Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Royal Namekian Blues ❯ Other Red Ribbon Projects ( Chapter 21 )

Royal Namekian Blues

Other Red Ribbon Children Revised

Note: For Maccam who suggested that the story jumped around a lot, I wrote this chapter to try and tie up some loose ends between Chapter 20 and the most recent ones. Thanks for the suggestion. I hope this chapter clears things up!

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It had been a week since the big explosion at Bulma's corporate party. It was called the blast that changed everything. A young man claiming to be Bulma's son had showed up out of nowhere and the latest fling of Mr. Yamcha had proved to be a Red Ribbon android.

Unfortunately her life wasn't the only one that had been shadowed by the sleeping giant that was Red Ribbon. Dr. Gero wasn't the only scientist running projects that forever changed recruits into potential monsters. Colonel White, a high ranking official had a small side project that involved enhancing psychic powers with genetic engineering. Dr. Gero had helped him develop small nanotechnology that could tinker with genes and tap the potential of the human mind. They had seen tapes of the Earth's Special Forces, and together they had forged two separate projects.

The volunteers were known by names, and were Dr. Gero's children. As for Colonel White, he had his own 'children' who were young scientists and professionals scoring high points on their esper abilities. He had gone around to many colleges under the guise of a parapsychologist gathering data for a book, and secretly tested the gullible volunteers for nascent powers. Then he had taken the results to Dr. Gero. Together they selected the best for Colonel White's psychic soldiers.

Two had survived the process, and escaped with their lives. Those two were Chablis Simms, and Dr. Stellari. And fate had brought them eventually to Capsule. Such an ironic twist of fate was now becoming all too apparent after the explosion. Shasta Seltzer, the one time girlfriend of Yamcha was one of the Androids Gero had created. Since she had been an agent of Dr. Gero, would they suspect all that had past ties to Red Ribbon, even if they were cut?

Thinking of these horrible developments, Dr. Stellari returned to her laboratory with a sigh. She slammed the door shut and realized the sash was still up past the yellow warning line. Quickly she darted across the tiled floor to pull the glass sash down and banish the ether smell to a quick blast of air. Across the front of the glass she had used black marker to draw pictures of various organic molecules. It had been a joke to push fun at the other materials chemists because they always added their various reactions and molecular pictures as graffiti on their fume hoods.

Never mind that she drew molecules in a way that resembled something out of a classic chemistry text. Her knowledge coming into the job still assumed carbon bonds were neat little 90-degree angles. When she had given her research presentation to the others, namely the polymers group they'd laughed in her face. Dr. Stratton had grabbed a black marker and drawn several zigzags overtop her neat little structures to let her know the reality of 100 years of chemistry advancement.

"Stupid know it all," Stellari grumbled. She ran her hand over the plastic top of her desk, and then plunked down into the vinyl-covered chair behind it. Everywhere she saw this thing called plastic. In place of metal, wood and glass it was all polymers. It was a horrific joke that something had recently changed her life forever, giving her the ability to manipulate Carbon and comprehend the strange way in which it was formed. Although by day she was just another organic chemist among a hundred making new miracle materials for Capsule, she held a strange secret.

It was all her ex husband Captain Scarlet's fault she reflected, pulling out the heart shaped locket from around her neck. Inscribed on the front was a small symbol that bore the initials R&R. Just why she kept it was her own terrible secret. The initials denoted her husband's last employer before their divorce. The locket was issued to female employees upon completing five years of service to the Red Ribbon army's R and D division. Ten years ago she had passed the interviews after getting her Ph.D. at West City University. She had met a young scientist there who had just completed a post doc under a new benefactor. He had promised her that he could get her the job of a lifetime if she came away with him, leaving her family behind.

Out into the mountains he had taken her to a small city called East Northern. A small community had been established for the think tank of scientists gathered for the sake of pure research. Her whole work had been based on developing new plastics for use in military applications. When she found out her employer was the Red Ribbon army she was certain it was a job that would be lucrative, but she had her misgivings. Along with her husband, they had undergone a strange procedure that allowed them to access the full powers of their minds.

In her husband's case it enhanced incredible clairvoyance and telepathic powers. He could instantly read and control minds, and see things at great distances. For her, she became a telekinetic capable of manipulating molecular bonds. Because she comprehended things according to chemistry, her power was limited to reforming things once living into strange plastics of any shape or size.

Using the raw materials presented before her she moved alongside a half dozen men and women who were showing off their new abilities for Colonel White. She had grabbed the wood and hastily formed it into a strange oily sludge that resembled the crude oil they had recently learned to convert to gasoline. Then seeing the crystals and diamonds they had formed, she suddenly shaped the sludge into a translucent barrier. The other TK master Professor Anthracite had shown his talents by taking the coal from one of the nearby mountains and shaping it into gleaming diamonds. He then hurled them like stars to land in the wood that the other wood and water of the artificial lake. Kneeling on the ground she generated purple ki that warped and thickened the oil into plastic. Before she knew it everyone was shaking her hands and shoving her into the assembled Red Ribbon scientists.

She pushed images of her colleagues and crushes out of her mind. What did it matter now that she was in a new life? Stellari, the red ribbon operative and telepath was the one who proposed. Along with his strange mind powers he could turn the elements of air and things like hydrogen to glowing plasmas. His elements were the gaseous ones that could glow with charged particles, or generate huge explosions by combining hydrogen with oxygen to form water.

Her name seemed a joke, because carbon was seen as a mundane thing. Yet Carbon was the core element of life. For all her work under the special psychic corps of the Red Ribbon Army, alchemy incorporated transmuting living matter into strange new substances like plastics and oily sludge. In turn she could change raw cotton into Polyester, or form hard diamond from a lump of coal. She even stumbled upon a transmutation that could take anthracite coal and shape it into tiny red particles that could form long microscopic tubes that conducted electricity better then graphite.

How ironic that when she finally could get away with her two sons, she was working for the biggest rival Capsule Corps. She had gone to them after knowing the horrible realities of what was happening to people. Not only were they genetically manipulating psychic people to soldiers, they were also using nanotechnology to create far worse and more destructive things.

So when the small youth with the tail had attacked, Dr. Stellari had made good her escape. She and a young technician named Chablis Simms. Together they turned themselves into the King's authorities. In exchange for providing information about the Red Ribbon's black book projects, he had given them full pardons. New identities were created, and they found themselves working at one of the biggest corporations after a referral from one of the King's science ministers. He had friends at Capsule Corps in West City, and was more then happy to refer them to Dr. Boxers Briefs.

Under the direction of the old scientist, Chablis and Stellari were put to work in the polymers and materials science division. They perfected the making of carbon Nanofibers, and fullerenes. Minute electronic structures that resembled miniature molecular soccer balls. Although she had to keep her powers under wraps lest others fear her, she had a nice salary and a career that allowed a good safe place for her two sons Fermi and Bohr.

Of all the scientists, only Dr. Briefs and his daughter Bulma knew her secret, except for Bulma's ex boyfriend Yamcha. Not to mention the houseguest of Capsule who had terrifying powers of his own. Prince Vegeta of the Saiyans, who was rumored to be an alien being. He was also rumored to be the father of Bulma Brief's new child who she was three months pregnant with. They had seen the horrible explosion that resulted from the public announcement of Bulma's new engagement to him, and so anyone exhibiting strange powers who wasn't a member of Earth's Special Forces was suspect.

Buried deep in the bowels of the laboratory she slid another ground glass piece into place. A screw clamp held the small round-bottomed flask that she forced to sit in the sand. Stellari wiped sweat off her forehead with the sleeve of her white lab coat. Before her in the hood with the draw down glass sash force fully upward she assembled her latest sculpture. A series of tubes formed a condenser fed by rubber hoses and electronic wires. The hood was an alcove in the wall of a laboratory that had an overhead fan drawing off any deadly chemical vapors. All she had to do to complete her experimental setup was to plug in the heating elements and draw down the glass sash that separated the alcove from the rest of the lab.

Noises in the hallway alerted her from her immediate task. She tore herself away from the hood, crossing the laboratory floor and wending her way around the lab benches. Poking her head out of her little domain, which consisted of Polymer lab 20, she glanced left and right to discern the source of the noise.

"Can't you build a ki proof GR?" complained Bulma Briefs, hands on the hips of her own white lab coat. She stood just inside one of the labs further down which comprised the metallurgic department. Another white smocked figure wearing a lab coat that bore the Capsule Corps logo shrunk backwards into his laboratory doorway as Bulma advanced on him.

"Didn't the metal alloy I just sent down make any difference?" Dr. Tensile groaned. Just inside the lab, one of his assistants peered around his shoulder.

"Metal's supposed to be the STRONGEST thing we can make. If I can burn the midnight oil building the damn chamber you can at least be more THOUROUGH in the upper limits! Didn't I tell you to give all your readings to Engineering?" she asked.

"Metal can only do so much under the force of gravity!" Dr. Tensile sighed. "It's designed to resist any..."

"It resists GRAVITY," Bulma glared at him, shoving a piece of blackened blue metal under his nose.

"This looks to be melted from an intense plasma source," he groaned. "Did you ask someone in..."

"Your Metal may be GRAVITY proof but as far as energy ready, it SUCKS," Bulma huffed.

"Dr. Briefs, we've done all the tests the Senior Dr. Briefs requested, but there are limits even to our latest alloys," he said.

"Fine. You get together with two other consultants from North City this afternoon and get cracking. I shouldn't complain because you've done exemplary work, but we're under enormous pressure," Bulma Briefs sighed. As head of R and D under her father, she was an absolute genius when it came to assembling electronics. Yet materials science wasn't her strong suit. That's why she had the entire top two floors of the West City research department devoted to developing metals, ceramics, and polymers capable of withstanding any sort of devastation a weapon of war or industry would throw at her.

"Watching the fun?" Dr. Stratton asked, giving her a prod. Dr. Stellari nodded glumly, blinking at her colleague, a platinum blonde haired woman who was in her early fifties. Dr. Stratton had the polymer lab just down the hall, having developed some of the newest plastics for a new sort of armor that Capsule was testing.

"And how," Stellari mumbled, shaking her head. It already swam with the latest in scientific developments. As the newest scientist for Capsule, Dr. Stellari was no stranger to filling her mind with the progress of hundreds of journals. What most of her colleagues failed to recognize was that this scientist also had a hundred or so years of technology to cover in only months.

"Back to the salt mines," Dr. Stratton said and patted her on the shoulder. "It gets like this all the time."

"I know, but she is right. Metal only works so well," said Dr. Stellari.

"I know. Plastics rule," Dr. Stratton laughed.

"Amen to that!" added her technician, Mr. Melmac who chimed in his two cents. Shoving a bleached blonde streak out of his face, he slapped his palm down into Dr. Stratton's.

"And they say youth is wasted on the young?" Dr. Stratton laughed high-fiving him again. "Let's go test that latest batch of UL254."

"Still working on your infinitely long polymer?" she asked.

"It won't be relegated to science fiction forever. The only problem is that it forms under an explosion, and lasts about two weeks. But then it disintegrates without warning," she said.

"I remember when you wore a business suit of it to the last awards convention, and then everyone was pointing and staring at you," Mr. Melmac blushed.

"You mean it disintegrated and you flashed everyone in the conference?" Dr. Stellari blinked, wincing at the mental image of the female scientist in the altogether.

"I'm glad my panties weren't made of the stuff," she said.

"Yikes," Dr. Stellari chuckled. She fingered her lab coat and happened to catch Dr. Briefs jerking her head in their direction.

"Is there something wrong ladies?" Bulma glared at them.

"Oh, nothing, just watching the show, Ma'am," Dr. Stratton apologized.

"Please tell me one of you plastic junkies can help with the Vegeta project," Bulma pleaded, rushing over with the click of stiletto pumps against tile floor. Dr. Stratton and Dr. Stellari both fought the urge to duck back into their laboratories at the intense blue gaze.

"You needed a ki proof plastic. Maybe one of us can help. How hot of a temperature are we talking?" asked Dr. Stratton. "Just last week my technician Bakelite had something that could withstand 2000 degrees Fahrenheit."

"It's not just the heat, it's the energy," said Bulma quietly.

"I might be able to help as well," Dr. Stellari nodded.

"See to it that you do. Our newest client's rather demanding, and my father's getting his butt chewed red," Bulma bit her lip, glancing from one scientist to the other. A few paces back, the laboratory technicians Mr. Melmac and Ms. Bakelite crept out of Dr. Stratton's lab. At the same time, Mr. Infra emerged from the third lab down, where he noticed Dr. Stellari's generous curves encased in her new lab coat. His eyes deviated south of the border, taking in Dr. Brief's creamy white legs and Dr. Stellari's short and shapely hips disappearing beneath blue and white cloth.

"Just give me the parameters," Dr. Stellari said. She swallowed hard; taking the binders that Bulma handed her then Dr. Stratton.

"What are you looking at! Get back to work!" Bulma yelled. Like pigeons fleeing a statue the white lab coated chemists and engineers scuttled back to their various labs up and down the hall.

"Rrrow," Mr. Infra licked his lips before Ms. Melmac grabbed his arm and yanked him back into the lab.

"Stop gawking and start putting that blood south of the boarder to good use you pervert!" she hissed in his ear.

Across the green, Dr. Stellari and Chablis Simms were heading back to the labs. Chablis caught sighed of Bulma Briefs standing under a tree, talking animatedly to a gun toting blonde with narrowed eyes and a sharp voice. Chablis grasped, stopping Dr. Stellari. "Who the HELL is that? She's got a GUN?"

"I don't know, but Bulma seems to know her," Stellari said.

"Dr. Briefs, are you okay?" Chablis asked, rushing over.

"Hey mind your own business!" Lunch shouted, aiming her rifle at Chablis.

"Relax!" Bulma cried, darting between them with both hands waving before her. "She's a friend!"

The honey haired Chablis turned to Lunch, asking her, "So what's with the machine gun? Is she allowed to HAVE that on capsule property?" asked Chablis.

"If it's ANY of your beeswax, I'm looking for Tien! Does bright eyes work for you or something?" Lunch shouted to Bulma.

"She's one of my scientists. Lunch, meet Chablis Simms. Chablis, meet Lunch. She's on the rough side but she's no enemy."

"Humph, nice to meet you. Now if you don't mind getting lost I was RIGHT in the middle of talking to Bulma here!" Lunch glared at her.

"C'mon let's leave them be," Stellari said, grasping her friend's arm.

"You should listen to your friend. She's got sense at least," Lunch grunted. "Who's the smart one?"

"Dr. Stellari," said Stellari, holding out her hand. "Nice to meet you, Lunch. You're Tien's girl right?"

"You heard of me? Huh, imagine that. Yeah, I'm his lady all right. Do you know where he is?" Lunch glared at her.

"Uh why don't we all sit down and have some coffee?" Bulma laughed nervously. Stellari grabbed Chablis' arm, tugging her back a bit.

"Relax. If Bulma knows her," Stellari whispered.

"She's got some weird friends," Chablis said.

"They're on the level, Lunch," said Bulma, taking a bit of grass and tickling Lunch's nose. Suddenly she let out a terrific sneeze and instead of a blonde; a demure indigo haired female stood in her place wearing the same clothing.

"What the hell?" gasped Stellari and Chablis together.

"Oh my goodness what am I doing here Bulma? I thought we were having tea and we're out here… who these two people are?" she asked.

"Oh boy," Chablis shook her head. Stellari figured it was just as well. She'd seen seriously weird things, but this took the proverbial cake.

Just then an alarm clanged across the complex. Security guards bustled about the women, who exchanged confused glances. Bulma's cell phone trilled. She pulled the small flip phone out of her pocket and said, "Yes, Dr. Briefs here. What the hell is going on?"

Chablis Simms and Stellari watched the other half of the tense conversation, barely able to make out the words over the shouts and clanging alarm. Bulma pressed her finger in her ear, face twisting into a look of anger, then terror. Confused, Lunch blinked from where Bulma had strode off to holler at someone over the phone to the two female scientists huddling together.

"What's wrong?" Lunch asked.

"You guys stay here. Lunch, come with me. If you don't mind. Something's gone seriously wrong, and I might need your particular skills," said Bulma, frowning intensely.

"I'm trained in martial arts," Chablis offered, rushing off after her.

On the way towards the source of the rapidly trotting guards, Bulma snagged one of them rushing forwards with heavy armaments. He glanced at her worried, "Dr. Briefs, you'd better keep behind us till we figure out what's going on."

"I know. Two intruders. Are they saboteurs or what?"

"We don't' know yet. Too bad we can't get that Prince of yours to help us," said the guard.

"What do you mean?"

"His Royal Nastiness announced clearly that he was going to train in the wilderness the last time we checked. The bots were ordered not to stop him, and I had forgotten to tell you," the guard stammered.

"Great. Is anyone ELSE here?"

"Mr. Yamcha's on his way. We've called him as soon as the trouble came about. And we also called Master Roshi's residence," said the guard. He escorted Bulma quickly to one of the guard shack monitors. Forgotten, Chablis and Stellari moved after her and lunch to peer over her shoulder at the monitor. The sight caused Bulma to pale, her eyes widening in horror.

"I need Project X43," Bulma said. "Get everyone evacuated to the emergency complex. Use the underground tunnels."