Deep Blue

by Nelzi-poop

Bulma and Vegeta AU get together. Bulma is a mermaid who refuses to silently accept the future that would have been forced on her so she swims away from home. The uninhabited island she claims as her new home just happens to be the jaded Saiyan Prince's training territory, for when the Gravity Trainer is 'out of order'... RATED M FOR EXPLICIT CONTENT.

4. Chapter 4 - Caution: High Voltage

AN: Sorry this chapter took so long to come out. Varsity has been sucking the creativity from my soul! I was suffering from terrible writer's block –who wouldn't –when you're forced to think calculus and transforms and vectors fields and systems and signals and programming for three week straight?! Absolute madness I say, but I hey, I chose the career I guess. Then I just had to go and get the flu and my computer just had to go and die on me… It's a miracle it's even working now. Anyway, I'm rambling –here's the chapter.

Chapter 4 (Caution: High Voltage)

After retrieving her belongings, along with a brand new breast-cover, Bulma donned her cloak, pulled the hood up and continued on. She swam briskly until the end the industrial area then right through the slums to reach the outer wall. Afterwards, it was only a matter of slipping discreetly through the main gates alongside the flow of travelling merchants and visitors constantly moving through. With her identity neatly hidden by the long cloak, no one paid her much notice, and her journey was rather uneventful within the well-travelled channels that stretched between their allied waters.

According to her map, though, Bulma would have to leave the Mammalian domain and pass through the Eelian-territory. Her current course would take her into what the map refers to as the Redemption's Pass. She recalled from Eelian Merfolk traditions, that the Mer-eels were the guardians of this passage way –and would grant anyone seeking 'redemption' –as it were –access to it impartially. This pass lead one into a shark infested cavern called the Sharks' Den. If she could manage to get through that safely, it would be a short swim to The Reef. Once there, she'll reassess how to proceed. With her path well in mind, Bulma used the long swim through the hub-stuctured cave she had just entered to meditate, once again, on her reasons for leaving and her reasons for continuing on when the chances of success seemed so small.

Being a sensible mermaid, Bulma could acknowledge that her current course was completely illogical. Her destination was shrouded in mystery and legends; having absolutely no factual foundation. Her journey would most likely cause her death and her reason for leaving was petty and egotistical. Even the notion that Mammalian Merfolk could survive on Land was never actually proven –just stories from her childhood. Considering all the aforementioned points, she should have high-tailed her way back a long time ago. Her ambitious journey simply didn't make any sense… And yet, Bulma felt herself unable to stop; unable to turn back, there seemed to be this nagging feeling deep within her soul, that was constantly pushing her forward –logic be damned. It felt right –she needed to take this course.

Thus, the determined mermaid continued on, all the while thinking of ways to convince the gateway guards to allow her onto the pass that led firstly into the wilderness and inevitably into enemy territory.

She was currently moving through a large cavern, much like the caves cities and towns were built in, except that this cavern had many exit-tunnels and fissures that could be found in the surfaces of its walls. It functioned like a great traffic hub: some of the its tunnel-branches were Merfolk-built, but the majority of them were naturally formed. Some lead into allied cities and some into the agricultural sites, from where her people harvested all the raw materials they needed to sustain their society –foods were collected in the shallows and metal and gems in the deeper waters, close to the volcanic ores coming from the earth's core. Then there were also tunnels that were pathways into the wilderness, where colonies of bandits and hostile rural tribes ruled supreme. Such tunnels were always gated and fortified by a military base in close proximity to it. The base's primary objective being to prevent any and all unauthorized exits and entrances, which, suffice to say, would present a problem to the fleeing mermaid. If it weren't for the fact that she was currently keeping a low profile; she might have pulled military rank to gain access to the outside dominions.

She knew that all exits were diligently guarded, though, and none but an enemy attack would distract those soldiers from their posts. Bulma was thus left with one –very unpleasant –option. An age old diversion tactic: terrorism.

As stealthily as she could manage, and with her energy so low her bioluminescence was barely detectable, Bulma swerved for the base with the perfect target in mind: The armory –isolated enough for a relatively easy access and minimal collateral damage, and also significant enough that they'll all come swimming when it eventually went boom. Being no stranger to covert operations, the six guards Bulma quietly knocked out and stashed proved to be a minor and she thus reached her destination with little difficulty. Once there, she decided to grab a few toys that might come in handy on her journey; and then, taking a deep breath, she called on her power, using her trident to form it into a stable sphere of heavily compressed, bright-blue energy. Stretching her control to its limits, she made her way to the exit, keeping the ball of volatile energy floating steadily in the weapons room. Unfortunately, with her using all her concentration for controlling the highly destructive nature of her energy-ball, Bulma's power-level, and 'glow' was back to its original intensity, and when the sudden,

'Hey you! What the are you doing in here' of a nearby patrolling officer tore through her mind, the only reply she had time for before it all blew sky high was:

'Oh Kelp'

When the blackness finally faded, Bulma found herself floating limply on a pile of debris. A glint of silver in her peripheral told her that her trident was not far behind and all around her soldiers were swimming to and fro about the newly destroyed building. It was the perfect time to slip out, it seemed, if it weren't for the fact that her senses have yet to return to her completely. The next thing she knew, she was being yanked upright by her arm and by reflex twisted out of the person's hold and manoeuvred him/her into a arm-lock. When she regained enough of her bearing to assess her situation, four tridents were pointed threateningly in her direction from all around her.

Kelp… so not my day

She grudgingly let freed the poor mermaid from the painful lock and raised her hands in a submissive manner. It was then that her ripped cloak revealed, not only her armor, but her Royal-hued tail as well.

Things were so not going as planned… and Bulma was fresh out of clever solutions

'Ge- ge –General?' came the timid appeal from the black haired mermaid she had just freed. Still, having no way to salvage the situation, Bulma naturally resorted to what she was most notorious for: She ranted:

'What the hell are you all floating about for?!' she suddenly demanded with all the authority her status and rank afforded her. 'Shouldn't you be hunting for the one responsible for this?'

'My Lady, we have no idea who did this.' The merman beside her answered up. Their tridents already returned to pointing in a safer direction.

'Of course you don't...' she replied haughtily, still having no idea where she was going with her story, but certain that if she sounded confident she would not be questioned. 'Now, I have order to bring about so leave me be and tend to all you find seriously injured.' She waved them off dispassionately.

'But General, shouldn't you head to the infirmary?' another mermaid asked.

'Worry yourself with your duties and leave me be. That's an order, soldier.'

With that, she practically tore her hood back on and grabbed her trident, unmindful of the eyes following every beat of her tail as she proceeded to search for her missing bag.

Kelp kelp kelp kelp her mind raced, it was all messed up –royally screwed. She was supposed to leave unnoticed and therefore have no concerns about leaving any leads as to her whereabouts. Okay, Bulma –it's not the end yet. There's still a chance to get out before anyone notices. If only I can find my stupid ba –Oh, there it is…

Her bag's strap was broken, it looked a bit worse for wear but ultimately it still held her belongings securely. The gates were obviously locked when she reached them, but as she predicted, thankfully unguarded and she managed to get out without notice, leaving only a broken gate as her last legacy to the place of her birth.

Bulma counted carefully every other tunnel she passed before turning off as the map indicated. In the wild, it was almost impossible to differentiate one tunnel-branch from the other. Now and again, she spotted signs that indicated a rural village was probably located nearby –a mounted shark's skull for example. Those areas she too gave a wide berth. After what seemed like ages of swimming Bulma decided that it was time for a rest and found herself a hole, small and deep enough, to offer adequate shelter from predators and enemies alike. She sheathed her trident and placed it in the hollow, along with the broken bag she was still holding in her other hand, then settled in a comfortable heap and promptly fell asleep.

Bulma shifted uncomfortably in her armor, trying to relieve the itch beneath her breastplate. Her chest scales were acting up again and her hands were tied tightly behind her back. She had been captured by Mer-eel bandits not so long ago, and they put her in a cage as soon as they reached their camp site. She had been waiting ages now for their leader to return. The 'Boss' was off 'bartering' her bounty-price with some high ranking individual in the Mer-eel authorities. The bastard took her trident along too and left her with his kelp-for-brains lackeys to deal with. Bulma sighed tiredly and awkwardly tried to relieve some of the itchiness she had in her… everywhere by rubbing against the cage-bars. The miserable worms didn't even have the common courtesy to provide her with a school of cleaner-fish. She hadn't had the opportunity to cleanse herself since she left her city, and school of Blue-steak wrasses* were easily and cheaply acquired. Really, she wasn't asking for much. Sadly, the only blue streak exchanged between captors and hostage ended up being the indignant cussing of the feisty mermaid-warrior when her humble request was flat out denied...

*EARLIER*

The Blue-haired mermaid princess found herself being rudely awakened by a sharp pain in the bottom of a tail. Before she had time to investigate she felt herself suddenly being yanked out of her hollow and made a desperate grab for her sheathed weapon; only to feel it slip helplessly through her fingers. She emerged then, pulled tail first, and the unarmed but never defenceless mermaid immediately twisted in the grasp of her assailant and socked him a good one, smiling in satisfaction when she felt something crunch under her fist. The stunned merman let go of her tail and Bulma, after noting that she was outnumbered, used the moment to dive back into the hollow that held her things, but her attempt was cut short by another pair of arms grabbing her own and twisting it into a painful lock-hold behind her back, and she suddenly found herself pressed face-first into the rock-surface.

'Woah, there missy…' her attacker tauntingly commanded.

'Let go of me!' was her demanding reply while she struggled in her attacker's grasp. 'Let go of me you creep!' A painful jolt suddenly entered her body, travelling from the top of her arms to her tail, followed by an exhausting numbness and she bit down hard to keep from crying out. She finally knew who she was dealing with –the attack she felt could only be used by one species of Merfolk: an Eelian. From her side she heard a groan, followed by the telepathic

'I think the squirmy little she-worm broke my nose!'

'I know,' the person behind her replied in an amused fashion, 'feisty little thing, isn't she? Pretty as an Angelfish too…'

'What are we gonna do with her, Boss?' another one jumped into the conversation.

'She's wearing armor. She might be dangerous.' Yet another one added. All mental connections were cut as this Boss person seemed to contemplate his next move.

'She seemed awfully frantic to reach that cave, Boys… Sharkbate, go check it out' Bulma jerked lightly in her captor's hold, another wily scheme already taking form in her brilliant mind.' The lackey called Shakbate's luminescence caught her peripheral view briefly as he entered her cave and again when he exited a few moments later.

'Well well –it seems our catch of the day is a soldier after all.' The Boss's remark was followed by amused titters all around. She presumed they were referring to her trident.

'Awe, Boss –she's too gorgeous to be a soldier. Look at those blue locks –you don't find hair like that in every cave.' This comment was followed by the sensation of a tugging on her hair. With her plan now fully formed, Bulma could do nothing but bite back the spiteful reply her pride would have caused her to express. With a sudden sense of spinning Bulma found herself with her back pinned to the wall and staring into the ice-blue bulging eyes of her Mer-eel captor. She had to restrain herself from recoiling when seeing the wide serpent-like jaw and two sharp, needle-like fangs protruding from the small, pouty lips of the merman before her.

'What's a pretty little Mer-mammal doing so far away from her home-turf?' He asked snidely, 'deserter?'

'Wouldn't you like to know' she taunted.

'Hey, Boss –there's some pretty interrestin' junk here in her bag…'

One by one, her stolen weapons were being pulled from her bag. Her purse of money was immediately pocketed, which confirmed her suspicions that she was probably dealing with bandits. The priestly robe was received with many a furrowed brow and the jewelled breast-cover seemed to evoke even more confusion. She was suddenly infinitely glad that her map was stashed in her armor breastplate.

'Tell me, Mammalian, just where did you get your hands on all these… unusual things.'

'Stole them…' was her detached reply, he cocked an interested eyebrow.

'So what are you then? Deserting soldier, wayward priestess or common thief?'

When she kept silent, his frustrated sneer was the only warning she had before his claws dug into her arms and he released another spell of paralysing electricity. Again, Bulma had to grit her teeth to keep from crying out. After the torture proved in vain, the leader simply sniffed and pulled at her unresponsive form. Another merman appeared at her side, grabbing on to her other arm and started dragging her along.

'No matter' the Boss finally said, 'we'll find out who you are soon enough. I recall that a rainbow-tail like yours indicates that you're someone important, right? I bet whoever you're swimming away from would pay dearly to have you back… and so would the Eelian government.'

'You're taking me into Eel-turf then?' she tried not to sound too hopeful. He stopped, turning to regard her with a perplexed frown, their gazes locked and after a moment his silver-blue eyes suddenly became guarded. He wasn't dumb, and he realized, perhaps too late, that she wasn't to be taken lightly either. The hand that gripped her arm tightened momentarily.

'See to it that this one does not get a within a tail of that trident.' He barked out harshly. His tone warranted no questions. The majority of the journey onwards, proceeded in tense silence.

*PRESENT*

She didn't know when she fell asleep, but Bulma was again rudely awakened; this time by a jolt of Mer-eel electricity pulsing through the specially crafted metal of her cage. Her extensively colourful sentiments could be picked up tails away and the bandit leader was once again the perpetrator. He was grinning like a maniac at her displeasure, his needle-like fangs glinting ominously. She would get him, she swore, and knock those pointy little teeth right out of his mouth. All of them –once she got out of this Neptune-forsaken cage she'd tail-whip all of them so hard they'd short out for a week or she wasn't Bulma the Bull shark.

Right now, though, she needed them to safely 'escort' her through Eelian territory. Bulma's plan for eventual escape was dependant on the hope that the Eelian Merfolk valued tradition to the extent that she'd be able to drift out of their territory through the Redemption's Pass relatively unscathed. It was her only chance at escaping alive.

'Time to go' the Boss said, ignoring her death-glare.

'Where's my trident, Boss-man?' she sneered.

'It's safe.'

'It better be!'

'Or what, little Mammalian?'

'Let me out of this cage and I'll show you what, you boggle-eyed maggot!'

His only reply was an amused chuckle. 'You, know, if your new owner didn't just pay me three-hundred in gold, I would have argued that you're not the 'all that' you think you are… but since I'm a smart fish and can acknowledge your buyer's eminence, I'd say it is best if we keep those chains on for the remainder of our journey together, ey? …on second thought…'

Bulma could do nothing but float helplessly as he reached for the back of her neck, the electric strike was felt only momentarily before the world around her went black again.

---

'Ah, the notorious General Bull Shark –how nice to see you again...' her procurer drawled as soon as she floated through, what seemed to be, his office doors. The bandit leader was at her back, with her tied hands still firmly in his grip. The Mer-eel at thought was sitting atop a elaborate work-desk, twirling HER trident on the tips of his fingers. His eel-like lower half swaying lazily to and fro. He then reached behind him and brought out a little bag, which he tossed over and it floated neatly into her captor's hands. It jingled slightly, indicating that it probably contained money.

The new Mer-eel 's tail was all black and vertically striped with silver streaks that pulsed with light at a low frequency, an indication that he was relaxed. She recognized him as easily as he did her: Knives –first Lieutenant to the Eelian Prince himself. The same Lieutenant that she all but impaled on the very trident he was twirling so nonchalantly.

'Knives,' she answered with the same falsely pleasant tone in which he spoke, 'I thought you dead.'

He frowned at the implied taunt, the pulsing of his tail-stripes sped up slightly as he rose from his unconventional seat.

'As you can see, General, I am very much alive.' He replied in a now dark tone. As he approached her she noticed a very pronounced three-fold scar on his chest and mentally sighed. Again, things were not going to go as smooth as she planned. 'Unfortunately for you,' he continued and started swimming in a circle around her –the arc of his tail sizzling with electricity as it coiled around her, 'you won't be able to say the same in a moment or two.'

Fantastic… First a greedy eel, now a vengeful one.

Refusing to be intimidated by his threat and the electricity sparking within inches of her Mammalian Body, Bulma kept her cool expression as she casually replied:

'So... you pay a fortune to obtain me, and then simply kill me?'

He stopped, and Bulma watched him as he seemingly considered her words for a moment, only to shrug untroubled and continue his 'circle of death'.

'For the privilege to kill you myself –the infamous Mammalian Royal turned Warrior Elite; the one said to be strongest in all of Mer-realm... why, I consider it a fortune well spent.'

'Typical,' Bulma sneered. Her fate was really seemed to be taking a turn for the worst. This was a fish that wanted her dead, so appealing to reason was out of the question, thus she moved on to her next target: his pride 'You Eelians are all the same –cowards, through and through. Any Mer could kill restrained prey... I don't blame you, though. You would never be able to take me otherwise –that nasty little scar on your chest proves it.' She chucked dryly, 'Kelp, even this son of a she-worm behind me has more of a spine than you do, Knives…'

With an enraged roar he suddenly thrust at her with the trident. Bulma considered dodging the strike, before disregarding the instinct. She kept her gaze defiantly locked with his as he moved to spear her with her own weapon… The blades stopped just before it pierced the skin of her exposed throat and Bulma didn't know whether to sigh in relief or grin in triumph as her gamble proved spot on.

'Curse you, you Mammalian scum! I am no coward!' He snarled, lowering the pointy weapon, a seemingly painful decision by the looks of it.

'Honorless then… what warrior worth his salt would not choose to face his opponent at their full strength?'

'I have honor, Mammal!' He swam in circles then, presumably contemplating his next move.

'Prove it then, Lieutenant. Permit me to go on my way to the Redemption's Pass.'

In his surprise, he stopped mid loop, dropping her trident and spun to stare at her –his already bulging eyes growing wide enough to nearly pop from his skull. After a moment they narrowed again suspiciously, and he continued his circling –this time again around the Mammalian princess.

'What's your game, Mermaid?' he asked, skepticism clearly evident from his thoughts.

'No game, Knives. I simply wish to reach The Reef.'

He chuckled humorlessly 'Is that right? Pray tell Bull Shark –why would I pay a fortune acquiring you, only to let you go off to commit ritual suicide? Don't think I do not know what you are doing –I will not be fooled into helping you escape. You're dying by my hands, General.'

'I'm serious Knives. Why the Kelp else would I be floating in your office right this moment. Granted, I wish it weren't you –a lower ranking court official would also have sufficed… Say Boss-man,' she turned her head to regard the bandit leader, still floating awkwardly in the corner of the room –'you sure do have friends in shallow places…'

'What nonsense are you thinking, Bull Shark –you're here because you had your pathetic tail captured by bandit-scum.'

Now it was Bulma's turn to laugh, 'You think I couldn't have gotten out when I wanted? Those 'bandit-scum' are lucky that I have such impeccable self-restraint or they would have been Shark-chum ages ago… Bull Shark chum.' With this she turned to face the lonely bandit again, giving him a particularly predatory grin. 'I simply hitched a ride with the fiends –avoiding unnecessary harassment from territorial commoners of your race… I'd say I made good time getting here.'

From the corner of her eyes she saw the aforementioned bandit attempting to slip out the door and acted with a swiftness that had left both Eelians in the room reeling. With one quick sweep she broke her bonds and grabbed her trident, firing a blast at the escaping bandit that intentionally missed him by a hairs breath, then spinning to apprehend the Eelian Lieutenant. By the time the guards came bursting through the door, she already had their commander in a compromising position. Her trident spears resting neatly under his chin. He coiled his tail around her and attempted electrocuting her, but the prepared warrior drew the energy with her trident until it glowed searing white with power.

'Tell them to back off or you'll find yourself very headless very soon, Knives.' She said, referring to the surrounding guards. When he did so, she cheekily added – 'Oh, and do send someone to retrieve that escaping worm of a bandit… I have a score to settle –I'm sure you understand,' – looking pointedly at the three scars she left on him in their past battle. Growling, he grudgingly acquiesced.

'Now,' Bulma started after the departure of the guard, 'I don't have any particular sushi with you, Knives, and what happened in the past –that was just war; no need to get your tail in a twist about it –we all have our fair share of battle scars and near death experiences so there's really no need to take it personally.' She reasoned, unperturbed about the nervous commander's frequent attempts at electrocuting her. 'You said you're a fish of honour, and If I'm not mistaken it is Eelian custom to admit anyone the opportunity to attempt the Redemption's Pass. According to your history it was a right of passage, even, for brave young Mermen to travel it and bring back a White Death's hide…'

'What of it, Bull Shark? That was before the sacred Reef was discovered. It is now constituted as an execution procedure for death row criminals and the way to eternal servitude to the realm Guardian… practically a euphemism for suicide'

'I'm not planning on dying, Lieutenant.'

'You're not planning on turning priestly and serving the Guardian Dragon, either… you have too much of a warrior's spirit for that… I ask again, what business to you have in the sacred shallows of the Reef, Bulma?'

'My business is my own, Eel –and you are obligated by the blood that flows in your body and those of your race, to admit me on that pass.'

'I'm obligated nothing –Mammal.'

'Then I might as well kill you now and your pathetic little entourage too and plead my case on death row. You know I can do it…'

It was silent as he contemplated her statement.

Unsurprisingly, Bulma found herself being cordially escorted on her merry way to the seemingly suicidal Redemtion's Pass… Well, after she made good on her promise to sock Mister Bandit Boss-man one good –leaving him permanently fangless. (The offences of his brainless lackeys would be overlooked) Her request to leave was even cleared by the Eelian prince himself –the gullible oaf. It is common knowledge that Eelian Royalty makes none of their own decisions, and rule on the whim of their advisers –much like Bulma's own monarchy. Apparently, the Mammalian Warrior's presence in their domain made the Mer-eels very nervous, and they would rather free her than kill her and risk the wrath of the Mammalians, who were at current the dominant society in the Mer-realm. They were only too happy that she was voluntarily choosing the path from which no one returns; and the little compromise they made with her –allowing her to enter the pass fully armed, which apparently is against the law –was only a minor in light of the fact that she would be out of their hair for good.

While travelling through their city, Bulma had a hard time managing the mild case of claustrophobia she felt. Unlike her Mer-race, who preferred large caverns and wide tunnels, the Eelians seem to prefer narrow spaces, so most of their passageways were uncomfortably tight. Thus when she finally reached her exit – the large, creepy and dark abyss that proved to be the Redemption's Pass suddenly seemed almost welcoming – almost...

About half-way through, though, Bulma was ready to turn tail and swim back home, the mermaid had needed to contend with jagged edges, unstable spires, lurking creepy-crawlies trying to sink their teeth into her and a series of even tighter squeezes than the thoroughfares in the Eelian domain. Needless to say, when she finally reached the passage that would take her straight into the shark infested hollow, she had so many cuts and abrasions she might as well have been swimming in with a pulsing 'Eat-me' sign over her head. Small wonder the path was considered suicide, Bulma thought.

Bulma considered the last tunnel she would have to squeeze through to reach her next destination – it had more unstable looking spires hanging from its ceiling – already she could make out what seemed the impaled skeletal remains of a previous traveler near the entrance. It was not the first corpse she encountered on her 'journey for redemption'. It also had jagged-edged ridges all around the passage walls. The most dangerous element of the tunnel though, was the current swirling through it, sucking everything that entered it right through.

Since the Blue-haired mermaid was not planning on becoming fish-paté anytime soon, she took the only other logical course to avoid getting blended –she blasted her way through.

It took quite some time, because the she had to split her concentration between smoothing out the rough edges of the tunnel walls with a steady stream of spiraling energy, and keeping herself from being pulled in by the current herself. She ended up having to take a few rest periods and after she was satisfied that the tunnel no longer functioned as a shredder, she found herself a nice comfortable –creepy-crawliless – hole, and bedded down for the time being.

When she awoke her wounds were half-healed, but not completely clean. Bulma decided then to make her first priority finding a school of cleaner fishes. Sharks always had some form of cleansing organisms in close proximity, so she figured it would be an easy deal to steal some of their hygiene services –staying a reasonable distance away from their jaws –of course. Not to misunderstand, Bulma was by no means afraid of sharks; she has had quite a few life-threatening encounters with them in her past adventures as an upstart young soldier on Gate-guard duty. She knew how to hold her own, but not even the most experienced warriors can be saved when caught in the middle of a feeding frenzy… Personal experience has taught her at least that much. So, it was with the greatest of trepidation that she finally proceeded. She used her left hand to steady her course through; her right hand was stretched out before her and held firmly onto her sheathed trident's staff; she winced when she felt her skin and scales drag painfully over a rough edge that couldn't be completely flattened. Fortunately, no skin was broken.

The Shark's Den was a large cavern and its walls were much like the passage into it was–decorated with many a flesh-slicing edge. It kind of reminded Bulma of shark teeth, like she was literally swimming into the mouth of a shark; and despite the danger of it, Bulma could not help but find the carvern beautiful and very fitting. She also could not help but feel a bit disappointed when the only sharks she could see were a few white-tips and one hammerhead meandering about. Where were the big players, she wondered : the Bulls, the Tigers and the Great Whites?

The warrior-princess definitely wasn't lamenting for long, for the next instant deadly jaws were coming right at her at an almost break-neck speed. She dodged the Mako Shark just in time –one of the fastest breeds in the ocean and before it had the opportunity to go for another bite, whacked it over its gills with the staff of her trident. It quickly got the message: Bulma was no snack –she was a predator like they were –a Bull Shark even, and the lesser predator needed to learn its place. The warrior-princess didn't know much about the mental abilities of sharks, but the little scuffle seemed to impress on the other inhabitants that she was not one to be trifled with, except one juvenile Great White. That one was dealt with much the same as the Mako and it darted off quickly too. The cavern was vast, and thus Bulma had to find a relatively safe space to float and study her map. While she considered her course, she felt a little caress in her tail and looked down to see a common cleaner wrasse pecking at her. Soon their were three and Bulma was enjoying her first cleanse in days. It felt good, and the mermaid was tempted to remove her armor so they can get to her irritated chest. Deciding against risking the vulnerability in shark infested waters, she went without the upper-body clean.

Great Whites and Tiger Sharks started appearing more often the further into the cavern she got, so she did manage to find the big boys after all. She could also feel the drag on the water lightening, meaning she was entering shallower waters.

It was a tedious task finding the entrance to the Reef. The main reason was that the truce with sharks seemed to have lasted only a limited time and she found herself dodging more and more investigative bites. Luckily for the mermaid, she could swim much faster with the reduced gravity of shallow waters and had an easier time dodging the snapping jaws. One Tiger Shark was quite relentless though, it kept trying to eat her with an alternating attack-retreat technique, always returning no matter how many times she whacked it (without drawing blood, of course). Another trial was the fact that the entrance was hidden. According to her map's description, it was a little passage located in the middle of four spires arranged in a diamond shape. This arrangement was unique to a specific grotto and when she found it, the mermaid almost did an about-face when she realized this entrance was located in what seemed to be Great White breeding waters.

The persistent Tiger Shark stopped following her as soon as she entered White Death's waters and she couldn't help but note that there is something to be said about the intellect of these predators. She had quite a tough time fending off territorial three to four tail-long males, but she managed to clear a big-enough area around the small entrance to risk swimming through. Bulma thus made her way, head first into the hollow. She placed her bag in first and attempted to wiggle through next. Only slightly confident about the protection the surrounding spires afforded her. She had barely managed to squeeze her chest into the entrance, left arm and shoulder stretching in to pull her body through, right, trident-wielding arm outside, when she felt a core-rocking ram come from underneath her and hit her square in her stomach and upper-tail. The mermaid was then roughly jerked from the hole and pulled right back into the red-tinged waters of the Great White's grotto.

She felt no pain, just winded shock. Her right arm hung lamely on the snout of the Great White that had its teeth embedded into her tail and midriff, and her trident was slowly sinking to the floor of the cavern. And in that moment the warrior was at a total loss about what to do. Her bio-light shone far enough to reveal that the water around her was fast turning from red-tinged to an opaque crimson, but Bulma found herself looking intently into the black hole in front of her.

Completely paralyzed.

For a moment there was nothing but the black eye of her predator, so empty, yet almost taunting, and then it was over. It thrashed, and with it came the pain of being slowly ripped apart. Bulma was suddenly snapped out of her stunned stupor and started to struggle. In a desperate endeavor to survive, even though the odds were fast dwindling, Bulma stuck both her hands into the mouth of the shark: one on the bottom, one on the top and attempted to pry it open with her superior strength –which was dwindling as fast as her odds. Uncaring of the teeth slicing though her hands, the mermaid pushed. In the blurry red water, the mermaid noted the lurking shadows of those also looking for a bite of the action and let out a distressed cry. Pushing with all of her strength, Bulma felt the teeth dislodge from her scales, and wasted no time on relief. She was out with flick of her tail, bumping into another open-mouthed White Shark in her frenzied escape attempt– and this time, the rows of razor-edged teeth were heading straight for her head. With another anguished cry the Blue-haired mermaid twisted her punctured tail swiftly and smacked shark under its jaw, blocking out the pain of her tearing wounds. Then dove in the direction her trident fell, slamming into on of the sharp-edged rock-pile in her haste. Bulma checked behind her briefly, seeing nothing but a red haze. Once on the grotto floor, the warrior-mermaid attempted to regain her focus, since one cannot perform complex energy techniques in a panic. It didn't take long for her to recall the skill, Bulma watched the floor intently for her trident; and when it suddenly lit up with her energy she wasted no time diving for it.

A.N: Welp –there it is. I know, I know –I'm mean. This chapter was meant to cover all the time missed from Bulma's escape to her eventual emergence: on land - with Vegeta! But it got too long so I cut part of it off. (Don't spear me!) There's still lots of exciting things that still has to happen SPOILER WARNING A deeper look into that silly old prophesy, the Reef, the Guardian Dragon.. all that jazz. Vegeta's also making an appearance next chapter. YAY! Hopefully y'all won't have to wait another month.. no promises though –I have a lot on my plate –test series are starting soon.

Oh oh:

*Bluestreak wrasses are a type of oceanic cleaner fish that pick parasites and other grimy things out of the scales of other fish -and eels -and stuff. I thought: Mermaids can't really bathe so I brought this little detail in. Also, another fun fact: these cleaners cleansing technique feels like a soft calming caress, that's why they get along so well with what may have otherwise been their predators.