Chapter Fourteen
"I can't believe this is happening again!" Gohan said, pounding a fist into his palm. "This is just like when Vegeta sold us out to Babidi just so he could gain more power to fight you!"
"Gohan," Goku warned and tilted his head towards Bulma, who was huddled on the bed in the corner of the cell, crying silently. Chi Chi and Videl tried to comfort her, telling her everything would be all right. When she kept pushing them away, they retreated and left her to deal with her feelings in her own way.
"Sorry, Dad," Gohan said, lowering his voice. "But what are we going to do? If Vegeta joins Nossoreg, I don't think the two of us are going to be enough to stop them!"
"Let's not worry about stopping Nossoreg's plans until we can figure out a way to keep the women safe," Goku said. "Once they're out of the way, we can deal with the rest."
"You have something in mind, don't you?" Gohan accused. "What is it?"
"Just follow my lead when the time comes."
They waited restlessly for an hour before Nossoreg finally returned. He strode confidently through his door, nearly glowing with excitement.
"Nossoreg, we..." Goku began, but lost his train of thought when Vegeta appeared in Nossoreg's doorway. At least it looked like Vegeta, dressed in Saiyan battle armor, but Goku sensed something was wrong.
"Vegeta!" Gohan shouted, ready to challenge the traitor. Goku held up his hand to stop him.
"That's not Vegeta," he said. "The energy is all wrong."
"That's right, Goku," Nossoreg smiled. "This isn't the Vegeta you know. He has the same strength and power, but not the same thoughts. I guess you could say that he is a 'more focused' version."
"What do you mean by 'more focused'?" Goku asked, unsettled by the intense look in Vegeta's eyes.
"He has all the memories of being a supreme Saiyan warrior, without emotions getting in the way. He's loyal only to me and will do only as I command," he added with a smug smile at the silent Saiyan Prince.
Goku still couldn't figure out what was wrong with Vegeta's energy. It felt like Vegeta's power level, yet there were no inner thoughts or feelings he could sense. It was almost like the inanimate feeling he sensed from Dr. Gero's androids, but with an energy reading the androids lacked.
"What's the matter, Goku?" Nossoreg asked. "Don't you like the new Vegeta?"
"No," he answered, eying the Saiyan who hadn't spoken or even moved since he entered the room. "I don't."
"Vegeta, why don't you take Bulma downstairs to more comfortable accommodations," Nossoreg suggested, then turned to the other two to explain. "Vegeta and I have reached an agreement. Bulma and Trunks will be under my protection as long as he assists me in my plan."
Vegeta walked over and stood in front of the women's cell. He pressed a button on a band encircling his glove and the energy shield was shut down. Emotionlessly, he walked in and took hold of Bulma's arm pulling her from the bed.
"No, Vegeta!" she begged. "Don't do this! Don't turn your back on your friends! Don't turn your back on the innocent people of the universe!"
Vegeta ignored her as he continued to drag her from the cell. Chi Chi and Videl tried to pull Bulma's arm free, but his grip was like an iron band. Desperately, they pounded on Vegeta's back. In one smooth move, he turned, raised his arm and pointed his palm towards the two defenseless women.
"NO!" Goku and Gohan screamed, recognizing Vegeta's attack stance.
"Stop!" Nossoreg ordered and Vegeta stood still, but didn't lower his arm. "Let's see if our heroes have had a change of heart."
Goku looked helplessly from the people he loved to the cold-blooded eyes of the Saiyan Prince. He could sense no emotion from him and couldn't understand why he was doing this. This couldn't be the plan he had in mind when he asked Goku to trust him. Something had gone wrong.
"So, Goku, Gohan, are you still willing to sacrifice your wives to save people you've never even met?" Nossoreg asked them. "Or will you save your families by joining me as Vegeta has done?"
"We'll join you," Goku said, trying not to look as defeated as he felt. He had to buy them some time to figure out what to do next. It was the only way he could see to do it.
"Dad, no!" Gohan said, but his father shot him a warning look. If this was going to work at all, they all had to play the part convincingly.
"Do as I say, Gohan!" he ordered, hoping he would understand. "We're going to do whatever it takes."
"Splendid!" Nossoreg beamed. "Vegeta, kindly lead them all to the control room. I'll explain more there."
Vegeta lowered his arm and let go of Bulma. She rubbed her arm where an angry red mark showed just how hard he'd been holding her. He then walked toward the door, the women following meekly along behind him.
Nossoreg opened the other door, and Goku gave Gohan a slight shove towards it. Gohan gave him a puzzled glance, but did not object. He learned long ago not to question his father's actions. Whatever his motive was, Gohan knew he could trust Goku.
They all proceeded silently down the stairs with Vegeta in the lead. The two men were also impressed with Nossoreg's enormous hideout, but the women were still under too much stress to appreciate its significance. Goku also realized their host was nowhere to be seen. Nossoreg was much too cautious to be caught without an energy shield protecting him.
When they finally reached the bottom of the steps, Vegeta led them to a large room with monitors covering one entire wall. Most of the screens were dark, but those that were glowing showed their family and friends. Krillen was sitting beside the unconscious Number 18 at Hercule's house. Master Roshi and Hercule were watching Maron and Goten play with a laughing Pan. Yamcha was at the Capsule Corp. with Bulma's parents, who looked very upset. They even caught a glimpse of Trunks flying through the air before that screen went dark.
"He bugged our houses!" Bulma exclaimed. "When? How did this happen?"
"That's how he knew so much," Chi Chi said in awe.
Facing the monitors was a large, hovering chair. The back was too high to see who was sitting in it, but just the sight sent a shiver down Gohan's spine. It was the same chair Frieza used on Namek. It was a sign of superiority. Was this person more of a threat than Nossoreg? Slowly, the chair rotated around to face them.
"Vegeta?!" they all said in unison. They looked back and forth from the Saiyan who brought them to the control room and the one sitting in the hoverchair. The one in the armor did not show any emotion, but the one in the chair was clearly angry. He jabbed a button on the arm of the chair.
"Nossoreg! What are they doing here?" he demanded.
"They've decided to join us," Nossoreg's voice answered from a speaker overhead.
"I told you we didn't need them," Vegeta said.
"We love our families just as much as you do!" Goku interrupted. He stepped forward and crossed his arms, acting more like Vegeta than ever. "We want them as safe as Bulma and Trunks. We're going to do whatever it takes," he repeated.
Vegeta appeared to consider Goku's dependability. He floated his chair over and leaned toward Goku, their noses just inches apart.
"Whatever it takes?" Vegeta asked skeptically. "Are you sure? Once you give your word, you're honor bound to keep it."
"I know," Goku answered without flinching. "I give my word."
"What do you think, Vegeta?" Nossoreg asked. Vegeta sat back, his chair gliding a few feet backwards.
"Time will tell," he said. "What do you want me to do with them?"
"Show the women to their new accommodations, then take Goku and Gohan to the lab. The other Vegeta and I will meet you there.
Vegeta floated over and landed beside Bulma. Without a word, he took her hand and helped her up onto his lap. Bulma looked surprised by the gesture, but didn't comment as the chair raised up into the air. He then led the way through a maze of rooms and stairs to a large, round room with comfortable sofas and chairs.
"Each of those doors leads to separate living areas," Vegeta told them, pointing to each wall. He then glided over to the door on the right, which opened on its own and closed behind him.
"Vegeta, what's going on?" Bulma asked when he set the chair down next to the bed. She heaved herself off the chair and onto the soft mattress. "Who is that other Vegeta? Is he an android?"
"He's not a machine," Vegeta sighed, drooping back in his chair. "He's as alive as you and I, only he has no free will."
"But how?" Then Bulma noticed how exhausted Vegeta looked. Sweat stood out on his forehead, but he didn't lift a hand to wipe it away. "And what happened to you?"
"Nossoreg took the DNA Dr. Gero collected from us and grew them. The only thing he needed to make them fully operational was our energy. He needs to keep us around to 'jump-start' his army."
"So you aren't really on his side, are you?" Bulma asked, hope obvious in her voice.
Vegeta gestured with his eyes to the corner of the room behind him. Bulma noticed a small speaker box near the ceiling. If Nossoreg could talk to them, then he could also listen.
"Like Kakarot said, we'll do whatever it takes," Vegeta said. "Get some rest. Trunks is on his way here. To help," he added with a ghost of a smile