Disclaimer: I haven't 'disclaimed' anything in a while, so I thought I would today. What do I own? How about the greasy bald guy in this chapter? lol...
Hiya, guys! Here's the beginning of the tournament! This took a while to think out, so I hope everyone enjoys it!
Chapter 21
Bulma sat on the balcony outside of her room and watched the sun rise serenely over the horizon. "It never truly occurred to me," she thought, "how special it is to sit and watch the sun. How extremely important. How humbling." She watched as it crept up the side of the mountain. When it reached the peak of the rock, it seemed to engulf the geographical structure in a fury of orange fiery light, enflaming everything in reach with its awesome luminance. "What an extreme power...," she thought to herself, an appropriate thought for the beginning of the day. For now, she blocked out thought of the tournament that was to begin today. She refused to be nervous. Excited. Anxious. Afraid. She refused to think how today would forever effect the rest of her life, because all thoughts were lost in the presence of the dawn. She stood slowly, steadily on her own two feet, closed her eyes, and stretched her arms high into the air. She brought them down and gradually inhaled until they reached her sides. She held her breath for a moment, as if cautious of what the next breath would bring, unsure of where it would lead her...but then exhaled and opened her eyes completely. "The day is here," she thought.
"And you shall seize it with all of your might."
The voice seemed to travel sharply through the crisp morning air. Bulma turned quickly, her blue hair rustled in the early winds. Vegeta was leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed. "How long were you there?" Bulma asked. "Ah, not to long", said Vegeta, adding, "I know what is going through your mind."
"Of course you do. You can read my thoughts."
Vegeta chuckled. "I don't mean literally, even though I was listening in, so to speak. I just know how you feel."
Bulma gave a small smile. "I believe you have a general idea, but you can't completely know how good it's gonna feel once I show everyone what I am. Do you know how many tournaments I've been to?"
"I'll assume you've been to many, with Kakarott, and his crew."
Bulma laughed loudly. "Many? Ha! 'Many doesn't even begin to summarize it...I've always gone, but just to watch. Never strong enough to participate. Vegeta, I'm tired of cheering for everyone. Now, they're going to have to cheer for me...whether they like it or not."
It was Vegeta's turn to laugh. "Oh, they'll like it. If they don't, I'll kill them."
Bulma shook her head. "Somehow, I don't think that would make a very good impression on the crowd, Vegeta."
Vegeta snorted. "What do I care of the crowd?"
Bulma raised her eyebrow at the pregnancy of his statement, but simply turned her head to the ever rising sun. She took another deep breath. "Vegeta,...it's time." Vegeta nodded, and said, "Well, then, let's go."
Bulma and Vegeta rose into the air, then started off at high speeds to town. Bulma watched the scenery fly by as they progressed to the arena where the tournament was taking place. As they approached, you could see the huge masses of people who were gathered to witness the excitement of another martial arts tournament. When they got closer, the roar of excitement was undeniable. The sound reminded Bulma of how important this was to her. "My day of reckoning...", she thought. Vegeta called over to her, "And you'll be 'reckoning' someone else!" Bulma rolled her eyes as Vegeta laughed uncharacteristically at his pun. "I know you're just trying to make me feel better", Bulma thought. She looked at Vegeta, her eyes shining. "It's good to simply have you here with me..." Vegeta looked back, his black eyes poignant with evocative emotion, a feeling she felt deep in her soul, and she found that she could not look away. They both stopped, mid-air, and Vegeta came to her, as if some magnetic force compelled him. She held out her arms, and, hovering above the grassy lands, they embraced in a manifesting kiss of devotion. Through Vegeta's lips, he was communicating the earth-shaking contents of his soul. There was nothing forged or false, and this was proved, because after the kiss, Vegeta pulled back to look deeply into Bulma's eyes. In a mesh of blue and black emotion, he said, "Kami, why leave it unspoken? You've known it, and I've known it longer. You are a beautiful angel to me, and I love you."
Bulma's eyes misted over, and she bit her lip. No amount of training, nothing could have prepared her for the undulated emotion that she felt; she was submerged in her love for Vegeta, and that alone was enough for her. Bulma grabbed his face fiercely and said, "Know this: If I live ten million years, fight ten million men,...if I die ten billion times, Kami, it will all have been worth it, just to be with you." With that said, Bulma lowered her lips to his and kissed him softly, deeply, sealing their declarations.
When the kiss ended, Vegeta closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them. "Die ten billion times? You'll hardly die once, with me here to protect you."
"You to protect me? I can protect myself!"
They laughed together. "If we don't get going, though", Vegeta said, "you'll never get the chance to die once! Let's hurry up!"
Hand in hand, they both flew to the arena.
They landed a few minutes later on the outskirts of the arena parking lot. The people were crowding the open spaces like too many ants in an ant farm. Vegeta and Bulma made their way to the registration desk. A small balding man was sitting there with a laptop computer. "Is this where I check in?" Bulma asked. The balding man let his eyes rake the length of her body, then with a leering smile, he said, "Sure, honey. What can I do for you?" Bulma kept her features and her body in control, but inside, she scoffed, thinking, "Okay, tubby, as if!" In response, Vegeta, who stood behind her, snickered quietly. "My name is Bulma Briefs, and I am checking in." The man replied, "Bulma Briefs, eh? Let's see..." As he perused the list of names on the screen, he added, "I don't see how a gorgeous woman like yourself would like to fight with all of the strong men here...so let me tell you this: If any of these guys hurt you, even a bit, you just come and tell me, and I'll make it all better..." he trailed off, and gave her a sleazy grin. Vegeta snickered again, and Bulma looked over her shoulder and winked. "I think I might be okay, but thank you very much for your offer...," and she held out her hand to shake his hand. The grease ball man jumped at the chance to touch her, and found that this was too his disadvantage. As soon has he put his hand into Bulma's innocent grasp, her hand crushed his greasy paw in half with little effort. The man yelped and pulled his hand back as if he'd been bitten, and he cradled it with the other hand. "I think I'll be okay today," Bulma reiterated, "so if you could just tell me..." "Your number is 173, and the qualification process begins in fifteen minutes!" he yelped, cowering a bit. Bulma winked at him and said, "Thank you." With that, both she and Vegeta turned and left.
"You vile witch, that was cruel!" Vegeta said, laughing.
"Cruel? Like you laughing behind my back wasn't mean, right? I'm here to show people who's boss, and that's what I intend to do."
Vegeta smirked, and said, "Yeah, but I didn't think you were gonna convince everyone personally."
Bulma shoved him. "Come on, he had it coming to him, anyway." She smiled. There was one victory. Every victory mattered, no matter how menial.
A loud voice came over the intercom. "Would the competitors please report to the qualification room, inside of the arena?" The message was repeated, then the intercom sounded. Bulma looked at Vegeta. "I guess this is my battle now." Vegeta nodded. "I'd go with you if I could...unless you'd like me to battle with you...," he raised his eyebrow, amused. "No, I think that you should simply spectate, this year." Vegeta smiled for a moment, then leaned in and kissed Bulma softly on the cheek, and whispered into her ear, "Crush them." As he pulled back, Bulma smiled and said, "You know I will."
"I'll be in the front."
"How will you manage that?"
"Ah, I'll just threaten someone's life. See you when you enter the ring." Vegeta and Bulma turned to walk in different directions. Vegeta took about five steps, then turned back around to watch as Bulma entered the beginning. "Good luck, love", he thought, projecting it to her. At the doorway, Bulma turned around and blew a kiss at him, then disappeared through the door. Vegeta turned again, and glanced backward, then did a double take. "Was that...did I just see...?" Vegeta thought to himself, peering at the door...then dismissed the thought. "Couldn't have been...," and he left to find a seat.
Bulma pushed a set of double doors into a massive room where almost 200 hopeful competitors were gathered, prepared to begin fighting. There was a large stage in the middle of the room, and around it, spaced evenly, was 8 large pillars. Bulma watched silently as the announcer tried to quiet everyone from the stage.
"Attention, attention, everyone!" the blond announcer said, his voice magnified by the microphone in his hand. "Listen, we're ready to begin. You are all here today to try to prove to be the greatest Martial Arts Master in the land, and in the process, become rich!" This was met by a thunderous applause. When the applause died down, the announcer continued, "Now, to begin the individual fights, we have to have everyone qualify. You'll notice the 8 pillars around the stage. These are here to test your strength. Think of it like a carnival game. The objective is virtually the same. The two strongest people for each pillar will qualify to fight. So, if you'll all find a pillar to wait for...you'll find the mallets near the bases. There is an official by each pillar to record scores. So, let's commence!" The people began to gather around the eight poles. Bulma looked at each pole, unsure of which to pick. "Its not like it matters," she thought, then stepped in line of the pillar closest to her; pillar 3. She was at the end of the line. "Good thing," she thought, "I wouldn't want to break the pillar for everyone else." Bulma watched as huge men took their turns. "There's a 79...that's pretty good...and there's an 83. Hmm..." Bulma studied the men as they took their turns. Finally, it was Bulma's turn. The official said to her, "Uh, excuse me, miss, do you realize where you are?" Bulma raised an eyebrow, and answered, "Yes, I'm going to qualify for the tournament."
Her reply was met by an uproar of laughter from the men around her. "She's going to qualify? Yeah right!", and "She'll die when she breaks a nail!"-- comments like that rose from the 20 or so men surrounding her. The official, who looked bemused, said, "If you say so, miss. There's the mallet." He pointed toward a huge hammer. It was more than half of her size, and looked to weigh as much as twice the official. Bulma couldn't help the smirk that crossed her face. "Okay," she said innocently, "let me try." She reached over and grabbed the hammer with her left hand and held it above her head, easily. She watched as the eyes watching her widened to the size of saucers. "Now, let's see if I can do this..." she said, and she swung the mallet causally at the target. They waited a second for the electronic result...562! She turned and watched as each jaw around her dropped to the floor. She looked at the official and said, "Now, did I do that? Remember, my number is 173." She smiled flirtatiously, and walked back to where she was. "DAMN, that felt good!" she thought to herself, and could almost feel Vegeta smile at her second victory. She crossed her arms and waited for the announcer.
In minutes, the announcer spoke again, trying to calm everyone down. "Okay, guys, okay...here are the qualifying numbers: number 12, number 24, number 34, number 49, number 51, number 69, number 81, number 86, number 111, number 125, number 136, number 143, number 158, number 173...
"Yes!" Bulma thought, as she heard her number being called. In her latest victory, she didn't quite hear the other numbers being called out. It was no matter to her. "Kami, this is going to be easier than I thought," she said to herself, and found herself excited for her first match-up.
So, what do you think? I can't wait to get Bulma in the ring, kicking some holy butt!...or will she? We shall see, shan't we? Alluring, ain't it? Please, if you feel so inclined, drop me a review. I got so many for my last chapter, more than I expected, and it was so wonderful! Thank you to all the faithful readers and reviewers of my story...I appreciate it more than you guys will ever know. :-)
Wanna join my mailing list? Either:
A. Tell me in a review.
B. Leave your e-mail address in a review.
C. E-mail me privately at songbird333@adelphia.net.
Hiya, guys! Here's the beginning of the tournament! This took a while to think out, so I hope everyone enjoys it!
Chapter 21
Bulma sat on the balcony outside of her room and watched the sun rise serenely over the horizon. "It never truly occurred to me," she thought, "how special it is to sit and watch the sun. How extremely important. How humbling." She watched as it crept up the side of the mountain. When it reached the peak of the rock, it seemed to engulf the geographical structure in a fury of orange fiery light, enflaming everything in reach with its awesome luminance. "What an extreme power...," she thought to herself, an appropriate thought for the beginning of the day. For now, she blocked out thought of the tournament that was to begin today. She refused to be nervous. Excited. Anxious. Afraid. She refused to think how today would forever effect the rest of her life, because all thoughts were lost in the presence of the dawn. She stood slowly, steadily on her own two feet, closed her eyes, and stretched her arms high into the air. She brought them down and gradually inhaled until they reached her sides. She held her breath for a moment, as if cautious of what the next breath would bring, unsure of where it would lead her...but then exhaled and opened her eyes completely. "The day is here," she thought.
"And you shall seize it with all of your might."
The voice seemed to travel sharply through the crisp morning air. Bulma turned quickly, her blue hair rustled in the early winds. Vegeta was leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed. "How long were you there?" Bulma asked. "Ah, not to long", said Vegeta, adding, "I know what is going through your mind."
"Of course you do. You can read my thoughts."
Vegeta chuckled. "I don't mean literally, even though I was listening in, so to speak. I just know how you feel."
Bulma gave a small smile. "I believe you have a general idea, but you can't completely know how good it's gonna feel once I show everyone what I am. Do you know how many tournaments I've been to?"
"I'll assume you've been to many, with Kakarott, and his crew."
Bulma laughed loudly. "Many? Ha! 'Many doesn't even begin to summarize it...I've always gone, but just to watch. Never strong enough to participate. Vegeta, I'm tired of cheering for everyone. Now, they're going to have to cheer for me...whether they like it or not."
It was Vegeta's turn to laugh. "Oh, they'll like it. If they don't, I'll kill them."
Bulma shook her head. "Somehow, I don't think that would make a very good impression on the crowd, Vegeta."
Vegeta snorted. "What do I care of the crowd?"
Bulma raised her eyebrow at the pregnancy of his statement, but simply turned her head to the ever rising sun. She took another deep breath. "Vegeta,...it's time." Vegeta nodded, and said, "Well, then, let's go."
Bulma and Vegeta rose into the air, then started off at high speeds to town. Bulma watched the scenery fly by as they progressed to the arena where the tournament was taking place. As they approached, you could see the huge masses of people who were gathered to witness the excitement of another martial arts tournament. When they got closer, the roar of excitement was undeniable. The sound reminded Bulma of how important this was to her. "My day of reckoning...", she thought. Vegeta called over to her, "And you'll be 'reckoning' someone else!" Bulma rolled her eyes as Vegeta laughed uncharacteristically at his pun. "I know you're just trying to make me feel better", Bulma thought. She looked at Vegeta, her eyes shining. "It's good to simply have you here with me..." Vegeta looked back, his black eyes poignant with evocative emotion, a feeling she felt deep in her soul, and she found that she could not look away. They both stopped, mid-air, and Vegeta came to her, as if some magnetic force compelled him. She held out her arms, and, hovering above the grassy lands, they embraced in a manifesting kiss of devotion. Through Vegeta's lips, he was communicating the earth-shaking contents of his soul. There was nothing forged or false, and this was proved, because after the kiss, Vegeta pulled back to look deeply into Bulma's eyes. In a mesh of blue and black emotion, he said, "Kami, why leave it unspoken? You've known it, and I've known it longer. You are a beautiful angel to me, and I love you."
Bulma's eyes misted over, and she bit her lip. No amount of training, nothing could have prepared her for the undulated emotion that she felt; she was submerged in her love for Vegeta, and that alone was enough for her. Bulma grabbed his face fiercely and said, "Know this: If I live ten million years, fight ten million men,...if I die ten billion times, Kami, it will all have been worth it, just to be with you." With that said, Bulma lowered her lips to his and kissed him softly, deeply, sealing their declarations.
When the kiss ended, Vegeta closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them. "Die ten billion times? You'll hardly die once, with me here to protect you."
"You to protect me? I can protect myself!"
They laughed together. "If we don't get going, though", Vegeta said, "you'll never get the chance to die once! Let's hurry up!"
Hand in hand, they both flew to the arena.
They landed a few minutes later on the outskirts of the arena parking lot. The people were crowding the open spaces like too many ants in an ant farm. Vegeta and Bulma made their way to the registration desk. A small balding man was sitting there with a laptop computer. "Is this where I check in?" Bulma asked. The balding man let his eyes rake the length of her body, then with a leering smile, he said, "Sure, honey. What can I do for you?" Bulma kept her features and her body in control, but inside, she scoffed, thinking, "Okay, tubby, as if!" In response, Vegeta, who stood behind her, snickered quietly. "My name is Bulma Briefs, and I am checking in." The man replied, "Bulma Briefs, eh? Let's see..." As he perused the list of names on the screen, he added, "I don't see how a gorgeous woman like yourself would like to fight with all of the strong men here...so let me tell you this: If any of these guys hurt you, even a bit, you just come and tell me, and I'll make it all better..." he trailed off, and gave her a sleazy grin. Vegeta snickered again, and Bulma looked over her shoulder and winked. "I think I might be okay, but thank you very much for your offer...," and she held out her hand to shake his hand. The grease ball man jumped at the chance to touch her, and found that this was too his disadvantage. As soon has he put his hand into Bulma's innocent grasp, her hand crushed his greasy paw in half with little effort. The man yelped and pulled his hand back as if he'd been bitten, and he cradled it with the other hand. "I think I'll be okay today," Bulma reiterated, "so if you could just tell me..." "Your number is 173, and the qualification process begins in fifteen minutes!" he yelped, cowering a bit. Bulma winked at him and said, "Thank you." With that, both she and Vegeta turned and left.
"You vile witch, that was cruel!" Vegeta said, laughing.
"Cruel? Like you laughing behind my back wasn't mean, right? I'm here to show people who's boss, and that's what I intend to do."
Vegeta smirked, and said, "Yeah, but I didn't think you were gonna convince everyone personally."
Bulma shoved him. "Come on, he had it coming to him, anyway." She smiled. There was one victory. Every victory mattered, no matter how menial.
A loud voice came over the intercom. "Would the competitors please report to the qualification room, inside of the arena?" The message was repeated, then the intercom sounded. Bulma looked at Vegeta. "I guess this is my battle now." Vegeta nodded. "I'd go with you if I could...unless you'd like me to battle with you...," he raised his eyebrow, amused. "No, I think that you should simply spectate, this year." Vegeta smiled for a moment, then leaned in and kissed Bulma softly on the cheek, and whispered into her ear, "Crush them." As he pulled back, Bulma smiled and said, "You know I will."
"I'll be in the front."
"How will you manage that?"
"Ah, I'll just threaten someone's life. See you when you enter the ring." Vegeta and Bulma turned to walk in different directions. Vegeta took about five steps, then turned back around to watch as Bulma entered the beginning. "Good luck, love", he thought, projecting it to her. At the doorway, Bulma turned around and blew a kiss at him, then disappeared through the door. Vegeta turned again, and glanced backward, then did a double take. "Was that...did I just see...?" Vegeta thought to himself, peering at the door...then dismissed the thought. "Couldn't have been...," and he left to find a seat.
Bulma pushed a set of double doors into a massive room where almost 200 hopeful competitors were gathered, prepared to begin fighting. There was a large stage in the middle of the room, and around it, spaced evenly, was 8 large pillars. Bulma watched silently as the announcer tried to quiet everyone from the stage.
"Attention, attention, everyone!" the blond announcer said, his voice magnified by the microphone in his hand. "Listen, we're ready to begin. You are all here today to try to prove to be the greatest Martial Arts Master in the land, and in the process, become rich!" This was met by a thunderous applause. When the applause died down, the announcer continued, "Now, to begin the individual fights, we have to have everyone qualify. You'll notice the 8 pillars around the stage. These are here to test your strength. Think of it like a carnival game. The objective is virtually the same. The two strongest people for each pillar will qualify to fight. So, if you'll all find a pillar to wait for...you'll find the mallets near the bases. There is an official by each pillar to record scores. So, let's commence!" The people began to gather around the eight poles. Bulma looked at each pole, unsure of which to pick. "Its not like it matters," she thought, then stepped in line of the pillar closest to her; pillar 3. She was at the end of the line. "Good thing," she thought, "I wouldn't want to break the pillar for everyone else." Bulma watched as huge men took their turns. "There's a 79...that's pretty good...and there's an 83. Hmm..." Bulma studied the men as they took their turns. Finally, it was Bulma's turn. The official said to her, "Uh, excuse me, miss, do you realize where you are?" Bulma raised an eyebrow, and answered, "Yes, I'm going to qualify for the tournament."
Her reply was met by an uproar of laughter from the men around her. "She's going to qualify? Yeah right!", and "She'll die when she breaks a nail!"-- comments like that rose from the 20 or so men surrounding her. The official, who looked bemused, said, "If you say so, miss. There's the mallet." He pointed toward a huge hammer. It was more than half of her size, and looked to weigh as much as twice the official. Bulma couldn't help the smirk that crossed her face. "Okay," she said innocently, "let me try." She reached over and grabbed the hammer with her left hand and held it above her head, easily. She watched as the eyes watching her widened to the size of saucers. "Now, let's see if I can do this..." she said, and she swung the mallet causally at the target. They waited a second for the electronic result...562! She turned and watched as each jaw around her dropped to the floor. She looked at the official and said, "Now, did I do that? Remember, my number is 173." She smiled flirtatiously, and walked back to where she was. "DAMN, that felt good!" she thought to herself, and could almost feel Vegeta smile at her second victory. She crossed her arms and waited for the announcer.
In minutes, the announcer spoke again, trying to calm everyone down. "Okay, guys, okay...here are the qualifying numbers: number 12, number 24, number 34, number 49, number 51, number 69, number 81, number 86, number 111, number 125, number 136, number 143, number 158, number 173...
"Yes!" Bulma thought, as she heard her number being called. In her latest victory, she didn't quite hear the other numbers being called out. It was no matter to her. "Kami, this is going to be easier than I thought," she said to herself, and found herself excited for her first match-up.
So, what do you think? I can't wait to get Bulma in the ring, kicking some holy butt!...or will she? We shall see, shan't we? Alluring, ain't it? Please, if you feel so inclined, drop me a review. I got so many for my last chapter, more than I expected, and it was so wonderful! Thank you to all the faithful readers and reviewers of my story...I appreciate it more than you guys will ever know. :-)
Wanna join my mailing list? Either:
A. Tell me in a review.
B. Leave your e-mail address in a review.
C. E-mail me privately at songbird333@adelphia.net.