The following is a Dragonball-based fanfic, centering around Vegeta. These characters do not belong to me, and are copyrighted to their respective owners. Now, on with the story.

"Hey Goku!" Shouted an excited Bulma from across her kitchen. The blue- haired woman sprang up from her seat at the table and ran over to him. "Look at THIS!" She exclaimed while shoving a piece of paper right into his face.

"Wh...." He scratched his spiky black hair confusedly, "What is it, Bulma?"

With an exasperated sigh, she pulled the paper back and began to explain, "It's a letter from my aunt, silly! She's inviting Bra, Trunks and I over for a weekend!" She runs back over to the table where she seems to be compiling a list of sorts. "I have to make sure we bring everything we're gonna need, so we don't impose on them, y'know?" She asked, partially not expecting an answer.

"Well, yeah, but...." Goku looked a bit puzzled, "You're gonna make Trunks carry all of THAT?" He asked while pointing at the rather large list in front of her.

"No you numbskull!" Bulma shouted back, "We are going to take one of our Capsule Corp. Planes. I have one in a Dino-Cap right here." She held it out for examination purposes.

"Oh OK!" Goku chuckled a bit as he scratched his head. Just then, a sudden rumbling coursed through the ground, shaking everything in the room. "Hey! What's...."

Goku was cut short by a gloved hand attached to a short but muscular frame grabbing his arm and yanking him outside. "Vegeta?! What's up?"

"Don't worry Goku! I'll show you!" He half laughed as they reached the midday sun. Floating in the air above the ground, they hovered, waiting.

"What is it Vegeta?" Goku asked again, getting impatient.

"THERE!" Vegeta pointed downwards. With that, a golden aura enveloped him, as his body gained a bit more muscle mass. His eyes went from black to a more crystal blue as his hair stood even more on end than it had a moment before. With the final addition of the electricity surrounding his body, his transformation into a Super Saiyan 2 was complete. Now, fully powered up, he charged downward at an invisible foe beneath the earth.

"Vegeta, wait!" Goku reached his hand out to stop the Saiyan Prince, but to no avail. "We don't know what it is yet!!" He shouted downwards.

Whether Vegeta heard him and didn't care or not is irrelevant. What matters would be the rather large green fist that met the Super Saiyan's jaw. The rest of the body emerged from the upturned Earth after the ground-shaking blow was delivered. A bulking mass of green muscle leapt from the dirt and onto the grass. Brown hair resembling that of a porcupine's quills adorned his head, as his bright red eyes stared at his foes. A large silver breastplate adorned his massive chest with the Red Ribbon insignia across the front.

"R.. Red Ribbon?!" Goku exclaimed. "More Androids?!"

Wiping a bit of blood from his lower lip, Vegeta stood up. "Great! I don't remember asking for more toy robots for Christmas!" He mused as he assumed his fighting stance again.

The Green Creature stared for a moment at Vegeta and then up at Goku. After a moment, his mouth opened. "NAME: VEGETA. RACE: FULL-BLOOD SAIYAN. AGE: 47. NAME: KAKARROT/SON GOKU. RACE: FULL-BLOOD SAIYAN. AGE: 41." After stating the information in its memory, its attention immediately turns to Goku and flies towards him at blinding speed.

"Ack!!" Is all the Saiyan could get out before he had to use Zanzoken (Blurred Movement) to avoid the monster's attack. Upon reappearing behind the creature, he was met with an elbow to the gut, then a hammer blow to the head that sent him careening into the ground below.

"GOKU!" Vegeta shouted, as he powered up his aura again and rushed the monster.

"SOLAR FLARE!" The android raised its hands to its face with fingers fanned out next to the eyes. Then, a flash of light emanated from his body, blinding the Royal Saiyan and causing him to stop short with his assault. Thoroughly pleased with the result, he turned back to Goku, who had now regained his composure and followed Vegeta's lead by turning into a Super Saiyan 2 as well. Emotionless, the Android lunged at Goku and threw a flurry of punches and kicks, each one blocked or dodged nimbly by the trained warrior. Goku delivered a few of his own as well, but the Android just took most of the hits sans the last kick, which was quite formidable. The beast instead opted to jump backwards, out of the way of the attack.

"WOLF FANG FIST!" The hulking giant called out, as wind enveloped his body. He then rushed at Goku so fast he could barely be seen. Goku's eyes widened as he saw this familiar attack, and he braced for the impact he knew was coming. After a moment, and not feeling said impact, he opened his eyes only to see Vegeta taking the last few hits of Yamcha's technique, and being hurled through the air like a rag doll. Goku saw this as his opportunity to strike, so he charged up a familiar move of his own.

"Kaaaa..Meeee...Haaaa." At this point, Goku's hands were held together, palms inward at his side charging his chi, then the Android looked up at Goku and began the same motion with his hands. "KAAAA.. MEEEE.. HAAAA.." They both finished the move together, almost simultaneously, "MEEEEE.. HAAAA!!!!!!" With that, they both extended their arms straight out in front of them, palms outward, and released a huge chi blast at one another. The blasts collided in the center of the distance between the two fighters, but the force of the blast was quickly traveling at Goku.

"Goku! Hold on!" Vegeta shouted as he flew over to his comrade's side. He extended his one arm outward and held his hand up, palm outward. "Big Bang Attack!" He shouted as a new chi attack shot forth from his gloved hand. Together, their chi was a match for the Android's, until the giant released a humming noise, and his eyes flashed red. Then, the once blue energy blast emanating from his hands turned red, and quickly overtook the two fleshlings.

"Shit!" Vegeta spat, "I don't have all day to be fighting you!" With that, he made another head-on rush and met his opponent with a brilliant display of martial artistry. However, his technique and skill are overshadowed by the power of his prey and soon all he felt was a cold, metal fist pounding into his abdomen, causing a rather large wad of blood to fill his mouth. Vegeta dropped to the earth, coughing up crimson as he felt the ground quake below him.

With a loud yell, and another, even more spectacular showing of golden light, Goku once again transformed. After the glow subsided, Goku stood tall before his assailant. His aura filled with blue shocks of electricity. His forehead more defined and prominent, his facial features more primitive and his eyes lacking eyebrows. His hair had grown the length of his back, and still golden. The would-be attacker was taken aback by this, and paused for a moment before lunging forward with a new assault. An assault which Goku met with one fist, and with his fist, took the android's arm with it.

Not to be outmatched, Vegeta attacked the dis-armed monster with all his might. And, much to his dismay, was still discarded like rubbish by the one armed giant. However, Vegeta's distraction was all Goku needed to thrust his clenched fist through the robot's torso, find its power source, and crush it, thus turning the Android off forever.

Vegeta flew into the sky and looked down at Goku. With a frustrated look on his face, he let out a sigh. "Man, Goku. How come no matter how hard I try, my power is useless compared to yours?!" The proud warrior ran his fingers through his short, evenly spiked upward hair.

"That's not true Vegeta." His friend tried to comfort him. "I mean, if it wasn't for your help, I don't think I could have taken this Android out.."

Vegeta cut him off in mid-sentence, "I don't need your sympathy, Goku!" The prince clenched his fists tight, gathering handfuls of his hair with it. "All my life I have tried to be better then you, and because of my selfish ways I failed. Now all I want to do is be as good as you, and I still can't. And it's not even for selfish reasons. I truly want to help people, and I still can't do anything but stand by and watch as everything and everyone surpasses me!" He outstretched his arms and screamed at the top of his lungs, "NO MATER HOW HARD I TRY, ITS NEVER GOOD ENOUGH!!" Two huge shockwaves leapt from his body and flew through the air. Goku had to brace for impact as he watched them form around his friend. He turned his head away from the blast just in time to see Bulma's plane taking off from the house.

"VEGETA! NOO!!" Goku shouted, but with no luck. He watched in horror as the first wave struck the plane, jarring it in midair and causing the engine to explode.

"BRA!! MOTHER!" Trunks shouted as the plane was struck. He immediately powered up to his Ultra Super Saiyan form and scooped his mother out of the pilot seat and his sister from the passenger with one arm. He then flew out of the plane and attempted to carry it down to the ground.

"Trunks, look out!" Goku screamed, but it was too late. He tried locking onto Trunk's chi with his Instantaneous Transmission, but it was still in vain. The second wave crashed into Trunks' back, and he immediately lost consciousness. His hair returned to its pale bluish hue and his grip on the plane, and his family, slipped. At the plane descended, the flames from the engine's exhaust shot upward, scorching Trunks' body. Bulma and Bra fell to the ground, knocked out from the first shockwave, and hit the Earth with a wet thud. The plane came down on top of them a moment afterward, with Trunks' charred corpse falling last.

Goku stared on in shock. Not believing the tragedy he just witnessed. After he had defeated all the eternal dragons there were no more dragonballs left, which meant there was no way to revive Bulma, Bra and Trunks. Sadly they are now lost forever. After a moment, Vegetas yelling subsided, and Goku turned his gaze to him. "Look what you have done Vegeta! You have just murdered your entire family!" He screamed, pointing at the wreckage. "Your vanity and your pride have once again caused you nothing but pain! You have let your ego get in the way of your rational thoughts, and now we must all pay a hefty price!" Tears began to stream down Gokus face as he remembers all the fun he had with Bulma in their first adventures together, and then with Trunks as they went to gather the Black Star Dragonballs. His hair immediately faded back to its original black color as he collapsed to the ground. After a moment, he looked back up at Vegeta.

"I.. what. have.. I.. done?" The Saiyan hovered there, motionless. His pupils dilated, gazing at the wreckage. His hands trembled and his eyes burned. Slowly, he raised his hands to his head and then let out an Earth- trembling scream. Unlike the one he had just released; this one was of pure pain. The very sound of it shot its anguish and torment down your spine. And finally, after he was out of breath, his hair faded to black and he plummeted to the ground, creating a huge impact crater as his body collided with dirt and rock.

Two weeks later, inside the infirmary at Dr. Briefs' house, everyone had gathered to try and help Vegeta. Still unconscious, and in a catatonic state, the Saiyan had been unresponsive to all forms of stimuli as well as attempts at resuscitation. They had already had the funeral, and buried his family in the wide stretch of land outside the Briefs' residence.

Goku, Krillin, Gohan, Goten, Pan, Videl, Master Roshi, Oolong, Yajirobe and Chi-chi had all shown up to try to help, and give their support. Even though he is the reason three of their friends would never be seen again; he didn't do it on purpose, and as hard as that is to look past, somehow they manage. Barely, but they do.

"I don't know what to do." the older man admitted. His white lab coat being kicked up a bit by his feet as he shuffles across the floor, reading various computer printouts. "It appears he is in a coma, or something similar to that. As is the case, he may never awaken or he may awaken with impaired movement or brain damage. Right now as it stands, the IV is the only thing keeping him sustained nutrition-wise. He IS breathing, but not enough to sustain his life, that's why I've fitted him with an oxygen mask to help him out. But, I think after two weeks, now is the time to make the big decision."

"Hey guys," a voice called out from the front door, "sorry I'm late." A middle aged man walked towards the group, and the bed they were surrounding. His skin was a dark green, and two small antennae hung above his eyes. His white robe glided behind him as he seemed to float across the room.

"Dende!" Goku shouted. "Boy are we glad to see you!" Dende met up with Goku, and everyone explained the situation to him. Even though there were no dragonballs left, Dende was still the guardian of the Earth. Many times though, after the elimination of the dragonballs, he has questioned his abilities to actually guard anything, much less the Earth.

"I don't know if my powers will help any, but I'll give it a shot." The young Namekian admitted as he placed his hands on Vegeta's chest. Slowly, a yellow glow leaves his hands and covers the warrior's body. After about a minute, Dende withdraws his hands, and looks back at Goku. "This is all I can do. If he isn't healed now, then whatever is ailing him I can do nothing about."

"Thanks Dende," Goku smiled before looking to Dr. Briefs, "any change yet?" The morose look on the Doctor told Goku all he needed to know. His eyes shut tight for a moment, trying to hold back tears, but to no avail. He looked at the rest of the people gathered before him. "I think it's time." The words came out cracked and broken, as Goku fought back the swelling lump in his throat. Everyone nodded, and tears fell. Doctor Briefs nodded and pulled the plug, then removed the oxygen mask.

The proud warrior's breaths became short and quick, then suddenly turned into weak gasps. His muscles twitched involuntarily as his lungs burned for the air they needed and couldn't get. His skin crawled and quivered as the life-force was leaving his body. Finally, the E.K.G. flatlined, and his body went limp. Everyone watching turned to walk out, consoling one another as they did, as Dr. Briefs began the process of turning off the machines.

"NO!" A shout came from the bed as the E.K.G. jumped back to life suddenly. Vegeta sprang up in the bed and almost immediately jumped out. "What the hell am I doing in here?!" He asked nobody in particular. "I didn't think that Android beat me THAT badly." He admitted, scratching the back of his head as he walked over to Goku. "Speaking of that, what happened to ol' ugly, Goku?" He reached Goku and put his arm around his shoulder, overlapping Chi-chi's for a moment, who drew back violently. "What's wrong Chi-chi?" He noticed that she had been crying, "Were you crying? Did you guys really think some Android was gonna make me buy the farm? HA!"

Chi-chi grew very mad at his comments, and began to shout back, "You bastard! You are a mur." and was cut short by Dr. Briefs' hand as he looked up to the two. "Uhh, it's great to see your OK Vegeta is what she meant to say, right Chi-chi?" He looks down at the woman in his arms, as he nudges her. She nods in obedience, still unable to speak because of the hand clasped over her mouth.

"Awww, thanks guys!" Vegeta begins to blush a bit, "I had no idea you all cared so much! But I'm fine, really." He looked around the room for a moment. "Geez, you all show up and are worried about me, and my own family isn't even here. The nerve!" The last was said in a sarcastic tone as he laughed a bit. "I'm a little sore and I feel out of shape so," Vegeta's eyes lit up, "Goku! Let's go spar!"

You didn't need to be a genius to figure it out: Vegeta's mind has repressed the murder of his family. He had no idea that they were right outside the window, in the ground. He had no idea that he himself had caused their demise. And all Goku could do was to go along with him. That's all anyone could do. Besides, who would want to be on the receiving end of an assault from Vegeta, especially if you just told him that he killed his family? "Sure Vegeta, sounds good." Goku said, a bit uncomfortably, as the two walked out of the infirmary and towards the Gravity Chamber.

After the two had left, Chi-chi lunged at Dr. Briefs, almost giving him a heart attack. "WHY DID YOU STOP ME FROM TELLING THAT MURDERER WHAT HE DID TO US ALL?!" It took the rest of them to hold Chi-chi down, as Dr. Briefs began his explanation: "Vegeta's mind has suffered a traumatic shock from the experience, and in turn, has repressed said memory. If you tell him what has happened, he will not believe you, and then the memory will be forced to the surface. That forcing of the memory could cause intense physical and mental anguish, pain and possibly even sending him into another coma. It's better ff that he realizes it himself. Or we reveal the truth to him when we feel he's ready for it. I just hope Goku doesn't slip up." With that the doctor trailed off as they stared at the door.

"Alright Goku," Vegeta punched his fists together as he hopped in place, "don't you dare go easy on me because I feel sore." He typed some things on a nearby keypad and the numbers 150 appeared on a display. Suddenly, the room made a whirring noise, and the two fighters wobbled a bit, getting used to the sudden change of gravity. They squared off and began the fight with a violent array of punches in the center of the room. Both warriors were equal in skill and power, and both managed to get their shots in. This repeated for a while, then Goku flew into the air, and powered up to Super Saiyan. Vegeta smirked, "We're turning the heat up now, eh?" The Saiyan was getting a bit overconfident, as he too flew into the air and outstretched his arms a bit.

But nothing came.

Looking a bit puzzled, Vegeta charged up more, releasing a loud yell as he powered his body up to its fullest. A bluish-white glowing aura encircled him, but there was no gold, no changing of hair, no bulking muscle, no electricity. no Super Saiyan. Slowly, his eyes met Goku's "What's wrong with me Goku?" His eyes scanned his friend for some answer, some inkling that he understood, but all he read from Goku was that he was concealing the truth. He was hiding it! He knew what was going on, and he wasn't telling. Vegeta flew back down to the ground and walked over to the door. "Fine then, Kakarrot, you stay silent. Be content in your knowledge of my problem, I'll figure it out on my own and don't you try to stop me, or help me either. Got that?!" With that, he pushed more buttons on the panel as he walked out the door. As soon as the door shut, the display popped up "999". Goku's eyes widened as he immediately crashed to the ground, unable to stand straight up.

"Goku," his wife sat down with him at the dinner table. There was a massive helping of chicken, roast beef, potatoes, broccoli, rice, noodles and corn set out on the table. Under normal circumstances, this would be enough for Goku alone, but tonight nothing had been touched. "You're worried about him, aren't you dear?" Chi-chi placed her hand on top of his, which was resting on his thigh. "He's strong; tough. He'll be OK."

Goku's gaze turned to her. "Chi-chi, I don't expect you to understand, but Vegeta has just lost his world. While he may not realize he lost his family yet, he has now lost all that he's ever fought for. His crowning achievement was his Super Saiyan status, and now it's gone. To be honest, I don't know if he will be alright." He stopped and concentrated for a moment, holding two fingers up to his head. He paused for a moment, then a grim look spread across his face. "I still can't sense him, Chi-chi. It's been two months and still no sign of him anywhere."

"Didn't he do this before? Run away, I mean." Chi-chi tries to recollect her thoughts. Goku rubs his chin a bit as he tries to remember as well. Finally, after a moment Goku's eyes light up. "YEAH!" He shouts as he stands up in his chair. "He went to some planet to train, back when he tried to turn into a Super Saiyan! Of course, I should've guessed it!"

With that Goku kissed his wife, and left for Capsule Corp. His intentions were to borrow a spaceship Capsule from Dr. Briefs and search around for Vegeta. Upon arriving at Dr. Briefs' doorstep, he found the doctor already waiting for him. "Hello, Goku." He waved as he opened the door, inviting him in. "Chi-chi told me everything. I have the ship all prepped and ready to go. But I must warn you, you probably won't get him to return unless he learns the truth, and telling him the truth may harm him, or worse, kill him." The Saiyan nodded and ran out the back door and got into the ship. Moments later, he was out of the atmosphere and into the cold void of space.