Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Danger in the horizon ❯ Message from a dead man ( Chapter 49 )

Chapter 49 -

Message from a dead man

Note: I don't own DBZ, any of its characters or "Watership Down"; this fiction is for entertainment purposes only, not profit.

If Bardock had the strength to do so, he would have attempted to blast the triumphant and cruel smile from Freeza's blackened lips, having some measure of satisfaction before his death. However, there would never be the opportunity to sacrifice himself in such a fashion, his body was weak, too weak even to subdue the slightly trembling Doctor Zodor beside Freeza. This had been Bardocks lot in life, for over twenty years a slave to Freeza, the only reason he was still breathing was due to his incredible talents as a seer, obtained on the successful purge of Planet Kanassa all those years ago.

It had not taken long for Freeza to become aware of his emerging powers and in the standoff that resulted from Bardocks tormented ravings, which was when Bardock attempted to save his people, Freeza had seen to it personally that Planet Vegeta was destroyed and he was taken prisoner, starved, beaten and forced in submission. Planet Vegeta had been scheduled to be destroyed anyway as the Saiyans had become rebellious even with him holding the trump card - Prince Vegeta himself. And so during the planets destruction, Bardock had been spirited away from sight, emotional blackmail and the threat of torture keeping him under control for the best part of twenty years and for the most part Bardock had wished that he had perished along with the rest of his proud feral race.

The years had not been kind to Bardock in any way and slowly but surely his once burgeoning optimism had begun to fade away like a flickering flame, no hope of ever being free of his icy and cruel captor, either by death or by rescue. However, after seeing both of his sons alive and well within the murky mists of his vision, there was now a tiny spark of hope growing anew within him, that somehow, in some way he would once again see his sons in the flesh and regain his pride before he died. This was information that would keep him alive and breathing, give him a reason to cling onto life.

As Freeza was growing impatient with Bardocks silence and straining to keep his short fuse under control, he slowly circled the silently defiant Bardock who was still in his cross-legged position on the cold floor before lashing his tail around, barely missing the once proud Saiyan warrior. "As I said, Bardock, what do you have for me?" He hissed, bringing his deathly pale face close to Bardocks own, noting with pleasure that the Saiyan flinched, expecting a brutal attack.

Bardock cleared his throat, his mouth suddenly dry, not willing to reveal all that he had seen in the violent and strange vision he had been privy to. In one of life's true ironies, Bardock had become more powerful in his mental abilities the weaker physically he grew, this meant that his visions were more vivid and factual, less open to interpretation as they had been in the early years of his so called "gift." It was important that he conceal his growing power from Freeza, otherwise Freeza would know more than Bardock deemed necessary, in fact for several weeks, Bardock had been concealing more than half of the content of his visions, although this was the very first time that Bardock had been able to see both of his sons alive and well.

In his latest visualization, Bardock had seen Zarbons death and had revelled in the fact, but he had also seen the ascension of Vegeta to the legendary status of Super Saiyan, a fact he would do his best to contain. He closed his eyes, acting as if the facts were hard to recall, frowning with feigned concentration. "Many things, Lord Freeza." He quietly replied, emphasising his intense dislike of his captor with the short sentence, his lip curling in pure revulsion. "Firstly, Zarbon is dead."

Freeza withdrew, his face registering no small amount of shock at the blunt reply. "How? Where?" Freeza snapped back, clearly upset that he had not had the opportunity to torture his former right hand man, to hear his screams of terror and pain before being slowly put out of his misery, not to mention how in hell that anyone had been powerful enough to dispose of the suave green skinned alien. Bardock shuddered at the expression on the icy lords face, knowing quite well what Zarbons fate might have been. Bardock, due to his powers had full knowledge of Zarbons attempt at escape and his abortive mission to apprehend Prince Vegeta and bring him back into Freezas depraved fold, only to be tortured to death.

"Where? Earth." Bardock said, averting his eyes from Freeza's enraged ones as he continued with other minor details. "How? This is the most surprising thing, Lord Freeza." At this point Bardock suppressed a smile at Zarbons demise. "He was disposed of by ………….an Earth woman." Bardock almost cringed when he revealed this snippet of information, but it was necessary in his keeping the ascension of Vegeta a secret.

Freeza snorted derisively, disbelieving that a woman and an Earthling at that had eliminated Zarbon. To his knowledge, Earth was a planet rich in resources, but not powerful warriors, it had been marked down many years ago for population purging but as he had never been contacted upon successful completion of the mission, had forgotten the tiny blue planet - until very recently.

"Lies, Bardock. No one on that puny planet could possibly hope to best a fighter as experienced as Zarbon, not even Vegeta with his much lauded Saiyan power." Quick as a flash, Freeza grabbed Bardocks sinewy neck, squeezing slowly as he whispered like a lover into the Saiyans ear, black eyes flashing with unholy brightness. "Don't lie to me Bardock." He squeezed tighter, getting the first tingles of sick pleasure running down his thickly corded back as the Saiyan choked and gasped, his face turning a pale red as the blood was trapped in his head. "Would you like to experience true pain? I can show you……………..I would love to show you."

Bardock coughed, forcing out a few words to try and stop Freeza from killing him. This was not the way he wanted to die. "Not……lies…..truth. She…..defeated him…….with her mind…………..it…………is ……………very …….power…..ful." He gasped out, his vision beginning to fade to black, his blood roaring loudly in his ears. Then as abruptly as Freeza had grasped at him, Bardock felt the strong hold on him fall away and he fell back, lungs heaving in lungfuls of sweet life-giving air. "What else is known of this woman, Bardock?" Freeza asked quietly, his voice tinged with violence, his mood almost changing in an instant. Now he wanted some answers, preferably the ones he wanted to hear, for although he was extremely physically powerful in his own right, Freeza never had one ounce of pure physic ability, also he was very superstitious, which made him curious in the extreme regarding seers or anyone possessing mental ability.

Bardock was well aware of the fate that awaited him if he said the wrong thing, a good long stretch in the brig, his skin flayed off with an electro whip, thrown in with the half mad beasts and men that had fallen foul of Freeza over the years which lived in there, all with a taste for fresh meat. He would be too weak to fend them all off successfully and would be lucky to emerge alive and intact, such was Freezas skill in the art of cruelty, although at this time he was still too valuable to kill.

Bardock rubbed at his now tender throat, wincing at the pain, knowing that he would have to reveal her relationship to Vegeta, it was dangerous, but necessary. "From what I saw in the vision, she is connected to Prince Vegeta in some way, possibly even as his mate."

Freeza sniggered, a chilling sound that reverberated throughout the metallic room. "Interesting…..another weakness for the oh so proud Saiyan Prince." He examined his hands with an air of boredom before continuing, barely disguising his need to know more, much more. Freeza in his many years of depraved life knew of the primitive need for Saiyans to bond with another for life and in his opinion it made them vulnerable. It made them weak in his eyes, for if it not been the way of the Saiyans to do so, he would not have been able to subdue Vegeta's father so easily. He had so enjoyed breaking King Vegeta's lovely feral wife before her mates horrified eyes, allowing his most trusted men to rape the proud woman before he tortured her to death, King Vegeta unable to do anything as Freeza leisurely killed her, the powerful but demented Freeza showing his mastery over the Saiyans in one fell swoop, forcing King Vegeta to hand over his only son and heir as collateral to keep the rest of the Saiyans alive.

Freezer had once had such high hopes for Vegeta being as loyal as some of his men, but instead it appeared that Vegeta had been concealing his true nature for over twenty years, biding his time, waiting until the right time to turn traitor and attempt to overthrow him.

Such fear….such delicious screams….perhaps Vegeta will scream like his mother…or maybe his woman will…...I would like that very much…..

Freeza blinked rapidly, moving away from the cherished memory and the fantasy, turning to Zodor with a slight smile, his face looking very much like a grinning skull as he bared his fine white teeth. "Zodor. You may leave now. The primate and I … have much to discuss, none of which is for your ears to hear." Zodor took in a deep breath of relief, bowed deeply and made to exit the room, grateful to not have raised the ire of his master again, relieved that he could finally clean himself up from his embarrassing loss of bladder control. But before he could reach the door, Freeza's smile widened to a grin, and a sudden burst of light dancing on his black fingernails shot out, hitting Zodor directly between the eyes, a look of horror on the dead mans face as he fell face forward onto the deck, a faint trickle of orange blood moving away from his prone body. "I didn't say that you would be alive though…" He chuckled maniacally.

Then, as if it was preplanned, Freezas personal slave hurriedly shuffled in and dragged the body away without ceremony, a sickening trail of blood following as the body was dumped outside in the corridor for the clean up crew to take care of. Freeza turned his attention back to Bardock, and requested in an almost friendly tone, sending a fresh burst of tremors down Bardocks spine. "Please, my dear Bardock, continue. I would very much like to hear more about this woman. She sounds………..fascinating."

As Freeza watched the body of his former physician being hauled away, his attention still on the deliciousness that killing brought him, Bardock took the only chance he had with the door being open, not for escape for that would have proved futile, no, it was something that Freeza would never have anticipated from his weakened slave. Sidling nearer to the open doorway in the break in the shielding the normally closed doors provided, Bardock summoned all of his mental strength and sent a message across the cosmos to one of the only people in the universe with the power to hear him, hoping that against all odds the message would be received and understood, and that Freeza would be none the wiser to his little break in subservience. Bardock smiled slightly he made contact and as the receiver demanded to know his name before he broke of all contact, not willing to press his luck further than he should, resolving to try contact again when the opportunity arose. His small triumph would have to wait however, until Freezer had ceased in his interrogation.

His luck was still with him as Freezer dragged his eyes away from the little macabre scene and turned his attention back to the situation at hand, Bardock shivering involuntarily as the metal door encased him and Freeza alone in the small cell, knowing that many lives would depend on his ability to withhold as much information as possible for as long as possible.

Vegeta had to succeed or all would be lost.

Amanda had known that having a car with automatic transmission instead of the normal manual gears would come in handy one day, but not quite like this. Her slender hands would not cease shaking as she and Victor drew closer to her apartment, the one that she once shared with him as his wife, and if the car had been manual, then it was entirely possible that Amanda would have stalled the car at every set of lights along the way, causing a violent episode from Victor. During the relatively short drive, Victor said very little, only occasionally reaching out to stroke her hair gently before prodding her back through the seat with the pistol in his hand, as if to hurry his former wife to their destination. With a dry mouth and a look of terror, Amanda saw the crest of the hill where her apartment was situated and once again she called out to Radditz hoping that he could hear her plea.

Please…..Radditz…help me!!!

Amanda placed a gently hand on the still flat plane of her belly as if to reassure the life that she was now very sure was growing within her that she would protect them. She hoped that in her panic she would not reveal to Victor that she was most likely with child…..Radditz's child, a fact that could cause the unbalanced Victor to fall over the edge of sanity.

It was quiet around the apartment complex, as Amanda had feared, all the inhabitants were either at work or taking their children to school; a situation that was quite clearly perfect for Victors needs. As the car came to a smooth halt, he leapt from the car before Amanda could even unclasp her seatbelt and opened her car door, firmly but without any outward violence removing her from her seat. Victor then put his arm around her slender waist, moving them together as one unit towards Amanda's abode, relieving her of her house keys and releasing the lock before gently propelling her through the door, his pistol now out of his pocket and pushed uncomfortably into Amanda's ribs earning him a sharp intake of breath as the muzzle bruised her tender skin.

"Sit." Victor commanded harshly as he surveyed the room, then swiftly locked the door to prevent escape and closed all the roman blinds to shield them both from any prying eyes.

It would not do to be caught out by a nosy neighbour or passer-by, for this was a plan that Victor knew would have to be executed perfectly.

Amanda slumped in a wooden chair, her legs no longer able to support her weight, her mind in turmoil as Victor pulled a seat over so that he could face her directly, his alcohol infused breath washing over her each time he spoke, causing Amanda's already delicate stomach to lurch uncontrollably. One of his hands reached out to stroke Amanda's face to wipe away the perspiration that had built up on her smooth forehead, a scowl forming quickly as she violently recoiled, physically revolted by his touch. "Once you liked my touch, sweetness," he slurred, his hand still holding her firmly, "I will make you crave for me once more……once I have removed the obstacle in the way of our love." He pulled his hand away, eyes flashing with anger, only to lean his head in closer, his lips nibbling on her tense jaw line, murmuring, "You have become a ……whore, Amanda, fucking that…..that…..alien. You are mine and always will be."

Her soft retort came as a surprise to Victor, causing him to halt in his oral exploration of her jaw. "No, Victor, I am not yours…I never was…. People aren't possessions to be reclaimed when other things are seemingly more important…like your work…" She would have continued but Victor had heard more than enough, aggressively grasping Amanda's long blonde hair and pulling her head back, exposing her throat, cutting off Amanda's quiet verbal reasoning with him. "Enough!" He grunted, panting as his blood pressure began to rise to a painful level, blood roaring in his ears, the voices in his head telling him, ordering him to punish the trembling woman in his arms. With his free hand he punched Amanda, the sickening sound of bone on flesh reverberating in the darkened room. Her cry of pain and the bruise that began to form on her cheekbone did not soften Victors resolve to have her back by any means necessary, in fact he felt the desire to strike her again and again until she understood what he was feeling, but stopped himself, still retaining an unbreakable hold on her fine hair, a strange look of horror now on his face as he registered what he had done. "I'm sorry, darling….."He whispered, stroking Amanda's tear streaked face gently, "I'll never do that again, I promise."

Amanda shuddered as Victor spoke softly, apologising for his rash and violent behaviour, but decided to take the opportunity to try and talk her way out of the surreal and frightening crisis as his personality changed. "It's alright, Victor. We can talk this over, just let me talk to you." Amanda murmured, gradually trying to ease herself out of Victors iron grip to make a break for it. His hand's grip slackened for a moment as her soothing words and voice reached him, but to Amanda's horror, his hold tightened again once he realised her intent, a cruel chuckle emanating from his chest as he pulled maliciously on her long hair, hearing her involuntary cry of pain and despair. "No, no, no, no, Amanda. This won't do at all." Victor leaned in closer, his tongue delicately tracing Amanda's ear as he whispered, "Now it's time to clean you up.." He paused and sniffed Amanda's now tangled blonde mane like a predator would, making Amanda tremble in sheer fright. "…I can smell his stink on you, Amanda," Victor hissed, "You must be pure for me to take you back." Victor did not pay any mind to the tears coursing hotly down her cheeks, eyes screwed shut and her lithe body now tense as she anticipated the next blow, whispering one word, "Please…" It's true…he has lost his mind..

Victor stood and cracked his neck, cocking his head as he looked her over, seeing a fallen woman, one who needed to be cleansed thoroughly. Bending down, Victor kissed the rapidly forming bruise on Amanda's high cheekbone, causing her to wince with the pain, and then straightened up, pulling Amanda painfully up by her hair to pull her to her feet. Amanda struggled against his grip, but Victor swiftly pulled one arm behind her back, causing her to curve her back in an effort to reduce the pain, her breasts straining against the thin silk of her blouse. Unconsciously Victor licked his lips as he watched Amanda's breasts move as she breathed shallowly, remembering that once, he and only he was privy to the delights of her tanned slender body.

And now it seemed he would be once more.

Amanda wriggled to try and loosen Victor's hold, but he would not budge, in fact his hold seemed to tighten even further, pinching the skin on her wrist painfully, even though he was still quite intoxicated, the sharp odour of liquor passing his lips each time he exhaled. "Let me go Victor, we can work this out somehow, just let me go." Amanda whimpered, trying to with one last shot reason with the man she once pledged to share her life with, almost ashamed to have all but given up the struggle, but remembered that another life may be at stake - that of her and Radditz's unborn child, and if Victor had any idea of her condition, the situation could take on a very deadly turn. Victor smirked, enjoying the power he now held over his former wife, his grip on her weakening body like steel. "No sweetness," He whispered hoarsely, "…this must be done, otherwise, I will have to discipline you again….and I don't want to ruin your beautiful face, do I?" As Amanda nodded her head in compliance, Victor pulled her towards the bathroom, saying, "Good girl. You know what I have to do now, don't you?"

Amanda stifled a cry as he moved her now compliant form towards the bathroom and sent out one last mental cry for help, now hoping beyond hope that Radditz or in fact anyone else could hear her. Someone…anyone….help me!!!!!! She did not feel the heavy blow that assaulted the base of her neck barely seconds later, sending her mind into the gloomy shadows, her last thought being, Please don't hurt my child…. before the lights went out.

The ploy had obviously worked as Bulma wandered in mental pain and shock around the Capsule Corporation compound, hair wild, her eyes blank and staring, scarcely noticing the workers that saw her who were offering their condolences and sympathy for her fathers current condition, who was still hooked up the monitors and apparatus in the medical wing, barely alive. Chi Chi had not followed her from the bedroom; leaving Bulma to her own devices, which was the very reason Bulma, had stated her intent to speak with Vegeta although it had been a lie.

She wanted to be alone.

Although Bulma had tried to remain as calm and collected as possible, her mind was still reeling from the information that was contained in the disc that Yamcha had obtained for her to prove that his written words were truth and not some ridiculous pack of lies. The worst of it all only hitting home as she aimlessly walked about.

He did not lie to me, my father did, my own flesh and blood.

The most terrible portion of the data was not just the proof that Yamcha was some android, and that her own father and Dr Gero had spent so much time and energy manipulating the basic structure of the human body for their own glory, no, it was some of the later notes, ones that chilled Bulma to the bone, for she had never realised the extent of her fathers desire to have the greatest and most vile secret of his life concealed or even the extent to which he would go to keep her and many others in the dark.

This was to her mind the greatest betrayal of them all.

To ensure that she would never find out the full extent of his attempt at playing at God, Jock Briefs was fully prepared to go further than any man would have thought necessary. When Bulma had returned home from her wandering of the Earth in search of the legendary Dragonballs, she had brought Yamcha with her and Jock Briefs had the hardest job in the world concealing his shock at coming face to face once more with his shameful secret. Then, once he had discovered her infatuation for and later her love for Yamcha, certain steps had needed to be taken. Jock knew that one day Bulma would want to marry and have children and to her naïve eyes she had found the perfect man in Yamcha, and because Jock loved his daughter so much he hatched a nefarious arrangement in secrecy.

The plan was simplicity itself.

Once Bulma and Yamcha had married, Jock would find a way of artificially inseminating his own daughter with obtained sperm, biological matter that closely resembled Yamchas own physical makeup and ensure that she did in fact become pregnant, thus guaranteeing that his dirty secret never came to light. This would be a relatively simple process due to his contacts in the genetics area; no one would question his request for such materials.

And this was the one thing that almost made Bulma physically sick. Her own father would have deceived her, her mother, everyone, just to protect his own reputation. There he would have been, watching her swell, heavy with child, showing a false brightness and pride at the impending birth of his first grandchild, knowing all along that the child she would bear would not be Yamchas. Bulma herself would not have been any the wiser, if it had not been for Yamcha's discovery of his true origin and tragic demise.

Like a sleepwalker, Bulma instinctively headed to her sanctuary, her fortress of solitude, an area that only one other person knew of and that person was Goku. He was the only person Bulma truly trusted now apart from Vegeta, the betrayal of her father now like a sharp pain in every joint in her weary body, making her slump heavily to the polished floor of her library, slender fingers fumbling for the tiny lever hidden behind a first edition of "Watership Down", moving her body back awkwardly as the shelf swung outwards revealing her little hideaway from the world, a slightly musty gust of stale air escaping.

Bulma had discovered the small hidden room in her personal library not long after her return from her adventures with Goku quite by accident, the excitement of finding such a place for herself made her keep it a secret from her parents so that if she so chose she could be truly alone with her thoughts and dreams, no one to intrude, every teenage girls dream. As an adult Bulma very rarely secreted herself in her furtive little room, there was no real need for it, no need to have any childish secrets, but still she did not reveal it, for what reason, she did not know.

Looking around to see if she was being observed, Bulma then stepped into the gloom, lighting a large vanilla scented candle to illuminate the area and freshen the air as the door creaked and closed securely behind her. The flickering candle revealed all of her teenage treasures, pictures of her travels, Yamcha, Goku, Krillen featuring quite prominently in some of them, the edges of the photos now slightly curled with age and despite the pain inside, Bulma smiled, remembering all the good times they had had together, searching for dragonballs to make silly inconsequential wishes, like a prince or a lifetimes supply of strawberries. There were her old pistols and the remains of one motorbike sadly destroyed in a crash as she and Goku escaped from some altercation or another resting against the wall, never to be used again.

Finally her eyes alighted on the small stack of letters resting on an upended crate that once held bottles of beer, some in the childish and thick writing of Goku as he told of his training and some in the sharp spiky script of Yamcha as he wrote simple lines declaring his undying affection for her whenever he was away training. Bulma pulled over a dusty floor cushion purloined from her parents quarters and draped a large faded woollen throw around her shoulders, sitting cross-legged as she started reading the old letters, smiling at the memories that each line awoke in her.

Life was so simple then….naïve dreams of love and friendship…

Bulma ran a delicate fingernail over the letters from Yamcha, a large salty tear coursing down her face and plopping audibly on the yellowed paper, making the ink run, and for only a few moments she wished that the clock could be turned back and things could be made right.

Now its death and betrayal……complicated……uncertain….

Everything was so uncertain. Freeza was coming, Earth was in grave danger and her father was dying. It was useless, Bulma knew, to try and recapture the past, her life had changed, she had found true love and began to take the path towards her destiny, helping Vegeta to achieve what was once thought to be an impossibility by his own race.

Nonetheless, Bulma sniffled and pulled the throw tightly around her body, wallowing in self-pity, letting the papers fall to the floor, fully intending to sit there alone and feel sorry for herself, to let her mind drift away into sleep to numb the ache inside her head and her heart.

Bulma had only been dozing for a few moments when something unexpected jolted her from her piteous reverie. She stiffened and jerked upward onto her aching legs as a disembodied voice, faint and unrecognisable briefly fluttered in her mind before fading away, speaking to her, Earth woman….I have seen you in my vision…….If you can hear me……..tell Radditz and Kakkarot……my sons…….that I live….tell them…..Freeza is drawing near……….he knows of your power……...

Who are you? What do you want? Bulma projected back as strongly as she could without knowing of the voices whereabouts, disturbed by the message and intrusion into her mind, vainly twisting her head around. "Who are you?!" Bulma spoke aloud, her eyes looking around in the dim light, vainly trying to locate the source, although she knew full well that there was no one but her in the small room and for the most part she felt damn foolish for speaking out loud to someone who was not there.

When the reply came after several minutes, Bulma did not expect the answer that she got.

It was a message from a dead man.

……..Bardock……The voice replied in a vaguely amused whisper before disappearing altogether.

Bulma could not repress the gasp of surprise that escaped her lips, but regained her senses quickly, wanting to know more. Wait…don't go…where are you? She replied, How did you know about me? But this time there was no response, even though she waited patiently, huddled on the cushion, clutching at the wool around her trembling shoulders. Realising the voice that claimed it was Bardock would not return, Bulma cast off the woollen throw around her shoulders, and become conscious there and then that there were more important things to do and worry about than to keep focussing on her personal pain, her father's stupidity and Yamchas revelation. It was up to her to forget the past and try to forgive her father, no one else. If the voice was indeed Bardock, then she needed to let Radditz and Goku know as soon as possible, it was important, more important than her problems at hand. She stole one more longing glance at the letters, the photos, slightly frightened at leaving her treasures and letting go of the past once and for all, but with a deep breath she whispered aloud, her voice clear and strong in her conviction. "Goodbye Yamcha." And this time - I mean it.

Bulma had made the vow on Yamchas death saying to her mate, "It's over Vegeta. He will haunt us no longer." The letter from the grave had made her break that vow, albeit only for a short while, but still, Bulma felt guilt at directing her attention on something that she could not control as Vegeta and herself should have been her focus.

The message from Bardock gave back to Bulma her sense of purpose and was the last piece of encouragement Bulma needed to wrest herself from her wallowing, and without a second thought she tore out of the small room and ran breathless, her body and mind somehow lighter than it had been for the past twenty four hours. Bulma was strangely elated, her eyes now shining not with tears, but with a renewed sense of purpose as her feet quickly took her outside into the pouring rain to Vegeta's gravity chamber, not caring if her secret room was discovered or how drenched she became.

The part of her life with Yamcha was now truly over…..it was time to live properly in the present with Vegeta, a man she loved with her body and soul, not in the past with a memory of someone she thought she once loved, and to try to forgive the well-meaning wrongdoings of her father.

Now it was truly time to start her next journey in life for however long it lasted, because nothing lasts forever.

Goku and Radditz followed the leading group of Tien, Krillen, Piccolo and Chao Tzu into the wild untamed expanse of desert known as the "Badlands", neither of them speaking as they flew steadily onward, both still mentally caught up in the events of the evening before, ignoring the chattering of Tien and Krillen as they flew.

Radditz for one, was still totally shocked at the way in which Zarbon had died, the power that Bulma had welded had been so awesome, almost as powerful as the burst of pure energy from Vegeta when he first transformed. It seemed that the fates had been correct in throwing the volatile Saiyan Prince and the brilliant Earthling, cutting him out completely. He had been so sure when he first laid eyes on Bulma that she was the one - his soul mate, but he could not have been anymore wrong in his life. Amanda was the one and luckily he had not been too blind to see the truth, for if he had continued in his pursuit of Bulma and attempted to take her as his mate, then he would have been dead by Vegeta's hand and would have never met the woman he was destined to be with. Ahhh Amanda….my woman. He mused, remembering the moment that told him that they would be parents in less than a standard years time, and how her face had glowed with the knowledge that he wanted a child with her.

Radditz, if you can hear me……help me…….Please…..Radditz…help me!!! Someone…anyone….help me!!!!!!

Suddenly, he stiffened and stopped dead in the air, his brow furrowed in concentration, his tail loosening from his waist and lashing behind him in the heavy warm air above the desert as Amanda's multiple pleas reached him. Instead of reaching his mind in a series of mental messages, everyone Amanda had projected came at once, each one growing more desperate as her situation worsened. Her ability to connect with Radditz was only in its beginning stage and so that in itself made it difficult for them to engage in mind speak unlike Bulma whose abilities were almost on par with Kami's. He growled ineffectually as the tone of her voice wavered as she became more terrified and began to lose hope that he would ever hear her, and as Radditz attempted to talk with her, he realised with shock that she was unconscious and therefore unable to hear his soothing reassurance that he would come.

Goku continued to fly on for several more seconds, at first oblivious to his brothers sudden halt, looking forward to a decent spar with Piccolo and the others. Sensing that Radditz was no longer at his side he looked back, seeing Radditz's tawny skin pale and his breathing quicken as his energy level rose, his face now twisted in anger and rage, as the knowledge that his woman had been harmed sank in. Knowing that something was very wrong, Goku swiftly returned to his brother, seeing as he grew closer that Radditz's hands were curled into fists, shaking with the effort not to lose control of himself, his eyes flashing with now unconcealed violence. "Radditz?" Goku asked calmly, keeping his distance from the larger Saiyan whose energy level was climbing still higher, his teeth bared, spittle being sprayed about as he replied in a guttural tone, forcing Goku to move back even further from his now unstable brother. "My woman, my child is in danger." He by had now bitten through his lip in the almost fruitless battle to control his violent urges, the blood dribbling down his chin onto his training suit.

"Let me help you, brother." Goku replied simply, still keeping his distance but desiring to help his older sibling in whatever situation Amanda was currently in, it was in his nature to do so, he could not help it. Radditz hung his head for a moment in contemplation of his brother's offer, but his blood lust was overriding every rational thought and action. His instinct was screaming at him to kill and there was no way in hell it could be silenced, not now. Someone was harming his mate and child and as such he was the only one to either stop their attacker or avenge them should they be killed, he needed no ones help, not even his brothers. "No." Radditz snapped, glaring at his soft-hearted brother as if the earth bound Saiyan had taken leave of his senses. "I don't need your help little brother - this I do alone." He licked up the blood on his lips and smiled, chilling Goku to the very bone with the simple action, "Don't follow me, Kakkarot or I will kill you, or your companions," he continued, turning away from Goku and heading in the direction of Amanda's ki many miles away, Goku's shocked plea for him to stay his hand and not kill falling on deaf ears.

He wanted blood and didn't care whose it was.

No one touched his woman and lived. No one.

Time to die, scum….

Chi Chi kept herself occupied by switching off the servo bot and clearing away the large pile of cutlery and crockery that breakfast had created, noting from the corner of her eyes and with a dry smile that Master Roshi had finally fallen asleep and was now busily drooling on the glass topped kitchen table, T.V. remote control in hand. Puar was napping on the chair next to him, her tiny furred tail curled around her plump little body, stomach completely stuffed from the food she had eaten. Before starting her work, Chi Chi had checked on Sarah Briefs to make sure the older woman was resting comfortably after taking the mild sedative the doctor had prescribed to calm her down and now the normally chatty blonde woman was fitfully sleeping in a cot next to her ailing husband, the whirr and hiss of the equipment to keep him alive echoing throughout the sterile and soulless med room.

As she reached into the warm soapy water to scrub the filthy plates, Chi Chi caught a glimpse of Bulma hurriedly running across the sodden grass towards Vegeta's gravity chamber which made Chi Chi wonder once again what kind of information Bulma had discovered about Yamcha. "I wonder……what could it be?" She mused aloud to herself, aggressively scrubbing at a yolk crusted piece of china, "She said he was something…..oh god only knows." She muttered, clearly exasperated by the complexity of her musings and returning to the much less complicated matter of cleaning up after a pack of hungry men.

Bulma's state after receiving her package from Puar still worried Chi Chi as she knew that Bulma was in her vast experience a complex, highly-strung genius that craved adventure and excitement, a complete contrast to Chi Chi who had chosen a more domestic existence. How they managed to become friends she would never know, but friends they were none the less, no matter what the differences were and in her own way, Chi Chi saw Bulma like a sister and therefore she worried about her. She knew that the information about Yamcha would be revealed in the fullness of time, but she felt slightly annoyed that Bulma went to Vegeta to speak about it first and not her as she would have done before his arrival on the scene, but that was the way things went, people changed and matured, started new relationships.

Never once had Chi Chi regretted her decision to give up the warrior life and become a devoted wife and mother, despite the fact that some women like Bulma would have found such a life mundane. She had the life she really wanted, a loving husband and a bright young son. Sighing softly, Chi Chi placed her damp hands on her belly, absentmindedly stroking the still flat area, knowing that 8 months from now she would give birth to another child and secretly she hoped that it would be a girl to give balance to the male dominated household she lived in, and silently she prayed that whatever happened, Goku would be there when the child was born. Plunging her hands back into the water, Chi Chi returned to her work at hand and let her mind go blank, watching the rain fall outside, doing what she always did, not matter where she was, waiting for her husband to return.

The rain fell in huge fat droplets and soaked Bulma to the bone as she finally reached the pulsating spherical chamber, tapping futilely on the door to gain Vegeta's attention. "Open up!!!!" She yelled growing wetter by the moment standing in the pouring rain, now belting on the door with her fists.

Her impatience was rewarded suitably with a string of muffled curses as the light inside changed from red to white, the gravity simulator shut down and the stomping heavy footsteps of Vegeta as he wrenched the door open to see a rather drenched Bulma, tapping a foot in irritation. "Well?" He answered a scowl firmly planted on his handsome face, "What is so important to interrupt me?"

"Are you going to let me in?" Bulma countered waspishly, running her blue eyes over the sweat sheened body of Vegeta. It didn't seem to matter where they were or what they were doing, she could feel the warmth within her grow each time she saw him. Vegeta smirked at the look on her face and the clothes now plastered to her curvy body and stood back from the door, allowing Bulma to enter, the door closing automatically behind her as Vegeta strode over to pick up a towel to dry her off, as it seemed to him that his training was over for a few hours at least.

Vegeta handed Bulma the towel, sitting cross-legged on the floor as she dried off and sat with him, his face registering some surprise at her swollen red eyes, it appeared that she had been weeping again, he hoped that it was not over that fool former lover of hers, but he could not confirm this, Bulma was sheilding her mind too well, even for him. "So what is so important?" He gruffly asked, hiding his curiosity well with his trademark poker face, but Bulma was not fooled in the slightest.

Bulma took a deep breath before answering, unsure of which piece of information should be revealed first, her good mood somewhat dissipated now that she had to spill the beans as such. Good news or weird disturbing news? She decided on the weird disturbing information first, to get it over and done with, to get on with her life. "Firstly, Yamcha did not die as the result of an accident, it was suicide….." her breath hitched momentarily as she continued, "Yamcha discovered something about himself that made him take the course of action that he did."

"Which was what?" Vegeta asked gruffly, not really caring either way, but it seemed to help Bulma accept what had happened on the balcony that night. The whole experience had scarred her, despite what she said and he for one wanted her attention focussed on one person only, and that person was him.

"He was an artificial human, an android." Bulma faltered and stuttered at the rest of the story came tumbling out, her eyes closed in pain. "M, My father helped to construct him along with another doctor called Gero, but his purpose was unclear and the project was abandoned. He was never meant to be found. B, b,but I did, in the desert, 10 long years ago and brought him back. He never knew what he was until about 8 months ago, that was when we parted and I left Earth. There is more on a disc that Yamcha stole from the lab, most of it much more disturbing than what I told you, but I would rather not go into that now." It was an abbreviated course of events but it was more than enough for Vegeta to hear. The whole stinking mess sickened him, the very thought that a man would deceive his own child to cover up his repugnant mistakes, letting her believe that the man she slept with was something that he was not.

He paused in his mental rhetoric, looking closely at the glazed and shocked expression on Bulma's pale features, sickened that her own father had manipulated her life to suit his own twisted sense of ethics. With cat like grace, Vegeta manoeuvred around Bulma and pulled her gently to rest against him, his powerful arms encircling her in a protective embrace, his head resting lightly on hers.

"I must tell them all Vegeta, so that they do not waste a wish on Yamcha…..we might need that wish for something else…" Bulma continued haltingly, "I am going to rebuild him as he asked, but I will remove any memory he had of me in the past, otherwise it make matters worse."

"Agreed." Vegeta replied tersely, undeniably irritated that her former lover still haunted their lives even from the grave, but pleased that he could now quite reasonably claim the wish that would have revived Yamcha. "Then it is truly at an end." He frowned, recalling that Bulma had said firstly, which meant that was more news to come. "What else did you want to tell me, Bulma?" Vegeta asked in a slightly bored tone.

Bulma shifted in Vegeta's embrace, moving around to face him, her arms and legs curled around his waist, resting her damp head on his chest and closing her eyes. "I got a message, a message from a dead man." She whispered, her voice barely able to be heard.

"What?" Vegeta asked, lifting Bulma's chin with a hand and forcing her to open her eyes and look at him, all pretence of disinterest now gone. "What do you mean, a dead man?"

"This man said his name was Bardock. According to Radditz, his father has been dead since Vegetasei was destroyed and he along with it." She replied, her eyes locking onto Vegeta's own piercing gaze. "But this…Bardock…..he said that Freeza knew about me and to tell his sons that he lived."

Vegeta removed his other arm from around Bulma and cupped her jaw, his expression puzzled and disturbed, his eyes searching for any lie in Bulma's statement. How can this be? He died. "What else did he say?" He demanded, his tone becoming urgent.

"Nothing else….I couldn't connect with him again, he seemed close, but something was blocking me, either it was him or wherever he was." She frowned at the expression on Vegeta's face, clearly this was something that disturbed him.

"Bardock." He muttered, more so to himself than to Bulma, a half smile on his face, "So you third class dog, you are still alive. Freeza must have picked you up before Vegetasei was destroyed, so that he could pick your brains, use your talents."

"What does it mean though?" Bulma enquired, still slightly in the dark about what Bardocks significance really was. She had felt his mental power, but still did not know how this discovery affected them.

Vegeta lowered his eyes to Bulma's, his eyes flat and almost fathomless, a strange light glimmering in their depths, his voice low and serious, his smile now gone. "Bardock was cursed, or the uninformed and greedy might say `blessed' with the gift of prophecy, Bulma, remember that. What this means is that Freeza is using Bardock to gain information, to find out what our plan of attack is and," Vegeta paused as some of the message relayed to him sunk in, "He knows about your talents and your connection to me, which means, " Vegeta could feel the icy chills travel his spine as he uttered the next words, "you will most likely be the bait to draw me into a trap."

Amanda woke with gasp, her head throbbing with pain as she opened her eyes and surveyed her surroundings. She was in her bedroom, a familiar place in normal circumstances, but as she raised her head and looked around in the dim light, Amanda could see literally hundreds of photos of her and Victor plastered haphazardly to the walls, the ceiling, some were even on the floor, each one a reminder of a time in her life that was now over. In a word, the whole scene was disturbing. She felt strangely constricted as she tried to sit up and looking down at herself, Amanda saw that Victor had taken the liberty of changing her clothes, now she was clad her in her wedding dress, shoes and even the veil had been added to complete the outfit. Not only that, Victor had taken the precaution of strapping her legs and arms to the bed, restricting her movements almost totally, rendering her defenceless and stopping any possibility of escape and her mouth was gagged with a soft swatch of silk, preventing her from crying out for help - not that anyone would hear anyway, the walls of her apartment being so thick. She squirmed against her bonds again and felt her skin burning slightly. It seemed to be very sensitive to any movement and the fabric of the wedding dress was causing it to be even more inflamed, especially on her back. What the hell has he done to me?

A flicker of movement caught her eye, and as Amanda looked around, Victor emerged from the shadows, fully dressed in his tux, the one he had worn when they had married, a musty odour rolling off the fabric due to it not being worn for so long. A thin smile graced his now clean-shaven face as he bent over the bed, his hands reaching out to caress Amanda's face and to loosen her gag. She trembled with fear and anger as he pressed his lips to her own tightly pursed lips, trying and failing to stop him from forcing her mouth open aggressively to gain entrance, his tongue slipping in like a slimy snake to explore as she tried not gag. Victor withdrew, not noticing or not caring about her attempted resistance to his advances. "So gorgeous, Amanda, so very gorgeous." He whispered as he nibbled on her neck, his large hands kneading and stroking her breasts. "I was hoping that you would wake soon sweetness, otherwise we would have to wait another day to do this and I know that you can't wait that long." He murmured huskily against her skin.

"To do what?" Amanda softly asked, hiding her fear of the answer, her mouth dry from the gag. Victor raised his head and looked at Amanda, deep into her frightened jade green eyes, his own blue eyes hard and unyielding. "Our wedding day, what else?" He answered simply, moving away from her bound body, his eyes lingering on her straining form. "It took so long to get you cleaned up, and even then I couldn't get that nasty mark off your back. We'll get a good doctor to remove that later otherwise you won't be pretty again."

"My back?" Amanda stuttered, now knowing what Victor had tried to scrub off, her bonding mark, the one that bound her to Radditz and no other. Oh no, it's not gone, is it?

Victor reached out and pressed her head back down onto the soft down pillow, fluffing out the veil underneath her, retying the gag, his voice quiet and creepy. "Yes, that ugly mark. Just be patient sweetness, the priest will be here soon to marry us and then we can be together forever. Just like before."

He then turned, adjusted the blood red rose in his buttonhole and walked out of the bizarrely decorated room, then closed the door, leaving Amanda shivering in darkness.

With tears prickling at her eyes, Amanda waited until his footsteps faded out before starting to wriggle as much as she could, trying to loosen at least one of her bonds on her wrists, and to her joy, one of them was starting to release its hold on her delicate bones. She resisted the urge to make any noise, although it was impossible to say anything intelligible and instead set to work, starting to work her hand out of the smooth rope binding, the nylon burning her hand in an almost unbearable way as she did so. She gritted her teeth and tried to convince herself that a little pain was nothing compared to what Victor could or was going to put her through next. Once out of the bonds then she could escape through the window, and hopefully make it to her car before Victor returned.

It was obvious that he had lost his mind completely, losing her to Radditz taking a toll on his already delicate state of mind, driving him to the very brink of psychosis.

Victor circled the clearly terrified priest in the living room, keeping his pistol trained on the man as he fumbled with his robes and his bible, trying to keep as calm as was possible in the circumstances. Father Joseph had been preparing to christen a child in his church as Victor had arrived, pistol in hand, demanding his assistance in a wedding ceremony, frightening the assembled family and friends of the small squalling child in his arms. Joseph had little choice but to do as the clearly disturbed man requested, passing the child to the father, gathering up his robes and departing, no one in the church willing to risk the life of the child as Victor bundled the hapless priest into Amanda's waiting car. Joseph knew that the family of the child would report that he had gone missing and the police were sure to find him soon, but still he silently prayed that God would make sure that everything right, relying on his faith to get through the dangerous experience.

Oh heavenly Father, please help this misguided soul so that he may see the error of his ways…

"Now Father," Victor quietly spoke, "I am going to get my bride and then you can marry us. Please don't make me use this weapon against you Father by you trying to leave and forget your responsibilities." For emphasis Victor took the safety off and moved the pistol to rest under the Father Josephs chin, the message clear - try to escape and I will blow your head off. "Do I have your word?" Victor asked, jamming the barrel of the pistol further into Josephs skin, making the priest swallow nervously, "A nod of the head will suffice." Victor intoned, not unkindly, smiling at the priest. Joseph nodded carefully, keeping his brown eyes focussed on Victor, not daring to speak lest the wrong words came out and his brains were spattered on the cream coloured wall behind him. Victor smiled again at Joseph, this time showing his fine white teeth, further scaring the priest. "That's good Father, just wait here."

He turned and put the pistol back on safety walking steadily towards Amanda's bedroom where he had left her only 10 minutes before, bound and gagged, ready and waiting to become his bride once again, this time though, it was to be forever.

Amanda stiffened as she heard the footsteps coming towards the room, her heart racing like a frightened animal as she tugged at the last remaining bond tying her foot to the bed, but it would not give, the knot almost impossibly tight and she let out a hushed curse, the footsteps coming ever closer. "Oh shit, stupid fucking piece of rope let me go!" Finally the offending piece of rope loosened, and Amanda ripped the veil from her head, gathered up the seemingly endless metres of silk and lace of her dress and prepared to climb out of the window, or at least that was the plan, but to her dismay, Victor had a firm grasp on one of her feet, dragging her back down to the carpeted floor with a violent yank, where she landed painfully on her back.

Amanda screamed out as Victor held her firm to the floor, holding her flailing arms with one strong hand, straddling her writhing body. "How could you,!" He shouted, the veins in his neck and face pulsating and straining, his blue eyes wide with unconcealed anger, as he raised his free hand to strike at Amanda's face with the pistol, making her see stars and feel white hot pain as he struck her again and again, yelling "How could you! You are mine, mine and no one else's! He will not have you, he will not!" Victor stopped suddenly, looking down at Amanda's beaten face, blood and bruises covering one side, gently running the pistol down the uninjured side as he leaned his face in close to hers, kissing her panting mouth tenderly.

With great care he took the pistol off safety and cocked the weapon, resting it under Amanda's jaw, drinking in the fear emanating from her trembling body, the voices in his head telling him that she wanted this, she wanted him, eternally. "I have no choice, sweetness," he whispered hoarsely, the words spilling rapidly from his spittle flecked mouth, "We don't need to be married again, in the eyes of God we are still man and wife, no piece of paper can tear us apart. We will be together again, only now it will be in the next world. Be strong, it will only hurt for a second and then I will be with you. Forever." The words were final, and Victor fully intended to take the final step to reclaim his lost love, killing her and him and taking them both into the afterlife. Amanda could not form any words to stay his hand, her throat was too constricted by fear and pain to do or say anything. Radditz, remember that I loved you….I wanted your child…please forgive me… She closed her eyes tight and waited for the bullet to rip through her, intending to accept her imminent death with grace and honour, hoping to see Radditz in the next world when his time was up.

There was no sound.

The shot never came.

At the precise moment that Victor placed his finger on the trigger and prepared to squeeze, the window burst into a thousand pieces of glass, and the weight that had been pressing on Amanda's body was suddenly gone. For several seconds all she could hear was animalistic howls of anger, Victor's pathetic pleas for clemency and then a volley of shots from the pistol.

There was a sickening wet thud against the wall, then deafening silence.

Still terrified, Amanda opened her eyes and saw Victor, his body slumped against the wall, the pictures of him and Amanda cascading down around his battered and broken body, blood gushing forth onto the floor from the massive gaping wound in his chest, where his heart once was. His eyes were open and staring at her, his mouth half closed and coated with black red blood, one hand grotesquely reaching out to his former wife. Undeniably sickened, Amanda rolled to her side and vomited, her body wracked with pain and quivering in shock. She recoiled slightly as she felt the warm touch of a person soothingly stroke her back and shoulders, before recognising the touch and scent of the man, her mate, Radditz. Unable to stop herself, Amanda turned and pressed her body against his warm muscular chest, the tears coming like a flood, relief at her rescue putting her mind at ease almost immediately. "Oh, god, you came for me, you came," Amanda stuttered, hiccupping with shock and tears, "I knew you would."

As her body shuddered and her tears soaked his clothing Radditz said nothing, but continued to sit on the floor, holding his mate securely in his blood stained arms, elated that neither she nor their child had come to any serious harm. The pain that had coursed through Radditz's body as he witnessed his mate being violated so horribly had almost been unbearable, his ki rising to almost unimaginable heights, burning him from within. For a few seconds Radditz felt what it was like to be a super saiyan, the anger inside of him pushing his body to the very brink, the colour of his hair and eyes flickering, before he launched his body through the window to save his mate and kill her attacker, Goku's final words to him as he had departed the desert not having the desired effect.

Shaking his head to return to the situation at hand, Radditz rubbed his tawny face against Amanda's now pale and bruised neck, re-establishing his scent on her body and reassuring her that she was safe once again, his warm gently hands stroking her back.

You are safe again…I will spend my life protecting you and our children….never will I let to fall into danger again…never..even if I have to fight Freeza myself.

It had been close, too close. He never wanted to feel that way again, ever. He had so very nearly lost the people most precious to him and his pride would never allow that to happen again.