The Spoils of War

The journey home had been a quiet one. The two Saiyan space pods had travelled in perfect unison across the entire system, leaving the space dust of what was once planet Umirion, and entering Delta NW-74 in perfect silence. Celeria had said nothing more to Kale after her previous abundance of threats, and Kale hadn’t bothered to badger Celeria any further. Words were no longer necessary, as both Saiyans knew that they stood at a precipice, and at some point soon they were going to fall off the edge. When the pods broke the atmosphere of their new home world, Kale peered out of the view window and at the small colony far below him. It was with great humility and fear that he looked on the final refuge of a dying race, and he felt pain and responsibility for what was about to come.

As the pods came to a halt at the planet’s crust, they both thumped at the earth, creating a sound that reverberated across the whole colony. Both pod doors hissed open at the same time, and the doctor emerged with a much greater weight on his shoulders than when he had left. Waiting for him at the docking bay, like loyal companions at his side, were both Grape and Keyla. They had no doubt become alerted to the missing presence of both their commanding officer and their resident doctor when they’d heard the distinctive roar of Saiyan space pods leaving the planet. And now they smiled as they met his gaze, Keyla more so, her eyes even lighting up at the sight of his return.

Kale didn’t reciprocate the kind gesture, he simply looked in the cold and wilted direction of Commander Celeria, as she strode off, no doubt whilst contemplating one-thousand instances in which the colony could develop a failsafe against the coming threat. The doctor looked on with a myriad of emotions towards her. He respected her authority, and understood the importance of her existence to the colony all too well. But he’d seen an unstable side to the Commander, a side that neither his professional nature nor his rationality could easily ignore. She was so very similar to the ki blasts that she so eagerly hurled at her enemies. She was powerful and deadly, but highly explosive to the touch, and these qualities of leadership reminded him of an all too familiar tyrant. They were all Saiyans, and they were all technically weapons without the safety clip, but if Celeria continued to lead by the sword, then it would be an inevitability that she would die by the sword. Kale’s mind raced with these thoughts, as his eyes meticulously watched the Commander disappear.

“You went with the Commander, you both left in a rush. She seems… agitated.” Grape said, as he observed the tension and the distance between Kale and Celeria.

“Doesn’t she always.” The doctor quite carelessly marched past Grape and Keyla, and approached the medical bay.

“Something happened didn’t it Doctor?” Keyla pursued him hot on her feet, followed by Grape who appeared slightly more reserved.

Kale entered the med bay with a scan of his handprint at the front entrance, and took his place at his work station. He went to town at his command console and brought up the medical records of the entire colony. Sifting through each and every individual, he landed on the Commander’s profile, and opened all of his gathered data.

“She’ll need medical attention quickly. She’s punctured several arteries, and there appears to be damage to the clavicle and abdominal regions… we’ll need her up and-”

“The Commander? What happened? It sounds like you’ve both been in the battle rings of planet Vegeta for 20 rounds. Do you mind explaining to us just where you have both been?” Grape asked inquisitively, and Kale heard the ruffling of the junior doctor’s clothes as he crossed his arms.

“Not me I only lasted 1 round, I’ve just got a concussion and a bruised ego.” The doctor inhaled in exasperation. “Didn’t I already tell you that we need the Commander for immediate medical attention?”

“What happened doctor?” The nurse asked, and Kale rolled his eyes at the tirelessness of their questioning.

“Last I remembered, this was MY medical bay nurse. And I’m not answering questions right no-” Kale buried his head in the keyboard in front him, as he made an effort not to look either of them directly in the eyes. He huffed, as he felt the encumbering sensation of fury and exasperation pin him to his seat.

“I alerted them all, every single one of them.”

“Them?” Grape pondered, the doctor could hear a shiver in his colleagues voice as he forced himself to enquire further.

“I followed the Commander to a remote colony world in this system… Umirion, it had been ravaged by some… monster. It’s in this system- it WAS in this system, it’s been destroyed now by the patience of our dear Commander.” Kale picked his head up off of the keyboard and looked on with bemusement at the jargon of letters that were meshed together on the screen. “We found Planet Trade Organisation survivors, and they had a saucer, not unlike the one on this colony…” He trailed off as his eyes directed towards the hanger. “We were attacked by… something. And I was ordered to retrieve the entire data archive from the PTO vessel while Celeria and… whoever battled.”

“A monster? Freeza?” Keyla whispered, half to herself, half to Kale.

“Back this up! A whole planet was destroyed!? The shockwave from that will alert-” Grape was thinking on the right lines.

“No need. I already alerted the cavalry doctor.” The doctor stood and pushed his way through the space between Keyla and Grape. He stood at a healing tank and equalised the androgen and oestrogen levels in preparation for Celeria. “They’re coming. They’re coming here, they’ll find us, without doubt. I activated a trip mechanism in the database, and it released a distress beckon that was amplified by these.” Kale pointed an erect finger to the scouter fixed around his eye. Their greatest source of knowledge in battle had become their greatest weakness of all. “Apparently hibernating for x amount of years leaves you at a natural technological disadvantage. I had the knowledge and the rules, but it was the old rulebook etched into my brain. The PTO main rain is more solid, more… complex these days. It used my scouter, the Commander’s scouter… and everybody else’s scouter as a transmit.”

“I-I don’t understand…” The nurse took a step back in fear, her blinking intensified and Kale could feel her sympathetic nervous system going into overdrive.

“Let me help you to understand.” Kale ripped his scouter off of his face and held it in his palm, everybody looked at this ‘harmless’ device with hesitation. “think of a sonar ray, spreading out across the ocean. Except this is an ocean of stars, and the big fish, that’s Freeza’s gang. They’re gonna come here, in force, and we’re going to have to fight them.” The doctor volleyed his scouter to the other end of the med bay, and watched it ricochet off of a wall and onto the floor.

“Are you insane doctor?” Keyla’s voice raised. “You can’t just land that on us! We’ve just found out that our entire race lies in ruins, and-and now you tell us that your midnight campaign has brought Freeza’s hounds back for the rest?”

Doctor Kale nodded his head lightly, and his eyes scanned the roof. “Yes, yes. I believe that’s exactly what I’m telling you.” he then interjected, “Did we ever re-synthesize the androgens for the healing tank?” He asked, casually.

“You’ve got nerve Doctor. Nerve to even confront us in this way. Why didn’t you let us know you were running to the edge of the system to play soldier? You don’t play games with out lives. If this is who you are then I don’t want to be a part of it! I’d sooner suit up and join the barracks than work here with YOU, in this medical bay.” Keyla was in full swing, as she shouted with all of her compassion in Kale’s direction. He’d goaded her, but he couldn’t care less right now. Perhaps he wanted the conflict, perhaps it prepared him for what was to come.

“You think this was MY fault?” The doctor now stopped rattling away at his machinery and looked both Keyla and Grape in the eyes. Grape looked on in confusion, Keyla lead a direct assault.

“This was exactly your fault, yes. All of it! Even if you had no idea, even if you were ordered to do this, it was your fault because you never thought for one moment about any of this here. This is our home now Doctor, and you can’t play games with that. I’m not blaming you for what you did, I’m blaming you for how you did it.” Keyla approached the exit and looked Kale dead in the eyes, she was a Saiyan filled with contempt, he was duly impressed. “Next time you make a decision that concerns US, doctor, please let US know before hand, won’t you?” The doors slid open, and she took a step to leave.

“WHAT IF THE DECISION ISN’T MINE TO MAKE!?" Kale retorted, bellowing his voice at the height of its volume. “What if everything I do here, I do blindly? Hoping that each and every second that I search, I stumble on the right answer? I don’t know WHAT choice to make, I’m not a warrior, I’m a doctor!” Kale’s face contorted as he yelled at the nurse.

“We always have a choice Doctor.” The doors closed behind her, and silence reigned for the minutes that followed. Soon enough, Celeria would call another colony meeting, and in her bloodied and battered state she would tell the colony the grim news. Kale and Grape simply spent the remainder of their time waiting in silence to hear from her, the tension thick…

Celeria left her pod in silence, treading with heavy steps across the landing platform. The two attending physicians, Grape and Keyla rushed out to meet them, but, after meeting Celeria's stone cold gaze, moved on to check up on Kale, even though he looked far less worse for wear. She would speak with them at her own accord. First, there were things that needed to be done. Although her wounds were relatively harmless, they could be quite a nuisance to her if left untreated. She would need proper assistance bandaging the cuts, as the beast's claws must've had a kind of anti-coagulant coating - her blood just kept gushing out. However, first things first. Celeria made her way to her chambers, leaving behind a faint trail of blood. She initiated the console and made arrangements for the data to be transmitted to her scouter. She would survey the information from the healing tank. For now, she would monitor the intergalactic communication network. Her fingers hovered over the console before she began typing - she punched in a series of passwords, logging on to several cloaked transmission monitoring channels. For now, the activity was minor.

Unfortunately, Celeria forgot herself in the work on the console and was only stirred when there was a knock on her chamber door. Celeria rose up to her feet and noticed she felt a bit light-headed. Time for the med bay, then. She approached the door only to find nurse Keyla on the other side. Celeria smiled at the girl.

"Commander, I strongly advise you to make your way to the medical bay. I have been informed of the severity of your wounds and I implore you to proceed." - Keyla muttered in an almost robotic voice. Celeria noticed her eyes were watery.

"Yes, nurse. As a matter of fact, I was just about to head there myself." - Celeria's smile widened when she suddenly felt even dizzier and leaned onto the door frame. Keyla immediately recognized the symptoms and dashed to Celeria's side, taking one of her arms over her shoulder and hugging her by the waist, letting Celeria lean on her so as she'd be more at ease.

"You really shouldn't overexert yourself like this, Commander." - Keyla said, a slight tremble in her voice.

"You seem far more upset than me, nurse Keyla. Might I ask what is the matter?" - Celeria turned her head towards the young woman and spoke to her in a soft tone.

Keyla looked at Celeria and her cheeks instantly flushed a soft pink.

"Commander, I... Kale told us what happened. And I... I told him what I thought on the subject." - Keyla replied.

"And what do you think, nurse Keyla?" - Celeria was somewhat amused. She was glad to see there was a spark of ferocity even within the medical staff. It made Celeria very pleased, as the colony would need all the ferocity it can muster to survive what was coming.

"I think he screwed up, but that none of us would have done any better if we were out there. Whatever happens, I'm sure we'll prevail. We must. It's the order we were given." - Celeria felt as if Keyla was comforting herself. Still, she was glad that she found comfort in such words, rather than giving in to desperation.

Either way, the time for chit chat was over, as the doors of the med bay slid open with a loud hiss, revealing Grape and Kale in a heated discussion that ceased as soon as they became aware of the commander's presence. As soon as Celeria entered the room, supported by nurse Keyla, the chamber fell silent.

“She’s very serious about… us… and our future here. What did you expect Kale, a warm welcome and a pat on the back?” Grape leaned against Kale’s desk, in private he never referred to him as ‘Doctor’ instead their relationship was far more informal.

“Warm welcome? I would have settled for a lukewarm welcome, or even a temperate one. That, that was a heated welcome at the very least. I’m surprised you can still see my face, what with the giant ‘kick me’ sign stamped all over it.” Kale half gazed at Grape and half focused on the console in front of him as he proceeded to empty the healing tank of all liquids. The machine hissed as it bled dry, and a repeated bleeping revealed that it was prepared for use. Finally, he gave his full attention to his colleague.

“Well, if they are coming here as you say, then our options are limited. Let’s not pretend that we have the man power or the resources to stage any kind of assault. We don’t.” The junior doctor crossed his arms, and spoke with a kind of ‘matter of fact’ tone.

“You know what…” Kale’s eyes widened and an expression of mock enlightenment filled his features. “You’re… you’re right. I’m such a fool!” He raised a flat palm and slapped it against his forehead, “there’s no point in fighting this. You know, I say we all go out onto the landing platform and… and just lie down and accept our eventual destruction.” The doctor pursed his lips and nodded.

“You’re seriously going to do this now? Jokes at a time like this?” Grape rolled his eyes and turned away.

“It’s called sarcasm…?” Kale raised a brow.

“It’s unnecessary.” The junior doctor quickly retorted.

The doctor knotted his fingers together and stretched his arms out in front of him, he was getting tired of this constant bickering. “I know what I did Grape, and I’m not going to disappoint anybody. I’m gonna make sure we get through this-”

The door snapped open with a hiss, and quickly entering the medical bay was the face of the she-devil herself, Nurse Keyla, entering with Commander Celeria draped over her shoulder. Kale thought that this was either a dream or the beginning of a very funny joke… quickly he ran to help support the Commander.

“Status report?” The doctor asked, all squabbling and grudges were dropped for the meantime.

“The Commander’s losing blood rapidly, doctor. Wounds aren’t closing, I’ve never seen anything like it. It’s like she’s deteriorating moment by moment…” The nurse seemed panicked, but her training was keeping those nerves bubbling below the surface of a calm exterior. Kale quickly winked at Keyla in thanks before relieving her of her heavy load. The Commander was surprisingly heavy, the doctor’s back arched with her weight as he clumsily lugged her over to the examination table. As he lay her down and her weight released, Kale panted in relief.

“I would NOT like to get flattened by you Commander.” He whispered to himself. “Scanner, quick.” He snapped his fingers and Grape was immediately at his side with the device. Kale’s training always took hold in moment’s like this, and his personal thoughts and prejudices disappeared into the recesses of his mind. Now he no longer saw the Commander, or even a woman who had threatened him with death on various occasions throughout the last few hours, what he saw now was somebody in dire need of help. Celeria’s face, as always appeared undeterred, she kept her signature neutrality throughout the whole ordeal. Kale did however notice that her pupils were severely dilated, and her breathing was becoming shallow and more frequent.

“She’s entering shock.” Grape shouted, reaching for a powerful sedative at the operating station.

“Stay with me Commander, focus on this.” Keyla illuminated a small torch and had Celeria trace the light with her gaze. It’d suffice to constrict her pupils and maintain her consciousness. Kale nodded in thanks. At this very second the three of them, Kale, Keyla and Grape felt like a team, and it would have warmed the doctor, had he not been in a crisis situation.

As he scanned the wounded areas, the scanner identified an unidentifiable substance. The doctor recoiled at its response, nothing was ever easy with the Commander. “Gotta love the mystery!” He nervously joked before moving the scanner up her neck and near her cranium. “Whatever this is, it seems to fluctuate… here!” As Kale scanned Celeria’s head, it happened again. The reading blipped, again and again. And no matter how many times he covered that area of her brain it did the same thing. Something was in there, and for some reason he hadn’t noticed it sooner. “Damn it! Damn it!”

“Doctor?” Keyla exclaimed, her face observant.

“This happened before. When I first examined her, the reading was off, but I thought it was a malfunction. I’m not gonna let my incompetence lead to anymore losses.” The doctor toggled the scanner from ‘detection mode’ to ‘emission’. This thing could fight infection as much as it could detect it. “I’ve got a theory!”

“What are you going to do?” Grape shouted, injecting Celeria with the sedative as he did so.

“It’s just a theory…” Again Kale nervously laughed and cracked a smile.

“Shoot!” Said Grape.

“Whatever’s in the Commander’s brain is the catalyst of all of this. It’s at the command centre of all of this havoc in her body.” Kale saw his colleagues nodding along. “I’m gonna confuse it. Throw it off a little. That SHOULD give the Commander’s body time to start the natural healing process.”

“You’re certain?” Keyla looked worried.

“I’m never certain!” Both Grape and Keyla looked at one another in fear, before looking back towards the doctor with a reassuring joint gesture. That was all he needed to fix this, he was taking Keyla’s advice, he wouldn’t make such a large decision again without consulting friends. “I’m sorry Commander, but this is really going to hurt…” Kale winced slightly, “even for you!” He drove the scanner onto the flat of Celeria’s skull and activated a trip switch. All of a sudden a volt of energy fired from the scanner and directly into the Commander’s skull. The small machine fought hard to inject such a large voltage and began to tremor in Kale’s grasp like a struggling fish out of water. The small device was giving everything it had until quickly it began to fry.

“There’s not enough power to confuse that… thing in her brain.” Kale threw the charred scanner to one side and quickly ignited two of his fingers with raw ki. “Desperate times…” He murmured and then fired a powerful wave of energy onto Celeria’s skull. The Commander’s body convulsed violently and the whole room exploded in a wave of sheer force. Computer screens fractured and tiles cracked as a power wave of… something roared in the Commander’s brain that almost bowled the doctor over. After a few seconds everything fell silent again, and Kale dropped his fingers. He panted before grabbing for a second scanner.

“It… it worked!” He raised his free arm in the air and fist pumped triumphantly. The Commander’s wounds were already beginning to constrict the blood flow.

“Vitals stabilising Doctor.” Said Keyla with a slight smile.

“The sedative is taking effect.” Followed Grape.

Kale nodded in compliance, as he retrieved a healing agent from the operating table and injected the Commander. She’d begin to feel healthier again in minutes, but she’d need time in the healing tank soon. One very pressing question remained however, what had exploded from her head? What was in there? Whatever it was, the doctor had the sneaking suspicion that it wasn’t gone. Both Grape and Kale looked at him intensely, he simply replied with, “I know, I know.”

“Commander, I’m sorry about the rough ride back there,” He winked coolly, yet was still a little breathless. “How are you feeling?”

As she was making her way to the medical bay with nurse Keyla, Celeria felt more light-headed with each step. Something was really off, but she didn't give it much notice as she would be healed soon. She darted a look at Grape and then at Kale. As Keyla was giving an assessment to Kale, sight and sound had faded into an intangible mesh until there was nothing but darkness. Celeria looked around, yet there was nothing. Suddenly, she found herself staring into those green eyes as the creature materialized before her eyes. Celeria felt herself erupt with rage as she flung her arms forward, ready to blast the beast to kingdom come. The beast responded as if in complete synch, and interlocked its claws with Celeria's fingers. Both were powering up, eager to crush one another. A raging torrent of an aura enveloped the two beings who were giving it all to defeat the other. Every muscle tensed to its maximum as the two opponents shrieked from both pain and rage.

Her hands started bleeding red, as the creature's claws bled black. Her emotions went from anger to despair to burning hatred. She felt as if her own body would come apart and her sanity devoured by the thirst for blood. Simultaneously, they screamed out:

"YOU WILL NOT DEFEAT ME!"

Blood poured out in small streams from her eyes. She would give all it takes, the thrill of watching the creature bleed wiped all concerns from her mind. Just a little further, just a little more, even if that's the last thing she would do, she would have victory. Muscles tore and bones cracked, yet she went further and further until the creature's face was replaced by the sight of the med bay ceiling and the faces of attending physicians. Celeria awoke to a world of pain. She was drenched in sweat and breathing heavily. Without any effort, she broke free from the grasp of the three doctors, jumped to her feet and ran to the corner where she bent over and coughed up blood and black ooze. She rose up to her feet once more and breathed deeply.

She then turned around to observe the trio. Grape and Keyla seemed stupefied with fear and they just stared back at her blankly. Then her eyes turned to Kale. She narrowed her eyes and her face contorted into a grimace of disgust. Not only did this one have the nerve to talk back to her after gambling away the very existence of the colony, he also had the balls to tamper with the only thing that was standing between said existence and brutal annihilation.

“Commander, I’m sorry about the rough ride back there. How are you feeling?”

"Shocked." - Celeria's lips drew into a malevolent grin. "Shocked that your first go-to solution jeopardizes the only thing that stands between you shitheads and a PTO invasion." - Her tone became lower and more grave as she approached him. Celeria walked to Kale until their faces were but inches apart. Then, she grabbed his collar and lifted him off the ground. "I don't care what you think you've accomplished."

Celeria leaned in even closer and growled: "I should have you court-marshalled."

Suddenly, she dropped Kale back on his feet and moved towards the healing tank. As she opened the hatch, she turned back to face all three of them.

"Now if you lot are done torturing me, perhaps you can actually get around to doing your job and fixing me up so I can get back to finding a way to save this goddamn colony."

Celeria punched the initialization button and seated herself back into the tank.

"Shocked. Shocked that your first go-to solution jeopardizes the only thing that stands between you shitheads and a PTO invasion."

Shitheads? That was a new one. Kale looked to one side as he contemplated the insult. He’d never been called anything like that before, maybe he’d write it in his diary and save it for later? Self inflation of her ego also? The doctor internally ticked the box of ’developing psychosis’ on his metaphorical ’Celeria’s mental and physical wellbeing’ form. Quickly, and predictably, the Commander pursued the doctor with haste. Her face grimaced and became malignant and she ruffled him by the scruff of the collar and lifted him to eye length. Kale had never noticed just how much shorter he was than Celeria before, he’d probably develop a height complex should he continue to stand so close. He recoiled in his skin slightly, such proximity was unnerving.

"I don't care what you think you've accomplished."

Saving you from agonising death… and identifying a sentient foreign substance lodged in your cranium. He silently thought, knowing full well what he‘d accomplished. Of course, he had the intelligence and the patience to have already come the conclusion that vocalising any sort of opposition to Celeria’s words would be met by threats and/or physical violence. He just bobbed his head blankly as she spoke instead.

"I should have you court-marshalled." She spat

And I should have you placed in a straightjacket. The doctor continued to think, again paying lip service to the Commander by simply nodding along, seemingly both seriously and thoughtfully at her verbal barrage.

"Now if you lot are done torturing me, perhaps you can actually get around to doing your job and fixing me up so I can get back to finding a way to save this goddamn colony."

Kale stood still, looking on in Celeria’s direction. He was quiet for a second, he had thought that a second wave of rage was surely going to erupt from the Commander. After a moment however, the doctor broke the silence and spoke to the medical staff.

“You heard the Commander, align the healing tank. I’ll oversee her treatment myself.” Kale looked at both Grape and Keyla, who were slightly traumatised by the sight of a less than controlled Commander Celeria. He only had one single thought in response to their horror, how do you think I feel?

- - - - -

Celeria had been in the healing tank for a while, Kale kept tabs on her vitals but as always was surprised by the speed in which she naturally recuperated. She was a lot of things, an aggressor, an authoritarian leader… but she was undeniably a natural born warrior. Keyla approached the tank and looked over Kale’s shoulder. She wasn’t exactly pleased with him, he could tell that much, but she wasn’t as abusive as Celeria. He lived for these small mercies, of course.

“In response to your earlier question Doctor, yes we did re-synthesize the androgens.” She placed a hand on his shoulder before walking towards a counter in the far corner. Kale grinned, it was a ’don’t be such a smart ass grin’ more so than one formed in genuine amusement. He gazed at what the nurse was placing on the table with keen interest, before he enquired.

“What? That’s your lunch?” He joked, nodding his head in the direction of a small vile containing a black larva type creature.

“The Commander gave it to me on the way here doctor, she wasn’t lucid so I don’t know what to make of it.” Keyla looked at the substance, almost in a trance-like state. Whatever it was, it had prompted Kale away from the healing tank and towards the vile.

“That’s similar in composition to the substance that buried itself in the Commander’s wounds…” Grape observed, bending in for a closer look.

The doctor snapped his fingers when Grape spoke, he was onto something. “You’re right, and the Commander knows more about this than us. She fought something on Umirion, and I’m not sure what. She managed to get out with her life but, well… you saw the rest.” He leaned against the desk and crossed his arms before continuing. “That sample is a sample of whatever she battled. She’s a tactician after all, she probably knew it’d be wise to analyse the remains of that thing afterwards.”

“So what do we do now?” Grape asked.

“We analyse it.” Kale nodded, “But not now. The Commander’s about to heal up, and I don’t know about you, but I could do without the unnecessary physical assault for breathing without her permission.” Grape seemed to nod uneasily as he looked over towards the tank. Kale cracked a small smile before walking back over to the healing tank in preparation of the drainage.

“You are forgetting that you HAVE still doomed us all Doctor…” Keyla retorted sarcastically as she stood in her designated position at the healing tank.

“One tragedy at a time nurse?” the doctor mused, as Celeria regained consciousness. No doubt the whole colony was about to find out that they were all in Cold Creak without a paddle. He wasn’t looking forward to the moment at hand…

During her time in the healing tank, Celeria focused more on surveying the data she had gathered than concentrating on anything else. She was just going over her third calibration when her scouter beeped with a notification of an incoming signal. Who could be sending her a transmission now? What was even more alarming was the fact that her personal transmission code was used. Apprehensively, she clicked her scouter a few times and an array of symbols appeared on her scouter screen. The code that was used on the battlefield, albeit somewhat altered.

"Inbound ship, model F-121. Coord:+34.25.-32 T-14. - A friend"

"A real bad joke." - Celeria thought to herself. But in times like these, one could not be paranoid enough. Via a backdoor gateway, Celeria accessed her main console and punched in the coordinates from the message. Her heart raced as the mainframe processed her request. She could imagine the ground-based satellite plates aligning into place, until they were finally on target. What Celeria beheld instantly made her eyes widen and heart rate skyrocket. She tore off the mask from her face and punched in the chamber override button. The tank glowed with a pulsating red light as the healing liquid drained fully. Without so much as a word, she darted out of the healing tank straight towards the armor compartment. Donning a fresh bodysuit and a mint-condition armor, she ran her hand through her wet hair and let out a long and heavy sigh.

She then turned to face the three doctors who were all hunched over the instrument the creature's tendril was placed in for analysis. When Celeria noticed the others were staring at her blankly, she muttered, faintly but audibly, the expression on her face betraying her terror at the words that came out of her mouth:

"Congregation meeting in no less than five minutes. It has begun."

Celeria ran to the nearest console and typed in the emergency code. Suddenly, the corridors started howling with alert sirens. She activated the microphone.

"Attention. This is not an exercise. You are all to report to the conference chamber in T-minus five minutes. Commander out."

She turned off the console and instantly darted out of the room. Celeria found herself running down the corridor. Her thoughts raced – there must be something she could do from here. Then, it dawned on her. She immediately patched through to the navigation centre.

“Control, this is Commander Celeria. Turn on disruptors. Do it now, 25% overburn. This is a direct order.”


“Affirmative, Commander. Disruptors charged and active. Over and out.”

The disruptors should keep them cloaked, which might give them some extra time, if any. Celeria hoped that the PTO didn’t have a clear idea of where they were going and, indeed, if that was the case, she would do her best to throw them off, because every minute saved is one step ahead. Ok, now that the disruptors were up, Celeria’s thoughts raced, she would have to make sure the shields and defensive equipment was at its peak. Just in case the “friend” was wrong in his calculations, or PTO space-travel technology had advanced beyond all predictions.

It was a matter of time before she reached the conference room. She immediately stood at the centre of the room which was now slowly filling with scared, dejected and outright angry faces. Celeria waited until everyone had arrived, seeing many familiar faces in the crowd. The clamor died down far sooner than she expected as a deathly silence spread throughout the room.

“I won’t lie to you lot.” – Celeria began in a solemn and commanding tone. “I won’t beat around the bush either. We are facing an invasion by none other than the scum who annihilated our race.” After meeting many eyes filled with surprise and disbelief, Celeria decided to reiterate, this time more clearly.

“Frieza is coming for our heads.”

The room suddenly roared with shouts of incredulity mixed with obscenities.

“What the fuck?!”

When suddenly, an indistinct yet domineering voice echoed throughout the room:
“Why don’t we show that slimy fucker what for?!”

“That is EXACTLY what we are going to do.” – Celeria spoke out and the room fell silent once more. This time, even more disbelieving eyes gazed at her.

“But we’re going to play it safe, as our brothers and sisters did before us. We have no other choice but to move the majority of the colony – the cryo-stasis sections along with those still dormant within them, the majority, if not all medical staff, most non-military personnel and a sufficient number of soldiers and their superiors.” - Celeria outlined.

“The migration will be conducted by second-in-command, Liutenant Espara.” – she continued.

“An assessment will subsequently take place assigning each warrior his fate in this upcoming encounter. Some will be sent to the next colony base, the majority will stick around and prepare a welcome party for Frieza. Should there be any volunteers, I will be taking names at my quarters.” – Celeria added.

“I will be staying on the planet. In case of unforeseen circumstances, the title of Commander will be transferred to Liutenant Espara.” – here she paused for a little while, reflecting on everything that recently took place.

“These bastards took our planet away from us. They took our brothers and sisters from us. The debt must be repaid, and this one’s long overdue. And I will not stop until I see a saiyan fist rammed deep into the face of the Planet Trade Organization.”

The chamber exploded in a wave of applause and cheering, as well as the shouts of warriors who were eager to sign up for the final stand. The atmosphere brought a wide and confident smile to Celeria’s face. For a moment, the outcome of the battle didn’t even matter to her as much as the fact that these warriors, these saiyans, would finally get a chance to do what they were made to do, what they were bred to do, what they were born to do. And she would be the one to lead the charge.

Ikolo listened carefully at stiff attention at the commander spoke. She stood at the very back of the crowded room, not seeing anything beyond the backs of her comrades but hearing clearly as the commander gave her speech. For once her stuffed toy was nowhere to be seen. She stood like a statue almost, her breathing barely even visible as her wrapped about her middle so tightly it felt as though she might snap herself in twain with it. No, this was suicide. She watched in rapt study as the room burst into cheers. No, I cannot watch them die needlessly.

As the whooping died down Ikolo strode purposefully forward through the throng. She ducked and dodged a few of her more unruly comrades and forced all her anxiety aside. She had to do something! Every bone in her screamed of terror at the prospect of facing the commander down even if only in words but she had to offer herself for something of use. She was not going to watch so many more die because there was no other way.

They were born to fight, she was born for another purpose. She was a supplement to their kind, a role of support and function. She was a diplomat trained in the way of words and culture. Her people she could barely address for their savage nature where she had such thing stifled in her there were other parts to be nurtured. Like the doctor Kale whom healed she could offer something. Even diplomats had their place and she would take her own as steadfast and strong as any warrior.

She gathered her courage as she moved through the crowd. She saw faces, smiles, kinship, camaraderie, all of that she wished to preserve for the future. She could not bear to think that her people, her racial kin would be slaughtered needlessly. She gathered her bravery from the cheer of the others. The warriors who would so readily die to defend them. She would do everything in her power to aid them and protect them no matter how savage. She would serve her purpose or die trying.

A few murmurs began in confusion as the small syainess approached the commander with her eyes straight ahead and tail lashing behind her in agitation. She betrayed no sign of nervousness by the time she reached the area directly in front of the commander. Her tail lashed one more time before snapping itself around her waist as the warriors held them.

She seemed calm though a tumult of emotion rolled through her being. Anxiety itched along her skin like a million bugs marching over and she resisted the urge to scratch. She looked up into Celeria's eyes with honeyed hues betraying only her fierce determination. She stood proudly before the commander, as a diplomat she was trained to parry words. Dukes, kings, princes, queens, it did not matter, she had been born for this and trained into it. She could speak as affluently as a river flowed when faced by those of a status. Her mind knew all the things to do, she'd had them all hammered into her head from a young age.

She seemed so much fiercer now than anyone had ever seen her. Espara needed her, the commander needed her, the doctor with the funny jokes needed her, they all needed her. As a diplomat they needed her help now more than ever. Everything was clicking into place. This was where she belonged, in front of those of status and strength. Humble and strong, this was where she was meant to be, this was where she had to be to serve. Everything before was practice. This was no game, it was the real thing. If she failed here she would fail them all. She would die trying to succeed if she was too weak. She would not be a coward, if so needed she would defend her brothers and sisters in battle.

She took a deep breath, puffing out her chest and closing her eyes. She focused and cleared her mind. She felt it, the calling of her need. Her nerves calmed slightly as a few more murmurs began. What was this girl doing standing so brazenly before the commander? What did she have to say? The dissent went unheard by the young saiyaness. She opened her eyes again and stared straight into the commander's dark orbs. She bowed as was custom when addressing one of rank.

Her voice almost wanted to tremble at first but she quickly fought the remaining scraps of anxiousness away as she stared intently into Celeria's eyes. Her counsel would be heard, whether it would be heeded was another story entirely. Her mother would have been proud of her, her father would have been pleased. She stood fast in the face of possible adversity and she stood as any saiyan was expected to, proudly. Her mouth moved slowly, deliberately as she began to speak. She chose her words carefully, she could do this, she would do this!

"Commander, I cannot in good conscience stand by this and watch, neither as a diplomat nor as a saiyan. I cannot see my brothers and sisters send themselves to slaughter alone. I have never seen a coward amongst our kind and I shall not be the first. What I would ask may to some be insult but I would humbly dissent.

Such a battle fought alone is suicide and surely you know this as sure as the rest of us. With so few of us left we cannot merely throw away the lives of those who remain. Already we are so few. Our ranks already long decimated, our home is long destroyed, our families dead and disgraced in the eyes of the universe. We will not allow this to stop us, none here would allow dishonor to taint our ferocity. Even I would not back down from this battle if required but there is such a sore need already to preserve our kind.

Our resources surely shall run low if they have not already. We are weakened and few. Even with our innate strength those amongst us who would stay and fight stand little to no chance at all of surviving this battle. There is no glory to be had in dying needlessly. For every warrior we have Frieza commands at least one hundred more. For every one of us of great strength Frieza has twenty men better. We fight a useless battle if we fight it alone and without tact.

I would ask a boon to try and avoid such needless bloodshed on our own ranks. You must recognize the need as much as I, we have no allies. Frieza commands hundreds of planets which he can bring against us. I would ask to be given diplomatic amnesty from relocation and battle for myself and a few warriors along one technician, pilot, and one of medical training if not staff to begin a mission of mercy that we may gain at least one ally against so great a foe.

A single grain of rice can tip the scale, one man may be the difference between victory and defeat but even I hold no delusions of such grandeur in this coming battle. I see here strength, camaraderie, cheer. I not wish to see such things lost as our king did not wish to see them lost. I would not ask my comrades to die needlessly for the sake of the rest who would be sent away again to preserve our species. How many times must we repeat our own history before we learn from it truly?

I wish us victory not senseless destruction of our own! I wish my brothers here who would fight so gladly for us, to return with tales of courage and strength! I would see them return in celebration not the desolation of defeat, to be placed reverently into the cold ground for the fact that we did not do all all we could to prevent it!

Friza feared us! He became terrified by our potential and so destroyed us. That is why we are here today, we find ourselves on the brink of a second decimation! I cannot stand silent and let us be put through such again. I will do my job or die trying before I would quietly allow history to run on a loop until all of us are gone! If Frieza so fears what we are capable of then let us show him what fear truly is! Let us give his terror true justification! Let us make him tremble with our roar and cower before our might for we are not weak by any means!

I would have us show to the universe we are to be respected as much as Frieza would have us hated! Are we truly strong divided? Are we ready to place ourselves further tilting over the precipice of complete annihilation?! No! We are saiyans, we are strong, hardy, and we do not back down from our challenges! This too is a challenge we must overcome but we cannot do this alone! I trust in your judgement commander, as I trusted our king's."

She took a deep breath as her speech paused and her next words came carefully. Her voice had grown steady and strong as she spoke, her demeanor gaining animation as she put forth her feelings and her logic. Surely she had worded it well enough to gain enough support to make her counsel heard instead of falling upon deaf ears. She was made for this, the parry of words and wits.

She was not meant to be objective, a diplomat was meant to think as much with their heart as their mind. Compassion, consideration, courage to do what was right for the whole, these were things every diplomat should have she had been taught. Her next words were as intense as her speech but she seemed to calm greatly as she bowed again, lower this time.

"Please, grant me this and I will gather for us all the strength of alliance I can find to overcome this adversary, we are few but we are not alone. Frieza has wrong many a race. He has betrayed us and we were not the first to have such treatment. Let me find those who would remain free, those who have been hurt, those who are in outrage as we are. I will not give up until the last breath has left my lungs and my heart beats no more. We all are doing what me must here, I understand your reasons and I have reasons all my own.

Even if I cannot gather alliance quickly enough to send back reinforcements to aid our battle here we will have them ready for those remaining after. We are all owed at least one victory. We owe it to the warriors already dead, those who will die. We owe it most of all, to our king who sent us here to save us!"

She stayed bowed this time, eyes upon the floor in determination. She was home, she was strong in her own fashion. In her words she was fierce and powerful. She had an almost commanding air about her, a grace that only one like her and the commander could carry with them in their respective roles. She had found her place as her heart hammered in her chest and she awaited rebuttal. She would accept the commander's answer gracefully.

She had done all she could for now, she could only wait for assent or dissent to the proposed action. She hoped, she prayed her counsel would be heeded and she would be given the chance to show her own potential to help. She wanted to be useful and this was the purpose she was raised for alongside another.

She had to do everything she could to protect her people, there was no others to do so, they had all long gone and she was all that was left. There was no anger in her, only a deep burning passion to see her own survive the coming doom. They could overcome the odds. She knew they could not do so in gentility but where she could not fight others could.

She was a saiyan, the hot blood of strength flowed through her and she would not break before another mission. This would truly be her first, she might not get to see Espara again if she failed, she might never get to read a book with him, dance for him, listen to music with him, see him smile, but if she did not try to do this then many saiyans in this very room would never do any of those things themselves. There would never laugh nor smile, they would never make such friends as she had found in Espara.

The commander was not a friend but she was a woman worth trying to protect as all the others were. She wondered vaguely if the commander ever smiled. She hoped she could give the green haired saiyaness a reason to. She wanted to give them all a reason to celebrate, dance in victory, drink in fellowship, sing in merriment over their own victories. Many legends would be born, and many more would die before they could begin if she failed or was not allowed her boon.

The Commander sprang from the healing tank without reservation, her face seemed awash with what Kale could only describe as panic. What could it be now? Was there another complication worming its way into the small colony? This was beginning to feel like some sort of intergalactic television drama. Kale’s lax body cranked into a stiff and straight posture as Celeria quickly dressed and passed him and his other two colleagues by. She didn’t take too much time out of her frantic departure to explain.

"Congregation meeting in no less than five minutes. It has begun." Soon after the Commander activated the colony red alert function and sirens sounded everywhere. Kale had the automatic impulse to reach for his ears at the uncomfortable sound, as he was reminded of his earlier failure on the PTO vessel. The ship had made the same screeching sounds, and the lights flashed in the same way. Goodness, he was experiencing post-traumatic stress! This really was some sort of interstellar drama after all.

"Attention. This is not an exercise. You are all to report to the conference chamber in T-minus five minutes. Commander out."

The doctor sighed and sunk into his clothing a little, as he hunched over he looked at least a size too small for everything he was wearing. He had accepted with full responsibility his role in all of this, but that didn’t mean he had to enjoy watching his people respond to the knowledge that they were at threat *again*.

“Come on.” Keyla swatted Kale hard on the arm with a flat palm as she followed in Celeria’s footsteps. He was beginning to feel like that ‘kick me’ sign really was plastered on his face.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -   

For the second time in a week, the entire Saiyan colony crowded into the conference chamber. It was a large dome-like room, structured around a centre point where the speaker (in this case the Commander) was visible from a 360 degree angle. The design was very Saiyan by nature, with the layout of the chamber attracting the bystanders to the authority figure in the centre of the room. Every Saiyan gathered in a cluttered circle around Celeria, and the rowdiness of chatter and speculation quickly died to complete silence.

Celeria commanded the room with her words. “I won’t lie to you lot.” She began. Kale anxiously fiddled with his thumbs in his pockets. Keyla eyed him as he did so and simply frowned.

“…Aaaaand here we go.” The doctor whispered to himself.

“I won’t beat around the bush either. We are facing an invasion by none other than the scum who annihilated our race. Frieza is coming for our heads.”

The auditorium exploded in frenzy as every single Saiyan in the room had something to object. Logic had dictated that this would happen, after all everybody there understood the tyranny of Lord Freeza and his galaxy crushing organisation, and if they had two brain cells to rub together, they also understood their chances of survival.

“Why don’t we show that slimy fucker what for?!” A rowdy member of the crowd shouted, a hint of pride welling in their voice. Kale huffed, they were delusional. Freeza’s strength was unparalleled, he was virtually unstoppable. Warriors alone weren’t enough to prevent him, even the Commander commanded only a fraction of the dark overlord’s power.

“That is EXACTLY what we are going to do. But we’re going to play it safe, as our brothers and sisters did before us. We have no other choice but to move the majority of the colony – the cryo-stasis sections along with those still dormant within them, the majority, if not all medical staff, most non-military personnel and a sufficient number of soldiers and their superiors.”

No, no. The doctor silently objected, he’d stay behind and form part of the defence force. Ironically he was one of the stronger Saiyans on the colony despite his no-combat role, and he needed to be there to treat the wounded. He’d be a vital part to the insurgency, and as self opinionated as it sounded, he knew he had the mind to form a real defence strategy against Freeza. He was necessary to Celeria’s plans, and he wouldn’t have it any other way. Besides, what was the worst she could do? Yell him down again? Throw some heavy threats his way? Ground him and take away his gadgets? He was the senior physician here, he was too important to neglect.

The speech concluded with the assignment of new roles for the colony members in the event that Celeria and many others did not get out of this alive. Kale sharply nodded, now she was thinking across the right lines. There had to be a backup plan, the race had to survive, even if he and Celeria acted as scapegoats for this eventuality to take place. He rolled his eyes, it was the second time in a lifetime that he’d been a decoy. He was beginning to feel as useful as the Oozaru teddy bear he had previously seen on no other than… And then Ikolo boastfully stepped in and objected to everything.

She spoke, and then spoke… and then spoke some more. The cheering from Celeria’s uplifting and triumphant speech faded, and the faces of the battle hardened Saiyan people gnarled. Whispering began, and before long it became talking, then it was a little louder. Kale himself was somewhat flabbergasted by meek Ikolo’s little speech, it was filled with idealistic jargon and reeked of political sentiment.

“Saiyan diplomat? What’s that?” Grape leaned in and whispered into Kale’s ear. The doctor nodded along, such a term was a misnomer. His eyes scanned the auditorium, and he waited in silence for a few seconds. He knew the Commander and her temper, and he knew what she was capable of doing to this naïve girl who appeared to have come out of a children’s fantasy story. He shouldn’t have wanted to take it into his own hands but he did, she was stamping on the morale of the troops by suggesting that combat (The Saiyan‘s only solution) was futile, and Kale and Celeria both knew that this was all they had now. He had to intervene before the Commander ripped her a literal new one.  

“Er… Miss Ikolo?” He announced, the sphere shifted its attention from the young Saiyan girl to Kale. Why didn’t he just feel important! “If that is your real title and name of course.” He said somewhat condescendingly, after all he had no idea why a Saiyan of her nature had been chosen for a colony of planet Vegeta’s most elite warriors and minds. “What exactly are you trying to get at here?” He raised both eyebrows and pressed his thumb and index finger against the bridge of his nose. “You *can’t* stand by and watch this happen as a diplomat and a Saiyan? Is… is that so?” He pressed forward through the crowd until he was standing firmly at the forefront of the circle. His eyes darted to Celeria and then back to the naïve child in front of him. “You realise the Saiyan foreign policy has been the annihilation of every single thing we encounter, right? This concept of Saiyan diplomacy that you have mustered up is a complete fallacy. We don’t have friends anywhere else other than here. I thought that was self evident when our race was completely obliterated a generation or so ago.” He paused, and crossed both of his arms. “Look around you. We’re Saiyans. We’d rather stand and fight than run and search for a way out. Ask anyone here… even me. Every single Saiyan will tell you that they will stand and fight this, because it’s simply what we do. If you want to go searching for some kind of useless alternative to this then feel welcome to it, the rest of us are going to do what we always have. We’re going to fight back.”

Kale looked her dead in her young and inexperienced eyes, then he looked back to Celeria before turning away and walking back towards Grape and Keyla. Saiyan diplomat? That was the best he'd heard in a long time. Just who was this fluffy, inexperienced child in their midst anyway? And why were her jokes funnier than his!?

After she had finished her speech, Celeria sat back and began sorting the personnel files that were being rerouted to her mainframe and thus to the scouter - the files first and foremost of those who volunteered for the 'welcome party'. As she was ready to disband the congregation, a young female approached her looking as if she's about to wet herself but mustering all her determination not to do it. Celeria cocked an eyebrow and leaned back in her chair. Apparently, the young one had something to say. Given the circumstances, Celeria was feeling generous, so she gestured the girl to go on uninterrupted. However, what the little girl had to say surprised Celeria even more than she had expected.


"There is no glory to be had in dying needlessly... without tact.. mission of mercy."

As she listened to the girl, Celeria's lips drew into a grin. As she proceeded, the grin grew wider. When she was about to finish, Celeria chortled. As she uttered the last syllable, Celeria felt her abdominal muscles beginning to contract. She barely managed to contain herself as Kale spoke out. But after he had finished, all eyes fell on her. A few silent seconds passed before Celeria erupted into the most loud and entertained laughter imaginable. Her roaring  resonated through the room and was soon joined by the laughter of more or less the entire congregation.

The entire chamber laughed for a good few minutes and Celeria's eyes swelled up with tears due to the sheer amount of amusement. Even though she knew that the majority of the congregation had a clear idea of what all of this was about, she felt compelled to elaborate. As she slowly rose from her massive chair and towered over the young woman, the laughter died down completely.

"Mercy. That's interesting. Tell me, child, do you know what was my response to the last person who uttered that word?" - after a slight pause, she added - "I tore out his throat." - Celeria's grin turned sinister, revealing her chillingly white teeth.

"You see, all those planets oppressed under the PTO boot - WE put them there. We flung the chains around their necks. We handed them to Frieza as playthings for his own twisted amusement. And you know what? We loved every minute of it. Because, need I remind you, it's what we do. And since when is a brutal death in battle needless?!" - she rose her voice, directing the last question to the entirety of the congregation.

Her silence was met with supporting cheers of excitement. When the rabble died down, Celeria's features contorted into a grave expression.

"And dying here is everything but needless." - She muttered to Ikolo before raising her voice once more to address everyone else.

"The ship that is coming for us has far superior technology. If we all run, they'll hunt us down and shoot us mid-flight. If we outrun them, they'll find us and slaughter us all one by one. In order for us to preserve what remains of our race, the ship must be destroyed - absolutely torn apart. And I will remain on the planet to do just that. I'm not stupid, I haven't the slightest delusion of beating Frieza. But what we are going to do is to piss him the heck off. Go out blazing." - Celeria looked up at the saiyans whose faces were all eager in expectation of the upcoming battle. She imagined their fists burned with the urge to be driven into the flesh of the enemy once more.

Celeria looked down at the girl one last time, lowering her voice to address Ikolo alone:

"Big words will get you nowhere here, little girl. That kind of thing is what Frieza gets off on. Personally, I have no sympathy for nonsensical babbling and no patience to pretend otherwise. So the choice is either to stand and fight, to go with the majority of the colony and protect them with your life - or to die here by my hand. The choice, my dear, is entirely up to you."


Celeria stared Ikolo down in silence for a little while longer before she climbed back up and stood in front of her chair.

"The meeting is adjourned, you are all to move to your directed posts. If you have any questions, you are free to seek me out in my quarters. Oh and, if someone even so much as calls Espara commander before I draw my last breath - I'll hang them by the balls!" - She laughed heartily and the rest of the group joined in, she was glad she could lighten the load on their shoulders with camaraderie jokes. They all walked in uncertain, in apprehension and now walked out patting each other on the back, bumping fists and, by the sound of it, discussing past experiences in battle. Perhaps they all needed an incoming invasion to remind them of what they really were. With that sentiment, she prepared to withdraw. But there was one last thing. She clicked her scouter promptly.

"Doctor, I need to speak to you about the arrangements for the upcoming evacuation procedure. Meet me in my quarters as soon as you can. Commander out."

Having completed everything that needed to be done, Celeria turned on her heel and exited the chamber, her cape waving solemnly along with her footsteps.

“Wait for it.” Keyla whispered confidently into Kale’s ear.

“Wait for what?” The doctor asked, letting his ear fall into place at her lips.

“That.”

The intensity of the Commander’s glare was no doubt petrifying to such a young girl, even Kale himself felt his hair stand to attention at the sight of Celeria’s flared nostrils and glaring eyes. And then the Commander laughed, and with her everyone else joined in. The room whaled in perfect unison, it was like a chorus of drunken patrons around a bar, laughing at the entertainment… that or the eruption of thunder across the whole sky. Both similarities were quite intimidating really. A room full of warriors all failed to contain their utter amusement at the naivety of a bizarre Saiyan teenager who had spoken too soon, terrifying. Poor thing, Kale thought, as he watched her flail under scrutinisation. He had approached her with a little more subtlety, Celeria on the other hand had hung her up in a tornado and left her to dry.

Kale found the laughter infectious after a time, and he himself began to giggle. First he huffed slightly, concealing his amusement, and before long he chortled along with the rest.

“And now you’re laughing.” Keyla said with a roll of her eyes. “Why are YOU laughing?”

“I-I wish I knew.” The doctor managed to say, as he wiped a single tear from the corner of his eye and continued to giggle. He hadn’t laughed so hard in such a long time, and it could have been for a multitude of reasons really. First, it was all so simply surreal. They were all doomed to the fate of sitting ducks at the hands of a monster, and here they were making light of a child’s words. Second, this was all Kale’s fault, he’d done this, and what else was there to do other than laugh? Third, the Commander laughed! What was more entertaining than that? The doctor released a long sigh before wiping the pearls of moisture from his forehead with a spare hand.

“Thaaaaaat’s so much better.” he said, fixing his collar and listening to the rest of Celeria’s speech. She simply condescended to the young girl, and dismissed her flawed logic accordingly. The doctor approved, she’d never shown such restraint with him, maybe he needed to grow a foot shorter and put a ribbon in his tail? No, bad idea, Kale thought, Celeria would then simply have yet another foot of height on him. She was already making him feel short. After the humiliation was over, Celeria lifted her audience again, and spoke directly to Kale.

"Doctor, I need to speak to you about the arrangements for the upcoming evacuation procedure. Meet me in my quarters as soon as you can. Commander out."

“First date?” Grape mused, moving through the dispersing crowd with Kale and Keyla.

“Second! But I’ve got high expectations for her after the first. For our first date she got into a fight with another guy and blew a planet up. Where do we go from here?” The doctor joked, patting his colleague on the back.

As they made their way to the exit, Kale noticed Espara in toe with another soldier. If he remembered his data logs correctly, that was Nich, first class in his battalion back home. The lieutenant was keeping good company, and they’d probably need him for the battle to come. If he got any input into the planning process at all, it would be that Espara and other like minded warriors remained to face Freeza’s forces. He might have been single-handedly signing their death warrants, but he knew the colony was far safer with weathered soldiers than well, Ikolo or any other pacifist that might be lurking in a comfy corner somewhere.

As Kale passed the lieutenant he patted the muscular soldier on the shoulder. Immediately he felt the rippling in his muscles, what did he stuff in there? Stones?


“Congratulations Almost-Commander Espara” the doctor smiled and gave a two finger salute. “It’s not everyday that somebody nearly gets promoted to Commander, I’d remember this day if I were you. And…” Kale leaned in smiling, before whispering playfully. “I’d keep an eye on Commander Celeria’s wardrobe, you know… it’ll give you some ideas for the types of capes and other affluent attire you’ll be expected to wear when you’re in charge.” The doctor pulled his head back and pursed his lips. The lieutenant was much less serious company than the Commander, thankfully.

Ikolo stared up at the commander in the best image of patience she could muster. Her tail unwrapped from her waist and swished anxiously as her tone took a dangerous turn and she was given three options. She held herself in place as best she could. She couldn't let her bearing down, she was a saiyan! They were laughing, all of them except for- Espara? He'd come up nearby but he seemed to show more concern than mirth. More than could be said for the doctor who also began to chortle along. There were only a few who didn't seem of the mind to laugh. Looked like her jokes were funnier than his somehow.

She took a breath she tried to keep from shaking but only barely managed to do so. It was taking every ounce of her training now to keep calm in the face of such adversity. She had to do this, somehow. She'd figure it out later. She cast a glance at Espara as the room roared with laughter. He still didn't seem to be growing in ire towards her. For a moment the world seemed to narrow to the two of them, alone in a sea of faces. She forced away the forlorn look that wanted to come to her face, the begging she wanted her eyes to let him see. She couldn't, it wouldn't be right to ask him to ride to her rescue in any way. The gears turned and she already had her answer from the look on his face. He cared, that was all she needed to see.

It wasn't wrong to be different or new. It wasn't wrong to care. What was wrong was to force people into little labeled boxes like she had lived her life in. Every vow she'd ever made reminded her that she was in a little labeled box that nobody here could comprehend. Even she didn't fully understand why she'd had to be forced in a little box with a bow on it. She answered lowly, for the commander to hear without her disrupting the din of laughter too much. "I'll defend the new colony then Commander. I'll pray for your victory to any god who might hear."

If nothing else she had done one good thing today, she had made them laugh. It didn't matter that it was at her expense. So what? Let them laugh, they needed the merriment even though it tore her heart in two. She turned on her heel and slunk away like a whipped dog, ducking and dodging not only a few insults hurled her way but as well some items, a few of which didn't miss. Her bare feet pounded as she darted through the crowd and dissappeared out the door as quickly as she could. It was time to hide and lick the wounds and let herself breakdown quietly. She knew all too well she would not win this battle with ideals and hopes. She had to learn her way and do better next time. No amount of hope alone would save them. She'd have to act eventually. She'd have to get better at what she was here for.

During the speech, one of the cry-stasis chambers began to thaw. Falling out of the chamber was a young 16 year-old boy with his black hair falling over his face. His tail was out stretched and he slowly began to stand on his feet. On his feet the boy began to hobble for a moment before finally being able to stand up straight. Flexing his tail came next, then the boy began to look around. He was in a laboratory like room, with a few more stasis chambers like his. Going up to one of the chambers he rubbed the glass to see another person held up inside.

Putting his hands up to his head the boy tried to remember what exactly happened. In his mind he remember three things. His name which was Okara, the image of 5 different people who looked similar to him dead with a large Saiyan standing over their body, and finally the image of that same man falling to his knees. The first image caused rage to fill Okara's body he wanted to smash everything in his vicinity, but he didn't. He wouldn't. He couldn't explain it but he felt that if he were to act out his emotions in a place like this it would lead to his own destruction. Sighing he decided to look around the area to see what was going on, but there was one problem... He was naked.

Cursing at himself he moved to find a suit of armor in the room, but after looking for a good 3 minutes he looked back in the chamber and saw a suit of Saiyan armor. Putting it back on sleeve by sleeve and leg by leg Okara stretched as best as he could just in case he needed to run, not that he had any real means of escape. Walking around aimlessly for a moment he was somehow able to make his way to the conference chamber. Walking in mostly unnoticed he listened to the news of what would occur. Okara scratched his head, Freeza the tyrant would be coming to destroy the saiyans. Okara sighed, sounded like the Saiyans would be in trouble if they didn't escape but he knew that Saiyans aren't cowards him included, something inside of him wanted to participate in the fight to stop the ship that was coming toward the planet but he knew that he couldn't really jump into a fight like that with his very little battle experience. Even without a scouter he could tell that he was probably one of the weakest beings in the room, considering he was just awakened and probably one of the youngest around.

Sighing and standing at the edge of the room, Okara crossed his arms he wanted to see if he could recognize anyone in the room. Unfortunately he couldn't at least not at the moment. Letting his eyes survey the room Okara was sure he would be undetected... well as long as no one noticed that he wasn't wearing a scouter.

"Yeah," Espara replied smiling. "I may ask the commander for some fashion tips." He smiled, with an innocence that almost deceived Kale into believing that he wasn’t a trained lieutenant.

"It's good to finally meet you doctor." Nich said, extending his hand towards Kale. "I've heard quite a bit about you."

Kale smiled gleefully in response. Well at least there were a few faces who weren’t completely out to get him. Maybe that ‘kick me’ sign really was gone off his face. The doctor extended a hand to grip the private’s, if his memory served him correctly -which it always did, and he was blaming the medical corps for that- then this was Nich. Kale remembered reading that this particular soldier was top of his unit back on planet Vegeta, maybe he’d be useful in the battle against Freeza, I.E. the mess created by Kale?

“It’s all deceitful dirty lies, all of it, I promise. I’m a good guy when you get past the psychopathic tendencies!” He joked, gripping Nich’s hand warmly before continuing. “And I’ve heard quite a lot about you too Private.” He paused and glanced into the air in thought, “No… wait, I haven’t heard anything about you at all. Hmm…” He pondered. “But I’ve read quite a lot about you from a medical dossier, so I know all about your high cholesterol and borderline addiction to eating exotic fauna.” His eyes trailed off again and he pouted his lips, he was only half-joking.

Kale’s stream of conversation was blunted however as another familiar face approached and interrupted the conversation. He seemed to be vying for Espara’s attention, no doubt in light of the news that he someday might have the top job. Kale held back a snicker, until finally the soldier spoke to him.

“Hey there doc. That kid over there seems to need help.” Kale’s gut pinged with slight resentment. He hated all use and associate with the word ‘doc’, it was an infantilising abbreviation of a profession that simply couldn’t be infantilised. He peered out the side of his eyes at Mokra, and traded his a coarse smile. “Thanks… Mok” He said, slightly sarcastically, abbreviating Mokra’s name in the same manner that he’d done to Kale. But alas, Mokra was right, there in the middle of the crowd was a confused looking Saiyan. He had the colourless pallor, and look of general disorientation that spelled out cryo awakening. Had Celeria started setting the rest free already?

Kale raised a hand and spoke to Espara and Nich. “Give me five guys.” He walked towards the shorter disoriented looking Saiyan, he was very young, he was similar to Ikolo in a way. “Hey there, you look like you’re lost. We’re about a couple of thousand parsecs north of planet Vegeta… so basically, that way!” He smiled, sharply pointed a hand directly in front of him to signify direction, and then tucked both of his thumbs firmly in his utility belt. “Are you all right? I’m a doctor, I can help.” His tone became more serious, as he made his first enquiry.