Chapter Fourteen

Inside the largest temple like structure you find yourself in a massive hall inside which a rather large congregation of these very violent monkey men has gathered. The room is filled with the noise coming from the impatient Saiyans wondering about why their king called them there.

Cabba swallows nervously. "I... can't believe it! Every great house of the Saiyan Elite is here!

Oh man... I did not anticipate such a crowd!"

"Are you gonna be okay?"

"Y-Yeah... I... I just need a minute."

"Let's... go over things. Maybe that can help you calm down."

"Good idea! Erm... So I'll go over the events of Planet Smog, then the occupation of it, then the Tuffles... Then I go over the plan, the king will approve and appoint me to take care of it... Oh God! I'm so nervous!"

"Why? Is your family up there?"

"W-With the elite?! I wish. I come from a low born family... But these people are the backbone of Saiyan society! If I make a blunder here..."

You pat him on the back and hand him over a breadstick. "Don't worry, you got this.

Here. Maybe this will help you calm your nerves a bit. Now listen here: Just pretend that the only one present is the king, ignore the rest. But if that doesn't work just remind yourself that you can go super. That's gotta count for something."

"B-But nobody knows I can do that!"

"That doesn't matter. You can do it, can't you?

Who cares about what others think? The fact that you can turn blond on its own elevates you to their position."

"Y-You're right... Look at me, a Super Saiyan quaking in his boots. Master would surely be disappointed." Nervously he starts chewing on the snack you brought as he gathers his courage. "Maaan why do I have to do this? First the princess now this... I belong on the battlefield not the court."

Swallowing the bread he takes the first steps and gestures for you to follow him. Stepping into the limelight you are greeted by Saiyans wearing a caped outfit similar to Cabbas. From both sides they look down on you and their loud discourse dies down until only faint whispers are left. In front of you sits the man himself: King Sadala, his son sitting slightly behind him.

The man in charge wears a more regal outfit, decorated with gems and precious metals to show his status. Unlike most Saiyans he also sports some facial neatly kept in the shape of a goatee without a moustache. With a casual motion of his hand he manages to silence the crowds. "Cabba, Proud son of Sadala welcome home."

Cabba gets on one knee and whispers for you to do the same but you absent mindedly forget about all that. "It's good to be back my liege."

"Tell me: Why have you sought an audience with us? Judging by the request of the Sadala Defense Force it must be quite urgent."

"That it is my king!"

Cabba, with his stage fright seemingly fought off then began explaining the situation of Planet Smog, its history and how it was ruled by crime families up until recently. He then slowly revealed to the court the reason WHY the planet had to be besieged by the SDF so suddenly. Needless to say, the court was in an uproar when they heard that there might be a Tuffle threat on the rise.

You looked the noble families over, wanting to judge their reactions. Some of them were less surprised than others, probably due to family members being in the SDF, you assume.

But things go so far that the crowd has to be put in place by the king. "SILENCE!" He then returns his attention to a young Cabba.

"Continue..."

"Thank you my lord! So... In light of all of that I'd like to request your permission to perform a special operation, using the intelligence we've gathered from members of the fallen crime syndicates in order to infiltrate Planet Plant and undo whatever damage may have been caused by this breach in the blockade."

Some of the families begin to talk amongst themselves once more but this time King Sadala doesn't bother to put them in place.

"As far as I understand Planet Plant is in no position to be a threat to us. What makes you think that trading with some lowlife scum would change that?"

The king carefully plays out the script he made up with the SDF. Naturally he knows every bit of this plan but he needs to convince and calm down his subject that everything will be alright. "As you know Planet Plant has been under control for quite some time now.

But that's mostly due to the Tuffles reckless consumption of their planets resources back when they first embarked into space. If our intel is to be believed the families of Planet Smog traded large quantities of raw materials in exchange for the Tuffles advanced technology. If through these deals they acquired enough metal to kick start their production... Well... I'm sure I don't have to explain why that's a bad idea."

The courtroom falls, the Saiyans begin to think over the issue. All of them are seemingly absorbed by this new conundrum. All except one.

"And who is that outsider with you Cabba?

For what reason have you brought an offworlder into our court and exposed him to such sensitive information?!"

Ah... one of them is very observant.

You try to look around to see who that was but can't find them. But you hear the King grumbling in response to that.

"Grrr stupid girl."

You look to Cabba who appears to be quite nervous about this. He clearly didn't expect anyone to pay any attention to you when faced with the Tuffles return.

You tap Cabbas shoulder to signal "I got this".

Stepping up into the main light you speak up.

"My name is Eric. I worked together with Cabba on planet Smog as an operator."

Once again the court erupts. What began as a few murmurs turned into a competition of who can be the loudest as people joined in one by one. Things got so out of control that King Sadala had to speak up again, this time with considerably more anger.

"ENOUGH!" His sharp look is enough to shut the rest of the Saiyans up. Then he turns back to you. "I see. Sadly us Saiyans are not adept at espionage. So I must thank you and your kind for your contribution to keeping the universe safe stranger. But I must ask... Are you here of your own accord? Do you wish to help us with further operations? If so... I imagine your services aren't for free."

Ah... So now the King wants to know if he can count on you or not. And he even managed to ask a veiled question about your fee. You've gotta hand it to him, for a Saiyan he knows how to spin a convincing tale good enough. But that probably comes with the job you suppose.

"Well my lord, I'm no mercenary. I'm doing this more as a favor for a friend, nothing more.

But if you feel like doing me a favor in turn... I'm sure we can work something out."

"Why not now? I have nothing to hide from my subjects..."

"That may be the case my lord but I don't think this deal concerns them. The terms of my contract are none of their concern... my lord."

"I see. In that case I thank you for your assistance regarding... this. And I hope this cleared up the matter a bit..." The king looked at the silent congregation then returned his gaze to you. "As for you Cabba... I appreciate that you brought this matter to my attention. Of course I'll authorize this operation of yours and I'll make sure to lend you whatever form of support I can."

"T-Thank you my lord!"

King Sadala nods and looks back at his court.

"Now if none of you have any desire to so rudely interrupt me... I suggest you return to your homes and leave us. We have much to discuss."

Slowly but surely the crowd disperses until you are left relatively private with the king and the crown prince. King Sadala then stands up from his throne and lets out a heavy hearted sigh. "Forgive me for that... Looks like my daughters are in a good mood today, otherwise they wouldn't even bother with such an event."

"I-It's quite alright my lord! I'm just glad we could resolve the situation without much trouble."

"Relax Cabba. You don't need to be so nervous. Now... please follow me somewhere more... private."

The king then proceeded to lead you into a secluded little room where his guards stood and kept out any intruders. Sitting down at a rather large table he asked you to join him.

"So Eric... I've heard quite a lot about you.

Cabba praises you quite a lot. And such a recommendation from my most elite fighters carries a lot of weight. By the way, I'd like you to meet my son Prince Sadala! Say hello son."

"H-Hello~"

You raise an eyebrow at the kings comment.

"He does?"

King Sadala nods. "He told me that despite not being too strong you have a brave heart. I can respect that. But I see he may have been a bit sparing about your power."

"A-Actually my lord, Erics greatest talent is his ability to improve at a rapid pace. Working under Lord Champa means he managed to raise his battle power greatly since our time on Planet Smog."

"Is that so? Hmmmm... How peculiar.

Would it be possible to see that power of yours in action Eric?" The king asks you and Cabba freaks out.

"M-My liege-"

"Cabba... You can't expect me to send a man to such a dangerous place without knowing whether or not they'll even survive..."

"Well I guess you're right. And I wanted us to spar before the mission anyway. What do you say Eric?"

You give your neck and knuckles a few cracks. "Sure. I'm game. Might be pretty necessary too..."

"Excellent!" The king speaks up.

"Please follow me to my courtyard. You'll have ample room there." Then he turns to his son.

"And you make sure to pay close attention to them Sadala. You need to learn from the example of others."

After leaving the cozy little room for some fresh air you find yourself standing face to face with Cabba who promptly took off his formal uniform and now stands in his usual battle armor. Stretching your limbs nice and good you speak to him. "But this is just practice Cabba. No need to get super into it, know what I'm saying?"

He nods. "Of course. But I don't want to disrespect you either. So I'll try to restrict my own powers as little as possible."

"Jeez... I told you to take it easy and now you want to break me in half? Okay... Pain is my element anyway..." You assume your stance and start thinking about how to do this.

Before you start pummeling each other you remember something... "Here your lordship.

My gift to you. Please enjoy these snacks while we duke it out!"

Returning to Cabba you assume the stance Vados taught you and open up your palms.

"Ready?" You ask Cabba. He nods and charges you.

The sparring match starts out kind of slow. Throwing a quick barrage of punches the Saiyan boy thrashes you a bit as you attempt to block or parry his attacks. He wasn't kidding when he said he won't be holding back as each strike you catch with your arms feels like it's about to break your limbs like a twig. Even when you raised your ki to its absolute maximum you still felt like an ant staring at a tank.

"Tch..." You give voice to your concern.

"No matter how much I improve I still don't see myself getting closer. Well... looks like I have no choice!"

As Cabba flies in for a quick spin kick you change your stance and pocket your hands. Cabba realizes this and he hesitates for a brief moment during his attack. "What?!"

He screams in surprise.

The heel of his foot almost touches your cheek as you manage to activate your time-skip. Managing to barely dodge the attack you duck under it but miss with your counter attack as Cabba spins out of the way of it. He lands on his feet and pauses for a moment. "I didn't realize you learned that as well. Did he really teach you?"

"Well... he tried. I'm just a crappy student!"

Meanwhile King and Prince Sadala are munching on breadsticks as they watch you, wondering what the fuck is going on.

"That boy is quite quick. I have no idea how can he move in a flash like that."

Cabba, reconsidering his stance begins to bombard you with a series of ki blasts that you attempt to swat away with your aura thickly wrapped around your palm. In the rare instance when you fail to block one, you use time-skip to buy yourself an extra instant so you can defend yourself. To the onlookers this doesn't look particularly odd as all they see is you managing to accelerate to top speed rather fast.

Realizing that you can't keep this up and make a mad dash forward, dodging and weaving between balls of energy, using time-skip whenever necessary. All in all you had to rely on it three times before you manage to get close enough to Cabba. Pulling your palm back, you thrust it forward with great force.

The young Saiyan realizes the danger of it and narrowly manages to avoid it by flying upwards. Not wanting to lag behind you gather your energy and take up after him. Right as you approach you use time-skip one more time just before collision so the instant speed boost would help delivering the strike. However Cabba predicted this and raises his arms in response. Your palm smacks into him and a wave of energy washes over his arm.

He hisses and looks up from behind his guard. "That does have a sting to it.

Wouldn't want to get hit by that again!"

You smile as you fly backwards. "Don't patronize me."

It's clear that you haven't really managed to make him sweat yet. But you're keeping up with him and so far he hasn't whooped your ass despite staying true to his word and not really holding his power back. At the same time he's not really coming at you like he wants you dead but... details.

However you are not satisfied by that. Not by a long shot.

Altering your stance you raise them in a familiar manner which Cabba seems to notice nervously. "Uh-oh."

"You know this..." You observe.

"The question is: Can you do it?"

"I don't know. I guess we'll just have to wait and see." As you let out a smile your body begins to vibrate and shimmer before you disappear and Cabba puts up his guard.

Making a sharp descent you now fly upwards and towards your target. Inside the Saiyan boys eyes you see just a tinge of fear as you approach him with arms spread quite far apart. You have no clue why but the different stance does make it easier to do a time-skip. As you prepare your next attack you spread your fingers a bit more apart, which improves your efficiency by an additional 5%.

As you pull back your leg for a powerful kick Cabba aims his guard downward to intercept but finds your body flickering before the angle of the kick completely changes and you strike him in the side. The psychic energy enters his body and its kinetic energy sends him flying.

Lowering your stance you give your fist a few test squeezes. "Interesting. I have no idea why this works but it does."

Meanwhile Cabba hisses in pain as he reaches for his side. "Owowow! Okay I get the picture!vYou definitely can do it! Man... how long was that?"

"I believe one twentieth of a second.

Kinda hard to count something so small though..."

"At these speeds that might as well be an eternity. I couldn't even start predicting your movements..."

"Yeah..." You respond while panting.

"But I'm already beat. I can't keep this up any longer. And if I made just one mistake I'd be toast."

"Yeah but if you didn't... I'd be the one on the ground. Sadly I'm no match for Hits techniques. No wonder even the gods of destruction fear him."

"Really?!"

"Oh yes. Supposedly Hit can hurt even lord Champa. Just don't let him hear this.

In fact... As far as I know there is only one person these techniques don't really work on.

Or... at least Hit can't land them on him."

As you fly down to the ground before things get too out of control Cabba starts inquiring you about the nature of the time-skip.

"By the way, how come changing your stance lets you stop time longer?"

"I don't know... But it feels almost like my arms act as amplifiers or something. It's really weird."

Landing you are approached by King Sadala who seems to be pretty astonished by your performance. "Incredible! You actually managed to stand your ground against Cabba!

And what speed you possess! I could hardly keep track of your movements!"

But as you are showered with praise and rub the back of your head in embarrassment suddenly a new figure jumps out from the shadows, pointing a finger at you and shouting angrily. "Okay... what was that?!"

"E-Excuse you?"

Azuki stomps over to you. "You barely stood your ground one second then DOMINATED it the next! Father! Don't tell me this isn't fishy to you!"

"P-Princess! You can't be serious! Eric is a friend of mine! I assure you he's a good man-"

"So what? Am I supposed to believe YOU now? Okay... then tell me. How come you were fighting all out against this alien yet it looks like you aren't worried the slightest?! I know from experience you're hiding something! Out with it!"

You stare at this display in utter awe. Not only is this girl who's not even in line to the throne bossing around everyone like that but the others are apparently tolerating this. At least King Sadala looks like he's about to give her a piece of his mind but still...

You pocket your hands and quietly withdraw yourself from this conversation and let King Sadala handle it. "Azuki-" He begins."I understand your frustration. Your anger over not being able to inherit the throne as my eldest child, the fact that you also lost your friend Cabba to the Sadala Force. But that doesn't justify being rude to strangers."

"But father!"

"No buts... Look my sweet. Cabba got stronger than you, that's true. He left to join the army, that's also true. But he is still your friend. And this man is his. He offered to help Cabba and us with this very important mission.

They are both good people, of that I can assure you. So you're only doing a disservice to yourself by not treating them appropriately. You may not be the one to be the next ruler. But you must still carry yourself with a certain dignity. I hope you understand that."

"I... But!... Tch! Let's go Caya! We're going hunting! These crusty geezers can jerk each other off for all I care!"

"Kay!" Her little sister jumps up as Azuki stomps away in anger. "Don't worry Cabba! Sis is just flustered because you were so cool up there! She'll come around!" Then she turns to you. "And thanks for the food! It was really delicious!"

With that the two of them disappear and you are left wondering what the hell just transpired.