Couples Retreat
Set months after the Buu saga, Bulma struggles to come to terms with everything that had happened. Especially those involving her husband Vegeta when he was under the spell of the wizard destroying part of the world tournament arena and killing hundreds of innocent people. As a solution to get answers and move their relationship forward Bulma asks Vegeta to go on a couples retreat to the nearby planet Cascadia Terra. Will this trip give them the peace and answers they need for their relationship to survive or will the obscure, wild planet claim not only their relationship but their lives?
Chapter 1
To the unknowing at first glance, it seemed like a tranquil, late afternoon in the wilderness near Mount Paozu on the surface. There was a stillness to the region on this perfectly clear summer day without a cloud in the sky. But to the creatures native to the region, it was anything but a peaceful day. Starting in the morning the silence and stillness was broken by two warriors who chose the region as their sparring grounds. One of the warriors sped by, a blur of orange and blue. The other pursued as the aggressor, clad simply in all dark navy blue tank top jump suit with white gloves and boots. The man in dark blue finally caught up to the man in orange who was immediately on the defensive, blocking all of his hyper aggressive strikes and kicks as he flew into a small valley. The man in orange blocked one final blow and sped off to the side of the valley gesturing for a time out before descending down to the canyon ground.
"Time out Vegeta!" the man in an orange Gi Goku said, brushing off dust from the dry canyon.
"Hmph! Since when are there time outs in battle?", the shorter man Vegeta replied sharply as he crossed his arms, still floating in the air.
"Well, this isn't a real fight. We're just sparring, remember?" Goku said cheerfully as he did some quick stretches.
"I know that you moron! Do you think I suddenly forgot?!" Vegeta yelled back, never one to miss out on an opportunity to talk trash as he began to descend down.
"Just give me a few minutes. I'm getting hungry! We may have to cut this short soon." Goku said.
"Yes, YOU will cut things short. I am not ready to stop. Because unlike you I have work ethic. And discipline!" Vegeta replied smugly.
"Yeah, you sure do, buddy." Goku fired back. Vegeta opened a cooler on the side of the canyon and got a metal bottle of water out. He tossed another bottle in Goku's direction.
The two Saiyan warriors had made a pact to train together exclusively shortly after the conflicts stemming from Majin Buu. Both men acknowledged if any other threats faced their home Planet Earth, they needed to be united and they were on a level of strength few else on the planet were at as the last two surviving pure blooded Saiyans. So far the sparring sessions were proving to be fruitful even though it had just been a couple months. Both men were being pushed to their limits and pushed out of their regular comfort zones in training as intense as they both may be.
Goku finished his canteen of water. "Ok one more series then I wanna go home.", he said as he wiped sweat from his brow.
"Fine! But we're doing blocking exercises!" the ever-intense Vegeta spat back.
"Works for me! You first!" Goku replied cheerfully. Shortly after, the two flew over to an area of the mountains littered with large rocks and boulders. Goku picked up one large rock and threw it in Vegeta's direction with the velocity of a meteor as Vegeta chopped it in half once it reached him. Goku threw more rocks and boulders at Vegeta who batted them away, blocked them or destroyed them. Eventually the two men switched spots and Vegeta threw stones at Goku who would block or destroy them.
The men were not alone on this training ground as the wives of the two warriors watched a safe distance away up the mountain top. After chatting and drinking tea, both women were lounging about taking in the fresh summer air in silence until that silence was broken by the sound of rocks and boulders exploding on impact.
"Jeez!" Bulma exclaimed as the loud noise jarred her out of her trance. "Are they not done yet?"
"Apparently not! It sure doesn't sound like it! " her friend Chi Chi replied. She brushed some silk fragments native to the mountain valley off her purple dress and stood up as she walked to the edge of the cliff to see what the source of the noise was. Even miles away she could see the men tossing rocks at each other as a training exercise.
"Looks like they're playing catch with rocks." Chi Chi observed. "They better be wrapping this up."
Bulma got up to see the action for herself as her friend sat back down. The canyon wind blasted at her and blew her long blue hair which she had been growing out back as she walked up to the edge. Maybe her attire of a Capsule Corp shirt and shorts wasn't enough cover, she hadn't anticipated how chilly the wind got up in the mountains.
She chuckled with her arms folded as she watched her husband Vegeta intensely throw rocks at Goku who was blocking them. These guys were so intense it was ridiculous sometimes. Everything that had happened within the last year felt beyond ridiculous. It had been several months since the battles against Majin Buu and Bulma had just now began processing everything. It was hard to imagine that in that span she had died along with everyone living on Earth thanks to the demonic entity then brought back to life. You would think that'd be traumatic to think about, but it wasn't.
What was traumatic as well as confusing to Bulma was the actions of her husband early on in the sequence of events. Seeing him teleported to the world tournament stage. She could never forget how he looked. He was powered up to some Super Saiyan level, but he had a dark "M" on his forehead and sunken dark circles around his eyes. And his expression... that blood thirsty, malevolent look. She was trying to forget about that day out of everything that happened.
There was so much to process over that period of time. Bulma was happy that everything worked out in the end. She got her husband, her son and her friends back. The demon Buu was defeated. So why was she still thinking about what Vegeta did? She didn't understand how it could happen. Vegeta was a very complicated man but Bulma stubbornly thought with her intellect she could figure him out by now. She didn't think after the battles against Cell he would ever be so selfish again after his behavior back then yet there he was destroying part of the World Tournament stadium and killing innocent spectators. Had he really changed at all?
Was he capable of doing something evil like that again? He had been different after he had been wished back but Bulma didn't have the courage to talk to him about everything. She knew she had to. She had been distracting herself with lab work and her family's organization the Capsule Corporation. She realized this was her way of putting off having that talk.
These thoughts were eating away at her mind. She had to bring it up soon but how?
"Hey are you alright?" Chi Chi asked, snapping Bulma out of her daze.
"Um. Y-yes." Bulma replied, collecting herself.
"No, you are not. You've been standing there staring off into the sky for at least five minutes now. I didn't notice you were still standing there until I finished a few chapters of my book! What's up?" Chi Chi pressed.
"I... a lot is weighing on my mind. Everything that happened the last year. I've had a hard time coming to terms with it. That's all. I haven't had time to think about it until it's all over. "Bulma stammered as her voice cracked. She sat down at the foot of Chi Chi's lawn chair. No sense in keeping these secrets from her friend but she this was the first time she was voicing these thoughts that weighed on her conscience.
"Hey it's ok." Chi Chi said as she got up to get closer to Bulma and embraced her. "It seems our lives are full of chaos and even with all the crazy things happening I still struggle with grounding myself throughout everything. It's so much worse when it's not just us going through this but our families are too. It's torture to constantly see Goku and the kids face threats we couldn't even dream of and put their lives on the line in every fight."
"It...it's not just that." Bulma said quietly.
"What is it then?" Chi Chi asked.
"Ugh. It's Vegeta, Chi.", Bulma answered. " I can't stop thinking about what he did at the World Tournament. He seems to be fine now, but he seemed so deranged so... sick that day. I thought he changed until that day and now I don't know what to think."
"Have you talked to him yet? If anything, he seems like he changed for the better after everything with Majin Buu." Chi Chi said trying to cheer her friend up.
"No... I don't know how to approach him. I don't want him to dismiss my concerns either. " Bulma said looking off to the distance.
"Even though he's a jerk, no offense, I don't think he would if he saw how much this was weighing on your mind."
"Did you ever have problems like this with Goku?" Bulma asked.
"Of course. Not like what's bothering you, but we had hard times when he came back to life. So much changed, Gohan is grown up, Goten is around. But we worked through it."
"How did you do that?"
"One day I just couldn't take it anymore with him, so I told him we're going to go on a trip, just me and him, and address all of our problems and get them solved. And we did." Chi Chi said smiling.
"If only it was that easy."
"It doesn't have to be hard either. Being isolated from the noise of the world makes a big difference. Our trip didn't solve all of our problems, but we were both on the same page once we got home... Maybe that's what you and Vegeta need."
"Maybe... but where would we even go?"
"Wherever you want! Is there any place special to you two? Goku and I went camping by the tree where we had our first date when we were kids." Chi Chi said smile as she reminisced.
"Eh, not exactly. Come to think of it most of our relationship has been in the confines of Capsule Corporation. Ugh."
"Well you're a genius I am sure you could find somewhere in the universe you'd both enjoy. Then you can get be on the same page."
Bulma nodded. She felt encouraged now and thought of places she'd like to visit. Places that would prove to an oasis away from all the distractions and chaos of Earth. Recalling her star chart she had been working on in her leisure time she immediately thought of options planet wise.
While Bulma thought she heard the sound of two sets of boots landing on the ground.
"Hey! We're all done!" Goku yelled with a grin.
"It's about damn time!" Chi Chi responded.
"I know I'm starving. But we had a good session. Til next time, eh Vegeta?" Goku said to his training partner.
"Hmph. Until then Kakarot." Vegeta said as he walked over to the ship he came in with Bulma as Goku and Chi Chi walked back to their home which was close by in the mountain range.
"I swear, all this man thinks about is eating and training." Chi Chi lamented playfully as Goku held her hand as they began their short journey back home.
"Remember what I said Bulma. I promise you will be happier once you go through with it. See ya!" Chi Chi added, quickly turning around.
Bulma soon followed her husband back onto the ship.
"What's she blathering about?" Vegeta asked gruffly.