Bulma looked around wildly, her brain just now getting a grip on the situation. They stood on a beach, nowhere she recognised. The man still grinned at her, like they were old friends.

'You're him aren't you? The Kai!'

'Bulma Briefs, it's always a pleasure,' he said. His voice was pleasant, his manner friendly, everything about him suggested that he was gentle, kind and trustworthy. Perhaps it was for this reason that she seemed to be incapable of gathering the necessary sense of fear.

'You speak like you know me,' she said, and then gasped because the scenery changed again. Now they were on a mountainside, and it was dark and windy.

'In a very real way, I do. I've talked to you many, many times, but never here, in this universe. I am Kibito Kai, the Eastern Supreme Kai, and Guardian of the Eastern Universe, in this world and the next. But you may call me Supreme Kai.'

'Are you here to kill me?' Ah, there was the fear after all. Watery knees.

His smile disappeared, and he looked serious. The mountain became Kami's lookout, and Bulma spied Mr Popo watering flowers in the planters.

'Mr Popo!' she screamed.

Mr Popo looked up and smiled, waving, looking very much like he didn't grasp her plight.

'Hello Supreme Kai! Hello Bulma!' he cheered back.

'Help me!' she cried, but the scene dissolved again, and now they stood in a forest in half-light.

'Why do you keep doing that?' she asked, a tremor making it's way into her voice. She tried to pull away from the Kai's hand, or step back, but even though he only touched her gently she found she could hardly move.

The Kai shrugged. 'Evading detection. Right now I expect that Vegeta has noticed you are missing. He won't be able to find you while we keep on the move. He told you I'd be coming didn't he? Did he tell you why?'

'Because you screwed up the multiverse and made time travel illegal.'

The Kai looked insulted. 'Well that's a very one-eyed view of things.'

'He said that the Kais cast a spell to consolidate all the Planets of the Kai in all the multiverses into one, and that meant the Kai couldn't possibly keep track of all the universes. And if you'd left well enough alone each universe would have it's own set of Guardians to look after it.'

'We didn't cast the spell for nothing. It was clear the timelines were interfering with each other. I felt nothing beyond surprise and interest the first time a time traveller appeared in my universe, and the second, and the third, but by fiftieth time the I was becoming alarmed. The points of origin, the travellers, their timelines and their stories were becoming wilder and wilder. Some kind of chain reaction was in process, and my own universe was being buffeted by the unpredictable arrivals of these time travellers and their purposes, whatever they happened to be.'

The Kai looked around and the scenery changed again. Bulma thought that he had forgotten to keep them moving during his speech.

'It wasn't just that though,' he said. 'Something was also happening to the power of the Kais. It was becoming diluted. The threats were increasing and our ability to do anything about it was decreasing, split, we believe, between universes when they diverged.'

Bulma had the sinking feeling that confirmation that what she and Vegeta were doing was wrong was about to be delivered.

'We didn't walk into this thing with our eyes closed. We did our research. We got a couple of time travellers of our own and investigated some other timelines – did some damage of our own I might add, and quite unintentionally. We consulted the Kaioshin of other universes, and they reported the same thing. There was a spell created by the Grand Old Kai, and my timeline was chosen to consolidate on, because although it wasn't even close to the original any more, the universe within it was the least broken. After the spell was cast we were still surprised to discover the extent of the problem. Since then we've been at full strength and working to combat the proliferation of timelines.'

'And the eradication of time travel?'

'Yes.'

Bulma stood trembling while the surroundings changed again. She barely noticed any more.

'Do you kill the time travellers?' she said, wondering if her own Trunks had been picked up in this crackdown.

'Not usually. Usually it's enough just to destroy the machines. Most of them are ignorant to the consequences of time travel, and quite apologetic. We even return them to their own timelines where possible.'

Bulma was a little relived. 'So if you found my son…?'

'I'd bring him back at once. That Vegeta you are with though…'

'Is a repeat offender?'

'Exactly.' The Kai shook his head and made a vicious expression with his pretty lavender face. 'That Vegeta! He'll always let you down, no matter what universe you're in. But then it's impossible to hate him entirely because after wrecking everything he'll come up with some redeeming heroic act. I'll probably let him live, if only because he's so hard to kill, but I absolutely must remove all means to time travel from him.'

They stood on a cliff in the blazing sun of dawn, above the clouds.

'You are going to kill me, aren't you?' she said, tears welling up.

'The word "kill" would suggest violence and pain, and a lack of choice in the matter. I'm going to offer you a choice.'

'What?' she said. 'What choice?'

'Every time machine from every time line can be traced back to you,' he said gently. 'You are the originator of all time travel, of every split reality.' He tapped her forehead. 'What's in here, it's something that shouldn't have existed. It's something unallowable. You are a freak outside of nature Bulma.'

Bulma felt a new sensation – horror. The scene changed again. They were standing in snow in a frozen field.

'Here's your choice. Either you can come with me now to the next world. It would be as easy as we are jumping between locations now – just a second and you'll be in the Eternal Garden. There are people waiting for you there you know. Your friends, your parents…Peace and happiness forever.'

Just a second and she'll be there? It was still scary, and still forever, but didn't sound so bad. Just one thing to check first though.

'Will Trunks be there?'

'No, I'm afraid not.' The Kai looked apologetic. 'A soul enters the Next World in the universe it is alive in when it dies. You see the extent of our predicament? Even the Next World and the Demon Realm are split when someone time travels in this world. Your Trunks will rest for Eternity in the Next World of wherever he's found himself.'

'No! Then I can't!' An eternity without Trunks? 'What's the other choice?'

'You can stay here, and live out your days in this world. I would have to first take away that part of you that can build time machines.' He touched her forehead again and she jerked away in horror.

'You're talking about lobotomising me? No!'

'I'm not talking about anything as severe as lobotomy,' said the Kai. 'Just that technical genius. I'll…average you. Maybe take that sharp edge off your IQ. I doubt you'll even feel anything is missing most of the time.'

Bulma's stared at him, her whole being offended, recoiling. How could she ever say yes to this? How could he even think it tempting?

'And I would still not have Trunks back?'

'No. Even we can't find him Bulma, he's buried too deep. But you'd have this Vegeta. You could even have another child together, if it eases the loss.'

Bulma burst out laughing; a bitter, scornful sound. 'You've got to be kidding! Even if Vegeta was willing, which I doubt! Even if I was able…do you realise how old I am? I'm forty nine! I'd never get pregnant, and if I did it would likely kill me!'

'And if that wasn't an issue? Would that sway you?'

She looked at him, unsure if he was serious. Make her fertile? Let her have another baby to substitute the loss of Trunks?

'I can do it as easy as this,' he added, clicking the fingers of his free hand.

'No! I want my son back! I love Trunks! You won't buy one child with the promise of another!'

The Kai looked disappointed. 'Bulma,' he sighed. 'You're not going to get him back. We can't let you try, and if you did, have you learnt nothing from Vegeta's tale? You won't get him back no matter what you do!'

Bulma's lips started to go numb. Surely he wasn't right? Surely their plan was workable? They just needed time! She needed to buy herself the chance!

'I'll…I'll destroy the time machine! I'll never build another! Please, just don't kill me or take my brain!'

The Kai cocked his head. He smiled, but he looked sad. 'We've tried this before,' he said. 'I trust you Bulma, except when it comes to your children. We both know you're lying. You'll build another just as soon as you think my attention is off you.'

Bulma let out a wail of desperation. Her brain danced about, looking for a way out of this predicament. Dimly she registered that it had been a while since they had shifted scenery. Time! Yes, she just needed a little more time.

She cried out and grasped the front of the Kai's tunic, bowing her head and letting her tears fall on him. She wished that his hold over her allowed her to fall to her knees; she wanted to make this as theatrical and distracting as possible.

'Please, Supreme Kai, is there no other way?'

'No…other way. I'm sorry Bulma.'

She looked up again – looking into his surprised eyes, making hers as wide and beseeching as possible. 'I could look for a while – just one jump there and back. Please!'

'I can't let you! Just those two jumps would create two new timelines, and one of those contains another Bulma, who no doubt, will go on to create another time machine to make untold damage.' He put a hand on the back of her head. 'I'm sorry. I wish it didn't have to be this way.' He looked truly upset. Good! She was upset too! It was her son, life and brain on the line!

'Then I need more time to decide! Please, I can't decide between death and lobotomy like this!'

'I understand. I could give you-'

'A week?'

'No! You could finish the time machine in that amount of time! A few hours perhaps.'

'Four days!'

'One. And then the decision will be made for you.'

'Three! Please!'

'All right, two then. It's all-'

The Kai's face was suddenly lit by a warm golden glow. Bulma saw the instant when his face moved from sympathy to shock. Vegeta's fist closed on the Kai's tunic at the same time, and then she was pulled along at speed just above the snowy ground. The Kai vanished and so did whatever force held her to him. She crashed into a drift of snow, coming up spluttering and shivering and saw Vegeta burning brightly, grasping the Kai's empty red tunic and looking up over her head.

'Keep away from my Woman! I'll kill you next time, immortal being or not!'

'Desist Vegeta! This is enough! You've gone well beyond all sympathy we Kai have held for you! You're deranged!'

Vegeta certainly looked deranged right now. He was furious, The golden light of his Super Saiyan form lit up speckles of spit that flew from his mouth when he snarled 'I am not!'

'You'll never fulfil your plan! Never!'

Vegeta breathed hard, but then mastered himself. 'Well you're wrong. I'm almost there! I'm two jumps from home!'

'You've said that before.'

'Well the other times I was lying!'

'Listen to yourself. Even if you are only two jumps from your end, you're not going home! You're two more shattered universes from living in your custom created fantasy world! Only it's two universes of real souls you're building it from!'

Vegeta said nothing for a moment – his eyes were wide on the Kai. Then he let out a howl of rage and pain. Snow and ice were whipped up, dragged on a wind that spiralled towards Vegeta. He was powering up.

'What do you think you're doing?' yelled the Kai.

Vegeta closed his fists on the air around him, pulling them to him as if pulling in the invisible power that swirled around him. The golden light intensified, and electricity crackled over the surface of his skin. His hair, already golden, stood up in icy hard spikes, his whole aspect appearing to harden into something tougher than flesh and blood. Bulma felt goosebumps rise all over her body, even her own hair was trying to stand on its end from the charge in the air. If he'd looked like a golden angel of mercy as a Super Saiyan, he now looked like a vengeful archangel. She'd never seen this before – what was he?

The Kai's mouth popped open, and then he was gone in the same moment that Vegeta arrived at the spot he had been. Bulma didn't have time to form words before Vegeta was behind her, wrapping an arm around her middle. The frozen landscape was gone and they hung in midair in the hangar.

With horror she saw Android Sixteen take a blow to the chest from the Supreme Kai, a blow that smashed him through the area of the hangar that she'd set up as a smithy, scattering casts, clay pots and an anvil before he slammed into the wall – several feet into the wall. But he rebounded at a run, heading directly back at the Kai who was now turning on the spot to see Vegeta. The Kai held a ball of energy in his fist that he threw not at Vegeta or her, but at the half-built time machine. Vegeta was in it's path as soon as it was let loose, leaving her falling to the floor from six feet in the air. She saw him absorb the blast before she hit the floor hard enough to snap her jaw shut, and jar her feet, ankles, knees and wrists.

Putting the pain out of her head she looked around the hangar for the Kai, but he was gone. Vegeta still floated in front of the time machine. Sixteen was marching towards her looking concerned. He had a large dent on his green body armour and concrete dust in his hair, but he didn't look damaged other wise.

'Bulma Briefs, are you all right?' he asked.

'Yes, but where is the Kai?'

Vegeta barked a reply. 'I'm trying to locate him!' He was frowning in concentration. Whatever he was doing must've been hard because he closed his eyes then and brought two fingers to rest on his forehead as if trying to focus his effort there. When he finally opened his eyes it was with an explosive breath.

'He's gone. He must be back on the Planet of the Kais. It's the only place I can't follow him.'

'I guess they must be watching us from there now,' said Bulma, amazed at how level her voice sounded. 'He seemed to know exactly the right time and place to visit me on Earth.'

Vegeta's face twisted in pain or humiliation, she wasn't sure. Tension was etched all over him. Or perhaps it was this new form. It didn't look likely to loosen up. He dropped to the ground and came to stand in front of where she sprawled, next to Sixteen.

'The question is, when will he return?' he said.

'Two days,' replied Bulma.

Sixteen made a soft, rumbling sound of disquiet.

'Two days? Why then?' asked Vegeta.

'Did you hear our conversation?'

'Some of it. Mostly I was concentrating on trying to find you though.'

Bulma nodded. Maybe it was better if Vegeta didn't know everything that was said. Something about the way Sixteen was looking at her made her think that he at least had heard everything.

'I've got two days to decide it I want to be killed or if I want to let the Kai scramble my brain and live out the rest of my days.' With you, was what she didn't add. She wasn't sure how he'd react right now if she told him he'd been thrown in as a sweetener for the Kai's deal. As this thought flitted through her mind she laughed at the notion of Vegeta being a sweetener. Sweet was the furthest thing from what he looked right now. She put her hand over her mouth to stifle the laugh, aware that it would look like she was hysterical if she started cracking up now. This made her laugh harder. Perhaps she was hysterical?

'Bulma!' barked Vegeta, getting down on his knees. 'What's going on in there? Did he do something to you?'

This poured cold water on her amusement. Had he already done it? Could he have taken that part of her already, and not told her? She didn't feel any different, but then again, he'd said that she might not notice most of the time. 'I don't know!' she said.

'Shit, shit!' cried Vegeta. He looked around and grabbed the first thing to hand. 'What's this?' he asked her.

'It's…it's a…' Panic was getting the better of her – she couldn't think of the words. Vegeta shook her, which made Sixteen upset.

'You will hurt her Vegeta. If she doesn't know, she doesn't know.'

Vegeta stood up and angrily threw down the thing he was holding, which chimed loudly as it rebounded off the concrete floor, flew up and hit the ceiling before landing and bouncing away again, under the chassis of the time machine.

Bulma was outraged by such treatment of a tool. 'Hey Mister, that's one of my father's best socket wrenches! What do you think you're doing?'

Vegeta looked back at her, narrowly. 'So you do know?'

She realised that of course she did. 'It's a titanium alloy socket wrench with a size sixteen head attached! Which you've likely ruined now!'

'What about this then?' He pointed at some wires that hung from the machine.

'Lower hatch release controls. Or they will be.'

Vegeta relaxed a tiny bit. 'Two days…In two days, I don't suppose you could-'

'No,' she said flatly. 'I can't finish it in two days. Even if I didn't sleep at all, it would take me longer than a week. And like you said, sleep deprivation and time travel don't mix.'

Vegeta rubbed his hands over his face and gave a defeated 'ha!' Whatever form he had been holding he let it relax now, softening into the gentler glow of a Super Saiyan.

'Then I will just have to be ready for when he returns.'

She tried to get to her feet, grimacing at her sore wrists, but then gasping at her ankles and feet. Pain lanced through them. Yup, she'd jarred them good. Sixteen stepped forward and lifted her in his arms like she weighed nothing.

'You are injured Ms Briefs. Let me assist you.'

Bulma felt bad for every distrustful thought she'd had for Android Sixteen. He'd defended her machine, taken a beating and was trying to minimise her pain. He truly had a noble and caring central processing unit. Still, she wished Vegeta was the one holding her. She looked over at him, could see him lost in dark forebodings.

'Let me check the house and the rest of the lab first,' Vegeta said, coming to himself. 'I don't trust the Kai.'

Sixteen propped her up in the corner of the padded bench seat next to the dining table and wrapped ice from the freezer in a tea towel to compress on her ankles. The ice was cold; she began to shiver, so Sixteen fetched her a blanket to wrap herself in. She hadn't realised that she was soaked through from rain, snow and sweat.

Please don't go into shock, she told herself. I don't have time.

Two days. She could already feel precious minutes slipping past her. She had Sixteen bring her the laptop, some buttered toast, and hot tea with two sugars from her precious sugar supply. She could ice her ankles, write sub routines and stave off shock all at the same time.

'What will you chose if the Kai fellow catches you again?'

Bulma looked up, unpleasantly reminded. 'I don't know. I don't want to die while Trunks is in some other universe. Neither do I want to live as a mental cripple and then still die while he is in another universe.'

'But you could have some years of happiness with Vegeta, if you chose to live.'

'If I chose to have a part of myself excised you mean. I don't know if I'd even be me after the Kai's scrapped that part of me away.'

'Take the sharp edge off your IQ you mean? It's no different from what you did to Seventeen.'

'Huh,' she said, feeling just a small pang of shame. 'Yes it is different. Strength is not your personality or soul.'

'I believe that intellect is not your soul either. Am I wrong?'

Bulma sulked, knowing that he was right, but not wanting to make the prospect of mental incapacitation sound less horrific than she felt it to be. 'Doesn't really matter what I want anyway, does it? If Vegeta's dream is smashed, will he want to stay here with me? He loves his Bulma, his other universe Bulma, not me. Especially if I'm not the same in the head.'

'I think he cares for you,' said the android. 'Although, I am not well versed in human interactions.'

'Yes, you've been activated for what? Two and a half months now? Vegeta cares for me because I'm a means to an end. And I remind him of his wife. But I'm not his wife.'

All at once she felt heavy with despair. Every which way she turned in this situation was heartbreak. This life was not fair.

The sound of someone on the stair made her look up, and Vegeta entered, still glowing, but the light flickered and went out as he crossed to the dining table. He was just plain Vegeta now, looking as tired and defeated as she felt. He tucked something in the pocket of his jeans as he sat down next to her – the communicator.

Brilliant, she thought to herself glumly. So he's heard all that then.

He put his head in his hands, his fingers laced through his black spikes of hair. She couldn't take her eyes off him. Sixteen placed some tea in front of him, but Vegeta made no acknowledgement.

When he at last lifted his head he said 'I'm sorry Bulma.'

She blinked. Sorry was not a word she'd heard much from Vegeta's lips. 'What for exactly?'

'I failed us.'

'But you saved me.'

'But I let him get to you in the first place.'

'That wasn't really your fault.'

'Yes it was! I let my eyes off you. I let my mind off you. I knew he was hunting. I failed you in more ways than you know, so stop arguing!'

Bulma sat still, watching the display of abject regret before her. Her wasn't really looking at her, but at her hands around the mug she held.

'It won't happen again!' he hissed. 'I'm not going to let it all come undone! You won't have to give him an answer because he won't get a chance to ask the question.' He glanced up at her face and away again. 'Now, take this,' he said, brandishing something small, pale and shiny.

'A Senzu bean?' she exclaimed, scandalised. 'I'm not that badly hurt. I doubt anything is even broken!'

'You're hurt enough to be off your feet,' he said sternly, looking at her again. 'We don't have time for you to be lazing around recovering.'

'But it's a Senzu bean! It's precious!'

'From Korin, with love! Now don't argue, take it!' He reached over, forcing her mouth open with one hand and jamming the bean between her teeth with the other, standing over her and glaring at her like the scariest mother hen that ever existed. She thought he might actually force her to chew and swallow it too, so she quickly complied. It was a tasteless thing, crunchy on the outside and creamy in the middle. She washed it down with some tea and then felt the strangest sensation spread from her stomach.

Vegeta looked on with a grim expression as a slow wave of tingling moved throughout her body, erasing every sore spot, eliminating every bruise, knitting each strain and undoing the knot of every minor kink in her body. When it was done, she stood up gasping, suddenly more full of energy and ease than she had been in years.

'Wow that's powerful stuff!' she said. 'I don't think I've felt this good since I was about twenty years old!'

'Good,' said Vegeta, picking up his mug of tea and pausing to down it in one. 'Because you've got plenty more work to do today.'