The Saiyan Empire, Part I
The time to return to Earth was growing closer and closer. Sarada only had two weeks left before she had to leave and train, then face Jagam for the survival of the Saiyan race. If she and her friends failed to kill him, her people would surely be slaughtered.
That undeniable truth weighed heavily on Sarada's mind. No matter who she talked to, the crux of the conversation was always that her race's survival rested on her shoulders.
She needed to be stronger. She and Ishtar had been making much use of the state-of-the-art training facility in the basement of the Palace when she had time, but it wasn't enough. Her duties were cutting into her training. She was afraid that she would eventually stagnate and regress. That would have been unacceptable. She had a lot of work to do once she returned to Earth, of that there was no doubt.
Before she could leave, however, there were still some things she needed to do. First and foremost, the thing she had been wanting to do since she became Queen. In front of reports and journalists, she signed the necessary documents to official end her Aunt Enoki's exile, as well as those who followed her into exile. At the time, the Vocadoan government was a vastly different entity. Enoki stood up for what she knew was right, speaking about against the regime and Queen Becbaga for their harsh, unfair treatment of those that were weak and half-breeds. After a while, she left and joined the GP to fight against the Saiyans. Soon after, Becbaga exiled her.
Years later, Sarada officially ended her aunt's exile and allowed her and those with her to stay on any of the Saiyan worlds, if they chose to do so. She hugged her aunt tightly, knowing that her family was finally complete again.
Becbaga was standing close by, awkwardly, and muttered what sounded like an apology.
The next day, Sarada and Ishtar left to spend the rest of their time on the colonies. They spent a few days at each, receiving tours and being briefed by the viceroys on how each planet and the people there were faring. For the most part, all sounded good.
Turrip was probably in the best shape. The Conglomerate left detailed notes of the welfare of the Saiyans there for the viceroy to follow so the transition of power would be as smooth as possible. Economically speaking, it was extremely well off. Trade and jobs in the various technology fields were both booming, and Turrip's exports accounted for a great portion of its income. The people seemed happy, for the most part, though there were some still uncomfortable with having an, in their words, non-intellectual on the throne.
Sarada tried not to take offense, but being called stupid in such a snobbish way irritated her. It was then that she remembered why she hated coming to this place so much. The Saiyans here to just as prideful as every other Saiyan; it was just that their pride took on a different form.
Before they left, they received gifts. Sarada received an experimental teleportation device that would allow her to transport before planets instantly. With a bit of doing, she could even transport to other worlds if she knew the coordinates or had some way to lock onto a fixed location.
The next world was Pepa. While the government had finally stabilized, the people were disgruntled. For years, they had served under a democracy, where they had the chance to choose for themselves who they wanted to rule. If they weren't satisfied with this person, they only had to wait until the next election to vote someone else into office. To have all of that suddenly done away with and to be placed back under a monarch left them all with bad tastes in their mouths.
That was understandable. Sarada admitted that she hadn't give that much thought, but when she did, she found herself agreeing with them.
Still, when she and Ishtar made their official visit, they were hospitable and courteous, treating the young Queen and – more importantly – her consort with the respect and dignity they were both owed. During one of the days, they made a brief visit to the statue of the goddess Tunsar, who had been worshiped by the Arquinians before they were summarily wiped out ages ago. It was a startling reminder that despite of tranquil and peaceful this planet and its inhabitants currently were, their homes were built on the blood and corpses of the race that came before them.
It was a sobering reminder of how checkered the Saiyans' past was, and how they needed to make amends any way they could to make up for it.
As a gift, Sarada received a small angel statue, beautifully crafted by the most skilled artisan on the planet.
Next was Langal. They had been there only a few weeks earlier, but their visit this time was for a different purpose. The main focus on the agenda was working out some kind of federal aid. For years, the planet had been wracked by hurricanes and tsunamis that left many without homes, specifically those that lived on the cost.
Sarada wasn't sure how to go about that. There was already a tax in place, but how much it was varied from planet to planet. When she returned from defeating Jagam, she would need to work out a new tax that was uniform across the Empire. From there, she would decide how much money went where. Relief aid was at the top of the list.
As an aside, she visited the museum she and Ishtar visited before and found that the broken amulet was indeed being kept locked up safely in a triply secure vault under the building. No one but herself, Ishtar, and the curator knew it was there.
The gift they were presented was a beautiful painted of the two of them in a loving embrace. Seeing how... realistically it was portrayed made Sarada's face warm.
The next world was Ruco. A picturesque world with perfect sand, clear water, and clear skies, it seemed to be paradise. It made Sarada afraid of what was happening under the surface. Luckily, there was nothing too bad. The worst of it was that unemployment was unusually high ever since the transition from Queen Senerg to the viceroy. It seemed some were discouraged at having a Vocadoan Saiyan on the throne, and feared a return to the old ways, despite Sarada's speech.
That was fair, she supposed. If Pepa taught them anything, it was that people in power lied all the time to appease the people and get them off their backs. Sarada made a brief statement to reassure them that what she said then was actually how she felt.
Ishtar would notice that of all the worlds they had been on, Ruco was easily the most diverse. It had every race imaginable – Saiyans, Namekians, Arcosians, even humans – so seeing an Oni walking hand in hand with the Saiyan Queen when they were on the beach on night didn't even register on their radar. This was why Sarada was so excited to take Ishtar to Ruco, so she could see that this was the best her race had to offer. Everyone was so accepting and so kind. There were more inter-species pairings on Ruco than anywhere else combined. Half-breeds ran around joyously without fear of reprisal or assault. They were treated as equals by purebreds, and with respect.
It was then that Sarada decided to purchase a home there so she and her love could have a place to rest and relax when the time called for it. That was their gift from the planet Ruco, a beach front property, the very best they had to offer.
She was tempted to visit whatever was left of the Ishisna. Its population had suddenly vanished into thin air, with no clue as to what happened there. There was nothing left, so all they would have been looking at was the remains of its sudden end.
With that in mind, she decided against it, but made a mental note to visit it at a later date so she could see if it would be possible to salvage what was left.
Last and certainly the least anticipated visit was to Callion. It went... far worse than she expected it to. Which was saying something, because she was expecting the absolute worst.
The moment they arrived, their ship was pelted with rocks, rotten eggs, spoiled milk, and rancid meat. The native Saiyans jeered and cursed at them; the brunt of their fury was directed at Ishtar. Callion was notorious for being extremely unwelcoming to outsiders and non-Saiyans. They were also furious that a non-Saiyan was Sarada's consort, and that it seemed likely that they would pair. To them, the mere thought of serving a meat-mixer as Queen disgusted them.
Sarada felt herself growing incensed, but knew that lashing out and attacking – or even killing one who had the audacity to toss a feces filled balloon, which thankfully missed, at Ishtar – them in retaliation would not only make the situation far worse, but also reflected badly on her. If she wanted to bring these... these savages to her side of things, then she needed to lead by example.
Hilda's words rang clearly in her mind. If they regressed, it was all over for them. While she was there, there were very loud rumblings from Pinrit's family that they were going to take their planet back and secede from the Empire. If that happened, they would surely go on to form their own rival empire, which would undoubtedly include slaughtering countless innocent people.
Because of their savage, brutal disposition, the Saiyans on this world were far, far weaker than anywhere else. The economy depended on war in the past; with that done away with, they were impoverished. They were currently in the middle of a depression, which only made them more furious at Sarada, as she was the embodiment of the decision that put them in this position in the first place.
The Saiyan Empire, Part II
Any attempt to work on solutions during her meetings with the viceroy were interrupted by loud, rowdy protests outside the capital building at the top of Mt. Pinrit. Cries for Queen Parsley were loud and clear. It was startling, but not surprising. She supposed she had been spoiled by the progress Vocado had been making, but this only made her hark back to her childhood. It wasn't a pleasant trip down memory lane.
Before they thankfully departed, they were “treated” to the shocking, sudden public execution of a pair of half-breed children, both of which couldn't have been older than six. Their parents – the mother of which had been painted blue and had goat horns superglued to her forehead – were slaughtered next, their bodies fed to rabid animals.
Sarada was shell-shocked by the horrendous display, then grew livid when they started to move towards her. “Enough,” she uttered sharply. With a sweep of her hand, she sent a powerful wave of concussive force that sent the incoming savages flying back. Her power made their look infantile in comparison, as did Ishtar's. They both could have slaughtered this entire planet if they wanted to.
Sarada had half a mind to do exactly that. Just kill everyone in sight, then plant more Saiyans there to start over on the right foot. It was the Saiyan way, after all, the beloved way of Otatop these people touted so much.
No. That... that wasn't how she should have gone about it. That was the easy way. She needed to do this the right way if the change was going to be most effective. It was going to take a long, long time, but these people would see the light.
They mercifully departed, en route to Earth. As she left, she contacted Vocado and ordered that a small battalion of Super Elites be sent to Callion to protect the viceroy and quash any uprising that may come in the future.
With that done, she sent the notes she collected during her visit to Mato for him and the others to look over while she was gone. Once Jagam and his ally were dead, she would start figuring out where the Saiyan Empire needed to go, and what to do to get it there. Callion needed the most work, so they would spend the most time focusing on that.
“I'm sorry,” she said to her beloved when they finally departed from that hellscape. “I didn't realize they were so... I'm sorry you had to see that.”
She had probably encountered worse – to the point that the displays there were likely seen as childish – but that didn't make Sarada feel any better. She leaned over and kissed Ishtar on the side of the mouth. “I'll fix things there. I don't know how, but I will.”