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Chapter 11
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After wishing her parents a rather lengthy goodbye, with a promise to return home soon, Bulma powered up the spacecraft and seated herself in the pilots chair with a determined look.
A light chuckle echoed from behind her, happy and masculine, and she turned to frown at the voice.
"What?" Her eyes narrowed slightly, "This is serious business."
"Mhm." The man smiled, almost mockingly.
She rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to the control panel at hand.
"So the universe is still in shambles?" The man asked casually, taking a seat beside his blue haired companion.
Detachedly, she nodded, "It's nowhere near the republic we decided it would be after, er-"
"After my death," the man stumbled over the words slightly, still in disbelief of his state, "was there not some peace?"
As the ship took off Bulma leaned back a bit, her composure much more relaxed, "For a little while. I was with Launch, you know," she watched his face fill with emotion, "The two of us watched your battle from the sky box. I don't think there will ever be peace for some, but, for most of us, after Frieza's death and the funerals for all those who died in combat, there was a lot of rejoicing.
"I honestly thought that we'd establish this democratic government and there would be utopian bliss, but I forgot to calculate that when the flesh is tempted with absolute power, he usually succumbs to it." An almost angry look encompassed her features, "Vegeta wants nothing short of being the very same fiend Frieza was."
The man nodded. It wasn't hard for him to picture Vegeta seated in a lush throne giving orders with a content snarl.
"Tien," the blue-haired woman spoke, turning to stare at him, "You're going to come to quite a shock to many."
He smiled, "You don't say? The fact that I'm a live still shocks me, actually."
The woman laughed lightly, "Seriously Tien, I don't know how I'm going to go about explaining myself to everyone once you're discovered."
"You'll just tell them the truth. That you wished me back on magical balls because of an urban legend you heard when you were young," he shrugged, "So we're going to Vegeta-sei for sure?"
She nodded, staring ahead, "We will be there in about a week."
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The air was still and heavy and she had to inhale quite deeply to satisfy her aching lungs. It was unfortunate, for their also hung a putrid odor and she grimaced as she breathed.
Her companion chuckled lightly as he also stepped off the spaceship, equipped with filtered air and a crisp, light scent, and inhaled the air of the refueling station.
"Grotesque, isn't it?"
He merely shrugged as they made their way into the bar as their ship underwent the refueling process.
Taking a seat at the bar, Bulma tried her best to go unnoticed. True as it was, no one recognized her as one of the Five or even as the genius she was; but it was hard to not notice an exotic woman with blue hair and such striking features.
Tien sat protectively at her side, ordered them both drinks, and listened silently as the bartender chatted with drunken shipmen.
Bulma also listened, her face not being as masked as Tien's upon overhearing talk of the Sayains.
"-and yah'ere that they're ah goin' to make him king now'ta former King ha' died."
"No shit? His brat of a son?"
"He's got plenty'ah years on 'im though."
"True. Ah, he'll be a hell of a better monarch than that bastard Frieza was, that's for sure."
The men continued to speak as Bulma shot Tien a look of horror.
Tien tipped his head lightly to one of the men and frowned, "I must have been on that ship too long," he paused, clearly confused, "King Vegeta is dead?"
"Yep," one of the men replied with a nod, "And his son's supposed to take the throne pretty soon, too."
"Nah," one of the men interjected, "There will be thirty days of unrest, Sayain costume yah see?, before the Prince can step up and take the throne."
"He's a bold man, that's for sure."
"Nah," one of the merchants spoke with a stealthy glare, "He's as evil as Frieza, that's for sure."
"He helped kill the damn bastard!" Another retorted, slamming his drink on the table.
Once their drinks were gone, Tien said goodbye to the men, and one smiled at Bulma.
"Yer a beautiful young lady, y'ah know, I hear that Vegeta is rather handsome."
A few of the other men broke out into drunken laughter while Bulma shot them weak smiles and met eyes with Tien.
He confirmed her with a nod, and they paid for their drinks and their fuel, and were situated in the control room soon after.
As Tien took the controls the pair sat in awkward silence.
Finally deciding to break the silence, Tien shot Bulma, who was silent in thought, a glance and sighed, "I know how it feels."
"Huh?" Bulma said, shaken from her scattered thoughts, "How … what feels?"
"Missing someone." He turned his attention back to the blackness before him, a stretch of stars in the backdrop of all the darkness, "I know you, Bulma. I know you'll try to deny it, but … I miss someone, too you know?"
She nodded absently and sunk slightly in her seat.
"Yeah. I know."
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"Bulma!" Tien shouted loudly, entering the kitchen where a sleepy Bulma was pouring herself a cup of coffee.
She shot him an irritated glance, "What?"
He smiled at her devilish hair and half-opened eyes, "We're ahead of schedule"
Cerulean eyes shot open, now fully awake.
"How far ahead?"
"We're approaching Vegeta-sei's atmosphere as we speak."
Quickly setting the cup down on the countertop she nodded, "Uh, right, well then, we'd better get dressed and … strap ourselves in."
When they had landed, their welcoming party had been nothing more than a pair of Sayains who were nothing short of annoyed by their presence.
Bulma's eyes narrowed as she leaned in, "What do you mean we can't have a meeting with the Prince?"
"Ma'am, he's a very busy man, being the Prince and all. He doesn't have time to meet with every random commoner who wished to take a few minutes out of his day for some pointless reason or another." The soldier stated, rather jadedly.
Tien stepped in front of the aggravated woman and nodded, "Alright, well, can we speak to ChiChi or Krillin or … Kakerot?"
"No, I cannot just schedule you a meeting with members of the council." He sighed lightly, "But this is Courance," he motioned to a rather evil looking woman with purple hair, "She's a member of the council and will hear you."
Before Bulma could retort, the purple haired woman the soldier had called Courance stepped forward and grinned at the pair, "Welcome to Vegeta-sei."
"Hi," Tien said, greeting the woman with a small smile, "Can you please help us? We need to speak with Vegeta."
"Prince Vegeta," The woman corrected with a glare, "And soon to be King. Do not forget your place."
"Uh," Bulma tapped her foot, "Regardless of what his title is or will be, we need to arrange a meeting with him. Can you help us?"
"As Lieutenant Eglpla already told you, he's a very busy man."
Bulma growled, clenching her teeth, and Tien merely shook his head, "Thank you."
Just as they were about to leave, Bulma spotted a tall Sayain with long, black hair walking down the hallway. There was an air of importance about him and a scowl was imprinted upon his features.
"Raditz!" Bulma nearly shrieked, then, turning to the woman she smiled mockingly, "Thanks for your time, but I think we just found our ticket in."
Tien bowed lightly before the blue-haired woman drug him out of the room by his elbow, calling Raditz's name as she hurried to catch up with him.
Stopping in his tracks, Raditz turned to find the pair standing beside one another. Greeting Bulma first with a kind smile, then staring in disbelief in Tien's direction.
"Long story," Bulma began, a radiant smile adorning her mouth, "But we need to speak with Vegeta."
"Hm." Radtiz said, shaking himself from staring blankly at Tien and nodded towards the grinning genius, "It's too late to arrange anything today, but I'll try to come up with something for you tomorrow."
"Thank you." Tien breathed.
"Do you two have a place to stay while you're on Vegeta-sei?" Ratiz said, retuning to his previous façade, "I'm sure you've heard, but Vegeta is a hard man to speak to these days. It may be a week before I can get him to see you both."
The pair exchanged a look and then shook their heads.
Raditz exhaled thoughtfully for a moment and then nodded, "Well, you both can stay at my place for the time being."
"Oh," Bulma shook her head with a polite smile, "We don't want to impose. If you could lead us to a hotel or-"
"Nonsense." Raditz spoke abruptly,. "It is the least I can do for you Miss Briefs."
"I-uh." Bulma blinked in confusion.
"What you have done for … my family."
Bulma smiled, knowing that he was referring to her selfish actions of separating Victoria and Vegeta. However, Ratiz was now free to live in peace and raise his baby with his wife on Vegeta-sei without the Great Tyrant Lord looming constantly over him.
"Well then," Bulma grinned, "lead the way!"
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The baby was round with folds of fat and slightly cross-eyed with a head of unruly black hair, but Bulma cooed just the same.
Tien stared distantly as the baby gurgled and the two females present laughed and smiled as if it were nothing short of the cutest thing they had ever seen in their entire lives.
Turning to Raditz, who seemed to have the same starry-eyed expression on his face, Tien decided that he was the only sane one; definitely the only one not taken by the infants apparent charm.
"So," Victoria began conversationally as she handed the frumpy child to Bulma's outstretched arms, "we're very curious Tien, how did you come back from the dead?"
Taking a short pause from making faces at the baby, Bulma looked up at the Sayains and smiled, "Victoria, do you happen to remember that myth I told you about the dragon balls?"
"Uh," Victoria's mouth shifted thoughtfully, her facial expression failing to hide her disbelief, "the magical balls that can grant wishes?"
"Those very ones," Bulma exclaimed, turning her attention back to the baby, "Well, they happened to be true, so I gathered them and wished Tien back to life."
The conversation turned from Tien's resurrection, to the healthy baby, and then, finally, to politics.
It seemed that it was no secret that while Frieza was no longer in power, many of his implements still were.
Tien told Victoria and Raditz of the indifference of the sate of the universe, how in many places the wrath of Vegeta was no different from Frieza's rule.
"And," Bulma began with a sad sigh, "at least under Frieza woman remained untouched and valuable. I'm afraid now that the scarlet sashes illegal, I've been threatened to nearly raped at every refueling station from Earth to Vegeta-sei."
Tien took a seat beside Bulma and the grinning infant, "However, there are still many followers of Vegeta. They are ready, have been ready, for change. And they embrace their new ruler."
"So we need to talk to Vegeta. To … you know, get him to right his wrongs."
Victoria smiled, "I like you Bulma, and Vegeta likes you too, but how are you going to present yourself to Vegeta? I ran off almost six months ago without a word, but now I'm back to give you a list of all the things you've been doing incorrectly and to help you fix them?"
Tien scratched the back of his neck, "She had a point."
Bulma sighed, "We'll think of something."
"The new council," Victoria began with a short nod, obviously trying to change the subject, "has been put into place. It's not the republic you fought for, but I think you'll find that Vegeta has tried to level out the balance of power. There's King Ajames. He's a kind, older man who rules over a very powerful planet in the South, and Courance, the 'purple-haired bitch' you ran into earlier," Victoria smiled as Bulma rolled her eyes upon remembrance of the unpleasant woman.
"There is also a rather handsome man, named Tamt - he helped fight against Frieza's army - and he's representing the industrial planet of Turbo."
"And what of Launch?" Tien nearly blurted.
Bulma tried her best to bite back her smile. She knew that Tien had been wondering about her since the moment she had wished him back, but with all the talk of Vegeta and politics, it was hard for him to voice such questions.
"She's alright," Victoria stated calmly, "She works in palace kitchens as a hired chef. She hangs around ChiChi and the blonde girl you're brother is secretly smitten with. I've never seen a soul so broken though, she's been mourning your death for a while now, Tien."
His face fell into a saddened expression and Bulma glanced helplessly at her friend.
Raditz cleared his throat from the corner of the room, "It will be hard to just spring you on them, Tien. I suggest the two of you lay low for a little while, but I will let Bulma's presence be known at the meeting tomorrow."