Day Four: Early Morning

[Raditzu]

There it was, jutting through the air, signaling the final battleground for those still left in Dante?s Abyss. The small device attached to the long-haired warrior?s ear gave a small beep, informing its bearer that he had entered the only remaining safe zone on the island. With, at least, his temporary survival insured, Rad flopped against one of the sparsely sprouted trees and let his body slide down its trunk. He could feel his hair catch on the barky surface, tearing from its rightful place, but he didn?t care. His injuries stung as he settled into a sitting position, but he didn?t care about that, either. There wasn?t too much to care about at the moment.

I fucked up was all that Rad could really think to himself.

Of course he had fucked up, what the saiyan had been expecting to happen was a mystery, even to himself. Was there supposed to be some big group hug after everyone had beat each other senseless? Some bonding revelation after the melee? It didn?t matter so much anymore. Most of them were probably cursing his name as he sat there. She was probably cursing his name. That?s what really tore at him. And that?s when it hit the warrior.

Since when did I start caring about what other people thought?

The question cut through him with more force than any amount of ki ever could. When had the warrior really started caring? Part of him knew he had always cared. He had spent his whole life caring. His whole life working against the preconceptions people had of him, but this was different. It went beyond whether people thought of his as an overgrown ape, but what they thought about him. What would he do if Eighteen turned away from him? What if she shut him out? As disturbing as that thought was, Raditzu found his mind continuing the train of thought.

What if Bardock shut me out? or Bra? or Goku?

Without understanding how or why, Raditzu had come to put a great deal of weight on the opinions and feelings of those around him. It was, to say the least, a bit of change. He felt himself evolving beyond just a soldier. No longer was he worried about detaching himself from everything around him. There was more to this than simply getting the job done. He wasn?t a mercenary and he had long since separated himself from the saiyan military he had once so proudly thrown himself into. While it may not be fueled by a sense of justice, there was definitely a righteousness surfacing within Raditzu. As with most change, though, it was being met with a stalwart resistance.

I shouldn?t have to change for them, the warrior assured himself.

Was it a change at all? Perhaps he was simply realizing something within him that had been buried beneath a system that told him he was nothing more than a grunt. Since birth he was told he would be nothing. Just another nameless face in a nameless crowd. An average child born from an average father and raised into an average life. What he had accomplished? the things he had done? the people he had fought. On more than one occasion he had battled the Prince of Saiyans to a standstill. The ordained to control their race and reign supreme among the strongest warrior in the galaxy. Twice he had saved the planet Earth before turning to conquer it. Guru himself had sworn a debt to Raditzu for aiding him in his greatest time of need. The Kais themselves had bowed to the long-haired wonder for his selfless services. It had been a long while since Raditzu had actually been subjected to the bonds of mediocrity.

But I still felt? average?

It was definitely true. Despite his rise in power and the spread of his endeavors, Rad had always felt that weight upon him. That burden that he had been born into nothing and that would forever remain nothing. No matter how strong he grew, or how many foes he defeated, it was still there. Until recently. His desire for power had become something more than a self-serving quest. He wasn?t doing it to appease himself and show up those who had doubted him. He wanted to be there for people. He wanted to guide them and help them. He wanted to lead them.

Lead people!? Me?

The thought had never actually occurred to him. In his capacity as a solider he had been told to follow order, and he had been very good at it. He supposed that, with his strength, the mantle of leadership had been thrust upon him more than once, but it was something that he had always taken reluctantly (despite his posturing) and assumed it would removed as soon as possible. Maybe he was ready for that now. Maybe he wanted to lead those that would follow. While it was far from anything definite, the long-haired wonder had something he would have to give some serious consideration.