Val went to the kitchen, seeing Trunks already there with a few dirty and empty plates piled up around him. She hummed to herself at the sight of it, reminding her of Vegeta. "Morning," she said, starting to fix her own, much smaller breakfast.
"Morning," he said between bites. "Oh, my mom texted me earlier. Wanted me to warn you Daiki will probably try to convince you not to let her and her dad remove the bomb from #16."
She nodded, sitting down while saying, "because it's too dangerous. Yet leaving the bomb in him would be more so. Humanity could be lost or gain, knowing he contained such a thing." She started eating, trying not to think about #16, fearing the soul of the man was trapped by his own father in that mechanical clone he created.
Trunks nodded, looking at her. "She said you wish you could be there, too for it," he added.
She gave him a quick sour look and nodded, still eating her meal. "The guardian must remain at the Lookout," she recited.
"Unless they leave temporarily on guardian business," a deep voice said from behind her. "The times you tried to leave were not guardian business."
She turned back, seeing Piccolo walking in. She felt her heart flutter at the sight of him. Then it skipped a beat when she saw he had the staff in hand. He leaned the staff next to her on the table. She looked at it, feeling ashamed. "I didn't mean to leave it behind this time," she said honestly. He hummed down at her in nonverbal response. His eyes flicked over to Trunks. Val followed his gaze, noticing Trunks was staring at the two of them. "What?" she asked.
He blushed and shook his head. "Nothing," he said in embarrassment.
"Have you finished eating?" Piccolo asked, nodding done at her plate.
"Not quite," she said, taking another bite.
"When your finished, it's high time you contact King Kai," he told her.
She sighed, taking another few bites, finishing up the meal so to go and get it over with. She cleaned up her dishes quickly before bidding Trunks farewell and following him out to outdoor part of the Lookout. This time as she left the room, she made sure she had her staff in hand.
She stood before, too hands on the staff and watching him patiently, trying to listen to his instructions, staff in hand. "Hold the staff up." She raised it up in line with her stomach. "Higher." She brought it and her hands in line with her chest. "Close your eyes and sense for King Kai."
Before trying, she asked. "Where?"
"The afterlife," he explained.
"Where is that?" she asked.
"Northern part of the universe," he said.
She looked at him, frowning and shrugging. He hardly explained it well. She closed her eyes, trying to sense someone, anyone off planet. The staff felt a bit warmer than usual in hand. Yet her mind wandered, first to Nail and how he had tried to teach her how to sense people before he died and failed terribly at explaining it. Then her mind wandered to her brothers on New Namek, missing them as well. She missed Moori especially, wishing he was here to advise how to do the honorable thing. And Dende, who seemed the most fascinated by the Earth than the other brothers. She opened her eyes and sighed. She saw Mr. Popo and Trunks had come out, watching the pair of them as well.
"Did you find him?" he asked. She shook her head. "What were you thinking about?"
"New Namek, our brothers," she said most of the truth.
"Clear your mind," he instructed.
She closed her eyes, trying to both clear her mind and sense for someone off planet, figuring that was the best way to start. There was nothing and no one since the Earth was a drop of a planet that could support life in a sea of uninhabitable space. She could hear him talking, trying to advise her more, but she tuned him out, trying to since North, wherever that was in space. She huffed, giving up. She opened her eyes. "Maybe he ought to contact me first, so I know where he is?"
"That's not how it works," he pointed out.
She sighed, frustrated by him. "Maybe I should go read up on it some more in the library and then you can try to teach me," she suggested.
"It's been days since you took over when you should have contacted him within the first day," he told her.
She closed her eyes, biting back the argument on his tongue. She closed her eyes and focused, seeking out someone, anyone, hoping to find this King Kai she never met before. She found her concentration broken before she wanted it to be, sensing not one, but three others approaching the Lookout at a slow flying pace. She opened her eyes and dropped her hands down to her sides with the staff still in both hands. She noticed Piccolo noticing the approach as well. "Why are they coming back and whose with them?" Val asked out loud.
Piccolo looked behind himself while Val peered around him. She saw Tien and Chiaotzu land on the Lookout. Tien was holding onto someone a bit shorter than him. The mop of messy blonde hair seemed to be shaking. "It's alright, it's alright. We've made it. We're up here at the guardian's Lookout." Val stood up a little straighter, watching Chiaotzu float next to Tien with Aiko walking slowly to approach them. Val felt her stomach twist at the sight, unsure why the three of them were there. Without thinking, she shrunk back behind Piccolo, hidden from sight thanks to his cape. He looked back at her, but she shook her head, hands wringing the staff. "It's not as high up as you think. No need to be scared," Tien was soothing.
"I told you," Aiko said, voice sounding weaker than Val recalled, but still full of bite. "I'm not scared. I'm shaking because it's cold. And windy," she insisted. "Now, where is the planet's guardian, ah? You said she lived here." There was a pause of silence with Val unable to see around Piccolo. "That... That demon can't be the guardian," Aiko insisted. "Where is the true guardian of this planet, eh? The one who thought the it was a good idea to save our village from the heart virus. To save me from the heart virus." There were a few more moments on silence. "I want to see the planet's true guardian," she demanded.
Val peered around Piccolo, looking at the trio who stopped a few feet away from Piccolo. She twisted her hands on the staff, stepping into sight from behind Piccolo, standing at tall as she could next him. She took two steps forward just to be in front of him enough for Aiko to get a good look at her staff in her hands.
Aiko's eyes flitted frightfully from Piccolo to Val. Her eyes went wide. "I knew it! I knew it!" she insisted. She eyed Val, who allowed herself to be studied by the weaker woman without dropping her stance. "I knew the space witch had to be the guardian now somehow. You told me before it was a he, but then said she when I recovered from the virus. Who else would care enough about the village, even after -" she choked back a sob, disguising it poorly as a cough. "Even after we got sick," she excused.
"I'm sorry, she insisted," Tien explained. Aiko looked up at him ruefully to show how she disliked his betrayal. "She wanted to thank the guardian personally after she recovered. For saving our village. Those who took the medicine survived. Those who didn't..." He went a little quieter.
"They were fools, prejudice, stupid, fools," Aiko swore. Aiko pushed herself away from Tien in her huff. He held his hands out carefully, ready to catch her if she fell. She stumbled a little before she was two steps in front of him. She looked quite pale, skinnier than she had been. Weaker than she had been. Val remembered how weak, how empty she felt when she was in the first days of recovering from the virus herself. Val felt a wave of pity go out to her, her standing there shoulders hunched. She looked vulnerable and she then looked vicious, half shouting, "why did you do it?" Val blinked at her words. "Why did you care? Why did you give us medicine after how I- how we treated you? Why didn't you just let us die?" She stepped closer to Val as she shouted at her, stumbling towards her.
Val blinked, frowning at her words. She threw a quick glance back at Piccolo, drawing strength from him in this awkward and tense situation. She looked back at Aiko, seeing her eyes wide again as she looked from him, to Val, to Tien, and back to Val. "I've had and fought the virus before. I know what it can do, and what it feels like to have it nearly overcome you. So when Chiaotzu came to me for help, I knew I couldn't refuse him," she answered.
Aiko seethed, "oh, you think you're so pure of heart? Rescuing us, huh? After... after we treated you so poorly?" She was closer now, a formal distance away. She was still taller than Val, but in no way as intimidating as she thought she was. She glanced behind her, a guilty look on her face. "After what was taken from you?"
Val sighed, not wanting to be in this conversation, not wanting to face this woman, this rival she never wanted nor asked for. She looked down at the staff and then looked back at Aiko. "When I became interim guardian, I swore to protect this planet and its inhabitants. I haven't done as well as I know I should have, but that was something I could do with the help of Chiaotzu and another friend out at Capsule Corps," she answered. She sat the end of the staff down on the ground with a resounding thud. "You're welcome."
Aiko looked more ashamed and embarrassed by that answer. "Fine then, thank you! Is that what you want to hear?" She hissed out, face turning red. "And... and we're sorry. For how you were treated... in the village..." She turned away, stomping over to Tien, and leaning against him. She looked humbled yet raging. His arms came around her comfortingly. "I want to go home. I'm tired. And cold. Just cold, not scared, cold."
"Of course," he said down to her soothingly. He looked over Aiko's bowed head. Val locked eyes with him. He threw her a thankful smile, hand coming up to smooth down Aiko's hair. She nodded, giving him a small, platonic smile in return. He started leading her away from Val and Piccolo, towards the edge of the Lookout.
"Apology accepted," Val called out after a moment of thinking.
Aiko skidded to a stop, looking back over her shoulder at Val. Their eyes locked just for a second, long enough to forge a connection. Aiko looked down and turned away. "That's one of her friends, from before? The demon looking one? One you were worried about it?" Aiko asked Tien, probably louder than she intended, as they walked slowly away.
"It was never worth worrying about," he said after a second's hesitation. He looked back this time, looking over at Piccolo, nodding. Then he threw a patient look with his eyes glancing briefly down at Aiko. He looked away, scooping Aiko up and flying off with her. Chiaotzu followed them.
Val felt herself relax as soon as the trio were out of sight. "Great Mother, that was awkward," she swore. Piccolo looked down at her, grunting in lack of an answer. She approached him, staff switching from one hand to another. She gave him a coy look, raising her hand to up to touch him and leaned forward, reminding herself that Trunks and Mr. Popo were nearby, so she needed to be discreet about it.
Just in that second, she heard a familiar flitting sound. She saw Goku, still in Super Saiyan form, between the two all of a sudden, her hand on his shoulder instead. "Hey, what are you doing?" he gasped, pulling away from her.
She cringed away from the Saiyan, pulling her hand away from him. "What are you doing here?" she asked.
"Not trying to get that friendly with you, that's for sure," he said, brushing off his shoulder with a sour look on his face. He looked behind him, seeing Piccolo with an amused look on his face. "Oh, did you two finally stop bickering?" he asked, blinking back and forth between the two of them. "And I see at least one of you went into the Room of Spirit and Time," he added, nodding at Piccolo.
"Yes," Piccolo said, nodding.
"Thought so! You've gotten a lot more powerful," Goku said hesitatingly.
"Tell me what you really think," Piccolo requested. "That even though I've powered up a lot, I still don't stand a chance against Cell."
Goku sighed, "no, you don't."
"Good," Piccolo hummed. "You didn't spare my feelings."
"So what brings you here?" Val asked.
Goku's face went from amused to more solemn and serious. He looked down at her, asking, "I know you weren't born Namekian, but you adopted by them. I was wondering if with your own magic, if you could create another set of dragons balls? I want to bring them back so we can resurrect all the people killed by Cell. We'll probably need them later, too."
Val felt her shoulders slump and she shook her head. "I can't, I'm sorry. I don't even know where I would begin. The Dragon Clan is born with that magic, and I was taken in as a Demon Clans member." She shifted her feet, looking down at the staff in her hands and the bracelets on each wrist. "I don't think I could curse that into being for someone else either." She flicked her eyes back up at him. "We need to find someone else to do it. I'm only here as a place holder until a permanent guardian is found. Kami did seem to prefer another alien took the job. He wanted you to it, and then Piccolo, and me." She looked over at Piccolo, adding, "and he wasn't able to find anyone else on Earth who could take over."
Piccolo spoke up next, "if no one can be found after we defeat Cell, I'll have to take it over from her since she and I agreed it would only be temporary."
Goku raised his eyebrows up at that. "Well, after Cell, can you split again, like before you rejoined? Then we can just have Kami back."
"Unfortunately, that would be impossible. Once we rejoined, it was liken to a natural death for Kami. It would be impossible for us to split again," Piccolo explained. "And as for my magic goes, I can't create dragon balls because Kami's magic is weakened by my state of being a mostly Demon Clan. Once he joined me, I became a mix of both clans."
Val felt a pang of grief at that thought. She pulled the staff closer to her chest.
"Really, that's too bad," Goku said with a sigh. "But I guess you're right. Gohan did tell me that the other surviving Namekians went to another planet. I'll try to contact them. Maybe one of them from the Dragon Clan will decide to come live on Earth!"
Val felt herself perk up at the suggestion. "Could you really do that?"
Goku shrugged. "And if that happens, we can have a permanent guardian back, right? And then you'd be free to go back to Capsule Corps," he said with a goofy grin.
Val looked up at him, mind rushing. If he brought someone soon, she could maybe make it to Capsule Corps in time to help with #16, even if she would only have hours to research when weeks would be preferable.
"I'm going to go now to look for the Namekians," Goku cheered.
"I'll be overjoyed when you find a new guardian," Mr. Popo said, sounding relieved. Val felt herself feel a bit of shame at his comment.
"But Goku, how are you going to get there?" Piccolo asked. "You don't even know what planet they went to. It'll take too long."
"What're you talking about? Have you forgotten about my teleportation technique? All I have to do is look for a ki like yours and I'll find the New Namek! I'm going to try. Please, everyone, be quiet." Val held her breath, watching him bring two fingers to his forehead, concentrating hard. He frowned and dropped his hand down. "Sorry, it didn't work..."
"What now?" she asked, trying to keep her tone in check and to not sound too disappointed.
Goku perked up, "I know! I might be able to find them if I go to King Kai's world! Let me see... King Kai... King Kai..."
"Wait," she said before he disappeared. He stopped focusing on his search and focused on her. "Take Piccolo with you. So he can chose the next guardian since he would know whom Kami would most likely chose. He can see our brothers again," she said longingly.
"You would have to go, too," Piccolo added. She looked up at him on bated breath, trying not to be too obvious about what she could hope for. "Even if you are interim guardian, you ultimately must chose the next guardian to take over your position. You have to pass the staff and the guardianship onto the next person." He looked up at Goku. "Take us both."
"I can't leave the Lookout," she reminded him.
"You can if it's to look for a new guardian," Mr. Popo told her. "I will hold onto the staff for you while you go."
She looked down at him, grateful. "I... I should have done better. Thank you..." she admitted, handing him the staff. She almost could not believe it would really work.
"Come over here then," Goku said, beckoning to the two of them. He held his hand out. Val stepped over to him, grasping his hand. She felt Piccolo clamp his hand down on her shoulder tightly. "King Kai... King Kai... Got him..."
Val felt the wind rush passed her in a gulf of blackness.