The concave door of RV. Capsule Corp 2 closed with a firm clatter as all natural light was extinguished. A unanimous sigh of relief from the occupants echoed off the ships metallic walls. Bulma slouched in the nearest seat like a rag doll and laid her hand over her weary eyes, the stress of the situation had finally burdened her body. She wanted to head back to Earth for a warm bath, her mother's strawberry cheesecake, and to surround herself with all things familiar.
'Wow Goku! You're a better actor than Barry Kahn!' Krilin giggled, lying on the floor. He, too, appeared exhausted, but now with having the security of his best friend nearby, it seemed like his worries had evaporated from his pores.
Goku chuckled as a slight blush crept across his cheeks, 'Well perhaps I'm in the wrong job.' His tail unwound and relaxed upon the steel tiles.
The monk sat up to face his friend, 'Yeah how d'you put up with those guys? They seemed like real nasty pieces of work!'
'Ah they're not that bad once you get to know them,' the Saiyan flapped his hand in appeasement. 'And speaking of pieces of work...Where did you get this gun from Bulma?' He looked at his oldest friend and threw the weapon in her direction, as if it were a tennis ball. The woman's arms flailed awkwardly as she caught it with a thump.
'Be careful! That's delicate!' She chided. 'And anyway I built it! What if that loon Piccolo Jr. wants to take over the world again while you're out playing Saiyan huh'? Who's gonna defend us? Yajiriobe? Please!' She scoffed, whipping her head dramatically and elevating her small nose in the air. A behaviour which was a direct consequence of her wealth and social prowess. Most would perceive it as impolite; but to her friends it was an beacon of security: for everything was as it should be; Bulma had returned upon her high horse.
'Ah you know that wouldn't happen! And anyway my son is around if you need any help.' He replied in earnest.
'Goku your son is four.' Krillin interjected with a raised brow.
'Yeah and he's so strong and capable. Boy do they grow up fast!'
Bulma sighed. Ever since she had met him all those years ago, the Saiyan had always been such a ball of positivity, he was so lucky. A bit ridiculous at times, but she always thought the world needed more dreamers like him. They pushed engineers like her to materialise fantasy into reality. She looked at her control panel, they had more than enough fuel to get them home. It was time to go and put this little misadventure behind them.
'Ok guys.' She sung with a joyful tone, smiling from ear to ear, as she booted up the ship and gripped the wheel firmly.
The sound of the boys cheers were heard loud and clear from behind her. Krillin turned to Goku as the engines started to rattle and the ground began to shake.
'You won't get in trouble for this?'
'Nah. I'll just get Bulma to alter the records again and give me another holiday- Chi-chi will like an unexpected visit.'
Bulma thought about how Goku's wife would be delighted at the sight of him. The mental image of her waiting for him outside their mountain top home, resembled the cover of a cheesy pastoral romance novel that she had read in her teens. She had always admired how Chi-chi could remain so steadfast and loyal, whilst her husband gallivanted around taking on missions to improve his training. Bulma wondered how she would cope in a long distance relationship, would she be as resilient as Chi-chi or crumble under the strain of being separated? When he had first joined the Saiyan Army, Goku gave Bulma his scouter. After stating her concern, he simply shrugged it off in a blasé manner, joking and smiling. Bulma never enquired as to the repercussions of his actions, and after he sent her a video message, sporting a black eye -she did not want to know. But by handing her the device Goku had granted Bulma direct access to all the Saiyan schedules, databases, and archives. She could manipulate, add, and erase whatever she wanted. Goku had given her the key, knowing she was the best person to open the door. A strategical move he used to his advantage; extra holidays, the non-lethal missions, ones that happen to be in Earth's sector, removing the tracer from his space-pod. The Saiyan was far more intelligent than what people assumed.
Bulma's fingers were pulsing all other the wheel in a sporadic fashion. She was teeming with excitement upon hearing the ships engines purring, as they steadily began to reach maximum potential. They were going to be out of the woods.
Suddenly, a faint beeping noise from Goku's scouter pierced the pleasant ambiance.
'Oh wait. I have to take this.' He smiled.
The humans watched the Saiyan. When he nodded, the spikes of his hair comically bounced. He affirmed something and hastily hung up. A wide toothy smile was plastered on his face, whilst he scratched the back of his head. Bulma knew that look, she had seen it many times when he was a child; it was a look that said I've done something sneaky and you are not going to like it.
She leaned forwards in her chair and looked at him inquisitively, her eyes bored into his, as her hands rested on her hips. The fact he was a man now was irrelevant, he would always crack under this look.
He giggled awkwardly, 'Well … we have company.'
'What?' She blurted. Krillin's eyes bulged too.
Suddenly there was a banging on the ship's door.
'Open up Kakarot!' A familiar voice shouted, it was his brother.
'Ok guys there's something I have to tell you about - ' he whispered in panic.
'Kakarot!'
'Coming.'
'Bulma open it.' The words hissed through his teeth, his arms were held in front of him. The material of his black body suit made a light rustle, rubbing against his armour.
'No! Are you crazy?' She chided, subconsciously moving her hand over the door control in order to protect it from Goku.
'Bulma you have to do it!' He pleaded. 'The short guy -'
The thumping upon the door was even louder.
'Kakarot!' This time the voice belonged to Prince Vegeta. Bulma heard it too and flung herself over the control panel. Those creeps were not coming in, not when they were so close. Her combat boots squeaked upon the surface as she awkwardly tried to set up her defence. But to her chagrin it was insipid, Goku swiftly lifted her with one arm and pushed it.
'Sorry.' He whispered.
'Goku, I'm going to tell Chi-chi about the time you forgot her birthday!'
He smiled 'Yeah. I deserve that.' He knew he did. Yet he would rather endure the deadly temper of his wife, than live with the guilt of letting his friends come to harm. As long as he was there, they would be guaranteed protection.
The pistons exhaled as the ramp opened slowly, revealing two intimidating silhouettes that sliced through the pink hue of the dwarf planet.
'We weren't going to let you be the only one to get off this damp shit hole.' Raditz sneered to his brother as he walked up the ramp, dumping the duffel bags on the floor next to Krillin. Vegeta hung back, and looked at the vessel, it was a heap of junk. It looked like nothing had been polished, there was dirt on the floor that lead to what looked like a scientist's work bench. Vials and pieces of circuit boards were amongst a myriad of papers, creating a melange of disorder. To his right he could see oil leaking from the pistons, and slowly trickling down. The mere existence of the dirt and mess forced him to advert his eyes, and his body began to stiffen. Was that bags of detritus in the corner? He dared not look, as he wanted to cringe. He had never felt so uncomfortable in his life. The sooner this mission was over, the sooner he could return to his immaculate palace.
'Raditz, take control of the ship.' Vegeta ordered in his native tongue. Goku turned to Bulma, his face looked worried as she realised the Saiyan was coming over, they had to keep this act up. Goku placed a hand on her shoulder.
'Get off me you... you bad person,' she screamed. Reflecting upon her and her friends' previous performances, it was without a doubt, that she would be enrolling them all in acting classes when they return to Earth. She was still convinced that this fiasco was going to dissipate like heat from a engine upon its exposure to the colder surrounding air. But when she saw their bags and heard the door close, she questioned her delusion.
Raditz shimmed over to the control panel. Never had he seen another like it. The control panel had a screen but he could not decipher what it was displaying, there were various levers (one was clumsily fixed in a position with silver tape), and there was a rainbow of flashing lights. It was all alien to him. His tail tightened around his waist, he was going to have to admit defeat, this mission was making a mockery of him. Everything Vegeta had said to him, since they were cubs was true, he was a failure like his mother. The long haired Saiyan turned to the Prince who knew that look, and he hated it. Vegeta let out a low growl, baring one of his sharp canine teeth. Where was this lowly excuse for a Saiyan's pride? How dare he not be able to pilot a space craft of a primitive species, and then he said the words that made Vegeta disgusted.
'I can't do it.'
'You push buttons you imbecile.' Vegeta muttered, he walked towards the panel as Raditz moved to the side. A turquoise button caught his eye and he went to push it.
Bulma was watching every movement and gesture. She realised she needed to make Kirllin and herself look indispensable. That's how their lives would be saved without blowing Goku's cover. She had to take control, the duct tape caught her eye, the Saiyans were on her turf now. She raised her head, she would demand their respect.
'Don't you dare touch that! You'll blow us up to smithereens.' She cried over emphasising her struggle from her friend's grip.
'Kakarot did I give the prisoner permission to speak?'
'No s-'
She interrupted the Saiyans with a voice laced with authority, 'Look buster! I designed and built this ship! You want off this planet and I happen to be the only one with a ship. Now if you shut up and let me drive! Then we'll all be happy.'
Vegeta snarled and sharply turned his back towards her. He folded his arms, he abhorred her manner of addressing him, yet she had him at a stalemate. He promised himself that he would make her suffer the consequences for her audacity once he could contact the Saiyan fleet. He would not be bested by an unruly woman, he refused to let her gain the upper hand.
'Earthlings you will report to Kakarot or Raditz- you will refer to me as General Daiko. You will not speak directly to me. You two will provide them with the quadrants so we can further the progress of this mission without accumulating any more tailless vermin'.
'O'h and you built this?' He looked directly at Bulma. 'That explains why it's a worthless piece of excrement.' Vegeta smiled to himself. A wave a pure satisfaction smoothly washed over him, as the feeling of anger radiating off her only fuelled his ego.
During her formative years Bulma was the ideal student, she was well behaved, top of her class and had a penchant for doing more than what was recommended. However in her academic reports there was one incident that sullied her perfect record. The note from the teacher merely stated "kicked another pupil in the shin". When asked to justify her behaviour, to what looked like a room full of intimidating adults. She responded passionately, pudgy hands on her hips aping a business woman from a film that was still fresh in her juvenile mind,'he made fun of me 'cos I'm smart!'
From that day forth Bulma was privately tutored from within the Capsule Corp grounds, away from the other children. Any temptation for her foot to come into contact with someone else's shin was non-existent; until this day with the Saiyans. She had certainly had her far share of conniving and facetious Entrepreneurs, but they could never pierce her armour. Her fists were tense with anger, she began to shake with the feeling pulsing from within her. She was going to force feed him a slice of pie, not just a slice, this guy needed a delivery van load of humble pies. A tirade of insults sat behind her pretty pink lips, ready to be released in a fit of unadulterated rage.
Until Goku's hand covered her mouth like a concrete dam.
Vegeta looked over his shoulder at the muzzled woman, and smirked.
She scowled, swallowed and exhaled as if to bury her indignation in the far reaches of her soul, (for the time being). She reminded herself that revenge is a dish best served diabolic and pink.
A silence shrouded in malaise filled the main chamber of the ship, but there was a sliver of relief in the wake of Vegeta's departure. Goku displayed the new quadrants on his scouter, as Bulma huffed in rhythm with her fingers meticulously inputting the data. The ship teetered as the engines wheezed like a geriatric asthmatic, and the toil soon subsided once they left the planet's atmosphere. From the main window Bulma's candyfloss dreamland dangled in space like a small pink pearl. She turned in her pilot's chair, and unconsciously twisted her earring in-between her thumb and forefinger as she looked to Krillin on her left. They looked so small in comparison to Goku and Raditz, who were slightly hunched over in the largest part of the ship. If it was not such a tense situation, it was almost comical that they were squashed like body builders in a lift. Her eyes wandered over Raditz's arms, he looked so masculine and savage. She had always had a weakness for the archetypical 'bad boy' and incredibly chiselled men. She did not spend three nights a week in leg warmers bopping to the oldies at Rick Slimmon's gym, just to date someone out of shape. A guy who looked after himself was a dish, she had eaten plenty of dishes so far but none had satisfied her as of yet. She shook her head in realisation, breaking her chain of thought that now was not the time to be sizing up for a potential Saiyan bed buddy.
Raditz cleared his throat, and peered at Krillin dwarfed by the co-pilot's chair 'What can you do?'
'Me?'
'If you're useless we could always eat you.' Raditz smiled.
For a brief moment Krillin was relived that his presence had been over looked by the Saiyans. They were instead focused upon their attempts to assuage their leader and the entertainment he provided with Bulma took centre stage. He wanted to return to being ignored, as the mental image of Raditz licking his lips at him would haunt him for eternity.
'He's a genius too- I need him to help me, fountain of wisdom... ' Bulma interjected as she elbowed him in the side.
'Yeah erm' his mind raced with idioms. 'The habit does not maketh a monk, erm All the world's a stage... you can't – damn erm what was it? You can't have your apple a day!' He chuckled nervously as Raditz stared on in bemusement. The room erupted with the sound of Goku's laughter.
'Such sage advice.' He panted between giggles as his brother snarled at him.
Whilst everyone's attention laid with Goku's display of joy, a small blue button glittered in the corner of Bulma's eye. She focused upon it, and knew exactly what it meant. A grin that would paralyse the devil himself, flashed upon her face. A certain someone was in the shower.
Vegeta finally felt it; tranquillity. Alone with his thoughts, he was finally spending time with someone he found agreeable. In the Prince's opinion, to clean oneself was the most therapeutic of acts. Upon searching the ship, his eye would wander to filth, emphasize it until it was all he could focus on. He wondered how barbaric and uncivilized were these creatures? The sleeping chamber he stumbled upon was covered in papers scrawled upon and discarded small thin metal drinks receptacles. His teeth clenched and his muscles tightened at the idea of merely sleeping in such a place. True contentment finally swept over him upon finding the adjacent wash room. A sigh of relief flowed out of his mouth like freshly spun silk, as fragile as the condensation mark it had left behind. He could remove the traces of this mission from his skin for a moment, he was liberated. His thoughts rushed around his frustration that his father forced him on such a trivial errand. He should be increasing his power and ascending to the legendary form. He snarled as his slapped his hand on the wet wall, the cold tile cracked under his force. He was the Heir Apparent, the one to lead the Empire into the new age, to render the common masses into abject fidelity and servitude. He was alone in his ambitious thoughts, his mental visualisations were like a state of meditation, the rhythmic sound and warmth of the water were a shield to the inevitable reality that he would have to return to this mission.
He was jolted out of his relaxation when the water scorched him. He tried to avoid extraneous burning spray, hitting his head against the plastic door in the process. The dial had not been altered by his hand, he reached to end the heat. Cold . It was so cold. He huddled inwardly, the hairs on his tail were standing on end. He looked directly at the shower handle. Pink frothy bubbles started squirting at him – it was an obstruction on his sensitive nose. Then searing pain came from his eyes, he closed them shut. He had to get out, smashing the door in the process. Bubbles and suds surrounded him, as he came in to contact with the wash room furniture. He fumbled in vain, searching for a drying cloth. For a moment he was no longer the graceful Prince, and had been reduced to a clumsy oaf. There was no doubt; the woman was behind this. She dared make a fool of him. His tail was vertical and puffed, his white teeth bared.
'Is it too much to ask for the servility of lesser beings?' He spat. She was going to taste his royal fury.
'Earth woman!' the shout was aggressive and from the gutter of his throat. Raditz raised his head in concern. He knew this tone and blood always followed it. Goku's shoulders broadened as he crossed the snarling prince. But in Vegeta's blind rage the only colour he could see was blue.
'You pathetic wretch. How dare you!'
'General?' She turned to him in the pilot's chair a small blue eyebrow was raised.
'Your little act in the shower.' Small pink suds wafted off his body, with every dramatic hand gesture. They delicately landed on Krillin's head.
'General. I've been here the whole time.' Her hand swept towards the other occupants in the ship.
'You lie! You have control over that shower!'
'No General you obviously don't know how to operate it.'
'You wretch! I should blast you to oblivion!'
'Then who would steer the ship? Get you to your precious mission?'
'I will! It can't be that hard if a dumb animal like you can do it!'
'You jerk! You blast me and I will push the self destruct! You're powerful but you can't survive in a vacuum- just like a dumb animal.'
Stale mate. A growl formed in Vegeta chest, his tail puffed and tightened around his waist.
He felt Bulma's eyes move across his body, the damned woman was sizing him up.
He was suddenly aware of his audience. His pride would not let them think he had been bested.
'Kakarot you will watch her! She will not breath without your permission! I don't trust these creatures' He cast his eyes quickly at Bulma before he closed it again.
Yes Kakarot will be perfect for this job! He thought to himself. In Vegeta's opinion Raditz was just as feeble minded but had a weakness for young attractive women. The coy little harpy would have him wrapped around her weak alien finger. He was convinced of Kakarot's loyalty and lack of libido.
'Go about business.' He declared marching out of the communal space. The metallic floor echoed with his steps, as Bulma caught site of his muscles moving in his back.
Once again he was alone, his thoughts turned to the pugnacious woman had dared to challenge him. It was then that Vegeta rubbed his red eyes and decided that he would make an example of her. It had worked in his youth. Raditz had served as a reminder to the others at the royal academy. The third class had dared burst into the dorm room forgetting his place and having the guile to disrupt his sleep, rabbiting on about his long lost brother. So that night Vegeta beat him in courtyard, making sure a certain special someone was there. The girl to whom Raditz had pathetically been scenting. The way her black eyes closed in disgust at the bloody heap that was Raditz. She even sneaked into the boys dorm to congratulate Vegeta on her knees. She was Vegeta's first; he did not much care for her. But he certainly cared to ensure the rumour of their coupling reached Raditz. It sent the message loud and clear. It seemed that the universe did not learn and now, this woman would have to be schooled. He would render her servile and obedient, without violence but with wit and cunning; it would make him the ultimate strategist. He was determined to assault her with his tongue. She would bow before him, or so help her and her entire planet, once she was no longer of use.
He smirked. The game was now in play.
Hello everyone. I'm sorry for the long update. I started a new job which I thought was going to give me more free time and well it had the opposite effect. I apologise for any major mistakes in this chapter, I just wanted it uploaded - I am currently on the hunt for a Beta reader though.
Thank you for reading and I hope you're enjoying the story so far.
