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Endlessly	By : Froglady15 Category: Dragon Ball Z > AU - Alternate Universe Views: 2949 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Just my Husband, laptop, my 3 dogs and a very overactive imagination. Dragon Ball Z and any songs mentioned DO NOT belong to me. I MKE NO MONEY/PROFIT!

Chapter List
- 20
- 21
- 22
Disclaimer: I don’t own anything. Just my Husband, laptop, my 3 dogs and a very overactive imagination… Dragon Ball Z and any songs mentioned in this fic DO NOT belong to me. I’m just borrowing them for my own twisted amusement.
Chapter 21
Previously…
Vegeta's ship was gone, but unfortunately still visible from the palace. It was all but a small grey dot in the sky.
"My poor Prince." Frieza said shaking his head. "I honestly don't care who you fuck; or who you take as a mate. However, you have proved to have made some very stupid mistakes over the past few days. I do not care that you disposed of Zarbon. I was bored of him; it was your turn to have his position. However, you destroyed him over want of a bed slave and then disappeared."
Vegeta tried again to release the grip of his tail from his neck, but had no luck. Bulma, I am sorry. I have failed you.
"Let's hope you really enjoyed your evening with your little slave. You didn't actually mate her, I hope." Frieza laughed at him.
Vegeta tried to kick him, but was lifted off his feet again. He felt himself sink into despair when she didn't reply to him. Maybe she was angry that Kakarott had followed his orders and he had placed a mental wall up, blocking her from him.
"I guess we shall find out. You Saiyans form a bond when you mate, correct? Should she die, she would bring you along with her, wouldn't she?" Frieza taunted him.
"Please, don't. She's gone. She will no longer be a distraction. Let her be." Vegeta grated out as best he could with Frieza's tail choking the life out of him.
"That's very sweet, but unfortunately, I am sorry. Watch closely, Vegeta. I do love fireworks; I hope you do as well. Enjoy the show." Frieza said and aimed a Ki ball directly at the retreating ship.
Vegeta watched in horror as the ship exploded. He could see the tiny debris floating down towards the ground. There was nothing left. He choked and cringed inwardly as he waited for the inevitable pain to follow immediately at the demise of his mate.
"Now that was simply stupendous, don't you think, Vegeta?" Frieza asked him gleefully. "You can truthfully say she went out with a Bang." He laughed as he dropped Vegeta to the ground.
Vegeta dropped to his knees immediately following his release, shaking in a mixture of grief and pure rage. He was completely breathless. He looked at Frieza standing there looking down at him with his arms crossed, looking quite pleased with himself. He roared and threw himself at the Lizard Lord in a blind rage, striking him right square in the jaw.
Vegeta took advantage of the element of surprise and went for another blow that was just narrowly blocked by Frieza who had regained his equilibrium almost instantly.
"My, my. I seemed to have upset you. You said you were done with her. I thought the kind thing to do would be to end her life, seeing that you broke hear heart and such." Frieza said.
"You had no right." He growled, trying to call upon every ounce of self-control and energy within him. He needed time; time to calm himself down, clear his head so he could think straight. He couldn't expect to win if he was so consumed with rage that he couldn't see straight, which was his current state of mind at this exact moment. At the moment all he was seeing was red. He needed time to gather the energy he needed to power up to his full potential if he was to have any chance at all of beating him.
"I think I was very much within my right." Frieza said, wiping the blood off the side of his mouth. "You see, you work for me again. I cannot have my general distracted for any reason. Especially over a girl. You will return with me and continue to learn your place until I see fit to release you."
"No. I am not leaving with you. I'd rather rot in hell, Frieza." Vegeta spat at him.
"I could easily arrange the latter my dear Prince Vegeta, but you see, that is where you are wrong. Your father has already consented. I will be leaving in two days’ time and you will be leaving with me." Frieza said, whacking him again with his tail. "When will you figure it out? You are just as much a slave to me as that little wench of yours was a slave to you. I will not be releasing you anytime soon. You can either make it easy on yourself and come willingly, or if I have to, I will drag you onto my ship. Either way, you will fall into line."
Vegeta stood up proudly, balling his hands into fists. He tried to reach out to Bulma through the bond once again and still felt nothing. He let out a roar of rage and felt himself start to change again. The rush was unbelievable. Now if he could only just hang onto it long enough to rip Frieza apart, he would be happy; as long as it didn't evade him once again. It was almost there.
Frieza laughed at him and struck at him with his tail again. Vegeta had been anticipating it and managed to dodge it, but not quite fast enough. The end of his tail still managed to clip him painfully in the arm, breaking it. "My, that is quite the light show you are putting on. Very impressive."
He could feel the golden aura surrounding him. "Take a good look." He replied haughtily.
"I see you have improved much in the last few years since I have seen you. That will help me rest easy knowing my General is untouchable." Frieza said, acknowledging Vegeta's increase in strength and power. "Unfortunately, you will have to do much better than that, my Prince."
With that, he quickly lunged for Vegeta and buried his knee right in his stomach. He had been so fast, Vegeta hadn't even seen him coming. He didn't get the chance to recover from the blow and Frieza was all over him. Try as he might, he could not get away from him to even get a chance to block any of the blows.
After a few minutes of receiving blow after blow and not being given a split second of a chance to defend himself, Vegeta collapsed. It was no use. He may have ascended, but he was still no match for Frieza. How had he even thought that he could ever gain enough strength to destroy the Lizard Lord?
Frieza stepped on his side, crushing his ribs painfully, cackling in amusement. "It would seem that you are out matched, my Prince." Frieza replied, leaning down into his ear. He looked down at the bloodied and fallen Prince and narrowed his eyes at a red mark on his neck that he had not noticed until now. "You have got to be kidding me. This just keeps getting better and better!"
He wrapped his tail around one of Vegeta's legs and carelessly dragged him down the hallway back to the throne room. Vegeta desperately tried to sit up and get free, but could hardly lift his upper body up, due to the number of broken ribs he had sustained in the skirmish he had just lost epically in.
Frieza walked into the throne room and tossed Vegeta across the room. He landed not far from his father.
Asia gasped. Oh my god! She thought to herself. Poor Vegeta!
"My King, it is done. Your Son has been relieved of the distraction; however it would seem that you were correct. There was much more going on between those two than what even you thought." Frieza said, walking up to the King. He grabbed Vegeta by the front of his armor, dragging him up to his father with seemingly no effort. "Take a look. It would seem that the little wench marked him. Now, correct me if I am wrong, but isn't that part of your people's mating and bonding ritual?"
The King looked at his son and shook his head in disgust. Now what? He had seen the ship blown to smithereens from his throne room. If he had mated and bonded the girl, it more than likely wouldn't be long before his son succumbed to the depression and passed as well; unless it was only a brand new bond, which he suspected. He hadn't smelled the girl on him since she had arrived. There also was always the possibility that since she was not a Saiyan that the bond didn't take as well. There was some hope. However the thought that his son had indeed taken her as his mate was absolutely inexcusable.
Asia took a few small steps towards Vegeta, the King and Lord Frieza. She peered at his neck and swallowed the heavy lump that had formed in the back of her throat. It could not be. The little bitch had marked him! He had obviously allowed it. She had hoped that Vegeta's explanation regarding Bulma had been true. That he had only been using her to make her think he had wanted her. She had believed him so much that she had actually felt bad for ratting out Bulma and Kakarott's secretive entry on Vegeta's ship. So what was it? If he had allowed her to mark him, had he taken her as his mate as well? This was unbelievable! What did he see in her? She was weak and frail! She wasn't even remotely like a Saiyan! Her feelings of guilt for Bulma's demise quickly vanished.
"Son, did you take her as your mate?" the King asked, barely containing his rage at the situation.
"You know what? I did." Vegeta spat. What did it matter in denying it anymore? Bulma was gone. He still couldn't figure out why he wasn't in a tremendous amount of pain from the bond being severed, however, he was already in excruciating pain from the beating he had received, so maybe he was and he just could not tell. Everything hurt. "And I was more than proud to take her as my mate. Her only flaw was that she was not Saiyan. That being so, I would have gladly made her my queen without reservation. She was a genius upon epic proportions that could have been a great asset to our empire. She was completely unselfish, without ulterior motive and carried herself with grace and class the way a real queen should. More than I can say for you." He grated, pointing at Asia while attempting to stand back up.
"She is the only woman I have ever met that I would bestow the honor of being my mate upon. Should I survive the loss, I can assure you I will not be taking another woman. I will, however make sure I live long enough to carry out the deaths of every single person in this room." Vegeta continued, standing up as proudly as he could, despite the many broken bones in his body.
"Son, she was a bed slave." His father replied angrily. "You had to know that it would come to this at some point anyway. Best it be nipped in the bud now. The bond is new. It probably hasn't had time to even take fully. You will recover and when you are finished your service, you will take a proper Saiyan mate of my choosing. Now get out of my sight before you disgust me any further." The King replied, turning his back on his Son. "Lord Frieza, you may proceed as you wish with him. I have said my piece. He is your problem to handle now." He said to Frieza as he exited the throne room.
Frieza laughed and smacked Vegeta again with his tail, sending him down into the ground again. He walked up to him and kicked him brutally in the side one more time and stepped on his leg, crushing it to make sure he wasn't going anywhere. "Captain Ginyu, take him back to his quarters. See to it that he does not have access to a regen tank until the night before we leave. I think I have made my point."
"Of course, my Lord." Ginyu replied, grabbing Vegeta by the front of his armor and dragging him down the hallway towards his personal quarters.
Asia, not knowing why, decided to follow them back to Vegeta's quarters. Maybe she could help him. His injuries looked pretty serious. If he could not have access to a regen tank for a few days, he would suffer greatly. She was still extremely hurt that he had chosen Bulma over her, but maybe she could use this opportunity to prove to him that she was every bit as fit to be at his side that Bulma supposedly had been. Maybe if she helped him get through these next few days before he had to leave, maybe she could still get him to care for her. After all, he needed someone and the distraction of Bulma was no longer a threat to her.
Ginyu opened the door to Vegeta's quarters and dumped him on the floor carelessly as though he were a bag of rubbish. "Sweet dreams, Princy. Ha haa!" he laughed and closed the door.
Asia waited until they were gone before quietly entering Vegeta's room. She shook her head sadly as she noticed the careless way they had just dumped him on the floor. They hadn't even dropped him near his bed! She knelt down next to him and rolled him on his back. He was an absolute mess.
She got up and looked around. She had never been to Vegeta's private chambers before. She headed into the next room, which she found to be the bedroom. It was absolutely glorious! Even more so than she had imagined it would have been in her many fantasies. She headed on into the bathroom and grabbed a hand towel and ran it under warm water for a minute. She ran back out to where Vegeta was still passed out on the floor of his living room. She began to wipe his face gently with the towel. He had a horrible gash on his forehead that was still bleeding and his left eye looked pretty swollen. She couldn't help but notice the small bite wound on his neck and frown. She forced back the weave of jealousy that once again threatened to take over. Bulma didn't matter now. She was permanently out of the picture and luckily, he had her to help him forget all about her. She had probably tricked him into mating her for all she knew!
Asia continued to dab at the open wound on his forehead gently, when he moaned. "Vegeta? Are you alright?"
"Woman." He mumbled; his eyes closed tightly as he winced in pain. "Bulma?"
"No. Bulma's not here. It's Asia." She replied, trying to keep the edge out of her voice.
His eyes shot open immediately, even the swollen one. "Get the hell out." He growled, shoving her away from him.
"But you're hurt and you need help-" she objected, trying to wipe the rest of his face.
"I do not need help. Yours especially." He said, slapping her hand away from him again. "Get out. Now."
"No. Not until I at least get you to bed."
"I do not need help and I especially do not need your help you conniving bitch! Now get the fuck out of my quarters, and I never want to see you in here again." he said angrily trying to get up.
"You're badly injured, you need someone to look after you." She argued, trying to help him up even though he was pushing her away.
"There, I got up on my own, I do not need your help. There's the door." He growled and started limping towards his bedroom and trying to pull his armor off. He stumbled into the wall in his attempt to get it off.
Asia quickly walked up to him and helped pull it off the rest of the way. He shoved her away again and stumbled to his bed and collapsed, ready to pass out and hopefully never awaken ever again due to the amount of pain he was in.
"Don't you want a shower?" Asia asked, determined she was going to help him whether he wanted her to or not.
"I want you to get out!" he shouted at her.
"I'm only trying to help! You don't have to act like such an arrogant prick! You're practically on death's door for god's sake!" She said angrily, starting to get frustrated with him.
"I am not on death's door! I have sustained much worse than this!" he growled. "I only need a few hours of sleep which you are currently depriving me of. Get out! I do not want your help. Especially knowing that it is partially because of You that my mate was blown into oblivion. You are fortunate that I am in an incredible amount of pain at the moment or I would have ended your life the second you disturbed me. You're continued refusal to leave is wearing my last nerve and if you do not remove yourself, broken ribs, leg and arm or not, I will remove you myself."
"It is not my fault! You caused this all on your own! You signed her death warrant the day you decided to bring her here. Better yet you signed it again a second time the moment you disappeared with her and decided to take her as your mate." Asia replied accusingly. "What were you thinking? How could you have thought that would work out? I refuse to take any responsibility for this. You're better off! I did you a favor."
Vegeta rolled over onto his back slowly and painfully. "I refuse to discuss anything with you where Bulma was concerned." He growled, while painfully trying to sit up.
"What are you trying to do?" she asked, walking up to him in an attempt to help him.
"I am attempting to get up in order to physically remove you myself since you will not leave me alone!" he yelled, managing to stand up again.
"Fine!" she snapped turning to leave. "But I will be back to check on you later on."
"Enter these premises again and I will blast you where you stand!" he shouted at her, flopping back down on his bed. The nerve of that bitch!
Vegeta didn't relax until he heard the door slam. He lay there on his bed, reveling in the complete silence. He closed his eyes and forced his throbbing body to relax. At this point, every bone in his body ached. His head ached. Everything ached. It even hurt to breathe; compliments of Lord Frieza. He didn't doubt he had a punctured a lung from the several kicks to the ribs he had endured. He continued to lie there in silence. What a cluster fuck today had turned out to be. A few hours ago, he'd been showing Bulma how to defend herself. Not long after that, he had taken her again. He could even still smell her on him and he could feel his body wanting to respond at the memory of her marking him. It had been so unexpected. It had been erotic even. He would wear her mark proudly.
She had earned it.
He should have listened to her and left as soon as they had made it back to the palace and Kakarott informed him that he had gotten his ship ready. Or he could have simply left Bulma on his island, gotten his ship and picked her up from there. He could have also taken her suggestion and remained there with him a few more days, testing out his new abilities and making love to her every chance he had. He could have even taken her advice and left the night she had first suggested it. What had he done? Mocked her and told her she was ridiculous and that looking for a safe place would have been an impossible waste of time.
He laughed cynically at the irony.
Vegeta continued to lay there and contemplate the last few days. He knew it wouldn't change anything. No matter which way he looked at it, he had failed her. She had begged him to not leave her. He had told her to trust him and in the end she had and look where it had gotten her. Blown up. And it had gotten him his ass kicked royally. He had been a fool. An arrogant fool and it had cost him the only person he had ever cared for.
He had failed her.
He wanted to go down to the training facility and beat someone to a bloody pulp and not being able to do that because he could barely stand sunk him into a further abyss of anger and self-loathing. Training always cleared his head. More than anything though he just wished sleep would claim him, that way the thoughts would disappear. He was in far too much pain at the moment to think clearly. He needed to get some rest and then formulate a new plan. Part of him didn't even want to bother. Maybe he would fall asleep and not wake up. He would be okay with that. However, then Frieza and his father and Asia would win. He couldn't allow that.
He wondered briefly why he wasn't writhing in pain at the loss of her. Shouldn't his head be burning? And shouldn't he be completely grief stricken? He had heard stories about the effects of losing a mate and the pain associated with a severed bond. His own father had supposedly wallowed in indescribable pain and grief for months after the death of his mate. Yet he was one of the rare Saiyans who somehow managed to tough it out and overcome it. Maybe I am more like him than I thought. He thought to himself, once again laughing cynically at the irony. All his life he strived to be nothing like his father. Here it was looking as though he was just as much a cold hearted miserable bastard that his old man was. On the other hand, maybe this just proved further to him that he was incapable of having any natural affection for anyone or anything. He had believed that to be so for a long time; that his heart was cold and dead. Bulma somehow didn't believe that. She had even convinced him briefly that maybe there was hope for him, that he wasn't as much a monster as he thought he was.
What did she know? She was a weak frail woman who believed in stupid romantic notions of love concurs all or some crap like that. What else had she said? He thought to himself. There was some quote she had told him once in the many verbal spars they had had on the ship on their trip here. They'd had nothing else to do. It was from some all-important book she had mentioned. He could not remember. He remembered how passionate she had been about the subject. The way her eyes had lit up and the way her lower lip stuck out just a bit more and her flushed cheeks in annoyance when he had laughed almost maniacally in her face about the absolute stupidity of it. What was it again? Love is forgiving. Love is unselfish, patient, long suffering and kind. It does not look out for its own interests, does not keep account of injury. Love believes all things, hopes all things, and bears all things. Love never fails. He thought about that for a moment. He wasn't any of those things. He was not patient. He certainly wasn't kind. And he did not forgive those who crossed him. He knew he was selfish. He was always looking out for his best interests. Case in point: he just had to go back and get the plans for that stupid gravity room instead of simply relying on Bulma to remember the plans from that pretty little head of hers. On top of all that, he had failed her. He dwelled on all of that for a few minutes and finally came to a conclusion:
Stupid Woman.
He thought a little more on it. No, maybe not stupid woman; stupid race for spewing such utter nonsense. There was a reason that planet was gone. Small wonder, he snorted. Try as he might, he could not fault her for believing something that she had been brought up to believe. However, he faulted her for making him believe in the small possibility of something so stupid. Last night he had believed it, when he had taken her carefully last night. He hadn't been selfish then, for probably the first time in his life that he could recall. He had actually put her interest ahead of his own. Something that was completely foreign to him. He had done it willingly too; not because he felt obligated to or because he was expecting anything in return. He didn't know why he had done it, and he didn't regret it. Not even now. He had taken great joy in bringing her pleasure ahead of his own.
Vegeta laid there, still contemplating everything. He didn't know why, but he focused on the bond he had forged with Bulma and tried reaching out to her yet again. He received no response. He could not sense her at all. Of course not! He berated himself angrily. He clenched his teeth together. Why? Why would the gods have tossed her in his direction in the first place if it was never meant to be? Was this some joke? Maybe payback for all the spouses he had killed in his time under Frieza's rule? That would make sense. He thought. What right did he have to find a mate and have a chance at happiness when he had killed many families despite their begging and pleading to spare them? None, really. Maybe this was a test they had laid out for him and he had failed miserably. Just like he had failed her. No matter what, it angered him to the core that she had paid the ultimate price. She had never done anything to anyone. He decided that once he was done killing everyone responsible for her death today, he would challenge the gods himself for this hand they had dealt him today. The Legend of the Super Saiyan said that once ascended, he would practically be a god. No one would be able to stand up to him. He would challenge them. Spit in their faces. How dare they place something in front of him and then once he accepted it and found a brief measure of piece, rip it away from him so soon after accepting it. So they might damn him to hell. What did that matter? He was more than likely going there anyway for all the horrible things he had done. He wasn't going until he stood up to them and held them accountable for their actions.
He chuckled bitterly. Then coughed in pain.
What a useless and honor less way to die. Being blown up. He had not only sentenced Bulma to that death sentence, but also Kakarott, his First Lieutenant and most loyal companion since childhood. Aside from Bulma, Kakarott was the only one who really knew him. He was the closest thing to what Bulma would have called a friend. He remembered mocking her. Saiyans do not have friends. Comrades maybe, but certainly not friends. He had seen Kakarott more like the brother he never had. They stuck together through everything. Confided in one another. He was always getting the clown out of some scrape because of his stupidity. On the other hand, Kakarott was always behind him in his corner when he picked a fight he should not have. He chuckled painfully at a memory of back when they were boys and he had pissed off Zarbon deliberately for some reason. Kakarott had tried repeatedly to talk him out of it but he had been too angry and hot headed at the moment to see reason. He backed him up though. No questions asked and they both won a free trip to the regeneration tanks for a few days. Other than Kakarott, no one had ever stood up for him. Now he was gone too. What an embarrassment. Kakarott may have been a third class warrior by birth rights, but he was a formidable ally and warrior. He was always right behind him in terms of strength. Vegeta had always had the intention of appointing him as Elite once his father was gone. He deserved it. Now Kakarott was just someone else he had failed. How would he ever be able to face Bardock again? It was his fault Bardock's youngest son was killed today. It was no secret that Kakarott had been his favorite son out of his two sons. He held great affection for both, but Kakarott was always definitely favored.
Vegeta allowed himself to be overtaken by sleep as his mind ran rampant. His throbbing and broken body needed it. He drifted off into a dreamless sleep.
Bardock rushed into the palace in panic. He had seen the explosion and knew his son had been aboard Vegeta's ship with Bulma. It had been by pure luck and quick thinking that he had been able to contact his son, however it was looking like it had still been too little too late. Bardock had gone by the wreckage site where the debris had fallen. There wasn't much left. He could not tell if he had been able to escape in an escape pod or not. He hadn't seen the pod ejected from the ship and he could not seem to contact him again with his scouter. It wasn't looking good. He had no idea how he was going to explain this to his mate.
He was headed in a hurry to his lab when he ran into the King.
"Bardock." The King greeted, not knowing if the older Saiyan was aware of all that had happened that afternoon.
"Your Highness." Bardock replied.
"I am not sure if you are aware or not, but unfortunately, your son Kakarott was attempting to escape the planet with my son's bed slave turned mate." The King said, eyeing him carefully.
"I did see a ship blown up earlier." Bardock replied, not knowing how much to reveal.
"It would seem that my Son sent your Son to sell her for him for a decent price instead of to you." The King explained, watching the older Saiyan suspiciously. Bardock only nodded. "He said that the girl had developed a foolish romantic attachment to him; that he had simply lead her on to believe he shared the same sentiments so as to have a willing bed partner. In the end, he decided to sell her off planet instead of to you. Is this true?"
Bardock sighed and thought very carefully on his reply. This was getting even more complicated by the minute. "I was aware the girl carried some measure of affection for the Prince, yes. In which case, sending her off planet would have been a kindness."
The King nodded in agreement. "It would seem, Lord Frieza decided to end her life and destroyed them both by blowing up my son's ship so as to use her as an example for my son since it turned out the stupid fool lied in an attempt to save the useless wench and had indeed taken her as his mate. I am very sorry for your loss, Bardock. You are a very faithful servant to the Empire. It was not the intent to have your son caught in the cross fire. You can take the matter up with Lord Frieza."
Bardock nodded. He did not know what to say. The grief of having lost his youngest son had not sunk in as of yet. As well, he was still hanging on to the possibility that he may have been able to manage an escape, however at this point it was seeming to be more unlikely than likely. He may not have had the time.
"I am curious, though." The King continued. "My son went to your lab before attempting to board his ship. Why would that have been?"
"I do not know." Bardock replied. The only thing he could think of was that the plans for the gravity room and initial building had been there. "Possibly to recover the plans for the Woman's capsulation technology?"
"But if it was her technology to begin with, why would he need that?" The King asked suspiciously.
"I do not know." Bardock shrugged. He knew Vegeta did not want his father aware of the gravity room. Not yet, anyway. "You would have to ask him."
"Well, I left him to Lord Frieza's care. I cannot believe that he would be so careless as to take her as a mate!" The King said, completely outraged. "She was weak and unfit. What he was thinking, I will never know. I just hope that the bond did not take due to the fact that she is not Saiyan and must be fairly new. I do not think he took her until last night."
Bardock nodded. "She would have been valuable, your highness. It is a shame we never had the chance to see her true potential."
"She bewitched my son!" The King bellowed. "Enough that he lost all good sense and mated with the little bitch!"
Bardock nodded, knowing that nothing he could say would change the King's mind. Not that it mattered at this point anyway.
"I am sorry your son lost his life, but her death was for the better!"
"I understand, my King." Bardock replied. "Where is the Prince now?"
"I do not know." The King shrugged. "Lord Frieza gave him a good beating for his carelessness. I left him with him. He is Frieza's problem now. Not mine. Hopefully Frieza can bring him in line. Nothing I have ever said has seemed to work."
Bardock frowned and nodded. "You haven't been to check on him to make sure he is alright?"
"Why would I? He is an embarrassment to me. I specifically told him to not mate and bond to the girl. What does he do? Mates and bonds with the girl. Hopefully he will learn something from this."
"You are sure he will not succumb to the loss of a severed bond, your highness?" Bardock asked.
"She was not Saiyan, and I am fairly confident he only bonded to her last night. It is still a new bond. It may not have had the time to take effect." The King shrugged. "He will pull through. I did and I was fully bonded to my mate."
Bardock shook his head. He could not believe how the King was just brushing this off as nothing. He could only imagine what Vegeta must be going through at this moment.
"I am sorry again for your loss, Bardock. I will be sure to make sure my son follows through with the proper arrangements to honor him." The King said and left the older Saiyan in the hallway alone with his thoughts.
Bardock sighed and continued into his lab. He grabbed a few things. Some pain killers and things to suture up any wounds; bandages and dressings. If Frieza had given him a good beating, he would need some care. He threw everything into a small bucket.
He looked around for anything else he may need and couldn't help but notice that the blue capsule with the gravity room progress and plans was missing. He sighed to himself, knowing that had been the reason he had come here. He hoped Lord Frieza hadn't gotten his hands on it. That was all they needed. He left his lab and headed hurriedly down to the royal wing where he assumed Vegeta would be, if Frieza was really pissed, he would not be allowed the benefit of a regeneration tank for a few days.
Thankfully, there was no one there. He quietly entered Vegeta's quarters and made his way to the Prince's bedroom. The sight before him made him shake his head. The Prince was a mess, passed out in his bed. He went to the bathroom and filled up the bucket with warm water, grabbed a towel and headed back to Vegeta.
"My Prince?" Bardock called him, shaking him gently on the shoulder, hoping it wasn't already damaged.
"Hmmn." Vegeta groaned painfully. He just wanted to be left alone.
"My Prince, wake up." Bardock said, shaking him again.
"Bardock, I failed.-" he replied, coughing painfully. "I failed you and your son. I failed Bulma."
"You did not fail anyone." Bardock said, trying to get him to sit up.
"Leave me alone, Bardock." He said irritably.
"My Prince, you need to let me help you." Bardock said, ignoring him.
"I do not want any help. I just need to sleep." He argued.
"Let me help you and then you can sleep." Bardock said, cutting his shirt off. "At least let me set some of these broken bones and I will leave you alone."
"Fine." Vegeta replied, slowly and painfully sitting up and removing the rest of his shirt. He reached into his pocket and handed Bardock the blue capsule. "Here are the plans for the Gravity room."
Bardock took the capsule and put it in his pocket. "Why did you go back for this? Bulma could have redone the plans. Worst case scenario, I could have had it discreetly sent out once you had found someplace to stay."
Vegeta nodded. He had already gone through all of the woulda, shoulda, coulda but didn't scenarios. "Bulma begged me to leave it behind."
Bardock nodded and began setting his broken right arm. "I am sorry things did not work out today, my Prince. I did try to help."
"I know. Kakarott told me." He replied through gritted teeth as Bardock snapped his arm back into place.
"I knew your father and Lord Frieza were planning something against Bulma last night." Bardock explained. "I sent Raditz to go out looking for you and Kakarott to get your ship ready. I also went out to look for you. On my way back to the palace, I saw your ship leave; thinking the three of you made it out without issue so I continued to head back to the Palace. I happened to see Lord Frieza drag you out in front of the palace. I called Kakarott on his scouter and warned him that Frieza most likely knew he had left with Bulma and would likely attempt something. I do not know if he had time to get himself or Bulma into an escape pod. I did not see one eject and he has made no contact with me."
Vegeta shook his head. "There was no time. I told him to leave if I was not there in fifteen minutes. I notified Bulma through our bond when I knew I would not make it onto the ship. They left a few minutes after that. I did try to stall for as long as I could to give them time to get some distance. Thank you for your help. I regret getting Kakarott mixed up in this as well. He was a loyal comrade and I always had every intention of promoting him as Elite once I took the throne. I will make sure he is honored as he deserved. Unfortunately, he did not die a warriors death but he died following my directions."
Bardock nodded. "I went and checked out the wreckage. There was nothing left. I could not tell if they actually did manage to escape or not. It is not looking good." He had finished setting and wrapping his arm.
"I cannot reach Bulma through our bond. Nor can I sense her." Vegeta replied dejectedly. "They did not make it."
"I am sorry, my Prince." Bardock said, now taking a look at his leg. It didn't seem to be broken as bad as his arm had been and he was still more concerned about his ribs, but began setting his leg nonetheless.
"It is fine, Bardock. I was a fool." Vegeta replied, flinching as he set his leg. "You have nothing to be sorry for. You just lost a son. I still do not understand why you are here."
"I am here to help you, my Prince as I have always been." Bardock replied. "I am deeply saddened by the loss of my son, however you cannot undo what has been done. I have lost my son, but you have lost a mate today. That is no small matter."
Vegeta simply nodded appreciatively. He was still into much physical pain and in a barely contained rage to be able to think clearly where Bulma was concerned. He could not think about her right now. He needed to formulate a plan to destroy Frieza. He would take time out and grieve later once he had avenged both her and Kakarott.
"You mentioned that you could not reach her through the bond. You did formally take her as your mate yesterday?" Bardock asked.
Vegeta nodded. "She accepted."
"Of course she did! Tell me though, what happened last night with Zarbon?"
Vegeta chuckled and coughed painfully. That was where everything went wrong. "I found out from Bulma that it was Zarbon who took her from her home before destroying her planet. He planned on keeping her for himself. He very nearly violated her and would have gone through with it had he not been interrupted by an urgent call on his scouter insisting he drop whatever he was doing for something else. Bulma took the opportunity to hide and left the ship with the other female slaves and ended up at auction and was bought and sent to the tavern. I found her there a few weeks later.
"Zarbon, of course, remembered her immediately when he saw her on stage the other night and kicked up a scene about it in front of Lord Frieza and my father about how she owed him for saving her life. He had wanted to spend the evening with her and in the end agreed to a private dance instead. My father and Lord Frieza made it impossible to back out on. Frieza insisted on meeting her. I brought her out with the plan that after she met them and did a quick dance for Zarbon we would leave. I stuck around to keep an eye on her and it went all according to plan until he was no longer satisfied with simply being a spectator and tried to violate her and would have if I had not been there to stop him. I ascended and ripped him limb from limb."
"I saw that." Bardock smirked. Trying to discern the level of damage to his ribs and the best way to repair them so as to give him at least some relief until Frieza allowed him to get to a regen tank. There would not be anything he could do about the punctured lung he could tell he had, but anything was better than nothing. "It was quite the mess you left. I saw it myself. You ascended, you say?"
"I did. I have not been able to get it again. I tried this morning and it evaded me." Vegeta said wincing as Bardock prodded at him some more, trying to set his ribs somewhat. "I almost had it earlier after the ship was blown up, but didn't get the chance to fully power up and got my ass kicked as you can see."
Bardock nodded and began bandaging him up. "So, what now?"
"I must train. I need you to complete the gravity simulation. I have no choice but to leave with Lord Frieza in two days. Until then you must continue building it. I will come back to visit my father when I can like I did last time. I will try to contact you before I return and get it from you then. I need that gravity room. It is the only way I will ever gain enough strength to beat any of them. I also need to be able to train in secret. No one can know of my ascension." Vegeta said determinedly.
Bardock nodded. "I do not know when I will have it done, my Prince. I will make it a priority but without Bulma's help, I cannot say how long it will take. I told you before, the mathematics are beyond my caliper. She did break everything down extremely well in her notes. I have been over them many times." Bardock said. "It will take me some time, but I am confident I can do it. You will need to be patient though. It could take me months."
Vegeta nodded. "So be it. I do need it though."
"There you go, my Prince." Bardock said, finishing wrapping his side in bandages. "Do you want me to have a look at some of those open wounds?"
"No. I am fine, thank you." Vegeta replied, lying back down.
"I have something to help you to sleep until they grant you use of a regen tank."
"No. I will be fine on my own." He said shaking his head, ready to fall asleep and forget today have even happened.
"Your Highness, surely you want some relief from the pain."
"No. I desire it. I was unable to protect my mate. I do not deserve relief." Vegeta said.
"Vegeta, what happened today was not your fault." Bardock said in an attempt to comfort him, the boy was delirious. "Do not blame yourself. If anything, use it to attain your goal; but do not blame yourself. Bulma nor Kakarott would want that."
"Bulma was a fool." Vegeta replied dryly.
"I'm sorry, your Highness?"
"Bulma was a fool. She put all her trust and hope into me without even knowing me; spewing all this nonsense about goodness and love and hope. Look where it all got her." He said bitterly. "I should have left her at the tavern."
"I'm sure she does not feel that way." Bardock said, unsure of what to say to him. "I know she loved you very much and she knew you would always do your utmost to keep her safe. She would not blame you for what happened today."
"Bardock, I… We shared something last night that I thought impossible." He said, trying to keep his emotions in check. "She bore her soul to me and I reciprocated and bore my soul to her as well. Everything. I set my pride aside for her and she accepted everything; my past, my insecurities, even the knowledge that I may fail her. She accepted it without question. The depth of feeling she held for me was something I always mocked. I never thought it existed. Yet, last night she showed me everything. It was there and I felt it and let myself believe in it. We were able to read each other's thoughts and feelings so easily. Last night, we knew each other inside and out. I vowed to protect her until my last breath. I did not honor that today."
"You were unable to, my Prince." Bardock replied. He had never before seen him so overcome with grief and actually display emotion of any kind. He hoped he wasn't caving into the depression of the severed bond. "How could you have protected her today? Keeping her with you would not have kept her safe."
"She had wanted to stay on the island longer."
"That would have only been delaying the inevitable, your Highness."
"It is as I said. Both she and I were fools." He said dejectedly.
"I disagree, my Prince." Bardock said after thinking it through for a few minutes. "It sounds like you and Bulma forged a very strong bond. It can take mates years to forge what you have just described. I have even heard of mates that never fully understood one another and had a weak bond at best their whole lives."
"Aren't they the lucky ones."
"No, my Prince. What you have described is something beautiful. You are fortunate to have been able to find that in a mate. Hang onto it." Bardock said almost pleadingly.
"Why?"
"Because you never know, they may have found a way out. Do not give up."
"Bardock, I cannot feel anything from her. It feels the same as if we had never opened up the bond at all." Vegeta replied.
"Vegeta, you do not know. They may have been knocked unconscious from the blast. You also have a very new bond. It has not had the time to fully take. Do not give up just yet that she is lost to you."
"Now you sound as foolish as the woman was." He replied, rolling his one good eye.
Bardock stood up and shook his head. He needed some sleep. He was practically delirious, not that he blamed him. He had gone from the joy of having finally been able to formally take Bulma as his mate only to have had her ripped from him within a matter of hours after bonding with her and then endured a heavy beating from his greatest enemy who had also blown up his mate. Vegeta wasn't one for expressing any kind of emotion other than anger, this was probably more than he could handle. It would take him some time for his pride alone to recover from this. Bardock pulled out a needle and quickly injected him with a sedative before he had a chance to refuse.
"What the hell, Bardock! I said no!" He growled. "Leave me in peace!"
"As you wish, my Prince." Bardock said, gathering up his supplies to leave. The sedative would take a while to wear off. He would hopefully be in a better frame of mind once he woke up. Or if Bulma was truly gone, he might be worse. Only time would tell. He turned back to Vegeta just as he started dozing and handed him Bulma's ipod. "I recovered this from the room where Zarbon's remains were."
Vegeta took it. His first inclination was to crush it. He did not want any reminders of Bulma around him. It was bad enough her scent lingered on her side of the bed next to him. After a few moments of contemplation, he decided against destroying it. It was one of the few things that would be left of her. He nodded in thanks to the older Saiyan.
"Bring me those wires over there." He said pointing to the night stand on Bulma's side of the bed. Bardock handed them to him and left him alone.
Vegeta plugged in the earphones, turned it on and scrolled through to the top. He had watched her fiddle with it enough times. He scrolled to the top of the play list of All Songs and let the music play randomly as he allowed the sedative to pull him into a much needed abyss sleep.
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