Disclaimer: I do not own anything from the Dragon Ball universe. That privilege belongs to Akira Toriyama.

Disclaimer 2: I do not own the videos this story was inspired by those privileges belong to Rising Fist and Prince Vegeta

Summary: Vegeta has a secret meeting with a figure from his past. Hit has been cloned over the millennia. Vegeta gets some new digs as God of Destruction. Whis And Vegeta learn about Earth's fate and follow the trail of the survivors. Among the survivors of Earth is a not-so-familiar face. Whis is suspicious of his Lord. How long can Vegeta hide his truth from his attendant?

"I don't know, this seems risky, even for me. You're a god, can't you just, ya know, do some god stuff?" The male voice crackled over the large monitor, a broad-shouldered figure sat in the shadows on the other end, the amount of time and space between them caused static and lag.

"Please," Vegeta dropped to his knees in front of the monitor that hid inside his armoire. "I am begging you to help me, I can't trust anyone else with this information. It's only you that I can ask this of." He had promised himself many years ago to let this individual live in peace but he needed help, and didn't know where else to turn to for this particular request.

"Wow, I never thought I would see you, of all people, beg." The darkened figure sat back in his seat as he watched the God of Destruction beg.

"I will as many times as I need to," Vegeta bowed his head and clasped his hands together over his head to plead with his body as well as his words. "I need your help, only you have the abilities to assist me."

"You know I am in a lot of trouble already, this could-"

"It could alter the fate of the entire omniverse." Vegeta spoke in earnest, he needed help if he was ever going to find Bulma's reincarnation.

"Why can't you trust Whis?" The man asked, concerned this could get them all erased.

"I have already told you, he could turn around and tell his father, who would, in turn, tell Grand Zeno, and then I will be obliterated along with her, again ." Vegeta deepened his bow in hopes of swaying the man to do his bidding. "I can't have that happen."

There was a pause, static cracked and the image wavered. Vegeta pressed his forehead to the floor and waved his joined hands over his head, as high as he could reach in his current position. Then came a loud sigh of resignation, "Alright. I will look into it."

"Thank you!" Vegeta snapped his head up but stayed on his knees. "I cannot tell you what this means. Truly I am indebted to you-"

"That is enough groveling, yeesh, it's making me uncomfortable. I will come to you when I find something. I can't disrupt the flow for this or we could be discovered."

"Please hurry."

"I will." There was another long silence before the shadowed figure spoke again. "It is good to see you again."

"And you, thank you, truly. I-"

"Don't mention it. Seriously. Don't ever mention this. Well, at least not until you change fate." Vegeta could make out the flash of teeth when the man smiled. It was ironic for them, this situation.

Vegeta nodded and the screen cut out. Heaving a great sigh the god began to pace about his room. He tried to wear a groove in his floor while he waited for Whis to return. He had contemplated telling him to find Hit himself, but didn't want to make this any more bizarre than it already was. Requesting the presence of the cloned assassin from the neighboring universe was odd enough, especially after millennia of...nothing. Vegeta couldn't bring himself to tell anyone what he was seeking. Anyone that might speak of it anyway.

"Whis!" Vegeta barked through his castle, as he stormed down the corridor towards the grand hall. His meeting with Hit had been stressful. The assassin wasn't used to this type of mission and with such vague details was reluctant to agree. Eventually, Vegeta gave him just the right incentive to complete the task. He only prayed to the Omni Celestials, Hit wouldn't find anything.

"Yes, my lord? How may I help you?" Whis said, appearing a step behind Vegeta as the Saiyan marched down the corridor.

Vegeta froze at the sound of the airy voice behind him, he hated when Whis did this. "I need to get away from this stuffy castle." Vegeta growled anxiously to hide his surprise that his attendant had chosen to flank him. It was a tactic Whis used when he was annoyed and Vegeta knew it. He would have to guard his emotions better.

"My Lord?" Whis implored again, his expression detached and cold.

"What's happening on earth?" Vegeta wanted the conversation to turn away from what he had been doing and towards a destination, they could move towards.

"Sire," Whis began apprehensively, it had been many millennia since Vegeta had even uttered the name of his home. "I do not know if that is advisable, you-"

"Whis, it can't be that bad can it?" Vegeta barked and sneered, threatening Whis for questioning his ability to cope.

"Well no. It is very different now. Not at all like you remember." Whis warned.

"I don't care, I need a distraction." Vegeta commanded and turned on his heel to march out into the courtyard to get some fresh air. "And some food." He added over his shoulder.

"This should certainly do both jobs." Whis concluded following his Destroyer out into the open. "However, I can not allow you to leave in this state." he added, gesturing to Vegeta's attire. Looking down at himself Vegeta didn't see what was wrong with him. He was still dressed in his Destroyer garb, something he loathed and didn't care if he was missing the collar or not. It was oversized and absurd. "Honestly, I can't believe you met with Hit in that state, just look at your attire you look like a half-dressed monkey." Vegeta growled at Whis for his last comment. "Are you trying to solidify my opinion?"

Glaring at the Celestial, Vegeta stepped back from the tall blue being. "I hate that fucking thing."

"Oh my." Whis gasped at the ferocity in Vegeta's tone. "Why didn't you say anything before my Lord? That is traditional but there are several varieties of Destroyer dress. Everything from actual dresses to suits not dissimilar to the flight suits you used to wear."

"And you are just telling me this now!? I have been sauntering around the universe topless all these years for nothing!?" Vegeta was livid, they had put him in this costume and never said another word about it.

"Again, you could have said something, Vegeta. You are a god, you are not bound to an outdated costume."

"How the hell was I to know, I am bound to this stupid planet and it ruined my-" Vegeta couldn't bring himself to say his marriage was ruined by the arbitrary bonds to a planet that was uninhabitable for his spouse. "Just put me in something else, something that covers me for fuck's sake."

"So a dress would suffice? What length of skirt would you prefer?"

"Kami's sake! What are the suit options?" Vegeta snapped.

Giggling at how red Vegeta's ears were turning Whis opened the pocket dimension in his orb and materialized several different options for the former prince to choose from. "These are your options, and of course there are long, short, or sleeveless suits with either full length or short legs. They come in both black, or white."

Vegeta inspected each set with a quickly assessing eye. All of the options were unadorned of the diamonds that would appear once Vegeta wore them. And the colored stripes that framed in the uppermost diamond were all white. This was the one difference between his clothes and Beerus's, Vegeta did not have a blue aura before he became a god. It was violet and what had been blue on Beerus was now purple on Vegeta, his waistband being a deep royal indigo. The Diamonds were Whis's brand, and marked Vegeta as the god he was responsible for. There were four options set out before him, a decent variety of styles and it didn't take Vegeta long to decide.

The first had a thinner version of the collar, only this time it was a part of a golden armor that was fitted with musculature definition of the pecks, that peaked out from under the collar, as well as the upper abdominals. The armor ended with the ribs leaving an open strip between it and the sash that was thinner than the one he currently wore.

The next set was simpler and made of a leather-like material. It was a chest plate that matched the collar he had thrown away. Another one was made of a golden scale mail that hung to mid-thigh. Around the top was a collar identical to his missing one. Lastly, a very basic style. Consisting of two interlocking, wide straps that met over the sternum for the diamond to reside.

Sneering at all of the latter options, Vegeta turned back to the first and reached out for it.

"Allow me, Sire. Am I correct in assuming you desire a full suit, in black?" Vegeta only nodded and Whis waved his staff to change Vegeta into his new garb.

Vegeta had to retain his full cufflet set. Two earrings: one in each ear set back from the lobe but not in the cartilage, a gold ring collar, two armbands, two full cuffs, and two anklets. The new sash had the traditional long front panel, and three plain black ones, three-quarters the length of the forward one. They rested one at each hip and one in the back. The black suit went from ankle to wrist to the golden ring around Vegeta's throat. In order to please Vegeta, something that grew more difficult with each passing millennium, Whis added a pair of gloves to nest under the cuffs and a pair of boots to be cinched by the anklets. Both were a match for the Saiyan style he used to wear.

As the golden plates of his new armor joined together over his chest, Vegeta felt it tighten around him, forcing all the air from his lungs. Collapsing to his hands and knees Vegeta struggled to take in a breath. The more he labored to breathe the tighter it constricted, until he began to feel real, physical pain, for the first time in an age. Panic began to set in when he looked to Whis for an answer, but the shock and horror on the Celestial's face told Vegeta neither of them had any idea what was happening to him.

Whis was stunned into inaction when Vegeta fell to his knees. He had never heard of a god having a reaction to their clothes. After sharing the frightened look with Vegeta, he scrambled to try to remove the armor but his staff wouldn't work on it. Whis bent down to try to pull it off with his hands when Vegeta's ki erupted out of him in an impressive show of raw unbridled power.

In one final attempt to free himself from the crushing confinement of his armor, Vegeta amassed all his power. He allowed it to build just under the surface for only a second before unleashing it in a concussive wave around him. Knocking Whis over one hundred meters away before the angel righted himself. Again they only stared at each other, words no longer adequate for the situation.

Finally, Vegeta was able to take a full breath.

Pulling against the armor he found it perfectly form fitting. Unbuckling one side he slid it over his head and inspected the inside of the smooth metal. Whis joined him, still at a loss for words, they both appraised the new item. Finding nothing out of the ordinary Vegeta broke the silence.

"If I put it back on, will it do that again?"

"There is only one way to find out." Whis said, daring Vegeta to do it again with his tone and the way he side-eyed him.

Releasing a sigh Vegeta took a deep breath and placed the armor back over his shoulders and slowly buckled the side. He held in his air, waiting for the painful shrinking feeling to start again. Whis leaned closer watching him intently for any sign it might happen again. They both waited a few more seconds before Vegeta released his breath and was capable of resuming normal respiration.

"Huh?" Whis tipped his head and scrutinized Vegeta in his new clothes. "These suit you much better. Shall we?"

The celestial brushed the entire incident off like it was of little significance. Vegeta pulled at the sides of his armor once more just to reassure himself it wouldn't try to squeeze the life out of him again. He then reached out and grabbed Whis's shoulder and the two began their journey to Earth.

"What did you need from Hit, my lord?" Whis asked only three minutes after their departure.

"Nothing really," Vegeta grumbled, not wanting to have a conversation during their fifteen-minute flight.

"But something you couldn't ask of me, or even allow me to be privy to?" Whis let his annoyance with the day's events show.

"What exactly are you getting at Whis?"

"I am only pointing out that it was rather odd for you to request Hit, my lord, and I thought we were getting on so well." The teasing tone was not lost on Vegeta. They were companions for the past million years, and although he found the celestial tiresome and nosy, he was the only person Vegeta had left in this life.

"It's not like that, Whis."

"Oh? And what is it like? If you don't mind me asking?" Whis dug again, he had received next to zero information about his Lord's suspicious behavior and it was irritating him. He liked Vegeta, even if the man was a bit stuffy at times. He was a far more benevolent god than Beerus was, and didn't treat him like a servant or slave most of the time.

He knew this side of Whis, the celestial working… But for whom? The Omni king, or these Omni celestials ? He would have to stay guarded until he knew for sure. "It was nothing, just a dream," Vegeta said, hoping to placate his keeper. "I sent Hit to look into it." The tip of Vegeta's tail flicked with the lie, and he was thankful he was sitting behind Whis at the moment.

"Hmmm, are you sure my lord? For gods, dreams are often premonitions." This entire situation was giving Whis deja vu from back when Beerus had gone searching for the Saiyan god, and he found three of them.

"Let us hope not, Whis," Vegeta added darkly.

"Whatever do you mean lord Vegeta?" Whis asked, looking over his shoulder at the Saiyan.

"It was just an old nightmare Whis, nothing more." Vegeta refused to look Whis in the eye even though he felt the angel scrutinising him.

"If you say so my lord." Whis faced forward again, feeling dejected, his concern for Vegeta etched upon his face.

"Whis, if it was of importance, we would be seeing to it, personally . I sent Hit out to search the other universes, just to be certain." Vegeta tried to placate the celestial, and in truth, the only thing he had that could ever be considered a friend. He didn't like lying to Whis, but it was still too early to risk anyone else knowing fully what was going on. " If he comes back with anything then we will take care of it, but I doubt it." Whis didn't respond so Vegeta tried to lighten the mood "Hehehe, gods I hope it amounts to nothing, how comical would that be if I sent him on a wild tail chase across the universes?" Vegeta drew on the persona he had perfected over the two decades in Frieza's army. 'Two decades…' Was it a coincidence, or was it something else? Something more like Fate?

"Very well." Whis said, not at all convinced Vegeta was being honest with him.

Vegeta let the conversation end, they were entering the Milky Way Galaxy and would arrive at Earth shortly. He needed time to think up how to search, while using Whis's traveling abilities but not enlighten the Celestial to his plans. It would be tricky, Whis wasn't easily fooled and it was even harder to keep things hidden from him, he had an eighth sense about these things. In ways he was as tough as Bulma had been to trick, especially later in life. Lost in his thoughts Vegeta didn't notice the changes to the solar system he once called home until Whis stopped.

"Oh my." The celestial muttered in dismay.

Vegeta erected himself from his Anza pose and flew around Whis to float at his side.

"What the hell happened here?"

Earth was nothing but a burnt and desolate rock, even more, lifeless than the neighboring planet of Mars. Looking to the star at the center of the system Vegeta growled. It was larger than he remembered and had a very distinctly orange hue, gone was the brilliant yellow it had been when he resided on the surface below.

"I will look back and we can see for ourselves. This is highly unusual, however. Grand Kai mentioned nothing of this to us last century." Whis spoke mostly to himself as Vegeta flew off and circled the globe.

"There are no lights on the far side, no water, no life." Vegeta said with a far-off tone, again he looked to the sun, analyzing the star. It definitely felt warmer than it used to, and appeared larger, if he was remembering this all correctly.

"Let's see what happened." Whis said as he stopped the viewing orb in his staff.

The two hovered in silence as the past nine-hundred thousand years played out in a time-lapse. As they watched they saw a comet destroy the global defense shield. Then a great war broke out and vast numbers of mankind fled. After that, the earth seemed to start to recover but slowly over the last five-hundred thousand years, the climate grew arider and arider as the sun did increase in size just enough to push back the habitable zone. Also, the moon of Earth was pulled into Venus's orbit and now Earth stood a barren, moonless wasteland.

Whis rewound the time-lapse. "What are you doing?"

"I want to see where they went. Wouldn't you like to know if your descendants survived? Also, I want to try out their evolved dishes. Didn't you say you were hungry my lord?"

"Tch." Vegeta scoffed and crossed his arms over his chest. He was tired of telling Whis to stop calling him Lord so often. "Why don't we just check Mars? It's right over there and was already being terraformed by Piccolo after…" Vegeta didn't finish his train of thought, and Whis shut down the orb, his eyebrows pinching together as he witnessed Vegeta tear open the gaping wound that remained on his heart.

"Excellent memory Vegeta, lead the way." Whis was sure to call his lord by his name that time, sensing how upsetting this was for the Saiyan. He had now lost two home planets. Hopefully, Mars would be a good enough replica. At the very least Whis prayed for a decent meal.

Vegeta flew quickly to mars, arriving in orbit around the red planet in only ninety seconds. He sighed, Earth had truly been a unique planet. Of this, he had no doubt when he looked down at the mostly barren landscape. High domes held cities of towering structures, all of them brimming with life in their fragile little bubbles.

As they orbited the planet one thing stood out, different from all the other bubbles. A lookout tower, equipped with its very own dome covering. Aside from that feature, it looked identical to Dende's lookout back on Earth.

Watching Vegeta closely, Whis saw the recognition and almost hope wash over the Destroyer god. However, it was quickly diluted with pain and longing for his mortal life. Whis was torn between being happy that there might still be a small slice of something left of his past life, and relieved it wasn't exactly the same. The Celestial wasn't sure how it would affect the Saiyan turned god if he was able to see things he was feeling so nostalgic over, it could spell doom for the entire universe.

"Shall we go to the lookout, my Lord? I am certain whoever is the guardian of this planet will know more of what happened on earth. We did only receive a preview of the events that brought them here." Vegeta only nodded in response. Whis looked closer at the dome and not seeing any openings transported them down onto the pristine white patio.

Sitting in his chair near the open windows an ancient Namekian, round and wrinkled with age, watched his young pupil tending to the flowers outside. He felt his time was growing near and only hoped the young man outside would be prepared, Nail already inherited many of his father's best qualities. And only one of his more abrasive ones. Lost in his musings of the future this child would have, he heard the young Namekian start yelling at something.

"What are you doing!? I just planted those. You are trampling all over them! Who the hell do you think you are? Get out of here!" Nail screamed at Whis and Vegeta when they materialized in a freshly planted flower bed.

"Oh, well now, isn't this a Namekian? He is a bit young, but he looks just like the one you used to be friends with, doesn't he, Vegeta?"

"That he does, even sounds like Piccolo."

"What? How do you know my father?" Nial asked, looking between the two men. They couldn't be older than 30 Martian years, and Piccolo had been dead for centuries before he had even hatched.

"Father?" Vegeta asked incredulously as he and Whis stepped out of the flowerbed. "You could have landed us on the tiles you know?" Vegeta grumbled under his breath at Whis, his new boots now coated in mud.

Glaring at the man with flame-like hair, Nail noticed the diamond pattern and golden cuffs. Looking at Whis, he noted the matching pattern and the Attendants Staff he carried. His mouth fell open and he dropped the watering can he was carrying.

"Nail, do not be rude to our guests. They have come a very long way." The elderly Namekian said as he struggled to walk across the patio to see the Destroyer for himself. All eyes turned his direction, and he watched as recognition then confusion wrote itself across Vegeta's face.

"Elder Dende, you should have called for me, I would've helped you outside." Nail scolded the struggling elder as he rushed to his side and assisted Dende to a chair several feet away.

"D-Dende?" Vegeta stammered.

"Hello, Vegeta. God of Destruction." Dende said bowing his head, as the rest of his body refused to bend these days.

"H-how is this possible? It's been almost a million years." The Namekian he knew as a child now looked like the last Elder of Namek, Guru, but Vegeta didn't think Namekians could live that long. Memories of his time after first coming to Earth flooded his mind and he felt a burning sensation building in the backs of his eyes.

"One million and two years to be precise. Come and sit, there is much to tell." He waved a hand at the extra seats at the table. "Nail fetch us some tea," pausing Dende gauged Whis and Vegeta as they moved to sit with him, "and some food for our quests, lots of it."

His hunger forgotten, Vegeta sat beside the Elder. "How are you still alive Dende?"

"Allow me to ask a question of my own if you would, Lord Vegeta."

"So long as you don't call me that."

Dende's brows rose high enough for the whites of his eyes to show. "There was a time when that was all you desired. How ironic that now you wish to only be called by your name. Earth certainly changed you Vegeta, I am glad. I am also glad that I got this chance to see you once again."

"As am I, Dende. It is pleasant to see a familiar face." Whis cleared his throat at that comment. He had known Vegeta for decades before he took over for Beerus. Vegeta glared at Whis from the corner of his eye and sent him a mental message. I didn't think I would ever see anyone from Earth with it being uninhabitable, not to mention it's been over a million years!

Of course, forgive me, my Lord. Vegeta rolled his eyes at Whis before turning back to Dende expectantly.

"What do you know of what befell earth, Vegeta?"

"A comet, war, then the star grew did it not?"

"Yes, a terrible war broke out, not many survived." Dende nodded to Nail as he came up with a tray of tea service and several dishes of food and began serving Whis and Vegeta. "Most that did, were the descendants of yours, and Goku's."

"Were they the cause of it?" Vegeta asked, accepting the tea from Nail.

"Oh no, a single man was responsible." Whis and Vegeta shared a look of concern. "He had lost his family in an accident and somehow gained access to the global defense shield. The comet should not have been an issue for Earth. The strongest of your daughter's descendants perished when they tried to stop the impact. After that, resources were scarce and wars broke out. At first, they attacked the central government, blaming it for creating the man that tried to destroy Earth. I am not sure on those details but he worked for them and was, in a way, responsible for his family's death. War on a global scale soon followed the collapse of the government. When the oceans were poisoned, Piccolo and I decided to flee with what remained of those trying to stop the wars, and we came here. The Earthlings lived on a space station for many years, while Piccolo finished terraforming as much as he could. Mars does not have a living core and he tried to ignite it several times. Without an active core there can be no atmosphere thick enough for life to thrive here. This is the reason for our domes, they keep the air inside. And why Nail was so upset by you being in the flowerbed, plants supply us with the air we breathe."

"I apologize, allow me to repair any damage caused." Whis offered with a respectful bow of his head.

"You can clean my boots while you are at it." Vegeta added bitterly. "And would you stop staring at me!" Vegeta snapped at Nail, who was sitting across the table from him just holding his tea and staring at him with narrowed eyes and a begrudging look on his face.

"Nail, you are correct, this is the man from your previous life that slaughtered our people, but it is rude to stare."

"Forgive me Elder." the young Namekian said, dropping his head.

"Tch," Vegeta scoffed. "So you came to Mars and live here now. That doesn't answer my question Dende."

"Of course Vegeta. I am still alive because Piccolo and I worked in tandem to act as guardians of Mars. I spent the majority of the last million years in a hibernation of sorts, only waking when I was needed. And, in order to prolong my life further, I have not produced any of my own offspring. Piccolo passed away millennia ago, but not before he left behind one final gift for me. The reincarnation of my brother, Nail." Dende nodded towards the guardian in training.

At the word reincarnation, Vegeta had to restrain his enthusiasm and desire to drill Dende for any information the being had on the subject. Yes, Vegeta, I know what you are seeking. What the goddesses have in store for you. Dende's voice resonated through Vegeta's mind and the prince sat on the edge of his seat, awaiting anything the Guardian was willing to divulge to him.

"Are the humans here all that is left of the human race?" Whis asked, curious about all of this.

"No they are not. Several centuries after we colonized Mars we were visited by other life forms. We traded technologies and shortly after a group of ambitious individuals set out to colonize the empty parts of the Galaxy. That was roughly two-hundred thousand years ago. Since that time they have pushed past the edge of this galaxy and have expanded the entire universe. The last remaining frontiers are the outer reaches of the eastern and southern quadrants. I believe Shin has tallied the total number of inhabited planets into the thousands. It seems that you have allowed life to thrive and prosper, God of Destruction."

Whis was so wrapped up in the information he wasn't paying any mind to Vegeta. Good thing too as it would've given away the fact that while Dende was telling them one tale outwardly, inwardly he was enlightening Vegeta to everything the man needed to know.

"My, my. That is quite interesting, I suppose we will have to do more traveling now to make sure the universe is producing strong enough species. Don't you agree my Lord?" Whis asked.

That is all I can impart to you old friend, but I have aided you in another way. Whis thinks you need to travel and visit more of these places. He will believe this was his idea, and should give you ample time before he suspects anything. But I do suggest you confirm his question or he will be suspicious again. Dende said in completion of his private explanation to Vegeta.

"Absolutely, Whis. I will not allow our universe to grow weak." Vegeta sneered, pretending to be annoyed and bitter, same as he had been for the entire day.

"You should eat something first, Sire. I do not enjoy traveling with you on an empty stomach." Whis commented.

Vegeta glared daggers at his attendant, but inwardly he was gleefully smug. They could pursue his agenda while pretending to see to his duties as a Destroyer. Now all Vegeta needed was for his first source to dig up even the tiniest of details and he could zero in on his target.