Destiny
Chapter 25: Looking Back
"You two. Let's go." Vegeta stood up and left the dining room. Kinomi and Tarble exchanged confused glances. They assumed he was talking to them. They finished shoveling food into their mouths and followed their elder brother outside the house.
Raditz raised an eyebrow as he watched the royal siblings leave. "What do you think they're up to?" he asked with his mouth still full.
"Maybe he wants to spar with them," Turles answered with a shrug. The words settled for a moment before everyone looked up from their food. Stuffing a few bites into their mouths, the remaining men rose from the table and left as well, leaving Chichi and Bulma with the children.
Chichi shook her head. "Well I guess we'll get started cleaning."
Outside, Tarble and Kinomi stood together a few feet from their brother. Tarble nudged Kinomi. "What do you think we should do? Is he going to fight both of us at once?" he asked quietly.
"That would be fine. The only ki you're allowed to use is ki for flying," Vegeta said. He smirked at the face Tarble made. "You act like my hearing isn't as good as yours."
"Fine, Geta. Just give us a moment to plan our attack." Kinomi started stretching. "But I warn you. Tarble's really fast."
The others came outside to see that the spar had yet to start. Tarble was watching Vegeta as Kinomi stretched beside him. Raditz caught her eye as she was bent over. She smirked and winked at him. Rolling his eyes, he followed his brothers and Nappa to a cluster of rocks to watch the proceedings.
"Ready?" Tarble asked.
"Hn." Still in her awkward stretching position, Kinomi phased away from Tarble.
Vegeta jumped into the air, deftly dodging his sister's kick. He'd expected her to attack first and unexpectedly, but that made it expected. What Vegeta had not planned on was Tarble's attack. He had not even seen his younger brother move. Before the elder prince could block Tarble kicked him from behind. He fell forward but as he was catching himself, Kinomi came from above and brought her hands down on his back. Vegeta went flying to the ground.
The twins tagged each other and headed for the cloud of dust where Vegeta landed. Something zoomed past them. They both stopped and turned. Tarble grabbed Kinomi's arm and swung her behind him. Vegeta became visible when his punch missed his sister. He turned his head to see Tarble swinging Kinomi in his direction. Throwing up his left arm to block her foot, he then took hold of her extended leg and wrenched her from Tarble's grasp. He tossed Kinomi down to the ground, grabbed Tarble by his head, and brought his knee to the younger prince's face.
The elder prince crossed his arms. He was impressed at the teamwork the twins exhibited. Had he been a weaker opponent he would have been overtaken quite easily. Tarble is faster; much faster. His strikes aren't particularly strong, though. Kinomi... is definitely physically stronger, Vegeta mused. Just as he lowered himself back to the ground, the twins attacked him from both sides. This was going to be a fun day.
Vegeta opened his eyes. Frowning, he pulled himself up from his bed. Leaning forward, he put a hand to his head and checked on Bulma. Her mind was still relaxed. She must not be awake yet, he thought. Getting to his feet, he decided to get dressed and head to find something to eat.
The mess hall was relatively deserted considering all the people that resided in the fortress. Vegeta walked to one of the meal dispensaries and swiped his credits card. He put in his order and three capsules were dispensed into his hand. He took the three capsules and walked over to a round table. Vegeta opened all three capsules on the table and three meals appeared before him. He got started on the one directly in front of him.
Zarbon walked into the mess hall. He was surprised to see Vegeta there so early. He knew Vegeta was a creature of habit and rarely did he deviate from his schedule. Anything outside of that was highly out of character for him. Narrowing his eyes, Zarbon retrieved his own food capsule and made his way to Vegeta's table. The prince did not flinch as he sat down and opened the capsule.
"Lord Frieza is very pleased with you, even if you did not bring back what he asked," Zarbon said right as he began eating. There was no change in Vegeta. "That blue-haired wench is very important to him."
Vegeta raised an eyebrow. He stopped eating momentarily as he pushed the first plate away and pulled the second to him. "I fail to see why Frieza would waste his time on such a pathetically weak creature," he said blandly. "What purpose does she serve to Frieza?" He discreetly watched Zarbon squeeze his fork. As far as the other man knew, Vegeta had not regained his memories and had no idea who Bulma was. Vegeta just wanted to see where this conversation would lead.
"Her physical strength is not what she's needed for. Her mind is what Frieza considers precious." Zarbon heard Vegeta snort. "What?"
"Frieza wants to use her for her brain and he sends her to Dodoria to be tortured? That seems awfully counterproductive." Vegeta started on his third meal.
That had never crossed Zarbon's mind. "Lord Frieza would not have her tortured beyond repair. Dodoria knows her limits."
The prince grunted as he hurriedly finished his meal. He sneered when he saw how little Zarbon ate. An idea came to mind. "Spar with me," he said simply.
Zarbon nearly choked on his food. He looked up at Vegeta in surprise. It was one thing for the two to actually converse without insults eventually being tossed about. It was another for Vegeta to ask to spar with him. Well, he didn't exactly ask, Zarbon thought as he narrowed his eyes. What is he playing at?
"What's the matter? Surely you aren't afraid." Vegeta smirked as he stood.
The green-haired man inwardly sighed at Vegeta's slight. "Of course not. It just wouldn't do if I killed one of Frieza's favored by accident."
"Oh you won't have to worry about that."
Bulma jerked awake when she heard noises from outside the metal box. She could barely open her eyes. Her throat was dry and her lips were chapped. It took a moment for her to realize that the low whistling sound was her slow hoarse breathing. She was so hot. It was a miracle she had even gotten any sleep, let alone woke up.
Why did I wake up? Did I hear something? Did I imagine it?
"You better not be dead in there!" Dodoria's voice boomed from outside the box. Startled, Bulma tried to move but found that besides being practically glued to the metal, her body was just too weak to make any sudden movements. When the top of the box flew off, Bulma squeezed her eyes shut. "Time to get up, little princess." Dodoria grabbed Bulma by her sore arm and pulled her out of the box.
Bulma bit down on her dry lip to keep from screaming. It felt like some of her skin had literally been ripped off. She was not surprised to feel the blood running down her left leg and arm. Dodoria gave her no time to adjust to standing and instead lifted her over his shoulder. Bulma exhaled slowly as she released her lip from her teeth. The air was still stuffy and stale but compared to the box it was damn near freezing.
Dodoria carried Bulma out of the torture chamber and down the hall. Bulma saw what looked like waves on the floor. She craned her neck to see a large, clear tank of water. Her eyes widened when she realized what Dodoria was about to do. Without much fanfare, he simply tossed her up in the air and into the tank.
The cold water hit Bulma like millions of pin pricks stabbing her repeatedly all over her body. Her heartbeat was pounding in her ears. She involuntarily drew in several breaths only to swallow more and more water. Her arms were still tied behind her back so she could not swim to the surface in order to breathe. She sank to the bottom of the deep tank. With her lungs starting to burn, Bulma looked outside of the tank. Dodoria was smiling. She continued to watch him and stopped struggling.
The pink alien's smile disappeared when he saw Bulma had gone still. He started to step forward to grab her out but something hit him in the face. He looked down at the floor and saw that it was a piece of glass. A few more pieces of glass fell to the floor. Little streams of water were coming from the minuscule holes in the tank. Dodoria watched on in shock as cracks began to spread across the glass. He shielded his eyes as the glass finally shattered. The room was immediately filled to his ankles in water. When he looked back to where the tank had been, all that was left was Bulma lying in the center of the metal floor of the tank. Grumbling, he walked over to her and rolled her over onto her back. She did not appear to be breathing.
I don't know what happened, Dodoria bent down and gave Bulma's chest a few hard pushes, but I'm lucky it did. I have to be more careful. Frieza will kill me if the bitch dies. After a few more hard pushes on her chest, Bulma started coughing. Dodoria turned her on her side so she could get the water out of her lungs.
Once her lungs were clear, Bulma inhaled deeply for much needed air. She had unconsciously used her powers again. That has not happened in a long time. I have to maintain control, she scolded herself. She winced when Dodoria grabbed her by her arm and lifted her again. He hoisted her over his shoulder and returned to the Vault.
"I think it's about time for you to heal up a bit. Wouldn't want you to get too used to the pain," Dodoria said. He walked over to the old rejuvenation tank and started it up. He sat Bulma down in it. For the first time, he remembered her arms were still tied behind her back. Sighing, he untied them. Her arms swung forward limply. There were angry red marks around Bulma's tiny wrists. He was not completely sure if they would heal all the way. Shrugging off his worries, he placed an oxygen mask on Bulma's face and closed her inside. "An hour should do. I'll see you soon, princess."
Bulma watched Dodoria leave the room. Her heart had finally slowed down and it did not feel as though it would burst through her ribcage. She relaxed when she felt the cool healing fluid start to fill the tank. Closing her eyes, she felt herself giving in to unconsciousness again.
"By the gods, I would gladly take being whipped to this pure TORTURE!" With that, she let loose a bloodcurdling scream. She grabbed hold of Nappa again and squeezed his arm.
It was not long before Chichi and Kinomi both entered the room. Nappa managed to sneak away from Bulma's grasp before she could grab him again. His ears were still ringing from her scream. He was barely out of the room before she screamed again.
"How far are they apart, Bulma?" Chichi asked as she sat a tub of warm water down. She then put on some gloves. Kinomi was already in the process of cutting away Bulma's pants. Bulma did not manage to answer Chichi before another contraction ripped through her. Chichi's eyes widened as she felt the child's ki spike even higher than before. She frowned. There was distress in the ki. There was also more than one. "How could we have missed that?" she whispered.
"Missed what?" Bulma managed to get out before another contraction came.
Kinomi finished tearing away Bulma's pants and paused. "Uh, Chichi?" She tugged on Chichi's shirt. "This is way too much blood."
Bulma watched as Chichi nodded and placed a hand on her womb. Her face confirmed her thoughts. There were two babies; twins. While Chichi was happy with this, she knew Bulma needed to give birth and quickly. "Bulma, lift your knees and spread your legs."
"Can't... move..." Bulma whispered. Kinomi nodded and did it for her with her now-gloved hands. "It's like they don't stop. There's no time for me to..."
Chichi tuned Bulma out as another scream filled the air. She continued to feel around Bulma's womb. There was definitely a problem. "Bulma, when the next contraction hits I need you to push as hard as you can."
"Chichi, I can't... It hurts so..."
"PUSH!" Kinomi yelled. Shocked into action, Bulma did as she was told. She reached out for anything to grab onto. Kinomi took her hand and let Bulma hold on to her. She looked down at Chichi. The other woman nodded. "He's coming fast! Again, Bulma!"
It went on for the next five minutes like that. Chichi smiled when she saw the small tail that followed after the baby. When she felt the slight resistance, she frowned. The child's tail was clinging to something. Chichi softly stroked it to get the baby to react. A loud squall was heard as the baby expressed his discomfort and the resistance gave away.
"Kinomi," Chichi said. Kinomi pulled away from Bulma and took the child from Chichi. She immediately went to the tub of water and cleaned the child. She wrapped him in a towel and laid him on a little palette.
Bulma turned her head when she saw Kinomi sit her son down. She smiled weakly at the sound of his crying. "If I ever see your brother again I'm going to murder him," she whispered.
Kinomi chuckled as she resumed her position at Bulma's side. "No you won't. You'll cry and fawn over him like he's some sort of god. Hell, I bet you'd even jump his bones the moment you see him," she said, earning an amused snort from Bulma.
In her euphoric reverie at seeing her baby, Bulma forgot all about her contractions. Her eyes went back to her newborn son. He was still crying and his tail was thrashing about wildly. It was not until she heard Chichi practically screaming her name that she was drawn back to reality. "Huh?"
"This is going to hurt, Bulma," Chichi said. Bulma appeared confused for a moment but then she noticed that she was still having contractions. "The baby is turned awkwardly. If you give birth like that, the baby will be deprived of air and... things could go wrong. I'm going to have to take the baby out manually."
"Wait. What? Manually? You mean... I thought I just..." Bulma inhaled sharply when another contraction passed.
"She's lost so much blood already, Cheech. Can she handle this? She isn't as strong as us," Kinomi said quietly. She'd noticed how incredibly pale Bulma had gotten. She saw Chichi nod as well. The other woman looked very concerned. "I'm going to tell one of the guys to get Moori."
Bulma opened her eyes when she heard Kinomi leave. Chichi had lowered her legs and was now hovering over her. She ripped Bulma's shirt up to her breasts and looked down at her swollen womb. The Saiyan held up her right hand, showing a small knife of some sort. "Do it," she said hoarsely.
"Are you ready?" Chichi asked without looking at her face. Just as Bulma began to nod, Chichi made an incision. Bulma threw her head back and screamed.
Vegeta threw water on his face while in the shower. Why that particular memory of Bulma's had played out in his mind during his entire spar with Zarbon left him bewildered. Bulma had said she had it hard but he never imagined that it would have been that hard. Having the child carved right out of her without proper anesthetics? Vegeta had a newfound appreciation for Bulma's strength. Childbirth, he thought with a shudder. Then his thoughts drifted to his spar with Zarbon.
Frieza's right hand had been tougher than Vegeta thought. The prince still held back a great deal so as not to give Zarbon too much of an idea of his full power. Vegeta had purposely not led Zarbon to his hideous transformation. That would have alerted Zarbon immediately. "Let the bastard believe he is stronger than I am. It'll make the look on his face that much sweeter when I rip his entrails out and shove them down his throat," Vegeta said to himself.
The prince stepped out of the shower and quickly dressed. He threw his regular armor on. Frieza had called for him. He probably had some meaningless mission ready for the prince. Vegeta had nearly forgotten that he was still working for the overlord.
Zarbon's pride had taken a major hit. He had fought Vegeta to a stalemate. He used to be able to destroy the younger prince with a few punches. It was quite clear that he had grown stronger. The little punk was probably still withholding his power. I should've been wearing a scouter. He nearly forced me into my transformation, he angrily thought. He pictured the disinterested look on Vegeta's face as they had sparred and it only served to make him angrier.
Now that he thought about it, Vegeta had looked rather distracted the entire spar. It was almost like he had been on autopilot. There were certain moments when Zarbon had managed to take him off guard and knock him back into the present. Other than those times, he rarely got a hit on the prince. Of course, it had not been like Vegeta was paying that close attention to him anyway.
Something isn't right with Vegeta. He's hiding something.
Zarbon came to the door leading to Frieza and straightened his armor. The door opened and he was mildly surprised to see Dodoria speaking with Frieza. The spiked alien seemed a bit distressed. Zarbon walked slowly up to the two speaking. Frieza was shaking his head.
"My lord, she has only been in my care for one night. Are you sure that enough has been done?" Dodoria asked.
Frieza nodded. "I'd rather not put out that fire inside of her. Knowing your methods, she'll be a catatonic by the time you're done with her. Complete her healing all the way. Then bring her here. I would like to have a few words with her." The tyrant noticed Zarbon standing there. "Ah! There you are! Where have you been all morning?"
Zarbon cleared his throat and made a little bow. "I was training with Vegeta, my lord."
"With Vegeta?" Frieza's face was one of dull surprise. "You didn't kill him, did you?"
"No, my lord. I'm positive he's actually grown in strength. He was able to keep up with me in my base form."
A grin spread across Frieza's face. "Well that is certainly nice to hear. I would almost be disappointed in him if my pet had not grown in strength all these years." The overlord noticed the grim look on Zarbon's face. "You're worried?"
"It's just that..." Zarbon trailed off. He did not want to show weakness or fear in front of Frieza. While he was concerned about Vegeta's true power, he would not let on that he was to Frieza. "It is nothing, my lord. I just think we need to keep a closer eye on Vegeta."
"I'm certain we do. I have a new job for him. There are a few more bases we've located that I want taken care of. I'm sending you and Dodoria in his place for now. His new assignment will keep him busy," Frieza said.
Bulma opened her eyes when she felt the movement of the healing fluid. Why did I just dream of my pregnancy? She saw that the tank was beginning to drain. Dodoria was standing in front of her and he did not look pleased. Bulma did notice that he carried a new bodysuit in his arms. When the tank opened, Dodoria tossed the bodysuit at her. She held it in her hands and looked down at it. Then she shakily stepped out of the tank and began to get dressed.
"Frieza has decided that you have learned your lesson. Hurry up and dress," Dodoria snapped.
After doing what he said, Bulma followed Dodoria out of the room. If she never saw this part of the fortress again it would be too soon. But now, she had no idea where Dodoria was going to take her. Was she going to see Frieza? Was she going to a cell? Dodoria had said nothing else on the subject. They stepped in the elevator and the door shut behind them.
Having become accustomed to the darkness of the Vault, Bulma was temporarily blinded by the bright fluorescent lights of the upper floors of the base. Her eyes took longer to adjust than she would have liked. Dodoria pulled her arm in order to keep her beside him. Once she fell into step with him, Bulma callously shrugged him off.
Vegeta, where are you?
Woman, why are you...
Just tell me where you are. Dodoria is taking me somewhere and I don't know where. All he said is that Frieza was relieving me.
Meanwhile, Vegeta mentally rolled his eyes. Before him, Frieza was droning on about some new assignment he was being given; an assignment that had nothing to do with capturing and destroying rebel bases. Vegeta just wanted Frieza to hurry up and tell him what it was. "Any idea when you'll be getting to the fucking point?"
Frieza stopped talking and blinked at Vegeta. He took a deep breath and decided to ignore his favorite's crass language and manners. "Do you recall that girl you brought back?"
"The one with the odd-colored hair? What about her?"
Thee overlord nodded. "She has history of... running off. She's also very valuable to me. Like you, she's a favorite of mine. Her abilities are invaluable."
Vegeta narrowed his eyes. "I am not a babysitter, Frieza. I am a warrior. Find someone else to take care of your little witch." The prince turned to leave but was stopped when the door slid open.
Dodoria grabbed Bulma's arm and threw her forward into the room. She stumbled for a moment and into Vegeta. She looked up at him and immediately stepped away. She watched Vegeta give her a quick once-over and then he sneered at her. Bulma rolled her eyes and stepped around him to see Frieza.
"Come here, Bulma," Frieza said, holding his right hand out. Bulma narrowed her eyes but walked forward nonetheless. She glanced down at Frieza's outstretched hand. Slowly, she put her hand in his. Frieza's fingers quickly closed around her wrists and pulled her forward. He held her close and examined her arms and neck. He took notice of her face and hair. "I do wish you had not cut those gorgeous locks of yours."
"I'm getting really tired of you assholes slinging me around like I'm a puppet. I'm perfectly capable of moving on my own," Bulma hissed. Frieza simply shrugged and took hold of her chin. He pulled her face closer to his and squeezed to make her open her mouth. As Bulma held her mouth open, he examined her teeth. After a moment, he released her brusquely. Bulma took a few steps back and rubbed her chin.
Frieza turned his narrowed gaze to Dodoria. "You better be glad they are growing back."
"I was aware that they would, my lord. You know I would never disobey a direct order," Dodoria said quickly.
"Did you at least keep the teeth?" Dodoria shook his head. "Go and fish them out of whatever hole you threw them in, you imbecile."
"Yes, my lord!" Dodoria turned and hightailed it out of the room.
Bulma raised an eyebrow as she watched him go. Then she glanced over at Frieza. "What do you need my teeth for?"
"You wouldn't be interested in hearing about my side projects, Bulma. You should be hoping Dodoria finds them. If he doesn't I'll just have him pull some more." Frieza smiled when he saw Bulma tense up. He turned his attention back to Vegeta. "Do what you want with her, Vegeta. Just make sure she stays alive and on this planet."
Vegeta shook his head. "I already said I am not babysitting this woman, Frieza. Find someone else for this menial chore."
Frieza's smile disappeared. "She is much craftier than she looks, Vegeta. You are not the type to give in to a pair of big, blue eyes. That's why this is your mission."
If only you knew, Frieza... Bulma mentally smirked when she thought of how easily Vegeta gave in to Okura whenever she looked at him with big glassy eyes. Vegeta shot her a glare and she straightened up.
"Do I have to make this a direct order, Vegeta?" Frieza asked. Vegeta mumbled under his breath in his native language and turned his head away from Frieza. "I don't really care how you treat her. Just make sure she stays sane and unblemished. Besides, I'm sure she'll make a great bed-warmer."
The prince growled at the implications of Frieza's words and walked towards Bulma. He grabbed her by her arm and pulled her out of the room. The two moved quickly through the halls. Bulma tried to wriggle away from Vegeta but he would not release her. He said nothing nor did he look at her. Eventually, Bulma stopped struggling and tried to keep pace with him.
When Vegeta arrived at their destination, he put in the code for his room. The door slid open and he pushed Bulma inside. He stepped in behind her and shut the door. He opened his mouth to speak but paused. Something was strange.
"Even if you are keeping up an act, you don't have to be so rough, Vegeta," Bulma said, rubbing her arm. She turned around to see Vegeta looking cautiously around the room. She straightened up and watched him. He began moving around the room. He seemed to be... sniffing. "Is something wrong?"
Vegeta grunted but said nothing. He started walking towards Bulma. He stood right in front of her. "Someone has been in here. Probably to plant some sort of observation device." He watched Bulma immediately cover her mouth and shook his head. "The cameras here only capture visuals, not sound. You are free to say whatever you want, just watch your actions."
Bulma nodded and lowered her hands. "Why would Frieza put cameras in your room?" she asked.
"Why else do people hide cameras in places? He obviously wants to set something up between us and I have a few guesses what it is. He gave away more than he intended when he started discussing your teeth." Vegeta motioned for her to open her mouth. Bulma did and he looked at the spaces where her molars used to be. True to form, they were growing back. He then looked over her. "What else did he do?"
She closed her mouth and sighed. "I'm not going to tell you, Vegeta. It no longer matters. It's over." Bulma walked away from him. She sat down on the bed and glanced around the bare room. "Wow. I know you are a man of few possessions, Vegeta, but this is just ridiculous."
Vegeta was suddenly on top of Bulma. He pinned her hands above her head and lowered his face to hers. She was not tense, but she was looking at him questioningly. "If we're being watched, I cannot be nice to you. You already know this, woman. We are not safe even in here."
"So are you telling me that you're going to slap me around some more?"
"Of course not, woman. I don't hit women." He ran a gloved hand down her arm to her face. "I do torture them, however." He got up off the bed and released her.
Bulma sat up and frowned. "That is not funny, Vegeta."
"It wasn't a joke, woman. I was serious. I was under the influence for five years." The prince disappeared into the adjoining bathroom, leaving Bulma sitting there with her mouth hanging open.
AN: Short chapter. Well… My chapters are actually pretty long anyway but this is rather short for me. I had to cut this one short because what's next just doesn't go with this chapter. So yeah. Sorry for the obscenely long wait!