Chapter 2

One year later…

"Dammit. That wasn't the best idea but at least it got the job done." Goku dropped his arms, his entire body screaming with pain.

He had just barely managed to win a ki battle against Vegeta, his kamehameha swallowing his opponents attack and sending him up into the thin atmosphere. Goku knew that had he not used a four times kaioken charged attack and stayed with three, the outcome would have been totally different.

Vegeta was easily the strongest adversary he'd ever faced, so strong that Goku had felt a tiny shred of respect for the wayward Saiyan, albeit begrudgingly. His body was wrecked and he was exhausted but he stood firm, knowing the battle wasn't over yet.

"Goku! You did it! You really did it!" The young Saiyan's eyes widened in surprise and he turned slightly to spot the source of the voice, his surprise increasing when he saw Yajirobe running towards him at full speed.

"Yajirobe? When did you get here?" He asked when the samurai stopped in front of him. He truly wasn't expecting him to be here.

"Oh you know, I've been hiding behind that rock, waiting for the right time to come in and help you but luckily you didn't need it! I saw how you managed to defeat him!" Yajirobe slapped Goku on the shoulder. "You're the man!"

"Ahhhh!" Goku felt as if his arm was about to fall off. He'd exhausted his body more than he thought if that friendly gesture brought on so much pain. "Sorry Yajirobe. It's just...I really pushed my body to its limits with that last attack so I'm pretty wasted."

The samurai crossed his arms, taking in those words. "Well, I'm not surprised Goku. You do have a tendency to overdo things sometimes."

"Yeah, true. But in this instance, it was worth it." Goku smiled, looking up at the sky.

"Look at us! The two warriors standing together in victory!" Yajirobe exclaimed proudly, acting like he was useful in some way.

"Nope, not really." Yajirobe's face dropped at that. "He's not dead. If anything, all I've managed to do is really tick him off. I'm willing to bet that when he gets back, he's going to be in one hell of a bad mood", Goku said with a grave smile on his face.

"Well then", Goku did a double take when he realised that Yajirobe was no longer next to him but was much farther away, "You seem like you have everything under control. I'll be around if you need my help, although I doubt you will!" Before he could say anything in reply, the samurai scurried away, leaving a cloud of dust in his trail. Goku shook his head at his friend's predictable behaviour and stood tall, waiting for the Saiyan prince to return.


Vegeta rode the ki blast involuntarily for a moment or two before gaining control of himself. He pushed off of it and watched it travel into the outer regions of space. He grit his teeth, his unfurled tail bristling three times its original size.

"How?! How could it be that I, Vegeta, last of the royal bloodline could be tested so heavily by a lowly third class? One that doesn't even know his own heritage no less!" His tail lashed violently from side to side. He brought a clenched fist to his face. "That fool thinks he knows what power is?! Well, I'm about to give him a rude awakening!" He laughed maniacally and shot down to the surface.

Goku saw him coming and stood in position. He was fatigued right down to the bone but he was determined to see this through to the end. Vegeta landed with his arms crossed, smirking evilly at him. He couldn't help but feel slightly unnerved by the crazed look in his opponents eyes. It didn't bode well for him.

"I must admit that I am quite impressed with you Kakarot. You've managed to do what most people have failed to, which is best me at almost every turn. Unfortunately for you, this also means that you have defied me greatly and must be severely punished." The Prince shook his head in mock despair.

"It's a shame really. Had you decided to join me, we would've been a formidable force. Now it's too late."

Vegeta suddenly grinned wolfishly, the knowing look on his face making Goku uneasy. "Don't feel too bad though. I intend on giving you an end worthy of a traitor to his race." He lifted one arm, palm facing up. "I had noticed that the Earth's moon looked to be destroyed. Luckily someone had managed to come up with something that could easily replicate the moon in the event of there not being one. That person...was your father Bardock."

"My father?!" Goku asked , his mind racing from what he just heard.

"Indeed. He realised that on every planet we invaded, not all of them would have a moon, so he came up with this." Vegeta conjured a ball of light, its brightness stinging Goku's eyes from where he stood.

"Your father may not have been one of the best fighters but he was a brilliant scientist for creating an attack that would be a Saiyan warrior's saving grace in the event he needed to transform. And now, your father's creation will be your downfall!" The Prince smiled maliciously at his younger adversary, his power trip running through him in waves, making him delirious with bloodlust. He tensed his arm, winding it backwards and prepared to toss the ball into the air…

WHACK!

Vegeta was caught off guard as Goku unexpectedly phased behind him and kicked him as hard as he could, causing him to fly through the air before crashing into the mountain, his synthetic moon dissipating as he made impact.

"Sorry Vegeta. As much as I'd like to see your transformation, I'm not too keen on risking the destruction of the planet!" More like he couldn't afford to. He still hadn't recovered from his previous attack. Letting Vegeta gain the upper hand would be a fatal mistake. Goku stood in silence, waiting for him to make his next move.

The ground started to shake beneath his feet violently. He spread his legs to balance himself and waited. A moment later, Vegeta burst out of the rubble and flew on top of a tall boulder.

"You're going to regret that Kakarot!" He snarled at his adversary, his tail lashing violently. That synthetic moon had taken a good portion of his energy, now it's simply gone! That traitor would pay!

"Haaaaggghhh!" The Prince roared as he powered up, determined to end this once and for all. He charged Goku at full speed, his face contorted with rage. They met in the middle and collided in a flurry of punches and kicks. They battled fiercely, the force of their attacks so enormous, the terrain around them shook in response.

Unfortunately for Goku, because of his weakened state, his attacks were uncharacteristically sluggish and uncoordinated. Vegeta saw this and upped his attacks. He punched Goku in his midsection, causing him to cough up a huge glob of blood, and followed through with a roundhouse kick, sending him flying through the open space.

'This isn't good! I need to finish this fight right now otherwise the Earth is history!' Goku thought frantically, panic beginning to course through him. He righted himself before he could crash and charged Vegeta, attacking him with renewed vigor.

The older Saiyan was unprepared when his opponent came flying at him and attacked with everything he had.

'Where the hell did he get the power to do this?! He should be incapacitated from all his injuries by now!'

Goku delivered a powerful uppercut, his fist splattered with Vegeta's blood, and caught his leg with a tight grip. He spun him multiple times before launching him far into the distance.

'Now's my chance!'

He quickly flew to the top of a flat top rock and lifted his arms, attempting to gather energy for his spirit bomb. He stood as the energy from the living things around him gave him their energy, all the while he paid close attention to his surroundings.

'Come on Vegeta. I know you're around here somewhere. Show yourself!'

"Alright, here goes!" Once he gathered enough energy, he focused on trying to form it into a sphere.

"Looking for someone?"

'Oh no!'

"Ahhhh!" Goku yelled in pain when a small ball of ki passed through his right arm.

Vegeta phased in behind him and punched him on the right side of his back. Goku dropped his arms and began to fall forward, only for him to be caught by the neck with Vegeta's tail. He gurgled as his windpipes were slowly crushed by the furry appendage.

"It's a damn shame Kakarot. You really are one of the finest warriors I've encountered in all my travels." The Prince caught one of his flailing uninjured arms and sent another small ki blast through it, preventing him from trying anything else. "But now, it's time to bring this little game of ours to an end. Say goodbye!" He aimed a ki blast at Goku's heart, about to end him once and for all.

"Stop!"

The Prince raised his eyebrows and smirked at the newcomers. "Ahh, if it isn't Baldy and Kakarot's whelp. Come to join in on the fun?"

"Leave my dad alone!"

Vegeta smirked deviously at the half-Saiyan child, recognising the fire in the boy's eyes. His tail tightened around Kakarot's neck, his smirk growing when he saw the fear in the child's eyes. "And just why would I do that?"

"Because your fight is with me now! Let him go and we can get started!" Gohan said assertively. His little body gave off nothing but confidence, sureness in his abilities to take down the threat to their world.

"Hmph. Very well kid. I'll indulge you for now." Vegeta released the now unconscious Kakarot from his hold and turned to face his new foe.

It was on.


"Damn those sneaky bastards! I shouldn't have toyed with them for so long!" The Prince snarled.

His three adversaries now lay unconscious before him. Their little scuffle had all been a ploy to distract him so that they could use that attack he had prevented Kakarot from using before they'd arrived. The poor fools had actually thought they had managed to defeat him with that attack. Unfortunately for them, he had no plans on dying on this miserable planet without getting his wish.

"I've let this go on for long enough. It's time to put an end to this." Vegeta walked slowly towards the young hybrid, intent on starting with him.

"Get away from him!"

Vegeta only had time to turn his head to see a rotund man with a sword fly at him before he felt a burning pain go down his back.

"You cut through my armour! You...no good...wretch." He spat out before collapsing on the ground.

"Yeah! I beat him! I did it! I saved the planet! This'll teach you from trying to mess with the best you scoundrel!" Yajirobe gloated for all the wastelands to hear. His celebration, however, was short-lived when Vegeta started to get up.

"What was that Tubby?" He questioned the now shaking 'warrior' in front of him.

Said 'warrior' began to slash at him randomly as he advanced on him, only to trip on a small rock behind him.

"Wait, hold on! I didn't actually mean to hurt you! That was a huge mistake! To be honest, I really admire your fighting style and I was kinda hoping we could be friends-"

A punch to his gut cut him off mid sentence. Yajirobe fell to his knees, struggling to breathe from the heavy attack. He whimpered when he caught sight of Vegeta's boots in his line of vision.

The Prince wrapped his tail around the man's neck and slowly lifted him up so they could be face to face. He relished his pathetic whimper when he brought him close to his face. "There is nothing I hate more than cowards with a false sense of bravado who can't follow through when they make some big claims on their strength." He whispered in his face with a deceptively soft tone, tightening his hold on his neck all the while. "It makes me sick to my stomach."

Vegeta continued to tighten his hold on the tubby warrior, intent on carrying this out until the end. "At the very least, I should grant you a death worthy of a weakling. You can thank me when we see each other in Hell." The man gurgled as his tail tightened even more, his arms flailing uselessly.

"Vegeta stop! Please!"

He looked over to the source of the voice and raised an eyebrow. "Well, well, well. You're still kicking eh, Kakarot?"

"Don't kill him! Leave him out of this!" The young Saiyan pleaded for his friend's life.

"And just why would I do that?"

"It's obvious that you've managed to get the best of us. There's nothing left for you here! Piccolo is dead which means the dragonballs are useless, remember? This fight is pointless now! Just leave the planet in peace, we won't stop you!"

The Prince would've laughed at the ridiculousness of his last statement if he hadn't remembered something important. He dropped an unconscious Yajirobe and walked towards his enemy. "You're right, of course. There is nothing left here. I should just leave this planet and be done with it." He smirked at the premature relief on the younger Saiyan's face. "However, I do require something from here before I leave."

Goku eyed him warily, "What is it?"

"Last year on the day you died, I overheard a voice through my scouter. A female voice. Everything I gathered from what she said told me she was quite intelligent, since she claimed she would be able to fix the damaged scouter."

'He must be talking about Bulma.' Goku's eyes widened, ice forming in his veins from the fear he felt at hearing those words.

A wicked grin spread across Vegeta's lips at the look on Kakarot's face. He knew exactly who he was referring to. "She also mentioned something about a radar. I can only assume she meant a device that could locate the dragon balls since they were going to hunt for them so they could bring you back to life." He tsked in mock dejection. "It's a pity really. If only she'd kept her mouth shut, we wouldn't be having this conversation right now."

He bent down onto his toes, his onyx eyes never leaving Kakarot's. "I want you to tell me where I can find her so I can...kindly ask her for the device. Once I get it, I'll be on my merry way."

"No!"

"No?" Vegeta asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I'll never tell you where she is! No deal! Not happening!" Goku was one hundred percent certain that he would rather die than tell this monster where his most dear friend is. He looked at Vegeta's blank expression, desperate to know what he's thinking, what his next move would be.

He was prepared to be beaten for answers. He was prepared to be skewered with more ki blasts as a method of torture to get him to talk. What he wasn't prepared for was the smirk that crossed his face, the look on his face utterly terrifying.

"Never huh? You know, I do enjoy it when you heroic types use the word 'never'. 'I'll never tell you what you want to know!' 'I'll neverlet you get away with this!' It amuses me to no end." He stood up and looked down at his foe, his smirk never leaving his face. "Most of all, I enjoy it because I see it as a challenge." He turned and walked in the opposite direction.

"A challenge to do what?" Dread was slowly starting to course through Goku's being. He didn't like where this was going.

He slowly turned his head to face him, his eyes sparkling with malice. "A challenge to see if you can stay true to your passionate protests...even if the lives of your loved ones are on the line."

Vegeta laughed darkly as he went to pick up an immobile Gohan. He held him by the scruff of his torn gi, turning to face Kakarot once again. "You're a father, Kakarot. One that obviously cares a great deal about his son. Would you really be willing to forfeit his life for the sake of someone who isn't even your blood?" He straightened three of his fingers, formed an ice blue ki blade and placed it against the young hybrid's main artery on his neck. Just one nick and he'd be as good as dead.

"Leave Gohan out of this!" Goku tried to wiggle around, doing all he could to try and stop Vegeta, but it was useless. He couldn't do anything, his body just wouldn't cooperate. He looked over to Krillin but saw he was still out of commission as well.

"Don't be absurd Kakarot. He's been involved since Nappa and I arrived on this planet. Why should I exclude him now, hm?" He moved his lethal fingers below the young boy's lifeline, making an incision big enough to have his blood slowly trickle down his clothes.

"NO! STOP IT!"

"Just say the words Kakarot and I'll leave him be. It would be a shame to do away with such a powerful young boy with so much potential." He moved his hand back to his artery. "Tik tok. Time's running out."

Goku warred with himself but really, he knew what he had to do.

'Forgive me Bulma. I'm so sorry.'

With tears burning his eyes, Goku opened his mouth to speak when he suddenly looked up, a spark in the sky catching his attention. His face paled when he saw it was an airbus. It could only belong to one person…

The Prince frowned at the look on Kakarot's face and turned to see what got his attention. His eyes narrowed in suspicion at the large yellow aircraft. He looked over at his subordinate. "Friends of yours?" The panicked look on his face gave him the answer he needed. "Well then, how about we go and say hello? Don't worry Kakarot, I won't hurt anyone."

'Yet.' He unceremoniously dropped the boy and strolled towards the landing ship.


"Come on, Bulma! I can walk faster than this hunk of junk! Hurry up!" ChiChi yelled in frustration.

"It's an airbus, not a plane ChiChi. Just try and relax. I'm going as fast as I can." Bulma answered, the irritation in her voice barely audible. To be honest, she was just as frustrated as the ox princess was.

After Bubba's crystal ball had shattered into pieces, she'd waited all of fifteen minutes before deciding to hop on a plane so she could see for herself what was going on. ChiChi had readily agreed with her decision. And so, while ignoring Roshi's protests, she'd whipped out the airbus so that they could all fit into a vehicle and began their journey to the battlefield.

"I know. I'm sorry, I'm just worried about Gohan and Goku. I just pray to Kami that they're still alive." ChiChi spoke in a softer tone.

'At least you have hope that they're still alive. Unlike Tien, Chiaotzu...Yamcha.' Bulma let a few silent tears make their way down her face.

Yamcha. Her sweet, brave Yamcha. He was gone. Just...gone.

Her heart had broken into tiny shards when she saw him lying on the ground after that creature had self-exploded, taking Yamcha with it. And it was the fault of those horrible, cold blooded Saiyans.

"I see something up ahead. I think we're here." Master Roshi pointed out.

Bulma wiped her face with her hand and looked out the windscreen. He was right. They had arrived. "I think we can land here." Bulma initiated the landing sequence on an empty patch of land. Once they'd landed, ChiChi had moved to stand in front of the rear door, ready to make a mad dash for her family.

"Come on. Come on." She whispered as the door lowered to the ground. The second it was low enough for her to cross, she started to make a mad dash for the empty battlefield. ChiChi took three steps out of the ship before she came to a grinding halt, screaming at the sight before her.

"Greetings." The man before her spoke, a vicious grin on his face.

Bulma jumped at the scream and rushed to the back of the ship. "What?! What's going on?!" She stopped short when her eyes laid themselves on Vegeta, the one responsible for their sorrow. Her knees threatened to give out as she took in the sight of him.

The Prince turned his attention to the new voice, instantly recognising it as the one he heard a year ago. The first thing he saw was her blue hair, before he saw the rest of her.

'What odd colouring…'

He slowly walked towards the ship, his gaze intent on her. "So you're the one, huh? The woman who claimed she could fix Raditz's scouter." Vegeta laughed at her deer-in-headlights expression as she took in his words.

"How did you-"

"The scouter also works as a communicator, remember? So I heard a lot of what you had to say. Considering the less than stellar status of this planet, fixing something like the scouter should have proved to be a hardship. Yet you claim that you could repair it with your backwater technology." He was purposely throwing subtle insults at her, trying to goad her into answering him.

Against her better judgement, Bulma narrowed her eyes at him, arms akimbo. "I didn't just claim to be able to fix it. I succeeded in repairing it and managed to translate the weird language it came with into one I could understand."

"Oh? Is that right?" The others got out of his way as he continued walking towards the woman.

"Of course." Bulma kept on speaking with a brave face, even though she was feeling anything but.

'Alright Bulma. Play your cards right and we could all get out of this unscathed.'

She took a deep breath, steeling herself for what she was about to do. "I am one of the most intelligent people on this planet. The company I run is able to make storage capsules for anything that you can think of. Ships, houses, planes. It doesn't matter. We can encapsulate almost anything.

The heiress felt herself get excited when she saw the intrigue shining in his dark eyes. She almost had it in the bag. "So, in that spirit...I want to make you an offer."

"Bulma, what are you doing?" Roshi questioned her.

She ignored him, not breaking her stride. "I can build you anything you want, be it a new ship or a brand new and better functioning scouter. I'm offering you my knowledge and skills in exchange for our lives." Bulma mentally patted herself on the back for her quick thinking. She wasn't President-in-training for Capsule Corp for nothing.

Bulma watched his blank expression, hoping against hope that he'd accept her offer.

Vegeta took in the woman's stance, internally scoffing at the confidence in her stance. She thinks she's already won the battle. Oh, he was going to enjoy bursting her little bubble.

He stopped an arms length away from her. "Well, that all sounds very interesting. However, I want something specific from you. Something I'm sure you already have."

"What are you talking about?"

The Prince gave her an appreciative once over, his tail swaying contentedly behind him. "I learned, since the Namekian was killed by Nappa earlier on, that the dragon balls here ceased to work. The only other option is for me to travel to his home planet and collect the one there."

"There are dragon balls on another planet?" Bulma tried to hide the excitement in her voice. This could be the chance she needs to bring the others back.

"Indeed. And this is where you come in." He felt a smirk come over his lips. "I'm going to need that radar you built so I can find them without hassle."

The heiress' eyes widened in shock. "How did you know about the dragon ball radar?

"I didn't. You just confirmed it for me. Actually, I partially didn't know. I overheard you speaking about a radar and seeing as you already had a scouter in your possession, I could only assume you were talking about a dragon ball locator seeing as you'd been planning to wish Kakarot back. Turns out my hunch was right on the money."

'He tricked me! That shady son of a bitch!'

If looks could kill, Vegeta would have died a hundred times over. "Of course, that's not all." He stepped closer to her, causing her to take a step back. "You're going to accompany me to Namek and help me find the dragon balls. It only makes sense since, if you're as smart as you claim to be, you could easily tamper with the radar before handing it over to me."

"Over my dead body! I'm not going anywhere with you!"

Vegeta grit his teeth at her screeching before he glared at her for that. "I still need my ear drums, you harpy. Scream like that again and I'll rip your tongue out. Understand?!"

Bulma shuddered at the look on his face, her bravado leaving her as quickly as it came. She nodded her agreement, not wanting to piss him off again.

"Good girl." He chuckled darkly before carrying on. "Now then", he pushed away from her and walked back towards the group, "I suggest you think about your answer carefully. Of course, I won't kill you for refusing. You're essential to my plans. But...that doesn't mean I can't kill someone else in your place."

Alarm went through her at his words. "Wait, what?!"

The Prince grinned in amusement before raising his arm, his palm facing the group. "Or maybe I won't kill just one. Maybe I'll just do away with all of them." As he finished his sentence, he summoned a medium sized ki ball, relishing in the screams of the helpless people in front of him.

"No, stop!" Bulma ran to him and grabbed his outstretched arm. "Fine! You win! I'll go with you!"

"I knew you'd see it my way." The energy in his hand vanished and he turned to face the woman.

Roshi spoke up. "Bulma no! Don't do this! We can find another way to-"

"To do what?! This is the only way I can make sure the planet is safe!"

Vegeta growled, feeling his patience run thin. "You're wasting time! Let's go!"

"Right. We just need to go to my place so we can get the radar." Bulma stuttered softly.

They walked out the ship, into the open field. Out of the corner of her eye, Bulma spotted Goku and the others. She watched as ChiChi dashed to her two boys, fussing over them. Her eyes burned when she saw the state they were in. if she wasn't sure about her decision to go with Vegeta before, seeing them injured helped to cement her choice.

'This is my chance to bring the others back to life. I'll find some way to swipe the balls from him. If he kills me for my betrayal, then so be it. In the end, Yamcha and the others would be brought back and hopefully they'd bring me back too.'

The heiress saw Goku turn his head in her direction, his eyes beseeching her not to do what she was about to do. ChiChi must have filled him in already. She smiled at him, fresh tears filling her eyes.

'Don't worry Goku. I'll be fine. I promise.'

"Woman." Vegeta's gruff voice brought her back to the present.

She turned and frowned at him, not liking his nickname for her. "My name is not Woman. It's Bulma."

"Whatever. Which way is your dwelling?"

She took out a capsule and pressed it, throwing it up and catching the navigational device that fell from the sky.

The Prince raised both his eyebrows at that. Looks like she was telling the truth about her invention after all.

Bulma typed in her address and waited for the coordinates to show up. "It's 100 kilometres west of here." She squeaked when she felt Vegeta grab her waist and roughly pull her into his side.

Vegeta smirked deviously at the look on her face. "Hold on tight." He whispered before blasting off full speed into the sky.

Neither of them looked back to see the gang staring after them, the air around them forlorn at the sacrifice of another one of their own.


Author's Note: Wow...I wasn't expecting to write this much for this chapter. I wanted to add context to it but this is a bit LOL.

I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. As I'm sure you've noticed, our resident prince is more sinister in this story. I really tried to bring out his evil element. I hope it came out alright.

I wanna give a shoutout to Becky L. Sly, Rosise and Romi for their reviews on the first chapter. Thank you guys! I appreciate it!

Please don't forget to review. Stay safe and healthy everybody. Peace, love and good vibes to you all! Till next time!

RR18