Fulfillment

Hey again, all. I know you been waitin', so now I'll be getting' on with the writing. Oddly enough, though, I tend to write better late at night. Strange, perhaps, but so long as I gets the job done, who cares? Here we go…

Chapter 9

"THIS is the KITCHEN?" Krillin's exclamation nearly echoed in the large tiled room. "Jeez, this is even bigger than your room! I mean… Wow!"

Juu rolled her eyes. "I swear, all males are the same, no matter the species. You all get excited over food."

"Hey, don't blame me, I was on starvation rations!" Krillin's dark eyes roamed the room. "So… uh… I see a lot of stoves and such, but where's the food even kept, anyways?" He was startled to see Juuhachi hold up a large basket.

"I already took care of that while we were in the pantry. Now we just get some water and find you a place to sit…"

"Whoa, hold on," he stopped dead in his tracks. "When were we in a pantry? We came in through that window into that… big…" He laughed softly. "Oh. That was a… pantry…?"

Juuhachi nodded.

Krillin sighed. "This place… closets the size of bedrooms… pantries as big as a normal-sized room… kitchens the size of a house… what's next, toilets you can swim in?"

"Ha! Not quite. But yes, things are rather palatial here." Juu smirked at him. "But then again, this is a palace, isn't it?"

A sheepish grin crept across Krillin's face. "Heh, guess it is, huh?" His gaze turned up toward the high ceiling dotted with the occasional support arch. "Well, that at least explains the size of the kitchen. Must be a lot of people sending food orders through here."

"Oh yeah, quite a few. There's the royal family, the nobles and their families, the guards, the hired hands, and any number of slave meals might be made here…"

Krillin felt his heart sink for a moment. Her statement had been a reminder: no matter how good he might have it, no matter how well he was treated… he was now, and would forever be, a slave, and to be honest… the realization made him lose some of his appetite.

The sound of a foot tapping on the floor roused him, and he looked up to see Juu, hands on her hips. "Okay, I don't wanna sound pushy or anything, but my father IS waiting, and I'd rather we not keep him that way." She reached behind her and pushed open a large door. "He can get a little cranky if he doesn't get his snack before the 25th hour."

Krillin gulped. "R-right. Sorry. So, uh… where is he?"

Juu stepped through the door, Krillin following closely behind. "He's still in his library," she sighed. "Ever since Mother was killed, he's spent a lot of his time in that room, studying the books that managed to survive the civil war." She sensed he was about to speak. "And if you want to know more about that, ask my father. He's one of the few people that know most of the details."

Krillin just walked behind her, dumbfounded. 'How does she do that?' he wondered as they started up a winding, torch-lit staircase. "So how many floors up do we have to go?" he asked.

"We go up two floors, go right down the hall, go through the sixth door on the left and then down another three floors and head right. After that, you really can't miss the library. It's though the really big door at the end of the hall."

Krillin scratched his head. "Not the most accessible place in the world, is it?"

She scoffed. "Not really supposed to be. Father cherishes all the books in there more than almost anything else; he made it so that there was only one way in to keep out the looters and vandals. And on top of that, whenever he's not in there, there's a guard posted at the entrance." She sighed. "Or rather, there used to be." She stopped and opened the door at the end of the second flight of stairs. "Stay close and keep your head down, alright?"

Krillin nodded. "Sure." As they made their way down the hall, he whispered, "Hey, if you don't mind me asking-"

"QUIET!" Juu hissed at him, her eyes fixed on him with a stern gaze. The two silently crept down the long hallway, Juu politely nodding at some of the other Noble children that they passed on their way. Apparently this was some sort of main hall for the entirety of the palace, as there were many nobles and their families scattered throughout the hall, as well as a healthy accompaniment of slaves and hired servants tending to a few large tapestries bearing a strange symbol akin to a standing trident crossed at the handle by a half-circle. As Krillin looked over a railing, he realized that the same symbol decorated the floor of a large room below them, which was currently being scrubbed by a large number of slaves, being supervised by a Saiyan with a large scar covering the left side of his face…

"Psst! Hey!" Krillin felt a tug on his shirt and focused on Juu.

"Didn't I tell you to keep your head down?! If he catches you looking at him, he'll have you beaten within an inch of your life! The only slaves allowed to look at a guard are the ones that are assigned to work under him, understand?"

Krillin felt a lump form in his throat. "Uh… yeah. I got it. Sorry."

Juu released him. "Good. Now let's go, we're almost there."

Krillin kept his gaze fixed firmly on the blood-red carpet under his feet as they made their way down the final stretch of the hall- which to his mind was more of a skywalk- and into the stairway.

Juu felt her shoulders slump as she let out a sigh. "Look, I'm sorry I had to be so harsh with you there. It's just that… slaves are not permitted to speak to their masters in public, or at any time, really, unless spoken to. And they certainly can't look their superiors in the eye. I was only trying to look out for you. In the future, though…" She started down the stairs. "You're on your own. I can't keep covering for you without people getting suspicious. Got it?"

Krillin let out a sigh of his own. "Yeah… I got it. Hey, can I ask you something? What happened to your guard?"

Juu sighed. "His name was Bardock. He was a friend of my father's. He was a great warrior. Surpassed the supposed class limits to become as powerful as the elites. Well, he managed to get himself placed as the Captain of the Guard for a while, and did a great job until he had a bit of a falling out with the King and got himself demoted. I was actually in a relationship with his older son at the time... Then he just... left me."

"Why on earth would he do that?" Krillin quickly slapped a hand over his mouth. 'Why the heck did I just ask that out loud?!'

"Said he'd been embarrassed enough by his father and didn't need to be embarrassed by being seen with me on top of it." She sighed. "Idiot was just playing politics the whole time, hoping that if he married into my family, he becomes nobility… He's far too ambitious for his own good, or anyone else's. He's a constant pain, too." She scowled. "I don't want to talk about him anymore."

"But his father… he was good. So was his younger brother, though he was a bit of a moron in his own right. Not too intelligent, but nice. Anyways, Bardock took over as our guard, protecting the library, and his other son, Kakarot would sometimes join him. But a few weeks before the purge… they found him dead out in the palace courtyard. Stabbed multiple times by the blade of either a Royal or a high-ranked guard. And Kakarot was put in prison a few days later for attacking the Prince and making 'wild accusations'. After that... Father started spending most of his time down here."

"Oh. Wow… sorry about that Bardock guy. Sounds pretty cool." He scratched at the back of his head again. "Umm, I've just got one more question. What's up with that symbol that keeps popping up everywhere?"

"That would be the Royal Seal. It's stamped on pretty much everything that they own. You'll see it quite a bit when you go to the city. Theirs, and the seals of the other nobles. Not much is really privately owned."

"Really?" Krillin cocked his head. "Well then, does your family have a Seal?"

"Yes. In fact, you'll see it in a moment. It's along the hall leading to the library."

They came to a stop at the foot of the stairs. Krillin looked on in amazement. The hallway was more of a chamber unto itself; the ceiling towered a good twenty feet above the floor, barely touched by the light of the torches that lit the room. The walls were covered in ornate carvings from the very top to the bottom save for one large stained-glass window, depicting everything from what appeared to be daily life for an ancient race to strange alien creatures that may or may not have been native to this world. Set about five feet out from the walls were metal poles, each after the other in ten foot intervals. On each was a white banner designed to reflect the light, and in the center was a simple depiction of a blue circle within a gold circle.

"Wow…" was all Krillin could say. The place was absolutely stunning! It was beautiful, awe inspiring and downright cool all rolled into one!

His eyes fell on the banners, reflecting the light to seem brighter than usual. "Wow… so is that your family's seal…?"

Juu frowned slightly. "Yeah, it is. My dad designed it based on a picture he found in one of the books in his library. I'm not sure why… just brings back some bad memories."

"What's it supposed to be?" he asked.

"It's… from an old religious text. Supposed to be a halo. He picked it because of my mother… Says it reminds him of her." She hung her head slightly. "I miss her sometimes."

"Oh. Um, if you don't mind my asking… how did she…?"

"You wanna know how she died?" Juuhachi glared at him. "She died because some IDIOT wasn't careful about where he was shooting off during a sparring match, that's why! Trying to show off how strong he was, and he hit her! "She jabbed her finger at the room's only window. "Came right through there! All she was doing was looking at those… stupid carvings." She fought back tears. "My brother was there with her… he actually had to see it… saw our mom get a hole blown right through her chest by some giant bald fool who just laughed at how 'she must've been weak if he killed her that easy'. Right in his face, just a little kid… now my brother's gone too…"

Krillin wasn't sure what to say. He'd never really had a chance to know his mother OR father, and siblings… he never had anyone he could call a brother or sister. "I'm really sorry… wish I could say I know how you feel. My parents abandoned me when I was a baby, so… I don't have any brothers or sisters, either…"

Juuhachi looked at him with an icy cold gaze. "Well then you can't possibly know what it's like to lose them, can you? You can't even pretend to know what that's like!" Her hands balled into fists. "If there's one thing I DON'T need, it's YOUR sympathy, alright?!" She stormed off down the hall toward the large door, Krillin following behind her, dragging his feet.

'Just a slave. That's all. Nothing can change it…'

Seriously, I've got more to come, but it won't be until a little later. But keep watching for it, folks!