Strange New World, That Has Such Creatures In It

A Difficult Birth Chapter 4

A bundle of ki burst from of the castle, skimming over the desert and sending up plumes of sand. Raditz woke up and turned his head to look out his window. He couldn't see who it was but Vegeta had taught him how to feel ki, and it felt like his prince. He sat up and felt again to be sure. His charge should have been in the room across from his own. But that room was empty, and Vegeta's ki fading into the distance. He swung his legs over the side of the bed and stood. Though he didn't want to take off in his sleep wear, a loose shirt and a baggy pair of pants, there was no time to dress properly. He stumbled to the window and flew after him. Vegeta was too close, flying like this too dangerous. He shook his hair back over his shoulders. Perhaps closer than he'd thought. He flew faster.

After a few miles, Vegeta's flight slowed and he dipped closer to the ground. He finally landed and began to walk, his arms wrapped around his stomach. The Jakek caves stood before him, but with the first sun still beneath the horizon, they were more shadows and hints of light. He stopped and looked over his shoulder.

"Raditz," he said.

The bodyguard touched ground behind him, eyes wide. "My prince."

"You said you knew these caves."

"Yes, I do." He glanced at Vegeta's stomach. The prince was farther than any of them had thought. "The top caves are the safest."

Vegeta nodded once. He closed his eyes and breathed deep. Raditz's hands moved around him, picking him up and cradling him. Warm wind enveloped him, and when he looked up again, he found shadows and damp stone lit only by the small entrance several yards away.

"The castle would be easier for you," Raditz said, putting Vegeta down. His voice echoed through the rest of the cave.

"It's warm here," Vegeta said. He sat on a sandy patch and leaned against the smooth rock. "Better than usual."

Raditz sighed and cracked his knuckles, looking as if they'd practiced this maneuver over and over. "Are you ready?"

Vegeta nodded. He pulled his top off and tossed it nearby, then lay his claws over his stomach and breathed deep. He made the cut slowly, slashing the skin with careful precision as the scent of his blood filled the air around him. Raditz put one hand on Vegeta's, steadying the cut. Halfway through, the prince closed his eyes and let his brother guide his hand.

"Have you thought of a name yet?" Raditz whispered.

"Yes." Vegeta focused on his voice so that when he spoke, his own voice wasn't so strained. "Jalen."

"I recognize that," Raditz said. "From our old language...change to positive, something like that."

"Yes. Something like that."

*

The king's eyes opened. At first he thought the cold air had roused him like every other morning, or that Bardock had rolled out of the bed again. But his mate slept nearly on top of him, squashing him, and with a grunt he pushed him off. Bardock rolled onto his other side and kept snoring. There were no explosions or screams outside, no black shadow coming closer, but still, something was wrong. He stood up and dressed, fixing the clasps on his cape as he walked out of his chambers.

He stopped.

Vegeta was gone. So was Raditz. He didn't have to check their rooms but he did anyway. Both were empty. The lack of blood was only a passing comfort, and he flew out of Vegeta's window down to the nursery, sitting on the windowsill and peering inside. The oversized bed, the crib, the low tables and cushions and the hot spring with steps built into the sides, all ready for the prince and his child. But empty.