Disclaimer, in case it wasn't obvious. I don't own Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, or really any other property. Thank you.

The Cataylst

Act V

Chapter 66: Dysfunctional

Vegeta: Four Months Later

The air was thinned this high in the air, but he'd adjusted to that days ago. The air was cold enough that after repeated exposure for days, even Vegeta took shelter in a cave when he'd come to sleep. The howling wind of this place wore against his skin at every moment he was out here. It was nothing compared to the gravity chamber in most respects, but it was a different experience. This high above the world it felt like he was standing head and shoulders above his competition. Though he knew the truth, every day he trained up here he was a reminder of where he should be. The current method of pushing himself as hard as he could was training on the edge of space itself, letting the environment provide the harshest realities that this world's upper atmosphere could throw at him.

Since leaving West City, there was a clarity he'd experienced as well. Getting away from the woman and her 'concern' for his safety had been the best decision he'd made so far. There weren't any concerns for him beyond being able to finally surpass Kakarot and his damned twin, Turles. The rest of them were nothing in comparison. Raditz, Piccolo, and the humans were less than his concern. The only amusement he got out of anyone beyond the two items of his vengeance was his former servant, Raditz. The hatred Raditz felt for him was real. The last time he'd been in proximity with that weakling during the battle of Coast City, Vegeta had determined very quickly that his former soldier would kill him at the first opportunity, if it wasn't endangering people close to Kakarot, or 'people'.

And that was the most delicious irony. Raditz, just as he lacked the force of will necessary to kill the purple haired woman when Vegeta had first arrived on this planet, lacked the same will that would allow him to excel enough to ever come close to a dream of his revenge. That irony left Vegeta with more than a sense of accomplishment.

Because it meant that he was going to win. He was going to overrun everyone else here when the time came and he became a Super Saiyan. No one was as dedicated to the art of fighting as he, the Prince of all Saiyans. They all had petty self interests which went beyond their drive for power. Kakarot was the only one who might eventually be able to keep up with him once he'd finally caught up with him. Raditz, Turles, and Piccolo? They were all jokes, as far as the Prince was concerned.

Liberated from his own petty concerns, Vegeta's body took off from the edge of the rock he was on as his body went further above the clouds, until the oxygen was so thin, he could feel the lack of pressure forming ice on his face. When his aura flickered around him, Vegeta began his trained practice, shooting between the edge of space and the thinned atmosphere he needed to survive. The strains on his body became increasingly extreme as he picked up his pace, deliberately pushing his body to the maximum of this extreme.

Hours, that was what he spent up there, perhaps a day even. Even as he felt his strength waning, Vegeta bitterly scattered bolts of ki into space as he flexed his power, trying to achieve the goal. The goal he'd now become nothing but a mere witness to. At least he'd not seen Kakarot transform, robbing him of his brithright… being there at the witness of Turles's ascension was a crime reality had committed against him.

Fury drove his training. Hours turned into days, until finally his strength waned. When he felt his power slip, Vegeta's legs kicked out as consciousness fled him for several seconds before he fell. The force of the wind rolling around him as his body nearly caught fire, passing down through the atmosphere at terminal velocity while he tumbled, Vegeta's energy reignited enough for his aura to reappear before he managed to pull himself out of the dive he was making. When he landed atop the mountain peak which had become his home, his hands and feet pressed into fresh snow while he breathed in and out with the 'thick' atmosphere. He'd been on the edge of oxygen depravation for days now and even he knew it was time to rest.

Damn you!

The words weren't just directed to the people he obsessed with, it was directed at everything. It was pointed at himself, his body, the world. No matter how extreme, nothing would let himself break free from the shell of being what he was. Nothing he did seemed to drive him to his birthright. That was the ultimate insult about all of this.

A fist slammed into the ground, sending tremors through the mountain as a dozen avalanches emerged down the gigantic feature's slopes. It was a curse wasn't it? For him to become the bystander?! He would never accept it!

Trying to stand up immediately, Vegeta pushed himself to try and send himself back up beyond the clouds, back into the void where he could finally meet his destiny. But all the power fled him in that moment. He couldn't even take flight. Without realizing it, he'd almost died, every spec of energy in his body was spent on his survival, from his fall from the heavens. It took only a few more moments before Vegeta just… collapsed.

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Bulma:

He'd left.

That was something she'd started to come to terms with when she saw the spaceship outside not in use. It'd taken several days of her just sitting on the balcony, waiting for any sign of him to come back. She'd not really cried over it. It was almost numbing after several days. Her parents didn't notice at all that their guest was just… gone. She thought her father made a comment there was less tremors and yelling than he used to remember.

To Bulma though, it was the sensation of being naked. Anything that happened now, any sound she heard almost made her jump. There were nightmares of her being killed and worse at almost every turn as some monster like Turles, Frieza, or any other host of things destroyed her home. She could always see their silhouette in the fires of her life, and there was never anyone there to save her. She was waiting for Vegeta, Goku, even Yamcha. But instead she was always alone.

Worse, she'd come to the realization of just how alone she was. Certainly, she had her parents here, but she never really saw anyone anymore. Goku had moved on, he'd gotten married and had a kid and was training all the time. Yamcha had moved on after the breakup, though she'd seen him once or twice in the last few months. Krillin was off training with Goku and his brother. Those had been the people really in her life since she was a kid, back when she wasn't afraid. It made her yearn for her youth, to be able to just go on an adventure fearlessly looking for the Dragon Balls, or anything.

Her vision was fuzzy as she sat in the lab, wincing several times as she felt hot again. It was so angering that she'd found herself like this now. A lack of protection when sleeping with Vegeta had been probably the dumbest thing she'd ever done. She'd thought about what her options were when she'd found out, but honestly, she had some grim realities behind it. She was single, she was going on 31, and she was loaded. In a way, she thought maybe single parenthood wouldn't be so bad. But it now tied into the loneliness she was experiencing.

I'll kill him the next time I see him.

It was a lie, and she wouldn't admit that. Really, she wished he was here right now. She'd even pretend like nothing happened for the sake of not being alone. The worst examination of it all, she might not feel so insecure and afraid with him here. What did she mean might? She was afraid all the time now. That was the worst thing about everything she'd been through, living for a year with that monster looming over them at every turn, and then worse, Goku not dealing with Turles when the rabid dog finally turned himself loose. The worst part was he was now out there and according to Vegeta and Goku, was just as strong as Goku they thought.

All of her inventions now were about trying to keep things out. The latest force field for the facility itself was almost done, for all the good it'd do. Then there was the thermal detection grid, designed to pick up the heat signatures of Saiyans. The metabolism of Vegeta and Goku, from her research, was higher than a normal human and generated more body heat, even if it sometimes wasn't noticeable.

Still, sometimes it felt all in vain. A force field was going to hold for, even at her most generous estimates, thirty seconds. There were definitely no weapons should could make that would stand any kind of chance against even Tien, let alone Turles. Redesigning her home into an invisible fortress was the first thing she'd reasonable thought of. The next thing she was thinking of was maybe a pocket dimension field, though she estimated that was going to take five years to develop, and her problems always felt more immediate.

Her fears, were always more immediate.

Before she realized it, she'd stopped working, sitting back in her chair and just putting her hands over her face. This was the definition of taking on too much. Almost five months pregnant, worried for her life, no spouse, and no one around her that she felt like could be there for her. Nightmares? Those were a definite plus too. How did people cope with this kind of stuff? She'd experienced anxiety before, but nothing where it was persistent, all the time.

It didn't get better when she'd realized the single parent aspect of her life that was pending, was going to make her research and development time go through the floor. Problems seemed to compound other problems.

"Are you still working?" her mother's voice came over the com. "You stop that! I told you to get some rest."

Well, at least she could rely on her parents for support. Sliding out of the chair and onto her feet, Bulma groaned as she stretched her back before slipping off her lab coat. There were a few moments where she felt like she had the excuse to try and keep her mind off things. It was sad when she realized that all the stress she was under was bad for her current condition.

She needed someone to talk to who wasn't her mom or dad. Grabbing the phone off the wall, the list of people to not call seemed longer than the people to call. The only person she talked to, with any frequency of what was going on was Chi-Chi. The embarrassment of her situation though, may have led to some embellishments.

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Son Goku:

Another great day of training, minus all the problems. The biggest one was that Piccolo had bowed out of their training again. Even Goku had spent a few days looking for Kami, but it looked like he literally fell off the face of the Earth. There was no sign of his energy at all, and that kind of concern was clearly bothering Piccolo. It was understandable, given Piccolo would die if Kami died. Which meant that for weeks now they'd been getting interrupted from their normal pacing, and it was really noticeable.

And given that his desire to get Turles to join them kept getting snubbed, Goku was more than feeling frustrated by their progress. At least Tien, Krillin, and Gohan were all making progress, but Goku knew that there were big hitters when the Androids showed up. Right now, they were himself, Piccolo, Raditz, Vegeta, and Turles. So, it wasn't good if his, Raditz and Piccolo's training was getting stagnant from distractions.

Still, when he came home at the end of the day, Chi-Chi didn't have dinner ready for once. Instead she was on the phone, which wasn't really the most common thing he'd seen in a long time. The growl in his stomach was more a cry for mercy at this point, than it was a warning for food. The frown on his face was almost audible when Chi-Chi gestured her arm at him several times to calm down dismissively.

Mouthing 'who is it' to her, Chi-Chi instead just answered the caller on the other side of the phone.

"Well, I'm glad that things are at least going as good as they could be, Bulma," Chi-Chi remarked. "But I've got 3 hungry aliens looking at me, and I don't know if they brought guests or not. Call me back tomorrow, okay?"

With the click of the phone, Chi-Chi immediately stood up, beginning to start making dinner. Which was agony for Goku as he realized it was going to take forever for it to be made. That was the worst part about what'd just taken place. It was alright for Chi-Chi to have a phone call, sure, whatever, but… the food being late?

"Not one word, Bulma's been having a hard time," Chi-Chi remarked as she started to put water on. "I don't think she's seen almost anyone outside of Vegeta and her parents for months."

We should drop by and visit at some point. I'd like to even, I've known Bulma forever. Buuuut… I've got so much training to do.

"She must be super bored," Goku remarked, trying to get an eye on what Chi-Chi was making.

"Stop hovering," she warned, pulling up the frying pan she was about to use warningly. "If you've got time to hover, you've got time to go clean the house."

Without realizing it, Goku looked almost like a begging dog which had just gotten itself in trouble, even as behind him he could feel Raditz and Gohan's moods equally decline.

"Sorry Chi, it's just been a really long day. We were out there for hours and I'm real hungry."

"Well you have to wait," she reminded. "Now shoo."

Reluctantly, Goku turned to the others, as if a general leading a defeated army in retreat. Gohan looked like he was about to cry almost, trying to avoid looking as hungry as he was. Raditz on the other hand just looked angry. They'd drop their grudges the second they got food in them, Goku was 90% sure. He'd learned that sometimes no matter what, food just was late. Still, the disappointment was very much real.

"You'll never guess who she's been seeing though," Chi-Chi remarked, sounding surprised in the extreme. "Not that I'd ever allow that beast over. But she's with a certain-"

"Vegeta?" Goku asked instinctively, as he'd already guessed. Not that he really cared all that much, but they met Vegeta and Bulma's son from the future. "She's with Vegeta, right?"

Chi-Chi blinked, her surprise clearly ruined as she stared back at Goku. "Well uh… yes. How did you know?"

That's right. How would I know? Hmmmm… C'mon Goku, think for a second here.

"I didn't, I guessed," Goku said. "I mean, she's been living with him and… uhhh… I just thought that's how it worked, right?"

Looking to Gohan and Raditz for support, he was met by glares. It was very obvious that Gohan was not happy about anything relating to Vegeta. The look Raditz had almost scared him. His older brother looked back at him with a disbelief and disdain for what he'd just heard that looked like a man on the verge of murder.

Gosh, I forgot how much Raditz hated Vegeta. I should probably talk to Gohan about forgiveness at some point after this. Holding onto this kinda thing is terrible for you.

The odds of Raditz ever getting along with Vegeta were nil, and even Goku could see that. Really, he only understood that Raditz had never forgiven Vegeta and Nappa for something that happened. The day he killed Nappa in front of him in cold blood, Goku realized that there was a reason for his change of heart, but never inquired deeper as to why. He knew that Raditz had thought of telling him at one point, or at least that's what he thought was coming, but it was something he didn't want to unearth. Still, he couldn't imagine his brother was to hear any news about Vegeta that didn't involve him failing, or dying.

"Well, that's not the only news," Chi-Chi commented from beside him as he heard the sizzle of meat from the kitchen. "Bulma's having a baby."

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Raditz:

Kakarot seemed to brighten up as he walked back towards the kitchen, in a likely bid for food in some capacity. There was something really akin to joy from his brother regarding the news. Even he knew that Bulma had been his oldest friend, so he was likely happy for her life circumstance. What Raditz's thoughts immediately descended to was a pure resentment. For all of his burdens, for all of his time being here and acclimatizing himself to a life amongst his family, Raditz had avoided acquiring revenge on Vegeta.

Truthfully, it was due to a lack of power on his part.

The joyful news was amongst the worst things he'd ever heard. It was an insult to him in the most extreme way, and the hypocrisy of it overwhelmed his senses. Vegeta had criticized him for being weak and undeserving for even being around a human woman. He knew what he'd felt, that was why he'd ordered him to kill Colonel Violet. But when Vegeta comes to this planet, he engages in some kind of 'relationship' with the blue haired woman and is living some kind of life where he fathered a child with her. He was engaging in the life which Raditz might himself have engaged in, had it not been for Vegeta himself.

The anger he felt was pure. It was almost righteous even. There was nothing wrong that could come of it. He could sense Vegeta's power on the other side of the planet and knew it was spent at the moment. He could fly there right now and just attack. The idea of murdering Vegeta had never felt so available. Maybe after he'd killed him, he might finally have some peace. Without a word, Raditz stood up, walking towards the door.

"I'll be back, there's something I need to do."

He didn't get ten feet outside the door when Kakarot appeared in front of him, a calm and collected stance on him. He knew what he'd been thinking before he left the room, and that was sad to Raditz. It was sad because his brother would never understand the need for revenge. It was something Raditz himself both pitied, and was envious of. The envy was born of the fact that his brother was such an innocent soul that the idea of not being able to forgive someone, with enough time, was beyond him. Despite having tried to kill him on Namek, Raditz was sure by now Kakarot would forgive Frieza, even if reluctantly. The pity however? The pity came from the fact he would never understand what it meant to be a complete person.

Because revenge was apart of being alive, for all of its faults.

"Hey," Goku said casually, just standing there. "Where are we off to?"

"I'm off to see Vegeta," Raditz commented. "Alone."

"I don't think so," Kakarot said immediately, not even giving him time to explain himself or let the words sink in. "I know you hate him, but you're going to have to let it go."

"Let it go?" Raditz snapped in disbelief.

Flashes of Vegeta's mockery, or his betrayal of command, or his wanton murder of someone just because he cared about them were the only things Raditz saw behind his own eyes as he sneered at Kakarot.

"Yea, you're going to need to let it go," Kakarot repeated. "I know what you're planning and I'm not going to let you do it. If Bulma and Vegeta are a thing, and she's my first friend ever, I'm not going to let you go and ruin that for her just because you hate Vegeta. I know he did something to hurt you, but that's in the past."

"Let it go."

Something sharp hit his stomach as Raditz felt his rage boil over, despite it being Kakarot in front of him. His face twisted into pure rage. Reaching forward, he grabbed Kakarot's fighting gi by the front, an action even he found insane as Goku's eyes widened.

"Let it go?" Raditz spat back at him again. "I'll let it go when his body is dead and cold at my feet."

Then, something frightening happened. Kakarot lost any sign of his jovial self. There was something pure on the other side, and it wasn't innocence. Reaching up, Kakarot took his hand, pulling it off his clothes. Raditz winced as his thumb was twisted against his own strength, his wrist bending unnaturally.

"I will not let you do something you'll regret later, Raditz," Goku informed him. "Let. It. Go."

Trying to regain control of his wrist, Raditz failed, falling to one knee as his much smaller brother held his arm in place.

"Please," Goku's voice finished, his tone returning to normal, having an edge of sympathy to it even. "Just realize that this might make Vegeta a better person, and maybe if he becomes that person, you can learn to forgive him. You became a better person Raditz, and I forgave you. Give Vegeta that chance. I know I have."

"He tried to kill you, and everyone you know," Raditz breathed, trying to regain control of his wrist. "He even tried to kill your son. He made me beg for his life and then was going to kill him anyway! Turles had to save your boy! Do you not realize what kind of monster your dealing with!?"

"And what changed?" Goku asked. "What changed from yesterday? All that changed is that he's become more than friends with my friend. Nothing else is different."

It is, Kakarot. Because he's taking for himself what he took away from me.

Releasing his hand, Goku just stood there in front of him, an imposing barrier.

"Let's have dinner," Goku offered, implying to the door. "Chi-Chi will be done soon."

It was when Kakarot walked past him, that Raditz knew one thing was true. If he was going to get his revenge, it wasn't going to be in the heat of the moment. It meant he would need to plan it. It was going to need to be as apart of his life as training was. For all the evils of his race, for all of the crimes they'd committed, they'd had a saying which was just as much as a saying, as it was a way of life. It was something even Raditz couldn't look back upon shamefully, as if it was barbaric. Even if it was, he didn't care. In this moment it was the truest words he'd ever heard as they resonated with him.

An eye for an eye, and a tail for a tail.

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Author's Notes:

An eye for an eye. And a Tail for a Tail. What. Could. Go. Wrong?

Reviewers:

Blades of Fury: More Raditz is here man. Just watch the chapters unfold. It's a bit of a slow burn, but he's got in my opinion, a fantastic story over the next 6-7 cahpters.

Kacarrot: Dr. Gero registered that there was a battle that took place, but his observation equipment didn't survive the battle…

Perfect Cell: It's monthly from here on out as I work on The Long Road. After I finish the Janemba stuff, I'm going to hammer out tons of smaller chapters for both stories.

Super Mystic Gohan: He's never coming to Earth, lol

Sigmakleim: You got one. The first part of Janemba is up. 😊

Zyr0TruthCanExist: The Catalyst is far from the current arc my friend… We've got the Androids to worry about, after all. What. Could. Go. Wrong… without Kami around… during the Android Saga…

DarkFalconZ: I know :P

KagariAsuha: It got updated :P

Luke: People doing nice things doesn't always mean they're trustworthy. Inevitably, you'll find some of the worst monsters in history did nice things. Most monsters either wear a mask which helps them blend in, or are both good people, and monsters at the same time. It's really scary, honestly, lol.

OuterSpaceHooker: Turles is not destined for a happy love-life. I actually find his fate in this story amusing. If we get far enough, people will definitely think it's a good fit, I suspect. It makes me laugh at some of the finer details.

: It's more the latter, I suspect. Raditz, Vegeta, and Turles have a very base view of the humans they're surrounded by. At least at first.

SSJ1998: