About an hour later the Z fighters had gathered at CC. Yamcha, Tien, chaotzu, krillin, Gohan and Piccolo. Everyone was in shock. Not only were they going to stare death in the face once again, but it also meant Goku had failed them. Not only by not killing Frieza, but by not being here right now to help them.
Bulma kept to herself, leaning against the house. Still dressed in the blue overalls. An hour ago, she was working on the GR and everything was fine. She was finally doing well, becoming the woman she used to be. Now, she felt lost and scared. Could Frieza be looking for her? She hugged herself. Observing her friends.
"I should have known Kakarot didn't finish him off. Even as a Super Saiyan he is soft." Vegeta said.
"Look, we can speculate all we want, but right now it doesn't matter. Frieza is coming and we need a plan." Piccolo weighed in. "And he's not alone."
Bulma kept her eyes mostly on Vegeta. She felt he was the best person to predict how all of this would go down. And if they stood a chance at all. He changed back into his Namek battle gear.
"Wait guys, who's to say he won't blow up the planet from his ship. We might not even get a chance to fight." Krillin said.
"Don't be an idiot. Have you learned nothing from Namek? Frieza wants to see the suffering up close. He won't blow this planet up without coming down here and have his fun." Vegeta said, glancing in Bulma's direction for just a second.
"Vegeta, is there any way we can beat him?" Piccolo asked.
"No."
Piccolo nodded, clearly expecting that answer. "Well, I suppose we will go down fighting once again."
"Does Frieza know we are alive? And back on Earth?" Krillin asked.
"Yes. Frieza was there when the Namekian kid made the wish to move everyone to Earth." Vegeta said. "And he saw me, alive after he killed me." He glanced at Bulma again. She knew why. If Frieza knew about the wishes, he would know that Bulma was here as well.
"So, we can't really surprise him either." Krillin concluded.
"No, but Frieza can't sense energies. So, it's probably the best way to...do some damage." Vegeta said.
"But we're still screwed." Yamcha said, being the only one to give words to the inevitable truth. "We're all going to die."
It stayed quiet for a moment.
Bulma was not afraid to die. In fact, she welcomed it. Considering the other option. What could she do? Frieza probably couldn't find her easily, she no longer had the chip in her body. Maybe he wouldn't even really look for her. Maybe he had forgotten all about her.
"Frieza is getting closer, we need to leave, see where he lands and try to...catch him off guard." Piccolo said, lacking much conviction.
The other fighters agreed, knowing they really did not have a choice, but to face this head on. Meanwhile Yamcha was walking towards Bulma. She was in shock, not really able to show much emotion. Yamcha gave her a hug and a kiss on her cheek. She managed the smallest smile. Then he took to the air, following the other fighters. Only Vegeta remained.
"Frieza is here to take revenge on Kakarot. He's been humiliated. I doubt he will go looking for you. But if he should see you, I'm sure he'll take you again. So, stay away from the battle."
Bulma nodded in agreement. Then she saw Vegeta fly off. Off to his death most likely. For some reason, to know that she was never going to see him again saddened her more than anything else.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
Vegeta felt a rage towards Goku he hadn't felt before. He hated him. He bested him in battle, then let him live, making him feel like a weakling, safe to leave running around. Then, on Namek, Goku had to fight his battles for him against the Ginyu Force. Humiliating Vegeta in the process. Then he took on Frieza, after Vegeta was killed by him. He had cried and begged Goku to finish off Frieza. He told him what he had done to their warrior race. To have done that, be vulnerable like that, for nothing, pissed him off to no end. "Fuck you Kakarot." He said to himself. This was unforgivable. Now Vegeta would never get the chance to become a Super Saiyan, and beat Goku in battle. For some reason the woman also came to mind. He would never see her again.
Frieza's energy felt overwhelmingly close. "Let's touch down here. There are plenty of hiding spaces, that way we could get closer on foot if need be." Piccolo said.
Just what Vegeta had been thinking. Piccolo was the only one with a brain amongst these fighters, Vegeta felt.
They were all hiding in the rocky terrain, close to each other. Everyone was afraid, but for Krillin and Yamcha it was almost too much to bear.
"I don't know guys, I don't think this is such a good idea. We don't stand a chance, right? Why are we here again?" Yamcha said.
"You're going to die either way. Might as well be with some honor. Now pull yourself together weakling." Vegeta said.
"Do you know who the other strong fighter is Vegeta?" Piccolo asked.
"Probably King Cold, Frieza's father."
Piccolo nodded. Vegeta could tell the Namekian was worried for Gohan. He kept looking at him, with sad eyes. Back when they fought on Earth Piccolo had sacrificed himself for the kid. And on Namek he had seen his devotion towards the brat. Trying his hardest to keep him safe. This time, he would not succeed in keeping him alive. And he knew it. Piccolo's eyes glanced at Vegeta's once more.
"Goku really shit the bed on this one. That was one battle he should have finished to the end." He said.
Vegeta gave a slight nod.
Then the spaceship became visible through the clouds, landing close to the fighters. Everyone held their breath as the massive door opened. Frieza was even stronger than he was on Namek, looking different too.
"Frieza looks like a robot now." Gohan said.
Next to Frieza was indeed his father. No doubt about that, as he looked very similar, only much bigger.
"So, this is Earth." Frieza said. "Of course, that puny saiyan would come from such a puny planet."
"Tell me son, how would you like to proceed?"
"Be patient father, I want to have some fun on this one. When Goku comes back, this planet will be covered in the blood of his beloved human race. Hahahahaaa."
That told the fighters that Frieza did know that Goku was still alive. And he wanted to make him suffer.
"I sent some men ahead to retrieve a little package for me." Frieza said.
Then Vegeta's eyes widened in shock. "Fuck, fuck, fuck." He said. The woman was here. He could sense her energy.
"What's going on?" Krillin asked. He didn't get an answer.
Sure enough, a moment later, some of Frieza's men came flying in with Bulma in their grasp. She was fighting to get loose. They landed right in front of Frieza, forcing Bulma to kneel before him. She spat on his feet.
"Bulma!?" Yamcha said. "What the hell does Frieza want with Bulma?"
"Hello my dear. So, we meet again. Have you missed me?" Frieza said.
Bulma said nothing, but gave him a disgusted look.
"Well, well, well son. This must be the beauty you found on Namek. Enchanté my darling." King Cold took Bulma's hand and kissed it.
"Back on Namek, I remember Frieza and Bulma talking while we were on the battlefield."Krillin said. "I did not understand it at first. They seemed to know each other. I didn't get why she was suddenly there, on the battlefield. But now, I'm afraid Bulma was taken by Frieza while we were looking for the Dragonballs. It's all making sense now..."
Piccolo watched Vegeta. "Is that true?"
"Yes."
Yamcha was hit with the realization that, that was the reason Bulma had been so traumatized after Namek. "Poor Bulma."
Vegeta despised that remark. Bulma was not one to be pitied.
"You look awful, what is that terrible thing you're wearing?" Frieza said. "We'll have to find you something nicer. First let's see if you're still as beautiful as I remember." Frieza's tail slowly pulled the zipper of her blue overalls down. Revealing her breasts in a simple black tank top. "Hmmm yes..." He dragged his tail down her neck to her breasts. "You're pathetic." Bulma said.
"Oooh she's a feisty one, isn't she son? I like that."
"She's mine, father." Frieza said.
"I belong to no one! Now either let me go, or kill me, because I am never going to break. I will never give up trying to escape, I will never stop fighting, I will never surrender to you." Bulma said.
"We will see about that. Eventually I will break your spirit. Make you bend to my will."
Still hidden in the rocks, the Z fighters tried to figure out a strategy.
"If she disappears inside that ship she's gone forever. We have to act now. Piccolo and I will attack Frieza head on, the rest of you make enough of a racket to distract King Cold, and you take the woman out of there." Vegeta pointed to Yamcha.
Everyone agreed, except for Yamcha. "Wait, and then what!? So, we save Bulma for now, she'll just end up dead later, like the rest of us."
"She'd rather die than be taken by Frieza." Vegeta said. "And we were always going to gamble on a surprise attack, it might as well be now."
"Vegeta is right, let's do this." Piccolo said. "You ready, Gohan?" The boy nodded with a determent look on his face. "three, two, one...Go."
The plan seemed to work when Frieza was hit by an energy blast from Piccolo and a kick to the neck from Vegeta. King Cold was under a blanket of dust and smoke from all the combined blasts from the other fighters. Vegeta landed between Bulma and Frieza. Why the hell was the woman still here! Where was that weakling!? As Yamcha was nowhere to be seen, Vegeta turned around and grabbed Bulma. Just as Vegeta set off to fly Bulma out of there he was hit with a blast from behind, both of them crashing into the ground. Vegeta was knocked out cold on top of Bulma.
"No, Vegeta, wake up!" She gently tapped his cheek. Thankfully he came to, almost right away. He stumbled upright, before making his way back to the battle field. Then something unexpected happened, no one could've seen coming. They sensed another energy nearby. It was massive.
Everything had gone quiet. No more blasts. Everyone was stunned by this energy. Except for Frieza and King Cold of course, who could not sense energies.
"Did you really think that was going to accomplish anything? A surprise attack. Hahaha! It's nice of you all to save me the search though. It seems you all can't wait to meet your end." Frieza said. Both him and King Cold dusted themselves off like it was nothing.
"That must be my dad, right?"
"I don't know Gohan, it seems different to me." Krillin said.
"Let's just hope he's on our side." Tien said.
"What are you waiting for son, let's kill these pathetic Earthlings and be done with it." King Cold said, completely unaware of this other strong fighter.
Then they saw someone coming down from the sky, landing on a higher up ledge. A young guy they had never seen before.
"Hey Frieza! Let them go, your fight is with me now!." The fighter yelled, immediately having everyone's attention.
"Is that so? And who might you be?"
"I'm the guy who's going to kill you, and your father." He moved his gaze from Frieza to King Cold. They both laughed, not impressed at all.
Bulma decided this was her chance to get as far away from Frieza as possible. Nobody was paying any attention to her. She quietly started walking in the opposite direction.
"Where you going sweetheart?" Frieza fired a blast towards Bulma. In less than a second the blast hit, but Bulma was in the air, two strong arms holding her. The unknown fighter had saved her.
"Are you alright?" He asked her. Bulma didn't know this guy, but he seemed so familiar. "Uhm, yes, I think so."
He set her down on the ledge he came from. "Don't worry, you'll go home safe and sound today. And so will your friends."
Bulma nodded, though she had a hard time believing that was true.
Yamcha joined Bulma, he laid a hand on her shoulder. The fighter gave him a slight nod. Then he set off to the battlefield, landing right in front of Frieza.
"You guys can go, I'll take it from here." He said.
"You cannot be serious." Vegeta said.
The unknown fighter smiled to himself. "I am."
Everyone else did not need to be told twice, they headed for the ledge where Bulma and Yamcha were standing.
Vegeta eyed the man up and down. He felt he recognized something in him, but couldn't put his finger on it. Then he too left the battlefield.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
Vegeta was sick of waiting. And not getting any answers from this punk.
First, in about half an hour, the young fighter, he was really just a kid, had cut Frieza into little pieces with his sword and blown King Cold to smithereens. He did so, by transforming in what looked to be a Super Saiyan. What in the actual fuck...
Then he had proclaimed to know where and when Kakarot was going to land. He gave no explanation as to how he would have this information.
And for some reason the kid kept staring at him. "What the hell are you looking at!?" He finally said.
"Nothing..."
He didn't seem nearly as tough as he did facing Frieza. He was being very secretive about who he was. Or if he was a Saiyan or not. But surely, he wasn't. Kakarot, his son and himself were the only Saiyans still alive.
On top of everything, Vegeta was in pain, from the blast he took to his back.
"How much longer?" Krillin said.
"Less than an hour." The fighter answered.
Vegeta took a glance at Bulma. She was sitting on a rock, looking disheveled and run down. Her overalls were torn at the legs. No doubt from their fall. It was probably for the best she had been here to see the end of Frieza. It would've been hard to believe otherwise. Gathering from her facial expression it probably hadn't sunk in yet that she was going to be ok. Yamcha was fussing over her, but it was clear to Vegeta that Bulma did not want him there. She wanted to be left alone. What was that idiot thinking anyway. He had not done anything to help save her. "Weakling." He muttered to himself.
"Bulma, your legs are bleeding, just let me take a look." Yamcha said.
"It's no big deal." She said in a sluggish voice. She was exhausted. She closed her eyes for a moment.
"I can take you home?" Yamcha tried.
"No way."
Vegeta smiled to himself. The woman would not want to miss this. She was probably just as curious about this fighter as he was. The kid was wearing clothing with the CC logo on it. No doubt she had seen it too.
"Why do you always have to be so stubborn?" Yamcha said.
"Why do you always have to be so annoying?" Bulma responded.
Krillin snickered.
"Fine, suit yourself." Yamcha said, finding another place to wait out Goku's arrival.
The young fighter then made his way to Bulma.
"I could clean those wounds for you. I have some supplies with me." He said in a kind voice. "It might get infected..."
"Fine." Bulma said reluctantly. The guy smiled to himself.
"What's so funny?" She asked annoyed.
"You just remind me of someone." He answered. Then he took a capsule and opened it. A first aid kit appeared. Bulma recognized it immediately. Her company was the only one in the world to make those capsules. It was her father's technology. He took out some bandages and disinfectant spray.
"How the hell did you get this stuff?" She asked, not beating around the bush.
Vegeta listened intently. The woman might get something out of him.
"I...bought it..."
Bulma glanced at Vegeta. The kid was lying, she could tell too.
"It's really expensive technology." She said.
"I know." He said while checking her wounds through the rips in her overalls. "Your knees got the worst of it. I'm gonna rinse them off with water first so I'll have to tear your jeans open to the knee."
Bulma nodded. "So, how is it that you can afford these capsules?"
"Does it matter?" The stranger opened a bottle of water and poured it on her knees, rinsing most of the dirt from the wound. Bulma hissed, from the pain and how cold the water felt on her overheated skin. They had been sitting in the sun, waiting for quite a while. "You should find a place in the shade, you are burning up."
"Why are you wearing clothes with the CC logo on it?" Bulma asked.
"I'm a fan." He smiled at her. Then he held up the disinfectant spray. "This'll hurt." He sprayed it on all the cuts and scrapes on her legs.
"Son of a bitch, that burns!"
The kid seemed amused by something.
"Is my pain funny to you?" Bulma said.
"Not at all." He put some bandages on her knees before putting the first aid kit back in its capsule. He seemed in a hurry to get away from her, Vegeta thought. She was probably asking too many questions.
"Find some shade." He said once more, before walking away from her.
Vegeta watched Bulma get up from the rock she was sitting on and walk into the shadow of a bigger one. She sat down on the ground, back against the rock, eyes closed. She did look flushed. Curls wild and unruly. An unfamiliar feeling stirred inside of him when he looked at her. A strange urge to...comfort her...make her feel better. He ran a hand through his hair, annoyed at himself. Never in his life had he done anything like that. Easing someone's suffering? No way. He caused suffering.
The kid clearly did have a knack for helping someone in need. He focused his gaze on the young fighter. He seemed pure at heart, but with frieza he had been merciless. He was definitely an experienced fighter. Not soft like Kakarot, but good at heart. Vegeta did reckon the kid had seen his share of suffering.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
Bulma felt someone sitting next to her. To her surprise, it was Piccolo. She gave him a quizzical look.
"Bulma, I just wanted to say that...we didn't know. If we knew you were taken by Frieza back on Namek, we would have come for you. I hope you know that."
Bulma nodded and forced a small smile.
"However, there is no excuse as to why we didn't put two and two together afterwards. We let you deal with it on your own. We all feel really bad about that. We only just figured it all out. You're just as much part of this team as me or Gohan and Krillin. You're the reason we even got to Namek in the first place."
He was right of course. They had all been very dependent on her skills and technology. Without her, no spaceship for Goku, no one to fly the Namekian spaceship, no dragonradar. And even though she knew, none of her friends were really to blame, she could not deny it still hurt. And that it had made a crack in their friendship and her trust in them. Because what Piccolo said was true, they should have known. If they had only paid a bit more attention to her, they would have known she had just been through hell.
As Piccolo stood up to leave, he said: " And you should know, it was Vegeta who made sure we got you out of there before it was too late."
Her eyes automatically went to the Saiyan, who was staring ahead, seemingly deep in thought. When she turned her head, Piccolo was gone, joining Gohan.
Vegeta rescued her once again. He was sitting on a rock, hunched forward, looking extremely agitated. His battle suit was even more damaged than before. She could see where Frieza's blast had hit him. When he saved her. It occurred to her that this had been quite a day for him as well. Frieza was the one responsible for the end of the Saiyan race. And Bulma was sure Vegeta had quite a few bad encounters with Frieza. Why else would he have been so understanding about what Bulma had experienced.
And a second Super Saiyan? That must've pissed him off. All though no one was convinced yet that he actually was a Saiyan.
And now Goku was coming back? She didn't know how to feel about that. He was her oldest friend, of course she missed him. But she was also very disappointed in him. He failed to finish off Frieza, and hadn't been here when he wanted his revenge.
She hoped it would be soon though because she felt like she was going to pass out. When had she last slept?
Then she noticed everyone was suddenly excited. They could sense Goku. He was here.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
Could they never catch a break? Frieza had been dead for only a few hours but they already needed to worry about the next threat.
"You have got to be fucking kidding me." Bulma said. "Androids!?"
"Yes." Piccolo said. "I know it's hard to imagine, a guy from the future warning us. But I choose to believe this guy. And I will train."
Everyone seemed to agree with him. This annoyed Bulma. They were all so easily convinced.
"C'mon Goku, surely he told you more?" She asked.
"Gosh, uuuhm, not really Bulma. That's pretty much it."
"You are lying to me Goku."
Goku was grinning and nervously looking at Piccolo for help. The young fighter had spoken to Goku in private but Piccolo overheard, thanks to his Namekian hearing.
"Well Piccolo, wanna weigh in here?" Bulma asked. But he too stayed quiet.
"You're both idiots for not telling the smartest person here, everything you know." She said.
"I'm sorry, you're just gonna have to trust me Bulma," Goku said.
"Whatever, I want to go home."
Goku eyed Bulma up and down. "What happened to you Bulma? If I didn't know any better I'd say you were the one who fought Frieza." When he saw the pained look she gave him he knew he said something wrong.
"So where have you been, dad?" Gohan asked, breaking the tension.
As Goku was talking about his adventures Bulma walked away from the others. She couldn't care less where Goku had been. She was gross, hot, angry, sad and relieved, all at the same time. Why couldn't she just be happy that Frieza was dead? She was struggling on the rocky terrain. Yamcha came in from behind her, grabbing her hand and letting Bulma lean on his arm. She welcomed the help but did not acknowledge him.
"Just let me take you home Bulma." He said.
She really wasn't in the mood to deal with him right now. But she did have to get home. She nodded. "But no talking."
"Maybe it would be good for you to.."
"I don't want to talk about it Yamcha."
"Fine." He scooped her up and took off. She glanced at Vegeta one more time, who was watching her intently.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
Vegeta felt overwhelmed. Too much had happened, he couldn't get his mind around it. It had been blow after blow after blow. First Frieza was alive, then the woman was taken by him once again, then another Super Saiyan appeared out of nowhere, then Kakarot had come back. And to top it all off, Kakarot had not given him any insight as to how to obtain the legendary transformation. According to him "there was nothing to tell." Vegeta wasn't sure if he believed him or not. Apparently, he had just snapped when Frieza killed his friend. There was no technique or anything like that. He supposed it did sound believable. Of course, his son had been there too. He could imagine Kakarot was desperate to keep him alive. That could've driven him over the edge.
With all this came the realization that transforming might be forever out of his reach. He would never care for anyone like that. Of course, he had no way of knowing that was the only way to do it. Surely for him it could be different. At least he had a goal to work towards. Because if that kid from the future was right, the perfect opportunity to test his strength would be in three year's time. And he did have the perfect training conditions. He could use the GR and he could go to space to find some desolate rock to train on.
He was flying at a slow pace, watching the sun set, making the sky rosy.
He saw CC coming into view. He sensed the weakling's energy fading away. Probably just dropped the woman off. Vegeta realized he would be staying here for another 3 years. That was unexpected. He hadn't really thought ahead though. What were his plans after Kakarot came back? Keep training till he could challenge him again? It would have made perfect sense to stay anyway. If the woman would still have him. He was still planning to kill her friend of course. But now he could assist in defeating the androids. That put helping him in a different perspective.
He felt very tired, mentally and physically. His body was already healing, but it did take a lot of energy. He would eat, shower and rest until the woman was done repairing the GR. She nearly finished it prior to Frieza's arrival, so it shouldn't take too long. Of course, the woman would need to rest first anyway. So, Vegeta might as well do the same.
He touched down right in front of the entrance to the house. When he opened the door, he saw Bulma standing in the kitchen, throwing back some kind of alcoholic drink. She had clearly just stepped inside as well. Looking just as disheveled as before. When he got closer, her eyes found his, looking at him strangely. She slowly walked towards him, never breaking eye contact. She wanted to say something, but stopped herself. Then she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him. She kissed him. He couldn't believe it. But it was impossible to not give in. He kissed her back with a longing he didn't know he had. He felt her fingers gliding up the back of his neck, finding his hair. Grabbing a handful. The kiss was hungry, messy and necessary. Vegeta tried to hold on to his sanity. If he really let go, he would hurt her. She was so breakable next to him. His hands were placed on her hips carefully. He wanted her. All of her. But he was hesitant to move forward. She probably needed to be in control. The kiss intensified, when Bulma jumped up and wrapped her legs around Vegeta's waist. Vegeta took that as a sign and easily carried her up the stairs to her bedroom, never breaking the kiss. The last bit of daylight came in through the window. He sat down on the bed, Bulma in his lap. She broke the kiss to look at him. He saw something in her eyes that he did not recognize. No one had ever looked at him like that. She ran her thumbs over his eyebrows and smiled softly. Then she slowly pulled the zipper of her blue overalls down revealing her bare neck to Vegeta who immediately brought his lips to her skin. His hands pulled the overalls down over her shoulders, setting Bulma's arms free, which found their way around his neck one more. Pushing herself against his hard body. She moved her hips sensually, driving Vegeta crazy with lust. Bulma raised her arms, telling Vegeta to take her top off. He pushed the top upwards, over her arms, revealing her breasts to him. Vegeta stood up and turned around, dropping them both on the bed, him on top of her. His mouth finding her breasts, tracing his tongue over her hardened nipples. Bulma moaned. It was the most delicious sound he had ever heard. She started kicking her legs, trying to get the overalls off. Vegeta pulled them off in one swift motion, leaving Bulma in nothing but her underwear. Simple black boxers. Vegeta took a quick glance over her cut and scraped legs, mentally noting to be careful with her. He took off what was left of his armor and battle suit, before his mouth found hers again. His hands explored the soft curves of her body. Her breathing became more erratic, her body moving sensually under him. When his fingertips slid under her underwear, he was hit with the smell of her arousal. It clouded his mind with lust. There was no going back now. This was happening. At this point it was like their bodies melted together. There was no overthinking, their bodies took over. Moving together perfectly. It was messy, raw, hard and passionate. It did not compare to anything Vegeta experienced before.
He fell onto his back next to her, taking a deep breath, trying to calm down, settle his craving desire for more. The woman was still breathing fast, eyes closed, biting her lip. She opened her eyes to look at him, still clouded with the pleasure she had felt only moments ago. She gave him a playful smile. Then she rolled onto her side, resting her head on his shoulder, arm across his chest. Her fingers tracing softly against the skin of his ribcage He could tell she was going to pass out any second. He could feel her breathing slowing down and saw her eyelids getting heavy. Ten seconds later she was sleeping. Vegeta had a hard time falling asleep, his mind in turmoil. But eventually fatigue hit hard, and he too drifted off.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
A/N: Thank you for reading. I had fun on this one. Hope you did too. Love to hear your thoughts.