Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Unfaithful ❯ Part Four: 34 ( Chapter 34 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

..................................U N F A I T H F U L ........................................................................... ........Rhapsody~* ________________________~*Part Four*~: War.....Maylene and Byron sat silently in the dirty little building that had become the home of the small group of rebels. All around them, the people who had come to view them as their leaders slept restlessly. More than once, a child's quiet whimpers could be heard above the snoring of the men, the only present evidence of their misgivings. Maylene wanted to shut out their sounds of despair, but it wasn't working anymore. It seemed that from now on, they would have to face harsh reality."Its been too long," Byron muttered hopelessly. "They should have been here a long time ago. They must have been defeated-- that's the only explanation that I can think of. They've been defeated by Yamcha, and Bulma will have to endure a living hell for the rest of her life.""Oh, shut the hell up!" Maylene snapped, sick of his self-pity. "The Saiyans will win, believe me. Its just a matter of time before they get here. They're probably just otherwise engaged in other parts of the world. If you have any amount of trust in me at all by now, then please believe that and stop your whining."Byron looked doubtful. "Why should I trust you? For all I know, you're in this for your own selfish reasons. You could be trying to get your own titles back, for Kami's sake! What do I have that would convince me to trust you?" He shook his head. Maylene listened silently, her lips in a tight line. He was merely babbling to blow off some steam, so she let him. "I could only be reassured by someone that I trust at this point.""Oh, spare me," she replied incredulously. "I've been working alongside you for quite a while now, helping to put food in the mouths of these dirty, dream-ridden fools that you insist will save this planet one day! Do you think that I, a woman of nobility and class, the girl who always loved pretty gowns and great parties, would stoop to this disgusting level if I didn't think that it, that you, were worth the effort?" She couldn't believe that she was sharing her feelings with Byron, but saving one's pride was hardly worth it anymore. "I think that there's trust between us, and that should be enough."Byron was silent for a long moment, his expression thoughtful. When he spoke, he sounded more rational and less crazed with hopelessness. "You're right. They will come in time." He ran a tired hand through his disheveled hair and sighed. "Its just that sitting here, doing nothing, is driving me up a wall. It kills me knowing that she's sitting up here in the palace, at the mercy of that monster..."Maylene let out an ironic, almost hysterical laugh. At the shocked look on Byron's face, she laughed harder. "What's happened to us, Byron? Look at us! We used to be the pride of Earth's courts, the finest young people around. You were the hottest young bachelor, and Bulma and I were the best of friends and just beginning to see the world and its possibilities. And now..." She cackled again, and Byron wondered if something had snapped in the woman since this had all started. "Now look at what we've become. You're a pathetic, lovesick man without a cent to your name, chasing a useless cause, and I'm... well, I'm in almost the exact same situation. Except I'm doing this for the good of my childhood friend, not to barge my way back into her life.""When this is over and Yamcha is dead, we can start all over," Byron said. "We can rebuild our lives.""No we can't," Maylene contradicted forlornly. "When the Saiyans win, Earth will never be the same. Their king will save Bulma from her sad situation, sweep her off her feet, then take her back to his palace on Vejitasei, and we'll be left behind. They won't attempt to rebuild our planet or its customs. Its not their way. When they take over a planet, its viewed as conquered territory, nothing more than another asset to add to their long list. We'll never see her again, Byron."Byron's face was hard with determination. "That's not true. When the soldiers come to our city, we'll come out and greet them. We'll join forces, and then when they kill Yamcha and take over the palace, we'll see Bulma again. She loved us both once, and I doubt that she'll have forgotten. She'll make sure that we, as well as the planet, are taken care of.""See what I'm talking about?" Maylene exclaimed pointedly. "You're hopeless! You're chasing a dream that will never come true. Bulma will not fall head over heels for you again, no matter how involved you become with the Saiyans. We're her past, and they are her future. The sooner you come to accept that, the easier things will be. Do as I do-- help the cause because you cared for her once, and because there's nothing else to do in the midst of a war."Before he could reply, she stood and walked to the far corner of the room, where she had become accustomed to sleeping. Byron watched her settle down to sleep, then turned away. He knew that what she had said was right with his brain, but not with his heart. Somewhere inside of himself, he still believed that there was a chance of earning her love again, no matter what anyone told him.Sighing in defeat (for now), Byron layed down to sleep. Little did he know, his chance to shine was swiftly approaching..._____________________________________________________________ ___________________________...Vejita watched the small pod break away from the main ship through narrowed eyes. He wasn't worried about its safety-- Valyn had equipped Magdalene and her handmaiden's pod with special technology that made it virtually untraceable, and Kami knew that Magdalene could fare for herself. What worried him was her own strong will. If she saw fit, she would defy him in a heartbeat."Can you hear me?" his mother's voice crackled through the intercom that connected their pod to the ship. "Clearly."He had originally planned to send them down to Earth at a later time, but something was disturbing him this day, whispering for him to hurry in the back of his mind. For the life of him he couldn't figure it out, but he meant to try. He turned away from the window and departing space pod and took a seat in his chair."We're approaching the capital now," Magdalene informed him. "I'll contact you as soon as we get in."Vejita ignored her and leaned farther back into his chair. The whispering nagging in the back of his mind was causing his temples to throb with pain. Frustrated, the king closed his black eyes.As if waiting for him to finally slip into unconsciousness, a dream formed quickly in his mind. Except this was far too real, too painful, to be a dream. If he had been awake, he would have jumped up in his chair.He was seeing the world through someone else's eyes, someone with eyesight not as keen as a Saiyan's. Through these new eyes, he stared down at a cement floor, a floor covered with a thick pool of blood. This person's weak senses and nerve recoiled at the grisly sight at first, then was overwhelmed with a surge of satisfaction. They wanted to hurt themselves-- they were delighting in the sight of their life flowing out of their body.Thin, frail white hands came into his view, hands wielding a long dagger. Vejita's mind raced with alarm, for he knew those hands. They were Bulma's hands. As if to confirm his guess, a small wavering voice sounded. The voice was weak and half-hearted, but he recognized the song it was humming instantly. His song. Alarm made his vision of the dream go red for a moment, but whoever sent him this vision was not finished yet.The vision of the red-stained floor lurched closer, and Vejita knew that she was now lying in the pool of her blood. If she moved just the slightest bit to the side, she would drown in it. Not only was that danger looming, but the fresh cuts on her arms and wrists threatened to leak until she was bone-dry.Using all of his mental strength, Vejita tried to break the vision and escape from unconsciousness, but it was not to be achieved. For a few minutes that seemed to Vejita like hours, he was forced to stare at the growing pool of crimson around the woman's head. As if to tease him, a few perfect curls fell into his view and became soaked in the thick liquid.And then it was over. Vejita nearly fell out of his chair when his own vision came back to him, but he hardly noticed. Consumed by anger and, to his shame, fear, he stormed out of the control room and to the meeting place where his last remaining generals, Turles, and Valyn were waiting.They glanced up in shock when this beast threw open their door. Vejita had looked bad before, but now he was simply frightening. His eyes were tinged with red, and an aura of just barely restrained power radiated around him. Turles immediately jumped to his feet, followed by Valyn, who looked more cautious."What has happened?" Turles demanded. "What's the matter? Did Magdalene make it on Earth alright?""Prepare your ships," Vejita growled, disregarding Turles' question completely. "We leave for the capital in thirty minutes.""But, Vejita!" Valyn protested before the king could exit the room. "You're advancing our plans by nearly a week! I had thought that you wanted to completely weaken the other parts of Earth before you took the palace."Vejita met his old friend's eyes with his own, and in them Valyn saw the rage, but also the foreboding pain, and knew what had happened. If he had thought that things were bad before, then they were simply disastrous now. There would be no swaying Vejita now."Dear Kami," he breathed. "Is she alright? What has happened to her, Vejita? Tell me!"Vejita glared down at the transparent-skinned hands that gripped the front of his armor, then at his friend's pleading eyes. Pathetic-- the man was begging like a child. With hands that shook, he seized Valyn's writsts and removed them from his chest carefully. "I cannot tell you what I saw. You have to see it for yourself." Then he released the man's wrists and moved from the room, leaving the men staring after him.Turles came down upon Valyn like a madman. "What did he say? I know he told you more!"Valyn shook his head, dismissing the interrogation. "He told me nothing that I didn't know already. He saw something. I don't know how or why, but he did, and it has to do with Bulma. Something's gone wrong." Turles caught a glimpse of his eyes before he turned to the other man and knew that more had been communicated between Valyn and Vejita than either was letting on. He did not question it, however. "You heard what your king said!" he shouted to the stunned generals. "Man your ships and prepare to invade the capital!"Turles turned away from Valyn and cursed under his breath as he moved to do Vejita's bidding. "The asshole could have at least waited for nightfall to have his little vision...".._______________________________________________________________ _________________________...Magdalene and Chichi were crowded together in the small spacepod, more than halfway to Earth when they realized that they were still wearing their Saiyan garments. After a brief moment of panic, the two had lapsed into a brooding silence, each battling their own demons.Chichi was thinking about Kakkarott, who was off fighting the humans somewhere, for all she knew. He thought that she was safe on Vejita's ship, cozy and protected because of her pregnancy. But no-- here she was, jammed in a spacepod and about to undertake a dangerous mission. To tell the truth, she felt as safe with Magdalene as she did when Kakkarott was around, but she was sure that he wouldn't feel the same way.Magdalene was thinking about the mission at hand and just how they were going to waltz into the palace while wearing their unmistakeably Saiyan clothing. She fingered the thin material of her green wrap and wracked her brain for solutions, but none came to her."What if we find Bulma, and she's..." Chichi trailed off for a moment, hesitant to utter the words that would bring Vejita's wrath-- therefore certain doom-- upon all of them. "dead?"The Saiyan Queen was silent for a moment. She had wondered the same thing. "That's a possibility, but we cannot let ourselves dwell upon it. We have to believe that she's alive, for all of our sake's."Chichi grunted-- the last sound that either one of them made until they made their bumpy landing just outside the capital city.Stiffly, the two women stumbled out of the pod and into the bright midday sun. The air felt thicker, less pure than that on Vejitasei, and both Saiyans were forced to breathe more deeply in order to adapt to the change.Before them lay the outskirts of the city. There were no guards, or even traces of human life, visible-- just small, rundown houses of peasants and little merchant shops here and there. Bravely, Magdalene made the first steps towards it. Chichi followed silently, trailing a little behind."They're all empty," Magdalene observed, poking her head through the doorway of a particularly ramshackle home. She withdrew it with a look of disgust. "I cannot believe that Yamcha allows his own people to live like this. Even the third class on Vejitasei don't live in these conditions."Chichi had made the same observation herself. "Where do you think all the people are?""Well, since Vejita hasn't attacked here yet, I'd say that the men and boys have gone elsewhere to fight, or else are gathered near the palace," Magdalene replied as they threaded their way through the city streets and alleys. "As for the women and girl-children... they are probably servicing the army or are in hiding. Probably in the surrounding areas or even in basements."They walked through the city like this for what seemed like a very long while, staring at the same scenes of emptiness and poverty until they all ran together and were impossible to tell apart. Finally, when the sun was high in the sky and almost ready to begin its descent down into the far horizon again, they reached what seemed to be closer to the center of the city.Magdalene stopped in her tracks at the sight of the melon rinds that littered the road in front of her so quickly that Chichi almost ran into her before she was able to stop herself. "There are people here," the queen said quietly. "These were discarded very recently.""How can you tell?" Chichi asked in a low whisper. "You can never be sure that--""Stay right where you are, Saiyans," a human voice cut in. From inside one of the 'abandoned' buildings, a human man slipped out. He was underweight and dressed in dirty, torn clothing, but he had a look of nobility about him. He was most likely a misplaced duke or lord of some kind, Magdalene guessed. "Its hard to believe that the Saiyan King would send out two of his women to invade the city, is it not?"A dark-haired, striking woman stepped out of the building beside him and looked them over, unimpressed. "I don't think he sent them at all, Byron. Look at them-- they are clearly lost and caught off their guard." She, too, looked noble but was dressed in worn clothing and a nondescript gray cape. Her aristocratic features, however, made it impossible to forget to which class she belonged. "Who are you, and what business do you have away from your own kind?"Magdalene answered before Chichi could say anything untoward. "I am Queen Magdalene, and this is Chichi, my handmaiden." She figured that there was no point in lying to them-- even if she didn't train as hard as the men did, she was stronger than the average human and could take them if they chose to attack. "I have come to Earth to infiltrate the palace and check on your queen. It would be a great advantage to Vejita if he knew what state she was in, and where she was being kept.""Why are you telling us this?" the man who the woman had called Byron asked. "We could kill you, or take you to our king if we wanted to."Magdalene smiled knowingly. "You would not take us to your leader, nor would you be wise to attack us. Yamcha is your king, but he doesn't have the loyalty of his people. Anyone can see that. Besides that," She shot an amused look at Chichi. "you asked."The woman looked slightly intrigued. "Are you daft? You can't stroll into the palace wearing clothing like that. Yamcha would have you captured in an instant." She glanced at Byron, as if to assess his reaction, then turned back to the Saiyan women, her expression resolute. "I'll accompany you on your mission. I was... closely acquainted with Bulma once, and I know my way around the palace. I could help you get past the guards."Byron protested before Magdalene could utter a word. "You are the only daft one here, Maylene! Are you insane? You're putting your life into a Saiyan's hands!"Maylene glared daggers at him. "Like hell I'm daft!" she spat. "You're only protesting because you're jealous of the opprotunity! You wanted to be the one to ally yourself with the Saiyans and go see Bulma, and now I'm taking the chance. Its easy to see why you're protesting. Don't you think its time that you stop acting like a child and think of the greater cause here?""I still don't think...""Besides," Maylene continued. "Someone has to stay here and look after the others, as well as meet this Vejita character whenever he decides to show up. I'm just a human female-- he'd kill me on the spot. For you, he'd at least listen for a moment. Better a crazed man than a crazed woman.""She's quite right," Magdalene added. "I should know-- the man is my son. To ensure that you aren't harmed, I'll contact him later and inform him of your intentions. I can't guarantee that he'll listen, but I can give you a chance."Maylene smirked triumphantly. "I can help you two find some decent clothing to disguise yourself with. They're very particular about what their servants wear, so everything must be perfect."Byron could not hide his disapproval. "You're making a mistake, Maylene. Yamcha will recognize you, I'm sure of it.""He will not," the woman replied definitely. "Its been a long time since he's seen me. Besides that, I think that he'll be occupied with other things at the moment-- the fact that half of his planet is in flames, for instance. And if I remember correctly, he never lowers himself to dealing with handmaidens. We'll most likely only be confronted by guards."Magdalene glanced up at the sun in the sky and then back to the arguing humans. "I would love to allow you more time for heartfelt good-byes, but the sunlight is leaving quickly. I would like to be at the palace before Bulma sleeps.""I'm ready," Maylene told her. "I have no belongings to bring with me." She then turned to Byron, who looked sorry to see her go, despite their many disagreements. "Well, we're parting at last. At least you don't have to deal with me anymore. Your 'noble cause' can now be accomplished without any sarcastic remarks from me."Byron gave her a half-hearted smile. "You were the only thing keeping me down to earth, you know. There's no telling what I'll do without your expert guidance.""So go cry about it," Maylene retorted. With a brave smile, she extended her hand. "For old time's sake. I'll make sure that I say hello to Bulma for you."Byron took her hand and pulled her into a friendly hug. "See you when the dust settles."Maylene looked back once as she and the Saiyan women walked away. Byron was still standing there in front of his pathetic little building filled with people, watching them go. In spite of herself, Maylene felt her heartstrings tug a little. Quickly shaking off the unfamiliar feeling, she turned away and adjusted her pace to the brisk one of the other women...___________________________________________________________________ _____________________...An hour or so later, the three women were dressed in identical gray gowns, somber and conservative with corsets underneath. The two Saiyan women had balked at the tight contraption at first, but now were reduced to grimacing at almost every breath. Maylene did not seem to be bothered by the outfit, besides the fact that it was both inconspicuous and cheap, both of which she detested in clothing."Is this truly what the handmaidens here wear?" Chichi asked, adjusting her corset and heavy wool dress uncomfortably. "Of course it is," Maylene snapped back. "Do you think that I would sacrifice myself along with you two by choosing the wrong outfit? I have had servants almost all of my life. I think I know what they wear.""I can't understand how anyone could get work done in this," Chichi grumbled in reply. She was especially uncomfortable in the outfit because of her newly swollen baby. She bitterly wondered if the dress would do any permanent damage. "On Vejitasei, maids are allowed to wear free-flowing dresses at least."Magdalene did her best to shut the two women's bickering out of her mind, but was not having much success. The morale of the group was dangerously low, and the palace was only minutes away. "What do you plan to do?" she asked Maylene. "Are we simply going to walk into the palace?"The Earth woman shook her head. "No; we're going to enter through the servant's quarters, then make our way to some guards who can tell us where Bulma is. We're going to have to find some bath supplies or something and use the excuse of cleansing her for Yamcha to get in.""This is going to be a disaster," Chichi muttered under her breath.Magdalene was about to reply when the communicator that Vejita had given her beeped underneath her clothing. She quickly stopped and pulled her companions into one of the empty buildings. Chichi was incredulous as the queen pulled the device out of her skirts."He chose to communicate now?!" she complained. "We could have been anywhere! He could have gotten us killed!""I am quite aware of that," Magdalene retorted shortly, taking the device in hand."Who?" Maylene demanded. "Your son?"Magdalene nodded and switched the communicator on. "Vejita, what the hell are you thinking? We could be in the palace right now and at Yamcha's mercy!""Spare me your whining," Vejita said carelessly. "I thought it only fair to warn you that we're on our way to the capital."The queen's green eyes grew large in her head. "What on Earth are you talking about? You're way ahead of schedule!""I have my reasons," he replied vaguely. "None of which I have to explain to you. We'll reach the city in four hours. I plan to attack the moment we land-- I'll have none of this delaying that you guys seem so fond of."Maylene listened to him from behind Magdalene, observing the roughness of his voice and his unmistakable authority. She tried to envision just what Bulma had loved about this arrogant man, but she couldn't tell anything from this conversation. To be quite honest, just the king's commanding tone frightened her a bit. He sounded like a winning asshole to her."You've seen something," Magdalene accused. "What did you see?""I saw you hauling ass to the palace and getting me my report before I arrive."There was a brief shadow of hurt on Magdalene's proud face, but it disappeared just as quickly as it had come. Maylene wondered what on Earth was going on with these Saiyans, who had seemed so put-together from afar. She shrugged it off as the royal problems that people in power always seemed to have. In any case, it couldn't be half as bad an environment as the one that Bulma had been living in."I really wish that you weren't so much like your Kami-damned father, Vejita," Magdalene snapped. "If you weren't, then perhaps you could see the haste behind your actions. You should wait right where you are until we're sure that Bulma is even well enough to go home with you.""How far are you from the palace now?" he asked."We can be there in a manner of minutes," she answered. "I wish that you would give us some more time. We could get her out of the palace so that there wouldn't be so much risk involved. Surely you can go along with that.""Surely I cannot. I want to see the look on Yamcha's face, and the look on hers when I spill his blood." There was a heavy sigh on his side of the line. "I'm growing bored of this arguement. Contact me when you know her condition, and don't do anything that will get you into more trouble than you're already in."The device went silent, and Magdalene knew that he had gone. "Damn him and his foolish pride!""You want me to help you bring Bulma to that?" Maylene exclaimed. "I don't think so! I would rather hide her among the commoners on this planet than deliver her to the hands of some... some bloodthirsty, stubborn..." She struggled for a word. "ass!"Magdalene smiled in amusement at the woman's bold exclamation. She could easily see why Bulma was connected to her. She was brutally honest about anything and everything. "He may be some of those things, dear, but let me assure you that he would never lay a hand on Bulma. He would sooner give up his title and claim to power.""He would never lay a violent hand on her, anyway," Chichi quipped quietly. This earned genuine smiles from all women and the tension in the air seemed to diminish somewhat."Whether Vejita's a nice person or not, the fact is that we have to get her out of here," the Saiyan queen said. "It doesn't make much of a difference where she goes afterwards, at least not now."Maylene nodded in agreement. "You're right. I'm sorry for my outburst-- its just that I would hate to see her go to another man like Yamcha. You have no idea what its like to watch your best friend being reduced to emptiness. You don't know what it has been like here for so many years.""Its going to change very soon," Magdalene promised solemnly, resting a comforting hand on the girl's shoulder. "Believe me."As she led them closer to the palace and Bulma, Maylene knew that she was not lying. It would all be over soon....___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________