Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Unfaithful ❯ Part Five: 39 ( Chapter 39 )

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

..................................U N F A I T H F U L ........................................................................... ........Rhapsody~* ________________________~*Part Five*~: Vengeance.....Magdalene watched as Yamcha turned on his heel and began running away from Vejita, who followed with an amused look on his tanned face. As she watched him hunt down his weaker, defenseless prey, she marveled at how much he looked like his father when he was angry. The murderous gleam in his black eyes could have easily rivaled that of his father, if the facial features were a bit rougher and the smirk twisting those features were a little more viscious. She could only hope that he would stray away from this kind of behavior and not make too much a spectacle out of Yamcha's death. She almost couldn't bring herself to watch.Yamcha had reached the doors of the church, where Turles and Valyn had quickly materialized as soon as he began running towards them. Trapped, he turned back to Vejita in dismay."You've stripped me of all my weapons!" he exclaimed, waving his arms wildly. "This is not a fair fight!""Bitch about it later, to someone who cares," Vejita advised him matter-of-factly. "Oh, wait... you're about to die, and no one cares! Silly me, I must have forgotten!"Meanwhile, Magdalene and her companions were so absorbed in the battle that they hardly noticed Lady Briefs stand silently and edge closer to the altar, where they were located. Now that Turles and Valyn were distracted, she had her chance. The old woman's thin white hand slipped beneath the folds of her skirt, closing around the hilt of the dagger she carried. With a half-smile, she leaned against the altar, now within ten feet of Bulma and Magdalene, and watched the fight."You're a sick bastard!" Yamcha hissed. "You're going to fucking rot in hell for what you're doing!""Undoubtedly," Vejita confirmed, undeterred. "But you'll be arriving there much sooner than me."Almost escaping human eyesight, Vejita reached out and shoved Yamcha back on his ass, where he sat, stunned and terrorized. The Saiyan was now looming over him, a luxury that he rarely got to enjoy anywhere besides the battlefield. Turles and Valyn watched their ruler warily from their position at the doors, awaiting any order that he might give.Bulma wrapped her arms around Magdalene's waist and clung there, watching Vejita and Yamcha reluctantly. Her fingers were shaking, Magdalene noticed, and when she looked down at her, she could spot tears still streaming down her cheeks. Off-handedly, the Saiyan Queen wished that she could read minds so she could find out just what it was that was scaring the hell out of the small woman. So far, the fight was going smoothly, and with absolutely minimal injuries to Vejita. Or Yamcha thus far, for that matter. She also wondered just how Bulma's skinny little body was producing so much liquid. She wrote it off to the fact that the girl was human.Vejita smirked and planted a gold-tipped boot onto Yamcha's soft stomach, slowly putting more and more of his weight -- and then some extra strength -- into the effort, which earned him some painful groans from Yamcha. "I'm going to really enjoy killing you," he muttered under his breath, his voice husky with the pleasure that this particular killing was bringing him. "Especially with everybody watching. Think about me stringing up your remains in the town square when this is all over, for all of your 'loyal' subjects to see... I can smell the entrails rotting in the hot summer sun now..." Then, just for Yamcha to hear, he muttered, "And then think about me later, fucking your wife in your own bedchambers..."The women felt their stomachs turn in disgust at Vejita's former comment, and Byron, from his position at the center of the aisle close to the altar, shook his head. For the life of him, he still could not see Bulma's attraction to this cruel man. As a matter of fact, the jealously was brewing within him like a dormant volcano, on the edge of bursting. He clenched his fists at his sides."Please..." Yamcha managed, his hands uselessly gripping Vejita's booted ankle. "For the love of Kami...""He has no such feelings for you," Vejita responded. "Kami has not been known to save rapists, or dishonorable little pieces of shit who find satisfaction in beating their mates!" Then, apparently sick of Yamcha's babble, he let go of his self-control and inserted his foot the rest of the way through Yamcha's stomach. Red, thick liquid oozed out of the wound, and as Vejita slowly drew his boot out, prolonging the pain, some entrails peeked through the hole. Yamcha wailed in dying agony, humiliating tears streaming down his cheeks."In your case, I don't mind getting my new boots dirty," Vejita commented. Then he bent over and seized one of Yamcha's feet. Much to everyone's disgust, he began to drag the body down the aisle towards the altar and the women, leaving a gross red and brown trail of blood and Yamcha's innards behind him. He didn't seem to notice that, nor hear the shrill screams of his victim. Magdalene braced herself, ready to move both herself and the sobbing Bulma away. "Kami-dammit! He'd better not be dragging that disgusting thing any closer!"Vejita, thankfully, stopped halfway down the aisle. Then he lifted Yamcha's body and slammed it against the side of a nearby pew. A loud, sickening crack was heard as the human's back was broken. Yamcha, at this point, was only capable of quieter, guttural sounds of pain as his consciousness -- and life -- was failing him. Vejita chuckled to himself sadistically."Oh Kami," Bulma muttered. She had been longing for the death of her abusive husband for years -- almost her whole life, actually -- but to witness such a brutal murder was not easy on her, no matter whose murder it was. The entire scene made her stomach (which had only recently been purged of its tiny human newcomer, unknowingly to her) do flip-flops within her. "I'm going to be sick..."In the aisle, Vejita was in the process of methodically, almost casually, breaking each of the bones in Yamcha's legs with a bit of pressure from his foot, as if Yamcha was not worthy of even a full effort. The cracks echoed off the high ceilings of the church.Bulma delicate stomach could handle it no longer -- she turned away from Magdalene and vomited what little materials were left in her. Magdalene rubbed her back absently, her attention fully on the display before them. When Bulma had emptied her stomach of its contents, she coughed up a bile that burned her throat. Spent, she viewed the mess she had made with no emotion at all.Turles and Valyn came away from their posts at the church doors and down the aisle to where Vejita was finishing up the destruction of Yamcha's legs. They gave each other worried looks, and Valyn was the one to speak up quietly."Perhaps you should just kill him and get it over with now," he suggested. His eyes went to where Bulma had been vomiting. "You're harming Queen Bulma more than you're helping her at this point."Vejita cast him a sideways glare. "Did I ask you what you thought, Valyn?"The man shook his head. "No -- ""Then that's all there is to say," the king interuppted. Ignoring them, he went back to Yamcha and reached down to check his pulse. "The bastard's still alive -- didn't think he had it in him." When Turles and Valyn did not move, he stopped checking Yamcha and turned to them with an incredulous frown. "What the hell are you hovering for, soldiers?!""Vejita-sama," Turles began reluctantly. "I understand your anger at this fool, but don't you think that you should just kill him and see to Bulma now? You've accomplished what you wanted -- you've won her. She would be better off with a doctor, not here watching you mutilate her husband." He quickly added, "With all due respect."Vejita stared down at Yamcha's pale countenance for a moment, then glared back up at his men. "Who the fuck do you think you're giving orders to -- Kakkarott?! I refuse to give the son-of-a-bitch a mercy killing, and that's the way its going to be! If you two don't have the stomachs for it, then I suggest that you get to cleaning up the city with Bardock."The two men stepped back again.Vejita was now fueled with further anger. Gritting his teeth, he picked up Yamcha's barely conscious body by the neck and squeezed slowly, increasing the pressure as time passed. Yamcha's neck bruised, then began to tear, then with a sickening thud his head disconnected from his neck and fell onto the floor. Grotesquely, it rolled down the church aisle to rest at the foot of the altar. Vejita cast the lifeless body aside, his eyes narrowed.Bulma and Magdalene jumped back with a yelp when the head rolled up the front of the altar. If Bulma had had anything left in her stomach, she would have retched again. Chichi gave a little scream and pressed herself as close to the windows as possible, and Maylene stood her ground, staring stonily down at the expression frozen on Yamcha's face -- an expression of unbelievable pain."Its a damned shame," she commented suddenly, her red lips pursed. The others looked up in surprise. "After all that, Vejita didn't even castrate him.""He slowly popped his head right off his body, like a fucking dandelion!" Chichi growled from near the windows, her face white as a sheet. "What more torture could you ask for?""It wasn't nearly enough," Vejita grumbled, slowly approaching them. His rage made him seem like a whole different man. "If those fools hadn't shit all over my concentration, I would still be over there enjoying myself, I assure you.""You're a very sick man," Lady Briefs chipped in, appearing unafraid of the entire situation. "It's going to get worse," Vejita shot back at her. "In a few minutes, I'm going to order my men to put his sorry remains on display in front of the palace -- permanently -- so that you and the rest of your weak race can have the pleasure of watching him rot for the next hundred years." He smirked, his thoughts on that very task. "And I believe I'll have them position him so he'll be doing his favorite activity for eternity -- jacking off."Magdalene frowned. "That was unnecessarily gruesome, Vejita."He ignored her and moved straight to Bulma, who was sitting beside her, eyes wide and moving frantically from Vejita to Yamcha's severed head. Before he acknowledged her, he looked to Lady Briefs again and glared. "Give me your weapon, before I decide to take it myself."Lady Briefs frowned, looking like she was going to deny his accusation of a weapon. "What does it matter?" she questioned haughtily. "What could a weak human woman do with a small knife, anyway?""I don't want to wait to find out," Vejita responded. "Give it to me, or I'll give you a much more painful death than was already coming to you."Shakily, and with a death glare in the Saiyan's direction, Lady Briefs withdrew her knife and tossed it over to where Bulma was sitting. Bulma barely even looked at the dagger as it slid next to her.When Vejita reached her, he placed a hand on her forehead, judging how healthy she was. Bulma leaned into his touch, her eyes fluttering closed in something resembling contentment, or at least as close to the emotion as she could get. She didn't even notice that Vejita's touched was leaving tiny traces of Yamcha's blood on her white skin. Slowly, Vejita's hand trailed down to her bandaged arms. He took her wrists in each hand and gently tore away the makeshift bandages, revealing the ugly cuts beneath. His black eyes lifted to lock onto hers, which had opened in shock when he took away the cloth."Why did you do this?" he questioned under his breath. He could not help but sound a bit accusing. "I was on my way to you the entire time -- you should have known that."Bulma began to tremble, and her lips struggled to form words. Her voice came out small and quivering. "Sometimes I could not be sure exactly what I knew... I've not been myself ever since I returned here. I've not been myself in a long time."Vejita assessed the damage to her arms, and decided that she would survive if she didn't see a doctor for a little while. He glanced up at Magdalene warningly, and she reluctantly moved away from Bulma and back with Chichi and Maylene. "We're leaving this giant ball of shit tomorrow morning, and you'll never have to think of this again." He shot a look over at the women to make sure that they hadn't made out his uncharacteristically caring words. "Even after death, Yamcha will be humiliated and laughed at daily, for as long as his remains hold up."A half-smile touched Bulma's lips at his odd form of comfort. "I know," she assured him. "But how can I ever forget all of this? This was my life, up until I went to your planet." Her eyes darkened to the color of a stormy sky. "I'll never forget. I'll never be able to." She was drifting away from them again.Vejita's grip on her tightened as he began to fear that she would sink back into herself again. He had to keep her here with him. "On Vejitasei, you'll be so distracted that you won't have to look back on those damned memories again, I swear it.""You'll try your hardest, I'm sure," Bulma said, the edges of her mouth twitching at his sexual innuendo. "But you'll never be able to chase it away.""This is what you wanted, is it not?" Vejita demanded. How was he supposed to please her after all that he had already done? Didn't Yamcha's head rolling on the floor satisfy her? "You've gotten everything that you've ever hoped for, woman! What else is there that someone can do?"Bulma choked on a sob, the thoughts of the human population being exterminated outside the church windows, and of her own past life of torture surfacing in her mind like nightmares that wouldn't go away. "You can help me forget all of that... Please help me..." With fresh tears, she allowed herself to be taken into Vejita's strong embrace. When she was there, she could almost shove the memories aside. She almost felt safe. This was as happy as she could ever be -- she might always have the bad thoughts, but they could be temporarily shoved aside.Byron watched the quiet, yet unmistakeably tender exchange from the aisleway, not far from where Yamcha's grimacing head had rolled. Jealousy and anger brewed in his stomach until he thought he was going to be sick. It wasn't right, this couple -- Bulma was the human queen, so she should consort with a human suitor. He had been in Bulma's life for years before she had even heard of this Saiyan warlord, so why should he be cast into the background now that they had been reunited again? With a low growl, his hand went to the long dagger at his side.Bulma savored the feel of Vejita's warm embrace, almost fearful that she would never feel it again. The fact that she was free to be with whomever she chose was hard to believe. The flame that had existed between them had never gone out -- the connection and the feeling of security was still there, even stronger, it seemed. She smiled demurely, and shifted to rest her chin on his broad shoulder. When she opened her large eyes, however, she was met with a sight that made her blood suddenly run cold. The hooded man who had followed Vejita into the church was lunging at them, a long dagger drawn and ready. Apparently, Vejita was not bothering to follow his weak human ki as he nuzzled her neck.Gasping, she did the first thing that came to her mind -- she grabbed the dagger that had been cast close to her by her unknowing mother. Once the man got within a foot of Vejita, the Saiyan finally picked up on his presence and whirled to face him. In Bulma's shocked (and clearly forgetful) eyes, his movements weren't fast enough, so she instinctively threw herself at the man before Vejita could untangle himself from her and act.The dagger inserted itself cleanly and easily into the man's ribcage, earning her a deep groan of pain. They collapsed together onto the ground, his blood soaking into her already filthy white dress. Exhaustedly, she rolled off of him and curled herself into a ball as the full impact of what had happened washed over her. She had killed a man, or at least it was looking to be that way. She forced herself to sit back up and see who it was that she had saved Vejita from."You sneaky little cocksucker!" Vejita was growling at the moaning figure. "What kind of ungrateful motherfuck are you? Did you honestly think that you could harm me? If the woman hadn't gotten you first, I would have dismembered you before you could even get your pathetic little weapon within two inches of me!" As if noticing Bulma sitting there just now, he put a possessive arm around her waist. Bulma was grateful, because as her head swam she felt that he was the only thing holding her up. Little did she know..."Who is he?" she asked. "Who is that?"Magdalene, Maylene, and Chichi had scrambled over, along with Turles and Valyn, as well as Lady Briefs, who looked to be above the whole situation."Its nobody, dear," Magdalene tried to tell Bulma, knowing how the identity of the man would effect Bulma. "Turles -- take the body away so it won't further distress Bulma.""He'll do no such thing," Vejita snarled. "I'm not done with the prick -- he's not even dead yet."Magdalene gave a shout of protest as Vejita reached to lower the man's hood, but to no avail. The hood was lowered, and Byron's distressed face was revealed for them all to see. Bulma at first showed disbelief, then shock, and then she began to shake within the circle of Vejita's arms."Byron?" she managed, breaking away from Vejita to lean over the dying man. "Oh Kami... what have I done to you?" Byron's eyes focused hazily on her face, and an unsteady arm snaked towards her. "Bulma... you've gotten even more beautiful as the years passed. I've missed you so much.""Oh Kami," Bulma breathed. "I'm so sorry..."Byron glanced over at Vejita for a brief second, then back to Bulma. "So am I. How could you...?"Bulma gave in to sobs, unable to speak. She couldn't believe it -- she had killed him. Byron, the love of her youth, was going to die by her hand. Her already traumatized mind felt the strain, and she saw her breaking point approaching quickly on the horizon. Her hand quaking violently, she reached out for the hilt of the dagger, which was still embedded in Byron.He waved her hand away weakly. "Don't... Do you remember the day that I was sent away...?" Byron was saying, desperately trying to find something to win her afffection with. "You came to the docks, and you looked so breathtaking--"Vejita, who hadn't even been paying attention to the conversation, just to Bulma's unsteady form, cut him off when he suddenly aimed a ki blast at the man's heart, putting him out of his misery. "Is that all anyone does here before they die?! Ramble on mindlessly?" He clearly had no idea what he had just done.Bulma gave a shriek, and then gave in to body-wracking sobs. She felt like the floor had been taken out from under her, and the world was spinning wildly around her. She had reached her absolute limit -- she could handle no more."I can't believe you!" Maylene shouted to Vejita as he bent over Bulma's hunched form. "Do you have any idea what you just did?!" When Vejita just glared at her blankly, she elaborated. "Byron was Bulma's boyfriend a long time ago, before Yamcha sent him -- and all the rest of Bulma's friends -- away."Vejita's expression darkened. "All the more reason to kill him."Magdalene hurried to Bulma's side, shooting Vejita a black look. "What could have been the defining moment of Bulma's life has just been turned into the worst, with thanks to you! If you're going to make any more of those comments, I suggest you step away from this poor woman." While Vejita chewed on that, she put a hand on Bulma's shoulder. "Honey, you must snap out of it. You aren't to blame -- Byron would have gotten himself killed anyway, and believe me, his death by anyone else's hands would have been much more painful. He's at peace now."Bulma did not even acknowledge Magdalene at first. Then, she lifted her head and met the queen's eyes for a brief moment. "Why did this have to happen?" she asked between whimpers. "Why me?"Vejita rudely nudged his mother aside and took the small woman into his lap. He quickly motioned for Turles and Valyn to take the body away -- they hurried to do his bidding. "Woman, you have to ignore it. Magdalene was right -- if you hadn't put him out of his misery, someone else would have." He cast a quick, murderous glance over at the body, thinking that it most certainly would have been him, when Bulma was not present. But he didn't have to say that. "Your bastard husband is dead -- you should be relieved now, not on the floor bawling.""This is Kami's revenge on me," she assured him softly. "He's paying me back for not doing anything about Yamcha and his cruel policies for so long...""That's bullshit and you know it," Vejita corrected her. "You didn't have a choice. Would it please you if we took you out of here -- to a doctor?" He gave a weak half-smile and attempted some humor. "Maybe you'd rather see a shrink instead?""I want nothing..." Bulma said, a few matted curls falling across her face. "I don't want anything else... everything I want comes to me through violence and death...""You won't have to fight for anything anymore," Vejita told her roughly. "You belong to the most powerful empire in the universe now. All you have to do is ask, and the entire third-class will run to do your bidding. No other person in the universe will ever hold that kind of power."She laughed ironically, humorlessly, then closed her eyes. "I killed him," she sighed. The musical undertone in her voice was gone, and that was the most disturbing thing of all.Magdalene watched as Bulma cried silently, eyes closed, within Vejita's grasp. Her son looked, for once in his life, completely helpless and even a little bit confused. She could understand where these feelings were coming from -- he had just killed her evil husband for her, liberated (as well as exterminated, for a great number of them) her people, and given her a chance for another life, and here she was, withdrawing back into herself. But Vejita, a rare man who had always been too hard to let any emotion in, could not possibly understand what Bulma was going through. Magdalene was just grateful that Bulma and Vejita seemed to have no idea that she had aborted Yamcha's child. She shuddered, thinking of what might have happened if the baby had been allowed to develop."We're losing her!" Maylene exclaimed from beside her, breaking the Saiyan Queen's train of thought. "Not again!"Magdalene watched with dread as Bulma stopped responding to them. She could almost feel the girl's presence shrink from the room, as if it were fog hanging in the air. She did not rush to her, like Maylene and Chichi did, but instead stood a short distance away and watched with stony green eyes.Lady Briefs, almost forgotten after Byron's death, moved slowly beside her. The two women contrasted greatly -- Magdalene was tanned and brash, with almost complete disregard as to whether her actions were ladylike or not, while Lady Briefs was rail-thin, pale, and the epitome of a court noblewoman. Magdalene didn't lower herself by acknowledging Bulma's mother, and instead observed her out of the corner of her uplifted eyes."Its a shame, really," Lady Briefs commented, acting completely detached from the whole situation. Her cold, unfeelings eyes were on Bulma and Vejita. "Though, I can't honestly say that I didn't see this coming. That girl's been through hell and back in her life, but she's never been properly grateful for the small breaks that she did receive. Why should she be excited about this one?""I'd say that being grateful has nothing to do with it," Magdalene responded hotly. "If you were put into Bulma's place, you would most likely do the same thing. Have you no sympathy, no compassion, for your own daughter?"Lady Briefs actually appeared to consider the question, and her gaze fell ever so briefly to her feet. "I would never be in her situation, Saiyan. I've given her the best life that a woman could have -- if I were her, I would understand and accept that my fate is for the betterment of my people." Her red lips slowly curved into a mocking smile. "Though I have to say, your son certainly looks to be more... sexually appealing. When I first saw him, I began to understand where Bulma's thoughts were."Magdalene wanted to murder this bitter woman standing next to her with all of her being, but something was telling her not to -- at least not yet. "You seem to know what you're talking about, considering how limited your experience with sex undoubtedly is."Lady Briefs bristled at the mild stab, but said nothing.Across the floor, Maylene swallowed her fear of Vejita and moved close enough to hold one of Bulma's small, sad hands. She was slightly shamed at the streaks of tears that were on her own cheeks, but she was willing to shame herself for the sake of her beloved friend. All of the surrounding people's efforts and pain was seeming to be have been in vain, because Bulma looked worse off than she had been before. Her skin was deathly pale -- so pale that Maylene wondered whether she had been on the floor of the church bleeding for much longer than they had estimated."You knew her from before?" Vejita's voice was low and gravelly -- most definitely not the kind of voice accustomed to quiet questions. Maylene flinched at the sound of it, then looked up and did her best to hold his gaze. "Did you not hear me, human?""I heard you quite clearly," Maylene answered shortly. She caressed Bulma's cold hand, then continued in a more subdued tone. "We were the best of friends from childhood until Yamcha banished me from the palace -- probably about three years before they went to your planet." Much to her embarassment, she choked on a few sobs. "After that point, she had nobody -- he sent everyone, even her lesser friends, away. It was horrible, knowing that she was in the palace, alone, dealing with him in every second of her life."Vejita looked like he was about to reply, but suddenly his communicator began to beep. He practically ripped it from its place at his waist, then slammed the button down impatiently. "What do you want?" he barked into it.Chichi perked up nearby at the sound of Bardock's voice through the device. "We've finished, Vejita-sama. The armies are annihilated, and what humans are left around the area have been... detained.""Its about time," Vejita snapped back. "Make your way to the palace -- and bring a doctor."Bardock grunted his affirmative. "Kakkarott wants to know how his ma-- Chichi fares."Vejita brows furrowed. "Who?"It was all Chichi could do not to snatch the communicator from the man's hands. "I'm fine! I'm perfectly fine!" she stammered, her words tripping over each other. "Tell him that I'm well!"Vejita carelessly tossed the communicator in her direction and refocused his attention onto the still woman in his lap. The blood that he had on his hands, Yamcha's blood, had also gotten into the sections of hair which he had touched, making for a very gruesome appearance. Not that it diminished her beauty -- it actually enhanced his attraction for her, as sadistic as it might have sounded. He had never felt so helpless in his life."Your plans didn't go through quite as well as you thought they would, hm?" Lady Briefs queried mockingly.Vejita's eyes sought her out, as if he were noticing her for the first time. "You're the bitch mother.""I care not what you think of me," she said. "I just want to work out a compromise."Vejita glowered at her."In exchange for placating my people's anger towards your race, you would install me as ruler of Earth," she continued, her voice as smooth as honey. "You'll find me to be quite a capable ruler. The people already know who I am -- I've actually been a driving force behind both Yamcha and his father's reigns. I can turn some of our trade policies to your advantage -- a sort of alliance, if you will."Vejita's incredulous look demonstrated his opinion of her. "How fucking stupid do you think I am?" he snarled. "The only thing that you'll be ruling for the rest of your lifetime will be a dungeon cell -- if you're lucky enough to even get one. I've been giving serious thought to just putting you on display like that other piece of shit that I murdered today." At her dumbstruck look, he rolled his dark eyes. "If you thought that you would get anything else, then you were fucking dreaming.""I'll watch her," Magdalene volunteered, meeting the human woman's angry gaze with a sarcastic smile. "I'm certain that I can handle her.""Whatever." Vejita gave Lady Briefs no more thought. His sense picked up on a few new intruders into the palace. "Bardock, Kakkarott, and Radditz are in the palace. Turles and Valyn have joined up with them."Right on cue, the men came through the doors and down the aisle towards them. They sidestepped Yamcha's body, and then his severed head, with its frozen expression of agony, with a hint of distaste, but showed no other outside reaction. They went on one knee before their king, then stood. Kakkarott looked like a child with ADD, practically squirming as he shot sideways glances in Chichi's direction."What's happened to her?" Bardock asked, motioning towards Bulma's form. "She looks like--""Like she's attempted suicide, bled all over the fucking floor, witnessed me slaughter her husband, and then murdered her first boyfriend?" Vejita interjected, his voice full of dark humor. "Well, that would be because she has. All of the above, as a matter of fact." He gently shook her, but the only reaction he got was the slight fluttering of eyelashes. "If any of you idiots have suggestions, this would be about the only instance in my lifetime in which I would be interested in hearing them.""Maybe she's hungry," Kakkarott suggested innocently. "Or thirsty -- she doesn't look very healthy."Everyone glanced at Kakkarott incredulously, except for Chichi, who thoughtfully stepped off of the church's raised dias and towards one of the small bowls of holy water. Carefully, she lifted the golden bowl up and carried it towards Bulma and Vejita. "Its still chilled," she commented. "Pour some of this on her face -- maybe that will wake her up."Vejita watched her every move as she knelt next to Bulma and slowly poured some of the cold liquid onto the pale face, and then -- much to everyone's amazement, save Kakkarott -- Bulma's eyes suddenly opened, an alert and shocking shade of blue.After the initial shock wore off, Bulma shuddered and situated herself closer to Vejita's warm body, as if attempting to absorb some it herself. "I want to get out of this place," she said monotonously. "Now."In spite of himself, Vejita cracked a small smile. She wasn't herself, but she was at least conscious and speaking. "As you wish."..___________________________________________________________________ _____________________... Several hours later, Maylene stood, along with the few people who had begun to crawl out of their hiding places in the city, in the town square. Despite her renewed status and her acquaintance with the Saiyan royals, she stood among the common people, who jostled her around to get a better view of the spectacle that Vejita and his men were purposely causing.He and his men had torn down the imposing statue of Yamcha's father that had stood in the square for decades rather unceremoniously; it now laid in pieces around the platform it had once stood on, forgotten already. In its place, Vejita and his men had erected a display of their own -- a rather morbid display that made Maylene's skin crawl, but at the same time uplifted her downtrodden spirits.Yamcha's beaten body was strung up in a rather offensive sexual position, with his hands placed accordingly, for all to see. His head, which had been severed from his body, was now set lopsidedly atop his neck, grimacing gruesomely at them all. Vejita and his counterparts were standing back, admiring their handiwork like it was a priceless piece of art. Which they probably thought it was, from what she understood of their culture so far. Maylene could only hope that Bulma never ventured into this town square ever again, at least not until she had recovered fully. Which was looking pretty dim about now.Vejita had taken her to his ship, which had been moved closer to the palace. She had been put into the care of some of Vejitasei's finest doctors, who were probably helping her at this moment, then she was due to float in the regen tank. Maylene couldn't be sure, because she had declined to enter the Saiyan's ship after Magdalene and Chichi. She shared their sense of victory over a common enemy, but she had declined to join them in relaxing on the enormous battleship. She wanted to stand with her own people for these last few moments, just to savor the feeling of somewhat normalcy before the Saiyans turned their planet upside-down. She hoped to get a grip on what she was going to do with herself now.For the moment, she was content to watch from afar while their king and his warriors disrespected Yamcha's remains. A smile tugged at her lips, but it faded quickly. She supposed that she should have been happy that her people were liberated from Yamcha and his line, but what now? Mostly likely Earth would be consumed by the Saiyan Empire. It would become a playground for vacationing Saiyans, or perhaps an industrial center to spare them the space on their own planet. She didn't know what she had expected exactly. All she knew was that things would never be the same.And Byron was dead. She hadn't particularly loved the man -- he had even annoyed her at times. It was just that he had been an important part of she and Bulma's past together. The three of them had snuck away to quite a few parties in their time, and they shared common viewpoints on events that had happened in their past. And besides that, Maylene mused, everyone needed a friend to laugh at.She could not even allow herself to think of his horrible death by Bulma's unknowing hands.A hush suddenly went over some of the people behind her, and Maylene whipped around to see what it was that had frightened the people. It turned out to be Kakkarott and another tall, burly Saiyan walking directly towards her. The people parted like the Red Sea before them, but Maylene stood her ground. She even lifted her chin defiantly when they stopped before her. The resemblence between Kakkarott and the other man was striking; however, the other man's features were more mature."Yes? What do you two want?" she asked. Kakkarott flashed her his careless smile. "Uh, Queen Magdalene asked us to come and find you. She wants your presence immediately. She said that--"The other man cut in with a mischevious half-smile that struck a familiar chord in Maylene -- he was flirting with her, or at least attempting to. "Our dear queen ordered us to come save you from these pressing human crowds. She believes that you are far above doing such things -- and I have to agree with her. A pretty little thing like you shouldn't be out here, getting jostled by these simpletons."Kakkarott stared blankly at his comrade, then burst out laughing. "I think that's the smartest-sounding thing I've ever heard you say, Radditz!" he exclaimed. "You almost sounded like you're trying to fl--""Why don't you shut your trap?!" the other man, Radditz, interjected, adding in a painful-sounding slap on Kakkarott's back. While the other man bent over, gasping for the breath that had been knocked out of him, Radditz turned back to Maylene with another ravishing smile. "So... do you want to tag along? I, personally, would love to bask in your company."Maylene smothered a smile of her own, not wanting to come across as too interested. "I'm dreadfully sorry, but I'm going to have politely decline. I didn't care for your ship." Her face became more serious. "In other words -- hell no." She turned on her heel and did her best to saunter away from the two men. She was a little rusty from not using her 'feminine wiles', as the confessor used to call them, in quite some time.As she had expected, the man came trotting after her. She stopped from him, much to her own surprise. "Did you not understand me?" she asked. Maybe her skills weren't as rusty as she had thought."I understood you fine," Radditz retorted, less patiently. "I just wanted to tell you that they aren't on the ship right now, at least, Magdalene isn't. Some of the soldiers set up a little place to sit, near the ship. She's there."Maylene considered his words for a minute, her mind racing, then opened her mouth to speak. "Alright then, soldier -- lead the way."...___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________