Dragon Ball Z: Unlikely Romance
By Eric Jacobson
Chapter 7: The Kidnapped Saga
Episode 18 - "The Joruney Within, Part Two"


"Look at you. And you call yourself Saiyan. You allowed a pathetic creature to get the best of you. You're of the Royal Saiyan bloodline, yet here you are, being beaten by a lesser being. Sad."

"What makes you think that I've been beaten? You should know after all." Vegeta confronted the figure before him. "You're me, aren't you?" He stared into his own eyes, but they weren't quite his own. Instead of the usual obsidian, the other Vegeta's eyes were aqua in color. His hair a radiant yellow. "But you can't be me. I'm not a Super Saiyan."

"You're not a Super Saiyan yet, Vegeta. That power does exist within you, along with more that you will realize in time. But you're still blind to it. And that makes you weak."

"I've had just about enough of you making me sound inferior. I don't have to tell you who I am, you know damn good and well. And whether you're me or not, if you keep talking like that, I'll destroy you."

"You will do no such thing. Otherwise, you risk destorying your own pitiful self." Another voice came from Vegeta's right, a youthful yet distinctly Saiyan voice. To his horror, he recognized it from his youth. As the source of the voice came into view, Vegeta took a step back. "What's the matter, Vegeta? Afraid to face yourself?" The figure was himself as a young Prince, just before he left Vegetasei to begin his service under the tyrant Freiza.

"What the hell is going on here? First there's you, the Super Saiyan. And then my boyhood self? Somebody had best give me some damned good explanations for all of this."

The two visions of himself turned around suddenly, and were joined by yet a third figure. This time, Vegeta found himself feeling as if he was looking in a mirror. This Vegeta was similar to him in every way. "You want an explanation? Well, you've come to the right place. Welcome to your trial, Prince of Saiyans. And in this courtroom, you are guilty untill proven innocent, if that's even possible for your worthless hide..."

Bulma couldn't keep the link to Vegeta's mind for very long, and lost contact after she was distracted by what she considered to be telepathic static of some sort. "What's happening to him?" Fear and worry riddled her voice as she ran to her Prince's side. He was still unconcious and immobile. "Vegeta, wake up! He's coming, Vegeta, you've got to get up!"

"On the contrairy my dear, I'm not coming, I'm already here." The Amazon stepped through the hole he had made using Vegeta's body and into the room. "Oh, is your precious Saiyan hurt? That's just too bad. No more monkeys left here to defend you, little girl." He turned his attention to Rico, who was still sitting up against a table, his wounds bleeding like crazy. "So you just won't die, will you? Actually, I'm glad you haven't. When I killed your brother in our dimension, you weren't around to see it. Too bad, really. It was a rather greusome sight. But now that you're here, you can see me do it all over again. Doesn't that sound nice?"

"To hell with you, Amazon." Rico coughed violently, but his eyes never left the creature standing over him. The situation had grown out of his control, and the feeling of helplessness in his current condition made his anger swell.

Bulma had no clue what to do. Everything was going wrong around her, and her mind was ablaze with confusion. She looked down at Vegeta, hoping to find some sign of life, anything that would tell her he was going to wake up. The link was lost and she couldn't get through to him at all. But as she looked him over, she couldn't see a thing. 'Oh Vegeta, please wake up..."

"What do you mean I'm on trial? What kind of game is this? I'll have you know that I'm not having too much fun at the moment if it is a game. And besides, games aren't really my style, anyway." Vegeta's rage grew with each passing second as he passed his gaze to and from each of the Vegeta "clones."

"This is no game, Prince of Saiyans." His mirror image spoke up. "You are on trial for betraying yourself and your heritage. You stand accused of treason... against yourself."

"Treason against myself? What the hell are you talking about?"

"Let the proceedings begin." With that statement from the Super Saiyan version of Vegeta, the scene suddenly shifted and reformed in a large courtroom.

"What the hell is going on? What manner of magic is this?"

"This is not magic, Saiyan Prince. Now, you stand accused of betraying yourself and your heritage. How do you plea?" The Super Saiyan Vegeta had taken his place behind the main platform of the courtroom. Obviously, he would serve as judge and jury.

"How do I plea? Do you really think that I'd enter a plea when I think that this court is some pathetic delusion? This mockery of justice is annoying the hell out of me. Besides, where is my defense? Don't I get representation? Isn't that how these things work?"

The child Vegeta stepped out of the shadows and stood next to the Prince. "I will be your defender, though I doubt it will do you much good. You're as guilty as you are arrogant."

"You know, if you weren't me, I'd vaporize you for being that lippy."

"And you wonder what you're on trial for."

As the mirror image of Vegeta began the prosecution, it seemed as if his entire life passed before his eyes. It started with Nappa, and how he protected Vegeta out of loyalty to his father the King, even while with Freiza. That ended painfully, however, when the subject of questioning turned to the circumstances of Nappa's demise.

King Vegeta himself followed, and spoke of the hidden fear that his one and only son wouldn't be able to take the throne of their once great empire. He regretted selling him out to Freiza when he knew the tyrent would destroy them anyway. But it was the only way he could keep the Prince alive. 'One in my favor, I believe.' The Prince loved his father, and seeing him, even if it was only a dream, brought out the good in his pride.

Thus began the parade of creatures from worlds Vegeta had destroyed and enslaved. Endless aliens, each only saying the torture and horror their races felt at the hands of the Dark Prince. The humiliation of the great army of T'or. The King of Xandahar, reduced to cinder in front of his entire race. The Baralans, forced to endure 32 hour shifts in mines on their once beautiful planet. The list went on and on. One by one, Vegeta watched as the races and peoples he had himself destroyed accused him of crimes most normal men would consider insanity.

With each charge, the sadistic grin on the doppleganger Vegeta grew wider. The judge remained solem, his eyes focused squarely on the accused. When the procession stopped, the prosecuter rested his case. "I think that explains it. This pathetic excuse of a Saiyan is nothing more than a low-life thug that doesn't deserve leniance. After all, he's never shown it himself. Countless worlds have fallen under his hand. And now he even seeks to live on Earth among lesser beings. This is no Saiyan." Vegeta's twin turned to look directly into the eyes of the Prince. "He's just a monkey."

His mind raced with anger. Fire grew within him and rage flowed to every part of his being. 'Must everyone think that I'm just a monkey? Doesn't anyone have any of the respect due to a member of the Siayn race? Why must these people belittle me? Why does everyone...' He stopped in mid thought when his mind suddenly became aware of another...

The Amazon walked over to Vegeta and stood over his still limp body. "So, what should I do to him, eh? Should I break each one of his bones one at a time? Maybe sever his spine in all the right places and paralyze him before I smash his head against the wall?" His details were greusomeas he tried to eat at the soul of his fallen opponent. "Maybe after I finish this one off, I'll go looking for that other Saiyan we've seen him with here in this dimension. What do you think of that, Bulma?"

"You'ld never beat Goku, jackass. He'd knock you through your dimension and through three more before you finally stopped." She tried her best to keep an air of composure outwardly. She didn't want him to know that she was trying to reconnect with Vegeta's mind. Try as she might, though, she couldn't get in touch with her Prince. She knew his mind was still working, even in his current state. But something was in the way.

"If he's anything like what this worthless ape says he is, then I should have no trouble at all. This pathetic loser is the pinnacle of an otherwise harmless pack of primates. Not much to look at, is it? Come on. Be honest with yourself. How could you possibly be in love with this pitiful excuse for a warrior?"

His comments struck a chord with Bulma, and anger began to swell from within her. "Look, asshole. You may have Vegeta down, but he's certainly not out. And as for how I feel about him, he's more than you could ever imagine any race could be, even your own. You think your so superior. Vegeta's a thousand times the warrior you are, and he's a million times more the better man." A smirk worthy of her Prince crossed her face. With a new found strength, she doubled her efforts to get ahold of her Prince.

"A feisty one, aren't you. I should have seen it earlier. You'll make an excellent 'mate' for Vegeta. You're strong willed and have a drive to match. The warriors we clone from you will be excellent fighters indeed." There was an element of certainty in his voice, as if he were sure that his plan would succeed. After all, the one person who stood a chance of beating him now lay unconcious on the floor, vulnerable to whatever evil he could come up with.

Bulma kept a close eye on the enemy before her as she tried to reestablish the link to her beloved Vegeta. Whatever was blocking her was strong indeed, and she had no clue what kind of power - good or bad - that it could be. "Do you really think you're going to win? Are you really that sure of yourself? Even if it comes down to me, I won't go down without a fight of my own, you ass."

"Ha. Do you really think that you could do any damage?" With a laugh, he turned his attention to the all but lifeless Vegeta, wounded and ripe for the kill...

He could feel it. It was very feint, but he was sure of it. Bulma was trying to get through to him. What was holding her back, though? This was all a creation of his own subconcious, so he knew that something inside of him was jamming the line. 'Bulma, keep trying.' He searched his soul, every corner of his being for the answer.

"So, Prince of Saiyans. You have heard the evidence laid before you. One after another, you've heard the tales of the horrors you have caused. At the behest of Freiza or not, you still committed these acts with your own hand. You have tarnished the pride and tradition of the Saiyan race, all in the name of hatred and contempt. What do you have to say to all of this?" The judge looked down at him with a vicious glare, the kind that would make a Farakian (a being made of ice, and one of the races Vegeta had destroyed) shiver with fear.

"I have heard. Not that I had to, as I experienced it all first hand. You know what? It doesn't matter to me. It was in my past. Long dead history. Yes, I caused suffering, and yes it was by Freiza's order. But now, things are differant. I have a new goal. A new reason to survive and carry on my Siayan heritage. Nothing else matters to me now. I am one of the last of my race, and I have no intention of letting my bloodline die off. That fool Kakkarot cannot be allowed to be the soul bearer of that responsibility." His trademark smile again crossed his lips as he realized the answer to the broken bond problem. "I honestly don't give a damn what you think about me, or what verdict you choose to render on me. It doesn't matter. I don't much care for anything you have to say, really. I could give a rat's ass about this courtroom, this trial, and I grow tired of this dream. It's time I took control of my own destiny. To hell with all of this. DAMN IT ALL!"

In a blinding flash, a power was unleashed from within Vegeta that swallowed the room and its occupants, leaving him alone amidst the glow. Suddenly, he felt the link to Bulma grow stronger as the barrier holding him back vanished. 'Bulma. I'm alright now. And I'm coming to help you.'

"That's it!" Bulma felt the bond with Vegeta grow stronger again, as well as a rush of energy seemingly coming from her Prince. It flowed through her body, giving her strength she'd never known before. She looked at him and smiled. Even when he was unconcious, he was still trying to help her. She then set her sights on the Amazon, who was moving towards Vegeta with intentions that weren't the greatest. She charged at him, ready to pull the only move she could think of that would stop the creature, even for a moment.

"Keep your eyes peeled, both of you. You're about to watch the second demise of the Prince of all Saiyans. I'm going to enjoy this, you know. It's not often that you get to kill this big a target twice. Time to die again, Veget-TAH! Ahhh, AHHHHHHHH! OhhhhhhhOHHHH!" Suddenly, his voice got a whole lot higher as he realized the source of the pain he was now feeling. His crotch was ablaze with a sharp, intense pain, the kind that only comes from a shot to the pills. "Wha... What have you done? You little... AHHHHHHHHHHHHH... Bitch... OhhhhhhhhhOHHHHH Ahhhh Owwwwwwwww!"

Satisfied with her work, Bulma turned her attention back to trying to contact Vegeta. 'If you're going to wake up, do it now, Vegeta. I don't know how long that'll hold him off...'

Her words echoed in his mind, and the light surrounding him vanished. Vegeta awoke from his dream world and slowly opened his eyes. Unlike in his dream, he was in great pain. As his eyelids slowly parted, he thought he saw someone bent over in front of him. His hearing came back as well, and was instantly bombarded with the horrid sounds of someone moaning as if they'd just been kicked somewhere unfriendly. When his vision cleared, he first saw the face of the Amazon. He looked to be in great pain. And then, without warning, he fell backwards and landed hard, rolling around and clutching his nether region, moaning like a soprano in heat.

"Vegeta! You're awake!" Bulma ran over to him and knealt next to him. She looked at him with wide eyes for a moment, allowing some tears to well up before she calmed herself and tended to her work. "You're a mess, lunk head."

"Oh sure. Take advantage of me while I'm a bit run down. I see what kind of woman you are." Vegeta looked over at the Amazon for a moment, and smirked. "Did you do that, woman?"

"You're damn right I did. I felt a burst of energy and decided that I'd had enough. So I did the only thing I could think of that would slow him down for sure. But that's neither here or there. You need one of these." From her pocket she produced the bag of Senzu Beans that Krillin had given to her. She took one out and fed it to her fallen hero.

Swallowing the life giving leghume, Vegeta waited for it to take effect. The Amazon was slowly recovering, and he wished the bean's magic would hurry. Once his strength returned, he had one hell of a score to settle with his nemesis.

The Amazon stood up, collecting his wits and shunning what remained of the pain. "You're going to pay for that you little twit. When I've finished my mission, I'm going to make your death a slow, painful one. Mark my words, I'll..."

"You'll have to get through me first, Amazon. It's time for round two, and Vegas isn't giving you very good odds."

The creature turned to see Vegeta, still bloodied and bruised, standing and looking as though he was full of energy. "How... How in the hell did you recover so fast?"

"A little secret we have here in our dimension. A secret that will spell your undoing. Now, are you ready to go, or do I have to give you some more time to nurse your marbles?


Since I'm updating content for FanFiction.Net, I really won't be writing much down here. It'll all be the same. Heck, you've probably read this very sentance already! Probably several times. Sorry. I'm in a hurry to convert these. Anyway, please review, and please make sure any criticism is CONSTRUCTIVE!!!" Flamers need not apply ^,^