The rebels being attacked sort of threw their entire plans into a state of disarray. Everything they were doing right now, sans going to Namek was all as a favor to Korian and Sayomi. Now that they were told to stay out of whatever was going on Vegeta didn't quite know what they should do with themselves. In a way this was good, he supposed; fixing all of their own problems would be far easier without any sort of deadlines looming overhead. He figured though this would blow over and they would be called back, so best not to take on too much now. On a whim he opted to ask Viral, perhaps he knew from his time with the Saiyans. Unfortunately he was in the dark as well, so no one truly knew what was happening. "No use in worrying over it, not until we get more information..." he mumbled, frowning as he rubbed at his head. They should get on the fast track to helping their friends then, one at a time. And he had a theory about getting Viral some help. "Why Kaesstra? I figured since you draw on natural energy for your power, and Kaesstra is full of it, that may be a decent place to start. That also means we need to get T'charrl sorted out though, and I've not noticed much change while working with him..."

Haku didn't know why these two had come to him, but he really couldn't be bothered. There was no desire to act buddy-buddy with them, he didn't like them and he knew they didn't like him. Despite trying to be rid of the brothers Takeshi was persistent, going as far as to open up his door so he and Shu could peer in. This just felt like his privacy was being violated. It was bad enough already he was essentially their prisoner, now he couldn't even have his own room to himself? Quite annoyed, he was even further agitated when he noticed Shu staring at him. Just what was that little squirt looking at anyways? "Oh really? You're not afraid of me?" he asked, smiling amused. Watching the other boy raise up his arms, Haku could only arch an eyebrow in confusion. Just what in the hell was he doing? And now he was being chastised by the Prince, wonderful. "Come off it, so you're a goody two shoes, doesn't mean I have to be," Haku retorted, rolling his eyes. "Look, why don't you two go back to playing, or whatever it is you do. I don't want any part of what you're doing."

This really was going to take every ounce of patience that Takeshi had to work. He figured Haku was going to be a pain in the neck, and having the kid be rude to Shu was pushing it a bit. But he had to try and settle down, play mediator here, because that always worked well for him. "Come on now you two, we can get along..." he interjected, giving a strained smile, "Haku, I'm offering you a meal and you don't have to do anything for it. It's better than having leftovers by yourself like you usually do, isn't it? And Shu? Haku just doesn't know us yet, yeah? Maybe once he gets to know us he won't be so rude." That was the hope, anyways. If this ended up being a total bust then oh well, he wouldn't waste any more breath on the kid. Rubbing at his forehead and letting out a sigh, Takeshi turned back to the other boy, gesturing for him to come out. "Just come eat. I mean seriously, you don't have anything to lose by joining us, right?"

"Except my dignity, I guess not." He could use a meal, but was it really going to be worth having to put up with these two? He'd originally been sent to either capture or kill them, and now here they were acting all nice. It just didn't add up, Haku saw no reason why they would do this, there had to be ulterior motives. Though... He was finding a small part of him hoped it to be true, he wouldn't hate having a meal with some company. His time on Earth had been spent alone, and most of his time with these people was the same way. Scratching at his neck for a moment he glanced back at Shu, a small smirk pulling up the corners of his mouth. "Even if I agreed, you don't want me coming, right? Because you're so used to being coddled and adored by everyone around you. Someone comes along suddenly who doesn't do that and you hate them. That's a bit selfish, don't you think?"

Viral didn’t see the appeal in going back to that hidden planet again, especially when he was supposed to be finding treatment and Namek. He didn’t see the point in backtracking just now but it wasn’t as if he had any influence on where they were going to travel, especially in his condition. Despite what he needed and what they had to do, it seemed they were going to go backwards now. Frowning at Vegeta’s reasoning behind him he looked to the door, just feeling like he should leave just now if it was going to turn into the waiting game to get to Kaesstra, “Then why am I still here? If we must start in Kaesstra…why should I need further tests?” he questioned him, looking back to Vegeta, “And how long will it take for us to get to that bug-filled world…”

Shu was getting pretty annoyed at Haku all trying to be the better and stronger guy in the end of their chat, purposely targeting him because he was odd looking, he bet. He didn’t say or do anything and Haku was already on his case and trying to look like the better guy in their little fight. Shu didn’t want to get angry since he knew what would happen, but what Haku was saying to him was certainly winding him up. Letting out a snort when Haku only managed to insult, he bounced on his toes a little before his eyes went up to Takeshi who tried once more to speak to the guy and get him to come along for dinner. Looking between the pair Shu frowned, moving closer to Takeshi as if for further protection.

Shu really didn’t like this guy; he was really mean to him and it hurt his feelings, making him angry as a result. He didn’t want to be angry, but Haku was purposely trying to make him mad so he’d get in trouble. Staring at Haku, Shu backed off a little when attention was once again given to him, his eyes staring up at him as he frowned, backing off a little, “I-I am not selfish! I’m not…” he squeaked, feeling a little hurt by that, “You hurt my friend and made me mad! I don’t want to be mad, but you’re trying again! Takeshi is trying to be nice and you’re being mean to me!” He didn’t think like that at all, but Haku certainly believed it and it wasn’t the first time he heard that before. He didn’t like being thought of like that and it only proved to make him paranoid and a little upset, “Takeshi doesn’t think that! Right?”

"I suppose I should word that differently, now that I hear it myself. We're not going directly to Kaesstra, but we are returning there. Not just to help T'charrl, but you as well. I'm just curious if that planet's natural energy could somehow influence your own. I don't know how planetary power works, how Earth differs from any other world in that regard. If there's a chance that somehow it can help calm yours or even fix something then don't you suppose it's worth looking into?" The first thing to do would be to run some standard tests, check to see if there were any anomalies in the Beastman's body. Aside from the obvious, such as the external appendages and anything directly around those areas. Anything touched by the transformation was going to be odd, that much Vegeta already surmised. He was more concerned with deeper, more internal aspects, and even genetics. The latter seemed like quite the stretch but at this point he was going to check everything, leave no stone unturned as they say. "I really should do some bloodwork on you as well, it can't hurt. Do you feel like you're well enough for any to be drawn though? I can do something else if we need to put that off, I understand you're still recovering."

Haku was reluctant to believe any of this was earnest. No one on Kortal wanted him and they were his own people. Those on Earth barely passed him a second glance, even during his short time out on the streets. So why should he assume that this pair was any different? He wasn't much of a warrior, sure, but they must want something from him. That was the only reason anyone tried to earn his trust. Takeshi was being infuriatingly pleasant, and Shu was just being bothersome. He opted to take his annoyance out on the latter, flinging insults at the other boy casually. "Not selfish? People do everything for you, and you let them. Over and over again. How's that not selfish? You just take and don't give." Again, like everyone else. People only cared about themselves, so he should do. And what was best for him was to stay away from the pair in front of him. When he was called mean, Haku turned his head and scoffed, folding his arms over his chest. "What are you, a baby? Stop whining about me being mean, it's humiliating. And you're supposed to be a Prince... I can't imagine having to be loyal to someone like you if we were back home."

By this point there was a blood vessel pulsing in Takeshi's forehead, his teeth grit tightly as he listened to Shu and Haku go back and forth. That brat was really trying his patience, what little he normally had. His brother was upset and Haku was just pressing, that wasn't any way to thank someone who was trying to be nice to you. Glancing down at Shu he smiled slightly, shaking his head, "Of course not buddy, you're not selfish, not at all," he answered, looking back at Haku. "Just because he needs help sometimes doesn't mean he's selfish. And he's helped other people plenty too, you don't know what you're saying."

"Whatever, I don't really care. You're both just trying to do what makes you happy, what you want. I don't know why you'd want me along, but forget it, I'm not going." They could do dine by themselves, he'd just sneak out later and find something as usual. Turning around on his heels he moved to go back to his bed, instead gasping as he felt the collar of his shirt be grabbed. Twisting his neck to look behind him he yelped as he was pulled back, being dragged out of the room by Takeshi. "H-Hey! Let me go dammit!"

Takeshi had enough of the back and forth, this was going to work dammit. After snagging Haku by the collar he grabbed Shu as well, ignoring the stinging of his hands. "You two are going to get along, and you're going to have a meal together, and you're going to like it," he said forcibly, not trying to hide his annoyance any longer. He was exasperated, being nice wasn't getting them anywhere. Fine, if the kid wouldn't respond to pleasantries then he would to force. With one Saiyan in each hand he started dragging them towards T'charrl's room, scowling as he heard Haku complain. "Oh shut it. It's a free meal and you get some company for a change, shut up and be happy will you?"

Viral didn’t see the logic in it at all, his mind not able to come to a conclusion to how that might help his affliction. When he was on the planet he did manage to recover a little bit, but how that might affect how he currently appeared didn’t compute with him. He was more concerned with the fact he was not currently himself, how he was several different forms rolled into one. He was more concerned with lashing out at someone he knew because he couldn’t control himself, not how well his energy was currently flowing. Staring down at his paws as Vegeta tried to explain what he meant, he slowly rubbed them together before slowly stroking the fur on the back of his paw. It was humiliating to be like this, to be not one thing or the other with his biggest worry being if it advanced anymore. Keeping his head low he slowly looked up to Vegeta again, narrowing his eyes before looking down again, “I’m not weak. I can stand for having a little bit of blood taken from me”, he spoke, almost as if he was insulted by that, “The only thing I’m recovering from is the energy you took from me…I am fine…”

Shu didn’t see how he was selfish or how he was only liked because of certain aspects of him, especially when he didn’t know how he was selfish just from doing what he usually did. He was just acting normally and the fact that was somehow selfish made him a little upset. He didn’t want to be selfish, but he didn’t know how to not be selfish if it meant acting like he didn’t usually do. All of this was confusing him and was making him feel all flustered. Hissing at Haku, Shu moved to the side and threw his arms up again, “I am not a baby! I’m not selfish!” he squeaked angrily, still trying not to get mad but it wasn’t working very well while all it managed to do was make him flustered and scared. He wanted Takeshi to protect him, but he knew he would be considered selfish if he did ask for it, “I do give…I do! You don’t know me…”

Getting all flustered and upset, the first thing Shu felt like doing was going to his room so he could be alone instead. Stamping in frustration Shu turned around looking ready to leave until Takeshi grabbed hold of him, taking him along with Haku. Letting out a squeak he stumbled, looking up to Takeshi with a frown he squeaked a little with each footstep, “I said this was bad…I said!” Shu didn’t think T’charrl was going to have a very good time either, especially his history with Haku. The guy was mean and not the easiest to speak to, but if Takeshi was wanting to make friends with him then there wasn’t much he could do to stop him.

"Again, it's only a theory, but I feel it's something that we'd be foolish to overlook. And in due time of course, it won't be our first stop." They were going to Kaesstra whether Viral was helped first or not, seeing as T'charrl was to be brought back once he was better. If by some unfortunate event the Beastman was still struggling by that point then they could try it, but Vegeta intended to help his friend long before then. They really ought to be getting onto the testing now, starting first with some blood work. "I wasn't trying to imply you're weak," he replied, sighing as he pinched the bridge of his nose, "Just that we should be careful until your energy has completely replenished. And again, I'm sorry for taking your energy, but it it was all that could be done in the situation." That or hope Yumi could get through to Viral, and by the time she did people could have been hurt. It wasn't ideal, but using the device was the best option for them. In a drawer just along the counter were a few syringes, one of which Vegeta retrieved and returned to Viral's side with. Grabbing hold of one of his arms he held it out, pouring over the limb carefully for a vein. "Look on the bright side, we have a way to prevent rampages. So concerns that you might hurt someone while like that can be dismissed.

If all these two were going to do was bicker then it couldn't be helped. Takeshi was going to make them sit down whether they liked it or not, he was through trying to be patient. He was mad, but not at Shu so much as he was Haku. Even so he had to still try to not show it too much, he was trying to get this to work out after all. Silencing another complaint from the other boy, not wanting to hear any of it. "It's not bad, it's just a pain," he corrected, glancing back at Shu, "It's going to work, but you two will have to get along for that to happen. and dammit I'm going to find a way to make this work."

Now this was just plain humiliating. Being dragged along on his heels by the scruff of his neck, he felt like a child. "Neither of us want to be friends, so don't waste your time..." Haku grumbled, "Just let me go back to my- Hey!" Giving a soft yelp as he was jerked he wriggled in Takeshi's grasp, glaring up at the older boy. He couldn't win for the life of him as of late, everything went against his wishes. Not that this was new, his life pretty much consisted of that. Huffing he looked over at Shu, frowning as he did so. "And would you please stop whining? Seriously, it's like you've never been picked on before. You're so sensitive..."

"Haku... Please shut up, or I'm flushing you out of the ship," Takeshi warned, glancing back with a strained smile. Was there an off button for his being a jerk? Maybe the best thing for this was some tape, they could close his mouth and then viola, Haku and Shu would be the best of friends. Sometimes he wondered why he tried doing things like this, or why he was trying now. Life was easier when he was apathetic and a loner. Lonely, sure, but easier. "Listen, both of you. I don't care if we eat in silence, just flipping eat with each other, okay? I don't even care if you avoid eye contact the whole time, just please be quiet and try to get along?"

Viral didn’t know how it might help him, especially when the planet was foreign energy and he couldn’t exactly stay there if it managed to do something positive while everything else didn’t work. It wasn’t going to be a long term solution and even if it did take the bug back to his other bug friends he still wished it was long after they had done everything they needed to do. It was just one pain after the other with him and the number of times he had held up everyone else was getting beyond overwhelming to carry on his shoulders. Nobody was getting to do what they wanted to do at any time, except maybe the Princes where they would get to go back and see their pals again. Watching Vegeta move off to get the equipment ready, he sighed and let Vegeta take his arm as he looked away, leaning his head on his other paw, “And if it’s sudden? Sometimes my transformations are able to be immediate and I doubt you’d have time to pull that out of your pocket and throw it on me before I swipe your face off”, he spoke, just expressing concerns, “I don’t know what’s happening to me. I don’t know how much worse it may get…so you better have some RRA weapons on your side…”

Shu wasn’t sure he was going to be able to last that long at the dinner table nevermind just now, knowing he was all worked up and he didn’t know how to get back down again. He was scared of himself and of others who were able to manipulate his emotions like that, but he didn’t think anybody would be able to understand. Lowering his head when Takeshi told him things were going to be okay before to Haku, frowning at his words. He wasn’t sensitive, just different. Squeaking a little he looked away, not sure if he would be able to keep to Takeshi’s words. He was reassured it was all going to be okay but already it was falling apart and he was unable to keep up with it all, feeling all overwhelmed by it all, “I’ll try…since you want to be nice…” he muttered, looking up a little, “I just want my friend…”

A blood test was a simple enough starting point. Quick and painless, and it could give them loads of information for little effort. Provided there was anything worth noting in his blood, that was. It could just as well be moot. Taking a syringe from the cabinets, Vegeta took the wrapping off and tossed it away, coming back with the syringe in hand. They hadn't completely solved Viral's transformation problems yet, but they did have the trump card in the form of his invention. It wasn't ideal, but it was better than having the Beastman going on a rampage. "If it's sudden then I hope I can react quickly enough. All it has to do is attach to you and the device does the rest." A simple press of the device was all it took to activate the energy sapping, and after that Vegeta needed to give no input. Smirking slightly he lifted up Viral's arm, examining it for a vein. "I'm not concerned about you attacking me right now, if I'm honest. And even in the event you do I know more than one way to subdue you." Ah, there was a good spot. "Now there's going to be a small pinch, just hold still." Sticking the needle through Viral's hardened skin he drew out a small amount of blood, retracting the syringe and setting it on a nearby table. With him he brought some medical gauze and tape, and with those he covered up the spot he stabbed. "I'm not sure of any of that myself. But I do know we'll fix it, so just keep hope."

There was no possible way this was going to end peacefully, not when it started out as an argument. Even so, Takeshi was going to try and make it work. After getting the two younger boys to quit their bickering he dragged them along, T'charrl's room wasn't all that far off. The Kaesstrian wouldn't be thrilled about this arrangement either seeing as how he and Haku fought, and nearly killed one another. Somehow that was going to need to be put aside if those two were ever going to see eye to eye. Hearing Shu, the older boy sighed softly, nodding his head in understanding, "I know, and we're going to get him. And thank you, I know it's not easy, Shu." If this paid off then it would be worth the headache of setting it all up, Takeshi hoped. T'charrl was actually in his room, he didn't know how long he could keep the pair with him quiet before they started up again. Stopped just outside their friend's room he set Shu and Haku down on either side of himself, putting on a smile as he knocked on the door. "T'charrl? You in there?"

Viral simply watched and observed as Vegeta got his needle ready and got all he needed to take these tests, his anticipation of it not exactly very high. He didn’t like getting poked and prodded with various things all the time and recently it was definitely happening a lot more often than he would had liked. If he hadn’t been in the labs so often then he wouldn’t be so willing to let his blood be taken for the good of his health, but instead he was pretty well established within and there was no true end to it all while he was still living. Feeling a little fed up, he held out his arm in an awfully submissive fashion and allowed Vegeta to take his blood. Withdrawing it as soon as Vegeta was done patching him up he stared down at the bandage and let out a sigh, “I could barely feel that…” It was a little depressing being unable to feel a simple little prick over what he was feeling now. Looking to Vegeta, Viral frowned and slowly rubbed at his arm, “I don’t believe in hope. There’s either a solution or there’s not and if there’s not…might as well dump me somewhere and call it an ending. You’ll be able to make a new one, one that works and will be more obedient…maybe one to help you more than just be a subject to you”.

T’charrl had been fairly quiet in his room, sitting on his bed by himself with his feet up on it. Despite his size he wasn’t too heavy for his bed, otherwise he would have an awfully difficult time flying. It was awfully lonely in his room but he was told to stay here for now until things had been solved after Vegeta was called out. He felt like he had been waiting for a long time, but he was safer in his room than wandering around on his own and possibly being a danger to someone or himself. He was extensively paranoid over what he had become and what he was going to be so it seemed fit to be in his room during his lonelier times. Pulling at stray hares that had long come out themselves, T’charrl gasped when the door was knocked upon by Takeshi no less. Stumbling off his bed he managed to catch himself, crawling over to the door and opening it up slightly, seeing Takeshi with Shu and strangely enough Haku, “…Uhh…h-hello…why are people here…?”

"Hoping can help bring about a solution. Gods... I sound like Takeshi, thinking magically like that..." Vegeta mused, smiling as he shook his head. And there went the dramatic self-abandonment again, as it tended to be with the Beastman. Sighing softly he placed a hand on his face, giving it a rub before looking at Viral. "I can't make a new you. There's one you, anything else will only be a cheap knock off. I don't want a new one, I want the original, the one I grew up with. And if you need some work to feel better then fine, I don't mind helping you." It was part of the whole caring for Viral, exactly what his father had requested of him. He wouldn't go back against what his father wanted him to do, not even if it was an inconvenience or bother. Vegeta didn't mind, it meant he was putting his knowledge to use and was actually doing something worthwhile, rather than sitting at a desk pouring over papers. This lab of theirs, it really was equipped with just about anything one would need. Transferring the blood over into a small vial he placed that in a small notch, letting the machine do the rest of the work. Since that would be a moment Vegeta took a seat on the table beside it, folding his arms over his knees and leaning forward a bit. "I have to ask... I've told you repeatedly that you're not a burden, or a failure in my eyes, and that I don't mind helping you. So why do you insist that's the case?"

Was T'charrl even inside of his room? Takeshi figured so, seeing as the only time he was really out was when he was with them, or Vegeta. There was some silence for a moment and no immediate answer, he was ready to grab the others and keep looking elsewhere. At last their friend came to the door, and in a strange manner no less. Glancing down at the floor the older boy arched an eyebrow, smiling confused as he rubbed at the back of his head. "We're uh... Here to bring you with us. To get something to eat, figured you were hungry, you know?" Alright, just why was he crawling on the ground? Either T'charrl was awfully tired or lazy, Takeshi wasn't sure which. The Kaesstrian had noticed Haku pretty much right away, he had seen, which might well sway his decision. "Before you say anything, yeah, Haku is coming with us. But he's going to behave while we're there. I figured we'll try to be nice to the kid, see if he changes or not," he explained, divulging his plan now both to T'charrl and Haku alike. "I'm willing to bet you could go for a nice meal right now, yeah?"

So that was what this was all about? Haku had heard the tail end of their conversation earlier, but was in the dark up until now. They were trying to be his friends? Eh... It was too good to be true, people just didn't suddenly decide to try and be his friend. Narrowing his eyes slightly he glanced up as Takeshi spoke, not buying into it at all. If he thought he was going to be able to he'd get up and leave right now, but with both the Princes and T'charrl there he wouldn't get far. If he only could just stay in his room, then he wouldn't have to be dealing with this nonsense right now. Letting out a quiet huff he rose up to his feet anyways, folding his hands in his pockets as he leaned against the wall. Even if this was genuine, which he doubted, did he really want to be their friend? They were fighting the King, and no matter how strong they might be the King was even more so. This was the losing side, he had no reason to have faith in their ability to win. He was better off keeping his distance and not associating at all, then when they did lose maybe he'd catch a break. Maybe.

(For deletion)

There went Vegeta again with the whole helping business once more, wondering why he didn’t just give up and send him someplace else after all of these failures. Any other person in command would do the same to a failing soldier and he was no different or should be considered special; if he failed then that was it, he shouldn’t be given so many second chances. It made him feel like a broken toy constantly being fixed until it was covered in bandages and dents, eventually being left to the side when no more use could come out of it. To have a life like his was probably torture to anyone else, to be constantly made a mockery of and then tested on to see why he was failing. Grumbling when Vegeta only denied the possibility of more experiments he casually scratched his ear with a claw, “You’re only saying that because you know you’ll fail”, he mumbled, letting Vegeta do whatever he needed to do with his blood. He didn’t know what he might find in it, it wasn’t like he was a scientist but something told him there wouldn’t be all that much in there. Looking back when Vegeta when he presented him with a question he stared him down, narrowing his gaze before averting it again, “I’ve failed more times than I can recall a victory. I’ve gone from one of the strongest to the weakest warrior here and I am not getting better. What has been done that’s been a clean success? And don’t say ‘living’ or something stupid like that…”

T’charrl was a little nervous to have someone at the door, even if it was Takeshi probably because of what happened the last time they were together. It was so bad just how much he was screwing up being around others and he was certainly a little scared that Takeshi was going to question him about it all. Staring up at him with a frown before realising food was on the menu, “Uhh, I-umm…food…” He was awfully hungry and hadn’t eaten much at all lately, but that was on the account of him either not knowing how to make food, being too self-conscious being around the others or too distracted by everything else he had to deal with. Finding the prospect of food too appealing to put down, slowly he managed to push himself up and onto his knuckles on his large claws, “Y-Yes, thank you. Uhh…” he paused, reaching over and grabbing his scouter, gently putting it on; while he was getting better at speaking he still felt self-conscious about how he sounded normally too, “I’m ready. I’ve missed out on too many meals…”

Blood work wasn't liable to yield very much in the way of results, but it was best they cover all their bases. Vegeta wouldn't miss the issue because he happened to forgo one little test, he'd be certain they did it all. Viral might not appreciate it, there was bound to be quite a bit of poking and prodding. Should it at last solve his dilemma then the Saiyan didn't think his friend would mind too much in the end. The Beastman sure was set on being abandoned, and while he chalked that up to depression there was the innate need to ask exactly why that was. The answer that he was given didn't surprise him at all. "The weakest, hm? Well then that Narbu must have been leagues weaker than he seemed, seeing as you held your own against him," Vegeta mused, frowning, "And you've been able to fight alongside us even in your failing health, but I suppose that's all a fluke as well. True, you're not in your prime, but you're not obsolete either, not by a long shot. You're still a perfectly viable combatant." On a good day he was still one of the strongest, unfortunately those days were just far and few between as of late. The only thing they could do about that was keep working to get better. "You're training Takeshi in swordplay, you helped devise a battle strategy for the rebels. You've been a factor in nearly every big fight we've been in lately, and we've won in part thanks to your help. True... You haven't had a clear victory on your own, but that doesn't make you a failure."

Man... T'charrl was really a nervous wreck. It was kind of awkward, looking down at their friend like this. Smiling sheepishly Takeshi rubbed at his neck, kind of hoping he'd pick himself up at some point. "Yeah, food. Fruits, vegetables, fish, beef, whatever you guys want I'll cook. I'm no Choi or Kai, but I should be able to make something." Hm... Maybe while he was thinking of them he should invite them down. Kabocha as well, since they were including everyone. It had been a long while since their whole group sat down for a meal, and they might as well now since who knows when they'd get a chance again. After this was the next planet, and then probably back to the rebels to fight their father. Waiting for a response, Takeshi watched T'charrl put on his scouter, putting a hand on his hip as he stepped to the side. "Well then we'll make this one a big one! When we get down there I'll call the twins, and everyone else. We might as well make this a big party." Out the corner of his eye he could see Haku pale a bit, the kid wasn't enthralled with the idea. Too bad, if he was going to be a part of this, willingly or not, he'd need to get used to being in a crowd. Waving the three on he started walking to the mess hall now, sending a look over his shoulder. "Hey... Shu? How much did we leave back in the shuttle?"

Viral was sure he shouldn’t be with them, he should had been left a long time ago to make room for those who could succeed. There was just no honour in lasting this long through failure and to look like this meant he was disgracing himself by being in the presence of others. He looked and felt like a clown; trying to fight one battle with an honourable being and this happens to him, his opportunity squandered and disgraced. Groaning lowly at Vegeta’s suggestions he slowly shook his head, finding them completely unamusing and unable to pick him up from this hard time. He was just being told the same thing over and over again, just a different subject being placed on top of it all, “Hmph, that Narbu nearly beat me in less than ten minutes; you know I transform into that…thing when my life is in danger”, he spoke up, slowly rubbing his chest, “Takeshi never wanted to train with his sword in the first place. It was only because I bribed him that he eventually gave in. The battle strategy…you just need a brain for that…tch, all you idiots were too busy talking amongst yourselves to bother thinking one up…”

T’charrl felt he should be okay having food, especially when he was feeling the hunger now. It wasn’t very pleasant to get sparks of low blood sugar when his body relied on sugar greatly for nutrition. He didn’t mean to skip out on it so much, but he was better off keeping that to himself instead of just embarrassing himself further with weak excuses for not going to get something to eat. Feeling satisfied that it was going to be an alright time, T’charrl exited his room but looked to Takeshi at his plan, frowning a little, “Everyone? Oh…this is going to be hard…” he spoke, feeling a little discouraged, “That’s a lot of people and I can’t fit at the table very well…are they going to be okay with me sitting on the floor? Isn’t that rude? They’ll just stare at me….”

Shu wasn’t feeling very happy, even after they retrieved T’charrl. His friend being all nervous and all was making him feel nervous in return, his confidence to be able to do this sucking well dry; however, knowing the others would be there was a little bit better since it meant he wouldn’t need to sit near Haku after all. Haku was just a bully, picking on him because he was different. It wasn’t his fault he grew up in a different environment to everyone else and nor was it his for looking different too. Feeling a little moody, Shu didn’t realise Takeshi was talking to him until the prolonged silence reminded him he was being addressed, “Huh? I don’t know…a bit in the bag? I don’t know; I can’t count to remember how much…”

"True... But you could also transform if you're somehow unstable, which considering your current state that isn't that much of a stretch." There was no doubt that Viral was unstable, the question therein was where exactly did his instability lie? That was the reason for all of these mundane tests, and they would keep at them until the cause was found. Only then could they work on a solution. "I don't think Takeshi would have stayed away for long. His pride kept him away if anything, but even he should know you're the only one that can train him. As for the strategy, perhaps that's right. But these new events notwithstanding I believe your strategy, simple or not would have led the rebels to victory." Plus, it had been a good enough strategy for Korian, so that ought to be indicative that it was a good idea. Something had been bugging Vegeta though about that. The rebels, particularly Korian and Sayomi should be brilliant tacticians by now. So why rely on Viral's plans? Either they really were out of ideas or they were trying something new, either way it was a bit odd. Glancing at the centrifuge, Vegeta leaned over slightly to peer at the display on top. "Though now I suppose any strategy is null, seeing as we're not fighting right now..."

Having all of their friends at the table might be nice, they hadn't done that in some time now. Really none of them had spent much time together at all, and since they were supposed to be a team of sorts it only seemed right that they should be. There was a sound of almost unanimous displeasure at the idea, to his chagrin. Well at least they were finally agreeing on something, Takeshi mused. "Alright, so not everyone. As long as you guys are fine with me cooking. I'm no Kai or Choi, so my food isn't going to be some fancy, five star cuisine." He wasn't trained to cook for a king, not like the twins. Evidently his method of cooking over an open fire wasn't good enough for their standards, or was so simplistic it was looked down on. Hmph... He could cook just fine without their kind of training, he'd prove it. Preparing fruit would be easy enough to do, though he wasn't sure just what they had left in the way of it. "Ah... I don't even know if someone brought it in, or if it's still in the shuttle," Takeshi mumbled, frowning as he rubbed at his chin, "Well.... Even if it's still in there, I would guess there's a bit left. If we cook plenty of other stuff too then we'll have a big enough meal for the four of us."

---

"There has to be something in here... There's nowhere else it could be..." Blood work had been fruitless, a routine physical had proved to be ineffective. There were no anomalies as far as energy was concerned, though that was difficult to measure. The only thing that could be wrong now was something at the basic level, genetic. Whether it was bodily or mental Vegeta didn't know yet, but he was certain he was cornering the issue now. Compared to everything else he had done thus far, this was where the real work began. Studying genetic coding meant pouring over countless strands of DNA, examining every individual piece and comparing them to find any irregularities. Most likely it was going to turn out to be a few day project, and he had only just begun now. Well, no one said helping Viral was going to be easy. Both sheets were copied and then displayed on a monitor, blown up to size so that the naked eye could detect discrepancies. Side by side, he should be able to spot anything, given enough time. Viral was back in the medical ward with him, and likely getting impatient already. "Have you tried any training lately?" Vegeta asked, not taking his eyes from his work. "I know I've neglected training you in favor of helping T'charrl, but that doesn't mean you can't do it on your own."

Not killing one another sort of made you friends, right? At this point it was about the only sign that this might work which Takeshi could see. The meal the other day had turned into a mess, with Haku flinging food at Shu, the young Saiyan reciprocating and then a food fight breaking out. Now they were trying to train as a group, T'charrl and Haku included. The former had been busy with speaking lessons as of late, he hadn't had a chance to train with the brothers in a few days now. And rather than work solely on combat, today was aimed a bit at tempering Shu's anger as well. Not that Takeshi knew how to go about that really, he was still flying in the dark on that one. "Maybe if we try agitating you... And you do your best to stay calm, that could work?" he suggested, glancing over at Shu. They had been bouncing ideas around for a bit, trying to come up with anything that could make some progress. Much easier said than done, unfortunately.

Viral frowned at Vegeta’s revelation, not exactly finding it encouraging, “You make it sound as if it is a good thing that happened…” Everything was completely discouraging for him to experience and he was not seeing how anything he was going through was better than what lay ahead for him, his only hope that he could last long enough before his body gave up. Despite how he looked everything was painful so hope was dwindling by a lot now. Anything positive was feeling distant and while Vegeta was trying hard to bring that forward it just wasn’t happening for him mentally, his mind feeling damaged and unable to accept the positivity, “He wanted to use a warrior’s weapon to show off…not even looking at it until then. You say it was pride, but he didn’t seem to want or care for it other than as a tool for his own personality boost”. Letting out a sigh he rubbed his face, exhausted already just from trying to sit up. He needed to wait until his energy recovered before starting heated discussions. Laying back down again he grumbled, trying to shift his head, “I hate this…”

---

The whole time Vegeta had been trying to figure everything out there wasn’t much for Viral to do, even if he did want to. He wanted to do a lot of things like train or fight, but he was left hiding away in his room a lot of the time or elsewhere by his own desire. There was little for him to do even if it was all available to him still; he just didn’t want to do it. Watching as Vegeta could only grow confused over an answer his eyes soon strayed away from him, his paw going to his head and slowly rubbing it. He wouldn’t be able to find the answer either, he knew that much, but it still didn’t annoy him that there was nothing that was coming up yet. It all seemed fruitless. There was little point on getting angry at Vegeta for not finding anything yet, especially when he was the only one who could help him, “Training? No…I have not”, he spoke, grumbling lowly, “It’s nothing to do with the fact that I have not had you around, but rather…everything else. Anything I do could make it worse…so I’m back to square one until you fix it”.

Shu didn’t mean to make a mess at dinner or to make everybody else really messy, but he tried hard to get on with Haku and in the end it wasn’t going to work. It was Haku’s fault he was set off and made a mess, but that was all in the past and he just wanted to move on and see what else he could do to take his mind off it and get on with what he needed to do. He didn’t need to be around Haku, it was Takeshi who wanted to be around Haku and make friends with him. For now he was going to have time with Takeshi, but it wasn’t exactly something he was looking forward to doing. Staring up at Takeshi he tapped his fingers together, finding it a little daunting what he needed to do, “Huh…? You mean make me angry on purpose…? I-I don’t know…” he spoke, looking down, “What if I can’t? How is this the best place to try that…? Shouldn’t Yumi help me too…?”

Meticulous was a fair way to describe these tests. Every single strand, every little bit had to be scrutinized for him to find the issue, if there were any. Some machines back in his personal lab could do this in a matter of minutes, yet he didn't have those here. As if he would have expected to be doing genetic mapping while out in space, hindsight on his part. He would be busy with this for some time, hopefully Viral understood that. Did the Beastman intend to just sit around and wait? He could train, do something else. If he was worried about not having a partner then surely the brothers or Yumi would train with him. "No training at all? Hm... I see." Vegeta didn't know about making the problem worse, though it was fair to be cautious. Until they new what the problem was it was best that they refrain from any risky activity. A bit absurd to think training could fall under that, but in the past it had caused changes. And when the training was geared towards transformations, well, the probability of accidents was even greater. "If you want to help, you can do some reading in the mean time," Vegeta said, gesturing blindly to the papers on his desk. "There's notes from Sayomi, myself and father on there. It might be a bit odd reading them, but you know your powers better than anyone, perhaps you can find something."

Now... How were they going to go about this? Anger management was a bit of a silly thing to leave up to someone like Takeshi. Hell, after all he needed it as well. Yumi had correctly said he was a good choice because he would be determined to help Shu, but that didn't mean he knew how. The only methods he could think of were ways of coping, ways that he'd never gotten to work for himself. Maybe forcing out anger to begin with was a good start, then they could work from there. Only, Shu didn't sound very enthralled by that idea. "I mean Yumi could help... But the point of this is so you can control your anger, you know? We won't always be there to help you, so you need to know how to do it on your own." Provoking Shu was a dumb idea, he'd admit that. Plus, with Haku and T'charrl present it was a bad idea to chance him changing. Takeshi might be attacked, but he was confident in his ability to stop his brother. The others... Not so much. Sighing to himself he rubbed at his head with a bandaged hand, putting his other hand on his hip. "Uh... Maybe the best way is to just get it out? If you're fighting and letting out your anger, there's no time for change, right?"

Viral didn’t like putting off any sort of training because he was once again unable to do it, finding it to be the least productive thing he could do on the entire ship. There was nothing useful he could do and that was it. He shouldn’t allow himself to be driven by fear, it was completely irrational but anything could happen; besides, everyone was busy training with their partners to keep an eye on him. It was just pathetic, really. Shaking his head at Vegeta’s response he groaned, already annoyed, “Don’t give me that tone…you know why I have to be cautious!” he snapped, pointing a claw at him, “If you’re so disappointed then why don’t you train with me and see yourself? Call it a ‘therapy session’ if you wanted to…” He hated it when he was spoken to in that tone, but if Vegeta wanted to doubt his ability to judge then it would be his fault when he was proven wrong. All high strung now, his eyes went to the desk before back to Vegeta, “You want me to read those? You let that Saiyan keep information on me…” Finding it more annoying than anything, Viral moved over to the desk and picked up some of the papers. A lot of the words used in these notes appeared fairly technical, but it was nothing he wasn’t familiar with. Looking through them nonchalantly, he sighed before looking up at Vegeta again, “It’s nice to know how much you two have about me”, he mumbled, “There’s nothing about this happening…just an analysis of my energy and other crap about me. If you think you have no idea what’s going on then why should I know?”

Shu didn’t know how he was supposed to control his anger just because Takeshi told him he could, especially when he wasn’t used to feeling it. He felt incredibly vulnerable and dangerous at the same time, the ability to explode with anger being inside him and the ability to try and tear Takeshi apart made him very scared. He didn’t know how he was supposed to release this anger either and the thought that he needed to get angry at Takeshi made him a little sad. Frowning, he stared up at Takeshi, “But…she could help if I got too mad too”, he muttered, feeling a little cornered, “What if I can’t get angry at you?” Feeling confused and a little lost he looked around, tilting his head slightly before slowly looking back at Takeshi at his latest suggestion, “Umm…I don’t usually feel angry when I’m fighting…I mean, fighting like I usually do…I-I mean when I do get angry when I’m fighting, I change. I don’t know how to feel anger like that, especially towards you”.

"Please stop jumping to conclusions, I'm not disappointed in you," Vegeta replied flatly, still examining the charts. "I was curious if you'd tried or not, that's all. And you know I can't be training you right now, not if we want to get this figured out." Training might be fun right about now, but there were priorities in place. First and foremost was find the solution to the Beastman's woes, and only once that was done would he relax and train. With the notion that there was some time before they were going back to the rebels in mind there wasn't quite the same urgency to train as before either. This might go faster if more than one person was working on it, and so he prompted Viral to grab some sheets and start reading. "I know you don't like Korian, but Sayomi has done us no wrong and is an ally. She's done nothing but help you and the rest of us. It's not as though I let the enemy get this." The King likely had data already anyways from their time holding Viral, so worrying about that now was a moot point. They wouldn't be able to do anything about that until they got onto Kortal itself and destroyed the data there. "We're both scientists, its normal for us to keep records of data like these. And the reason we're looking over these is to find what's going on, both of us are perfectly capable of finding anything unusual."

Takeshi sighed under his breath, placing a hand on his face exasperatedly. They couldn't be relying on Yumi constantly for help, or even him. Shu needed to figure this out on his own. The same could be said, he supposed, for himself too. That meant there were two people who needed help and neither had any idea how to go about it. "Alright, fighting is a stupid idea, forget it," he said, taking a seat on the floor lazily. "I get it, you can't get angry at me. It's when someone hurts your friends it happens, right? That happens to both of us, I just can't change like you can. So what can we do to stop it..." Sure, a few ideas came to mind, but Takeshi was skeptical about how well they would work. On paper they were solid but in practice they were likely to be anything but, making the decision even tougher. Voicing his annoyance in a groan he laid his head down on his knees, lifting it up after a moment and giving his head a rubbing. This should be easy, they were given plenty of tips from both Vegeta and Yumi alike. "Man... This sucks. I don't get why we can't figure this out, you know? Maybe we're just missing something..."

Viral was getting annoyed at Vegeta for all the wrong reasons, his paranoia kicking in pretty greatly over Vegeta’s dull done and reactions. He didn’t have much to go on other than the tone of his words and even that was finding answers in nothing. It sure was making him feel angry having to listen to such dull responses all the time, “Well maybe if something was found already then maybe I could be free to do what I wanted by myself! Sorry…” he snapped but quickly apologised, finding it hard to keep a cool head. Throwing the papers down again he sat down, rubbing his head. If he could just think for a minute then maybe he could at least try to help himself, but as of right now it was too difficult to think passed the continuous pain this presented him. Finding it a little aggravating that others still held information on him he slowly rubbed his shoulder, trying to think passed the rage that was all built up inside him, “The enemy already has data on me…both the King and the RRA so what does it matter? The King already knows how to nullify my energy, he’s done it before, remember? The King probably did this to me…he must know…it’s stupid hanging around here trying to find answers when I could go after him myself…”

Shu knew Yumi could help him calm down if things got too heated for him, but he also knew there was no way he was going to be able to convince her to come and help him when she had her own stuff to worry about. She needed time for her own activities and to be with one of those twins, not having to worry over what he was doing all the time. His own predicament was proving to be fruitless to try and help so far and even Takeshi didn’t know what to do. Slowly sitting down with him he slowly bumped forward, tilting his head, “I don’t know, I mean…it’s pretty hard to think about it when I can barely think when it’s happening…” He wanted to help himself but he didn’t know how, knowing he was completely stuck at the same time. It felt like a really bad problem waiting to be solved but he didn’t have the mental capacity to think through it. Frowning a little, looking to Takeshi he thought of only one way around it, “Maybe…we can do something else? Can’t think of things, best not to think of things; do different things! Maybe? There’s lots of things to do instead! Don’t need to do this stuff, right?”

Vegeta didn't take Viral's outburst personally, it was justified after all. Anyone would be frustrated in the Beastman's position. That was just all the more reason to keep working and hurry towards a solution, they needed to give Viral something to look forward to for a change. All the more reason for Vegeta not to take a break and keeping on running through this data until he found what they were seeking. "The RRA is powerless, relatively speaking. And the King is busy with whatever disrupted the battle. Neither are an immediate threat, and you won't be fighting alone when we encounter them. That aside, perhaps the King did do this to you. In fact I'm certain of it. But at the present chasing down him and his men just isn't going to work. Things at Kortal sound to be a mess still, we would never get close enough. For the time being we have to use what we've got to make this work." And that meant using data accrued by several sources, Saiyans included. Staring at this genetic mapping was proving to be tiresome rather quickly, it was all beginning to just melt together. Pinching the bridge of his nose, Vegeta turned away from the screen for a moment, looking back at Viral. "How are you feeling today, by the way? Physically, I mean."

Both he and Shu were stumped, not a good start to anger management. Maybe it would come to them like an epiphany and they'd just randomly get it. One could only hope because Takeshi had no idea how they'd find out otherwise. He wracked his brain for ideas but nothing came to mind whatsoever. "Gah... Man this is a pain in the ass!" he complained, dropping down on his backside. They couldn't ask Yumi, this had to be between them or else it wasn't really a solution. Sighing to himself he looked at Shu when he sat as well, frowning at the suggestion. "I guess we can do something else. We're not getting anywhere trying to figure it out anyways..." With some luck they could think of something later, no reason to get a solution right this instant. So, what else could they be doing? "I don't know, what do you wanna do?" Takeshi asked, laying back on the floor and spreading his arms out at his sides. "Play... I guess we could train. Maybe see what everyone else is up to. Uh... Not really hungry right now... Could always try teaching you too, I guess. I don't know." Shu could pick, he wasn't too picky right now.