Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Obsession ❯ Ground Zero. ( Chapter 3 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: HeartlessChild 
Anime/Manga: Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst / Romance / Adventure | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 05.30.2004 | Pages: 8 | Words: 8.9K | Visits: 1.1K | Status: Completed
Anime/Manga: Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Angst / Romance / Adventure | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 05.30.2004 | Pages: 8 | Words: 8.9K | Visits: 1.1K | Status: Completed
~*~
The pain was incredible.
Bulma had never experienced anything so painful in her entire life, if she discounted her infected appendix. It hurt to inhale, it hurt to exhale... Gods, it hurt to just move at even a snail's pace.
Nevertheless, she continued to hobble out of the medical quadrant of the C.C mansion, clutching her right side as though it would split apart at any moment.
Although the pain she was experiencing was unlike any she had endured, her mind was still in shock. It was still numb from the harsh blow her ego had been dealt.
She had thought that she was helping the Saiyan Prince by keeping him tranquilized, but the end result had only further lowered Vegeta's character in her mind's eye. Prior to Vegeta's attack, she had shown him a side of herself that only a rare handful of people had seen. Her vulnerable, sweet, compassionate and kind side.
She had not wanted Vegeta to see her 'bitchy' side to its full extent. Sure enough she had given him little doses in their daily verbal battles, but other than that he had truly no notion of how her behavior would drastically change, given the certain circumstances.
It had been a miracle that Vegeta had seen a side of her that she would not dare to show anyone other than her close friends and relatives, but his presence had somehow brought about her acceptance of him into the Briefs' family and in turn causing her to show the woman beneath the 'bitchiness'.
Her eyes hardened as she continued to walk slowly, the sharp pain in her ribs being another reminder to her of her mistake. It would certainly be a cold day in hell before she allowed herself to be compassionate with him... Or behave in the way she had before this entire incident.
If not, Vegeta's attack on her only proved that he wasn't to be trusted. Because of this, she would not allow him to see the side of her that her friends would normally see.
She would put on a cold front, just the same as it was when dealing with other business executives thinking that they can buy C.C out of their stocks. It was the only way she wouldn't get hurt... Behaving like the ruthless business woman and scientist she was.
She frowned and stopped walking, once again sensing the hairs on the back of her neck prick up in an eerie sixth sense. She stiffened despite of the pain she was in, and looked around suspiciously. She shrugged and continued to walk.
Upon rounding the corner of the large C.C dome mansion, to the nearest elevator, she winced as her bruised rib contracted. She would make her way to her bedroom, knowing that by Kami's good grace there was a Senzu bean stashed in the bottom of her lingerie drawer.
Any ideas of work seemed to fly away from her mind as she implored ideas of her father substituting in her disappearance. He wouldn't mind if she took the day off. Just this once.
As different thoughts became apparent in her mind, she let a small sadistic smile play upon her lips, knowing what she exactly needed to do to get the cruel Prince off her mind.
~*~
The fuel for his confrontation with Bulma had all but died out the moment he watched her walk painfully slowly from the medical room. Instead he hovered after her, assuring himself that he was merely making certain she would reach her destination safely. The confrontation could wait for the evening.
He'd prefer to catch her in a dark setting, so as to ensure that none of his emotions would be on display when he spoke with her. He also had a feeling that she would not want to speak to him at that moment anyway... It would only result in both of their tempers flaring and he was certain that the consequences would be dire. And so he had calmed himself, surprisingly.
Unbeknownst to Bulma, Vegeta had been trailing behind her, watching and following her from a distance as she clutched her bruised ribs.
All of a sudden, she had stopped walking, standing like a statue in the middle of the hallway that had different rooms branching out from it. He stayed above her, hovering himself as she froze abruptly, holding his breath.
He almost sighed in relief as she continued to walk. It was odd that she could sense a presence through a sixth sense, and yet brush the idea away... If only she knew that Vegeta was indeed spying on her.
A sharp, stabbing sensation of guilt rushed through his spine and he felt his heart constrict each time he watched the delicate features of her face cinch up with a pain. Never in all his years of killing and murdering had Vegeta experienced such a reconstituted feeling of guilt... Was this part of the notion of being enthralled with another being? He refused to think it was love. After all, Saiyans did not fall in love.
There only love was for battle, and so it shall always remain.
Forcing down the additional thoughts he was having, he frowned as he saw a smile play upon her face... A smile he knew all to well. He had never seen her wear such a look of carnal animalism, and it made his blood rile to think that there was a deeper creature buried beneath her, one that somehow mirrored him in every way.
He already had caught glimpses of the fiery woman beneath the amiability she showed on the outside. It was then that he wondered just how much of the woman's spirit he had not witnessed.
He watched her step into the elevator, away from his sight. He was already thirsting to catch another glimpse of her, even if it pained him to see the damage he had caused upon her fragile figure. He sensed her ki move slowly to the second floor of the C.C mansion. Her own private floor, where her room resided.
Without thinking twice, he lowered himself to the ground and stepped into the elevator, following her decent to her private quarters.
~*~
Bulma stepped inside of her room, sighing with relief at the familiar and comforting surroundings. No matter how agitated she was, her entire room was the only thing that could make her feel better. That and her inventions.
Silently, she trudged towards her dressing table, swiftly opening one of the drawers and removing a small brown pouch. She dove her fingers into the opening and extracted a small, pill-shaped bean from the pouch. She smiled slightly, knowing that when she was fully healed physically, she could begin to heal herself mentally.
Popping the bean in her mouth, she chewed slowly, surprised that even her jaw ached as she chewed. It seemed that she had been tensing her jaw too tightly in her agitation.
The small bean snaked its way down her throat, leaving a sugary after taste in her mouth as she swallowed. She had always loved the taste of the Senzu beans that Korin harvested. She had never needed them, but one time when she was sixteen, the curiosity had been to over-whelming. And so in her stubbornness she had taken the bean, much to Korin's dismay.
Nothing had happened, because she wasn't injured but the taste had been delicious as she had eaten it and after that it seemed like she was hooked on the beans. She sweet, sugary after-taste was too much for Bulma to bear and she had insisted on paying Korin any amount for his entire stash of Senzu beans, knowing that they would be great comfort food when she was on her period.
Of course, Korin had politely refused and Bulma had thrown a tantrum, demanding that he hand over the beans. It was a good thing that Goku had been there to stop the head-on collision between the wise cat and the fiery blue-haired genius, otherwise there would have been hell to pay.
Luckily, Bulma had gotten over her cravings for Senzu beans and now saw her behavior towards Korin as childish and immature. But what could one expect from a sixteen year old teenager?
A warm glow spread through her body and Bulma smiled as she could now stand up straight, completely healed of her previous injuries. Thank Kami for Senzu beans! It was definitely one injury that Bulma did not want to keep... If would only be a painful reminder to her.
She snarled in frustration as her thoughts wandered back to the Saiyan Prince yet again! It was agitating her to no end that he would still be on her mind after the terrible act he had committed against her.
She shook her head and stormed over to her walk-in closet. Stepping into the closet, which could only be defined as a separate room for her clothes, she wandered through the various aisle ways that were stacked with dresses, shirts, skirts, T-shirts and pants. There was even a whole section of her room dedicated to the innumerable pairs of shoes she had acquired over the years of shopping for every known occasion!
Bulma thought back to the activity that she would partake in and instantly knew what to change into as her eyes landed on an ensemble that screamed feminine power.
Striding to the fifth aisle down in the room that was her supposed walk-in 'closet' she smirked as she pulled out a complete outfit that was hanging from the rack.
In a matter of minutes, she stood before the full-length mirror in her room, examining her new look with pride and modesty. The tight black leather trousers accentuated her curved hips perfectly, whilst the modest and clingy white T-shirt stuck to her like second skin. Emblazoned across the chest of the T-shirt was a sparkling and glittered red dragon, her favorite mystical creature.
She slipped into a pair of four inch black stiletto ankle boots, creating the effect of height in her favor. Bulma was by no means short, but she wasn't tall either and to have the added boost gave her the confidence to take on the world.
Looking at the dial of her watch, she strutted over to the chair at her dressing table and quickly slipped the tight black leather jacket on. She zipped it up just under her chest, knowing she had purposely bought it one size smaller for the very purpose of showing off her designed T-shirts and accentuated bust.
It was one of the many outfits she possessed that made her feel empowered. It made her feel as though she did not need any man to take care of her because at heart, Bulma was a true feminist. Taking one final glance in the mirror, she primped her already crimped hair and made certain her black smoky eyeliner had not smudged.
She felt ready to kick some ass. I am woman, hear me roar... Bulma almost giggled and straight away she knew it was a wonderful idea for her to take the rest of the day off. Pushy, rude and arrogant Saiyan Princes be damned, Bulma was out in full force without a care in the world!
Hooking her pager to her waist, she walked to her doorway and pressed the camouflaged panel in the wall, beside the light switch. The wall opposite the door slid open, revealing shelves and shelves of accessories. She walked to the open wall and without blinking, grabbed the shiny black motorbike helmet with a small red dragon imprinted on the side.
Terrible encounters with Vegeta aside, she looked and felt great. The rain that was pelting on her window was not enough to keep her from her ride on the newest bike she had purchased the other day. Besides, she loved the rain and it thrilled her to ride her two-wheeled motorbike in such dangerous situations...
It was then that Bulma's smirk faded as she realized that none of her close friends knew about her wild escapades in her private time. They all believed her to be a dull genius that happened to have an intense fiery temper... They would never believe her if she told them about her wild rampages around town, never believe that she enjoyed the dangerous situations that she was presented with.
It would be too much for them to handle, because they saw her as a loud, fashionable and shallow genius, who could also be caring and kind and sweet at moments when it was right. But none of them knew of the dangerous woman that lay beneath that shell...
Not even Vegeta.
And for that, Bulma was glad. Perhaps it was one of the many reasons she had been attracted to 'bad boys'. It was nice to have some things to keep to herself, even if at times she grew saddened by the fact that no one, not even her true friends, knew the real Bulma Briefs.
In bitter yet determined spirits, she exited the room, clutching the shiny black helmet under her arm.
~*~
Vegeta had been waiting outside of her room for nearly half an hour in anticipation, waiting for her to emerge. About fifteen minutes through the wait, he had gathered the courage to actually confront her about his actions in the medical room. But after another fifteen minutes of waiting, the nerve she had gathered had been dashed to nothing.
It was slowly driving him insane, bit by bit. He had never been forced to wait for anything in his life and the idea of him waiting was absolutely absurd! He should have just stormed into her room and demanded an explanation for her coldness... But even he knew when he grew too delusion with false hope that she would even consider talking to him. Especially after hurting her like he had.
So after waiting what seemed like an eternity, which was only thirty minutes, he sneered in frustration from his hovering position against the ceiling.
But just as he was about to lower himself from the ceiling, he was surprised to find Bulma had wrenched her door open and was now striding out like a woman on a mission.
He gaped at what he saw.
What is Gods name was she wearing and where was she going dressed like that?!
He took into account that she seemed fully healed from the injury he had caused her.
His mouth hung open, but much to his relief he did not find himself salivating at the sight of her. Never in his entire time on the planet had he seen the woman don such an ensemble, and it was excruciatingly painful to admit that she looked above and beyond delectable.
It was almost as though she were rebelling against any conformist ideas by wearing pants that hugged her curvy hips and a tight jacket that left nothing to imagination. From the angle he was hovering, he could distinctly make out a red and glistening pattern that was peeking out from the T-shirt that was underneath the jacket that zipped up halfway.
Focusing his Saiyan vision, he was mildly amused to see the mythical dragon creature emblazoned across the chest of her T-shirt, drawing attention to her...
His heart pumped the blood around his body at a wild pace as a rush of desire engulfed him, much to his own embarrassment. Only moments ago, he had accused the woman of purposely trying to hold his strength back and yet here he was now engulfed in his rising desire for the woman.
What was wrong with him?! He growled at that moment, disgusted with himself for the feelings she was incurring within him. It was not proper for a Prince of his standard to be so enamored with a weakling woman from a back-water planer...
A beautiful weakling woman, from a beautiful and cultured planet... He snarled quietly to himself, thinking that she had somehow cast a spell upon him to make him act and think like a dolt.
As he grew more focused, he noticed the black and glistening object she was carrying under her right arm. Frowning, he looked closer to find that it was an infernal contraption that humans called a 'helmet'.
Shaking his head in shock, he watched her round the corner of the domed mansion and enter an elevator. As she entered the elevator, he watched the pointer above the door flash down and instantly knew that she was leaving the compound.
He knew without a doubt that he was going to follow her... Just to be certain she wouldn't get herself into any trouble. After all, one could only expect trouble when dressed like THAT. He lowered himself to the ground and made his way down the hallway, to the spiral staircase that led to the ground floor of the mansion, knowing that even at the speed of the elevator, he would reach the ground floor before her.
~*~
Bulma sighed as she fingered the small capsule pouch that was attached to her thick, steel ringed belt. She left the mansion through the front doors, knowing her mother would not appreciate it if she rode her bike through the back garden that was filled with many rare and prized flowers.
Stepping onto the gravel path of the driveway, she looked about her front porch and made certain that no employees were on the grounds to observe her departure on her newly created and highly expensive motorcycle. She raised her arm and was about to press the small button at the curving head of the capsule when her pager started to beep urgently.
Bulma groaned and lowered her arm, slipping the capsule into the pocket of her jacket. She lifted out her pager from its confines as it was attached to her hip and flipped up the lid, scowling as she read the words that were marked in electronic capital letters.
'911-ASSITANCE NEEDED IMMEDIATELY IN LABORATORY GROUND ZERO'
Bulma had an inkling of what the emergency might be about. Her father had been discussing certain things with her these past few days to make even someone with a steady mind such as Bulma's, wince from the revelation.
She growled, snapping the pager shut and hooked it back into its holder around her waist. Another free day perfectly ruined! She turned on her pointed heel and once again entered the mansion through the front door, amazed to find herself standing nose to nose with the Saiyan Prince.
Covering her surprise, she stared up and down at his cocky stance. Not bothering to even attempt a conversation with him, she walked around him as he blocked her path.
A moment later, Bulma felt icy fingers grasp her upper arm and she was immediately halted from moving forward. She turned around silently and narrowed her eyes at him, internally shocked to see apprehension dancing in the cold ebony eyes of the prince.
Vegeta froze as he grabbed her arm, never in all his time of Earth had he seen her deliver such a heart crushing glare. He was pleasantly surprised by the turn of her personality and he found it a welcome change to her concern for him. Although, the turn in her personality meant that he desired her even more than he had before... Almost to the point of pain.
It was as he stared into her icy blue depths that he realized she was waiting for him to speak. He snarled before speaking, "Where do you think you're going, dressed like that?" Vegeta said thickly. He cringed inwardly at the choice of his words. He did not mean for them to come out as though he were a jealous fool, when in fact he couldn't care less about where she went... Or did he?
Bulma wanted to laugh at his odd behavior, but she was still a long way away from forgiving him and so she drew her lips back into a sneer that could rival Vegeta's. "Get your murdering hand off my arm this instant," she hissed as her eyes laced their way to lock with his.
Never in all her life had Bulma mustered up so much venom in her voice and she was secretly pleased with her acting skills. Inside, she wanted to curl away from his touch and hide in her room for the way he gripped her arm. But she would not do that. She was Bulma Briefs, strong and independent.
She almost regretted her words as she saw the intense expression on his face falter for the briefest second. To the untrained eye, Vegeta would have seemed no different than he had been five minutes ago, but to Bulma she could see that her words had affected and cut him far more deeper than he was willing to admit.
A shimmer of hope lanced its way into her heart. Could he truly be sorry for hurting her? But the hope vanished as he sneered back.
"I asked you a question woman!" He growled back, not ready to admit to her that he was wrong to hurt her. The words she had spoken to him hurt immensely, yet he had never felt more fueled with desire for her in his entire life. This was certainly a different woman from the one he had hurt in the medical room. He stared into her eyes, refusing to back down as she looked at him fearlessly.
Bulma refused to speak, and so a silent stand off ensued.
A bleeping noise interrupted their little staring match and Bulma reluctantly lowered her eyes, lifting up the pager with her free hand. Reading the message, she rolled her eyes and looked back up into his eyes.
She was inwardly surprised to find him still slightly taller than her, even in her ears. Vegeta was probably short for Saiyan standards, since Goku was immensely tall, but for human standards, he was way above average in height. Her thoughts wandered back to the first time she had seen him on Namek, he had seemed much smaller then.
Perhaps Saiyans grew the more they trained and more they ate food with nutrition. Shaking herself out of her little daydream, she looked at him resolutely. "Look, let me go Vegeta."
"We must speak of what occurred in the medical room," it pained him to say it out loud, but it had to be done. He had to let her know it was unintentional.
At that moment, Bulma didn't care. She didn't care about him or the strange expression that lit up his face when he stared at her. She struggled futilely in his grip, "LET GO!" She shrieked at the top of her lungs. After a few more moments of struggling, she saw that he was clearly not amused by her tantrum and certainly not phased by it either.
Huffing from the exertion, she gave up struggling and rolled her eyes. "Fine, keep your filthy hand on me, but at least let me walk to my lab!" She did not care for his childish behavior at present. Her eyes widened at what she had just said. It was then that she realized that she was about to show Vegeta the biggest secret of her life...
But if the problem had something to do with what she thought it was, then she would certainly need some expert help. After all, he was the only one amongst the Z Senshi that knew of space and the universe. She was now needed urgently in the secret lab beneath the C.C mansion, where two hundred thousand employees were working for her and her father, in secrecy.
Unbeknownst to the rest of the population in Satan City and her friends, Bulma and her father had kept their 'Ground Zero' laboratory a private institute, demanding secrecy from all their employees who worked there. 'Ground Zero' was practically an entire embodiment of a city underneath Satan City itself... And no one knew.
'Ground Zero' was the main base of the Capsule Corporation Empire and it was in this city of laboratories, computers and chemicals that her and her father conducted the testing for all their private inventions and deadly experiments.
They had kept a decoy laboratory on the upper grounds of C.C itself, but it was modestly small compared to the city beneath her feet at present. They needed a decoy to ward off any prying eyes that may come to steal or copy C.C's private designs in capsule manufacturing and space technology.
If she showed Vegeta the underground city of various labs and tunnels... Would he keep her secret? Could she trust him? For he had given her innumerable reasons not to trust him.
On the inside, Bulma was actually dying to talk about 'Ground Zero' with anyone other than the employees that worked there.
Vegeta frowned at the strange pallor of her face, "If you wanted to go to your lab, woman, it is outside and not in here. Do you take me for a fool?"
Bulma had to chuckle inwardly, "Actually, yes. You have no idea what you're dealing with, Prince Vegeta." She replied calmly, not phased by the red hue his face was taking a liking to.
"Do not patronize me." He snapped, suddenly fearful of the cold tone of her voice "What-?"
Bulma beat him to the punch, "Vegeta..." She trailed off, whispering as she looked up demurely into his eyes. "Follow me, murderer." She couldn't help but add in a taunting manner.
Vegeta released his hand from her arm unwillingly as she breathed his name. Only in dreams had he heard her voice his name like that! It had felt so good to hold her, even though he could not feel her flesh. Just having the notion of touching her was enough to drive him insane with and blind. But the confusion he felt from her underlying messages was enough to alleviate his curiosity and so he had let her go.
Bulma glared at him, "Stop staring at me!" She cried, annoyed to no end as she turned and began to walk away from the Saiyan, keeping note that he trailed behind her in curiosity. As she looked ahead of her, a cruel little smirk wound its way onto her lips, knowing full well that it was curiosity that would kill the Saiyan.
Vegeta scowled harshly at her back, crossing his arms as he strode behind her. In normal circumstances, he would have walked ahead of her, but he did not know where she was leading him and so resolved to stay behind her. His eyes traveled down the luxurious and seemingly dangerous curves of her body as her hips swayed in a hypnotic gesture that had him entranced in mere seconds.
He snapped his eyes and barely stopped himself from shaking his head. He would not be weakened by her feminine enticements! He would have to watch himself around her, otherwise he knew that all would be lost if he showed his weakness. He had already bared too much to her by gripping her arm in the growing urgency he felt for her to forgive him.
Focusing on the task at hand, his curiosity seemed to grow as she led him into the kitchen. SO immersed in thought was he, that he did not notice that she had stopped walking and found himself barreling into her from behind. He allowed his eyes to rove her smooth and creamy cheeks as she had now turned to face him.
Vegeta frowned, "If you think that you can make me forget by feeding-" Instantly he felt a hot index finger push against his lips and he almost fell back in surprise at the feeling of her tender flesh against his moist lips.
Bulma wanted to howl with laughter as she saw his face turn several different shades as she pressed her finger further into her lips. She tilted her head, refusing to move her finger lest he speak, "Did I ever tell you, you talk too much?" She shook her head, a sneering smile curling at her lips, "Don't answer that. Just keep quiet and follow me Vegeta, if you truly want to see this."
He frowned again, yet found himself speaking against her finger, "Why are you even bothering to show me anything after..." He trailed off in uncertainty. There. He had mentioned what he had done in the medical room.
His heart seemed to flutter in a moment of hope as he saw her cold blue eyes soften minutely. At that moment, he wanted to reach out and crush her to him at just feeling the nearness of her body and... Gods that facial expression!
Bulma shivered at the close proximity of their bodies. It was only then that she realized what he was speaking about and hidden deep beneath his ebony stone eyes, she could see a crack of remorse there.
The lines around her eyes softened slightly, before she frowned again. "We'll discuss that later. I'm not one to get emotional feelings caught up with business." She drew her finger back and felt slightly light-headed as she could feel the damp moisture of his lips on her finger.
He was taken aback with the comment. Business? What was this goddess of a woman talking about? Never had he been so confused! He had never seen her behave in such an odd manner, not even with her prior worm-like mate.
Yet here she was, behaving like this self-controlled dominatrix of a woman... Perhaps this was what she was like behind the stupefied exterior she showed her friends and ex-mate? Vegeta grunted and unconsciously took a step back as he watched her turn around and go through a door, on the far side of the interior decorated kitchen, that he knew led to the basement.
Why was she going down into her basement? Did she keep hidden treasures there?
Bulma turned at the doorway that led to their 'basement'. She turned as she noticed that the Saiyan Prince wasn't following. "Coming?" She asked in a bored tone, as if she could not care less.
Vegeta snapped back to attention and muttered obscenities under his breath as he walked towards her still form in the doorway that led to the basement.
Bulma waited for him to near before she turned around and descended the stairs down into the 'basement'.
They entered the dimly lit room quietly, each one immersed in their own thoughts.
Vegeta scowled at the musky smell of the basement. With his sensitive nasal capacity, it was intoxicating in all the wrong ways. He was about to speak out again when he watched the woman walk to the corner of the room and move a few card board boxes away from the corner she was standing in.
She gestured for him to come and stand by her and he did so silently, wondering what the hell he was getting himself into. He knew that it would be nothing good if they were standing together, but with his mind screaming every protest and insult at his current situation, Vegeta stood by her quietly as he contemplated the consequences of his uncharacteristic behavior.
Once he was at her side Bulma sent him a sideways glance that constituted of a smile and smirk at his wary behavior. He was acting as though she were a plague! Shrugging to herself, she kicked away the final box that was pressed against the wall, to reveal a computerized numeric panel.
The new development had intrigued Vegeta considerably. Somehow, he knew not to underestimate the fragile human female. He was certain that if she put her mind to it, she would have been able to conquer the universe single- handedly with her charm and colorful inventions. She would most likely have every planet wrapped tightly around her little finger. He gazed down into her eager blue eyes as hey searched his face for some sort of reaction. He was intrigued, but he was yet to be impressed.
Bulma rolled her eyes at his masochistic calm composure. She was about to wipe that calm look on his face, she thought to herself gleefully. Crouching down beside the wall, she punched in a long and numerate code, that only related to her, one that only knew and would take to her dying grave.
Even with his trained fighting eye, he surprised by how fast her fingers flew across the numerate and glowing panel. He had barely any time to memorize the numbers she punched in with her experienced fingers.
As he stood beside her crouched form, the panel of wood flooring they had been standing over seemed to shift slightly. What made him completely speechless was the fact the Bulma was now standing, pressed up against him with her feet placed upon his. As he supported her full weight on his feet, his breathing grew labored at the sensation of her body pressed into his. Suddenly, he lost his footing for a brief second and was surprised by what was going on as the square foot of flooring that he stood on detached itself from the rest of the floor!
Bulma grinned at his reaction as the part of the floor on which he stood broke away from the rest of the floor and hovered above the rest of the wooden floor of the basement, "Surprising huh?" She whispered quietly into his ear, pressing herself further into his body.
If Bulma didn't know any better, she would say that she was flirting with the man that had just attacked her previously! :You haven't seen anything yet!" She said, chuckling as the square wood section of flooring that Vegeta was standing on dipped and hovered a few feet above the ground.
Vegeta had barely any time to figure out what was going on. "What is it wizardry?" He demanded in a raspy voice as she clung to him tightly. He was afraid that he wouldn't be able to hold himself back from capturing her venomous crimson lips as he stood there like a statue whilst she pressed her body into his.
Bulma noticed his uncomfortable state as she looked down to find his fists clenching involuntarily. She knew she had some sort of effect on the Prince, but never knew that it was this strong! "Sorry," she murmured, capturing his attention once more. "The hovercraft fixed into the floor was only meant for one person and that's me." Bulma grabbed his arms and put them around her waist, before continuing.
"This is the only way we can go down together, and I'm afraid it's going to be a tight squeeze. I would let you come down by yourself, but there are many parts you of the hovercraft you wouldn't be able to function because it's only programmed to react to my voice and my essence." She wanted to laugh loudly at his almost horrified expression as his hands came round her waist, as if it was a completely new experience to him.
She secretly wondered how this man could have been the same one that had attacked her... Could it be that Vegeta had different undertones to himself as she? She had no clue as to why she was being so amiable with him all of a sudden...
Wasn't she supposed to hate him for what he did? But as she stared into his amazed and wide eyes, she knew she couldn't stay angry at him for long. He was still very much new to the planet and the compassionate ways in which humans acted, and therefor had acted out in his own defense.
Although it still pained her that he still could not trust her enough... Perhaps she could change all of that. Bulma smiled inwardly. It seemed like a much better plan than her previous ideals of behaving coldly towards him.
But secretly, she enjoyed his surprised and awed reactions to her coldness. It was like he couldn't believe that the cold Bulma was the same one that had tended to him and his injuries out of compassion and yet he enjoyed every minute of her coldness and cruelty of her harsh words, because he could relate to the coldness and cruelty himself...
It was the only thing he could relate to and she understood that now. She understood that to speak his language, she had to be a cold and calculating bitch like she was with her business. Vegeta was certainly in for the surprise of his life!
She shifted her weight slightly as she stood on his strong Saiyan feet. Wondering how on Earth she had managed to get herself in such a complicated situation as this. She wasn't mean to show him the secret city of labs known as 'Ground Zero'... She wasn't meant to feel such things for him!
Bulma blinked as soft beeping occurred all around them.
Vegeta didn't know what to say as Bulma stepped into him. It was as if he had just stepped out of the realm of reality and entered a different era and completely different zone than what he was previously in!
He had almost trembled at the feel of her in his arms, but his warrior disciplinary scolded such cowardly behavior around women, especially her. He would not turn into a puddle every time he was around her dammit! He looked around as the room echoed with soft but urgent beeping sounds.
Then, Bulma realized why it was happening, it was a security measurement to ward off genetically unknown creatures... Her eyes grew, Vegeta! The flat hovercraft that had previously been apart of the floor did not recognize Vegeta's footprints! Bulma groaned at her stupidity and for letting herself get caught up in the moment.
"What is that infernal noise?" He barked, as it grew louder and louder. What was Bulma trying to do, deafen him?! He had certainly not bargained for this and was about to push her away from him, when she shouted over the roaring beeps that echoed around them.
"It's a security measurement!" She all but screamed, pressing her cheek against his as she shouted over the beeps that had now turned into a steady siren. Bulma lifted her foot from Vegeta's and touched the tip of her toe to the edge of the hovercraft. She would have spoken out, but she was certain that Kin would not be able to make out her voice through the sirens.
The noise immediately stopped and a computerized voice now filled the room.
"Good morning Lady Briefs."
"Good morning Kin." Bulma replied steadily, her ears still ringing from the sirens.
Vegeta stared at her, dumbfounded that she was interacting with an invisible computer's voice! He wisely remained quiet, fully aware of her body still pressed against his. He restrained his needs as he listened to the conversation taking place between the computerized voice and Bulma.
"Lady Briefs, an unidentified object and/or person has entered the field near the entrance of 'Ground Zero'. Kin is confused as to why an unauthorized personnel is amongst your presence." The male voice of the computer grew utterly confused by what was going on. The hovercraft was only meant for one being and yet there were two standing on it!
Bulma chuckled at the confusion of her private computer's male voice. "Don't worry Kin... WE have a new employee in our midst." She looked up at Vegeta, winking.
At that point, Vegeta almost definitely threw her away from him. He was no one's employee! He knew what it meant when he was employed by Frieza and the hounds of hell would have to find him before he would become one again! But as he looked angrily into Bulma's eyes, he could see the teasing light in her eyes and immediately calmed down. He would have to learn how to control his temper and not let silly comments get to him.
The voice spoke again, this time with a strange sigh. "Very well Lady Briefs, if you insist. Your father has been trying to contact you for fifteen minutes now. Should I alert him that you are on your way?"
"Yes please, Kin. And could you please tell him that I am bringing down Vegeta with me." She wobbled slightly as the hovercraft lurched minutely, only to find Vegeta's arms strangely tighten around her to ensure that she didn't fall off the edge of the hovercraft that still amazingly looked like the piece of the basement floor.
Kin seemed to sigh again, as he, or whatever it was in Vegeta's opinion, spoke. "Affirmative... Message has been relayed. Hovercraft will now be transmitted to 'Ground Zero' entry tunnel-way."
Vegeta felt his stomach turn inside out and he slowly closed his eyes at the strange waves of sensation running through his body. When the odd feeling left the pit of his stomach, he opened his eyes and looked around, astounded by where he was.
They had disappeared and reappeared from the basement into the end of an extremely long and thin passageway. And it was all coated in a shining white paint that seemed to glisten! It all seemed very sterile to Vegeta and he suddenly felt extremely uncomfortable in his gray sweat pants and bandaged upper torso.
He had forgotten to remove them in all the excitement, he thought to himself wryly. He felt Bulma pull away from his body and instantly he felt a longing need to reach out and have her in his arms again. But he held still as she pulled away from him. He refused to speak, lest his voice crack with the utter shock he was feeling at that moment.
Bulma smiled slightly as Vegeta was forced into a silent shock. It was highly refreshing for her to witness such an experience, and now she would finally get to share this secret with someone other than her father or the employees of 'Ground Zero'.
She cleared her throat, knowing that Vegeta wanted answers as to exactly where they were. She pointed up as she spoke, "We are under the C.C mansion right now, in a tunnel that leads all the way to 'Ground Zero' where the main control room is."
Vegeta looked up and saw the tiniest black square in the high and narrow ceiling above them. His eyes widened, and he couldn't help but speak. "You mean to tell me that we came all the way down here, from your basement, which is that tiny black square and fifty feet high above our heads at this very moment? In a matter of seconds?!" His voice was incredulous yet the amazement could not be hidden.
Bulma nodded. She was about to reply, when another urgent beeping from her pager came. She looked at the message on it and growled, "Shit, we better get going. It looks like things are starting to heat up in the control room of 'Ground Zero'!" She pulled Vegeta off the hovercraft, that still looked like a piece of square wood flooring from the basement. Vegeta watched as it phased from its position and vanish into thin air.
His intelligence told him to look up, and sure enough, the tiny black square they had come through had been filled by the square hovercraft, and it looked as though no square black hole had been there at all. It simply looked like an immaculate white ceiling. He glanced nervously back at the floor, suddenly feeling strangely claustrophobic. He had been in enclosed spaces before, but never one such as this.
Bulma saw his agitation and tried to calm him, "It's ok, we can get back out. Don't worry."
"I'm not worried!" He snapped back, scowling.
Bulma stared at him for a moment as though he were Satan himself and then turned around quickly, walking at a fast pace down the white and elongated hallway, her blue hair swirling behind her.
Vegeta merely followed, keeping up with her fast pace. She could walk fast for a human, but he could walk faster. He noted that she was still carrying the confounded helmet under her right arm. Where had she been going with that thing anyway?
He was deep in thought as he followed behind her closely, picking up her fragrant scent every other second.
After walking silently down a bland white hallway for five minutes, Vegeta finally exploded. "Where in the blazes are you taking me, woman! Did your stupid race create a playground full of idiotic toys?! If so then I have no desire to see what you weaklings have kept secret from me!" He stopped in his tracks, refusing to go any further. He admitted that he was slightly hurt that Bulma had never told him about any of this before.
It was in a sudden epiphany that he realized that the hallway had somehow widened from it's narrow beginning, he could faintly make out a wide white wall in front of Bulma, as if it were camouflaged into the hallway.
Any other idiot walking down the hallway, most likely Kakarott, would have bashed head-first into the wall. Of course, Vegeta saw himself as far superior that Kakarott in intellect and therefore had seen the outline of the wall.
Bulma whirled around at his comment, anger evident in her eyes. "Listen here Vegeta! What I am about to show you history in the making." Her voice held such poison and assertiveness in it that Vegeta wanted to take her there and then. She continued speaking, ignoring his strange look, "What you are about to witness is a revolution, designed and produced by the human species itself. You may think all humans are tree hugging species that we all have fuzzy feelings."
She stepped closer to him, her mouth drawn in a snarl, "Well I'm about to let your narrow mind in on a little secret," Bulma took a deep breath and lowered her voice to a venomous whisper, "Not all of us are like Goku. It's true that we are compassionate and kind when we see fit, but in other circumstances we are a proud, ruthless and cunning race. We are the type of people you Saiyans would jump over to associate with."
Vegeta was shocked by her cold voice and he found that he couldn't speak.
"The people that you have associated with," she spoke with a bored tone, "Are nothing. They are country bumpkins in comparison to myself. They know nothing of what I have created with my father, nor will they know what I create in the future! This is a whole world that is far beyond them and you. Consider yourself lucky to associate with this side of me, because only a select few get to see me at my bitchiest." She raised her eyebrow mockingly and brought her arm up with her palm raised.
Vegeta had to admit that she had guts. No one had ever spoken to him in such a cold and vile manner... And if he was honest, he would say that he enjoyed it coming from her. It was invigorating to see and hear that not all humans were like Kakarott and his bunch of moronic friends.
But if humans weren't like that, then what were they really like? He watched as her arm moved to the right and slammed into one of the parallel walls.
Vegeta thought she was going to break her hand, but it was at that moment that he saw her hand push into a blue jelly-like mold. A green light moved up and down, as if scanning her hand.
He then watched with interest as the blue mold disappeared and be replaced by a square patch of plastic indigo.
Tilting his head, he carefully watch Bulma press her face up to the wall, her eyes hovering above the indigo patch. Another green light moved up and down as if scanning her eye. Did she want to go blind?!
Next, the patch disappeared and in its placed came a numerate panel, like the one in the basement. He observed her punching in various codes and allowed his Saiyan memory to store the exact codes she dialed in.
Another voice echoed in the hallway as it spoke, "You are verified to enter, Lady Briefs."
Bulma turned to him with a smug expression. She stood in front of the dead end of the hallway they had walked down and spread her arms out in a bird- like fashion, with her palms facing him.
Her voice did not waver as she gazed him directly in the eye, the proud smug look never leaving her face, "Welcome, Prince Vegeta, to the REAL world!"
The entire wall behind her slid open in a 'whoosh' of air, too fast for Vegeta to see. And then, she smirked the most wicked smirk Vegeta had ever seen.
He was momentarily blinded from the bright light assaulting his vision, but it soon passed and then he found himself staring at the massive structure behind Bulma.
For the first time in his life, Vegeta made a strangled cry of utter shock and humiliation.
He had never seen anything like it before, not even on his travels with Frieza.
It was...
Simply spectacular.
~*~
The pain was incredible.
Bulma had never experienced anything so painful in her entire life, if she discounted her infected appendix. It hurt to inhale, it hurt to exhale... Gods, it hurt to just move at even a snail's pace.
Nevertheless, she continued to hobble out of the medical quadrant of the C.C mansion, clutching her right side as though it would split apart at any moment.
Although the pain she was experiencing was unlike any she had endured, her mind was still in shock. It was still numb from the harsh blow her ego had been dealt.
She had thought that she was helping the Saiyan Prince by keeping him tranquilized, but the end result had only further lowered Vegeta's character in her mind's eye. Prior to Vegeta's attack, she had shown him a side of herself that only a rare handful of people had seen. Her vulnerable, sweet, compassionate and kind side.
She had not wanted Vegeta to see her 'bitchy' side to its full extent. Sure enough she had given him little doses in their daily verbal battles, but other than that he had truly no notion of how her behavior would drastically change, given the certain circumstances.
It had been a miracle that Vegeta had seen a side of her that she would not dare to show anyone other than her close friends and relatives, but his presence had somehow brought about her acceptance of him into the Briefs' family and in turn causing her to show the woman beneath the 'bitchiness'.
Her eyes hardened as she continued to walk slowly, the sharp pain in her ribs being another reminder to her of her mistake. It would certainly be a cold day in hell before she allowed herself to be compassionate with him... Or behave in the way she had before this entire incident.
If not, Vegeta's attack on her only proved that he wasn't to be trusted. Because of this, she would not allow him to see the side of her that her friends would normally see.
She would put on a cold front, just the same as it was when dealing with other business executives thinking that they can buy C.C out of their stocks. It was the only way she wouldn't get hurt... Behaving like the ruthless business woman and scientist she was.
She frowned and stopped walking, once again sensing the hairs on the back of her neck prick up in an eerie sixth sense. She stiffened despite of the pain she was in, and looked around suspiciously. She shrugged and continued to walk.
Upon rounding the corner of the large C.C dome mansion, to the nearest elevator, she winced as her bruised rib contracted. She would make her way to her bedroom, knowing that by Kami's good grace there was a Senzu bean stashed in the bottom of her lingerie drawer.
Any ideas of work seemed to fly away from her mind as she implored ideas of her father substituting in her disappearance. He wouldn't mind if she took the day off. Just this once.
As different thoughts became apparent in her mind, she let a small sadistic smile play upon her lips, knowing what she exactly needed to do to get the cruel Prince off her mind.
~*~
The fuel for his confrontation with Bulma had all but died out the moment he watched her walk painfully slowly from the medical room. Instead he hovered after her, assuring himself that he was merely making certain she would reach her destination safely. The confrontation could wait for the evening.
He'd prefer to catch her in a dark setting, so as to ensure that none of his emotions would be on display when he spoke with her. He also had a feeling that she would not want to speak to him at that moment anyway... It would only result in both of their tempers flaring and he was certain that the consequences would be dire. And so he had calmed himself, surprisingly.
Unbeknownst to Bulma, Vegeta had been trailing behind her, watching and following her from a distance as she clutched her bruised ribs.
All of a sudden, she had stopped walking, standing like a statue in the middle of the hallway that had different rooms branching out from it. He stayed above her, hovering himself as she froze abruptly, holding his breath.
He almost sighed in relief as she continued to walk. It was odd that she could sense a presence through a sixth sense, and yet brush the idea away... If only she knew that Vegeta was indeed spying on her.
A sharp, stabbing sensation of guilt rushed through his spine and he felt his heart constrict each time he watched the delicate features of her face cinch up with a pain. Never in all his years of killing and murdering had Vegeta experienced such a reconstituted feeling of guilt... Was this part of the notion of being enthralled with another being? He refused to think it was love. After all, Saiyans did not fall in love.
There only love was for battle, and so it shall always remain.
Forcing down the additional thoughts he was having, he frowned as he saw a smile play upon her face... A smile he knew all to well. He had never seen her wear such a look of carnal animalism, and it made his blood rile to think that there was a deeper creature buried beneath her, one that somehow mirrored him in every way.
He already had caught glimpses of the fiery woman beneath the amiability she showed on the outside. It was then that he wondered just how much of the woman's spirit he had not witnessed.
He watched her step into the elevator, away from his sight. He was already thirsting to catch another glimpse of her, even if it pained him to see the damage he had caused upon her fragile figure. He sensed her ki move slowly to the second floor of the C.C mansion. Her own private floor, where her room resided.
Without thinking twice, he lowered himself to the ground and stepped into the elevator, following her decent to her private quarters.
~*~
Bulma stepped inside of her room, sighing with relief at the familiar and comforting surroundings. No matter how agitated she was, her entire room was the only thing that could make her feel better. That and her inventions.
Silently, she trudged towards her dressing table, swiftly opening one of the drawers and removing a small brown pouch. She dove her fingers into the opening and extracted a small, pill-shaped bean from the pouch. She smiled slightly, knowing that when she was fully healed physically, she could begin to heal herself mentally.
Popping the bean in her mouth, she chewed slowly, surprised that even her jaw ached as she chewed. It seemed that she had been tensing her jaw too tightly in her agitation.
The small bean snaked its way down her throat, leaving a sugary after taste in her mouth as she swallowed. She had always loved the taste of the Senzu beans that Korin harvested. She had never needed them, but one time when she was sixteen, the curiosity had been to over-whelming. And so in her stubbornness she had taken the bean, much to Korin's dismay.
Nothing had happened, because she wasn't injured but the taste had been delicious as she had eaten it and after that it seemed like she was hooked on the beans. She sweet, sugary after-taste was too much for Bulma to bear and she had insisted on paying Korin any amount for his entire stash of Senzu beans, knowing that they would be great comfort food when she was on her period.
Of course, Korin had politely refused and Bulma had thrown a tantrum, demanding that he hand over the beans. It was a good thing that Goku had been there to stop the head-on collision between the wise cat and the fiery blue-haired genius, otherwise there would have been hell to pay.
Luckily, Bulma had gotten over her cravings for Senzu beans and now saw her behavior towards Korin as childish and immature. But what could one expect from a sixteen year old teenager?
A warm glow spread through her body and Bulma smiled as she could now stand up straight, completely healed of her previous injuries. Thank Kami for Senzu beans! It was definitely one injury that Bulma did not want to keep... If would only be a painful reminder to her.
She snarled in frustration as her thoughts wandered back to the Saiyan Prince yet again! It was agitating her to no end that he would still be on her mind after the terrible act he had committed against her.
She shook her head and stormed over to her walk-in closet. Stepping into the closet, which could only be defined as a separate room for her clothes, she wandered through the various aisle ways that were stacked with dresses, shirts, skirts, T-shirts and pants. There was even a whole section of her room dedicated to the innumerable pairs of shoes she had acquired over the years of shopping for every known occasion!
Bulma thought back to the activity that she would partake in and instantly knew what to change into as her eyes landed on an ensemble that screamed feminine power.
Striding to the fifth aisle down in the room that was her supposed walk-in 'closet' she smirked as she pulled out a complete outfit that was hanging from the rack.
In a matter of minutes, she stood before the full-length mirror in her room, examining her new look with pride and modesty. The tight black leather trousers accentuated her curved hips perfectly, whilst the modest and clingy white T-shirt stuck to her like second skin. Emblazoned across the chest of the T-shirt was a sparkling and glittered red dragon, her favorite mystical creature.
She slipped into a pair of four inch black stiletto ankle boots, creating the effect of height in her favor. Bulma was by no means short, but she wasn't tall either and to have the added boost gave her the confidence to take on the world.
Looking at the dial of her watch, she strutted over to the chair at her dressing table and quickly slipped the tight black leather jacket on. She zipped it up just under her chest, knowing she had purposely bought it one size smaller for the very purpose of showing off her designed T-shirts and accentuated bust.
It was one of the many outfits she possessed that made her feel empowered. It made her feel as though she did not need any man to take care of her because at heart, Bulma was a true feminist. Taking one final glance in the mirror, she primped her already crimped hair and made certain her black smoky eyeliner had not smudged.
She felt ready to kick some ass. I am woman, hear me roar... Bulma almost giggled and straight away she knew it was a wonderful idea for her to take the rest of the day off. Pushy, rude and arrogant Saiyan Princes be damned, Bulma was out in full force without a care in the world!
Hooking her pager to her waist, she walked to her doorway and pressed the camouflaged panel in the wall, beside the light switch. The wall opposite the door slid open, revealing shelves and shelves of accessories. She walked to the open wall and without blinking, grabbed the shiny black motorbike helmet with a small red dragon imprinted on the side.
Terrible encounters with Vegeta aside, she looked and felt great. The rain that was pelting on her window was not enough to keep her from her ride on the newest bike she had purchased the other day. Besides, she loved the rain and it thrilled her to ride her two-wheeled motorbike in such dangerous situations...
It was then that Bulma's smirk faded as she realized that none of her close friends knew about her wild escapades in her private time. They all believed her to be a dull genius that happened to have an intense fiery temper... They would never believe her if she told them about her wild rampages around town, never believe that she enjoyed the dangerous situations that she was presented with.
It would be too much for them to handle, because they saw her as a loud, fashionable and shallow genius, who could also be caring and kind and sweet at moments when it was right. But none of them knew of the dangerous woman that lay beneath that shell...
Not even Vegeta.
And for that, Bulma was glad. Perhaps it was one of the many reasons she had been attracted to 'bad boys'. It was nice to have some things to keep to herself, even if at times she grew saddened by the fact that no one, not even her true friends, knew the real Bulma Briefs.
In bitter yet determined spirits, she exited the room, clutching the shiny black helmet under her arm.
~*~
Vegeta had been waiting outside of her room for nearly half an hour in anticipation, waiting for her to emerge. About fifteen minutes through the wait, he had gathered the courage to actually confront her about his actions in the medical room. But after another fifteen minutes of waiting, the nerve she had gathered had been dashed to nothing.
It was slowly driving him insane, bit by bit. He had never been forced to wait for anything in his life and the idea of him waiting was absolutely absurd! He should have just stormed into her room and demanded an explanation for her coldness... But even he knew when he grew too delusion with false hope that she would even consider talking to him. Especially after hurting her like he had.
So after waiting what seemed like an eternity, which was only thirty minutes, he sneered in frustration from his hovering position against the ceiling.
But just as he was about to lower himself from the ceiling, he was surprised to find Bulma had wrenched her door open and was now striding out like a woman on a mission.
He gaped at what he saw.
What is Gods name was she wearing and where was she going dressed like that?!
He took into account that she seemed fully healed from the injury he had caused her.
His mouth hung open, but much to his relief he did not find himself salivating at the sight of her. Never in his entire time on the planet had he seen the woman don such an ensemble, and it was excruciatingly painful to admit that she looked above and beyond delectable.
It was almost as though she were rebelling against any conformist ideas by wearing pants that hugged her curvy hips and a tight jacket that left nothing to imagination. From the angle he was hovering, he could distinctly make out a red and glistening pattern that was peeking out from the T-shirt that was underneath the jacket that zipped up halfway.
Focusing his Saiyan vision, he was mildly amused to see the mythical dragon creature emblazoned across the chest of her T-shirt, drawing attention to her...
His heart pumped the blood around his body at a wild pace as a rush of desire engulfed him, much to his own embarrassment. Only moments ago, he had accused the woman of purposely trying to hold his strength back and yet here he was now engulfed in his rising desire for the woman.
What was wrong with him?! He growled at that moment, disgusted with himself for the feelings she was incurring within him. It was not proper for a Prince of his standard to be so enamored with a weakling woman from a back-water planer...
A beautiful weakling woman, from a beautiful and cultured planet... He snarled quietly to himself, thinking that she had somehow cast a spell upon him to make him act and think like a dolt.
As he grew more focused, he noticed the black and glistening object she was carrying under her right arm. Frowning, he looked closer to find that it was an infernal contraption that humans called a 'helmet'.
Shaking his head in shock, he watched her round the corner of the domed mansion and enter an elevator. As she entered the elevator, he watched the pointer above the door flash down and instantly knew that she was leaving the compound.
He knew without a doubt that he was going to follow her... Just to be certain she wouldn't get herself into any trouble. After all, one could only expect trouble when dressed like THAT. He lowered himself to the ground and made his way down the hallway, to the spiral staircase that led to the ground floor of the mansion, knowing that even at the speed of the elevator, he would reach the ground floor before her.
~*~
Bulma sighed as she fingered the small capsule pouch that was attached to her thick, steel ringed belt. She left the mansion through the front doors, knowing her mother would not appreciate it if she rode her bike through the back garden that was filled with many rare and prized flowers.
Stepping onto the gravel path of the driveway, she looked about her front porch and made certain that no employees were on the grounds to observe her departure on her newly created and highly expensive motorcycle. She raised her arm and was about to press the small button at the curving head of the capsule when her pager started to beep urgently.
Bulma groaned and lowered her arm, slipping the capsule into the pocket of her jacket. She lifted out her pager from its confines as it was attached to her hip and flipped up the lid, scowling as she read the words that were marked in electronic capital letters.
'911-ASSITANCE NEEDED IMMEDIATELY IN LABORATORY GROUND ZERO'
Bulma had an inkling of what the emergency might be about. Her father had been discussing certain things with her these past few days to make even someone with a steady mind such as Bulma's, wince from the revelation.
She growled, snapping the pager shut and hooked it back into its holder around her waist. Another free day perfectly ruined! She turned on her pointed heel and once again entered the mansion through the front door, amazed to find herself standing nose to nose with the Saiyan Prince.
Covering her surprise, she stared up and down at his cocky stance. Not bothering to even attempt a conversation with him, she walked around him as he blocked her path.
A moment later, Bulma felt icy fingers grasp her upper arm and she was immediately halted from moving forward. She turned around silently and narrowed her eyes at him, internally shocked to see apprehension dancing in the cold ebony eyes of the prince.
Vegeta froze as he grabbed her arm, never in all his time of Earth had he seen her deliver such a heart crushing glare. He was pleasantly surprised by the turn of her personality and he found it a welcome change to her concern for him. Although, the turn in her personality meant that he desired her even more than he had before... Almost to the point of pain.
It was as he stared into her icy blue depths that he realized she was waiting for him to speak. He snarled before speaking, "Where do you think you're going, dressed like that?" Vegeta said thickly. He cringed inwardly at the choice of his words. He did not mean for them to come out as though he were a jealous fool, when in fact he couldn't care less about where she went... Or did he?
Bulma wanted to laugh at his odd behavior, but she was still a long way away from forgiving him and so she drew her lips back into a sneer that could rival Vegeta's. "Get your murdering hand off my arm this instant," she hissed as her eyes laced their way to lock with his.
Never in all her life had Bulma mustered up so much venom in her voice and she was secretly pleased with her acting skills. Inside, she wanted to curl away from his touch and hide in her room for the way he gripped her arm. But she would not do that. She was Bulma Briefs, strong and independent.
She almost regretted her words as she saw the intense expression on his face falter for the briefest second. To the untrained eye, Vegeta would have seemed no different than he had been five minutes ago, but to Bulma she could see that her words had affected and cut him far more deeper than he was willing to admit.
A shimmer of hope lanced its way into her heart. Could he truly be sorry for hurting her? But the hope vanished as he sneered back.
"I asked you a question woman!" He growled back, not ready to admit to her that he was wrong to hurt her. The words she had spoken to him hurt immensely, yet he had never felt more fueled with desire for her in his entire life. This was certainly a different woman from the one he had hurt in the medical room. He stared into her eyes, refusing to back down as she looked at him fearlessly.
Bulma refused to speak, and so a silent stand off ensued.
A bleeping noise interrupted their little staring match and Bulma reluctantly lowered her eyes, lifting up the pager with her free hand. Reading the message, she rolled her eyes and looked back up into his eyes.
She was inwardly surprised to find him still slightly taller than her, even in her ears. Vegeta was probably short for Saiyan standards, since Goku was immensely tall, but for human standards, he was way above average in height. Her thoughts wandered back to the first time she had seen him on Namek, he had seemed much smaller then.
Perhaps Saiyans grew the more they trained and more they ate food with nutrition. Shaking herself out of her little daydream, she looked at him resolutely. "Look, let me go Vegeta."
"We must speak of what occurred in the medical room," it pained him to say it out loud, but it had to be done. He had to let her know it was unintentional.
At that moment, Bulma didn't care. She didn't care about him or the strange expression that lit up his face when he stared at her. She struggled futilely in his grip, "LET GO!" She shrieked at the top of her lungs. After a few more moments of struggling, she saw that he was clearly not amused by her tantrum and certainly not phased by it either.
Huffing from the exertion, she gave up struggling and rolled her eyes. "Fine, keep your filthy hand on me, but at least let me walk to my lab!" She did not care for his childish behavior at present. Her eyes widened at what she had just said. It was then that she realized that she was about to show Vegeta the biggest secret of her life...
But if the problem had something to do with what she thought it was, then she would certainly need some expert help. After all, he was the only one amongst the Z Senshi that knew of space and the universe. She was now needed urgently in the secret lab beneath the C.C mansion, where two hundred thousand employees were working for her and her father, in secrecy.
Unbeknownst to the rest of the population in Satan City and her friends, Bulma and her father had kept their 'Ground Zero' laboratory a private institute, demanding secrecy from all their employees who worked there. 'Ground Zero' was practically an entire embodiment of a city underneath Satan City itself... And no one knew.
'Ground Zero' was the main base of the Capsule Corporation Empire and it was in this city of laboratories, computers and chemicals that her and her father conducted the testing for all their private inventions and deadly experiments.
They had kept a decoy laboratory on the upper grounds of C.C itself, but it was modestly small compared to the city beneath her feet at present. They needed a decoy to ward off any prying eyes that may come to steal or copy C.C's private designs in capsule manufacturing and space technology.
If she showed Vegeta the underground city of various labs and tunnels... Would he keep her secret? Could she trust him? For he had given her innumerable reasons not to trust him.
On the inside, Bulma was actually dying to talk about 'Ground Zero' with anyone other than the employees that worked there.
Vegeta frowned at the strange pallor of her face, "If you wanted to go to your lab, woman, it is outside and not in here. Do you take me for a fool?"
Bulma had to chuckle inwardly, "Actually, yes. You have no idea what you're dealing with, Prince Vegeta." She replied calmly, not phased by the red hue his face was taking a liking to.
"Do not patronize me." He snapped, suddenly fearful of the cold tone of her voice "What-?"
Bulma beat him to the punch, "Vegeta..." She trailed off, whispering as she looked up demurely into his eyes. "Follow me, murderer." She couldn't help but add in a taunting manner.
Vegeta released his hand from her arm unwillingly as she breathed his name. Only in dreams had he heard her voice his name like that! It had felt so good to hold her, even though he could not feel her flesh. Just having the notion of touching her was enough to drive him insane with and blind. But the confusion he felt from her underlying messages was enough to alleviate his curiosity and so he had let her go.
Bulma glared at him, "Stop staring at me!" She cried, annoyed to no end as she turned and began to walk away from the Saiyan, keeping note that he trailed behind her in curiosity. As she looked ahead of her, a cruel little smirk wound its way onto her lips, knowing full well that it was curiosity that would kill the Saiyan.
Vegeta scowled harshly at her back, crossing his arms as he strode behind her. In normal circumstances, he would have walked ahead of her, but he did not know where she was leading him and so resolved to stay behind her. His eyes traveled down the luxurious and seemingly dangerous curves of her body as her hips swayed in a hypnotic gesture that had him entranced in mere seconds.
He snapped his eyes and barely stopped himself from shaking his head. He would not be weakened by her feminine enticements! He would have to watch himself around her, otherwise he knew that all would be lost if he showed his weakness. He had already bared too much to her by gripping her arm in the growing urgency he felt for her to forgive him.
Focusing on the task at hand, his curiosity seemed to grow as she led him into the kitchen. SO immersed in thought was he, that he did not notice that she had stopped walking and found himself barreling into her from behind. He allowed his eyes to rove her smooth and creamy cheeks as she had now turned to face him.
Vegeta frowned, "If you think that you can make me forget by feeding-" Instantly he felt a hot index finger push against his lips and he almost fell back in surprise at the feeling of her tender flesh against his moist lips.
Bulma wanted to howl with laughter as she saw his face turn several different shades as she pressed her finger further into her lips. She tilted her head, refusing to move her finger lest he speak, "Did I ever tell you, you talk too much?" She shook her head, a sneering smile curling at her lips, "Don't answer that. Just keep quiet and follow me Vegeta, if you truly want to see this."
He frowned again, yet found himself speaking against her finger, "Why are you even bothering to show me anything after..." He trailed off in uncertainty. There. He had mentioned what he had done in the medical room.
His heart seemed to flutter in a moment of hope as he saw her cold blue eyes soften minutely. At that moment, he wanted to reach out and crush her to him at just feeling the nearness of her body and... Gods that facial expression!
Bulma shivered at the close proximity of their bodies. It was only then that she realized what he was speaking about and hidden deep beneath his ebony stone eyes, she could see a crack of remorse there.
The lines around her eyes softened slightly, before she frowned again. "We'll discuss that later. I'm not one to get emotional feelings caught up with business." She drew her finger back and felt slightly light-headed as she could feel the damp moisture of his lips on her finger.
He was taken aback with the comment. Business? What was this goddess of a woman talking about? Never had he been so confused! He had never seen her behave in such an odd manner, not even with her prior worm-like mate.
Yet here she was, behaving like this self-controlled dominatrix of a woman... Perhaps this was what she was like behind the stupefied exterior she showed her friends and ex-mate? Vegeta grunted and unconsciously took a step back as he watched her turn around and go through a door, on the far side of the interior decorated kitchen, that he knew led to the basement.
Why was she going down into her basement? Did she keep hidden treasures there?
Bulma turned at the doorway that led to their 'basement'. She turned as she noticed that the Saiyan Prince wasn't following. "Coming?" She asked in a bored tone, as if she could not care less.
Vegeta snapped back to attention and muttered obscenities under his breath as he walked towards her still form in the doorway that led to the basement.
Bulma waited for him to near before she turned around and descended the stairs down into the 'basement'.
They entered the dimly lit room quietly, each one immersed in their own thoughts.
Vegeta scowled at the musky smell of the basement. With his sensitive nasal capacity, it was intoxicating in all the wrong ways. He was about to speak out again when he watched the woman walk to the corner of the room and move a few card board boxes away from the corner she was standing in.
She gestured for him to come and stand by her and he did so silently, wondering what the hell he was getting himself into. He knew that it would be nothing good if they were standing together, but with his mind screaming every protest and insult at his current situation, Vegeta stood by her quietly as he contemplated the consequences of his uncharacteristic behavior.
Once he was at her side Bulma sent him a sideways glance that constituted of a smile and smirk at his wary behavior. He was acting as though she were a plague! Shrugging to herself, she kicked away the final box that was pressed against the wall, to reveal a computerized numeric panel.
The new development had intrigued Vegeta considerably. Somehow, he knew not to underestimate the fragile human female. He was certain that if she put her mind to it, she would have been able to conquer the universe single- handedly with her charm and colorful inventions. She would most likely have every planet wrapped tightly around her little finger. He gazed down into her eager blue eyes as hey searched his face for some sort of reaction. He was intrigued, but he was yet to be impressed.
Bulma rolled her eyes at his masochistic calm composure. She was about to wipe that calm look on his face, she thought to herself gleefully. Crouching down beside the wall, she punched in a long and numerate code, that only related to her, one that only knew and would take to her dying grave.
Even with his trained fighting eye, he surprised by how fast her fingers flew across the numerate and glowing panel. He had barely any time to memorize the numbers she punched in with her experienced fingers.
As he stood beside her crouched form, the panel of wood flooring they had been standing over seemed to shift slightly. What made him completely speechless was the fact the Bulma was now standing, pressed up against him with her feet placed upon his. As he supported her full weight on his feet, his breathing grew labored at the sensation of her body pressed into his. Suddenly, he lost his footing for a brief second and was surprised by what was going on as the square foot of flooring that he stood on detached itself from the rest of the floor!
Bulma grinned at his reaction as the part of the floor on which he stood broke away from the rest of the floor and hovered above the rest of the wooden floor of the basement, "Surprising huh?" She whispered quietly into his ear, pressing herself further into his body.
If Bulma didn't know any better, she would say that she was flirting with the man that had just attacked her previously! :You haven't seen anything yet!" She said, chuckling as the square wood section of flooring that Vegeta was standing on dipped and hovered a few feet above the ground.
Vegeta had barely any time to figure out what was going on. "What is it wizardry?" He demanded in a raspy voice as she clung to him tightly. He was afraid that he wouldn't be able to hold himself back from capturing her venomous crimson lips as he stood there like a statue whilst she pressed her body into his.
Bulma noticed his uncomfortable state as she looked down to find his fists clenching involuntarily. She knew she had some sort of effect on the Prince, but never knew that it was this strong! "Sorry," she murmured, capturing his attention once more. "The hovercraft fixed into the floor was only meant for one person and that's me." Bulma grabbed his arms and put them around her waist, before continuing.
"This is the only way we can go down together, and I'm afraid it's going to be a tight squeeze. I would let you come down by yourself, but there are many parts you of the hovercraft you wouldn't be able to function because it's only programmed to react to my voice and my essence." She wanted to laugh loudly at his almost horrified expression as his hands came round her waist, as if it was a completely new experience to him.
She secretly wondered how this man could have been the same one that had attacked her... Could it be that Vegeta had different undertones to himself as she? She had no clue as to why she was being so amiable with him all of a sudden...
Wasn't she supposed to hate him for what he did? But as she stared into his amazed and wide eyes, she knew she couldn't stay angry at him for long. He was still very much new to the planet and the compassionate ways in which humans acted, and therefor had acted out in his own defense.
Although it still pained her that he still could not trust her enough... Perhaps she could change all of that. Bulma smiled inwardly. It seemed like a much better plan than her previous ideals of behaving coldly towards him.
But secretly, she enjoyed his surprised and awed reactions to her coldness. It was like he couldn't believe that the cold Bulma was the same one that had tended to him and his injuries out of compassion and yet he enjoyed every minute of her coldness and cruelty of her harsh words, because he could relate to the coldness and cruelty himself...
It was the only thing he could relate to and she understood that now. She understood that to speak his language, she had to be a cold and calculating bitch like she was with her business. Vegeta was certainly in for the surprise of his life!
She shifted her weight slightly as she stood on his strong Saiyan feet. Wondering how on Earth she had managed to get herself in such a complicated situation as this. She wasn't mean to show him the secret city of labs known as 'Ground Zero'... She wasn't meant to feel such things for him!
Bulma blinked as soft beeping occurred all around them.
Vegeta didn't know what to say as Bulma stepped into him. It was as if he had just stepped out of the realm of reality and entered a different era and completely different zone than what he was previously in!
He had almost trembled at the feel of her in his arms, but his warrior disciplinary scolded such cowardly behavior around women, especially her. He would not turn into a puddle every time he was around her dammit! He looked around as the room echoed with soft but urgent beeping sounds.
Then, Bulma realized why it was happening, it was a security measurement to ward off genetically unknown creatures... Her eyes grew, Vegeta! The flat hovercraft that had previously been apart of the floor did not recognize Vegeta's footprints! Bulma groaned at her stupidity and for letting herself get caught up in the moment.
"What is that infernal noise?" He barked, as it grew louder and louder. What was Bulma trying to do, deafen him?! He had certainly not bargained for this and was about to push her away from him, when she shouted over the roaring beeps that echoed around them.
"It's a security measurement!" She all but screamed, pressing her cheek against his as she shouted over the beeps that had now turned into a steady siren. Bulma lifted her foot from Vegeta's and touched the tip of her toe to the edge of the hovercraft. She would have spoken out, but she was certain that Kin would not be able to make out her voice through the sirens.
The noise immediately stopped and a computerized voice now filled the room.
"Good morning Lady Briefs."
"Good morning Kin." Bulma replied steadily, her ears still ringing from the sirens.
Vegeta stared at her, dumbfounded that she was interacting with an invisible computer's voice! He wisely remained quiet, fully aware of her body still pressed against his. He restrained his needs as he listened to the conversation taking place between the computerized voice and Bulma.
"Lady Briefs, an unidentified object and/or person has entered the field near the entrance of 'Ground Zero'. Kin is confused as to why an unauthorized personnel is amongst your presence." The male voice of the computer grew utterly confused by what was going on. The hovercraft was only meant for one being and yet there were two standing on it!
Bulma chuckled at the confusion of her private computer's male voice. "Don't worry Kin... WE have a new employee in our midst." She looked up at Vegeta, winking.
At that point, Vegeta almost definitely threw her away from him. He was no one's employee! He knew what it meant when he was employed by Frieza and the hounds of hell would have to find him before he would become one again! But as he looked angrily into Bulma's eyes, he could see the teasing light in her eyes and immediately calmed down. He would have to learn how to control his temper and not let silly comments get to him.
The voice spoke again, this time with a strange sigh. "Very well Lady Briefs, if you insist. Your father has been trying to contact you for fifteen minutes now. Should I alert him that you are on your way?"
"Yes please, Kin. And could you please tell him that I am bringing down Vegeta with me." She wobbled slightly as the hovercraft lurched minutely, only to find Vegeta's arms strangely tighten around her to ensure that she didn't fall off the edge of the hovercraft that still amazingly looked like the piece of the basement floor.
Kin seemed to sigh again, as he, or whatever it was in Vegeta's opinion, spoke. "Affirmative... Message has been relayed. Hovercraft will now be transmitted to 'Ground Zero' entry tunnel-way."
Vegeta felt his stomach turn inside out and he slowly closed his eyes at the strange waves of sensation running through his body. When the odd feeling left the pit of his stomach, he opened his eyes and looked around, astounded by where he was.
They had disappeared and reappeared from the basement into the end of an extremely long and thin passageway. And it was all coated in a shining white paint that seemed to glisten! It all seemed very sterile to Vegeta and he suddenly felt extremely uncomfortable in his gray sweat pants and bandaged upper torso.
He had forgotten to remove them in all the excitement, he thought to himself wryly. He felt Bulma pull away from his body and instantly he felt a longing need to reach out and have her in his arms again. But he held still as she pulled away from him. He refused to speak, lest his voice crack with the utter shock he was feeling at that moment.
Bulma smiled slightly as Vegeta was forced into a silent shock. It was highly refreshing for her to witness such an experience, and now she would finally get to share this secret with someone other than her father or the employees of 'Ground Zero'.
She cleared her throat, knowing that Vegeta wanted answers as to exactly where they were. She pointed up as she spoke, "We are under the C.C mansion right now, in a tunnel that leads all the way to 'Ground Zero' where the main control room is."
Vegeta looked up and saw the tiniest black square in the high and narrow ceiling above them. His eyes widened, and he couldn't help but speak. "You mean to tell me that we came all the way down here, from your basement, which is that tiny black square and fifty feet high above our heads at this very moment? In a matter of seconds?!" His voice was incredulous yet the amazement could not be hidden.
Bulma nodded. She was about to reply, when another urgent beeping from her pager came. She looked at the message on it and growled, "Shit, we better get going. It looks like things are starting to heat up in the control room of 'Ground Zero'!" She pulled Vegeta off the hovercraft, that still looked like a piece of square wood flooring from the basement. Vegeta watched as it phased from its position and vanish into thin air.
His intelligence told him to look up, and sure enough, the tiny black square they had come through had been filled by the square hovercraft, and it looked as though no square black hole had been there at all. It simply looked like an immaculate white ceiling. He glanced nervously back at the floor, suddenly feeling strangely claustrophobic. He had been in enclosed spaces before, but never one such as this.
Bulma saw his agitation and tried to calm him, "It's ok, we can get back out. Don't worry."
"I'm not worried!" He snapped back, scowling.
Bulma stared at him for a moment as though he were Satan himself and then turned around quickly, walking at a fast pace down the white and elongated hallway, her blue hair swirling behind her.
Vegeta merely followed, keeping up with her fast pace. She could walk fast for a human, but he could walk faster. He noted that she was still carrying the confounded helmet under her right arm. Where had she been going with that thing anyway?
He was deep in thought as he followed behind her closely, picking up her fragrant scent every other second.
After walking silently down a bland white hallway for five minutes, Vegeta finally exploded. "Where in the blazes are you taking me, woman! Did your stupid race create a playground full of idiotic toys?! If so then I have no desire to see what you weaklings have kept secret from me!" He stopped in his tracks, refusing to go any further. He admitted that he was slightly hurt that Bulma had never told him about any of this before.
It was in a sudden epiphany that he realized that the hallway had somehow widened from it's narrow beginning, he could faintly make out a wide white wall in front of Bulma, as if it were camouflaged into the hallway.
Any other idiot walking down the hallway, most likely Kakarott, would have bashed head-first into the wall. Of course, Vegeta saw himself as far superior that Kakarott in intellect and therefore had seen the outline of the wall.
Bulma whirled around at his comment, anger evident in her eyes. "Listen here Vegeta! What I am about to show you history in the making." Her voice held such poison and assertiveness in it that Vegeta wanted to take her there and then. She continued speaking, ignoring his strange look, "What you are about to witness is a revolution, designed and produced by the human species itself. You may think all humans are tree hugging species that we all have fuzzy feelings."
She stepped closer to him, her mouth drawn in a snarl, "Well I'm about to let your narrow mind in on a little secret," Bulma took a deep breath and lowered her voice to a venomous whisper, "Not all of us are like Goku. It's true that we are compassionate and kind when we see fit, but in other circumstances we are a proud, ruthless and cunning race. We are the type of people you Saiyans would jump over to associate with."
Vegeta was shocked by her cold voice and he found that he couldn't speak.
"The people that you have associated with," she spoke with a bored tone, "Are nothing. They are country bumpkins in comparison to myself. They know nothing of what I have created with my father, nor will they know what I create in the future! This is a whole world that is far beyond them and you. Consider yourself lucky to associate with this side of me, because only a select few get to see me at my bitchiest." She raised her eyebrow mockingly and brought her arm up with her palm raised.
Vegeta had to admit that she had guts. No one had ever spoken to him in such a cold and vile manner... And if he was honest, he would say that he enjoyed it coming from her. It was invigorating to see and hear that not all humans were like Kakarott and his bunch of moronic friends.
But if humans weren't like that, then what were they really like? He watched as her arm moved to the right and slammed into one of the parallel walls.
Vegeta thought she was going to break her hand, but it was at that moment that he saw her hand push into a blue jelly-like mold. A green light moved up and down, as if scanning her hand.
He then watched with interest as the blue mold disappeared and be replaced by a square patch of plastic indigo.
Tilting his head, he carefully watch Bulma press her face up to the wall, her eyes hovering above the indigo patch. Another green light moved up and down as if scanning her eye. Did she want to go blind?!
Next, the patch disappeared and in its placed came a numerate panel, like the one in the basement. He observed her punching in various codes and allowed his Saiyan memory to store the exact codes she dialed in.
Another voice echoed in the hallway as it spoke, "You are verified to enter, Lady Briefs."
Bulma turned to him with a smug expression. She stood in front of the dead end of the hallway they had walked down and spread her arms out in a bird- like fashion, with her palms facing him.
Her voice did not waver as she gazed him directly in the eye, the proud smug look never leaving her face, "Welcome, Prince Vegeta, to the REAL world!"
The entire wall behind her slid open in a 'whoosh' of air, too fast for Vegeta to see. And then, she smirked the most wicked smirk Vegeta had ever seen.
He was momentarily blinded from the bright light assaulting his vision, but it soon passed and then he found himself staring at the massive structure behind Bulma.
For the first time in his life, Vegeta made a strangled cry of utter shock and humiliation.
He had never seen anything like it before, not even on his travels with Frieza.
It was...
Simply spectacular.
~*~