Chapter 7 – Defeat

Focusing on forming a new vision, Mirai Trunks suddenly gasps in surprise. The world becomes a blur when he is hit with… some awesome power he cannot describe. He feels his control slipping away and starts to fall into nothingness.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Mirai Trunks' body falls back and hits the ground, unconscious.

Vegeta slowly opens his eyes, aching all over. But a mind-blowing feeling of relief washes over him, as he feels Goku's hand on his shoulder.

'I wondered where all that power came from,' Vegeta thinks tiredly.

'You know I need you to make that happen, Vegeta,' Goku thinks modestly. 'You're the mastermind. Without your mind, I'd never be able to channel my energy the right way.'

A sigh echoes through Goku's head. 'At last Mirai Trunks is defeated. Kami, for a few moments in this battle I actually thought he was going to win.'

'He became ridiculously strong because of his desire to bond with you…' Goku thinks. 'You know, maybe that's how I became so strong as well.'

Vegeta chuckles, almost asleep. 'Seems I have a thing for pushing warriors over the edge.'

Goku kisses Vegeta's forehead gently. 'Sleep now, koi. Get some rest. I'll take care of Mirai Trunks in the mean time.'

Mirai Bulma is waiting for Goku to return at Capsule Corp's hospital wing. It's weird to be in the other dimension, where the androids don't play a major role in everyday life. It's also very weird to see herself in this dimension… but she has to admit that she's most nervous about seeing Vegeta again.

Suddenly, Goku appears in the room, holding an unconscious Vegeta in his arms. Mirai Bulma swallows hard. 'My Kami… Did Trunks do that?'

Tears form in her eyes, as Goku places the limp body of his mate on a bed.

"I've got senzu ready," says Bulma. "We'll have him up and running in no time."

Then she looks at Mirai Bulma. "Are you okay?"

Mirai Bulma nods slowly. "I guess so… It's so bizarre to see him again…"

"I understand," Bulma says, handing the senzu bean to Goku, who feeds it to Vegeta.

"I need to go and get Mirai Trunks," Goku says and puts two fingers to his forehead once more. "See you in a bit."

Vegeta opens his eyes and is surprised to see two Bulmas instead of one. He shakes his head, then realizes what's going on.

"Mirai Bulma…" he says, sitting up.

The sound of his voice alone is enough to knock her off her feet. She collapses to the floor. Bulma picks her future counterpart up and walks her to Vegeta's bed.

"Go ahead, he won't bite," Bulma chuckles.

Vegeta reaches out his hand and pulls her up to him. Mirai Bulma embraces him, sobbing into his bare chest.

'I've missed you so much…'

Vegeta is surprised that she can establish a telepathic connection with him, but then shrugs it off. It's clear that she loved his future counterpart very much.

'I know. I'm sure that wherever your Vegeta is now, he misses you too.'

He strokes her hair and sooths her with his ki. She soon falls asleep.

"Wow," Bulma whispers. "You've sure changed a lot, Vegeta."

"That's just Kakarot rubbing off on me," he growls, a little embarrassed by his own compassion.

Goku reappears, holding Mirai Trunks in his arms.

"It's a good thing you put her to sleep," Goku says, nodding to Mirai Bulma. "She'd probably faint if she saw her son like this." He puts Mirai Trunks on another bed.

"She almost fainted seeing me like this," Vegeta chuckles softly. "Now, what are your plans with the Future brat?"

Goku shrugs. "There aren't many things we can do. All I could think of, was to take Mirai Trunks to Otherworld and make him submissive. But I'm not sure if that's going to help. You know what effect it had on me…"

"He's already experienced the fever. You hadn't. It could work…" Vegeta looks at Mirai Trunks lying on the bed. Cold little claws tug at his heart as he sees him so utterly defeated. Change him into a submissive Saiyan without his approval? Wouldn't that be… degrading?

"You're not sure, are you, Vegeta?" Goku immediately senses his mate's hesitation.

"It seems rather… harsh. This whole situation isn't his fault." Vegeta looks down to his hands, clenching them into fists subconsciously. "It just happened."

"Bulma, could you leave us?" Goku suddenly asks. She nods and exits without asking questions.

Goku stares at his mate intently. Vegeta doesn't return his stare and avoids looking into Goku's eyes.

"So you want to talk about the other solution," Goku states calmly.

Vegeta looks up, surprised at Goku's calm reaction. "I… I do."

A smile forms on Goku's face as he sits down on Vegeta's bed, taking his hand and squeezing it gently.

"What do you think I am, Vegeta, blind? I know you care for him. You had the whole jealous-at-his-super Saiyan-power thing going on when he first appeared in this dimension. From you I've learned how faint the boundary between hate and love can be."

Vegeta finally looks Goku in the eye. "So you'd… approve?"

Goku laughs out loud. "My Kami Vegeta, you're the dominant Saiyan! It's your decision!"

Vegeta squeezes his mate's hand not so gently.

"Kami damn it, Kakarot, I'm serious about this. I know I'm the dominant Saiyan, but I know that you used to be one as well. That's why I hesitate: because I don't want to hurt you. I need your full approval."

Goku stops laughing and looks at his mate very seriously. "You have my approval, Vegeta. I understand that you don't want Mirai Trunks to become submissive; he's a dominant Saiyan and I can imagine he'd never want to be any other kind. The way he fought you… All he wants is a devil's bond. No other solution would satisfy him."

"I think any other solution would destroy him," Vegeta says seriously.

"That would be a waste, wouldn't it?" Goku winks at his mate. Vegeta blushes intensely.

"Can't I keep any of my thoughts private?" His voice sounds irritated, but then he smiles. "Arigato, Kakarotto."

"You're welcome, koi."

Mirai Trunks awakes with a start. He can't see a thing; everything is pitch black. With his other senses he tries to discover where he is. To his own surprise, he senses nothing. It seems like he's powerless to do anything at all; the walls surrounding him are cold and made of some kind of metal. He can't find a door. Because the room is so small, he doesn't dare to use a ki blast. He might kill himself while trying to get out that way.

'Vegeta,' he thinks. 'He must be the one who put me here, wherever 'here' is. What the hell is he up to?'