DBZ: The Fallen Empire (Chapter 5: Asylum)

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Vegetto Jr. grunted in annoyance, suddenly whipping his hand away and shooting up out of his seat.

"Damnit Jaz...don't you get it?! We don't have a happy ending like this: we're just fighting for everyone else! People that no matter what you do to help them, they'll just keep asking more and more from you. It's not going to stop: we'll be dead before the end of this war at this rate."

He wildly gestured to the window on the other side of the room.

"You think Arcann cares about us? My father will take care of him and Vaylin...he'll find a way to win like he always does. So why: why do we have to fight?"

Vegetto Jr. dropped his arms.

"I already won the war I needed to fight: you're free and here with me. Let's just get the hell out of here, we can live our lives together in peace. Instead of throwing them away for an ungrateful bunch of pricks."

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HK-47 bowed his head slightly to Solaris, watching him depart before inserting the metal rod into the nearest port. The ship immediately hummed to life, the entire vessel ominously radiating and vibrating across every floor panel.

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Vegetto perked his eyebrows at the sudden jolt from his surroundings, glancing around in confusion. The automatic doors swung open as Gogeta Jr. entered the cockpit, raising an eyebrow at Koth.

"What was that?"

Koth shrugged his shoulders.

"Not sure. The hyperdrive seems to be online again...but I'm not sure what else they fixed down there. Must be the power taking a bit to reboot all of the systems."

He then nodded to the controls, shaking his head.

"Lana already messaged me: you didn't tell me you moved everything off to Odessan. You sure that's a good idea, setting up shop in the middle of nowhere?"

Gogeta Jr. nodded, leaning forward as the ship slowly floated forward, the engine thrusters pushing the ship along much faster than before.

"Yeah...it's risky to be out in the open like that. But Arcann won't find us here, as long as our underworld contacts play their part."
 
Jaz listened as Junior continued to talk and the more he did, the angrier she got. She balled her hands into fists and, for the first time, she launched a fist directly at Junior's cheek, striking him as hard as she could. She trembled in both anger and sadness. 

"You're the one who doesn't get it, Junior!" Jaz held back her tears. "Suuuuure, let's go live on some peaceful planet, away from this mess! You think your dad is gonna fix everything just because he did it before?! What if your dad can't win against Arcann or Vaylin?! Then what?! When Vaylin sniffs you out, we'll just run away to another planet and another and another! Eventually, we'll have nowhere to run, and you'll be Vaylin's toy while Arcann kills me and everyone off! You'll be all alone again, but this time, Vaylin won't let you die, not when you're her special little toy!"

The girl held herself back from striking Junior again. Her voice got louder than before, her spike in anger made her float so she can reach eye-level with Juinor.

"Those 'pricks' are trying their hardest to protect everyone, even you! They would risk their lives to protect everything! I almost died protecting your ass and everyone else from Vaylin today! If you're not gonna stand up to your problems then give yourself up to Vaylin, I bet she enjoys a man who won't do anything to stop her from killing everyone!"

Jaz lowered herself back to the floor and just walked off, leaving Junior alone in the room to his thoughts. She opened the door and stood outside before turning back to yell at Junior once again.

"You're nothing but a coward, Junior!"



"Jeeeez, I need a break, don't you think?" Kire yawned, rubbing his eye after working diligently on KABS. 

"I suppose a small rest would not halt progress." Helga agreed. "Also, Mioi's weapon is finished. I associated the colors to match her persona. I certainly hope she likes it."

"Alright, hand it over."

Helga's arms went back up the ceiling and came back down moments later with a shiny purple glossed Sniper Rifle. It was lightweight enough for Kire to grab with one arm. The scope was slightly bigger so that Mioi would have no problem seeing through it. On the side of the weapon was Kire's signature 'K' and Mioi's name in cursive on the other side. A page of random cute stickers came down with the gun and Kire rose a brow.

"...It is in case Mioi would like to decorate it," Helga added in. "I assume she would like to add her own touch to it."

Kire rolled his eyes and shrugged. He placed the sniper over his shoulder and stepped out of his lab to find Mioi. When he did, he saw Jaz screaming into the room next door and walking off in a fit of anger. He moved out of Jaz's way, watching her disappear down the hallway, blinking at the sudden outburst. The door to the room was still opened, and he poked his head inside to see Junior. 

Oh man, not again... 

He closed the door behind him and placed the rifle near the corner of the room. Kire crossed his arms and stood near the door, leaning against the wall.

"Sounds like something happened in here."
 
Xenest and Brachi both heard the commotion, but decided not to get involved into matters that was not of their concern. Xenest on the other hand was pondering, whether he should have his allies know of their status or to remain keeping a low profile...
 
"I see. So the ki that the Saiyans speak of and the Force are one and the same?" Mioi pondered. "I know that the Jedi abide by a code of discipline and self-control. And selflessness. I know little of the Sith... or perhaps my memory was tampered with from the carbonite. What makes the Sith different from the Jedi that allows them to achieve such a level? Is it how they see the Force?" Mioi turned her head toward the door for a brief moment as she heard more discordant shouting and loud noises that indicated something had escalated. She felt it best not to intervene with the disturbance at the moment, lest she become distracted any further with business that did not concern her directly.
 
Vegetto Jr.'s head whipped to the side, completely offguard and unprepared for the punch. He staggered a bit, reaching up and rubbing his cheek while he stared back at Jaz, stunned into complete silence during her outburst. Helpless in being unable to respond, Vegetto Jr. soon lowered his head down and sat down on the couch with a heavy slump after she left the room. 

He buried his head into his hands shortly after, letting out a loud, frustrated groan and digging his fingers deeper into his skull. The rage was only momentary, the exhaustion and defeat soon returning to his expression as he let his arms fall down into his lap.

She's just like everyone else after all. All that work...and she didn't even hesitate.

 Vegetto Jr.'s head dipped down.

She cares more about others than she ever will about me.

His head remained down, barely moving at the sound of Kire's voice. His solemn stare was locked firmly on the floor, his voice weak.

"Just leave me alone."
 
Kira opened her eyes and focused on Mioi, keeping the lightsaber floating in mid-air. She glanced in the direction of the noises as well, but chose to ignore them for the time being. She had a padawan to induce into the ways of the Force.

"The Force, Ki, one's a religion and studying of how it connects to the entire universe and all the philosophy associated." She stated. "The other as best as I can gather from Solaris is merely using the same energy that the Force manifests itself in as a way to become stronger. Same energy but different manifestations. As for what makes the Sith stronger, age. Whis, before he disappeared, stated that the Emperors, specifically Valkorian, were born thousands of years ago. Vegetto and Gogeta are on a level close to his, yet no other Sith Lords ever were. Only explanation has to be that." She said before frowning. "Though... Solaris, after the Aslyum fight. I can't sense his energy anymore. And he's been with us for as long as a newborn baby. I guess their strength might be something else."
 
Kire pondered the thought of leaving Junior or staying to hear him explain what happened. He found himself waking over to the boy and sitting next to him on the sofa, not saying a word until he correctly gathered his thoughts. He gazed out the window, took out a cigarette, and lit his smoke. After a minute of silence, he finally spoke out.

"She doesn't hate you, Junior, if that's what you're thinking," Kire crossed one leg over the other and leaned his body back against the sofa. "but she ain't the brightest bulb in the factory either. If anything, she's the bulb that short-circuits the entire lighting system of the factory..." 

Kire pulled in the fumes of his cigarette and blew opposite to where Junior sat, hoping the smell didn't bother him.

"So, mind telling me what happened in here or do I need to figure it out myself? The last thing you want is for me to make assumptions between you and my girl. Best thing to do is get it out of your system, Junior."



Jaz wondered the hallways of the Gravestone, grumbling to herself and kicking any junk that happened to be in her way. She entered an empty room, not even bothering to close the door behind her by how frustrated she had become. The girl paced back and forth.

"Stupid Gogeta, stupid Junior! I am not gonna sit here while other people get hurt protecting me! No way! I'll train harder than either of them, take down Arcann all by myself, and end this stupid war! That way no one will have to worry about me ever again! I don't need Junior's help to fly, I bet I can do it all by myself! I flew once, how hard can it be?" 

Jaz took a deep breath and tried to remember the little hints Junior told her about flying. She jumped, hopped, skipped, and wall jumped to try to find a way to stay in the air. The longer she tried, the more she failed. Several minutes passed by and Jaz was still stuck on the ground, despite her creative efforts. Enraged and frustrated at her lack of progress, Jaz kicked a box, the gizmos inside falling out and scattering across the floor. She stared at the bits and stopped her rant, finally thinking with her head. She started to realize the gap between her and the others.

"What can I do compared to amazing people like Junior and his dad? Everyone on this ship is already better than me in some way..." Jaz's shoulders slumped and frowned, sitting down in the center of the room with her knees to her chest. "Maybe Gogeta was right... I really am a simple-minded bitch. I'm just a weakling who holds everyone back. What good can I do..? I'll never be as strong as Junior or Veggie..."
 
Vegetto perked his head up at the sound of muffled shouting, his eyes narrowing a bit at the sensation of Jaz's energy signature flaring up from her momentary rage. He narrowed his eyes slightly, still looking off in the same direction as the others in the cockpit room that all heard the outburst. Gogeta Jr. scoffed lightly, turning back to the console.

"What a joke. Not even one day in and they're already fighting."

Vegetto frowned, his right eyebrow raising.

"What are you talking about? Jaz and Junior are-"

He caught himself mid sentence, glancing down for a minute to collect his thoughts at the realization of the time skip.

"-were...inseparable."

Gogeta Jr. nodded once, his head still facing down.

"Exactly: were. Times have changed, this isn't some fairy tale love story where they can just do whatever they want. The people needs us, just like they need you."

His lips rose slightly into a smile.

"When the universe sees you're alive, Emperor, they'll know-"

"Hey man."

Gogeta Jr. stopped midway into his sentence, glancing over his shoulder at the sound of Koth's amused voice. Gogeta Jr. blinked, noticing Vegetto had completely vanished from sight in the cockpit and quickly turned his eyes to Koth, who gestured towards the door.

"He left halfway into that...you know."

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Vegetto rounded the nearest corner, following after Jaz down the hallway and soon walking up on the curled up Jaz. He frowned immediately at the sight of her solemn state, opting to stand where he was a few feet behind her with his arms at his side.

"Jaz...what are you doing here?"

========================================

Vegetto Jr.'s eyes slowly narrowed, his frown remaining and his voice falling flat.

"Just shut up. You haven't been able to do anything to me since the day we met, and you never will."

He kept his head down, the strong stare mixed with his frown clearly indicating his tired, yet annoyed attitude towards Kire.

"It's bad enough listening to you talk down to me like you have some control. So you can either get out of my face or I'll throw you out that fucking window myself."
 
Mioi crossed her arms and nodded silently through Kira's explanation. Looks like the way the Force is manifested and used depends on the person. 

"And Solaris definitely isn't dead, we saw him walking and talking mere minutes ago. Then again, my ability to sense energies is pretty weak so I haven't noticed..." Mioi trailed off before her eye widened with an idea. "Why not let that be our first training session? We have a plethora of lifeforms on this ship to practice sensing energy."
 
Kire barely flinched when Junior spat his threats and took another puff from his cigarette. He smoked until there was nothing left of his cigarette, flicking it to the side.

"Alright, do it then," Kire said calmly, lazily looking out the window. "After 25 years of being bossed around by friends and family alike and hounded by Vaylin and Arcann, you're worried about what I'm gonna do." 

Kire leaned his head back against the sofa, closing his eyes and sighing, disregarding Junior's threat.

"I'm not here to pick a fight or argue with you, Junior. I heard a lot of yelling between you, Jaz, and that Gogeta kid, so I can only imagine what said in here. I'm not gonna bash you and make you feel any lower than you already do, I just hate seein' you like this and thought I could help you out. I know I'm a jerk, but even I got a heart...somewhere." Kire paused for a moment and stretched his new arms. "But hey, if you think I'm still trying to control you for my 'master plan', then I'm ready to get chucked out the window."



Jaz was startled upon hearing Vegetto's voice, immediately standing up and looking around the room for an excuse. Realizing that no excuses go past Vegetto, she lowered her head in shame. 

"I was trying to teach myself how to fly..." She said in a low voice. "I...I was also training myself to control this Ki energy thing like you do. Y'know, for when I take down Arcann all by myself!"

The girl balled her hands into fists and let out a sigh. She seemed to have a lot going through her mind and looked indecisive about how she should feel.

"I just wanna get strong enough so that I can be able to protect you, Junior, dad, and everyone else! I'm sick and tired of holding you guys back and watch everyone get stronger each day! All I ever do is sit back and do nothing while you guys risk your lives to protect me, a simple-minded bitch!"

Jaz's anger spiked, and she turned to kick a piece of scrap that fell from the box she kicked earlier. Her mind was clouded with many thoughts, and she seemed to have a hard time controlling her bursts. Jaz was shaking with apparent rage as she kept her back to Vegetto; however, her voice cracked when she spoke.

"How am I ever gonna compare to someone like you when I can barely even protect myself..? All I do is mess everything up and make everyone worry. Every time I fight Vaylin I start shaking because..." It was obvious that Jaz's trembling was her holding back the urge to cry. Her voice turned to a whimper with tears rolling down her cheeks and on to the floor. "...I...I... I'm scared that she's going to take Junior away from me and I won't be strong enough to save him..."
 
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