Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Lost in the Darkness ❯ Hatred and Other Things ( Chapter 10 )

Lost in the Darkness

Part 10

Hatred and Other Things

Disclaimer: I don't own. So there.

Vegita: Ha! I'm still mocking you!

*gives triumphant grin and pulls out…* Ha! I've still got the Frying Pan of Doom!

Vegita: *gulps and runs away* SAVE ME!!!!!

*Smiles proudly* NOW I'm done. Enjoy!
~*~ ~*~ ~*~

It was fairly early when Kakarotto woke up to the sound of Mrs. Williams singing. It felt so good to be FREE! He wiggled happily, stretching in several warm-up katas he had not had time to do in years. His father owned him and that made him FREE!

Turlis was having the same thoughts as his twin, but neither were speaking to the other at the moment so they were unaware of the fact. Turlis woke up several hours after his brother and immediately went out for a morning fly. He hadn't been flying by himself for ages and now that his wings weren't clipped, it felt even nicer. Or, it would have if he wasn't dreading what his father would tell him when he got back.
~*~ ~*~ ~*~

"I have enrolled you two in school!" Bardock gave a proud smile. "You know enough to start only a year below your true `grade level' as they call it here, so you should be caught up in no time!" The former Saiya-Jin warrior was immensely proud of his sons. They would get a chance he had never dreamed they could. He hoped they were as happy as he.

"You WHAT?!" Turlis choked out. "Tousan!"

"We're going WHERE?" Kakarotto gaped, thinking his father had gone mad. "But, don't the humans not allow that?"

"The law says it's perfectly legal and I think it'll be a good experience for you two." Bardock replied firmly. It had only been a week since the papers had gone through and the two adult Saiya-Jins had been freed.

"If you say so." Kakarotto told him, still somewhat skeptical. He wasn't about to tell his father that, though.
~*~ ~*~ ~*~

The brothers found themselves starting high school the next week. While the duo should have been sophomores, they had to start as freshmen. It was a brand-new year, only a week in beginning, so hopefully they could stay unrecognized as former slaves. Nervously Kakarotto rubbed at the whip mark that ran along his arm. A constant reminder of the furious beating he had received when he was first bought. He hoped no one would notice. It was hard enough to fit in already.

Turlis had a different first hour teacher than his brother and so they split up at the doors. The only thing that kept them partly sane was the knowledge that they had several class and lunch together.
~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Hesitantly Kakarotto raised his hand and gently knocked on the door to his first hour class. He heard the teacher announce that they had a new student to the class inside and walk to the door. The man, in his upper fifties with graying hair was beginning to bald. His sharp brown eyes watched the teen Saiya-Jin with relative disinterest and with a frown, he gestured Kakarotto into the room.

"This is our new student, Kakarotto Son. Tell us about yourself, boy." The teacher barked with a scowl.

"Hi! Um, my name is Kakarotto, as he said, and, um, I like to do martial arts and read, on occasion. I also like to paint when I can." He smiled shyly at the class who began to snicker at the boy. With a slight frown he added, "And I DON'T like being laughed at." The class clamped their mouths shut in surprise. No one had ever said THAT before.

"Go take you seat, over there. By Sharpener the fifth." The teacher snapped. Kakarotto bared his teeth and barely surpressed a growl of rage. The boy was definitely the son of his first master and he was every bit as arrogant. The blonde teen didn't seem to notice Kakarotto's murderous look at him and went back to primping and admiring himself in the mirror he carried in his pocket.

~ I haven't even been here an hour and I already hate it. ~ Kakarotto thought with a growl. Sharpner's eyes flicked towards him and he did a double take at the Saiya-Jin teen.

~ That looks like a slave we used to own! ~ He frowned. He had never spent much time with any slaves besides his own which was why he didn't recognize him right off, but now that he looked, he was absolutely positive of it.

It was math class and so the teacher had assigned them book work for the other half hour of the class. Unfortunately, when Kakarotto was deep in thought, he would rub the scar on his arm. That proved Sharpner's theory. The human boy smirked. He would have the ex-slave kicked out in no time.

It was fortunate the bell rang then for the end of class.

Second hour was Science class, third was English, and fourth hour was Universal language. Kakarotto was already excellent at that language, he'd been speaking it since he was born, and fifth hour was lunch and art, another subject he excelled in. Sixth hour was history class, and last came his band class.

He had never used an instrument before, but the teacher put him on the tuba and the other low brass accepted him with no questions and helped him plenty. They were especially happy to have someone else with them. Kakarotto found many friends in the band, just like anyone would with activities like that, and he was pretty happy with it.

Art was another matter altogether, though. His teacher wanted him to paint HER way and Kakarotto wanted to paint his. They didn't get along very well, needless to say. It didn't matter, though. He still enjoyed the class and the teacher liked him well enough so it would all be all right. At least until the debates came along.
~*~ ~*~ ~*~

A month had passed relatively well, there were no mishaps and no accidental slip-ups, a fact for which Kakarotto was grateful. There were also new friends and even some enemies. That he was not grateful for. Turlis fit in with no mishaps as well, so, at the moment, things were going better than anyone could have hoped.

At least until they got to the topic of the slave wars in history class.
~*~ ~*~ ~*~

It was nothing against his teacher, in fact, Kakarotto rather liked his teacher. He made the class as interesting as he could and while it wasn't the bloody and exciting history of Vegita-Sei, it was still pretty fascinating. The only problem was that his history teacher lead debates in class. And when you start talking about the history of slavery in front of one who suffered from it's injustices, well, it's not so great. And that's exactly what happened.

"The slave wars started almost two hundred years ago, on July fourteenth. That first battle was the bloodiest of them all, excluding, perhaps, the Saiya-Jin wars. The first race captured were the Noritz-Jins." The teacher gave several more dates and a few more battles with other races, including some in the Saiya-Jin wars, to which Kakarotto added the dates in Saiya-Go, and then the teacher started the debate Kakarotto had been dreading ever since he learned of it.

"So, class, what do you all think of slavery? Do you think it's right?"

"I do! I mean, slaves are stupid and they can't even think for themselves!" A girl with mousy brown hair called.

"Yeah, and what would they do if we didn't interfere? They'd all be savages!" A boy agreed.

"That's not true!" Kakarotto interjected. "Some had very interesting cultures that no one even bother to learn about!"

"Like who?" One asked with a smirk.

"One race believed that animals could be guides in whatever they were doing. Something like spirit animals, but the people weren't limited to just one animal. It's pretty cool." He was referring to Zarbon's race.

"Really? Sounds like a dumb tradition to me." one mocked. Kakarotto frowned.

"And besides, the slaves have it better here! The Saiya-Jins were killed for making mistakes. Nothing happens to them here." Amanda, a red head told them.

"Do you know why? There's always a reason." Kakarotto broke in.

It was Sharpner who spoke next. "I don't, so why don't you tell us, slave."

The class gasped and Kakarotto stiffened as though slapped. "Sharpner! Don't say things like that!" The teacher snapped.

"Iie." Kakarotto broke in, speaking in his native language for a moment. "I am not ashamed of the truth."

"WHAT?" The class demanded as one.

"I was a slave. My father bought me after the lady gave him and my mother his freedom. I am free because of that." Kakarotto scowled. "I am a Saiya-Jin. The last race to be caught. And the battle for our freedom was glorious. Even if we lost. It is true that we could die for mistakes. But we had our reasons, just as you had your own reasons to beat the slaves you own. Our reasons were that often, in battle, mistakes were life or death. Superiors were the law and the king above them all. Our culture was different than yours, yes, but it was the same in many aspects. We have laws, just as you do. And in some places, our culture is more refined. We don't beat our mates. I believe you call them wives. Instead we are bound in heart, mind, and soul. We can talk to them telepathically. It is different then here. Mates are bound for life. Death is the only thing that can break the bond. And then, we came here."

"It isn't THAT bad, is it?" The mousy haired girl asked.

"We are ripped from our families. Bound mates are sold to other people. Some will never see each other again. My parents were very lucky. I have not seen my older brother since I was sold on this planet. I don't even know if he's still alive. They beat some of us to the point of permanent injury or death. What are your specifications for `bad'?" He snarled.

"What do you mean? No one beat you." The teens couldn't believe it. They had never seen their parents do such a thing, but they would when they got older. Were shown how to "manage" their own slaves.

"I have the scars to prove it." He looked at them with haunted eyes. "My brother, my twin, he was beaten on the ship here. We thought he was going to die. I was beaten on the auctioneer's platform. All three of us that were sold together, my dad, brother, and I, were beaten at our first home. I nearly died from it. My mother was lucky. She got a nice owner who later freed her. My other brother? I don't know anything about him. I don't know where he is, what he's doing, I don't even know if he's ALIVE!" He spoke with a fiery conviction that left little room for doubt.

"Will you prove you have the scars?" A girl asked hesitantly. The entire class looked tot he teacher for the okay. They wanted him to prove what he was. What had happened.

The teacher looked from Kakarotto to the class and then back at the once enslaved Saiya-Jin. "It is Kakarotto's decision." The teacher finally told them. "If he wants to show you, I will allow it."

Kakarotto looked at the class. He knew, in his heart, that if he didn't do it they would never believe him. But the scars were more than just physical. They were also mental. Unless he found hidden strength for the coming days, he knew he shouldn't do it. Hesitently the Saiya-Jin teen walked to the front of the room. With one deft movement he turned around and shed his shirt, exposing his back to the class. Red and white welt-like scars crisscrossed his back with smaller red and white scars mingling with them. The number that had once identified him as a slave was roughly crossed out with the seal of the international slave department next to it. The still legible number was 652860143851A. He drew a deep breath and turned back around also showing the scars marring his chest and shoulders. With a sigh he replaced his shirt and looked at the class.

"I had my humanity taken from me. None of us were even worth a name. Just a number. That's all I was to them. A number. And even the number had a reason. The first number identifies the planet. The next ten is the number of slave I am. The one states I am male and the A tells everyone I have a twin." He held back his tears and continued. "I wasn't even an animal to them. At least animals have names."

The class gave no reply. There was nothing to say.
~*~ ~*~ ~*~

(A/N) Sorry I cut Vegita out of this part, I really am, but I wanted to post because it's been so long since I have, and this is a really long chapter already. I hope you didn't find it too boring, but I tried not to bore you with unimportant things. I'm expanding on the other cultures now, and that will probably play a big role later. Next chapter is Vegita, I swear. And I figured it was pretty fair for Vegita to be cut out because the last chapter was mostly him.

So, review and tell me what you think and flames are always welcome, though if you send them now you'll probably look kinda dumb because you've already read nine other chapters to a fic you didn't like.

R/R, sil vous-plait! (please)

Ja ne!
~*~ Lady Foeseeker ~*~