I wish I owned DBZ, but I don't. I own DVD's and tapes, but it just isn't the same. I also don't own the rights to any of the music pieces you see selected, just copies of merchandise, such a shame. The artists that created them are geniuses and we all must bow to them.

Chapter 57: Shaky Alliance

Lenz stood across from the larger green alien, scowling deeply at him. Bido's grin seemed to widen as the moments passed as he remained still with his arms crossed. While both were actually brimming with confidence, only Bido showed it. Lenz was in the midst of a mental debate on whether she should beat him up slowly or quickly.

"I'll let you have the first move, little girl," Bido offered. Lenz cringed in anger and flew straight at him with her fist leading. Bido caught it and the last moment and his grin didn't waver.

"You'll have to do a lot better than that, but I do like my women strong. That way the beating they take later won't kill them," Bido laughed. Lenz's other hand glowed briefly before she fired a blue ki beam straight at Bido's vanishing face. Lenz landed and crouched down in a defensive stance as she searched for him. She didn't feel his presence until she was knocked down from behind by his charging shoulder. Lenz got up quickly, her face and armor already dirty as her lip bled.

"Hahaha, good good! You're pretty and strong, but this level is still pathetic. Give up now!" Bido suggested.

Lenz scoffed at this, "We haven't even started yet!" Her bright blue aura surged to life, causing a few cracks in the rough ground around her. Bido barely reacted to this as he sat back to observe. Lenz returned his smirk with one of her own before she charged at him again. Bido stood ready to face the next attack and swung into an after-image. Bido quickly spun around, where Lenz's boot was waiting for his head. Bido shrugged off the blow and countered with a hard fist into Lenz's left side. Even though it was a glancing blow, Lenz still felt that a rib or two had cracked when she fell. Lenz backed off while holding her side, wincing slightly with her next few breaths.

Bido chuckled lightly, "Whoops, that wouldn't have been good if I had actually aimed for your heart. If that's all you have, you should stop. I promise to be gentle!" From the side of the arena, the rest of Bojack's crew stood by, watching along with Fuzai.

"What a waste of time," Zangya muttered, "Bido is just going to play with his toys again!"

"I also do not see the point of continuing this fight. However, letting Bido have his foolish fun is usually better in the long run. Surely I do not need to point out that night with you a few months ago?" Bujin asked as he grinned slightly.

"Argh! Don't remind me of that! One time deal, it'll never happen again!" Zangya growled back.

Gokua looked more bored than the others, "He should have let me have some fun!" Fuzai scowled a bit but said nothing while watching his sister ponder her next step. He didn't need a scouter to know that if Lenz didn't do something soon, the contest was decided. Lenz sighed heavily and appeared to relax herself as she closed her eyes.

Bido smiled wider, "Wise choice."

Lenz slowly pulled a string from around her neck, taking her brother's gift off before she tossed it to him, "Hold onto that for me."

Fuzai caught it with concern, "You really shouldn't do this."

"I'm not going to break it while I'm fighting! Besides, it was starting to tickle," Lenz said as she returned the frown.

Bido's laughter continued, "Oh don't worry, I'll take care of it for you. And then I'll tickle you all night long now that you give up!"

Lenz's head snapped towards Bido as her eyes flashed green, "You think I'm giving up? No way!" Lenz's aura exploded outwards with golden hues while the entire cave shook just slightly, dropping a few rocks from the ceiling. Bido shielded himself from the force of her Super Saiyan ki.

"What the hell?" Zangya shouted.

"Her energy just skyrocketed, incredible power is being emitted. And this transformation, I think I've heard of this before, or something just like it," Bujin said. Fuzai stared in wonder as his sister made all four of the henchmen pay much more attention. The arena settled as Lenz remained determined, her golden aura easing back down around her.

Bido cracked a smirk, "Am I supposed to be scared now?"

"You should be," Lenz warned. She promptly phased out and caught Bido unprepared with a fist to his jaw. Bido's shocked and painful expression held for several seconds, more than long enough for Lenz to bury a kick into his side. Bido crashed into the furthest wall with a dull thud, leaving a nearly two-foot indention. Bido seethed with anger as he crawled out, a complete reversal of the past several minutes.

"You'll pay for that one! No one makes a fool out of me, no one!" he snarled. Lenz could feel Bido's energy level rise quickly and backed into a defensive stance. He's going to charge me, do I attack first or do I wait and counter? Little brother would say to be patient and look for the opening. I see it now, but I don't think I should rush in, he might have a hidden weapon like that Etarb guy had. Lenz's attentive thoughts were interrupted when Bido flew at her quickly. Lenz instinctively dropped to the ground just as Bido reached her. He stopped in midair and looked down in time to see a pair of boots coming. Lenz pushed off the ground as she kicked upwards into Bido's stomach, sending him high into the air. She used her momentum to flip right side up and land on her feet. Bido managed to stop once he saw the ceiling coming closer and hovered for a moment, enraged. From the side, Fuzai noticed mixed reactions from the other henchmen.

"Bido is getting sloppy already, the idiot underestimated her! He always does this!" Zangya complained.

"I find it to be quite interesting that the girl would have a power like this. I assumed she was a weakling, but that doesn't appear to be the case," Bujin commented.

"I suppose this means that we'll have to help him," Zangya groaned.

"I would rather enjoy watching Bido lose in this manner," Bujin replied.

"This is so boring, I hope he loses soon so I can take over!" Gokua whined. Fuzai took note of their reactions, slightly concerned that Lenz would end up fighting more than one of them. At the same time, he was amazed that she was even able to keep up with Bido. He was said to be the strongest of the four, but he also appeared to be the dumbest. Fuzai was so amazed that he didn't hear someone much more menacing sneak up behind him.

"Well well, what do we have here?"

Zangya turned and bowed in tune with the others, "Master Bojack!" Fuzai joined them on the ground within a half second, completely startled.

"Master, we are currently observing a fight between Bido and the Rotian girl!" Bujin pointed out.

"Your talent for stating the obvious has never ceased to amaze me Bujin, nor has it ceased to annoy me," Bojack said with a slight frown.

"My apologies master!" A brief shockwave went off, brightening the room as Lenz and Bido scuffled again, resulting in her catching him in the back of the head.

"So this girl is one of those Super Saiyans I've heard about eh? Not bad, despite being an amateur. I might decide to have some fun with her later, or perhaps the boy. I assume that Bido instigated this match?" Bojack asked.

Zangya nodded, "Should we help him master?"

Bojack smirked slightly, "Possibly, let's see where this goes." Lenz remained focused on Bido despite the conversation taking place. It was difficult to notice Bojack enter the arena with all her attention on her opponent. After the last attack, she finally caught sight of him, which caused a wave of fury to wash over her. It might have been confused with fear by the way she shuddered, but that would have been far from accurate. Lenz wasn't sure if any of the others were going to jump in or not, thus she attacked cautiously even though she had the upper hand.

I'd love to have a go with Bojack himself for blowing up Rotaria, but there's no way I can take them all, not without little brother here. I'm not even sure I can take Bojack anyway. Lenz shifted back to Bido, who was shrugging off the pain of her previous hit. First things first, drop this guy! Lenz charged up a small but powerful ball of ki as she flew forward, intent on finishing the match. Bido's eyes lit up in surprise before cringing in anger as he cast his arms forward. A vast spray of red ki bolts shot out at close range. Lenz managed to slow down and shift to her left to avoid them. In doing so, she lost track of Bido, who phased in behind her with a grin on his face. Lenz spun around just as multiple strings of lavender energy came out of his hands and entangled themselves around her. Lenz tried to break out, but struggled against the bonds. Bido laughed aloud as he continually channeled the technique.

"Finally, took him long enough to get serious!" Zangya declared.

Lenz struggled to even twitch, "What-what the hell is this?"

"Silly girl, it's our Barrier technique. I wouldn't bother struggling if I were you. You will only waste your energy!" Bujin claimed. Lenz didn't heed the warning and attempted to squirm loose, but to no avail. Her golden hair faded back to purple soon after as she lost energy.

"That was anticlimactic, pity. I would have rather enjoyed a longer battle," Bojack said as he turned to leave. A loud howl of rage came from Lenz as she continued to struggle against the energy bonds.

"Don't bother, you've already lost too much energy to take me on!" Bido laughed. He phased out and clobbered Lenz in the side of the head. Lenz screamed in agony as she hit the ground, bleeding from the temple and still unable to move. Bido landed next to her, kicking her torso for good measure. Lenz groaned painfully as all the air in her lungs was forced out, leaving her wheezing.

Fuzai jumped up, "That's enough!"

Bido glanced over and chuckled, "I'll decide when it's enough! Just who do you think you are, giving me orders?" Fuzai didn't answer as the others gazed over.

"You're welcome to join her here on the ground if you want, otherwise stay there like a good little monkey!" Bido ordered. Bido then bent down and grabbed Lenz by the throat. Lenz gagged as she was hurled into the air. Bido followed and rushed by her before dropping an axe kick into her back. Lenz smacked the ground hard and didn't move afterwards. Fuzai gasped aloud at this cruelty, but managed to hold position.

"I hope you're happy, now I can't have any fun," Gokua complained.

"Go sharpen your sword, she ain't dead, not yet," Bido pointed out as he smiled, "Then again, I can't promise anything will be left after tonight!" Fuzai growled slightly and dared to take a step forward. Zangya and Bujin surrounded him before he could even blink.

"Are you sure you want to do that? Since when do you care so much?" Zangya asked. Fuzai swallowed hard and backed down. Bido's grin widened as he reached down towards Lenz again and picked her up by the scruff of her jumpsuit. Lenz was still conscious as she opened her eyes, glaring for all she was worth at everyone else in the room.

"Is that runt as much of a pushover as you are?" Bido asked from behind her.

"You'll find out!" Lenz grumbled.

"Ha, I doubt it!" Bido claimed as he reached between her legs.

"Get off me!" Lenz growled.

Bido turned her around so he could look her in the eye, "I'll be taking my prize now!"

Lenz's eyes shifted color rather quickly, changing to a furious, glowing crimson, "I'll kill you!"

Bido chuckled, "Maybe, if you could!" He then slammed her into the ground, her head bouncing rather harshly before she lay still again. Bido continued to laugh as he reached down to grab her again. His arm stopped cold when a smaller glove grabbed a hold of his wrist.

"Huh?" Bido asked as he turned his head. Everyone piped up to see Verto next to Bido, but not looking at him.

"Back off, now!" Verto demanded. Bido attempted to throw the smaller boy off, but his arm wouldn't move.

"And I suppose you're going to make me?" Bido taunted.

Verto turned his head so he could glare into Bido's eye, "If you don't stop, you won't live." Blue and white energy rose from Verto just as he pulled Bido sideways. Bido's other hand opened to reveal a bright ki blast. Bido never got the shot off before his world was cracked in two by Verto's roundhouse kick to the midsection. He was completely knocked out by the blow, but his body hit the furthest wall before it dropped. The other henchmen were quite startled by this and jumped towards Verto, landing all around him. Just as they brought their palms up, all three were blown backwards by a powerful energy surge from their target. Gokua has the shortest trip and rebounded off the cave wall. He drew his metal sword and came down from the air, intent on splitting Verto's skull clean. He stopped when he only saw air beneath him. Right when Gokua turned, the rounded edge of Verto's Psi sword stopped an inch from his chin.

"If you even budge, off goes your head," Verto warned. Gokua froze in surprise and held his breath as he dropped his sword. This lasted for several seconds before the sound of someone else's applause ended the drama.

"That was certainly entertaining, albeit much too fast," Frost said from a high balcony as he clapped his hands.

Verto scowled up at Frost, "I'm not your personal jester. Tell these clowns to back the hell off before I drop all three of them! They're lucky I didn't already!" Frost chuckled and nodded, waving his hand. Verto pulled his blade away, allowing Gokua the space to breathe again.

Zangya started to protest, "But Lord Frost…"

Frost frowned, "I don't need to repeat myself, do I?" Zangya shook with fear and bowed her head obediently. Two guards came rushing down the provided stairs to check on Bido.

"Get those two to medical!" Frost ordered. One of the guards left to get such assistance. Verto's scowl remained directed at Frost for several seconds before he finally tended to Lenz.

Lenz was in recovery for only a few hours before she emerged, though thoroughly pissed off. Verto managed to get her to stay in the provided room for the remainder of the night, but felt concern for the days following when he wouldn't be there. After being treated to a decent meal, Frost sent Verto a message to meet him in the command center. Verto hung back for a few minutes before answering the summons.

"No more fights while we're here, and certainly not while I'm not around! Train all you want, but I'm not going to be able to come to your rescue all the time," Verto said sternly. Lenz muttered a silent grumble, but nodded.

Verto then turned to Fuzai, "She stays safe while I'm gone, you got that? Keep her out of trouble!"

"Are you kidding me, like I'm going to be able to stop…" Fuzai stopped dead when Verto's hot glare seemed to melt his nerves.

Verto promptly left and made for the command room. Frost was waiting there patiently, along with an extremely familiar looking person. The bulky form wasn't as much of a surprise as the overall likeness to someone else.

"Ginyu?" Verto blurted out before he was able to stop. He wasn't a complete match to the former purple captain, rather his skin was more of a true blue color. Aside from that, it was the only difference.

"I'm afraid that you're mistaken, though I find it interesting that you knew that fool," Frost claimed.

"I've run into him, but not much. He's still alive, but you'd have a tough time finding him among all the other toads on Earth," Verto replied carefully.

"Indeed? This is Miruk, who as you have probably deduced, is part of the same species. He will accompany you and the others on the mission, as captain of the guard. We'll take my capitol ship, so I will be joining you as well," Frost declared.

"Oh lucky me, who else is on this little trip?" Verto asked.

Frost lightly shook his head, "So untrustworthy. Lord Bojack and his men will lead the team, you will assist them."

Verto gave Miruk a cold stare, "And him too?"

Frost nodded and grinned as he turned around, "Of course."

"Don't try anything tricky," Verto warned.

"Do I make you nervous?" Miruk asked. Verto didn't answer as they continued to lock eyes.

Frost seemed to take note of the slight tension, "We leave in two days, feel free to continue your Rotian investigation. I offer any assistance that you may require." Verto took the hint and left the room, heading for the lab at Frost's direction.

Verto stared at the caged creature intently, as if he were trying to figure out a puzzle. The crazed Rotian snarled back at him and anyone else who dared to step closer. The other three Rotians were being held in adjacent cells with a clear front wall, and each was behaving in a similar manner. I don't get it. This can't be a simple matter of genetics. If it were, then it would have affected all of them since birth. And why doesn't it affect Lenz or her brother? If they all went crazy like this after the planet was destroyed, surely those two would have as well. The only reason I can think of is that whatever this is hasn't manifested itself in either of them yet.

Frost came up from behind, "Intriguing mystery isn't it?"

"A confusing one," Verto admitted.

"Yes indeed. As you may have deduced, the girl and Fuzai are not immune to this. It's only a matter of time before they succumb to it. I'm quite surprised that they haven't already," Frost said.

"Yeah I can't figure that out either." Verto stared at Frost's taller form through the reflective glass; Don't tell me he reads minds too?

"Have you discovered anything else with your keen intellect?" Frost asked.

Verto scowled at the sarcasm, "Nothing of any worthy attention. I do have a question though, your father killed them all once before, right?"

"Correct, and then they mysteriously returned to life. I would guess by use of these Dragonballs I've heard about," Frost said with a nod.

Verto held his tongue for a brief second, "However that happened, why did he leave the planet itself alone?"

Frost paused, "I'm not sure. I never considered that."

Verto gritted his teeth, I knew I should have looked into that while I was in the Pendulum Room, damn it!

"Father never said why he left the planet alone, but it isn't the first time he's destroyed a species while leaving the planet intact. He certainly didn't leave planet Vegita that way. Perhaps he saw value in it before his unceremonious end," Frost suggested.

"Was there anything there that was valuable? Maybe priceless gems or a rare mineral ore?"

Frost turned to look down at Verto directly, "Nothing we would need. It did have very curious crystal formations in some of the underground caves, but nothing of value to the empire. No abnormal energy readings were detected at the time either."

"You mean, not until after Rotaria was destroyed?" Verto asked.

"Correct."

Verto grimaced slightly, "Alright, we know that there's something connecting the Rotians and the supposed Saiyans from the Marauder, or at least we think there is, right?"

"Yes, so far."

"But the Rotarians themselves originally had special abilities as well, or did I hear wrong?" Verto pointed out.

Frost snorted, "So you suspect that the Rotarian bloodline might have something to do with this, I highly doubt it. Need I remind you that you're also a Saiyan with an abnormal condition, and you're not one of them are you?"

Verto grunted slightly, "I'm not suggesting anything, I know where my 'condition' started. I'm just trying to figure this out. If the original inhabitants were alive, we might be able to find out, need I remind you."

Frost seemed amused by the verbal counter, "Possibly. I have my doubts that they would have cooperated in that regard. They were a spiritual type of people."

"Spiritual? Wait, they were religious?" Verto asked as his eyes narrowed.

"In a sense, I never bothered to learn anything about it. But they weren't willing to give up such secret beliefs either," Frost replied.

"But they were willing to help you make a crossbred species?"

Frost nodded, "Odd isn't it?"

"Yeah it is. Can you have someone let me know if anything here changes?" Verto inquired.

"Yes, but why? I doubt anything will change."

Verto stepped back for a moment, "I have a hunch on this, but I need to speak to Fuzai, alone."

A/n: And the mystery continues…