Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z or any of it's characters. Someday I will, but not today. So don't sue me, you wont get anything.
The Adversary
By Courtney
Part 7
Bulma's ship landed with a big thud and she carefully jumped off the ship.
"So this is Vegetasei," she wondered out loud, looking around, examining the area. It was nothing at all like Earth, possibly the exact opposite. The sky was red, as if it was on fire and most of the ground was covered in ash.
'Probably from all the fighting' Bulma thought to herself. 'No wonder Vegeta's so grumpy all the time. Poor thing, I can't even imagine living here all my life.' A cold shiver ran up her spine. She sensed stares from all the Saiyajins that surrounded her crater.
"What're you lookin at?!" Bulma snickered and gave them a dirty look. They looked away and slowly the whole crowd disappeared. Bulma had a hard time climbing out of the crater but finally stumbled out after a while.
Unlike on Earth, there weren't many buildings on Vegetasei. Only one stood out. A gigantic palace. The gates were blood red and were carved into an unusual looking symbol. It took Bulma a while to recognize it as the symbol that was marked on Vegeta's armor when he first arrived on Earth.
"Well I guess that's Vegeta's house," Bulma said shocked. "It's so...big…Damn! It makes Capsule Corp look like a tiny wagon!"
She sighed and walked towards the palace. Several Saiyajins who passed by her wore displeasing looks on their faces.
'What the hell's the matter with these people?! Just because I'm new around here doesn't mean that they have to look at me like I'm a trashcan or something!!' she thought to herself. 'Urg! Who cares about them?! I'm going to see Vegeta again!!'
With that she quickened her pace and started jogging towards the gates as fast as her legs could take her but only found them to be locked.
"Dammit!!" she cursed as she kicked the gate in frustration. Then she caught a glance of a person leaning against the wall next to the gate. Bulma turned her attention to him. He looked exactly like Goku but he's grown a lot older.
"Goku?" she asked with a bit hesitation.
"Huh?" the Saiyajin looked at her awkwardly.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I've mistaken you for one of my best friends."
"Oh," the Saiyajin simply replied and looked away.
Bulma hesitated a little more before asking him another question. "I'm looking for Veg..I mean Prince Vegeta, do you know where I might him?"
The Saiyajin hiked an eyebrow. "Prince Vegeta?" he said turning to face her. "Lady, I don't know where in the last couple of weeks, but Prince Vegeta hasn't been seen around here for days!"
Bulma gasped.
"Rumor has it that he ran away," the Saiyajin started.
'Oh NO!!' Bulma thought. 'What if he went back to Earth? Ahh! What a disaster!! I knew this was a bad idea!!' she was snapped back from her thoughts when the Saiyajin continued talking.
"Says he's too scared to take his place as the new king. Honestly, I think the rumors are true, but we'll never know for sure now we'll we?" he laughed.
Bulma slapped him as hard as she could. "Vegeta would never run from anything! Besides, from all I've seen, you dirty Saiyajins don't deserve such a potentialled king such as Vegeta! In fact, I don't think you deserve a king at all!" she yelled, just inches away from his face.
"I'd really learn to control my tongue if I were you. You're just lucky that I have at least some patience for fools like you!" he spat.
"Fools?! You take that back!!"
The Saiyajin snorted.
"That is the last straw! When I tell Vegeta about you, he's going to rip your head into pieces and flush it down a toilet!!" Bulma screamed.
He taped on his scouter and smirked. "Lady, you don't know who you're dealing with here," he said calmly. "Besides, how would a lowly woman like you even get a chance to look at Prince Vegeta?!"
"Well unlike you, who don't even have a faintest clue to where he is, I do!! In fact, I'm probably the reason he left in the first place!" Instantly Bulma sealed her lips with her hands realizing what she had just blurted out.
'Oh NO!! What have I done?!' she thought backing off. 'If these ruthless Saiyajins finds out that Vegeta risked his title for me, they'd think of him as soft and weak. Lord, what have I done?!' she backed away even further. Tears pooled her eyes. A few drops fell down her hands, which were still covering her mouth.
"Prince Vegeta…would leave…for you?! Ha! Don't kidd me!!" he snickered.
Bulma sighed in relief and viciously wiped her tears away. 'Stupid fool!'
"Feh! I doubt that anyone would something like that for you! You're not worth it!" the Saiyajin continued.
"Urgh! You dirty bastard!!" she tried to punch him, he caught her fist with ease.
"HAHAHAHA!!!" the Saiyajin laughed mockingly.
"Bardock!!" a feminine voice snapped from behind them. "Release her at once and report to Lord Freeza!"
The man let go of Bulma's hand and walked away like he was told to. 'Bardock, so that's his name,' Bulma quickly mad a mental note.
"Thank you," Bulma said rubbing her sore hand and looking at the woman standing in front of her. Her long dark hair was pulled back roughly into a ponytail. She wore tight fitting armor just like Vegeta's, long white gloves and a pair of that infamous gold tipped boots.
"Hmm," the woman said. "My name is Lila, I'm in charge of the 1st class training squads here on Vegetasei. I don't suppose you're from around here, are you?"
"No, not really. I'm Bulma Briefs. President of Capsule Corporation, Planet Earth," she said proudly.
"I couldn't help overhearing you say something about the location of Prince Vegeta."
'Dammit!!' Bulma mentally slapped herself. "No, no, I didn't say anything," she muttered nervously.
"Ma'am, my ears do more than just frame my face."
'@#$%' Bulma cursed silently.
"Since you have that information," Lila continued. "I am forced to take you to the King at once."
"Bu I can't---"
"Ms. Briefs, Prince Vegeta has been gone for nearly 10 days and it is my duty to bring King Vegeta any indications of where he might have gone. Now you can come with me calmly or I can drag you there kicking and screaming!" Lila said narrowing her eyes. "So what's it going to be?"
Without thinking, Bulma whirled around and started running towards her ship. With ease, Lila was in front of her, blocking her path. She harshly grabbed Bulma's arm and tightened her grip so that she could not escape.
"Let go!!" Bulma cried.
"Ms. Briefs, no one and I mean NO ONE has ever escaped my grasp. Do you actually think that you can do any better?! I think not!"
Bulma glared daggers at her. "Bitch! You just wait till Vegeta comes back. He'll pound you into a pulp just like he'll do to that other guy!!"
"HAHAHAHA!!! Ooooh! I'm so scared!!" Lila said sarcastically. She looked around and pointed at the nearest Saiyajin.
"Hey you!! She yelled. "Pick her up and follow me," she ordered. The man came over and roughly threw Bulma on his shoulder.
"Unhand me you dirty rat!!!" Bulma thrashed around on the Saiyajin's back as he carried her through the gates.
~*~
The sleeping gas slowly wore off and Vegeta fluttered his eyes open. He was back at Capsule Corp, just outside the lab.
'I'm here,' he thought and stepped out of the pod. Jumping out of the crater, Vegeta walked steadily towards the lab. He pushed the door open and looked around.
No Bulma.
He turned and marched into the kitchen.
Still no Bulma.
He felt his muscles tensing up. 'Something's not right here.'
Vegeta staggered through the kitchen and started up the stairs that lead to Bulma's room. He quickened his pace, a twinge of fear flew through his veins. 'Oh no! What if something happened to her?'
Vegeta swung Bulma's door open and what he saw made him even more uneasy.
Mrs. Briefs was crying on Dr. Briefs's shoulder. An ocean of tears streaming down her face and a piece of paper crunched up in her hand. Dr. Briefs stroked his wife's hair gently and was almost crying himself.
"She had to do it dear," he whispered softly.
"Ahem!" Vegeta cleared his throat to let his presence be known. Mrs. Briefs wearily looked up and gasped. She unfolded the paper in her hand and stared at it, then at Vegeta and back at the paper.
"What?!" Vegeta growled in agitation. Mrs. Briefs gave a loud cry, she handed the paper to Vegeta and went back to weeping on Dr. Briefs's shoulder. Dr. Briefs just kept on staring at Vegeta. Vegeta sneered at him and looked at the paper for himself. It was a letter:
'Dear Mum and Dad,
Sorry I could not be there to tell you myself, but if I did, I know you'd try to stop me. I'm sorry, I really am. By the time you read this, I'd probably be about half way to Vegetasei. I'm going to go and get Vegeta, I know it's very dangerous on Vegetasei, but if I don't make it back you can always wish me back with the dragonballs. But don't worry, I'll be back. I'll be back really soon. I promise.
Love Bulma'
'Oh, Kami no…' Terror filled Vegeta's heart as he immediately flew out of the balcony and into his space pod. Setting the co-ordinates he shot up into the sky and began his long journey back to Vegetasei.
~*~
Bulma stared helplessly at the never ending corridors as she passed them. She had no choice but to lay still on the Saiyajin's shoulder as he carried her down the halls of the marble palace. Normally, she would marvel at the riches the walls were made out of. Even the tiles on the floor were made out of clear crystals. But Bulma just wasn't in the mood to admire with the predicament she was in. Her whole body ached from being throbbed up and down the Saiyajin's shoulder as he walked. Her head felt like it was spinning around. She had started crying long ago, but it didn't do any good, her tears just dried up on her cheek.
Slowly the Saiyajin came to a halt. Bulma forced herself to look up. They were standing in front of a door with a big button on its side. He pressed it and the door instantly opened. The Saiyajin roughly threw Bulma into the room and by pressing the button again, he closed the door.
Bulma ran after the door and banged on it as hard as she could. "Let me out!!! Please let me out!!!" she cried desperately.
"Get some rest woman! It's going to be a long day," the man replied from outside.
Bulma fell to her knees and started sobbing. She pulled herself into a sitting position and crawled to the corner of the room. She hugged her knees to her chest and tiredly rested her head on them.
~*~
Lila kneeled down on the ground and bowed her head. "King Vegeta, I have uncovered some knowledge of the whereabouts of Prince Vegeta."
King Vegeta raised an eyebrow. "Well done Lila, go on."
"Yes, your highness. A female earthling landed on west section 44 earlier this morning. She identifies herself as Bulma Briefs, President of Capsule Corporation. I roughly overheard her conversation with Bardock and she mentioned that she had and idea of where Prince Vegeta might have been heading. However, she denies the fact that she holds this information, but we can soon change that."
"We sure can, Lila. Where is Ms. Briefs right now?"
"At the moment, she is being held captive in room A64, two hallways away from the main corridors, sire. We also have her space ship. Our top scientist are studying it as we speak," Lila reported.
"Excellent work, Lila. Now, escort Ms. Briefs to the throne room, will you? I'd like to have a few words with her in person right after my meeting with that idiot, Freeza. So make sure that she's ready my then," King Vegeta smirked mischievously and walked into the throne room.
"Oh, and Lila," he said over his shoulder. "Make sure that no one speaks a work of this when Vegeta returns from his little cruise or it'll be you who shall suffer the burning wrath of my power."
"Of course your highness," she said and exited the room.
~*~
Hours passed and Bulma's head was still buried in her arms. She tried to cry but couldn't, her eyes were too dry and swollen. So instead she sobbed quietly to herself. What had happened? She had came to this foreign planet to find her Prince Charming that she'd been wishing for all these years of her life, and now, she was locked in this tiny room, with no way out.
'This is Bardock's fault!' she thought to herself and sighed. 'Who am I kidding?! I got myself into this mess.'
Slowly a small tear appeared in the corner of her eye and slid down her face. Then another and another, and pretty soon, her face was pouring with tears. "Vegeta…where are you?" she whispered quietly.
Before long, she heard footsteps coming down the corridor. Bulma quickly stumbled to her feet and waited for the arrival of the outsider. She heard someone press the button outside and the door opened, just as she thought.
It was Lila.
"Oh, it's you!!" Bulma growled at Lila.
Lila took one look at her and grinned. "Stop crying Bulma." Bulma glared at her.
"I'll do you no good," Lila said in a teasing tone. "You hate me, don't you? Oh, come on, Bulma, it's not all that bad, I mean, you're in the grandest place on Vegetasei and pretty soon, you'll have the chance to be in King Vegeta's presence for yourself. That's something not many people gets to do," Lila laughed.
"Bitch!" Bulma spat at her.
"Oh, Bulma. What else was I to do? We can't keep the King waiting for his son forever you know," Lila walked up to her. "It's a good thing you showed up when you did because if you hadn't, our good King might have gotten some ideas about me. And we certainly can't have that. Especially when we're so close to victory."
Bulma eyed her suspiciously. "What're you talking about?!"
"Hmm. I suppose there's no harm in telling you. Even if you did tell, King Vegeta will never take your word for mine," Lila smirked.
"I have a little secret, Bulma," Lila said running her tongue along her upper lip and chuckled. "In just a few hours, all you see here before you will be just a pile of rocks floating around in the middle of no where," she grinned and paused.
"Wha..what do you mean?" Bulma trembled.
"You really have no idea, do you? It's King Vegeta's anniversary today. While he and everybody else are at his so called party, Lord Freeza and I will be long gone and ready to destroy this puny planet. The stupid fool won't know what hit him until it's too late! HAHAHAHA!!!" Lila laughed menacingly.
"You should join us Bulma. Why waste your time on this pathetic dump when you can conquer worlds with Lord Freeza?!"
"Get a life, whore!! I didn't come here for my own selfish deeds like you did!! I came here to take back my man!!" Bulma spat at her.
Lila frowned. "Very well then. Now, if you will, please follow me."
Slowly, Bulma gathered all her courage and stomped on Lila's foot as hard as she could. Surprisingly, that was enough to distract Lila, allowing her to push her aside and race past her.
Not long after, Lila was back on her feet and raging mad. "Raditz!!" she yelled at the top of her lungs. A lone Saiyajin who was walking by looked at her. "Stop her!!" Lila screamed at him.
Before she knew it, Bulma ran right into Raditz's thick arms. Bulma struggled, she kicked and screamed but found herself to be as vulnerable as she was before. Raditz tightened his grip on Bulma and made her face Lila.
Lila placed her hands on her hips and regained her composure. "Well, well, well," she smirked. "Really Bulma, I thought you'd have more sense than that. I mean, a pat on the foot and run? You're one in a million in the Saiyajin Empire. Everybody else is against you. When will you ever learn? Oh well, better luck next time!" Lila laughed.
"Raditz, let's go!" she motioned him to follow her. Raditz grabbed hold of Bulma's hands and dragged her after Lila while Bulma wrestled violently against his iron grip.
~*~
Lila thumped the giant ring against the doors leading to the throne room.
"You may proceed!" came a rough voice from inside. The doors opened on either side. Lila and Raditz both hauled Bulma into the throne room as she struggled for an escape.
"Well done, Lila. You are both dismissed," King Vegeta blankly waved them away. The two threw Bulma to her knees, bowed and left without a single word. King Vegeta turned his attention to Bulma.
"Ahh..Ms. Briefs…So we finally meet…face to face. I've heard so much about you."
A cold shiver ran down Bulma's spine the second she heard King Vegeta's hoarse voice. She didn't dare look at him.
"Come now, Ms. Briefs, I'm not that fearsome, am I?" he taunted and fired a small ball of ki that flew right by Bulma's face and hit a wall behind her. It erupted into smoke instantly. Bulma cringed. King Vegeta laughed.
'Now what?!' she thought as she stared helplessly at the almighty King of Vegetasei.
~*~
Vegeta hurried through the gates and into the palace. Sweat dripping down his face and a vein popping up on his forehead every now and then. Before he got far, he caught a glimpse of a spaceship. It wasn't one of the Saiyajin ships, nor was Freeza's. He didn't give it much consideration but then he saw 'Capsule Corporation' written across its side.
"Bulma!!" he jumped in joy and flew to the ship. He peaked in through the window but there was no Bulma. Vegeta gritted his teeth in frustration.
"You!!" he yelled at the nearest Saiyajin. "Bardock!!"
"Raditz, sire," the man corrected.
"Whatever!! Where is the human who arrived in this ship?!" he barked.
"I'm sorry, sire, but King Vegeta has passed on strict orders in not to allow you to that information," Raditz said weakly.
"And why is that?!" Vegeta yelled in annoyance.
"I do not now, your highness," Raditz shook his head and backed away.
Vegeta violently grabbed Raditz by his armor and smashed him against the wall. "You tell me where she is right now or I'll blast this whole fucking planet to hell!!" he roared.
Raditz gulped and thought for a moment. He hesitated before answering. "She's…she's…in the throne room...with King Vegeta as…as we speak, s..s…sire," he squeaked out.
Vegeta growled loudly as he let go of Raditz's armor. His aura surrounded him once more as he sprang to his feet and headed for Bulma.
~*~
King Vegeta circled Bulma slowly. Round and around. He inhaled deeply. Coming to a halt right in front of Bulma, he exhaled.
"Now, Ms. Briefs, if you don't mind me asking, how do you know my son, Vegeta?"
"Whe..When his ship exploded, I…I offered him food and shelter, along with a gravity machine…for him to train in," Bulma trembled.
"Hmm…I see…" he didn't look too amused. "So you were his slave," he stated a matter-of-factly.
'Slave?!' Bulma raged in her head. 'Brainless brute!! I'm anything but a slave!!!' Bulma slowed her breathing. 'Come on, Bulma. Keep your cool. Can't make thinks worse than it already is.'
"Why have you come here?" King Vegeta asked after a while. "You are of no value to him anymore. You're lucky you're even alive right now. Vegeta normally disposes of his leftover slaves once he has no use for them."
"…" Bulma didn't answer.
"Come on woman, spit it out! I haven't got all day!! Why are you here?!"
"I…I…I--" she was cut off when King Vegeta sighed loudly and held up two fingers, motioning her to stop.
"No matter. I can uncover that later," he said, more to himself. "But now, there are more important things to find out like where he is!" King Vegeta said, clearly referring to Vegeta.
"Well, Ms. Briefs, would kindly tell me where Vegeta is?" he asked simply in a low voice.
Bulma stepped back slightly and shook her head.
He sighed. "I wont take 'no' for an answer Ms. Briefs. One way or another, I will get what I want, I always do. Now, tell me where is he?" he said, still calm.
Bulma shook her head again, but more firmly this time.
"Foolish woman!" King Vegeta chuckled. "Do you not know how powerful I am and how easily I could end your worthless days of hell permanently? I suggest you tell me where my son is before you loose your life!" he threatened.
Gathering all her courage, Bulma pulled her shoulders up and glared at him.
"You stupid Saiyajin!! Get this straight! You're not getting anything from me!! Not a thing!!" she spat.
"SILENCE!!! You fool!" King Vegeta yelled. He grabbed Bulma by her neck and shoved her against a wall, pinning her to it.
"Mark my words human, if you don't tell me where Vegeta is, I will be the last person you see before you die an agonizing death and soon after that, your planet shall suffer the same fate as you!! Am I in any way unclear?!" he yelled in a deadly tone, inches away from her face.
Suddenly the doors burst into flames and Vegeta flew through it all. "You lay another finger on her and I swear I'll make you wish that you were never born!!!" Vegeta roared savagely. His eyes burned in rage as he glared in hatred at his merciless father.
~*~
Author's Note: Cliffhanger! I'll try to get Part 8 done quickly but only time will tell since it's the busy season for me. But please review, I'd like to know my high points and downfalls. So, again, plz review. And if you want, you can visit my website, Silver B's, at "end.at/majin" ^.^
The Adversary
By Courtney
Part 7
Bulma's ship landed with a big thud and she carefully jumped off the ship.
"So this is Vegetasei," she wondered out loud, looking around, examining the area. It was nothing at all like Earth, possibly the exact opposite. The sky was red, as if it was on fire and most of the ground was covered in ash.
'Probably from all the fighting' Bulma thought to herself. 'No wonder Vegeta's so grumpy all the time. Poor thing, I can't even imagine living here all my life.' A cold shiver ran up her spine. She sensed stares from all the Saiyajins that surrounded her crater.
"What're you lookin at?!" Bulma snickered and gave them a dirty look. They looked away and slowly the whole crowd disappeared. Bulma had a hard time climbing out of the crater but finally stumbled out after a while.
Unlike on Earth, there weren't many buildings on Vegetasei. Only one stood out. A gigantic palace. The gates were blood red and were carved into an unusual looking symbol. It took Bulma a while to recognize it as the symbol that was marked on Vegeta's armor when he first arrived on Earth.
"Well I guess that's Vegeta's house," Bulma said shocked. "It's so...big…Damn! It makes Capsule Corp look like a tiny wagon!"
She sighed and walked towards the palace. Several Saiyajins who passed by her wore displeasing looks on their faces.
'What the hell's the matter with these people?! Just because I'm new around here doesn't mean that they have to look at me like I'm a trashcan or something!!' she thought to herself. 'Urg! Who cares about them?! I'm going to see Vegeta again!!'
With that she quickened her pace and started jogging towards the gates as fast as her legs could take her but only found them to be locked.
"Dammit!!" she cursed as she kicked the gate in frustration. Then she caught a glance of a person leaning against the wall next to the gate. Bulma turned her attention to him. He looked exactly like Goku but he's grown a lot older.
"Goku?" she asked with a bit hesitation.
"Huh?" the Saiyajin looked at her awkwardly.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I've mistaken you for one of my best friends."
"Oh," the Saiyajin simply replied and looked away.
Bulma hesitated a little more before asking him another question. "I'm looking for Veg..I mean Prince Vegeta, do you know where I might him?"
The Saiyajin hiked an eyebrow. "Prince Vegeta?" he said turning to face her. "Lady, I don't know where in the last couple of weeks, but Prince Vegeta hasn't been seen around here for days!"
Bulma gasped.
"Rumor has it that he ran away," the Saiyajin started.
'Oh NO!!' Bulma thought. 'What if he went back to Earth? Ahh! What a disaster!! I knew this was a bad idea!!' she was snapped back from her thoughts when the Saiyajin continued talking.
"Says he's too scared to take his place as the new king. Honestly, I think the rumors are true, but we'll never know for sure now we'll we?" he laughed.
Bulma slapped him as hard as she could. "Vegeta would never run from anything! Besides, from all I've seen, you dirty Saiyajins don't deserve such a potentialled king such as Vegeta! In fact, I don't think you deserve a king at all!" she yelled, just inches away from his face.
"I'd really learn to control my tongue if I were you. You're just lucky that I have at least some patience for fools like you!" he spat.
"Fools?! You take that back!!"
The Saiyajin snorted.
"That is the last straw! When I tell Vegeta about you, he's going to rip your head into pieces and flush it down a toilet!!" Bulma screamed.
He taped on his scouter and smirked. "Lady, you don't know who you're dealing with here," he said calmly. "Besides, how would a lowly woman like you even get a chance to look at Prince Vegeta?!"
"Well unlike you, who don't even have a faintest clue to where he is, I do!! In fact, I'm probably the reason he left in the first place!" Instantly Bulma sealed her lips with her hands realizing what she had just blurted out.
'Oh NO!! What have I done?!' she thought backing off. 'If these ruthless Saiyajins finds out that Vegeta risked his title for me, they'd think of him as soft and weak. Lord, what have I done?!' she backed away even further. Tears pooled her eyes. A few drops fell down her hands, which were still covering her mouth.
"Prince Vegeta…would leave…for you?! Ha! Don't kidd me!!" he snickered.
Bulma sighed in relief and viciously wiped her tears away. 'Stupid fool!'
"Feh! I doubt that anyone would something like that for you! You're not worth it!" the Saiyajin continued.
"Urgh! You dirty bastard!!" she tried to punch him, he caught her fist with ease.
"HAHAHAHA!!!" the Saiyajin laughed mockingly.
"Bardock!!" a feminine voice snapped from behind them. "Release her at once and report to Lord Freeza!"
The man let go of Bulma's hand and walked away like he was told to. 'Bardock, so that's his name,' Bulma quickly mad a mental note.
"Thank you," Bulma said rubbing her sore hand and looking at the woman standing in front of her. Her long dark hair was pulled back roughly into a ponytail. She wore tight fitting armor just like Vegeta's, long white gloves and a pair of that infamous gold tipped boots.
"Hmm," the woman said. "My name is Lila, I'm in charge of the 1st class training squads here on Vegetasei. I don't suppose you're from around here, are you?"
"No, not really. I'm Bulma Briefs. President of Capsule Corporation, Planet Earth," she said proudly.
"I couldn't help overhearing you say something about the location of Prince Vegeta."
'Dammit!!' Bulma mentally slapped herself. "No, no, I didn't say anything," she muttered nervously.
"Ma'am, my ears do more than just frame my face."
'@#$%' Bulma cursed silently.
"Since you have that information," Lila continued. "I am forced to take you to the King at once."
"Bu I can't---"
"Ms. Briefs, Prince Vegeta has been gone for nearly 10 days and it is my duty to bring King Vegeta any indications of where he might have gone. Now you can come with me calmly or I can drag you there kicking and screaming!" Lila said narrowing her eyes. "So what's it going to be?"
Without thinking, Bulma whirled around and started running towards her ship. With ease, Lila was in front of her, blocking her path. She harshly grabbed Bulma's arm and tightened her grip so that she could not escape.
"Let go!!" Bulma cried.
"Ms. Briefs, no one and I mean NO ONE has ever escaped my grasp. Do you actually think that you can do any better?! I think not!"
Bulma glared daggers at her. "Bitch! You just wait till Vegeta comes back. He'll pound you into a pulp just like he'll do to that other guy!!"
"HAHAHAHA!!! Ooooh! I'm so scared!!" Lila said sarcastically. She looked around and pointed at the nearest Saiyajin.
"Hey you!! She yelled. "Pick her up and follow me," she ordered. The man came over and roughly threw Bulma on his shoulder.
"Unhand me you dirty rat!!!" Bulma thrashed around on the Saiyajin's back as he carried her through the gates.
~*~
The sleeping gas slowly wore off and Vegeta fluttered his eyes open. He was back at Capsule Corp, just outside the lab.
'I'm here,' he thought and stepped out of the pod. Jumping out of the crater, Vegeta walked steadily towards the lab. He pushed the door open and looked around.
No Bulma.
He turned and marched into the kitchen.
Still no Bulma.
He felt his muscles tensing up. 'Something's not right here.'
Vegeta staggered through the kitchen and started up the stairs that lead to Bulma's room. He quickened his pace, a twinge of fear flew through his veins. 'Oh no! What if something happened to her?'
Vegeta swung Bulma's door open and what he saw made him even more uneasy.
Mrs. Briefs was crying on Dr. Briefs's shoulder. An ocean of tears streaming down her face and a piece of paper crunched up in her hand. Dr. Briefs stroked his wife's hair gently and was almost crying himself.
"She had to do it dear," he whispered softly.
"Ahem!" Vegeta cleared his throat to let his presence be known. Mrs. Briefs wearily looked up and gasped. She unfolded the paper in her hand and stared at it, then at Vegeta and back at the paper.
"What?!" Vegeta growled in agitation. Mrs. Briefs gave a loud cry, she handed the paper to Vegeta and went back to weeping on Dr. Briefs's shoulder. Dr. Briefs just kept on staring at Vegeta. Vegeta sneered at him and looked at the paper for himself. It was a letter:
'Dear Mum and Dad,
Sorry I could not be there to tell you myself, but if I did, I know you'd try to stop me. I'm sorry, I really am. By the time you read this, I'd probably be about half way to Vegetasei. I'm going to go and get Vegeta, I know it's very dangerous on Vegetasei, but if I don't make it back you can always wish me back with the dragonballs. But don't worry, I'll be back. I'll be back really soon. I promise.
Love Bulma'
'Oh, Kami no…' Terror filled Vegeta's heart as he immediately flew out of the balcony and into his space pod. Setting the co-ordinates he shot up into the sky and began his long journey back to Vegetasei.
~*~
Bulma stared helplessly at the never ending corridors as she passed them. She had no choice but to lay still on the Saiyajin's shoulder as he carried her down the halls of the marble palace. Normally, she would marvel at the riches the walls were made out of. Even the tiles on the floor were made out of clear crystals. But Bulma just wasn't in the mood to admire with the predicament she was in. Her whole body ached from being throbbed up and down the Saiyajin's shoulder as he walked. Her head felt like it was spinning around. She had started crying long ago, but it didn't do any good, her tears just dried up on her cheek.
Slowly the Saiyajin came to a halt. Bulma forced herself to look up. They were standing in front of a door with a big button on its side. He pressed it and the door instantly opened. The Saiyajin roughly threw Bulma into the room and by pressing the button again, he closed the door.
Bulma ran after the door and banged on it as hard as she could. "Let me out!!! Please let me out!!!" she cried desperately.
"Get some rest woman! It's going to be a long day," the man replied from outside.
Bulma fell to her knees and started sobbing. She pulled herself into a sitting position and crawled to the corner of the room. She hugged her knees to her chest and tiredly rested her head on them.
~*~
Lila kneeled down on the ground and bowed her head. "King Vegeta, I have uncovered some knowledge of the whereabouts of Prince Vegeta."
King Vegeta raised an eyebrow. "Well done Lila, go on."
"Yes, your highness. A female earthling landed on west section 44 earlier this morning. She identifies herself as Bulma Briefs, President of Capsule Corporation. I roughly overheard her conversation with Bardock and she mentioned that she had and idea of where Prince Vegeta might have been heading. However, she denies the fact that she holds this information, but we can soon change that."
"We sure can, Lila. Where is Ms. Briefs right now?"
"At the moment, she is being held captive in room A64, two hallways away from the main corridors, sire. We also have her space ship. Our top scientist are studying it as we speak," Lila reported.
"Excellent work, Lila. Now, escort Ms. Briefs to the throne room, will you? I'd like to have a few words with her in person right after my meeting with that idiot, Freeza. So make sure that she's ready my then," King Vegeta smirked mischievously and walked into the throne room.
"Oh, and Lila," he said over his shoulder. "Make sure that no one speaks a work of this when Vegeta returns from his little cruise or it'll be you who shall suffer the burning wrath of my power."
"Of course your highness," she said and exited the room.
~*~
Hours passed and Bulma's head was still buried in her arms. She tried to cry but couldn't, her eyes were too dry and swollen. So instead she sobbed quietly to herself. What had happened? She had came to this foreign planet to find her Prince Charming that she'd been wishing for all these years of her life, and now, she was locked in this tiny room, with no way out.
'This is Bardock's fault!' she thought to herself and sighed. 'Who am I kidding?! I got myself into this mess.'
Slowly a small tear appeared in the corner of her eye and slid down her face. Then another and another, and pretty soon, her face was pouring with tears. "Vegeta…where are you?" she whispered quietly.
Before long, she heard footsteps coming down the corridor. Bulma quickly stumbled to her feet and waited for the arrival of the outsider. She heard someone press the button outside and the door opened, just as she thought.
It was Lila.
"Oh, it's you!!" Bulma growled at Lila.
Lila took one look at her and grinned. "Stop crying Bulma." Bulma glared at her.
"I'll do you no good," Lila said in a teasing tone. "You hate me, don't you? Oh, come on, Bulma, it's not all that bad, I mean, you're in the grandest place on Vegetasei and pretty soon, you'll have the chance to be in King Vegeta's presence for yourself. That's something not many people gets to do," Lila laughed.
"Bitch!" Bulma spat at her.
"Oh, Bulma. What else was I to do? We can't keep the King waiting for his son forever you know," Lila walked up to her. "It's a good thing you showed up when you did because if you hadn't, our good King might have gotten some ideas about me. And we certainly can't have that. Especially when we're so close to victory."
Bulma eyed her suspiciously. "What're you talking about?!"
"Hmm. I suppose there's no harm in telling you. Even if you did tell, King Vegeta will never take your word for mine," Lila smirked.
"I have a little secret, Bulma," Lila said running her tongue along her upper lip and chuckled. "In just a few hours, all you see here before you will be just a pile of rocks floating around in the middle of no where," she grinned and paused.
"Wha..what do you mean?" Bulma trembled.
"You really have no idea, do you? It's King Vegeta's anniversary today. While he and everybody else are at his so called party, Lord Freeza and I will be long gone and ready to destroy this puny planet. The stupid fool won't know what hit him until it's too late! HAHAHAHA!!!" Lila laughed menacingly.
"You should join us Bulma. Why waste your time on this pathetic dump when you can conquer worlds with Lord Freeza?!"
"Get a life, whore!! I didn't come here for my own selfish deeds like you did!! I came here to take back my man!!" Bulma spat at her.
Lila frowned. "Very well then. Now, if you will, please follow me."
Slowly, Bulma gathered all her courage and stomped on Lila's foot as hard as she could. Surprisingly, that was enough to distract Lila, allowing her to push her aside and race past her.
Not long after, Lila was back on her feet and raging mad. "Raditz!!" she yelled at the top of her lungs. A lone Saiyajin who was walking by looked at her. "Stop her!!" Lila screamed at him.
Before she knew it, Bulma ran right into Raditz's thick arms. Bulma struggled, she kicked and screamed but found herself to be as vulnerable as she was before. Raditz tightened his grip on Bulma and made her face Lila.
Lila placed her hands on her hips and regained her composure. "Well, well, well," she smirked. "Really Bulma, I thought you'd have more sense than that. I mean, a pat on the foot and run? You're one in a million in the Saiyajin Empire. Everybody else is against you. When will you ever learn? Oh well, better luck next time!" Lila laughed.
"Raditz, let's go!" she motioned him to follow her. Raditz grabbed hold of Bulma's hands and dragged her after Lila while Bulma wrestled violently against his iron grip.
~*~
Lila thumped the giant ring against the doors leading to the throne room.
"You may proceed!" came a rough voice from inside. The doors opened on either side. Lila and Raditz both hauled Bulma into the throne room as she struggled for an escape.
"Well done, Lila. You are both dismissed," King Vegeta blankly waved them away. The two threw Bulma to her knees, bowed and left without a single word. King Vegeta turned his attention to Bulma.
"Ahh..Ms. Briefs…So we finally meet…face to face. I've heard so much about you."
A cold shiver ran down Bulma's spine the second she heard King Vegeta's hoarse voice. She didn't dare look at him.
"Come now, Ms. Briefs, I'm not that fearsome, am I?" he taunted and fired a small ball of ki that flew right by Bulma's face and hit a wall behind her. It erupted into smoke instantly. Bulma cringed. King Vegeta laughed.
'Now what?!' she thought as she stared helplessly at the almighty King of Vegetasei.
~*~
Vegeta hurried through the gates and into the palace. Sweat dripping down his face and a vein popping up on his forehead every now and then. Before he got far, he caught a glimpse of a spaceship. It wasn't one of the Saiyajin ships, nor was Freeza's. He didn't give it much consideration but then he saw 'Capsule Corporation' written across its side.
"Bulma!!" he jumped in joy and flew to the ship. He peaked in through the window but there was no Bulma. Vegeta gritted his teeth in frustration.
"You!!" he yelled at the nearest Saiyajin. "Bardock!!"
"Raditz, sire," the man corrected.
"Whatever!! Where is the human who arrived in this ship?!" he barked.
"I'm sorry, sire, but King Vegeta has passed on strict orders in not to allow you to that information," Raditz said weakly.
"And why is that?!" Vegeta yelled in annoyance.
"I do not now, your highness," Raditz shook his head and backed away.
Vegeta violently grabbed Raditz by his armor and smashed him against the wall. "You tell me where she is right now or I'll blast this whole fucking planet to hell!!" he roared.
Raditz gulped and thought for a moment. He hesitated before answering. "She's…she's…in the throne room...with King Vegeta as…as we speak, s..s…sire," he squeaked out.
Vegeta growled loudly as he let go of Raditz's armor. His aura surrounded him once more as he sprang to his feet and headed for Bulma.
~*~
King Vegeta circled Bulma slowly. Round and around. He inhaled deeply. Coming to a halt right in front of Bulma, he exhaled.
"Now, Ms. Briefs, if you don't mind me asking, how do you know my son, Vegeta?"
"Whe..When his ship exploded, I…I offered him food and shelter, along with a gravity machine…for him to train in," Bulma trembled.
"Hmm…I see…" he didn't look too amused. "So you were his slave," he stated a matter-of-factly.
'Slave?!' Bulma raged in her head. 'Brainless brute!! I'm anything but a slave!!!' Bulma slowed her breathing. 'Come on, Bulma. Keep your cool. Can't make thinks worse than it already is.'
"Why have you come here?" King Vegeta asked after a while. "You are of no value to him anymore. You're lucky you're even alive right now. Vegeta normally disposes of his leftover slaves once he has no use for them."
"…" Bulma didn't answer.
"Come on woman, spit it out! I haven't got all day!! Why are you here?!"
"I…I…I--" she was cut off when King Vegeta sighed loudly and held up two fingers, motioning her to stop.
"No matter. I can uncover that later," he said, more to himself. "But now, there are more important things to find out like where he is!" King Vegeta said, clearly referring to Vegeta.
"Well, Ms. Briefs, would kindly tell me where Vegeta is?" he asked simply in a low voice.
Bulma stepped back slightly and shook her head.
He sighed. "I wont take 'no' for an answer Ms. Briefs. One way or another, I will get what I want, I always do. Now, tell me where is he?" he said, still calm.
Bulma shook her head again, but more firmly this time.
"Foolish woman!" King Vegeta chuckled. "Do you not know how powerful I am and how easily I could end your worthless days of hell permanently? I suggest you tell me where my son is before you loose your life!" he threatened.
Gathering all her courage, Bulma pulled her shoulders up and glared at him.
"You stupid Saiyajin!! Get this straight! You're not getting anything from me!! Not a thing!!" she spat.
"SILENCE!!! You fool!" King Vegeta yelled. He grabbed Bulma by her neck and shoved her against a wall, pinning her to it.
"Mark my words human, if you don't tell me where Vegeta is, I will be the last person you see before you die an agonizing death and soon after that, your planet shall suffer the same fate as you!! Am I in any way unclear?!" he yelled in a deadly tone, inches away from her face.
Suddenly the doors burst into flames and Vegeta flew through it all. "You lay another finger on her and I swear I'll make you wish that you were never born!!!" Vegeta roared savagely. His eyes burned in rage as he glared in hatred at his merciless father.
~*~
Author's Note: Cliffhanger! I'll try to get Part 8 done quickly but only time will tell since it's the busy season for me. But please review, I'd like to know my high points and downfalls. So, again, plz review. And if you want, you can visit my website, Silver B's, at "end.at/majin" ^.^