A.N. For some strange reason, I was really blocked and easily distracted from starting and finishing this chapter, even though I know exactly where the story is going. It was the weirdest block I've ever felt! Alas, here it is (finally) with a continuation quickly soon to follow. Hopefully by the end of today.

I'm generally way behind schedule though, and buzzing with creativity right now. Plans for another story are already underway, though I'm still pondering what to do with this one once the final chapter is out.

Hmmm…

Well! In the meantime, you can check out some Videl and Kari fan-artwork posted on my deviantart profile ^.^ (Hopefully I won't get scolded for shameless advertising. Details on profile.)

Enjoy!

~ Anorelei ~
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Chapter 19: Of Noble Cause and Consequence

General Kakarot had always wondered what a Royal welcome would feel like, but never did he think he'd ever turn that thought into a reality. As the Saiyan warship finally touched down on Planet Vegetasei, he at last experienced the lifestyle that both Kari and Vegeta often took for granted. The dozen troops of Royal Guards had been accompanied by Executioner Beetro, together with Enforcers Ruta and Baga. The three Saiyans onboard the ship, willingly gave themselves into custody without a fight, much to the Executioner's disappointment. They were taken directly to the Palace Throne Room, which as highly anticipated by Kari; had been pre-set for their arrival. In a semi-circle around the central piece of the King's throne, were seven chairs for the official council to be seated. The King had already alerted the trust-worthy sub-division of 'nobles', that is; the remaining Saiyans who valued the old ways. Accomplished savages, at best. They resented technology and anything else that reminded them of the Tyrant Changelings. Fortunately, they lacked the strength to challenge the current council for higher ranking. Several had tried, and bitterly failed, and so they remained merely a shadow within society. No doubt secretly plotting for the day when the old ways would fully return. Their presence formed the main audience among the other high ranked elites, each of whom licking their lips at the prospect of two council seats opening for the taking. The word on the streets was that there would be two executions today, by the hand of the King himself. The roles of the Council Explorer and Interrogator, would be up for grabs. It was all rather exciting, to say the least.

The main 'prisoner' was led through the crowd by Executioner Beetro to stand in the centre of the circle, while Kakarot and Raditz remained at the edges. The four remaining members of the council took their chairs, and the brooding King lifted his cheek from his palm. Someone was missing. When his growling voice rose above others, the great hall gradually fell silent.

"Where is Preceptor Jhinga?" At the King's demanding question, the twins gladly spoke up.

"The Preceptor feels her involvement is far too personal," Ruta started, casting her exotic, violet eyes expectantly to her brother.

"Now that her only son partakes in the Trial," he concluded. A sly grin matched both their expressions.

"The council is forced to agree." The King frowned deeper, transferring his stern glare to the otherwise silent Judge Tatsoi.

"We feel it is best she remains in isolation," Ruta added, followed by another agreeing nod from Baga.

"Does she too, not deserve the Rite of Passing?"

Various hushed voices spread in a quiet wave of uproar amongst the 'nobles,' while Vegeta merely crossed his arms in silent pondering. He didn't like the sound of all this; Jhinga had been a strong 'noble,' and it definitely wasn't like her to miss a gathering like this. Not even for the rites of solitude and silence many parents undertook, when their offspring faced the Elite Trial. Yet there were far more pressing matters at hand here, and this minor offence was easily dealt with. At last, he spoke again, having reached a conclusion that would temporarily silence the great hall.

"So be it. Consider her council position revoked."

"Your majesty -" The interruption of Tatsoi was immediately silenced by the King's booming voice.

"Kurrat!"

From the gentle parting in the noble's gathering, a very tall male stepped forwards, and bowed deeply from the waist before the King. His right hand placed over his heart, and his tail wrapped securely under First Rank, Elite armour. From the top of his otherwise shaved head, sprouted a thick tuft of dark hair in a long yet narrow, Mohawk fashion.

"Take your new seat as Preceptor, and let this damn trial be done with!"

Dark eyes complete with a very light grin, lifted to the lightly frowning Tatsoi, as the noble Kurrat took his new seat. The council may well be five again, but the fate of the two empty chairs kept the audience under restless control. Several voices shouted and jeered, while prisoner Kari remained completely relaxed and still. Even under her half-brother's constant, dark glare. It was Judge Tatsoi who finally stood to officially open the court trial, with his hands clasped behind his back.

"First Rank, you are brought here under three crimes. Firstly, for the training of an Earthling. Secondly, for committing that Earthling to our sacred Trials. Thirdly and most importantly, the combination of your acts, leading to the complete crime of Treason against your King and Planet. Punishable by instant death regardless of blood. How do you plead?"

"Guilty."

A collection of growls, gasps and grunts spread throughout the hall. Only the council and the King, remained silent and stoic.

"For all but one," Kari continued. "For the act of treason, I will gladly prove my total innocence."

"Objection!" A noble stepped forwards, proceeded by the nod of the King to allow further speech. "She admits her guilt for two crimes, therefore she is guilty of all! The trial is closed. End her, and be done with this farce!"

Judge Tatsoi was swift to raise his palm, silencing any further eruptions. Kari took the chance to continue.

"There is no question of guilt or farce. What we should be questioning, is why our beloved King acts so strongly against the wishes of our late father. Yes, our father. Each of you all forgets who you are speaking to. Hah! Where is your respect? I am of Royal Blood, and I am therefor-"

The first ki ball shot across the hall, intercepted quickly by Enforcer Baga's repelling shot before the damage could be dealt to the prisoner. Ruta was swift to suddenly appear behind the owner of the offensive blast, snapping the noble arm that fired it without hesitation. The elder, noble female howled as her bones broke like twigs, and she fell to her knees with a single foot pressed against her back, as Judge Tatsoi barked his verbal retribution.

"There will be order in this hall! Even if you all must suffer that fate." On cue, he pointed to the trembling woman, now fully cowering at Ruta's feet, and soon to be surrounded by two of the Royal guards to be taken away. "Royal blood earns the Rite of Trial, and we will respect this! All of us."

Tatsoi even turned his strict glare to Vegeta, who harrumphed at such trivial facts. Lightly smiling her gratitude, the unmoved Kari again continued, as the hall became completely silent once more. The more she added to her testimony, the more she could hear her brother's growing growl. Yet the more that fuelled the persistence of her words.

"Dare I add that should our mighty King fall, I am all that is left? Or do I need to remind you all of our King's failure to secure his heir. Do you honestly believe the genophage is to blame for this, alone? Even if this were true, perhaps such a weak -"

Said King's growls reached breaking point, and he rose instantly to silence his half-sister in a series of barks.

"DO NOT FINISH THAT SENTENCE KARI!"

He earned a little chuckle for his loud efforts, and a wave of tension spread across the room. Several Saiyans hoped the King would finish the woman there and then, while others narrowed their eyes at where her words would lead next.

"Watch your tongue," Tatsoi proceeded to scold, though eyeing the King wearily rather than the Royal Princess. Her laughter may have ceased to be, but Kari's smile remained, as she shone in the centre limelight. This was her stage, and she would claim the centre of its' attention for as long as she pleased.

"The fact remains. I am next in line to the throne, and should either of the current, Royal generation fail… it is I who has achieved what the current King only consistently fails. I have procured, an heir."

Another wave of chaos detonated from Kari's teasing revelation, and the council took a moment to exchange apparently uneasy glances. Despite the noise and distractions, Kari proudly continued.

"Oh yes. My child is strong. Tell them, Kakarot. Tell them all how she kept the Earth under her thumb. Tell them how it was she who acted where others failed!"

All eyes turned to the General, and Council Elite in charge of Planetary Exploration. He swallowed hard and lowered his dark eyes; feeling the great burden weighing heavily on his shoulders. This was his chance to do the right thing, but if only he knew what that was. The glare of the King burnt hottest of all, but at last, he lifted his gaze to settle on Judge Tatsoi alone.

"It's true."

King Vegeta clenched his fists tightly, gritting his teeth as his anger swelled to dangerous measures. Here was his most trusted ally and comrade, daring to denounce him in public with such lies? It was unheard of!

"We found the Earth to be under our control, even after all these years. We believe… when Shugesh and Borgos expired, it was Kari's child who took over. That is why, the shipments continued. All until two years ago, when the Earthlings -"

"DO NO INSULT ME WITH YOUR LIES KAKAROT!"

The instant erection of the King from his throne, brought various heads tilting down, especially the shame of Kakarot. Vegeta prowled down the throne's steps; cape flapping behind him with the silent roaring of his unstable ki.

"This trial is beyond a joke! You would try to tell me and my people, that a human managed this? The same human who now threatens that Elite Trial!" His gloved finger pointed up to the overhanging screen, still monitoring the progress on Gelidus with now three blinking dots.

"And you!" The same finger now pointed with clear accusation to Kari, together with a deep set scowl. "You have no heir! Your half-breed spawn was a mockery that met a fitting end … seventeen years ago. Your claiming a human as your heir is sheer madness! I call on the right to end this now!"

It was the noble Kurrat of all people however, who finally spoke up for the rest of the confused congregation, with narrowed eyes directed at the King in particular.

"You speak of another half-bred? What secret or lie is this?"

The two twins grinned at the opportunity to speak in their rhyming unison, commenced by Ruta, as usual.

"If secret it be, one assumes it was our former Kings doing."

"Or if it be lies," Baga finished with a casual lift of his brows. "One assumes good reasoning, for wasting our time."

A growl confirmed Vegeta's frustrations. He should've known that Kari would twist the trial to come to this conclusion, and reveal the darkest secrets kept away from the ears of his people. Time for him to sway the favour back to him. A devious smirk caught his face as he darkly chuckled. In a very theatrical gesture, Vegeta swept his hand to Kari.

"Go on, dear sister. Tell them more of your Hel spawn."

"Gladly," she retorted with an ironically confident smile of her own, managing to partially chip Vegeta's backbone. He grunted deeply, unimpressed by her countenance which to him, was a constant disrespect.

"I will not deny it. When the first half-breed begun to show great strength, I too, craved that power. But my actions were for the good of the planet. If I could create my own, strong child, then I would be contributing to the protection of our race. In addition to continuing my own lineage, naturally."

"Your abomination was pathetic!"

"No Vegeta," Kari kept her calm despite hurtful accusations. "She was merely denied her inevitable perfection."

"It was fittingly denied the right to breathe." Despite his baiting her temper, she merely folded her arms, and addressed the rest of the council.

"I believe our dear King is experiencing the sin of envy and wounded pride. Not only did I produce an heir while he has not. My Halfling child, will soon become my Halfling Elite." In a loud gesture, she pointed up to the screen again. "Observe!"

Yet as all eyes lifted to where a single dot faintly flashed with concealed ki energies, the laughter of the King gradually cackled across the throne room walls.

The unsuspecting shack in the middle of the valley, situated by the calm flow of a river, was no more.

Two feet clad in white boots, descended to touch against the disturbed dirt, as the great cloud of grey smoke cleared. Kale crinkled his nose, as he dared to sniff. Two foul scents vaguely filled the area entirely; one of which had left a recent trail to the north. Ah yes, that one had followed the impact of his space pod upon the planet's atmosphere. A single finger tapped at the lime-green screen over his left eye, searching for any survivors within the rubble of wood and stone. It certainly helped to have a scouter, especially when emerging from the sanctuary of your space pod into endless, snow-capped fields. But the owner of the second scent was proving to be more difficult to find, even with the additional fortune of the exact co-ordinates he'd been ordered to hit first.

"Dispose of the human first," Jhinga had said. "Then deal with your real foe, and claim your birth-right."

So with a firm scowl, the Saiyan got to the more gruelling task of searching the rubble himself. Kicking aside planks of wood, and stooping over to lift heavier pieces of collapsed wall. Either she was dead, hence the non-existent ki. Or she was the combination or being very smart, but very weak.

Videl watched from her sanctuary in the trees, and thanked Kame for the instinctual warning she'd felt. She knew it was dangerous to split up, and if Gohan hadn't been pushed by his pride to suddenly fly after the invader alone, she would've followed or convinced him to stay. Instead, she'd obeyed his foolish orders. Only when she was alone in the shack with her own thoughts, and strapping on her armour while trying to keep her ki levels lowered, did she reach her fortunate conclusion. The shack was hardly safe. It was an enclosed cage that could easily engulf her, as this stranger just demonstrated. So she'd fled to the safety of the trees, where she knew she could camouflage herself between branches and leaves, and jump from one position to the next if needed. From there, she now watched the Saiyan intruder, as he undoubtedly searched for her remains. Swallowing hard, she closed her eyes tightly, and tried even harder to keep her energy suppressed. The very act made her skull throb, and her cheeks turned pink as she strained herself just a little too hard.

Kale saw it then; numbers briefly appearing on his scouter, directly to his left. A smirk found his thick lips.

"Gotcha."

The powerful, red ki blast soared towards the trees, forcing the sole inhabitant to leap and swing around the trunk of the neighbouring tree, finding her feet on the ridged bark. Luckily she'd been climbing trees since she was five, but it took a lot of grip to hold on while the force of the neighbouring explosion shook the surrounding area. The Saiyan laughed as he caught the blur move, and begun to fire alternating, less powerful and smaller ki balls at the whole area. Not targeting anything for the sole purpose of fishing the catch out. She finally revealed herself, though not intentionally. As Videl tried to evade the blasts, she was soon caught off guard, and tumbled out from the clearing amidst rising dirt clouds. By the time she'd rolled down the small hill and stopped at the edge of the riverbank, the Saiyan was already looming over her. Kale lifted chiselled arms, resting hands on sharp hips in a superior gesture. He allowed the human to spring up to her feet, and address him as though she were actually ready to fight. The thought alone disgusted him.

"I've a message for you." Her frowning brows eased slightly, though her exotic eyes remained narrow. 'Pity,' the Saiyan thought to himself. 'A fine trophy this one would make.' Yet he was quick to focus on his task before entertaining that notion any further than needed.

"A message, for me?" Videl asked, unsure about this male. Her sixth sense was kicking into overdrive, telling her that he smelt bad. This wasn't a man to be trusted, whatever news he had to bring.

"For every rival," he corrected her with a rather sinister grin. He spoke in a medium pitched voice, and wore a youthful physique similar to Gohan's 'leanness,' in comparison to Nappa at least. "Because nobodies getting off this ride, not until there's only one left."

The words didn't make sense to Videl at first, but she was neither given the time to make sense out of it all, as the male suddenly lunged at her.

"Prepare for Hel!" He cried, as he initiated the battle with a flurry of thrusting strikes which the human struggled to block and evade. The style was similar to Gohans, as she found herself barely ducking under a spinning high kick that threatened to twist her head far beyond the capabilities of her neck. In fact, as the attacks wore on, she felt like she was seriously sparring with her most recent trainer. Only this was an all out-spar; there would be no holding back.

"But I'm not even part of this trial!" She yelled, trying her best to reason with this dangerous male in-between desperately trying not to get hit. His knuckles only slammed against the cross of her blocking forearms in response, and she winced at the pain that shook through to her bones. No time to recover though, as he followed with a rhythmic motion of continuous punches, each of which she did her best to meet with palms, forearms or evade completely. At last, Kale caught her with his stronger punch, hearing his knuckles forcing a crack against the Saiyan armour she wore. A knee lifted as she was briefly stunned, connecting with the afflicted area. Then, he was above her in a flash, and hammering her at the back, sending her soaring across to the river.

It was bad enough that Videl was winded, without having much needed oxygen replaced by her lungs choking on disturbed water. Her body twisted and turned, until at last her head broke the surface. Barely even able to inhale desperately, the relentless Saiyan fished the female out by a handful of her hair, and tossed her back across the embankment. Rolling across the silt dirt in a collection of breathless grunts, Videl finally skidded to a halt, and forced herself up. A hand rose to her left rib, where she felt the large crack in the armour, and winced at the already severely bruised area. Brows knotted with a focused growl, as her opponent landed several feet ahead of her with the glow of his light grey, powered up ki.

"Fine!" She barked at him, "if that's how you wanna play!"

King Vegeta could not believe his eyes. What had started as an easy battle, was now becoming far more complicated. Oh yes, he'd enjoyed witnessing how Kari's expression had faltered at the realisation of a new competitor. Even better, as Kale's signiture dot advanced on the failing Earthling. That was before the human's energy frequency started to waver dangerously. Her red dot now shone intensely on the map, while statistics showed the rapid racing of her pulse to dangerous levels, along with the increase in body heat. The dot flickered for several moments, until finally her statistics suddenly soared.

"WHAT!" Vegeta spat, eyes wide and mirroring the reaction of many others.

"That's not… possible," Kurrat added on behalf of the other, disturbed nobles. Tatsoi merely exchanged glances with the heavily breathing Kari, whose ecstatic laughter finally broke her temperament.

"I told you!" She exclaimed in the euphoria of this wonderful revelation. "That's my daughter." At last, the words naturally rolled from her tongue, and she felt alive with their reality. Only now was her experiment worthy of such recognition, and she would shout it for all to hear.

"Did you hear me? THAT'S MY DAUGHTER!"

Videl shook with her uncontrolled ki, as she screamed with the explosive force that burst from within her. Pushing it all out with several, trembling attempts, a wave of her own euphoria finally surrounded her evenly in a flash of bright, pure white light. Kale stumbled back slightly, staring at this new challenge in initial surprise. He'd expected this to be a simple battle; toy with the girl for awhile, before finally bringing her expiry date forward. Yet now here she was, proving to be far more than he expected. As the bright light finally faded to reveal her shimmering and heavily breathing presence, the sight alone excited Kale to the point of a rare smirk.

"I can do that too," he countered, as she recovered from the intensity of the ki transformation wrecking havoc on the shell of her body. Seoxyrium was nothing compared to the adrenaline rush that pumped through her now. As pale cerulean eyes re-focused, they sharply narrowed, as she felt her enemy's ki soaring as hers had. Only with Kale's energy along with his gradually elevating voice, came a far more controlled and well-practiced, smooth transition into his fully-charged form. Videl didn't breathe a single word in response. Instead, the very ground cracked beneath her feet as she suddenly launched herself more confidently towards her opponent…

The sudden, heightened energy levels did not go un noticed elsewhere on the planet either, as a well-baited Gohan tracked the initial disturbance he'd felt, all the way to the bordering edge of the great snowfields. He now hovered over the crater where the white pod had landed, yet as he descended down to the wide open ball, he found more than just empty contents. Brows nudged and lowered, twitching slightly as he focused on getting a signal for the new ki. Instead, he suddenly tapped into the very unexpected and unavoidable swelling of pure energy, back in the direction he'd flown from! Instantly, he was in the air again, wearing an expression of frowning anxiety. There was no denying the whose signal he'd picked up, but Gohan was sure which worried him more. The fact that he hadn't even taught her how to force her ki out like that, or the fact that she was stressing her potential like this. It was beyond dangerous, and that could only mean one thing; his intended mate was under great threat. The more clarified answer came to him mid-air, as another, far more powerful ki, reached its' own controlled levels. Of course, how could he have been so stupid? Leaving the human wide open for attack like that, while he chased his own pride. Gohan growled to himself, powering up his own ki in an explosion that pushed him faster through the clouds. It no longer mattered anymore about keeping himself hidden. How this new competitor had alluded him and found Videl instead, didn't matter either. Nor did trying to figure out why another Saiyan had been sent in the first place. What only mattered now, was finding Videl, before something terrible happened….

To be continued…