Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Princess WHO of WHERE?!? ❯ Round One ( Chapter 10 )

Sorry this took so long. First, someone forgot to, uh, pay the bill (oops). Then, the cable company decided to work on the lines for a week, so that screwed me up. And finally, we discovered that our brand new motherboard IS NOT compatible with Windows XP. What that means is that every few weeks our computer shuts on and off, by itself, and won't stop until we reformat it. Sometimes I really HATE computers.

Also, I noticed a few errors when I went back and read my posted chapters. Sorry about that. I swear no matter how many times I read and re-read and proof read I always miss something. Bear with me…..

On with the story!

Thanks to everyone that reviewed!!!!

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Bulma watched Vegeta go to his men. They clustered closely around to hear what he had to say. Bulma listened attentively from the spot she had been left at on the edge of clearing.

"Listen up! We're going to start off today with basic hand to hand, then to shifting. Afterwards, I will split you into two groups and we'll move on to the next portion. There shouldn't be any problems working in your natural forms here because I didn't chose anyone that cannot operate in this environment."

Bulma nodded her head to herself, agreeing with his wise selection. It wouldn't have been a good idea to choose a Kylarian of an aquatic type to practice in a grassy meadow.

He paired them all off leaving one for himself. He commanded them to spread out and begin. At first, Bulma watched the guards fight one another. She noticed Vegeta had matched them up well for they actually seemed to give each other competition. For the longest, Vegeta merely watched, making comments or corrections for a particular man. On the whole he seemed pleased, but Bulma wondered when he was going to start sparring.

And as if he had heard her thoughts, he called the final guard to him. They both dropped into a fighting stance. Vegeta with a look of smug certainty, the guard looking more than a little nervous.

Bulma decided to climb into the nearest tree, fortunately with low branches and sparse foliage, to get a better vantage point to watch. She lay on a branch parallel to the meadow and in full view lest someone thought she had run away. Bulma looked again to Vegeta and the guard, neither had moved. Vegeta, obviously waiting for him to strike first, while the guard did not want to make the first move.

Vegeta began to lose patience with the man. He had specifically chosen him due to the Guard Captain's report of a lack of progress. This young man was obviously timid and did not possess the fighting spirit of the average Kylarian. Most likely the result of an over coddling mother. His patience was at its end and he knew that if he didn't initiate something, they would stand there all day.

"ATTACK!" He commanded.

"Y-y-yes, sir!" the guard stammered. He swung clumsily and without any power behind his hit, so Vegeta deflected it easily. The next hit came, then the next, all the same as the first, but as the young man continued, the punches came faster and faster almost until his arms were a blur.

Vegeta had to put all of his concentration on him just to make sure nothing got through. He was impressed, though he didn't show it. This guy was FAST. Almost as fast as Vegeta himself. The only thing was that his hits barely tickled. Vegeta couldn't understand how he ended up in the Guard. If this guy could run half as fast as he could swing, he would be much better suited to be one of his Father's messengers. He halted at that idea by grabbing the next arm that came at him and twisting it behind the young man's back.

"Halt! I have some instructions for you." He then released the young man who was grimacing and massaging his now sore arm. "Go back to the fortress and see Master Cibatt. Tell him that I sent you."

At that, the young man's eyes lit up in recognition. "Yes, my lord! Thank you, my lord!" He trotted a few steps away from Vegeta and changed into his natural form.

What Bulma saw galloping away was a slim, deer-like creature with two small horns protruding from his head, his coat the color of dead leaves.

`Wow,' Bulma thought, now only see the little puffs of dust he had kicked up a moment ago. `Running that fast through cover, he would be impossible to see.' She watched until there was no longer any sign of him and was impressed by the ver minimal disturbance he caused in his passing.

`I wonder what Vegeta told him.' She turned back to watch the others and saw that Vegeta had resumed his supervisory position.

Vegeta was watching one pair in particular. One of the guards was back flipping around while his opponent was trying to strike him. Vegeta could appreciate agility, but not he was supposed to be sparring, not entertaining.

"You there! What in the world are you doing?"

Both guards stopped immediately and saluted Vegeta, right fists over their hearts.

"Well?" Vegeta asked.

The one on Vegeta's left spoke. "My lord, I was just trying a move Farmer Tilden's son showed me."

Vegeta recalled Tilden, one of the few older Kylarians that had chosen to leave the homeland with his father. What Vegeta remembered the most was the man's slender, wiry frame and how his movements were almost always a blur. Even in his old age, he was faster than anyone here, including Vegeta himself. His son, however, was an unknown.

"Well, I don't see how flipping around like a Fool is going to be beneficial in battle."

The guard's face reddened a little, but he stood his ground. "Really, my lord, it is a very cunning maneuver. Whenever I spar with Moro, he'll hit me with it every time. You see, the way its supposed to work is while flipping you're able to score one, or if you're good two, kicks on your opponent."

Vegeta thought this over, the technique seeming only vaguely feasible in his mind. "An intriguing idea, but still it sounds like it would only be useful one on one."

"I, uh, don't know. I just wanted to try it out. If you want to see it done perfectly, I can go fetch Moro and -,"

"I can do it," Bulma piped up from her perch. She knew how to do it, but she was surprised at herself for volunteering to demonstrate. The whole trick to the move would be that your opponent would most likely be expecting you to flip away. This would cause them to close in and strike while you on the other hand would have your legs extended and kick them in the face. That left your opponent momentarily stunned and open for your next attack.

"I have got to see this; so go on. Let's see it done by a Master," Vegeta told her sarcastically, not at all believing in the use of acrobatics.

Bulma nodded to him, tensed her muscles and flipped over landing pretty much the same spot, feet spread apart to balance her landing. She looked to the men seeing surprise and awe in all their faces except one.

Bulma smiled devilishly to herself, seeing a prime opportunity. "I see you're still not convinced, Lord Vegeta. Perhaps a `practical' application would help?"

Vegeta laughed at the presumptuous female. "YOU against ME?" He said incredulously. "You cannot be serious!"

"What? Are you scared a little female might whip your tail into the dirt?" she taunted.

"Please! I'm more concerned about your health than mine, but if you want it, then so be it. It'll be your funeral."

"Don't chisel that headstone yet."

Bulma assumed her ready stance as Vegeta went into his. The remaining guard quickly backed away, wanting to see if this new girl would measure up to their lord and master. They all knew Vegeta had grown up without any regular female contact. The only one's he ever saw were servants, his father's harem girls, and the few peasants he slept with. Vegeta didn't know that true Kylarian women possessed greater fighting abilities than any male.

Needless to say, they were quite anxious to see how much of a match this unknown female would prove to be.

"Lorien," Vegeta called to one of the guards. The man in question stepped forward. "On your mark," he told him, which meant he would begin the fight so that neither would have the advantage.

"Ready…," Lorien yelled, "BEGIN!"

Bulma and Vegeta began circling each other neither taking their eyes off the other.

"Ladies first," Vegeta suggested.

"Oh, no. Nobility before beauty," she countered. Bulma took the initiative and struck first anyway, not really trying to hit him, just as a way of ascertaining his true speed.

Vegeta deflected the feint neatly. "Ha! Is that the best you've got, woman?" If he had known her better, he would've caught the gleam in her eye and backed off. Her next succession of hits came at him from the left and right in a blur of blue. She was throwing punches at him faster than he had ever experienced. He blocked them, but his shock left him literally slack jawed, which Bulma took advantage of and smacked his mouth closed with her open hand and then jumped back before he could strike back.

She grinned at him from a few feet away, while he fairly growled in disgust. She laughed at his anger with her guard still up. "Is that all YOU'VE got?"

This seemed to anger him even more and he threw an array of punches and kicks, sure that he would score a hit on the female. Or so he thought. Not only did he not hit her, she wasn't even trying to block him! She was dodging everything at speeds that even he couldn't attain. All this did was anger him even more so he backed off of her to cool down his temper.

"Oh come on now! You can't possibly be tired already! I haven't even broken out a sweat yet!"

That set him off on another brainless barrage. He just wanted to hit her one good time and knock her to the ground. Bulma grinned during the whole fight, while sneaking in hits of her own. She held back none of her punches knowing that he wasn't holding back any of his, even though he couldn't touch her.

`Time for a teaser,' she thought. She back-flipped knowing that was one move he'd be ready for, if that was what she was intending to do. She just wanted to back away from him a little. He growled at the obvious trick, more determined that ever to beat her. His ire at being beaten on by a female was making him irrational and not much competition. He was going to end this now!

Vegeta gathered all his strength into his next punch knowing that he would break through her block with the power in it. Unfortunate for Vegeta that at that moment Bulma performed her second somersault, with his anger blinding him, she neatly hit his chin on both counts. He reeled backwards for not even a second before something hit him hard in his gut. He went down in a whoosh of air and a very audible THUMP as he fell to the ground.

Silence surrounded them. Bulma surveyed her handy work, pleased that she was able to catch him with both feet and even more so by the fact that she was able to deal him a final blow to knock him to the ground.

"I guess this means I win."

The guards, while surprised, were also pleased though they dared not show. Many had wanted to deal the young Lord Vegeta a good hit, to prove their skill, but none of them had been able. Here was this female, that not only beat him, but she gloated about it.

Vegeta lay at Bulma's feet huffing and puffing, trying to catch his breath.

`HOW DARE SHE!' he thought. He pulled his waning energy together one last time and threw a cheap shot at her abdomen. Not being at all prepared, she fell to the ground on top of Vegeta, clutching her stomach. He rolled them both over and pinned her arms and legs down with his own.

"That…was…cheat…ing," she puffed out in outrage.

He laughed at her from his superior position. "In battle, there's no such thing as cheating."

She squirmed underneath him desperate to get free. The warmth spreading through her body was pleasant, though disconcerting, and definitely not welcome. She didn't want to feel any sort of attraction for this…this…MALE!

But his hard, sculpted body urged her to wrap her legs around his flanks and take him in front of anyone who cared to watch.

`NO!' she told herself as she suddenly regained composure and bucked him off.

He rolled away as she jumped to her feet. Vegeta, too, had gotten up and stood there smirking at her. Bulma prayed that he had no idea of the internal battle she had.

She turned her nose up at him and said, "Well, I guess we now know who is truly the most skilled."

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You know the drill.