A/N: Got you thinking that I abandoned this story. Put the blame on the Fantastic Four: Romanian, Math, Biology and English. Those bitches are now ruling my free time.

Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ.

The troubles of adolescence eventually all go away - it's just like a really long, bad cold. ~Dawn Ruelas

FIVE YEARS LATER

~Dream~

Lime green reptilian eyes were mercilessly piercing the other fighter's stare. Their possessor was a bulky, light blue alien, five times the size of his opponent. When he smirked, two rows of sharp teeth completed the ensemble of his features. He made a step towards the other alien. The whole arena seemed to be seized by a short earthquake under the pressure.

" - Talos! Talos!", the whole crowd began chanting, among various encouraging sounds and howls. From giant loudspeakers on each corner of the arena a loud tune was covering the noise, pumping through everyone's chest, while some of the aliens in the back were making bets, encouraged by barmen, who wouldn't stop from pouring them drinks.

So far, everyone was betting on Talos, and it was no wonder why. He was well known all over Dital for his countless victories and his supernatural strength. No one has ever had a chance.

" - That lil' prick has no chance! After Talos is done with him, he'll have him for dinner!", one of the aliens shouted, carefully counting some coins from a dirty, teal bag. He wasn't sure if he counted correctly, according to his current state, but he couldn't have cared less. In the end he'd win anyway.

" - I don't know, Rik, the pipsqueak seems pretty dangerous. Look at those legs!", his mess mate across the table commented, glancing at the ring, before looking back at his companion. They both burst into laugh, hitting the table with their palms.

The "secret" fighter watched as Talos advanced threateningly in his direction, growing annoyed by the second. The bulky alien didn't know when, nor did he know how he ended up with that scrawny being. Of one thing he was sure: he did not want to waste any much time on that arena. As much as he liked being cheered and stuff, it was getting late for his taste.

With a loud roar, he launched himself to his opponent, expecting the sound of crashing bones. But it never came.

Instead, the alien felt an excruciating pain on the back of his neck that sent him straight on the arena's floor.

His opponent quickly went on his side and rolled him over so Talos was laying on his back, his eyes narrowed, trying to regain consciousness. He mumbled something unintelligible, but the second his mouth opened, the only thing he was able to see was the face of the fighter, leaning over his own. He was straddling on his chest, squeezing Talos' neck with his knees. When the latter stuck his tongue out in his struggle to breathe, his opponent swiftly grabbed it and ripped it clear, throwing his hand in the air with the bloody organ in his hand.

The entire crowd was speechless; even the loud tune stopped. On every single face was plastered a single expression: utter shock. Their mouths were open in disbelief at the sight before their very eyes.

Unfazed by the sudden attention, the small fighter threw away the ripped tissue and, with pure hatred in his eyes, started sending fists in Talos' swollen face. Shortly enough, there wasn't anything left from the alien's figure, and there was no one brave enough to come up and get the opponent off him.

After a tense silence, a voice spoke from the far corner of the room:

" - And we have a winner! The first one...um, the only one who managed to defeat the great Talos from planet Dital!", the announcer called, regaining his composure as he walked on the ring and lifted the victor's hand cautiously. "Tell us who you are!"

The alien smirked and contently unfolded his dark brown tail.

~ END OF DREAM~

Vegeta snapped his eyes open and realized that his features and neck were drenched in sweat. He lifted himself to a sitting position at the edge of the bed and took a deep breath. The loud snorts from the other side of the room assured him that, fortunately, Nappa didn't hear his shaken breath. After wiping the moisture on his face, he looked at his own hands.

The "mystery" fighter was him. The one who killed Talos in that horrible way was him.

Well, over the years, he had witnessed thousands of ways of killing people, which he had classified under two categories: quick, swift murder – mostly as a result of total purges, and slow, preceded-by-torture-murder. Prolonged to the point when death would have been one's release. The second type was not something he usually used to agree to, it was a pathetic sight, and a boring one, for that matter. What was to come after that, however, was not a blissful sight at all. These were the nightmares.

One day, during an assignment he had been sent on with a bunch of soldiers well known for their mercenary acts around the galaxy, the Prince watched with a slight curl of his lips as one of the aliens was ruthlessly sending fists into an old inhabitant's stomach, while the other was holding his hands behind him and laughing near the elder's ear, whose whimpers were lower by the second. After a short while, the old man stopped sobbing, falling gracelessly on the ground when the soldier released him.

" - That's it?", the other soldier questioned, motioning angrily to the lifeless body in front of his feet. "A limax would have lasted longer.", he barked, spitting over the corpse in disgust, before turning behind him to look at Vegeta.

" - Hey, Vegeta", he smirked, showing his wide upper teeth. "That's how you become a man. It strengthens your mind and makes you invincible.", he spoke, before turning at his companion. "Needless to say, it's fun. This, however, was definitely crap, but let's just take it as a demonstration. C'mere!", the alien waved at the boy to approach him. "There you go, Nipple found some more of these slugs.",he said, patting the Prince, who was on his shoulder's level, curtly on his back, and motioning with his chin to the other soldier.

Vegeta scowled at the approaching alien, holding tightly two other silhouettes by their arms.

" - Meeplet*, dumb ass!", he barked, before brutally pushing the two villagers on their knees.

The fear in their petrified sights was so intense, that the Prince could feel it himself. He could even hear the vibrations of their chests from the raced-beatings of their hearts. A sensation he used to know as well. Never did he show the fear in his eyes whilst beaten by Frieza, but in the inside, he could not control it.

Vegeta barely heard what the alien next to him babbled, when he felt a slight push forward.

" - Your turn.", the voice behind him cackled.

The boy looked down at the villagers with a hard expression on his face. Behind his thirteen year old features, there were the thoughts of a man thrice his age. Had his planet still existed, his life would have been so different. Perhaps not so sprinkled with the constant caution he always had to maintain, and certainly more carefree. And confident. No one would have dared to challenge the Prince of all Saiyans, and he wouldn't have needed to use power to make his point – he would have been respected.

And now? There he was, among aliens from bizarre planets, assisting to an utter pathetic display of domination.

The boy was sure that if he'd sneezed right then, the frightened villagers would have had a breakdown, consisting of heart attack or miserable crying. They were holding their breaths in anticipation; what happened to their neighbor, it would happen to them too.

As if sensing Vegeta's hesitation, the younger alien burst into bitter tears, falling on his elbows and keeping his head above the ground, his whole body shaking uncontrollably with sobs.

" - P-pleease, don't kill us, your soul be blessed, have mercy!", he cried at the Prince's feet, lifting his head to look at the boy. His eyes were drown in tears and the corners of his misshapen mouth were contorted in a strange angle.

" - Shut up!", Meeplet shouted, sending his foot into the alien's side, before lifting him roughly back on his feet. "Come on, Vegeta, prove us that your Saiyan blood has not perished just like Vegetasei has.", he smirked, watching over Vegeta's facial expression. "Lord Frieza won't be pleased to know that he has a twat as a soldier, will he?"

He really didn't know if it was the mention of Frieza or the memory of his planet, of one thing he was sure: the next second, he was frantically punching, scratching, shoving his feet into the unfortunate alien. A strange fire was running through his whole body and he was no longer aware of the red of the blood on his hands, but the deep red of his fury, of every single thing he had to bury in the back of his mind, that made his chest ache from shame and inability.

The other two soldiers looked in satisfaction as the "wussy monkey"-his nickname lately- was literally tearing the alien into piles of raw flesh with his teeth clenched in a blind fury. Meanwhile, the other alien was watching in absolute horror the whole scene, not even being able to close his eyes, let alone getting on his feet and run for dear life.

When Vegeta looked up at him, his eyes widened. Even the soldiers took a small step back at the sight of the teenager's features. If they hadn't been assured that the planet had no moons, they would have sworn that the boy was about to transform in front of their very eyes.

Besides his face being sprinkled with the alien's blood, the Prince's bloodshot eyes were spitting fire between his eyelids and his mouth was revealing sharp canines, a low growl coming from his throat.

The last think the alien knew, he let go a terrified cry, before his head was teared off his shoulders, a petrified expression still plastered across its features.

As a precaution, because who knew how the "not-so-wussy-anymore" Prince would behave, the soldiers decided to let him purge what was left of by himself, as they took off to the opposite half of the planet.

During the flight back to Frieza's base ship, there hasn't been exchanged one single word. Without a doubt, the "incident" left all of them speechless. Vegeta's head was throbbing in pain and he squeezed his eyes shut, but, almost immediately, the sight of the pile of flesh and the decapitated alien appeared just as real as the first time. The Prince looked down at his hands; he didn't even bother to wash up the blood on his previously pristine gloves, and now they had different shades of dry red fluid all over. With slightly jerky moves, he took them off and threw them on the back of his pod. The assistants would clean them anyway. The question was, who will clean up the images in his head? He was not supposed to do that, he was taught to fight the ones equally as strong as him, not kill – and, much less, in such a horrendous way- the weak ones. On Vegetasei that kind of murder was called torlashimur* and it had been strictly forbidden to the Saiyan soldiers. Out of fairness, some of them said, but the real reason was that murders of such level of violence had negative effects on one's subconscious. Also known as nightmares.

But at that moment, he felt...good. Just like the whole rage and frustration constantly held in the back of his chest had been finally released through his arms down to the fists he so eagerly sent into the aliens' helpless bodies.

Vegeta took a deep breath and looked in front of him through the circular window.

There was no torlashimur anymore. These were other circumstances, and the main rule was kill or be killed.

From the minute the space pods landed on the baseship, the Prince hadn't said a single word, as usual.

He entered the room he shared with Nappa, only to see the massive warrior covered in long, light, scars all over his body, with a deep scowl on his face and his mouth contorted into a grimace. The scars must've been deeper, of course, since they were still visible even after being healed. It wasn't the display of light lines on the Saiyan's skin that caught the boy's attention, though.

" - What the hell happened to...your hair?", Vegeta only managed to utter before bursting into a peal of laughter. He was almost out of breath, as he bent a bit in the front, holding his stomach, but it felt so relieving. His previous tense mood was quickly draining itself from his chest.

Nappa only rolled his eyes and passed one hand over his newly bald head. He opened his mouth for an explanation, but the sight of Vegeta laying on the floor, almost choking from laughter, made him snort in amusement as well. When was the last time he had seen the boy like that? Almost three cycles ago?

After a few moments, Vegeta finally regained his breath, and tried to look at his bodyguard without bursting out again.

" - I got punished... because I asked for new boots.", he stated, motioning next to his bed at a pair of dirty-white boots which were already far from their initial shape and badly worn out at the edges of their soles.

The Prince sighed. Nappa's concept of "asking" for something, was not on the likes of Frieza's people. After all that time spent as one of the tyrant's soldiers, one would have thought that the massive Saiyan had already gotten some tricks on how not to get beaten up for everything. Sadly, it was not the case.

" - How'd it go?"

Vegeta's features darkened as he got up to his feet, discarding his gloves,armor and boots, and throwing them in a corner. He did not want to talk about the assignment. At least, not right now. Any minute he would be "invited" to Frieza's quarters and give the detailed report, anyway. It was a thousand times worse, needless to say. He never understood why the lizard wanted a report after every assignment. Unless there were harsh conditions, and the soldiers' armors would have had a high chance of getting damaged, and thus, breaking the communicators, it made no sense; everything was broadcasted right to Frieza's big screen.

At least, he would get to choose whether to tell the story twice.

" - Fine.", the boy bluntly said, before heading to the bathroom. The cold, damp floor made him regret that he didn't leave his boots on. He walked over in front of the shattered mirror hanging in an awkward angle against the stained, gray wall and looked at his own reflection.

Despite the constant frown of his eyebrows and occasional twitching of his right eye – a reflex he recently got, which was due to being constantly forced to hide his anger outbursts whilst in front of Frieza, he had the appearance of a regular thirteen year-old Saiyan boy: with a slightly outlined jawline and temples, but still a child overall.

The outbursts were getting more and more frequent lately and, at night, he started to have, aside nightmares (including violent images – which, also, got more frequent) , weird dreams which he used to find disgusting before. Be it the "trip" on the other side of the baseship, the place where soldiers went to satisfy their needs – and he was positive that it was the real reason -, the boy would never get those distorted images out of his head.

Suddenly, he heard a loud bark coming from his room, followed by a growl and something else being hit.

" - Where's that brat? And don't play smart with me, bald head, I'd say that you had enough for one day!"

Vegeta entered the room, only to see a furious Nappa regaining his composure after being slammed against the wall, and a disgusted Cui who was giving the room a once-over, his eyes finally settling on him.

" - There ya are. Heard you've been a total wreck back on Gardin, eh?", he cackled, his eyes looking down in the Prince's, who was highly unlikely to break the contact. "Well, we'll just see about that. Come.", Cui spat and left the room with Vegeta following suit.

" - He's not that defenseless anymore.", Zarbon stated, looking up at the projection on the white wall. "The others got scared of him."

" - Fools. Mercenary warriors getting scared of a boy who just hit puberty. They'll have some explaining to do.", Frieza said blankly, though his red eyes were slightly narrowed as he watched the Prince literally tearing the alien apart, limb by limb. "As for the monkey, we all know his filthy kind gets stronger each time they heal from heavy battles."

" - My Lord, pardon me to tell you this, but the last time the brat's power level has been checked, he was slightly past 11 500."

The tyrant turned his head to face his henchman, a pensive look on his features.

" - It looks like I've crossed the line with the punishments. But how else could I keep the fire burning inside him?", he said thoughtfully. "If I stop...giving him lessons, he will lose his nature, and my aim is to use his nature in my favor. Vegeta is not a regular soldier and I don't want him to be either. But he has to know his place."

" - Do you have anything in mind?"

" - Precisely. Bring me the two soldiers who accompanied Vegeta on Gardin."

As Zarbon left, Cui entered the room with the Prince behind him.

" - Lord Frieza, Vegeta is here.", he humbly croaked, kneeling in front of the Ice-Jin, who just turned off the projection to face the newcomer.

" - You may leave, Cui.", Frieza absently said, turning his attention to Vegeta.

The boy half-raised an eyebrow when the Ice-Jin didn't say or do anything aside staring at him.

From all his soldiers, Vegeta was the only one to maintain eye-contact with him. In the boy's first two years under his rule, the tyrant was able to recognize that look: hatred mixed with fear. But lately, his sight would become blank, lacking any sign of emotion. Just like he had learned to separate his thoughts and feelings and lock them deep into his mind. In front of Frieza, he was strictly objective. Everything he said lacked any trace of self-opinion towards the matter in hand.

The awkward silence broke as the two soldiers who had been sent on Gardin entered the room, followed by Zarbon. On their faces, aside from the usual fear, it was pure confusion; usually, only the soldier with the highest power level gave the report. And in their case, that was Vegeta, and he was already there. Why did he summon them then?

" - You two have been sent with Vegeta on Gardin on a purge mission.", Frieza simply stated.

" - Yes, my Lord.", one of the aliens spoke in a weak voice.

" - And you have been given two days to complete the purge. According to the devices attached to your armors, the mission has been completed in one day and a half. If I recall correctly, as soon as a mission is complete, not a minute later, you must report it to Zarbon!", the Ice-Jin snarled.

The two aliens began trembling in horror, their heads lowered, as if waiting their fate.

" - You are not sent on assignments to have fun!", Frieza icily said in front of them, before taking a few steps back. "But while we're here...Vegeta!", he called.

The Prince's head snapped in the tyrant's direction and his eyes slightly narrowed.

" - Repeat the performance from Gardin.", the lizard casually said, motioning at the two aliens, whose horrified expressions were unmistakable. "Right here. Right now."

Vegeta moved his sight from Frieza to the soldiers in confusion. He couldn't have asked him to kill the aliens in that barbaric way. Right there. Besides, he had only acted by his instinct.

" - What?", the boy asked in confusion.

The Ice-Jin pursed his lips in disgust. One of his greatest displeasures was to repeat himself. Had he not spoken his words clear enough or put the blame on the environment, he would have understood.

" - You heard me, monkey!", he shouted.

Vegeta's jaw pulsed for a second and looked back at the aliens. Kill or be killed. He was surprised to find that it wasn't even so hard this time. Only inhaling the Ice-Jin's quarters' scent was sickening. He rather found that as a relief. It could have been any being, it just didn't matter. After five minutes of gory display, the boy stood up on his feet, the front of his body drenched in blue blood.

" - Did you like it?"

The question comes as simply as it sounds. Did he like to -literally- tear their skin and limbs off? In his opinion, it was useless, a waste of time. He could have disintegrated them with one single blast, he was stronger than both of them combined. No, he didn't. But he disliked more being dead.

" - Nice. Dismissed.", Frieza said with a small curl of one of the corners of his mouth, noticing the boy's hesitance.

" - Cut the Saiyans' meat portion by half from tomorrow on."

If Vegeta's headache was bad before, now he felt like his skull would explode in any second. Of course he wouldn't go back to his room. The air felt like a thick rope strangling his neck and preventing him from breathing. He knew he would throw up if he didn't exit the ship soon, so he eagerly took of through the circular open window on the hallway's roof.

The two suns about to go down were giving a soft light and the air was slightly cool. The boy landed gracefully near an old building that once served for weapon storage. He sat down on the ground with his back against the degraded, his arms on his knees as his eyes were unfocused on a distant point. It was better now. The Prince did not even realize that he was dozing off when he heard steps on the short, gray grass moving towards him.

He instantly jumped on his feet, his gaze alert as he tried to acknowledge the scent. To his disbelief, he couldn't associate that scent with any of the soldiers on the ship.

" - Who are you? Show yourself!", he shouted, charging a ball of ki in his right hand.

A small, slim silhouette approached the Saiyan, wearing a pair of dirty, worn out, dark gray pants and a light gray shirt, strained with black dust. It was a boy around Vegeta's stature, with light orange skin, sparkling gray eyes and ruffled, silver hair. His cheeks were slightly pink as he raised his both arms in defense.

" - Wait! Wait! I'm no threat to you!", he cried out, his eyes widening at the sight of the sparkling ki.

Vegeta narrowed his eyes. He was not a soldier and, considering the frightened look the boy was giving him, he would've most likely fainted if the Prince fired into the tree behind the alien.

Power level: 500

With just a snap of his fingers, the boy's neck would no longer have a head to hold on it.

" - Who are you?", Vegeta asked again.

" - My name is Shalin. I am a Luthirian, my father brought me here against my will.", he said in a single breath, before continuing in a whisper: "He lost me on a bet he made while drunk."

The Prince's lip curled in disgust. A similar thing happened to him, more or less.

" - Too bad.", Vegeta blankly said. "Do you have any business with me? If not, you're free to get out of my sight."

" - I know the reason why you are here."

The Prince instantly turned around to the boy.

" - And I might help you escape."

*torlashimur – a pun on: "tor-" from "torture", "-lashi-" from "lasitate"(ro.) meaning "cowardice" and "-mur" from "murder"

Meeplet - it has a French pronunciation, like "mee-play/mee-plaee" whatever

limax - is some sort of slug without a shell, only bigger(in my oppinion, the most disgusting thing ever)