What's next for our heroes?
How would you react if some stranger arrived claiming to know your future?
Find out on the next chapter of Axis. Hope you all enjoy!
Axis
Chapter 2
Concrete Bubbles
"Oh, hell no," Kate sputtered, backing away.
When Yamcha had made the offer to take her to see Bulma, their mode of transportation hadn't even crossed her mind, but now that Goku was staring at her expectantly, she felt her childhood phobia inching it's way up her spine, making all the hair on her body stand on end.
"I'm not fucking flying," she told them, shaking her head. "No way. No how. So you can forget that idea. I don't fly."
"Oh come on, I've carried Bulma tons of times, it's perfectly safe. Besides, Goku's the strongest out of all of us—he's not going to drop you," Yamcha assured her.
"I don't care how many times you've done it, that's not the point," she squeaked out.
"I think she's scared of heights, Yamcha," Tien muttered, leaning towards him.
"Hey, relax," Goku said softly. "It's fine. No flying. I got it. I'll just use my Instant Transmission."
She grunted at that. She felt stupid for not thinking of it herself. "I don't know why I forgot that you could do that. Probably because the prospect of being dangled hundreds of feet in the air momentarily killed all of my brain cells." She shuddered at the thought. "Fucking flying," she muttered under her breath.
So far the evening had held several unpleasant surprises—the suggestion of flying being the least irritating out of the bunch. No. The Saiyan Prince still held slot numero uno in that department. The stubborn jerk. That old adage warning against meeting your idols was holding true—regardless of how handsome they were. She'd expected the arrogance, but his snarky attitude had been on an entirely different level than she could have ever anticipated. Boy, that man was a piece of work. She must have lost her damn mind when she'd engaged in their earlier shouting match with careless abandon. Screaming at a homicidal maniac hadn't been one of her best judgement calls, but hell, he wasn't even supposed to exist in the first place.
And then the old man had inserted his perverted nose into the situation.
Master Roshi hadn't made a much better first impression than Vegeta had. Popping his head into the room, his shiny bald head had dipped low, eyes scanning her naked limbs with thinly veiled lust plastered across his wrinkled face.
"Did someone say they needed pants?"
"Don't get any ideas, old man," she warned him, pinning him with a scowl.
"I'm just being a gracious host." He grinned broadly, and she hadn't missed the way Krillen had rolled his eyes when his old master had tossed her his poor excuse for of a pair of pants.
She eyed the tiny scrap of cloth that dangled from her finger. It looked to be a pair of shorts but it didn't seem to offer any more coverage than a bikini bottom would have. "You're joking right?" she muttered, her eyes sliding back to the mischievous old man's expression, to glare at him.
"It's the only thing here that will fit you," he shrugged innocently.
She pursed her lips in annoyance. "I highly doubt that."
"If you need some help getting it on, I can—"
He'd begun creeping closer, his fingers reaching for the hem of her shirt when she'd jabbed a finger at his nose, shoving him back.
"I don't think so," she laughed when he winced, stumbling back, as she crossed her arms across her chest for extra coverage. "If you value your hands, then keep them to yourself. I'm not the type of girl who puts up with that shit, and you'd do we'll to remember it," she warned him before glancing at Piccolo pleadingly. "Do you think you could do me a solid and magic me up a pair of pants before this grubby old bastard tries to get another eyeful?"
Piccolo blinked at her in surprise. "What do I look like, a tailor?" he grunted.
"I'll owe you one," she told him. "Please, Piccolo? I've had men staring at me all day—first that Saiyan asshole, and now this moron," she said throw a thumb towards Master Roshi. "I don't think my sanity can handle anymore prying eyes."
He rolled his eyes, shoving away from the wall with a huff. "Hold still," he grunted, putting out his palm, then hesitated suddenly, tilting his head to glance at her. "What do you want?"
"Just a decent pair of shorts should suffice, nothing major," she replied gratefully.
He nodded, and his palm began to glow brightly making her squint her eyes. She felt the sensation of something pressed to her legs, and once the light faded she looked down.
"Holy crap."
The dark blue denim shorts were a perfect fit, rolled at the hem in the middle of her thighs, and that's when she noticed the matching navy sneakers with white laces that were suddenly adorning her feet. Her eyes flew up to his in astonishment and before she could stop herself she threw herself at him, wrapping her arms around his waist in a tight hug.
"Oh my God, you even gave me shoes. Thank you!"
Piccolo grunted uncomfortably, unsure exactly how to react to her gesture. "They're just shoes," he muttered awkwardly.
"Yeah, but you didn't have to do that," she told him leaning back, and realized from the look on his face that she might have overstepped her bounds, letting him go instantly. "Sorry. I get overexcited sometimes," she said sheepishly. "These are great though—really. Thank you again, Piccolo."
He cracked a smile. "You're welcome."
And then the whole nightmare of flying to Capsule Corp had come up…
One second Goku was nodding goodbye to his former master as the others each touched their palms to his back, and then the tiny beach house seemed to blink out of view and the towering curve of the dome filled Capsule Corp compound appeared before them. Kate's eyes grew wide as she took in the lush gardens that filled the expanses between the buildings, they were in a courtyard of some sort, the epicenter of the compound it seemed. The domed capsule buildings varying in size like enormous concrete half-bubbles.
"You okay?" Krillen chuckled, shaking her out of her stupor.
"Yeah. That was by far one of the strangest things I have ever experienced. It's basically teleporting." A thought struck her. "Holy shit, I just teleported," she said excitedly, more to herself than the others, which they seemed to find amusing.
"Yamcha, you sweet boy, is that you?"
They all turned towards the voice that chirped out happily, and Kate instantly identified the woman heading in their direction as Bulma's mother. Her bright blond hair piled high on her head was unmistakable as her blue eyes scrunched excitedly when she smiled, looking them all over.
"It's so nice to see you, dear. Oh, and you've brought your friends."
"Hi, Mrs. Briefs," Yamcha greeted her politely. "We're looking for Bulma, do you know where she is?"
"Yamcha, didn't I tell you to call me Panchy?" she chided him gently. "Bulma will be so excited to see you all. I think she's down in the lab with my husband."
"Thanks." With a wave he turned to head towards one of the smaller buildings when her voice stopped him.
"Can I get you all anything first? Something to drink?"
"No, Mrs. Briefs—Panchy," he corrected quickly, eager to disengage from the conversation. "We're good. We're sort of in a hurry anyway."
"Well, you all just let me know," she beamed at him.
He nodded and hurried away as the others followed. "That woman will talk your ear off if you let her," he muttered under his breath.
"I'm sure she means well," Kate murmured distractedly as her eyes scanned the edges of the buildings curiously. "So are all of these buildings Capsule Corp, or just the big one?"
"They're all owned by Bulma's father, but that's the main building used for company purposes. Building 1," he told her, indicating the towering behemoth that stood nearly ten stories high on the right. "The smaller ones, over there," he said motioning towards the far left edge of the courtyard, "those are labs and equipment storage—buildings 4 and 5" He pointed then to the medium dome straight ahead, that looked to be three stories at the most. "That's Dr. Briefs and Bulma's private lab. Building 3. They live in the larger building next door, between the main building and the lab, that's Building 2." She recognized Building 2 because of the balconies that faced towards the courtyard—one that took up nearly the width of the third story, and several others that curved around the fourth and fifth floors, all adorned with wide glass doors, partitioned by each room.
"Has Bulma talked at all about taking over as CEO of Capsule Corp one day?" she asked casually, as she continued to study the buildings lit by the glow of tall lamps that were scattered about the compound. She was so distracted that she hadn't noticed that he'd stopped walking to turn and stare at her—that is, until she smacked face first into his chest.
"Are you okay?" he said, eyeing her curiously as he reached out to steady her.
"Yeah, sorry. I wasn't paying attention," she said sheepishly, rubbing her nose where it had been smushed by the impact to his sternum, before adjusting the straps on her shoulders where her bag had slid off.
He looked on edge suddenly. "Listen," he sighed, letting his hands drop. "I don't mean to sound like a jerk, but I'm still a little freaked out that you know things about me and my friends that you shouldn't be able to know, and so I don't really feel comfortable telling you things about my girlfriend without her permission."
"Oh, no, yeah," she waved him off awkwardly. "I totally get it."
"It's just that…you see, Bulma's better with things like this. She has a knack for dealing with abnormal shit—probably because her parents are so eccentric. I'd rather see how she handles everything first, before I can trust you. I've got to protect her," he told her in a firm voice.
Kate raised her hands defensively. "I totally understand, Yamcha. I wasn't meaning to pry. Honest. I was just curious, I didn't mean anything by it."
"C'mon man, you'd be nosey too if you found yourself in her situation," Tien laughed, clapping him on the back. "I don't think asking about Bulma's involvement with her father's business is some sort of evil scheme."
"I didn't say that," Yamcha grumbled, throwing up his hands as he made a sour face at his friend. "But I can't be the only one who thinks this whole situation is weird."
"Even I think this whole situation is weird, and I'm the situation," Kate muttered wryly. "You guys aren't even supposed to be real," she reminded him. "I'm so used to you all being cartoon characters that I find it utterly bizarre seeing you all as real people with actual hair, and skin, and real clothes. Do you get what I mean? It's fucking bizarre as all get out to me, too."
"Yeah, yeah," he nodded, lowering his eyes guiltily. "I get all that. I'm just not comfortable with all of this. It's been a weird day for us all. We went from thinking Frieza was about to demolish us all, to meeting a guy from the future...to you. I've had about all the weird I can handle today."
"I believe you," she said with wide eyes. "I'm sure you're all on edge still."
"Well I think it's pretty exciting myself," Goku interjected, crossing his arms as his lips pulled into a wide grin.
"Tch. You would," she teased him with a soft laugh. "You think every challenge is exciting. I'm not sure anything actually scares you. In fact, a healthy dose of fear would probably be good for you once in a while," she snorted, rolling her eyes. "You're the most bizarre one out of the bunch, with your ridiculous stockpile of optimism. Probably because of how sheltered you were as a kid. It must be nice being so carefree."
Goku blinked at her in surprise. "That's not true at all. Plenty of things scare me—okay maybe not plenty, but there are a couple."
"Really?" she raised a brow at him in challenge. "Name one."
Every one of them turned to stare expectantly at Goku.
"Well…Chi-Chi," he chuckled. "She doesn't even know I'm back yet, and if I don't get home with Gohan soon she'll bite my head off once I do. So we should probably hurry this up."
"Yeah, that sound about right," she snorted as the other smirked in amusement. "In fact, Gohan should probably head home now and give her a heads up. The last thing I want to do is get you in trouble with your wife."
"But I want to stay!" Gohan argued, reaching up to grab hold of his father's arm desperately.
Goku shrugged. "She's going to yell at me for being gone so long either way," he said smiling down at his son. "Maybe your mom will go easy on me if we come home together."
Gohan beamed brightly back up at him.
"Your family misses you when your gone like that, you know?" she told him. "If you're not careful, you're going to miss everything while you're off traversing the universe, and that's time you won't be able to get back, remember that," she told him pointedly.
He stared at her utterly speechless for a moments as her meaning slowly sank in, then he looked down to stare into Gohan's wide eyes that blinked up at him adoringly. "Trust me," he sighed, reaching to ruffle his son's hair affectionately. "I'm well aware of what I'm missing." He frowned then, glancing up to meet her eyes. "Now that you're here maybe it won't be that way anymore."
Her brows furrowed in confusion. "What's that supposed to mean?"
He shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm just saying since you know what's supposed to happen to us, maybe you know a way to prevent it."
Guilt swam through her. "Interfering with the future could cause more damage than it would help. Surely you're aware of that? Even Tr—" She caught herself quickly. "—the boy from the future...him coming back to warn you all will have unintended consequences."
Yamcha, Tien and Krillen gasped at that.
"Are you saying that he made things worse?" Tien pressed anxiously.
"No, not worse," she said shaking her head, "Just different. He changed things by coming here, so not everything will happen exactly the way he said it would. The future shifted the second he arrived, and probably shifted again now, because I'm here when I'm not supposed to be. Do you understand what I'm saying?"
"No," Yamcha muttered. "Not really. I'm sure Bulma will be able to make more sense out of all of this than we can, though."
"Well, lead the way then," she muttered in an exasperated voice.
Without a word he turned to make his way towards Building 3 as they all followed, punching in a code by the door, and it slid open revealing a long hallway lined with large glass walls. The rooms behind them were all vacant, the lights switched off, leaving only the glow of flashing buttons on various machines and very scientific looking equipment that could be heard humming through the glass. The sound of beeps indicated the buttons of another code being punched and the next door slid open to reveal a long metal set of brightly lit stairs that spiraled down to the floor beneath it. Yamcha began the journey down casually, clearly used to being there as Goku followed along, Gohan on his heels as Piccolo went at a more cautious pace, eying Kate over his shoulder.
"What's your deal? I'm not going to kick you down the stairs," she teased.
He grunted in response and she heard Krillen and Tien snicker behind her, Chiaotzu remaining silent as he followed close by.
"Lighten up, Piccolo," she laughed touching his shoulder gently.
"I don't like having strangers at my back," he said cooly, making her pull her hand away quickly.
"I'm not your enemy, you know?" she sighed, frowning as they curved downward, the shuffle of their footsteps echoing. "And I don't mean to invade your personal space. I may be a stranger to you, but none of you are strangers to me. I'm a friendly person and I'm not used to people being on guard around me."
He paused glancing up at her where she stood two steps behind him. "I don't dislike you, if that's what you took my meaning to be. I just don't know you."
She bowed her head in acknowledgment. "Fair enough."
He continued on, nearing the bottom, as Yamcha turned left down a darkened hallway that slowly lit up when sensors detected motion. "Bulma? Dr. Briefs?"
"Yamcha?" a soft voice echoed out in surprise as they neared the farthest room on the right. "Goku?" Bulma said in confusion, sliding her safety goggles atop her blue curls as he and the others slowly began to file in. "Hey, what are you guys all doing here?" Then her eyes caught an eyeful of pink, recognizing Vegeta's shirt instantly, but filled with confusion by the the stranger with long dark hair who was wearing it, wondering why it wasn't on the Saiyan Prince. "Who's this and how come she's wearing Vegeta's shirt?"
"It's a long story, B," Yamcha sighed, raking a hand though his hair. "The shortest explanation is that she's sort of from the future, too."
"What?" Bulma blinked her wide blue eyes, shifting them back to the girl where she was making a face at Yamcha.
"That's not entirely accurate," Kate frowned, crossing her arms.
"You can explain it to her then," he muttered waving her toward Bulma.
Kate marched towards the heiress with a hand outstretched. "Hi Bulma, my name is Kathryn. I know you're a highly intelligent person so would you mind if I summarize everything for you?" she said, feeling suddenly impatient.
Bulma blinked at her for moment before glancing at her offered hand. "Sure, I guess," she said awkwardly as she shook it.
"Okay, well…" Kate began, folding her arms back across her chest. Here goes nothing, she thought wryly. "Evidently Vegeta found me after I fell through a portal from an alternate dimension of earth—I was naked, and he gave me his shirt—I try not to think about that part too long to spare my sanity," she spoke in a rushed voice, waving it away quickly. "My world is just like yours, except in my world, you, Goku, Yamcha, and all the others—your entire lives basically since the day you and Goku met—are nothing more that a Saturday morning cartoon for kids." She saw the way Bulma cocked her head at that. "And I mean that in the literal sense. You're literally fictional characters in a cartoon. Bizarre right?" Her laughed had a panicked edge to it. "Evidently a few hours ago I fell into the freaky cosmic portal that brought me here to this dimension, where you're all real, living, breathing human beings, and now because Captain pissy pants of the Saiyans is the only one who knows where said portal is, I have no idea how to get home. So Yamcha and Goku suggested that you might be able to help me, and that's why I'm here. That's the gist of it." She held up her hands and shrugged awkwardly.
Bulma blinked blankly at her. "Come again?"
Kate cringed at the dumbfounded look on Bulma's face, her eyes shifting behind her as Dr. Briefs crept closer, his mustache twitching curiously.
"So you're not from the future?" Bulma asked slowly, in a careful voice, bringing Kathryn's attention back to her face, to watch as she slowly processed everything in her head.
"No."
"And Vegeta found you and gave you his shirt?" Bulma asked eying her skeptically.
"I don't know anything about how that. I woke up at Master Roshi's wearing nothing but his shirt, and I have no memory of anything after falling through the portal, other than waking up surrounded by all of them," Kathryn told her motioning the others. "I don't even remember arriving here. Goku said my clothes had been burned off—whatever that means. Also, it looks like my bag got a little crispy too," she grumbled, sliding her pack off her shoulders, to swing it around between them; holding it at eye level so that Bulma could see the scorch marks and singed edges for herself. "Which actually make sense considering that the last thing I saw before I passed out was blue fire."
"Blue fire?" Bulma gasped, jerking her head back in surprise. "How odd…" she murmured, inspecting the bag quizzically, tilting it as she studied the burn marks. "Well, the marks are consistent with the heat temperature required to make blue flames, but you don't look like you have a scratch on you," she said eyeing Kate suspiciously again.
"I don't feel like I've been burned anywhere," she admitted, glancing at her arms and legs before raising her eyes back to Bulma, "but when I woke up it sure felt like my whole body had been beaten all to hell with a baseball bat. I wondered if it had to do with a gravity difference, or perhaps a difference in the atmospheric pressure affecting my body, but your earth seems to have the exact same conditions as mine. So I just came to the conclusion that I must have fallen at some point when I passed out, and landed wherever it was that Vegeta found me."
Bulma leaned back, crossing her arms as she studied Kathryn carefully. "The whole Vegeta finding you part is what's tripping me up here." There was an accusation in her tone.
"Funnily enough, that's the part that makes the least amount of sense to me as well," Kate retorted wryly, crossing her arms to mirror Bulma's stance, one strap gripped tightly in her left fist. "The whole deal with you all being real I can rationalize," she laughed humorlessly, "but that jackass doesn't have a compassionate bone in his body so I can't imagine why on earth he'd even bother taking me to Goku for help."
Bulma's brows shot up at that, her eyes shifting to Goku then. "Can you corroborate her story?"
"What do you mean?" Goku asked in confusion.
"Did Vegeta tell you about this supposed portal?" she pressed.
"All he said was that it looked like a hole in the ground filled with blue fire and that she came flying out of it—said he put his shirt on her because her clothes were mostly burned off—and that's what it looked like when he showed up at Master Roshi's." Goku sighed reluctantly then, raking a hand through the back of his head.
Her eyes slid to Yamcha then. "Were you there too? Is that where you ran off to after I left?"
Kate could sense the tension between the two of them as Yamcha met Bulma's gaze guiltily.
"Yeah, B," he said hesitantly. "There others were already there, and you were pissed, so I figured I'd stay and let you cool down for a while."
She brushed that aside. "And did Vegeta say anything else?"
"You know how Vegeta is, Bulma. He's not exactly a people person," he told her pointedly. "He made up some bullshit excuse that the only reason he brought her to us was so we could take her off his hands because he 'didn't have time to babysit pathetic weaklings'," he told her making air quotes with his fingers. "None of us tried to talk to him about what happened because he looked just as baffled as we were—he was completely unhinged, and I didn't feel like starting a fight with him. That guy's a walking, talking lunatic."
Her eyes widened. "So he found her and then just dumped her body there with you all and left?" she asked in an outraged voice.
Kate furrowed her brows in confusion as she glanced at Yamcha. "Wait a second, what are you talking about? Vegeta was there when I woke up," she argued.
"He was going to leave…" Yamcha's face twisted uncomfortably, refusing to meet her eyes as he stared at Bulma. "But then you know how Master Roshi is with women," he said in a meaningful voice.
Bulma's eyed widened sliding to Kathryn then. "Did Roshi get handsy with you?"
Yamcha interrupted her before she could answer. "No, nothing happened. I swear, but you know how the old man gets. Vegeta was just about to leave, but then Roshi opened his big mouth talking about her—ahem—lack of clothing, and it just set Vegeta off. He starting screaming and threatening to blast the whole house to pieces if we didn't keep the old bastard away from her. I'm telling you, B, the whole thing was weird as hell," he muttered sourly. "The guy was off his rocker—like more than he usually is." He glanced at Kate awkwardly. "So, no, Master Roshi didn't lay a finger on you," Yamcha assured her, putting out his hands again. "We wouldn't have let that happen, but then Vegeta went and posted himself up against that wall anyway and refused to move a muscle until you woke up. We all thought he was acting strange," he explained waving his hands towards the others before his eyes shifted back to Bulma. "Like I said, he was acting completely unhinged."
Bulma scoffed at that. "He's a deranged psychopath. Nothing he ever does makes any sense. I wouldn't even be letting him stay here if it wasn't for the fact that he has nowhere else to go—besides, he's going to be helping us with the androids, so we sort of need him." She glanced at Kathryn then hesitantly. "I don't know if they've told you about all of that yet."
"I already know all about the Androids," she told her waving her hand aside. "I knew about them before I got here, because I've seen it all already," Kathryn explained. "Which is why I really need to get home before I do or say something that's going to screw up the future."
Bulma crossed her arms over the chest of her lab coat as she eyed Kathryn in confusion. "Wait, so you are from the future then?"
"No. I told you, I'm not from this dimension." Kate let out an exasperated sigh of frustration, closing her eyes as she pinched the bridge of her nose. "In my world none of you are real—you're just cartoon characters in a TV show, and in my world, the cartoon of you all, and where you are all at in this point in you timeline, was written like…twenty years ago." She shook her head, looking back at Bulma. "I don't know how to explain this correctly, but basically in my world, we're already twenty years ahead of this point in your lives now, so I've already seen what's going to happen to you all in the future. Your stories have been written well past this point, all the way up to like twenty years from now. So that's why it's imperative that I get home before my presence changes anything that's going to happen. I'm not supposed to be here," she told her, desperation in her voice as she tried to stress the gravity of the situation.
Bulma was tapping her finger impatiently on her arm as she studied her with a distrustful expression. "Right. In your world we're all just cartoon characters." Bulma's tone held a mocking edge to it making Kathryn's eyes widen.
"I can prove it!" she told her adamantly, adjusting her pack, until she could unhook the main flap. "My friends and I are all huge fans of the Dragon Ball series—that's what the TV show is called. There's Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball GT—though that's not considered cannon, so I wonder if it holds any weight here…" she mused out loud as she shuffled through the DVD cases just as she'd done back at Roshi's house. She glanced up at Bulma. "Do you have a TV show that you're a fan of? Or something that you're a fan of? Like scientist conventions or something for inventions?"
"Well, there's an annual conference for science and technology that dad and I attend together," she said, motioning to Dr. Brief's where he'd remained silent throughout their conversation. "Why?" Bulma said curiously. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"Okay, well…" Kate told her walking over to set her bag on one of the lab tables to make it easier to sort through her belongings. "The TV Show of you all is sort of…famous. Fans get together to watch it and stuff, sort of like all the scientists get together at this convention you guys go to. You with me so far?" she asked glancing over at Bulma.
"Yeah."
"Good," she nodded. "Well, before I fell through that portal, that's sort of where I'd been. We had a convention this past weekend and some of the voice actors from the show were there. That's why I have all of these discs with me," she explained, pulling out 9 cases to arrange them in chronological order. "The creator, Akira Toriyama, who writes the stories had recently released a new series after almost a decade, called Dragon Ball Super, and after being at the convention all day, a few of my friends and I were all having a party to watch the new episode. I had my DVD's of the previous seasons with me when I fell through that stupid hole," she spread them wide, fanning them out across the table so that only the covers of the nine seasons were facing up in order. "See for yourself."
Bulma took a tentative step towards her, her eyes widening as she touched shaking fingertips to a few of the cases, utterly bewildered. Then she jerked her hand away, shaking her head so that her blue curls bounced. "A bunch of drawings don't prove anything."
"She's telling the truth, Bulma," Goku's voice murmured softly, and both women turned shocked eyes to stare at him.
"You actually believe her?" Bulma gasped, gaping at him wildly.
"She knows things about us that she shouldn't be able to know. I know it sounds crazy," he said in a serious voice.
Bulma pursed her lips, setting her hands on her hips. "Goku, you're always too trusting."
"Yeah, he is," Kate snorted wryly, pulling her attention back. "But that's why he's the hero of the show. Look," she ordered as she gathered the cases into a stack, before flipping over the one on top to read the back. "Season One, where it all began. Goku may be small, but this fearless warrior packs a punch as powerful as any on the planet. Left alone after his grandfather's death, this unusual boy is happy to spend his days hunting and eating and eating some more. But everything changes on the day he meets Bulma—a bossy, blue-haired beauty with boys on the brain. Together, they set out to track down the seven magic Dragon Balls and make the wish that will change their lives forever."
She slid it to the bottom of the pile and flipped over the next one. "Season Two. After meeting his match in the World Martial Arts Tournament, Goku embarks on a mission to recover the Four Star Dragon Ball that once belonged to his grandfather. His treacherous quest will take him from the terrifying heights of Muscle Tower to the darkest depths of the deep blue sea. But with the Flying Nimbus under his feet and Bulma's Dragon Radar leading the way, there's nothing mighty Goku can't handle."
She glanced at Bulma, but caught sight of the others over her shoulder where they all were gaping at her with wide eyes. She continued on to the next case.
"Season Three. Goku embarks on a journey to test his strength against the best of the best! Driven by his promise to a heartbroken young boy, Goku completes his training under Master Korin and prepares for a brutal rematch with Mercenary Tao! These two powerful warriors trade blows in a furious flurry of Dodon Rays and Kamehameha Waves, but that's only the beginning of this adventure."
"Still don't believe me?" she asked, her light eyes shifting to Bulma's face where it had paled slightly. "Season Four. Goku's headed for a showdown with a sinister green fiend! A new breed of evil - more powerful than anything ever experienced - is taking the world's greatest martial artists down for the count. Goku is quick to join the fight, but he's about to meet his match in the form of King Piccolo. This menacing monster has the power to pulverize the planet, and his murderous rampage will not stop until he controls the power of the seven magic Dragon Balls." Kate glanced at the large hulking Namek. "Sorry, Piccolo," she murmured apologetically when she saw the way his face darkened.
He was taken aback by the guilt in her voice, as her eyes lowered awkwardly back to the rest of the cases.
"Season Five. In the aftermath of his epic battle with Piccolo, Goku embarks on an electrifying quest to rescue his fallen friends from the realm of the dead. His perilous journey will take him to the heights of Korin Tower—and beyond—as he searches for Kami, a mystical being with the power to resurrect Shenron and restore the magic of the seven Dragon Balls!"
She gathered up the five cases then and slid them back in to the bag, leaving the last two.
"Those are from the first series—the original Dragon Ball series that was created well over twenty years ago in my world," she explained. "Then there's Dragon Ball Z—my personal favorite, and the most popular thus far in my opinion. This is season one," she explained, lifting up the orange case with a photo of Vegeta so that the others could see before she flipped it over.
"The Saiyans are coming! The last survivors of a cruel, warrior race, these ruthless villains have carved a path of destruction across the galaxy, and now they have set their sights on Earth! They will stop at nothing until they have the wish-granting powers of the seven magic Dragonballs for their very own. With the fate of his family, friends, and the entire human race hanging in the balance, Goku, the Earth's greatest hero, must rise to meet the approaching threat. As he prepares for the fight of his life, Goku embarks on an epic journey that will take him to other worlds, pit him against new and old enemies alike, and force him to confront the dark secrets of his own past. At the end of his path, the most powerful opponent he has ever faced awaits—the evil Saiyan Prince Vegeta!"
Kate tried to ignore the way her heart thumped slightly as she said his name, hearing the others make small noises in reaction to what she'd read. Reading those words was like a glaring reminder that the Saiyan Prince she had met earlier was far removed from being the hero she'd seen him evolve into. That version of him was still twenty years into the making and she knew that it was in the best interest of her own safety to remember that.
She swallowed the lump in her throat and continued on. "Season Two. While Goku recovers from injuries suffered during battle with the Saiyans, his friends begin their perilous quest for the Namekian Dragon Balls! Awaiting their arrival on Planet Namek is the powerful Ginyu Force—and the vile monster Frieza!" She shifted the cases to read the last two summaries carefully. "Season Three. All seven Namekian Dragon Balls have been assembled, and the dragon Porunga has been summoned! Goku and his loyal friends must stop Frieza from making his wish for immortality. To defeat this monstrous foe—a Super Saiyan must emerge! Season Four. Goku is missing, and a new breed of villain prepares to wreak havoc on Earth! Armed with knowledge of this looming menace, a Super Saiyan arrives from the future to deliver a grave warning: the Androids are coming—and they cannot be stopped!"
The silence in room was deafening. All eyes were locked on her as she turned to look at each of them, seeing the realization on their faces as it seemed to finally sink in for all who still held any doubt—she was indeed telling them the truth.
"This is where you are all at now, right? Evidently Tru—" she caught herself once again, "—the Super Saiyan boy from the future, he arrived earlier today before I did, to warn you all about the androids right?" she asked them pointedly.
No one answered. The tension in the room was thick, fear hummed silently between them, the sudden threat of the Androids hitting home harder than it had before.
"Listen, I'm not trying to scare you all," she told them anxiously. "But you need to take the Androids seriously. Each foe you face will be stronger and more dangerous than the last, so trust me when I tell you that what's coming is something that none of you are prepared to handle right now. The isn't like how it was during the tournaments you all have participated in—there are no rules—no safety measures. People will die if you don't stop them—millions of people. The future that boy came from is what your world will become if you aren't able to defeat them. You have three years to get ready." Kate couldn't help the way her eyes shifted to Gohan's tiny pale face. "You've got to make every second of your training count."
"This is utterly fascinating." Dr. Briefs' voice startled her when he spoke making her whirl to face him where he was unfolding one of the cases to examine it's contents, his mustache twitching with curiosity.
"Not to me," Kate responded cooly, shaking her head. "To me, this is a nightmare. I have no idea how any of this is even possible. I'm not supposed to be here because this world—your world—it's not supposed to even exist. I have no idea how to get home because I have no idea how I was able to come here in the first place. To be here now…what if I'm still here when the androids arrive? I could be stuck here forever. I don't find that fascinating Dr. Brief's—I find that fucking terrifying."
"Wait," Bulma's voice made her glance at the heiress where she was scrutinizing the contents of here bag. "What about the rest? There are other disks in here—"
Kate snatched the bag away from her, as she scrambled to shove the cases inside. "That's my point. The rest are about what happens during and after the Androids arrive. I'm sorry, but you can't see these," she told her, hugging the bag to her chest protectively as she shook her head. "I can't let you all see your future. I can't tell you. It could screw up everything. Please understand that," she pleaded with Bulma fiercely. "Do you believe me now?"
Bulma contemplated her question as she tilted her head, studying her cautiously. "I can't refute the evidence you've presented us with," she sighed, stuffing her hands into the pockets of her lab coat. "So far, everything has happened exactly as you said—with Goku and I meeting, the tournaments, even with what happened to us on Namek—I don't see how I can doubt you with that sort of information staring me in the face, but I have to be logical about this."
Kate relaxed slightly at that. "Yes, so you understand why I need your help, Bulma. I have to get home, and the longer I'm here, the more dangerous my presence in your world becomes."
"In the meantime we could just destroy the discs," she said with a shrug.
Kate frowned at that. "I mean, you could…I don't like that though, because I really don't want to destroy these," she explained hugging her bag tighter to her chest. "I love them, and while I could always buy more—if I ever get home—even if you did destroy them, that wouldn't change the fact that I already know everything that's going to happen."
Bulma's brows shot up eagerly. "But if you already know what's going to happen then you could help us," she argued.
Kate winced in reluctance. "I want to—trust me, I really do—but I'm afraid if I tell you about anything that happens beyond this point that it will alter the future in a way that could do more damage than good, so I can't. Trun—I mean, the boy you met today, he came from the future to warn you about the Androids because in his timeline the Androids have killed almost everyone of you, and he came here hoping to stop that from happening, but even him doing so has changed a few things already. Things that he didn't even know to warn you about. If him warning you about a few small things has had such a huge effect then what do you think will happen if you're told about the rest of your lives? What if it gets you all killed?" Kathryn posed to her meaningfully hoping that she understood the point she was trying to make.
Bulma narrowed her eyes at the girl suspiciously. "So you know who the boy is?"
Kate went still, pausing to consider her answer before she spoke. "Yes…I do, but I can't tell you who he is or what I know. I can't take that risk, you all matter too much to me, and I have too much respect for you all to alter your destinies like that. Goku and Piccolo, you two understand what I mean don't you?" she glanced at the two warriors pleadingly from back up.
Bulma gasped at that as her eyes flew to Goku and Piccolo. "Wait, you mean…you two know who he is? So you two didn't tell us everything he told you did you?"
Panic shot through Kate suddenly. "Dammit! See! This is what I'm talking about!" she railed frantically. "No one but Goku and Piccolo are supposed to know anything else the boy told Goku besides the stuff about the Androids. It could ruin everything, Bulma!" she pleaded with her desperately. "You just can't know. I'm sorry," she said shaking her head anxiously making her long dark waves swirl around her. "This is why I shouldn't even be here. I know too much, and it's hard to keep track of what I'm allowed to tell you and what I'm not. I might let something slip on accident. I cannot stress to you enough just how dangerous that is. So, please, I'm begging you all to trust me. I know that's asking a lot. I know how bizarre and frustrating this probably is, but you all can't know, under any circumstances."
"So you already know if we're all going to die and how?" Piccolo's gruff voice growled.
Kate locked eyes with him. "Even if I do, I can't tell you. Besides, would you really want to know?"
"We all deserve the opportunity to change our fate," he argued.
"Yes, you've said that before—earlier today when Goku wasn't going to tell the others. I know," she sighed, sending a jolt of surprise through Piccolo. "I understand all of that, but this isn't the same situation as with the Super Saiyan boy you met earlier. What I've seen is fixed in a different way. It's a different timeline from his. With me here it could set the future on a path that's worse than what he's seen in his. What if you don't die in the future I have seen for you all, and me telling you causes you to get killed anyway, or earlier than you should? There's two sides to every possibility. On one hand it may save you, on the other hand it could get you killed. Do you want to risk it having a negative effect?" she told him in a hard voice.
"You have a point," he grunted.
"Of course I have a point," she snorted derisively. "I wouldn't have gone on that long rant to convince you if I didn't."
"She's feisty. I like her," Bulma laughed, grinned as her eyes flashed with admiration.
"Does that mean you'll help me?" Kathryn asked as hope bloomed in her chest.
"I don't know what we can do for you really," Bulma sighed. "I have no idea where to even start."
"Well first, I need to find the portal I came through," she told her, slinging her pack back over her shoulder. "I don't know where it is, because all I remember is falling through it and then waking up surround by these guys," she threw a thumb over her shoulder at the others. "Unfortunately Vegeta's stubborn ass is the one who found me, and I'm pretty sure that I royally pissed him off, so the egotistical jerk is probably going to be of no help whatsoever," she huffed irritably as she rolled her eyes.
"That sounds like Vegeta," Bulma muttered in amusement.
Kate frowned at that. "Yeah, he's a real piece of work."
Bulma blinked in surprised. "Wow. You two must have really gotten into it."
Yamcha burst out laughing at that. "You have no idea, B. Aside from you, I've never seen anyone stand up to him like that. You should have seen the look on his face," he chuckled.
Kate crossed her arms irritably. "I shouldn't really be surprised that we ended up in a screaming match. I already knew he was an asshole. His reputation didn't disappoint at all."
Bulma raised a brow at that. "So you know all about the things he's done then?"
"Oh, trust me, she knows a lot more about him than any of us," Yamcha explained wryly. "She knew things about him that should be impossible for anyone to know but him. She knew about his future, something about him being a hero one day, and even told him things about his past that even he wasn't unaware of. It definitely spooked him."
"Which was a mistake on my part," Kate murmured guiltily. "I shouldn't have told him any of that. I don't know what in the hell she was thinking…but he just kept on pushing my buttons and my temper got the best of me."
Yamcha snorted at that. "Listen, I understand you're worried about changing things, but honestly, he needed to be taken down a peg or two," he said attempting to ease her guilt.
"Regardless, I still shouldn't have done it," she argued, remorse in her voice. "After all, from what you all have said, Vegeta is the one who brought me to Master Roshi's to get me help when he found me, so I sort of owe him. That information wasn't mine to tell, and no matter what he's done, it was extremely reckless and cruel of me to tell him the things I did," she told him pointedly. "Like I said, you all matter too much to me, and I have too much respect for each of you to risk possibly altering your destinies like that."
"Well, I think we should start by running some tests," Bulma interjected, sensing the tension in the air. "Maybe there are some traces of residue left on you from the portal when you came through it. We might be able to use that to engineer a tracker to detect the radioactive frequency it puts off."
"That's assuming it's still there," Kate muttered dejectedly. "What if I'm stuck here?"
"I don't know," Bulma said sadly. "I'll admit, it's a long shot, but it's worth a try. Until then, it would probably be a good idea for you to stay here at Capsule Corp."
Kate blinked at her sharply. "Really? You don't mind?"
Bulma shrugged in response. "Not at all."
"You sure do have a thing for taking in strays, don't you?" she teased her playfully. "Honestly Bulma, I can't tell you how much I appreciate that—you too, Dr. Briefs," she said glancing at the elder scientist.
"Think nothing of it, my dear," he replied, folding his hands behind his back as he smiled warmly, his eyes crinkling at the corners.
"Don't thank me yet," Bulma laughed in an uneasy voice. "The only room we have that's suitable for guests is the one down the far hall from mine—next to Vegeta's."
Kate's bubble of elation burst.
Bulma saw the flash of apprehension that appeared on her face and hurried to assuage her fears. "I know!" Bulma said excitedly, snapping her fingers. "I'll set some bots up clearing out one of the other spare rooms starting tomorrow morning, and we can move you there after we get it set up. It's just a bunch of boxes and old furniture. I should have it cleared out within the week, if you don't mind using the other one in the meantime. You probably won't even run into Vegeta anyway. He's usually too busy destroying the training bots I built for him and then his second favorite hobby seems to be hunting me down to complain about the training bots I built for him. It's a spectacular part of any day," she told her sarcastically in annoyance. "Sometime I just want to plant a bomb in those things and watch him blow himself up."
"You wouldn't," Kate chortled hysterically.
"No, I wouldn't," Bulma muttered making a sour face. "But I've considered it. I mean, would it honestly kill the jackass to say thank you?" she snapped irritably, putting her hands on her hips.
"Probably," Kate muttered, trying not to laugh. "His ego would shatter. That man would rather choke on the words before he'd ever bring himself to say them. I don't think 'thank you' is part of the Saiyan vocabulary."
Bulma snickered at that, hooking her arm within Kate's slyly. "Oh, I'm going to like having you around. I'm not usually one for gossip, but I need someone to bitch to about that asshole to because I'm about one more conversation away from losing my patience with his attitude."
"I'm not exactly his favorite person right now Bulma," she reminded her warily. "The two of us together is just going to piss him off more."
"Let him be pissed off," she laughed, waving off her concerns. "He's a guest in my house, he's not the boss of me. Besides, don't you have dirt on him or something?"
A wicked grin slid across Kate's face suddenly, her blue eyes brightening mischievously. "Why yes, yes I do."
Yamcha's booming laughter made everyone look at him then. "I would say that I almost feel sorry for the guy…but I don't."
As the room burst into a chorus of giggles and amused laughter, a short distance away, a severely shaken Saiyan Prince was touching down on the balcony outside of his room on the third story—and he was seething.
Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed the second chapter. I just love having the whole gang back together again, and it's always amusing having a laugh at Vegeta's expense. ; )