Days after I managed to pass my test, my brother was sent off on his first mission, along with Raditz, Nappa, and a half-dozen other nameless Elite Saiyans, some of whom (like Raditz) weren't even as strong as me.
Apparently, I didn't qualify for going with him, because I was a disappointment.
Fine by me. Vegeta had his own destiny.
He'd be gone for three months, plus however long his mission actually took.
That meant that Vegeta, Nappa, and Asper were all gone. In other words, my entire wing of the castle was completely deserted for the six months between the time I passed my test and my mission date.
It was perfect.
I spent most of my time alone in the training room, teaching myself how to control my ki better with basic physical exercises. I didn't fight anyone for six months, and it was glorious.
Idly, I wondered if I was some sort of mutation like Broly was, because I'd never heard of a pure-blooded Saiyan that cared as little for combat as I did.
Unfortunately, I couldn't spend all of my time training. Every afternoon, I made time to scour Frieza's computer network, studying different planets and noting down their locations and any other useful information. I also studied basic spaceship mechanics, but honestly, I didn't get very far there. I just didn't have the time to wrap my head around the physics involved, and without that, the mechanics were just gobbledygook.
But I did manage to make great strides in my understanding of the universe's known planetary systems, regardless. I memorized the locations of every single planet that I felt like I could possibly need to go to, for any reason.
Except for Frieza's little bases that he had scattered across the galaxy.
I didn't need to know the locations of those.
My brother finished his mission around a week before I was set to depart, the same day that my team's formal roster found its way back to me, ironically. As I passed his Royal Coldness in the hallway, on my way back from training, he seemed even colder than usual.
I couldn't blame him, he'd just carried out mass murder. That changes a person.
When I got back to my room that day, I looked over my team's roster. As I'd expected, my father'd created my team with politics in mind, just like my brother's.
He'd put Raditz in my brother's team, even though Raditz was ten times weaker than him and the gap was growing by the day, in order to keep Bardock loyal, since he couldn't just get rid of Raditz's father like he had with Broly.
But with my team, he'd just stocked it with well-gened trash. Just like Raditz.
Asper's daughter, Pepper, for example. She was a year or two older than me, but her power level was only around 200. Lower than even Raditz. There was a note on her file about a tendency toward destructive impulses. For a Saiyan, that's saying something, but I ignored it. Asper had the brain of a potato, so I didn't have high expectations for his progeny.
Then, there was Tommy, Lynn, and Tater, triplets born to one of my father's generals, one of the few female Saiyans with a power level that surpassed 6,500. They looked incredibly alike, and all had power levels hovering between three and four hundred.
And the final member of the team was our navigator, a female Saiyan named Mel. Navigators were a rare thing that only certain Elite Class Saiyans were allowed. Their job was basically just logistical support, but Mel was still a fully grown Saiyan, with a power level of around 2,500. I'd have to be careful around her, even if her job wasn't to fight, she was notably stronger than I was right now.
So, my team… I didn't have any high hopes for them, in all honesty. They were typical Saiyans, through and through, based on the information in their files. Only between six and nine years old,
As I was looking at the files on my screen, there was a knock at my door, which then proceeded to open without my say-so.
"Brother?" I was shocked to turn around and find Prince Vegeta himself standing in my doorway. Walking inside without any prodding, he looked around my room critically. It wasn't much, but it was mine.
"Hmph. Small."
And now I was annoyed. "What do you want, brother? Come to remind me how weak I am? If so-"
"You earned your right as a Saiyan Prince, Tarble. That's not why I'm here." I was speechless to hear that come from the mouth of the arrogant Vegeta himself. Noticing my shocked expression, my brother continued, standing awkwardly in the middle of the room. "You're five years old, and you're nearly ten times stronger than you were at birth. Only a handful of Saiyans in history have ever grown so much so quickly, Tarble."
Vegeta looked like he was passing a kidney stone, but he managed to get the praise out. I could almost hear the admittance beneath his words. 'Only a handful of Saiyans in history have ever grown so much so quickly, Tarble. Even including me.' Even now, Vegeta was seven, and his power level had only made it to five thousand. Sure, that was a five times increase from where he'd started, but over the last six months, I'd been steadily increasing the amount of energy I allowed to show, so my current power level, as far as anyone knew, was 750. That's nearly a ninefold increase, even though I hadn't had nearly as much time as him.
I doubted that Vegeta was nervous about me surpassing him one day, but it was a fact that I'd grown faster than him. Apparently, in his mind, that meant that I'd 'earned' the right to be his brother, or something.
"Thanks, brother, but I know you're not here to compliment me." I thought aloud.
"Here." Vegeta tossed something my way. I caught it in my hands, but when I realized what it was, my eyes widened.
"This… is an elite-grade Scouter!" Scouters had grades. The higher grade, the more accurate they were, and the higher power levels they could detect. This particular one was the highest grade I'd ever seen, and custom made with a blue screen to boot. It'd be able to detect power levels up to 50,000.
"You may grow quickly, but you're still a weakling. Wherever Father chooses to send you, Tarble, there's a fair chance that you won't make it back." I already figured that one out. It was one of the many reasons behind me learning to constantly suppress my power level.
Having said everything he'd wanted to, Vegeta turned on his heels without another word. "Thank you, brother. I appreciate this." I thanked him. With a snort, the door closed behind my brother, leaving me to stare at the scouter in my hand.
I wasn't lying about appreciating Vegeta's gift. As princes, we didn't get everything we wanted on a silver platter. We needed to work for anything we had. In other words, Vegeta'd used his entire 'paycheck' from his recent mission on this single gift, to help me on my mission.
That meant a lot.
Plus, having a scouter was an exceptional boon for me. I could sense power levels nearby, nowadays, but scouters were far more precise over a far wider range, even if they couldn't be fully trusted.
The only downside was the fact that it could be tracked, but that could be solved by keeping the device's power source disconnected whenever I didn't need it.