Glitch
By Raven Zaites
CHAPTER THREE: BROKEN
Kai stepped out of the steaming shower and wrapped a towel around herself protectively. She was reading too many cheesy romance stories where the man bursts in on a showering female and was more then happy to be prepared for the like.
That could never happen, she thought to herself, it would be far too cliché. Kai reached up and wiped the steam from the mirror. She wondered how a mirror could fog up so much after a cold shower as she slid into her far-too-revealing-for-comfort dress.
The doorbell chimed and Vegita rose to answer the door automatically.
"There's a doorbell on this hellhole ship?" he pondered as he reached out to open the door. Thoughts of who it might be raced through his head until he stumbled upon a logical conclusion; it was Kai's boyfriend, undoubtedly.
The door swung open with no force on his behalf, and standing there, to his surprise, was no boyfriend of Kai's. It was Mayumi, someone who he had yet to be introduced to, and every single one of the surviving "Z Fighters".
Mayumi struck out more then the others, with tame blue-green hair, and a vicious attitude in her eyes that rivaled Kai's. Though Vegita's eyes didn't dare wander below her shoulders, he still caught a glimpse of her attire despite his rigid line of vision. She was dressed in the clothing of human females, though her pointed ears would've suggested otherwise, and rather sparsely clad with what the humans would consider feminine material.
Beside Mayumi was Killin and his shiny head, which, not surprisingly, glinted furiously in the midday sun. He stood wearing a very surprised look, his arms hung dormant by his side. It was very clear to Vegita why Krillin was gazing up at the Saiyan, he was far more self-conscious than he would like to admit.
"Vegita?!" Krillin stammered, "What are you doing here?"
Mayumi's gaze flicked to one and then the other. "You know each other? And you know Kai?"
Vegita glared venomously to them both. "Yes I know her, she claims to be a warrior, after all. I'm not half as ignorant as you two portray me to be."
"How did you meet?" Mayumi questioned curiously, this portrayed by the twitching of her pointed ears.
"I saw her walking while I was training and knew she was no human. When she noticed my presence, she immediately questioned if I had lost someone recently and then rambled on about some mystery she's trying to solve."
Mayumi's face lifted up and she burst into triumphant laughter. "Oh how I know Kai! Amazing how I predicted this, isn't it?"
"It sure is!" Gohan said, laughing as well, "I knew that there would be a chance to find mom, just like dad said."
Vegita crossed his arms across his chest. "If you want Kai you'll have to wait. Even when she's done with her preoccupations, I doubt she'll be of any use to you or your friends. Kai is most likely as lost as all of you are proving to be."
Mayumi raised both brows. "Charming, isn't he?" she said to Piccolo.
Piccolo grunted in disapproval.
"We'll need all the help we can get," Piccolo said, with a brutally honest tone in his voice, "even if there are certain obstacles in the way."
Mayumi cut in before Vegita could react, "Yes, this is true. Thanks for your help, we'll wait for Kai outside."
He sneered at her compliment and shut the door, not as hard as she would've expected. A little nerve-wrecked at the sudden dismissal, she turned to the crew and began a lecture of encouragement. A good pep talk would serve them all well for the bumpy road ahead.
Meanwhile, Vegita turned and headed for the soft, bulky piece of furniture the human's called a "couch". He rather enjoyed the feel of the soft cushions, a luxury he wasn't used to spoiling himself with. Now was a good time to relax, he was still confused by Kai's reaction to what she had mistaken as a compliment.
In perfect timing to his thoughts, she walked in, the typical strands of hair glued to her face as well as areas of her clothes that touched her still slightly damp skin. He frowned as she plopped down casually next to him, obviously deep in thought.
"Since you find the thought of touching me so violating, maybe you should move farther away from me," he said, staring coldly at her stunned reaction.
"I'm sorry I gave you that impression, Prince," she said warmly, her voice devoid of any mocking tone, "The reason I was shocked by my action is because it just wasn't like me. I mostly keep to myself, I don't like reaching out and embracing others."
Vegita frowned. The thought of hugging others obviously didn't sit well with her, he could tell. Perhaps an upbringing with no real physical contact like his had influenced this mindset.
"I take it you aren't social," he said, in his usual cold tone.
"Not really," she said, "I may seem kind and giving, but I don't appreciate the company of others as much as I should. I live in space alone with rare visitations and I am perfectly prepared to live with these accommodations."
"I see," Vegita responded in slight anger, "So this is your way of telling me that you are done with me and will be glad to see me leave, isn't it?"
Her eyes widened. "Where do you get these strange ideas? All I said was that I like to have time to myself, not that you should get the hell out of my house. Besides," she added with a smirk, "We have a bet to uphold."
Vegita frowned. "Your little friends are waiting for you at the door. They want you to assist them in their fruitless quest, I gathered. Since the winner is inevitable and the bet won't have time to be carried out, you might as well prepare yourself for tomorrow morning when the loser must agree with the terms."
She smiled, practically oozing confidence. "No, my dear prince, the bet shall be carried out despite the surroundings. Though I'd love to do things your way and have the privilege of seeing you walk around tomorrow in pure humiliation and no clothes without any effort on my behalf, I think I'll win the fair way."
He snickered. "You really think you will win, don't you? I, the Saiyan Prince, seldom lose for a reason. Just be a good wench and accept that you can't do it and take your place as my slave."
"We'll see who the loser is, won't we?" she said, standing up to answer the long-awaited door. Vegita watched her get up and his eyes narrowed skeptically.
"Tell me, where did a second-rate warrior get a dress made for the lecherous?" he said, adding smugly, "not that you aren't lecherous as is."
She turned her head but continued walking towards the door. "It was for a costume party, but you don't have to believe me. Royalty doesn't care for a peon like me, remember?" she said, smirking as he glared at her. She turned her head back to the door and reached for the lever to pull it open. Again, it swung open without her even touching her, thanks to Mayumi on the other side.
"What's taking so…" she said, trailing off when she saw Kai. Her eyes shot further open in pure joy and she yelled excitedly, "KAI!! I MISSED YOU!"
She then threw her arms around the bewildered Kai and held her so tightly she was at a loss of air. "What happened to you? I haven't seen you in so long!"
"Hi Mayumi," Kai responded gingerly, "I've just been investigating a case that came up a year ago, that's pretty much it."
She tried to slip away from the tightly wrapped arms of Mayumi, but Mayumi just clung tighter. "My little Kai the investigator!" she stated, taking on a motherly role as she ruffled Kai's damp hair as best she could. Kai sheepishly scooted away and stole a glance at Vegita, who wore a look of simultaneous disgust and amusement.
"Umm…" she stammered, trying to change the subject, "What brings you to my spacecraft, Mayumi and… uhh… friends?"
Chiaotzu was the first to clue her in, with the help of Krillin and Tien and a few bitter complaints from Yajerobe. They informed her of the disappearance and who they were with great enthusiasm. The gang didn't mind that she had no clue what was going on at all, they seemed very accustomed to being in this position. Kai threw in the valuable information of the Rueran mystery and how these incidents could be related. They all came to the conclusion that they were, in fact, somehow related very quickly: given, of course, the unusual nature of the mystery.
Mayumi stopped all side conversations occurring with a resounding,
"Hold on a sec!" Having instant silence and the attention of the group granted, she wore a smug smirk and continued, "OK, we all have agreed that this other mystery is related to ours, and that not only are we not alone but that Kai can help us. And all of that is all good and well, but there is one little thing that I really can't understand." She paused for effect before continuing, "Why in the hell is Kai wearing a dress?!"
Everyone crashed to the floor, including a very embarrassed Kai. She got up and sweat dropped, tittering nervously. "It's a long story. Let's just say that I'm feminine for a day, for amusement purposes. My own, mind you," she said, tossing a glance at a glaring Vegita.
"Oh I see, this has something to do with that spiky haired fellow." Realizing she was describing a good portion of her clients, she stopped herself from elaborating on her distaste for his hair.
Kai frowned, "Yes, let's just leave it at that."
Mayumi assumed a casual pose and swept some of her dark cerulean hair over a shoulder. "Ok then, we should discuss when we get started on solving this puzzle."
Kai raised a brow at her businesswoman tone, a usual tone when at home but one she rarely used during her travels. Perhaps it was because traveling reminded her of her childhood, one that ended far too abruptly. Kai pushed aside memories of Mayumi recalling her younger days, Mayumi was still very young, not even 19 yet. She shifted her mind back to the topic at hand and scolded herself for getting carried away.
"Maybe the day after tomorrow. I'm sure brainstorming thoughts of where to go next and sorting them out will take a full day and a half. We don't have a clue where to go next, do we? Besides, it would be nice to rest before a long path of discovery."
Piccolo frowned. "That's too long, we should leave at least by tomorrow."
Tien shook his head. "I agree with Mayumi. We don't have any idea where to get started, it would be nice to plan it first."
Soon, the people who agreed on that date outnumbered the rest, and it was determined. They would leave the day after tomorrow to be sure everything was properly prepared.
Kai, of course, had more than just the innocent motives her speech implied. She was going to win this bet and she was going to spend a whole day savoring this victory. Quests would be postponed, seeing the mighty Saiyan prince suffer failure was one great event she was more than happy to relish.
Vegita, on the other hand, relied heavily on a different outcome. He was certain he was going to win, and everything he did proved it.
It was obvious both Kai and Vegita had confidence on their side, but only time would determine the winner. And time was exactly what they had.
Kai ran a brush through her hair, her brush unable to complete the task.
"Damn hair," she muttered, fussing over the many tangles. She sighed and put the brush down once her patience had reached its limit. She had gotten her mother's raven black hair but not her mother's smoothness and soft straightness. Instead she bore a messy, tangled hair that was stiff to no avail. With another heavy sigh, she recalled the trouble her mysteriously colored eyes brought about.
Only demons in legends on her planet possessed red eyes, and all her life she lived in torment, those around her believing she was one. Neither of her parents had ruby eyes, her mother had blue and her father brown. This complicated things much more, even her cold and heartless parents believed the tale. They summoned a priest to explain this, and he began to babble some nonsense about her being a demon incarnate. She believed him at first, back when she was still a naïve, young girl. Afterwards, she lost her innocence in battle along with her gullible frame of mind. No longer did she believe she was a demon, but the tormenting didn't stop. Not until one horrible day that would haunt her dreams for years and send her world into chaos. That one day that shaped her being into a killer on the run, and a frightened woman trapped in a body possessing nothing but a torn soul and an empty heart. That and something else. Something she wouldn't dream of telling somebody.
A knocking on the door of her room abruptly interrupted her thoughts.
She twitched, a bit startled, and then calmed herself.
"Come in," she said, the door swinging open promptly after her invitation. Standing there was, predictably, none other then the Saiyan Prince.
"What is it?" she asked, moving the brush and other items aside from her desk to mask the clutter.
"It's evening, woman, and I desire to be fed." He crossed his arms defiantly across his chest and she couldn't help but smile at the gesture. He resembled a small, spoiled boy who was whining for his dinner. Walking up to him and realizing his eyes were level to hers, her smile grew.
"What's so amusing?" he questioned with narrowing eyes.
"Nothing," she said, stifling a giggle as the words "and I thought I was short" passed though her head.
"Tell me at once, wench!"
She said nothing but instead winked at him and walked out the door, seized by suppressed laughter as she thought about the look on his face. He spun her around as he had done before and a surprised look washed over her as she realized how close his face was to hers. Sure he was a conceited, brutish warrior who lost his temper far too often, none of that seemed to matter when she stared deeply into his eyes. Vegita was remarkably handsome in her opinion, but she had the keen ability to not let her shallowness get the best of her. It wasn't as though he had a charming personality to match the body Kai tried not to lust after. She reminded herself of this fact and tried to keep eye contact.
"I was just thinking about how sick you'll get after I cook for you one of my infamous dinners. I may bake edible desserts, but I'm no chef when it comes to the main course."
At first, he seemed a little frightened at the thought of her cooking when she informed him of her skill. Once she had mentioned deserts his expression had gone stale.
"Just because I didn't rant about the atrocity of those so called "cheesecakes" doesn't mean you should let it get to your head. You said yourself, you're just a peon, don't be surprised if you cook as poorly as your social status compares to mine."
She smiled, a devious glint in her eyes. She knew that the only way to get payback from the rude prince was to do the last thing he was prepared for her to do: flirt. In the most pathetic way she could; the only way.
"You know, I really should bake you deserts more often. You're so cute when you're mad."
He froze. Cute. Just as his wife had called him long ago before she had disappeared. He felt the ice around his heart melt ever so slightly to those words, and his eyes widened with shock.
"Cute?"
"Yep. Good thing most of your enemies are men, otherwise you'd have all your most hated people chasing after you."
"You certainly fit that category," he said, smirking at his own consistent cleverness.
She frowned. There was nothing cute about that kind of mockery. "Well then, I should get started making your dinner. I do, after all, have a bet to win."
Mayumi sighed, propping her lacy boots onto a makeshift footrest consisting of a backpack and a few pillows. Frowning as her feet slipped and hit the floor, she pulled herself up and walked loosely over to the center of the room. She knew it was time to get started. There, with hand planted on hips, she called the attention of the room with a simple call.
"OK EVERYONE, SHUT UP AND LISTEN." When the attention of the room was hers, she smiled victoriously.
"What is it, Mayumi?" Krillin inquired with great curiosity. Her grin widened at this, her normal audience would not have been so understanding with her means of attention.
"Well," she continued, "I've been thinking about the relation between the Rueran mystery and our own. My question is, why did the Rueran people and our people both take a year to disappear? You'd think that persons, person, or thing responsible for this would have a great deal of motivation. What pride is our kidnapper after? Whatever it is, it must be huge."
"Maybe this person was just really bored," Yajerobe suggested. Everyone but Puar crashed to the floor once again.
"Maybe they just were really mean," Puar added. Sweatdrops followed.
"Well, yes," Mayumi said, "I've heard of people who wipe out whole civilizations single-handedly out of hatred, it's not unimaginable as horrible as it is. But our main problem is finding this person or these people and who did this and discovering why and how. And, of course, if we can get your friends and family back."
Krillin, who was beginning to seem like the one in charge of this operation, explained to Mayumi the concept of the dragonballs and how they had tried to use them to wish the people missing back. The dragon told them it was beyond his power and wouldn't say whether they were alive or not. Mayumi frowned deeply and planted her hands on her hips.
"This always happens when you least want it to, doesn't it? Here's a perfectly good way to get them back and everything takes the worst possible turn." She sighed and sat down on the couch next to Yajerobe.
So far, not much had been resolved. They had no idea where to go next; she had found herself at a dead end when it came to clues. Perhaps it was best to learn more about the situation at hand.
"Tell me, was there something that they did that might have triggered a disappearance? Like, did they all share a certain action before they were found missing?"
Murmurs drifted around the room.
"That's the strange part," Piccolo said, "There was no way to tell if they were doing something wrong to end up missing, it was completely random. This whole mystery is just a bizarre turn of events."
Mayumi sunk back into the couch. Not only were things getting more difficult, but also they were getting nowhere. She was beginning to worry if millions of yen were worth a job more difficult then the worst of her bounty hunting experiences. Sighing once again, her gaze wandered to the ceiling of the ship. Something had to be done, something she was not yet aware of. That, however, she had a feeling would be resolved soon.
As soon this thought traversed her troubled mind, the phone rang. It was as though it was on cue, so much so that she shot a quizzical glace at Krillin before raising a shaking hand to answer the ringing cell phone.
"Hello?"
"Is this Mayumi Yaiba?"
She inhaled sharply. "How did you know my name? Who is this?"
"It's not important. I understand you are looking for some people."
"Do you know where they are?" The room stirred with noise and everyone shifted closer to the phone, hoping to catch some of the conversation.
"I might."
"Is this a joke? Who is this?"
"I'm an acquaintance of Kai, and this is no joke, Mayumi. I posses a gift that may aid you in your quest."
"How do I know what you are saying is true?"
"Meet me at the Capsule Corporation building at midnight. You must trust me, I can help you."
"Fine, but I won't be alone."
"Then I'll see you there. Goodbye." A click was heard and then a resounding dial tone. She hung up the cell phone and stared blankly at the wall for a minute, wondering if what had just happened was really true. Was there someone who actually knew where they could find everyone? There was only one way to find out.
*****
"Where, is my dinner, woman?" Vegita yelled, taking an impatient sip from his wine glass.
She suppressed her anger and responded in her sweetest tone, "it's ready, my prince."
Vegita grumbled under his breath, took another sip of the red wine, and gave her a furious glare as she came in holding a well-arranged tray of some strange substance. Kai walked to his side, where she bent over to set his tray on the table. As soon as she had done so, he caught a very generous but unintended glace of her exposed bosom. Seeing far too much skin then he felt comfortable with, he immediately spat out the wine he was in the process of drinking all over the startled Kai.
"Ahh! What was that for?" she exclaimed, fussing over her now ruined dress.
"I was choking," he responded quickly, "it was my first reaction." He fumbled over the word "reaction", but Kai ignored this.
"I have to change," she said hurriedly, "I can't wear this dress anymore, it's stained."
"Fine, woman. But hurry. If I don't like this food you will have to make me more."
She clenched her fists and her face flushed red with anger, "I spend so long slaving in the kitchen to make you this meal and you repay me by spitting wine all over me and demanding me to make you more if it doesn't please you? I can never please you, can I? You're just a damn fussy brat who claims to be a warrior prince, and I'll be damned if I'm expected to give my all and get nothing in return." She spun around and stormed off, not wanting to take this argument any farther.
He blinked in shock at her sudden exit, and then quickly turned his attention back to his food. Though his eyes were elsewhere, his mind was still dwelling on Kai. He was frustrated with her outbursts, yet a part of him actually had feelings for the tomboyish wench.
An intrusion of reality interrupted his stream of consciousness when he realized what he said. Feelings? For Kai? Impossible! It was nothing other than alcohol that had prompted this thought, he assured himself, how could he ever have feelings for that repulsive woman?
Mayumi and the others stood at the Capsule Corporation building and she frowned judgmentally. The lighting in this building was atrocious; she could barely make out the foreground. Surly their mystery guest would have no trouble surprising them with an ambush, but perhaps this was only her overwhelming sense of prudence poisoning her with paranoia.
It didn't take long before a strange masked figure slipped out from the pocket of darkness he had been lurking in, wearing what appeared to be a black coat and black pants. This made it harder for the group to decipher him from the shadows, but the light mask was a location giveaway.
"Masks," Mayumi thought to herself, "how typical."
"Miss Yaiba," he said, that same deep voice ringing a tone of familiarity in Mayumi's mind from that previous phone conversation, it was him alright. "I see you stay true to your promises. I can assure you that you will not regret this get-together in the least."
The group exchanged soft mutters and Mayumi silenced them with a motion of her hand. She believed in him, and her seriousness was evident if not contagious.
"Please, tell us what you think can help us."
"Oh I will, Miss Yaiba," he said, bringing out his gloved hands from his pockets and lacing his fingers together, "I most certainly will."
NEXT CHAPTER: CONFESSION
The bet's winner is revealed, finally, and the maskedfigure informs the warriors and Mayumi of information that may help their quest much more than they bargained for. Are they ready for answers?
