Free From Time

Chapter Four: Helpless Abiding

"Who are those two?" She asks, the obviousness that she just woke up clear in her voice.

"Piccolo is fighting Frieza!" Gohan happily shouts. He seems to share a close bond with the Namekian. She watches on as Frieza easily dominates Piccolo. His head is almost as long, if not longer, than his torso. His twig-like legs are bent, and his face is revolting to Articho.

"Ugh. He's ugly enough that I want to punch him," Articho remarks. Frieza starts firing ki lasers at Piccolo, who can't keep up with the faster form. Gohan rushes behind Frieza and fires a large blast at him, but Frieza knocks it back. Piccolo blows up the energy flying back to Gohan before it hits him.

"Alright, I think its time I end this little game," Frieza says, clearly finding the situation boring. Articho tries finding Vegeta's ki, but can't find him.

"Krillin, where is Vegeta?" She asks, turning to the Earthling.

"H-He wanted me to hurt him as much as I could, so I-I did," Krillin points to the ground below them, "I t-think he ended up down there." With alarm on her face, she dives down to see him. Vegeta has a large hole in his chest. Articho lands next to him, and kneels down.

"V-Vegeta?" She's not sure why, but she feels like crying; she barely knows him. The situation gives her a sense of déjà vu. 

"D-Don't worry. T-The little Namekian c-can heal people," The prince struggles out. Articho looks around for the 'little Namekian' and spots him healing Piccolo. She zips over to the two within an instant.

"What is your name?" She asks kindly, surprising them both.

"I-I'm Dende," The shortest one replies.

"Can you h-heal Vegeta, p-please?" She asks, a tear softly rolling down her face. This catches Piccolo off guard; Kakarot, or Goku to the Earthlings, and Vegeta barely ever show emotion in this manner.

Dende sighs, "Murderer or not, I guess I have no choice," Articho smiles at the young Namekian, as Piccolo stands up. She bites her lip to stop herself from crying.

"Thank you, Dende,"

"I would ask about you, but it's not the time for chit chat," Piccolo says to her.

"There's not a lot to me," She responds, with an edge of sadness to her voice. None of the fighters on Namek knew about her past, not much at least. Articho, sensing Vegeta's power returning, zips back to his side.

"There you go, Vegeta. You can thank me in a manner of debt," Dende says, having fully healed Vegeta. Articho holds herself back from an unusual urge of cuddling him; that can wait until after Frieza, at least. Vegeta stands up and smiles briefly towards Dende.

"This is for making me worry," Articho smirks playfully and softly punches him in the shoulder. Vegeta turns his head to her and smirks back. What he's thinking of will have to wait, as long as Frieza lives, they won't be leaving. Wind howls past the trio as Frieza finishes powering up. Articho turns her head to an island with a coat of smoke.

"At last, Frieza shows his true self. And he doesn't look tough from here," Vegeta remarks, looking towards the tyrant. He fires a purple beam through the group, which hits, and ends, Dende. Vegeta approaches Frieza, while Articho stands next to Piccolo, Gohan and Krillin.

"I would've thought he'd be the ugliest creature in the universe," Krillin says.

"He's still repugnant," Articho replies. They watch as Frieza effortlessly dodges Vegeta's attacks., "He's making Vegeta waste energy." The earthlings turn to her.

"What do you mean, Articho?" Gohan asks.

"Vegeta can't keep up with Frieza. He can keep dodging as Vegeta throws blow after blow towards him. Then, when Vegeta is out of energy, Frieza will fight back," She clarifies. Piccolo can see it as well; Frieza isn't on the backfoot because he is losing. He's toying with Vegeta. Articho looks back to the fight as Vegeta attempts to fire ki blasts at Frieza, who easily dodges.

"What is he planning?!" Piccolo asks, as Vegeta continues firing ki blasts. Frieza keeps dodging, and appears infront of Articho and the others. Piccolo grabs Gohan and Krillin and flies off. Articho gives him the bird and flies off after Piccolo.

"Vegeta can't keep this up forever; Frieza isn't breaking a sweat," Articho reveals. Suddenly, Vegeta stops firing ki blasts, and then flies into the air and fires a much larger one towards Frieza, who effortlessly kicks it into space. Frieza then kicks Vegeta down into the water, and then kicks him towards Articho and the others. They watch on in horror as Frieza uses his tail to strangle the battered and bruised Vegeta. Frieza punches Vegeta in the back, near his kidneys. How easily Frieza is outmatching Vegeta snaps something in Articho. She can't hold herself back for any longer. Painful memories of her timeline start resurfacing. A menacing green aura overcomes her. Her rage starts to boil. Vegeta can feel her slipping; she isn't suppressing her power any more. Her voice roars out across the plains of Namek. She is done with holding back. Nothing will stop her now.