Val sat in the med bay of the ship, being tended to by the nurse and with Asa standing nearby. She wished she could go into the rejuvenation tank, but she was much to short for that. The nurse studied the burns, asking questions about them to Asa at first, until Val got frustrated and answered them for herself, even if she could only half understand what had happened. The nurse bathed both her forearms and hands in cool water over and over to ensure no infection or long term damage would be had. Caught so soon, the nurse hoped scaring would be unlikely.
The nurse had only wrapped up her right arm in medicated bandages when none other than Frieza walked, outside of his half ball, into the room. Asa was the first of the three of them to kneel down, bowing as low as she possibly could. She pulled Val down with her, who was careful to mind her burns as she bowed. Frieza stepped up right in front of her. She looked up in knee jerk reaction to his eyes baring down on her. She met his eyes without thinking. He hauled her up by the left arm, making her cry out in shock and pain. He kept her left hand in his, using his free hand to unwrap her right arm and see the burns there as well. She hissed through her teeth, trying to pull away at first, but stopped when her left arm hurt more. He heard, he must have heard what happened, making her fearful that he might of heard what she said as well as what she did.
"What caused these wounds?" he demanded, looking over at Asa. Val felt grateful this time around that Asa was questioned, not her.
Asa stood up, stepping closer, looking pale and nervous. "My Lord, she was trying to use energy blasts, but is far too inexperienced to use them properly. She burned herself with them," Asa was quick to say, sounding rehearsed. "Better to burn herself then anywhere on the ship. A suitable punishment in and of itself for such a foolish endeavor." She watched him, heavy eyes not blinking.
He looked at her a little too long, which Val found bothersome. Val shifted, feigning at trying to pull away to draw attention back to her. He did not look down at her, but tightened his grip on her left arm. "What color was it?" he asked, sounding almost nervous.
Val began to answer for herself, "it was-"
"Whitish-blue," Asa interrupted. "I've seen her father's energy before. It was a similar color to his."
Frieza looked back at Asa and then down at Val's arms, both in hand now. "I heard it was gold, your eyes must be growing dim as well," he told Asa. "And I thought as an Anthromorph, she was not supposed to inherit anything from her father," he stated, eying her suspiciously. This time she made to look down and avoid his gaze. Both of his hands were wrapped around her wrists and lower forearms, nails sliding along the already wounded flesh.
"Perhaps I got the color wrong, it all happened so fast. Some does get in from the non-dominant parent with Anthromorphs," Asa answered. "So to prevent them from being an exact genetic copy of the parent before them, whichever race they sway. Better for the gene pool, makes them less vulnerable to disease and such. Her mother's mother was a high priestess among the Aviarians to one of their goddesses."
"And which parent or grandparent did she inherit the desire to curse whomever she saw fit?" he dead panned. "Apparently she was sounding off like a little enchantress."
Asa seemed to pale next to her. "It was a childish temper tantrum, nothing more," she rushed out. Val looked at her, annoyed with the childish comment, but looked back down with how gravely serious Asa looked in the moment. "Napa angered her and set her off, nothing more. She could no more curse you than I could." Asa sound desperate, making Val's stomach twist in nervousness.
"You are certain of that?" he pressed the issue, eyes on Asa.
"My mother was just an Anthromorph, just as hers was," Asa insisted. "Hardly anything special, especially the un-grown."
Frieza looked back down at her, eyes boring into her. "She's worth something at least," he said cryptically. "Better alive than dead...," he reminded himself. His hands tightened on her arms, long nails digging into her forearms. His hands heated up all of a sudden, making her cry out and try to yank her arms away. The new burns seared on to her arms by his energy burned worse than her own did.
"My lord, please," Asa pleaded, raising her hand to reach between the two of them.
He slid his hands down her arms, nailing slicing into her skin in time with the energy burning her as he moved. Val backed away, looking down to see her arms were bright red and bleeding now. She brought them to her center, smarting as they touch her shirt. "Be sure to mind your mouth next time, child, or else," he warned.
"Yes, my lord," she responded stiltedly the way Asa taught her.
"Heal those," he demanded of the healer, gesturing to Val's arms.
Val watched him leave, feeling sick to her stomach at the sight of the worsened burns on her arms. The nurse was quick to step back over to her, starting to tend to her wounds all over again. Asa drew closer to her, sitting beside her as the nurse worked quietly. Asa hummed softly when the nurse warned these wounds were most likely to leave scars now with a burn injury being applied to another burn injury.
Another nurse came in as the other one was working. She knelt down next to Asa, saying, "Asa, when you get the chance, I need to tell discuss with you the results of your blood tests."
Asa raised her hand up to her. "Later, later," she cautioned, hinting for her silence. Val looked up at her questioningly. Asa shook her head, leaning the side of her head against Val's. "Nothing to worry about, sweetness," she soothed.
When the nurse finished, she sent the two of them away. Asa escorted Val back to their rooms quickly and quietly. Asa leaned her back against the door, giving her a sorrowful look. Val looked down at her bandaged arms, carefully pushing up the sleeves of her billowy shirt to keep them off the bandages. "I thought he was going to kill me," Val confessed. Val sat on her bed, laying her arms down gently on her legs. Her legs dangled off the edge of the bed, much to her annoyance. She wanted to grow, just a little at least. Having to resist it was so frustrating at times.
"He wants to," Asa answered, shaking her head and walking away from the door. "He heard of you trying to curse him, and he knows you descend from Aviarian priestesses, who were known to be able to do things like bless or curse someone, among other things. Things that ranged anywhere from wishful thinking to controlling someone's will or fate. Your mother could do it, but only with the touch of her hands. Even though she was an Anthromorph, that much of Aviarian descent got through. He might think the same as you."
Val nodded, knowing that information, which was why her mother wore skin tight gloves all the time. "Could I have inherited something like that?" she breathed, looking down at her arms.
Asa shook her head. "If Napa does die the way you cursed him, Frieza will either kill you or try to take advantage of that power to bend it to his will," she warned. "He'll make you counteract the one you placed on him first. You're in more danger now here than you were as the last un-grown Anthromorph. He was planning to sell you off to the highest bidder once you grew behind the Saiyans' backs, but if you prove you can curse someone, he'll keep you for himself for that ability. Perhaps he'll loan you out, but this more valuable than your potential to save a dying race. He'll keep you close for it, grown or un-grown."
Val felt her hands start to shake, which smarted. She swallowed thickly. "How do you know all that...?"
"I've heard him talk before privately with others, when he thought I was asleep...," Asa said softly. "And I know how he thinks. You need to get away from him the second you get the chance, to run. There's been talk of going to another planet based on reports Raditz sent back, something that would give him a shot of immortality. It's not one of the planets in his control. Try to be taken to the surface and give whomever your with the slip. Be smart about it and keep a low profile to avoid the scouters if you can't destroy them first. You'll look like a child to the race there, but once you convince them your an Anthromorph and promise to help their race, then they will be more likely to shield you."
Val stood up, jumping from her perch on the bed. "We," she corrected, mind racing. "We are going to do that, we are going to do that together," she insisted. "That's what you said. That way you can convince them I'm not some child or runt, but an adult."
Asa gave her a sad smile, "you sound just like your father when you talk like that..."
"We, we are going to do that, it's just a matter of time, like you said," she insisted.
Asa gave her a softened look. "Kiri," she breathed. Val went over to her, trying to willfully stand before her, to will her to agree to stick to their original plan.
"No," Val insisted, stomping her feet willfully. She felt her arms heat up, making her gasp and flinch at the pain. She raised them up between the two of them. She saw a faint golden glow on her arms.
Asa had her by the shoulders in a rush. "Stop," she ordered, hands firm but shaking. "Don't do that to me, resist it," she borderline pleaded. Val relaxed her arms to her side, feeling them cool off. Asa swallowed. "I don't have long, so there's nothing you can do or should do to prolong my life. I'll only suffer more if you do."
"But... no," Val groaned. "I'll be stuck here... with him... alone..."
"That's why you must escape," Asa insisted. "Promise me you will, the second you get the chance."
She nodded, feeling both numb and sick. "I will," she promised, not wanting to face the onslaught of new feelings and emotions overwhelming her today.