Well guys, I kinda made a fail in that last chapter. Pui Pui is a minion of Babidi. CUI is a minion of Frieza. So...woops. We'll pretend that didn't happen. I mean, close enough right? Yeah, I know. No, it's not. PLEASE FORGIVE ME!
"BULMA! HEY, BULMA!" Krillin shouted upon landing outside of Capsule Corp. and knocking loudly on the door. Piccolo winced, and fought back the urge to slap the short monk hard upside the head.
Almost instantly, as if she had been waiting at the door the whole time, Bulma threw the door open and bolted out. "Krillin! Guys- guys? Krillin, where is everyone?" she asked shakily when her eyes landed only on Piccolo and Krillin.
Krillin shook his head.
With a howl, Bulma dropped to her knees, and began to wail and sob, hitting the ground with her fists. "Y-Yamcha... no..." she whimpered.
"Bulma, I am so sorry," Krillin said softly, placing his hand on her shoulder.
"Th-there's nothing we can do to bring them back, is there?" she sobbed.
"Well, not exactly..."
Bulma's head snapped up. "What?" she gasped.
"We can bring back Gohan," Krillin supplied.
Bulma swiped at her tears, standing shakily. "How?"
"Uh, well, I'm not exactly sure... Piccolo, how do we do that again?"
"We're going to Namek. They have dragon balls there."
"What? Wait, can we bring back the others too, then?" she asked. Piccolo shook his head. "Well why the hell not?"
"I can't tell you."
"Then how are we supposed to know this isn't just some agenda of yours, huh? How do we know that you're just keeping them out of the way so you can finally take over the Earth, hm?"
Piccolo snarled. "Because, you stupid woman, why the hell would I bother bringing the kid back then?"
Bulma took a small step back, and put her hands on her hips. "Then why can't you tell us why he can come back and the others can't?" she challenged.
Krillin stepped in to the rescue. "Because a higher power told him, Bulma. And it forbid him from telling us about it."
"How come you were so conveniently the only one this 'higher power' will talk to, then?"
"The old guardian you called Kami is a part of me, remember? He could speak to the kais, or so I was told. Is that not correct? Or are you going to badger me about that too?" Piccolo snapped.
Bulma raised her hands in defeat. "Fine, fine. I got it. Whatever. Why come to me, then?"
"Uh, we need a way to get to Namek... and you're a genius."
Bulma smiled slightly. "You got that right."
"So, do you have a way for us to get there?"
"Well, I suppose so. Dad and I have been working on a new ship that can travel longer spans of space faster and more efficiently. It's not done yet though..."
"How long until it is?" Piccolo pressed.
"I don't know, I suppose if we cracked down on it, within 24 hours...but, hey, where is Namek even located? We don't have the coordinates, nothing! That's kinda important to travel, you know."
"I'll get you your coordinates. Finish the ship as soon as you can. I'll be back tomorrow," Piccolo said shortly, taking off for the only place he could call home.
"Well, I guess that settles that then... Hey Bulma, can I take a shower?"
"Yeah yeah, go ahead. Then get your butt down to the lab. There's some heavy equipment I'll need you to lug around for me."
"Aw man, Bulma..."
As soon as Piccolo landed in the desert, he threw a massive blast at the mountain he and Gohan had shared. It blew into a million pieces upon impact. He let out an angry roar, smashing his fist into the ground, creating a deep crater.
"Anger will not bring him back any faster," Tsuki said softly from behind him, resting her hand lightly on his shoulder.
"I promised him I wouldn't let anything happen to him," Piccolo muttered angrily, shaking her hand off and standing wearily.
"He made his choice. There was nothing you could do about it," she replied gently. "Why are you so upset, Piccolo? You're bringing him back. He's not gone forever."
"It's the principle of the matter."
"Ah, I see. Ever proud. A good quality to have in a protector."
"Some protector. The kid's dead."
"Yes, but when he's back, well, let's just say it's good practice."
"I'm not even going to ask what you mean."
Tsuki smiled. "You're catching on quickly."
"Hmph."
"Anyways, I'm here to give you the coordinates to Namek. It should take you about a month to get there using Bulma's ship."
"Will they willing let us use the dragon balls?"
"You're one of them, Piccolo. What do you think?"
"And you're sure the dragon will bring Gohan back? No catch?"
"No catch," she answered, handing him a piece of paper with what he assumed were the coordinates.
Piccolo nodded and stuffed the paper in his gi. For a few moments, the two were silent. Above them, the moon began to rise in all her glory, and Tsuki smiled. Her smile quickly turned to a contemplative frown as the sky began to streak gold and red rivulets.
"Hm. It appears my brother is up to something," she mused, her voice just a touch dark.
"Should we be worried?"
But when he turned to look at her, she was gone.
Piccolo stood outside the door of Capsule Corp. before opting to knock on the door as he had seen Krillin do the day before.
The door swung open. "Jesus Christ!" Bulma shrieked, clasping a hand over her chest. Piccolo raised an eye ridge. "Oh, sorry Piccolo. I guess I'm still not used to this whole you being on our side thing. Not every day a demon king comes knocking on my door."
"I'm not a demon. I'm a Namekian," Piccolo muttered.
"Oh. Like... as in... a native to Namek? Like, where we're going?"
"Yes."
"Good god, Bulma. You trying to wake the dead? Oh, hey Piccolo," Krillin said sleepily, rubbing his eyes. "You hungry or something? I think Mrs. Briefs is making some breakfast."
"Yeah, she is," Bulma yawned. "Bacon, eggs, toast, fresh squeezed orange juice...the whole shebang."
"Geez Bulma, you look awful," Krillin marveled.
"Well thank you, twerp. I was up all night putting the finishing touches on the ship after you went to bed."
"You could've asked me to help, you know."
"Oh yeah, like you understand complex physics and engineering."
"Okay, no need to get snippy. Come on in, Piccolo. Hungry?" Krillin offered again.
"I don't eat," Piccolo replied bluntly.
"Wait, for real? How do you live?" Bulma asked.
"I get all my needs from water."
"Oh. Well, we have plenty of that too. You didn't happen to come across the coordinates of Namek did you?" she asked.
"Yeah, I've got them. Here," he said, handing her the piece of paper Tsuki had given him the night before.
"Oh, excellent. Let's see... Seriously? This is really far away," she mused.
"A month's worth of travel using your ship."
"Okay then. Well, I'll get this programmed as soon as I grab a quick bite to eat. And then I have to pack..." she muttered to herself, walking into the kitchen.
Piccolo's ears twitched back slightly. "She's coming with us?"
"Huh? Oh yeah. There was no way I could talk her out of it. She made a few good points. Neither of us know how to run a spaceship. Or fix one, for that matter."
Piccolo growled in annoyance. "Fine. But I want to leave in an hour."
Krillin laughed. "Yeah right! Bulma's got to pack for a two month's time. You have any idea how long that'll take her? Plus, we've gotta pack enough food, water..."
"Get it done in an hour, or I leave without you."
"Piccolo, you can't get pushy. It won't work with her-"
"JUST GET IT DONE!" Piccolo snapped.
"Okay, okay! I got it! Let me go tell her... I'll be right back..." Krillin babbled, scrambling away. Very shortly, Bulma's angry, shrill voice filled the house, and Piccolo walked back outside, slamming the door shut behind him.
"You have no idea how much I hate you two," Bulma grumbled, opening the ramp to the ship and walking up, with Krillin and Piccolo at her heels. She had managed to pack her clothes, food and water, and supplies within the hour, dragging separate labeled bags full of capsules behind her. Krillin only had two capsules in his pocket, having flown to Kame House to pack his clothes.
Piccolo had brought nothing with him.
Bulma dumped her bags unceremoniously in the middle of the ship's floor, stomping over to the control panels, jabbing at the keys in annoyance. "Alright guys, sit down, and buckle your seatbelts. Take off's a little bumpy on this thing and we'll get this baby into space," she snapped.
Krillin sat down in a vacant seat quickly. When Piccolo didn't move, he looked up. "Man, you better sit down or Bulma will yell your ear off. She's already pissed at you for making her rush," he warned.
"Sit down!" Bulma practically shrieked when she turned and saw Piccolo still standing. He raised his lip at her, but did not move. "Fine. Fall backwards. I really don't care."
She pressed a few more buttons, and the ship began to rattle in response. Piccolo barely had time to grab onto the back of Krillin's seat to steady himself as the ship launched itself into the air at warp speed.
Maybe when they left Namek, he'd actually sit...