Bulma slowly closed the door of her lab behind her as she started to make her way back home. She was very tired. Not just in her body, but in her spirit as well. Everything had gotten so complicated, and yet so simple in the last few days. The mysterious super sayian had come from the future, to tell Goku of his impending death, and give him the cure. He told them about the androids and how in only 3 years, they would all be fighting for their lives yet again. These were the moments in her life she truly hated. The waiting, the knowing what was coming. and not being able to do a damn thing about it.

Why did she have to know these things? She walked amongst the people around her, with great envy. They had no idea, they just lived their lives, happily in ignorance. Why couldn't she be like them? Fate.. fate was what had forced her to be one of the chosen few who knew about the terrors that lurked around every corner.

She slowly made her way back to the main house, and turned to look at the strange round sphere that currently took residence in their back yard. She could hear the battle waging within it's steel walls. She paused to listen for a few moments before letting out a sigh and finally making her way inside. A few moments later she was immersed in the soothing water of a bubble bath. She closed her eyes and sighed again, but this time with a small smile. She was one of the chosen few who knew of the future, and that was hard knowledge to bear, but it came with a few perks. Her life was never boring, it never lost its challenge. She let her thoughts wander back to the beginning of it all.. When she had first learned of the Dragonballs. She'd had a strange dream one night, it told her of a mystical beast, of Shenlong  the eternal dragon. It told her of the seven magical spheres that held the key to the dragon's power. Each sphere holding within it a piece of the dragons life-force. In her dream, the golden balls with the pale stars came together, and from them, the life of the dragon erupted. His ethereal presence hanging in the air around her, causeing her shields her eyes for a moment. She looked up at the dragon as it wound its way through the sky. She whispered it's name softly to the wind, and it had looked down at her. She felt slightly afraid, it's powerful stare seemed to look into her very soul. The dragon brought it's massive head lower till it's chin almost touched the ground. It's soft yet powerful voice making her tremble slightly. "You must find me young one, you must call me forth into the world. You have a great destiny, a great purpose, you are the key." He moved slightly to better look down at the young human, and for a moment his eyes looked very sad. "You shall know great pain, your heart shall be tested, broken, and reborn. You must be strong young one, and be brave. You must find me, and call me forth, and your silent wish that lies within your heart shall be granted" With his last words, his eyes glowed red and lightening streaked across the black sky, and then he was gone.

When she had woken, she had known it was not just a dream. That somewhere, in some strange place where the dragon existed, he had called out to her.

It had taken her a few months to construct the dragon radar, to figure out the exact energy signature of the spheres she sought. When it was constructed, she set out to do what the dragon had asked of her. She had found Goku, the naive young boy with the tail, she had found Yamcha, and Olong, she had found adventure. The dragon had kept his word, had granted the wish she always held in her heart. He had given her a true and meaningful purpose, he had brought into a world where she was needed, where she could make a difference. Her life had never been the same from the moment she had woken up from that dream so many years ago.

She got out of the tub and towelled herself off. She could hear the commotion of Vegeta coming in for dinner. The man was nothing but commotion, his way of announcing his presence she figured. He never did anything quietly, that was for damn sure. She wrapped her hair up in a towel and put on a pair of sweat pants and a loose t-shirt and made her way downstairs to greet the loud Prince. "Good evening Vegeta, I guess you want dinner" a muffled humpf was her reply.

She opened up the fridge and took out the large steaks she had defrosted earlier and made her way to the  bar-b-q. Placing them on the grill, and slathering them with bbq sauce, she turned to make her way back inside. Vegeta was sitting at the table, picking away at the salad she had left out for him. She smiled a bit "How's the training coming?" He gave her a sour look as his reply.

She sighed a bit "That good eh? You'll get there soon Vegeta." She moved across the kitchen to the fridge and poured a large glass of milk, setting it in front of him. "I've been analyzing your training data, your power level is rising at an incredible rate, you muscle density has almost tripled in the last month." He listened to her, not showing much interest. "I should have your new training bots ready by tomorrow, the design changes you asked for were a little tricky, but I think I got it right" She picked up a file she had brought in with her from her lab and set it down beside him.

He moved to open it while she checked on the steaks. Inside were pictures, x-rays, power readings and the specks for the new bots. The woman was very through, he had to give her that much. She had been observing and analyzing his training sessions for the past month. At first he had been furious she had even mentioned the idea of setting up sensors and cameras to watch him train.  However when it came down to it, he could not deny her intelligence. She had already proven herself with the upgrades to the gravity room, and the training bots she had designed for him. She had looked at him with the most serious expression, stating very plainly that if he was going to stay at Capsule Corp, then he would use it's resources to their fullest, that included her ability to create equipment that would help him reach his goal. She had laughed a little bit and for a moment he thought she say something foolish and ditzy like he couldn't do it without her help, and if she had, he would have refused her completely. She had surprised him though, "Vegeta, you are a Prince with royal blood, royalty should have the best, and though the earth may not rival with the technology of other races, Capsule Corp is the best the earth has to offer. If I am to give you the best equipment, I need information. Plain and simple. The data I can gather with the sensors will help me keep up with your training demands without having to bother you with questions. This will be quick and efficient." Her face had gone back to it's more serious expression. She had forced him honestly think about her offer and accept it.

With all the information at her disposal, her improvements had exceeded even his expectations. However, even with the improvements, he still hadn't reached his goal. The power of the legendary super sayian still eluded him. Even she was at a loss as to why he couldn't pass the threshold that held the great power beyond it. To her, it was a challenge she had to figure out, she was almost as obsessed with it as he was. If she had shown any kind of emotion about it, any kind of pity or sorrow for his failures, he would have pushed her away, but she didn't. She wanted him to reach his goal, she would do anything that would help him, but she did it with such professionalism that he couldn't refuse her help. Her attitude was that of a scientist, pure and simple. She took the information she received from his training and set out to find a way to improve upon his tools. To give him what he needed to get stronger. She did it, as if it was what she was simply meant to do.  He closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair as she re-entered the kitchen with the steaks in hand. She paused to look at him, her curiosity present on her face. He opened his eyes and looked at her, if she was any other being, he would never let his guard down like he did. He couldn't figure out why he felt so relaxed around her, as if he could do anything in her presence and it wouldn't matter. He mentally shrugged it off and sat up again. "I can't figure it out Onna, I'm missing something, some important step I have to take"

Bulma set the stakes in front of him and sat herself down and began thinking about what he had said. He knew far more about this then she did, he had at least seen Goku as a super saiyan. She looked over at him with a serious expression. "Vegeta, I need your consent on something. I want to bring Goku here and have him transform while in the Gravity Room." She waited to see how he would react.

He let out a low growl "No"

"Vegeta, if I can analyze his transformation, I may be able to figure out what is keeping you from it" She took a stern look at him

He seemed to think for a moment "Woman, I know you want to figure this out, like it was some sort of puzzle, but I will not take any help from that fool. This is my destiny, my life, not a science experiment. I will do this alone."

She seemed hurt by his words, but not surprised. His pride was to strong for her to fight him about it. "Why do you let me help you Vegeta?" The question was a serious one, not entirely connected to the conversation at hand.

His voice took on a very quite and serious tone, "You are a tool at my disposal, I would be foolish not to use your intelligence to my advantage. However, Kakarott is an obstacle, one I must overcome, I cannot take knowledge from that obstacle and then use it to destroy him, there would be no honour in it." With those words he left, leaving her to think on what he meant more then just what he said.

As she cleaned up the kitchen she continued to think on what he had said. She wasn't surprised by it, she just hadn't thought of it that way. She knew that one of his goals was to defeat one of her closest friends. Not something she wanted to dwell on, for some strange reason she knew that even if he did surpass Goku in strength, he wouldn't defeat him. That just wasn't part of his destiny, despite what he thought.  He was right though, if she did use information from Goku's transformation, it would be like he was cheating. Seeing the answers before taking the test. She let out a sigh as she placed the last of the dishes into the dishwasher, turning it on and leaving the room to return to her studying.

She may not be able to analyze Goku's transformation with scientific equipment, but she could use the knowledge she already had. Goku had transformed when he was pushed passed his limits. Gohan had told her about the fight after they had learned from Porunga that he didn't want to be wished back. Freeza had killed Vegeta and Krillian, fatally wounded Piccolo, and Goku had not been able to stop him. Gohan had told her, that after Krillian had died, it was as if something inside of his father had snapped. He had become enraged by Freeza's crule acts and his own failure. He transformed because it was the only way he could defeat the monster. Perhaps that was the key Vegeta was missing. Goku didn't want to transform, he didn't even know he could, he transformed because there was no other choice. He needed the power, and so the power awakened from within him.  The knowledge didn't help her much though. Vegeta didn't need the power, as much as he wanted it, he didn't need it. How could she create a situation where he would have to need that much power. She turned off her computer screen and rubbed her eyes, she would sleep on it, maybe the answer would come to her later, right now she just couldn't think anymore. She quickly made a few sandwiches for Vegeta to snack on after his training, and turned off the light.  Slowly making her way to her room, she quickly got undressed and welcomed the coolness of her bedcovers before falling asleep. Perhaps her dreams would hold the answers she needed, she could only wish it would be that easy.