A/N: Ok I just wanted to answer a few observations and questions. Yes, Pan is putting those plants to use! She spent four years tending everything down there in the cavern and developed quite the green thumb; also she knows how helpful some of them can be for medicinal purposes, etc. Now as you're about to read, Pan didn't just give Capsule Corp a few thousand plants alone. And to answer the question made by a reviewer…yes Goku visited Pan, and no you haven't seen the last of Mogiri. (Well it will be in flashback or spirit form) You guessed ahead of time what I was going to do for a flashback sequence darn it! (Starts to cry) Btw the rating had to go up because of the guys' joke. Men are gross…
" I know God won't give me more
than I
can handle. I just wish he didn't
trust me
so much."
Mother Theresa
The next few days after the party consisted of meetings dealing with certain specifics of Pan's contract. Bra and her executives were rather impressed by the woman's intellect and business sense. She had definitely come to play hardball. The best they could do was meet the majority of her requests because letting this opportunity fall into another company's lap was not an option.
Some of the conditions were quickly agreed upon. Pan would be the Director of Capsule Preserve and Head Caretaker. Anyone working directly with the plants would answer to her. She would be notified and have final approval on visiting scientists and professionals. For the biotech departments she would act as a consultant when they required her assistance.
A four-bedroom villa would be built on site for her as soon as the main greenhouse, now referred to as "the dome", had been completed. Her salary was generous, put simply she would never have to worry about money again. It was the least the company could do considering what she had provided them with.
The press conference had gone well despite the media having a field day with it. They adored anything that had to do with Capsule Corp and it's beautiful president. Bra was able to keep the jackals at bay and succeeded in presenting their plans for the project in a positive light. But what Capsule Corp had neglected to mention to the press was that Pan had given them more than just "plants". The rest of the world didn't need to know that she had given them access to alien technology that would propel them 200 years ahead of everyone else.
At the negotiations earlier that week she had surprised the lawyers and executives by insisting to be involved with the Tulantian technology research. They had assumed that Pan would have preferred to sit amongst the green day in and day out. Such was not the case. She knew they would need her help since the technology and its creators needed to be explained. The concepts they were based upon would be too foreign to human scientists without some kind of help. Pan also made it clear that there would be no deal unless Trunks was placed in charge of this new division. He was the only one she could trust with such sacred information and knew that he would do right by her. She brought the pieces to Capsule Corp's main research facility in Satan City secretly by herself. Pan had refused to disclose the location of Mogiri's cavern to the company and had made it clear that trying to find it would result in severe repercussions.
The work began a week or two after Trunks had assembled his teams together. But it was clear from the beginning that they would have their work cut out for them…
" Sweet sufferin' fok are these vines I see comin' out of this thing?" said Frank in dismay while standing over one of the Tulantian machines.
" Quiet O'Connell, Briefs didn't fly your ass from Dublin so you could just stand there and gawk at this stuff," scolded Mitch, waving a wrench threateningly at him. He stopped when he felt a hand rest on his shoulder and found it belonging to Juunanagou.
He gave Mitch a brief smile before walking over to Frank.
" Be careful of those so-called vines Frank. I'm pretty sure those are the dominant wires," he warned the man in a calm tone. Frank nodded and left to set up the back lab with the other men.
Juunanagou sighed and looked around him. Trunks had definitely left him with a motley crew. The man had hired the very best from across the world to work on this project making each one sign confidentiality agreements before joining. Then Trunks promptly left on their first day to pick up equipment that had arrived at the airport, leaving him to be the fortunate one in charge.
He returned to the primary computer, sat down on the dolly leaning back and wheeled himself back under the main console. Setting up shop was the easy part; their true test would come soon when the real work began. The voices of the men around the hanger were laughing and chatting as they worked which was something he hadn't counted on. Most of the men he had worked with before tended to be more quiet and serious, even more so than himself. So in a way Juunana found his new co-workers to be very refreshing.
Juunana's thoughts were interrupted when he felt a foot nudging his right boot.
" Yeah?" he asked from under the console.
" I was trying to tell Mitch that joke Shinji told us earlier…you know, the one where the best man is acting up? I can't remember the punch line and I know you probably memorized the whole thing from hearing it one time," said Ivan, setting down something that sounded heavy.
" The Irish one?" he asked.
" Here now!" protested Frank with a smile which made a couple of the men laugh.
" That's the one," answered Ivan with a grin.
Juunana set down his tools and rolled himself back out.
" There were once three very good friends named Mary, Paddy and Sean," he began in his best version of an Irish accent much to his audience's delight. " The time came when Mary and Paddy were finally getting married and Paddy made Sean his best man. Later at the reception, Sean's at the bar havin' a few when he sees Mary on the dance floor having a good time by herself. Well, Sean gets turned on by this, gets up, walks over to her and says ' Oh Mary, yer so beautiful! I just want to take off all yer clothes and kiss you all over!' Of course the bride doesn't react very well to this and threatens to tell Paddy. Sean panics and stops her by saying, ' I'm sorry! It was just the liquor talkin'! Only the liquor talkin'!' Mary decides to let this one slide. An hour or so passes and Sean sees Mary again on the dance floor. He walks back up, this time saying to her, ' Oh Mary, yer so beautiful! I just want to take off yer dress and run my hands across your breasts, up and down, up and down…' Mary freaks out and goes to tell Paddy what Sean has said but Sean is able to stop her again by telling her ' that it was just the liquor talking'. Ok…now it's a few hours later and our boy Sean is pretty much shit-faced. Once again he approaches Mary and says to her lustfully, ' Oh Mary, yer so beautiful! I just want to turn ye upside down, pour Guinness into ye and drink it all!" Well, that last comment did it and Mary marches off to find Paddy. She finds him and pulls him aside to speak with him. 'What's wrong luv?' he asks her. ' Do you know what your best man has been saying to me?' asks Mary and then she tells him about the first comment Sean made. Paddy frowns and says, ' Well for THAT, he gets one of THESE.' He slaps down on his right arm and raises his right fist in the air. ' That's not all,' says Mary and she tells him the second thing Sean said to her. ' And for THAT he gets one of THESE,' says Paddy slapping down on his left arm and raising his left fist. Mary shook her head. ' You haven't heard the worst of it!' she says and tells him the last comment. ' What are you going to do about that?' she asked Paddy. ' Nothing,' he tells her. ' But why?' she asks him. ' Because a man who can drink that much Guinness is a better man than I.'"
All the men nearby started to roar in laughter including Frank. Juunana smirked from his dolly and was about to roll back under the console when he heard a soft female voice. He stood up and saw some of the men standing by the west doorway talking to a young woman. Upon closer inspection he realized it was Pan.
Walking up to them, he noticed her looking in his direction, smiling suddenly when she recognized him.
" Juunana!" she greeted, waving at him.
For some strange reason he was incredibly glad to see her and for the life of him he didn't know why.
" Hey Pan, what brings you out here?" he asked, wiping his brow.
" Bra. She told me to come here so she could pick me up for lunch since she was heading back into the city this afternoon," she answered, glancing around.
" Are you guys setting up in this hanger?" she asked curiously.
Juunanagou nodded and turned to face the room. " The boss is out of town so we're just getting everything ready for when he brings in the last of the equipment. Which reminds me…I need to thank you for making my job finally interesting with this little surprise of yours," he said with a broad grin.
Pan laughed lightly. " You're welcome, I think. Do I dare ask how things are going so far?" she asked, taking a few steps inside.
" As well as can be expected," replied Brian.
" What kind o' creatures dreamed this junk up?" asked Frank, shaking his head in confusion.
Pan walked over to a large disc that stood 15 ft tall that was flat and covered in green. She pressed her fingers lightly against the leaves and the green in the center of the disc retracted to show a blank screen.
" They were very wise and very beautiful," she answered knowingly as the men rushed over having seen what she had done.
Juunana watched with amusement the stunned reactions of his coworkers before deciding to enlighten them.
" Gentlemen this is Pan. On Monday she'll be joining us to help go over everything. She is the only one familiar with these devices therefore, as far as we're concerned, she's God come Monday and the days that follow," he explained. " Now don't be shy and feel free to say hello, I promise she won't bite," he added sarcastically.
Pan stood next to Juunana while team introduced themselves to her.
In a matter of minutes most of the men had gone back to what they were working on with the exception of a few. Frank continued to inspect the screen with a comical expression of frustration on his face while Mitch nagged at him to get back to work.
" Don't let them fool you, they really are professionals and the best in their fields," Juunana assured her.
" Oh I'm sure they are. You and Trunks know what you're doing. But still, they are pretty funny," she giggled looking at them.
Juunana found himself smiling down at her as she laughed when Frank began to swear in Gaelic at the machine before stomping away. Just then her eyes looked up and caught him gazing at her.
Pan couldn't resist staring back into the bright pale blue eyes. Against his dark coloring they stood out beautifully. Her eyes remained locked with his for what seemed like an eternity although in reality it had only been a few seconds. His eyes seemed to be asking her a gentle question. She knew the danger of truly looking into another's eyes because old saying was true: The eyes are the windows to the soul. Suddenly everything became fuzzy and she felt lightheaded.
" Pan!" Juunana shouted. He grabbed and steadied her as she started to collapse.
She moaned and raised her fingers to her temples to massage them.
" I'm ok," she said frowning.
He let her go once he could see that she was fine. The little fainting spell worried him because it seemed to have come out of nowhere.
Pan straightened up and smiled at him.
" Thanks Joanna, I don't know what that was all about. Kind of weird," she said nervously. Embarrassed, she began to make a beeline for the west door.
Juunana felt a chill go up his spine. " What did you call me?" he asked her.
She stopped and turned around.
" Huh? I called you Juunana, your name silly," she replied.
" No Pan. You called me Joanna," he corrected her, folding his arms.
Pan exerted all the control she had to keep her face from looking horrified. She forced a strained laugh and shrugged.
" I'm sorry if I did. That momentary loss of consciousness must have goofed me up a bit. I have to go; I can feel Bra's ki outside. She's probably wondering where I am," she said apologetically. She then flew out of the hanger and down the hall, leaving Juunana to contemplate what had just happened.
*********************************************
" Well Pan what did I tell you? Is this place great or what?" asked Bra proudly leaning back in her chair, a drink in hand.
Pan looked up from her menu and nodded.
" Very nice Bra. Here comes the waiter, do you know what you're getting?" she asked as she looked back down to make a decision.
Bra tucked a few strands behind her ear and giggled.
" I don't know why you're bothering to look. You're just going to end up ordering two of everything or something like that," she teased.
" Like you're any different," Pan retorted from behind her menu.
Bra handed her menu to the waiter and preceded to order 10 t-bones cooked rare with 5 salads and 2 sides of mashed potatoes.
" Aw just what all the boys love, a real meat and potatoes kind of girl!" chuckled Pan after she gave the waiter her order.
" Oh shut up, at least I didn't waste all my time looking only to end up ordering two of everything again," Bra shot back playfully.
Pan picked up her glass and swirled the wine around a bit.
" Raw bloody steak, yuck…you are your father's daughter," she commented while making a face.
Bra shrugged and sipped from her glass.
" Bra? What's wrong with Juunanagou?" Pan asked quietly.
Her companion set her drink down and looked out across the restaurant for a moment before meeting her eyes.
" I'm not sure Pan because I don't know all the details. It's been impossible to get a straight answer out of that man. He came to work for Capsule Corporation about five years ago when Trunks hired him, deciding that he could be trusted. So far I've been nothing but impressed with his abilities. All I know for sure is that he and Juuhachigou had a big fight three years ago and have had a strained relationship since. It was around the time that everyone started to notice that he was beginning to show signs of aging,"
" It's so strange to see him the way he is now," Pan confessed.
Bra nodded. " I know what you mean. We were so used to the pretty boy teenage version for most of our lives. Still…who could've known he'd trade it in for such a ruggedly handsome look," she said with a hint of mischief.
Pan giggled and leaned forward to whisper to her friend.
" Ah, the huntress has her chosen her prey for the next hunt?" she asked playfully.
" No, no. He's not my type. Come on, you know how I am."
" Princess Bra wants her chivalrous knight in shining armor who treats her like gold, has a nice butt and always remembers to ask for more when she cracks her whip!" described Pan as they both started to laugh, gaining the attention of the tables nearby.
" Ha!" Bra said while wiping her eyes. " Close but not quite. You crack me up."
Bra noticed Pan still smiling at her with an evil grin and she flapped hand dismissively.
" Seriously hon. I have other game in my sights. Just because I'm interested in something else doesn't mean I can't appreciate fine art."
" Does this 'something' have a name?" Pan inquired.
She ran a hand through her long blue hair and eyed her friend suspiciously.
" Uh uh. I'm not saying a word there are way too many eavesdroppers here," she replied firmly.
Pan suddenly had an idea.
" Ok then Bra, so let's talk about Goten," she said casually.
" Goten? What about him?" her friend asked a little too quickly.
Bingo. So she felt the same way, thought Pan. She delighted in seeing Bra squirm nervously in her seat.
" I was curious as to how you ended up hiring him," Pan answered.
" Oh. Well there's not much to tell really. He quit his old job and was looking for a new one. I got wind of it and asked him to send me a resume to see if I could help. He proved to have a lot of Public Relations experience and even had a bachelor's degree in it. I didn't even know he had finished college…anyway, I got him an interview with my Director and she hired him. You'd be proud of him Pan; he's doing well. Personally I'm not surprised. He's always been charming and social. Goten has a knack for deterring the evil media and promoting us," Bra observed thoughtfully.
" Right. He's much smarter and more capable than people give him credit for."
Bra's eyes lit up.
" That's exactly what I said to my mom!" she exclaimed in surprise.
' Oh Bra…you really do care for him,' Pan thought, deeply touched. She wasn't ready to play matchmaker but Pan wanted to be able to help these two come together quite badly. Bra may play the part of the glamorous seductive president but Pan knew deep down the girl wanted a chance at honest love. Having such a high profile denied her that a majority of the time.
" So do you see each other much around the building?" she asked.
Bra shook her head. " Not really. I'm so busy and am always running around."
" Still, you handle it much better than your brother did," Pan pointed out.
" Yes but you can't compare us. We both inherited our mother's intellect but in different ways. I'm good at organization and multitasking. Making decisions and coming up with strategies for the company is easy for me. Now put me in a lab and tell me to invent something to save the world because its about to blow up and…"
" Boom," Pan finished for her.
" Pretty much. But Trunks could. He has Mom's creativity and the brains to make his ideas reality. I'm constantly amazed by what he's dreaming up," said Bra leaning back and folding her arms.
Pan looked down at her glass and smiled. " Livia has her father's creativity and her mother's cheerful personality," she remarked. She lifted her eyes to find Bra studying her with a smirk on her face.
" What?" Pan asked.
The smirk merely widened. " You know what," she hinted.
Sighing loudly, Pan raised an eyebrow at her and frowned.
" Don't get those kinds of ideas into your head Bra. Your brother happens to be one of my best friends, that's all," she warned.
Bra tilted her head and pouted her lips.
" You used to worship the ground he walked on hon. so forgive me if I thought that you might still be interested. Besides his daughter adores you! She even has her own room at your home!" she argued gently.
" That was seven years ago! I have a different life now. And yes, Livi has a room at my home. She's over so much I just thought it made sense to give one to her. I'm not going to deny that I don't love the both of them," Pan replied sharply.
" Then if it's not Trunks you're into these days, then who is it?"
Pan just gazed at Bra sadly. " No one. Not everyone is meant to live happily ever after."
The blue haired demi saiyan was taken aback by her friend's answer. Her voice sounded like it was full of defeat. Bra bit her lip and leaned forward across the table to grasp Pan's hands.
" What are you talking about?" she asked.
" Just what I said. The likelihood of my marrying happily and having children is pretty slim. I'm meant for other things. The duties and plans that I have to carry out will pretty much consume my life. Besides, I'm not all that sure that I'd be any good at the whole 'love' thing," she explained softly.
Bra chuckled and squeezed her hands.
" Now that's a laugh. You, saying you wouldn't be good at it, honey you are all about love! There isn't a day that goes by that I'm envious at the depth of your compassion and love for people," she challenged.
" That kind is easy. I'm talking about the romantic type. That requires a certain vulnerability and risk of injury that I'm not sure I want to chance. How pathetic am I? I'm nearly twenty-six and discussing something like this with you…"
" Don't talk like that," Bra interrupted her firmly. " First of all, age means nothing especially where you're concerned since you don't know how long you'll live. Secondly Pan, everyone is afraid of being hurt…that's natural. But believe me when I say that it's worth risking," she assured her with a smile.
Pan returned her smile and squeezed her hands back affectionately.
" You're right of course. And I know how much you love hearing that," she joked.
Bra sat back in her chair, satisfied that her friend was ok. But there was something that nagged her in the back of her mind about what Pan had said.
" Panny, what did you mean by all those duties and plans you have to carry out? Were you talking about the Preserve or something else?" she questioned.
" The Preserve is part of it. I have a lot of work and practice to do for a while. Mogiri always told me it was best to start out small and work my way up," Pan answered her good-naturedly.
' Start out…small?' Bra's mind asked. Did Pan consider this multimillion dollar project to be easy? She chose not the say anything to her about it now.
" Oh good, here comes our food Bra," said Pan looking beyond her.
Bra looked over her shoulder and then nodded at Pan. It was probably nothing worth bringing up anyway.
****************************************************
" Pan? Can you hear me?" spoke
Mogiri's voice faintly.
" Yes," she answered.
" Good. You are now ' within'
and I am here with you. Now just relax and allow yourself to be directed by
your guide. When things become clear tell me what you see and who you are," he
instructed.
There was nothing but silence
between them for a few minutes.
" I…I'm in a trench. It's filled
with bodies of my friends, some alive and some not. It's dark and the enemy has
stopped its advance for now. The air smells like smoke and rotting flesh," Pan
began in a trance-like voice.
" Who are you?" Mogiri asks her.
" I'm a private in his majesty's
army. My best friend Fred is next to me trying to keep warm and we're both
scared. He is Trunks. We both thought it would be fun to join up and help out
in the Great War. How could we have been so stupid? We're the only ones left
alive from our hometown now. I see my Captain going over the plans for the next
push with some men. He is a great man and he's saved my life a hundred times.
He is Vegeta. If I am lucky, I will be able to go home after all of this to
Joanna. I miss her so much. A photo in my wallet is all I have left to remind
me of her. Tears start to come when I realize I can't remember the color of her
eyes and that I will probably never find out. Gazing at her face all I can do
is pray. She is Juunanna. They've started the bombing again and the lieutenant
is blowing his whistle signaling the charge. I'm rushing out and running
forward with the other men. The enemy sends up a flare balloon and spots us.
The light source makes me realize that I'm stumbling across corpses and not the
ground and I start to gag. I can see the barbed wire ahead…"
" Pan where are you now?" he
calls out softly.
" The void again, I was released
from the experience," she replied.
" Do you wish to continue? That
was a harsh life to start off with."
" I can go on," the monotone
voice assured him.
" Then let them take you again
sa-bu, I will be here waiting."
" There is a reflection in the
small pool before me. It is mine. My hair is drawn back and I look tired. I'm
in the courtyard of a fine house in Athens. It is my home. Walking back to the
women's quarters I see my son talking to a servant animatedly. He is Goku. My
husband has been away for two months conducting trade. I do not miss him. I am
only the third wife and have barely been in his presence in the fifteen years I
have been here. Of the two times he shared my bed, one visit provided me with
my son, my only joy. Unlike most women I have been fortunate. Because I was so
young when I arrived the first wife took me under her wing instead of making my
life a living hell. She taught me how to be a proper Athenian wife and the
rules of conduct. She is Vegeta. I find myself sitting at my loom once again,
doomed like Ariadne to spin forever. This life sometimes gets tiresome but that
is a life of a woman. My favorite serving girl enters the room bringing me my
dinner. She is very sweet and helpful. How I hope they don't beat her too
badly. She is Bra. The girl leaves quickly leaving me alone once more. I can
feel myself being pulled away Mogiri…"
" Let them point the way. I am
here."
" My soul is tired."
" As it should be, you are not
accustomed to this. You did very well," he praised.
" I recognized my friends. But
they looked different and were other genders…"
" Yes, now you see that you have
known some of them through many lifetimes. Now you can be aware of the roles
they provide to you and you to them. Some will be more important than others of
course," Mogiri explained.
" Like my soul mates."
" Correct sa-bu."
" I had no idea this was going
to be so hard…"
* laughter *