Disclaimer – I do not own DBZ, neither do you, so read this fic, or I will kill you!

 

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A/N – This is my first AU fic, so if it sucks, the next ones will be better. This takes place on a separate planet called Farad, and has no connection to Earth, Vegeta-sei, or anything like that.  Yes, this is a B/V fic. Not lemony, but close. Unlike my other big fic, The Key, this one shall be updated a lot and kept more up-to-date. Please R & R!!!!

The planet of Farad was a land like out of fairy tales; the planet was just like the Middle Ages or the Dark Ages of Europe. There were 4 continents, or realms, which the people called them, - Duran, Laret, Mithil, and Tandoc. Jateal was a kingdom in Duran, on the outskirts of the Great Forest; the peasants lived in the beginning of the dreaded forest, while the higher class lived in the fertile hills right behind it. The kingdom was ruled by the mighty lord, Kinas. Many people traveled far and wide to come to Jateal, for it was a holy place, where the Prophets used to say peace would come, and unite the 4 realms. They also kept the maidens in that kingdom. They were the fairest in the entire world, and lived in there own sanctuary. Fathers and Mothers brought their daughters from all over the world to try and make them maidens, but few succeeded, and were turned down by the Prophets. The race of maidens, or 'angels', as the common people called them, continued on. Each had their own servant girl, who waited on them day and night. These girls were often maiden applicants who had been turned down and agreed to go into this bondage to one day earn maidenship, called 'Valur' or 'second maiden', or girls who were sold into slavery by their parents, and not once any of those girls become a maiden. They were called 'Kimul' or 'filthy girl'.

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A maiden, Chichi, came down to river to wash. She had an escort on horses, while her servant, Bulma, walked at her side.  She went around the bend of the stream, as to wash in privacy. The men could see her form through the bushes, and all looked with adoration. She had the brains and strength of any young knight, and was as beautiful. She was one of the fairest of all the maidens.

Bulma went farther down the stream and looked at the water. She was a Kimul, and she lived up to her title. She was soft spoken and dirty, but brave. She was also beautiful, with her aqua hair, although often pulled up into an unfashionable ponytail, when let down was gorgeous. Her blue eyes were like sapphire pools and her body was perfectly formed, except that with the rags she was forced to wear, no one could tell. So, the only time you could tell she was actually pretty was when she was in the forest, where she let down her hair and bathed unclothed in the pools, but no one saw her there, for she always seeked privacy. She resented being a Kimul, and although most girls tried to take some pride in their dishonoring job, she had given up. She looked at her reflection and sighed heavily. She wished there was some night in shining armor to take her away. She had tried to get away many times, but she was always caught and brought back, then beaten. She winced as she pulled off her shirt and looked at the result of her last escape. She had bruises all along her back and legs. She slowly eased into the river and relaxed as soon as she felt the cool water flow over her body.

She also had one secret that she never told anyone.

One time after she ran away, she had been called to be punished, but when she walked in she found that it was none other than Lord Kinas. He had called her to his chamber, and beat her severely, and after she was to weak to resist, had taken her to bed with him, and with all her will she tried to fight, but all she could do was stop him from kissing her. Still he was able to rape her and practically kill her, both physically and mentally. She awoke to find him sleeping next to him. She had passed out as soon as he began, but he raped her numerous times afterwards. Many times now he had called her to him, and she back fought always, and although very few times did she escape, he often woke up with large bruises. She on the other hand, had many more from her running away, and day-by-day she grew weaker and weaker.

 She had never told anyone this secret, but everyone knew that she was undergoing this pain. Although they pitied her, the maidens did not care, and neither did most of the Valur. But a few Valur and an all the Kimul helped her, by hiding her on the nights when she was called upon. But still…

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She sat on the bank of the river and closed her eyes. She didn't realize it, but she slowly lost consciousness and slipped into a dream.

She awoke with a start. It was sunset, and as she quickly got dressed, she realized her party had left her, by accident. But she saw this was her chance. She quickly started to run into the forest, for although there were many rumors of evil things in the forest, she did not believe them, and the lord's men would not dare to go into the forest at night.

She had been running for hours, it was already past dark, and as she ran, she thought about her dream. She looked back – no one was following her. She decided to rest for now. So she found a good spot, covered herself with brush, and quickly went into a deep sleep.

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Once again Bulma woke up with a shock. She didn't move until the memories of the previous day returned.  She slowly stood up, then went walking towards the center of the forest. It was a summer day, and while little light penetrated the think foliage, the light that did shone on beautiful flowers, and green bushes and exotic plants and trees. So Bulma walked on with confidence into this jungle of the extreme. It was not the place that the old women of the village described, of fear and evil. It was a place of peace and quiet.

Brightly colored birds hummed beautiful tunes, while vines hung from every place on the trees that could be imagined, sprouting beautiful bright colors. All the animals seemed at peace and in harmony with each other. Suddenly, though, with one step she walked into the world that the aging women described. She wanted to go back to the world she just left, for she had definitely stepped into another. But even as she turned around, the dark world closed around her and pulled her into darkness, until she was consumed by it.

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Bulma awoke to find herself in the nice clearing again, but she felt as if she were being watched, and if at any moment she made a mistake, she would be thrown into darkness again. But she convinced herself that she dozed off, and tried not to think about it. Just then, she heard the thunder of hooves. She realized her that they were probably searching for her and when she focused on her dilemma, she thought of only one thing, so she ran. As she did the world around became an area in between the nice clearing and the dark world. It was thick and darker, and harder to run in, but she knew it would be even harder for horses. Still, she heard them gaining and plummeted farther into the depths of the woodland.

She passed into a short clearing, and darted into a bush right outside of it before they could see her. As they passed into the clearing she saw that her fears had been confirmed. Over 20 men had been on her tail, and among them was Yamcha. He had been her friend, but when she ran away, he was the one who always tracked her down. He was the king's tracker – he helped him hunt game, and caught thieves and runaways. She ended their friendship quickly by fighting him the next day. He still had a scar on his arm from where she nicked him.

They were debating which way they were going to go when Yamcha stopped them. She held her breath, hoping he wouldn't discover her. But just as he walked towards her, two hands grabbed her gruffly from behind and carried her away as swift as any horse. She wanted to scream, but she had a feeling that whoever had her was going to help, so she didn't complain. When her head stopped spinning from the sudden attack, she looked up to see her so-called 'rescuer.' He was clothed in plain clothes, but wore a hood so that she could not see his face. When they finally stopped, he set her gently down and then sat down himself, for he seemed very tired.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"My name is Goku. And just to answer further questions, I have been watching you since you entered the forest. No one enters the forest without us knowing. When you stumbled in to the Black Marsh, I was the one who got you out." He answered, with a flat and non-plussed voice.

"I still have questions though." She said inquisitively.

"All will be answered in due time."

Bulma realized she wouldn't get anything out of this guy, for now. She sighed and relaxed. Goku could take care of himself, and her too.  She looked back up to him, and with a panic, saw that he wasn't there. She stayed as still as possible until he came back, which was probably only an hour, but it seemed like days.

"Sorry, but I had to go do some business."

"Well thanks for cluing me in." Bulma snorted – he had scared her to hell, and now that he was back, he just plain pissed her off. "What was this business you had to attend to?"

"I had to see if I could take you back to the Lair."

"The Lair?"

"Yes, that is where my people live – another question answered – in an area that we simply call the Lair?"

"What a… homely name!" she said it trying to be nice, but was still miffed, so ended her statement dripping with sarcasm.

"Thanks. Anyway, I think you might be happy with this. I was talking to the chief and he said that it was fine with him if you came. So, I will be taking you there, and not leaving you in the wilderness, happy?"

Bulma tried to look like she was just going because, but couldn't help being excited. "Well, its probably better than home, and I can never go back now…"

So, she, with her silent companion, walked for a complete day, until they reached a clearing. Goku hesitated hear, not knowing what to say. She was looking around, while he seemingly was scooping out the area. Before she knew anything, he sneaked up behind her, gave her a sharp rap on the neck, and collapsed into his arms.

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Bulma awoke to find herself in a dark tunnel, dug out of the earth centuries ago. The ground was paved with smooth stone, and had many doors branching to and fro. She sat up, and instantly saw Goku, who was sitting in front of her.    

" 'Bout time you woke up. Come, your almost at the end of your 'trip'."

So she stood up and followed him. Although the tunnel was dark and almost depressing, she felt like she was at home, for some odd reason. As she walked she saw people just like Goku, walking back and forth. But one thing was different. They had tails. She looked at Goku, and surprisedly she saw that he had removed his cloak, and now she could see that he, too, had a tail. Then they turned a corner that seemed weirdly familiar. Shaft of light penetrated the dark hallway through what seemed to be an opening to the surface. She then remembered where she knew it from.

She had had a dream in which she came into dark halls form an entrance just like that. The dreams started when Lord Kinas had begun to 'have his way with her.' She would run, until she would fall into a black pit. She would land, and would wander until she came to a door.

Sure enough, as she ended her flashback, they came to a halt, by the dim light of a torch; she could see the faint outline of a door. That could mean only one thing. She was about to meet someone that had helped her going for a long time. He had talked to her, been kind with her, gentle, and had listened to her every word. She had thought this was only her subconscious, telling her to run away, find a new place that accepted her and loved her for who she was.

But know she knew the truth. Goku knocked on the door, which was answered by a gruff voice, gentle, but gruff. Goku opened the door, showed her in, and quickly departed, closing the door behind him. Bulma looked into the gloomy room, but could only see shadows. But she still could sense something, out in the shadow, and decided to act upon it. So, Bulma thought, one for the money, two for the show, three to get ready…here it goes!

"Hello, Vegeta."

~Fin~

A/N  - Cliffhanger!!! Yeah. The next chapter is very cute and has got a twist. I hope you liked, please review!