Will of the Saiyans: Chapter 5

Rima grimaced as she continued to inspect the damaged circuits inside of her arm. She currently had the skin of her forearm peeled back, and was attempting to do some repairs on the pieces of her that had been damaged on her last mission.

Keyword, attempting.

The tray in front of her rattled with the table it was on, and Rima grimaced, sliding her arm back as the gelatinous blob on said tray wiggled precariously. She shuddered as she imagined putting something like that in her body willingly, thanking the gods that she didn’t need to eat. It wasn’t all bad, the food served in the canteen had more in common with plastic than anything resembling nutritional food and tasted just as bland, but at bare minimum it was filling. If you weren't a Saiyan at least, but the Visurii was working on something in that regard.

Speaking of Saiyans, that brought her to the other reason that her repairs were taking so long…

The Visurii sighed as the table jostled again, nearly causing her to jam the tiny screwdriver into her delicate internals. On the other side of the table, Papri and Sadri were currently bickering about something that she couldn't be bothered to figure out. The two of them were really riled up, practically yelling in each other's faces and Rima would really prefer they just go find a room so she wouldn't have to watch.

She looked at the two bickering warriors in annoyance, “Are you two just gonna keep bickering all night, or are you actually gonna eat? I'm trying to make some repairs here!”

Papri looked over at her, disregarding the annoyed Seijin she had just been arguing with, “Rima! Tell Sadri that his hair is not nicer than mine!”

“Yeah Rima! Go ahead and lie to my face!”

The Visurii actually couldn't believe her ears, “That's what you two have been fighting about!? Hair!? Are you actually children?”

Sadri just shook his head in pity, “You wouldn't get it Rima. You can just change your hair out whenever you want to, you have no personal pride in having grown it yourself.”

As Rima looked on in disbelief, Sadri ran a hand through his white locks, looking like some sort of posh celebrity one could find on the extranet while beside him, Papri nodded at his words.

“Of course,” Sadri smirked as he turned his gaze to the Saiyan beside him who narrowed her eyes in suspicion, “Some people aren't as blessed genetically as others. Some have beautiful, lustrous strands, and others have something like a… shaggy mop stuck to the top of their heads.”

Papri leaned forward, slamming her forehead against Sadri’s as he did the same in front of her. She gave him an angry grin, eye flashing in annoyance “You wanna say that again!?”

Sadri just grinned back, “You heard me! Though I don't know how you can hear anything through that carpet on your scalp!”

Papri laughed, high and annoyed, “Oh I see how it is! You wanna get your ass kicked, is that it?” She pressed harder against him, feeling her blood begin to pound in anticipation.

“Hah! You? Beat me? Don't make me laugh. You still haven't done it yet and you never will!” He smirked, and Rima sighed in exasperation at his comment, knowing exactly what he was trying to do. She closed the small hatch on her arm and put the synthskin back in place. Clearly, she’d just have to wait until she was back in her room to actually get anything done, she settled in to watch the show.

A vein popped on Papri's head and her eye twitched angrily, “Huh!? Oh you must really want me to beat your ass! You wanna take this to the training room!?”

Sadri just kept up his infuriating smirk, “Sure thing! Think you can pull off a repeat of last time? Just know I'll be prepared for it this time.”

As Papri hesitated to respond, Rima raised an eyebrow in questioning, “Last time? What happened last time?”

Papri nodded to Sadri, who explained, “Well, we were sparring right? I was winning of like always, and-”

“Ok hold on! I'm not gonna let you tell the story if you're just gonna lie!” Papri shouted in outrage.

She shoved Sadri out of the way, looking towards Rima, “We were sparring and evenly matched the entire time. Sadri wanted to show off his new attack and I was kind of interested so we had a beam clash.”

Here, Papri grimaced, “I will admit that he might have been winning but then I-actually, you know what, hold on a second.”

As Rima watched curiously, Papri retrieved a small device from the inside of her boot. She pressed on its surface, and the device suddenly expanded, splitting into to and projecting a small rectangular screen that Rima recognized to be a holopad. A pretty old model but one that looked to be in pretty good condition.

Sadri leaned in curiously as she navigated the device’s files, looking for something specific, “Where the hell did you get that?”

Papri kept her eyes on the holopad as she scrolled through it, “Raaj smuggled it in for me. I had to pay a premium for it and it's pretty old, but I'd say I got a pretty good deal all things considered.”

Sadri nodded in agreement, “I'll say. Raaj would never do something like that for me. Probably still mad about the coffee incident. Guy can hold a grudge like nothing else.”

Rima gave him a look, “You somehow managed to spill three cups of coffee on him in a ten minute period. You're lucky he didn't try to throw you out the airlock.”

Raaj was the ship’s smuggler. That meant that if somebody wanted something that wasn't available in the commissary or planetside, they had to go to him. Unfortunately, like Sadri said, he tended to hold a grudge, and the only reason he even dealt with Papri was that she apparently reminded him of his cousin.

“Ah! Here we go. Rima, take a look at this.” Papri slid her holopad over to the Visurii, who grabbed it and examined it curiously. It was a video, one that was clearly taken from the cameras in the training room. Papri and Sadri were front and center, and Rima realized this must have been the spar they were talking about.

She pressed play, curiously watching the fight unfold.

~~~

Papri grimaced as she downed the last of her slop. Her stomach grumbled in protest of the shitty food and she felt like she was about to hurl, but she forced it to stay down. She needed all the nutrients she could get.

Across from her, Rima hummed as she finished the video. Pressing the screen on the holopad and deactivating it, compressing it back to its compact state.

“So what exactly was that?” The Visurii asked as she slid the device back to her friend. Papri shrugged as she caught it.

“No clue. I'm pretty sure that it has something to do with my heritage but I haven't been able to find anything similar in my family's records.” She sighed, placing the device away into her boot, “There's just so much random stuff in the dataslate. Family records, recipes, meditation methods; who the hell meditates?”

Rima perked up, “Actually, could you send me some of those? I've been trying to destress in my off time.”

“Aww, are you saying we stress you out?” Sadri sounded devastated, and his lip wobbled pitifully, “I can't believe you would say something so mean.”

Rima rolled her eyes, flicking a portion of her food across the table and smirking as the Seijin ducked in disgust, “Everything you do annoys me Sadri. I'm not even sure why I put up with you.”

“Yeah sure, whatever you say. You know you like us.” Sadri grinned.

“Against my better judgment.”

"D’aww! Look at you two getting along.” Papri sniffed as they gave her annoyed looks, “Almost brings a tear to my eye…” It was good to see her best friends getting along.

“Well look at what we have here boys. The Saiyan finally found her way out of the training room.” An especially annoying voice called out.

Aaaaand there went her good mood.

She sighed at the annoying voice, “What do you want, Dask?”

Dask was one of the stronger members of the crew. Weaker than Papri, but there were only a few who weren't. He ranked right below her in power level at around nine thousand, and this unfortunately gave him a big head. He tended to be extremely antagonistic towards the Saiyan and her friends whenever he thought he could get away with it.

And unfortunately for Papri, the canteen was the perfect place for that sort of thing. Fights were a common occurrence after all, so nobody would bat an eye at some mean words.

“Aw, what's wrong Saiyan?” The man chuckled mockingly as he made his way over with a group of people, “I just wanted to talk. That's all.”

“I'm not in the mood for your shit right now Dask.” Papri didn't bother looking back at the man as he and his group stopped in front of her table, “Why don't you just skip to the part where you shut up and fuck off? Save us all five minutes of your annoying voice.”

“Ha! Hear that fellas? The ape thinks I'm annoying!” He looked back at his cronies, who laughed on que. Papri scrunched her nose at the fake laughter. Dask was a brownnoser of the highest order, always following Orishi's every word as if it was gospel. Unfortunately, this meant that the captain actually liked him, and as such he had more pull inside of the ship.

Papri honestly doubted the several people behind Dask actually gave any kind of shit about him and were instead just there to reap the benefits of being his friend. Either way, that just meant that they weren't likely to leave unless Dask told them to.

“Honestly I'm surprised that a shit slinger like you isn't dead yet. Pets don't usually last as long as you have.” Dask laughed, cuing those being him to do so as well.

Papri sighed, already over this conversation, “Really? Schoolyard insults? What are you, twelve?”

“Cut him some slack Papri,” Rima piped up from the other side of the table, “You know he's always been a bit behind the curve compared to most. In mentality and…” she looked him up and down with a grimaced, “Other things.”

As his ‘friends’ laughed behind him, Dask’s face turned an interesting shade of purple. He glared at Papri, “You’d better keep a better leash on that whore of yours Saiyan. Before that mouth of hers gets her into trouble.”

Papri scowled at the threat, “If I were you, I'd shut your mouth while you're ahead, Dask.” She spoke lowly, “You may think you're hot shit, but you're not Orishi. I have no problems with beating you within an inch of your life.”

Dask laughed at her words, “Oh yeah? And what are you going to do about it? Are you and your two little friends gonna-Mf!” His little speech was stopped in its tracks as Papri's hand clasped the back of his head and, with little fanfare, shoved his face through the metal table they were sitting at.

She stood up to loom over him, scowling as his friends shouted at her angrily, “I thought I told you to shut the fuck up.” Dask groaned from his position on the floor, “You’re really starting to piss me off.”

“Oh, so he didn't piss you off before you slammed him through a table?” Sadri asked sarcastically as he walked up next to her. Beside him, Rima sighed as she realized that the situation had escalated far beyond her control, hesitantly standing as well to join her friends.

“Just one day. One day where coming to the canteen doesn't end in a fight or some sort of dinner m measuring contest. Is that too much to ask?” Rima asked rhetorically as she put her hands up in a makeshift stance to Papri's right.

“With us? Probably.” Sadri grinned as he got into his own stance to her left.

A crowd quickly gathered around them, cheering happily at the fight that was about to occur. Their opponents suddenly looked extremely nervous, clearly aware that they stood no chance against the three of them. Their eyes darted about in search of an escape where none was to be found. Papri grinned, clenching her fists. This would be cathartic.

Then, just as Papri tensed her legs to launch herself at the grunt who had managed to get back to his feet, her collar beeped, and her eyes widened in horror at the sound.

“Shit no-!” That was all she managed to get out before the device activated. Her breath left her lungs as the metal prongs of the collar’s internals sunk into her skin, delivering their payload expeditiously.

Her hair stood on end, spiking wildly around her as the device began to discharge thousands of volts of electricity into her skin. Rima and Sadri stared at her in horror, and the crowd forming around them backed up, murmuring uncomfortably as the Saiyan fell to her knees, howling in agony.

Papri fell to the floor, eyes wide and bloodshot as she writhed in agony. Her own screams echoed in her ears, the pain in her vocal cords nothing in comparison to that of the collar. This was much worse than it had ever been, her mind was overcome with the agony radiating throughout her body and it was all she could do to keep breathing. Black spots danced in her vision, teasing her with the merciful oblivion that was just out of reach. Foul smelling smoke rose into the air above her writhing form and electricity flowed across her skin as she clutched at the collar around her neck.

She could just barely sense Rima and Sadri hovering over her in worry, hands not touching her body for fear that the shocks would transfer to them. She just barely managed to wave them off, not wanting them to hurt themselves in a futile attempt to assist her as another jolt ran through her, causing her fingers to twitch.

And then, just as she started to wonder if this would be the end of her, the collar deactivated. The world of pain she had come to know slowly faded away, wisps of smoke rising from her reddened skin as she heaved in deep breaths of air. Rima noticed this and bent down, a hand coming to cup the Saiyan’s head as she looked over her, Sadri hovering nearby in worry.

“Papri!? Are you okay?” The Visurii asked in worry as her purple eyes scanned for visible injuries. Papri's eyes weren't on her however, instead looking past her at the entrance to the canteen.

“She’ll be fine. The ape is used to it by now.” Rima’s gaze snapped over to the voice, glaring angrily.

Orishi’s footsteps echoed loudly in the silent canteen as he made his way over to them, and Papri’s blood boiled at the infuriating smirk on his face. He stopped a few feet in front of them, and Papri’s view was suddenly blocked by RIma’s back as the Visurii stood between her and the captain.

“What do you want, Orishi?

“A new assignment came through.” The Neijin said, crossing his large arms in front of his chest as he stared down at her with something akin to sadistic amusement, “The three of you are joining Davik on a mission to Obir. Lord Cooler has gotten tired of those upstarts messing with the Organization's plans. You’re being sent to eradicate them.”

“You're sending us to Obir!?” Rima asked in alarm, Papri’s mind sluggishly tried to remember what she knew about the planet. The only thing she could recall was that the population was made up of exceptionally strong individuals. Just as strong as she was now, if not stronger,  “Orishi, they aren’t strong enough for that! Just let Davik and I handle it! There’s no reason for them to join us!”

Orishi smirked at her worry, “Oh? And here I thought the ape wanted more opportunities to fight strong opponents. Am I suddenly the villain for providing the challenge she desires?” He spread his arms outward, laughing into the silent room, “How unfair is that?”

Rima scowled, “She wanted to fight strong opponents! Not a fucking death sentence! You know that that planet’s population is too strong! You're just trying to get her killed. If Lord Cooler caught wind of thi-”

“ENOUGH!” He shouted, silencing the murmurs that had begun to grow. He glared down at Rima who stared back in defiance, “Don't question me. I have given you orders, and you will follow them. Am I clear?”

Rima grit her teeth and nodded, not taking her eyes off of the blue skinned alien.

Orishi nodded in satisfaction, taking a step back, “Good. Report to the departure hanger to meet with Davik. Don't be late or else I will be forced to punish that ape once more.” With that, he walked out of the canteen, his footsteps echoing throughout the tense silence as those around him watched him warily.

Papri's eyes stayed on his broad back as he walked, rage and pain suffused her very being as she struggled to sit up on her elbows. Around them, the crowd that had gathered slowly dispersed, not paying any mind to her as she slowly rose up.

“ ‘m gonna fuckin kill him.” The Saiyan slurred as Orishi left her sight. Blood seeped from under her eyelids, rolling down her face and falling to the floor, “Gonna rip his heart out and feed it to him…”

“Then you better get stronger fast, Papri.” Rima said seriously as she helped the Saiyan stand back to her feet. She held out a steadying hand as the younger woman swayed on her feet, sharing a look of concern with Sadri, “You won't last much longer at this rate.”

“I'll be fine…” Papri groaned out as she gently removed Rima’s hand from her shoulder. She stumbled slightly before righting herself, taking a deep breath to gather her composure. She brought a hand to her face, gathering the blood on her fingertips before putting them in her mouth to clean them off.

The sharp taste of iron grounded her, letting her think clearly. Her body ached like nothing else and she was almost positive her neck was bleeding, but she couldn't worry about that right now. Orishi had made it very clear what would happen if they were late to the departure hanger.

She took another steadying breath, before looking back at her companions  who stared back at her with worry, “I’ll be fine.Let's go. I don't want to hear any of Davik’s complaints if we're late.”

“Papri, you're smoking…” Sadri said quietly.

Papri looked down and grimaced as she saw that her bodysuit had begun to smolder. It hadn't caught fire, but it was damaged enough that she would have to change it. Great.

“I'll go change. Head over without me, I'll be there in a bit. Sadri, don't let Rima fuck with my pod. I have it how I like it and I know how she is.” Papri internally winced at her terse tone, but she figured her friends would forgive her given the circumstances.

Sadri gave her a nod while Rima made an offended face, “Will do. Go get fixed up, we'll see you there.”

“Yeah, see you.”

As she slowly limped her way back to her room to change, Papri swirled her spit around in her mouth, gathering the residual blood from inside. She scowled.

She was going to make sure Orishi’s death was as painful as possible.

~~~

Dask Power Level: 9,277

Papri Power Level: 11,602

Sadri Power Level: 12,501

Rima Power Level: 22,362