Ch. 28

“But other than that things have been peaceful,” Nappa said with an angry sigh.

Vegeta let his mouth twist in a small smile at the Commander’s disappointment. “I’m not sorry to hear it, Nappa. You don’t seem to understand that we’ll need a unified empire when we fight Freeza. To me this altercation on Tournrak is most distressing. See that it is taken care of at once,” he said sternly.

Nappa’s eyes widened, his heavy jaw dropping a little. “Well, Vegeta,” he growled from the communicator screen, his cheeks beginning to stain with pink, “Most of our troops are either on Wharlo or Urstece. There was an uprising against the ruler we dealt with there.”

Vegeta’s features darkened. “Was that where the entire system was already under one command?” he asked quietly.

Nappa nodded his shiny head. “Yes, sir, that would be the Vemben system. Vemben Five and Six.”

“And exactly why wasn’t this uprising put down by our troops right away? In fact, Nappa, why wasn’t the ruler deposed as soon as we realized its popularity was gone?”

Nappa stared at him for a few moments before bowing his head and mumbling an apology. “I’m sorry, Vegeta,” he rumbled, not raising his eyes.

Vegeta looked down and saw that his arm was shaking with the force with which he was clenching his fist. “Is this what I can expect from you, Nappa?” he hissed quietly. “Is this complete, total, and utter incompetence the norm in your performance?”

“N-no, sir,” Nappa stammered, features going white.

“Then, dammit, Nappa, see that this is taken care of immediately!” Vegeta shouted, bringing his fist down on the console, bending the metal and sending sparks into the air. He watched as Nappa’s jaw worked noiselessly, the big Saiyan’s meaty face pale and blank with fear. Vegeta snarled and made a spitting gesture in his disgust. “All right, Nappa, that’s it. I’m sending the ship to Tournrak right now.”

“But, Prince Vegeta, what about you and Radditz?” Nappa blurted.

Vegeta clenched his teeth, hissing through them as he spoke. “Zarbon, Radditz, and I will take pods back to Arlia when our business here is finished,” he spat. “See that this sort of thing doesn’t happen in the future!”

“Yes, sir,” Nappa stammered, moving his arm across his chest in the Saiyan salute, and Vegeta angrily terminated the signal. Sparks were still flying from the console where he had hit it, casting strange, warped shadows in the well-lit room. He stared at it for a few moments, almost forgetting what had caused them before he came to himself enough to look about for a servant. One of the downfalls of having a full communicator setup in his private quarters was he had to actually go search for someone to clean up after him. He stormed into the hallway and barked orders at the nearest soldier to take care of the communicator damage and headed down to the bridge.

Once there he accosted a bluish saurian who had been serving as the commander of the vessel. “You are going to take this ship and go to Tournrak at once,” he ordered sharply.

The saurian bowed and spoke without standing upright. “Yes, sir,” it said, “But might I respectfully remind His Majesty that this ship is low on supplies and armaments for such a mission.”

Vegeta scowled and crossed his arms over his chest. “What? What sort of pathetic excuse is that? Why isn’t this ship battle-ready at all times?” he demanded.

The saurian continued to bow. “Your Excellency and Master Zarbon were all the weapons we needed, Sire,” it said gently.

Vegeta cocked his head to the side. “Oh, of course. Well, then, what’s the nearest planet under our control between here and Tournrak?”

“Orec, Sire,” it replied, slowly straightening up.

Vegeta nodded and turned his back. “Very well. Stop at Orec and pick up whatever supplies you need, on my official orders. We don’t need bureaucracy at a time like this. Once you get there radio Atlia and let him know you plan to continue on to the battle zone. Have him inform the Commander of your actions. In the meantime, have someone gather Zarbon’s and my things. Deposit them, along with three pods, on the lawn here in front of the ship. Leave a portable communicator and tell Atlia to only contact me in dire emergencies. I can’t have my work here go to hell just because Nappa calls every time there’s a fistfight.”

The saurian clicked its heels together and saluted. “Yes, sir,” it replied. “Right away.”

Vegeta turned and looked the saurian up and down, the smallest hint of a smile twisting the corner of his mouth as he watched the ship commander start to tremble slightly. “Very good. Speed be with you,” he mumbled, and strode off the bridge.

Two hours later the belongings and pods were deposited on the lawn and the ship was taking off, leaving Vegeta standing there alone in the grass with luggage piled around his ankles. The ground shook as the vessel rose into the air, quickly disappearing from sight with a thunderous clap as the sound barrier was broken. A few moments later people came running from the house and outbuildings, shading their eyes as they stared up at the sky. After throwing cursory glances at the man and his luggage nearly everyone went back inside, apparently having decided that the excitement was over. Vegeta scowled in disapproval and looked around, not having a clue what to do next but not wanting to admit it.

“What in the hell was that?” a shrill voice sounded through the air, and he turned to see the blue-haired woman storming over to him. “Vegeta, what is going on here?” she demanded.

“Well, woman, if you had half a brain you’d see that my spaceship has taken off,” he said snidely.

Her blue eyes widened, chills running over her skin like insects. “What?” she gasped in disbelief. “It took off without you on it?”

His mouth twisted into a sneer. “That would seem to be the case, wouldn’t it?” he retorted. “I can’t believe you’re the human who managed to alter Radditz’s scouter. With your mental capacity I’m surprised you can even say my name.”

“And I’ll curse your name too,” she growled. “How in the hell are you going to get home?”

“So eager to be rid of us already?” he said with a smile. “Well, maybe we’ll just leave now and take our technology with us.”

His eyes narrowed as she broke out in a grin. “And how do you propose to do that?” she snickered, pointing to the massive amounts of luggage surrounding him.

He growled under his breath and silently cursed her when something occurred to him. “Well, you’ll just have to encapsulate it all if you want to be rid of me, won’t you?”

She crossed her arms tightly over her chest and scowled at him angrily. “I’ll have to start work on that straightaway,” she growled to herself, her glare full of daggers. “So where do you intend to stay until we’ve finished with each other?”

Another evil smile unfurled across his sharp features and he raised an arm, making a slight gesture at the main building. “Oh, I think you’ll just have to figure something out,” he replied quietly.

Her eyes widened as her jaw dropped nearly to her chest. “You’re going to stay here?” she gasped. “But you can’t stay at my house!”

He raised an eyebrow and continue to smile. “Radditz is already staying there and you seem to have more than ample room for Zarbon and me. Are you honestly going to give a third-class soldier better lodging than the Saiyan Prince?” he said softly, taking a few steps toward her.

Little prickles of apprehension traced themselves up her spine as he approached. “Fine,” she growled, eying him warily. Who knew what would happen, but she feared the worst. She was absolutely positive that her home would be a smoking pile of rubble within the week. “But I’m not carrying your luggage.”

His smile twisted a little and he nodded. “You’re too puny for it anyway,” he replied, his dark eyes locked onto hers.

For a moment she forgot where she was, the endless black of his gaze sucking her up, coating her with darkness. “Uh, whatever,” she replied absently, and turned toward the house, unable to believe her bad luck. “Follow me.”

He scowled and stood his ground, planting his hands on his hips.

Sensing that he wasn’t right behind her she turned to him and scowled right back, her full lips turning down at the corners in displeasure. “What?” she snapped.

He waved a hand at the equipment surrounding him. “What about this? Don’t you have servants to take care of this sort of thing?” he said imperiously.

She narrowed her eyes. “Yes, they’re called garbage men,” she growled, then snorted as she surveyed the sheer amount of parcels. Her eyes flickered back to his displeased expression, the mouth a little puckered in his sour face. “Well, I suppose I can come up with something,” she began, but then something occurred to her. “Since you can’t handle them yourself,” she finished, running her tongue over the back of her front teeth in anticipation.

Her words worked like a charm. She watched as Vegeta’s spine stiffened and his eyebrow twitched in some unexpressed emotion. Snarling silently he turned and glared at his belongings, making her gasp as they slowly rose, one by one, into the air and hovered there in a line behind him. “Get a move on, woman,” he snarled.

She shut her mouth, which had been hanging wide open, and smiled to herself. Her little plan had worked like a charm. Idly she wondered if he could pick up heavy machinery- maybe he or Radditz would be of use in the old machine shop. “Glad to see you’re able to do something useful,” she said lightly, and sauntered toward the house.



He had followed her up several staircases and down numerous hallways before finally arriving at a destination. “These will be your quarters,” she said, pointing to a moderately-sized room with an adjoining bathroom. “Just put your stuff wherever you see fit.” He glared at her without saying anything and several of the containers floated into the room and settled on the floor. She glanced behind him and noticed a long line of belongings still left. “What about those?” she asked, pointing.

Vegeta grimaced. “Zarbon’s,” he grumbled. “You’ve never met a worse clotheshorse.”

Bulma smiled. “Well, he does always look great. Unless, of course, you count the times when he comes back after you’ve tried to kill him.” Vegeta grunted and turned his head to the side. She shrugged and smiled to herself. She was starting to enjoy goading him. Perhaps she had found a new hobby. “So I suppose we should get a room for him, too,” she said softly, thinking aloud as she tapped herself in the cheek. “Okay, how about here?” she said, going a few doors down.

Vegeta peeked in the room. “This room’s twice the size of mine!” he declared, his eyes widening in surprise. “How dare you give him a bigger room!”

Bulma shrugged. “He has more stuff than you do. I thought you were a warrior, Vegeta. Aren’t warriors not supposed to care about the material?”

Vegeta narrowed his eyes and took a step closer. “Are you implying that Zarbon is a less-than-model warrior?” he said quietly.

She tried to ignore the ice that raced up her spine as he approached. “Of course not,” she replied, her courage rapidly running out. She must remember in the future not to toy with him for so long unless she wanted to get hurt. “After all, he beat you to a pulp.” Vegeta’s face twisted and she thought for a moment that he was going to strike her, but instead he just turned his gaze away. “Listen, if you really want the bigger room you can have it, but you’ll have to go down the hall to use the bathroom. I just thought you’d prefer privacy over space.”

He turned his attention to her, his dark gaze a little puzzled. How would she know something like that? “My accommodations are just fine but don’t ever presume to know what I’d prefer, Earthling.”

She shrugged again. “Fine. I just figured that you’d want some time alone, being an emperor and all. I’d imagine you don’t get much time alone. After all, I certainly don’t, and I’m only the president.”

He inclined his head, not taking his eyes off of hers. He had forgotten she held such an important position on this planet. Diplomacy, he almost heard Zarbon say behind him. “Then these will do very well for us,” he said coldly.

She nodded, feeling the coldness in her spine slowly melt. Disaster had been averted once again. “Okay, great. Radditz is about three doors down the hall, but he’s at Goku’s right now. If you need anything just help yourself. You know where the kitchen is and your room is stocked with clean towels and linens. Anything else?”

He glanced at her for a brief moment more and slightly turned his nose up in the air, watching as Zarbon’s belongings floated past them and into the room. “No,” he replied.

She sighed. “If only you were that useful all the time,” she said, watching him stiffen. “Well, like I said, just make yourself at home,” she continued, looking him over. “You know,” she said, “You’re filthy.” Leaning forward, she sniffed him cautiously. He was stinky, no doubt about it, but underneath it all was a smell that tugged at her abdomen and did funny things to her knees. She was close enough to him to feel the body heat radiating off of his strong neck and she watched for a moment as his heart beat slowly and steadily away in the artery she saw there. Backing up hastily she put her hand to her face and stared at him, blushing. “Uh, go take a bath, stinky” she murmured with a giggle, poking at his chest, feeling something inside her quail as her finger encountered rock-hard muscle. The color rose to her face even further and she glanced up into his eyes, his expression softened in his confusion. Suddenly it felt as if the room was closing in on her and she felt the urgent need for fresh air. “Gotta go. Have fun,” she muttered, and turned to walk down the hall as quickly as she could.

He watched her retreating back in utter confusion, not understanding why her mood had changed so suddenly. One moment she was being combative and the next she was blushing and halfway batting those big blue eyes of hers...was she healthy? Was something wrong with her? He scowled suddenly. He didn’t care whether or not anything was wrong with her; he only cared if he got his technology. Muttering curses in her direction, he returned to his room to take a shower.

He was still wondering what was wrong with her when he got out of the shower, drying off with a burst of ki after glancing at the plush towels hanging to the left of the shower. Looking around the bathroom, he decided that perhaps the towels were worth something after all and he snatched one, balling it up and wiping water vapor off of the wall-length mirror. Leaning over he examined his collarbones carefully, searching for the hairline scars only he knew were there, the two identical slits equidistant from his supersternal notch. Two more of the same sort of scars ran across the rise of his pectorals, so small that they could barely be seen except for when the light hit them just right. Turning, he examined his wrists and above his knees, moving so that the light fixtures’ product hit them so that the scars were visible there as well. He slammed an open hand down on the counter and glared at himself in the mirror, watching the flames of hell burn in his own eyes as he stared at his reflection. “Freeza will pay,” he snarled to himself, and gave the scars one last look before opening the door and sliding out of the bathroom.

The colder air of the bed chamber hit his bare skin like a slap as he entered the room, but after being confronted with the disarray he encountered in the center of the chamber he barely noticed the chill. His frown intensified as he realized that all his worldly belongings were stuffed into the space crates, and he didn’t even know what was in them. Certainly more than he would have brought if he would have packed it himself. Casting around he found one he thought would be useful, but upon opening it he realized it contained his ceremonial armor and the heavy red cape he had taken off the Arlian tyrant who had preceded him. He took it out of the box and laid it on the bed; it was just as well they had packed it, for if the woman really was some kind of president he was sure he would have to use it. Opening another crate he found a portable communicator, some Arlian weapons, and a few more technological odds and ends. He smiled; he would have to keep the woman’s pale fingers out of this crate for sure. He could already see her blue eyes twinkle devilishly at the thought of new gadgets. The smile fell from his face immediately. Damn her, she always seemed to be in his head one way or another, whether it be her clear eyes, her white skin, or that peculiar, changeable scent of hers. He couldn’t wait until she had fulfilled her purpose and he could kill her. He locked the crate again, resetting the locking code, and set it aside. Just let her try and break into that one. Someone on the ship had packed a whole crate of gloves, another of boots, and two more of armor, not to mention the plethora of different bodysuits he found himself faced with. Sighing, he picked out a soft black one that was a little more loosely-fitting than his usual, tossing on a chestplate to go with it and grabbing a pair each of gloves and boots. No reason to go running about the house a mess, he supposed. He located a closet and put everything away, making sure the gadgets were hidden, but in a spot that he could see from anywhere in the room. That would hopefully foil her if she ever worked up the nerve to ransack his room. He sort of hoped she would, for that would give him a concrete excuse to blast her into the next dimension. In a matter of moments he had everything stored and sat on the edge of the massive bed, looking around the room. Now what? Zarbon was in a tank, Radditz was off with his traitor brother, and the woman was off running errands or something, so he couldn’t even torment her. What else was there to do? He stood up and paced the room a few times before becoming agonizingly bored. He supposed he could meditate like Zarbon was always nagging him to, but the thought just wasn’t appealing. Snorting, he opened the door and stuck his head out, looking in both directions before stepping out into the hall. Cautiously opening his senses to weak ki, he realized that most of the private wings of the house were currently unoccupied. So, exploring it would be, it seemed. A twisted smile wound its way across his face and he started off down the hallway.

He padded softly down the hallways, levitating when he thought his boots would click against the floor and create unnecessary noise. His eyes searched out every nook and cranny, his warrior’s instincts taking over as he mentally mapped the premises. Doors passed by on the right and left and he counted them, peeking in when the doors were open a crack and taking note of the rooms’ contents. Many of the rooms were merely quarters for guests and others were obviously storage, but he had realized that the woman had not led him astray; his and Zarbon’s accommodations were among the best, his being the most private indeed. He felt his brow crease as his scowl plunged deeper and he spun away from the vacant rooms with a growl. Racing down the hall he managed to push most conscious thought from his skull until he found himself stopped in front of a familiar door. What strange impulse had brought him here? Closing his eyes for a second, Vegeta took a deep breath and exhaled slowly through his nose, placing his hand on the door and pushing it slowly inward. Light brushed against his eyelids and he lifted them, staring straight ahead at the floating form of the tank-bound Zarbon. The alien’s slanted eyes were shut, the lashes making dark shadows on his cheeks as the light played across his perfect features in the near-motionless water. A glance at the status screen told him that Zarbon wouldn’t be out for another day or two- it seemed that Zarbon had indeed paid for his arrogance, although he was wounded so badly because he had pushed himself too hard when tired. Radditz’s attack hadn’t helped, he’d heard. Vegeta found himself shaking his head slightly as it dawned on him that if he hadn’t possessed Saiyan healing factors his own recovery would have been much, much longer than Zarbon’s. Most likely a week or more. That bastard had nearly killed him. A smile flickered across his face; he most likely deserved it. Well, that would all be taken care of when Zarbon was recovered. Vegeta would make sure that there would never be a reason for Zarbon to be able to win against him ever again, and what better way than to be taught by the opponent? Vegeta slowly extended a hand and touched the cool glass of the rejuvenation tank, feeling its smooth surface beneath the fabric of his gloves. He narrowed his eyes as he peered at Zarbon through the blue liquid, the green hair spreading out like spider webs from behind the stately face. “What should I do now, Zarbon?” Vegeta whispered, still scowling at the floating form. He gently reached out with his mind but met only silence. Zarbon was very, very unconscious. “Damn you,” he whispered again, dropping his hand, and turned on his heel to leave the room.

After seeing Zarbon he realized he didn’t really feel up to breaking into rooms and snooping about and so he merely wandered the halls, waiting for an opportunity to entertain himself. As he stalked about he passed a room that was filled with electronic equipment, sleek and black in fitted cases, shelves abounding. That sparked his interest and he scanned the room, finding it empty. There was a comfortable-looking piece of furniture placed in front of the main case, piled with little cushions. The color didn’t suit him, but he figured for once that beggars couldn’t be choosers. He entered the room cautiously, glancing about for any sort of surveillance devices, then went over to the cushiony thing and sat down, leaning back with a sigh as the cushions folded his body into themselves. In the case in front of him was something that resembled a communicator screen but had several cables running out of the back and appeared to be connected to various pieces of machinery. Once box in particular seemed to be of importance, its position directly below the screen. The box was fairly narrow, with a slot in the front and blinking numbers on a little screen beside it. Glancing at the cushion next to him he saw what he assumed to be a remote control. He had possessed enough remote controls in his lifetime to recognize one, and so if the thing next to him wasn’t a remote control he figured he’d have to destroy it to erase all proof of his ignorance. Picking it up, he balanced it in his hand, feeling its weight and wondering to what degree of advancement its components were created from. The remote was absolutely teeming with little buttons that had all sorts of little names written above them, like VCR, TV, CD, DVD to name a few. Shrugging, he saw a button marked ‘power’ and pushed it with his thumb. The screen flickered to life, images of people dashing to and fro, including not a few scantily-clad women. Frowning, he pushed the TV button, then the power once again. The screen went black. So the screen-box was the TV. He pressed the VCR button and the power button. The thinner box whirred to life but nothing else happened. His scowl intensified and he turned on the TV once again. He was about to throw the remote aside as useless when he noted that one section of the device was set aside for VCR function. A right-pointing arrow was set at the center of it and so he pressed the button. The VCR made a faint grinding noise and suddenly the images of the scantily-clad women disappeared, an image of a vehicle exploding replacing it on the TV. His curiosity aroused, he tried the other buttons. The images sped up, slowed down, paused, or stopped altogether depending on what button he pressed. So the VCR was some sort of recordable device. Interesting. He pressed one last button, one with an upward-pointing triangle with a line under it. The VCR made a dreadful sound and out popped a black box, apparently some sort of cassette. Vegeta slid off the couch and reached out to grab the cassette, hefting the black plastic gently. His gaze slid over to another shelf and he saw that many similar items lined the shelves, all in colored paper sleeves, some with pictures and some with just decorations. Standing, he moved over to the shelves and picked a few of the things up. “Most outstanding film of the century! A plus!” the text on the back of one sleeves read. So, these things were films, made for entertainment. Zarbon was right, the Earthlings had far too much time on their hands. Glancing around the room he sighed. He also had too much time on his hands. Perhaps he would give the TV and VCR a try. Going back to the couch he began to flip through TV channels, sampling sports, sitcoms, movies, cooking shows, cartoons, and immensely bored with it all. When he was thoroughly tired of the programs he shot a look at the window, surprised to see how dark it had gotten. He checked his senses- the blonde’s energy was in the kitchen, the old man’s in some far-off room, and the blue-haired woman’s was nowhere to be found. So he was still on his own, it would seem. He sat up and rubbed his eyes with a gloved hand, nearly at the edge of his endurance. He wandered back to where the films were and selected one at random, shoving the cassette into the slot of the VCR. He returned to the couch and reclined, putting one arm behind his head as he eased down into the cushions and raising the remote to point at the VCR.

Somehow he made it through the entire film. It was some long, drawn-out story about how two people who hated each other to the core ended up falling in love. He had nearly been bored to tears, but when he glanced at the clock he realized it had at least made two hours go by pretty quickly. How strange that humans sat around watching made-up stories instead of going out and making their own. Oh well, if they were all as bored as he was he supposed it made sense. He returned the cassette to its place and chose another at random. This one didn’t have any sort of markings on the sleeve other than what he assumed to be the brand name of the cassette manufacturer. The actual cassette had no name on it either. Scowling, he popped it in the VCR and rewound it, swinging his foot back and forth over his opposite knee of his crossed legs as he waited. Finally the machine was finished and he pressed play, scowling as the film began.

The movie started normally enough- he thought at first it was going to be another love story, with the boy and girl making eyes at each other in school. The girl’s skirt seemed unusually short, but he dismissed that as some sort of fit of fashion that probably only Zarbon would understand. Then the boy stopped by the girl’s class after school, picked up her books, and the two began to walk home. Vegeta suppressed a yawn, pressing the back of his glove to his mouth. Then, as the couple passed a hedge, the boy threw the books on the ground and turned to the girl, taking her shirt and ripping it open to expose her breasts. She gasped in surprise and he pushed her to the ground, ripping her clothes and throwing them aside as he spread her legs and worked himself in between them. The girl began to moan and clung to the boy. Vegeta’s eyes opened wider and he felt the blood rush to his cheeks as he realized what he was watching. Earthlings even made shows out of their sexual rituals! He couldn’t believe it, forgetting to blink as he stared at the screen in a mixture of horror and fascination. Was this the norm for the planet? The boy was grunting and sweating and the female certainly didn’t seem to be having a good time. Was this what Zarbon had done with all the Kijaran females? Was that all that sex was- unconcealed violence? Suddenly the lights in the room turned on, breaking him out of his shock. “Are you a big fan of porn flicks?” a quiet voice said from behind him, the sound soft with humor as it floated around the room.

Vegeta turned and felt his cheeks go even redder. Of course it had to be the damned woman, with his luck. “Is that what you call this? You humans have far too much time on your hands,” he accused, standing hastily and stopping the program.
She shrugged, an amused smile winding its way across her full lips. “Hey, not my problem. That tape must be one of Yamcha’s. Never understood the appeal, myself.”

Vegeta snorted and shook his head, tossing the remote down on the couch. “I’m not surprised. That man seems a rather base individual,” he said coldly.

Bulma scowled at him. “Think whatever you want. Yamcha is a kind-hearted and lovely individual,” she snapped, dashing over to the VCR and snatching the cassette. She rammed it into its case and replaced it on the shelf. “Anyway, I’m back with the groceries and Mom’s halfway through with making dinner. Be downstairs in about fifteen minutes, okay?”

Vegeta didn’t reply, only stiffened as she brushed past him on her way out of the room. Once her footsteps receded down the hall he let his face break out in a feral snarl, cursing his horrible luck. Of course it would have to be her that caught him watching that movie! He boiled inside as he knew he wouldn’t hear the end of it for several days. Dammit! After a few moments he felt himself calm, the blood slowly leaving his cheeks and his head clearing. Oh well, at least Zarbon would get a kick out of it. He seemed to like just about everything that had to do with humans. He found them annoying, but Zarbon was genuinely amused with them. Vegeta thought back to what he had seen on the tape. If the opportunity arose once Zarbon was better, he had some questions he wanted answered. He leaned over the couch and turned the TV off and smiled to himself in anticipation, leaving the room as the smells of dinner wafted down the hallway to his nose.


27 / Bulma’s Hideout / 29