Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Facing it Together ❯ Doubt or the Truth? ( Chapter 17 )

Disclaimer: There are a lot of things I want to own. But life has yet to be kind to me, and I seriously doubt it would allow me to own Dragonball Z. Hmm. . .

Well. . .Not So Quick Note: *bound by all of the angry readers* Stop! Please! For Pete's sake put me down! Okay, okay! I'm sorry! Will you at least listen to me?!?

*readers drop her on her ass* Ouch. Alright, Alright. The reason why this chapter is SO late is because of two reasons:

1.) I went out of town for a whole month. I visited my family, which by the way is what I call `technologically challenged'. Get this, they believe in television and radios, but not in computers and portable phones? I was practically stranded for one month, so I couldn't get any writing done. So if you believed that I gave up and quit, WRONG! I'm right here, your anxious and willing author!

2.) I had originally written this chapter and HAD planned to put it out on May 19th-20th, but I didn't like it, so I erased it. So, this is the alternate chapter of what I had previously written.

Well, anyway thanks a bunch for your votes. But wow. . .I at least thought I would get SOME for Turles. Do y'all really hate him that much? Well the people have spoken up and chosen their champion. So, who would I be to deny you guys of what you want? *cough* *cough* *forgets about long wait*

Speaking of which, I had a request to make this a longer chapter, so. . .here it is.

And thanks to my ff.net reviewers. 100 reviews! *hugs her monitor* You guys are great!

Facing it Together

Chapter Seventeen: Doubt or the Truth?

Vegeta looked at his right-hand man. How dare he refuse him! It didn't matter if Kakarrot was training, and as the king of Vegeta-sei, he would be denied nothing. He would make Turles pay brutally for his insolent behavior. He turned and waved a gloved hand towards the entrance to the gravity chamber, signaling Turles to follow. The dark man did, silently allowing a smirk to grace his lips, purposely trying to hide it from his king. However, it didn't go unnoticed by Vegeta, at least not with Bulma's warning clear in his mind.

`Chalk that up to his future wounds,' Vegeta tallied to his long `pay-back' list.

The two stood in the middle of the chamber, Turles eagerly anticipating Vegeta's first move. Vegeta cruely smiled at his once loyal servant and pushed the yellow operation button, turning up the gravity to 250 times normal gravity. Vegeta remembered his earlier experience, listening to the machine activating, and stood his ground to watch Turles fold to the floor, smirking as he observed. "Are you okay?" the king taunted.

Turles painfully lifted his heavy head as he stared into the chilly glare of Vegeta's eyes. `How could he not feel the impact of the change in gravity?' he asked himself. He was beginning to think that challenging the king now was a huge mistake, but. . . true to his Saiyan pride, he forced his body to lift itself from the floor, glaring at his king squarely and equally cold. "Due to the sudden change, I was not prepared for that, but I have adjusted," Turles said, lowering himself into a fighting stance. "And I am ready for our match."

"Well it's about time," Vegeta remarked, his vicious expression never leaving his face. "I thought you would be hugging the tile all day." He then fixed his arms into a stance as well. The gravity was slowing him down just barely, but he knew in a few minutes he would be able to move as freely as he wanted. A moment passed and Vegeta decided to begin the sparring match on the offensive. Starting off with a leap and a horde of punches, he attempted to make short work of Turles. Turles managed to dodge almost every one of them-the gravity of the room making the task harder than usual. He tried to drive an elbow into Vegeta's side, but viewing the king's classic smirk, he quickly guessed that his trial had failed.

And oh, how right he was. Vegeta grabbed the man's arm and jerked it upwards to clear the way for his foot-which found its place at Turles stomach, forcing him to drive into the wall. Turles closed his eyes for a split second to compose himself, then stepped forward, planting both of his feet to the ground in order to power up. Through the white haze of his ki, Turles witnessed Vegeta's power flare up as well, but only a couple of notches above his own. Turles' eyebrow rose questionly at the site, he knew the king had more power than what he was showing him, but for some reason, he failed to use it.

Vegeta grasped Turles' unspoken question. "I want to keep this as evenly matched as possible. If I had decided to go to my full power, this match would be over before it had begun. That is why I demanded that loser Kakarrot to spar with me. He is the only Saiyan that is close enough to my level to make me sweat."

"Hmm. . ." Turles said, his brain processing the information. Just how powerful was the king? He had hoped that this match would give him a glimpse of what might happen in the future, if his plan to obtain the dragonball radar did not work and he was forced to take the king head-on. He wasn't using all of his power, but if he increased his, then Vegeta would do so also. And if he powered up to his limit, just how far would the king go?

Vegeta took advantage of Turles' debate and glided across to him to connect his fist to his face. But this time, Turles was not entirely unaware. He lifted his knee, steered it into his chest and completed his action with his own fist in the king's face.

The punch landed between his eyes, blinding him for only a moment, however one moment was enough for Turles to gain the opportunity to execute a number of more punches and blows to his stomach then finishing it off with his foot that tripped Vegeta. As soon as Vegeta regained composure, he readied his fist for an attack to Turles. But before he was able to deliver an assault to his opponent, Turles blinked out of sight and reappeared behind of him, kicking the king into the wall that he had occupied only a few minutes earlier.

Vegeta stood, smiling at him. "Well, it looks as if you're not so weak after all."

Turles returned it. "Thanks for the compliement. I know you're holding back for my benefit, but how about we make this a little more interesting?" And with that, he pushed himself up to his max, causing some of the tile to rise along with his power level. His white aura flashed to blue, signifying the enormous change, trying to persuade Vegeta to fight at his maxium power as well.

Vegeta understood his request immediately. "Very well, if you're in such a hurry to end this. . ." Vegeta clentched his hands into fists and released the gate inside that was containing his power. However, instead of changing from white to blue, his flared from white to a radiant red-his powerful aura made a crater in the floor.

Turles' eyes widened in a combination of shock and fear. Oh he was going to get it now. . .

Vegeta fixed his smirk and flew at him. All Turles could do was throw up his arms into a block, but that didn't even work as the pain of Vegeta's power hit him. Turles had never thought that anything could be so strong, and as the king attacked him in a combination of kicks and punches, his mind kept asking him the same question over and over. . .

`Is he. . .the. . .one?. . .The. . .legendary?'

And then one blow to the back of his head sent Turles reeling into the land of unconsciousness.

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Bulma once again found herself heading down one of the many hallways of the palace, her mind going crazy over her stupid mistake. She was one of the most intelligent creatures on the planet, but based on the many errors that she was constantly making, she no longer was as confident in the power her brain as before. The only thing that mattered was to get her original radar back and then she would be able to leave. However, Bulma had no idea where Vegeta's chamber was in the huge palace. She had a feeling that once she reached her destination, she would encounter a highly guarded area. When she got there. . .well, she'd pick things up from there. `I am intelligent, remember?' she mused to herself.

She passed the doors to the harbor and stopped. Scenes from the night before played in her head and made her enter the room. She knew she wouldn't be able to prompt anyone to work on her ship, vividly recalling Vegeta's decree, but she knew she had something else to do. . .for her conscience's sake.

Bulma tapped a finger on his shoulder, causing him to whirl around. She smiled. "Hi Yamcha."

Yamcha's eyes were wary of her, she noticed them. "Um. . .hello Bulma." He cleared his throat. "Can I do something for you."

"Can I talk to you for a minute?" she asked.

"Yamcha nodded and lead her back outside to the hallway. She looked down at the floor and sighed. "Look, I just wanted to apologize for my actions earlier. I didn't want to hurt you, but-"

"It's alright. I just thought that you felt the same way that I did. I wished I had seen it before I tried to kiss you, though."

"Oh, I think you see me in the same way that I see you." She watched him form a confused expression on his face. "A friend. Granted last night you showed me that you think a little more of me than that, but. . ." she trailed off for a second and started again. "We're still friends, right?"

Yamcha grinned at her. "Of course, Bulma."

"Good," she said, nodding her head towards the harbor door. "I don't want to keep you from doing your work. I know how Vegeta-King Vegeta!" her eyes clinched shut as she corrected her slip up. "-is when his demands aren't met, so I'll leave you alone."

The slip didn't pass Yamcha and he guessed that something was happening between the two. He nodded, his mind surrendering in defeat. "I'll see you later," Yamcha told her before stepping back inside of the harbor.

Bulma watched him and sighed again. She saw the look that crossed his face when she mentioned the king. `Well, so much for subtlety. . .'

She continued down the hallway and smiled when she saw the gravity room that she had designed. The lights were off, surprising her. Bulma had thought that Vegeta would lock himself inside of it with his desire for strength. Strength, that he had been trying to achieve ever since he departed from his mother's womb-the same need that affected every other Saiyan that she had met on this planet.

Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard a soft groan from within the area. Bulma's eyes searched for the cause of the noise, and then a gasp escaped her lips as she saw a bloodied and beaten Turles limping as he walked, a trail of crimson liquid following him down the hall.

She took a few seconds to decide whether to help him or to let him drag his own conniving self down to the infirmary.`I should just kill him myself. . .But you know you could never do anything of that sort, could you Bulma?'

As much as she wanted to see Turles get what was coming to him, his condition was too bad for her good nature to ignore. She walked up to him, wrapping an arm around his torso, letting him put some of his weight on her so he could at least walk somewhat upright. She turned away from his shocked expression. "You need some serious medical attention."

A corner of his bruised mouth curled upwards. "I'll be fine. A. . .Saiyan heals faster . . .than a human."

"Yeah, but by the time that you heal properly, it'll be about a month later." She lead him down one of the halls. "Where is the infirmary, by the way?"

"We're heading in the right direction." Turles was secretly reveling in her scent and the feel of her arm around him, even if he knew she had only done so in order to help him. "I don't suppose I need to tell you who did this?"

"I have a pretty good guess. Only Vegeta could've made you bleed through your black uniform." Shit. That was the third time that she addressed King Vegeta on such an informal basis. She decided to pretend that she didn't notice it, in hope to diminish the statement. But she could help raising an eyebrow at Turles' response. It was a low growl, and after a second she dismissed it as an answer to what she supposed she thought was an insult to his strength.

`So they're on a first-name basis already?' Turles thought to himself, not even realizing that he was growling. Limato was indeed right. The king and Bulma were hitting it off pretty nicely. He couldn't stop the flicker of jealousy and anger that rose within him. But somehow, he pushed it beneath his emotionless façade and changed the subject. "Here it is," Turles said, pushing open the door to the infirmary.

Beetero looked up from a clipboard to see the pair enter. "Oh my-Turles-sama, what happened to you?"

"I think you should ask him those questions after you've healed him," Bulma remarked as she lead him to sit down on a nearby chair.

"Right. Uh, Would you mind helping him get into the regen tank?"

"Um. . .Okay." She returned to her previous position, an arm around him and shifting his weight upon her once again. After seeing him into what she supposed was this `regen tank', she left the room, feeling only the slightest bit of guilt for helping the enemy, but shrugging it off, since she knew she would feel even more guilt if she had left him to die from blood loss or infection.

After she had pushed those thoughts from her mind, she then continued her task to find Vegeta's room. Once there, she could make the switch-the tainted radar for her own. Then, when she had the real one in her hands, she could leave Vegeta-sei and return to her home.

`Are you really sure you want to do that, Bulma?'

Bulma shook her head. Of course she did! There was no chance that she would be able to stay. . .at least not after Vegeta found out that he would not be able to summon the dragon in order to make his wish. And when he did-

`-He'd turn over the universe to find you.'

Great. Just when she thought she had the answers, her mind has to be asking questions that she hadn't really thought of. Sure, Chi Chi had mentioned something to this extent to her earlier, but she didn't entirely mind it at the time. All of her attention had been focused on tending to her friend's happiness. But at the time, she didn't even realize that the same situation applied to her as well. Except that Chi Chi had fallen head over heels for Kakarrot, when Bulma had-well, she wasn't sure what she felt for Vegeta. It couldn't be love, it was a feeling within her that somehow made her waking thoughts turn to him and made all of her other thoughts flee her mind when the day ended. It was something, of that she was certain. But was she really ready to explore those feelings?

`Of course, you are, Bulma. It's only a matter of if you want to return to your family, or create one of your own here, with Vegeta-ou.'

Yeah right. She definitely couldn't see Vegeta as a father. Probably would kill the poor child in one of his training sessions. A family would most likely be out of the question with Vegeta. The only deciding question was if he loved her. If so, Bulma was fairly certain that she could be able to love him-

`-If you don't already.'

"Shut up!" She told her mind aloud. She wasn't going to get any thinking done if it kept conflicting with reason. . .especially if it was telling the truth. She might be able to figure this out later, when her nerves weren't on end. She wondered why she suddenly felt so jumpy. . .

"Talking to yourself, woman?"

Bulma turned her head to see Vegeta staring at her. Why did he have to have that cocky visage on his face all of the time? "Vegeta, what are you doing here?"

"This is my personal wing of the palace. I should be asking you that." He moved towards her.

Bulma felt the heat rise inside of her and forced it down. "But, if it's your personal wing, shouldn't it be well guarded?"

"Nothing would pose as a threat to me, not when I'm stronger than any other Saiyan on this planet. Now, why are you here?"

"I-I got lost. I ususally do some of my thinking in my room, but I wanted to find another place, since it seemed cramped in there today," she lied.

"Is that so?" Vegeta said, never ceasing his walking. "I figured you wanted a reprise of our actions earlier."

Something triggered a shiver within her body and she couldn't help letting it show. However, she wasn't going to allow him to get off that easily. "Why can't you be a little less arrogant?" she asked, trying to retreat into the hallway that she had came from. She couldn't deal with him until she was able to sort through her emotions. But Bulma knew that Vegeta was going to make it hard, since for every step she took back, he would take two forward.

"It's not arrogance when it is the truth," Vegeta said as he caught up, standing in front of her. His presence was making the hairs on the back of her neck bristle. She needed to get away, and fast. . .or else. . .

A hand snaked around her waist and pulled her forward, and Bulma knew then that she would be powerless to stop him at this point. Especially when it felt this good, the many feelings that were swirling around in her belly. Again, her mind wondered how he could force her to feel these wonderful things, and couldn't help but think about the things that she had to be invoking within his own being.

His mouth crashed against hers and then she realized that not only was he able to make her feel such amazing emotions, but he was also able to clear her mind, the mind that she had she staked so much pride in, almost as much of the Saiyan pride that possessed Vegeta. Why was destiny pulling her towards him? If this had been in the past, she would have cracked up at the idea of becoming involved with a man of his calibur, but now she couldn't deny it; the proof of which was dragging her towards his bedroom, the reason being that she allowed him to.

As the door closed behind him, she asked herself the one question that the answer was now becoming clear to her:

`Is this. . .love?'

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Turles closed his eyes as he felt his muscles relax, no longer feeling the sting of his wounds and bruises. Now he was more determined than ever to obtain Bulma. This growing obsession was breaking his sanity and it wouldn't end until he had her. She had to feel something for him if she had helped him today. Of that he was sure, and that glimmer of hope shone even more brightly inside of his mind.

The only problem would be Vegeta. How he was going to defeat him was going to be even harder, now that he had seen the extent of the king's power. The group was going to need to get even stronger, and that was something that would take even more time. He had a feeling that Limato wouldn't stand for that.

But the theory was simple: Kill or be killed.

Author's Note: *fanfare and trumpets in the background* Ha! Nine pages! The longest chapter (besides Ch 7) in the whole story! Anyway, now that I'm back, I fully intend to update every week-two weeks as I've done before.

Also, I've finally finished my website! After wow. . .about ten or so months, I've finished it! Well, perhaps I shouldn't get too excited, but after so long I have to be! Well, I'll see you guys later, and as always, I hope you review!