I'm gonna crash into your world, and thats no lie
Vegeta watched Bulma bounce their infant son on her knee, as he listened to Nappa's report. The bald Sayajin was gesturing over a map, pointing out Kold's strategic advantages.
"Nine planets, total," Nappa placed his ham-sized fists on the table and leaned on his knuckles. "While you're walking into their ambush, they can hit Vegetasie from three different angles, and we don't dare go Oozaru on our own territory. My King," Nappa lowered his head in deference, "You have to stay here and man the counter attack. Is your allegiance to the Lunarians worth the annihilation of your people?"
"Nappa, you might be the most brilliant tactician I have, but you don't have the common sense the goddess gave a pigeon." Vegeta sighed and leaned forward. "I can send the boy and that idiot girl, but they don't have the experience or the training, and who the hell will want to help them."
"Push 'em off a cliff and see if they'll fly," Nappa shrugged, "Bardock will be there, and I'm sending Cabbage. How bad could it be?"
"Bardock took the Mark after we fought Freeza; he's not going to be in any kind of stable condition, even if he has used the Dragonballs, and Cabbage has even less common sense than you do. The Sailor Senshi don't have the sheer physical strength it will take, and the Namekians or Earthlings cant make up for it." Vegeta scowled down at the map, took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. "If we send ships now, we can land a few dozen Sayajin on those planets and have them completely razed by the end of the week."
"Kold will still send his army here; they've already mobilized. Kooler has mobilized his own army, and he's moving straight for Nameksie."
"What does he want Nameksie for?" Bulma asked, still bouncing the baby. "Is he going after the Dragonballs there?"
"I think so," Nappa avoided looking at her, whether out of disgust or deference, Vegeta couldn't tell. "It could be because they're second on the power rung, or because if he gets the planet, he'll have a clear shot at Earth. Who knows."
"Vegeta," Bulma stopped bouncing her son, and looked her mate in the eye. "No matter what you do, you have to warn Serenity and Endymion. If they send the Sailor Senshi and you send a few of your best to Nameksie, they can hold off Kooler long enough for us to take out Kold and get to them. Send just Trunks and Rini into the ambush; they'll be fine."
"The boy will be fine, its her I'm worried about," Vegeta snapped. "The problem is getting Kold's men down on the ground. Even a few Oozaru are capable of crushing an entire army; getting the army in a position to do so has always been the issue."
"They can blow us up from space," Nappa positioned an enemy ship on the depiction of Vegetasie. "Just one ship, but they're sending an entire army. The planet is still useful to them, so they'll come in for a ground assault either way. We cant use Oozaru," Nappa reiterated, "Without inflicting more damage on ourselves then on them."
"They out number us five to one, and there's no way to know where they'll land," Vegeta leaned over the map as well, "So we cant ambush them. You thinking of bottlenecking them?"
"We'll lose too many by baiting them into it to begin with," Nappa leaned on his knuckles again, his tail unwinding behind him.
"You could use my cannon prototype to take out their ships before they land," Bulma suggested, prying her long blue hair away from her son's chubby fist.
"Weapons of mass destruction are dishonorable," Nappa growled, his tail starting to thrash.
"Bardock said once, that the point of war was to do the most amount of damage in the least amount of time," Vegeta cocked his head thoughtfully. "You trained with him when you were kids, didn't you?"
"He was third-class, then," Nappa shrugged. "We must have been thirteen. Why?"
"Who did you train under?" Vegeta met Nappa's eyes, and saw the idea spark behind his huge dark eyes.
"Jardinier. The bastard might still be alive." Nappa stood upright, curling his tail back around his waist.
"Find out." Vegeta felt the feral grin starting to tug at his mouth.
"What are you thinking?" Bulma raised one fine brow at him as soon as Nappa was gone.
"We take out just a percentage of their ships, force them to land here," Vegeta tapped the map of Vegetasie, on the smallest continent. "There's only two major cities, each on the coasts. We land them in the middle, right at the center of the desert, and pick them off at our leisure."
"And what does this Jardinier have to do with this?" Bulma looked from her mate to the map and back, shifting Trunks on her hip.
"This is his island." Vegeta folded his arms across his chest, and glowered at the map. "He might be a crazy old man, or the goddess might really talk to him, but he is definitely a force to be reckoned with."
"Why? How much damage can one old man do to the throne?"
"He's old, woman. So old, that he allowed my ancestors to ascend the throne in the first place. He is the Gardener. He forged Joyeuse Sang, he allows every king of my line to sit on the throne uncontested. No one has challenged your right as my queen because of a prophesy he gave, days before you landed here for the first time. You respect Baba as a seer; he surpasses Baba. When the boy is ready," Vegeta jerked his chin towards his infant son, "Trunks will stand before him."
Bulma nodded, if not in complete understanding, then in acceptance. "I guess I have some cannons to work on. I'll see you for dinner." She kissed Vegeta's cheek, deposited Trunks in his lap, and started walking toward her lab.
Vegeta sighed, walked over to the hanging screen on the far wall, and dialed. It was a direct line, to the only other two screens like it; Vegeta had to hand it to his father in law, the man knew how to make electric things sit up and dance. Endymion was the first to appear on the screen, looking a little hurried.
"Vegeta? What's the matter? We were just leaving to take care of the Black Moon Clan," the king pulled at the Lunarian armor he was already wearing, trying to adjust some of the smaller straps.
"There's been a change in plans." Vegeta set his son down at his feet, and stared hard at Endymion as he stood again. "Kold and Kooler are going to meet for the treaty, but they're bringing minimal forces with them. They're sending the bulk of their armies to Vegetasie and Nameksie."
"Taking out the powerhouses of our deck," Endymion nodded. "Where do you need us, and when?"
"Take care of your Black Moon Clan," Vegeta shrugged, "Then haul your ass to Nameksie and help out there. I've got my hands full here, but I'll be sending you another pair of brothers, Cabbage and Laittue. Nappa's boys. Piccolo will know who they are."
"You sure? Bardock used the Dragonballs to wish Raditz and Kakarrot back, and they're coming with us." Endymion raised an eyebrow, cocking his head to one side in careful consideration.
"If you can get them on the ground, you can use Oozaru. The Namekians have the cannons Bulma designed six months ago, and you've got a decent fleet. Make it count," Vegeta glanced down at his infant son, then looked up into the other king's eyes. "Don't dishonor me."
Endymion laughed, and his brown eyes danced. "If we lose, I'll let you kill me yourself, you pompous bastard." The mirth was gone in a flash, "Just don't let anything happen to my little girl."
It would have been a cringe on a less prideful man, but on Vegeta, is was merely a distasteful grimace. "Someone has to step into that ambush, Endymion. Someone strong enough to kill them both."
Endymion was quiet for a long moment. "You think your son can protect her?"
"He'll die trying, if he's worth his Sayajin blood."
"If he doesn't, I'm coming for you first, Vegeta. You made this decision, and I'll back you now because we should have listened to you with Freeza, but whatever happens is on you. Glory or failure, its on you." Vegeta had had some respect for Endymion as a warrior, weak as he was; now there was a measure of understanding that went beyond comrades in battle. Vegeta bowed shallowly at the waist, acknowledging the threat and promise. Endymion cut the connection without responding. Vegeta snarled at the screen, took a deep breath, and dialed Guru.
"Hello?" the old Namek peered at the screen, standing close to tap at the image. "King Vegeta? Is that you? Hello? Is the sound on? I cant hear you!" the Namek tapped at the screen furiously for a moment, then stood back and huffed.
"I need to speak to Piccolo," Vegeta crossed his arms over his chest and prepared for the onslaught of inane chatter.
"He's off taking care of something for that Queen Serenity girl. Sweet young thing, isn't she? She stopped by for lunch a while ago, but I cant exactly remember when. Is she doing all right? What about Bulma, how is she? I haven't seen her in so long! My, don't you look all grown up, Vegeta! You sure have changed a lot since your time here!" Guru leaned back on his heels and chuckled happily. "You should come for another visit, I'm sure my boys could use some good sparring, they've been working hard to keep up with you Sayajin! I'm afraid we just aren't as good at fighting as you are, though,"
"Guru," Vegeta cut in, "Is Nail there? May I speak to him?" Vegeta had learned long ago that even Sayajin rudeness did nothing to hinder the old man's ability to chatter aimlessly, but he sometimes actually got a reaction if he tried to be polite.
"Nail died in the Moon Kingdom, in that battle with Freeza," Guru shrugged, taking another breath to chatter away about something else.
"What? No he didn't, I was there, I watched Piccolo bury his dead, Nail wasn't…there." Vegeta narrowed his eyes, realization dawning. "If his body wasn't buried, then what the hell happened to him?"
"Piccolo absorbed him," Guru shrugged again, his wide shoulders rolling with the motion. "You know, its actually a very complicated move, it requires a lot of focus and forethought, and it can be very dangerous,"
"What about Dende, is Dende there?" Vegeta tried to dodge the upcoming lecture, mentally slapping himself for allowing Guru to distract him.
"Oh, Dende's right here! Dende, Vegeta wants to speak to you!" Guru lumbered out of view as Dende came scampering up, his long ears perking up in attentiveness.
"Yes, Your Majesty?"
"Kooler is sending his army your way. The Sailor Senshi and Piccolo should be heading straight for you, the minute they're done with the Black Moon Clan, and I'm sending two of my best, Cabbage and Laittue. Prep your cannons and close all but one of your space ports, and pray to whatever god you have that we get there first." Vegeta cut the connection on the alarmed green face, scooped up his son, and walked away tapping his scouter. "Cabbage, come in."
"Standing by, Your Majesty," The deep voice rumbled over the connection.
"Find your brother Laittue, and haul ass to the throne room. I've got a job for you." Vegeta cut the connection there, too, and stepped into the hallway.
He beat Cabbage and Laittue to the throne room by almost twenty minutes, and nearly laughed out loud as the full-headed versions of Nappa came to a screeching halt at his feet, fists clapped over their hearts.
"Ever listened to your father's stories of being stranded on Nameksie?" Vegeta asked, foregoing preamble.
"Yes, sir," Cabbage glanced up warily, eyeing his king with no small amount of trepidation.
"Kooler's army will be there soon. Guess where you're headed?" Vegeta grinned at them, ferally.
"Just us, Your Majesty?" Laittue kept his eyes to the ground just in front of Vegeta's feet, face blank, like a good soldier.
"You remember the Sailor Senshi? They'll be there, with Piccolo, Bardock, Raditz, and Kakarrot. Maybe the Z Senshi, I'm not sure. Pack up, don't die, and keep out of serious trouble."
"My King," Cabbage started carefully, "Raditz and Kakarrot cant be alive, I saw their bodies,"
"Dragonballs are a wonderful thing," Vegeta shrugged dismissively. "Don't let me detain you."
The brothers took the hint and left quickly, already starting to bicker as they went through the door. Vegeta smiled to himself, and tapped his scouter one more time.
"Boy," he growled into the connection, and counted down for the irritatied "What now?" on the other end.
"Get down to the throne room with your little girlfriend." He cut the connection, and waited patiently for Trunks to turn up with the girl. When they did turn up, Vegeta swallowed the guilt that had been building, and did what needed to be done.
"You sent for us?" Trunks bowed shallowly at the waist, fist over his heart.
"You know Kooler and Kold have an ambush waiting for me." Trunks nodded, and Vegeta plowed on. "They'll be sending their armies to attack, expecting me to be gone."
"You need me to go in your place," Trunks finished the thought. "They didn't send their armies in our time. We think there might be a diverging timeline, because of our presence here, but there's no way to know for sure, yet." He turned to Rini, cocking an eyebrow. "You up for it?"
"Sure," she flicked her hair over her shoulder, and smirked. "Let's kick some lizard ass."
"When do we leave?" Trunks turned and smirked at his father, a little more feral than was warranted.
Vegeta returned the expression, uncociously mirroring the look. "Twenty minutes." Trunks laughed and turned back toward the door, tail swaying happily behind him.
Vegeta snarled as his infant son burped and sprayed white goo all over both of them.
A/N; Sorry this took so long, I had to scramble to get my homework done before spring break was over. I'll be back to posting only one chapter a day now, but slow and steady wins the race, right? Savage Garden lyrics. You know, I'm just going to use Savage Garden lyrics for the rest of this thing. I'm going to have it completely wrapped up by chapter 15, and its going to go as quickly as I can make it, since I have more plot bunnies raping me in my sleep.