Damaged

Chapter Four: Dawn of Hell

The lavender haired regal slumped to the ground. Her mind faintly registered ChiChi's unstoppable sobs, as Goku hugged her, trying to comfort her pain, or probably even soothe his own. But the girl was deaf and blind to the world, locked inside her mind for a moment that seemed like an eternity.

Her home was destroyed... Her mother, her father, her people... Her race was completely demolished... The children, the women, the men... Her planet was utterly gone... The trees, the beautiful night sky that she could observe for endless hours before she would fall asleep... She could find a new home, she could live with Yamcha on his planet... But it wouldn't be the same... With the planet destroyed, they could never wish it back... With everyone dead, who would be there to believe in her judgement now?... She had not noticed, but those people kept her fire burning, as faint as it was because of her mental state.

Now... Everything was going to change. Nothing was going to be the same ever again... She lost absolutely everything dear to her... Everyone that did not know her, yet believed in her without a second thought... GONE!

Yet again, tears would not form in her eyes. All she could do was stare with her frozen soul evident in her dead eyes in the far corner where her home planet had been located for so many centuries. Gone... No more existing... Never to be again... Not in an eternity... Namek was gone, Earth was gone, with that Dragon Balls and the legend about them also gone. They couldn't be resurrected... There was no possible way...

Where was she going to go now?... She had no home planet anymore. She had no family. She had no subjects... She had nothing, absolitely nothing.

In an instant, she felt anger wash over her. Now she was getting it. It was that asshole's fault! That's why he came here! He wanted something that he did not wish anyone else to have. She knew that the sly snake wanted to do something bad all this time. He was probably plotting his evil scheme for the last five years, thinking how to destroy her completely. But unknown to him, she was able to escape... Yes, she was completely alone now, with no back up from her people, but she had her own power, damn it! She once did, she would get it back again! Even if it was the last thing she'd do!

All of the thoughts that clouded Bulma's mind like a dark mist were those of sweet revenge. She knew that she had to plan everything perfectly, to make it flawless, and then to attack, once she was sure there would be no place for mistakes to occur. But taken in by the malice of the situation and the pain caged inside her for years that now had the oppertunity to materialize as blind rage, the Queen stomped over to the control panel and slammed the coordinates in, startling everyone, making them turn their heads towards her in confusion.

She was not going to be walked over again... This time she would do something... Drastic, or not, she needed a release... She couldn't take it any longer! She had to get this heavy weigth off her shoulders! And then and only then she'd be able to let it all go and live her life, if she was still breathing after doing what she planned to.

A hand made contact with her shoulder, startling her out of her trance. Her sparking sapphire eyes shifted to the form of Radditz, who rose a questioning brow at her.

"Where are we heading, your Majesty?" He asked courteously. A sad grin crossed the Queen's face before she answered.

"You should know better the coordinates of your home planet, Radditz. I think we need to plan his royal Majesty a visit that he will remember..."

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Vegeta sat in his throne in the middle of the huge room that represented what his people called a throne room. He wondered about many things... How would he proceed now?... Earth was gone... The bastards probably fled and then destroyed it... They could be on any planet, waiting to attack, even right there, on Vegeta-sei, expecting the best moment, the one when he would be most vulnerable, to attack him.

Did he believe what Bardock told him?... He was forced to ensure himself... If Earth vanished when Namek did not exist, it would be a disaster. Namek was far from this solar system, and even all the neighbouring such. They would not go that far. Not to mention he had some of his people headed that way right on the instant, so he was sure there would be no unpleasant surprises.

But... How could he imagine that the woman was dead?... Her fiery self not breathing, not moving, not in this world? Not in this Universe, that was soon to become his?... Yes, they were separated all this time. No, he didn't want her bitchy self with him, she was just a burden. Yet he found himself willing to know that somewhere, in her solar system, or another, she still existed, still believed in her naive dreams... How could he imagine that never again will he have the opportunity to make her laugh, to cause her tears, to make her yell at him for something stupid he did yet again?...

"Hello, Vegeta." The man heard someone call his name and snapped out of his trance, glaring his eyes at the feminine form with waist long obsidian hair that was approaching him. The Saiya-jin slowly observed the following actions of the figure as it stood by the arm of his throne.

"What do you want, mother?!" He hissed between his tightly clenched teeth. He was not in the mood for his mother's lectures. "Don't you see I have things to decide for myself right now?"

"May I ask why did you demand all of the air-defence systems to be engaged?" The woman seemed to be determined to get the answers that she wanted from her offspring, no matter how much time and effort it would cost her. Well, he was his mother's son after all.

"I believe that this is no longer your business, woman." His words seemed more like a threat rather than an answer to such a simple question. Well, maybe the question was not that simple in the first place.

"Just answer me, and I'll leave you alone." She smiled slyly at him, making the younger version of her husband growl back.

"It's a precaution." He explained as-a-matter-of-factly.

"I thought you didn't believe in Bardock's 'mindless babbling', as you described it. I thought that to you he was just a 'mad man who had nothing better than to cause panic throughout the Empire'." The woman's smile grew as she knew the answer to those questions that she was asking. There were more of statements rather than anything else.

"He is a mad man with nothing better to do than to cause panic throughout the whole Empire and has no idea what he's blabbering about."

"But?..." The woman urged him with a note of something he knew no idea what it was. She never behaved like that before... And he already knew that it was pissing him off.

"But nothing! Now just get out of the fucking throne room and go do whatever you retired old bags do! I have work right now, so leave me alone!" He tried to push her out, but she just dodged him.

"Why did you go to Earth, Vegeta? Tell me, I'm not going to share it with anyone, son, you know I can keep your secrets."

The spiky-haired Saiya-jin cringed as he remembered some of his most sacred thoughts that he had shared with his mother. With an irritated sigh, he crossed his arms and glared daggers at her yet again, still just as determined to push her out of the door so he could get back to acting about the precautions so his planet would not follow Earth's example.

"Weren't you going to "leave me alone" after I answered your first question?!" He snapped and stood angrily up, walking out of the huge wooden doors towards the main quarters of his elite warriors. The sound of high heels hitting against the tiled floor alarmed him that his mother was not the one to give up easily.

"Come on, your majesty, share with your aging mother why did you do that and I'll really leave you alone this time." She gave him the best pleading look she could muster. It never worked if he wasn't in the mood for talking, but it wouldn't hurt if she tried...

"I... Wanted to insure myself."

He sped up as he opened the doors that led to the huge private training quarters of the elite Saiya-jin warriors, who served directly their King. The elder woman stopped in front of the door and headed back calmly towards her own room. Her smile was very much evident to all the servants that passed by her, making their face twist in confusion before they walked away.

Vegeta's mother was a complicated person. She was a Saiya-jin. That was true. She was most fit for giving birth to her King's son that would continue to Royal bloodline. Yes, she was taught by her Saiya-jin parents everything that every single Saiya-jin grew up with: emotions are for the weak, to be strong you must hold no restraints, both mentally and physically and such. But even her own son was the living proof for what she was taught when she was dead - emotions were what made a person stronger.

The woman could see it clearly. Yes, her son was blood-thirsty, he had a lust for power that could not be matched by any other being after he became Super Saiya-jin... But probably even he himself did not know that his weak spot lied in a being that contrasted him fully. A being that she had only heard about, whose legendary good nature and great Empire was known to the whole Galaxy, probably.

As much as her son would never admit it, she knew that all no matter how hard and utterly he had broken her, Vegeta knew that she would be able to move on, so he just wanted to insure that she would have the oppertunity to do so... And so, her son became even stronger than he believed.

The smile just refused to leave her expression.

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For the past five years, Vegeta-sei became the centre of the biggest Empire known that could possibly rise so high for so little time. For five years, the nature of the Saiya-jins' economics changed to roots. There were countless slaved people from neighbouring planets and systems. It was the centre of all sorrow caused to the people in the Universe. The centre of the Universe that you could just call Hell...

Vegeta-sei was never a civil planet. People there were far too primitive in their customs to become civil and be able to speak rather than to break bones. Yet now it was far more barbaric, as the race held more power than anyone could imagine - the power of their "immortal" King. With that power, Vegeta could do anything he wanted... And if it was ruining people's lifes he wanted, ruining people's lifes he got.

Being a slave in the Saiya-jin Empire was worst than death. Many have found that out the hard way. People from purged planets taken for fun of the warriors during trip, whores to please them in bed or just people to do the dirty work. They had no rights, no one asked them about anything. The people were far weaker than their masters, they had no hope for a riot that would stand no longer than a second against a Saiya-jin...

People were sold on markets like mere objects... Threated as if they had no privacy, no life, no pride, every single part of them belonged to their master once they were taken...

The best slaves were provided to the Saiya-jin no Ou himself...

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As Bulma's carrier finally reached its destination, she barely believed her eyes. How did he have the... the insolence to order his people to shoot at her ship?!

Shortly said, they had a rough landing on Vegeta-sei ground.

"Ah! That was some rough trip!" Goku said as he jumped out of the transport. Bulma stormed out and suddenly felt how everything weighted probably ten times it usually did. The gravitation, she remembered instantly, but still continued as though she felt no change. These years of training left a scar, you know.

"Your Majesty! Wait! Where are you going?!" Yelled Ariane as she got out the spacecraft as well, but was instantly pressed down by the higher gravitation than what she was used to on Earth. "You... Can't... Go... Alone!" She yelled after the determined woman, who turned on her heel to glare at her subject, as the auburn haired girl did her best to push herself back to her feet.

"What do you mean I can't go alone?! Of course I can, I am the Queen, Bulma Briefs! I can do whatever I want! I know the King and I have some things to talk with him about! I can do whatever I want!" She stomped with her foot against the ground, making a crater on the same spot.

"Bulma... You could be taken as a slave!" ChiChi called as she joined Goku, still getting used to gravity herself.

"What the hell are you talking about?! No one will take a QUEEN for a slave!!! I'm well-known, they have no right to do such a thing!" She insisted and turned around again, not noticing the paled faces of her remaining subjects when she bumped into a wall. She analyzed the situation again, recalling no wall present behind her just a second ago.

"Well, well, well... What do we have here? Brand new toys for our King...." A sly voice echoed in her head when she looked up to see a huge bald man and a few of other Saiya-jins behind him. Her frown deepened but her determination did not falter, unlike ChiChi's face.

"Your king?! Perfect! I have something to discuss with him! Now lead me to the Palace!" She demanded. Well, she had to behave arrogantly, like all Saiya-jins did. All except Goku, that is...

"Ohhhhh...." The group of Saiya-jin warriors exclaimed. Then their leader raised his hand to shut them up.

"I don't think you get it, sweet cheeks." He whispered as he bowed down to her eye-level. "You will not be bestowed with the priviledge to talk to his Majesty. And trust me, knowing what your function about him will be, you won't need to talk at all, not to mention won't be able." He chuckled coldly after his statement. Bulma's mind yet again tried to analyze what was just happening, trying to combine the sentences spoken by the guard to mean something else than what she was imagening them to mean, yet again believing that her luck would not fail her this day again.

"I heard there were screams echoing in the whole Palace the whole night every day! Can you believe that?! Even I can't hold up so much time every day! He's truly incredible, man!" Bulma's eyes bulged out. No.... It couldn't be....

"Come on, you little bitches! We're heading for the markets! We need to confirm that you are of a high class." The huge man bellowed at the people behind her. She lifted her head when he spoke to her again, her eyes wide and not blinking at all as the following sentence hinted her that she was closer to hell than she could ever imagine before... "As high as it is possible for mere slaves."

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A/N: Oi!!! Bulma and the others are going to be slaved! No! Veggie, save them boy!! Don't let her end like that! I hope you liked it... Well, the next chapter will be far more eventful. I promise. I WANT TO SERIOUSLY THANK TO ALL OF YOU WHO ARE BEING SUCH DARLINGS AND ARE REVIEWING EVERY CHAPTER! YOU KEEP MY FIRE BURNING, PEOPLE! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!

Review again and the next chapter will be up as soon as possible and you'll finally have an interesting moment yet again! Or at least that's how I plan it for now, lol. Neither of us all could know if you don't review!

Yours sincerely, Hope.