Chapter 9
"What...in the seven hells is that?" Vegeta said quietly, horrified beyond words at the grotesque transformation of his adversary.
When he'd been close to Zarbon's general direction, he'd felt the fool's energy moving in circles, obviously signifying that he had no idea where he was. When he'd eventually caught up to him, Zarbon had been shocked to see him, but not for too long.
The Prince remained locked on to Zarbon's ki, getting more and more excited at the prospect of getting rid of one of his lifelong tormentors once and for all. A moment later he spotted him in the distance, looking for all intents and purposes like a lost puppy. With a malicious grin on his face, Vegeta sped up, ready to deal with that pansy for the last time.
"So, we finally meet again Zarbon. What a surprise." Vegeta remarked, his tone sarcastic. "I've already disposed of that useless Dodoria. And now it looks like your turn."
"What?!" Zarbon yelled out, his golden eyes widening in disbelief. "I find that a bit hard to swallow."
Vegeta chuckled lowly. "I thought you might."
"I say you're bluffing."
"Well you don't believe me? Then why don't you try me for yourself Zarbon." The Prince goaded.
The elegant warrior said nothing, looking over the Saiyan Prince. He sensed something different about Vegeta this time around. Something about the warrior put him on edge, what it was though, he wasn't sure.
"Come on Vegeta. You should know that you can't win against Frieza." He said, tactfully changing the subject.
"That's what you think. And besides, your precious Frieza isn't here to protect you. Oh, whatever shall you do?" Vegeta said, mockery present in every syllable.
"I'm not particularly worried about myself, Vegeta. If anything, you should be worried about what your fate will be once Lord Frieza gathers all the dragon balls and makes his wish for immortality."
The handsome warrior sported a smirk of his own at the faint surprise in the Saiyan's eyes. "I mean, that is what you're here on Namek for as well isn't it? To make some sort of wish that will allow you to defeat Frieza. Well, I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news but that isn't going to happen, not with you going at it all alone."
"Let's get one thing clear Zarbon," Vegeta growled out, his fists clenched, "I don't need anyone to help me find the dragon balls and I'm not going to let anyone stand in my way, understand?"
"Well, someone's on edge." The emerald haired warrior said mockingly. "I would at least think with that woman you brought along, she would've helped you relax before you snuffed her out. She must not have been all that good. Or maybe she just needed someone who really knows how to pleasure a woman, someone like me."
The Prince snarled viciously at those words, his ire involuntarily rising at the thought of this succubus getting his paws on Bulma. He'd rip his head off of his shoulders before he got anywhere near her. He stilled at that train of thought.
'In what universe do I actually give a damn what happens to her?! Her usefulness reached its end when I figured out how to use the dragon ball radar. She's nothing to me!'
"Oh excuse me, did I strike a nerve monkey boy?" Zarbon quipped, his smirk still stuck on his face.
"Enough of this! I'm tired of your constant yapping Zippy! It's time for you to put up or shut up!" Vegeta hissed, dropping into a fighting position.
"Gladly!" Zarbon followed suit, about to strike his foe when suddenly Vegeta phased out sight, reappearing right behind him. He reacted quickly, phasing a good distance away from his opponent. He charged a powerful ki blast, aiming it right for the Prince and fired. Only for that to fall through when Vegeta easily slapped it away, a huge explosion following a moment later.
"You...surprise me Vegeta." He called out.
Faster than his eyes could follow, the Saiyan phased in front of him and delivered a quick elbow to his jaw. The elegant warrior snarled and attacked viciously, getting more and more frustrated as Vegeta did nothing but dodge all his attacks with that infuriating smirk on his mug.
"Don't tell me that's the best you got Zippy!" Vegeta taunted, still dodging his foes attacks.
"Why you little!" Zarbon yelled. He delivered a powerful kick, only to hit the open air in front of him.
"I'm up here!" Before he could react, he cried out in pain as the Prince followed through with an aerial kick, sending him plummeting towards the earth. He'd barely managed to land when he found himself flying forward, courtesy of a surprise roundhouse kick from his foe. He slid face first through the dirt before coming to a stop.
"How disappointing. I thought you'd be more of a challenge." Vegeta said, his laughter grating the warriors nerves.
Zarbon got up on shaky arms, breathing heavily before a few laughs escaped from his lips. "My my Vegeta. I must admit, you really have become stronger than ever. Unfortunately for you, it just isn't enough to defeat me."
"Oh? Is that so?"
"But of course." He got up, ignoring the slight pain on his face and arms. "You see Vegeta, you're not the only one who has a few tricks up his sleeve. Have you ever heard the saying 'Beauty is only skin deep?' Well right now, you only see the beauty."
Vegeta shook his head, his lips stretched in an amused grin. "Beauty huh? Well, you'll have to forgive me for not agreeing with that analogy."
"Oh you poor fool. You already think you've won, don't you?" Zarbon turned to face him with a disturbing glint in his gold eyes. "I'm about to make you see the error of your ways."
"How about you stop talking in riddles and get to it, Pretty Boy?"
Zarbon grinned maliciously at those words. "With pleasure Vegeta. With pleasure."
And he got to it alright. Vegeta had been expecting him to try and attack him by surprise, attempt to attack him from behind or at least try another ki attack.
What he didn't expect was for him to transform, doubling his muscle mass and completely changing his face. He normally didn't care for something as trivial as looks but whatever Zarbon was now made his skin crawl, it was absolutely hideous!
"And now Vegeta, I present to you the beast!" Zarbon proclaimed in a now monstrous voice before charging at Vegeta.
The Prince stood in shock at his astounding speed before finding himself flying through the air, pain radiating from his stomach. Zarbon quickly followed through with a powerful punch to his gut, prompting Vegeta to spit up a glob of blood and sending him crashing to the ground. Vegeta barely had a chance to breathe before Zarbon lifted him up and held on to his head with both hands and began to savagely headbutt him, his skin splitting open with every blow, the blood burning his eyes.
'What the hell is happening?! I had him on the ropes and now he's turned the tides!' Vegeta raged silently. Barely managing to gather his bearings, Vegeta delivers a powerful uppercut to the monster's solar plexus, halting his attack on the Prince. Vegeta keeps going, each punch loosening Zarbon's grip on his head.
Quickly catching on, Zarbon anticipates Vegeta's next punch and catches it, quickly twisting himself around and getting him in a full nelson, laughing grotesquely at his futile struggle.
"What's wrong Vegeta? I thought you wanted more of a challenge!" He said, laughing at Vegeta's frustrated growls. While he held his struggling foe, a faintly sweet scent (so faint he would have missed it if he was in his normal state) reached his nose but he ignored it, choosing to focus on the male in his grasp.
"Let go of me!" Vegeta demanded, his struggles eating away at his reserves.
"Now where would the fun in that be? I quite like having you at my mercy, it takes me back to all your 'punishments' that I dealt you for being a disobedient little monkey."
He wasn't prepared for Vegeta to throw his head back and bash his nose, breaking the bone. Zarbon let him go with a cry of pain and held his face, trying to stop his blood flow.
"Haaaa!"
He looked up to see the Prince fire a massive ki attack straight at him. Too late to stop it, he cried out and it blew up, blinding light covering the surrounding area.
"How's that for disobedient?" Vegeta panted heavily with his arm extended, his gaze fixed on the spot where Zarbon stood. However, his blood ran cold when he saw Zarbon emerge from the dust cloud still in one piece, looking haggard and severely pissed off.
'Impossible! I'd put all my energy into that attack and he's barely injured!'
Vegeta felt his heart begin to race, trepidation wracking his frame at the possibility that his winning streak was about to come to an abrupt end.
"That does it! I'm done playing games with you monkey boy! It's time to end this once and for all!" He snarled, his gaze downright murderous towards Vegeta. He flies forward and punches him right in his cheek, blood flying out of the Prince's mouth.
Zarbon grabs him from behind and flies up as high as he can before turning around and charging full speed towards the surface. He ignores Vegeta's cries and a short distance away from impact, he applies the brakes and lets go of his foe at the same time, sending him crashing into the body of water below him.
He stayed above and kept his gaze intently on the lake below him. A moment later he chuckles lightly before bursting into full blown laughter.
"I'd warned you Vegeta, that you could never defeat me! And now you've paid the ultimate price!" He said, grinning deviously. He took a deep breath and focused, turning back into his normal state.
"Well, it looks like I'm done here. I'd best go report back to Lord Frieza, he will be most pleased." Zarbon turned to where he hoped Frieza's ship was and flew off, his smug smile never leaving his handsome face.
Bulma and Gohan remained in the Capsule house during the tussle between the two warriors, with the little boy giving her regular updates on the fight. She can't help but grow increasingly worried as the young fighter told her that Vegeta isn't faring well against his opponent.
"Holy cow...unbelievable." Gohan whispered, his face paler than usual and his eyes wide.
"Gohan? What is it? Did something happen?" She felt dread settle in the pit of her stomach but was hoping that he didn't confirm her fears.
"Vegeta...he's been defeated. I can't sense his energy anymore." He relayed, his shock still present on his face.
Bulma felt her heart falter at those words. 'No...there's no way he's…'
It couldn't be possible! He'd taken out two of Frieza's soldiers without breaking a sweat! There was no way he'd been defeated! No way, she refused to believe it!
A knock at the door disrupted her musings. Gohan looked over at her and smiled brightly.
"It's Krillin! He made it back!" He rushed to the door and opened it, revealing the short warrior standing with a smile on his face.
"Hey there squirt!" The monk greeted jovially.
"Hey Krillin! I'm so glad you're okay!" Gohan replied.
Krillin looked over and his smile widened when he saw his longtime friend standing by the couch, looking completely unharmed. "Bulma!"
"Hey there Krillin! Don't just stand there, come on in." Bulma waved him in, a genuine grin on her lips. As soon as he was close enough, she bent down slightly and gave him a hug. "It's so good to see you!"
"Likewise Bulma." He said, returning her hug. He pulled back slightly and looked her over, needing to make sure she was okay. "We were all so worried about you, thinking Vegeta was going to hurt you. Are you okay?"
"I'm fine Krillin, I promise."
"That's good." He breathed out, letting go of her. "I'm just grateful you're alive and unharmed."
The heiress shrugged lightly. "He was a complete jackass but he never touched me. I'm all good."
Well, he didn't touch her in the way they were thinking, that's for sure. But they didn't need to know that.
"Speaking of Vegeta, did you feel his energy Krillin?" Gohan asked
"Yeah, I couldn't believe it. On the way back from Guru's, I felt his energy drop in his fight against that Zarbon guy then the next thing I knew, it vanished."
"Are you two absolutely sure that it's...that he's…" Bulma asked, not wanting to say the words.
"I'm positive Bulma. He's gone! He won't be able to keep you against your will anymore. You can finally relax now." Krillin said assuringly. Of course, he assumed she was asking because she wanted to know if her kidnapper was gone. He turned around, not seeing the slight sadness in her face.
"All I can say is good riddance. Vegeta was completely rotten to the core. He got his comeuppance." Krillin remarked.
The young genius felt a flash of anger at Krillin's words but just barely managed to hold her tongue.
'They don't know what I do about Vegeta and his life so I shouldn't really be mad at his words. Even in the shower, I'd acknowledged that the others weren't going to be as forgiving towards him. As far as he knows, Vegeta was an evil, selfish prick who got his dues.'
"Krillin," Gohan reprimanded, "I know that Vegeta was a bad person but I think he could've been useful in our fight against Frieza."
"Are you listening to yourself Gohan? This is Vegeta we're talking about! He would sooner kill all of us than help us against Frieza!"
"I'm just saying, we could have formed a temporary truce until my dad showed up, since it seemed like he was going against Frieza as well. Think about it. He was stronger than the both of us combined. If he'd somehow agreed to work with my dad, they probably would have defeated Frieza." The young Saiyan tried to reason.
"And then when they've managed to defeat him, he'd turn on us the first chance he gets and take the dragon balls for himself. I get what you're trying to say Gohan but it just would've been too risky to take that chance."
Gohan sighed minutely, not having an argument to those words.
'Gotta give him points for trying.' Bulma mused.
She shook her head and looked over at her older friend. "So, how did it go at Guru's?"
"Huh? Oh, right! Guru was extremely helpful, he'd explained to me how the dragon balls work on this planet. That they grant three wishes and there's a password needed to use them."
"Yeah, I know that. The elder from the village we were at told me about that. He'd said that when we're ready to make our wish, we should go back to their village and he'll give us the password." Bulma said.
"That's great! Oh and another thing, he'd managed to unlock my hidden powers and now, I feel stronger than ever!" He exclaimed.
"Whoa, no way." Gohan whispered. Now that he focused, he could actually feel the difference in his power level. It was enormous! How had he missed it the first time?
Bulma blinked as she suddenly remembered something. "By the way Krillin, I spoke to my dad not so long ago. He said that Goku is on the way. According to him, he should be here in a couple of days."
His eyes brightened. "Really?! That's great! Perfect, with Goku here we'll be able to get things done in a snap!"
'I'm not so sure about that.' Bulma thought to herself, hating her doubting her oldest friend but unable to help it. Knowing what she knew about Frieza, she wasn't taking anything lightly.
"Now, while this power up is really cool, it's still not enough to defeat Frieza and his posse. Which is why I need you to come with me Gohan so we can have him unlock your powers too. While our powers won't be enough to stop Frieza, they should be enough for us to cause a big enough distraction to get them back from him and hightail it out of there without getting caught."
Krillin turned to his other friend. "Bulma, you need to stay here and wait for us to come back. Now that Goku's on the way and Vegeta's gone, we need all the strength we can get so we can defeat Frieza." He said, his face serious.
"So you want to leave me here all by myself?" She raised an eyebrow at the two of them.
The monk shrugged lightly. "It's only until we can unlock Gohan's power and get the other dragon ball from Guru. I promise we'll be back as soon as we can."
She huffed and crossed her arms. "Fine, whatever. I'll be here then."
"Thanks Bulma! Let's get going kid."
"See you soon Bulma!" Gohan yelled as they ran out the cave.
"Be careful you guys!" She yelled after them.
Once she was sure they were gone, she dashed to the bedroom and tore off her robe. She donned new undergarments and put on her old yellow jumpsuit, not deemed to waste time on searching for a new outfit. Bulma grabbed her capsule case out of her backpack and sprinted outside, decapsulating her pink air bike. She got on and sped to where the fight had taken place, according to Gohan's rough estimates.
Like all scientists, Bulma needed to see something in order to believe it. She couldn't believe that Vegeta was dead until she could see the evidence for herself.
'I refuse to believe that he's gone, not when he still has to get his revenge against Frieza! He's too willful to die without finishing his tormentor first.'
Bulma wasn't stupid, she knew that Vegeta was not a saint, not in the slightest. He's murdered millions, maybe billions, of innocent people and destroyed countless planets. He was practically drowning in the ocean made up of the blood of all his victims. When everyone saw him they saw a monster that deserved to die for all his sins and they weren't exactly off the mark.
'And here I am, risking my safety going to make sure that he isn't dead instead of staying in the comfort of the house, thinking about how I'm free of him. Can anyone say Stockholm Syndrome?' She thought wryly.
But unlike everyone else, Bulma had seen the scars on his back that didn't come from fighting, rather from severe punishment. She'd seen that he had respect for those who respected him, even if they were weaker than him, like that doctor on Planet Frieza. Most of all, she knew the story of his life from his childhood to now, thanks to that pink bastard.
The heiress knew that everything she's listed doesn't excuse any of his past actions against others but she couldn't help but think that...maybe if he hadn't had his life ripped away from him at such a young age, he may have turned out to be a bit different.
Of course, she could be spouting a bunch of bull but after seeing the slight hesitation to kill in that village and being told about his internal conflict, she had faith that there was more than a slight hope that he could be better than his tormentors. She was positive that if Goku had been present to see what she had seen, he would agree with her one hundred percent.
So was she crazy for caring what happened to Vegeta? Definitely. But she was Bulma fucking Briefs. She'd never lived her life playing it safe anyway and she sure as hell wasn't about to start now.
Bulma looked around, seeing the broken rock formations and craters and knew she was getting close. She slowed down a bit and scanned the area, looking for any sign of Vegeta. She drove around, her eyes taking in every little detail.
"Whoa. They really went for it when they fought. This place is a mess." She mused out loud.
Something in her peripheral caught her attention and she turned her head to see a lone figure lying in the distance next to the bank of the lake. Taking a chance, she rode closer to the prone figure.
"Oh my gosh." She gasped. She sped up when she recognised the spikey hair and dashed to his side.
'Please be okay, please be okay.' She repeated over and over.
Once she was close enough she got off her bike and encapsulated it, running to his side. Bulma dropped to her knees and looked him over. He looked absolutely dreadful, and that was just his back. She couldn't imagine how his front looked. "Vegeta? Can you hear me?"
He didn't move a muscle.
Bulma noticed that he was wet, which means he'd just managed to pull himself out of the water before passing out. She put her fingers against his neck, searching for a pulse.
She couldn't find one.
"No no no." She whispered, her hands starting to shake. She ignored the burn in her eyes and tried again, putting her head against his back trying to listen for a heartbeat.
"Come on Vegeta. Don't you die on me." She whispered around the small lump in her throat.
It was faint...so faint she wouldn't have felt it if she wasn't paying close attention, but it was there. She felt a weak pulse in his neck. It wasn't much but it was enough.
"I can't relax now. I need to get you back to the Capsule house. I've got a fully equipped first aid kit there. I'll patch you up in no time." She promised.
She couldn't use her air bike this time. She needed him to be stable while she took him back to the house.
'Good thing I brought my case with the aircar.'
Bulma tentatively reached out and paused before she stroked his hair, trying to comfort him as best as she could. It was so much softer than she thought it would be, a stark contrast to his stony exterior.
"Well well well. What have we here?"
Too late her hackles rose on her arms, her hand frozen in Vegeta's hair. The heiress looked back sharply to see a tall handsome man with light bluish green skin and emerald hair in a braid, standing behind them with a charming smile on his face. But...something about him seemed off.
She was paralysed, she couldn't speak, couldn't move.
"Aren't you a beauty? And here he had me fooled, implying you were dead. I'm so glad I was wrong." His smile widened, showing off a set of pearly white teeth. He really was a sight to behold, except…
His gold eyes were beautiful but cold, hollow. She felt butterflies forming in her stomach, and not the good kind.
She gulped audibly and forced herself to speak. "Who are you?" She spoke, trying to put strength in her voice.
He bowed slightly, keeping his eyes on her the whole time. "I am Lord Zarbon, at your service my lady."
The heiress felt her blood turn to ice immediately.
Zarbon.
"I know you. You're the one who did this to him!" Bulma accused, her heart racing out of control. She was in trouble, a world of trouble.
"Indeed. And you're the woman Vegeta arrived with to this planet. Lord Frieza will be most pleased to realise that you're both alive after all."
The heiress felt the blood drain from her face, her palms starting to sweat. This couldn't be happening.
"That's only if I let you take me to him which, surprise surprise, I won't! I'm not going anywhere with you! And you're not taking Vegeta anywhere!" She yelled, her fear driving her bravery.
"Quite defensive of the Prince, aren't we? This is a truly intriguing turn of events. Frieza will definitely want to hear about this."
"Fuck you!"
Bulma squeaked when Zarbon put his face in front of hers, his expression chilling her to the bone.
"Listen here little girl. That monkey may allow you to address him anyway you want, but that's not going to fly with me." He ran a finger down her cheek, his skin cold to the touch. " I suggest you watch your tongue since I'd hate to have to mar something so beautiful. Understand?"
She could do nothing but nod, her body shaking slightly. His words were so icky and wrong, they made her feel dirty. His touch had disturbed her the most. He was as cold as a reptile. He was figuratively and literally cold blooded.
With Vegeta, she'd been afraid of him in the beginning but that fear slowly faded away. She'd never minced her words with him and he usually never minded. In fact, he seemed to enjoy it when she yelled at him, they could verbally spar with each other.
With this guy, she'd be lucky if she was still breathing if she tried that stunt more than once.
"Now then," he got up, his face contorted in an evil smirk. "It's time for us to go. Lord Frieza is waiting for us."
'No way, death threats or not, I'm not letting him take us! I'll get us out of here one way or another!'
Before she could do anything to try and get them away from this monster, however, he moved faster than her eyes could follow and hit her on the back of her neck, her eyes bulging before she fell to the ground. Her eyes landed on Vegeta, her vision quickly starting to fade.
'I hope that when we arrive, nothing will happen and that we'll be okay. I'll get us out Vegeta, count on it.'
That was her final thought before her world went dark.
Zarbon looked at the unconscious woman, looking over her features. She truly was a beauty. Maybe he could convince Lord Frieza to let him keep her once her usefulness to him expires. It wouldn't be a mission. She'd resist in the beginning but eventually she would submit to him. They always did, and they always begged for more.
Picking up Vegeta by the arm and throwing the woman over his shoulder, he flew off towards the ship.
This should be interesting.
Meanwhile, somewhere out in space…
Goku was training at one hundred times Earth's gravity, his body screaming at him to take a break, to relieve himself from the unholy pressure. Unfortunately, his body would have to hold out a little longer. He needed to become stronger so he could help his friends and son.
The younger Saiyan had just finished talking to King Kai. He'd been ecstatic to find out that the guys, and even Piccolo, had been granted the opportunity to train with his former master. He knew that those guys would be stronger than ever once they've been wished back.
That wasn't the only thing King Kai had wanted to talk about.
"I still don't understand why he doesn't want me to take on Frieza. Sure, he's stronger than me but is he really that powerful?" Goku couldn't help but doubt his teacher's warnings. Vegeta was easily the strongest adversary he'd ever faced. For there to be someone who's even stronger and more wicked than him, it was inconceivable.
"Well if he had to yell at me to not confront him, then this Frieza must be a real force to be reckoned with. I know I promised I wouldn't take him on but if he poses any sort of threat to those I care about, all bets are off."
In any case, his mission wasn't to take on universal tyrants. He was going to rescue his childhood friend from the Saiyan Prince and come to the aid of his best friend and son. They needed him and he wasn't going to let them down!
He looked over at the monitor and saw he was getting closer to his destination. Just a couple more days.
He hoped that Gohan and Krillin were holding up alright. He hoped that Bulma was alright and that Vegeta hadn't harmed her in any way otherwise there would be hell to pay.
Most of all, he hoped that they could stop Vegeta and Frieza and bring their friends back to life. That seemed like an impossible task and really it probably would be.
But he was Son Goku. And he never backed down from a fight for the greater good, no matter the cost.
Author's Note: Dun, Dun, DUN! That is all. That was a wild one, I must say. And we have another appearance by Goku, yay! What will happen in the next chapter? How will the meeting between Frieza and our dynamic duo turn out? Find out next time!
Okay so first, exams are coming up AGAIN in about three or four weeks so I'm not going to be around for a while. Granted this chapter took a while to come out but this time I'll be studying so I'll be back in a month's time. But the wait will be worth it, I guarantee it.
Second, I want to thank A Jaye, RoyalBlueRoses, Rosise, and Becky L. Sly for your reviews on the last chapter! Thank you so much you guys! And thank you to the rest of you for favouriting, following, subscribing and kudosing (if that's not a real word, just roll with it ;D) this story. You all have my thanks, truly.
As usual, stay happy and healthy everybody! Peace, love and good vibes to you all! See you soon!
RR18
