Even with knowing Tien was not following her, Val flew as quick as she could to the Lookout, knowing and hating that she was going to be late when it was her idea to be early today. She managed to make it, landing hard and stumbling in at a run that she did not slow down from. She ran, sensing for Piccolo up there, worrying mentally over what excuse she could make that would still allow to leave in time to get to Kame House on time. She halted at the building, looking about. She did not sense Piccolo anywhere, wondering if he was suppressing his energy, readying to jump out at her and attack when she least expected it. She kept her eyes open and ear drawn back to hear or see anything. She warmed her hands up, ready to attack a slightest provocation. She heard something behind her, sending a small blast towards the ground between her and the sound. "Oh, I'm so sorry," she rushed out next when she saw she had nearly hit Mr. Popo's feet with the blast.
Luckily he had jumped back in time. "It's quite alright, Miss Val," he said to her. "What are you doing here so early?"
"I was supposed to meet Piccolo early today to train," she explained, still trying to sense for him. She debated asking if he was here, but if it were a test, she thought not to ask. She stood at the ready.
"He's not here, nor is Kami," he answered the question she had not said and more.
"What?" she asked, relaxing slowly. "Why not? Where are they?"
He shook his head, answering vaguely, "Kami has asked something of him a few times over, with Piccolo refusing. He went down to the Earth to ask it of him again. Had he known the two of you were going to meet early this morning, he probably would have waited until he got here instead."
She nodded, frowning at the vagueness, but not asking after it. She debated what to do now that she was already up here. She looked down at her hands, knowing she could not train without Kami creating the simple creatures first. She formed fists, knowing she could train to fight up here on her own if she really wanted to, but was unsure if she really wanted to. She could go to the party early she figured, or just go back to Capsule Corps and wait. She did find it annoying that while she was late, Piccolo was later, and possibly not coming at all now. She could have skipped after all and with little to no repercussions. "Well, I guess..." she hummed out, looking around the area. "I guess I should just go then..." she determined. "See you later," she bid.
"Goodbye, miss," he said back to her.
She turned to go, ready to fly off, but halted when she saw Kami land back on the Lookout, looking quiet and disgruntled. He stopped before the two of them, saying, "Val, what are you doing here?" The way he was looking at her, the way he caught her eye seemed like he was burrowing and looking deep into her soul. He nodded once to himself.
"I was supposed to meet Piccolo, changed the time," she answered, blinking first.
"I guarantee he is not coming anymore," he warned vaguely. "He would not be in a mood where you would want him training you today anyway."
"Oh, alright," she answered, not sure what to make of that. "Well, I guess I'll be going," she ruled, guessing he was not in the mood for any training himself.
"Before you go, come, I want to show you something," he bid, walking off into the building.
She blinked, watching him walk off for a second before following after him. She crossed her arms over her chest, following him down a flight of stairs and into the depths of the Lookout. She felt a chill run through her. "Isn't this the way to the Shinsenkai?" she asked, worried he was leading her down that way. It was darker down here, the air was staler. She sensed for it, regretting it in an instant when a shudder went through her chest. She felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up, even after she stopped reaching for it.
"Yes, but that is lower down," he answered. "No mortal is to ever go down there, unless they have a death wish."
He stopped walking down the stairs and turned down a hallway off to the side instead. She followed after him, noticing torches along the wall lit up as they walked. She felt her ears draw back as she followed after him. He stopped in a room with stone writing all over most of the walls. One wall was left blank. She hesitated to enter until he beckoned her in. She brought her hand cup to her necklace, out of place in such a room, even if she had no clue what it was. She stood closer to him, feeling a chill in the room. She studied the walls in their silence, trying to puzzle out what it was.
"Kiri, what do you see?" he asked, breaking the silence. His voice echoed in the room.
"Eleven stories," she answered. "I can't read them, but there's room left for more to be written." She shook her head, disliking the sound of her voice in the room that all but made the walls shutter. "And I shouldn't be down here." She felt herself shudder. The air felt thinner as she started breathing quicker.
"What makes you think that?" he said calmly, looking down at her. She met his gaze, feeling less overwhelmed. Her heartrate slowed, as well as her breathing. He looked over at the wall where the oldest story was. She followed his gaze. "Earth has had eleven guardians before me..." he explained. He stepped over to that section of wall, hand tracing over the worn down stone. She listened in, hardly blinking, daring not to touch anything beyond the floor with her feet. He explained about each former guardian who guarded the Earth centuries upon centuries. Most had been human, a few like him had not been. More were female than male. A few had been wed, with children having been running about the above ground of the Lookout. Val thought the sound of it odd compared to the quiet she had known the Lookout to have.
He reached the end of the eleventh's story, sharing how he was chosen once he and Piccolo's father had separated, sharing the back story of his rival for the guardianship. How he was chosen instead of another alien named Garlic, whom the eleventh guardian sealed away in a dark crystal to prevent him from taking over and enslaving the humans. His son had sworn to get his revenge for his father's imprisonment, but after three centuries, tried and failed years ago. Now he was imprisoned in the Dead Zone, trapped there forever.
His hand drew upon the blank stones after, where she figured his story would be put one day. "You were more worthy of it," she commented, finally speaking. "And certainly more worthy of it than Garlic or his son ever were," she ruled.
"The Earth is not a perfect planet, nor humans the perfect species. Nevertheless, they and it need protected and watched over. Guardians can intervene, and have in the past to keep it going. Fighters, such as yourself and the others, have sworn to protect it from forces both inside and out." She nodded. "What do you want with your life as a refugee on this planet? Live here, work for Capsule Corps, wed, and have children of your own?"
She shook her head, half cocking it to think about what he was saying. It was lacking something... "I don't know, but better here and that than taken by King Cold and stuck in that future I escaped."
"So you finally understand why Vegeta left you behind, even if you still disagree with it," he commented.
She nodded shortly. "If he found out how easily life can live on this planet, he'd take it and sell it off to the highest bidder," she reasoned. "And kill or enslave the populous."
"You don't want that to happen," he stated.
"I'd stand in the way of it," she ruled, straightening her spine.
"As just simply a fighter amongst the rest?" he asked.
She frowned, not quite understanding his question. "If that's what it would take," she answered, speaking softly so her voice would not carry in the room. She looked down at her hands, thinking over how she could fight, both with her strength, her hands, and even her looks as Vegeta had pointed out before he left. She drew her ears back, wishing to get out of the room and how oppressing the feeling of it was around her.
"What about as the next guardian instead?" he deadpanned.
She gaped at him, blinking in confusion. She shook her head at the thought in an instant. "I would... I would never be worthy of it..." she stuttered out, taking a few steps back. She looked down at her hands, at the bracelets. "I can't even control my own abilities... When Goku gets back, you should ask him again. He killed Frieza, which is something I didn't even bring about after all since I never touched him when I said that curse... I'm not strong enough... I've plateaued physically... I'm not even sure I want to be in... with... I'm not human... I'm hiding on this planet... The dragon balls, I can't do that magic... I'm not good enough..."
He looked at her, holding her gaze until she went quiet on voicing her own insecurities and then some. "Goku has already turned me down once, and so has Piccolo yet again today."
She shook her head, looking around the room. The pressure of the room seemed to be closing in on her. She wondered if it was worse than her still existent fear of the rain. "It can't be me," she decided.
"Think it over carefully and logically before you decide," he suggested. "Don't let emotions rule your decision."
She looked away from him, and over the walls. Every story written down, every guardian that come before her. Then the blank stones that would be his. Then at the stones next to them where her story would be written if she said yes. "I'll think about it," she answered, tempted by the thoughts of what would happen if she said yes.