The end is finally here! I want to thank everyone who has continued this journey with me ^_^
Disclaimer: I do not own DB, DBZ, DBGT, or Dragon Ball Super
Overcoming the Past
~Bulma and Chi-Chi
"I have a good feeling about this one," Chi-Chi softly spoke to Bulma.
The two escapees had managed to hide their presence the past four months without arising suspicion. With difficulty and hard work, they changed their disguises every few days and confided in the slave maids to keep their true identities secret.
Luckily for them, the aliens wanted to see Frieza usurped and destroyed again, so they had no issue with protecting the stowaways. This safety net worked well this long and the two hoped it would last.
Tonight was the night they were going to free Lena. They didn't waste the time they had in the shadows, but used their carefully selected costumes to gather intel. This information ranged from discovering how large the building was, where the security was positioned the heaviest, and how heavily it was distributed; what codes to enter for each chamber door, what was behind those doors, and how to handle what would be found on the other side. They even found where the ships were stored and blue prints on how to use them. Needless to say, they were quite the busy bodies.
A shy, cat-like humanoid that was a regular stylist for the food-serving slaves finished a waterfall styled braid in Chi-Chi's hair before checking her and Bulma over.
"Yes, this will do," the creature purred quietly before dismissing herself.
This time, the heroines were risking all the hard work invested in their escape plan if they were to fail. The two never made contact with the enemy on previous excursions prior and would be walking into the lion's den for this.
They were dressed in delicate, white silk that hugged each curve and left little to the imagination. Their faces were shielded behind thin cloths made from the same thin material. The face covers had gold trims that connected each side around the backs of their heads.
Bulma noted that they resembled exotic Arabians and to keep the outfit for another less stressful event such as role playing whenever they made it off this hell hole of a planet. Vegeta was up for anything that involved his Saiyan stick.
"What's so funny?" Chi-Chi asked innocently at the giggling Bulma.
"Oh, you know," Bulma continued to laugh and winked.
"How can you think about that at a time like this? We need to go over the plan one more time."
"Okay, fine," Bulma exhaled a pent up sigh.
"First, we follow the other servers into Frieza's personal dining room," Chi-Chi began.
"Easy enough," Bulma followed.
"Yes, and then what?" Chi-Chi tested.
"We follow the cat woman's lead. She'll show us how to behave and what the norm will be for us."
"Right! Then she will recommend that we are the ones selected to serve Frieza personally, and if he accepts?"
"We serve him the poisoned pears," Bulma answered gleefully.
"And if we get denied?" Chi-Chi quizzed again.
"We use the secret weapon!"
They smiled and embraced one another before the cat lady summoned them. The friendly feline looked anxious.
"Humans, there is a new factor involved that may…or I should say will impact your strategy," she warned.
"Oh no," Bulma mumbled.
"There is a surprise guest I was not prepared for," the feline explained.
"And?" Chi-Chi prompted for more information.
"You must act calm and stay collected. If you allow any emotion or hint at your distress, then I fear the worst."
"So, you don't know who this guest is?" Bulma blurted.
"I wasn't able to see them. Another servant, one of the dancers, ran into me on the way back and mentioned it in passing. I only hope this means nothing serious," the furry responded.
"It may mean that the monster is on to us," Chi-Chi whispered to Bulma.
"Or, that he has been this entire time," Bulma whispered back as they followed their superior with a last string of hope.
~Raditz
The scowling beast electrified the surrounding air with his increasingly heating intensity. He was easily weaving around the maze of a basement in search of Lena solo. His temper worsened the longer he dwelled on the previous conversation he had with his brother and princely friend.
The three had raced in the direction the blasted androgynous freak said the females would be found. There, they were finally able to pick up their waning kis. Raditz assumed Frieza manipulated the planet with some type of force field to prevent them from sensing the captured ladies before now which would also explain why they were not teleported to them directly.
They soon discovered that Bulma and Chi-Chi were separated from Lena. All three Saiyans could feel the tug of danger radiating from each woman. Raditz, being the eldest and possessing the most knowledge of their enemy, recommended that they stick together, get Lena, and then retrieve the other two. Once the girls were out of harm's way, they would then strike against Frieza and the 16 bot together to end the madness.
Whether it was instinct to protect their own or simple idiocy, Vegeta and Kakarot disagreed with his approach and argued that they should split up. They went to retrieve Bulma and Chi-Chi while he fetched Lena alone.
"Those stupid, foolish, ignorant brats," Raditz bitterly spat.
He knew that they were doing exactly what Frieza wanted by splitting up. He hated to admit it, but in truth, he was alone and afraid. What if he was too late? What if he ends up being the one that hurts Lena? Anything could be a trap. Most importantly, who was the Saiyajin's ki he was picking up the closer he got to her? Was it the one putting Lena in a deadly predicament?
~Bulma/Chi-Chi
Bulma's heart beat so fiercely and heavily that she expected it to burst from her chest. She chanced a glance at Chi-Chi whose eyes glazed from the fear the dark-haired woman must have been fighting to keep control over. Both had strikingly strong personalities and had no trouble with independence, but they were suddenly starting to lose their wit.
They never imagined that Frieza's presence would bring such weakness out of them. It wasn't that he appeared threatening; after all, he was a small statured alien with purple accents of all colors. No, it was the menace that seeped from his pores that was torturing them. His sheer nature was so foul that it was polluting the room and threatened to drown everything in its proximity. What was worse was that 16, who should not have been present, stared knowingly at them.
They had been naïve, but each refused to admit it and stuck with the plan.
"As you can see, these are very fine species of the highest quality. I recommend them for your pleasure in service," the feline meowed, also going along with the original plan.
"What do you think, droid?" Frieza cooed.
"Yes, I think you will enjoy these," 16 agreed.
"Wonderful! Pussycat, please take them to the kitchen and have them bring our dessert," Frieza commanded.
She curtsied and motioned the ladies to follow. Chi-Chi and Bulma copied the honorific bow and quickly trailed after the cat.
"Well done," the leader praised, "pardon me as I rearrange your dresses in the style the servers wear."
The next thing she did startled the rescuers. She un-sleeved Bulma's dress first, pulling the top portion down to expose her chest. Then, she tied the sleeves into a bow behind Bulma's back. Once that was complete, she raised the bottom left of the silk dress and tucked it under the pocket section that was created from the bow. Basically all that was hidden was her right leg, abdomen, and bottom.
This could be fun, if it wasn't for that piece of shit being the one it was for instead of Vegeta, the sky-eyed woman thought.
Chi-Chi politely refused when the feline turned her attention towards her. The whiskered slave master ignored Chi-Chi's obvious wish to stay covered and wasted no time in replicating the change onto her.
Bulma smiled teasingly at Chi-Chi's obvious discomfort. Honestly, it was a relief that she wasn't alone. The fur ball left them and returned several minutes later with the silver trays of poisoned pairs. She placed one into the arms of each of them and pointed to the exit. What happened next was certainly unexpected.
16 had been replaced with a black haired man who possessed a very prominent widow's peak. Bulma fought to keep her surprise from reaching her face.
"Beautiful are they not?" Frieza cheerfully announced.
Vegeta muttered something, but kept his eyes on the table in front of him.
"Thank you Felix, you may go," Frieza commanded to the cat before speaking to Bulma.
"I assume the pears I have ordered have been cooked to perfection?" He emphasized the last word, suggesting that the poison was known to him.
Without speaking, Bulma and Chi-Chi nodded their heads. Felix had not been anxious because of 16's presence. The cat was fearful that she would be discovered for what she really was. Had all the slaves been secretly giving this creature all the information involving them? Had they lived under a false sense of security the entire time? How long had Vegeta been here? Did this mean the others were here too?
The twit of a Saiyan may have had a point, Vegeta thought about Raditz's forewarning sourly.
It was not good that he was positioned here alone. One wrong answer, one wrong action was all it took for him to risk losing Bulma and Chi-Chi. He hoped Kakarot was alert and aware of the situation. If they failed, he would have to face Raditz and his I-told-you-so attitude.
"You've always liked the color blue," Frieza stated conversationally as he motioned for Bulma to bring the treat.
Her stomach churned from nerves when she lifted the lid from the tray to present the sweet fruit. She started to place it in front of Frieza before he shook his head and pointed to Vegeta. The few seconds of hesitation was almost enough to give her away, that is, if she hadn't been exposed already.
Frieza motioned for Chi-Chi to bring his once Bulma stepped back.
"Now this one looks like your kind, does she not?" Frieza suggested as Chi-Chi handed him the tray.
"Yes, her hair and eye color are reminiscent of my race," Vegeta agreed with an edge of irritation.
"Do you see that scar on her right earlobe? Eerily similar to a Saiyan mating bite wound, wouldn't you say?"
"Yes," Vegeta mumbled uncomfortably.
"Do you remember my discovery that if one Saiyan placed a mate of another's in danger, that the mate would know? It was fun testing it out on that Catsearia fool. Shall we try that again on this one?" Frieze continued casually as he nibbled on a pear.
"Plan two?" Bulma blurted uncertainly.
"Now!" Chi-Chi encouraged and stepped back from Frieza.
A few days ago the two had succeeded in planting mobile metal wings into various stored fruits largely due to Bulma's quick-thinking engineering skills she shared with Lena. Felix wasn't informed of this backup idea just in case she actually was scheming against the schemers.
Bulma reached under her dress and removed the tampon-looking trigger (she had even hidden it as such much to Chi-Chi's disgust) that would turn on the manipulated fruit to start the chaos.
Strawberries, kiwis, limes, and melons flew into the open dining room, shredding anything in their path with their knife-like appendages. Vegeta rushed towards the mischief makers protectively. Various cuts decorated his back and arms as he shielded them while they ran for cover.
Goku paced timidly in a circle out in the hallway and wondered if he should have followed Vegeta. 16 had exited the same time Vegeta went in. Either the android purposefully paid Goku no attention, or perhaps he didn't notice his presence at all because the red-haired robot ran swiftly by ignoring him.
We should have listened to Raditz. We are too far from him in case we need help. Goku thought worriedly.
His pacing quickened as he felt an eerie sense of peril encompassing Chi-Chi's ki. He trusted Vegeta to follow through with a distraction so that they could rescue their wives without endangering them. He remained as is which was out of the way. That was when it happened.
Goku's mouth popped open in awe as flying food whipped out from where his allies were. He was too busy plucking the blades from the hovering delicacies to feast on them to even acknowledge Frieza blasting the airborne fruit several feet away. Frieza was too distracted with the scenario himself to notice Goku either; that was until the Saiyan went into fight mode.
Goku ran to block Frieza's escape. Before he could land a single blow against the pompous beast, the creature began to cough up blood. He continued to wheeze and sputter before falling to his knees. Goku wasn't about to question the luck on the matter and quickly lifted his knee under the sick monster's chin to roughly bring the weakening alien to his feet before beating him back down to the ground.
A rebuttal from the crippling enemy was nonexistent. He lay there as still as stone. Goku checked for a pulse but found none. He did so multiple times in disbelief. There was just no way that a fight this dire would be so anticlimactic.
His mate ran from the room he last sensed her in and embraced him. Bulma and Vegeta were not far behind her.
"I can't believe it!" Bulma exclaimed in wildly.
"I was under the impression that he knew the poison was in the pears he ate and that he prepared an antidote for immunity with the way he was behaving in there," Chi-Chi stated uncertainly.
"A double agent knows her tricks," a purr interrupted.
"Felix! You were on our side the whole time!" Bulma cheered.
The feline smiled and encouraged them to find the others because the danger wasn't over just yet.
~Raditz
Sixteen was very much ready to be done with the whole damn thing. The sooner Lena would fall the sooner his existence would be erased which is all he really wanted. He could feel Raditz's power maximize with each passing second.
It wouldn't be too much longer before the Saiyan would surpass his own strength; a feat that 16 could not afford. Time was running out and the outcome wasn't turning towards his favor.
"Stop where you are," Raditz stated coldly in a strong, monotone voice.
He's too calm, too prepared," 16 thought anxiously.
In a matter of seconds, Raditz launched at the weary droid and ripped it in half with his bare hands—no tricks, no energy blasts; his simple brute strength. The fight was so dull that he continued to pinch himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming.
The act reminded him of where he first witnessed the odd human tradition. It was when he had claimed Lena as his. He shivered as he realized how far he had come. Lena, in every aspect, was his everything. She was the sun to his moon, the spring to his autumn; and most importantly, she would soon be a mother and he a father. If ever two souls were molded into a perfect piece, it would be theirs to behold.
What the hell kind of romantic bullshit was that?!
Raditz dismissed his sentimental daze as he tossed the android's vertical halves aside. He carefully examined each portion to salvage any parts that Lena could potentially use. He knew that she would fuss at him for being so wasteful had he not.
He clung to the collected parts as if they would ensure Lena's survival. After all, it would be for nothing if she didn't make it through this disaster of an adventure.
The lumbering soon-to-be-father had been lucky so far, but he didn't give a flying fuck. Speaking of flying, what were those hovering objects that just fluttered past him? Was it food?! No, he must have been hallucinating and hungry.
He disregarded them without further ado and continued to race lower into the jungle of a basement before hesitating at a solitary, laser protected door.
~Lena and Bardock
Lena felt her stomach roll viciously from her twins' response of their father's nearing ki. Her left rib snapped sharply and forced her to cry out in merciless pain. The only thing keeping her sane was the crisp moonlight bleeding into the tiny rectangular opening next to her.
Bardock shook violently in his restless slumber. He hadn't moved from the spot he had been chained to four months ago. He was drenched in sweat, urine, and other bodily excrements. Lena was used to the smell having to soak it in for so long that it didn't bother her any more. What did bother her was seeing him suffer and knowing that there was nothing she could do to help.
Frieza had not intended for her to writhe in the same fate. She was removed from her own restraints daily to be properly fed and was even allowed to bathe regularly before being relocated into the prison she shared with the dying man.
She didn't take any chances of escaping during her free time. She didn't dare risk endangering herself. She had more than one life to worry about now.
Even so, the ruler of this planet still wanted her to die. He wanted her to be in great shape, clean, groomed, and as beautiful as ever to make the scene more devastating for her loved ones. It was sickening. The whole debacle was as revolting as Bardock's state of ever-growing filth.
Lena continued to watch Bardock tremble. She didn't want to wake him, but part of her longed for someone to tell her that everything was going to be okay. That they were going to endure this together.
Her abdomen contorted awkwardly again as her little ones stretched. She honestly wasn't big enough to house the two beings possessing superhuman strength. Every jerk they made forced her into near panic attacks of uncontrollable terror that they would break another bone or potentially puncture her lungs. Her biggest dread was that they would rupture through the amniotic sac barely containing them.
There was no way that she could handle an early labor on her own physically or mentally. She needed Chi-Chi and Bulma as soon as possible and couldn't understand why they hadn't freed her yet. She knew that it would take them time to formulate a successful strategy, but her hormones prevented her from being rational. My god, four months of this was long enough!
She returned her distracted mind back to the milky moonlight and focused on Raditz's fast approaching spirit.
"Lena, you're breathing too rapidly. Please try to relax," Bardock spoke up.
The agony he was in tainted his voice making him sound horse. Lena was thrilled to see him conscious, but this also meant that the pain he suffered while asleep would increase tenfold.
"Bardock, I'm so glad that you are awake and alive," Lena whispered in conflicting relief.
She lifted her arms to show her own captivity.
"I was afraid of that. Listen carefully," he stuttered with urgency.
She nodded obediently.
"Do you smell that?" He asked.
She frowned. She smelled a lot of things, all of which were escaping from him.
"Do you mean..." she choked before saying "you".
He was not referring to himself at all. Oh no, it was the strong, sweet scent leaking from below her stomach. She was too busy focusing on Bardock, the pain she was in, and on the light coming from the peep hole to even notice her water breaking.
"Not now!" Lena began to shout in frenzy.
"Don't panic," Bardock replied calmly, "get into a squatting position."
She nodded vigorously and managed to sit up onto her feet. She could barely breathe, but stayed in place.
"Now what?" She asked wearily.
"That's all I got. I just remember Kakarot's mother giving birth like that."
"All right then," Lena said more to her than to him.
"Try to stay calm while I loosen my bondage. It shouldn't be too much longer before I can come to you," he managed to say encouragingly.
And then do what? Stand over me with your stinky self and watch? Lena thought sarcastically.
She stared at his starved formed as he snapped his left arm free. He was working on the right arm when he took notice of the vibrant light hitting the floor.
"Lena, where is that light coming from?" He asked worriedly.
"It's from the moon. It's all that I've been able to use as a sense of comfort this whole time," she replied after groaning from her first contraction.
"Shit," Bardock sputtered.
Raditz slammed through the door, startling them, right before the transformation of man to beast began.
Lena stared in horror and alarm as the man grew in size while his features morphed into a giant ape. The walls collapsed around them.
On the upside, she could now move freely even though the chains were still clutched around her wrists. On the downside, she was still facing a hybrid monster without much hope of hiding other than by using her estranged lover standing in front of her.
She didn't have much time to think on the predicament. Raditz turned his head and cocked a half smile at her.
"This isn't how I intended our first date together since you've been gone to go. Don't worry, I got this. Just try to stay out of the way and watch out for flying debris. Kakarot and the others will be here soon and then we can go home," he said before flying towards the unfamiliar Bardock.
He knew that three lives were on the line. Bardock's Great Ape form left no time to think the minute his attention fell on them.
"Lena?!" Bulma cried out after watching the giant gorilla-like monster drop a fist onto her best friend and Raditz.
She, Chi-Chi, and their mates arrived in the nick of time. The ladies rushed over and took Lena arm-in-arm while Raditz held the blow destined for them out of the way. They took her behind one of the fallen walls to stay concealed.
By this time, Lena was experiencing contractions every 2-3 minutes. She was unable to fight back the groans escaping her lips. Chi-Chi pulled Lena's hair into a ponytail and coached her into a steady breathing pattern. Bulma was on her knees facing Lena to help with the birthing process. She urged Lena to push at the onset of each contraction.
Meanwhile, Vegeta and Goku had successfully detained Great Ape Bardock so that Raditz could find material strong enough to hold the raging animal down. They could have resolved the problem by simply tearing the tail from the beast, but they were having difficulty holding it still long enough.
The force field Frieza initially placed on the planet was playing a huge effect in their abilities; all except for Raditz, or so it seemed. He was the only one making any progress with keeping Bardock at bay.
The three Saiyans were finally able to pin Bardock in place when something bewildering happened.
The purple sand and sky surrounding them melted away and was replaced by an azure atmosphere and rich, green grass.
Goten, Gohan, and Trunks were sitting in a half circle among seven gold balls each of which were numbered one to seven with red stars. They had successfully wished to bring their family back to Earth.
"Mommy, it worked!" Goten squealed as he and Trunks raced to where Lena, Bulma, and Chi-Chi sat confusedly.
Lena let out another scream in response to the cramping punching at her lower back and vaginal barriers.
"Wow. I told you that it was going to be bad," Gohan stated to the two boys as he took in the unfolding scene of one ginormous primate, three Saiyans doing their best to keep it at bay, and three terrified women struggling with labor and delivery.
"Stop gawking and get his tail, son!" Goku yelled at his oldest.
Gohan didn't waste any more time and forced the tail free from the obnoxious animal. Fortunately, Bardock quickly returned to his normal form.
"Oh my god there's a head!" Lena screamed hysterically while Chi-Chi attempted to coax her back into rhythmic breathing.
"Let's get you into the house," Goku voiced before dragging his father into the Briefs' residency.
Vegeta, Gohan, and Goten followed after. Raditz and Trunks remained behind to help.
"What have you done to me?!" Lena roared at Raditz who took over Chi-Chi's role.
"We'll find out soon enough," he replied evenly with a touch of smugness.
"I think I'm going to be sick," Trunks whined.
"I know baby. Thank you for being a big boy and helping your Aunt Lena and me out. Please get three of our largest towels; no just go ahead and get all of our towels, and that large wash basin from the basement that we were going to use to bathe the dog we never got," Bulma instructed her son.
He nodded and returned before Lena's first born arrived.
"It's a boy!" Bulma, Chi-Chi, Trunks, and Raditz said in unison.
However, the celebration was dulled due to the next oncoming issue.
"Oh no, his tail is tied in a knot with his sibling's. I'm sorry Lena, but your second baby is in a breech position and I'm not going to be able to correct that," Bulma sighed.
"I don't care! GET IT OUT OF ME!" Lena bellowed in agony.
It was possible that the whole city could hear her. Chi-Chi looked towards the house and saw the entire Saiyan clan (excluding Bardock) peeking out though the various windows facing them.
Bulma took a deep breath and urged Lena to push while she gently tugged at the tiny hips of the infant forcing its way out of Lena's womb.
"One more push, sweet Lena," she continued to encourage.
She was right. The final shove freed the twin with the last of Lena's waning strength.
"It's about time we had a girl!" Bulma cheered as she announced the gender proudly.
"It's over," Lena gasped.
She managed to get a quick glance at each newborn while Chi-Chi untangled their tails. Each time she managed to unravel the two, they immediately formed the tie again.
"They're already inseparable," Raditz laughed.
Lena smiled, but was too exhausted to do much else. She revered the two creations that had formed within her. They both were blanketed within their own long, tangled, black hair that matched their father's. They each shared her forest green eyes.
That was all she could remember before blacking out.
"Lena? Lena? She's not responding," Raditz said shakily.
"It's going to be okay. She's lost a lot of blood, but we can handle this. Trunks, go get a room prepared in the east wing," Bulma softly said.
This wasn't the first time she had been thankful that her father built the in-home facility. It probably wouldn't be the last either. She was acting more stoically than she felt for Raditz's sake. Lena was in really bad shape, but Bulma wasn't about to say so.
"She's not breathing as all," Raditz stated as his face paled drastically.
"Get her and go after Trunks. There should be a nurse already there to hook her up for blood transfusions."
"With whose blood? She's only half human remember?"
"Oh, shit! Oh, shit! Oh, shit!" Bulma shouted, losing her self-control.
"Never fear, the Great Saiyaman is here," Gohan cheered as he danced his way towards the trouble and handed Raditz a senzu bean.
"I'm not going to question what the hell you just said or what it means, but if this helps Lena then thanks," Raditz stuttered.
Hours had passed since the bean was forced down Lena's throat. Raditz and Bulma would not let anyone inside the hospital room until Lena became responsive.
"Do you have any ideas for what to name them?" Bulma asked.
"Of course. I don't know what her take would be though," Raditz confessed.
"Well let's not give her the chance to disagree. She doesn't know too much about Saiyan naming anyway. You wouldn't want her to mess it up. Vegeta still gives me hell over Trunks."
"All right, I was thinking Daikon for the boy and Leminz for the girl." **
"Sounds pretty legit to me," a raspy voice chimed in.
"Lena, it's about time!" Bulma smiled before placing a twin into each of Lena's arms.
"They're hungry," Raditz stated bluntly before helping Lena get them latched on to her chest.
"They're always going to be hungry," Lena smiled tiredly.
Two hours were admitted to them for privacy before the rest of the family barged in to see the new members.
Lena watched in awe as they were passed around and admired. Everything was right in the world. Everything was going to be okay.
* A/N
The name Daikon (a type of radish) was inspired by the tradition of Bardock's family having root vegetable names and with it being another name for radish obviously lol. Raditz felt that a girl shouldn't copy that, but should be like her mother; strong and unwavering and didn't want her associated with something underground. This is why he went with a fruit :D
ALSO, I received feedback from several readers to include an epilogue. Of course I couldn't deny them of their request! THERE WILL BE A SHORT TIMESKIP EPILOGUE POSTED LATER THIS WEEK. I have it written, I just need to get it typed up.