Zafira's Story

CHAPTER 5: Starting Anew

      Zarbon entered the room where Zafira had soon grown tired from crying and approached her. Zarbon knelt down to touch her hair, but she quickly pulled away and stood. "Stay away from me!!" she yelled and rushed out of the room. Zarbon merely stood there and watched her leave.

      Prince Vegeta was finally let out of his room and led to where Zafira waited for him in a room. "Mother!" Vegeta yelled and ran into her arms. "You're all right," she said with a relieved voice. Then she looked up at the soldier who was staring at the scene. "Well don't just stand there! Get him some new clothes and get him started on his training!" Zafira ordered and the soldier quickly led Vegeta to another room.

      In the cafeteria, Zarbon and Dedoria were eating (again). "She hasn't said a word to me since then," Zarbon said. "I guess she really did care for that king. Looks like you lost your chance," Dedoria said. "What are you talking about?" Zarbon looked up at him. "You lost your chance at becoming her mate 'cause that king stole her heart before you did. It's shameful, really. A ladies man like yourself getting shown up by that ugly, balding, monkey," Dedoria said, laughing. Zarbon nearly sneered and blushed. "Who said anything about me becoming her mate?" Zarbon asked. "Oh, give it a rest, Zarbon. Who are you trying to fool. You and I both know you have a thing for her and it's only a matter of time before she realizes it too," Dedoria said. "I do not care about that blasted saiiyan!" Zarbon yelled, getting everyone's attention. He blushed and lowered his voice. "And anyway, she needs to stop blubbering over him and move on." "Sounds like you're concerned. A perfect sign that you like her," Dedoria said. "I'll show you," he muttered and got up.

      Inside her old resting quarters, Zafira held a small portrait of herself, King Vegeta, and Prince Vegeta. As usual, they all had serious looks on their faces. The king has his arms around her waist as she stood in front of him and Zafira had her hands on Vegeta's shoulders while he smirked and stood in front of her. A tear rolled down her cheek as she placed it under her pillow. Just then, the doors slid open, and Zarbon entered the room. "What do you want?" she asked in an icy tone. "I came to check up on you," he said. "Well you can leave now," she said. He gritted his teeth and walked up to her. "Still blubbering over your dead king?" he asked in a cold tone, himself. She looked at him and sneered. "Jealous because I never showed the same concern for you?" she said, with her back turned and got off the bed and headed for her dresser. This infuriated him and he grabbed her by her wrist and made her face him. "Listen, you need to forget about him! He's gone!" Zarbon yelled. "Yes, he's gone! And it's your fault!" Zafira yelled back. He pushed her onto the bed and ripped off her gloves, shoulder-pads and her dress. She sat on her legs in nothing but her panties, folding her arms over her breasts. "Forget about him! Tying yourself down to his memory will make you weak!" he said. "Are you done?" she asked, looking down. He eyed her for a moment and noticed the necklace that the king had given her. "Not quite," and he ripped the necklace from around her neck, threw it in the air, and blasted it into dust. "You bastard!" she yelled and tried to attack him, but he got her by her wrists and held her down. "Let go of me! All you've ever done and made my life a living hell!" she yelled and struggled. "That's a lie! All I've been trying to do is help you!" he said. "By taking me from my husband and then destroying my home?" she asked. "This is your home! Here! With Frieza! And with me," he calmed down. "Can't you see? You don't need the saiiyans. You have me. I will ALWAYS be here for you. And anyway, how do you know if he really loved you. For all you know, he could've just kept you to bear an heir," he said. "Impossible," she looked away. "Oh really? I heard about how his first wife could not bear a child. How do you know he didn't sleep with you just to get an heir?" he asked. She wanted to say something to defend her king, but she couldn't. Her only excuse was the battle she had with Cyrene, but who knows what could've happened if Cyrene had survived the battle? "You see. Now, forget about Vegeta. The planet and it's blasted king," Zarbon said and bent down to kiss her.

      Time had passed and Prince Vegeta had grown adjusted to life as one of Frieza's men, unfortunately, they weren't always the best of times. He felt as if he were constantly being bullied by Frieza. And his new friends shared the same fate. As Vegeta grew up, it had turned out that there were still some saiiyans that had survived. Raditz, from Bardock's family, and Nappa, a saiiyan elite, stood by his side and grew up, remaining loyal to their prince. The three were allowed to come and go as they pleased. The three were a unit, they always stuck together, always traveled together. Raditz, had left the Planet Vegeta in search of his brother, Kakarrot. As it turns out, the baby had never returned from Earth, where he was sent. Nappa was a wandering saiiyan elite, very strong, but not too smart. Since she was returning to life as one of Frieza's, she wore her original outfit, the one before she went to Planet Vegeta. Over time, it became obvious that Zafira and Zarbon were an item, and it didn't exactly make Vegeta too happy. Whenever the two trained, Vegeta would always give him a reason to hate him and Zarbon would do likewise. Vegeta was strong, but nowhere near his level, so he constantly lost, but he always came back stronger than ever.

     Zafira continued to train Vegeta herself, especially in intellect. She taught him to be tactful, crafty, and how to think his way through his problems instead of letting his short temper get the best of him. One day, Frieza dropped them off on another one of his planets where he could train more. Frieza knew that Vegeta would never leave his mother's side, so it was impossible to send the two separately. Here, Vegeta met the Ginyu force for the first time: Captain Ginyu, Berter, Jeice, Recoome, and Guldo. The five were weird, constantly striking these weird poses whenever they introduced themselves. But what they lacked in dignity, they made up in their strength. The group was incredibly powerful. Vegeta had always hoped that one day, he'd be as powerful as they, but until then, his power level quickly rose above the one named Guldo. Guldo was a short, pudgy alien that was green like a frog and two extra large eyes on the sides of his head. Guldo was sort of quiet and a little insecure. Vegeta ALWAYS gave him a reason to be angry. The Ginyu believed that Vegeta was nothing more than a puny little brat, even as a teenage. Zafira, on the other hand, got a little more respect (a little). Like the men on Frieza 8, whenever she would stroll by, she was always prepared for a perverted comment or a whistle from them.

      Zafira stood in front of a window, watching new Ginyu recruits train. Jeice happened to be walking by when he saw her. A smirk curled his lips and he walked over to her. "Hey Zafira. How'd you like to join me for lunch?" he asked. Zafira looked over at him and smirked.  Jeice was cute, she thought, but naive. He felt because of his good looks, (and all the girls that would drool over him for obvious reasons), that he could get any girl he wanted and because Zafira showed no interest, he was constantly after her. She would merely play along. "Run along, Jeice, we have business to discuss," a loud, booming voice spoke. Jeice nearly jumped out of his skin and saluted the tall purple giant before him. "At once, Cap'n Ginyu!" and he rushed off. "Hello Zafira," the Captain said. "Hello yourself, captain. So, just what is this business?" Zafira asked, staring up at the giant. "I'm a little concerned about your son. He has quite the potential to become a member of the Ginyu force, but he lacks...how should I put this? He lacks the finesse and style," he said. "Whatever do you mean?" Zafira asked in a phony voice of concern. Vegeta was in one of the training rooms and blasted away one of the men. Guldo jumped up and down and yelled at him, saying that he didn't even bother doing the introduction they made up for him. Vegeta merely smirked and tripped him and burst out laughing. A sweat drop appeared on the side of Zafira's head and she giggled. "Come now, Zafira. Unless you want your son to be dropped from the program, please talk to him," the captain pleaded. She sighed,"Alright, all right. I'll see what the problem is." The captain clasped his hands together and thanked her, then bowed and left.

      "Because those stupid poses look ridiculous. They look foolish, doing those stupid poses whenever they battle," Vegeta said as his mother combed his hair. "Well, just remember. I talked with the captain and he's giving you one more chance at joining the Ginyu Force. Unless you can do those silly poses, they'll send you back to Frieza," Zafira said. Vegeta sighed in exasperation. The next day, Vegeta was kicked out of the Ginyu camp.

      One night, Frieza wanted to have Zafira posted on Planet Frieza 20, so she had to leave Frieza's ship. Vegeta wasn't too delighted with the idea, neither was Zarbon, but it was Frieza's wish. Frieza felt that the only reason Vegeta was so unmanageable, was because with his mother around, he could do whatever he wanted because he knew, she didn't care. And he knew that if anyone tried to scold him, other than Zarbon, they'd have to deal with her. "I don't see why I can't go with you," Vegeta said as he stood with his mother in front of the docking ship. "Because you're not needed there, I am. They want me to run things and get everyone on the up and up. The soldiers there are weak and need and strong leader to make them strong again. I want you to stay here and behave," Zafira said and kissed him on the cheek. Snickers were heard from behind him. "Mother!" he yelled like a little boy. She chuckled, then looked through her bag and brought out some kind of chain. In the center was a white orb, circled by gold lining. "What is it?" he asked. She placed it in his hand. "I know you'll be concerned about my health, so I'm giving you this. I had this made especially for me. If that orb ever turns black, it means I'm dead. I want you to hold onto it. Who knows when we'll see each other again," she said. Vegeta put it in his shirt and folded his arms angrily. "I still don't like it," he said. "So spoiled," she said, shaking her head. "Well? Doesn't your mother get a hug or a kiss good-bye?" she asked, opening her arms. Vegeta looked behind him to see the other soldiers laughing at him. He pointed his palm at them and fired a blast and they all ran off in fear. He turned around and hugged his mother tight before letting go and planting a kiss on her cheek. "Good-bye son," she said and boarded the ship. He merely folded his arms, still not happy with her leaving.