Twice Upon a Time
Summary- All Vegeta wants to do is fall asleep and wake up to see his dead wife, Bulma, in the Otherworld. Instead, Vegeta wakes up rejuvenated over thirty years in the past to find that he's been given a second chance.
Disclaimer- Dragon Ball Z is owned by Akira Toriyama and Toei Animation
AN- I updated my profile with a list of upcoming fanfics, if you want to check out what is coming up in the future. I'll probably be writing DBZ for the next ten years (as long as people read it, that is). I also added the link to a story I posted for Team Dragon Star called Love Will Save the Day. The story includes some BV, so please, read and review. Also, check out the other wonderful stories that Team Dragon Star has to offer.
Sorry for the long wait. I've been super busy! I am a grad student and I have an internship that kicked up a notch. Plus, projects and finals.
Chapter 36-
This job demanded gloves. Vegeta had long abandoned heavy, bulky armor and even gloves. He fought light and simple. A mission like this required not getting his hands dirty, though. There was no way he was going to touch that filth, especially his innards (which he fully intended on pulling and twisting out of the bastard).
Vegeta pulled a pair of folded white gloves out of the drawer near their bedside. He tried not to look at his wife's accessories and knickknacks. He could very well get sidetracked and swallowed up by Bulma's photographs, perfume bottles, lotion, hair combs and brushes, nail-polish, and other unneeded crap. He never understood why she needed so many things. Saiyans lived sparse, even the women. When they died, the only real personal item left was a body.
No, he would not look. This trip into her (dare he say their) sacred dwelling would be quick. He needed a level head.
Vegeta pulled on the pristine gloves. They were slightly cold and felt dry against his skin. The pair would not remain clean for long. He flexed his hands, feeling his knuckles bend, ready to throw punches and rip out entrails, splatter blood.
For his entire first life, Vegeta hated no one more than Frieza. The feminine lizard haunted his mind for nearly ninety years. The alien fueled him on with intent to unleash pent-up anger that never ended even when the monster was long dead. When he trained, that fury drove him to new heights.
Frieza had been replaced. His name was Hedoro. When Vegeta closed his eyes and needed a push, there the homosexual prick would be. In a sense, this battle would last a lifetime.
He was ready. Vegeta walked out of the bedroom, head high, eyes straight. He exited and closed the door securely. He turned to find Mrs. Brief holding Trunks in the hallway. Trunks had a rattle his in grasp and he swung it awkwardly from side to side. A tiny tinkling sound followed.
Mrs. Brief looked over at Vegeta and he noticed that her eyelids were parted and she had a strangely insightful look on her face. Sometimes the blond wasn't so clueless.
"Say goodbye to Daddy, Trunks," she said softly.
Vegeta frowned. "Don't be foolish, woman. I will be home for dinner," he said with confidence.
Bulma's mother forced a smile. "Of course. I'll make eggrolls, one of your favorites."
Despite his words, Vegeta stepped forward. He put his large calloused palm on top of Trunks' head. The baby stared up at him with large blue eyes. He held out the polka-dotted rattle as if as a present.
"I don't want your slobbery rattle, brat. I wouldn't have anywhere to put it," Vegeta said.
Trunks whimpered.
No words needed to be exchanged. Mrs. Brief had witnessed enough on the sidelines to figure things out, even with her naïve perception.
"Have those eggrolls ready in about four hours," he ordered.
Mrs. Brief giggled. "I'll fix an extra batch. You'll work up an appetite."
He nodded and walked away, ignoring Trunks' whimper that turned into a full-blown cry. The boy really needed to toughen up. His own father left for months on end, leading battles and making royal diplomacy visits. Vegeta's jaw clenched as he remembered himself making trips into space that lasted for over three months in the first timeline. I'll be home for dinner, he promised himself and his son.
The bracelet awaited him downstairs, repaired and appearing almost like new. Bulma left a piece of paper with instructions on its use, along with a short note. Sorry, you're just too sexy to resist. Good luck and give my best regards to me. The note was unnecessary and didn't really say anything in his opinion. He could imagine her smiling and winking, not really taking it seriously. This Bulma was trying to remain light-hearted but it didn't fool him. Deep down, he sensed loss and doubt. She was trying so hard to fix something that was never together, and so she didn't know how the pieces fit.
Vegeta brought the bracelet up to examine it up-close but retracted it when he got a good whiff of Givenchy Ange Ou Demon. Dammit, did that woman steal his wife's perfume! He had trouble believing that the other timeline's Bulma had money for 90 zenni perfume. Did she not understand boundaries? He growled and fastened the band around his left wrist.
He wound the tiny dial and then pressed the button. His body felt like it was knocked forward but he recovered quickly. He stood in a darkened room with metal structures and a domed ceiling. The air smelled musty and full of pungent chemicals. It was a laboratory of sorts, but not as sterile as Bulma and her father's. The place looked like it hadn't been dusted in years. On a square table set weird and complicated objects. Vegeta was no expert but he hypothesized that they were alien in origin.
"What an honor this is, Prince Vegeta." The voice was similar to when two people fused, as if there were two entities speaking. One sounded very much like Android 20.
From around the corner, Hedoro stepped in from an adjacent room. At least, it was partially Hedoro. The features were fixed together like a Picasso painting, ugly, and horrorish. Pieces were made of Hedoro and others of Gero. Even his mouth didn't match, the left side stitched to a thicker and fuller right.
Vegeta let out a humorless chuckle. "Shall I call you The Creature now or just Monster?"
Hedoro snarled. "Don't mock me, Saiyan. Your kind wouldn't know true beauty. You may call me Hedgero."
"Actually, I think I won't have to call you anything. In a few moments you will be nothing but smudge on the bottom of my boot."
Hedoro, or Hedgero, or whatever it was, glanced around proudly at his laboratory. "I'd like to take this somewhere more appropriate. I have a lot of valuables that cannot get ruined. As a matter of fact, your wife came by and stole two of my devices. I'd like to have those back. I went to a lot of trouble to steal those from the Chronos Officers and they are worth a pretty penny."
Whoever those people were. They sounded like something out of one of Trunks' comic books. Snorting, Vegeta said, "I don't give a damn about your toys. Besides, I have no idea where Bulma put them. Let's just get on with my fist going through your chest, shall we?"
Hedoro stared hard at the prince, as if sizing him up. "That Bulma wasn't from this time, was she? I think I'll have to make a trip to retrieve my property. No concern, I was planning on a vacation to visit your son anyway."
That made Vegeta snarl. So, he was targeting Trunks, the older Trunks. His hands curled. There was no way he was going to let this monster touch another one of his family members.
"Come on, quilt-face, show me what those disgusting patches of yours can do!"
They left for the mountains not far from where Vegeta first fought Goku. Both men levitated above the earth, facing off, Vegeta glowing gold as a Super Saiyan. It had been a long time since Vegeta felt this way, the raging vibration of anticipation to annihilate and not to protect, a very pure Saiyan instinct. He hadn't sensed this with such intensity since purging under Frieza. His fists shook and his temples throbbed. It was clear that Hedoro wasn't going to make the first move. Fine. Vegeta wasn't much for patience.
He burst forward, arm up in an uppercut, slamming it into Hedoro's mutated chin. The bastard's body flipped back, swung into a mountain and smashed rocks. Vegeta flexed his arm and almost pouted in disappointment. Maybe this would be a lame battle after all, one that wouldn't be very satisfying and end too soon. He decided that he would torture the sick creature if need be so he got what he deserved. Frieza taught him a few useful techniques. One involved twisting the tongue out. Or, opening up the stomach and removing the organs in just a way that half of you ran out while the other was left in. A person could still live for hours that way.
Hedoro moved up the side of the mountain and into the air. Vegeta flew towards him, ready to dish out more violence. Hedoro's monstrous body shifted back to attention, alert, and unhurt. Vegeta set his jaw.
With frenzy, Vegeta pointed a new and improved big bang attack. The yellowish energy exited Vegeta's outward palm and traveled toward Hedoro. The explosion met a wall and bounced off. Not expecting the returned blast, Vegeta didn't have time to comprehend it before it smashed into him. He was knocked back and lost flight. His body slammed down into the dirt. He laid there, his brain having trouble computing what actually just happened.
Hedoro floated over him. Vegeta lifted his head. "What the hell?" Did the man have a force field now? It was a good thing Vegeta was as strong as he was. A blast like that would have killed him once upon a time.
"I've made quite a few advancements," Hedoro announced.
"You're a Kami damned cyborg then?" Vegeta said as he struggled to sit up.
"I'm perfection."
"Hmph, I've only seen one thing near perfection and it wasn't anything like you, quilt-face." He wasn't going to admit to anyone that this perfection involved his infant daughter grabbing hold of his index finger. That memory gave him the stamina to stand.
He just had time to stand when lasers shot from Hedoro's eyes. Vegeta dodged but it grazed his left shoulder, burning the blue fabric of his uniform. He gritted his teeth.
Time to get serious. He didn't wait around and hollered, gathering up his energy, pushing his body to the limit of Super Saiyan 3. The golden hair pushed back, falling into spikes down his back.
"Impressive, small prince of the Saiyans," Hedoro said. "But no one can judge a book by its cover."
"Just shut up!" Vegeta spat. He shot a blast up to engulf Hedoro. The android spun around in the air, flinging the energy off. The stupid bastard had shields. The only way to beat him, Vegeta thought, was to get him fast enough before he noticed and activated it.
Vegeta lifted like a rocket and came over Hedoro's head. He phased behind his opponent and cracked his boot down on the creature's skull. Then, he chopped into the monster's spine. He rose above Hedoro and aimed with two palms. He'd been working on a new technique and it was the opportunity to try it out.
"Whirling Inferno!" A tornado of orange and yellow swirled around Hedoro's body. It surrounded him until he was completely consumed. Vegeta smirked. That was sure to do the trick.
The energy slowly faded to sparks and then vanished. Hedoro was left practically smoking. His arm twitched at his side. He grabbed it with the other, narrowing his eyes.
"Hurt like hell, didn't it?" Vegeta stated, his smirk intensified.
Hedoro had the audacity to smile back. "I can't feel a thing. One of my upgrades."
Vegeta gritted his teeth. He couldn't feel pain! The damage was there just the same, but without the agony his revenge wouldn't be satisfying.
"So, you are nothing but a machine."
"I am the glory of science!" Hedoro said.
They went at it with punches and kicks. Vegeta had the advantage of youth and he used it for speed. He kneed Hedoro in the gut. Then he blocked an uppercut and shifted around to Hedoro's back. He swept his leg out. The older man toppled.
Vegeta floated down to the rocky ground, placing his feet gently down. He laughed haughtily. "Now, I am going to turn you inside out, you bastard. No one touches my Bulma!"
Hedoro shot to his feet. His skin was charred and he spit out dirt, but his eyes were mad with determination. Hedoro moved as if he'd only fallen from a mere stick. He shot forth like a crazy man with one arm, as if about to choke Vegeta. The prince jumped back out of the way.
They proceeded to battle near the ground for a long while. Vegeta was able to dish out some decent damage but it never seemed good enough. Hedoro was like a battery that never gave out. He looked like hell but his fire raged strong and fierce. It unnerved Vegeta, who sweated and longed to shift down from Super Saiyan 3. The form was the most tiring of the 3.
Hedoro noticed the fatigue. He managed to touch Vegeta on the shoulders with both hands. Vegeta gasped, feeling vitality suck away and into Hedoro. No. He had Android 20's ability to steal energy, but at an even better rate. Vegeta managed a head-butt and shot back. As he did, his transformation flickered out. He was left panting, chest hurting, and for a second he questioned whether he had caught the heart virus.
He didn't have time to think before Hedoro blasted out another eye beam. He dodged the oncoming lasers. Hedoro flashed from the eyeballs, stream after stream. Rocks fell from cliff-sides in an avalanche. A giant bolder smashed down to hit Vegeta on the back of the head which made him stumble. Slowed down by a piece of earth!
Blue energy hit Vegeta's midsection, smoldering flesh. He doubled over and hollered.
This cannot be! I am Vegeta, Prince of the Saiyans. I am the strongest now. I'm better than Kakarot. How can this beast of a man, an android, be better! No, I have to stop him. He hurt Bulma. He will hurt my son! I have to be the best! Not for me, but for them!
Vegeta straightened and mustered strength to continue forth. Muscles ached. Blood trickled from the gash on the back of his head. His skull throbbed. Still, he searched beyond it all. He could do this. He had to do this. A Saiyan persisted to the bitter end.
"I am Hedgero, the perfect combination of Hedoro and Dr. Gero. Prince Vegeta, did you really think that you could stop me?"
"I will stop you," Vegeta croaked.
The laser sizzled across Vegeta's chest, slicing just below the heart. So precise. It had come from Hedoro's pointer finger. So, he had laser ability from his eyeballs and fingertips. It almost seemed like cheating. If Vegeta wanted to go that route, he could have had Bulma fix him up with a few gadgets imbedded in the body as well throughout the years. But no, it was dishonorable. Un-Saiyan. He would train to get stronger. The right way.
This abomination needed to go down!
Hedoro shot lasers again. Vegeta threw himself out of the way but landed face-first. He rolled over and groaned. The monster stomped towards him. He held out both hands, his eyes aglow.
Hedoro shot up at the mountain over Vegeta's head. Jagged pieces fell down in a shower, pinning Vegeta. His skin felt like a pincushion of needles, throbbing, stinging. Hedoro prepared his next attack, straight at Vegeta . . . and Vegeta knew. He knew this one would hit him where it mattered. The bastard was about to make an explosion from both hands and the eyes. There would be no going back from that. At least not for a few months.
It would be nice to see Bulma. To go back to the original plan and meet her on the other side. Vegeta thought about surprising the bastard and gaining enough power to detonate them both, in the same fashion he did with Buu. But he had a little boy waiting at home. He had a little girl not yet born. Bulma would kill him all over again just to make a point.
Saiyans never gave up. They fought to the end. They died in battle.
Vegeta, the last pure Saiyan left currently on the planet, pressed the bracelet's button just in time. He heard a boom right before the rush came. The lab's dim and tidy atmosphere surrounded him. Vegeta fell back, legs outstretched, arms at his side. He clawed at the cement floor, frustrated, wounded more on the inside even as he bled out.
He rarely cried, but there, alone, with the body of his dead wife in the same room, he let a few stray tears escape. He'd failed. As a Saiyan and a prince. But two truths remained.
He'd done the right thing as a father.
And he would beat Hedoro. Just not that day, and possibly not in that timeline.
AN- I'm not confident at battle scenes. I hope it wasn't too bad.