"This... This is just a dream!"
Bulma tried to convince herself as she stared at her haggard-looking reflection in the mirror in front of her after she washed her face on the sink inside the ladies' restroom of Sun Wukong Hospital, nearest to the room where she and Vegeta just came from. She felt uncomfortable at the twisting, sickening feeling in her stomach upon witnessing one's existence being destroyed right before her eyes by the man who claimed to be the God of Destruction of this Universe. It's unlike anything she had ever witnessed before. She was flabbergasted by how Vegeta Yonsei simply stared at Himawari Maeda with his dark, merciless eyes as the old woman succumb to the agony of having a heart attack. Bulma wanted to call for help, but the destroyer god stopped her. His cold and cruel gaze never changed, aside from its coal-black color to a glowing reddish-purple light, even as he called out to Himawari's soul and destroyed it with his supernatural powers of destruction.
She couldn't believe what she had just witnessed and therefore refused to accept it. She tried to convince herself that whatever she just saw was nothing but a dream. Perhaps, she still had a hangover from all the alcohol she consumed yesternight, right?
Bulma straightened herself, frowning at her reflection, and slapped her cheeks with her hands in hopes of waking up from this nightmare. When she felt the stinging pain, it only made the uncomfortable, sinking feeling she had even worse.
"So this is reality? It's not a dream? The God of Destruction exists? All those things are real?" She asked herself breathlessly, wide-eyed.
"Ahh..." She shook her head in denial, to clear her thoughts while she whined. "This is unbelievable! How terrible! This can't be right! How the hell did I end up summoning such destruction into my life?!"
Is there anyway for her to push him away and forget about the contract? By the way he acted persistently, she knew he won't stop until he was able to convince her to wish for him to destroy the world. Heck, he might do anything just for her to do it.
He even said that if she doesn't decide the fate of this world soon, then he would destroy the one she loved the most.
Her sister.
What must she do to make him leave her alone?
Chapter 19: Reality is Cruel to Everyone
While Bulma was busy with her confused thoughts in the restroom, Vegeta waited outside, silently observing everything that passed right in front of him. He could sense all the souls surrounding him pulsing like that of a heartbeat as they felt his divine destructive presence. He could feel their life forces, the flame of energy that blazed around the mortals' souls. Some of it were small and about to burn out and disappear. Once it does, the mortal body is dead and the soul will come to him so he could allow them to pass over to the otherworld.
There were about sixteen individuals who died in that place just because he was in there, whose souls had come to him and he allowed them to transition to the afterlife.
If that woman takes longer in that damn restroom, the more souls in this now cursed hospital will have to go to the afterlife. And Vegeta was becoming quite bored and impatient with it.
After the last soul had disappeared, Bulma finally came out of the restroom. She stared at him like she wasn't expecting him to be there.
"Are you finally done?" Vegeta asked her impatiently as if he was glad he's finally going to leave this damn place.
Bulma walked into his side and nodded with a forced smile. "Hn..."
"Then let's get going. You serving me my Maguro Nigiri had been long delayed already." he uttered in a lukewarm tone.
They went out of the hospital together, walking side by side.
"This isn't a dream, right?" Bulma asked him reluctantly and awkwardly.
Vegeta scoffed at her, rolling his eyes. So she still thinks that everything she just witnessed today was just a dream?
"This is reality," he told her confidently.
Bulma made an expression as if she just ate something very bitter. "This is just... Terrible."
"Death and destruction are normal. It keeps the balance of this Universe. How is that terrible to you?"
"..."
"Just accept the fact that this is the reality. And reality itself is cruel to everyone."
Vegeta suddenly stopped in his tracks, staring right ahead of him with a colder gaze than usual. Bulma turned her eyes to him, confused.
"Speak of the devil..." Vegeta growled.
"Huh?"
Bulma followed Vegeta's cold gaze towards a girl with dark brown hair in a bob cut. She looked like a young teenager, maybe around thirteen or fourteen years old. She wore a cute, pink hooded sweater with its hood over her head and designed with cat ears, black fitted jeans, and pink-colored boots.
She is called Yonshir, the reality-warping goddess. A multiverse level deity capable of warping the reality of any universe. A creator and destroyer combined.
Yonshir grinned happily, her big, brown eyes sparked with excitement as soon as she found Vegeta and she jumped like an ecstatic child seeing her beloved best friend after a long time.
"Vegeta-chan!" She called as she stopped hopping right in front of Vegeta.
Vegeta's face was stone cold as he stared at the teenager-slash-goddess. Though she looked younger than him, she was a million years older than he is.
She held up his hand and shook it happily without even bothering to wait for him to hold it, "I finally found you! I'm so glad!"
Vegeta pulled his hand off her and glared. "What the hell are you even doing in here? Can't you see I'm busy?" he asked her coldly.
Yonshir pouted. "Aww... Don't be like that. I decided to stay here for a while to see how you, Whis, and Shin are all doing."
Vegeta gritted his teeth in annoyance. Of all the multiverse-level deities he had met, Yonshir is the most irritating. When she heard about his fight with King Mu and how he was able to break reality, time, and space with his power, the goddess took a liking to him. She was the one who taught him the basics about reality warping and the 'Infuu Seikuyo' closed space technique, which allowed him to transport his targets and contractees, such as Himawari Maeda or Chiaki Sanjou, to a different dimension that separates them or whatever territory enclosed within the Seal of Suppression from the flow of the normal world.
While he was glad that such a powerful deity was on his side, her childish and somehow, clingy nature made him disgusted and uncomfortable when he was around her. Anyone would think it's normal for Yonshir, who looked like a cheerful and mischievous teenaged girl, to act like that.
But Vegeta knew better than that.
And that's why he's so disgusted with her acting like this around him.
Yonshir turned her head to see the blue-haired human woman on the God of Destruction's side.
"Huh? Who is this?" Yonshir asked curiously, finally noticing Bulma.
"A client," Vegeta deadpanned.
Yonshir stared at Bulma suspiciously for a moment, before she turned her gaze at Vegeta and her lips stretched into a sly grin.
"Eeeeehh, so she's your client, huh?" She drawled, giving Vegeta a knowing look. Vegeta's brows furrowed in greater annoyance. Just what the hell was she trying to imply?
Yonshir hopped towards Bulma and she held up her hand at her in a friendly way. "Hello there! My name is Yonshir! Let's just say that I am Vegeta-chan's friend, even though you were right about me," she winked and she whispered. "Yes, I am also a deity but let's keep that part a secret between us, okay?"
Bulma's eyes widened in shock about how Yonshir read her thoughts. She reluctantly held up her hand and Yonshir took it as she happily shook it. "It's so nice to meet you, Bulma! Oh, and we do not read your thoughts. We hear them automatically, right, Vegeta-chan?"
Bulma blushed in embarrassment and Vegeta nodded with a frown.
Yonshir pulled away from Bulma to face them both. "So anyway, as I've said earlier, I'll be staying here to see how you're all doing. I've heard interesting things about this place that's why I decided to visit. First off, how about I join you guys at that restaurant? I'm curious about what your favorite food's like, Vegeta-chan!"
Yonshir hopped between Vegeta and Bulma, grasping at their arms as if she's a child trying to forcefully join her parents. The two stared at her as if she had just lost her mind.
"Come on, you guys! Let's go!" Yonshir squealed.
They finally reached the sushi restaurant where Bulma worked. They met up with Whis inside the place. They found the Guide Angel waiting for his master by the table in the corner that was already filled with several stacks of bamboo bento boxes filled with Maguro Nigiri.
As soon as Whis saw Yonshir, he stood to give her a respectful bow but the goddess signaled for him not to do so. Whis sat back in his seat and turned his violet eyes toward Bulma.
"Hello, Bulma-san! I was hoping you could serve us some sushi today," Whis greeted her with a cheerful smile.
"Hello, Whis-san." Bulma greeted with an awkward smile as Vegeta and Yonshir sat on the chair right in front of Whis. Bulma pointed at the door only employees are allowed to enter with her thumb over her shoulder and excused herself. "I'll go and change to my uniform right away."
Bulma went to her locker to get her uniform. Vegeta and Whis stared at each other with knowing looks before Vegeta took one of the bento boxes and a pair of chopsticks to begin eating. He frowned as he put an entire piece of Maguro Nigiri in his mouth and chewed on it. "That woman. She's quite a strange creature. Her mind works in ways I could not understand," he said in a low voice only Whis could hear.
Yonshir and Whis blinked their eyes in puzzlement at his words, "What do you mean?" asked Whis.
Vegeta swallowed the food in his mouth before saying, "A mortal normally doesn't remember anything about those whose existence was destroyed by me. It's not supposed to work that way."
"Really? She can do that?" Yonshir gasped. "This is the first time I have seen a mortal have this kind of ability," Yonshir said.
"Vegeta-sama does when he was still a mortal. Although his ability is due to him already possessing the power of a god even though he was still a mortal back then." Whis said.
"Does this mean she has some kind of divine energy? That's why she can easily resist my power?" Vegeta asked.
"Who knows? As far as I'm concerned though, she is an ordinary human, with no more than human strength, energy, and ability." Yonshir said.
"Aside from a powerful intellect she inherited from her father. Too bad that her supposedly great life was reduced to this." Whis said.
Vegeta, remembering how in his investigation of the Briefs family during his contract with Saike Regin, he found out that Bulma Briefs, the daughter of his target, Doctor Briefs, was hailed to be more intelligent than her genius of a father. She had a degree in both Engineering and Medicine and majored in Physics at the age of 26 back then, which is quite impressive for a human. She did charity works for the indigent along with her family, believing that the deities have given these gifts to them to help those in need. Despite their scientific genius, they're quite the religious type of people too. Too bad that they only believed in the existence of a single deity who in reality described what Shin, the God of Creation is.
Too bad though, that they have fallen victims to the God of Destruction, and Bulma, who was supposed to have a life of greatness, was reduced to being a waitress who served food to others, a job that doesn't fit someone of her caliber. Vegeta wondered if it hurt her pride to be like this.
He recalled how much she denied her previous religious beliefs and doubted the existence of the deity she once believed in that night she made that wish to him. And Vegeta was well aware of the fact that he, the God of Destruction, was the one who turned her life upside down, made her lose everything she once cherished and caused her to be this way.
Similarly to how Beerus did to his mortal life.
Vegeta lightly snorted at his Guide Angel, "Hmph! That's just how mortal life works. There's a time when they enjoy the goodness of life and there will also be the time when they lose all those good things and have to suffer or vice versa. It's a game of survival for them, the strong ones remain while the weaklings will be eliminated. How they deal with their lives is a mere test from me to help me decide whether I should let them exist in my universe or destroy them."
Yonshir gave him a sly look, "You never change. You still base your judgment on mortals about what strength means to you. Though I can see that you decided to spare this world because of your fondness for Maguro Nigiri. I've heard that the Earth of the Seventh Universe serves extraordinary food. Honestly, it would be a waste to destroy such a beautiful planet. But then, whatever your reasons are, you should not allow it to affect your judgment on bestowing the divine punishment of destruction."
"I have no good reason to destroy this world yet."
"That's the reason why you chose her? Bulma Briefs, right? I've heard her thoughts about you. It seems she had accidentally summoned you to destroy this world for her, but because she claimed it was an accident and that she was not serious about her wish, you cannot destroy this world. Why then, do you persist in waiting for her decision? Unlike your previous summoners who had accidentally called out to you, you are persistent about her. I know this isn't about the usefulness of the Earth or the weaknesses of the human race in your eyes. If you think this world and its inhabitants are useful to you because of your favorite food, why do you persist in destroying this world? Is there a particular reason why? Hm?"
Yonshir tilted her head curiously at Vegeta, giving him an odd look.
"You know how multiverse deities such as myself know everything, we just pretend that we don't know anything." she sighed. "Be careful, Vegeta-chan. This could become your greatest test yet," she warned.
Vegeta glared at Yonshir, "What are you implying?"
"You know exactly what I'm talking about."
"The bond?" Vegeta frowned. Yes. He suspected that he may have some kind of bond with that human woman. The reason why he was being persistent with forcing her to make a wish, just so he could destroy her existence and sever that stupid bond he had with her. For someone who decided to close off his cold, hardened heart from any other emotions aside from those a God of Destruction like himself is allowed to feel, he didn't expect this to happen.
"Tch! You should worry about yourself," he said, gritting his teeth in annoyance. "I was a Saiyan Warrior Prince and the God of Destruction now. I was never raised to have such emotions meant for weaklings such as these pathetic humans."
"You know what? You really shouldn't jump to conclusions, Vegeta-chan. You wouldn't know what may happen in the future. Not even deities or seers themselves aren't sure about that."
"Heh! Didn't you just say that Multiverse level deities know everything earlier?"
"I did say that," she said. "But there are unexpected exceptions to this rule. Like you, for example, I know every choice you have to make in your life and everything that would happen following those choices. But since you are a peculiar one, whose thoughts are impenetrable even as a mortal, I have no idea what choice you are planning to make among these options. This is why I am giving you a fair warning."
"The greatest test for me, huh?" Vegeta turned his dark eyes towards the window. "I don't know why but I feel excited about that."
Yonshir rolled her eyes. "You and your pride, as always," she grumbled. "Whatever. Anyways, I gotta go now. I have something exciting to do. See you both later!"
Vegeta and Whis watched as Yonshir hopped out of the restaurant like a gleeful little girl. Vegeta returned to his food with a silent snort, ignoring that odd feeling he got about Yonshir's words.
Bulma slammed the door of her locker with a loud bang.
"I can't believe this," she sighed. "Did I just meet another crazy person who has a god complex?"
Bulma reminisced the girl, Yonshir, who gave her a warm, welcoming smile as she held up her hand. She still doubted the things she just witnessed today and is having a hard time trying to convince herself that it's reality just as Vegeta Yonsei was telling her.
"Unbelievable. I was trying to be as rational as possible and I still think about how impossible these things are. After all, those three looked like they're all crazy people." Bulma scratched her head with a grimace, feeling annoyed and confused.
Then the memories of Himawari Maeda's soul and existence being destroyed by Vegeta Yonsei flashed in her mind. Bulma sighed and she leaned back to the door of her locker with a tired look.
"But those felt real," she told herself. "He's right about one thing though."
"This isn't a dream, right?"
"This is reality."
"This is just... terrible."
"Death and destruction are normal. It keeps the balance of this Universe. How is that terrible to you? Just accept the fact that this is the reality of life. And reality itself is cruel to everyone."
She never feared death before, but since she had almost experienced the taste of almost dying twice, she couldn't help but fear it.
Especially when death and destruction combined showed their face to her in the form of that flaming-haired man.
Bulma dragged herself back to the counter where she found her co-worker, Mao Chichi approaching her. She saw Krilin and her boss, Chichi's father, Gyumao, were busy making sushi on the other side.
"I'm so sorry about Yamcha," Chichi told her. "To be honest, Dad didn't like how he approached us about you earlier. So, did you manage to catch him?"
Bulma snorted, "Heh! He fell off and broke his leg. I'm sure that will teach that jerk a lesson."
"Really? Woah. Karma does hit hard," Chichi laughed.
"Hah! He just broke his leg. I'm sure he'll be back here soon!" Krillin snorted, overhearing the conversation.
"Maybe we should release the CCTV footage online and see how his career falls. Hmph!" Chichi suggested.
"That won't be enough karma for him. People easily forget." Gyumao said. "I have an idea. Have you heard of this popular urban legend circling the net?" He suggested.
"You mean that ritual where you can summon the God of Destruction?" Krillin asked. "I heard about it. Although they say that if you enter a contract with him, you have to give your soul up in exchange for him destroying the existence of your subject of hatred."
"Do you honestly believe that? A God of Destruction doesn't exist!" Bulma told them with a disgusted look.
She turned her eyes towards Vegeta, who silently turned to her to give her a cold gaze. He raised a finger at her and he beckoned for her to come to him. She darted her eyes away from his uncomfortable stare and cleared her throat rather awkwardly.
"I mean... It is just an urban legend. Who would sell their soul in exchange for something they might regret later on? I will never do such a thing!"
Gyumao, Krilin, and Chichi looked at her as if she grew a second head.
"We never told you to do that..." Gyumao mumbled.
Bulma took the stack of bamboo bento boxes filled with Maguro Nigiri on the counter next to Krilin and approached the table where Vegeta beckoned for her to come.
"So I do not exist, huh? It seems that you are still not convinced about my true identity despite having experienced what I could do and after hearing my story." Vegeta grinned at her. "To answer your question, many have sold their souls to me in exchange for fulfilling their revenge or whatever dark desire they have in their minds. The weaklings are quite emotional creatures, very susceptible to manipulation, and easy to ruin psychologically. This is the reason why I destroy them as well. The weak do not deserve to exist in my Universe. Himawari is one example of this."
He flickered his dark eyes towards her boss before returning his gaze at her. "You know Gyumao is right about one thing. If you want that fool Yamcha to stop bothering you, you can always tell me to destroy him for you. Of course, you will pay my service with the destruction of your existence one day."
Bulma scowled at him. "Not in a million years!" she declared.
"Tch! You're quite a persistent vermin. Whatever. You only make this quite exciting for me."
Bulma gave him a puzzled look, "Exciting? How?"
Vegeta pointed at the television that hung on the corner. It was showing news about her ex-boyfriend, the famous football star, Yamcha, being rescued from the sinkhole and being taken to the hospital a few hours earlier. When an interviewer asked Yamcha how he ended up in such a state, he told the media that it was the fault of Bulma Briefs. He said he chased her all the way there until he fell into the sinkhole. He made up a lie that she just ruined his ongoing relationship with his current girlfriend, Shona Pareeh because she was desperate for his money and fame. All these lies made Bulma scowl deeply in her rage. Her hands automatically balled into shaking fists.
"Why that damn jerk!" she thought furiously.
Vegeta tilted his head in his interest as he let out an evil grin, observing her anger from his point of view. For some reason, he was getting turned on by that furious look on her face.
"I can tell, you know, just how much anger you harbor about that ex-boyfriend of yours. You want to rid of him and make him suffer for what he did to your fragile little heart and all those lies he was telling about you, yet you remain stubborn not to recognize that desire. Hmph! I wonder how long you will last before you give in to your emotions and ask me to destroy him, or this world for you." he said.
Bulma directed her angry gaze at him before she sneered at him, "You are crazy!" glaring at him before she slammed the stack of boxes in front of him and walked away from him.
Vegeta laughed at her.
Suddenly, Bulma shrieked when she heard his cold voice in her head.
"Fine. We'll take our leave now. Remember, you can always call me by my name whenever you want me to destroy something for you!"
She whirled around to see Vegeta by the exit, followed by his attendant who was carrying the pile of take-out in his hand effortlessly.
"See you later, Bulma-san." Whis smiled at her.
"Destruction." that was the last word she heard from Vegeta before he disappeared with his guide angel.
"I told you that woman's strange," Vegeta told Whis as he plopped to the mattress of his bed back in the Planet of Destruction.
"Hmm... Indeed," Whis agreed as he followed his lord to his bedroom. "This is the first time I've met a mortal capable of denying her true feelings in the midst of desperation. I admit that her willpower is amazing. Most mortals would eventually give in to their dark desires in exchange for their souls and existence, without any second thoughts or reluctance at all."
"Though there were some who eventually regretted what they did but realized it was too late for them."
"Why?"
"Do you remember that Earthling girl, Himawari Maeda, who summoned me sixty years ago to bestow destruction to her bully at school?"
"Ah, yes. I remember her well."
"I just destroyed her existence today."
"Hmm... Does it bother you?"
Vegeta sat on the mattress, crossing his arms over his chiseled chest and pouted.
"No. A weed like her trying to get in my way only deserved to be destroyed. I just find these humans really annoying." he mumbled. "They're all strange, their minds work in ways I cannot understand. One minute they want something, then the next minute they don't like it. They would even do something they would regret a few minutes later. They're all weird. They can't even make up their mind and decide without hesitation and regret. These kind of vermin should not exist in my Universe."
Whis stifled a laughter, causing Vegeta to give him a glare.
"What's so funny?" he asked with a threatening tone.
"Nothing, milord. It's just that you find the humans' capricious minds as being weird and annoying while you are very capricious yourself."
"Hey, I'm not like that!" Vegeta denied.
"Oh really? Then what do you call your indecisiveness about bestowing destruction to Earth? Hm?" Whis grinned slyly.
Vegeta's eyes narrowed with his ire, fuming.
"If I remember clearly, it was you who was trying to convince me not to destroy Earth, reasoning that I would lose my only source of Maguro Nigiri," he growled.
"Well yes, I did say that," Whis admitted. "But then, you know Yonshir-sama was correct about her concerns. Despite your reasons, as a destroyer god you shouldn't allow these to prevent you from doing your duties well. If you find the Earth worthy to be destroyed, you should destroy it without caring about losing your favorite food or anything else. Or if you find anything that deters you from doing your proper duties as the God of Destruction, you must destroy it as well. Do you understand what I'm saying?"
Vegeta simply lowered his eyes, "Yeah."
"So if you decide to spare the Earth from your godly wrath, you must leave Bulma-san alone. It seems that she is adamant with her belief that she had accidentally summoned you and that her wish was completely unintentional. She wouldn't want you to destroy her world."
"No," he said. The corner of his lips crooked upward as he gave off a wicked smile. "I know that she still desires for destruction. You saw her reaction when she found the news about that bastard ex-boyfriend of hers. She would call for me soon."
"Seriously Vegeta-sama, why are you being so persistent about Bulma-san?" Whis asked this with a firm tone. The smile on Vegeta's face quickly faded into a scowl as his guide angel continued. "You've been persuading her the entire day. You even saved her life this morning twice and you spared her once three years ago. You never acted like this to any other mortal summoners or clients before. Tell me, is there something about Bulma-san that's bothering you?"
Vegeta's eyes widened in surprise, "What?!" before he fiercely shook his head in denial, "No! No! Of course not! Why would I be bothered by a mere, insignificant, and pathetic mortal?! Pffft!"
Whis gave him a doubting look before he said, "If you say so. Just make sure that you end this as soon as possible. If you spend too much time with her, it would become troublesome for you."
Vegeta nodded, "Yeah, I will."
"Well then, since you have eaten already. I will leave you to your decision. I'll go ahead and do some housework."
Whis swiftly stepped out of Vegeta's room after that, leaving the God of Destruction sitting on his mattress alone.
The Hakaishin lowered his eyes to his fists over the white blanket, making up his mind.
This is the last chance he'll give that damn woman. If she refused to allow him to destroy something for her in exchange for her own destruction, then he will force her to do it.
He would kill two birds in one stone tonight and rid of that damn bond forever.
Another day of work was done and after closing the sushi restaurant, Bulma separated ways with Chichi and Krilin. It was a long, tiring day filled with strange and unbelievable circumstances and an almost near-death experience for her. She just want to go home and forget everything in her sleep, hoping to consider everything that transpired today as just a mere dream of hers or some hallucination as a result of hangover.
As she dragged her feet towards the bus stop, she passed by the same road where she was supposed to be an unfortunate victim of that six-wheeler truck earlier. As soon as she realized that, her feet hesitated to move. She knew she needed to cross the road to reach the bus stop where she must wait for a bus that would take her home. Even as the stoplight signaled for her to cross the road, she stood there, frozen. Her heart pounded hard against her chest with sudden fear and anxiety, making it hard for her to breathe. Her vision blurred and her surroundings spun around, making her feel dizzy she thought she might pass out.
Then for some reason, she thought of Vegeta Yonsei's cold face waiting for her on the other side. As her vision blurred greater, she reached out her hand to him.
"Hey idiot, why aren't you crossing the road?"
Bulma gasped, her vision gradually becoming clear after she felt a familiar jolt in her chest. It effectively distracted her from her thoughts of fear and anxiety. She frowned at being called an idiot and turned her sudden angry eyes to the source of the cold voice she recognized as that of Vegeta Yonsei's.
"You're here again?" Her voice was cold, certainly not pleased with seeing him again. Just that quickly, her anxiety and fear were replaced by irritation. "You're quite persistent, aren't you?" she told him as he walked toward her.
Vegeta gently grabbed her hand, intertwining his thick fingers with hers and he dragged her to help her cross the street. "Tch! What are you? A child unable to cross the road and in dire need of assistance?" he commented with a disgusted look.
"Excuse me?! Did I ask for your help?" she shot back at him.
"No, but it looked to me as if you needed my help," he told her.
"Why would I ask for your help, of all people, huh?!"
"Hmm... I don't know. Maybe it's because I am the first to come out of your mind while you waste your time trembling like a pathetic child on the sidewalk."
Bulma turned her head, shooting him a fierce glare, "Wha-What?!"
Vegeta smirked. Oh how he liked that look in her eyes she would give him everytime he makes her angry. He's definitely enjoying himself flaring her ire like this.
"So, how was your work today?" He asked, changing the topic.
Bulma gave him a weird look before looking away, "Why are you asking me that?" she asked suspiciously.
"Who knows? Maybe you can decide now and wish for this world to be destroyed."
Bulma grimaced, annoyed. "How many times do I have to tell you to stop bothering me about that?! I already told you that I didn't summon you! It was an accident! Unintentional!"
Vegeta clenched his teeth together, darting his eyes to the side in irritation. "Tch! You are an annoying woman, aren't you?"
Bulma turned her head to him again, this time, in disbelief. "So I'm the one who's annoying now?!" she whined.
"I am quite an impatient deity," Vegeta told her, staring back into her eyes. "The longer it takes for you to decide the fate of this world, the more I lose my patience. And you wouldn't want to see a God of Destruction losing his patience."
"Why?"
"There is a reason why anger is one of the few emotions we Gods of Destruction are allowed to feel. It's to help us focus more on destruction itself. What do you think will happen if I lose my patience with you mortals? Hm?"
"Are you going to destroy the world?" Bulma asked him. When Vegeta didn't answer, she told him. "Then there you have it! You don't need me to decide for you!"
Vegeta laughed once before he gave her a vicious grin, "No, that's not what I mean, woman."
"Then what are you trying to say now?"
"I told you my story. I was the only God of Destruction who was able to defeat the King of Nothingness, a Multiverse level deity in a one-on-one battle, a feat that no other God of Destruction before me was able to do. And that I did a very long time ago. Why else do you think I needed a limiter, hm?" he said, pointing at the golden earring sticking over his left ear. "It's because my destructive power goes beyond that of a Multiverse level deity, I can even break through reality, space, and time with it and my powers continue to grow stronger as time passes by. If I lose my patience and lose control of my powers, then everything in this entire universe may go 'poof!' in one go."
"And you didn't want that?"
"Of course not! I worked hard to raise the rankings of my Universe to the top! I do not wish to destroy everything that Shin had created for me to satisfy my goal to be the best."
"Then you can go ahead and stop destroying things," Bulma suggested.
"I cannot do that either. Before creation, comes destruction. I am one of those two deities that keep the balance of this Universe. If not for me doing my job of destruction, there wouldn't be any creation, birth, rebirth, light, summer, spring, and better things mortals like yourselves gain in exchange for what was taken from you."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Don't you get it? Everytime a mortal gains something for himself, he had lost something else beforehand. Take my story for an instance. Before I became the most powerful warrior in this Universe as a mortal, I lost everything in my life. And that's because Beerus, my predecessor, destroyed my life. All mortals suffer the same fate, though in different situations and circumstances. Reality is cruel to everyone, but at the end of the day, every suffering is a blessing in disguise. We deities listen to mortals' prayers and we get to decide which blessings you mortals would gain depending on how much you've lost. That is how we show our mercy. That's an example of how we work to keep the balance of this Universe."
"Yeah... I get it now. So does that mean that me losing everything I once had, was because of you? You took everything away from me?"
"I told you, didn't I? Saike Regin, the one who killed your parents and caused your sister to be in a coma, was contracted to me."
"And what did I gain after all of that? Nothing. If you deities are truly listening to our prayers, then why haven't you heard mine?"
"Hey now, I heard yours. What do you think is the reason why I am here?"
"No, you didn't!"
"I did. You wished for this world to be destroyed. Honestly, I was surprised about your wish. Nobody had ever wished for his or her homeworld to be destroyed just as much as you did that night."
"Aside from myself," he thought. He knew that as a mortal child, he once told his father that destruction will befall the Saiyans due to his foolishness. Although it was only a mere warning which turned out to be a desire when he lost his patience with his father, he knew deep in his heart that he truly didn't wish for it to happen. He tried to convince himself that his people deserved to be destroyed that day, but then as crown prince, he couldn't help but feel responsible for it and feel that boiling, seething anger at the destruction of his kingdom as well. That's why he exploded in rage when he learned about Beerus' role in that unfortunate fate of his.
"You are quite lucky that I was being patient with you and still giving you a chance to choose the fate of your world," Vegeta told Bulma.
Beerus never gave him this chance. If he could, he would have tried to change the fate of his people from destruction. He would have changed his mind about letting his father solve his problems and see for himself the results of his foolishness. He would have done something, anything to prevent destruction from coming into his life.
But Bulma doesn't seem to understand that.
"Hah! Lucky, my ass!" she snorted, rolling her eyes off him before glaring back at him darkly. "You know what? You are quite the self-centered, egomaniac deity!"
Vegeta simply shrugged the insult, like he didn't care at all. "I hear that a lot."
"Well, that only means it's true."
"I know. But what can I do? I am an evil, ruthless god after all." he said proudly.
"How the hell did I end up associating myself with you, of all deities in this universe?" she asked in a tired manner, unable to believe that such a stuck-up deity exists.
Vegeta's arrogant smirk finally faded and his expression turned dangerously serious.
"You only have yourself to blame. I blame fate for this, and that damn, unwanted bond it created for us." he told her icily.
"You told me earlier that no matter what my decision is, you will still destroy me either way."
"Yeah."
"It's because of that bond, isn't it?"
"Yeah."
"Then why me? Why of all people, why me?"
"I already told you that fate chose us to be bonded together for some reason. I chose you because I wanted to rid of this bond. I never wanted to be bonded with anyone, more so to someone as insignificant as yourself."
"I don't want this bond with you either. Why do I have to be bonded to such a crazy, heartless monster like you?!"
"Fate and reality are cruel to everyone. That is the truth you have to accept."
"I don't want this any longer!" she bellowed at him, pulling her hand off his. "Why don't you just leave me alone?!"
Vegeta stared at her with his cold glare, the blackness of his eyes seemed to grow even darker. He was silent for a few moments and this made Bulma feel a little frightened.
"Okay, fine. I've had enough games and I'm quickly losing my patience with you. This is going to be your last chance anyway." Vegeta said this, still with that ominous level of seriousness. Though for Bulma, his mood seemed to become more dangerous than before.
An alarmed expression appeared upon Bulma's beautiful face, feeling her heart pound hard within her chest due to her anxiety when she realized that he suddenly turned extremely menacing. Though clearly invisible, she could perceive just how terrifying he had become through an invisible aura that felt like a chilling wind blowing around her, and it frightened her. It made her shudder all of a sudden as she stared into his direful gaze.
The God of Destruction must be pretty pissed off by now, and it's no wonder why mortals greatly feared him and his wrath. And she knew that he wasn't joking around with her any longer.
"Last chance?" she carefully asked in a seemingly broken voice as it gave into her fear, or worry.
Their surroundings abruptly changed into a setting Bulma's mind and heart recognized and feared for the past three years. That hot afternoon in a small, obscured village in Mount Tohu.
The Pepper Village, the very place she had been dreading for the past three years. The site of her worst nightmares.
They were surrounded by people, people supposedly dead by now. She could hear gunshots as the people around her screamed in pure terror and fell to their deaths on the ground, one by one. Bulma felt her body suddenly run cold as if she was submerged into a drum filled with water and ice. She froze in her place, unable to move even though her mind told her to run away. In her chest, she could feel her heart pound so hard against her ribs in her terror.
Her frightened eyes gazed into Vegeta's glowing magenta irises as he stared at her coldly.
It was the same way as she remembered him. He stood there unmoving, in the midst of those dying people, like he didn't care at all.
He was the deity responsible for death and destruction after all.
"You were supposed to die during this time but I chose to spare you and your sister from this fate because, at that moment, I knew that you would one day decide the fate of this world for me. As the deity responsible for death and devastation, I could change this fate for you. I will give you the choice. You can go on and die in here right now, or tell me to destroy this world for you. I'll be waiting." Vegeta told her.
Bulma's eyes narrowed in frustration as the cruel god made use of her trauma to his advantage.
He was right. He was truly an evil, ruthless god.
Vegeta grinned, hearing her thoughts about him, "You better hurry up, else it would be too late for you."
Bulma saw her mother and her sister fall to her side, causing her heart to pound against her chest even greater. It felt so real and she squinted her eyes, tears falling down to her cheeks, not bearing to experience the most traumatic event of her life once more.
Bulma shrieked, her hand automatically grasping the side of her head.
"Stop! Please! Stop it! Stop!" she cried out to him.
Suddenly, both of them were back to the pedestrian lane, now devoid of any people or vehicles. Bulma didn't notice this as she shakily fell into her knees, clutching at her head and whimpering. The poor, traumatized woman was shaking like a kitty drenched in the cold rain.
Vegeta stared down at her, in his mind he recalled that time when he was a mortal child while he was being tortured by the voices of his people's sufferings in the afterlife after he ran away from the contract he had with Beerus. He was completely traumatized by that experience. Crying, shaking in pure and complete terror, just as how this woman was doing right now.
And Vegeta knew that he went too far with what he did to Bulma.
Something that he shouldn't be feeling abruptly crept into his chest, and he sneered at that. A myriad of voices began to resonate within his mind. His fists quickly balled on his side as his eyes narrowed and squinted.
He cursed at himself as he shook his head, focusing on a plan of destruction before he stepped forward and crouched down right in front of Bulma. He raised a hand and awkwardly pat the top of her head.
"Stop crying now. It's over," he told her in a surprisingly soft manner.
Instead of seeking his comfort, as Vegeta did with Beerus, Bulma pushed him back and she pulled herself away from him, though that was futile of course. Vegeta stared at her in confusion. What the hell was her problem now?
And then, he felt her slap him across the face.
Damn, he felt that sting.
He was unprepared for that attack and he didn't expect for her to retaliate like that.
Displeased by her audacity to slap his handsome, godly face, Vegeta glared at her furiously, but his glare instantly melted into one of surprise and awe when he found the burning fury blazing through Bulma's big, blue eyes as she stared right through him.
"Do you truly enjoy torturing mortals just because you are a god?" Bulma seethed at him.
Vegeta stared back at her, his glare deadly and murderous. How dare this pathetic mortal even touch his face?
"You... You aren't afraid of divine punishment, are you?" he told her coldly.
The fire within Bulma's blue eyes lit up even more instead of it dying out as Vegeta would have expected. At first, he wondered if the woman was too stupid to even dare try to stand up against him, of all people. She even dared to slap his face! He was the most fearsome deity known in this entire Universe, the God of Destruction who could easily destroy anything that exists, and yet, this mortal woman, this Bulma Briefs, doesn't seem to care about that at all. She didn't care who or what he was, or what he could do to her existence.
Oh, and that fiery rage in her eyes! Vegeta could feel the intense, hot rage she was emanating through her entire being at his audacity to insult her and use her fear to manipulate her. She wasn't one to easily be goaded at. She fights back and resists him as much as she could. Nobody had ever dared to stand up to him the way she did. She seemed to be the type of mortal who had the nerve and the courage to stand up and fight for what she was thinking. A woman of bravery and pride. She may not be a warrior, but she had a quality of one. And it only made his blood boil with excitement, wanting to intensify her anger greater. For the first time since he became the God of Destruction, he felt like a Saiyan again. His fighting spirit burned at the challenge of flaring this woman's ire even further. His lips crooked up into a smirk reeking with malice.
"I am an evil, ruthless god, remember?" he told her.
"I fucking hate you!" she screeched at him.
His pompous smirk only seemed to stretch as he felt even more excited, or so he believed.
"Good for you then. I get that a lot too. If mortals don't fear me, they hate me and they curse at me. Every mortal's hatred towards the deities all come to me, after all, I am the deity responsible for giving mortals their miseries. And I'm used to all of it."
The fire of fury in Bulma's eyes seemed to fluctuate when she saw that the pride and malice he was trying to show with his expression were betrayed by the glint of pain and sadness in his eyes, which he was trying his best to hide. What's the matter with him all of a sudden?
"How could you live like this?" she asked him, her voice breaking into a mixture of disbelief and frustration.
He broke into a sarcastic laugh, "Live? I don't live any longer. I simply exist to do my duties as the God of Destruction of this Universe. My hardened heart and my entire life have been sold to eternal damnation in order to gain this power and position."
Bulma shook her head. She didn't know what to say any longer. She was so furious she wanted to punch him on the face. But that won't do anything. Just slapping his face earlier made her hand feel like she just smacked a brick wall. She simply glared at him with her eyes filled with rage and tears.
"Ugh, whatever," she grunted in her irritation, shaking her head in utter disbelief. Maybe if he wasn't being such a jerk, she would have felt bad about him. But now that she saw just how rotten he actually is, she thought how he deserved such a lonely life.
She shouted back at him, frustrated, angered, "Why don't you just go on and disappear from my life?! Leave me alone! And don't you ever show yourself to me ever again!"
Those words caused Vegeta to be frozen in his position. The earlier cruel smile faded as he stared back at her with an unmistakable look of shock, hurt, and disappointment. Bulma turned her back on him and walked away, leaving Vegeta alone and speechless in the middle of that lonely road.
His hands balled into shaking fists on his sides, his pride being a shackle that restrained him from chasing after her. In his heart, even though he would refuse to admit it, he was beginning to be interested with Bulma due to her feisty, argumentative nature and her ability to resist him in one way or another. It was something he finds respectable due to him being once a Saiyan Warrior. Her last words, though, it frustrated him somehow. He wanted to spend more time with her, to poke the lioness within her to see more of the fire in her beautiful, big, blue eyes until he's able to finally convince her to enter a contract with him and destroy her existence.
Yet he failed to convince her once again.
"Damn it!" he cursed to himself.
And because he told her that this was going to be her last chance, Vegeta concluded that his fun was over. He begrudgingly accepted his first defeat against a mortal after over 1,500 years since he became a God of Destruction, and decided that he will leave her alone after this just as what she wanted him to do.
For some reason, that didn't feel good to him either.