. A Story with No Name .
The Bald Warrior
AN – Well, a big thanks for the reviews. A note about the characters personalities. I'm trying to save the hard-core explainingness of everyone's thoughts and stuff until later chapters to help make it seem a bit more meaningful. Like, for the beginning, I've been kinda skimming past everyone's real thoughts on what's happening, hitting more on the people that won't be there in the future chaps (like Yamcha and Tien. Never really liked them, but people skim over them so much so that they just capture my imagination sometimes) But that won't last long, I promise. Anyway, this chapter is a long one. Yeah! Enough rambling. Onto the story
The small group jolted awake to a high-pitched note screaming through the room. Gohan jumped out of bed and floundered around the room, trying to stand but unable to because his sheets kept entangling themselves with his legs. After hitting the floor, the half-Saiyan finally sat up and looked around the room painfully.
"What the hell is that?"
Bulma covered her ears and closed her eyes tiredly.
"I don't know, but it better stop."
The buzzing soon ceased and the group relaxed. They looked around the room idly, trying to regain their senses. The room only had three beds, so Bulma and Chi-chi had agreed to share one on the condition that they rotated who got to have a bed. Right now, however, that wasn't on their minds. Bulma climbed out of bed and walked to the closet, hoping to find something for her to wear that day. She was disappointed to find only four outfits, of which resembled those Vegeta often wore to battle. She grabbed one of the smaller ones and looked out it distastefully.
"Would you look at this! They expect me to wear this?"
She sighed exasperatedly and reached in to grab the skin-tight fabric that went with the chest plate she had picked. Gohan, having finally gotten his legs untangled from the sheets, walked over to Bulma and peered into the closet.
"Well, at least they don't have those weird shoulder things."
Bulma rolled her eyes and turned towards the other two girls. She looked around the room as though searching for something and narrowed her eyes when her search ended with no result.
"Where the hell am I supposed to change? I'm not going into that public bathroom just to change clothes."
Gohan smiled to himself and quickly grabbed his suit from the closet. He pulled the tight material over his boxers and slipped on the torso piece. He quickly walked towards the door, placed his hand on the doorknob, and looked back to the three pairs of watching eyes.
"Hey, you guys, I'm going to go see what they've got cookin'. I'll meet you there."
With that, he slipped out of the room and left the three women to themselves. The girls changed into the uncomfortably tight (for them, at least) uniforms and looked each other over.
"Huh…you don't look half-bad Chi. You know, you really oughta wear something besides those old dresses."
Chichi waved her hands towards Bulma, shaking her head.
"Sorry, but I prefer keeping my modesty."
18 shook her head at the two and looked to the door.
"I bet they aren't ready for him. He'll probably eat everything on the ship."
Bulma laughed and nodded, walking briskly towards the door.
"Probably. Come on, girls. Maybe they have some coffee. I feel like I didn't sleep a wink…"
With that, the trio walked into the hallway and turned to the right. They walked down the long hall, believing they were headed in the right direction, and came to an intersection that forced them to turn left or right. 18 narrowed her eyes as she looked each way, but before she could say anything, Bulma started walking to the left.
"Come on."
They followed her, turning and walking down the never-ending halls of dank metal. After walking a while, Chi-chi glared at the back of Bulma's head.
"Hey, wait up a minute."
Bulma stopped and turned to look at her.
"What is it, Chi?"
"Do you have any idea where you're going? We haven't seen a single person, and you don't know what this smelly old ship is like."
Bulma rolled her eyes.
"Listen, I know exactly where I'm going. Ok? Who's the genius here?"
Chi-chi's eyes sparked with an all-too-familiar flame.
"Oh, so suddenly, just because your dad is some psycho-science nerd, you know everything there is to know? Ha, don't make me laugh!"
That insult to her family caused Bulma's eyes to narrow harshly, a flame flickering within her own eyes as well.
"How dare you! My father is not a nerd! You're just jealous that I have money and you don't!"
As Bulma finished her snappy comeback, Chi-chi's composure fell as she watched something that loomed behind Bulma. The blue-haired woman paused, blinking curiously at Chi-chi's sudden distraction. She slowly turned around to see what caught her friend's eye, and instantly regretted it. A large shadow loomed behind her, and her mouth hung open slightly as she stared at it with wide eyes. She took a step back from the massive figure that towered at least two and a half feet above her head. He was like some freak superman, with pounds of muscles and bulk clinging beautifully to his frame. She looked up into the darkest eyes, and a queer smile lit his face. His head gleamed as he shifted under the light and bent down to look at her better. His smile changed once more as though he were playing with the thin, black mustache that lined his upper lip and dipped down to the edge of his jaw. His grin increased and he took a step closer towards her, suddenly making himself seem several feet taller and all the mightier. Bulma couldn't tell if he was trying to be nice and failing horribly, or if he was simply pretending to be kind with some other idea in mind.
"Oh? Par o tar, o me?"
She stared at him, too scared to regain her normally sassy attitude, and for good reason. He blinked and raised an eyebrow, suddenly seeming…almost cutely worried (though the ominous bulk he carried could only fuel the women's fear).
"Muak?"
Bulma blinked, getting a little more face at his sudden change of heart.
"…Excuse me?"
His face relaxed and he chuckled twice.
"Woo, man, I was worried yall didn't know it."
She blinked again, folding her arms defensively across her chest.
"What on Earth are you talking about?"
He blinked again in momentary confusion, but he quickly shrugged whatever bothered him away.
"Muak, you can speak it."
Bulma blinked again, raising an eyebrow.
"What's muak?"
His eyes were dull with an obvious bewilderment.
"You…don't know what it is?"
Bulma rolled her eyes, only increasing the bulky man's confusion (if such was even possible).
"Of course not. Now, just tell me what it means already, geesh."
He withdrew and stared at her in pure shock. He couldn't believe what he was hearing, and out of a woman's mouth. That thought having entered his mind, his eyes of dull black narrowed ominously, and his godly, all-powerful aura increased immensely. The girls took another step back, wary of this new threat. He growled, deep and powerful, glaring passionately at Bulma as though she were the Devil himself.
"How…dare you…you wench!"
His voice was raspy and low, reaching a powerful depth that caused their eyes to widen. His breath was quickening and his nostrils flared as his anger began skyrocketing unnaturally right before their eyes. A few veins upon his smooth head were even starting to show, yet suddenly, he paused, as though he remembered something. Oh, and did he remember it. A sudden voice had called out into his mind, one that he hadn't heard in what felt like an eternity. The harsh, demanding voice of a certain prince yelling out his name to reprimand him for misbehaving. His eyes softened drastically at the unconscious memory of his old prince. His eyes fell to the floor as he took a moment to think, and soon he realized that a familiar scent floated in the air. He looked Bulma straight in the eye and leaned his head forward, bringing his massive skull within two inches of her face. Bulma didn't know what to do, so she just stood frozen in fear as the thick face neared uncomfortably close to hers. His nose suddenly twitched, breathing quick puffs of air, smelling her like a dog might. Her eyes widened and she shot a characteristic glare towards him. She was about to slap him across the face, but luckily for her, he pulled away with a look of pleasant joy.
"Oh! Well, lookie here!"
He laughed, overjoyed suddenly. He grinned from ear to ear and nodded happily. He laughed heartily and pat Bulma's shoulder with his heavy hand.
"Holy shit, lookie here! Damn, well, sorry about that. I have a bit of a temper, I didn't realize you were His mate. So, what's your name, Miss?"
Bulma stared at him as though he was the stupidest person alive.
"…uh…Bulma."
He nodded.
"Aw, I shoulda known that one. Oh well, what about your friends there?"
He looked at 18 and Chi-chi curiously and Bulma turned her head to see them. Her previously cautious aura had faded to a more pleasantly calm look, and she smiled and turned to completely face the two dumbstruck women.
"That's 18."
18 just stared at the man as he smiled respectively and nodded his head politely.
"And that's Chi-chi."
Chi-chi weakly raised a hand and waved, and the burly man offered her the same polite greeting he had given 18.
"It's nice to meet you all. Oh, and uh…Chi-chi, was it?"
She nodded. His eyes brightened slightly, glad that he had remembered her name correctly. He took a step towards her.
"I just thought I oughta let you know. Don't wave your hand around like that here."
Chi-chi blinked and raised an eyebrow. She never liked people bossing her around.
"And why not?"
He grinned, humored by her reaction.
"'Cause it's considered…I donno, rude, offending, intimidating, challenging, bad, I guess."
The group stared at him, and Chi-chi crossed her arms over her chest.
"Oh, really?"
He laughed at this and nodded, seeming friendlier and more understanding.
"Yeah. See, in space, some people can shoot those ki things, right?"
He lifted a hand and collected a small ball of light within his palm.
"And how do you shoot something with it?"
He held his hand towards a wall and made a loud, yet playful 'boom'. The light dissipated from his hand.
"You point your palm at it. So, basically, unless it a friend of yours or something, it kinda means you wanna fight whoever you're pointin' at, or kill um, or something. Just, don't do it. Unless, a 'course, you wanna start something."
Bulma blinked, a question burning in her eyes.
"Huh…what about pointing a finger at someone?"
He shrugged.
"It really depends. A couple races think it's kinda rude to point, but that's about it. Most people don't care."
The three girls fell quiet, thinking a little over their new information, when the man's rough voice boomed down the hallways. He scratched the back of his thick neck and looked down the hall.
"So, where you girls headed?"
Chi-chi perked up at this, suddenly seeing him as possibly being of use to them.
"Actually, we're trying to find the cafeteria."
He smiled and nodded.
"Ah, so you girls just got here last night then, eh? All righty, here. I was just headin' there myself."
Chi-chi smiled to herself and nodded politely.
"Thank you very much, Sir!"
He laughed and shook his head.
"Whatever, come on."
He walked past Chi-chi and 18 and started walking down the hallway. Bulma quickly ran after him, and the other two eventually followed as well. Bulma took up walking next to him and looked up to his head. He looked down to her and smiled as he threw his head back to 18 and Chi-chi.
"So, what planet yall from?"
Bulma smiled cheerfully, taking a bit of a liking to his attitude.
"Earth, what about you?"
His eyes widened a bit and he stared at her for a moment.
"…Earth? You guys are all from…Earth?"
Bulma could hear the slightest touch of resentment and, possibly, fear echoing in the depths of his massive chest. Her eyes narrowed a touch in thought, carefully watching any signs that would give her a reason as to why.
"Yeah, so?"
He blinked away any dark thoughts that were floating within his head, and he shrugged his great shoulders.
"Nothing, just went there once, is all."
Bulma gasped quietly in shock.
"You've been there? Really? When?"
She sounded surprised, but she definitely wasn't anywhere near being angry. She was curious as to how often aliens had visited Earth without anyone knowing. He shrugged, protecting something that he'd rather not bring under discussion.
"Just a while back."
He allowed an awkward silence to fall after his words, but he quickly broke the awkward pause.
"So, you're Prince Vegeta's mate?"
He laughed.
"How'd you do it? Beat him over the head with a cinder block 'till he snapped?"
Bulma laughed for a moment, almost forgetting the fact that he was some stranger that she had never talked to before. She then realized that he had spoken of Vegeta, and instantly snapped her attention directly to the burly man beside her.
"Wait, you know Vegeta?"
He laughed heartily and shook his head.
"Shit yeah, I do. Who doesn't?"
Bulma watched him suspiciously, her curiosity growing fiercer then a wild fire on a dry plain.
"How do you know him?"
He grinned and closed his eyes for a moment.
"Well, let's just say that me and him go way back."
Bulma's eyes flickered, and a large smile graced her pale features.
"So, you two were friends?"
He shrugged.
"Sure. Call it what you want."
She paused.
"What would you call it?"
He laughed, reminiscing over various thoughts, and spoke with a sarcastic tone.
"Work. That's that best way to describe it. Hard-core, ass-breaking, sweatin'-like-a-pig work."
She gave him a hard look that wasn't vicious enough to be considered a glare. He saw it and raised a playful eyebrow.
"What? It was. That brat was nothing but trouble half the time, and a babbling mess the other. You'd think that someone like you would know that better then anyone, ma'am."
He stared at her, almost innocently, and watched her as she stared back with a disbelieving look.
"Well, maybe you're thinking about the wrong Vegeta."
He hooted and laughed, looking back forward and shaking his head side to side.
"My god, she's just as insane as him! Wooh, maybe now this joint'll lighten up a bit."
He chuckled, but gasped when he felt her slap his arm. He snapped his head down with a slightly frightened look in his eyes.
"Ma'am?"
"What the hell are you talking about?
He chuckled again, trying to contain his amusement to little avail.
"I'm just saying that there ain't no other Vegeta out there, that's alive anyway. What, is he some sorta tight-ass now?"
He chuckled at the thought and watched her, waiting for a response. She glared at him and rolled her eyes.
"He is not a tight-ass. He just…"
She paused, trying to come up with a good excuse on Vegeta's behalf. Of course, her mind drew a blank, and as she turned her eyes up to the face of the large, bulky man. He caught her eyes, and a devilish grin slowly grew upon his face.
"Ok, maybe he is…but–"
He laughed heartily at that and clapped his hands a couple times.
"I knew it! I just knew it! He's a tight-ass now, I knew it!"
He couldn't stop laughing, even while Bulma glared holes into the side of his skull, and as his uproarious laughter began to cease, she took the liberty to speak her defense.
"Well, he may be a bit stiff, but that doesn't mean anything. He's just shy."
She regretted her words the instant another explosion of boisterous laughter erupted from the depths of his mountain-like chest. He finally caught his breath and shook his head, stopping and turning completely to Bulma with joy sparkling his eyes.
"Geros Mare! Damn, he musta changed a helluva lot since I last seen him. Shit…Vegeta shy…"
He chuckled softly and mumbled the last few words, shaking his head. He perked up, and said a soft 'Right', and started walking again.
"Almost there."
Chi-chi noticed that they passed the door to their room, but kept following after their bulky escort. He soon stopped by an old door that seemed no different then the rest. It did, however, have red markings above the door. He pushed open the door and held it open as the three women walked inside.
"Here we are ladies. The cafeteria."
As the girls walked through the door, they were met with an experience they hadn't prepared for. Loud voices boomed throughout the old room, mixing together to form a painfully constant and never-ending roar. Lines of tables were covered in disorganized plates of food, and people of all descriptions sat about them, talking and eating their meal. Chi-chi lifted a hand to her mouth, surprised but not entirely shocked at the sight. 18's nose wrinkled in disgust at some of the scenarios she could see throughout the congregation (which mainly consisted of fighting and a few voracious eating habits). There were about a hundred people in all, but it would have been difficult to guess such a number, mainly due to the constant moving and the tightness of the room. The girls' escort pat Chi-chi's back reassuringly, and she turned her head back to view him curiously.
"Welcome to space, Miss."
His eyes caught something in the mass of people and food, and he smiled.
"Come on, you guys can sit with me."
He started walking ahead of them and forced his way through the rows of tables and masses of people. The girls followed him, still too shocked to attempt any independence, and noticed a small table with two other people waiting for him to come. One stood and held out his hand, palm down, and laughed a bit in greeting. The bulky man quickly approached him and beat the younger man's back in a semi-friendly manner. The two mumbled in a different language for a few moments before their new friend turned to face them. The girls stood together, still uncertain as to what was happening, and waited for their escort to say something. He laughed and pushed Bulma in between him and the stranger, placing his hands on her shoulders to keep her in place.
"'Ey, check this little gal out. Her name's Bulma. I found her wandering around the left quadrant. Poor thing just came in last night."
He looked back and beckoned for 18 and Chi-chi to come closer. After they followed his request, he lightly pat 18 on the shoulder.
"This one's name is 18, and the other gal is called Chi-chi. All three came straight from that Earth place I told you about."
His friend nodded, giving a peculiar look to the three girls.
"Huh, all of um, eh? Why they goin' to the Emper?"
The bulky man shrugged and chuckled.
"Not real sure for the other two, but this little gal's more important then she looks. You'd be surprised."
He looked down at Bulma as he spoke the last part of his speech, smiling warmly again before looking back up to the stranger. The two chuckled while the thinner man just shook his head, rolling his eyes sarcastically to show his disbelief. Chi-chi suddenly stepped towards the bald warrior, and when she finally caught his attention, she glared fiercely.
"So, who is this guy?"
He laughed and nodded apologetically.
"Sorry, Miss. This is my partner-in-training, Toronhar. He's a little newbie."
He chuckled as he hit his partner's backs, and Toronhar gasped mockingly. The two chuckled for a few moments, when the bald man suddenly remembered why he came. He turned to the girls and smiled.
"Here, sit down. I'll get you guys something to eat. Tor, Bawk, be nice to them till I get back."
With that, their new friend turned towards a hidden room in the back of the cafeteria and left the three women to themselves. Bulma confidently strode to a chair and sat down, waiting as Chi-chi and 18 followed her example. Toronhar turned to face them and smiled. He had long, brown hair that had a will of its own, and he had rich blue eyes that were soft and shy in appearance. A thin, black haired woman sat next to him and leaned over the table to look at the new girls.
"Well, who do we have here?"
She had an exotic beauty about her youthful face, and her dark, wet eyes seemed to constantly play young, fiery games with any male that happened to catch her gaze. She tilted her head and looked over the three girls carefully. Bulma smiled and held out her hand.
"My name's Bulma. We just came from Earth."
The young woman looked at Bulma's friendly hand, looked to her face, and looked back to her hand. Bulma blinked.
"It's a handshake. It's how we say hello."
The girl grinned, giggling darkly, and she looked towards Toronhar.
"Would you get a loada Blue?"
She snickered and looked up to Bulma's face, catching her blue eyes and keeping them with her own near-black gaze. Bulma's eyes narrowed angrily, yet she stayed silent. The woman's grin only increased upon seeing Bulma's anger, and she said something in another language. Bulma blinked, watching her obliviously as a more offensively sassy gaze consumed her dark eyes. Toronhar and a table behind her started laughing and calling out various words or names, none of which the three women could understand. Bulma looked around to the different obscene faces contorted fiercely in cruel amusement to her ignorance. She tightly narrowed her eyes as the mass of confusion increased and the number of faces grew. Their taunting voices roared within her mind, buzzing and biting coldly as she spun around in a world of confusion and humiliation.
A loud, resonating boom suddenly rose above the uproar of voices and instantly called an end to the torrent of torturous noise. Her eyes snapped open to see that the bulky man that had shown them to the cafeteria earlier was standing at the end of the table. He seemed suddenly so much taller as his previously sweet eyes burned with an enraged power, and his stern face hid any joyful emotion. Several plates of food had been set before him, but the future meal seemed miniscule before the immensely powerful man whose anger was undeniable. The two tables had fallen silent in his wake, watching in a tense stillness as he slowly lifted his head and sent heated glares towards the offenders. His eyes slowly narrowed as his powerful voice easily reached the others.
"I can't believe this. Some new girl comes, scared outta her mind after being ripped away from her home, and you jackasses start treating her like shit. Every single one'a you know how she's feeling. With the weird people and food, and the different culture and all. But you idiots treat every new gal on the ship like she's some sorta whore. But you don't even take the chance to think for a second. Do you even know her name, or who she is?"
Only the buzzing sound of the cafeteria took hold, for no one at either table wished to speak against him. His eyes narrowed as his voice grew.
"I didn't think so. For all you bastards know, she could be the wife of the head chief of the police or the wealthiest woman in the universe. She could be Lord Frieza's new concubine, and for all you know she could even be royalty somewhere. None of you have a clue, yet you instantly suppose that she's just a commoner."
A man stood at the second table and coldly narrowed his unnaturally pale eyes.
"Why don't you just shut your mouth, you shit-faced monkey?"
A few people at his table shouted in agreement when the large, bald-headed man smashed his fist straight through the metal table, instantly demanding silence. He pointed an unfazed finger towards the boy that had stood in defiance.
"If I'm wrong, you tell me who she is."
The pale-eyed man scoffed.
"You're the one protectin' the back-road bitch. Why don't you tell us exactly who the hell she is?"
Those pale eyes sparkled in arrogance, for he believed he had just won the little battle. Shouts of agreement bounded across the table, and the bulky man glared darkly towards the haughty fool.
"You wanna know who she is? She is Lord Vegeta's mate, and has been since Frieza fell from power."
The people sitting at the two tables snapped their heads to Bulma. They stared at her with fear, disbelief, and awe flickering within their eyes, fascinated with their newfound knowledge. Their previously taunting voices were silenced as they stared at her, and the pale-eyed boy slowly sat down, easily accepting the humiliating defeat. The black-haired woman who had started the ruckus lifted a hand to her lips as fear drenched the entirety of her ebony eyes. The bulky man nodded as-a-matter-of-factly and grunted.
"See? You were just fucking with the wrong bitch. If you shit-heads play your cards right, she'll make a sweet little lie for you the next time she sees him. If not, I pity every single one of you heartless bastards."
With that, he pulled out a chair and sat down heavily. He rubbed his forehead and waved his hand. As though he had just ended a spell of silence between the two tables, the group instantly returned to its previously boisterous activity, albeit every voice held a timid undertone. The man looked at Bulma and smiled apologetically.
"Man, I'm so sorry about that. I forgot how much of a bitch she can be whenever a pretty new face shows up."
He threw his thumb towards the still-frozen figure, and Bulma glanced towards her. The fear that burned within the woman's gorgeous black eyes unnerved her, so she tried to brush the woman's fear aside (although she failed miserably). The black-haired woman suddenly laid her shaky hand upon Bulma's.
"Oh, god, I'm so sorry. I…I didn't…mean–"
"Shut your trap, Bawkira. She already knows that you're a bitch."
The bald man glared towards her, and she shot a weak glare in return. She rolled her eyes and pushed herself away from the table. Bawkira spun around and walked towards the door, disappearing through a doorway with nothing but a flick of her raven hair. Toronhar had been watching Bulma, fascinated still by what his partner had said.
"Wow, you mean, you're the girl everyone's been talking about back at base?"
She turned her eyes and studied him carefully. A smile lit Bulma's face, and she shrugged.
"I still have no idea what's going on."
He blinked and chuckled to himself.
"Well, ma'am, for starters, we've been expecting for the Prince's woman to be coming. We didn't think it'd be for another month or so, but news ain't too fast up here."
She nodded, beginning to see what he was talking about.
"Oh, I see. So, this was all planned? Our being brought here, I mean."
He nodded.
"Aye, it was. The Emper heard word from a bounty hunter that Prince Vegeta had taken up base at a planet over in the back roads of the Northern quadrant. He also said that he had totally revamped his style, changing his name, looks, attitude, everything. Somethin' about him settling down with a family, too, but no one believed the guy. But since Frieza's a paranoid freak, he sent a few men out to see if what the hunter said was true. That was about a month ago now, I think."
He turned his head to look at the massive warrior who nodded to prove the younger man's words. The bald warrior cracked his neck and grunted.
"I know I sure as hell didn't believe that loada crap. Vegeta doesn't hide, and he would never change himself like that just to keep away from a buncha weak police fags. And he sure as hell wouldn't settle down like that. He'd jump the gun and start takin' over, just like he was planning to after wiping Frieza's ass off the map. I still thought he was dead before this chicky came along. Now I don't know what to think."
He grinned and shook his head. His black eyes suddenly fell back upon Bulma, and he smiled.
"I can't believe he's alive. Man, I could have sworn he was dead, disappearing like that ain't something he's good at."
She smiled to humor him, since she didn't really have much to add to the conversation.
"Yep…"
He chuckled and shook his head.
"Man, I'm still tripped out. Vegeta, with a girlie. Can't believe it."
She raised an eyebrow, becoming slightly defensive (a natural instinct whenever someone seemed like they were dissing a friend of hers).
"What's so unbelievable about it?"
He looked up, a little shocked that she'd suddenly become so snappy, however he brushed it aside easily, used to such treatment from previous relationships. He lightly lifted his shoulders and let them drop lazily.
"I donno, he's a picky kinda guy, I guess. He's real careful when it comes to personal crap like that, and I just don't see him falling for another girl after that whole mess with Brae."
She perked up, her attention completely focused upon the muscular warrior to her side.
"Brae? Who's that?"
He closed his eyes softly, and scrunched the side of his face in a poor attempt to show indifference.
"She was his last girl, didn't blow over well. That's all I'll say on that. He ain't a guy to do things that might end up hurting him again and to think that he's with a simpleton like you..."
He paused and looked up to her, an almost parentally fond look flickering within his eyes.
"…I…"
He stopped himself, allowing him a couple moments of thought before he continued. Bulma had yet to see him take such caution towards his actions, and this suddenly careful air made her lust for the answer ignite.
"Ah, ain't much I wanna say about it."
Bulma leaned forward, looking up at him with sad, longing eyes of sweet blue, and she gave a miniscule pout to enhance the effect that had worked wonders upon every man she had ever known.
"Oh, please tell me. He never says a single word about his past or anything. I want to know just what he has been through."
He studied her and shook his head.
"Ma'am, you shouldn't worry about him. You've got your own future to worry about now. I mean, working under someone like Frieza is gonna be a helluva lot different then what you're used to. And I'd bet the people are gonna be a pain to cope with."
Her blue eyes fell and stared at the old table thoughtfully. A flicker of fear just barely graced the dark reaches of her mind, and the warrior straightened up and adopted a soft smile.
"I wouldn't worry too much, Miss."
Bulma picked up one of the glasses he had brought earlier, and took a sip of the cool water.
"I'm not."
He blinked as she continued.
"He'll just come and kick Frieza around like a rag doll, then take me home whenever he gets bored. I'm not the least bit worried about getting home."
She grinned and looked back to Chi-chi, who nodded in full agreement. They seemed so calm about everything, which confused both men at the table.
"I know that Goku will come here and save us. It's only a matter of time until he wakes up and sees that I'm gone."
She smiled fondly at the thought, and 18 nodded, proving that she too held no worry towards the future. The tall warrior rubbed his head and turned his eyes to Toronhar, who just shrugged and looked back to the girls.
"Well, you all seem like a great bunch, and I'd love to hang around a bit more and chat, but I gotta get moving to my post. It was nice meeting all of you, see you later Baldy."
He chuckled and dodged a punch that was thrown in his direction. He soon slipped out of the door to continue his monotonous day. The man still sitting at the table shook his head and picked up a dish of food. He handed it to Bulma (who sat nearest to him), and she passed it on to Chi-chi.
"What is this stuff?"
He handed her another bowl, and she handed it to Chi-chi as well (she had handed the other plate to 18).
"It ain't much of anything, but it fills ya enough to keep moving. And that's all you need out here."
He handed her the last bowl, and Bulma set it before herself. The gray glob of food definitely didn't seem like any food she had ever seen. It was more like poorly made, year-old oatmeal. She looked up to him and watched as he began snarfing down his portion, finishing an entire bowl in the few moments she watched him. He sighed and set the bowl down, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.
"I wish they'd give us more food. This crap ain't enough to feed a bug."
Chi-chi stared at the bowl of mush and pushed it towards him.
"Have mine then. I lost my appetite."
He cheered and lunged for the dish, instantly inhaling the gruel as though it were a sweet perfume. 18 and Bulma glanced at each other and each pushed away their bowls. He snatched each plate and devoured the contents just as quickly. Chi-chi stared at him, and after he finished the last of their food, she sighed and shook her head.
"My gosh, you eat almost as much as my boys."
He paused and got a huge smile. He leaned his elbows on the table and watched her amusedly.
"Aw, you got kids? How many?"
She smiled proudly, always loving it when someone gave her the opportunity to talk about her family.
"Well, I have two sons. One is almost twenty years old and the other is eight."
Her eyes sparkled as a fawning look played with his thick face.
"Aw, an eight year old brat. Adorable. What are their names?"
She beamed, closing her eyes happily and nodding as she spoke each name.
"Gohan and Goten. Goten's the younger of the two."
He grinned, having always enjoyed hearing about people's family-lives. However, a thoughtful look sparked in the back of his eyes, slowly growing as the flame of confusion spread. He looked down at the table, thinking for a moment. Chi-chi noticed this and leaned forward curiously, since she always became much more affectionate towards those that took an interest to family.
"What's wrong?"
His black eyes narrowed slightly.
"I donno. I felt like I've heard that name before."
She blinked.
"What?"
He waved a hand, trying to find something mentally and simply using his hand to assist in whatever thought process he was using.
"One of your kids. Say their names again."
She raised a harmless eyebrow.
"Gohan and Goten. I don't see how you would have heard about either of them, though."
He snapped up and pointed a finger at her.
"That first one! Gohan! I've heard it before. Like, it's important, I think."
Chi-chi suddenly remembered something as the burly man searched for an answer to his question.
"Oh my gosh! I forgot all about him! We were supposed to meet up with him!"
Bulma perked up, remembering this as well.
"You're right. I wonder where he is."
She turned in her chair and glanced around the room. 18 suddenly pointed towards a table back in the corner.
"There. He's with a group of rowdy punks."
The man looked up, shrugging aside his thoughts for another time. He sighed and shook his head, about to say something when Chi-chi stood up. She turned and forced her way through the tables, and smacked Gohan upside the head when she finally got to him. His laughter was cut short by the blow, and he turned around quickly. His angry eyes softened dramatically when he saw that the offender was his mother. He quickly stood up with surprise at her appearance.
"Mom!"
Chi-chi glared and pointed a finger at his forehead.
"Don't you 'Mom' me, Gohan! You were supposed to meet up with us."
He laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his head.
"I'm sorry! I ran into these guys and I kinda got distracted…"
She rolled her eyes and grabbed his arm.
"You're becoming more like your father everyday. Come on, you're going to come sit with us so we don't loose you again."
She turned and dragged him back to their table.
"We would have been completely lost had we not run into this kind-hearted man. I want you to meet him, you should try being like him instead."
She finally came to the table and stood next to her son.
"This is Gohan."
She hugged his arm as the bald warrior turned around to greet the new person. He nodded his great skull in greeting, and flashed a friendly smile.
"Nice to meet ya, Gohan."
Gohan was deathly silent. He stared at the thick face and found himself at a loss for words. The man stood up, towering over Gohan with his undeniably ominous bulk. His grin, however, stayed ever cordial. He would never forget that face. Oh no, he could never forget that face. Gohan's eyes widened as memories flashed through his head. Two men from another world, fear, sorrow, pain, death, loss…
All those recalled emotions, crawling up inside of him, overwhelming him, causing his throat to close. He could see it all, it was all his fault, all his fault, he was too scared, too weak, he couldn't handle anything. Piccolo had fallen by those hands, fallen as a warrior should, for him, only for him. Always his fault. Guilt washed over him in a cacophony of inner turmoil, bubbling up until his throat was tight with tears, and his teeth were sharp and bare.
It couldn't be. He was…dead! But…it was. Before he could control his words, it came.
"Nappa."
It was spoken in a hiss that froze the souls of those watching.
Nappa.
AN – A note. Geros Mare is a sort of religious symbol for Saiyans. (pronounced 'Geh-ro-s Ma-reh') So it's like he said 'Jesus Christ!' or 'By Allah!' or something. XD -shrug- Just something I thought I'd throw in, since it's just a –little- overly unrealistic for him to say 'Jesus Christ!' XD Even though most of this isn't very realistic to begin with…oh well. Anyway, this was a fun little chapter to me to write. 'Till the next chapter, fare thee well