40 A Decision

Planet Vegeta is now part of the Cooler Force? 

While it wasn't very ideal, it was much better to be under Cooler's command than it was to be under Frieza's. Cooler was tactical. Level headed. If you do your job and do it well, he'll reward you. And even if you fail, he wouldn't outright kill you. 

You would have to either fail him very spectacularly or numerous times for him to kill you. 

In terms of tyranny, Cooler was leagues above his brother.

"What happens if I refuse?" I asked. 

Cooler stared at me for a moment before shrugging his shoulders, "Nothing."

I look at him with a suspicious gaze, "Nothing? You're serious?"

"This isn't an ultimatum, child. It is a choice. You can either serve in my Armored Squadron or continue on your own path. The only difference is that if you end up confronting my younger brother again, I will not save you a second time. And if you end up killing him, I'll hunt you down myself." He replied. 

He is really making it hard to say no. There are no downsides to this offer. And if he's actually truthful, there are even better benefits. 

Experience against higher level planets, all-out training, a potential sparring partner that will push me to my limits...

"Where are we currently?" I asked. 

"Just outside Planet Vegeta's atmosphere." Cooler replied. 

I put the chest piece down and looked towards him with a serious expression. 

"I'd like to speak to my family first."

____________________

Exiting the control room, I walk back out into the hallway and see Salza waiting for me. 

"So?" He asked. 

"I need to make a call." I told him. 

"Why didn't you make it from the control room?" He asked with a bit of confusion. 

"It's a private call."

He seems to understand what I meant and motioned for me to start following him. I still can't quite describe what it is about the ship being so empty that give me this weird feeling.

"Why is there no one around?" I asked. 

"What do you mean?" Salza asked for clarification. 

"Don't ships like this usually have an abundance of crew members on board? Why is it so empty?"

He scoffed and answered, "You are too used to Frieza's way. Don't worry, that will change soon enough. Lord Cooler doesn't waste his time with the vast number of underlings. Besides the crew that flies this ship and the Armored Squadron, there is no one else aboard." 

"So to put it in more simpler terms, Cooler believes in quality over quantity." I said. 

"Exactly." Salza nods. 

Ah, that explains it. I mean, I knew that Cooler valued strength, I just didn't think that he would only keep one Squadron on his ship. Seems he values his Armored Squadron quite a bit if they are the only one he calls on. 

After my question was answered, the walk towards the communication center was silent for the first half. But as we started to get closer to our destination, Salza began to speak. 

"What are your thoughts on the offer given to you by Lord Cooler?" He asked. 

I looked at him for a moment, debating if I should actually answer him before deciding to speak.

"It's tempting." I told him. 

"Of course it is. Who wouldn't want to be working under the strongest man in the universe?" He said with a prideful smile. "All members of Lord Cooler's Armored Squadron surpass that of those in the Ginyu Force."

"Really?" I asked, feigning a little surprise. 

That information wasn't news to me. I'm pretty sure even the weakest member of the Armored Squadron could beat Ginyu quite easily. 

"Of course." He nodded. "After all, I even kicked Ginyu in his high and mighty behind."

Now that I didn't know. I knew that they were stronger, but I didn't know that they actually fought against each other. 

"I'm guessing that he wasn't happy with the result?" I asked. 

Salza shook his head, "The man-child went and stole some poor sod's body just days after with some disgusting technique he came up with."

Wait, Salza defeated Ginyu back when he still had his original body?! 

"What did his original form look like?" I asked, wanting so desperately to know. 

"Very ugly. Ugh, I get shivers just thinking about it. He was this grey and wrinkly old man. Like a Namek, only with these two hollow horns that came out of his forehead and these eyes as dead as the leviathan's on Cooler Planet-914." Salza answered, looking more and more disgusted as he continued his description. "And don't mention anything I said to you to anyone. Especially Lord Cooler."

"What? About Ginyu's true form?" I asked. 

"No, about Cooler Planet-914. No one talks about Cooler Planet-914. Not since Dore developed Thalassophobia..." He muttered under his breath. 

"Isn't... Isn't that the fear of large bodies of water?" I asked. 

"Yes..." He nodded grimly.

.

.

.

I am now very curious as to what happened to them on Cooler Planet-914...

____________________

I stood in an empty room, the communications panel sitting right in front of me. I hesitated for a brief moment before inputting the number for Saiyan Command. 

[Identification?]

"Zyleth. Team Black." I answered. 

[Yeah right. Zyleth is dead.]

I raise an eyebrow before patching in with a live video feed. I see a fat Saiyan sitting at his desk with his feet kicked up, eating a big leg of meat.

"Do I look dead to you?" I asked with an annoyed tone. 

The Saiyan on the other end broke out in a cold sweat before suddenly sitting up straight, knocking a few thing off of his desk. 

"Zyleth! You're alive!"

"No, I'm the ghost come back to haunt you." I said sarcastically as I rolled my eyes. "Connect me to my father."

"Right away, sir!"

The video disconnects and the line reconnects to my father's Scouter. 

[Call back later.]

The line dropped and my eyebrow twitches in annoyance. He just hung up on me. Calling again, I'm reconnected with the same guy from Saiyan Command.

"Reconnect me with Bardock."

My father picks up again and I start speaking before he could hang up on me.

"I swear, old man, if you hang up on me one more time, no Rejuvenation Tank in the universe will be able to fix what I do to you."

He doesn't speak for such a long time that I honestly thought he had hung up on me again until I checked the connection. 

"Hello?" I spoke. 

[Damn, I put twenty down on you being dead.]

I let out a small chuckle, "Screw you."

[Right back at ya.]

"How is everyone?" I asked. 

[You want it straight or you want me to tell you that we're getting along fine?]

"Don't bother. I can already tell how it is by the way you worded it." I told him. "Is mom there?"

[Yeah.]

I hear shuffling going on in the other end before I hear my mother's voice on the other end. 

[Zyleth?] 

"Hey, mom." I said softly. 

I can hear her breath catch in her throat at the sound of my voice. I knew she had probably been crying ever since Cooler had taken me onboard his ship. 

[Are you okay?] 

"I'm fine, mom. Cooler put me inside a Rejuvenation Tank." I told her. 

I hear her let out an audible sigh of relief upon hearing that information. 

[He didn't do anything to you, right? Are you coming home?]

"No, he didn't do anything to me. Actually... there's a reason why I called..."

____________________

I exit the room and turn towards Salza, "Let's go."

He nods and we both walk back towards the control room. 

"Did the call help you come to a decision?" He asked. 

I look at him for moment before nodding my head, a small smile on my face. 

"It did." I told him. 

Upon reaching the control room, Salza takes his place by the door and I walked inside, seeing Cooler sitting in the chair as he looked at images of various planets. 

"I assume you have an answer for me?" He asked, not even turning around. 

"I do."

I walk over to the chest piece that was still laying on the small table. As I look at it, I can't help but think about what I would be leaving behind.

My family, my team...

But I can't think about them right now. They're protected. At least for the moment. Frieza wouldn't target Planet Vegeta in the near future thanks to Cooler's presence.

And even if he did, I could get everyone I care about off the planet unscathed given that his call for every Saiyan to return to Planet Vegeta would be broadcasted through enough channels to make it to me.

So right now, they're safe, and I need to think about myself.

I grab the armor and slide it on over my head.

I suddenly feel a hand on my shoulder, and I turn around to see that Cooler was standing over me with a smirk.

"Welcome to the Cooler Force."