Journey of a Vichy Rebellion
Chapter 2: Not A Mindless Brute
A/N: We catch up with our favorite vanguards of the scorched-earth variety, seemingly having developed much closer of a bond then depicted in canon, we love that for them! Buckle up; the escapades on Namek are going to be a rollercoaster!
Vegeta adjusted his Scouter angrily, his teeth tearing into the green flesh of a Saibamen – quite useful creatures, a high-yield rate toward combat depending on the planetary power in which they grew, but still tasty for emergency rations in a pinch.
The arrogant prince bore a glance at his dullard companion, Nappa, the bald man still entertaining himself by literally playing with his food – the shrieks of the lime monstrosity wailing as it's head was squeezed harshly; Vegeta, after a mission well-earned, Nappa be damned, just wanted to eat, silencing the annoying alien.
He could almost chuckle at the disappointment on Nappa's face and the resounding 'Geets!' as he finally relented and hungrily ate the scraps without another word.
"Things are changing Nappa," Vegeta began, an air of caution and tense surrounding his words, as if the smallest misstep could spring misfortune.
They had just gotten back from raiding a rebel fleet, the foot-soldiers had been outdated with older equipment, but what forces stationed there had been certainly more robust and crafty then they had expected – using the ship's reactor's to cause a chain reaction detonation and protect their intelligence was something Vegeta had not thought such minions to be capable of – food for thought later, he supposed, they're clearly loyal to some schmuck with an ego, they'll die the lot of them.
Nappa, erstwhile, was loudly enjoying his meal, barely heeding any attention to the prince's monologue before he caught a stray scorch to his hand, causing him to drop his food in the dirt and focus his sole attention on the shorter warrior.
"Frieza seems intent on no longer staying his hand, his laissez-faire treatment of the smaller jurisdictions helped in securing us important trade routes and enforcing the decrees of the empire at it's beginning stages when I was just a boy –"
Nappa in truth, well he was only half-listening – contrary to what his prince thought, he was not a mindless brute, his mind summoning the memories of him taking care of the youth who had grown into a ruthless commander, the last gasp of their race's pride.
His loyalty to the empire was astonishing, then again, Nappa once again remembered the last promise he had made the late King Vegeta – though it hurt his pride to lie to what remaining comrade he had left, Nappa had respected the deceased monarch and would follow his request unless otherwise ordered not to – as of now, for all Vegeta's bluster, the Saiyans had lacked a true king.
Nappa had wished he had paid more attention – as per usual, whenever Vegeta opened his mouth, it seemed as if the world loved nothing more then to kick him in the throat.
Vegeta stumbled down the ship's corridor, the green horizon of Namek unfamiliar to him – bleeding from his chipped and fractured armor, the liquid fell from his wild, mangled hair.
Vegeta, despite his pride refusing to allow it, had used Nappa as leverage to aid him during his walk of shame to the healing chamber.
If Nappa knew anything, between the scorned, rabid swears, screams, and grunts which Vegeta gave any reluctant troop which crossed his path, it was that Vegeta felt more hatred to himself in this moment.
No, Nappa knew, Vegeta would no doubt be reeking of fear for what Frieza would have to say about his most recent failure – recalling them back for a mission report for the ceremony on Namek was proof that the tyrant already had them in his sights, and not only that…
Nappa knew he himself would be in constant danger whilst Vegeta healed, having to keep Frieza's torment and ire from impeding the prince, jumping from rationale to a stalwart show of ass-kissing – Nappa snorted, nothing I haven't had to do before – he was sure that Frieza in his cruelty, to humiliate the prince, would wait for Vegeta to fully brief him personally.
He had often accused Nappa of being too soft, the unspoken irony not lost on the more muscular, aged warrior – Vegeta was a master tactician, and to be sure, his gambit had worked but it was still not enough.
Nappa could not remember the last time Vegeta had been forced to flee, especially when the two of them worked together effortlessly to dispatch whatever enemies had been in their wake, nor were there many a battle which caused this amount of damage.
Frieza's tail swished impatiently back-and-forth, sweeping the floor littered with the last few soldiers to enter the room without saluting fast enough – no amount of bodies put a smile on his face – after all, even a hundred of them did not compare to one of Vegeta, and so he did not see their extinguished souls as a loss of manpower at all.
The purple-and-white tyrant surveyed the gelatinous vat in which his most prized possession had sat – his simian toy had disappointed him, and after such an impressive showing earlier no less, he was certain that breaking the blockade delaying his diplomatic trip to Namek would have allowed the prince to receive strong accolades from those screeching pretend-officials back home on the tributary council.
A shame, Frieza smirked, how such rewards would be blocked without a fight after this most recent defeat.
Nappa, battered and exhausted, his face welted and bruised – kneeled, unable to feel his legs or stand up, the last act of his life subservience to a master whom never truly saw him, bowed his head.
Frieza's well-manicured nails glowed a purple unholy static, a small orb forming at the end of it's tips – his tongue rolled, a sing-song tenor in his nasally voice, he tsk'd – "All this when all I asked was for a little information? My simian coward, all I want is the report I was owed as your dear leader..."
A harsh clownish smile, unnatural on the pallor of the emperor's face, embraced itself across it – Nappa knew what would be coming, but he would not betray the prince he saw grow into a man – Nappa would wait for Vegeta to take his honor into his own words, he would not give Frieza that satisfaction.
The waters of the healing tank spiked and bubbled with a shaking force, and three miracles occurred that day in the medical wing of Frieza's ship:
Nappa, his strength sapped, collapsed into a slumber – alive.
Frieza, his attention on the vat, was surprised – first time for everything, he supposed.
Vegeta, final noble of Saiyan lineage, opened his eyes.
A/N: 'Geets and Nappa seemed to be fighting some tough opponent shortly after their foray into the rebel blockade – we'll see them next chapter – any guesses onto whom? And what secret is Nappa hiding from our dear prince? To make things direr, Frieza has also arrived on Namek, still delayed but not by as much as expected!