Crossover Fan Fiction / Sailor Moon Fan Fiction / Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Vendetta ❯ Chapter Three ( Chapter 3 )

Two Days Later, Vegeta's Home

 

It was dusk outside, the setting sun casting long shadows on the ground. The sky was brilliant with color, the sun blazing a blood red shade just above the horizon. But nobody on the planet really seemed to care, least of all the two Saiya-jins currently eating supper. The cook noticed, though, and prayed silently to the Gods of her home. The bloody sun signaled the death of one time and the birth of another. Things were going to change.

 

Without mentioning anything to the warriors lest they call her a superstitions old fool, she cleared away some of their used dishes and placed more food on the table. Saiya-jins did indeed eat great quantities of food, and she was old. She could hardly keep up with them, but they didn't complain. Both had come to like the old woman, if only because she was a great cook. Saiya-jins were actually fairly easy to please. They would love anyone who would cook them good food in mass quantities.

 

After supper, the two men retreated to the sitting room to discuss the plans for the next day. The old woman had no desire to learn of their plans for the tournament, and so contented herself to cleaning up the mess of plates. Cleaning up after meals took up almost as much time as cooking the meals, but she did it without complaint. She'd been a slave most of her life, and had been offered freedom before. But she was so used to cooking meals for people that she had kindly refused. She wouldn't know what to do with herself if she weren't preparing someone else's meals and cleaning up after them.

 

Meanwhile, Vegeta had settled into his favorite chair, scowling. Goku sprawled himself out on one of the sofas, stretching and yawning. “So, who's going to be competing in this tournament?” he asked.

 

“Nobody very interesting. I wish Gorran hadn't dropped out. He might be able to put up some kind of fight. The rest of these idiots are from backwater planets and don't even know about Saiya-jins. They will be in for a rude awakening.”

 

“So, unless we fight each other, there won't be any competition?” Goku asked, frowning. “Do you want to win this one, or do you want me to?”

 

The two were so close in power that their battles started to drag on longer and longer without getting anywhere. Since they could just as easily train together whenever they wanted, they had decided some months ago to choose the winner of tournaments before hand. Whenever the prize for the winner was monetary, they split it. Material goods and slaves were kept, and things evened out in the end. Goku usually gave his slaves to Vegeta or set them free anyway and neither envied the material goods earned by the other.

 

“I want this one. Frieza will be there watching. We'll have to put on a good show, or he'll know we're throwing the fight,” Vegeta decided. “I'm not going to have to go drag you out of bed again, am I?”

 

Goku just laughed. The last tournament had been somewhat larger, and had started early in the morning. Goku had trained hard the night before, and had been unwilling to get out of bed at any decent hour. When he hadn't met Vegeta near the arena, the Saiya-jin prince came and beat his door down to wake him up. Needless to say, Vegeta had insisted on winning that particular fight.

 

Present, Frieza's Spaceship

 

Hotaru woke to the exquisite feeling of warm, silky sheets and a soft, fluffy pillow. She yawned and stretched and opened her eyes slowly, slightly confused at her luxurious surroundings. From across the room, through the gauzy curtains around her bed she could see the dim glow of a lamp. A figure standing in the room was partially revealed by the light, and Hotaru felt her breath come short in fear. Slowly the figure walked around to the side of the bed and drew back the curtains.

 

It was the creature who had been commanding the green-haired man they had fought four days earlier. He had done no actual fighting, but his implied strength was frightening. They had been unable to make a mark on warriors who trembled in this creature's presence. Hotaru immediately scooted toward the other side of the large bed, but knew subconsciously that there was no escape.

 

“Come here child. I'm not going to hurt you,” he said, his voice breathy and somewhat effeminate. Hotaru trembled and refused to obey, shaking her head slightly.

 

“You had Haruka-papa killed,” she accused, glaring at him. “Where are Michiru-mama and Setsuna-mama?”

 

“I assume you refer to the others who were with you when you attacked me. I've sent them to stay with…friends. They will be fine. Come over here so that we can talk.” He patted the bed, but again she refused. “I am sorry your friend was killed. But you did come onto my ship without permission with the intent of killing me. My men were simply defending me.”

 

Before Hotaru realized what was happening, he had disappeared from the far side of the bed and had reappeared next to her. She tried to scoot away again, but he reached out a hand and gently brushed a strand of hair from her face. She trembled in fear, but found herself unable to move away.

 

“I told you, I'm not going to harm you. Are you hungry? You've been sleeping for two days now. Come, I'll take you to get some supper, and then you can go back to sleep.” He offered her a hand, but she refused to take it.

 

“I'm not hungry,” she said, glaring at him. However, at the mere mention of food, her stomach growled loudly. Frieza chuckled as she blushed and took her by the arm.

 

She stumbled as her feet hit the floor, still very tired, but he steadied her. Slowly they made their way out of the bedroom and down various hallways. Before they reached their destination, however, Hotaru's legs gave out on her and she collapsed. Wordlessly, he lifted her off of the ground and into his arms, carrying her the rest of the way to their destination.

 

Hotaru was too tired to really notice her surroundings as she ate. The food seemed tasteless, though it must have been good. She ate a good deal more than usual. When she had finished, she tried to stand on her own, but knew she would not be able to walk all the way back to the bedroom. Frieza seemed to sense this as well, as he scooped her up and took her back.

 

“Why don't you just kill me?” she asked. Before he could answer, she yawned widely.

 

“You are a rare treasure. You possess some strength, for one so small...”

 

She failed to hear the end of his explanation, as she had fallen asleep. Frieza left her tucked into bed, dimmed the lamp, and returned to the ship's bridge to check in with the pilot. The ship was due to land in a short time, and he wanted to make sure that everything was in order.

 

Morning, Frieza's Ship

 

After two days of monotony, the sudden bustle about the ship was unexpected. The senshi were just starting to believe that they would travel in the spaceship until the end of eternity, but apparently they had landed on a planet in the middle of the night. Now, outside the large room they could hear people running around, people shouting. The fear that had been lessening each day of the voyage returned stronger than ever, and people began huddling in groups again.

 

Suddenly, the large door opened to the outside world, letting in the bright morning sunlight. For the first time, they saw their captors, and were surprised to find that they looked like humans. They wore strange armor, but were otherwise normal looking. The aliens began shouting orders to their captives, trying to herd them into lines based on age and sex. This took some time due to the sheer quantity of people, and the fact that while the aliens all spoke “Japanese,” not all the captives did. Once translators were found, things progressed more smoothly.

 

Usagi and her senshi were all grouped together in the beginning, since all were of the same age. Their group, which was one of the largest, was quickly ushered into a building near the ship's landing sight. Again they found themselves in a large room, though this one was smaller than the one in the ship. Once inside the room, they were separated at random into smaller groups, and were then questioned at great length by their alien captors.

 

When Usagi's turn came for questioning, she felt like she was in a job interview. The alien carried a clipboard, took something akin to a Polaroid of her, and began asking her questions about her skills. No, she didn't know martial arts. No, she didn't do very well with children. Well, she could cook fairly well, but wasn't very good at cleaning or any of that domestic stuff. Of course she was a virgin, and how dare he ask such a personal question? When the alien moved on, she had the distinct feeling that she'd failed miserably. Coming to the conclusion that she was completely worthless, she prepared herself for her inevitable doom.

 

After the aliens had finished questioning everyone, they gathered people up into groups based on their skills and led everyone out of the room. Usagi was surprised to find herself in the same group and Rei and Minako, both of whom knew martial arts. There were about a dozen other girls, all of them very pretty, and Usagi felt a bit out of place. The alien leading the group left them in a sitting room full of plush, elegant furniture and thick carpet, closing the heavy door behind them and locking it.

 

Most of the girls settled themselves into the comfy furniture, the more strong willed girls into chairs and the more vulnerable huddling together on sofas. Minako and Usagi clung to each other, but Rei remained upright, pacing back and forth across the room and glaring any time she caught someone's eye. Other girls around the room began to talk softly to each other, and after some time, the fear slackened somewhat. It seemed as though the aliens would not be returning any time soon, and so they had some time remaining before they were separated.

 

“Where do you think they took Ami and Makoto?” Usagi asked.

 

“I'm sure Ami went off with all of the geniuses. I think everyone in Makoto's group was good at cooking and stuff. They were mostly too scrawny to be martial artists, and I doubt “boy crazy” is a group. I wonder why they bothered asking about martial arts if they weren't going to make it a group.”

 

Minako sighed and wrapped an arm around Usagi. Neither girl could find much reasoning in the groups chosen by the aliens. They just thanked whatever otherworldly being had kept them together this long. Rei, on the other hand, was cursing the otherworldly being who had decided to enslave so many people. As time went on, her pacing grew more and more agitated, and she had to fight the urge to start screaming at something.

 

Finally, she stopped pacing and calmly settled herself down on the couch next to Usagi. She seemed to have worked off a great deal of her frustration, and was now ready to act properly. Usagi untangled herself from Minako and latched on to Rei, who sighed and wrapped her arms lightly around her friend. Without warning, Usagi felt herself begin to cry again. She'd just been separated from two of her closest friends, and she had the distinct feeling that she was never going to see them again.

 

Present, Elsewhere in Space

 

Of anyone in the universe, she should have known better. She, who knew the past, present and future, should have known that messing with time was a bad idea. The second Usagi and Mamoru learned that they were supposed to have a daughter in the future, they were derailed onto another pathway in time. In one timeline, they would still marry and have Chibi-Usa, but in this time, that was impossible. And, to top it all off, she could not seem to find her way back to the gates of time.

 

During the fight some days earlier, it became apparent to the aliens that she drew her power from her staff, and they had confiscated it rather easily. Without her staff, she could not return to the time gates, and thus had no idea what was going to happen to herself or to the other senshi. At present, she knew that Haruka was dead, and that she had just been sold as a slave. Thus far, her future did not seem so bleak as it could. She would apparently be making and mending clothing, something she was quite capable of doing already. However, anything could happen, and not knowing the future was a strange experience for her.

 

At present, she had been given a small room above the office managing her work. Clients would call in with requests, and the designers would make something to fit their needs. Then, with slaves like herself, they would visit the home of the client and fit the clothing to the appropriate person. All money earned went to the designer, but if a client were especially happy they may send gifts or money to the slaves. Also, slaves could do some designing on their own free time, and if they were noticed, may receive a small allowance for their work.

 

Setsuna planned to do a lot of designing in her spare time. First, she would have to learn of the fashions currently in style, but she always had a good eye for clothing. It would not take her very long to figure things out, and hopefully she would be able to buy her freedom within a couple of years. Once she had accomplished this, she planned to raise money and go in search of either her staff or the other senshi. Hopefully after all that time, none of them would have met the same fate as befell Haruka.

 

Morning, Tournament

 

It was an unusually hot day, and the crowds in the stands were already uncomfortable. The warriors, however, seemed unaffected. They stood together, waiting for the order of fights to be announced. Frieza himself was present, sitting in a private, shaded box and frowning. The official standing in the ring stated the rules in a rather bored voice. A few things may change from tournament to tournament, but for the most part each was the same. Then, the fights were announced.

 

Goku groaned when it was all over, and the paths of each fight were posted. He would fight Vegeta in the semi-finals. The final battle would be anticlimactic. Vegeta didn't seem very upset by the matter, as he would be winning their match anyway. Both stood and watched as the first two warriors stepped into the ring to fight. One of the fighters was quite obviously the stronger of the two, and the battled lasted only a few minutes.

 

Then, Vegeta took to the ring, his opponent a blue-skinned humanoid. As soon as the official signaled for the battle to begin, Vegeta sent a ki blast at his opponent and knocked him out of the ring. Then, he scowled and left the ring. Another fight, similar to the first, took place before Goku had his fight. Like Vegeta, he knocked the creature he was fighting out of the ring almost immediately.

 

Things progressed in a similar manner until the semi-finals, when Goku and Vegeta had to fight. When the official signaled the start of the match, Goku launched himself at Vegeta, fist ready. Vegeta blocked the first punch and retaliated with one of his own. Goku dodged and took to the air, preparing a ki blast. He purposely took his time, and Vegeta, noting his slowness, also took to the air. Just as Goku was about to release the ki blast, Vegeta landed a kick to his back, sending him crashing to the ring. The Saiya-jin prince landed near him as he pulled himself off the ground, calmly dusting himself off.

 

Vegeta didn't seem to like his display of control, and attacked, launching a fury of punches at Goku's head. Goku dodged each, though he let Vegeta come closer and closer as time went by. Finally he took to the air again, and let off a small ki blast. Vegeta blocked and retaliated with one of his own, hitting Goku and knocking him to the ring again. Before Goku could get up, Vegeta grabbed his arm and threw him in an attempt to get him out of the ring. Before Goku hit a nearby wall, he managed to take to flight and returned to the ring.

 

Vegeta was relentless with his assault, however, and refused to allow Goku a moment to breathe. Goku feigned being tired, slowing down when dodging and letting himself get hit at times. Vegeta didn't do much in pulling his punches, either, and Goku could taste blood in his mouth. Finally, he dropped to the ground, attempting to kick Vegeta's legs out from under him. Vegeta read his move and hopped into the air, hitting Goku point blank with a ki blast. Goku stood a good deal more slowly this time, and Vegeta let him get to his feet. However, he attacked before Goku could get his guard up, and landed a well-placed kick to his stomach, sending the taller Saiya-jin flying to the edge of the ring.

 

Goku sat, pretending to be out of breath and in pain, and Vegeta approached. Goku tried to pull himself up, but Vegeta would have none of it. He kicked Goku in the ribs, rolling him over onto his back and scowling down at him. Then, he reached down, grabbed Goku by the arm and flung him out of the ring and into a nearby wall. Goku landed on the ground, crumpling and holding his ribs. He spit the blood out of his mouth, mostly for show. Vegeta was announced the winner as he left the ring, and the other two fighters stepped up.

 

As Goku predicted, the final battle was anticlimactic. It took Vegeta thirty-eight seconds to knock his opponent out of the ring. Goku just sat against the wall and watched, a stupid grin on his face. Even though he hadn't made it to the final round, it was apparent that he was stronger than the warrior who won second place. After Vegeta was officially named the winner, he came over and helped Goku to his feet. The gesture brought cheers from the crowd, but Vegeta scowled the whole time.

 

Two Years Ago, Earth

 

The first night Goku had the dream he'd woken up with the feeling that he needed to go beat the crap out of something. But, he remembered what had happened in the dream and fought the urge. He blamed the nightmare on the events of a few days past, losing his wife and son, and tried to go back to sleep. But he couldn't help thinking, wondering who “Kakorot” was, and wondering why anyone would want him to kill his friends.

 

The nightmares continued for days, growing more and more vivid, and lasting longer. Throughout the day, he kept hearing that voice in his head, urging him to start killing people. He grew more aggressive, picking fights with those friends who were still alive. Finally, fearing that he actually would kill one of his friends, he took off, ordering everyone not to follow him. He camped out alone in the woods, ate fish or whatever land animals he could catch, and spent the rest of his time meditating, trying to force the voice from his mind.

 

For some weeks he felt that he was over the voice, and hadn't had the nightmare. But then, one night the nightmare returned, and the next morning, there was another alien presence on the planet. This alien wasn't nearly as powerful as the one before and Goku decided to work his frustrations out on this new creature. Maybe if he got into a good scuffle, he could get rid of some of his aggression. After thus making up his mind, he took to the air and went in search of the new alien.

 

He found the alien in a secluded spot, apparently waiting. His ship was nearby and much smaller than the one the other aliens had come in. This ship could probably only hold a couple of people. He wore the same style of armor as the others, but looked far more human. In fact, he looked a lot like Goku, only with long, messy black hair. Goku landed a short distance from him, glaring. The alien smirked at him.

 

“Kakorot. I was just about to come looking for you,” he said. “You've failed, Kakorot.”

 

“I have no idea what you're talking about. What do you want here?” Goku demanded, falling into a fighting stance. “Who's Kakorot?”

 

The alien stared at him in disbelief. “You're Kakorot, you idiot. Don't you remember anything?”

 

“My name is Goku, and I still don't understand what you're talking about.”

 

The alien seemed less threatening now, for some reason. He leaned casually against a nearby tree and told Goku the history of the Saiya-jin race. He explained that they were brothers, that Goku had been sent as a child to take over Earth, and how the creature Frieza, who had been responsible for Chichi's death, had destroyed the Saiya-jins' home planet. Apparently, in a few months, more and more aliens would show up to enforce Frieza's control over the planet.

 

“Why did you come to find me now? Why not earlier?” Goku was still suspicious of this creature, though he didn't seem intent on harming anyone.

 

“I tried, but Frieza had other plans for me. He finally took a look at this planet, and since I had some time off, I finally had an opportunity. Come back with me,” he offered. Goku was reluctant, but his brother continued. “You'd be a valuable asset. You'll have far better opportunities for training and getting stronger. Surely you want to get strong enough to defeat Frieza.”

 

“Don't you work for Frieza? Why would you want me to kill him?”

 

“Everybody works for Frieza, in the end. But nobody likes him. He's a tyrant, and he destroyed our home planet. There are only four Saiya-jins left in the universe, thanks to him. And, he killed your woman, right? Come with me, and we'll get stronger. We'll avenge our race.”

 

The idea was very tempting to Goku, but he asked for some time to think it over. Retreating into the woods, he spent some hours meditating, weighing his options. He was reluctant to leave his friends here on Earth, but he had no real ties left. His wife was dead, his son and best friend kidnapped. In the end, the desire for revenge outweighed the few ties he had to the planet. Even if he was never strong enough to defeat Frieza, there was always the off chance that he could find Bulma or Gohan in space. He spent the rest of the day tracking down his few friends, explaining his decision. They tried to persuade him not to leave, but the next morning he met his brother and left Earth.