Lema groaned, turning away from the bright light. The last thing she wanted to do was move, the week finally catching up with her. Every muscle screamed in protest, but she wouldn't trade a single moment. She giggled, a rare sound from the normally tense and quite woman.

A tail tapped her on the stomach, a sign that her mate was awake. If she didn't escape, he wouldn't allow her to get up for the nineth day. "Hungry?"

Squealing, she barely dodged his quick hands, racing for the bathroom and shutting the door. Turning on the shower, Lema washed her hair, loving the length brush against her back. Cyan use to put it up in a pony tail for her, always followed by a lily.

'Cyan...' Strangely, she wanted to spend more time with her twin. He had been in space for five years before she ran away and she missed the long coversations they used to have and the trouble they used to cause their father. Lema smiled. She made a mental note to seek him out, but only if she could escape Vegeta.

Lema loved the attention, but Vegeta and his demonic half were quite demanding and often exhausted her. She mentally searched for her brother and tensed. "Vegeta!"

Her mate was quickly in the bathroom, searching for what had disturbed his mate. Finding nothing, he looked at her. Her eyes were wild with fright and she couldn't stop shaking. Their mental bond was new, but he knew enough that her distress had to do with her brother. Cyan was wrapped in a haze of rage, destroying everything in his path. He spared the commoners, but the field masters and elite soldiers were not so fortunate. "We have to stop him, Vegeta. I've never seen him so..."

Gently, he lifted her from the shower. Cyan's rage was understandable and something Vegeta would have done personally if he hadn't been occupied with his new mate. He easily blocked the images from her mind and decided to talk to her brother once he calmed and returned to the castle. Cyan was only responding to a threat to his sister, a threat that had gone out of control for far too long. Vegeta decided that the planet could function without field masters and decided to let the commoners control the land. He would make the announcement soon.

Turles was sparring invisible partners when he heard the door open. He was surprised to see Lema and he quickly moved in her direction. He searched for injuries and was pleased to find none, along with her scars missing. "I have a message."

She seemed uncomfortable and Turles almost told her to stop. "I was dying, but she stopped me and told me to tell you that death had many faces. Child birth did not kill my mother."

Turles snarled, "Don't speak what you know nothing of, little one! I saw her with my own eyes! She couldn't even speak to me!"

"Did you ever talk to Bardock about her death! Her injuries don't match that of someone dying from child birth!"

Turles slammed Lema against the wall, his grip painfully tight. She couldn't breathe and for the first time, she realized how powerful her father truly was. The door opened, and a loud gasp reached her ears before she started to black out. "Turles stop!"

He immediately froze, his eyes going from Lema to the woman touching his arm. "Zucca..."

"Let her go, Turles."

Lema gasped for air, suddenly released. He was so angry and it hurt to see him turn his back on her. Tears of rage slid down her face and she almost left the room. Before she did, she turned to her father's back, "You're a coward! If only you would open your eyes; you would see that an assassin is responsible for all our pain and suffereing!" He continued to ignore her; Lema left blinded by broken sobs.

Cyan stopped, feeling his sister's distress. He had been returning to the castle and found her in the gardens, hiding behind a rose bush. "Lema?"

She tried to wipe the tears from her face, but Cyan grabbed her wrists and pulled her close. "Talk to me, Lema. We always did when we were little."

"Mother was murdered and I tried to tell dad."

Cyan hissed, noticing the marks on Lema's neck. "Damn him!"

"He's never hurt me before, Cyan! Dad won't even look at me!"

"I'll take care of it, Lema."

"No! You're not strong enough! I don't even think Vegeta could fight him!"

"Trust me, Lema."

"Have you lost your mind, Turles? Vegeta will have your head!"

"Leave Zucca!"

"No!" Zucca moved in front of Turles and punched him. Stunned, he looked at the former queen. "You're a selfish bastard! Leana was my only friend! You're not the only one who suffered at her death and if you had been listening to what your daughter was saying, you would know she was right. We had several tests done on Leana and child birth didn't kill her!"

Zucca slapped him again, raised her hand for another strike when Turles flung her down on the table. His eyes were red with fury, but Zucca didn't back down. "Coward! This isn't the first time you've ran without a fight!"

"What are you talking about?"

"You let that bastard take me and you left without finding Leana's killer!"

"I thought you wanted..."

"Do you see a mark on my neck?" Zucca roared. "He only wanted an heir and I was the strongest female. You could have challenged him for me, but you didn't. You automatically believed every word he told you. I didn't sleep with him that night!"

"Then why did you stay out all night!"

"I sprained my ankle and we were trapped by a rare storm! Let go of me, Turles!"

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"You didn't want to hear the truth, Turles. Did you ever? Lema tried to tell you now; as usual, you lashed out in anger and only believe what you want to. It would be so much easier to think that she died from child birth, but the truth was her ribs were broken and her lungs were shattered. Child birth can't do that. That's why she couldn't speak to you."

"Dammit!" Turles released Zucca, punching a hole through the wall. He was about to go after Lema when the door crashed in, a very angry Saiya-jin walking through. Zucca gasped in terror, Turles backed away. Cyan's eyes were a deep emerald green, his hair a golden blond.

"You're always making her cry! All the scars, all the pain, all the suffering Lema's gone through in the last ten years is your fault!" Turles flinched. Cyan was right. "Mother's dead! You can't change the past! You can stop it from happening again! I don't think anyone regrets the former king dying, but the assassin won't stop there! Lema will die because we're not protecting her!"

Cyan kicked Turles through the wall, ignoring the guards that came running up. Turles didn't fight back. "If you ever..." knee to the stomach; "hurt her again...;" elbow to the jaw; "I'll personally break every bone in your body, heal you, and gladly do it again!" Cyan roared.

Suddenly Lema was in front of him, preventing Cyan from doing any further damage. "Please stop, Cyan." Lema knelt beside her father and gave him a sad smile. "Mother's always been a sensitive subject and I should have been more aware of your pain. I sensed it a few days ago. You've hidden you're pain deep that even your own son and daughter can't see it. I think deep down, you know that she didn't die in child birth, but it was the only way you could deal with the failure of protecting her."

"You were angry with the former King and Zucca. The King took everything from you, including your mate. The last thing you wanted was to let them have us to. That's why you hid us in the country." Lema's tail curled around her father's arm, like she used to do when she was small and scared. Cyan slowly calmed, listening to the calming tone of his sister.

"We can't change the past, father, but we can stop it from happening again. Please, let it go. Mother doesn't want you to suffer anymore. That's what she told me to tell you. You have to let her go."

"How?"

"There's people here that still remember her. Let them help you to make your peace and move on."

Turles looked at his son, "When did you become so powerful?"

Lema laughed; "Cyan's been fooling everyone. We're equal in strength, speed, cunning and power."

Turles staggered to his feet and glared at Zucca. "Woman, if you slap me again..."

"I can still break a few bones Turles! Don't tempt me!"

"I still defeated you in the trials!"

"Your point?"

"What the hell is going on? Why is half my castle destroyed?"

Everybody looked at each other and suddenly started laughing. Vegeta growled, but no one would say anything, Lema dragging him in another direction. He felt a deep pain buried in her mind, but she refused to tell him what happened. Cyan helped his father to the tanks, "Dad, you have a lot of damage to fix. She may have forgiven you, but Lema thinks you hate her."

"I don't..."

"Prove it to her."

Two days later, Lema still hadn't come out of her shell. Vegeta was eating the left overs Lema had prepared when he looked towards the bathroom, growling in protective anger. He could sense the turmoil in his mate, the agonizing pain that she masked from the world. Soon after she had marked him, he had seen everything that she was. Lema was curled up in the shower, her head buried in her knees.

Kneeling down, he brushed a hand through her thick hair. Slowly, she lifted her head, and gave him a look that both angered and terrified Vegeta. He hated the withdrawn expression, the barriers that he had spent the last three years trying to break. Turning off the water, Vegeta grabbed a towel and dried his mate, combing her hair with his fingers.

The pain deepened in her eyes, but she didn't cry. He almost wished that she would, anything except the silence that echoed throughout the room. "Lema..."

"They left," she whispered in a broken tone. "He left me alone."

Protectively, Vegeta pulled her into a tight embrace, never wanting to let her go. He wanted Lema to know that he would never abandon her, to leave her insecure and defenseless. "You're not alone," he promised.

"Why; why did daddy do it? We were only five!" Vegeta was trying to understand the flood of images, none of them in a chronolgical order. They were all of a young boy, hair like his father's and uncle's. "Cyan..."

"Twin..." she half-breathed, half-sobbed. "He was taken away! Why, why did my father do it! Why did he take Cyan and Raditz away? Why did he leave me alone all the time?"

"Lema," Vegeta growled, forcing his mate to look at him, "If it's within my power, no one will ever make you feel insecure, doubt or abandoned again."

Cyan sighed in frustration. He had tried to reach her, but she had shut him out. Vegeta didn't help matters and savagely kept other people away from her, both mentally and physically. The days passed, but Cyan couldn't get any closer. Turles had vanished as well. A month passed before he showed himself. He looked thinner, as if he had been sick for a long time and he had barely survived.

"Where is she?"

"No one's seen her. I think she's still in her room."

Turles didn't respond, heading in the direction of the royal chambers. Vegeta glared at Turles, but let him enter. Reaching his mate had become impossible and he had no choice but to let Turles fix the damage he had caused. "Lema."

She lifted her head, staring at Turles as if he were a ghost. "Nothing I say can erase my words of anger. You were right, I couldn't let her go. If you're still willing, we can look for her killer together. I don't hate you Lema. You look and act so much like her, that it hurts. I don't ask for you to forgive me, only that you understand my pain."

Lema was silent for so long that he almost left when she suddenly flung her arms around his waist. "Don't leave! You're always leaving!"

"I'll stay as long as I'm needed, Lema."

Slowly Lema relaxed and for the first time in a month, she fell into a dreamless sleep. If Turles moved, her tail would quickly curl around his wrist, afraid that he would vanish before she woke again.

Lema and Turles spent hours together, training and talking. He told her everything about Leana and in return she told him about her life in the fields. Zucca often joined them, filling in the gaps that Turles left out while he had been in space. Lema soon discovered that Turles and Zucca were both wronged in the past by the former king, torn apart by a man's selfish desires. He didn't care that two soul mates had been ripped apart and it was amazing that Turles managed to recover and find Leana. His love hadn't been the same, but it was no less than it had been for Zucca.

Zucca and Leana had managed to become best friends, the two relying on each other. The prince was eventually born, followed soon after by Cyan and Lema. Leana never survived and Turles had vanished. Zucca had no one to turn to in her anguish and often suffered the cruelty of her mate in silence. She sheltered Vegeta as much as possible, but the older he became, the more severe his punishments became.

Lema learned to hate her mate's father. True to his word, Turles was always nearby when Lema needed him and he slowly let go of the past. If he had known what his daughter was doing, he might have tried to stop her. She started leaving Zucca and Turles alone in the gardens, or in the training room, usually making up appointments that didn't exist.

Vegeta caught her in the halls one morning and grabbed her. It was rare to see her in a good mood, today she was smiling from ear-to-ear. He knew when his mate was up to something and usually it involved some practical joke. "You didn't re-decorate my throne room, did you?"

"No, but it could do with a change. How could you want anything that your father created?"

"You've been talking to mother again."

Lema smiled, trying hard not to laugh. "It seems my father agrees with both of us. It's a good thing your father's dead; I don't think he would have lived long if Turles had known half the things he did to you and Zucca." Vegeta was touched by Lema's protective anger, her desire to punish a man that could no longer touch him.

"Where are they?"

"I think I left them trapped in a ki proof weapons room?"

"You did what?" Vegeta started to rescue his mother when he was tripped by a black tail. "Lema!"

"Isn't your mother old enough to take care of herself? Besides, I don't think you want to take her from my father. He hides his emotions well, but I've caught glimpses of jealous rage when other males come close to her."

Vegeta started to protest, but Lema kissed him. He quickly forgot why he was angry. "I don't regret that you were born," she whispered, tugging at his ear with her teeth. "However, they should have been together in the first place."

"Lema, stop that..." He warned. "I don't have the patience to make it back to our rooms."

"We're near the gardens, right?"

Vegeta threw all reason out the window and snatched her by the waist. He couldn't think straight when she distracted him and there was only way to take care of the problem. Pressing her lips to his ear, "By the way, do you have a room prepared?"

"Prepared for what?"

"Surely you didn't think it would just be the two of us?"

"Are you?" He almost dropped Lema, but remembered to catch her before she hit the hard concrete floor.

Lema giggled. "I say in about six months, we'll have two new members to the royal family."

"Twins! That's not possible!"

"Why? It's very common to have twins in my family. Look at Turles and Bardock, Cyan and myself. Bardock never had a mate, his son was born in one of the labs. I think he would have had twins as well."

"Twins?" The sound appealed to Vegeta and he hugged Lema close. "Why are you training then?" he suddenly asked.

Lema rolled her eyes; "You're not getting over protective, are you?"

"Damn straight! Where the hell are your royal guards!"

"I gave them the day off."

"Royal guards don't get a day off!" Vegeta snarled. Lema laughed, tickling his nose with her tail.

"I guess that means they have to be present in our room and in the gardens then."

"No!" Lema silenced his protests and he quickly forgot why he was angry. Yes, he was protective, but she wouldn't have any other way.

Lema was exhausted. She found her mate in the throne room, signing papers as if it were a death sentence on his head. Laughing, she sat next to him, ignoring the looks of outrage. How could the King allow such disrespect for his position? However, instead of reprimanding or punishing the woman, he smiled and pulled her closer.

"Who are these people?" Lema finally asked, hours after Vegeta had been working.

"I'm not sure. Reports say that they're Ice-jins, a race of warriors that destroy the planets they encounter. The leader is King Ice, his sons Cooler and Frieza."

"I think you should talk to my father. He's had a lot of dealings with them in the past. Are they a threat?"

"It's too soon to say. Plus, there's not enough information about them."

Lema pulled the pencil from Vegeta's hand and helped him to stand up. "You've been cooped up in here for two weeks!"

Vegeta grabbed his mate, catching her before she stumbled over a stool. He noticed the dark circles for the first time and frowned. "Lema...?"

"I'm hungry!" she said, changing the topic away from her bad sleeping habits. "Let's have a picnic!"

"A... what?"

Pulling away from Vegeta, she kissed him on the cheek and ran from the throne room; "Meet me in the Royal Gardens at noon!"

"Lema!" It was too late; Lema was already half way on the other side of the castle. "Crazy female!"

Ringo was in her room, humming softly to her a newborn infant. Lema still found it hard to believe that her cousin would mate with a non-fighter, but she was happy for her friend. Gently, not wanting to wake the sleeping baby, Lema took Manito and sat. "Are you content, Ringo?"

"The last place I ever expected to live was the castle, mated to a royal guard. Still, Raditz is unlike the elite soldiers that lived on the farms or plantations. He's considerate and he treats all Saiya-jins with respect. It's hard to explain, but the people that exist in your circle, forget to see the social structures that have divided our race for thousands of years."

"It needs to disappear," Lema said quietly, still remembering the last four years. All the scars on her back had been heeled, but the regeneration tank could do nothing to ease the sickening horror of what she had witnessed and heard. "You're father, he isn't like most field masters. I don't recall him ever hitting his workers."

"He didn't believe in causing fear and hatred. Daddy said that a content and well fed Saiya-jin is worth more than a starving and mistreated one. Granted, they didn't have a lot of money, but there was always a decent shelter over their head and plenty of food."

"What about clothing?"

"Replaced twice a year. And a Saiya-jin always had a pair of shoes. Why the questions Lema?" This was the first time that Lema had said anything about the plantations since Vegeta and she had returned from their training. Where did they go and why was Lema so silent? Yes, she did smile more, but there was a haunted expression about her at times, especially when a field master came to speak with King Vegeta.

"What are Arico and yourself doing later?"

"We were going to watch Cowli and Raditz train."

"Tell them to cancel."

"Lema..."

"They need a break. We can't spend our entire lives fighting. For the next week, I don't want them so much as throwing a punch! Tell them to meet us in the Royal Gardens at noon, including Cyan."

Handing Ringo her son, Lema left, determined to get things set up. She ignored the exhaustion that spread throughtout her body. Her mate and friends would always come first.

"She what!" Bardock growled in frustration. "We can't just stop training on a whim!"

"Are you going to tell her?" Raditz breathed, wiping a sheen of sweat from his brow. Thankful for the break, he reached for his son and tossed him into the air, receiving a gleeful squeal.

"Something's wrong..." Cyan whispered, feeling uneasy most of the day. Everyone turned to Lema's twin, his face twisted in pain as he tried to stand on shaking legs. "She's weaker than normal."

"Fine, we'll go. Where's Arico?"

A very pregnant Arico walked into the training room, carrying a tray of drinks. Cowli scowled and quickly took the heavy burden, not wanting his mate to strain. "How's the baby?"

"Kicking and ready to make his entrance any time."

"You people are crazy! Why didn't you have the baby in the labs?"

"Saiya-jins are born stronger without the aide of machines; we've seen this with Lema and Cyan." Arico tiredly leaned against her mate's back, rubbing her swollen stomach. "Lema is the future queen of Vegeta-sai; the last thing we need is to get on her bad side."

"Lema can cook, another trait of her mother. Let's go, before we're late."

Lema stepped back in triumph, the ground covered in several blankets and dishes of food. The first to appear was Cyan. Smiling, she threw her arms around her brother's neck and giggled at his startled reaction. Slowly, he wrapped his arms around her back, "Are you feeling well, Lema?"

She didn't answer and went about finishing up last minute details. "You cooked all that?" There was pasta, steak, potatoes, deserts and other rare delicacies in the universe.

"You're early," Lema said, sitting down on the grass. Joining her, they waited for the others, enjoying the warm afternoon. "Cyan, can I ask you something?"

"What?"

"You've spent a lot of time in space, right?"

"Two decades."

"Do you know anything about the Ice-jins?" Lema heard the intake of breath, and felt a cold terror creep through her brother. Turning her head, she froze, surprised at the gray palor of her brother's skin; "Cyan?"

"They're monsters! Why do you ask about those freaks?"

"Vegeta received a report about them."

"They're not coming here, are they?" Cyan's tone was on the verge of hysteria, his fists clenched tightly at his side. "Lema... we can't fight them! Does father know?"

Lema grabbed her brother's wrists, trying to stop the shaking in them. "Cyan, you can't let fear control your life."

"You don't understand! If my father hadn't taken them by surprise, they would have..."

Lema saw what they were going to do, making her gasp in horror. "They wouldn't have... You were only a child!"

"It didn't matter to the Ice-jins, or the Ginyu force!"

"Ginyu Force? Are they Ice-jins too?"

"No. They're freaks of nature created by a lot of interracial breeding. He would pick two completely different creature types and force the male to rape the female. Most of the time the child and the woman would die, but occassionaly you would come up with extremely powerful fighters. In the cases of children, sometimes the Ginyu took great pleasure in having their way with us."

"How'd they capture you?"

"I was angry with father and ran off. It was the worst mistake that I've ever made in my life, but it also cost Frieza alot of fighters. He and his father were furious and swore revenge on our race; thankfully my father never mentioned where we came from."

"It won't take Frieza long to figure it out," Lema sighed tiredly. "The Saiya-jin race is well known throughout the universe and we would be conceived as a possible threat to whatever Frieza and his father's plans may be."

"They seek domination and power. Those that resist are destroyed, usually entire planets."

"Why hasn't our father informed King Vegeta about this?"

"Father, in the past, had no loyalty to the crown. It took me two decades to learn why. Apparently the former King took something of importance from father. Dad never forgave the king."

The next to appear was Zucca and Ringo. Lema smiled at the odd combination. The former queen had mellowed since the last time they had encountered. Three years with Ringo, had taught Zucca that you didn't have to be an elite or noble born to possess important gifts or ideas. The two had become close friends, Ringo teaching her some of the finer arts of tracking.

Arico and Cowli next. Cowli was supporting most of his mate's weight, her baby due any time. She was shocked that Arico would choose to have her child naturally, but no one dared to defy a royal guard of Vegeta-sai. Only the king had an option to object, and to Arico's advantage, he had been away until after the time that it was safe to take the baby. "How much longer," Lema asked.

"A few hours, a day... It's hard to say with him. It's like the baby doesn't want to leave, but objects to the cramped spaces."

"Are you tired, do you hurt?"

Her friends caught the note of fear in her voice and Cyan wondered if she remembered more about their mother's death than she let on. "No, surprisingly enough. Why?"

Lema didn't have time to answer when Vegeta finally joined them with Raditz and Bardock. Raditz still had his son, the baby pulling on his father's long hair. Vegeta gaped at all the food, wondering how they were going to eat it all. It was enough to last them the rest of the week. "You did this by yourself?" he stuttered.

She blushed at the compliment, and motioned for everyone to sit on the blankets. Several moans of pleasure could be heard, unable to speak their appreciation of the mouth watering food. Lema didn't know what possessed her to pile her plate higher than her head, her stomach protesting violently from the lack of food and energy.

Unaware of all the eyes on her, Lema hungrily ate the first round, quickly going for a second and third. Bardock and Raditz gave each other startled looks, unsure if they should say something or not. Lema never ate more than a salad, a steak and a potato at each meal. Turles watched her wearily, not liking the sudden change in his daughter.

Vegeta searched his mate's mind for signs of abnormality or discomfort, only finding a deep weariness that was quickly disappearing with the more she ate. After the tenth plate, Cyan finally snatched her hands, barely missing a plate of potatoes aimed for his head. "Lema, stop!"

She growled angrily, "I'm hungry!"

"You've eaten enough to feed the entire army!" Raditz protested. He started to take Lema's food away, but found himself on the other side of the gardens, a few bruises and cuts on his body. "Oww..."

Lema was on her feet, hair a bright gold and eyes as green as emeralds. Everyone backed from her growing anger, including Vegeta as she snatched her food back without blinking. "Touch my food," she snarled, "I'll break every bone in your body! So what if I'm eating more than normal! I'm not a damn bird!"

"More like an elephant if you continue..." Bardock growled quietly. To his surprise, she had heard him, and found himself covered in a pile of potatoes and gravey. He expected the cake as well, but she was already half way eating it by the time he could open his eyes again.

"Care to repeat that?"

Cyan didn't know what to say, not wanting to get on his sister's bad side. Everyone chose to leave her alone, watching as she ate another ten plates a mountain high before she was satisfied. Her hair had reverted back to normal, a smile on her face as she leaned back and looked at the sky. "I'm bored..."

Vegeta and Cyan saw no further signs that she was tired; quite the opposite. The food had given her a fresh surge of energy. "Lema," Ringo offered, "Why not a game?"

Lema sat up, her smile growing. "Like tug-o-war?"

"That's not a bad idea," Raditz said, feeling it safe to approach his cousin again. She didn't appear to be angry anymore and made a mental note not to interrupt her meal next time.

"Tug-o-war? What's that?" Vegeta asked.

"Isn't that a commoner game?" Zucca asked.

"It was one of the few entertainments allowed on the fields," Lema said. "Do we have any rope?"

Raditz and Ringo quickly vanished, returning a few minutes later with fifty feet of rope. They looked around, and found a perfect spot filled with sand. Grabbing several buckets of water from the fountain, they poured it over the dirt and watched it become a nasty mud pit.

"You're not serious," Zucca protested. "That's so..."

"Perfect!" Lema encouraged, jumping up to help her cousin and best friend. Dropping to her knees, she tested the depth of the pit and ordered that more water be poored until it was more like a giant puddle. "Now, who's on what side?"

A glint of mischief danced in her eyes and Vegeta wondered if he should run or accept her challenge. "Raditz, Cyan and myself will be on one team. Vegeta, Bardock and Cowli will be on the other."

"Aren't the odds more in their favor?" Raditz asked. Lema scowled and he immediately regretted the question. Her sudden mood swings were difficult to follow and he quickly agreed with her idea.

"What's the objective?" Vegeta asked, looking at the rope suspiciously.

"We pull on the rope and hold on until one side is completely emerged into the mud hole."

Ringo continued, "No one is permitted to let go, not if they wish to remain in the game. There has been times when a side had only two people left because people slipped or violated the rules."

"This is a strength and endurance game," Raditz finished.

Vegeta, Bardock and Cowli grabbed one side of the rope, while Lema, Raditz and Cyan grabbed the other. "Give the signal Ringo. Arico, Zucca and yourself can be the referrees."

"Go!" The rope immediately went tight, each side straining to drag the other. Lema was in the back of the group, digging her heals into the ground like she had been tought as a child. Cyan took the middle and Raditz in the front.

"Lema, you can do it!"

Turles sat and said nothing, while Zucca was cheering for her son and Bardock, never having seen her son failing at anything. Bardock and Vegeta took a step back, pulling Raditz a few inches away from the mud hole. He paled, but knew better than to let go of the rope. Not even when you went into the mud, did a Saiya-jin release the rope, in hopes that his commrades managed to pull him back and win.

"I told you the odds were stacked!" Raditz roared, suddenly finding himself face first in the mud. With only two people pulling, it made it easier for Vegeta's side to take the advantage and pull Cyan to the very edge.

Cyan's muscles screamed at the unfamiliar exercise, but he refused to give up and gave all his will power to keep from falling in. Raditz was almost on the other side, but couldn't refind his footing to help his cousins. "Lema, don't let them win!"

Lema had wrapped the rope around her waist and wrists, gritting her teeth in determined pride. Cyan's foot touched the mud and he slipped, flipping on to this back. He barely managed to keep hold of the rope, leaving his sister alone to battle three grinning Saiya-jin males.

Arico and Ringo were on their feet, encouraging Lema to give it all she had. The ground started to crack and it looked like Lema would loose when she started to scream, suddenly glowing a deep golden color. Cyan was dragged back out of the mud, quickly followed by Raditz. Cowli followed, Bardock and then Vegeta as she gave a final pull that sent them flying over her head.

Cyan lifted his head, surprised to see another surge of power in his twin. It was eradtic and spontaneous, coming in bursts of anger. "Lema?"

"What?"

"You've changed again."

"What is she?" Ringo and Zucca asked, clutching each other's arms.

"A super saiya-jin," Vegeta answered, spitting mud from his mouth.

Lema giggled, sheepishly placing a hand behind her head. "I just didn't want to loose. Sorry about that. I'm hungry again!"

"What?!" Everyone shouted, watching as she finished the remainder of the picnic.

Arico smiled at her friend, but suddenly found herself gasping for breath and holding her stomach; "Cowli?"

Water trickled down her leg, mixed with blood, "Is it?"

"Don't just stand there! He's coming!"

Lema ordered that the men leave the gardens and wait until they were called. Ringo started to chant, sending a wave of energy into Arico. A year after Ringo had moved to the castle, it was accidentally discovered that she was a healer. Cowli held Arico's hand, his face pale as he waited for the new life. "It's almost here," Lema encouraged, having a hold of the babies shoulders. "One more push, Arico!"

She screamed, giving the last of her strength to push her baby out. A loud cry pierced the afternoon, a sign that the baby was healthy and alive. "She's beautiful," Ringo squealed. The baby had a head full of hair and expressive brown eyes. A tail wrapped around Lema's wrist, followed by a gurgle.

"She?" Cowli asked. "It was suppose to be a boy!" he pouted.

Lema laughed, tickling the babies nose with her finger. "A girl is always better. There's never enough of us."

Arico reached for her baby and smiled, pulling the blanket tighter around it's shoulder. "Her name will be Jasmine."

"You're the first female to have a child in twenty-one years," Zucca said. "You don't feel any pain?"

"Just tired," Arico admited. "Why?"

"It doesn't matter," Lema interrupted, not wanting to continue on the subject.

The men quickly rejoined them, greeting the new life with respect and approval. A girl was seen as a good omen and a blessing on the house that had her. Arico's tired but healthy demeanor, led Lema to believe that her mother truly was murdered.

'I agree,' she heard her brother mentally say.

'Why would someone kill our mother?'

'Our father was a powerful threat. He had no direct connection to the throne at that point, but Leana did. Two naturally born children with their parents power level, could be an interference for future plans of over throwing the current king. King Vegeta's father was murdered.'

It all fit and the thought made a cold shiver race down her spine. 'Was everything a conspiracy to take the throne, to leave the planet in anarchy and choas? With no king, the planet was looking for a civil war that would kill thousands.'

'Exactly. With our long life spans, I wouldn't be surprised if the killer is still roaming the castle, waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike.'

'Damn! Cyan, I'm giving you an order to watch all the babies. At the moment, they're our biggest weakness.'

'Hai.'

Vegeta knew that his mate would be acting differently, but chose not to say anything until he caught her eating fifty plates of food and nearly killing the kitchen staff as they protested. "Lema, are you feeling alright?"

"No!" she suddenly burst into tears. "All I wanted was a snack! Why is everyone being so mean? Do I look fat to you?"

Vegeta knew better than to answer that question, despite the fact that she had been feeling a bit heavier. Then there was the sudden surges of energy after every meal. She would go from extreme exhaustion, to playful in minutes. "I think it's time you saw a doctor."

"No!" Lema snapped, no longer hungry. Vegeta stopped his mate before she could leave the cafeteria, wincing at the enormous strength she was displaying. 'How'd she become so powerful? I've always been stronger until recently.'

"I'm insisting."

"Is that a royal command?" she growled.

Vegeta sighed and patiently directed his mate towards the medical labs. "Lema, you're not acting normal."

"Now I'm an annoyance!" Bursting into tears again, Lema fled down the halls, brushing past Zucca and Turles. They blinked and then turned to the frustrated King.

"Are all women like her? She never acted like that during the trials or her training!"

"It isn't uncommon for her moods to change during pregnacy Vegeta. A few more months and everything will go back to normal. Or at least as normal as it gets with two new infants."

"What about the sudden power bursts? I've never heard of a female gaining so much power during a pregnancy. Doesn't it normally weaken them?"

"It depends on how strong Lema was to begin with. Cyan and lema have enormous power neither of them have tapped into yet. The same goes with yourself. She's drawing energy from the babies and requires more food to recover from the massive amount."

Vegeta found his mate in the throne room, asleep in his chair. Gently, not wanting to wake her, he lifted her into his arms and carried her to the labs. It wasn't until they started to draw blood that she woke, looked at the needle and released a terror filled scream that destroyed more than half the medical rooms.

Several hours later, they finally had their results, claw marks running down Vegeta's back as he held his mate securely. The doctors were hesitant about approaching the emotional woman, and made sure that all needles were out of sight before they quickly handed their results to King Vegeta.

"Are you positive?" King Vegeta gasped, not believing the results.

"Hai."

"This power level is unheard of!"

"We think that's only a tenth of their power. If they're like their mother, we won't be able to get an accurate reading. Do you want us to take them?"

"No!" Lema protested, fighting to get away. Vegeta tightened his grip and rubbed her back affectionately. She started to relax, knowing that Vegeta would never allow anyone to touch her. "Don't let them, Vegeta."

"Are you willing to take the risk?"

"Yes!"

Vegeta nodded, earning a smile of gratitude. Tiredly, Lema fell asleep, her head pressed against his shoulder. Saiya-jins were pregnant for about seven to eight months, it wouldn't be long before he was the father of not one, but two powerful children.