Seboll was frozen in shock. The Prince had saved him.
Now the Heir was close to death. Seboll didn’t need a scouter to
see the energy drain from the Prince.
Vegeta stirred slightly.
“Seboll…”
He rushed over. “Yes, Your
Highness?”
“You must—you must swear
to me…” Vegeta coughed, and Seboll gasped when he saw the amount of blood
that
came out.
“What, Your Highness?
I’ll swear it.”
Vegeta looked up.
He was weakened, but his glare was as potent as ever. “You will say nothing,”
he rasped.
Seboll was sure he heard
wrong. “Say…nothing?” he repeated.
“Nothing,” the Prince reiterated.
His voice grew weaker and he began coughing again. “You…understand?”
Seboll shook his head.
“You can’t say,” he started
coughing—rough, hacking heaves that made Seboll’s throat hurt, “you can’t
say
I—saved you.” The last two words were spoken in a near-whisper.
“But—”
Vegeta reached up and grasped
his arm, and his grip was surprisingly strong. “I order you,” he said
through clenched teeth.
Seboll bowed his head. “Yes,
my Prince. I won’t say anything.”
Vegeta’s grip relaxed.
Then his eyes rolled back in his head and he fell back, eyes closing.
Seboll jumped up, then reached
for the Prince’s scouter. He turned it on and began shouting orders.
***
“What happened?” one
of the guards asked Seboll after the Prince had been tended to.
“He was attacked. We
were in the garden, and three men just showed up and…”
“Hold. Did they say
their names?”
“Um…yes…let me think a minute.”
Seboll chewed on his lower lip, and then his eyes lit up. “Oh, yes!
Kalery, Tonatto, and—and Cerrit! That was his name.”
“Go on.”
“Um, they attacked.
They said that they wanted vengeance on the Prince…they were really strong.”
“What did they want vengeance
for?”
“They said something about
their exile.”
The guard made a note. “And…?”
“And they were really strong,
but…but they got cocky and the Prince managed to beat them.”
“Managed?” the guard asked
strictly. “Have respect.”
“Sir, these men all had
power levels over 3000. Our Prince is strong, but he’s not that strong,
no way.”
The guard made a non-committal
noise. “What were you doing during all this?” he asked suddenly.
“Oh. I was, uh, I
was…in the bushes.”
“The bushes?”
“Yes. See, the first
guy, Tonatto, he pushed me in there—it half knocked me out. So I
kinda heard the
action, but I didn’t move. Not until the very end, when I saw
His Highness take out the last guy.”
The guard clicked off his
scouter. “Okay, kid. Why don’t you go find your way home now?”
“Um, okay.” Seboll started
to leave then came back. “Um, will he be all right? The Prince, I
mean.”
“I know who you mean,” the
guard snapped. “He should recover fully. We got him in a regeneration
tank.
What did they do to him?”
“They just beat up on each
other, I think, but Cerrit hit him with a huge ki ball at the very end.”
“Ah. That explains
the bruises and burns.” The guard seemed to remember Seboll’s presence.
“We’re eliminating the bodies now. Why don’t you go?” It wasn’t really
a suggestion.
“Yes, sir.” Seboll smiled
at him, then turned and hurried to find his father. Papa isn’t going to
believe this! he thought as he ran.
***
Vegeta wasn’t sure what
woke him up at first. <Prince Vegeta, are you awake?> Seboll asked him
telepathically.
Of course he would wake
me up, Vegeta thought. <Do you need something?> he replied, opening
his eyes and feeling the medically treated water sting his eyes. I’m in
a regeneration tank, he realized. How did I get here? What happened?
<Your Highness, I just
wanted to tell you…I kept quiet. Just like you wanted.>
<Of course you did.
You wouldn’t dare do otherwise.>
<No. Your Highness,
please, why did you save me?>
<It suited me.
Let’s leave it at that.>
<But you almost got killed!
How can you say that suited you?>
<So you’re disagreeing
with me?>
Seboll sighed. <No, my
Prince.>
<Good.>
<I want to know why you
saved me, though.>
<Must a sovereign give
a reason for every act of mercy or kindness?> Vegeta snapped.
<I’m sorry, Your Highness,
but that was much more than mercy. You saved my life. I owe
you.>
<No. You owe me
nothing. Do you understand? Nothing!>
Seboll was completely taken
aback by the Prince’s savage tone. <I’m sorry, my Prince,> he said hesitantly,
<but I do. I owe a life debt to you, and I can’t just ignore that.>
<Oh, yes you can.
You can because I say you can. Or, if it makes you feel better, I
release you from your debt. You will concede I have the power to
do that, I hope?>
<Your Highness…>
<Were you not listening
to me? I said you owe me nothing. Listen to me.> Vegeta’s glare
penetrated even through the glass. <If you breathe a word to any of
this to anyone, I promise you that you will be dead. That is a warning.
You will not hear it again.>
Seboll looked at him with
widened eyes. There was something about the Prince’s tone…<I understand,>
he said.
<Good. Took you
long enough.> Vegeta leaned back and closed his eyes, signalling the end
of their talk.
Seboll sighed and left, more confused that before he had come in.