Empire

Chapter 34: Never A Dull Moment

Five Years Later...

Planet Earth – East City

Bulma leaned against the wall just outside of the ballroom. She could hear the talking going on inside. There was a great party going on inside. It was in celebration of the five-year anniversary of Vegeta and Bulma's marriage and coronation. Of course, Mieke and Chichi had thrown it against Bulma's wishes. Bulma was not feeling up to attending the party, but knew she would be missed by her friends, and by those gossipers.

The queen had been hearing the gossip throughout the empire about how she had not yet conceived an heir for her king. It was not for lack of trying, either. The couple did it whenever they possibly could; whether it was appropriate or not. Vegeta kept telling her that he was in no particular rush to be a father, but Bulma felt differently. Everywhere she went, she could hear the whispers. Even now, she could hear them as she leaned against the wall.

"Where is the queen?"

"She hasn't made an appearance yet?"

"No. She's probably hiding out. You know, I have heard that the king won't touch her."

"You lie! Why wouldn't he want such a beautiful girl?"

"They say she can't conceive. That's all it takes to make one undesirable. I've even heard he's taken a mistress. Probably one of her ladies on Vegeta-sei."

"I'd kill to be his mistress. The queen doesn't know how lucky she is."

Bulma sighed and decided to make herself known at that moment. None of what those inconsiderate gossipers said was true. Vegeta would never take a mistress. She turned the corner and just stood there to glare at the women. They took notice of her and immediately curtsied.

"Your majesty," they said together. Bulma just glared at them and pushed her way through them. She made her way across the floor, causing everyone to stop and bow to her.

Vegeta looked up as he saw everyone making way for Bulma. She had a determined look on her face, but he could see straight through it. She ascended the steps and sat down in a huff next to him. She remained silent for a full five minutes before Vegeta finally spoke, which was unusual.

"Odd," he said. Bulma turned her head.

"What's odd?" she said snappishly. Vegeta blinked at her tone.

"You would usually berate me for not mingling. Instead, you come up here looking like you want to curse the universe. Then, you sit in silence. I've never had to break the silence," Vegeta said. "And I haven't done anything to you... yet. Don't get testy with me." Bulma sighed.

"I'm sorry, Vegeta. I just overheard some gossip aga..."

"Why do you let those air-headed women get to you?" Vegeta cut her off. "There is nothing wrong with you. It'll come in due time. If you want, we can go try now," he said. Bulma smirked.

"No. We're the guests of honor." Bulma looked back out at the party. "The newest batch of hearsay is that you've taken a mistress," she said with a chuckle. Vegeta shook his head.

"Oh really?" he asked. "What a load of rubbish. You human women are ridiculous. When would I have the time to take a mistress? I'm with you all the time," he said. Bulma laughed.

"You know, I think I'll take you up on that offer now," she said while glancing at him out of the corner of her eye. Vegeta smirked.

"I knew you'd see it my way," he said. He took her hand and pulled her to her feet.

Chichi watched the king and queen disappear through the side doors of the ballroom. Kakarrot watched along with her as they danced on the floor. He shook his head and smiled.

"Are they always at it like rabbits?" Chichi asked. Kakarrot shrugged.

"You should see them when they're on Vegeta-sei. They disappear for hours at a time. I'm really surprised that they haven't had about four kids by now," he said. Chichi sighed. "One for every year."

"They've been married five years, Kakarrot," Chichi said. Kakarrot glanced down at her with a sheepish smile.

"Oh yeah. Right," he said.

Six months later, Bulma had finally gotten her wish, although it had come at a humongous price. She was now five months pregnant and enjoying it only about fifty percent of the time. She could not stand being confined to a bed, so she worked. She had managed to do what she told the Galactic Council she would do. She had turned Earth into a technological empire. Of course, it had required a little muscle.

Her pregnancy had not slowed her down, either. Mieke wanted her to slow down. Chichi wanted her to slow down. Even Vegeta threatened on a daily basis to strap her to their bed in Vegeta-sei. But, Bulma had threatened them with all her weapons, some of them deadly. She did not trust anyone else to make deals with other planets and kingdoms except herself. As Vegeta said himself; she did the speaking, he did the fighting.

In fact, that was how Bulma had found out she was pregnant. She had left on a trip, alone with only Brolly. A month into it, she had realized her condition. She had contacted Vegeta with the news. Needless to say, although he was somewhat happy, he was not pleased with her in general.

"You should be here, not out in the middle of space. I told you to let me accompany you," he said.

"You would've only gotten in the way, Vegeta. Brolly is perfectly capable of handling this with me. I'll be fine. I'll be home before you know it," she said.

That was the last time they had spoken; five months ago. Bulma knew Vegeta was probably worried to death. She could tell that Brolly was just as worried. He was at her side at every possible moment. She never saw him sleep. Every noise the ship made caused him to jump.

Bulma was huge now. The pain she experienced every time "Vegeta Jr." decided to use her as a punching bag was inexplicable. It was a shame she had to actually carry the child. That was what Mieke had told her. There was no gestation chamber for the queen. The heir must remain safe, so the queen had to carry the child to term.

Unfair, Bulma had thought once. But, then reason had taken over. She did not want anything to happen to their child.

Now, the queen sat in her ship, drumming her fingers on her swollen womb and humming quietly. Brolly sat across from her silently. To anyone who just randomly glanced at the queen, it would appear that she was nearing term when in fact she was only five months. Every moment or so, she would shift a bit. She appeared to be falling asleep.

"One month, my child. Then we'll be home and we can rest until you're born," Bulma whispered. The child kicked softly in response. Bulma smiled. "That was relatively tame for you. I think you're learning," she said.

Brolly watched the queen as she continued to hum softly. Lately, he had been on edge. He nerves were almost shot. Everything worried him about his queen. He did not feel as if she was completely safe. Against her orders, he had made up an escape pod just for her in case something was to go wrong. She constantly called him something like a "worry wart."

Suddenly, something felt seriously not right to the large Saiyan. He sat up straight and looked around. Bulma was still humming, having not noticed his sudden movement. Brolly stood and began moving towards the door to her room. Bulma's eyes finally opened as she noticed him passing her.

"Brolly?" she asked, starting to sit up. Brolly stopped her.

"Stay here, your majesty. I will return as quickly as possible. Do not leave for any reason and do not let anyone except me in," he said in a serious tone. Bulma nodded; he only used that tone with her when something was amiss. Bulma held her womb protectively and sat up as Brolly left.

What's going on? she thought.

Ten minutes later, Brolly returned loudly, drawing Bulma from her slight trance. Bulma watched him move towards her closet and nearly yank the door from its hinges. She started to stand but found that she could not. Her heart began to race. Her unborn child apparently felt her fear and let its concern be known with a slight kick. Bulma tried not to whimper. Instead she watched Brolly exit with what they had dubbed the "crisis bag."

"Brolly, what is going on?" she asked. Brolly said nothing and pulled her to her feet as gently as he could. As he did so, the ship rocked. Bulma looked around nervously. Brolly tried to ignore it and pulled the door off its hinges. They went into the tight corridor of the ship where soldiers were moving around in the opposite direction.

Then it happened. An explosion shook the ship, sending Bulma into Brolly. Brolly turned and caught her quickly. He looked down at her to make sure she was all right before continuing on. The lights went out for a moment. Bulma stopped walking completely before the red emergency lights came back on.

"Brolly! Tell me what's going on!" she yelled. Brolly shook his head.

"No time. I have to get you out of here. That's my first priority," he said quickly. Bulma tried to walk faster. Her child was starting to become more and more distressed because of her apparent fear. The pain was almost unbearable. She tried to calm herself. She was doing a great job until they came to the docking bay.

A space pod was waiting alone. Bulma released Brolly. Brolly threw the bag he was carrying in the pod and turned to look at the queen. She shook her head and backed away.

"I am not leaving alone, Brolly. Where am I going to go? I'm a month away from Vegeta-sei," she said. "And I'm pregnant. What if I go into labor while I'm en rou..."

"Princess Bulma. Or should I say QUEEN?" an ominous voice said.

Bulma froze. She literally stopped breathing for a moment. Brolly grabbed her by the arm and pulled her behind him hurriedly. Bulma turned around to look at the owner of the baleful voice. She finally managed to breathe again. She tried to swallow but found that her throat had run dry. She took a deep breath and said the name of the individual in a throaty voice.

"Frieza..."

"In the flesh, my queen." Frieza looked down at himself. "Well, the majority of my body is made of metal. I have you to thank for that, though." Frieza held out his arms. He was indeed about ninety-five percent metal. Bulma shook her head, wondering how it was possible that this sinister being was still alive. Brolly turned his head to the side.

"Please, Bulma, get in the damn pod and leave. I won't forgive myself if anything happens to you," he said quietly.

Bulma could not move. She was still in utter awe of Frieza's appearance on her ship. Brolly sighed and placed his hand on her chest. He pushed her lightly. It was enough to send her flying backwards and into the pod. Bulma landed less than softly. The pod closed and started up. Bulma looked up and saw an evil smile on Frieza's face right before the pod took off.

Run, little one. You won't get far, he thought.

Vegeta woke up. Something was not right. Something was awfully wrong. His intuition was usually right. He got up and immediately headed to where he could contact his queen's ship. Some soldier's were already there. When they saw the king standing in the doorway, they all looked a bit frightened. Vegeta's intuition had apparently been spot on.

"Get me a link to the queen now," Vegeta said tersely. One of the soldiers stepped up nervously. The man was literally shaking.

"Sire, we've, uh..." He stopped. Vegeta frowned and approached him with a frown on his face.

"Get... me... my... wife," he said.

"We've got something!" someone yelled from the front of the room. Vegeta glared at the other man for a moment before walking to the front of the room. A fuzzy picture started to blur in. Brolly's bloody face appeared. Vegeta's eyes widened.

"Brolly?" he whispered. "Brolly, what has happened?" he asked quickly. Brolly shook his head slowly. The large Saiyan fell to the side. Then a face Vegeta thought he would never see again, albeit somewhat different, took his place. Vegeta looked shocked for half a second. The initial shock wore off before rage took its place.

"Hello, Vegeta. It's been such a long time," Frieza said.

"Why are you still alive? Didn't the woman get rid of you?" Vegeta asked in a strained voice. He did not hear his mother walk up behind him. She gasped when she saw Frieza, but did not say anything. She merely put a hand on Vegeta's shoulder in order to keep him calm. Vegeta's shoulders relaxed a little.

"She almost did. I commend the little bitch on it. She actually had me worried. Those explosions nearly did me in. She did not count on me being able to breathe in space, though. She blew my body to bits. But, one day I'll disclose the entire story to you. Now is not the time though. I'm sure you want to know a little something else though," Frieza said in a demeaning tone. Vegeta's eyes narrowed.

"Where the fuck is my woman?" he asked. He was trying desperately to remain calm. Frieza smiled. He looked to the side at Brolly. The Saiyan guard was coughing up blood.

"I'm trying to figure that one out myself. Her dim-witted guard here refuses to divulge that information. I thought you might know." Frieza looked back at him. "It came to my attention that she's carrying your heir. That's all the more reason for me to find her. Besides, it's a dangerous universe for a weak human queen, Vegeta. We wouldn't want her to be alone. I suggest you find her before I do."

"Don't fucking touch her, Frieza. The woman won't be the one to deal with you this time," Vegeta growled. Frieza smirked.

"You shouldn't have crossed me, Vegeta. When I find your wench, she'll wish I'll just kill her and be done with it. I recommend you get a move on," Frieza said. He severed the connection.

Vegeta watched the blank screen for a moment. He turned and looked at his mother. Mieke nodded. Vegeta left the room promptly as his mother started giving orders to the men.

Vegeta went straight to his room. He began to pace back and forth. All he could see was red. It was not so much that he was angry. He was just worried. He was so worried that he could not think rationally or straight. He needed to find Bulma. He did not know where she was. He did not know if she was alive or dead. He did not know anything. He sat on his bed and put his head in his hands.

Brolly got her off the ship before Frieza could get to her. She's a survivor. She can make it on her own for awhile. She can do it. She'll make it, Vegeta thought. She has to. Vegeta sat up. He looked at his bare hands. He saw some sort of fluid on them. He wiped his face again and looked at his hands.

"Tears?" he whispered. "I am not crying." Vegeta stood and went to the mirror in the bathroom. He looked at his face and saw the liquid leaking from his eyes.

I am.

Bulma woke up several days later. Her back hurt and she had a killer headache. Luckily, the ride in the pod had not done anything to hurt her child. Unfortunately, it was extremely uncomfortable. She peered out the window of the pod. She had landed on a planet she was unfamiliar with. She pushed a few buttons and saw that the air was breathable. She suddenly remembered the events from some days ago.

I swear; there's never a dull moment in my life, she thought dismally. She shifted uncomfortably, her body still aching.

"Well, eventually, I will have to get out," Bulma mumbled. "Besides, I really have to stretch. Little Vegeta here is starting to do his morning kata," she said with a chuckle. She pushed a couple more buttons and the door opened. She climbed out and stood up in the crater. She stretched slowly and felt her back crack slightly. She sighed contentedly. Then she noticed that she had spectators.

Bulma looked at the edge of the crater and saw tiny green aliens. They had antennae sticking out of their foreheads. They looked down at her with wide eyes. They whispered to each other. Bulma raised an eyebrow. They looked harmless enough and more or less like children. She waved at them. They jumped and ran away quickly.

Well, so much for coming in peace, she thought. She looked around the crater and wondered how she was going to climb out of the crater in her condition. This should be fun. She grabbed her crisis bag and started to climb slowly. The little green aliens appeared again. Bulma sighed.

"A little help, please?" she asked. They looked at each other and went over to her. They came down the crater a bit and helped to pull her up. Bulma smiled once they reached the top. "Thanks. I'm Bulma. Who are you guys?" she asked. The aliens exchanged confused glances.

"I'm Dende. This is Hassan," one of them said. Bulma nodded. She looked around the landscape of the place. The planet looked a lot like Earth by its landscape. The only difference was that it seemed to have two suns. One looked like it was in the process of setting while the other was rising.

"Where am I?" Bulma asked, although it appeared to be mostly to herself.

"You're on Namek," Hassan answered her question happily.

Bulma looked down at him. She knew where Namek was in relation to Vegeta-sei; nowhere near it. She sighed. Brolly had really done it this time. She was way off course from either of her planets. From what she knew, the Nameks were relatively peaceful people, though. At that moment, her child let her know that he or she was hungry by dealing her one heck of a kick. She almost fell to her knees. Instead she doubled over. Hassan and Dende exchanged worried glances.

"Are you okay?" Dende asked. Bulma inhaled sharply.

"I'll be fine. It's just my baby. Do you have somewhere I could go to rest?" Bulma asked. Dende and Hassan nodded.

"Follow us."

Eighteen stared at Mieke on the large screen on Earth. She was alone in the room with the exception of Kakarrot. Mieke had just told them of Bulma's fate. Kakarrot looked worried but Eighteen's face did not portray any emotion. Instead, she looked quite tranquil and serious.

"Eighteen, you know your duty to Earth now. In the queen's absence, you will take her place. Everything rest in your hands until she returns. She WILL return safely to us," Mieke said. She looked away for a moment until she heard Kakarrot clear his throat.

"If you don't mind me asking, my lady, how is Vegeta?" he asked. Mieke sighed.

"Not well. He's holed himself up in his room. He's been in there brooding for the past five hours. I've had to set up the search parties. I might need to recall you to Vegeta-sei to watch his actions, Kakarrot. I don't want him being reckless," she said. Kakarrot nodded.

"I'm coming anyway. I'll be there within the week," he said. Mieke nodded. She looked at Eighteen, who appeared to be in deep thought.

"What is it, Eighteen? You look pensive."

"The description of Frieza you gave sounds familiar," she said. Mieke raised an eyebrow.

"You know who might've crafted Frieza's new body?"

"Yes. Humans may not be strong, but we are smart and astute. Bulma can definitely attest to that." Eighteen stared Mieke in the eye. "Is there anyone who might've wanted to help Frieza; allies, partners, relatives?" she asked. Mieke swallowed. Eighteen crossed her arms.

"Frieza does have family; an older brother and a father. But for the most part, they did not meddle in his affairs. They were not a 'close' family," Mieke said. Eighteen shook her head.

"I see. It would seem that they have 'meddled' this time."

"Well, whose work was done on Frieza?" Kakarrot asked. Eighteen sighed and looked down.

"My own father, a banished scientist, Dr. Gero." She glared at Kakarrot. "We're definitely not a CLOSE family."

Frieza "clunked" noisily down the hallways of his father's massive ship. He had lost the ability to move around quietly since acquiring his new body. Instead, he had gained mobility and power. As he turned the corner, he came face to face with his leering brother, Cooler.

"What do you want?" Frieza asked.

"Did you get that pretty little girl you're so desperately after?" Cooler asked. Frieza rolled his eyes and tried to go around him. Cooler stopped him with his arm. "I'll take that as a no. Why are after her in the first place? Shouldn't you concentrate on getting back what you lost?"

"She made me look like a fool, Cooler; a pathetic, powerless fool. If that weak... whore had done what she did to you, you'd want to skin her alive as I do, too. Now, out of my way," Frieza said. Cooler smirked and stepped out of his younger brother's way. Frieza passed him and continued to walk noisily down the hallway. Cooler leaned against the wall and watched him.

This young queen must be something special to have him this worked up, Cooler thought. He grinned evilly. I suppose I could find her first and see what whimsical talents she possesses...

AN: I had to. I could not resist. LOL