"Oh my god, Anne's alive!" - everyone getting this notification.

Yeah, sorry about the long hiatus. I have just been stuck in a rut with my writing, not feeling motivated or inspired to do anything. I have been stuck on this part of the story for months, just getting nothing done. But, I managed to get something together. I have a few more chapters ready to go, but I can't guarantee that we're back to regular updates. In the meantime, Twitter is the best way to see what I'm doing - annelovesspam.

Thank you all for being patient. Please enjoy.


Planet Vegeta

Dread and anxiety were shared by Saiyans all across the city. Every morning, they braced themselves for news of another murder, praying a loved one had not been met with slaughter. Rules had grown strict. Soldiers, called from all over the planet, were posted at every street corner, monitoring everyone who went past. The curfew was strictly enforced, and anyone caught outside of their homes in the dead of night were detained on the spot. People were not allowed in or out of the city without expressed permission.

Yet the murders persisted.

The trail had run cold. No new evidence could be gleaned from the growing body count. It was all the same as before, with no pattern. When one seemed to be forming, the next victim would throw it all off. Not since Frieza's takeover had so many feared for their lives.

While the main science team at the palace continued to get nowhere, Mizu and Okra continued their research independently. They snuck into the crime scenes while the others were gone and before they could be cleaned up to gather as much evidence as possible, before retreating to their homemade lab. Mizu gained access to the palace's files from an inside source, finding that the palace team had not made it further than they did.

Not that this wasn't a good decision. It was much more freeing working on their own time with their own resources than working under Haricot's iron thumb. It was a breath of fresh air for Mizu, who had forgotten how wonderful it was to work with her old mentor.

Still, it was frustrating that they hadn't got anywhere.

"Okra," Mizu said. "Do you have any ideas about the killer?"

She looked over her shoulder. "What do you mean?"

"You know, I thought maybe if we brainstorm together, we can come up with some new ideas. Maybe we can finally get somewhere, you know?" She squirmed in her seat. She hoped she liked her idea. She didn't want to disappoint her.

Okra looked down for a moment, as she thought. She pulled up a chair and sat in front of her. "Well… what do you think?"

Mizu stared for a moment, before she realized she had asked her a question. "Well, you know, what about the victims? Is there anything similar about them? I mean, they're all Saiyans, but is there anything else about them? That might pinpoint a suspect."

She hummed. "I think that you're looking at it from the wrong perspective. Have you thought about the ones that got away?"

"What do you mean? They all died, when he got his hands on them."

Okra lifted her finger. "That's what you'd assume. But you remember where we got our first description of the murderer from, don't you?"

"You mean Bulma? What about her?"

"Go back to the files, and look at that DNA sample, again."

Mizu stood up and went back to the tablet. She scrolled through the information, looking for what she was talking about. Then, she remembered the hair sample. Once she found it, she read through the information. The sample was compared with thousands of other races, for a compatible match. There was one that was perfect – Earthling.

"You see," Okra said. "The DNA from the murder came from Earth. The only person who's managed to get away from the murder was an Earthling. Have you considered that connection?"

Mizu turned around. "Are you saying Bulma's involved?" She didn't care much for Bulma, but she never came off that way. She helped them defeat Frieza. She couldn't be some raging tyrant.

"No, not necessarily. But it's something to consider, isn't it? Even if she's not involved, this is still an Earthling with a grudge against Saiyans. Maybe there's a reason they're taking so many of us out."

Mizu looked back down at the evidence. Maybe she was right. There might be something more to this story that they weren't looking for. They needed to shift their focus away from Planet Vegeta. If the culprit came from Earth, that's where they needed to start looking. "But how are we going to find anything, out here?"

Okra took the tablet, thumbing through the applications. "I think you underestimate how much information the lab gets. A little bit of fiddling around, and we can find anything we want. How do you think I was able to find out about Saibamen, for my project?"

Mizu began to perk up. They were going to solve this, and she knew it.


Vegeta stood on the roof of the palace, overlooking the city. That murdering coward was down there somewhere, he knew it. Each night, like clockwork, he stared down from above keeping vigil from the moment the sun went down until it rose, again. If he could catch him right as the murder was happening, then he could finally do him in. Yet no matter what, even as a full-powered Super Saiyan, he wasn't able to catch him. He'd hear a scream, rush in, and he'd be already gone. How could someone do so much damage in so little time, then slink back into the shadows?

Was his current power not enough?

He had endured so much to attain his legendary form, again: months of agonizing training into the darkest hours of the night. He had surpassed his limitations and broken the barrier as he did against Frieza. Yet, it was not enough.

The legends never did mention anything about a power beyond the "Super Saiyan". No one had ever gotten close to it. Everyone who believed had assumed that was the end of it. Could there be such a thing? A level beyond a Super Saiyan?

Could he be the one to make that breakthrough?

Vegeta heard someone walk up to stand beside him – it was Nappa. He glanced at him for a moment, before continuing his vigil over the city.

"Vegeta," he said. "It's getting late. Go get some rest."

"Don't give me orders. I'll sleep when I sleep."

"Didn't your father tell you about the council meeting, tomorrow morning? You should be better rested for it."

Yes, the king had asked Vegeta to sit in on that. It was a part of his plan to bring Vegeta into the world of ruling and delegacy at a gradual pace. So, if something were to happen to the king again, Vegeta could preside over the kingdom with no trouble.

Right before Vegeta could take a step down, there was a yell. Faster than a ki blast, he jumped off of the roof and flew in that direction, immediately powering up into a Super Saiyan. He couldn't be slow. Even if it was a trick, he couldn't let that stop him.

He came to a stop right at the source. It was in the middle of a street. Lying on the ground with his face in the pavement was a Saiyan man. Petrified and fearful, but still very much alive.

And standing on his back was a man all dressed in black. The only part of him that was visible was his eyes. He just stood there, staring at Vegeta, brandishing a weapon. Their eyes were locked, as they anticipated each other's next move.

"Vegeta, wait!"

Nappa flew down from above, and the murderer jumped into the air and fled.

"You're not getting away from me this time!" Vegeta powered up and flew after him.

He was hot on his trail, inching right behind him. The murderer bounced and jumped off of the walls, pushing himself forward. Vegeta kept going at a neck brake pace. The murderer kept glancing back, as he tried to escape. But Vegeta would not yield. This was his chance, and he wouldn't waste it.

With all of his might, he willed himself to move faster, going right on top of him. The murderer turned around just in time to block his oncoming fist. Vegeta blasted at him and he jumped out of the way. The ball of energy just missed him. A lucky move that he would not let him repeat.

He raised his hands into the air and the ki ballooned above him. He bent backwards and threw it towards his adversary. The murderer did not try to doge. He simply held out one hand and caught it.

"What," Vegeta exclaimed.

The murderer pulled his hand back and threw it back where it came. Vegeta moved his head, letting it explode behind him. No one had ever been able to handle an unstable ball of ki like that. What kind of power was this bastard hiding beneath those robes?

The murderer held his hands in the air and threw them towards the ground. A cloud of smoke and a flash of light erupted in front of them. Vegeta covered his face, blinded by the light.

When the dust cleared, he was gone.

"DAMN IT ALL!" Vegeta threw his hands down in frustration. His ki erupted around him, with flashes of yellow and gold flaming into the night sky. He almost had him, but that bastard pulled a fast one on him. What a coward. Running with his tail between his legs instead of fighting like a man.

"Vegeta! Stop!"

He was grabbed by his shoulders and turned around, shaken roughly. Nappa had managed to catch up. "You'll destroy the whole city! Calm down!"

Vegeta head butted him, forcing him to let go. "I almost had him, Nappa! We were this close to catching him and bringing him to justice! Don't you dare tell me to calm down!"

"Vegeta, listen to me! You getting yourself worked up won't make him return! If you blow yourself up now, we'll never get him! So will you please calm down?!"

Vegeta snarled and turned around. Still, he took a deep breath and powered down from his legendary form. He knew that Nappa was right, but he hated being lectured. Maybe nothing more could have been done at this point. Getting upset wouldn't solve it. He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, in frustration.

"It isn't hopeless. We finally have another witness. We're one step closer to finding this coward and taking him down."

Vegeta scoffed. "I can't tell them more than what I saw. It's hardly groundbreaking."

"Not you, Vegeta – the victim."

He turned around. "What did you say?"

"He's still alive. You got to him before he was killed. The killer ran away without claiming another victim. You saved a life, tonight."

He hadn't even noticed. If this was true, then… then he did do some good, after all. Maybe there was still hope. "Where is he, now?"

"With the royal guards. We'll be questioning him, soon."

"Then we better go back, now."

Vegeta and Nappa left without another word.