His Beautiful Mind
My Only
Disclaimer: DBZ is not mine.
A/N: Thank you so much for all those who reviewed! And many thanks goes to my beta reader Cat Alex! Hope you enjoy this chapter.
Bulma opened her eyes and peered over at the empty space beside her. Vegeta had come to hadn't come to the room last night. Instead he had gone to his room. She noted the still perfect crease on the edge of the bed on his side. She took a deep breath and rolled over on her back as the hum of the machine caught her attention. 'Dammit Vegeta.'She looked over to the clock on her night table and slapped her hand on her forehead. Had she really slept in until noon, it was unheard of. Both Vegeta and Trunks were going to be out of the gravity machine expecting lunch to be on the table. "Tegwana," she swore. Bulma's eyes shot open as she slapped both of her hands over her mouth. 'No, No, No! This can't be happening.'She sat upright and clenched at her sheets. "My name is Bulma Briefs, my name is Bulma Bra Breifs, I have two parents, and I'm and only child. I have an alien husband and a son." The sweat began to bead down her face. "Damn, damn, damn." She held her hand to her chest. "Alright, I can still say damn."
"Woman!"
Bulma jumped from her thoughts as she wrestled with her sheets and dropped onto the floor. "Damn." She reached for the nearest piece of clothing to throw over herself which happened to be her lab coat. Bulma rushed down the stairs in her nightgown and tripped before entering the kitchen. "Yes, yes I'm here." Bulma quickly composed herself and searched the room for Vegeta. She looked down to see her son waving to get her attention.
"Uh, hey mother. We paged you three times, but you didn't answer. Father sent me to give you a message." He took a step back and cleared his throat. "Woman the brat and I want food. So uproot yourself from your fuh-,"
"Trunks Vegeta Briefs. If I ever hear or hear of you using such expletives I swear to you that I will show you the true strength of a legendary super saiyan!" She took a swipe at his head and missed as he ducked and made his way to the nearest window.
"When you get back in here, I'm grounding you for the rest of the afternoon!" she called out after him. She watched as he held the back of his head and smiled before disappearing into the white orb.
'One would think that I would actually be able to spend time with my family. After all, that's why I took time off from work in the first place,'Bulma thought as she began to pace back and forth. 'Well, this wasn't exactly the best time to take a sabbatical. The World Martial Arts tournament was around the corner.'Bulma returned back up the stairs and plopped herself back onto her bed. The only thing for her really to do was clean, and that was already being taken care of by the robots she built. Curse her intellectual mind. She refused to do any real work during her vacation. So the only thing left for her to do was to reminisce. She pulled the scouter out of her lab coat and cradled it in her palms. His story was like a drug that she refused to be weaned off of. If she had enough time, or if she permitted him to keep Trunks in the gravity room all day, she would be curled up on her bed watching her husband's life. Would he notice it was gone? 'Well if he won't tell me, I guess I'll just have to take matters into my own hands.'
The boy's eyes shot open and he looked over to the side to see his mother curled up on the examining table of the medical bay. Nappa stood idly by in case anybody were to enter the room. Vegeta sat up and began untying the bandages from his head. The only thing that he could remember was fainting in his mother's arms while she was carrying him. Mother. The only woman that he has ever let his guard down around. The only living being that he would swear to protect until the day he would be no more, was her. He knew it was in his power to see to it that no harm would ever come to her if he had anything to say about it. He allowed her to see into the far reaches of his five year old soul, so young and pure, unscathed by the things she was able to protect him from. He watched her tail writhe contently behind her as she broke away from her sleep. He looked into her eyes as she turned to him. She knew him better than the back of her hand, his likes and dislikes, his aspirations to be the strongest, to rule the planet, to amass the largest empire any Saiyan will ever see. Only her.
"Vegeta, those bandages were to stay on until the next day!" she said as she grabbed another roll from the drawer.
He shot her a harmless scowl and ducked when she attempted to wrap it. "I don't need that, I'm a warrior," he asserted as he unknowingly stood proud in his naked glory. He put his hands on his hips and thrust his torso out slightly. His ribs were bandaged up to his chest covering the left half of his breast and the right side of his wrist was bandaged up to his elbow.
"A warrior without any clothes." She cocked her head in the direction of a folded jumpsuit and a pair of gloves. Vegeta's face turned red as he looked down at his naked state and covered himself with his small palms. He growled showing his displeasure and shuffled over to his clothes. Kelanna couldn't help but laugh as he tripped while putting on his jumpsuit. "Would you like assistance?" she offered as she reached for his boots. He ripped them out of her hands and shot her another glare. Without saying a word, he floated into the air and slipped his boots on.
"What did my father mean when he said that I was being sold?" he demanded.
Kelanna's smile melted off of her face as her son stood before her arms crossed and legs spread shoulder-width apart. She turned her head and handed him his scouter. "You left it on," she said.
"Answer my question," he said, unwilling to change the subject.
"You are going away with a few other elites from this planet," she whispered solemnly barely audible to even him.
"I will not leave you," he said adamantly, "There is nobody capable of taking care of you on this planet while I am gone." He held his fist to his chest and stared at her.
"Vegeta, you mustn't worry about me. You will have to take care of yourself while you are alone. I will be fine," she said with a smile. Kelanna knelt down to his eye level and rested both her hands on her knee. "Now go, you are expected in the training room, you will be meeting the elites that you're leaving with."
"No. Until I know that you will be safe, I will not leave you." The boy timidly reached out his hand for his mother's soft face and stroked the hair from her eyes. "Mother, I will take care of you if father refuses. I can protect you from him."
King Vegeta looked on from the doorway listening in to the conversation. What had she made this boy into? She was softening him rather than hardening his soul to emotion. He crossed his arms and leaned on the doorway.
Kelanna gently moved her son's tiny hand from her face and kissed his open palm. "My son, do not say anything that you are unable to keep, your word will be your strongest bond."
He nodded and turned toward the doorway to see his father leaning on the frame. He scowled at him and took a step in front of his mother.
"Go down to the training facilities, so that you can be briefed brat," he ordered. The boy stood unmoving in open defiance to his father. "Do as I say boy." Vegeta shuffled around his father making sure to keep eye contact as he pivoted on his heel and left the room. Vegeta pretended to turn the corner and knelt at the doorway to listen in to their conversation. He masked his ki and held his hair down so that it wouldn't poke past the doorway.
King Vegeta turned toward Kelanna and glared. "What have you done to the child?" he demanded taking a step closer to her. Kelanna took a step back and bumped into the gurney.
"I have done nothing to him accept carry out my duty as his mother," she challenged.
He bent over to her eye level, leaving no room between the both of them. Vegeta gripped her by the shoulders and hoisted her off the ground before slamming her backside onto the table. "I've grown weary of warning you, Kelanna. You are no longer allowed to associate with the boy. If you are caught, your offence will be punishable by death. You've received plenty of chances, and your grace period has now expired." The hairs of his tail stood on end as it whipped angrily behind him. "The way that child looks at you makes me sick to my stomach," he said as he pulled his hand back. "I will teach you a lesson that you will not soon forget." He brought his hand across her face with force and she screamed out in agony. The king took a step back to admire the bruise he had inflicted upon his mate. "Wear that as a badge of warning," he rasped as he turned on his heel.
"Vegeta. If there were ever a day that I was not able to be with my son, life for me would not go on," she said holding her head down. "Threatening me is useless if you do not follow through with it. If you take my son away from me, trust me, you'd be doing me a favor if you make good on your promise," she whispered. Vegeta paused in his tracks and allowed the words to resonate. Kelanna lifted her eyes towards the doorway and watched as his tail disappeared behind the wall.
The young boy bit his tongue and ducked behind the doorway. He retreated behind another door and waited in case his father paused. The prince watched him turn on his heel and felt his ki dissipate as he wandered further down the castle hall. Once it was clear, Vegeta made his way back into the medical bay and floated to his mother.
"Vegeta, you should be training," she said without looking up.
"He hit you mother," he said reaching out toward her face. Before his fingertips made contact with her cheek, he clenched them shut in anger and turned away. "Mother, I..."
Kelanna held her hand up in protest. "There is no need to apologize for something that was not your fault." She looked down at him and smiled. "There's no need for you to worry about me, son. Surely I can take care of myself; I'm the Queen after all," she said holding her fist to her chest as her son had often done. This instantly put a smile on the boy's face and a glimmer of hope in his eyes. "Now make your way to the barracks for training. Don't make me speak twice," she scolded.
Vegeta started for the door and looked back at his mother. "When I come back, from wherever it is that I'm going, I will rescue you from him," he said. He turned and whipped his cape to the side in his dramatic exit.
"If only things were that simple," she said solemnly.
Vegeta leaned on the door frame just out of his mother's plain view. His keen hearing had picked up on what she said to herself. "Things can be that simple if only you'd trust me," he whispered under his breath. He flailed both of his arms in the air in frustration as he finally made his way down to the training room.
Bulma gently removed the scouter from her face and placed it on the edge of the bed. 'Why hasn't he told me any of this?We've been together for nearly 10 solid years, and he still keeps secrets from me. And this isn't just any secret, it's an entire life. I really don't know him at all.'As soon as the humming stopped, Bulma grabbed the scouter from off of the bed and buried it under his other possessions in the night table. She tiptoed toward the window and peered outside. She turned around immediately and began to run for the phone. She frantically pounded down on the keys and pressed the phone to her ear.
"Hi mom."
"Oh, well if it isn't my long lost daughter Bulma Briefs!" she exclaimed. "Trunks Sr. you wouldn't believe who I'm talking to right now, it's our daughter's ghost."
"Mom..."
"Well how are things dear?"
Bulma closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose with her free hand. As she drew a deep breath she opened her mouth to answer. "Everything's..."
"I'm glad to hear that honey."
"But mom I haven't even said anything yet."
"Oh, and how's the sex post-pregnancy?" she asked with a hint of excitement dripping from her last word.
"Mother..."
"It's a completely valid question Bulma. I remember that you were afraid that you'd no longer fit him like a glove, if you know what I'm talking about!"
Bulma felt the blood rush from her face. "Mother, Trunks is eight. That's a question you should have asked me eight years ago."
"Well you tell him that nana wishes him a very happy birthday!"
"His birthday was nearly seven months ago."
"Well I guess I'm early," she laughed.
"No that would mean that you're late," she said. Bulma was rarely able to hold a conversation with her mother for longer than five minutes. It's not that she didn't want to, she wasn't able to. A conversation with Bunny Briefs meant the topic of conversation changed after every sentence. She was rarely able to complete a sentence that pertained to that topic. And if she got the opportunity, her mother would laugh in response. It was a never-ending pattern that lacked anything and everything that would be mentally stimulating. Never had she bothered to explain anything to her mother unless it pertained to shopping, cooking, or gardening. She had been a daddy's girl all of her life, and was definitely not planning to change anytime soon.
Bunny laughed into the phone as Bulma held it away from her ear and rolled her eyes. "Oh Bulma, you wouldn't believe what the doctor did to me last night," she swooned. "I bought some lovely lingerie and he didn't even wait for me to model them. He..."
"No mom. No. That is something that I never want to discuss. Not now, not later, not ever!"
"Bulma, you say that as if you didn't brag every time you had a midnight rendezvous with Vegeta before Trunks was even a thought," she said. "The doctor and I heard you every time. It's not like you were discreet."
"Focus mother, I called to ask you something."
"What is it dear?"
'Finally, I've finally got her attention.'"I was wondering if you'd be able to whip up some food quickly for both Vegeta and Trunks. I will send Trunks over to pick it up."
"Anything for my grandson and my gorgeous son-in-law."
"Thank you so much mom. I will talk to you soon. Kiss dad for me." Bulma hung up the phone promptly just in case her mother started talking again. Even though Bunny was one of the most loving women she knew, Bulma was secretly afraid that she would go brain dead following a conversation with her. She tiptoed to the window and peered out toward the white orb. "I wonder what they're doing in there," she pondered to herself. After watching the orb like a hawk for a solid five minutes, she turned her attention back to her husband's scouter.
~/~/~
The sweat-soaked boy fell to the tiled ground at his father's feet drawing broken breaths. "Why'd you stop the machine?" he huffed.
"Because it has finally become clear to me that your slack attitude is holding you back," Vegeta spat.
"No Dad, that's not it."
"Then stop your insolent whining!"
Trunks straightened up and nodded in compliance. Vegeta pressed the button to start up the machine again. "We're skipping lunch," Vegeta informed. He watched as his son's bottom lip nearly hit the floor. "When you begin to take training seriously, I will allow you to eat."
Trunks felt the pull of the gravity down on his body. The lanky, yet muscular, eight year old pumped his arms in the air and began to walk on the other side of the gravity room. He tilted his head to the side and watched as his father performed quick jabs with his fists with the utmost precision. "What's the matter, boy, is the gravity too much for you?"
Trunks attempted to punch the air, but his attempts were fruitless as his arm fell back down to his side. "I'm going to enter the tournament," he forced out as he tried to hover in the air.
"Not with the way you've been training. I will not allow you to disgrace yourself boy." Vegeta began a series of kicks in the air and flipped his way to the other side of the room with ease.
Trunks ceased his struggling and stood up. "I guess I'll just go super," he said nonchalantly.
Vegeta turned as he felt the energy level of his son spike drastically. He watched the boy perform the exact same manoeuvres as he did but with more emphasis. He stopped and began a set of push-ups. First with his knuckles, then to his index and middle fingers to prove a point to his father. He rose to his feet and began to run circles around him with closed eyes allowing his instincts to guide him.
'When did this happen?' Vegeta thought to himself. "Trunks, come here, son." Trunks stopped and stood in front of his father anxious for instruction.
"When did you ascend?"
"I was training in here with Goten while you were with mom. It was in the middle of the night and I didn't want to disturb you."
"You are lying; I would have felt such a spike in your energy."
Trunks jumped back and smiled. "Well I'm not sure when it happened. I think I was just born with it. I've seen you do it so many times, so I figured it couldn't be that hard, especially when I figured out my genetic make-up is different from yours, yet we're the same..."
Vegeta looked at him and cocked his eyebrow. He held out his hand to silence him. "That is your mother talking, not a Saiyan," he said. "Tell me, can the youngest spawn of Kakkarot ascend as well?"
Trunks nodded. "Of course, he said it happened when his mother was training him. He hasn't done it since because she began to cry."
Vegeta rolled his eyes in disgust. 'Humans,' he thought. "Are you stronger than Kakkarot's boy?" Vegeta clenched his fists. "Tell me, I must know," he demanded as he waited on baited breath for the answer of his son
Trunks rolled his eyes to the ceiling. "I guess so, he doesn't know how to fly yet, and I'm a year older than he is. There's only a slight gap though."
Carefuly not to allow his face show any emotion, Vegeta stepped back with a sigh of relief. 'We'll just have to make that gap bigger, won't we?' he thought. "I want you to try and hit me," he said holding his fist to his chest.
Trunks cocked his head to the side and shot him a blank stare. "Now why would I want to do that Dad?"
"Do it and I'll take you to the park...for a whole hour."
Excitement took over the young boy's features as he leapt to his starting position and began powering up. "Ready?" he asked giddily. "Here I come."
The boy lounged at his father throwing a series of punches at his face. Vegeta's eyes shot open in surprise at how quick he had become with a simple power up. Even though he'd never admit it, the prospect of blocking Trunks' punches had become increasingly difficult. The split-second of Vegeta's mental lapse allowed his son to graze his face with his fist. A smile washed over the boy's face in victory at the tiny blemish left upon his father's face. Joy soon turned to pain as Vegeta's fist met him square in the face knocking him across the room. Trunks' eyes began to fill with tears as he gingerly grazed over the sore with his finger. Vegeta's eyes widened in shock. He had hit his son plenty of times during their sparring sessions. But never had he done it out of anger or contempt for his son. Vegeta shook his head from his thoughts and relaxed his muscles.
"You didn't say that you were going to hit me back, Dad," Trunks finally said.
"Well I didn't say that I wouldn't now, did I Trunks?" he said quickly composing his face.
The boy drew in the snot from his nose that was about to fall and sobbed. "No."
"Grr- dry your tears, we're going to the park," he rasped reaching for the gravity controls.
Trunks forgot about his pain and shot up to his feet and barrelled toward the door. "Last one there's a rotten egg," he wailed as he took to the sky.
Vegeta leaned down on the controls for support. He had never felt disappointed in himself, out of his thirty some odd years of living, killing, philandering, and whatever else was deemed as a sin by humans. He had murdered masses of men, women, and children. But laying a hand on his son in order to protect his pride was something he knew was wrong, and it bothered him. His eyes glazed over as the memories of his father breached the firewall that we had set up in his mind.
King Vegeta floated in the air and powered up his ki. "You've received all of this training, and you cannot even land a body shot,let alone graze my cape," he called down to the boy.
Vegeta looked down at his gold-tipped boots and clenched his fists. He powered up and met his father in the air. He closed his eyes and let out a tribal scream and began to attack his father blindly.
"Open your eyes boy," he ordered. "You allow your emotions to blind you and dictate your decisions. A trait which should only be possessed by the female kind."
The prince cracked open one eye before opening them both. As he looked around for the burly man he saw a flash of blue light underneath him. His muscles tensed as he braced himself for impact. Vegeta fell to the ground cracking the floor on impact.
The king threw his head back and laughed. "I believe that my second born Tarble is tougher than you boy. That should tell you a lot Vegeta," he said punching his fists together beckoning the prince off of the ground. "It seems as if my first born is having a bit of trouble choosing his gender," he called out to Nappa. The king turned back to the boy. "Will you convince me otherwise,Vegeta?" he asked.
Vegeta forced himself up on all fours and leapt toward his father's face making contact with his fist. The boy smirked at his impending victory as he passed by his father in the air. The same smirk was wiped from his face as he felt both of his father's fists make contact with his tail area. A dirty trick. He was pummelled into the ground at the feet of his father and began to twitch violently. The veins on his neck protruded as his body seized in pain.
"That was dirty, and you know it," he choked out still twitching in pain.
"I'm beginning to believe that I made the wrong choice in sending Tarble away." He nudged theboy'scheek with his foot to force him to look up. "Soft like the woman."
"Dad. Dad," Trunks called out into the gravity room. Vegeta snapped back to reality as he repaired his mental breach. "Let's go, my time doesn't start until I touch the swing." He ran behind his father and tried to shove him toward the door.
"Let's go son," Vegeta said careful not to sound regretful of the decision.
Bulma paused the scouter. "He has a brother?" she whispered to herself in shock. Her stomach began to churn. Bulma pushed herself off the edge of Vegeta's bed and made her way toward the window once again. She watched as both father and son made their way toward the sidewalk. "He must be taking him to the park," she mused. "Well that will definitely give me plenty of time," she said excitedly. She got a running start and sailed through the air landing on his bed with a thud. Play.
The young prince met both Nappa and Raditz outside of the palace barracks. He wasn't in the mood to fight, he was in the mood to kill. And he was determined to make his father the first. If not, he was going to make him suffer. Dare anyone lay a hand on his mother out of contempt, they would surely meet their untimely demise at his hand.
"Something on your mind prince?" Radditz asked in disdain.
Vegeta looked at him and grunted his reply as he brushed past his knee into the training building. Nappa shot Radditz a look of warning before following the dwarfed boy. "Nappa, if I kill the king, what will that make me?" Vegeta asked.
Radditz choked on his saliva before turning down the first hall he saw; there was no way he would be convicted of treason. "You are too young to take the throne prince Vegeta. Your mother will act as the head of the monarchy until another suitor is found for her," Nappa replied.
A smirk graced the child's face as he closed his eyes. "It looks as if I have some plotting to do," he said clasping both of his hands behind his head. "Where is that bastard anyway?" Vegeta asked.
"Your father ordered for his location not to be disclosed for the time being," Nappa explained.
Vegeta cocked his eyebrow and began to scan for his father's ki."No," he whispered. The prince ran between Nappa's legs and blasted him in his back. The burly man fell to ground stunned from the unexpected attack. Vegeta blasted open the barracks door and followed his father's ki signature. He powered up and flew frantically past the castle guards.
He blew the doors open to the throne room and searched for his father. The room contained only one servant who was scrubbing blood from the carpet methodically. Vegeta felt his heart palpitate out of his body as he began to search for the ki of his mother. Nothing. "Where is the Queen?" he demanded. The servant abandoned his rag and bowed before the prince unmoving. "No, I don't want formalities, I want an answer," he screamed. "Where is she?" The servant remained quiet before the boy, lying unmoving.
The boy turned and ran out of the room still in search of his father. He followed the signature to the communications wing knocking out every guard on his way. He hid behind the wall and watched his father stare at the large screen. The lizard on the other side paced back and forth, his thick tail slapped the floor each time he pivoted on his heel.
"The agreement was that you were to deliver planet Tasba to me today. Why do I not have the planet monkey?" Freiza rasped.
"The estimates that we gathered were wrong. Their level of combat and other factors such as manpower and weaponry are three times to what we initially expected," the king replied.
"I will reach your planet in two days time," he informed. "What has become of the soldier who was in charge of this mission?"
"The incompetent soldier was executed as he gave me the report," Vegeta said coolly.
The prince ducked back under cover and sighed. It wasn't his mother's blood that was spilled in the palace throne room. "Then where is my mother?" he whispered to himself. Vegeta discreetly left the communications wing and ducked into medical bay upon hearing Nappa's voice.
"Where is the disobedient prince?" Nappa yelled into the hall. The sound of his voice sent the servants bobbing for cover under and behind anything that they could find. Nappa shook his head in anger and continued down the hall trying to pinpoint the boy's ki signature.
Vegeta ran down the hall and sought refuge in the study. The room housed the ancient Saiyan texts he was forced to memorize when he was three. He ran his fingers over the bindings of the books and turned the corner. Kelanna was comfortably perched on the table with a scroll in her hand. She turned her face to the side allowing her bruise to come into his view. "It got worse mother," he said standing in front of her.
Kelanna remained silent as she rolled the scroll and placed it at her side. "You should be training, my son." She eased herself off of the table and threw open the ruby red curtains. The sun illuminated her frame while she tied them in place. Vegeta cowered in the shadows with his arms folded. "Come here to me, son," she said reaching out her hand. Vegeta stalked to the end of the shadow and reached out his gloved palm to reach his mother's hand.
"Can you feel him coming?" she asked.
Vegeta looked up at her and cocked his head to the side.
"Your father," she informed.
Vegeta had been so caught up with staring at his mother, that he lost track of his father's ki signature. He looked toward the door and felt his father approaching. "Look at me, my prince," she demanded. She knelt down to his eyes and planted a kiss on his forehead and another one on his cheek. She reached into her shirt and pulled out the pinkish-gold rope and dangled the pendant in front of him. "Take good care of this," she said. She placed it around his neck and tucked it under his armor and jumpsuit.
"Mother, why-?"
She placed her index finger on his lip to silence him. "Remember son, not everything in this grand universe can be explained."
The prince's hair began to stand on end as he felt his father's raw power blast open the doors to the study.
"Kelanna," he rasped. Vegeta stood in front of her and held his arms out. "Your actions are detrimental to this boy's livelihood. I will not allow you to taint his mind any more than you already have."
"If you are going to execute me for doing my duty, then so be it, Vegeta. 'When it's a Saiyan's time, they do not fight it'," she quoted aloud.
"So be it," he said. He stretched out his palm and fired a beam toward her. The prince jumped in front of her and batted it back toward him. The king bent his neck to the side and the beam burrowed a hole through the wall.
"Vegeta, do not stand in the way of your mother's fate," he ordered. "It is inevitable."
The prince readied himself in his stance to fight him. "I am going to kill you," he piped. Two elite soldiers walked into the room and awaited the orders of the king. Vegeta cracked his knuckles and lounged toward the boy. The king's fist met with the boy's stomach and he doubled over in pain.
"You're lucky that's all I'm going to give you, boy. You attacked Nappa from behind. You inquired about the throne on the event of my death. You were searching desperately for her weren't you? The only thing that is holding my back from killing you is the treaty between Freiza and I. As long as there is something or someone in this universe you care for, fear will manifest in your heart and eat your soul. If you remedy this worm called love, you will have nothing to fear."
The king immediately turned his attention toward Kelanna and held out two fingers. The prince crawled to his father feet and pounded on his calves. "Leave her alone," he cried. Vegeta looked Kelanna in the eye and shot a beam toward her chest.
"No...Mother," he whispered. Vegeta abandoned his hold on his father's leg and fought down the pain in his stomach. He ran toward his mother and caught her as she began to fall. He eased her down gently and shifted to a position on all fours. "Don't leave me. Mother, don't leave."
King Vegeta leaned casually against the bookshelf and watched the small prince.
"Mother loves you very much my son, but I have to go away for a while," she said arching her back in search of a comfortable position.
"Will I see you again?" he asked stroking her forehead.
"We'll meet again, whether it is in this life or the next."
"Do you promise?"
She looked up at the small prince and smiled. "My son, grow up to be a good boy... for mother, okay?"
"But who will take care of me?"
"Your father will see to it that no harm comes to you my child."
"But mother, why can't you take care of me? Father hits me!"
"He's only trying to help you become a man," she said as she stroked the side of his face.
"Is that why he's taking you away from me?"
"No, you'll be starting your serious training soon, and there must be no distractions!"
"But you are not a distraction." He looked down at the wound to his mother's chest, and looked up at her with tears welling up in his eyes. It was torture; her life was slipping away as the wound began to eat away at her energy. He placed his hand on her chest and raised his ki. "If I can give you some of my energy, will you be alright until I can get you to a regentank?"
"No my son, you mustn't let them fall," she said wiping them away with her hand. Her eyes gently fluttered shut.
"Mother... stay awake...Please, I can fix you," he cried through clenched teeth. He ran to the silk curtain and tore it down and began to bandage his mother's chest.
She chuckled and opened her eyes. "Don't ever let them see you cry...alright. Promise me?"
"I promise," he said refusing to let the tear drop fall. He shifted his position and held her head in his tiny arms while stroking her dark brown hair. She closed her eyes and took her last breath.
The young prince shook with wrath towards his father who casually leaned on the wall quietly awaiting her death. He pushed himself off and rolled his eyes. "You will have no distractions now, Vegeta. Know that I am only doing this in your best interest."
"You sick bastard!" he screamed as he powered up. "Why did you do that to her?"
"Vegeta, don't make me laugh," he said as he threw a hand in the air signalling to one of the elites to clean up the body. "Get rid of the body, I have other errands to attend to. Report to the barracks." He turned on his heel and left through the door.
"Don't you dare touch her," he yelled as he covered her body with his cape. Prince Vegeta powered up and quickly immobilized one of the elites. The other grabbed at the curtain that was nestled on Kelanna's bosom and yanked it off. Vegeta placed his palm on his chest and let go of a massive blast. The charred body fell to the ground. He turned his attention back to his mother's body and lay down beside her.
"They won't ever see me cry mother," he said before offering a kiss to her forehead. He picked himself up and made his way toward the scroll that she had been reading.
A Saiyan is powerful.
A Saiyan is cunning.
A Saiyan knows when it is their time.
A Saiyan fears nothing.
Vegeta rolled the scroll and placed it beside his mother. He looked down at her body shimmering in the light. So pure and beautiful. He stared at her for what seemed to be an eternity, admiring her peaceful state. "I won't let you down, my Queen," he whispered. Vegeta turned around and held his head down. He was leaving her behind. Where he was going, she could not come with him, not even in his memories. He held his head high to try to stifle his tears. "I will take this necklace with me, but only because you told me to," he said. He waited for his tears to dry before he left the room and didn't turn back. Everything that he was, his hopes and dreams his aspirations; everything that he knew to be pure and just... died when his mother was no more.
Bulma paused the scouter and dried her tears. "Vegeta," she whispered. "I didn't know, I didn't know," she sobbed. "I'm so sorry, I disrespected her." She tried to regain control of her emotions. "I can ask you why you didn't tell me until I am blue in the face, but with you, I never receive a straight answer dammit!" She smiled and began to fan her eyes with her hands. She pulled out a small mic from her pocket and placed it in her ear. "Dial Chi-Chi," she commanded.
"Hello?"
"Chi-Chi, it's Bulma," she sobbed. "Do you have any time for tea?"
"Bulma, is everything okay?" the woman asked from the other end.
"I don't know Chi-Chi. I will see you soon."
"We'll talk when you get here then."
~/~/~
"Push me higher dad," Trunks demanded.
Vegeta bore his fangs as he grabbed the swing pulling it to a stop. "Your time is almost up," he informed. He looked at the watch that Bulma had given him when he first moved in at the Capsule Corporation. The only thing he knew how to work on it was the stopwatch, and he only used it for the countdowns until his next meal would be. He had to admit, it was one of the most useful items that she had ever given him.
"I have three minutes left dad," Trunks rebutted before running over to the slides.
Vegeta rolled his eyes and reluctantly followed behind him to ensure he could grab him as soon as his timing device began to beep. "You will only get to go down that flat metal sheet four times in the three minutes that you have left," he said. He had been watching the boy's every move. He slid down the slide seventy-one times, swung back and forth on the metal chair two hundred and thirty-three times before he jumped off and landed with a thud in the sand, not to mention the fourteen times he went back and forth on the monkey bars. Vegeta never understood what was so important about the various alloy shapes, and he would certainly never understand how they could keep his boy so intrigued for hours on end. The boy had royal Saiyan blood coursing through his veins, and was entitled to as more money than an adult would ever see, yet the only thing he wanted to do was climb asymmetrical structures and romp around in the dirt. Vegeta looked down at his time piece as it began to beep.
"Time is up," Vegeta called out to him. "Do not make me speak twice, Trunks." The boy took his last ride down the slide and reluctantly followed his father to the sidewalk. "Now it is time to train without ceasing, boy," Vegeta spat. "We will not make such an impromptu trip again." Trunks nodded and followed closely behind his father. "There are a few things about your technique that we must discuss," he began. "We will do so over lunch." Vegeta neared the corner to the Capsule Corporation and stopped dead in his tracks. The hover car parked in the driveway did not belong to his mate. The door whipped open and the first thing Vegeta saw was an afro of yellow hair poke out. He felt his face flush as she fully came into view.
"Hey Nana," Trunks screamed jubilantly. "How's grandpa?" He ran up to her and embraced her.
"Oh, Trunks dear, he's good."
Vegeta looked on in confusion. At of all the years he'd been living, there was never another being that he actually feared. Bunny Briefs happened to be the first. He didn't fear physical harm by her hand. It was psychological damage that he was afraid of. He kept his distance from her as long as he could, he didn't care how it made him look. She was always jovial, no matter what type of news came her way. He was positive that her IQ was less than that of her pets. Besides, during his inaugural year at the Capsule Corporation, he was nearly convinced that she wanted to sleep with him.
"Well if it isn't my handsome son in law," she cried out as she opened the trunk.
"Trunks, help me get this food out of the car will you? Bulma asked that I cook for you two, and how would I ever refuse?"
Trunks piled the food in his arms and balanced them to the door. Vegeta brushed past the boy to open the door. A large paper covered the handle and he grabbed it to read it.
Hey, I asked my mother to cook for you two.I knew you'd be hungry.
I told her that Trunks would pick it up, but I'm pretty sure she wanted to come by to visit.
I've gone to Chi-Chi's house for tea.
And Vegeta, please be nice to her.
Bulma.
Vegeta clenched his fists and ripped the note off of the door. "Damn."
