The cold, ever encompassing darkness that had fallen over the Earth had put all into a timeless sleep, as the night lingered on in the dense brush of the forest. A brisk wind scraped through the trees, and ruffled the leaves, making them scatter and fall, almost with an odd, whistling melody. In the darkness, a faint, flickering light like a heartbeat was beginning to emanate from within a dark cave, nestled deep in the sheer cliffside. Some time ago now, it had been disturbed by an intense battle that destroyed the mountain; leaving nothing but a sharp outcrop like a spike where the center had been revealed, and a surface that had not been exposed to the outside air in many an age. The soil, and the trilobite fossils in it, revealed that the earth within the cave perhaps predated back to as early as the Permian Age.
Gohan lie not far away, at the base of the much larger Mount Paozu, his eyes shut as his body clung to life, even as the blood that had dripped from his mouth had now dried and blackened, and insects crawled over his flesh searching for an opening to eat through. There was a tremor, then an odd violet glow emanating from the cave beyond, which began to pulse, and throb with each deep crack that it made, as a large millipede crawled away from the shaking ivory obstruction, and curled into a ball.
Sometime, long, long ago, an egg had been laid in this very spot...but, it had never hatched...until now, it had been silently incubating in peace. The bluish being inside was curled in the fetal position, as the glowing veins around it flashed, and it's body jerked awake. The egg was large, and covered by dried green slime, as it trembled, and a crack opened up in its side, where black claws had punctured the shell. Green slime oozed out of the crevasse, along with the shiny skinned hand that was pulling and breaking away segments of the egg shell, and birthing itself. The exposure to the air, and just the right conditions were what this being needed to hatch; as the egg shell crumbled, and slime dripped down the lip of the cave. It shuddered, gasping for breath as it found it's bearings, and clawed its way out of its birthplace.
"At last! I am free! My centuries of sleep are now at an end, and I shall search for something to quench my thirst..." A silken voice whispered, soft and reedy, like the low intonation of a wind instrument. The being crawled from the cave, and out into the open, standing. All that could be seen was it's glossy, ribbed skin that still was slick from embryonic fluid, and sparkles, that had an odd teal green cast, as the creature began to walk carefully through the forest, sniffing, licking it's shiny, white fangs with a purple tongue.
"Thirsty... I am, so thirsty..." It rasped, as it came upon the base of Mount Paozu, and found the small pond beneath the rushing waterfall. "Water..." It breathed, and stepped toward it, squatting down on it's haunches, and licking with its purple tongue, before submerging its jaw, and gulping down the water in large swallows, dark eyelids lowering and closing as it drank heavily of the refeshing, cold water. Long antennae came from the creature's brow, and dipped before it's eyes, as the hatchling drank. It pulled back with a hiss, and licked it's purple lips, looking around at it's current surroundings.
"Where am I...? Ārthgeä?" The creature slightly trilled, as it looked up at the sky.
"Ryokama... and Nyosana? They have descended into this atmosphere!" It gasped, then looked around again, swiping it's cat-like, green irises around the ground. They landed upon a faint, pale object far off in the overgrown grass, and the creature tilted it's head, purring querulously. It's wet, clawed feet with pink soles made their way up off the shore, and towards the object.
A shadow loomed over Gohan's silent body, then squatted, and looked intently at his twisted neck with interest.
"A dead Saiyan?" It trilled, and trailed it's long fingers down the spires of his spine bulging, yet not perforating his neck. A black claw tickled down his throat, and he gulped, making the creature jump slightly.
"Curious... Not quite dead, but very close." It mused, then carefully picked up Gohan, holding him against a voluminous, shiny bosom, as the female alien cradled him against her chest, and tenderly stroked a loose strand of hair back from his brow with a long, curved claw.
"This is a most interesting discovery..." She whispered, then turned back around, and returned to the dark cavern where she had been hatched.
The low rumble of her hover plane was soft enough as not to wake him, as Bulma flew Vegeta home to Capsule Corporations. The yellow plane made its long trip over East City, and finally towards home, West City. She left the dark city behind her, with a knitted brow as she bit her lip, concerned for the safety of her friends, but also too concerned for Vegeta's state to just leave him on the battlefield. He had not stirred at all, nor even moved when she had stapled the sword wound in his abdomen.
Bulma had to admit she dearly missed the sound of his voice, even if he was screaming, she would rather hear him ranting and raving about going back to the battlefield, instead of this dead silence that made her heart twist inside. She put the plane on autopilot, and reached back for his hand, watching his face for movement as she held his heavy, slightly cold hand in her small, warm ones. She stroked his tattered glove, blinking away her tears as she remembered the first time that she had ever 'held hands' with him, and not in the conventional sense. It was when he returned back from fighting the Gemini from before, and she had attempted to drag him into the house, and he'd let her, just out of curiosity, and to make Yamcha jealous. But Bulma remembered, Vegeta had let their hands linger just a moment, before pulling away. Bulma squeezed his hand, and stifled a sob.
"Don't worry, Vegeta... we're almost home, then you can yell at me and tell me I'm a foolish woman... I'd rather have that than this quiet, I feel like I'm gonna go crazy..." She sobbed, as she squeezed his hand harder and rested her head on his chest, pressing her ear up against his broken armour to be sure she could hear his heartbeat. She heard the heavy throbbing, not unlike her own, but it was a deeper, more heavy thudding sound, and a soft rumbling, that made her sit up quickly and stare at his face, hiccuping back her sobs as he stirred.
"Stop your... blathering... and man the ship, foolish woman.." He rasped, and Bulma laughed, her tears falling as he turned his face just slightly and gave her a pained smile. Bulma patted his hand and nodded quickly, as Vegeta tried his hardest to keep his eyes open, his vision blurring and doubling; but he felt his heart freeze when he saw her wearing his armour, her hair, cut short. She looks... magnificent. He thought, smiling weakly, then closed his eyes again, as Bulma maneuvered the ship down towards the Capsule Corps. landing pad.
Bulma wiped her eyes dry, as she looked out the window and saw her mother standing on the lawn, waving enthusiastically, her pink robe fluttering on the whipping air. She shut down the hovercraft, and opened the door, hiding her hurt with a smile as Bunny ran up to the plane, frantically asking questions a mile a minute.
"Where's Veggie? Oh, Bulma! Is everything ok? What happened? Did Vegeta take off to go fight again?" She asked quickly, and Bulma simply nodded, and told her to call the doctor, and quickly. She sat in the ship and waited, for what seemed like ages, but it truly wasn't that long until they came, and strapped him to a gurney, then wheeled him quickly inside, as Bulma and Bunny followed anxiously to the medical wing, and they wheeled him into surgery, quickly affixing an oxygen mask to his face.
"Oxygen!" The nurses barked out his status, "Injecting general anesthesia..." Bulma looked away as they prepped a needle to go into his forearm, one nurse running in a cooler of back up blood bags and fluids to the IV, before quickly going to set it up, the blood running down the tube. Nausea rolled through her stomach, and she looked away, squeezing her eyes shut against her mother's shoulder. A few minutes passed, as they ran tests and fretted over Vegeta's condition, then Bulma looked up quickly, gulping.
"He's ready for surgery, doctor."
"Scissors," The doctor said, and a nurse handed him a pair; in order to cut away the fabric of his bodysuit, and expose the abrasions and surface wounds that Vegeta had suffered in his battle with Vulcane. Bulma gasped, her fist to her mouth, watching with wide eyes as they examined the staples in his abdomen.
"Good work Ms. Briefs, if you hadn't closed the wound quickly like you did, he may not have made it to the medical wing." The doctor said, and Bulma nodded, clutching her mother tightly as they looked on with tear-filled eyes.
"Now, we will have to reopen the wound to check for any fragments of the sword you say he was stabbed with, and assess damage to his internal organs. For this, we must ask that you leave the room."
Bulma nodded, looking away as they wiped his abdomen clean with dark orange iodine.
"Pliers."
The doctor was handed a small, shiny pair of pliers to remove the staples with. Bulma gulped, looking away.
"Wait! Um, I know this sounds weird, but if you find any pieces of metal, could you please bag them up for me? For research?" She asked hesitantly, biting her nails, and a nurse nodded to her, smiling with reassurance.
"Of course, Ms. Briefs."
There was a metallic clink, as the first bloody staple was dropped in a metal tub.
"T-Thank you..." Bulma whispered, and began to leave the room.
"Wait, Bulma?" One of the nurses said, and she turned, blinking, as the auburn haired neko-mimi closed the door behind her, holding a small, brown paper bag.
"Hi Miyuki, what is it?"
"About your big friend there, Raditz? Make sure to thank him for the large blood donation he gave... If he and this one are friends, I'm sure he would like to thank Raditz, you know?" She said sweetly, and Bulma nodded, feeling slightly doubtful.
"Y-Yeah, I'll... tell him."
"Also, I wasn't able to get in contact with Launch again, but we have received some interesting results from the blood pathology... It happened early on in her pregnancy, so it was difficult for us to tell, but we believe Launch was pregnant with twins. Was she aware?" The nurse asked hesitantly, and Bulma shook her head.
"No... Not that I know of..." She shivered, as Miyuki lowered her eyes, and handed her a small, unmarked urn from out of the bag.
"W-What is this?" Bulma gasped, and looked into Miyuki's large, mournful blue eyes.
"Well, we would like to express our condolences with this small token of remembrance, perhaps you can tell her better than I, but... we found evidence that indicates something very unfortunate happened to Launch before she came here. An extremely rare event named Vanishing Twin Syndrome, which is where one embryo has absorbed the other.
This is why she had the symptoms of a miscarriage, and an afterbirth, but no visible stillbirth... the perforation in her uterine lining was from the other fetus... bursting through, into her other uterus in order to... eat the other." Miyuki said in a trembling voice, and Bulma hugged her, suddenly sobbing, then Bunny joining in as the women all cried for Launch's loss. Bulma had no idea how she could explain this to Launch, or how, but she knew that she would be devastated.
"Wait.. before you go, I have just one more thing to say. Please tell her, so that she can inform the father. The tests have told us that the father of the deceased was our past patient, Tien Shinhan." She said softly, handing Bulma the paperwork, as Bulma cradled the tiny urn to her chest, and shook her head back and forth, attempting to hold back her sorrow.
"He's.. no longer... with us." She managed to choke out, and Miyuki gasped, before hugging her again, "Tell Launch that all of us at East Medical send our regards, for both her, and loss." Miyuki said softly, and Bulma nodded.
"Um, I need to get back in there, I'll see you this weekend?" Miyuki said, as Bulma nodded. "Yes, and don't forget to bring a date." She said huskily, and walked away to go sit down, as her mother rubbed her back, and spoke sweet nothings into her ear to comfort her.
...
"Miss Briefs?" a voice called, and both Bulma and Bunny's heads popped up from where they had been snoozing against eachother, and the nurse chuckled softly.
"The patient's surgery was a success. He's resting now. He should be on bed rest for a few weeks, after the rough shape he was in." The doctor said, and Bulma had to hold back her laughter, Right. You just try and keep him in bed that long! She giggled softly, then yawned, stretching her arms out over her head, then looking over and realizing she was still wearing that silly armour.
"Can you have him transferred to room #6 on the second floor?" Bunny whispered, and showed them to the elevator, as Bulma lingered there in the infirmary just a moment, wandering back into the room, and watching as they emptied out with Vegeta in tow. Bulma stood and stared at the small tray left in the room, with the bloody instruments on it. She wasn't sure how long she was standing there, in a daze, until she felt a hand resting on her shoulder.
"Don't you think it's time you left, dear?" Her father said softly, and Bulma jumped a little, "Oh! Daddy..." She whimpered, and he put one arm around her back, and nudged her to walk with him.
"Come along, let's get you to your room." He said softly, and she rested her head against her father, softly sniffling as he walked her to the elevator and it closed behind them.
A low muttering sound woke Chi-Chi, as she slowly blinked, her eyes adjusting to the light of dawn. A warmth was hot on her back, as the forearm around her waist squeezed tighter, and she heard the muttering again.
"No... I don't... remember..." It was the man sleeping behind her talking in his sleep, as Chi-Chi rolled over to face him; pulling up the blue fur blanket covering their bare bodies.
"I'm not... you... Gohan!" Kakarot suddenly shouted, his eyes flying open, as Chi-Chi clapped her hand over his panting mouth to quiet him, then peeked over at Gohan, who was still sleeping soundly in the pod.
"Shh! He's still sleeping." She whispered, then cuddled up against him, resting her head against his chest.
"Oh, right... heh.. guess I forgot," Kakarot said in a more Goku-like fashion, and Chi-Chi raised one eyebrow, and a small smile made her cheeks pinken, as he stroked one hand down her back and squeezed her bottom.
"There's still time before he wakes up..." He said more gruffly, and Chi-Chi giggled, looking back to make sure Gohan's eyes were closed, before he moved quickly over her, and began placing kisses on her throat. "Kakarot..." She whispered, and fell helpless to her passion, as she found herself lost in his arms once again.
...
The Goku sleeping on the couch at King Kai's groaned, one hand twitching as the others looked over at him from where they'd been eating breakfast, and watching King Kai's favorite early morning comedy show.
"Chi-Chi..." He groaned, then made an odd sound like a growl, and everyone stopped their loud crunching on their cereal for a moment to listen in.
"Uh, guys?" Krillin said, gulping as his eyes quickly moved back up to Goku's face, and gave Tien a knowing look, raising his thick eyebrows. Tien glanced over quickly, then slapped a hand over all three eyes.
"Jeez! I didn't need to see that!" He groaned, shaking his head, as Chiaotzu's eyes seemed even wider, and his face paler as his head blocked King Kai from seeing what had everyone regretting looking at Goku's lower half.
"What? What's everyone all staring at?" King Kai blurted out, then his face paled as Chiaotzu moved his big head out of the way.
"You boys have some serious issues!" He sputtered, and they all laughed, turning away and dismissing the fairly obvious tent in Goku's orange pants.
"Guess he must be having a hot dream about Chi-Chi!" Krillin laughed, and Tien joined him, "That must be it! Haha!" Then Chiaotzu blinked, and frowned back.
"Maybe he's more alert than we thought, boys. All joking aside, there's many things we do not know about death, and how he could be travelling to the world beyond. We should leave him be, I'm afraid any interference here with his current state, could potentially alter him permanently." King Kai said sternly, and everyone grew sober.
"You mean, maybe he isn't just having a dream?" Krillin said, and King Kai nodded.
"Yes, perhaps he's on another plane of existence, where he's been ...reunited with his wife." He said, then cleared his throat.
"Wouldn't that be funny? Or maybe it is after all, just a little bit of 'rigor mortis!' " King Kai giggled, and Tien shook his head, scowling.
"You know, you really had us going for a minute there, then you had to make a sick joke like that! I swear, you'll laugh at anything!"
"Yeah, that's worse than Master Roshi, King Kai! Shame on you!" Krillin sneered, crossing his arms.
"That's gross!" Chiaotzu spat, having lost his appetite completely. King Kai laughed nervously, twiddling his thumbs behind his back. "Ah, hehe... Sorry about that, why don't we give Goku some peace and quiet, and head out for today's training?"
Krillin sighed, and stood.
"Yeah, poor Goku... I honestly do hope that wherever he is, he's having a good time."
"Yes, I feel the same way. I would feel horrible if Goku had to pass through hell like I did." Tien said, and pulled a blanket up to Goku's chin to cover him, and Chiaotzu patted it, tucking him in lovingly, before they left to go outside.
"Gohan... it's ok... daddy's here..." Goku croaked, his body trembling for a moment, before becoming still once again.
...
"Oh, Goku that was great," Chi-Chi sighed, collapsing against his chest, her loose black hair splayed across him.
"Wow, there's just something different about you lately that really turns me on!" She giggled, and Kakarot snorted, wrapping one arm around her as they looked up at the clouds passing over the blue sky.
"Did you forget again? Remember, I said my name is Kakarot, I thought you would know that, you say it enough when I'm on top of you." He murmured through his teeth, his bitter grimace emulating no other than his father as Chi-Chi turned around quickly to glare at him, getting over her bliss, and growling.
"You're still on that roleplay kick! Jeez, how many times do I have to scream 'Kakarot'! until you're satisfied?!" She said, exasperated, as he chuckled and pulled her over him, kissing her lips with a sweetness like her Goku, and a primal hunger like alter-ego. Chi-Chi gave into his kisses, holding his face and smiling as his tail wagged under the blanket.
"Oh! And your tail! When did you grow it back?" She giggled, as he moved it up to tickle her cheek playfully.
"Never lost it.." He growled, and wrapped it around her neck gently like a fur collar, pulling her up to kiss him, as his hips sunk back down.
"G-Go- Kakarot!" She gasped, then wrapped her legs around him.
"Mom?" A small, tinny voice was barely audible, then they heard a knocking on the glass. Chi-Chi froze, and Kakarot looked down at her in warning, unwilling to remove himself from his mate just because their brat was watching.
"Get off me now, before Gohan sees, you goof!" Chi-Chi hissed, slapping at his back. "Dad?" The small voice questioned, and made Kakarot stiffen in response. Gohan looked at Kakarot curiously, something was different about his father, but the resemblance was so uncanny, he dismissed it. His father moved off of Chi-Chi and stood, unashamed of his nudity like usual, as he picked his black breifs up off the ground with his tail, then pulled them on.
That's odd, I don't remember daddy having a tail... Gohan thought, his eyes wide as he placed his hands on the glass.
Chi-Chi pulled the blanket up to her chin, and blushed. Here she was, rolling in the grass first thing in the morning, as naked as the day she was born, with Gohan not 10 feet away!
What kind of mother does that? She thought, then hid her face in the blanket. Kakarot winked at her and chuckled, She looks so cute and sexy, just like the morning after our wedding night... He thought, warmly recalling the odd image of her in a white dress as he walked over to the pod, and popped it open with a hiss.
"Daddy!" Gohan immediately cheered, jumping up into his arms to hug him. Kakarot didn't know how to respond, the concept of hugging seemed so far away and foreign to him as the boy wrapped his arms around his neck, and squeezed tightly.
"Son," Kakarot said, and patted his back once. He gulped, feeling an odd stirring in his chest like before, as he pulled the child back by his arms to look at him intently, examining the child's appearance, and his resemblance to him, which as Kakarot stared, was becoming apparent as he glanced back at Chi-Chi and confirmed it, seeing the woman wiping tears from her eyes as she watched. He felt a lump swelling in his throat and swallowed it, puzzled.
Why am I feeling... so... emotional, I was desensitized as a brat. I haven't felt like this since I was on Planet Vegeta. Odd.
"Daddy! I thought you both died when you and Uncle Raditz fought!" The little boy managed to sob out, and Kakarot cringed, pulling him back.
Images flashed through his mind of an intense battle with his brother that seemed strangely familiar, but he shook it off. He'd been in many sparring matches with Raditz, but they'd never ended with death.
"Stop that wailing, do I look dead to you? And your 'Uncle' Raditz is fine, I'm sure he's just off on some mission." He retorted gruffly, his fist clenching as he calmed the urge to simply slap the boy into submission, something in him made him hesitate, as well as his worry for how the female would react.
Chi-Chi would never forgive me! He gulped, thinking of her waving around a frying pan, then he came back out of it as the child interrupted.
"Really? So, can we see him? I want to have a picnic! We can have lots of food!" Gohan said happily, his small tail wagging, and Kakarot shrugged his shoulders, after all, he did like to eat.
"Eh, I suppose maybe sometime when we're off duty. Right now, we'll have to make do with what we can hunt." Kakarot supposed, and set down the boy, who instantly ran towards his mother.
Is he not whelped yet? That's odd, saiyan boys his age should be weaned from their mother.
"Hey! Let your mother get dressed, boy. We'll go fetch the meat." He growled, and Gohan slowed down, hesitating to run into Chi-Chi's open arms. Gohan tilted his head a moment and blinked, remembering a familiar image of a small woman with short, spiky black hair, and warm, dark eyes that was almost, but not quite like Chi-Chi. He looked back as Kakarot began pulling on his armour, and walked back towards him, staring at the ground.
"Gohan, sweetie?" Chi-Chi murmured, her hand to her chin as tears threatened to spill from her eyes at her son's rejection.
"I'll be back later, mother." He said solemnly, then flew off with Kakarot, the memories from his almost desensitization rolling through his mind, and conflicting with what he currently knew. Kakarot looked over at Gohan, and scoffed, examining the garish yellow and green garments he wore, that appeared to have no use in battle.
"Where's your armour, boy? Or have you not earned it?" He spat, and Gohan turned his head in question.
"Hmm? You mean like your Gi? I haven't earned that yet from Mr. Piccolo." He responded, eyeing his father's armour, and recognizing how it resembled his Uncle Raditz's. Some small, forgotten gear in his brain clicked, and he smirked.
"Though, I'd really like to wear armour befitting a Saiyan, after all." He said, and turned his face back, as Kakarot narrowed his eyes on him. Something was odd about this boy, as was this entire situation. Everyone on this planet was supposed to be dead, but here he was, playing house with his long-lost family. He couldn't help himself though, he thought maybe he'd just play with the woman for one night, but he found himself marking her, resealing their bond, that he himself only had a faint memory of. But, Kakarot had never had a mate and children, Frieza didn't allow for familial relations within his army. For whatever reason, he just couldn't tear himself away from her, and a strong urge was welling up inside of him that reminded him of what Saiyan fathers do with young whelps like Gohan.
Gohan. What kind of name is that, definitely not Saiyan. Perhaps while out of sight of the female, I shall test this boy's resilience. If he truly is my son, he'll survive.
The beachside was dark, as the Saiyans left there were milling about, building odd structures with the leftover materials from the destroyed sanctuary, and rather quickly; as Launch noted, watching from atop a rock. Her newfound father, Nappa, was directing this odd gathering, ordering around the others with a sense of leadership that they didn't question. The Saiyans were skilled builders, she found out, and quick, too. They decided they liked the beachfront, and were using the un-marred area of the beach, near the trees, where the structures made of discarded wood and obsidian would stand, after being blasted with hot ki blasts to reinforce them.
Launch sighed, "This is boring. I wonder what Raditz is doing." She said, and flew down off the tall rock. What she didn't expect was to see Kannon there, leaning up against it with her arms crossed.
"Oh, uh. Hello." Launch blurted out awkwardly, glancing back at the camp, then at her mother.
"Hey... Quick builders, aren't they?" Kannon said with a smirk.
"Yeah, uhh... do you plan on staying... here?" Launch said, rubbing the goosebumps on her arms.
"Maybe for a while, I dunno. I haven't really had the freedom to ever explore this planet. This beach is the farthest I've ever been. Nappa just likes having someone to yell at. He spent a long time not being in command like he was used to, and now that he's got his own followers, he's just catching up for lost time." She said, watching him from afar, and sighing.
"Oh, yeah? I see. So, you and him... are together, like..."
"Mates? Yup." Kannon responded quickly, and Launch jumped a little in her skin, suddenly feeling nervous, she rubbed her neck where her mark was.
"You and Raditz are too? That's cute." Kannon snorted, and Launch steamed.
"That's none a' your buisness!"
Kannon laughed, and twirled the tassel on her cannon blaster playfully.
"Raditz has grown up to be a good man. Smart, strong, handsome. Just like I thought he would." She said warmly, and Launch nodded.
"Yeah... he said, you were like his mother, after his own passed?" She said cautiously, and Kannon nodded somberly, looking down at the ground.
"I tried, it's not easy trying to keep little Saiyans under control, they were always getting into everything, eating everything, making messes... hm. But I really loved those boys." She said with a smile.
"Aww. I bet Raditz was a cute little boy!" Launch smiled back, her tail swaying back and forth a little.
Kannon chuckled, "Sure, he was. If you can consider sneaky to be cute." She chuckled, noticing her tail.
"I see, you have a part of your father." She smirked, and Launch turned to show her the tail. "Raditz taught me how to use it. I can do all kinds of stuff with my tail, watch!" Launch said, suddenly gloating, as she went to wrap her tail around Kannon's ankles to take her down; for a bit of action to break the tension. Kannon stepped out of the way quickly, and grabbed her tail, making Launch grunt, then whirl around, and pull hard with her tail, knocking her mother on her back.
"Oof! Hey, you!" Kannon growled, then kicked out quickly from the ground, striking her in the back of the knees, and making her buckle, before putting her in a headlock, cackling maliciously.
"Urrg! Lemme GO!" Launch growled, then pushed her head up and bucked into Kannon's chin, making her teeth click together. "Oww!" She whimpered, holding one hand over her mouth, and Launch whirled around, pulling her semi from her armour, and aiming it at her.
"Hah! How'd ya like that, 'Mommy'!" She chuckled, and aimed the gun. Kannon growled, a heat coming out from around her, as her anger grew, in a red, wavy aura. Launch's erupted in turn, blazing golden, her hair raising slightly as she cackled.
"You've been a naughty little brat!" Kannon snarled, and pulled the tassel of her cannon blaster; making one blast out. Launch's eyes widened, and she ducked, gasping as the rock behind her was blasted into nothing, as the cannonball exploded.
"Whoa! You're psycho!" Launch shouted back, and began pelting her with bullets. Kannon sneered, as she surged out a golden light, and the bullets fell harmless to the ground, made into little pieces of hard licorice candy.
"What!? What the hell!" Launch screeched, as Kannon bent down, and popped one in her cheek, smirking with her achievement.
"You can make candy?!" Launch exclaimed, and Kannon nodded.
"Candy. Chicken. You name it, I could probably make it."
"Wow... That's awesome!" Launch said, lowering her gun. "Here." Kannon said, and tossed her one. "Try it."
Launch looked at the candy suspiciously, sniffing it, then popped it in her mouth, and tasted the familiar taste of sweet licorice candy.
"Let's take these to the others." Kannon said, and Launch nodded, squatting down to help her pick up all the little bullet shaped candies.
As they walked away, with Launch's tail wagging, and Kannon looking at her daughter with curious admiration, a soft crumbling of stones could be heard in the quiet, as Tianshae wedged herself in further to the rocky corner she had hidden herself in, waiting for the right moment to make her move. She wasn't quite sure what to do now, seeing as Vulcane was seemingly dead, but she hesitated to leave, the hypnosis that he put on her still lingering, as she'd watched the two conversing, and felt a hurt twinge deep in her heart.
"Tien." She whispered, and sobbed.
Where was her son? Dead? That's what it sounded like. She felt hopeless now, she had no family, no home now, no purpose. Tianshae peeked out a small opening in the rocks, and made an uneasy sound. She looked back over to where the women were walking together, laughing, then over to the darkness, where a burn trail in the slick obsidian had pulverized the glass into sand.
Saiashi... the wind whispered, and Tianshae whined again, crawling out onto her hands and knees, not caring as tiny shards of glass punctured her skin.
"Master... Master.. I must help the Master..." She chanted, her dark chestnut eyes glowing crimson in the shadows.
He hummed to himself as Dr. Briefs went to the kitchen, opening up the fridge, and taking out the milk and strawberry syrup, then making a tall glass of strawberry milk for his little girl. He then walked over to the medicine cabinet they kept over the counter, and opened it, taking out two bottles, one was labeled Diazapam, the other, was unmarked. He unscrewed the bottle of Valium, and dropped one pill in the garbage, then turned, and shook out a plain, blue pill of placebo, which by this point, was only about 10% Valium, as he kept track of the dosing, slowly weaning Bulma off, without her noticing. He closed the bottle, and put the both of them back, leaving the kitchen.
"Aaah...mmm.." Bulma yawned, and stretched, coming out of the large luxurious bathroom suite in the hall, where her mother insisted she take a long soak, while she looked after Vegeta, and Bulma relaxed. Bulma strolled out freely, wearing a thick pink terry cloth bathrobe, her short hair already drying as she raked her fingers through it, smirking at how convenient it would be now to style and dry. Bulma hesitated to walk in her room, and instead looked over to the door on the left, which was Vegeta's. She shrugged, and strolled over, pushing open the door, not before hearing a loud crash coming from her room.
"I said that's enough! Don't touch me, old woman!" Vegeta shouted, and Bulma jumped, startled, as her father bumped into her from behind, "Oh, poppycock!" He fumed, as she turned to look at him, and saw her poor father's glasses were covered in a pink, dripping substance, and he looked incredibly angry, as Scratch licked the milk off his face.
"I'm sorry Daddy! Was that for me?" She asked, feeling bad, she used her sleeve to clean his face.
"Yes," He sputtered, and offered her the still half full glass, and the pill in his hand, and Bulma took them, apologetic, as he walked away quickly to go get himself cleaned up. Bulma eyed the pill in her hand, and frowned, noticing it was melted from the milk wetting it. She walked over to a trash bot that was sitting inert in the hallway, and dropped it in. It lit up, making a beeping sound.
"Dispose of substance?" It chirruped, and she nodded. "Destroy."
"Destroying. Substance is 90% Sugar. 10% Diazapam, bendodiazapime. Anti-Depressant, Relaxer." It chirped, before there was a grinding sound, and a green light, indicating that it was taken care of. Bulma sipped her milk, her brows furrowing together.
Hmm... That's certainly odd. She perked back up quickly, as her mother came running out into the hall, sobbing, as pillows and stuffed animals pelted her, stuffing and feathers flying.
"Bulma! Help! Why's he so mean to me?!" She wailed, as Bulma stormed over to the door angrily, holding her mother back, to tear open the door.
"Hey! Don't make my Momma cry, Vegeta!" She shouted, as she saw him, then suddenly sputtered with bafflement.
Vegeta was propped up against her head board, with pillows supporting him, a tray table of goodies over his lap, and big bunny slippers on his feet.
"I told her, stop doting on me, damn it! I don't need all this soft and fluffy CRAP!" He growled, and Bulma burst out laughing, holding her stomach as Bunny ran back in, and tore off his slippers, batting him over the head with one.
"Veggie, you are an ungrateful, naughty boy! I don't think your mother would appreciate you treating me this way!" She shouted, then went to take away his plate of cookies, and his milk.
"What! I didn't say take those! My mother would slit your throat, you- elderly woman! Don't you dare talk about my mother as if you knew her!" He growled, and Bunny huffed, crossing her arms, letting him have the cookies.
"Well, it's not as if we were ever properly introduced! If you're going to mar-"
"MOM!" Bulma yelled, and yanked her away. "That's enough!" She hissed, then turned back and gave Vegeta a reproachful glare, before closing the door, whispering lowly.
"Momma, Vegeta's parents died a long time ago, please, don't push him too hard. I'll take care of him, ok?" She said softly, patting her shoulders as her mother sniffled.
"He-he called me elderly!" She cried, covering her face and sobbing hysterically.
"Mom, you aren't elderly! You're only 55 years old, that's not that old!" Bulma soothed her, patting her shoulders.
"I'm a senior citizen, Bulma!" She snapped, then began wailing again, so loud it hurt her ears, and Vegeta's from behind the door.
"How am I supposed to get any rest with that ridiculous racket!" He hissed from inside, and Bulma thrust open the door, furious.
"Vegeta, apologize to my mother, right now!" She demanded, stomping her foot.
"Me? You want ME, The Prince of All Saiyans, to apologize to a feeble old woman?!" He retorted back, sweat spraying from his red face as he snapped, and began tearing off the blankets covering him, sending the cookies flying, as he stood up, his fists clenched angrily at his sides as the bandage covered man winced as he yelled.
"These people have no respect! Get out of my way, I can't be in this stuffy room any longer!" He growled, but Bulma blocked his exit, by pulling her mother forth, who quickly flinched from being pulled towards Vegeta. Bulma looked at him sternly, and he looked at her with a furrowed brow, then at the pitiful little woman trying to curl up in a ball against Bulma from fear.
"Tch. This is ridiculous!" He huffed, crossing his arms, one eye twitching as his arm grazed his abdomen, which was slowly losing blood.
"It's... Ok, Bulma. Really. You don't hafta force him to apologize, after all... I shouldn't have touched his neck." She said softly, then flinched again, as Bulma looked at her oddly.
"His... neck?" She said, puzzled, and looked back at Vegeta, who turned his head so she couldn't see the inflamed mark on his neck.
"I revoke my insults, alright? Just tell her to watch where she's touching! Matter of fact, I don't want her touching me, ever!" Vegeta growled, and to Bulma's surprise, her mother nodded.
"Ok. I won't touch you, Vegeta. I understand... you need your.. personal space." She said softly, a tear dropping from her eyelash.
"And?" Bulma said, raising her brows at Vegeta. He looked perplexed a moment, then sighed.
"Hn. You are not what we Saiyans consider 'elderly'. In fact, you are aging naturally, as a Saiyan woman would, you show hardly any signs of.. wrinkles, or graying hair." He muttered, not making eye contact, as Bunny's chin lifted, and her eyes widened.
"Really..? You, really think so?" She said, her eyes sparkling. He nodded once to confirm it. "Ohh! Vegeta! You charmer!" She blushed, holding her hands to her cheeks. Bulma laughed, and another laugh followed, as Dr. Briefs joined in. Bunny ran to him and hugged him, squeezing her husband tightly.
"Honey! Did'ya hear! Vegeta was so sweet to me!" She giggled, and he kissed her forehead.
"Ah, well. It's about time! Now, Panchy, I agree with him on one level, though I don't appreciate his wording." He said, eyeing Vegeta, who stiffened, as he took a pen out of his pocket, and clicked it as a warning.
"I agree with him, darling. I think perhaps you should leave the tending to Bulma, if that's who he feels the most comfortable with. Or, myself." He said, clearing his throat. Bunny looked back at Vegeta sadly, hoping that one day he would allow her to maybe hug him, or do any of the motherly things she couldn't help but feel drawn to do. "That would be preferable," Vegeta panted, then sat down, placing one hand on his abdomen, then pulling it away, as blood came away on his palm.
"I'll leave it to you... Bulma?" Her father said, and Bulma looked back quickly.
"Are you alright to handle... blood, dear?" He said carefully, and Bulma gulped, squeezing her glass of strawberry milk and looking down at the red ribbons laced throughout.
I'll just pretend... it's strawberry syrup!
She thought, feeling suddenly clever, she grinned.
"Yes, Daddy. Leave it to me!" She said, and saluted her father. Dr. Briefs chuckled, and saluted her with two fingers on his forehead, then left, with his arm wrapped around Bunny, who waved, smiling before resting her head back on her husband's chest with a contented sigh.
Bulma looked back to Vegeta, and gulped, as he eyed her carefully, not speaking, as he rested his hands on his thighs, breathing shakily.
"Are you fit to care for me, or do you feel faint?" He said, exhaling sharply. Bulma shook her head no, and walked up to him, moving one hand forth to feel his forehead. He was incredibly hot, and dripping with sweat. She was sure he had a fever, and it was likely hundreds of degrees higher than any human could withstand, she didn't dare use a thermometer, for fear it would explode.
"Just stay here, and I'll get you fixed up, ok?" She said, and pulled her hand back. Vegeta quickly took her hand, and to her surprise, kissed it, letting his lips rest there a moment, before taking her hand and stoking the back of it across his cheek, rubbing his scent on her. She smiled, "Why'd you do that?"
Vegeta quickly dropped her hand, and stared down at the plush pink carpeting.
"No reason... just, your skin is soft, and cool." He said, fibbing a little in his sudden shyness and she nodded, and kissed his temple, before going to the bathroom to gather the supplies she needed. Vegeta reclined back on the makeshift recliner her mother had made, and closed his eyes, hearing his own blood pulsing heavily in his ears.
"There." Bulma said, and he opened his eyes, his surroundings slightly fuzzy.
"Your bandages are changed, Vegeta. It all looks good. Just a little excess blood and fluid leaking out, from healing. But you heal faster than we do, so I suppose that's normal." She said sweetly, and he shuddered as she took a cold cloth, and wiped it down his broad, battle scarred chest, removing some of the black powder that still remained from battle. He gulped, feeling his throat was parched, and Bulma quickly moved, and offered him a straw, which was in a tall glass of cold red liquid.
"What's that?" He rasped, and Bulma giggled, taking a sip, "Tastes like cherry! It's Pedialyte. This is to replace the electrolytes and sugar you're losing in all that sweat, and to give you a boost of energy and vitamins!" She said sweetly, licking her lips. Vegeta flared his nostrils and sniffed it, then nodded, taking the straw, and drinking nearly half the glass.
"Ah, that's enough! Not too much. You'll have to go pee, and right now I want you to stay still!" She giggled, as he growled with embarrassment. Bulma pulled out an odd looking jug, and showed him that there was a round opening at the top.
"If you really have to go, use this! On second thought," She pouted, looking at the opening, then down at his groin.
"It may be just a bit of a squeeze for certain... parts." She said, and cleared her throat. Vegeta smirked with amusement as she set the jug aside, reclining back and relaxing, as Bulma carefully cleaned him with the cold cloth.
"Does that feel good?" She said, as she leaned over him, cleaning his face, smiling with upturned eyes like her mother.
"I know what would feel better," Vegeta purred, and used his one arm that felt like dead weight to squeeze her hip, and pull her up onto him.
"Vegeta! What do you think you're doing?" She huffed, moving away to be watchful of his bandages.
"You left the bed. I told you, don't get out of bed until I get back, so that we can finish the mating ceremony." He said sternly, and Bulma shook her head vehemently, her short hair whipping around.
"No WAY! You are in NO condition for sex!" She whispered sharply, and attempted to get up, but he was able to hold her in place easily.
"But, Bulma..." I'm in pain. He wanted to say, but couldn't; squinting his eyes shut as he felt the searing pain all through his veins from not sealing their bond, that was actually worse than the wounds he'd suffered.
"Not until you're better." She said stubbornly, and Vegeta exhaled slowly, and frowned, plopping his head back on the pillows, his hands slowly losing their grip on her back.
"If you insist." He grumbled, then closed his eyes, turning his face away from the lamplight to rest. Bulma pouted, feeling bad for refusing him like that, but it just wasn't a good idea right now. She leaned forward and kissed his cheek, then paused, noticing the purple and red mark on his throat, and kissed there, pulling back without seeing the irritation disappear instantly, making Vegeta's brows finally lose their tension, his face relaxing as his breaths grew heavier with slumber. She smiled, and sat on the side of the bed, pulling open a drawer to take out a round container of birth control pills, then popped one into her mouth, downing it with the rest of her milk, before turning off the light, and curling up next to Vegeta.
The tunnel echoed with the sound of their careful footsteps, as Raditz and Piccolo made their way through the carven out rock where Vegeta had shot his Galick Gun, and as Raditz watched through his scouter using the green light he'd installed in it to light their path, he saw wetness on the floor of the cavern. Piccolo paused, from where he was ahead a few steps, and turned, dipping one claw into the maroon, tacky substance.
"We're getting close," Piccolo said, and grunted, as he had a small amount of difficulty standing, Raditz took his hand and pulled him up. Piccolo growled, swatting his hand away.
"I don't need your help!" He snarled, and turned sharply, making a small choked back sound. Raditz could have sworn he heard the strange sound, and frowned, whispering, "Why so blue, green man?" as he followed close after him. He saw the fluctuations of the Namekian's power level on the scouter, and felt concerned that whatever was ahead, he was extra-sensitive to, and it couldn't mean well for him. He thought of telling Piccolo to turn back, but he relented. Piccolo was a proud individual, much like Vegeta, whom he was accustomed to. Raditz knew not to harm another man's pride, so he attempted to conceal his concern, and followed on.
"The blast must have melted the Gemini, if his blood is coating the walls like this." Raditz said, attempting to change the subject back to their searching, which Piccolo seemed very adamant on.
"Yes, your friend there made a massive blast, it was a worthy effort, but hopefully not in vain." Piccolo said roughly, climbing over some rock crystals that were jutting up from the tunnel. Raditz frowned, feeling slightly annoyed.
"Vegeta is not my friend alone. He is the Prince of All Saiyans. His effort, was great and better than any of us could hope to achieve." He said gratingly, gritting his teeth with his anger at the Namekian's disrespect. Piccolo hissed in pain as his pantleg caught on the sharp quartz crystal, cutting his calf. Raditz surged forth to help, but Piccolo quickly blasted him with a force of energy, which was slightly charged air that made him stumble back just slightly.
"Stay the hell away from me!" Piccolo roared, and tore his leg away from the obstruction with a grunt of pain, leaving purple blood glistening on the tip.
"Piccolo..." Raditz said, creasing his brow with worry, as the other man charged forth through the tunnel stubbornly. Raditz heard a beeping in his ear piece, and looked down at the crystal Piccolo had cut himself on. Yet now, the blood was gone, and there was a strange dissonance in the crystal, that he sensed even without the scouter, that gave him a small shudder.
"Piccolo! Wait!" He shouted, jumping over it quickly, hunching his back and moving deftly, as he had been trained to at a young age when they had to clear out the tunnels. "Agh!" He heard a garbled shout from up ahead, and ran even faster, coming to see with terror that Piccolo had stumbled into another crystal, and impaled his arm straight through with it, as he was surely unsteady on his feet. Raditz felt even angrier with the green man now.
"What did I tell you! Allow me to assist you!" He exclaimed, and pulled Piccolo off the shard violently, squeezing him with his rage. "Stop being a stubborn fool! If you don't stop this idiotic act, I will be forced to immobilize you and carry you on my back!" Raditz growled, and shook Piccolo, who squeezed his eyes shut, and winced with pain. Blood dripped through Raditz's fingers as he held him, and he quickly pulled back, setting down Piccolo to inspect his injured arm. Raditz wiped the odd purple blood off his hand on his jeans, before assessing his injuries. Piccolo laughed weakly at Raditz's insistence, and held one hand up to stop him.
"Hey, it's alright... Remember my trick?" Piccolo said, panting.
"Your.. trick?" Raditz replied, his eyes still focused on Piccolo's arm. Then he remembered, he'd blasted his arm off before.
"I can't do it right now...not in a mangled mess like this. Plus, I'll keep bleeding until I bleed out if I can't get some...water. But, we can stop the bleeding... if, you blast my arm clean off like before..." Piccolo struggled to speak, clutching his arm as it pumped out blood onto the ground.
"No!" Raditz shook his head, and squeezed his hand around Piccolo's wound, attempting to tourniquet the blood flow.
"That won't work. It's too late. Please do it. I still have the energy to grow another arm. Then we can keep going to get.. that bastard's heart!" He growled, and Raditz nodded. "Ah... Alright. Wait, I used my Double Sunday before to do that...! That attack is much too large to do in here..." He said, and Piccolo smiled.
"I have an idea, how quick of a learner are you?" He said, and Raditz smirked.
"Quick, tell me, what do you need me to do?" He said, though he already had an idea.
"You remember my special attack, right? Special Beam Cannon."
"Yes, how could I forget, it nearly killed me." Raditz chuckled, and moved aside his black tank top to show him the starburst of scar tissue between his chest and shoulder.
"You Saiyans... sure are impressive... alright, place two fingers on your forehead...and place the other on my arm... You're going to redirect your Double Sunday into one arm, and condense it... it's the only way.." Piccolo rasped, as Raditz stared at him, shaking his head.
"My arm.. it'll burst! All that power?" He said, gulping.
"Don't be silly... you've seen it yourself.. it's like that Prince's attack, and his arms don't explode, do they?" Piccolo said, smiling weakly. Raditz nodded quickly, "Ok. I trust you. I'm going to try." Raditz placed his hand around the area of torn flesh, and took a deep breath, placing two fingers on his forehead. As he concentrated, his fingers slowly became red and glowing.
"Good, you're doing great, but you need more power.." Piccolo said, and placed his free hand on Raditz's arm.
"Push past your fear and let it flow through you... imagine that there is a vortex in your body, and at the center, is your power. Each limb is a pathway, your legs, arms, even that... silly tail of yours..." He chuckled softly, as red and blue energy began to pulse out around Raditz, who was concentrating too hard to laugh, but Piccolo's support encouraged him, and he growled with the energy flowing through; imagining it running through his veins, wrapping around his bones, feeling a hot point of power at the tip of his tail, as he bared his teeth and snarled with his exertion.
"Yes, yes, you're doing it, Raditz! Now! Do your attack!" He said, and Raditz nodded once, and grunted, "Special...Beam... Sunday!" and a fiery red beam blasted out his hand, and cut through Piccolo's arm and straight through the cavern wall with ease, making him Piccolo cry out in agony, then laugh, as Raditz fell back, and looked at his hand with surprise, making sure it was still attached.
"Wow! What a blast! That was invigorating!" Raditz exclaimed, and helped Piccolo to stand, still a little woozy from the blood loss. He held him up carefully as Piccolo strained, blood dripping from his severed arm, and onto the floor in a puddle where the discarded limb lay. He groaned, veins pulsing in his pink bicep and throbbing, then the pressure gave, and a new arm shot out quickly from the wound.
"Amazing! So, that's regeneration!" Raditz exclaimed, and Piccolo chuckled, testing his new fingers, then clenching them into a fist.
"Yes! I feel great! I can fight! Let's do this!" He said with sudden vigor, and Raditz agreed, punching one hand into the other, "Agreed, let's grapple! I feel as strong as an Elite Warrior!" He said with just as much gusto, and the two flew down the tunnel with renewed energy, leaving behind Piccolo's powerful blood, which was sucked slowly into the exposed power crystals, which then glowed green, as a soft, rattling hiss of a chuckle could be heard from deep within.
ATTN: I want to let everyone know, I now have a Twitter specifically for fanfiction now, under the name royal_blue_roses. If you follow me you can see the artwork related to this story, I have a comic illustrating a scene in the last chapter, and I may make more. Maybe I'll even do polls and contests, but I need participants. I would love to have more interaction with my readers, and feedback on how you feel about the story and what you'd like to see next. Reminder, this Saga is almost over, and I will be moving onto the next under a separate name, but that won't happen for a few chapters. Also, for VegeBul lovers. I have a new short story in the making, like A Rose By Any Other Name, but this one will have a different theme. Look forward to seeing it soon!