Chapter 6: Someone Save Vegeta

FRIDAY, MAY 8, 763

Goku's eyes cracked open well before twilight the next morning. He sucked in a relaxed breath and stretched, side-glancing at the clock on the nightstand. It was 5:10 AM. The Z fighter arched his back in a big stretch and then yawned as he threw the blankets off his body. He placed his feet on the floor and lazily pushed himself into a sitting position, stretching and yawning yet again. Then he scratched the back of his head and placed a hand on his stomach, feeling it rumble. Goku spotted the restaurant menu on the nightstand and noticed the time once more. I wonder when the kitchen opens, he thought to himself, reaching for the menu. He turned it over to see the front page. Hours of operation: 6 AM to 11 PM. Then he looked at the clock once more. Ah, lucky me. I only have to wait fifty minutes.

Goku glanced over at the lump under the blankets that represented Vegeta's unconscious body. He watched and listened carefully. The saiyan prince was still breathing steadily, fast asleep. Goku went to sit on the matted floor to do his morning stretches. He first plopped down with his legs straight and parallel to each other, his feet at a ninety-degree angle to the floor. Then he stretched his hands up and bent forward, touching his toes. The orange-clad warrior breathed out a relaxed sigh, pushing himself but not overextending. At one point, he casually glanced up and noticed Vegeta's tail hanging over the side of the bed, the tip twitching slowly. The rested Z fighter smiled and continued this routine, going slower and taking more time than usual. Then he folded his legs inward for a light meditation.

A while later, Goku's stomach roused him from his mindfulness practice. His eyes snapped open and he glanced at the clock. It was 6:01 AM. His mouth started to water. Yeah! Ooh, I can't wait to see the breakfast menu, he mused, grabbing the item and leafing through the pages. He licked his lips at the many delicious options. Without a moment's hesitation, he picked up the phone and pressed 2. After he had finished making another large order, he put the phone down and returned to his meditation. Thirty minutes later, a light knock on the door indicated that breakfast had arrived. Goku jumped to his feet and rushed over, opening the door to the welcome sight of another rolling table covered in silverware. The Z fighter licked his lips as he pulled it into the room, quietly closing the door afterward.

After devouring nearly everything, he glanced out the back window and saw sunrise. Goku smiled and rose to his feet, strolling into the bathroom to take a shower, brush his hair and teeth, and get dressed. Fifteen minutes later, he came out of the bathroom feeling great and peered at Vegeta's lump under the blanket. He decided to see if he could rouse him and get him to eat something. Goku pulled the blankets down from his head and shoulders, rolled him onto his back, and sat him up. The prince was as limp as a ragdoll and showed no signs of alertness. Goku bounced him a few times and brought a buttered biscuit to his lips, hoping the smell of food would stimulate him. While it was easy to pry Vegeta's mouth open, the royal made no move to chew what he was offered, let alone swallow it. "Vegeta, come on. It's morning. You gotta eat something," Goku told him. He tried dipping his fingers in his water glass and sprinkling it on the prince's face. Other than a microscopic eyebrow twitch, Vegeta remained unresponsive.

Goku's throat rumbled in a small sound of irritation as he laid Vegeta back down. "Alright, little buddy, I'll let you sleep in for an hour while I go train outside. After that, it's up and at 'em," he decreed, narrowing his eyes at the sleeping man. He turned his attention to the nightstand, leafing through the literature left by the Bansho Inn. One item was a blank notebook. He also found a pen. I'll leave him a note in case he wakes up while I'm out, Goku decided, clicking the end of the pen.

He started jotting, dictating as he wrote. "Hey 'Geets, I went out to train for an hour. Feel free to eat whatever's left of breakfast. If you're still hungry and want more, check out the menu on the nightstand and order from the inn's restaurant by dialing 2 on the telephone. They'll bring it right to the room. If you need anything from me personally, you can either find me outside or dial my cell at 200-555-5428. Yours truly, Goku (aka 'Kakarott')," Goku uttered to himself, leaving the note in an obvious location.

Goku put the pen away and started spinning his right arm around at the shoulder to warm up. "Man, I'm so ready for this. It's going to be a beautiful day," he uttered, grabbing the keys and his cell on the way out. He closed the door behind him, which locked itself automatically. It was a little more than an hour later when Goku returned to check on Vegeta at 7:45 AM. He unlocked the door and strode inside, hoping to see Vegeta awake and perhaps even devouring a large meal. Instead, Goku was met with silence. Vegeta had not budged, nor did it look like he had read Goku's note. Goku dropped the keys in his pocket and placed his hands on his hips. "Alright, 'Geets," he said in a no-nonsense tone as he paced to Vegeta's side of the bed, "that's enough. Wakey, wakey!" He splashed more water on the prince's face.

This time, he did not even get a minute eyebrow tic. Goku frowned. He threw the blankets off, picked Vegeta up, sat him on his lap, and started bouncing him vigorously. "Up, up, up! It's… time… to… wake… up!" he chanted in a singsong voice. Vegeta's head bobbed about haplessly. Goku stopped and thought for a minute, turning Vegeta sideways on his lap and supporting the back of the prince's head in one hand. He tried to pry one of Vegeta's eyelids open with his fingers, but all he saw was white. The iris was rolled far back and Vegeta remained insensible to the world around him. Goku frowned, looking worried. He checked Vegeta's pulse. It was slow but detectable. Goku was completely puzzled.

The Z fighter growled lightly in frustration. "Alright, Vegeta. One more hour, but we're not staying past nine. We have things to do, places to go. 'Kay? So, rest up while you can, sleepyhead," he declared, tucking Vegeta back into bed. He went back out and continued his morning training, coming back in at 8:45. It was the same scene as before. Goku started to get worried. He repeated his actions in trying to rouse Vegeta, but nothing worked. Okay, Goku thought, I don't know what's going on here, but maybe Bulma can help me figure it out. He went to gather their things and pushed the empty breakfast table out into the hallway. He wrapped Vegeta in the winter coat he had procured in Little Valley and carried him out the door and into the lobby. Meanwhile, Chamomile had taken his place as concierge.

Goku approached the front desk. He balanced himself on one leg for a moment in order to support Vegeta's lower body with his opposite thigh, thus freeing his right hand to return the keys. "Thanks for everything, Chamomile. My friend isn't showing any signs of sickness anymore, but he's still knocked out. I'm going to take him to see a doctor in West City to figure out what's wrong. You have a great day now. Is there anything else I need to do before I go aside from returning the keys as you said?"

Chamomile shook his head. "Nope, not at all. Sorry about your friend, but it sounds like you're making a wise decision. You have a safe trip now, Goku," he replied, taking the keys and stashing them back in the designated location. He turned his attention back to the saiyan warrior and waved goodbye.

Goku waved back as he walked out the front entrance. "Bye!" he called back, turning his attention to the skies. "Flying Nimbus, come to me!" the Z fighter shouted up into the clear skies overhead. He heard the whizzing sound before he spotted his cloud as it descended to meet him on the ground. As soon as it arrived, he hopped right on and dropped into a cross-legged sitting position. After lowering Vegeta into his lap, he pointed westward. "That way, Nimbus! We're off to West City. Step on it!"

The trip only took a couple of hours, but it seemed like time was moving in reverse. They were again outpacing the sun. By the time Goku spotted Capsule Corp in the distance, he glanced behind him to see the sun just peeking above the eastern horizon. I hope Bulma's awake, Goku thought, turning his attention back to his destination. When he neared the grounds behind the main building, Goku squinted his eyes and saw many Namekians out and about already. Piccolo was among them and he stood up when he heard the whizzing sound of the nimbus. Darn, I need to avoid these guys for now. Goku glanced down at his cloud. "Hey, Nimbus, go to the front entrance instead. Just fly right over."

He peered down at Vegeta lying on his lap and wrapped the winter coat tighter around him, swaddling him such that all his limbs were contained. Then he pulled the hood out and put it over Vegeta's head, tightening the straps and tying them in a bow. To the random onlooker, it would appear that he was carrying a person-shaped lump, but the identity of said person-shaped lump would remain a mystery. As they flew over the main building, Goku hopped up on his feet and eased Vegeta over his shoulder. When they reached the ground, he jumped down and strode right up to the intercom. "Hello, this is Son Goku here to see Bulma Briefs," he announced, pressing the buzzer. Then he waited for a reply.

A computerized voice answered, "Come in and go upstairs to the Briefs family living quarters, Goku. Bulma has not arisen yet, but she said that she is expecting you." The door opened automatically.

Goku was about to stroll in when the sound of a gruff voice clearing stopped him in his tracks. He froze and slowly pivoted his head and torso to peer behind him. Piccolo was standing about six feet to his rear, his arms crossed over his chest and his face sporting a one-sided grin. "Goku, welcome back. So… who'd you kill this time?" he inquired, nodding to the 'corpse' hanging from Goku's shoulder.

Goku slid his eyes closed in irritation and cursed inwardly, hanging his head. Darn it, Piccolo! He turned back and let out a sigh. "I didn't kill anyone, Piccolo. Everything is fine. Why don't you run off and play with your little Namekian friends, 'kay? I promise I'll catch up to you later for a good spar." The saiyan warrior took another step, now halfway through the open Capsule Corp entrance.

"Wait," Piccolo spoke again. He pointed a clawed finger at Goku's shoulder passenger. "Then tell me who that is. You're right. You didn't kill anyone. Now that I'm listening, I can hear them breathing."

Goku growled and strutted inside, ignoring the green one. Piccolo was clearly finding this amusing and Goku was far too worried about Vegeta's well-being to find anything funny about the situation. Goku's irritability and dismissiveness only seemed to bolster Piccolo's interest. The orange-clad humanoid glanced back again, only to find his ex-nemesis following him. "Piccolo, are you really so bored that pestering me is the only fun thing you can find to do right now? I'm sure there are lots of possibilities out there that you haven't even bothered exploring. I mean, think about it. You might be a master carpenter and not even know it. Or maybe you'd make a great sci-fi author like Bulma's big sister."

Piccolo snorted out a short bout of laughter. "You're right, Goku. I am extremely bored, I admit, but that doesn't mean I can't keep a secret. My slug alien senses are tingling, and you know what they're telling me? They're telling me something's up and you're the guy to talk to if I want to know more."

When Goku reached the elevator, he pressed the up button with a hard look on his face as he glanced back at his pursuer. "I really don't think you'd be interested in this 'secret' you speak of if you actually knew what it was. And second of all, it's not my secret to tell. I get it. You want a good fight, right? You want some serious excitement. I can't make chaos happen, but I can give you a good spar when I'm available. That might not be for a few hours, though. I'll let you know as soon as I'm free."

Standing to the right of the elevator, Piccolo leaned against the wall with the ever-present smirk still on his face. "A spar sounds great, but come on, Goku… I thought we were friends now. Just a little peek?"

The elevator beeped, signaling the car's arrival, and the door slid open. "No," Goku replied, stepping inside and turning around to block the way. He pressed the button for the second floor. "Sorry to disappoint. Have a great day, Piccolo. Like I said, I'll try to catch you later if and when I'm available."

Just like that, the elevator doors slid shut. Goku tapped his head against the interior metal door. I think I liked Piccolo better as a villain than as a pest, he thought, sighing. The door opened to the second-floor hall, at which point Goku exited and walked straight to the double doors at the end, the interior entrance to the Briefs family quarters. He rang the doorbell and waited ten seconds before the doors slid open. Mrs. Briefs greeted him with a smile. She was wearing a cooking apron and holding a wooden spoon covered in pancake batter. "Oh! Good morning, Goku. You're a bit early for breakfast, but it should all be ready in about thirty minutes. Come on in. You can put your luggage down in the living room, dear."

Goku followed her inside. "Actually, Mrs. Briefs, I need to talk to Bulma right away. Do you mind if I go knock on her bedroom door? It's kinda urgent," he shortly explained, rubbing the back of his head.

"I think I heard her stirring a few minutes ago. You better go catch her before she jumps in the shower."

"Thanks!" Goku replied, heading down another hall. When he reached Bulma's bedroom door, he put an ear to it. She definitely seemed to be on her feet. He knocked. "Bulma, it's Goku. We need to talk."

He heard a scuffling sound before the door swung open to a wide-eyed wild-haired genius in a nightgown. "Goku! Bright and early, I see. Where's Veg…?" she began, suddenly noticing the 'luggage' Goku was carrying. She gasped and clapped a hand to her face. "Oh, my goodness! Is he okay?"

"I'm not sure," Goku replied honestly. "He's breathing and has a pulse, but I wasn't able to wake him up this morning. He's been totally unresponsive. I came as soon as I got sufficiently worried. There's a lot to tell. Should I take him straight to the clinic and wait for you there?" he inquired.

Bulma pursed her lips. "Let me throw on some clothes. I can come back for a shower after I check him out," she determined, hurriedly closing the door. "Just hold tight for one minute!"

"Sure, Bulma." Goku waited in the hallway for a minute, shuffling his feet and holding onto Vegeta. Bulma was true to her word. Precisely one minute later, she emerged wearing a hastily put-on tee, unzipped khaki pants, and mismatched socks. "Your shirt is inside out," Goku informed her.

Bulma gave him a look. "Whatever, Goku. I'll fix it later. Come on, let's get Vegeta to the clinic," she urged, taking off down the hallway. She had to pause when her trousers started to descend, taking a blushing moment to zip up her fly. Goku followed her straight to the clinic. The woman gave a few employees dirty looks along the way when they noticed her disheveled appearance. When they arrived at the clinic, Bulma pressed a button to open the door and beckoned Goku to go in before her.

Goku gently adjusted Vegeta into a bridal position in his arms as he approached the gurney. He sat him down on the side of the bed and loosened the straps around the coat's hood, pulling it back to reveal Vegeta's restful face. Goku paused and glanced over to Bulma as the door shut behind them. "Hey, Bulma, do you have some clothes for me to put on Vegeta? When I found him, his clothes were dirty and covered in blood. All I had for him was my gi top," he explained, unbuttoning the winter coat and pulling it down to reveal the orange top Vegeta was wearing. He laid Vegeta back on the bed and pressed a hand to his forehead again, finding his temperature felt totally normal. "Hmm, well he seems okay, except he won't wake up," Goku noted to himself as Bulma approached with a worried look.

"His clothes were covered in blood? Oh, no! Is he injured?!" Bulma cried, rushing to sit on the far side of the bed. She grabbed a stethoscope from the side table and put it on, pressing the chest piece to Vegeta's heart. She listened for a moment. "His breathing is shallow and his heart rate is slow."

Goku shook his head. "No, he doesn't have any wounds on him. He was sick, not injured."

Bulma raised a brow and took off the stethoscope, hanging it from her neck. "Alright, Goku, I need you to tell me everything you know. Don't leave out a single detail. He was sick, you say?"

Goku nodded. "Very sick. That's why I took him to the Bansho Spa. You see, it happened like this…"

…

On the far side of the planet, it was nearly 6 PM. Gohan finished writing the last word of the last sentence of the last paragraph of the last essay of the last assignment he had missed while on Namek. He dotted a period for punctuation and dropped his pen, sitting back in his desk chair with a huge sigh of relief. He stared up at the fancy ceiling fan as it spun lazily overhead, so mentally exhausted that he could hardly see straight. "Aw, man…" the kid uttered to himself, his lips upturning into a tired smile. "I'm done. Now, I can sit back and enjoy my summer. Thank goodness! I thought I'd never catch up."

"Gohan, time for dinner! We have someone special over tonight. Come on out," Chi Chi called from the kitchen of their new vacation home. It had been a whole working week since the start of their first big city family vacation and yet Gohan had not until now been able to actually enjoy his new surroundings. The brain-breaking intellectual labor that his loving but strict mother imposed on him for the betterment of his education had his abilities stretched to the limit, and it only got more difficult as he grew older, never easier. Gohan had been so busy over the past few days that he had not even seen his father or anyone else since the barbecue when his dad and Krillin had been wished back to Earth.

With the promise of spending a whole summer of quality time with his father, Gohan had made it a priority to finish his make-up assignments as fast as possible. When Chi Chi mentioned that a special someone had arrived for dinner, Gohan felt his heart flutter in excitement. He jumped up, feeling re-energized to a small degree. It must be Dad! He thought in merriment. "Coming, Mom! Hey, guess what! I just finished! I'm completely done!" the boy cried, racing out of his new bedroom study nook.

He screeched to a halt in the grand dining room of their vacation dwelling, a vast wall-length window highlighting the sun in the west as it set over Orange City. The big smile on Gohan's face dissipated in an instant as he met eyes with a hard but familiar mustached face seated at the elongated hardwood table. Gohan looked confused and reached up to scratch his head. "Oh, hey there, Mr. Cardinal," he politely greeted, bowing. "I wasn't expecting to see you. It's a nice surprise though. How are you, sir?"

"I'm well, Gohan. Please, do join us," replied the mustache-wielding man in a sober tone of voice.

"Gohan," Chi Chi spoke, entering from the kitchen with a steaming tray of bao buns in hand. "Please, have a seat and get comfortable. You did say you were completely finished with your work, right?"

Gohan plastered a big smile on his face. "Yup!" he happily announced, skipping over to the table and pulling back a chair. He took his place and admired the spread that his culinarily-talented mother had prepared as she set the bao buns down near the center of the dining table. "I'm completely done."

"Excellent. I'm very proud of you, Gohan. Now that I can have your full attention apart from your studies, Mr. Cardinal and I have some very big news to share with you. Some of it might come as a bit of a shock, so strap in," Chi Chi told him in a light tone of voice, a small smile gracing her features.

Gohan ran his fingers through his hair, smiling. "Oh, I'm sure it can't be all that bad. You're in such a good mood, Mom," he teased lightly, reaching for the tongs to serve himself some food. His eyes popped open in realization. "Oh, Mr. Cardinal… guess what! My dad is back from his… um… business trip. I'd love for you to meet him. He's such a great guy. Maybe you can come to my birthday party at Dream Land." He paused, blushing. "Assuming you're not too busy… I wouldn't want to impose."

Mr. Cardinal did not reply as Chi Chi took her place at the table beside him. The young mother cleared her throat quietly as she served herself some wonton soup and dumplings. "Yes, Gohan, about that. I wouldn't say the news is bad, but it does mean there will be some very big changes in our lives from now on. It might take you some time to adjust to these changes. Your father and I… well, we're not going to be…" She paused, struggling to break the news to Gohan. Mr. Cardinal reached over and placed his beefy hand on top of Chi Chi's and nodded at her. She blushed and smiled back at him before turning back to Gohan. "In short, your father and I aren't going to be living together anymore, Gohan. We're still going to be friends and you'll get to spend plenty of time with him, I promise you that. As much as you want during summer vacation and then every weekend after school starts," she explained, turning her hand sideways on the table to give Mr. Cardinal's fingers a gentle squeeze in return.

Gohan froze with a bao bun halfway into his open maw, his eyes wide. After a long pause, he lowered the bao bun back down to his plate. "Wha… What?" he stuttered, unable to think up another reply.

Chi Chi kept her head down, struggling to meet Gohan's eye as she continued, "Our marriage is over. We're going to be getting a divorce. Divorce means the formal and legal end to a marriage."

Gohan stood up with his hands resting on the table. "But… is… is Dad okay with this? Is he at home right now? Do you mind if I fly over and talk with him real quick? I'll be back in an hour tops."

Mr. Cardinal turned his attention to Gohan. "Son, this is your new home. Your mother and I are in love with one another. Once the divorce is finalized, we plan on getting married and I'll be moving in. In fact, if you're so inclined, we would love for you to be the ringbearer at our upcoming wedding."

Gohan was speechless for a moment as he met eyes with Mr. Cardinal. "B-But… I-I hardly even know you, Mr. Cardinal. You say that we're going to be living together? Like, without my daddy?"

Mr. Cardinal recoiled. "My dear boy, it would be inappropriate for your biological father to live here in my presence, especially when he is no longer your mother's husband. There can only be one man of the house, you know. Having two wouldn't make any sense. It would be entirely unnatural and much too volatile," he explained, wiping his red mustache with a silk napkin as if he had been slighted.

"But isn't it wonderful, Gohan? We're not just staying in this beautiful penthouse for summer vacation. We get to live here permanently, right near the hip downtown district of Orange City! Your new school is right around the corner and there are so many lovely shops, salons, grocery stores, and farmers' markets… Just think about it, you'll get to make all kinds of new friends your age and receive a stellar education at a top-notch school. And, as I said, once school starts, you'll be able to visit your father every weekend. Isn't that wonderful, dear? It'll be just like old times, but better," Chi Chi said.

Gohan's face fell even more. "Only on the weekends?"

"You'll be too busy studying during the week, child," Mr. Cardinal expressed. "I'm the one paying for your education, so I expect you to be at the top of all of your classes. Understood?"

Gohan hesitated before nodding. "Yes, of course, I'll…"

Mr. Cardinal grinned. "And there will be new rules around here starting now which your mother and I have negotiated. You will not be leaving the house without adult permission and direct supervision. Once you turn fourteen, you may leave the house alone, but never without permission. Only then will you be allowed a cell phone and computer of your own. We've just bought you a new wardrobe and we expect you to wear it from here on out at all times. As for…" he paused, gesturing to the dark blue gi Gohan was wearing, "that, it will be discarded. No sleepovers and no friendships with members of the opposite gender at school. In fact, no talking to girls at all outside of mandatory class assignments. No dating until you've graduated from college with top honors. All playdates must be supervised by either your mother or me. Your bedroom door will remain open at all times. The bathroom door may be closed, but never locked. There will be no eating or drinking outside of the dining room. You will consume no junk food and absolutely no sweets, except on special occasions as permitted by your mother. You will watch no movies rated higher than G. If you follow all the rules, you'll receive a 1,500 zeni allowance per week, which will be deposited into a bank account that you will be able to access when you are old enough to understand the value of money. As for pets, nothing bigger or more demanding than a goldfish. That's only a portion of the rule list. The complete list will be written up and posted on the refrigerator door this coming Monday. I expect you to read it, memorize it, and recite it back by the following Friday. Are we understood? If you have any questions, we'll answer them now," he decreed in a no-nonsense voice.

Gohan scratched his scalp. He felt like his head was spinning. "Well… uh, yes. What is dating?"

Chi Chi furrowed her brows. "That's not something a boy your age should concern himself with."

Gohan looked even more puzzled. "Oh… okay. Sorry, Mom."

"It's alright, dear."

"Any other questions?" Mr. Cardinal asked.

Gohan rubbed his chin as he thought for a minute. "Um… well. Oh, yes. One more. Did I do something wrong? Am I in trouble?" he inquired worriedly. He had been trying so hard lately to please his mother and he thought he had succeeded. All the new changes and rules frankly felt like a punishment.

"Not at all, Gohan," Chi Chi replied with a smile. "I'm very proud of you for finishing your work."

Gohan frowned, peering at the floor. "But… usually you don't take away privileges unless I do something wrong. You were always okay with me closing my bedroom door before… It just seems odd. I guess I'm just worried that I've disappointed you somehow," he said, rubbing his shoulder.

"Well, Gohan, don't think of these things as a loss. We're moving on to a new stage in our lives in which we'll be living around many other people. Most of these new rules are just a precaution to protect you against the bad influences that you're likely to meet in this new environment. That's all."

Gohan met his mother's eyes. "Oh, really?" he replied. Chi Chi nodded. "Okay."

"And guess what, Gohan!" Chi Chi declared enthusiastically. "From now on, you no longer have to call my future husband here 'Mr. Cardinal.' You get to call him Papa Cardinal! Isn't that wonderful?"

Gohan blinked. "Oh, I don't mind calling him Mr. Cardinal. Nothing wrong with that."

Mr. Cardinal cleared his throat. "Young man, we have discussed the subject in detail and we've decided that it would be inappropriate for you to address me as 'Mr. Cardinal' given the paternal role I'll be taking on in your upbringing henceforth. Your mother's suggestion would be much more respectful, given that I'm paying for your feeding, housing, and education," the mustached man tersely explained.

"Oh…"

"And as for the question of you speaking to your father," Chi Chi chimed, "you're free to chat with him on the phone as soon as we get notice he's turned in the divorce papers I sent him. He should have received them today. Hopefully, he'll have that simple task squared away by Monday at the latest."

Gohan frowned again. "So, I can't even talk to him this weekend?"

Chi Chi shook her head. "It's best that you don't. Now, sit down and eat your supper before it gets cold, Gohan. Then we can go on a new family walk, have some TV time, and it's off to bed. Got it?"

Gohan looked at his plate, sitting back down in his seat. He had been half-starved at first, but now his stomach did not feel quite right anymore. A deep feeling of unease had taken over his mind and body. While his appetite had all but vanished, he tried to nibble away at his food as per his mother's orders. Meanwhile, Chi Chi and Mr. Cardinal chatted enthusiastically amongst themselves about their plans for the future, hardly paying him any mind. At least not until his mother happened to glance over and spot him pushing his food around the plate with his chopsticks and appearing to be in deep thought.

"Gohan, eat your dinner. I won't tell you again," Chi Chi charged, snapping him out of his reverie.

Gohan jumped in startlement, his large eyes darting to meet hers. "Oh… s-sorry, Mom!" he replied, starting to shovel food into his mouth. The faster he could get some alone time, the better. He needed to think. He had a lot to think about, and nothing about any of it was in the least bit exciting to him. All he had been left with was a sinking feeling in his stomach, but he forced it back long enough to fill up on dinner to his mother's satisfaction. As soon as he was done, he wiped his mouth and forced a smile. "May I be excused? I need to use the little boy's room," he expressed, rubbing the back of his neck.

Chi Chi nodded and Gohan hurried off. As he left, he overheard Mr. Cardinal's remark, "It looks like table manners are another thing we'll have to work on with your son, my dear. I'll add it to the rule list."

Gohan felt a painful prick behind his eyes as he broke into a jog, not hearing his mother's reply. As soon as the door was closed behind him, the tears started to stream down his face at a rapid pace. He bit his hand, grimacing as he felt his heart twist. This can't be real. I must be dreaming. Oh, Kami, let this be a dream… he thought, fighting back the urge to sob. It was too much too soon for a child his age.

Gohan held his breath against the urge to hyperventilate, fearing he would be heard. In desperation, his eyes darted around for signs of a fan. He needed noise. With his sight blurry, the only thing he could find in time was the sink faucet. He turned on a light stream to make it sound like he was peeing. His eyes fell upon the window above the toilet. He stood up on the toilet seat and unlatched it, pushing it open. He needed air, needed to escape. Flying out the small window was easy. He almost took off without thinking, but turned back and closed the window. Gohan moved over to his adjacent bedroom window, which his mother had left open for the fresh air and spring breeze. He squeezed inside, grabbed his backpack, and stuffed it with a few items. Then he left by the same window and was gone.

…

"Okay, so let me reiterate the important points to make sure I've understood," Bulma spoke, lightly pinching the skin on Vegeta's forearm. She stood up and yanked open the door of the nearby medical supply closet, bringing out a tall pole with a coathanger-like top and rolling wheels. She pushed and pulled it to the head of the gurney before turning to the nearby sink, pumping a generous amount of liquid soap into her hands and starting to scrub them thoroughly. "Frieza intentionally injected Vegeta with a lethal bioengineered disease. Vegeta never listed all the symptoms of said disease for you, but you witnessed him coughing so hard that you thought he was going to die in your arms. Correct?"

Goku nodded. "Yeah, it was a really scary cough. It seemed to last forever."

"What kind of cough was it? Was it a dry cough?" Bulma inquired, acting out an example thereof. "Can you demonstrate what it was like as I just did? Go ahead, try and show me what it sounded like."

Goku rubbed his chin. "Okay, I'll try. It was, like, really violent and uncontrolled, like…" he explained, pausing to mimic the whooping cough he had heard from Vegeta. "See? It was like he was gasping for air. And it got so hard at one point that he started coughing up blood and then… well, I can't explain it, but he coughed something out. I have no idea what it could have been. Before the cough started, he was talking just fine. I never saw him inhale anything. It was so bizarre. I've never seen anything like it."

"So, a whooping cough? And you say he coughed something out?"

Goku bobbed his head affirmatively. "Yup."

Bulma pursed her lips as she finished her handwashing and went right to the drying. "Okay, first I'm going to administer IV fluids because he seems to be quite dehydrated. Then I'm going to need your help bringing him to Radiology. You can push the gurney along and I'll follow with the IV stand."

Goku nodded. "How are you going to get him to drink the fluids though?"

Bulma paused and rolled her eyes as she finished her routine, putting on a pair of latex gloves. "You wouldn't want to drink IV fluid, Goku. It doesn't taste very good." She grabbed a clear plastic bag with liquid and put it on a tray with some tubing and other miscellaneous items, bringing the tray over and placing it on the bedside table. She hung the plastic bag from the pole and attached a narrow tube to the bottom. Then she turned her attention to Vegeta, taking his left arm in hand and poking at the veins on the inside of his elbow with her index finger. When she appeared to find what she was looking for, she took a tourniquet from the tray and tied it around his bicep just above the elbow. Bulma opened an alcohol swab and scrubbed the spot she had poked on Vegeta's arm. She glanced back at the standing saiyan. "Goku, you might want to look away," she warned, picking up a cannula from the tray.

Goku felt his hair stand on end when he recognized what she was holding. "Bulma, no! Don't do it! Poor Vegeta, those really hurt!" he cried, covering his eyes as he began to tremble from head to toe.

"Goku!" Bulma replied sternly. "The man is unconscious. He can't feel a thing." She did not hesitate to insert the cannula into a prominent vein in Vegeta's arm despite Goku's protests. After removing the needle and connecting the cannula to the IV bag, she allowed the hydrating mixture to flow through the tube and into Vegeta's veins. Then she re-sterilized the site and applied tape to keep the cannula in place. She turned around to face Goku, who had backed into a corner while shielding his eyes. "You can look now, Goku. It's over. I don't know about you, but I didn't hear a peep from Vegeta. Now, let's take him to Radiology for a chest X-ray. I need to know if the coughing caused internal injuries."

Goku looked at Bulma and peered at the floor, poking his fingers together. "It just seems mean…"

Bulma ignored Goku's mutterings and beckoned him over before patting the handle of the headboard on the gurney. "Come on, Goku. I need you to push, but not too fast. I need to keep up with you so we don't risk tearing out the IV from Vegeta's arm. We're going out the door to the right."

Goku took his place behind the gurney and followed Bulma's instructions. They soon arrived in the Radiology Room a minute and a half later. Bulma had Goku pick Vegeta up and put him down on the radiography table mattress. They both left the room, looking in through the window, as Bulma ran the machine. Then she had Goku return Vegeta to the gurney. "Alright, Goku. Let's take him back to the clinic. I'm going to print and analyze these results. It might take a while. You can head back to the family dining room for breakfast, if you like. I'll fill you in as soon as I know what's going on with Vegeta, okay?" she said, glancing over at her childhood friend. She noticed he seemed to be wringing his hands while looking down at Vegeta. "What's wrong, Goku? Don't worry. I won't stop working on this until he's all better, I promise. I'll tell my dad that I might have to skip the business meeting this morning. I won't leave him all by himself, you have my word. Besides, if worse comes to worst, we can always cryogenically freeze him until the dragon balls are available. Either way, it'll pan out."

Goku nodded sadly, taking hold of the head of the gurney. Bulma rolled the IV stand along beside him as they headed back to the clinic room. "I just feel like this is partly my fault. When he told me he was sick, I brought him to the Bansho Spa in Octagon Village because it's supposed to have magical healing powers for illnesses. It did seem to work. I mean, he stopped coughing and he doesn't have a fever anymore. But instead of going to sleep, I should've brought him right to Capsule Corp. I thought he was going to wake up the next morning refreshed, but instead, he didn't wake up at all."

"I've never been to the Bansho Spa, but you're right. It is legendary for being able to heal all sicknesses. Since we know where it is, maybe I should send a field technician to grab a few samples of the water to see how else it could be used in medicine. Actually, Goku, it sounds like you did the right thing. I mean, you took him there to recover from his coughing fit. By the time you guys were done, you were too exhausted to do anything else, but you didn't dawdle the next morning when you realized something was still wrong. So, I don't think you need to feel bad. And, honestly, I believe Vegeta will recover. Saiyans are known to be incredibly resilient and Vegeta is no exception," Bulma said as they strolled and rolled Vegeta down the hall. She glanced at the unconscious prince, noticing his oversized orange garment again. "So, uh… Tell me, how did you manage to get Vegeta into your gi top? I'm surprised he'd agree to put it on. He never seemed to like the color orange. Then again, I suppose he was too exhausted to make much of a fuss, especially if he didn't have any clean clothes of his own to wear."

"Oh, it was easy. He fell asleep right after I put him down in the hot spring. Poor guy had deep circles under his eyes like he hadn't slept in weeks," Goku explained. "So, he didn't make a fuss when I put my top on him. He was completely knocked out by then. Now, taking his dirty armor off, that was another story entirely…" he said with a nervous laugh. "Oh, man. I was falling all over myself trying to wrestle it off him. He really didn't want to part with it. You should've seen it. I've never felt so clumsy or awkward before in my life. And then he kept giving me this mean look when I was giving him a bath. Fortunately, he ran out of energy halfway through and stopped fighting. Now that I think of it, I have mine and Vegeta's dirty clothes in my luggage capsule. Maybe, we should go give them a wash so he can have his armor back when he wakes up. He's really attached to it for some reason, which surprises me because it's the same armor he was wearing on Namek when Frieza killed him. Go figure."

Bulma felt her face heat up from secondhand embarrassment as Goku regaled her with the story. She pressed the button to open the clinic room door and they pushed the gurney and IV stand in together. "Uh, Goku, I don't think he's as attached to his armor as you think he is. It sounds like that experience was really mortifying for Vegeta. I'm not saying it wasn't necessary, but a guy like him isn't used to being taken care of. It's probably why he ran away and never asked for help, like a feral cat."

Goku frowned as he repositioned the gurney up against the window facing the city. "Yeah, that's true. I guess that he was pretty much expected to fend for himself after Frieza took him away from his parents. He was just a little kid. When he was dying on Planet Namek, he told me about it because he wanted to convince me that Frieza needed to be finished off and not shown mercy. So, I see your point."

Bulma let go of the IV stand and rubbed her arm. "Yeah, Gohan and Piccolo mentioned something about that months ago. I guess now all there is to do is try to acclimate Vegeta to his new environment. Anyway, you asked me to get clothes for Vegeta. I'll go do that. They're still in the bedroom that he abandoned. Do you mind watching him for a few minutes until I get back?" she inquired.

"Sure!" Goku replied, sitting in a chair by the bed. Bulma smiled and headed out of the room. When she returned, she was carrying a large folder in one hand and a folded pile of clothes in the other. The pile included a Capsule Corp tee, loose khaki cutoffs, and a pair of black lycra trunks. She handed the clothes to Goku and approached the lightbox mounted on one side of the room, turning it on and sliding the X-ray images into it one at a time. Goku paused as he watched Bulma. He got curious when he saw the strange images and put the clean clothes on the foot of the bed, walking over to look. "Neat! Are these Vegeta's insides? Oh, wow! I can see his bones and everything," Goku said, oohing and aahing.

Bulma nodded. "Yeah, I'm going to have to spend some time staring at these images to see if I can find any signs of internal injuries or perhaps hemorrhaging. Meanwhile, why don't you go dress Vegeta?" she uttered with a yawn. "Darn, I need a cup of coffee for this. I better send a message to my mom."

Goku nodded. "Sure thing," he said, returning to the bedside. He unbuttoned the rest of the winter coat and pulled it out from under Vegeta's body. Then he aligned Vegeta's feet and pushed them through the leg holes of his stretchy boxers. He pulled the boxers up to his knees and stopped, noticing the lightly waving tail. He glanced back at his blue-haired friend. "Hey, Bulma, do you have a pair of scissors?"

Bulma yawned again, not looking. "Uh-huh. Sure. Check the white drawer all the way on the left."

"Thanks!" Goku returned, opening the white drawer on the clinic desk. He found a pair of scissors with orange handles and took them, snipping a hole in the back of Vegeta's boxers. He did the same with the khaki cutoffs and pulled those onto Vegeta's feet as well and up to his knees. Goku threaded Vegeta's tail through the holes and then sat the prince up, lifting him a bit to pull the boxers up first and then the khakis after. Once that task was done, he pulled the orange gi off of Vegeta's torso and put it back on his own, stuffing the ends in his pants and retying his belt. Then he turned his attention back to Vegeta and the Capsule Corp tee. He pushed his own hands inward through the sleeves, partially turning the tee inside out, and then grabbed Vegeta's hands with his own. Hehe, he thought, reminiscing. He had first learned how to dress others when Gohan was a baby. The practice applied to the current situation, making things much easier as he dropped the neck opening over Vegeta's head and pulled the tee down over his torso. He positioned Vegeta comfortably on the gurney and grabbed the white folded blanket in the attached basket, laying it over Vegeta's body up to his chin. "Okay, Bulma. I'm all done here!"

"Great. You going to breakfast now?" she inquired.

"Sure am!"

Bulma's eyes were set on the X-ray images as she leaned in to examine them. "Alright. Will you do me a favor and ask my mom to send a plate and a large cup of coffee over to the clinic? She knows how I like it. Thanks again for everything, Goku," she spoke in a tired voice, stretching her back.

"I'd be happy to. I got my cell on me. Let me know ASAP if there's even the slightest change. Thanks!" Goku expressed, heading toward the electronic door and pressing the button to open it.

"You got it, Goku."

Goku left with a wave. "See ya soon!"

"Bye!"

When Goku got back to the Briefs family residence, the morning meal was nearly done and Mrs. Briefs was looking a bit worried. "Oh, Goku dear! There's plenty left. Help yourself. Do you know where Bulma ran off to?" she inquired as she twiddled about in the kitchen, cleaning up her cooking mess.

Goku sat down and piled up a plate. "She's in the clinic with Vegeta. Oh, and she asks that you send over a breakfast plate and a big cup of coffee since she can't pull herself away just yet."

Mrs. Briefs perked up. "Oh, what's that you say? Vegeta's back? That's wonderful! Do you know if Vegeta's had breakfast already? I can bring something over for them both! I better get a hover cart…" she declared, opening a kitchen drawer and pulling out a serving equipment DynoCap.

"Actually, Vegeta's not awake yet. If I were you, I'd wait on that. He just got over a bad illness and I'm not sure that he'll have much of an appetite just yet," Goku pointed out as he poured maple syrup over a tower of pancakes. He poured himself a tall glass of orange juice and started chowing down.

Mrs. Briefs brought a finger to her lips. "A bad illness, you say?"

Goku nodded, swallowing a big bite. "Yup, he was coughin' like crazy."

"I know just what he needs! I'll make him a cup of peppermint tea with honey and lemon. He'll feel better in no time, just you watch," Mrs. Briefs declared, putting away the capsule. She got to work on her new objectives as Goku stuffed his face with food. Meanwhile, Dr. Briefs sat on the other side of the table sipping a cup of black coffee and reading a newspaper. He folded the newspaper and got up.

The doctor stretched. "Well, my dear, I'm off to work. You have a lovely day. Same to you, Goku."

Goku waved goodbye to Dr. Briefs. Once the Z fighter finished his meal, he rose to his feet feeling full and encouraged. Bulma had told him Vegeta's condition was not his fault and she promised he would recover one way or another. Goku trusted Bulma enough to keep such an important promise. Before heading out to train with Piccolo, he checked his cell phone and made sure the ringer was on.

…

Aloha Long struggled to hide a limp as she checked in at the front desk, sweating slightly from the thick makeup caked on her face to conceal any uncomely marks from her recent adventures. The robotic secretary was not one to notice anything being off in regard to a human's subtle body cues, but Aloha could only hope no people caught on. Another robot about the mass of a medium-sized rubbish bin rolled to Aloha's side on wheeled feet, two tong-like appendages sticking out of its body. "Come with me, Dr. Along," it spoke in a genderless computerized voice. "I will give you your first in-person tour of the Capsule Corporation compound. You may call me INTERNBOT-2000 or INTER for short."

"Okay. It's nice to meet you, INTER," Al replied with a smile.

"Likewise, Dr. Along," the robot said, spinning toward the front doors. "As you know, this is the main entrance of the building which all guests are expected to pass through during a visit to our global headquarters." It wheeled around to face the opposite direction and began to roll down the long hall. "Follow me, please. The passage you see branching off to your left leads to the normal entrance for all established employees. It is the entrance you will be expected to come through on Monday when you officially start working here." Al nodded. INTER gestured to the right. "Here, you see two elevators that can transport you to any of the main floors in the building. The second floor is host to the Briefs family living quarters and the third floor leads to the East and West Towers, accessible only with a Blue Access card. Now, if we continue straight ahead down the hall, we'll eventually come to the Atrium. The Atrium, you see, is an indoor garden area with all manner of trees, plants, and rescue animals…"

An hour into the tour, INTER and Dr. Along passed by Dr. Briefs' laboratory where they spotted him working with fellow scientists on schematics. Dr. Along presumed they were designing a new capsule building of some kind, based on what she could see through the elongated viewing window. Eventually, they arrived in front of a pair of double-hinged doors. "This area is a mini-hospital. It provides emergency care should any employee be injured on the job, as well as free routine health checks for all salaried individuals. This will include you. The only services not offered are specializations such as dentistry, dermatology, psychiatry, etc. Instead, Capsule Corp has partnerships with many specialty care centers all over the city that offer these services to our employees in our stead without fees. All you need to do is flash your employee ID number and you can get an appointment. All locations are listed in the Employee Benefits Database, which you can access on any Capsule Corp computer."

Dr. Along smiled. "Oh, that's great. May we go into the hospital wing?"

"Of course," INTER replied, rolling up to the double-hinged doors and pushing one open for the new employee. "Come with me. I will show you all the rooms and equipment, including the clinic."

"Awesome sauce!" Dr. Along declared as she followed the robot through the door. They had arrived at the entrance to the clinic when they both ran into a very flustered and disheveled Bulma Briefs who was looking through the contents of a folder and almost did not see them. "Oh, Ms. Briefs!" Al blared in surprise, causing the blue-haired woman to nearly jump out of her shoes and mismatched socks.

When Bulma noticed Al, her blue eyes lit up and her tired frown turned upside down. "Dr. Along! It's a pleasure to see you. You're having orientation, right? That's wonderful!" Then she looked down, noticing her own appearance, and blushed. "Eek, please forgive my lack of professionalism. I had to take a patient early this morning and I haven't had a chance to shower," she explained, trying to cover her embarrassing choice of clothing with her hands. Her face turned thoughtful. "Dr. Along… have you had much training in X-ray Analytics? I was heading out to seek a consultation with another M.D. Maybe you can help me out," she proposed, leafing through the images with a puzzled look on her face.

"I'd be happy to, Ms. Briefs. Yes, I do have some experience in Radiology and Analytics. Let's go to the clinic and use the lightbox. I'm sure the details will be much easier to see that way," Dr. Along said.

Bulma turned her attention to the robot. "INTER, pause orientation and return to base."

A red light lit up on the top of INTERNBOT-2000's head. "Pausing orientation and returning to base," it said, spinning around to head back in the same direction that they had come from.

"Nice! Getting right down to business," Dr. Along said, pressing the button to reopen the clinic door. "I don't mind being thrown into the deep end. I learn quickly, as you know." She strode right in and spotted a sleeping man with long spiky black hair under a blanket on the gurney. "Is this the patient?"

Bulma followed behind Dr. Along and nodded, moving over to the lightbox to slide the images back in. "So, the situation is that Vegeta here was sick with an unknown illness and was having such violent coughing fits that he was hacking up blood and who knows what else, according to a mutual friend. I'm trying to figure out if he might have any related internal injuries. He seems to be comatose since yesterday, as he is unresponsive. As for me, I need to get some coffee in me so my brain can start working again. My mother should be sending some over soon. I just sent our mutual friend off to ask her. Do you think you could take over watching the patient as well as analyzing the X-rays for about twenty minutes while I freshen up? I promise I'll be back as soon as possible and my cell is always on."

"Sure thing. Is he stable?"

Bulma nodded. "He's breathing, but his pulse is slow. He was dehydrated, so I have him hooked up to an IV. Let it empty before you detach, but keep the cannula in so we can administer more as…"

"Bulma dear!" Mrs. Briefs announced, appearing in the doorway with a tray of breakfast food and a mug of coffee. "Oh, it's true. Your sweet friend Vegeta is back! Is he alright? I came to bring you your breakfast as you asked. Who's your little friend there?" she inquired, nodding to the other scientist wearing a fitted white lab coat. "I haven't seen her around before. Is she one of the new employees?"

Bulma smiled. "This is Dr. Aloha Long, Mom. She's the candidate I told you about. Isn't it great? The board agreed to hire her. She also has an M.D., so she's going to help me out here with Vegeta while I go freshen up. Let's take that tray and head back to the living room," she declared, grabbing the coffee mug without a moment's hesitation and taking a sip. She sighed in relief at her first daily dose of caffeine. "Mmm, that's better. I need to catch a lightning-quick shower and then I'll eat breakfast."

"Alright, dear," Mrs. Briefs replied, opening the clinic door for her daughter by pressing the button. "Come with me, Bulma. Dr. Aloha, I can't wait for us to get to know each other better. It's a pleasure to finally meet you in person. Your resume is quite impressive, I hear. Take care of Vegeta dear!"

"Yes, ma'am," Dr. Along replied, smiling.

After they had left, Al turned her attention to the X-ray images. She examined them closely, drawing the butt of a pen across different areas to help her eyes focus. "Hmm…" she uttered, rubbing her chin, "that's odd." The cogs in her brilliant brain turned as she glanced over at the gurney in the back of the room up against the window. She strode over and pulled the white blanket down from Vegeta's chin, leaning in to examine his face. The 18-year-old scientist checked his pulse, still worryingly slow as Bulma had indicated. Al's large discerning eyes zeroed in on the bluish tint on Vegeta's lips. "Bingo."

Dr. Along turned her attention to the supply closet, pulling out a large cylindrical tank on a ratchet and rolling it to the bed's right side. She covered the patient's nose and mouth with a clear mask, pulling the headgear over his oddly-shaped hair. Then she connected it to the tank and turned on the valve.