Welcome to DBZ Saiyan Garden

A nervous Gohan stood before Tien, the Commanding Guardsman, as Tien inspected his uniform and equipment.


Gohan was wearing the full Guardsmen's dress, the uniform he would wear for most day-to-day services to the Crown Prince. The Prince's Guardsmen's uniforms were made of smoky grey leather and suede. Their armor was made of raw iron that still retained its darkness and coarseness. For State functions, they would wear silk garments in a deep blue color, with shining silver armor. The King's Guardsmen wore black clothing and armor, black silk and blue steel armor for State affairs.


Tien walked around Gohan as he stood at attention. He stopped in front of the young man and stared at him.


Gohan tried not to stare at the man's third eye.


"Tighten that tail around your waist." Gohan did so. "You'll do for now. But mind that you keep that baby face in check. You look afraid of your own shadow. A Guardsman is supposed to be a fierce warrior and carry himself as such."


"Yes, Sir!" Gohan barked automatically, learning fast how he had to behave.


"At ease." Gohan relaxed his posture, but saw Tien glance at his tail again so made sure he kept it tight around his waist.


"You and I will go over some of your duties now. Others you will have to learn on the fly as Chapa is leaving today and you will take his place as soon as he turns in his Palace sword."


"Yes, Sir!"


Tien smiled. He had never had to train someone so young for this position before, but he couldn't help but like the young man. It was easy to see that Gohan would do all that he could to be the best Guardsman he could be. If only he looked a little more imposing. But then again, Tien suspected that his innocent looks greatly contributed to the outcome of the fight with Lord Satan's men – they just weren't expecting a formidable warrior but that's what they got.


"As the Novice Guardsman, it will be your place to be by the Prince's side at all times. I will take his other side."


He saw the look of confusion on Gohan's face. "You have a question?"


"Yes, Sir. Is it wise for me, not yet knowing all of my duties, to be by the Prince's side? I mean, shouldn't someone more seasoned be that close to him?"


"The greenest Guardsman always gets this duty. First of all, it helps you pay your dues. It gives the other Guardsmen the ability to rest and have more time for themselves, time they've all earned since they have all been in your place. It is the position in which you will learn your duties quickest. And it enables you to get to know the Prince and what he likes in his Guardsmen. It wouldn't do for you to hardly be around the man and then have that as some kind of barrier, such as if you were intimidated by him, for instance." Tien gave Gohan a knowing look at that last comment, Gohan feeling the blush creep across his cheeks. Gohan, the two times he had seen the Prince since the encounter where he fell ill before him, out of sheer nerves stumbled in his responses to the Prince. Gohan ended up feeling like an idiot each time the Prince gave him a puzzled smile.


"This also enables you to get constant instruction from me."


Tien smiled, letting Gohan know it was ok for him to do so as well.


"Now, tell me. Where did you learn to fight?"


Gohan looked down briefly, but a strong hand shot out and pulled his chin up roughly. "I asked you a direct question. I expect a direct answer. Your feet will tell you nothing."


Gohan blushed, knowing that he had better get over his shyness. "My father and Grandfather spar with me all the time. It is what we do most often in the winter, when there isn't much to do on the farm in the evenings."


Tien nodded. He remembered when he had talked to the young man's father how impressive the man had seemed. He seemed a simple man, perhaps a little over friendly and enthusiastic, even seeming a little dumb, but still held a certain pride and his strength was more than obvious.


After meeting the mother, Tien was even more impressed that the father had managed anything with the boy the way the woman
obviously babied her children. The younger little boy, Gohan's brother, running around his legs and eyeing his uniform and armor was constantly yanked away and reprimanded by the doting woman. Still, she was beautiful...


Tien brought his mind back to the matter at hand, smiling.


"Now, the most important thing, the first rule -- your main concern is the Prince."


Gohan nodded again. Tien gave him a look.


Gohan barked, "Yes Sir!"


Tien smirked.


"Obviously, you would give your life to protect him."


"Yes Sir!"


"Do not let the peace of our time fool you. There are many attempts on both the Prince's life and the Queen's because of her Tuffle blood. There are some that think the Prince should be considered illegitimate. These people, some fanatics, will do whatever they can to get to the Prince. You must not hesitate when confronted with anyone like that. Do not let the Prince's prowess and ability sway you into thinking he can protect himself if attacked. He can, but it is YOUR JOB to protect him. You must step into the fray, in the way of the swinging blade and you must do whatever you can to survive, so that you may protect the Prince. Your survival means that his chances are better. But if you recognize that in order to save the Prince you must put yourself in harms way, towards certain death, then you must do that. Do you understand?"


Gohan gave Tien a look of determination. "Yes Sir!"


Tien fought the urge to grin. He was very pleased.


"You will shadow the Prince everywhere, so you see why you have to get over your unease around him."


"Yes Sir!"


"All right, that's enough for now. Even I can only take so much." Tien laughed at the young man's unease. "Don't worry, you will get used to me as well."


Gohan nodded, looking unsure. Tien squeezed his shoulder in a friendly gesture.


"Back to the Prince. As I said, you will be around him constantly. You will see him unclothed, on the bowl, with women. You must keep your expression discreet – stare at the wall, into space, whatever so long as you are not staring at him. It is bad enough that he has no privacy, the last thing he needs to hear is your heavy breathing when he's fucking some wench."


Gohan looked down. Tien yanked his chin back up, painfully this time to make a point. Gohan set his features, knowing he made an error and unhappy with himself.


"You cannot stare, but you must still be watchful. Especially when he's with a woman. Attempts can be made on his life then – actually, it is when he is most vulnerable."


Gohan set his features.


"You will guard him as he sleeps. You will catch naps when I give you the chance, usually, the final hours of the morning before he rises. You will be tired, but you will soon get used to it. I imagine the hours aren't any more difficult to keep than they are on the farm."


Gohan nodded.


"You will always flank him on his right side, where he can reach his own sword. I get his left."


"Yes Sir!"


Tien paced as he continued to think of things he needed to tell his new Guardsman, his tail flapping against his thigh. He looked thoughtful as he did so, and Gohan couldn't help but genuinely like the man, even though he knew the man would kill him in a second if he stepped out of line.


"Now, I know that your libido is kicked into full gear, almost getting yourself killed for a pair of pretty eyes as you have, but there are some things you should know." He ignored Gohan's continued blushing. "Your duty will offer very limited personal time, so my suggestion to you is go to the Kame House Tavern your first chance and get to know some of the young women there. This way, when the opportunity arises, you can get it out of your system quickly. And don't bother with anything serious if you can help it. Until you are replaced in your duties as Novice Guardsman, you won't have the time for a real girlfriend."


Gohan nodded.


"Now, back to the Prince. Do not let his kindness fool you. He has a swift temper, much like his father. When he is brought to anger, it is best to keep quiet and out of his way. You can never leave his side, but you can make yourself invisible to him."


Gohan nodded again, knowing that the flow of information would only quicken and that there was a ton more to follow. Tien saw the look of determination on the young features. "As I said, you will learn a lot on the fly. You will have to be quick on your feet. But I think you can handle it."


Gohan nodded.


"Well, I will instruct you for each task and if you have a question, ask me, not the Prince. Understand?"


Gohan nodded, saw the look on Tien's face, and barked "Yes Sir!"


Gohan wondered how the man could think he could ever ask the Prince anything!


"Now, I'm going to have you meet the other Guardsmen. You do not need to be formal with them. Nodding to your Guardsmen or calling them by first name is sufficient. The Prince however, may only be addressed three ways: Sire, Your Majesty and My Lord. He is very informal with us, but we are NOT informal with him. Understand?"


"Yes Sir!"


"When you meet the King, you will be with all of us. I will show you our formation for greeting him later. But basically, we kneel on our knees, heads touching the floor until he tells us to rise. The Queen we go down on one knee and bow our heads down, touching our hand to our forehead in honor to her."


"We need only nod to the Prince, never bow. But we say Your Majesty, My Lord, etc when we greet him. We only bow to the King and Queen. We do not bow to any other nobles. There is a reason for this. Our attention must be on protecting the Prince. We take our attention off of him when we bow. So, we only bow to the King and Queen and only in protected quarters, not out in public, so that is fine. Otherwise, we nod our heads in deference, but no more."


Tien continued, "And as to nobles, remember Gohan, you are a Guardsman now – this commands respect. Nobles must treat you with respect – if they do not, they dishonor the Prince. So expect it. Act with the expectation. If a Noble dares to insult you, make him feel the error of his ways. Then arrest him. Do not remember what it was like as a farmer -- you are no longer a farmer's son. That is over. Understand?"


"Yes Sir!"


Tien nodded at Gohan, "All right. Let's meet the others."


Tien walked off in that quick stride of his. Gohan followed easily this time.


* * *


Tien brought Gohan into the Guardsmen's common room, the men rising from off the couches they lounged on lazily. He was to meet the other four Guardsmen at once, Chapa remaining with the Prince for his protection as Tien took the time to instruct Gohan.


"This is Yamcha, Uub, Yajirobe and Sharpner."


Gohan nodded to all the men. Yamcha and Uub smiled at him in greeting. Sharpner looked at him, sizing him up. Yajirobe just looked bored.


"So Gohan, you start tonight, eh?" Yamcha started laughing mischievously. Gohan didn't know how he was supposed to respond, causing Yamcha to laugh further. "The Prince had sent me earlier to the Queen's chamber maid to arrange for her to stop by later tonight. Seems like you're going to start off with a bang!" Sharpner and Yajirobe laughed. Uub smiled at Gohan sympathetically. Tien just rolled all three of his eyes.


"Pay them no mind. Now, come with me."


* * *


Gohan stood before the Prince, who had his arms crossed as he sized the young man up.


He came up real close to Gohan, looking up at him a little since Gohan was taller.


Gohan looked down at the Prince, a nervous look on his face.


The Prince laughed. He turned to Tien. "He has to stop that."


"Gohan, you look like a frightened boy. Harden your stare." When Gohan looked at him questioningly in alarm. "Yes, even at the Prince!"


Gohan did his best, but the Prince only shook his head. "Well, let's hope he can look at others with a bit more conviction." The Prince stood back, hands on hips and shook his head. "In his uniform he somehow looks younger."


Gohan glanced at the Prince nervously.


The Prince sighed. "Well, I'm sure he will do fine. But all he has to do is walk by the King's men and they will chew him up and spit him out for breakfast, especially Nappa."


Tien sized up Gohan. "He'll just have to keep proving himself. Establish a reputation."


The Prince pondered that. "Hmm, unfortunately for him..." He let the thought die. "Anyway, enough of this. Welcome to the Guard, Gohan."


"Thank you, Your Majesty."


"Well," the Prince turned to Tien. "I feel like a spar!" He winked so only Tien would see.


Tien turned to Gohan. "All right, let's go down to the courtyard. Go with the Prince. I'll get the others."


* * *


Gohan held the blunt-edged sword warily, not believing that this would have to be his first task – to spar with the Prince.


The Prince was just wearing a black tank top and black pants so that he could move easily. Gohan was wearing his uniform and armor – this never came off unless he bathed, it seemed. He would even have to sleep in it.


The other Guardsmen stood off to the side to watch. Sharpener looked at Gohan as if he hoped he would slip up and make some kind of mistake. Gohan wasn't too sure he liked that one already. The others looked on with neutral faces.


"All right," said the Prince, crouching down, preparing for an attack.


Gohan wasn't sure what he should do. Tien looked at him pointedly. "Gohan, the Prince wants you to charge him."


Gohan controlled himself from glancing over at the Commander with a questioning look. He advanced on the Prince, but as soon as the Prince moved forward to meet the attack, Gohan halted. The Prince's large blue eyes narrowed at him in annoyance. The Prince slashed at Gohan's sword, Gohan's sword meeting the Prince's politely. The Prince pushed Gohan away forcefully, the young man stumbling.


Sharpner laughed.


Gohan felt his face go red.


Tien walked over slowly, his arms folded, looking down at his feet as he approached. Tien's tail flapped against his thigh repeatedly. Gohan was beginning to guess this was a sign of the Commander's annoyance


"Umm, Gohan, what's the matter?"


Gohan looked at him in embarrassment, but didn't know what to say.


Tien put a strong hand on Gohan's shoulder. "The Prince wants a good spar. You are not giving him one. Change that." And Tien walked away.


Before Gohan could think, the Prince charged at him screaming. Gohan went into protective stance, matching the Prince's blows, but it soon became obvious, that again, he was not giving it his all. The Prince stopped, panting, in front of him. Gohan straightened, thinking the spar was over. The Prince stepped forward and in one swift movement punched Gohan hard in the face, actually making his head snap to the snide with the force of it. Gohan staggered, hand to bleeding mouth feeling as if his jaw was unhinged.


Again, Tien walked over, arms folded, tail flapping. The Prince just continued to glare at Gohan.


"Gohan straighten up," Tien ordered. Gohan did, although, it was obvious he was in pain. Gohan could hear both Yajirobe and Sharpner snigger.


"Gohan, the Prince wants a spar! You are giving him nothing. If you don't want to displease the Prince further and ruin your first chance as Guardsman, fight him. He wants you to. Don't worry about hurting him. He needs the work. He wants to see what you can do. And one more thing."


Tien stepped closer to Gohan, giving him a menacing stare. "If I ever see you let anyone hit you like that again, I'll kill you myself. Got it! You are a Guardsman! Act like one!! Now spar!!!"


Tien stepped back quickly so that Gohan would not have time to think. Gohan got down in a defensive stance, fire in his eyes. He saw a flicker of pleasure in the Prince's eyes in return.


The Prince charged again and Gohan met him blow for blow, but managed to push the Prince backwards with his steps. He timed a move and spun around the Prince, whacking Trunks hard to the mid-back, sending the Prince stumbling forward. The Prince spun around, anger returning to his eyes, but Gohan didn't care.


The Prince wanted this -- the Prince was going to get this.


Gohan charged for the first time, surprising Trunks. At the last second, he feinted, and spun around on the ground, sliding a leg under Trunks taking the Prince's feet out from under him. When Trunks found himself on the ground, he also found Gohan standing over him, sword pointed at his face.


Trunks gave him an annoyed look as he held out his hand so that Gohan could help him up. Gohan did and then the Prince whacked him with his sword. At the same time, Tien yelled out, "Never let your guard down, damn it!"


Gohan stumbled but went into a protective stance again, finally looking menacing. He didn't like getting blindsided in a fight and it showed.


Trunks tried to contain the smile he felt.


Trunks charged and Gohan met his sword with such force that it nearly wrenched from Trunks' grasp. Trunks took a surprise swing at Gohan with his left arm, a punch aimed at Gohan's face, but Gohan ducked and sent his own uppercut, timing it just right to whack the Prince hard on the chin.


He sent Trunks flying.


All the Guardsmen gasped.


Gohan suddenly felt the eerie feeling of ice spread along his spine. He looked at the Prince, lying in a clump on the ground about 7 feet away.


Oh my God! I hurt him!! He thought in alarm.


Trunks got up slowly, Tien helping him to his feet. Gohan didn't know what to feel when he heard Trunks begin to laugh as the Prince wiped blood from the corner of his mouth.


"Dirty!" He wagged a finger at Gohan. "But very good. You are quick when you want to be. Just make sure you always want to be."


And with that, Trunks turned to leave the courtyard. He got to the stairway leading up to the private chambers, and turned around to give Gohan a curious look.


Tien crossed his arms again and then said, exasperated, "Gohan! You're supposed to go with him!"


Gohan, embarrassed, trotted after the Prince who climbed the steps two at a time.


* * *


Gohan tried not to gape at the opulence all around him. He was in the Prince's bedchamber for the first time. The Prince was in having a bath, his attendant since birth seeing to his needs. Gohan was instructed to wait in front of the foot of the bed, which was his station at all times whilst in this room.


Gohan heard the Prince approach and fought against the blush he felt at the sight of the naked and dripping Prince entering the room, the attendant following him uselessly with a towel.


"I'm hot, leave me."


Gohan nearly turned to go, but realized the Prince was speaking to the attendant. Gohan was dismayed at the swelling he saw on the Prince's chin from his own uppercut.


Trunks grabbed a silk robe and put it on over his wet skin, his purple tail poking out underneath -- Gohan had never seen a tail so colored. The Prince grabbed a book and then threw himself backward onto the bed to read, as if Gohan weren't even there.


Gohan stood, practicing how to keep the Prince in his peripheral vision but not quite staring at the man. He found if he looked right above the Prince on the bed, this worked.


The large bed, almost boat-sized, was surrounded by sheer curtains. The curtains kept the air warm within and gave the Prince a hint of privacy, but they were sheer so that his Guards could keep an eye on him when he had visitors. There was even a large Mirror on the headboard positioned just so that the Guardsmen could see the bed from above.


A year before there was an attempt on The Prince's life by one of his female visitors. But the precautions had already been in place, which is what probably saved the Prince's life.


The girl had a sharp, long pick clasped to her knee, it's sharp end tucked into the garter belt higher up on her thigh, and in one swift movement, as the Prince reached under her skirt for the first time, she brought the knee up, revealing the unsheathed pick. The metal catching the light alerted Uub and he sailed through the curtains across the bed, pinning the girl down as she repeatedly stabbed him in his thighs. Tien had rushed into the room, ripping the sharp weapon off her knee and then punched her so hard she lost consciousness. While Uub was taken away to be treated, Tien remained with the Prince; the other guardsmen taking the girl out to the courtyard, executing her at once. There were no trials for such attacks.


Gohan was told the story so that he would be on full alert. He was then told by Yamcha, that yes, Tien had to say to him not to stare at the Prince when he's having sex, but that didn't mean he shouldn't stare at the girl. In fact, he was supposed to. It was his duty to make sure the Prince was safe and that meant constant vigilance.


Yamcha had visited him while he had a pee break earlier to let him know that the others were impressed with his fight today. He then added the story because as he reiterated, the Prince would not be alone that night.


Gohan was nervous knowing this. Every time he heard Tien either pace or shift his feet on the other side of the door, he thought that it was a sign that the woman was coming.


The Prince sighed, throwing the book aside as he stared at the ceiling.


Gohan tried to be like a stone, using much of his meditative practices from the past to aid him. It was difficult, though, while keeping an eye on a fidgeting royal.


Trunks threw himself off the bed, and paced. Gohan backed closer to the wall to give the Prince room.


The Prince noticed his movement and went up to him, staring at Gohan menacingly. Gohan kept his eyes steady, still remaining as a stone.

Trunks reached up and tousled Gohan's hair so that it fell in his eyes. Then the Prince walked away, saying nothing.


Gohan felt himself blush as he pushed the hair back from his face.


It seemed that the Prince had a mischievous sense of humor.


Trunks looked at the books on his desk and sighed. He was bored tonight. Trunks didn't understand why he was so restless. He figured it might have something to do with a new Guardsman and getting used to it, but didn't see why that should be since he didn't have trouble adjusting to any of the others in the past. He thought fondly of Chapa and mentally wished him well.


Trunks turned to look at Gohan, who faced him, carefully averting his gaze just enough so that he was not staring at the Prince. Trunks smirked. Gohan was so earnest, it was almost endearing, which was an odd thing in a Guardsman.


A soft knock was heard and Tien entered, letting a young woman pass into the room before him. The woman, an attractive blond with a self-confident smirk on her face, bowed to the ground in front of the Prince, "My Lord."


Trunks smiled. Ahh, it seemed the night would pick up quickly, he thought.