Dammit...

Bardock grimaced as he removed the bandages from his bloody nub. The blood soaked medical taped descended to the cold floor. Now able to see himself in a full length mirror, he realized just how awful the damage was.

"Need any help?" The aging scientist called out from her makeshift desk. She was filling up a container with glowing blue energy she had been dangerously collecting over the last few months. It was all the time machine needed to get them assistance from the past. She placed it gently on the desktop before checking in on him in the adjacent room. "You look...disappointed?"

"Just thought I'd look a little more badass than this."

The blue haired woman rolled her eyes and removed the roll of medical tap from the dark bathroom counter. She cautiously covered up his large wound and sighed, blowing a long bang out of her face.

"Would you believe Gohan told me the same thing?"

Bardock's eyes flicked from his reflection to her blue eyes at the mention of his grandson. "Your kid and him were pretty close, huh."

Bulma nodded and gave his wound a pat, signaling that she was done. She gestured for him to follow her out of the room, and for once he listened to her without giving her any lip. "Honestly there were times when I thought he loved him more than me."

Bardock chuckled darkly and looked around the small laboratory for any sustenance. "You got any more of those Twonkies?"

The blue haired woman laughed at his mispronunciation but decided to let it go. She opened the bottom drawer of her desk and tossed it at him. As she watched him eat it, she couldn't help but notice how thin he was already starting to look - especially without the top of his armor on. "I wish we had more for you. I know you Saiyans could eat three full grown horses on a good day..."

The scarred warrior tossed the plastic wrapper onto the floor haphazardly and looked at her in disbelief. "The world's gone to shit and you still care about what I eat? Damn. Now I finally understand why the midget married you. A true Saiyan's wife."

"Well, we actually weren't husband and wife yet the day he was killed. Actually, we kinda hated each other."

"Ah," Bardock raised his only hand. "Say no more. Trunks was the result of a pity fuck. We all knew that."

The scientist pressed down on his foot with her heel and shook her head. "You're such an asshole!" Her smile couldn't be hidden. Even in times like this, even with vulgar company like this, it was worth it. She turned her attention to the time machine's energy container and held it close to her chest. "Trunks should be able to leave soon. He'll have enough to make it there. The version of me in your timeline should be able to provide him with more to make it back here."

Bardock could see her expression lingering on the side of uncertainty. "Hey, don't...don't worry. Kakarot, the prince, Gohan... They can take him. I can promise you that."

Bulma opened her mouth to say something, but the explosion of the wall on the right side of them had caused their peaceful moment to end. She had landed on the ground with the energy clutched deeply against her chest like an infant. Her ears were ringing and her vision grew hazy as she tried to locate Bardock through the smoke-filled room.

"B-Bardock!" Her voice croaked. "BARDOCK!"

Out of nowhere, his hand had grabbed onto her thin shoulder. She turned her body around to look at him with tears filling in her eyes. She shoved the energy container towards his chest. "Go on, take it. Bring it to Trunks. You have to. It's the only way. Too many people died for this and I'm not going to let it go to waste! Quickly! He's here!"

The Saiyan looked down at her, unnerved. He shoved the blue liquid back towards her harshly, causing her to move back a few feet. "Run," he spoke calmly and quietly. "I'm gonna be fine."

"NO!"

The scientist watched in horror as Black appeared from out of the smoke and wrapped his large hands around Bardock's neck tightly. The father of Goku shot her one last warning look, knowing that if she didn't leave now she would fall victim and this would all be nothing.

Bulma closed her tear-filled eyes as she turned her back to escape the damaged laboratory. In the clutches of pure evil, Bardock looked at her disappearing body before smiling weakly. "That's right... Don't ever look back..."

Another crater.

The Saiyan warrior of legend found himself in, yet again, another crater.

He slowly had blinked his eyes open to see a million leaves above him from ancient trees. The sky had that mid-morning appearance. It took him a moment to gather what had happened before turning his neck to the right to see that his arm was still missing.

Where was he now? What planet? What time period?

Perhaps if he were lucky, he'd be eaten by a dinosaur and wake up back home in bed away from this nightmare.

Bardock groaned in pain as he sat up straight. He floated his aching body out of the crater he had created and landed on his green-tipped boots. He cautiously viewed his surroundings. A smile slowly crept to his face.

No fucking way...

Mount Paozu! He was home! He was actually home! Bardock couldn't help himself. He ran through the familiar woods and through a meadow where he and his grandsons had numerous spars together. He ran past the bushes he hid in when Gohan proposed to Videl. Something had finally, finally worked in his favor and he would getting much needed rest with the people he loved the most.

My family...

Damn near hysterical, Bardock began laughing deeply as he continued to run to where his home was. After being in that hell hole of a timeline, he just wanted to wrap his single arm around every single person in that house. Hell, he'd even give Lucy a big ol' kiss!

His laugh had ended abruptly upon what he had seen.

In the spot where his house should've been, was nothing but wild grass. He could hear his heart pounding in his chest as he looked around frantically. "No, no, no, no, no, no..." Bardock pulled at his hear. "No, no, no, no, no..."

What was this!?

Had it been destroyed, or not even built yet?

Bardock dropped to his knees and looked at the empty nothingness that was once, or would be one day, his home. One by one, the memories of his home and the people inside it had begun to slip away as well. He could actually feel them disappearing from his life. Defeat and desperation caused his eyes to become bloodshot and brimmed with tears. His already messy hair was even more disheveled than normal.

There he was, lost.

Completely alone.

The only one who knew the evils that would befall his family and friends, and couldn't do a damn thing about it.

It was going to be an endless void of death and repeat, and would result in him never finding where he was meant to be.

He pounded his only fist into the ground deeply, and then multiple times as he screamed out in a mixture of agony and sheer depression. His tears had fallen into the deep crater he was creating, and for the first time he didn't care if someone saw them. He continued to punch until he grew exhausted, and then just allowed himself to fall back down into the hole he created.

Maybe the sun shining its rays down on him would burn him to a crisp and it would be all over with. Maybe he'd actually die, maybe he'd be transported, at this point he didn't care anymore.

For once in his life, he was giving up.

"I'm sorry..." His eye lids were getting low and heavy. "I'm so sorry..."

He stared at the sun, hoping it would destroy his retinas. But the bright star had been blocked by an oddly familiar sphere. Bardock shot up as if he weren't just trying to off himself and watched as the pod had crashed a few miles away, causing Mount Paozu to shake violently. Within seconds, he was up and flying to the location. The smoke signal was calling out to him.

The Saiyan took a ragged breath the moment he landed right on the edge of the crater. The Saiyan pod with the baby Kakarot resting safely inside it was in down below him.

Without a second thought, the worn-torn warrior jumped down and pried the pod apart with his hand just enough to be able to grab the resting baby. He lifted him up carefully and held him close to his exposed chest. He closed his eyes and rested his nose against Kakarot's hair, breathing in the familiar scent of his first home. Planet Vegeta.

"Oh, my. You two okay down there?"

Instinctively, Bardock held up a hand to send a ki blast in the direction where the voice came. He held it back when he saw a short, stubby old man with a white bushy mustache looking down at him.

"If you need medical attention," he called out loudly with his hands over his mouth in the shape of an 'o'. "I don't live too far from here!"

Bardock narrowed his eyes, feeling like he already knew who this old man was. "What's your name?"

"Gohan! Yours?"