ratsoftobruk | Call Me Out!

[ The flying kick doesn't hurt nearly as bad as it might have, but it's enough to knock him on his back. The shock hasn't worn off, not enough to block, and it rattles him enough to assure him that, yes, this is really happening.

Sitting up, Bardock rubs his jaw and...stares, for all intents and purposes like he's seen a ghost. Everyone died on Planet Vegeta, or at least they should have, and he's as baffled about Gi-ne's apparent survival as he was (and still is) about his own. What could have happened, how did this happen...? He has no answer, not to any of his questions, and as grating as that is, the relief upon seeing her and realizing that it really is Gi-ne overtakes anything else.

He reaches out to touch her fare, gently, like he's afraid she'll disappear. ]

Gi-ne....

[ You really are here. ]

[Well, she wasn't trying to hurt him so much as release some of her frustration over the situation. It's a love tap, really. Plus, he looked like he needed it]

[Gi-ne sighs and rests her forehead against Bardock's chest, kneeling on the ground next to him and happy to let him touch whatever he wants.]

I thought I was the only one. [She should be dead. He should be dead. She barely knows what happened, can only guess, but everyone should be dead. ]

I'm so glad...

[ It isn't often that Bardock finds himself at a loss. He's always been decisive, on the battlefield and in every other aspect of his life. Right now, he feels none of that, only a sad uncertainty and reluctance to believe something good has really happened.

She rests against him, and after a moment, Bardock's reciprocates - holds her carefully like she might break.

He doesn't say much. In truth, he doesn't know what to say. He thought he was alone here, but instead, a light has brightened his world, a place that would otherwise be dark and grim. ]

I thought I lost you.

[ You and everyone else. ]

[For Gi-ne it's just pure relief. She's not alone. She's better than "not alone", she has Bardock. Bardock always knows what to do. Most of the time. ]

I thought I lost me for a while there. [Does that make sense?] One minute everything's normal, the next everything is on fire and then I wake up in the middle of nowhere on- on a shittier version of Vegeta or something.

[Pulls back a bit, a little concerned by how lightly Bardock is holding her, to put her hands on either side of his face and look into his eyes.] Are you okay?

[ It does make sense. Bardock thought he was a goner too, or that he'd somehow ended up in Hell when he woke up. He doesn't know how either of them survived the explosion and ended up here, but for the moment, he doesn't care.

He stares at her when her hands from his face, eyes far away before he focuses on her. There are far too many thing running through his mind that he doesn't want to think about now.

Again, he touches her cheek. ]

I'm fine.

[ Shaken, scarred by the events that consumed the last days of his life, but otherwise just fine. He blinks once, and his expression clears. ]

Gi-ne...do you know what happened?

[She can tell he's not fine, whatever he says but- well, so long as he's not actually injured she can sort that out later. He'll open up gradually, she knows. Besides, she can hardly blame him.]

[Gi-ne shakes her head, no she doesn't know. But she's had two weeks with nothing to do but put the pieces together in her head, what few she has.] ... Frieza?

[He's the only one who had enough power. The only one who would.]

[ Very gradually. He's not good at this thing called 'having feelings', and honestly, there's a whole lot he's suppressing right now for the sake of not having to deal with everything at once.

She mentions Frieza, and just like that, his body goes tight, like a bowstring fit to snap. Though he did savor his victory over the tyrant's supposed ancestor, it didn't change the fate of their planet.

His answer, when he manages it, is soft. ]

Yeah.

He was coming for us, and I tried to rally the others.

[ Keyword there being "tried". ]

I went to face him, but...

[ Well. She saw the conclusion for herself. ]

Edited 2015-04-09 23:16 (UTC)

[Gi-ne tries to stay impassive. The first part isn't really a surprise, she'd guessed that much. But then her grip on him tightens and she can't mask her concern.]

You fought Frieza?! [HONEY, NO!] Bardock, you could have been killed! [Well, he almost was... And it's not like he had any other options, she guesses, but-]

[She scrunches her eyes shut and shakes her head.] He tried to blow up the planet and wipe us out. I don't get it, why would he...

He killed my crew, Gi-ne.

[ The answer comes out sharper than he means it too, rage he still hasn't managed to tame or let go of bleeding into his voice and posture. His hands curl into fists, and he has to take a breath to reign himself back in. ]

His elites ambushed them on a mission before I got there. Killed them, after all our hard work.

[ He knows why now, too. Understands it as he didn't quite before. ]

That freak was scared of us, Gi-ne. Of how strong we might become.

[ Bardock grits his teeth, and those the words leave a bitter taste in his mouth, he can't help but say them. ]

He was right to be afraid.

He- [Gi-ne pulls back a bit, both in response to Bardock's "sudden" anger and her own grief. She hadn't been as close to the team as Bardock had, hadn't fought alongside them. But she'd known them and cared about them and considered them her friends. Her eyes dart up to Bardock's headband, the scent of blood suddenly seeming relevant.]

... W-well, obviously he was- [The usual saiyan bravado isn't quite as effective with a stammer.] ... Bardock, what do you mean?

[ It isn't as effective, no, but he doesn't really expect it from her. Gi-ne has always been soft, a fighter in her own right but unsuited to the grisly lifestyle of most other Saiyans. It grew on him after a while, and he wouldn't trade his mate for anyone or anything.

Some of the tension seems to leave him, and after a moment, Bardock lifts Gi-ne off himself quietly and stands. He can only hope she won't be afraid. ]

This is what I mean...Gi-ne.

[ It takes a moment for him to remember exactly what it was like. The pain, the rage that caused him to transform that first time. He can't maintain it for long now, not yet, but the when the surge of power comes, he grasps it and holds on.

The golden glow comes again, like fire, and envelops him. His hair and eyes change, and the transformation comes with a yell before he settles.

New-found power crackles around him, and he stares at his mate through the eyes of a changed man.

A Super Saiyan. ]

[She thinks she knows what's about to happen, as she sees Bardock begin to power up and she starts to stand as well. He had been injured, had nearly died, and now he's recovered and is stronger for it. She's about to gently remind him that not only will it not likely be enough to kill Frieza just yet (she's not risking losing him now), but that she doesn't have a scouter with her and will likely need a better demonstration than this.

But then the blast of golden energy knocks her back onto the ground and she's reduced to staring at her mate, shocked to the core and in awe of what she's seeing. She's a little frightened at first by the sudden change but that quickly fades when something inside her responds at an instinctual level to the sight before her. She can feel the energy emanating from Bardock in a way she never has before from anyone and every story she ever heard as a child echoes through her brain.]

[It takes a full minute for her to respond but when she does it's in a hush whisper:] Super Saiyan.

Edited 2015-04-10 01:34 (UTC)

[ It really is an awesome sight.

Bardock lets out a slow, easy breath and relaxes just slightly. The transformation came a bit easier this time, and more than likely, he will get better with practice.

He looks at Gi-ne, finally, and he can see it in her eyes that she understands. The legend that all of them knew, that they someday hoped they would achieve. For Bardock, it is at once an honor and a bitter-sweet accomplishment.

With this sort of power, he could have defeated Frieza, and he knows it. It just came much too late.

He closes his eyes briefly and nods. ]

That's right.

It's real... [Slowly, Gi-ne starts to smile, barely believing her eyes.] Bardock, it's you!

[She scrambles to her feet and nearly rushes forward to touch him before she stops herself, a strange nervousness holding her back.] The Legendary Super Saiyan... Of course it'd be you!

[Right now she isn't thinking about the bad timing, of everything they've lost, completely distracted by her pride and amazement.]

... A real live Super Saiyan! [She might need a minute.]

[ Oh, it's real all right. He wasn't quite sure he believed it himself until it actually happened.

Bardock looks at Gi-ne, her enthusiasm, and wishes he could smile. The power of this transformation is awesome, but he wishes he'd had it sooner.

After a moment, he lowers his eyes. ]

I failed our people, Gi-ne.

[ The golden glow fades, and his hair settles in its regular black hue. He shakes his head. ]

It's the power we always looked for, but it didn't come when we needed it the most.

[ All he can think about is what they've lost, and it's starting to show. ]

I'm sorry.

[Gi-ne's excitement dies down a little at that and she watches him a little helplessly. Depressed Bardock is a little new.]

You don't know that. [It's the first thing she can think of saying and it just blurts out.] We're alive, aren't we? We can still fight and it can't just be us two.

[At least she hopes not. Yeah, they're definitely not! At the very least, she can think of three young saiyans specifically that might be worth looking for.]

You didn't fail anyone, Bardock, you did everything you could. [...] At least you actually fought back.

[ He doesn't like feeling like this. Like every step he takes is in a different direction, and he has no idea where he's going. They're both lost, if not in space, than in time. There's no way to get that he can think of, and the visions that he had so close to the end have gone oddly silent.

Bardock sits down on the ground again and looks...aggravated. Not at her, but with the circumstances in general. He's always been able to solve any problems they had; now, he doesn't think he can. ]

We're alive, but we shouldn't be.

[ It's a negative thing to say, but it's the truth, and he doesn't feel like sugar-coating it. ]

Do you know what the natives here call this planet, Gi-ne? They call it planet Plant. [ The old name of planet Vegeta. ] We're here, but everything is....wrong.

[ His hands clench, and he looks down. ]

I don't know what happened to us, but we can't just jump in a ship and get back to where we were.

[Gi-ne hesitates but then sits down next to him, side by side, and covers his hands with her own. Nothing makes sense and she's worried about a lot of things. However, only one of them is currently within reach so she'll just focus on trying to comfort that one while she makes sense of all this.]

Planet... Plant. [She hasn't heard their home be referred to by that name since she was a little girl. Not since King Vegeta had come into power.] ... Have they been living under a rock for the past few decades or something?

[She looks away from him to gaze out at their surroundings. Of course she'd recognised it, but it had seemed so different at the same time. Not to mention that there aren't any other intelligent species on Vegeta, not for years, and none as friendly and weak as those villagers in centuries. This is her home but it's- ]

... Like another time.

[ Bardock looks at the hands enveloping his own, and there is some comfort to be found in that. Heartbreak and sorrow are alien feelings to a race of warriors, and so most of what he does feel is tied to a deep-seated rage and sense of helplessness. He understands better than ever now why he was given psychic powers -- it was a punishment, not a gift, to see a future he couldn't change no matter how hard he tried.

He sits quietly, lets Gi-ne piece things together for herself before he finally says anything. ]

It is the past, Gi-ne. I don't know how or why, but it is.

I didn't believe it at first, but I ran into someone the other day who looked just like Frieza - his ancestor, I would guess.

[ He rests his forehead against their hands and just...stays like that for a while. ]

This isn't something I know how to fight.

The past? For real?

[OF ALL THE ASININE BULLSHIT no but seriously what the fuck. What a cheap plot device. It's not that she doubts Bardock, of course. She's always followed his lead and believed in him with only the occasional protest. Plus... Even if he had gone mad, would this really be the story he'd come up with?

But for real, what the fuck.] ... No wonder you're freaking out.

[Gi-ne leans her head on Bardock's shoulder, still holding his hands. Man, now she could use some comfort too.]

[ It really is asinine bullshit, and it certainly doesn't help that he was already dealing with a lot of garbage before the destruction of planet Vegeta. Witnessing the genocide of your own race is bad enough; seeing it in bizarre visions of the future beforehand is arguably even worse.

Part of him feels like he has gone mad. If he could somehow use his rage to accomplish something productive, that would probably be helpful, but as it is, he's stuck.

Gi-ne says he's freaking out, and part of him (the stubborn, proud part) wants to deny it. He's strong than that, he's a Saiyan, dammit... but even Saiyans can reach their limits.

He lets out an angry, frustrated sigh. ]

It's been a really bad couple of weeks.

[ That's really all he knows to say about it. ]

Yeah, it... it has. [And it sounds like it's been even rougher on Bardock than on her.]

Maybe... Maybe there's a reason for all this.

[It sounds like nearly their entire species has been wiped out and that isn't even the strangest thing to happen (she's seen it happen to so many others) but-]

Time travel doesn't just happen, right? Maybe we're supposed to do something.

[Anything to distract her from thinking about all the friends who are probably burning in hell right now.]

[ Strange how wiping out other species doesn't hit so close to home until it happens to you, isn't it?

Bardock shakes his head. ]

If we're supposed to "do" something, like hell if I know what it is.

[ He looks up at her again, finally, and he just...looks tired. He hasn't even had the time to cope with his planet and his people being gone, let along being thrown into the past. It's all a bit much, and it's wearing on him as much as he tries not to show it. ]

It'd be just our luck if the freak had a power he didn't even know he had.

[ The "freak" being Frieza, of course. ]

If he does, it's probably for the best that he doesn't know.

[The universe does not need Frieza with the power to travel through time. Enough people are dead because of him as it is.

Gi-ne kind of wants to keep desperately trying to figure out solutions but with Bardock acting like this... Maybe it will have to wait. She's used to him being the strong one, the one with a plan no matter the situation, and it's odd to see him so tired and defeated like this.]

... At least the boys should be okay. [For now. Kakarrot should be safe at least and... She can hope that Raditz will escape.]

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fatherofalegend - 2015-04-21 00:35 (UTC) - Expand

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meatery - 2015-04-21 00:48 (UTC) - Expand

Call Me Out!

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