Surviving Together: A New Legacy

Chapter 16 - Catfight

"Garock." Vegeta growled as he rose to his feet. He quickly pulled his spandex over his chest, and placed his armor and cape back on his body. "I did not send for you--leave."

"I know sir." Garock cleared his throat as he slowly walked into the room. "But, it seems as though you might need some advice anyway."

"Well, you are wrong." Vegeta replied icily as he looked away from the man. "I have things to take care of. I have no time for your unsolicited advice on whatever it is you think you know."

"Bulma?" Garock asked the name in the form of a question. "Why do you call her by that name? You seem to be the only person who recognizes her as such. Why is that?"

Vegeta froze. "It is her name." Vegeta said quickly. "One she has clearly forgotten, as I will soon enough."

Garock could feel the hostility dripping from the man. "You had a past with her?" He assumed.

"I don't know her now." Vegeta shot back with suppressed anger. "That is all that matters."

Garock felt tempted to touch the Emperors mind to know what he was hiding, but he decided that questioning the issue a bit further would be more honorable, and likely far less detrimental to his health. "How was it that you used to know her?"

Vegeta growled when the man continued to probe. "She was a passing interest once. Nothing more."

"Is that why you moaned her name with another woman?" Garock asked rather daringly.

Vegeta shot the man a look that almost made him regret his question, but he was surprised when Vegeta took no aggressive action against him. Instead, Vegeta walked back to his throne and sat slowly down. He took a long breath as he glared dangerously at his advisor. "I hope it is perfectly clear that all I say to you is not to leave this room. If it does-"

"You have known me many years sir. I would hope by now you could trust me and my respect for your privacy." Garock offered.

Vegeta nodded slightly at the man's words before he allowed his thoughts to venture to the past. He took a few calming breaths before he began to speak. "You met me as a boy of eight, when I came to serve Freeza, did you not?"

Garock nodded, slightly confused by the Emperor's opening. "Yes, and then seven years later I was transferred to another station. I didn't see you again until you defeated Freeza and liberated my station. I believe you were near twenty then."

Vegeta nodded, as the man's memory was quite accurate. "Much happened in those five years you were gone. Mostly painful memories I wish never to be reminded of, but a few…a few that changed my life." He paused silently as his eyes stared intently at the floor. "I was eighteen when Freeza thought it would be amusing to give Nappa, Radditz and I a 'sex toy.' He had recently purged a planet of weaklings and spared a few for various purposes. He gave instructions to his soldiers to capture a few women so they could serve his needs." Vegeta's teeth clenched at the mere thought.

"Unfortunately, one of the 'women' the men brought back turned out to be nothing more than a child of sixteen. Luckily for her, Freeza found no interest in her youth, so he passed her to Nappa, Radditz, and me." Vegeta closed his eyes as he relived the memory. "I can still see the broken body of the girl Zarbon threw on the floor that night. Not to mention the hungry looks Nappa and Radditz held for the child. It was shameful. She was pure and innocent that night, but she'd lose both before her stay with us was over."

Vegeta paused again, this time slowly running his hands through his hair before continuing with a sigh. "I was less than sympathetic to the girl, but I wasn't as cruel as I could have been. I made her work everyday and sleep at the foot of my bed every night. We fought, verbally, almost every time we saw one another, but I never hurt her. I even kept Nappa and Radditz from touching or injuring her. Those two were horny bastards, but they both knew I wouldn't stand for any disgracing of her. We lived in such a manner for six months before everything changed."

Vegeta shut his eyes as he thought about the change in him when she was a part of his life. "I was never supposed to care for anyone. I don't know why she changed that, but she did. She treated me with respect. She never expressed any fear for the man I was. She was kind to me when she didn't have to be; she did much for me. She spoke about her feelings honestly and she cleaned my wounds before I even asked. She was too soft a soul for the world she was living in and too gentle a creature to suffer the way she did."

Garock stood still and a depressing silence fell upon the room. He could feel the Emperor losing control of his emotions. He thought the man might stop speaking, but he was surprised to hear the Emperor continue as though he had a need to unleash past memories. "Ultimately, she was broken." Vegeta whispered after the long silence. "I took her virginity and her innocence; the final possession that had yet to be stripped from her. I did that which I vowed never to do. How ironic."

"Sir, you aren't implying that you-" Garock couldn't help but interrupt Vegeta's story. He refused to believe that a man he held in such high esteem could have done such a thing.

"I did." Vegeta stopped him quickly. "Though not as you think. The circumstances are much too difficult to explain, but the end result was the same. She was broken after that. Not merely physically, but mentally. Once the immediate shock wore off, the girl came down with some deluded idea that she cared for me. She allowed herself to believe I was of some importance to her." Vegeta let out a harsh chuckle. "And I was selfish enough to allow her to indulge in that fantasy by lying with her a second time."

A smile almost slid across the Emperor's face before his frown quickly replaced it. "Then I lost her. Freeza found out that I felt more than lust for the creature and decided it would be humorous to punish me for a failed mission by taking it out on her. He ordered her given to Zarbon. Zarbon. That beast would have raped her to death if his sister hadn't slit the bastard's throat." A sadistically wicked grin fell across Vegeta's lips. "I wish I could have seen it myself."

"Zarra helped the woman escape. I knew nothing after that. I vividly remember suffering an excruciating pain a few months after her departure. I felt my heart shatter and I could almost hear the sound of my name screaming from her lips in my mind. Now I know it had to be complete insanity, but… it allowed me to reach the level of Super Saiya-jin." A final breath escaped Vegeta's throat as he whispered. "That was the last I felt of her before this mess with Merigh. I thought it my imagination, but then I saw her; beaten and bloodied before Nappa."

"That's why you were so furious." Garock interrupted. "She wasn't just some injured woman to you. She was your lost love."

"I never said I loved her." Vegeta clarified quickly. "It was just a surprise."

"'Just' a surprise?" Garock raised an eyebrow. "A simple surprise doesn't help a man become the legendary. A surprise doesn't unleash Hell's fury onto a planet. A surprise doesn't make you moan another woman's name in the throes of passion."

"It was hardly passion." Vegeta muttered under his breath. "She was a part of my past. Nothing more."

"Oh? Is that why you just explained all this to me? Honestly sir, how can you remain silent? If you care for this woman you must tell her!" Garock knew that the Emperor felt more for this woman than he let on. Suddenly Trunks plan seemed less far fetched than he had originally thought. Trunks. Garock's eyes suddenly widened upon memory. "The boy." Garock suddenly gulped. "Then he must--"

"Not be mine if that's what you are thinking. I've already assessed the chance. There is none so don't bother suggesting." Vegeta cut the man off. His monologue emotionally drained him and he didn't wish to go through this emotional torture any longer.

"But Sir." Garock cleared his throat. "Even if the boy isn't yours, Miss Briefs is unattached. How can you n--"

"She already has a mate." Vegeta muttered, less than excited about bringing it up.

"No, she does not." Garock objected. "I've addressed the issue with her son. He claims his mother has been alone all of his life."

"He's wrong." Vegeta growled softly trying to mask his feelings of betrayal. "I saw her with Durka just minutes ago. They are clearly mates."

"Durka?" Garock was startled to learn this new information. "Something doesn't seem to make sense here, sir. I have noticed a friendship between the two, but nothing to suggest anything more serious. Perhaps you misinterpreted the situation."

Vegeta narrowed his eyes; there was no mistaking what he had seen. "I'm not wrong. And even if I was, it makes no difference. The illusion of what we shared is long over. I do not intend to continue dwelling on it and I am sure she would feel the same. It is over. The best course of action from here on out is to--"

"Emps!" Trunks screamed as he rushed into the throne room, rudely interrupting.

'Insolent boy. How dare he refer to me as Emps!' Although Vegeta scolded the boy mentally, he couldn't help but smirk at the child. "What do you want boy?"

"You have to come right now; we have a big problem!" Trunks gasped, out of breath.

"What is it?" Garock asked curiously.

"There's a big fight going on outside around the training grounds. Most of the male population must be out there watching my mom and that bitch from Durka's ship fight. They're killing each other!"

"So why don't you stop them?" Vegeta asked sarcastically, though mildly excited by the thought of watching his woman fight. It had been one of his oldest fantasies to see the warrior side of the woman, but he tried to ignore the image as Trunks replied.

"I tried but I'm out-numbered like three hundred to one! None of the men want to see the match end. It's weird; like they have never seen two people fight before." Trunks shrugged confused.

Garock frowned as he made a mental note to add an extra 'comfort' week to the roster for the clearly sexually deprived men. "Why are your mother and Aphara fighting?"

Trunks shrugged. "I picked up some cursing, and got the distinct impression they were talking about a man or maybe two men… I heard Durka's name a few times, along with yours" Trunks nodded towards the Emperor, who responded with his typically stoic expression, "but I can't say for sure what it was about."

"Wonderful." Vegeta growled. He figured he'd have to fix this one personally since he assumed he was, at least in part, the reason the commander was going after his mate. Not to mention his soldiers gawking at his woman. That was simply unacceptable. He would definitely have to put a stop to it!

Vegeta quickly turned on his heels and set off for the training grounds, Garock and Trunks following close behind. Garock kept hoping the Emperor could fix the mess before it got completely out of hand while Trunks was just happy to see the Emperor take charge of the situation. 'Yep, he will make a good husband for my mom', thought Trunks.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~

"Stop this Aphara!" Bulma screamed as the pair ascended into the air preparing for another round of attacks. "You're acting ridiculous!"

"I'm acting ridiculous?!" Aphara roared. "You're the one that is ridiculous! What the hell do men see in you? You're a scrawny weakling who's less than plain looking with a bastard for a son! You're nothing but a whore!"

Aphara quickly realized that bringing Trunks into the match was not a wise thing to do as Bulma charged at her with a startling velocity. She grabbed the woman by the shoulder and pushed her down bringing her knee into the woman's stomach. "Don't you dare call my son a bastard!" Bulma hissed as she pulled the woman back up to send another punch across her face.

Aphara lost control of her ki as she plummeted into the ground. She could hear the men cheering with excitement as she barely stumbled back to her feet. 'Horny bastards.' She thought as she watched Bulma touch down beside her on the ground. "End this Aphara!" Bulma demanded. "I don't want to keep fighting you! I've already told you Durka and I just kissed, nothing more, we're not pursuing it, it's done! And as far as the Emperor goes I haven't even met him, so I sure as hell don't know why you think there's something going on between us!!"

"Liar!" Aphara snarled as she tackled Bulma to the ground. The surrounding soldiers cheered louder as they watched the two women start grappling with each other.

"Grab her breasts!" One particularly horny male voice roared.

"Use your tongue!" Another followed.

Both women ignored the requests as they continued to fight. "You are so full of shit!" Aphara hissed. "I was so close to getting him into bed, and then he calls your name! You! You little bitch!" Aphara managed another punch across Bulma's face before the two rolled over and Bulma pinned Aphara on the bottom.

"I already told you! I haven't even met him! I was unconscious the one time he saw me! I don't know what to tell you! I was probably on his mind after what happened last night! I'm sure it was just a mistake!" Bulma tried to explain.

"Wrong!" Aphara continued to argue as she maneuvered herself back on top of Bulma and grabbed her by the throat. "He didn't say Bra, he said BULMA! That stupid name Durka calls you! What the hell is it? Some term for a cheap prostitute?!"

Bulma let her surprise momentarily disrupt her from the fight at hand. That piece of information was startling to say the least. Durka was the only person who knew her real name. 'How could the Emperor have learned of it?' Her thoughts abruptly halted when she started having difficultly breathing. Aphara's strangle hold was getting much too tight. In one swift move Bulma gathered her ki and aimed it right into Aphara's chest, sending the woman flying back.

The men cheered as the blast managed to burn off the bottom half of Ahpara's shirt, exposing her midriff. Bulma rolled her eyes. She couldn't believe these men, who were supposed to be some of the strongest in the universe, were acting like pubescent school kids.

Aphara rebounded quickly. She charged at Bulma, taking the battle back into the air. The two women continued to use every attack they thought might bring the other down. However, their powers seemed evenly matched. The battle, much to the pleasure of the male spectators, was beginning to look like it could go on forever.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~

"Well, look on the bright side sir; they seem to be boosting morale." Garock tried to sound optimistic as the trio arrived to view the two women going at each other.

"Wow, mom's doing pretty good." Trunks noted proudly. The dusk sky made the match slightly difficult to see, but the ki blasts helped illuminate the progress. Vegeta had to agree that the woman was more impressive than he had imagined possible, but she still seemed to be getting as many punches as she was giving.

"I suppose bringing them down peacefully is not an option." Garock mused, as he correctly imagined the riot it would cause.

"You've got that right." Durka agreed as he joined the group. He sported a nasty black eye and quite a few cuts and bruises himself.

"What happened to you?" Trunks was shocked to see him so beat up.

"I was on my way to the training facility when I heard a guy talking about the catfight. To my surprise, I found your mother and my commander going at each other like possessed females. I attempted to stop the fight, but no one was interested in helping me break them up." Durka frowned as he rubbed his head where one man had decked him when he tried to grab Aphara.

"Tell me about it." Trunks shook his head in understanding as he remembered how unsuccessful he was when he attempted to stop the fight. He turned to the Emperor in hopes that he'd have more luck. "Will you please fix this?" He asked almost pleadingly. His mom's injuries in the last week alone were enough to last a lifetime. This was just unnecessary.

Vegeta barely registered the boy's request as he continued to glare at Durka. He couldn't believe the innocence his behavior portrayed. 'I'll be sparring him later.' Vegeta smirked before he informed the group of his plan. "Boy, you and Garock will clear out the audience while the Captain and I break up the fight." Vegeta couldn't help growling at Durka as he remembered how the man held his woman earlier. "You will restrain your commander." Vegeta ordered with an almost evil glint. "I will take care of the boy's mother. Understood?"

"Yes, sir." Durka agreed hesitantly, still rather intimidated by the Emperor; especially since he was on the receiving end of a chokehold the last time the two met.

With lightening speed, the two males shot into the air to break up the fight. Vegeta was the first to intervene as he stopped behind Bulma. Before she had a chance to even realize what was going on, he had her arms locked against his biceps and her hands folded behind her neck. He forced her head down; completely blinding Bulma to everything but the sight of her own feet.

Durka followed the Emperor's lead as he mirrored the hold, this time on Aphara. "Let me GO!" The two women screamed in unison.

"You two have had your fun, now it's time to shake on it and let bygones be bygones." Durka suggested hopefully.

"Forget it!" Aphara hissed as she fought against Durka. "I am not going to let this little whore in on my territory!"

"Territory!" Bulma bellowed. "I already explained this to you… Durka!" Although Bulma couldn't see Durka, she recognized his voice. "Explain to this brain dead idiot that there is nothing going on between us!"

Bulma's declaration piqued Vegeta's curiosity. Her admission seemed impossible after the scene he witnessed between the pair earlier. Yet, the chance that the disgusting reality could be dispelled was something he was more than ready to hear.

"She's right." Durka added as he increased his ki to keep a hold on the struggling woman. "Nothing is going on between us! Not that it's any of your business, since there isn't exactly anything between us either." Durka added for Aphara's information. "Bulma and I are just friends! So commander, you have been making an ass out of yourself for nothing!"

"Bullshit." Aphara spat. "I saw you with your hands all over her body and your tongue down her throat. I could feel myself about to puke my lunch!"

"Really?" Durka couldn't hide his smirk. "Were you that jealous?"

Aphara hissed at his accusation. "Of course it bothers me when my commanding officer is allowing a whore to distract him from his duties. Remember that it's my job to stop you from making stupid mistakes!"

"Now who's full of shit?" Bulma intervened. "Even in your little delusional world where you feel the need to 'protect' your captain, you're too late. We already agreed that the one little kiss we shared was meaningless and there's nothing between us! So your little temper tantrum is completely unnecessary."

"Do you expect me to believe that?" Aphara roared.

"No, since you're not exactly rational at this moment, but it happens to be the truth!" Durka tried to explain. "Bulma is still hung up on Trunks father!"

Vegeta felt another blow to his already battered spirit when he heard the truth. So he was wrong about the captain and the woman, but he was correct in assuming that she held no enduring feelings for him. It seemed as if the boy's father was her one and only love. Since she had a child with the man, he assumed they held a special intimacy. He was sure they shared an intimacy that surpassed his connection with her. At least he knew the truth. Though she might physically be alone, her soul was bonded to another.

"She's lying to you Durka!" Aphara protested. "Even if she isn't fucking you, she's still having an affair with the Emperor!"

Durka glanced towards the Emperor, who seemed to be deep in thought. For a brief instant, Durka and the Emperor locked eyes and Durka recognized an undeniable truth hidden in the Emperors glance. It was the same look he saw when the Emperor had attacked him; a possessive yet protective glare that he hadn't understood until this minute. He took a long breath; his commander didn't seem as completely off the mark as she had been with her last accusation. "It's time we leave Aphara." Durka said in an almost nervous tone.

"No! She doesn't get to leave after saying something like that Durka!" Bulma screamed in fury. She was not going to allow this woman to insult her in such a manner. She began struggling harder against the body that held her as her anger was starting to get the better of her. "First of all you bitch; I haven't even met the man! And secondly, even if I had met him, I sure as hell wouldn't sink so low as to jump into bed with the bastard!" As she stopped her verbal attack, she could have sworn she heard a sound close to an indignant growl from the man holding her. She ignored it as Durka interrupted them by clearing his throat.

"Um… Under the circumstances ladies, you both might want to keep your mouths shut." The man suggested. He was judging by the angered look on the Emperor's face that his patience was starting to wear thin. It was time to end this fight.

"No!" Aphara protested. "I'm not finished with this litt--"

Before Aphara could finish her insults, Durka's hand covered her mouth as he looked at the Emperor apologetically. "My officer expresses regret for her behavior sir. I will see she is punished accordingly." Durka added before he sped off with the furious woman in his arms before she could say anything to get herself killed.

"Sir?" Bulma stopped struggling as she finally took notice of who was holding her. "Oh please tell me you're not who I think you are." Bulma moaned as she harbored little hope that the man restraining her was not the same one she had just insulted a moment ago.

Bulma's response was in the form of a muffled chuckled before she felt him lower her to the ground. They stood still, neither saying a word, in the middle of the training area. She could tell by the silence of the night that the audience had cleared out. She had to admit that the sudden emptiness did little to calm her nerves as the man behind her made no movement to release her. "Let me go!" Bulma ordered as she began struggling against his hold. She felt a sudden chill run down her spine as she could have sworn the man had taken a moment to smell her hair.

Vegeta couldn't stop himself from taking a moment to take in that sweet lavender scent he had been denied these last ten years. He felt his hold on her tighten unconsciously as some unfathomable force was refusing to allow him to release her.

As Vegeta tightened his hold instead of loosening it, Bulma began fighting more violently against him. "I said let me go you son of a bitch." Bulma continued struggling against him. Her anger continued to rise as she thought about Nappa's words. The Emperor killed her mate, her love, the father of her son, the only man she'd ever want or need. She continued to elbow and kick him. "I said release me!"

As she continued to fight, Vegeta unemotionally stood behind her, maintaining his hold. Never once did he utter a word. He moved his lips, but no voice came forth. He tried to release her, but his body wouldn't comply. Every fiber of his being was demanding him to keep this woman, to claim her as his own and never allow her to leave his side again. At the same time, his conscience and pride ordered him to leave, to push her aside, forget about her, what they shared, what she meant to him and just move on. To let her live with the memory of her dead true love, and let him go back to his misery, but his body refused to listen.

With her energy depleted to nearly nothing, Bulma hadn't realized that tears started running down her face. She couldn't help her body from collapsing so she allowed herself to slip forward to her knees. Her captor followed suit. It was then she knew her fight was futile. Even if by some miracle she could kill him or everyone else that had kept her and Vegeta apart, it would be worthless. It wouldn't bring Vegeta back, and it wouldn't heal her pain. Nothing but her deceased lover could help that. "I just want him back." She pleaded between her tears to no one in particular. "I just want him back."

Vegeta felt his chest tighten, as he knew whom she was pleading for. The man who could do for her what he never could, win her completely. Not just her body, but her mind and soul equally. At that moment, he had come to realize that she was his greatest defeat. He needed to know the name of the one that had beaten him in that battle. "Who?" He asked in a strained voice that was just above a whisper. He wanted to hear the name of his rival.

Bulma sobbed harder as she heard him ask. The answer to that question was just too painful to give voice to, until now. She had spoken his name so scarcely since the day she gave birth to their son, but at that moment she needed to speak it, she needed to finally let go. It was time she accepted her eternity alone, and the death of her one and only love. Her lips parted ever so slowly as his name rolled so quietly off of her tongue.

"Ve..ge…ta."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~

Author's Note: And there it is. I swear I don't intend to write these cliffhangers; they simply force themselves onto the computer screen! Alrighty… So Bulma has admitted that Vegeta is the only man she will ever love. Vegeta can't seem to let go of Bulma. Durka has flown off with Aphara. Aphara is still ready to kill Bulma. Garock and Trunks…well, you will have to wait until the next chapter to know what happened with them. And the crowd of male spectators is all gone. Or are they? Oh… I refuse to spoil anything so you will all just have to wait until the next chapter, when our couple… Oops… Not spoiling anything! Until next time…