AN: This is it, folks. We have reached the end of the line for Deep Blue. I've always intended to end Deep Blue before the Android Saga began, but I definitely have some plot bunnies still floating around in my head. I just need to catch them and arrange them into some semblance of order before starting a sequel.
So until then… Warning: Ahoy me maties! There be language ahead that'll make a sailor blush.
Disclaimer: I don't own Dragon Ball Z, Super or GT or any of the associated characters that appear in this fanfic. I do however own the Merpeople (except Marron)... and they're turning out to be quite fun.
Chapter 21 (The Heir Arrives)
The next morning, Vegeta was sitting at the kitchen island, a spread of his favorite foods laid out before him. As he ate, he could grudgingly admit that Earth did indeed have some redeeming qualities, despite being a backwater mud ball of a planet. It felt good being treated like the royalty he is. The cause of his royal treatment, the Brief's woman, was currently tottering about in the kitchen, preparing his dessert. His woman was asleep in his bed, worn out from their nightly activities. He had been worried at first, when he found her still asleep after he returned from his early morning training session, concerned that he overtaxed her already strained body. Until the Briefs woman casually mentioned that gestating females normally require more than the usual amount of sleep. So, with his appetites tended to, both carnal and culinary, he was well on his way to having a very satisfying morning. That is, until he noticed an unfamiliar ki approaching the kitchen, coming from the laboratory. The energy was higher than that of a human's, and felt similar to Bulma's. He deduced that it must be one of the 'friends' that she was referring to last night. A woman entered not long afterwards. She was drying dark green hair with a towel wrapped about her shoulders. Wearing what Vegeta had come to know as pool attire with a piece of patterned cloth wrapped around her body for modesty. What little of her body he did notice was rather unimpressive: thin limbs made to look even thinner by their longer length and lack of muscle definition. Definitely not the body of a fighter, he surmised, despite the higher than average power level. She froze as she noticed him. Their eyes met. Hers was an interesting shade of green, so pale it almost seemed gray. Her expression betrayed momentary surprise, but then to Vegeta's surprise, a sneer rolled over her face and her eyes dimmed like a thundercloud, literally turning stormy gray. Vegeta could almost sense the dislike rolling off her in waves. Vegeta raised an eyebrow, intrigued at what he could have done to invoke the ire of someone he had never met. Not that he hadn't received similar reactions before, what with his spectacular reputation and all that, but since this green-haired woman had no cause to know about his bloody past, Vegeta couldn't help but find her reaction intriguing. He eyed her lazily, actions reminiscent of how a cat would react to an interesting morsel that unknowingly wandered into its sight.
"So," the woman said, "you must be the infamous Prince Vegeta, then." she greeted, a noticeable coolness in her tone. She approached his table. Vegeta tensed, muscles bunching in preparation for combat but the woman simply plucked an apple from the fruit bowl before him. She smelled of seafoam, salt and something citrusy that reminded him of lime. Her proximity annoyed him. His chest rumbled, emitting an involuntary growl at what he saw as an invasion of his territory. The woman froze, eyes widening marginally in fear as some primitive instinct warned her of the predator she had unwittingly antagonized. The moment ended quickly as reason reasserted itself and Vegeta noted her eyes narrowing in indignation. Vegeta wondered if all mermaids had such easily-riled tempers or if Bulma had simply found a kindred spirit in this one. The reminder that the female was most likely a friend of his mate was the only thing preventing him from wringing her neck.
"What crawled up your butt and died, your Highness?" she sassed, but wisely backed away from his feast.
This woman represented the part of Bulma that he would never possess, that would always seek to separate her from him and he hated it. That hatred could so very easily be transferred to the piqued woman snarling at him, if not for the reminder that Bulma most probably felt dearly about her. He could hardly tell her all that so he offered her the next best reason for his sudden animosity towards her.
"Don't. Touch. My. Food." he iterated every word, slowly, trying to control his own ire and the urge to backhand the insolent wench across the room. Her eyebrows shot up in surprise before lowering slowly. Her expression turned taunting as she slowly and deliberately licked her pilfered fruit. The woman had a death wish, he thought, temper steadily rising with each passing moment. Her other hand suddenly produced what Vegeta recognized as the salt shaker, also stolen from his table, and she dusted the apple with salt. It crunched as she bit into it. As she chewed her salt-seasoned apple, she looked between Vegeta's food, to him and back to the food again. She swallowed. "What's your deal? it's not like you're gonna eat all of that."
"I most certainly will, Mermaid." he answered. Again, those expressive eyebrows betrayed her shock.
"Seriously?"
He didn't dignify her with an answer, just calmly went back to devouring his breakfast. After a moment:
"Neptune's Trident! You weren't kidding! Where does all the food go?" Vegeta glared at the woman, who it seems had not taken the hint to get lost and was now casually perched on the opposite end of his table, eyeing him like he was the most interesting thing on the planet… granted he probably was, he thought haughtily, but did this woman really have to be so uncouth about it. She was still salting her apple before every bite, each crunch grating more on his nerves.
Bulma' s Friend, he thought and repeated it a few times in his head as a reminder that strangling the female would be a very bad idea. He suddenly wished for Bulma's presence. In his opinion, it was way too early to be dealing with people, especially after he'd grown used to his solitary existence these past few months. The Brief's woman he would still tolerate, yes she talked a lot but he could easily tune out her inane chatter and focus solely on the food she provided him. This one before him… her scrutiny was making him uncomfortable, made worse by the fact he couldn't just blast her into oblivion, as his first instinct urged him to do.
"I'm Abelone, by the way. Abelone Perodite."
Swallowing, he replied "Do I look like I give a shit?"
"No." she answered plainly with a nonchalant shrug, taking another obscenely loud bite. He sighed. Mrs. Briefs chose that moment to stroll by, depositing a plate of freshly sliced sashimi on a bed of greens in the mermaid's hands. The mermaid beamed at her hostess, eyes lightening from grey to sage and making her look rather radiant. If he hadn't already gotten used to the idiosyncrasies of Bulma's physiology he would find the sudden transformation rather eerie. "Thanks Panchy." The mermaid said.
"You're welcome Abby."
The mermaid then dusted her new meal with more salt, set the shaker back on the table and walked off.
"See you around I guess." she said, sauntering away.
Vegeta was just getting back into the swing of things, setting a steady yet brisk pace, working through the rest of his meal when his senses picked up a second ki approaching. Stronger, but distinctly Mer as he was learning to distinguish. It was not his woman's ki however, so Vegeta sighed and looked at his food, debating whether it would be cowardly to get up now in order to avoid another confrontation with someone he was not allowed to kill. His debate lasted only long enough for him to realize he would be abandoning his food to another, and a Saiyan never abandons a meal he can defend. So Vegeta grit his teeth and tried to imagine this encounter as one of many a political tête-à-tête he was forced to attend in Frieza's Empire. Where no matter how badly he wanted to crush the stuck-up, self-entitled dignitary's head with his bare fist, he'd have to stay his hand, reminded that the benefits of their continued existence outweighed the momentary satisfaction of having their blood on his pristine white gloves. In this case, the benefit would be the continued happiness of his woman and her positive regard of him. Her affection and approval had become tantamount to breathing to Vegeta, as pathetic as it may be. He already resigned himself to the fact that the Woman was his vulnerability, his only concession to softness. She had buried herself so deep within his cold heart, carving out a place there, that to try and remove her now would be akin to ripping himself in half. So he would bear her obnoxious companions… and by bear he meant Not Kill. He'll consider it as practice for when he would help her establish her throne.
Vegeta grinned, and it was the type of grin that if anyone saw him at that moment they would turn on their heel and retreat from the room, because Vegeta realized that just because he couldn't kill them didn't mean he couldn't put the fear of the gods in them. He would have started cackling maniacally if the other Mer didn't choose that moment to walk into the room, a male this time.
"Hey Abs, have you seen my neurocom-" he shouted, but stopped dead as he beheld Vegeta seated at the table. "Uhm… Good Morning" he stuttered, then noticed the food and his face visibly brightened. "A buffet! Oh man, thanks Mrs B!" The broad shouldered, red-haired man yelled and made his way towards Vegeta. As he was reaching for something, Vegeta heard the one called Abby start to yell a warning. If the merman had bothered looking up he would have seen the diabolical smirk Vegeta was sporting.
Unfortunately, the cherry-haired merman did not notice the warning glint in the Saiyan Prince's eyes, nor did he pay attention to his comrade's attempt to alert him, which is exactly how he found himself dangling by the throat from the vice that was Vegeta's grip less than a heartbeat later.
"Worm, you dare touch my food?" Vegeta's words were soft, but the underlying danger in them couldn't be denied. If the merman had been able to breath, his brain would have had enough oxygen to wonder how in the world someone so obviously shorter and smaller than himself would have hoisted him so far up that his feet didn't reach the floor. He would have only needed to look down and see his assailant hovering off the floor, but since he had neither the brain function nor the ability to move his head to do any of that, he simply resorted to doing what he could, which was to attempt to pry the obstruction from around his neck. A wasted effort, Vegeta could have told him, if he was feeling charitable. He wasn't. So he watched the man writhing and struggling in his grip, like the worm he had previously compared him to.
Vegeta was assessing the wheezing man with a contemplative stare, calculating how much time the man could still go without air before he passed out. The merman's face was making a decent attempt at matching the shade of his hair. Vegeta figured he should probably drop him when he started turning purple. Should be any minute now judging by the blue already bleeding into his lips and around his mouth.
The saiyan felt an object whirl past him at a speed, catching the object's profile in his peripheral before it flew out of sight. It was one of those weapons that Bulma used when she first washed ashore: a trident. He heard a slap as the weapon collided with something behind him - probably the other female's grip. Almost immediately he felt an energy blast building behind him, quite a strong one at that. Interesting… He would have to revise his initial judgement of the green haired one, he thought. She was more powerful than she seemed.
"Drop him!" the mermaid demanded, and Vegeta swiveled slightly, so he could observe the new threat. He smirked.
"If you're going to use that thing, mermaid. You better be sure that you're fast enough… he's head looks about ready to pop." He said, making no effort to disguise his amusement. She stood battle-ready, a ball of green glowing energy was gathered in the center of her trident. She seemed confident enough, but couldn't hide the trembling in her hands. Vegeta felt his grin widen. He forgot how much fun tormenting people could be. He kind of missed it. But... he dropped the cherry head, with a sigh. The merman had long since stopped struggling anyway and was hanging limp in Vegeta's grip. Vegeta watched as his face, that had become an interesting shade of puce, slowly regained its original color as the merman hacked and wheezed.
"Dude!" he exclaimed, between coughing fits. "What is your problem?"
The other mermaid had since lowered her weapon, but was still loosely gripping in in her fist. Vegeta turned on his heel, satisfied that the alpha in the room had been established. He looked pointedly at the big man still rubbing his throat soothingly, then at the female still brimming with adrenaline at the balcony entrance. Then he took his seat.
Bulma entered the room soon after. Vegeta was tracking her energy so he wasn't surprised when she showed up.
"Morning everyone" she greeted, still rubbing sleep from her eyes. She was wearing a patterned silk robe, the sash of it tied beneath her breast, emphasizing her round belly. Vegeta suppressed the urge to growl again, thinking that she'd better be wearing something decent underneath that flimsy robe, but from the way that certain things were jiggling with each step, he wouldn't bet on it. Bulma's eyes went to Vegeta and a beaming smile lit her face.
"Vegeta. I thought you'd be training by now."
"Hmm" he grunted in reply.
"I'm not complaining. Who am I to spurn the opportunity to enjoy the pleasure of your company."
Outside, someone choked on something. Bulma looked towards her friends curiously, her eyes narrowing as she watched the green haired female helpfully slapping the big male on his back. Her eyes swiveled back to Vegeta, suspicion darkening them.
"Why are my friends sitting outside?" she asked, her tone souring with accusation. She took a seat close to him and started stacking a plate she found nearby. Before Vegeta could answer, Abby spoke from outside.
"Because you're boyfriend's an ass, Bulma!" she exclaimed, getting up to stalk inside. "And, I'm sorry to say, Princess, but he also might be slightly homicidal." Vegeta snorted. Bulma shot him a glare.
"Well if you think he's only slightly homicidal then he must have been in a good mood this morning," Bulma replied. "Also, you really seem to be getting good at human colloquialisms Abby… you're even cussing like a local." she started eating, then added, "Oh my Neptune, this is So good!" with a particularly salacious moan. Vegeta's mind was suddenly transported a few hours back as he recalled her moaning in that exact way for a very different reason. His blood started heating, feeling the stirrings of arousal combine with his annoyance at her for her, in his opinion, publicly wanton behavior. He couldn't quite decide which emotion was stronger. He finally settled on anger when she reached for another bread roll and her robe gaped open at her chest revealing the swell of her breast, confirming that she was indeed naked under the robe.
"For fuck's sakes, Woman!" he scolded, "do you have to be so vulgar in public?"
"Vulgar?"
"Yes! It's bad enough that you make weird sounds at the table, but is it so hard to put on some damn clothes before you come downstairs?!"
"But I'm wearing a nightgown." she defended with a pout.
"That's hardly enough"
"Well I would have been wearing something underneath if someone hadn't thought it a good idea to rip up my sleepwear."
"Sleepwear? The thing was gods-damned see-through!"
"Yes well, you didn't seem to mind that much last night, now did you?" she asked with a haughty sniff and Vegeta felt his face heat to the point of pain. His brain stuttered. He honestly had no idea how to reply to that… and at the fucking breakfast table no less. He looked over to her friend whose wide eyes flitted between the two of them in obvious bewilderment. Then he saw amusement dance in those expressive grey-green eyes, as her her lips tilted-up at the corners. Vegeta felt the beginnings of a headache tapping at his temples.
"Just… go get dressed," he said with a defeated sigh.
"After breakfast." Bulma agreed with a cheerful nod. "Which is lovely, by the way. Where is Panchy? She really outdone herself."
Vegeta refused to answer, moodily consuming the rest of his meal. He saw Bulma shrug from his peripheral and also dig in. Good, he thought, the child needs all the sustenance she could give him to grow healthy and strong. Although, it seems there's not much growing still left to do, he noted with a frown. The green-haired one was still hovering. Seemingly uncertain as to how to proceed now that their spat was apparently over. It seemed to annoy Bulma as well for she suddenly huffed
"Oh for the love of… would you sit down, Abby. You're making me dizzy."
"You sure he won't bite my head off?" Abby said nastily, pointing at Vegeta. Bulma sighed.
"He'll behave." Bulma said.
"I'm not a damned dog."
"Coulda fooled me." Abby grumbled and Vegeta hissed in annoyance. Vegeta watched the other mermaid sit down, his eyes flashed in warning, but he allowed it. "Are you going to strangle me too if I grab a plate?" she asked, eyeing him warily.
"What?" Bulma said, bewildered.
"Are you asking me or telling me?" Vegeta replied, ignoring Bulma's outburst, his voice again dropping to that soft-spoken, dangerous tone. He saw uncertainty flitting on her face.
"Asking." She finally answered. Vegeta sighed, then stood up.
"I'm done anyway." He said, and walked out, ignoring Bulma's ongoing queries about 'strangulations'. It was time to get back to training.
"Oh gods of the deep blue sea, Bulma. What the hell do you see in him?" were Abby's first words to her after Vegeta's abrupt exit. "Besides his body… whoo-ee that man is a snacc! Still, it doesn't make up for that horrible personality."
"Vegeta's not that bad, Abby." Bulma defended. "He's just a bit… prickly"
"If you mean prickly as in poisonous sea urchin, then I couldn't agree more." Marlin said as he plopped down beside her. His voice was a little hoarse. Bulma looked at him, noting the redness around his throat.
"Oh Neptune Marlin, what did you do?" He looked at her in bewilderment and she couldn't help noticing the accompanying redness in his eyes.
"Me?" he yelled defensively.
"Your man's just crazy, Bulma." Abby replied, "apparently has a thing with people touching his food… I'm surprised you're even alive." she informed her.
"It's a… uh, Saiyan thing I'm told." Bulma explained, "I asked him once why he never joined the table when the Briefs were eating. He said that sharing meals are limited to family units, comrades in arms and courting couples. If you attempt to eat at someone else's table you're basically challenging the Saiyan's right or to provide for his family or subordinates, especially if you're another male." She said then turned towards Marlin. "Are you okay?" she asked, voice betraying concern.
"I'll live." he simply answered, and started eating, wincing a bit when he had to swallow. Bulma sighed.
"You still think your lover's 'not that bad'?" Abby resentfully asked.
Bulma bit her lip, feeling abruptly guilty. "So he's not exactly Oprah Winfrey-"
"He's dangerous, Bulma." she said, reaching out to squeeze Bulma's hand. "Are you sure you've made the right choice?"
"He would never hurt me, if that is what you're implying."
"He could have killed Marlin. He wanted to, I saw it in his eyes. He's not a good person."
"Well, he didn't kill him… he doesn't kill a lot of people I know he wishes to. Partly because of Goku, I think but mostly because he's intelligent enough to realize what a good thing he has going here. To jeopardize that because of some insignificant annoyance would be monumentally dumb. You have to understand Abby, NOT killing is a novel concept to him. Vegeta has… a complicated past. Sentiments like good and evil did not exist, just survival. I think this planet is a second chance for him. He can become the person he was meant to be. Granted, he'll probably never be rid of the person he was made into, such things tend to leave permanent marks, and Vegeta's scars run deep. But I can live with that, I will take him as is because when I'm with him… I feel like I'm complete. He makes up the parts of me that I'm lacking, that I never knew I was missing. After experiencing that; I don't think I will be able to go back to just being part of a whole."
"You really do love him then?"
"Yes. With all my heart."
"You sure it's not just the sex? I mean, I know he's your first and all but as the humans say: there are plenty of fish in the sea… granted he looks like he can rock it in the sack. All that intensity-"
"Oh you have no idea" she agreed suggestively.
"I'm right here!" Marlin suddenly interrupted, disgust apparent in his raspy voice. Bulma laughed.
"Is he that well defined all over?" Abby asked, ignoring their red-faced companion.
"Abby!" Bulma yelled, scandalized, feeling her face heat.
"Oh come now, you were just talking about how he ripped up your lingerie. You can't turn shy now. Was it that negligee you bought yesterday?" she continued prying."You can tell me, you know."
"Ladies, seriously? I'm trying to eat here." Marlin complained and the two mermaids giggled at his discomfort.
Over the next few weeks, they developed a sort of routine. Bulma would always wake to find Vegeta downstairs at the kitchen table, having breakfast no matter how late she chose to drag her elephant-sized butt out of bed. It was becoming more and more difficult to even do that. She felt like a blimp some mornings, where the only way for her to sit herself up was to levitate herself upright. Her friends, either one or the other, sometimes both would be sitting on the balcony enjoying their own breakfasts. Bulma would approach Vegeta's table, either dressed for the day, or wearing 'decent' night clothes, (else she'd be sent back upstairs to 'put some gods-damned clothes on') and join Vegeta for breakfast. He would then surreptitiously watch her, monitoring her dietary intake until he seemed satisfied, then he left to train. If he felt she wasn't consuming enough protein or dairy or whatever else he deemed necessary, he would push forward a plate laden with items containing the nutrition he felt she was lacking and made sure she finished it before he left. As soon as he left, her friends would join her at the table and they'd have a pleasant breakfast together, discussing their progress in their respective tasks or brainstorming new innovations that could benefit their underwater city. It was all hypothetical, based on the scenario that she succeeded in bringing peace to the two realms and that she managed to take the throne. After breakfast they would all head to their respective work. Marlin was now the new lab rat for any mer related investigations and experiments. Abby was volunteering at the local clinic in the maternity ward to learn about delivering and caring for infant humans. No one knew what to expect after the birth, but as far as anyone could tell - using the state of the art equipment specifically designed for her - this baby looked like a human and they expected him to be born like one. Bulma had taken point on all ocean related inventions, discovering her knack for turning ideas into realities using science. She could, quite frankly, do this for the rest of her life. Dr. Briefs seemed pleased as a peach with her results, already building his underwater Capsule Corp Empire. Lately he had begun treating her as more of an equal than a mentee, openly discussing things like revenue and attempting to negotiate for their resources. Especially since he discovered that her trident was made from a special alloy only found at a specific location in their underwater magma ores. He was practically salivating as he ruminated on the potential of an alloy that can channel the flow of ki. Of course, she had to keep reminding him that she wasn't queen yet and that they first had to destroy the androids and oust the Council from power before any official talks and negotiations could begin. Which was exactly what she was currently reiterating as they debated the merits of utilizing the alloy in various ways.
"Nonsense, my dear." he replied one day "Haven't you ever played Monopoly? Whoever lands on it first gets dibs and I landed on a gold mine when you splashed into our lives. I'm investing in you because you have the potential to change this world for the better. "
"I'll try my best, Doctor" Bulma agreed, feeling her heart clench and her eyes growing misty. She did not know what she did for him to have such a high regard for her, but she could feel deep gratitude for the sentiments.
"And I have no doubt that you will succeed. It's not every day that I encounter someone with enough heart and enough brains to launch man -and merkind into a new era of development."
"I'm flattered you feel that way, Sir"
"Don't be flattered my dear, be smart. You see, I am an old man. When I eventually die I would ultimately have liked to share my legacy with someone who would see this vision I have through. Ideally it would have been my progeny, but that was not in the cards for us it seems. Panchy is barren as you already know."
"What are you proposing?" Bulma asked, a nervous fluttering in her belly.
"It's quite simple Bulma. I need an heir and you need power and influence enough so that you can solidify your claim on your throne at home. You have a legitimate claim, yes, but to truly achieve peace between your realm and mine you have to be able to protect your people from humans, and vice versa. You need connections, allies in high places. You're already half-way there. Befriending and associating with the strongest humans on this planet, the Z warriors, was a good political move on your part, even if it was unintended, but you need money. Those who control the money control the world. You need to become someone that not even the powerhouses of this world would dare cross. Only then will you have the leverage you need to oust the Council."
Here he sighed, eyes suddenly turning heavy with an unseen weight.
"There are very few people that I trust in this world. There are those that would look at my technology and see only monetary gain, putting things designed for good in the wrong hands and watch it become twisted and used for evil. Not caring as long as the coffers are full… and those that would pursue science with unchecked fervor, and in their brilliance would be blinded by the unintended and downright destructive consequences that an invention can wreck on this world. It's a very precarious balance and from our months spent together, it is a balance that I can see myself trusting you to uphold."
Bulma remained silent as she considered Dr Brief's proposal. She couldn't help but think back on Vegeta's words the night they made that promise. 'A solid base of power' he had said. When she thought about it, really contemplating the circumstances she found herself in, she couldn't help but feel that it had all been orchestrated once more. Those invisible strings pulling at them like marionettes. It was her destiny: meeting the Briefs, the fact that his mind was just unique enough to be able to hear her telepathic calls on their first meeting, and his subsequent research into the phenomenon. All leading up to this very moment; an offer, yet so much more. She would accept, of course, if that was what the gods desired, but resentment boiled not far from the surface as she was once again reminded of how little control she had over her own life, over her own fate. How her achievements would never be completely her own, but the credit of some meddling deity's. Would she ever be free of them? She sighed and looked at Dr. Briefs, he was watching her expectantly. Like her, he too was a puppet. His tragedies and triumphs were precisely orchestrated to bring him to this exact moment.
She reached out and took his hand. "You're an extraordinary man, Trunks Briefs. You see the potential in people and things and you nurture and feed it until it yields the most amazing results… Thank you, for believing in me and helping me find my calling. I would be honored to inherit your company, and all that comes with it and I promise to continue the legacy of Capsule Corp as you intended it."
"Oh" he blinked, apparently taken aback. "It was.. Well, you're very welcome then, young lady." he said, clearing his throat self-consciously. Bulma smiled and patted his hand before she got up and left him to his inventions, waddling over to her own workstation. It was just as she was about to sit down that she felt a sharp pain bloom in her lower back, weakening her legs with its intensity and she had to catch herself on the table in front of her to prevent herself falling. She must have cried out, for Dr. Briefs was suddenly at her side.
"Bulma! My dear, are you alright?"
"Ow! No. That one hurt like a bitch!" she replied.
"When did your pains start?" he asked, his tone switching from concern to professional in an instant.
"This morning. At breakfast. It was just slightly discomforting, like menstrual cramps."
"That is normal, I'd say. Well, let's get you to the med ward then." he said and took her arm to support her and they made their way through the labs to the medical bay within the compound especially set up to facilitate the birth of her child. In the nearby corner of the room stood a seawater tank big enough to fit the baby, monitoring equipment already connected for vital checks. "Just in case" Dr. Brief's had said.
It was well past sunset by the time Bulma's labour began in earnest. The delivery room was occupied by Dr. Briefs, Abby and Vegeta, who was trying his level best to wear a tread into the tiled floor with all the pacing he was doing. Bulma's pain was a constant thrum at his temple, an unconscious effort on her part to link with him through her ordeal. He had been allowing it, mostly for curiosity's sake, to try and understand what she was going through. He figured that it cannot be worse than the lashings he used to get for insubordination while he was still a hell-raising adolescent under Frieza's rule. He had to revise that impression when the last two contractions nearly brought him to his knees, the feeling akin to his tail amputation by that fat freak that sometimes went around with the warriors of this planet… but much slower, he thought and shuddered, recalling the length of the last contraction she experienced. He'd been blocking her psychic attempts to connect with him ever since. It wouldn't do for him to be a writhing mass of uselessness on the floor while Bulma was in such a vulnerable state.
"Is it always this painful?" Bulma whined after the last one subsided. She was talking to her comrade come midwife, Abby who was at her side, holding her hand.
"From what I've observed, yes." Abby replied, mopping some of the sweat drops on Bulma's brow with a cloth.
"I need more ice," the laboring woman suddenly demanded, and a foamalite cup was handed to her by Dr. Briefs, half full with the ice chips the woman had been chomping on between the torture sessions.
On the next contraction, the green-haired mermaid was screaming just as loud as his woman was, her hand clamped in the vice that was Bulma's grip. Vegeta cringed at the pain the superimposed screeching was causing his sensitive ears.
"This is your job, you know!" Abby scolded after Bulma settled down, shaking her injured hand.
Vegeta snorted, "Tch, as if"
"Oh for the love of-" Abby growled before pressing her clenched palms to her forehead. "Oh mighty Neptune," she suddenly exclaimed, head bowed solemnly, "why couldn't you have chosen a nice normal merboy to father Bulma's children? Instead you got her that terror!" she lamented, pointing at Vegeta. "What sin had she committed to deserve this? Why do you punish her so? Amen." she finished, eyes closed in piously. Vegeta's jaw ticked, a growl rippling through his barred teeth as the hands at his side opened and closed restlessly, imagining them wrapping around the insolent mermaid's scrawny neck.
"Can't you two quit bickering for more than two min-Aaah! Holy shit on a sandwich, that fucking hurts!" Bulma exclaimed, whole body tensing while she muttered expletives through gritted teeth.
"This one is quite strong." Brief notes, eyes on a tablet that displayed the woman and child's vitals. "How's it look down there Abalone?"
"Eight centimetres, Doctor" Abby answered from between his woman's legs. "We're almost ready to go."
"Hand. Fucking Hand!" Bulma demanded, reaching her arm out towards him. Vegeta silently complied, letting her squeeze his hand as she endured the contraction. He had to unleash a significant amount of his power to keep her from crushing it like she did her friend's. More than he would have thought possible, for although Bulma is strong, she has yet to surpass even scar-face in brute strength. Vegeta marveled at how, with this new-found strength of hers could probably wipe the floor with Baldy. He looked curiously at the green-haired mermaid, who was still crouched between Bulma's legs.
"You were holding back with her." he accused when her pain passed.
"Of course I did." Bulma replied, panting. "Abby needs her hands to catch this damned baby, whom I swear I will fucking yank out myself if he doesn't get his butt out of there in the next ten minutes. Dr. Briefs! Where are those force-EeeAa! Hot Balls!" she screamed… and screamed some more, once again attempting to crush his hand into a pulpy sack of bones.
"We're at ten, Doc. We can push now. Bulma, are you ready?" Abby yelled over the woman's screaming.
"I was ready five hours ago!" Bulma shouted back when the contraction finally ended.
"You're lucky it's only been five hours. I've seen some mothers having to endure 10 hours of stage 2 labor."
"Abby?"
"Yes Bulma?"
"Shut the fuck up and get this kid the hell up out of me!"
"Okay then. On the next contraction, you're going to need to start pushing."
An hour fourteen minutes later, Vegeta's son was born.
A few heartbeats later, Bulma started screaming and Vegeta felt a heavy sense of dread settling in his chest.
Something was wrong.
Vegeta looked over to where the newborn was being attended to on the surgical table.
"Doctor Briefs!", Bulma screamed, "He can't breath! Why can't he breathe?" She started struggling frantically to get her legs out of the stirrups.
"Bulma, wait! The afterbirth hasn't come yet." Abby was trying to calm her down but her words fell on deaf ears. The infant was convulsing, while the doctor attempted to attach all sorts of wires to him. And Vegeta felt the worst sense of helplessness as he stood frozen on the spot, unsure of what he should do.
"My baby," Bulma screamed, inconsolable and continued her plight to free herself, Abby attempted to restrain her but Bulma shoved the other mermaid so violently that she flew across the room, into the wall on the opposite side of the room.
"Vegeta!" Abby suddenly called out to him, from her prone position on the floor, "Don't let her get up!"
Vegeta felt something click into place as his focus reasserted itself. He was at Bulma's side in an instant, pressing her back down. "Breath, Woman." He ordered.
"But, I can feel his panic. Vegeta, he's dying!"
"Briefs," Vegeta called out. "Why isn't the boy in the tank?"
"He has gills, but they seem to be sealing up, Vegeta. In a few more seconds he should be able to breathe normally. I've seen Bulma make this transition many times. He will be fine." the doctor answered calmly. His voice was reassuring, and Vegeta breathed a sigh of relief, his erratically racing heart calming a bit at the confidence in the old man's tone. Bulma had finally stopped struggling, slumping back onto the bed in defeat. "He's so confused" she whispered and he felt her shudder. "He doesn't know what's happening." Vegeta watched, stricken as the tears ran down her face into her hair. The only comfort he could offer her was his arms. Abby was there again, tending to her during the final process of her labour.
A high pitched hiccup sounded behind him. Vegeta turned and saw the doctor holding the infant facing the table. Fluid was dripping from the newborn's mouth. Then the child took a breath, the echo of it deafening in the now silent delivery room, and started crying. The sound took his breath away, and he felt almost lightheaded with relief. He looked at Bulma, and saw the same relief reflected in her watery blue eyes. He felt a psychic prod and opened his mind to her. Her emotions hit him all at once: joy, relief, exhaustion and happiness. So much happiness he felt his chest would burst. He lowered his brow to hers, breathing in the scent of her breath, letting it soothe his body as her emotions were soothing his soul.
'He's okay.' she said, her voice a whisper in his mind. A tentative smile was forming on her face. She was sweat-slicked, tear-stained and her hair was all over the place, but to Vegeta, at that moment she was the most radiant creature he'd ever seen.
His eyes shifted toward where the doctor was busy swaddling the newborn, then he handed the child off to Abby, who then proceeded to approach them.
"Congratulations, your Highnesses" she said, the infant wriggling in her arms, "you have a son. The heir has arrived, as foretold." She announced, grandly, then placed him in Bulma's arms.
Vegeta watched, spellbound as Bulma unwrapped him partly to display a scrunched up red face. The child blinked, displaying grey-blue eyes. The fuzz on his head seemed soft and fluffy - an unusual light shade that Vegeta couldn't yet identify, as it was still slicked down with gunk. A little fist escaped the blankets, waving about as the child started fussing, nuzzling the breast that Bulma had already bared in preparation for the moment. Instinct took over as the infant latched and he saw Bulma winced at the sensation.
"I can feel his... comfort. Is that normal?" she asked Abby.
"Our babies have very little psychic ability at birth save for an instinctive bond with their mother. It's perfectly normal for you to feel what he feels, Bulma. Just as he feels what you feel… your earlier panic. That was most likely channeled from him as a natural defense tactic to alert you to his distress. It probably caught you off guard and that's why you were so irrational. I've seen it in first-time mothers before, so I'll tell you what I told them: The next time this happens, Try remaining calm and sending him your own reassuring and comforting thoughts. It will settle him down faster."
Bulma nodded solemnly and went back to watching the boy. Vegeta found that he too, struggled to tear his gaze from what was transpiring before him. He was so wrapped up that he completely missed it when something else snaked out from beneath the blankets and wrapped around Bulma's wrist. Vegeta's breath hitched in his throat. It was a tail. The fine brown fur was matted down at
certain spots, but undoubtedly, his son was flourishing the symbol of his heritage: a saiyan tail.
"How?" he heard Bulma whisper in wonder, eyes also on the new appendage.
"It looks like your son grows his tail when he's out of the water" Dr Briefs remarked in reply, a little sardonically.
"Amazing." he heard himself whisper.
"Indeed" the doctor replied.
"Well then he seems healthy enough, Bulma dear, but I'll need to run a few more tests to be sure." Dr Briefs said. "How are you feeling?"
"Apart from a few aches and pains, I'm doing pretty good."
"Excellent." Briefs replied, making more notes on his tablet.
"So, Princess. What are you going to name him?" Abby asked. Bulma's eyes met his own, radiating warmth as she replied:
"Vegeta. Vegeta Trunks Arowana." She looked to him for confirmation.
Vegeta felt his chest expand, filling with a sense of pride. By allowing this naming he was recognizing the boy as his heir. It would be merely symbolic, as the Saiyan-race are long dead, their customs with them, but he still appreciated the gesture. He nodded stiffly, watching the uncertainty leave her eyes at his acknowledgement.
"We can call him Veggie."
"Absolutely not" Vegeta vehemently and immediately denied.
"Trunks then," she amended, and he sighed, but nodded grudgingly at her searching look. "If that is alright with you Dr. Briefs?" she further asked, looking at the frumpy doctor who was suddenly misty eyed.
"My dear, you honor me" he simply replied.
"It is settled then…little Vegeta Trunks Arowana" she announced, "Welcome to the world, my son."
And he, Vegeta, Prince of All Saiyans, vowed then and there that this world would survive. That, when the time was right, his son would have a kingdom to claim. He would make sure of it, for Vegeta finally understood what it took to become the Legendary, and he was looking directly at at: his weakness, the chink in his armor. His key.
Vegeta's eyes were drawn to the only window in the room, the stars twinkled at him in the cloudless, inky black sky. Beckoning. It was time to start his training again. This time, he was ready.
…
FIN
AN: I hope you enjoyed reading this story as much as I enjoyed writing it (despite the frustration of what amounts to years of writer's block.) Thank you for all the lovely reviews, it really motivated me and helped me through my creative slumps.
Until next time...
Nelzi Out.