[IC] Dragon Ball: Legacy (Mogtaki and Vena Sera)

[Mogtaki]

T’charrl was pretty numb feeling, wondering if he was supposed to be feeling this particular way after being blasted by wind. It was supposed to be just wind, nothing else. It wasn’t punches or Ki blasts he was having to fend off, just an element that his people tried to avoid. It didn’t help that he lived underground most of his life, the winds down there was mostly due to storms elsewhere that ventilated from other areas. It was a force he wasn’t used to trying to deal with, but hopefully it was going to be able to help him in the end. Feeling pretty exhausted already he looked to his father as he took this brief moment to discuss what they were planning on doing next, feeling a little relieved the plan was to go only one last time at least. It was probably all he could take for his legs and the feeling in his chest. It may not had felt like too much to Haku and his father, but they were heavier than him and being so light made it difficult to withstand and push back from blustering wind. “…Okay, okay we’ll do that. I wouldn’t want that either…”

It would feel probably pretty good to get to meditation practice, better than being blasted in the face by sharp winds. It was all for his own good of course, he understood that quite clearly. Looking back at Haku he frowned a little at his insistence that he was going to be fine, not knowing if he should be believing the results quite yet. “Anything is possible…? I guess so: I went to space…” he muttered, thinking it through in his head before gasping when Haku decided to pull him forward. When he went back he had no idea how they’ll even react if at all, especially when he was not taken heed of all that much with the likes of Takeshi refusing to touch him anyway. Takeshi would never want to train with him because of his fur and odd moulting. That wasn’t his driving force though, he just wanted to feel better. “I won’t give up! I-I’ll still go one more time though…then I need to find balance so that my legs and chest don’t hurt so much…” So long as his head didn’t start hurting he was probably going to be fine, he’d never be able to meditate if he had a headache. Making clicking noises for a second he soon moved back into position, ready to go again. “I can take it! Then…where ever King Nema is. If he’s back at the palace then I don’t know how good I’ll be at flying after this…”

--

Krom didn’t really care about Takeshi’s words, he had seen much worse go on and Takeshi would probably just ignore the fact any of it happened. He didn’t care much about other people, that much was evident. The fact that there was people in worse situations that Takeshi ignored was already placing him in the ‘couldn’t care less about his words’ pile. It was interesting though, how much he was angry at him for all that had happened to Shu and Viral. Maybe he could use that to get him motivated, but he would have to be telling him more about what happened behind the scenes. Shu would be fine with him talking about it, the kid was already aware of everything that happened nor did talking about it actually spring up any emotions in him. It was important that he didn’t try and get him to change to try and help him control it today, with his head injury that much stress could end up popping something if he wasn’t careful. Takeshi, however, had nothing wrong with him so he could take it. Looking at him he let out a sigh, seeing him looking like he was just making it harder for himself with that posture. “You know, if you want to break your back then sure! Keep going at it like that! You’ll bend over like an overburdened twig!” he called out to him, heavily sighing, “Maybe once Shu is better we’ll give you that Frost Demon to fight against, see if you’ve actually grown in strength while I test out your brother! I’m sure you’ll do fiiiine fighting one of those creatures…besides, you’ve been ignoring his existence while he’s been sitting in a single room all by himself. He’ll be happy to get out and stretch his legs, I’m sure! Can’t let him end up being forgotten like you forgot about the Commander, huh?”

--

What Vegeta had done was just unforgiveable in Viral’s eyes at this moment, whether that would change in the future was something that couldn’t be predicted. It had been years of the same issues and even with them off Earth he was barely treating him with any respect. He was just another subject to him who had received the ‘care and attention’ he felt he deserved to receive before being dumped on the next person otherwise known as Aito. While this was supposed to be somewhat like training he was barely doing any of that and instead simply throwing out his frustrations, a small portion of it at least. He was on top of Vegeta at every corner while hardly giving him an opening, only having Vegeta charge at him once he was far away enough to given a chance to breathe. Growling, he pulled to the side to dodge the slow punch Vegeta tried to deliver before throwing a counter attack right back. With the intention of attacking once more he moved in, but Vegeta had managed to break through and score a hit to his head.

Staggering momentarily he soon caught himself, his claws up near his face momentarily as he glanced over when Vegeta finally decided to speak. ‘Still here’? Is that all he had for him? That he was still around after all the torture he endured? “…Is that all you can say? ‘Despite everything’? You think this is just all coincidence that I’m still around? Is that it? You’re surprised I’ve managed to survive this long?” he spoke, sounding almost baffled, “I survived because nothing will kill me! Not even a damn Saiyan blowing up in my face! You know how hard it is to die when nothing kills you??” Going in again he started throwing punches again, becoming a little more random with his attacks and his fists loosening a little. “I’m still here because of that sliver of hope that I might find a meaning to my existence! A reason why I’m still here! And do you know all I got? The fact that I’m just a damn babysitter for someone who never wanted me around! Maybe I should had stayed with the Saiyans…they at least gave me more ‘despite everything’!”

It was at this point where he didn’t even know if he was still mad at Vegeta or maybe himself. He had never been able to speak of these issues and what was he expecting, exactly? He had stopped trying to dodge or block Vegeta as he lost focus. He had so many years to try and figure it out himself, yet he had failed even that. He was a failure to himself. Vegeta was right: despite everything, all their efforts, he was still here, another roadblock in the way. Without him, Vegeta would have a normal family and everyone would be back on Earth.

[GambolMuse]

What was that jerk criticizing now? His posture? Who the hell cared if he was hunched over! Growling an insult under his breath he lifted the weights and straightened himself out as he continued to run along. If the guy was going to bust his ass over every little thing fine, better him than Shu he supposed. And it would make things all the more satisfying when he got a chance to finally fight Krom. "You mean Kiton? I didn't forget him you jackass, just been too busy," the Saiyan grunted, stumbling slightly as the weights shifted and he fought to keep balance. The load hadn't seemed too pressing when he'd begun but once in motion it was beginning to hit Takeshi just how heavy the gear was. Bringing up Viral struck a nerve and he nearly stopped in his tracks to scream at Krom, instead letting out a load, frustrated groan and pushing himself harder instead. He couldn't be mouthing off and shouting if he wanted Shu to get better, no matter how pissed he got it would only hurt his brother. The hell was he supposed to do with this heat though? Glaring at the Elite, Takeshi huffed before slamming his foot down behind him and taking off as quickly as he could manage, trying to focus on his training instead of letting his anger boil over. The jerk did help remind him though that maybe they should go and see Kiton later, the guy was definitely going to be lonely sitting all by himself. Not that he expected him and Shu to be great company but hey, it had to beat having none right?

----------

"N-No, that's not what I'm saying Viral, not at all! I'm applauding your tenacity! No one else could endure what you have!" Were he flexible enough Vegeta's foot would be planted firmly between his teeth right now. Just when he thought for a second he might be breaking ground his efforts blew up in his face. He had to keep trying though, now was the best and perhaps only chance to finally clear the air between them. What the Beastman said next made his heart catch in his throat, his arm raising only on instinct to block the swipe from Viral. It was the first time since this all began, since ever that Viral had been vocal about his inner struggles. Rather, the first time he'd said it in so many words. There was no way he was seriously proposing being with the Saiyans was a better alternative... Was he? Was mindless, hate fueled warfare really an alternative to what he had now?

"You don't mean that! You're free, free to do whatever you wish, to do what you choose! You would never have that choice with the Saiyans! No one does under them!" Not Takeshi, not Shu, not the twins or Kabocha or Yumi, and certainly not Viral. Blocking another punch Vegeta winced as claws raked against his cheek and left three gouges along it, stepping back and quickly wiping at the blood that began to spill. "They didn't give you those collars because you had choice, Viral. They gave you them to make you a mindless soldier! Is that really any better than this? Being with us?!" It was an alternative that Vegeta absolutely refused to accept. The fact that Viral even suggested they had provided so poorly for him made his stomach churn uncomfortably and his blood boil - but not out of anger. Had they failed him so badly that he truly meant that? Had he failed that badly? Negligence didn't even begin to cover his conduct and he'd tried to make amends, though in retrospect he'd done so while expending the least amount of time possible. As if Viral was just a side project, not a living being.

"Come on Viral... Take that back, what you said. You know you're better off with us than them," Vegeta argued weakly as a smile wavered upon his lips. Slowly approaching with hands extended as though asking for something he continued, "You're more than a babysitter, you're part of this group! You always have been! And I was wrong to try and send you off, I knew it then and I know it now but I could never admit it to myself. I was wrong and I realize it, your place is here with us! And as for your purpose... Your purpose is to fight with us, with all of us. Isn't that enough? To be fighting with friends for the greater good? What more do you possibly need?"

[Mogtaki]

Despite his standing with the Princes and anyone in general in this place Krom was still going to try and teach, he wasn’t going to slack off and just let things happen; besides, he would probably just get the blame for Takeshi’s bad back. With Takeshi adjusting himself and making excuses as to why he hadn’t been seeing his other friend, or whatever he was, in a while he couldn’t help but smirk. “Too busy? Doing what? Training? Going off to fight things? Everything that’s in a Frost Demon’s instinct to do? Hmmm that’s too bad…for him, at least. Unless you’re afraid that he’ll fly away…” It was a little weird that they weren’t using Kiton for anything, at least to him. It had always been the case that the talented and strong were used in battle as much as possible, but the Rebels didn’t appear to be doing such a thing. They seemed more set on keeping the strongest only on certain rotation, like they were satisfied just sending a few people out on missions at a time. It seemed pretty wasteful, like they didn’t want to put all their effort into a mission. It certainly said a lot about the rebels, unless it was just this bunch who barely wanted to do anything in regards to the monsters and the King’s own army. Seeing Takeshi’s nerve being struck there he smirked, folding his arms. “You know, if you’re going to get mad you should focus it into lifting those weights! You’d get stronger and more focused if you at least tried to stop yourself from focusing all your emotions into what you say! Put your feelings into action!”

--

Vegeta was just spouting the worst things to say right now, making him sound as if his endurance was something to clap at. Just who did Vegeta think he was? Or better yet what did he think he was? Surely his existence was worth more than a simple applause? Lashing out at Vegeta wasn’t going to be good enough for him, but something inside was slowly killing his ability to fight clearly and with one last quick punch it had instead turned into almost gouging Vegeta’s face. Growling lowly he stared at his claws for a moment before looking back at Vegeta, standing his ground. Just what was freedom if he wasn’t trusted to go where he pleased? What of all the regulations he was put under? Even the trial and how he was treated then. He knew Korian still despised him for all that he had done with seemingly no remorse. Just how many more around him hated the fact he existed? It had been different when he was with the Saiyans, he was aware of every moment despite being placed under control. He wasn’t happier with the Saiyans by far, but they made him feel useful and gave him a purpose which was more than what he had been given here.

“They knew me. Remembered me! They respected me as a warrior! And what have I been here? Constantly forgotten and discarded!” Backing off a few steps as Vegeta approached he let out a growling sigh, looking to his claws instead of Vegeta. He was trying hard to apologise to him, but that was pretty difficult. It had been most of his life already and to shake that off was going to take a lot longer than that. “Hmph, friends…? If your father didn’t call you over here you would never think about coming to see the likes of me? If I sought you out would you be willing to talk or leave your room with me or will you simply say ‘I’m too busy’? Ever since your father came back you’ve stopped doing everything with me or even acknowledged my existence because you no longer have to deal with me…” It was a lot more than simply having a lack of purpose, it was being seen as a subject and someone so unstable they needed someone to watch over all the time. “Being with the Saiyans may had been painful, I may had experienced horrors beyond your understanding…but I was never forgotten about! All it feels now is I’m being constantly watched by everyone here to make sure I’m going to behave myself! That’s all it has been so far…just more monitoring with the only difference being I’m allowed to go outside now under supervision…”

[GambolMuse]

"What he does ain't up to me. And Shu and I can't spend time with every single person, we're only two kids." Krom wasn't wrong though, Takeshi acknowledged bitterly, they'd certainly had time to pay him a visit. When not traveling on a mission they spent the majority of their time goofing off or training, both of which could easily be set aside to spend time with someone. Would Kiton even want their company though? He'd been so long without any and it wasn't as though they were close - not that they ever had an opportunity to even get close - but Takeshi couldn't see the guy wanting them to visit. Then again being alone all the time could be really lousy and it probably didn't much matter who came by after a while. Just like how Viral had been. Hearing Krom talk about the Beastman pissed Takeshi off - as if he had any idea or right to speak like that, but he bit his tongue and pressed on with training. Oh he'd use his emotions to fuel action alright: a swift boot to Krom's ass was action wasn't it? If Shu weren't present there'd be a slew of cusses and slurs thrown the Elite's way. There was one little thing to get off his chest though. "Maybe you should shut up too old man, don't want to bother Shu, making him think we're ignoring people," smiling as he spoke, Takeshi scoffed before facing forward and continuing to run, "And worry about yourself pops, it's not like you've got lots of room to talk here. Hush and be a good little teacher."

----------

What was he supposed to say? For all of his education and his pedigree Vegeta was left feeling as hapless as a freshman student on their first day of university. Where did he go from here? Aito offering no words of wisdom meant he was on his own and, frankly speaking, he was lost. For a man who prided himself on his combat ability wouldn't lauding his endurance be seen as a good thing? Vegeta struggled for an answer until Viral made a poignant remark: he was being watched like some wild, unruly animal. When he'd been at risk for sudden transformations that perhaps had been warranted but he'd improved since then - considerably so, so why then was he scrutinized the same way? They didn't think him incompetent or incapable and yet they almost didn't seem to trust him. Did he fear vindication or that Viral might seek revenge? No, that had never occurred to him once. So why then?

"It's... Been for your own good..." Vegeta had since stopped in his tracks and now looked to the floor, his features contorted into a mask of confusion. Even his own words sounded false to him. For his own good? That was the best he could come up with? Why couldn't he just make this right? Everything else was always so simple but Viral... He'd never been able to get Viral right. Why? Why couldn't he figure out someone he'd known all his life? He was Aito's son, grandson of Trunks, great-grandson of Bulma, he had the lineage of geniuses and yet he was as thick as Takeshi when it came to Viral. How could nothing he has tried work? Looking at the Beastman confused a trembling smile found its way on his face as he let out an uneasy laugh, his mind coming to perhaps the least accurate conclusion of a lifetime.

"It's you... That's the problem, it has to be!" It was a sensible conclusion in whatever plane of thought Vegeta's addled mind had found itself in. He couldn't have failed, he'd never failed, not when his father died, not when they had reunited, he'd even managed to keep Viral under control all those years. No, the fault couldn't be him, it had to be the Beastman. "I've done everything I should have, everything that I could think of... It's not me, it's you. Something's wrong with you and... And..." Just what was he saying? Was he trying to absolve himself of his very clear neglect and wrongdoings by pining it on someone else? On the victim no less? Laughing again as he felt tears in his eyes he rubbed at them with the heels of his hands, looking up at Viral in defeat. "I did all I could, don't you get it? I... I can't do anymore, I don't know what to do anymore. I can't help you."

"I think that's enough of that! I've never really enjoyed tense moments like this," Aito interrupted with an clasp of his hands. Vegeta had tried to speak his mind but it hadn't quite been as... Succinct, as the doctor as hoped. Perhaps he could help out. "Viral? You truly believe yourself to be without purpose? You were created to protect, right? But we're no longer on Earth, so how are you to protect that?" It was a rhetorical question and Aito had no intention of letting the Beastman answer. "It's a shame there aren't so... Oh, phantasmal beasts invading our dimension that only your solar energy could easily dispatch. I speak of course in hyperbole, and of you. You do still have a purpose, you're arguably one of the greatest allies we have in this impending battle of ours. And I believe it is time you are treated as such, not as a patient that cannot be trusted on their own. Don't you agree?"

[Mogtaki]

“Heh! Not up to you? He’s your prisoner, you’re the ones who brought him to the Rebels. You think they wanted him here? They don’t exactly treat prisoners well, especially such dangerous criminals…” Krom sighed, scratching the back of his neck. He wasn’t treated particularly well and was under high security all of the time, even now he was being watched pretty closely incase he tried anything otherwise he was kept in a single small room with limited facilities and hardly any light. It was nice to get out and about every so often, but that was all the relief on his sanity he was allowed. The Rebels never made a proper prison because they didn’t prioritise taking prisoners of war without trying to reform them. It was the same on all sides, even the Galactic Police treated their prisoners with absolute control over their physical and mental state before deciding on their sentence. Whatever though, this was all about seeing whether Takeshi could keep his temper under control and turn it into power, but that didn’t seem to be happening as he continued to get all cheeky and back talking. “Heh, old man? I’m only ten years older than you. ‘Old man’ is my father!” he sighed, rolling his shoulders, “And I already told you: I’m doing the talking while you do the training! You’re supposed to be able to focus while I am! And speaking of…” Walking to where he was right beside Shu he tapped his foot out in front of him before tapping Shu’s own foot, causing Shu to open his eyes and let out a squeak. “Don’t you think meditation is an excuse to sleep! I can tell the difference…”

--

All Viral had ever wanted was answers, but every single one of them had come to a dead end. He wasn’t like any of them, he wasn’t like anyone he had ever met before the creation of the other Beastmen and had been actively seeking out answers before knowing of their existence. They were all confident in their existence, they knew why they were around and were quite proud of it. They were made fully knowing of their existence to fight, but he had been told an array of things he was supposed to do that never had a clear answer. His damaged genetics had been fixed, he wasn’t supposed to be a threat anymore and yet there he was being treated as such. Just what was he supposed to be? Why was he kept around like some test subject? And they wondered why he had never seen them as a family, it’s not like he could ever remember any of them treating him anything like he knew to be what family is.

Hearing Vegeta finally speak he thought he was going to get an answer, instead he had been left stunned by it. For his own good? Everything he had gone through, all the constant monitoring and restraint, that had all been for his own good? Staring at Vegeta in confusion he narrowed his gaze, trying to figure out what he was trying to say before feeling taken aback by the look Vegeta had decided to give him, taking a slight step back when Vegeta started to laugh before coming to a halt at his conclusion.

Vegeta’s conclusion stung pretty hard. Even though he had become used to thinking of himself as a problem to anyone near him to have someone tell him that just drilled the thought many times worse into his head. He was seeing all the instances he had been an issue, whether it was causing trouble for the company or something drastic like sending them all into space. ‘It’s you’ was Vegeta’s strongest and most sincere-sounding conclusion, that he had been the main source of the problem. Something was wrong with him, everything had been wrong with him and with everything tried on him to correct the problem it was never going to be corrected because he was the issue. He wanted to bark right back at Vegeta and tell him he was wrong for saying that and was just making excuses, but he couldn’t. It was all his own fault, nobody was ever going to be able to fix it for him: he was far beyond help. Staring at Vegeta as he laughed once more he clenched his teeth, staring at him as he admitted defeat.

Flinching slightly when Aito broke the tension with quite a loud single clap he looked to him with the same expression he had given Vegeta, his stance hardly changing. Just what could he possibly add to all of this? Did that mean this little session was over if he was already trying to bring him to his own conclusion? That didn’t help, telling him that he was doing an awful job protecting the Earth by being away from it too. All of this was a failure, he had failed and turned into a problem. Opening his mouth as if to speak his eyes didn’t look at anywhere in particular as Aito mentioned the beasts randomly. Only his solar energy? Of course that was an exaggeration, they could kill them just fine without him. Letting out a slight groan he reached his paw up to his head, rubbing it slowly.

“…Enough of this. I understand it all well enough”. If Aito was trying to change the topic it wasn’t going to work. If he thought the mention of battle was going to immediately dismiss the topic at hand then he really thought of him as a simple creature with a short attention span. Growling lowly he moved to walk past Vegeta, not even giving him a glance of acknowledgement. If he was the problem then he saw no reason to stick around and if Aito felt the need to suggest it was his skills that were needed against those beasts then he could go ahead and fight them himself. They didn’t truly need him; besides, Aito was practically giving him the call of dismissal with that final line of his. “I don’t need anymore sessions! You can go back to being a happy family while I take care of the beasts…”

[GambolMuse]

Like we were supposed to know they were assholes. Takeshi bit back his retort and focused on what was in front of him: the empty training room. Not much to keep his mind occupied and mouth shut but he was putting all his effort into it - more than the actual training itself. For a guy who was telling him to keep quiet Krom couldn't do that to save his life, the jerk always seemed to have something he just had to get out. Seeing Krom then making a move towards Shu left the older boy certain the Elite was going to do something to try and get at him. Instead the little Saiyan got a simple nudge of the foot and with a start Shu woke up... From a nap. The little guy was napping?! Here he was running around with an obscene amount of weight while his younger brother was off in Lala Land. He nearly opened his mouth to bark at Shu but again thought better of it - mostly because he was stammering incoherently. Somewhere along the line he'd tripped up on his own feet and was pinwheeling his arms frantically to little avail, tumbling forward and doing a somersault before coming to a rest on his back. Jackass, Krom should leave Shu alone! And Shu should be meditating! Come to think of it did Shu even know how? Takeshi assumed Aito had taught him but he certainly wasn't doing it right just now. Rolling his eyes and getting back to his feet he started to run again, but not before leaving Shu with a small shout of encouragement. "Fall asleep again and I'll drag you along with me!"

----------

"Viral, I didn't say we were through. And you say that as though we're sending you off on your own. We're fighting as a team, regardless of who might be better suited for the battles to come." Perhaps he'd made a slight oversight in all of this. Aito had hoped Vegeta and Viral could reach some understanding while together but he'd had to step in and speak. Having done so - in perhaps too curt a manner, Viral was now ready to leave and Vegeta looked to be struggling to keep it together. Perhaps June had a point: going into matters by the seat of his pants - censorship there, her language was a little more colorful - that didn't always yield the best results. Would it be shameful then to admit this had been to some degree planned?

"I'd brought both of you two here to speak with one another and that's what we're going to do. I have absolutely zero intention of anyone leaving this room until you can both have some semblance of a discussion. And I am not hearing otherwise." There was time for sympathy and consolation but now was not that time, these two needed this and putting it off for anything was out of the question. Both Vegeta and Viral were no doubt done with this matter but they would both have to endure a little longer until some common ground could be found. "Viral, we can't change the past as you well know, we can't undo what has been. But I do know that we can move forward and make amends, and it's up to you to decide how that's done," Aito continued, and then to Vegeta he added, "It is your responsibility as well to work on this. I'm here in whatever capacity you two need me but this is ultimately a matter for you both to resolve. Together, am I clear?"

"Crystal." What was he supposed to do though? No words were just going to suddenly rectify the situation. Nothing he'd created had worked and he'd never been a great orator - he'd had people for that. As his stomach did flips he turned to face Viral again, having to avert his gaze shamefully as he couldn't look his friend in the face. He couldn't say anything and yet Aito demanded something, but what? "Viral I was wrong, on every single account. And I want to try and make things right but... I don't know how. But I want to set things right." Viral wanted a purpose? He could find something. Aito had suggested battling the beasts but that didn't feel right, it labeled Viral as a weapon and nothing more. Why had Aito suggested that anyway? Viral had more or less said that was all he'd been made out to be and by no small measure seemed displeased about it. Had he suggested such a thing on purpose?

"Viral..." He didn't want to be forgotten. Perhaps more than simply being a tool it seemed like Viral's greatest issue was being forgotten. Understandably so, for at one point he'd been Aito's pride and - most likely though he couldn't recall it - the two of them had been quite close. "We're all going to need to shore up our strengths to fight these creatures, and... I'm woefully behind on my training. I'd uh..." Hell he was never good at speaking and that didn't change even now. Finding his face growing red both in frustration and embarrassment Vegeta averted his gaze again, taking a deep breath before meeting Viral's gaze. "I would be honored if you could train with me. I need someone to show me how to be a better fighter and I can think of no better mentor."

[Mogtaki]

Shu was a little startled at first but he was feeling rather groggy too, trying to focus as he rubbed his eyes before squeaking again as he looked up at Krom. Shu didn’t really know where he was at first until it all came together in his head and to come to the realisation that he wasn’t in any danger after all. He had fallen asleep sitting up, but he didn’t mean to. He wasn’t sure what he was trying to do and was trying to remember as he rubbed his eyes. He could remember having to do something about meditation, but that was it. Groaning a little, he soon slowly shook his head as he tried to pull himself together again. “…Noooo, no fall asleep! Was just…really trying…” he groaned, eventually reaching up to his head and letting out a sigh, “Just tired and-…and no sleep much and trying but try to stay up! Please no tell Mister Aito!”

Krom stared down at Shu before he grunted, shaking his head. “I don’t care about how much trouble you’ll be in, anyway! You’re supposed to be trying to focus your mind, not taking a nap!” he told him off before sighing, looking to Takeshi. “And you’re not helping the matter! You know how literal he takes everything!” No wonder Shu was a paranoid wreck most of the time, having Takeshi telling him things like that. It was rather ironic though, it wasn’t as if Takeshi knew Shu as well as he thought, anyway. “To meditate you have to clear your mind and focus your Ki! Just calm down and don’t do anything rash…” Takeshi was easy to work with because he did have social skills and wasn’t so easily startled, meanwhile Shu had a very fragile mind and didn’t have the ability to be rational or think through his words particularly well, didn’t help either that he had been broken fairly well by Yamate’s scientists. “Tch, have none of you actually undo any of Yamate’s idiocy yet on the kid? He’s still really hairy. Your lot seemed to had fixed the Commander already, just weird you’d leave your brother until last”.

--

Viral saw no reason to hang around in this room anymore with those two, he was feeling anything but ‘better’. He thought he was supposed to feel better about himself once he got something positive out of these two, but instead he got told he an issue and told he was better off being a weapon. Just what was he supposed to say or do, exactly? It hurt him greatly, even though it probably shouldn’t in the end. He had been telling himself those conclusions for a long time, but that was all in hope that he could overcome that low and find out that he was worth more than that. Just maybe he would find something more than that and not automatically end on that conclusion, but it seemed that was never going to be the case. Stopping when Aito made an attempt to keep him in the room he gave him a rather strong glare, clenching his fist.

Just who did he think he was? Was he just supposed to take more of this if that was the best answer Vegeta could come up with? Even Aito struggled to make him feel better by thinking he would be happy fighting some beasts instead. It shouldn’t matter anymore, he didn’t need their help in trying to feel better about himself and his existence when they could only give him answers to make it worse. He wasn’t going to get mournful over it, instead anger took hold as he only found himself blaming those who created him in the first place to do their bidding. Humans were the cause of his problems, the reason why he had nothing. Aito was only treating him to clear his conscience of an unfinished job that he said he’d complete, meanwhile Vegeta saw him as a problem and had wanted him out of his life through any means possible. Neither of them wanted him around, it was just Aito’s bad luck when his personality conflicted so much with the thought of leaving a promise undone.

“…Make amends, then job’s done. Is that it…” That was always it with him. Aito would never let him go until he could go back to June and say ‘I did it’ before going back to whatever he was doing before. He could see it all now: Aito celebrates a job well done before pussyfooting around to make sure he avoided him in the future so he didn’t have to see him again. Maybe that would be for the best anyway, especially considering he killed him before and destroyed everything he worked his whole life to achieve. He must’ve seen him as an unfinished failure, so no wonder. He wasn’t sure if this was the paranoia kicking in or if he was right, he had been struggling with his mind and what was reality for a very long time, causing him to become angered at everyone unless he was fighting. He really was the problem, yet they weren’t letting him leave for whatever reason. Why was Vegeta even agreeing to this again? He had already called him the problem so why did he want that problem to continue hanging around? “You? Make things right?” he spoke, turning to look at Vegeta. He just wanted rid of his guilt for saying all that, that’s exactly what it was.

Either way, he was just about to leave seeing how he never agreed to stay despite Aito’s orders, but Vegeta calling out his name had him turning around again. What did he want now? Probably scared of failing, as usual. He hated coming out the loser, that was his main problem. It took a moment, but eventually Vegeta was trying to make an attempt to reconcile and finally offer him the training he had been seeking in the first place all while making it sound as if he had to convince him himself that he was going to be good to train with. “Me train you? Just what do you think is going to be the benefit of that, exactly? You have Ki and I don’t. Is that your idea of making me feel useful to you…? You shouldn’t feel honoured or see me as a mentor!” Vegeta better stop trying to flatter him before he punched him in that gash he had on his face, he was just not in the mood. Growling lowly he made an approach, glaring at Vegeta as he approached, clenching his fist. “You have greater power than I’ll ever have and all you do is sit around doing whatever else other than actual battling! I’ve not seen you actively try to fight these beasts off, what made you suddenly decide to fight them now? Because you pity me? Is that it? Funny how you change your mind after calling me a problem...and then laughing in my face!”

[GambolMuse]

"Hn, maybe you should just let him sleep if he's tired!" Had the little guy not slept at all last night? Takeshi had knocked out pretty quickly himself and he'd just sort of assumed Shu had done the same. Even sharing the same bed too... Was his brother still not sleeping right? That was on him too. Damn it just how bad was he screwing things up for Shu? Loathe as he was to admit it Krom actually looked to be working with his brother and trying to help him. First time for everything he supposed. He'd more expected the Elite to be a total ass and a slave driver but there he was trying to explain things to Shu, and not in a jerk way. Takeshi stopped shy however of giving the man some semblance of praise when he turned it around and questioned why they hadn't helped Shu. "Some of that's normal, you ass. Shu's always been hairier than me," he answered curtly before frowning, "He's a little hairier now, sure, but it's not like it's that bad." Like Viral most of what was wrong with Shu was all up in his head. How the hell was Takeshi supposed to know how to fix that crap anyway? Telling them to just get over it didn't magically fix anything and trying to goof around only helped for a little while. Damn it, why was that asshole bringing that stuff up now anyways?

----------

"Just because I have Ki doesn't make me better..." It was handy sure, and being a Saiyan imbued him with power that others had to work hard to achieve. Viral wasn't wrong: He had a strength Viral couldn't ever know. But then the opposite was true as well: Viral had power that Vegeta could only dream of possessing. It was why he felt his friend could be a superb mentor. He needed the training and openly admitted as much and to hear his request all but rejected outright was disappointing. "I was wrong to say that, you aren't the problem, you never have been!" Vegeta couldn't think of how to rebuke his own words other than to try and take them back. "I know I said them but... I spoke out of frustration. I'm the problem! My inability to help - to find a solution - I didn't want to accept it could be me. I didn't want to think I could be the issue. It was easier to put the blame on you rather than accept it." He still didn't want to accept it even after acknowledging he'd been in the wrong. How many other times had he been at fault? As head of Capsule Corp and rightful heir to the company no one would have ever openly questioned him, at least no one ever had. And with his parents' deaths perhaps it had all been out of sympathy - not for his actual ability, that they had let him lead. As if allowing that would somehow fix things. Well... In a way it had, having that sense of leadership, of competence, it had given him a new lease on life.

Aito felt he definitely should have prepared this better. Mayhaps sitting down and talking things out wouldn't have been such a bad idea after all? Vegeta was too busy questioning himself now to have any semblance of discord with Viral, they should really try to get this back on track. Giving Vegeta a slight pat on the back he turned to Viral, gesturing back to his son behind him. "Ki or no ki, Vegeta doesn't know how to properly fight the creatures yet. And ki or no, you're still a better fighter, both technically and in terms of experience. In fact your expertise perhaps outweighs even that of most on Uuonoe. So when you ask why he'd possibly want you to train him I believe that is why."

"And... I have a proposal for you, Viral. These creatures aren't going away any time soon and we need more people who know how to fight them. Your energy makes you invaluable against fighting them, this much is true. But your knowledge could be even more valuable still. If you could mentor not only Vegeta but others as well we could drive back the beasts before it ever becomes a real problem. You spoke of purpose? Then how about this: Assist us in training everyone to prepare for the fights ahead. Not only your friends but the rebels as well - if you wish to. It can be mutually beneficial: you help us and we help you. I can only see good coming from an arrangement like this, but of course its your decision ultimately."

[Mogtaki]

Krom tutted, wagging his finger. “Don’t you know anything? If you want to adjust your sleep cycle you sleep when you don’t want to be up! Do you want him sleeping while you’re wide awake? I don’t think so!” Takeshi really didn’t know how to look after a younger sibling, or anyone who was dependant on another for that matter. The guy was so terribly naïve and seemed to think that everything just happened and that he should just let them happen, something that would probably kill Shu if the others weren’t around too. He was not a terribly smart boy, that was for sure. He should probably not be showing any actual care on the subject matter considering they are Yamate’s kids, but they were still Saiyans and Yamate’s victims. Yamate knew he had grown tired of his actions and attitude, but he also knew he wouldn’t betray him when the lives of many Saiyans was also at stake. Staring at Takeshi as he made up excuses for not caring about how Shu looked he narrowed his eyes, looking to Shu for a moment as he noticed the kid staring. “Hmm. Both Viral and Shu were put under the genetics program to try and advance their genes and create super solders in a sense. Viral seemed to respond well, he started to show off new abilities so he was tossed into the field early. Shu didn’t, but they could be controlled to activate temporarily with that collar. Seems only right that he’d get a little hairier after that…hmph, weren’t your team lucky none of them showed exceeding physical prowess, otherwise they probably would’ve been tested on too. Funny how much your father used to care about his own people before those beasts showed up…”

--

“You never use your Ki to realise just how good you have it!” All Vegeta did was sit around and wait for everyone else to fight battles that could end up killing them then ignoring the fact that they had returned, not caring about the struggle they endured. Viral was angry that Vegeta constantly put himself down and played the victim when he was fully capable of everything that he could do and more. Nothing was stopping him from developing a weapon that could harness solar energy, that’s all they needed. Feeling rather defeated he just wanted to leave, knowing he could do just that if he wanted to even if Aito didn’t want him leaving. It just felt pointless to stay, he wasn’t going to get many answers out of the pair of them anyway. “So your automatic reaction is to pin the blame on me?? How kind of you to spare anyone else your blame…”

He didn’t know what he was supposed to do about the guilt that came with killing June and Aito, but he had been told time and again that it wasn’t his fault. He didn’t know if that was just a cover to make him feel better or actually the truth, he would never know when his memory had been screwed up so badly and was fragmented. He still wasn’t receiving answers about whether his memory could be recovered, even after all this time. Maybe he would feel better if his memories didn’t only consist of slowly being forgotten, being told he wasn’t allowed to leave his quarters for days on end by scientists because Vegeta was working and being tortured by the Saiyans. He didn’t really have many good memories to go on which made him bitter and angry. They were probably never going to find a solution to that, they would rather just move on and get things fixed and then be done with him again, he just knew it.

Turning to Aito when he spoke up he narrowed his gaze, not looking incredibly impressed. If Aito was trying to flatter him that wasn’t going to work. The only reason he was considered ‘better’ was because he was made to be a weapon. “Only because I keep getting sent out to kill them…” Maybe Vegeta would have more experience if he actually went out with them. Growling lowly when Vegeta spoke up again he turned slowly towards him, staring at him with a fair degree of discontent. Vegeta wasn’t going to quit with this insistence that he’d be trained, even going as far as to try and give him an answer to his purpose. He was the one who wanted someone he could train with, not train others. The only benefit he could find from this was he would have someone he could train, but then again beating up Vegeta with a purpose did sound like quite the draw too. Glaring at him he remained silent for a moment, looking even less impressed than when Vegeta pinned blame on him. “You want to be involved all of a sudden just to make me happy? Tch, I don’t see why training you will bring me any sort of pleasure…” Everybody was just going to get stronger than him, being Saiyans and all that; the most he’d get out of it would be he would try and get stronger and figure out how he did grow in strength. “…Fine. If only because I’ll get to kick your ass for all that you did at the same time…”

[GambolMuse]

"Fantastic! And, of course, your being the instructor means that the training regiment will be entirely up to your discretion," Aito said cheerfully, seemingly in a better mood rather quickly as Viral agreed to his proposal. And why shouldn't he be? They had just, by happenstance, found a purpose for Viral. It was one both born out of not only necessity - they needed troops to be trained - but out of a need to help Viral: they now had both. There was still a long ways to go before anyone was truly happy with things but at least this arrangement finally provided a starting point. "Full disclosure as well, we will have to inform Korian of our decision," the doctor pointed out before quickly adding, "But his say on the matter is nil, he'll have his troops trained by you one way or another. He'll simply have to swallow that pride of his and accept that you're the best fit for this."

Vegeta had to agree, and not just for Viral's ability to kill the beasts. In terms of fighting prowess, of experience, of simply the knowledge of how to train someone, Viral was better than most anyone else that came to mind. He'd taught himself and Yumi at one point after all - everything they knew had stemmed from that original training. There wasn't even a question of if Viral could do it: he absolutely could. Wanting to show some kind of support but being uncertain in how to do so - everything that had come out of his mouth came out plain wrong - Vegeta offered a smile and nod before direction a question to his father instead. "Um... I do have to wonder though. Korian is... Well to put it plainly he doesn't like Viral. Not that I doubt you can't convince him to allow Viral to train the troops but how exactly do you intend to do that?" Short of forcing the man to do so at gun point Vegeta couldn't fathom a scenario where Korian willingly let this happen. While he himself was hardly clean in regards of accusing Viral of things at least he had trust in the Beastman, where with the rebel leader there was none. So what did Aito plan for?

"I've already got something in mind for that, don't you worry. Just think about it: the rebels are fighting a two front war, even if there is a temporary armistice between the King and them. While the rebels do have plenty of troops they don't appear to be as well trained save a select few, and I'd bet that the Saiyans have stronger troops overall. So turning down any opportunity to have those fortunes changed is too good to pass up, grudges be damned. And that aside," Aito added with a sly grin to Viral, "For better or worse most everyone knows of your feats in battle. I know you'll argue until the sun sets that you've lost battles, but no one questions your tenacity or your ability. Even if the brass dislikes something, if the entire battalion is for something then orders are useless. In other words: we needn't even worry about Korian, only what the troops think. And I think they're more than happy to be trained by you."

----------

"Our old man gave a shit about someone other than himself? Sorry if I have a hard time believing that." The fact Yamate could give a damn about anything other than power and Saiyan superiority was almost impossible. Nothing the jerk had ever done would suggest he had the tiniest amount of remorse or sympathy for anything he'd done. Krom didn't sound like it either: the bastard was just putting blame on anyone else he could to try and make himself seem not as bad. If he really thought any of what was going on was a problem he would have left - they had. The whole discussion about a genetics program wasn't anything Takeshi would even pretend he understood. He'd been kept far away from the labs while on Kortal and no one would give him answers out of ignorance - willful or otherwise. Scoffing in annoyance he continued on with the circuit, voicing his opinion again as he neared Shu and Krom. "If Shu wants to be changed back then we can ask the doc or Sayomi, they'll know what to do. I don't care how hairy he is, I just want the little guy to feel better. And if that means losing some hair then we'll lose the hair." And if that also meant getting him out of training with some Elite jerkoff who had tried to capture and kill them too he was all for it.

[Mogtaki]

Viral didn’t know what he was supposed to do when it came to training other than forcing them to train with weaponry. Weapons, specifically blades, were probably their best bet to killing those creatures properly, but he doubted there would be many of those kinds of weapons around the base. Needless to say he wasn’t entirely on board with the idea, but he couldn’t turn it down either. He needed something in his life, even if it was a terrible situation for him. He wasn’t in a good state of mind for this, he knew he wasn’t, but that was all he had. It was just some training regimes: that was everything he needed to do. Sighing in annoyance he looked away, trying to think around what he was doing before he grunted at Korian’s name.

That man was still a problem to him, nor was he going to be happy with the fact that he resorted to killing again. Korian saw him as nothing more than a lab experiment that couldn’t behave itself, he was a delinquent who had no self-control and shouldn’t exist. He was probably looking for just one tiny reason to lock him up again or eliminate him completely and say it was an accident. He could almost see it, just wait until he was sleeping and slip him something to make it look like he died in his sleep. Maybe he would send him on a suicide mission instead, have him killed off and make it look like an accident. He was going to be as good as dead in no time, Korian knew he wasn’t going to get away with putting him in prison, it would be death that would be the best course of action. He wasn’t being paranoid, this was all true just waiting to happen and he knew it; it was going to come eventually, especially with this one slip up when killing those Elites.

Everything that Vegeta and Aito had been saying was all fading into the forgotten realm as Viral hadn’t been listening at all, instead lost in his own world of incredibly active imagination of how he was going to die. He could remember how he had been treated in confinement before, how Korian had tried to kill him and his insistence that it was for the best. It would be worse next time, it was going to be right out of sight and made sure that he was definitely not going to notice when the time approached. The smart Saiyans were the ones you had to watch out for, they were definitely the most cunning and dangerous. Catching Aito’s eye by chance he gasped lightly and moved back a step, giving him an angry glare. He didn’t really know what was being said and had only caught the end, his mind attempting a catch up to understand what he had missed. “What...what?? Korian?? If he tries to take me down I’ll kill him before he has a chance! If he dare thinks he can challenge me I’ll destroy him! His troops better learn to respect me…they’ll see Korian as crazy for wanting me dead!”

--

“Teh! He used to! Who knows though, maybe having an opposing pocket dimension of monsters in the way of his vision has sent him into madness! He doesn’t like it when there’s an opponent he can’t beat into the ground with brute force…” Krom spoke, letting out a chuckle, “Sounds kind of like you in a way…” It wasn’t like Takeshi was going to pick up on any of that, he was just going to carry on thinking he was making stuff up just for the sake of annoying him. It didn’t matter anyway, what happened on Kortal was something none of them nor the rebels wanted to hear about even if it was still having problems with its social structure with Saiyans fearing failure being met with being experimented on. The ones that were aware that Beastmen had been made were probably terrified that they would be made into Beastmen too in an attempt to combat their unknown enemy that they were told very little about. Once he was done here he would go back and get an update on what’s been happening back on Kortal from the other Elites, it certainly made him concerned but he would still do his job here to gain that trip back. “Changed back? Do you even listen to anything or does it go in one ear and out the other with you?” he sighed, shrugging, “Like I said: Shu never developed genetically like the Commander did, your father just tried to because the Beastman could, but it didn’t work with Shu. The hair is just a side effect from the tests not working…”

Shu let out a groan, sinking his head down. “Please no doing the talk about my hair…it just itchy sometimes…” He didn’t really like it when people talked about him when he was right there, it felt like he was just a little observer to discussions he wasn’t supposed to be hearing about. It was embarrassing when he was referred in such ways, especially when he tried to forget all that happened to him but people insisted on bringing it up time and time again. It was hard to forget, especially when his mind drifted off elsewhere, but he didn’t want to recall it either because someone else mentioned it.

[GambolMuse]

"I'd suggest not killing him. You won't earn many favors doing that," Aito offered with a small smile, "Whether his men like him or not he is their commanding officer, they follow his lead. As a military-minded man yourself I'm sure you can understand what suddenly killing one's commander might do to troops. Though I suppose they might rejoice as well..." The look Vegeta gave him told him to keep his mouth shut - and for good reason, he was thinking aloud again wasn't he? Not that he needed to even convince Viral it was a poor idea, he knew the boy was mostly blowing off steam and venting frustrations. "As a Saiyan the best thing you can do is prove him wrong and injure his pride. Be a successful commander, train his troops better than he ever could, what can he do then? You have the favor of his own men and you've proven him wrong to hundreds if not thousands. If I were you I'd think that sounds like the perfect way to stick it to the man, don't you agree?"

It did sound like the best way, at least to Vegeta. Make allies while alienating no one, or next to no one. What Viral decided though was ultimately up to him and him alone, they could only offer suggestions. Even then he himself hardly felt qualified to say anything on the matter, particularly when he'd be among those being trained. "If there's any way I can help too just let me know. Whatever you need I'll do it," Vegeta offered cautiously, "Or... I'll simply train with the rest of them. Whatever you need me for." There was still work that needed to be done for Viral as well, he still wasn't in a mental space anyone would deem healthy. Then again maybe this was what he was looking for? Maybe having some responsibility and having something to reaffirm his ability would turn things around? Or maybe the pressure would cause an even bigger collapse. Aito had to have considered this before suggesting the idea right?

"Like the man or not we will have to take the idea to him, they are his troops after all. I'm sure after we explain our position he'll happily accept our proposal." Moreover Korian simply didn't have any alternatives. Aito himself had been asked but he was never a soldier, training troops was far from his expertise. His own commanding officers were busy with missions which meant he had to look outside for help and, wouldn't you know it, they just happened to have the man ideal for the job. "But that's neither here nor there, from what I understand he's off world today anyway. Which brings us back to square one: are you two going to resume sparring? Or should we do something else?" To him it was a casual question but Vegeta looked rather perturbed, like he'd just asked a highly personal matter. Giving his son a puzzled look he glanced at Viral and shrugged, smiling as he scratched at his head. "Is that a no then?"

----------

He was nothing like their shitty old man! If he had a kid there was no way he'd do to them what Yamate had done to him and Shu. And he wouldn't go around attacking worlds and enslaving people either! He'd been nothing like their father before they ever knew him and now that he did he'd be damn sure to never be anything even close. He definitely wasn't going to do anything more to cause Shu any harm, not if he could help it. So when Krom went on harping about the tests done and how Shu was hairier than usual he grew annoyed, snapping back and telling Krom to leave the matter alone. It didn't help any either when Shu spoke up and sounded thoroughly distressed by their conversation. Which naturally served only to make Takeshi even angrier with Krom. Stopping his exercise he glared at the Elite and started towards him, stopping after a few steps and glancing at his brother. Damn it, pissed as he was he couldn't start screaming, it'd only make things worse. "Shu? You and I can talk about this stuff later, okay? Just focus on meditating for now and I'll keep exercising." It was so hard to keep his voice calm, his tone terse and clearly strained as he kept the volume down. Bastard wasn't making this easy for either of them was he? Glaring at Krom once more Takeshi took a deep breath and went back to running, trying to think about anything else to calm down.

[Mogtaki]

Viral growled lowly, giving Aito a fair glare. “Don’t you talk to me about my mind…”Aito had done enough damage already and trusting him further with making him feel better was now right out the window with him. He didn’t need them to feel any better, it was nothing he couldn’t continue handling by himself. If they had been anything it had been annoying and destructive when neither of them had any clue to how to get these visions out of his head. Neither of them had even tried to help him with that, they were all concerned with their relationship with him. Like all of that mattered, it never mattered until they started to feel guilty over neglecting him and treating him like nothing. He was just wanting to get this over with, he hated dealing with people, anyway. They would know that he hated dealing with people if they knew him, but that didn’t matter. All he cared about was doing this task and completing it so he could be on his way and get battling once more.

“I don’t care what you do. You won’t help me train so why don’t you just join in with the rest of them…” If Vegeta wanted to train with the other soldiers then that was his decision, not something he could design for him. It wasn’t as if he was going to force those soldiers to train with him either and if they didn’t want to risk being associated with him or being unable to handle him then that was their problem, he would just continue going on with his life like nothing happened. He doubted this base had anything close to real weaponry, probably all fancying their guns and using Ki over an actual blade. They were certainly seen as an artefact in most technologically advanced worlds, all without a purpose other than telling stories in a museum or someone’s private collection. It was either blades or they developed some sort of technology that could harness the sun in a way only he could, even then the Saiyans couldn’t get that out of him.

“I don’t care what you do…or what he does! If he doesn’t want me training those soldiers then I’ll just continue fighting by myself! I don’t need his approval for anything!” He could fight off an army of those things by himself if he really tried, he could even take a ship himself if he had to. He may have a bad streak when it comes to winning his battles with a fair match, but if he did end up dying then that was going to be on him. Looking to Aito when he decided to go right back to asking whether he’d like to continue sparring. Narrowing his eyes he growled lowly, giving him a rather harsh glare. “Vegeta already made it clear he doesn’t want such thing. Are you the one asking for a sparring match instead? Because I’ll kick your ass for ever suggesting that any of this was a good idea! You barely even try…”

--

Shu just felt confused. He wasn’t getting the conversation at all and was just wondering why him being kind of hairy was so important to think about at a time like this. Sure, he felt kind of itchier and needed to be bathed more than he liked but he never really thought about it being a topic for discussion. Groaning under his breath a little he slowly turned in his spot, squeaking when Takeshi called out to him. “I will! No bother me!” He was still mad at Takeshi for what he did so that hadn’t changed, but maybe this meditation stuff will help him calm down. He knew he had to keep calm and keep his eyes closed, but that was hard when he had a habit of dozing off. He didn’t mean to, he just never got enough sleep at night and got tired very easily during the day.

Krom watched Takeshi stop his training and make a brief walk over in their direction, folding his arms as he instead gave Shu a quick word which would sound like a telling off to someone who relied on vocal queues and body language, it was no wonder Shu snapped right back. He wondered if Takeshi was even able to understand that he was making Shu feel cornered whenever he stomped towards the kid, but then again he probably didn’t get many social queues himself what with how incredibly anti-social he was. It was kind of amusing how incredibly different they were compared to each other, yet they were with each other most of the time. “Heheh! You weren’t supposed to stop your task, remember? You were supposed to be working on controlling your emotions too! Remember…? Or did you somehow manage to forget?” he spoke slowly, letting out a slow sigh and shaking his head. “Now you’ll have to do extra until I tell you to stop! You see how getting all hot and bothered will get you into trouble? Don’t you want to beat your father? Then learn better control! That’s why you lost last time!”

[GambolMuse]

A few days later

---

What did Viral have in mind when training troops had been discussed? Had he expected to go on missions with troops? Or did he envision more traditional training, something similar to a military's boot camp. Whatever possibilities he had entertained for himself the reality was far from his wildest imagination. Instead of being given full reign of the troops right away - which to be frank Aito hadn't anticipated - Korian had agreed to the proposal with a stern stipulation: a trial run. Viral would be given the way of a few new recruits and have to work with Leto while he trained them to ensure the Beastman's methods were allowable. It was an infuriating limitation but the only way the leader of the rebels would let his troops be seen to by Viral, a man he once deemed wholly unstable and a threat. The fact the man had allowed for any troops to be trained was progress, now it fell to Viral to show him his concerns were wholly unfounded. Not something which would be easy by any means - mostly thanks due to his "partner", Leto. Vegeta wasn't sure who might kill the man first, Viral or himself.

"Now my friends, you must be ready to dedicate both body and soul to our efforts! Ours is the path of righteousness, only true men may walk it!"

It must be a mental tic, to flex every time one uttered any words. Vegeta watched Leto take pose after pose as he delivered what no doubt to him was a meaningful speech - to Vegeta it was mindless drivel. The troops however appeared enamored by the man's fervor and were perhaps, terrifyingly, imagining emulating such a figure. And he was going to have to train with them...

"When you are a member of our alliance you must always remember one thing. No matter where you came from, your past, your old alliances, you are here and now a proud member of our rebellion. We all fight as one and for one thing: a just and fair galaxy. Space pirates, the Saiyans, anything that threatens the peace. That said never think we ourselves are above the law! We are men of peace! We only fight to protect those who are being harmed, we do not enforce laws! Keep this in mind and fight for justice, my brothers, and you will do exceedingly well! Are there any questions?"

A young alien raised her hand tentatively and jumped slightly at Leto's boisterous acknowledgement. Looking between the other trainees she swallowed uncertainly before looking down and pulling at her antennae atop her head. "W-Well sir, it's just... So what are you exactly? The way you talk about it we sound a lot like the Galactic Police. Wouldn't that make us vigilantes? Isn't that wrong?"

"Ah, but that's where you're mistaken! We're more like allies to the Police - brothers in arms! We are a force for good born from necessity! We fight enemies that the Police themselves cannot, and we fight for those whose cries go ignored. Truly ours is a mighty call, one which only the manliest of soldiers can undertake. And that is why you fine young people are here today, to embark on a journey and become some of the galaxy's finest defenders!" In all of his grandiose speech there was one point that the recruits felt a need to address, a point which left the Yulian with an exasperated look on his chiseled features. "Of course I mean women as well, when I say men..." Leto trailed before shaking his head, "Never mind that! Who you are, where you're from, your gender or your race, none of that matters as much as your drive to do right by others! Prove you are virtuous and fight alongside us for a better galaxy for all!"

"I can't decide if this is rehearsed, just for show, or if the man's really this delusional," Vegeta muttered, sighing as he shook his head. Though a trainee he was lined up beside Viral for the moment, having no need of a pep-talk from the overzealous mountain of a man. That might be the philosophy of the rebellion but in practice they were anything but. Their own leader had tried numerous times to mete out his own justice, something they were supposedly never meant to do. One could chalk that up to his nature - a Saiyan was always a Saiyan regardless of allegiances - but Vegeta looked at it more for what it was: hypocrisy. "The man can't fly right? Perhaps we travel to a canyon somewhere and dump him there for the afternoon. Should give us a day to train in peace," Vegeta joked before smirking tightly as Leto continued on, "Or perhaps we can accidentally jettison him into space. I wonder if Yulians can breathe in a vacuum."

[Mogtaki]

Viral wasn’t really thinking straight when he was offered to train up the rebels, his difficult arising from his inability to think into the future and more settling for what he was capable of in the now. He just really wanted to fight something back then, he wanted to fight and find his purpose then be done with it; however, by the time he was able to break out of his little moment he began to realise his mistake. Korian was never going to let him have any sort of control, not in a million years, so of course he was being put through a trial run instead where he was simply playing the participant rather than leading the way. It was funny how Korian was ready and willing to accept the apologies of any other soldier that came from the Saiyan empire, but he couldn’t see any possibility that Viral might be capable of doing something right. Maybe in the past he had killed a lot of rebels, maybe Korian was still really sore after being unable to kill him before; either way, he was under deep surveillance right now and had to show off how capable he was at keeping it together.

Of all the people who had to be all in charge of this whole thing, it had to be Leto. Viral never did like the man, he confused him greatly and made him feel incredibly awkward and strangely nervous. He wasn’t allowed to bring serious harm to anyone who got near him, so trying to handle situations like that had him running on default flight as opposed to flight and leaving him flustered. He was already feeling incredibly uncomfortable with this, being surrounded by so many strangers who were all probably willing to give it their all with this exercise. He didn’t understand, he couldn’t understand, these were people who were familiar with each other through certain ways whether it was because they all worked together or because they shared the same ideals. He didn’t share their ideals nor did he work with any of them, he didn’t even know what it was like to have some sort of comradery with another person that was healthy in any sense. Leto irritated him, but not because of his rather excitable nature, but rather because he got on so well with others from his perspective and could find some sort of happiness in that.

There was no way any of these people were going to want to be taught by him, not by a long shot. This was all stupid and pathetic, nobody was going to ever want anything to do with him. The longer he listened to them all talk and question their roles he more he got annoyed at them and himself. They were all convinced that they were doing the right thing in some way and got defensive if they were seen as a group who demanded authority. He wondered how many of them were going to question his stance and why Korian hated him so much, why they should follow his word and learn his cruder tactics. He really did wonder, how many did follow Korian’s word and hate him as well. If they were all so obedient towards Korian, he was sure they thought the same way he did.

Getting a little lost in his own negative thoughts once again he barely realised Vegeta had actually spoken until a moment later, his eyes drifting to him momentarily. What was he complaining about now? He did an awful lot of that, complaining about others trying to be proud themselves. He was one to talk, he probably loved the sound of his own voice more than Leto did and was just ashamed to admit it. It would make sense, him probably getting all jealous over Leto getting a time to shine. The moment Vegeta mentioned using Leto’s inability to fly to punish him, however, Viral’s emotions went from dismissive to angry quite fast, glaring at Vegeta for a moment. “You truly are a Saiyan…” he muttered, looking away. It didn’t matter how annoying Leto was, but thoughts like that from others who looked upon him plagued him too often to ignore when he was witnessing it first-hand. “Death must be funny to joke about when it’s towards people you don’t like or find mildly annoying…and yet he could be more capable than you are in battle against those monsters for all you know. Is that even enough for you, though…to imagine his death and have a laugh about it…” Grunting, he folded his arms, staring at the other soldiers who all had a different means of expressing themselves at that moment. “Then again, just how many of them think the same way you do…”

[GambolMuse]

"It was a joke Viral, I wasn't trying to make light of someone dying." Admittedly a macabre joke but nothing more than that. Vegeta made a mental note to refrain from any kind of humor in the presence of Viral, at least until there was some marked improvement in his demeanor. The jab made at his capability fell to the wayside as he felt ambivalent at best towards who was better: it wasn't a contest, they all needed to be capable. Whatever degree of capability then that each person had was fine, the more powerful fighters they had the better their odds. "I welcome anyone stronger than me with open arms if it means killing these creatures," Vegeta muttered, watching as Leto began to group up the troops into pairs, "Looks like its time to get started. And time for you to show them what you can do, instructor." Clasping Viral on the back he went to the other trainees and paired against one another. His opponent for the day? A rather large alien with bright orange skin and green markings, difficult to say if they were male or female. Offering a greeting and a handshake he stood there awkwardly as the alien simply stared back at him, cocking their head in confusion. Weren't members of the rebellion generally versed in the common tongue?

"Now then my pupils, we can begin our training in earnest! Viral and I will oversee the exercises today and we will critique form, ability, and how quickly or slowly you pick up techniques. We want to know where our recruits stand so we know better where to start our lessons. So today is simple: a sparring session with the person across from you! And that includes you and myself too, Viral. We'll have partners of our own today!" A slight bit of information withheld from Viral at the behest of Korian. As a man under their leader Leto had no choice but to follow orders, even if Aito had specifically asked to keep Viral in the loop. Perhaps not off to the best of starts with regards to trust. Worried perhaps Viral would get angry - if he wasn't already - Leto clapped his hands loudly and declared for their partners to come out. "I think its only fair your instructors train as well! Lead by example as they say!" the Yulian belted, grinning as he flexed his frame, "And no man would ever turn down a chance to improve himself, isn't that right Viral?"

"Do you always have to speak so damn loud, Leto? We could hear you outside the room," Ricken growled as he and Sasha entered the room, his usual glowing self. "And you really could have just had us come in to start with, there's no reason for all the theatrics."

"I am merely instilling enthusiasm in our dear trainees, my friend! And but of course there is! What fun is life without a little excitement, a little show? I'd argue every day of our lives is a theater performance, and we are simply actors playing a part!" Vegeta buried his face in his palm hearing that. His father had let Leto read some of his psychology books hadn't he? That sounded eerily similar to a theory he'd read about once, now he was concerned the Yulian thought himself a professional.

"Well I think the part we're meant to be playing is fellow trainees right? So let's get to playing!" Sasha declared, attempting to stifle the inevitable bickering that would ensue. Ricken had a charm for that. Taking her brother by the shoulders she directed him to Leto, smiling as he gave her a glare and patting him on the back. In no way was she going to allow someone as confrontational as her brother to duel against Viral, he'd not have any of it. Going to the Beastman then she put her fists together, knuckles pressed, and bowed her head slightly. "On our home world that is how we show respect, like a master should be given," she explained before smiling, "I'm excited to train with our future instructor of the rebellion. I'll do my best not to make this boring for you."

[Mogtaki]

Viral wasn’t in the joking mood, especially with a quip like that. How would he like it? Just because he can fly and just throw himself right back out of the valley with little effort. Everything had him on edge today already, whether it was because of Vegeta or Leto he wasn’t sure, but he knew he didn’t want to be near either. He still hadn’t forgiven Vegeta for what he said, it was hard to when it had been so many years. It was a bit of a sad thought that the only time he got to see more of the world than what was on the television was because he had been forced to find all the Dragon Balls for them all, those were supposed to be for him too. He never did get his wish, but then again it was probably pointless now. There was always going to be a need for the Dragon Balls, he was never going to be able to think of a new wish, anyway.

Glaring at Vegeta when he decided to touch him he moved a few steps away, feeling like it was all somewhat pointless. Korian wasn’t going to give him a chance, this was just to get him to shut up and then once that’s all done he was going to get tossed out and told he was not fit for training with these people. Looking around at the other soldiers he huffed, seeing a fair number of them already familiar with each other already. It was probably a lot easier on them with each of them being very cooperative with each other all the way. He was a stranger too all of them and was probably not completely welcome after everything he had done. How was he supposed to fit in with these people?

Growling lowly he looked around, gazing at the many trainees and seeing Vegeta find someone. All he could think about was the negative outcomes that he would experience doing this, much to his delight. It was something nobody really wanted to solve and something he often tried to solve himself, but nothing ever worked. Everything in his head was just negative and constantly told him he was crazy for thinking anything good would come from thinking up solutions. He hadn’t had a pleasant thought in a long time, but nobody really cared about that in the end and just acted like it was all normal. He couldn’t pretend everything was fine, not like they all wanted him to pretend to be, at least.

Being nearly ready to call it quits on this whole and follow his own path he growled lowly when Leto decided it was best that they’d have their own partners, his mild disbelief being on the fact that he was supposed to spar with someone while watching everyone else. That was a real load of crap, he really didn’t feel like going through with this. It wasn’t so much that he didn’t want to train, but more the fact that he knew he would get scrutinised to hell if he so much as kicked the crap out of someone ‘too hard’ in a training session, labelled as violent and out of control. He knew that was going to be it, he knew there was a way Korian was going to try and screw this up for him.

Staring at Leto as his anger only grew he turned to the door when those two rebels from before entered, feeling quite doubtful that they were going to be able to keep up with him. Maybe it would’ve been different if it was a more animal-like rebel that was taking him on, but instead it had to be one of these stiffs. Folding his arms in contemplation he let out a short sigh, looking away briefly as Leto continued to prattle on about something annoying. Which one was it going to be? Well turned out it was going to be Sasha for some reason, not that he wanted to be near Ricken either. Turning to Sasha slowly he stared at her, watching her bow as she gave her reason. He wasn’t going to fall for it, he was going to outsmart Korian and his little plans to sabotage his reputation. “I’m not concerned about whether it’s boring for me or not. I have other concerns plaguing me right now”, he grunted, unfolding his arms and rolling his shoulder. “Let me put it this way: you’re going to be the one attacking me and I’ll be defending. It’s not that I see you as unable to take my attacks, I just need to be cautious for now…got it?”

[GambolMuse]

It was nothing short of a miracle they were even here right now. Sasha had been open to the idea of training - and why wouldn't she, they weren't doing anything else. Ricken wanted absolutely nothing to do with Viral or Vegeta however and had to be "coerced" into going. And by that she meant forced. She'd managed to compromise with her grouchy sibling and offered to spar with Viral in his stead, sparing him having to deal with that. Besides where the alternative was the eccentric Leto she felt like she'd won out in their deal. Ricken seemed to recognize as much when they finally reached the room, shooting his sister an accusatory glare as he lined up with the man. Offering only a shrug in response she introduced herself to Viral, bowing as a sign of respect. She'd meant it when she said she was looking forward to training with him, his accolades not lost on her. Shame he didn't quite share her enthusiasm.

"Are you sure? If that's what you want then okay, but... Wouldn't it be better of you fought back?" A resounding no shot down any ideas of that. Sasha would do as she was asked but it didn't feel much like training this way. Really it amounted to little more than sparring against a training dummy. With a smile she nodded her head and stretched out for a moment, giving Viral a chance to do the same if need be. "For the record I'm not worried about you hurting me. If that's why you 'just need to be cautious' anyways. I know you're plenty strong but I also know you're not the enemy, so I'm fine." He wasn't the wild beast some people painted him to be, if he was then she and Ricken would never have been asked to come here. She might be reading into things too much but knowing Korian's position when it came to Viral - as almost everyone at this point did - it wasn't hard to guess what was on the Beastman's mind.

"If we're all through talking then I believe it is time to begin our fighting! Let our hearts burn brightly as we do battle, friends!" Leto's pep-talks seemed to get no one besides himself riled up, as evident by the awkward looks all around. That didn't stop the Yulian from facing Ricken and flexing several times over, perhaps his equivalent of a warm up stretch. "Now, young Ricken, I'm sure you're intimidated by my impressive physique! But know that I, Major Leto, will cause you no undue-"

Ricken silenced Leto rather swiftly with a punch, causing the Yulian to spin around on a heel before he was kicked forward with a swift boot to the rear. Glaring at the back of his partner Ricken sicked, closing his eyes and shaking his head. "Just... Shut up and fight, you moron..."

"I guess that's our cue too! Here I come, Viral." Nothing to do but to initiate it and hope Viral would eventually take part. Starting conservatively, Sasha approached the Beastman with her fists raised, waiting until she got closer to throw her first punch. Having it caught she tried with a second, finding her hands both caught without much effort. Kicking a leg out to force Viral back she smiled and moved in quicker this time, throwing a high kick at his shoulder and immediately throwing another as he blocked it, dropping her leg and spinning around as she kicked with the other. Seeing little use in any of that she dropped to the ground and spun on her hands, sweeping at his feet instead and missing. Rising up on her hands she kicked out with both legs before flipping back up and trying to strike his abdomen with her elbow, trying then and failing to strikes his jaw when he blocked her elbow. If she could just keep the pressure on then he'd make a mistake eventually, she just had to be persistent. And hopefully land something before she ran out of energy. "You're not easy to hit, you know that? I'm trying to mix it up here too!"

[Mogtaki]

Viral couldn’t help but feel that they didn’t come on their own free will, he just needed to find proof that this was the case. It was always the same: he was always being monitored, even when he was by himself someone always needed to be watching him whether it was through spying or some other method. Quite frankly it made him rather angry at both the spy and who sent them to watch over him, the spy certainly being sent unwanted hate their way but it was their fault for agreeing to it. He just had to figure out what was going on here and hopefully ease his mind no matter how much of a mess it was in right now. Ricken was certainly showing signs that this wasn’t all mutual, he looked like he didn’t want to be here at all meaning something was definitely suspicious.

“I am absolutely certain. I don’t see what I would gain if I fought back”. Other than Korian getting on his back for ‘injuring one of his best rebels’, of course. “You seem more capable at dodging than attacking someone like me”. Was she trying to get him to attack her? That didn’t seem like something she’d do, unless she was actually quite sneaky and knew how to hide her true motives from her enemies. He was just confusing himself with all of this, otherwise, and probably making things worse for himself. It was hard to see past all that, he just couldn’t do it no matter how much he tried. With Sasha giving him her reassurances he still didn’t feel certain, it was easy to be thrown off by that and be back where he was before.

This was just bad, but maybe he would be able to get something out of her that would give him some answers. Looking at Ricken there was no way he would had wanted to come here knowing Leto was going to be leading the class too. The way he was acting out and making a mockery of Leto was just screaming out how little he wanted to be here doing this all, meaning there had to be ulterior motives behind it. Growling lowly at his insubordination and disregard, Viral turned his attention back to Sasha. It was certainly hard to read her, but he wasn’t going to stop in his little quest to figure out what was going on and whether he really was being monitored by these two. Shifting his foot when Sasha decided now was the time to get moving with this fighting he quickly got into it as fast as she did, catching her punches fairly easily. Staring at her he soon grunted as he was forced to block a kick with his arm, his eyes watching her body as she quickly made an attempt to trip him up. It was a lot easier dodging and blocking than concentrating on fighting, but he wondered how long it would take before she too saw this as an easy venture and grew frustrated at the lack of challenge. Luckily, Sasha seemed to be in to the whole adventure as she was soon flipping all over the place trying to strike him while he remained focused on everything else, staring at her as she continued to pressure him in to making a mistake. She was right, it was kind of boring, especially when there was no sense of danger in any of it. Looking to her as she spoke to him he simply grunted, backing off as she was getting closer to hitting his face. “I’m sure you’re quite happy to be getting a workout here…” he spoke calmly, not showing signs of faltering or getting tired. “I am curious though: why are you here training with me? Wouldn’t you had been better off training with your brother…? I was made for fighting, of course I’m going to be naturally good at it…”

[GambolMuse]

"Practice, that's what I'm gaining! And I'll take that as a compliment." She didn't know what more was to be gained from sparring other than practice. Fighters both new and seasoned could always benefit, and Sasha was certain Viral could as well. If he had no desire to fight back then fine, she'd do what she could on her own. She kept it simple - throwing a punch here, a kick there. She mixed in a bit of acrobatics with a flip or two but otherwise nothing overly technical. Viral kept pace with her easily, making it look effortless as he blocked and evaded her strikes. Compared to some of her regular sparring partners he was proving to be exceptionally better. Heck, she'd even say Viral was better than Ricken. Best not to mention that to him.

Sasha didn't feel the need to answer right away, not as Ricken began shouting obscenities at Leto. Smiling knowingly and nodding her head towards her brother she simply shrugged, feeling like that answered the question.

"Since you're so good then all the more reason to spar with you. You're better than I am, and I'll only get better by fighting someone more experienced. That and I'll admit... I've wanted to spar with you for a while, but Korian never would let me. So when he asked Ricken and I to go I jumped at the chance." Maybe it was a bit selfish, maybe she wasn't here entirely just to help Viral. Though her given task had nothing to do with what she wanted anyways: Viral needed to be monitored. She still thought Korian was completely full of it but she'd been given her orders, and thus far she'd seen no reason for him to be concerned.

"So honest answer...? Korian told me to. My answer? I want to, Korian's just my excuse to be able to. And I won't be reporting back to him after this, if you're worried at all. He didn't tell me to so I won't be. Just here to see if I meet your mark as a soldier." If he was to be their commander in the coming days then she wanted to know she was fit for duty under his command. She'd every intention of fighting those monsters, and to do so she'd have to follow Viral. With a smile she took to a stance again before darting in at Viral, jumping and rotation her body as she delivered a kick, one which was easily blocked. Rotating further she tried to deliver an axe kick upside-down, again having her blow blocked. It worked to her favor - grabbing hold of one of Viral's arms she let gravity do its work, pulling her down and him along with her. Wrapping her legs around his chest she pinned him to the ground for a brief moment before releasing him and backing off, smiling apologetically. "You're really difficult to get down."