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Post by Kon on Jul 12, 2019 12:04:58 GMT -6
Inspecting the small orange ball in her hand, Kon couldn't help but look at it with wonder. It was a lot smaller than she had originally thought it would be, but at the same time, Kon swore she could feel a mystical energy from it. Or perhaps, that was just her imagination. Quickly she pocketed it as she made her way into a small village. It wasn't something else she wanted people to know that she had. She had hung around the west, hoping that maybe she would be able find more dragon balls around here. But it would be awhile until Shimi would be able to provide her with new batteries to her disappointment, although she definitely wouldn't be busy as she now had to protect the ball from those that were also in the hunt.
The village while small, was just still incredibly modern. For the first time in a long time, Kon actually looked decent. After her hunt, Shimi had graciously provided her with an opportunity to take a shower and new clothes. With these in mind, she was in a much better mood than she had in the past, and even held a smile on her face. It would be difficult to recognize her as the young homeless teen that she was before and finally began to gain a resemblance of her former self once again. It was nice not having people try and avoid her or stare at her for once. Maybe there was some good in this hunt after all. It definitely seemed like her life was finally turning out for the better. Garon was right, after she hit the bottom she could only go up.
A bunch of coins jingled in her pockets, a bit of pay as thanks for showing Shimi that his creation worked. Kon didn't even hesitate to accept the free zeni, perhaps finally she could buy herself an actual meal. She made her way into a nearby shop, and was given a menu. For once, she didn't look at the menu with sadness, unable to afford most of the fares. Now, she could buy anything on here, but of course Kon had to be careful with her money. While she might had have zeni for once, it wasn't limitless. As such, while she no longer had to be picky, she had to be careful. Finally, she decided to buy one of her favorite meals of the past: a tonkatsu omurice dish. While it was a bit more pricey than Kon would have liked, she decided that she could treat herself. If Kon was risking her life in this hunt, she might as well eat one of her favorite meals before her possible death. Silently, she would then wait for her food to come.
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Post by Saizomaru on Jul 15, 2019 18:42:28 GMT -6
Saizomaru PL: 150,000 (Base)
Saizomaru needed to get away from it all. Get away from Central City. Get away from his home. Get away from the people he had placed his trust in and was found wanting afterwards. Ever since Sensoa had attacked the city, he had found nothing but a bitter taste in his mouth. Carro had let the demon and his Stargoon comrades off the hook with nothing but a slap on the wrist. No punishments or anything as far as the android was aware of or concerned. So long as they continued to exist, the Earth would always be under threat.
And he was powerless to do anything about it. He knew that LEO would have stopped him from taking the demon out, and the last thing he needed was someone else to fight.
He had decided to retreat himself to the Western Verge. It was a quiet place. Calm, serene, yet had everything that he could have wanted as though he was back in the big cities. It had reminded him of his military days when he was stationed at different outposts throughout the globe, keeping mostly to himself without having to deal with people. Most importantly, he didn't have to deal with people that he knew while he was here.
Making his way into the small village just beyond the grasslands, the android felt the calm, cool breeze against his cheek. The smell of the ocean was faint on the scent of the winds as he took in a lungful. With all the stress that had been accumulating up until this point, fresh air was what he needed. That, and something to eat. The taste of good food would ease his soul even if his stomach didn't need it.
He made his way to the nearest food joint just off the corner of the village block. The place smelled amazing—authentic Japanese cuisine was on the menu in this place. He could smell the sweet scent of the sweet bean buns; the savoury goodness of rice and tempura; the freshness of the meat and fish that went into their sushi and tonkatsu.
Something else took his sight, too. He recognized that styled, ginger hair from a mile off. With a smile on his face, he made his way over to the bar.
"You look good in your new clothes," he said softly from behind Kon before he took a seat next to her, hunched over and arms resting on the counter. "It's been a while, hasn't it? "
Kon
KP: 3/3
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Post by Kon on Jul 16, 2019 15:10:45 GMT -6
Kon had seen many faces across her time travelling upon Earth. Aside from some family, she didn't expect to encounter many of them again. As she happily waited for her food, swinging her legs and tail both synchronized as if she was a little child, a familiar voice spoke in her ears. It wasn't so much that his voice or appearance was distinctive, but rather the impact that he made on her life. His actions were some of the kindness that she only experienced a few and a far in between and had manage to lift her mood when she was in a rough time. "Hey," Kon said with a smile on her face. "Thanks." She was also delighted when he would take a seat next to her. He also made a pretty good conversationalist as well. Unfortunately, she simply couldn't seem to recall his name. Did he even mention his name last time they had lunch together?
"It has," Kon said with a nod. Last time they met, she was still scared and unsure of herself. But now things had drastically changed, not for the better, but she has grown since then. Kon had experienced the world for herself and wasn't as naive as she was. Hell, she now understood herself on a much better level and could even go into her oozaru, willingly now. "Things have changed a lot since then. I'm doing much better." More or less at least, there were still some things that were still rocky but like what that doragon said back then. Once she hit rock bottom, there was really nowhere to go but up. And up she went. For the first time in months, she could afford a warm meal, something that she thought would forever be a luxury that she could never afford.
But him, he looked just the same as she remembered. Well, if one was living a good life already, they would stay the same. Improvement only shows when you make drastic changes after all, and Kon was one of them, taking the steps towards a better life in general. "How have things been for you?" She would ask, unsure about what else she could say. She doubt that he would want to hear her talk about her shit life for the next hour or so as they ate. Maybe it was better if they talked about him instead.
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Post by Saizomaru on Jul 21, 2019 16:14:32 GMT -6
Saizomaru PL: 150,000 (Base)
The android gave the girl a bigger smile as he slid himself up a little further on the stool. He was glad to hear that she was doing better. Whatever happened to her helped bring her from that downtrodden street girl back to something that looked as though they belonged to society. Whoever that person was, Saizomaru was grateful that they had a presence in Kon's life. "That's good," replied the man. "You definitely look better. Hell, you even sound better. I hope it lasts forever for you."
One of the waitresses came back from the kitchen, notepad and pen in hand. She wore the usual waitress clothes—black dress with a frilled bottom in white, ivory apron and white hat that had her hair tucked into. Parts of the hair net could be seen from under the sides of it. She looked straight at the android before asking, "Can I take your order, sir?"
He paused for a moment. That was a good question. He had an idea of what he wanted but his mind drew a blank as soon as he was put on the spot. His eyes scanned randomly about the back wall that was filled with professionally put together pictures of their food. He was drawn to a particular one, then replied, ”Oh, right! I’ll, uh, have the pork and boiled egg ramen, please. Pair that with the chef’s sake recommendation, too.” Once the waitress had taken his order, she made her way back into the kitchen.
The android hummed with a smile as he took a pair of chopsticks from the holder and broke them apart. Idly he spun them around in between the fingers of one hand. He mused on how good the day had been so far. He had met someone he hadn’t seen in a while and they were living a good life—in the very least it was better than what she was having the last time they had met.
The mood turned sour though as Kon inquired on how Saizomaru had been. He paused. His hand stopped, fingers clenched around the chopsticks. Subtly, in a slow rhythm, he began to tap them on the counter top. "Things have… not been good, actually." There was a brief pause, then he let out a heavy exhale. "A lot has happened in Central City. Big fight for it broke out and the President decided to let the bad guys off the hook. Now a bunch of civilians are homeless and much of the city is in need of reparation. I had to get away from it all… so I came here."
It wasn’t just that. Something else had personally affected the android but, in his mind, he wanted to keep that knowledge from people. It was his grief to deal with. No one else could help him with that. Only he could solve the situation.
Kon
KP: 3/3
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Post by Kon on Jul 22, 2019 14:50:49 GMT -6
If only good things would last forever. Unfortunately, Kon had learned the hard way that once she reached the top things could only go down. It was some twisted version of the rock bottom advice that Garon had given her, but in the end, it wasn't something she particularly wanted to think about right now either. Right now was the life that she is living, and this is what she was happy with. But that couldn't keep her from shaking her head at Saizomaru's statement in slight embarrassment. "Yeah, I guess." She responded in the only way she could take to a compliment. "Thanks." Even if she didn't live the life of a typical teenager, Kon still had some of their mannerism. As he would order his meal, Kon found herself silently playing with the small ball in her pocket absentmindedly, fiddling it around.
For a moment, there had been silence as Kon had asked her question. She couldn't help but wonder if she struck a sour note. All she had was a simple question, but it was very likely that the said question held a lot more meaning behind it than she had originally thought it had. Then he spoke, talking about the Central City skirmish. She's heard of it before, although Kon never really thought much about it. It would get resolved eventually, and if not it wasn't like it was any of her business. But this was the first time that she had met someone truly involved in a large scale conflict. "It could have ended worse I guess." Kon said, unsure of what else to say. She wasn't exactly the best at comforting anyone, especially someone who was much older than her. "Things will get better eventually. Although, I guess events like that can really mess with people." She commented, "I know that my brother was pretty shaken after the events at West City." She absentmindedly said, trying to bring up a more personal example in hopes that it could comfort him. "He tried to defend the city but lost a lot in the process." Kon bit her lip, she was sure that she made things a lot worse after her encounter with him. That conflict took away much more that she cared about.
She placed her elbows on the table, resting her chin on her hands. "Fights always seem to come with destruction. Maybe with a powerful enough person they could end it before it would begin and bam, the damage would be minimized." She mused aloud with a weak chuckle. "Quick and clean." While Kon had no interest in the hero business herself, she could see the advantages of being powerful. In cases where diplomacy was impossible, it would be better to end things right at the beginning rather than wait at the end where many more suffer.
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Post by Saizomaru on Aug 12, 2019 11:09:44 GMT -6
Saizomaru PL: 150,000 (Base)
Saizomaru gave a half-humoured hum at the girl’s embarrassment as he hunched forward a little more, arms resting on the counter top with his hands held together, fingers laced. Kon had come a long way in these last few months, the android thought to himself. He could scarcely come to imagine what she had been through up until now, but that was what made her all the more interesting. She had gone from one extreme to the next, working her way up through her hardships. It was a sense of adulation that his father had taught him many years ago.
Maybe that was what he needed to do right now. He needed to overcome what had happened in the last few weeks and move on with it all. After all, these kinds of events were likely to occur with or without him and it would only make the situations better if he was involved. He was a defender of the Earth. He had to treat these without over-emotional attachment.
Besides, Kon was right. Things could have ended worse. The entire city could have been destroyed. Hell, the entire Earth could have been taken over if Sensoa had afforded himself victory. Saizomaru had to look on the brighter sides of these events instead of the what-could-have-been-betters. He hummed for a moment, then nodded his head. ”Yeah… yeah, you’re right.”
But then the girl mentioned her brother, someone who helped defend West City while he himself was stuck in the desert approaching Sensoa and Mumbo. From what he had heard there was only a handful of people there—some doctor woman, the bug Chromo, Tarch—
No… that wasn’t possible, was it? The thought made the android tense up a little. His hands clenched a little tighter together. Was Tarch Kon’s brother? More to the point, did that also make Kon his adoptive daughter? But now that he thought about it, she always did have a striking resemblance to Kohlra, at least her face.
He would have to keep these notions to himself.
”Well that was the plan, anyway,” replied the android as he quickly moved onto the next topic of discussion. ”I was planning on beating them both before anything could come to a head, but… well, they’re strong enemies. Stronger than anyone I’ve faced so far. I wasn’t going to be able to beat them both single-handedly. I had to gather allies. That was when everything came to a head at Central City. Still, we won though. That counts for something, I guess.”
Kon
KP: 3/3
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Post by Kon on Aug 21, 2019 10:54:47 GMT -6
Kon was never really much for pep talks, so when it appeared that her words to Saizo had made him feel better, she couldn't help but feel a sense of self-satisfaction for being able to do such a thing. Never did she imagine in a million years would she would be here giving a small talk to the man who bought her food when she was at one of her lowest points so many months ago. It was funny how with some time, things can definitely change for the better. "The world still isn't free from danger. You have to be there for everyone now to keep the world from anything else that's coming along. Now that you're still alive, you have another chance at stopping them." Kon said, a bit of hesitation in her voice. She wasn't truly sure how much he cared for saving the world, but from what she gathered from her conversation he was truly a heroic person.
As she continued to listen to Kon talk about what else there was to come, she couldn't help but wonder about the other path she could have taken. Could she have become a better person like Saizo and would be willing to even place her life on the line for a purely selfless reason, almost like she was right now. Well, currently her motivations for the dragon balls were purely selfish, but perhaps if she got the power wish and was able to carry out her plan, maybe she could offer her strength to help him? Kon didn't particularly have any other plans for what she was going to do after she killed Kohlra, so maybe if she offered her life for the Earth she could truly be seen as a hero as opposed to the villain she had been acting as for so long. Maybe, that could also be enough to wash her sins away as well.
Before long though, a piping hot bowl was placed right in front of her. "Enjoy your meal," a waitress said with a smile, almost as if this conversation didn't happen at all. Her mouth watered at the smell. She would turn towards Saizo first with a sheepish smile on her face, "I hope you don't mind if I eat first." She said before she took the chopsticks that were also provided and began to dig in heartily. It was one of the best things she had ever tasted in her life. After months of nothing but scraps, trash and random meat of animals she killed this was pure ecstasy for her. With this bowl of the omurice in front of her, Kon could say for sure that her life was turning out for the better.
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Post by Saizomaru on Aug 25, 2019 4:23:37 GMT -6
Saizomaru PL: 150,000 (Base)
”No, it’s not free,” agreed Saizomaru as his head looked up from the counter. He took a look around him, seeing all of the patrons at the restaurant. So many people ignorant and oblivious to what was, and will be, going on around them. Either they just didn’t keep up with the news, or had decided to ignore it all. This would never happen to me! That was a common mindset for most humans. ”And I don’t think it ever will be.”
All because of these dragon balls, so was the first thought that came to the android’s mind. He knew from Tarch that saiyans were on Namek months ago, more than likely looking for them—why else would they be there? Then Mumbo was on the hunt for them at around the same time. Then, there were all the other bad guys who were out looking for conquest: Stargoons, the World Trade Fleet, Sensoa, perhaps more than he didn’t know about. Times were tough now and he needed to stand by the Earth. He needed to fulfil his purpose, his destiny.
Saizomaru’s eyes trailed the young waitress as she brought Kon her food. He chuckled as she asked him for permission to eat first like she was his daughter. That was yet to be determined. ”Yeah, sure,” he replied with a brisk wave of a hand, ”knock yourself out. Not literally, of course. Don’t need you falling into a food coma and me carrying you home.”
Home. That was a nice thought. He hadn’t been home for a while. He hadn’t even seen much of his parents since he left his own home a few years ago. Then again, that was the norm for his family. Once a new generation is born, they’re expected to go out and carve their own path in the world. He just hoped that he was making the right one.
”I know that look in your eyes.” The notion was sudden yet sharp. The android looked down at the back of his hand as it lay on the counter top. His fingers curled, then stretched out. ”You think I do good in the world—that I’m some sort of hero. I’m not. Never was and never will be. I’m just a soldier doing what all soldiers do. I fight to protect what I love. That’s all.”
Kon
KP: 3/3
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Post by Kon on Aug 27, 2019 17:42:24 GMT -6
Sometimes, Kon couldn't help but wonder what the cost of being a hero or a villain was. You could never fight for yourself, as you would mostly fight for one side or the other, even if you are unaware that you are doing so. It made her happy that she didn't ever have to commit to one of the other, lest she would probably lose her mind with how much stuff she would have to do for a cause that didn't benefit even herself! Plus all that stress that was placed on you, it wasn't that great. She could never really imagine how people like Saizo did it, and thankfully, Kon never intended to do so. If they wanted to use their strength to help people, then so be it, although wasting their strength or wishes on things like revival was just on them.
She did make sure to swallow before she would give him a weak laugh in response to his statement about falling into a food coma so she wouldn't choke. It was funny for more ways than one, primarily that she had no home or any place to go. The only place she could even just roughly call her home was the planet, although it was more a place where she stayed over anything. It did definitely make her desire something more and yearn for a place where she could call home, not some pathetic excuse where she stayed briefly before moving on because she simply got tired of staying there. No, Kon wanted something more permanent. "I'll try not to, although my wallet still isn't that deep." She said with good humored.
Suddenly, Saizo spoke, startling her. It was true that she had been thinking those thoughts earlier, but she honestly did not expect for him to call her out for it, much less even knew what that meant. If he went through so much and met people like that it would probably make sense that he was use to discerning it. But the way he put the position that he was in, almost made him feel like a normal person rather than some far-off figure. A soldier. That wasn't something that Kon would expect someone like him to describe himself. "Why do you do it then," she asked after a moment of silence. "If you wanted, you could just take-" she paused before remembering about what he said about his wife. "You could just leave and disappear, make a new life some far off in an obscure place and never worry again. It doesn't even have to be Earth." It was a simple solution that Kon had entertained many times, but it didn't seem like anyone wanted to do it. If what Saizo truly meant what he said, why didn't he just take everything he love and leave? That way the tragedy with his wife would never happen again.
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Post by Saizomaru on Aug 29, 2019 11:34:58 GMT -6
Saizomaru PL: 150,000 (Base)
Saizomaru couldn’t help but snicker. ”Who said anything about your wallet?” he said with a wry grin. ”As long as you’re with me, I’ll pay for your food and I’m not taking ‘no’ for an answer. Oh, and no arguing, either.”
The android’s eyes glanced over at the clock on the wall in front of him. For as much as he and the girl had been talking for, only a few minutes had passed. Still, he was getting concerned as to where his order was. He had only ordered the pork and egg ramen bowl. It didn’t take that long to boil a couple of eggs, right?
As he pondered for a moment, Kon had chimed in to break the silence once more. What she posed was an interesting question but it wasn’t one that would be so easily answered. It wasn’t something that could be so simply put in fewer than one sentence. It was something that Saizomaru had come to accept not just because of who he was, but because of what he had experienced, what he had come to find in the many years he had been alive—because of what he became.
But he was still waiting on food. There was time to answer.
”I could do all of that,” he admitted with a brisk shrug of the shoulders. ”I could just get up and leave. I could just take everything and say, “Yeah, screw you all, I’ma go live on a backwater planet, in the middle of god knows where, where no sod lives”. But then… what would that solve?”
He hummed half-humorously as he brushed some of the curtain of hair from his face. ”But that’s the coward’s way out,” he continued. ”The cowards are the ones who complain about how their lives are so bad, how everything goes wrong for them, for how there’s no justice in the world. They’re also the ones to back down and run away when they have the chance to change things. Change them for the better. Better for them and every other coward. It’s like the old saying goes—you’re either part of the solution, or part of the problem. I like to be the solution.”
He was about to continue before the waitress had come back. In her hands was a small serving tray with the bowl of ramen. Thick slices of pork belly lined one side of the ramen bowl. Two, half-cut hard-boiled eggs floated on the other side. In the middle was a large bunch of egg noodles submerged in a rich, dark broth.
”Thank you, hon,” spoke Saizomaru with a soft, polite tone. ”I’ll take the bill when we’re both done here.” The waitress gave a silent nod as she made her way to the other patrons.
”Anyway, as I was saying,” he continued with his story, ”someone needs to take a stand against all the injustices in the world. I just play my part real good. Besides, it’s part of the family business.”
Kon
KP: 3/3
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Post by Kon on Sept 8, 2019 11:11:41 GMT -6
Despite Saizo specially saying not to argue with him, Kon wanted to do so quite badly. But it wasn't for the reason he may have been thinking. Kon wanted to revel in the feeling of spending money, especially when she had this much. It had been so long since she had experienced this sensation and wanted to see what it was like again. But then again, she was never going to say no to free food, especially when she had spent the past months eating nothing but actual garbage that she found. Compared to that, this was an upgrade that she had learned not to take for granted. Oh well, it just meant that there was more good meals that she was going to be able to eat.
Still, Kon couldn't understand that hero's mentality that Saizo had just explained. Why wouldn't he want to go and save himself? Sure, it was a coward's way but it would provide him with a much calmer life than the one he had right now. He wouldn't have to worry about all the pains that he currently faced and could enjoy himself. As he continued though, she couldn't help but tense up and her grip on her spoon tightened, almost to the point that she was beginning to crack the hard material. It sounded like he was describing her and she hated it. That wasn't true. They weren't the bad guys, they were just the smart people, misunderstood by the world who had treated them so poorly before. They wanted nothing more but to remain neutral and far away from the conflict around them. Unfortunately, they were enemies of both sides which made it difficult for them to live. Why did they keep blaming everyone?
Kon forced a smile on her face and nodded as she clearly understood and agreed with what he was saying. She made sure to relax her body to erase any underlying anger that she had before. While Kon was still enraged by what he said, furious about his statement which felt like he was personally attacking her, she couldn't let him know that. It was just bad table manners, and besides, she knew that being on his bad side probably wasn't a good idea and it probably would be better for her in the long run to keep up the image that she had built for herself before it would probably inevitably shatter once again. "Right," she said with a smile. "Well at least you're there to protect all the cowards, even if they don't appreciate it."
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Post by Saizomaru on Sept 9, 2019 12:01:47 GMT -6
Saizomaru PL: 150,000 (Base)
The end of the chopsticks grasped a hold of one of the thin cuts of pork that lay within the bowl. Just the slightest of grips made the meat compress, showing how soft and tender it was. Saizomaru raised it to his mouth and took a bite out of it before letting the rest of it rest on the noodles. It had been a while since he had food this good. Succulent and juicy, he barely even needed to chew. He couldn’t wait to dig in to the rest of it.
However, out of the corner of his eye, he could see the girl next to him start to get a little tense. He imagined that she was reflecting what he had just said upon herself although the android couldn’t understand why. As far as he knew, she didn’t run away from anything.
Not unless it was why she became a street orphan. Perhaps she ran away from home. He couldn’t cement it, nor did he wish to push that line of questioning onto her. It would sour the mood. It would make the food taste bad.
As Kon replied, Saizomaru took a bunch of noodles from the broth and slurped them up. Dark and rich, the taste of soy sauce and ginger danced on his taste buds. They were one of the few things he was able to keep ever since he became an android. It was a thankful thing to have that he once took for granted—the sense of taste.
”I can see that you’re pretty tense, Kon,” he finally spoke as he swallowed down the food. ”Don’t take it personally. You’re just a kid. Maybe you’ll come to see things in a different light when you grow up. I know I did.” He glanced over at her food, noticing that she had stopped eating. ”Eat before it gets cold,” he told her as he pointed at her dish with the chopsticks.
Kon
KP: 3/3
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Post by Kon on Sept 26, 2019 21:53:34 GMT -6
His words, while somewhat comforting, still made her feel bad. While she did ease up on the utensils that she was holding, the feeling still lingered in her head and already left a sour taste in her mouth. She looked down to the half-eaten rice and eggs in her bowl. While Kon did want to eat more, it just felt like she was going to be swallowing cement at this point after what they talked about. Her once hearty saiyan appetite was gone, and she was left feeling like she just swallowed glue. She knew that she shouldn't take others words personally, especially since that was one of her personal issues that she had struggled with since she was a kid, but those words basically matched who she was. It was pretty much impossible and honestly, Kon doubt that she was going to change. She didn't believe in practically anything anyone said these days.
Looking down at her food, she shook her heads at his prompt. "I think I'll wait for now. I don't mind cold food. This is better than most of the stuff I've eaten recently." Kon said, placing her chopsticks and spoon down. Her stomach turned, still hungry despite her loss in appetite. Instead, she opted to drink some of the delicious lemon-infused water that they had also offered along with her meal, finishing it in one giant gulp. It did manage to make her feel better at least. While she still wasn't in the mood for such fare right now, she decided to give it a few more minutes before she would continue. Still annoyed at the topic at hand, she ultimately decided to change the topic to something new. Something that wouldn't make her want to break the bowl in front of her in half. "What do you do for a living Saizo... aside for all that hero business that you were telling me about? How did you even get to where you are now?" Surely, he had something else he was up to that wasn't just saving lives. Besides, Kon was curious to see what type of person he was. The last time they chatted, they didn't have such a luxury to do something like this. It might be able to distract her from the conversation that she just had and hopefully it would make her feel less terrible for the type of person she was. Besides, it wasn't every day when you heard a hero's origin story right from their own mouths.
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Post by Saizomaru on Sept 28, 2019 14:35:51 GMT -6
Saizomaru PL: 150,000 (Base)
The android hummed and shrugged his shoulders. ”Suit yourself.” He knew that she was still hungry; he’d been around enough saiyans to know they have a huge appetite. He was aware that it was what he said that gave the girl pause but it needed to be said. It was how he felt after all. ”Don’t drink so fast,” he said with a smirk. ”You’ll give yourself the hiccups.”
Saizomaru continued to eat. He plucked out a small bunch of noodles and slurped them up, savouring the sweet yet salty taste of the infused broth. He remembered the days when he would sit and eat with his father like this, just like he and Kon were doing now. Every evening his mother would make them their daily favourites. When it was just the two of them, they would sit out on the veranda of the back of the house overlooking the river.
Someday, he would do that with his own child.
As he continued to dine on his ramen, the girl spoke up once more. Now, she wanted to know a bit more about the android. There was a pause as Saizomaru was about to pick out the rest of the boiled egg from the bowl. Then, he placed the chopsticks across the rim.
”For a living?” That was a good question. “Well… nothing. I’m retired now.” He hummed as he sat up straight and placed his hands on the counter top. ”From birth I was raised to be a fighter. I was raised to be a warrior. To be a defender for the Earth as my father did, my grandfather before him, all going back to the founding of my family line. We all did our part.”
No. No, that wasn’t true. There was one. “The Black Sheep”. “The Shadow of Mushou-Ryuu”. “The Betrayer of Humanity”. “The Demon God of the Black Forest”. It was that one person who made the android’s next words sting: ”I like to think that we all did our best to protect this world.”
He hummed as he lurched forwards again, propping up his elbows and resting his chin on the back of his entwined hands. ”When I was sixteen, I left home to join the military. I thought it was the best way I could actively put my skills to use, to fulfil my purpose. I was the best person they ever recruited. Might’ve had something to do with this ki control stuff that’s all the rage nowadays.”
It was always a strange thing for Saizomaru to try and understand. So many people were ridiculously strong, yet never bothered to join the Earth’s military. Maybe they were too proud of using their strengths to work with weaker people. Maybe they just wanted to be their own boss and go on their own path and make their own decisions. But not him. He learned so much while he was on active duty—discipline, patience, teamwork, comradery… friendship. He wondered if he’d have learned any of that if he had gone on his own.
”Soon I was given command of my own Special Operatives team; Goblin Six. We did reconnaissance, guerrilla combat… sometimes assassination missions. I guess, for what it was worth, they were more than just a team. We were like… a family.”
He reached a hand over and poured himself a small cup of the sake. He continued after taking a sip of it, ”I retired nearly four years ago but I owe a lot of what I’ve learned to my time in the military.”
Kon
KP: 3/3
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