Golden light bathed the plateau, turning every face the color of old parchment.
Vegeta stood at the center, arms loose at his sides, aura calm enough to make the air itself feel heavy.
Silence stretched so tight it could snap.
Krillin's throat worked, but no sound came out.
Gohan's small fists shook at his sides.
Nail's knuckles were white.
Every Namekian present took one involuntary step back, instinct screaming that the thing in front of them was no longer a warrior.
It was a natural disaster wearing Saiyan armor.
Vegeta let them stew in it.
Then he spoke, voice low, conversational, and utterly merciless.
"I'm going to kill Frieza. Today."
He paused, letting the words sink in like knives.
"I came here to tell you that so you don't do anything stupid while I'm gone. Like trying to collect the Dragon Balls yourselves."
His gaze swept the crowd and settled on Krillin.
"You've been busy, haven't you, bald one? Painting me as the big bad monster to anyone who'll listen."
Krillin flinched as if slapped.
"I "
Vegeta cut him off with a look.
"Save it. I don't care what you think of me. I don't care what any of you think."
He took one step forward.
The stone beneath his boot cracked in a perfect circle.
"But let's get one thing crystal clear."
Golden sparks danced across his shoulders.
"I want one wish. One. After Frieza is ash, you can have the other two. I was even going to be polite about it."
His smile was sharp enough to cut steel.
"I'm done being polite."
Gohan stepped forward, voice shaking but defiant.
"You expect us to just trust you? After everything you've done?"
Vegeta's eyes flicked to him, something almost like disappointment in the teal depths.
"Trust?" He laughed once, short and humorless. "Kid, I don't need your trust. I need you to stay out of my way."
He turned to Nail.
"That goes for you too, Namekian. I've killed everything Frieza sent at your people. I'm about to kill Frieza himself. When I come back, the Dragon Balls better be exactly where I left them."
Nail's jaw clenched.
"And if they're not?"
Vegeta's aura flared just a flicker, barely a heartbeat of gold.
The temperature dropped ten degrees.
Every Namekian dropped to one knee without realizing it.
Vegeta's voice dropped to a whisper that somehow carried to every ear.
"Then I stop being helpful."
He let that hang for three seconds.
Then the gold vanished.
Base form. Black hair. Dark eyes. The pressure lifted like a storm passing.
Vegeta turned his back on them all, already bored.
"I'll be back in an hour. Maybe less."
He glanced over his shoulder at Bulma, who hadn't said a word, just stared at him with wide, conflicted eyes.
"Try not to let the children do anything stupid while I'm gone."
A blink.
He was gone.
Only the sonic boom arrived late, rattling windows and sending Namekians stumbling.
Krillin found his voice first, hoarse and shaking.
"…He wasn't lying."
Gohan's fists were still clenched, tears of frustration in his eyes.
"He's going to kill Frieza… and then he's coming back for the Dragon Balls. All of them."
Nail stared at the empty sky, face unreadable.
The Grand Elder's voice drifted from inside, ancient and tired.
"He will keep his word. The Saiyan's hatred for Frieza burns hotter than his hatred for any of us."
A pause.
"Pray he succeeds."
Far away, a golden star streaked toward Frieza's ship.
Vegeta's grin was all teeth.
"Time's up, lizard."
~~~~~~~~~~~~
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