ZARBON

I was standing on the bridge of communications, staring at the panel.

The ship was empty.

Every soldier who'd followed me off that landing site was in the galley, sitting in silence, trying to process what they'd just watched, and I could’t blame them. Dodoria cut in half. Lord Frieza punched through the stomach and slapped across the sky like a common soldier. 

And to top this humiliation off… the monkey offering mercy like he was the one in charge. Such an ugly brute would never command the likes of Zarbon!

I'd taken the mercy. Walked away. Backed down in front of forty soldiers and a dead comrade.

The word "coward" didn't sit well with me, beautiful, elegant, unique did. But right now, I prefer the word “pragmatist." There was no honor in dying for nothing, and throwing myself at that Saiyan after what he'd done to Dodoria would have been dying for nothing.

I'd seen what happened to Dodoria. I'd seen first hand what he was capable of. Charging in blind would've been suicide.

But that didn't mean I was out of options. I was nothing if not resourceful, after all, there was a reason why I had rose through the ranks of the Frieza Force so fast, despite not being the strongest member.

I reached for the communications panel and input the access code for Lord Frieza's private line. The one reserved for direct contact with the Ginyu Force. The one that required clearance level D4 or above, which I had as General-Adjutant. Technically, using it without Lord Frieza's explicit permission was a violation of about twelve different protocols.

But under the current circumstances, I was going to operate under the assumption that protocols were temporarily suspended.

The line connected. A crackle of static, then a sharp click as someone on the other end picked up.

"This is Zarbon, General-Adjutant D4871."

Silence. Then the voice on the other end — deep, authoritative, edged with irritation.

"Why are you using Lord Frieza's direct line, Zarbon?"

Captain Ginyu. Straight to the point. He didn't like surprises, and someone other than Lord Frieza using this line was a surprise.

"Captain, I apologize for the unconventional contact, but the situation demands it. Lord Frieza has been betrayed."

Another crackle of static. I could hear something in the background — movement, voices. The rest of the Force, probably.

"Betrayed," Ginyu repeated slowly. "By whom?"

"The Saiyans, and Lord Frieza has personally requested your assistance in exterminating these rats."

“We are on our way.”

The call ended.

“Now, we just have to wait…”

Lord Frieza would see my tactical retreat as a smart approach, and he would praise my quick thinking for summoning the Special Forces. By the end of the day, I might even be rewarded with my own vocational planet, though... I would be happy if I just managed to keep my head after today, unlike Dodoria.

Almost as if on cue, the alarm on the bridge blared.

I looked down at the console. A single power signature had appeared just outside the ship, it wasn’t moving. It was just standing there, a few meters away from the ship.

I pulled up the visual feed.

It was a girl. A Saiyan girl, dark hair, arms at her sides, grinning. She was just standing in front of the ship, staring directly at the bridge cameras, meaning she knew she was being watched.

The ship’s internal scouter readout on the side of the screen was what made my stomach drop.

Her power level was reading at more than 500,000!

WHAT?!

First the saiyan king and now this girl? Just what had happened to these monkeys to grow this strong!

"Sir," one of the soldiers called from the galley doorway. "What's going on?"

"Shut up," I said without looking away from the screen.

The girl raised her hand. Palm open. Pointed directly at the ship.

She was going to kill us... No no no no, I can't let this happen!

I pressed the comms, activating the external path of communications so that she could hear me. "Hey! Your king spared us! He gave us mercy himself! You can’t do this!"

Her voice came through the external speakers, clear and flat. "That bastard is merciful, but isn't stupid. He sent you back here knowing exactly what you'd do, which is why he had Garlik keep an eye on all comms leaving the planet. You called the Ginyu Force, didn't you?"

My blood went cold.

"How —"

"You are stupid, arent you?" She tilted her head, that flat expression never changing. "We heard your little call, in fact, Escarot bet whoever he spared would probably call the special forces to aid their pathetic little lord, and he was right."

The soldiers behind me were panicking. I could hear them shuffling, someone muttering a prayer, someone else swearing. None of it mattered. None of it was going to help.

"Please," I said, and I hated how my voice sounded. Hated the crack in it. "Please, I was just following orders — I was trying to help Lord Frieza —"

"Ugh, that’s just sad… stop it, have some dignity." She snorted. "Besides, you're barking at the wrong tree idiot. The merciful one is Escarot, not me."

Her hand glowed.

"Wait —"

OKARA

Now all we had to do was wait.

I had no idea why that moron was so concerned about the captain of these elite forces. But he said killing Ginyu was almost as important as killing Frieza. Something about a body-switching technique that made him more than just dangerous — impossible to deal with under the right circumstances.

I didn't see the threat behind it. A technique was a technique. You hit the guy before he uses it, problem solved. But if Escarot was so adamant on someone dying, who was I to say no.

The wind picked up, carrying the smell of burnt metal from the ship I'd just turned into scrap. Good smell. Meant the job was done.

"Now what?" Bardock asked.

He was standing there with his arms crossed, looking at me like he expected a full briefing. I didn't work like that.

"Now I go prepare for plan B." I cracked my neck. Left side, then right. “You and your team wait for the elite morons, and kill the captain with extreme caution, remember what Escarot said.”

Plan A was Escarot dealing with Frieza. Clean and simple. He'd spent months getting ready for this fight — training, studying, doing all that and more He knew Frieza's moves, his habits, his weaknesses. If anyone was going to put the emperor down, it was him.

He was the best of us, for now.

Plan B was Escarot weakening the bastard enough for me to finish the job. If Plan A didn't get it done but got him close, I'd step in and do what I do best. Hit things until they stop moving. Simple. No thinking required.

If Plan A and Plan B didn't work, we were fucked.

But if needed, I would take Escarot and leave to fight another day. Even if he didn't approve of my plan C.

He wouldn't approve. I knew that. He'd say something about how running wasn't an option, how there was too much at stake, how this was bigger than him. He'd be right about all of it. Didn't matter. I'd grab him by the back of his stupid neck and drag him off this planet if I had to.

He could yell at me about it later. Yelling meant he was alive, and alive was the only thing I cared about.

I refused to let the moron die. If someone was killing him, it was me. And I didn't want to kill him. Therefore, he had no right to fucking die.

"Plan B," Bardock repeated. "And what's plan C?"

"None of your business."

"It's my planet too."

"Fuck off."

Bardock stared at me. I stared back. He was the only one besides Escarot who could do that without making me want to hit him. Most people couldn't hold eye contact with me for more than three seconds. Bardock could do it all day, despite knowing I could break him in haft with my pinkie, which was something I respected.

He looked away first this time. Good.

"Fine," he said. "Keep your secrets."

"It's not a secret. It's none of your business. There's a difference."

"Is there?"

"Yes."

The Ginyu Force would be here soon. Five of them, according to what Escarot had told me. Supposedly the strongest team in Frieza's empire. They apparently did little dances before they fought. Choreographed routines. Poses.

Who the hell does that?

I stopped walking and rolled my shoulders, feeling the muscles loosen and tighten.

"Where are you going?" Bardock called after me.

"To get ready."

Bardock and his team should be strong enough to deal with them, and they better do, I fucking trained them so if they lost it would look bad on me, and I would take that shit personally... in the meantime I would see how Frieza fought, and learn everything I could, in case I had to jump in.