The next morning, Bulma agreed to speak her piece about what happened to the council. Scientists that were investigating the case were present, as well. As she sat outside of the meeting hall, she held onto her forehead and took deep breaths. She was dreading telling everyone about what happened. She was expecting some snide comments from the people that didn't like her. She had hoped to ask Vegeta if he could come along, but he had left before she woke up. She didn't want to interrupt his training – not when he was even more determined to do so than he was, before.

The door to the meeting room opened. One of the council members looked down at her. She stood up, smoothed out her skirt and walked into the meeting room. The table was more crowded than it usually was, with the scientists sitting in on the meeting. She took her seat at the end of the table, squeezing in between two burly men.

Haricot stood up to speak. Another scientist went around the room, handing out packets of paper to the present men. "According to our reports, the victim was found lying face down in an alleyway located near Route Nineteen. In accordance with previous victims, there were no sign of a murder weapon or a point of violation on the victim's body. We did discover a small cylinder in the victim's neck – identical to the one from the last victim.

"However, unlike last time, we were able to gather the smallest piece of evidence. If you will turn to page three in the handouts we provided, you will see a photograph of a small strand of dark hair. It is currently being analyzed for a specific species. And, unlike last time, we have an eyewitness to the events. Bulma of Earth was present in the area, out for a leisurely night with friends. Time had been given for her to collect herself, but now she has chosen to speak of her experience."

"Thank you, Haricot," the king said. "Bulma, you may proceed with your testimony."

As Haricot sat down, Bulma slowly stood up. She looked around the room at the critical and serious glares pointed in her direction. She swallowed, and straightened her back, as she began to tell her story.

"I was out by Route Nineteen with Prince Vegeta on a date: we went to a small restaurant nearby. We were leaving and heading somewhere else, when we heard a scream. Vegeta went running towards it, but I couldn't keep up with him. I fell, before I could get any further. The next thing I knew, he had taken off into the sky, away from the alley. I went to see what was going on, but the victim was already dead.

"Then, I got a feeling that I was being watched somewhere. I can't explain it, but I felt like I had eyes drilling a hole into the back of my head. When I turned around… there he was: the killer. He didn't say anything to me or even do anything: he just sat on the edge of a window and stared at me. When I blinked, he was gone. After that, I just started running. I accidentally ran into Nappa and told him what had happened."

"Nappa, can you attest for this?"

"Yes I can," he said. "I had heard something and went out to see what was going on. Then, I found Bulma, just as she said."

The king nodded. "Now, Bulma, can you tell us anything about the killer?"

"He was dressed completely in black. His entire body was concealed in an all-black disguise. He could have been a part of the dark, and I might not have known any better. The only thing I could see was his eyes. They were completely black – no light coming shining in them and no emotions in them. His gaze… it felt like he was staring right into my soul."

"Is that all you're able to tell us?"

"Yes. He disappeared, before I could notice anything else."

One of the scientists was hard at work sketching up what she believed the killer looked like. When she finished, she hit her pencil on the paper. "Does this ring any bells for you?" She turned it around to face her. She had only drawn the eyes, but it was enough to make Bulma nervous.

"Y-yes. Those are the ones."

There was a knock on the door. A scientist burst through and bowed to the council members. "The tests on the hair strand are complete, sir!" He ran over to Haricot, shoved the documents into his hands, and ran back out the door.

Haricot opened the documents and looked over them. His eyebrow rose slightly. "Interesting..."

"What is it," one of the councilmen said. "Do we know who it is?"

"No, but we have narrowed down a species. This isn't the work of a Saiyan, to be sure – it's from a foreign force."

Another councilman pounded his fist on the table. "It's one of those Frost Demons, isn't it?! The Colds are behind this, I just know it! Who else would try something like this?!"

"No, no hint of a Frost Demon anywhere. If this information is correct and this sample is from the killer, then he is actually an Earthling."

Bulma's eyes widened. "What? But… but how?"

"The hair strand was matched up to a variety of different races – Earthling was a perfect match."

The information was passed to her, so she could look at it herself. "That… that can't be right. There has to be a mistake." She didn't want to think that someone from her planet could have caused this.

"Why not," Chini asked. "Just because it's your race means they can't do these horrible things? Is your race above that and higher than the rest of us?"

"N-no, it's just-"

"Just what? Just that they don't do that, to their own kind. Maybe there was a reason this murderer spared you, hmm?"

"Chini," the king admonished.

"Is it not something to consider? Why would the murderer spare her, if he killed every Saiyan he's come across?"

"That's a load of horseshit," Bulma said. "Vegeta was there, too, and he didn't do anything to him. He didn't even realize he was there – he had the opportunity to kill him, but he didn't."

Another council member chimed in. "How do you know this?"

"I was right there, when it happened! Vegeta told me, too! Besides, why would the killer leave when Vegeta showed up and climb back down, when I did? It'd make more sense if he were just there the entire time! It's simple logic!"

"There's no need for you to get so defensive, Bulma," Chini said, in a mocking tone. "Guilty conscience, perhaps?"

"That is quite enough," the king yelled. "Chini, we have spoken several times about your conduct. If I have to warn you about it one more time, you will be forced to resign your seat. Do I make myself clear?"

One of the scientists snorted. "Just like Okra. If this were about any other person in this room, this wouldn't be an issue. But because it's her, there has to be a whole issue about it."

Bulma couldn't believe what she had heard. As she looked around the room, she saw people actually nodding, in agreement. She never realized how many people in this court didn't like her. Her image of the palace as her home was crumbling, before her eyes. She thought that she had been accepted long ago, but that just wasn't the case. And the fact that they were willing to talk back to the king…

Just how many other people in this palace hated her, too?

No one wanted to calm down and talk rationally, after that comment. The king had no choice but to adjourn the meeting. Bulma let herself out first, not wanting to look anyone of them in the eyes. She could hear some snide snickering and whispers directed towards her. She wondered how many times this happened, before. She might have been oblivious to it once, but now she couldn't ignore it.

Maybe she should have stayed on Namek, all those years ago.

A welcome distraction from her recent revelations came, that afternoon. Earlier that week, Bulma had managed to snag an appointment in the archives for vague research purposes. When she had told Raditz, he was overjoyed. Now, they sat in the dark and deep sanctums of the archives, lit only by candlelight. They sifted their way through dozens of individual pod flight documents. They brought the book down with them to compare them. They had found a few transcripts that were not listed in the book, though none of them rang a bell for Raditz.

However, there were still thousands of documents to go through. It could have taken them weeks to go through them all.

"Hey," Bulma said, "Do you remember what time of year it was, when your brother was born?"

"It was early in the summer. That's all I remember."

Bulma thumbed through the documents, looking for the first summer month of the year. When she found it, she set the other documents aside and began reading through them individually.

"Come over here for a second."

Raditz hopped off of his stool and leaned in over her shoulder. "What'd you find?"

"It's documenting a stolen pod. I guess that would explain why they'd leave it out of the transcripts."

"May I see it?" She handed the document off to him.

This whole situation made Bulma curious about something. "So, Saiyans used to send out their babies?"

"Back in the ancient times. When a Saiyan was seen as weak, they were left on their own to fend for themselves. If they managed to survive, they could form their own groups with the other outcasts. People tried to do that with the pods, once we reached Planet Vegeta, but after the wars with the Tuffles, it wasn't practical. There were few of us, as is – we couldn't afford to lose our infants. The king banned it, decades ago."

That would explain why someone would have to steal a pod. She couldn't imagine how cruel a parent had to be to send a helpless baby away, like that. Maybe it was a necessary evil, in times of famine or crisis, but in this situation, it was just vindictive.

She shook her head. No use in dwelling on the past – what was done was done. "What do you think about this one? Any closer?" She didn't get a respond. "Raditz?"

Raditz was staring down at the document with wide eyes. He scanned over the paper several times, to make sure that he reading it right. Everything matched up to his memories – the time of year, the nature of the launch, and even the time of day. Nothing contradicted what he knew, already.

"This... this is it. I-It has to be..."

Bulma stood up from her chair. "You think so?" She looked down at the bottom of the document, memorizing the coordinates listed there. She pulled out a small notebook out of her back pocket and thumbed through it, looking for the corresponding planet. "Wow, what a coincidence."

"What? What is it?"

"According to the coordinates in this book, that pod ended up on Earth. Weird. I didn't think you all knew about us, back then."

Raditz grabbed Bulma by her shoulders and shook her. "Do you know Kakarot?! Did you ever meet him?! Do you know where he is?!"

She pushed against him, to stop his shaking, putting her head on her forehead from dizziness. "Earth is a big planet, Raditz. We have seven billion people on it. I don't know everyone."

"Do you think there's a chance he could still be alive?!"

"I guess. It depends on where he landed. If he was near a populated city, I'm sure someone would have taken him in. If it was in the middle of a forest, then not so much luck with that, I'm guessing. But yeah, there's a chance."

He stood back, and ran his fingers through his hair. His eyes were wide, in bewilderment and excitement. "There's a chance… there's a chance!" A large grin formed on his face, as he laughed. "Oh, yes! There's a chance!" He abruptly picked Bulma up, crushing her in a bear hug and spinning her around. "Thank you, Bulma! I didn't think I'd ever find him, without you!"

She laughed, awkwardly, as she tried to push his chest to loosen his grip. "Yeah, it's no problem, Raditz."

He practically dropped her back onto the ground. "Do you know when you're gonna be back on Earth?"

"I don't know. Not for a couple more months, I'm guessing. I'll be sure to do some digging for him while I'm there, though."

"Thank you so much! I couldn't have done this, without you!" Raditz ran up the stairs and back out the doors to the archives, feeling elated. He didn't think that it would happen. He thought that he would come across another dead end. But somehow, they managed to find something. He was one-step closer to finding Kakarot.

Now, all he could do was hope that he was okay.