00/05/31-06/04

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This chapter is for Miss T, P-chan(Super Sayian Alexin), Bulmachan and Torasuki for getting me out of this depressive rut of mine! Thanks guys. Though no honorable mention for you, Fork, you laughed at me *pouts* It’s not my fault the shoes are strange! And for Adimra and her comment on my last chapter, 'You know the drill - MORE!', it got me thinking and this is the result! Thanks guys!

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Bulma sat on the bed, somewhat disturbed by seeing an immortal angel cry. The story Stataris told her was sad and heart wrenching, frightening to think that she told her to prevent it from happening again. The room echoed with every movement she made as she padded towards the bathroom. She stopped at the entrance, having second thoughts about entering the room. 'Suck it up!' she told herself and walked into the room, showing no fear.

On the bridge, looking every so proud, sat the Prince in a fowl mood. He had touched the Chikyuu woman and it was causing an unfamiliar reaction in his body and mind. It was like she'd burned him, without leaving any physical marks. He hissed and stalked off to the training rooms, bringing along the first two unfortunate guards he happened to cross, Potatirs and Corais. The couple followed behind him, exchanging glances of uncertainty and battle readiness. Corais saw it was a great honor to spar with the Prince while Potatirs saw it as punishment for leaving their charge alone during a crisis.

The three stretched briefly before starting the unfair match, the guards together versus the Prince, no ki attacks allowed. Being the weaker of the bunch, Potatirs cringed inwardly; she really had no desire to spend the rest of the trip back to Vejiitasei in a regeneration tank or, much worse, dead. She hung back as the match started, darting in quickly to exchange single blows with the man. Corais, on the other hand, took the fight in great stride, giving it her everything. She threw combinations at him and a few even penetrated his strong defences. Vegeta found this game entertaining for awhile but grew tired of it quickly; they were no match for him, no one was. Although he did think that the one with the scar had some potential, the other was a waste of Sayian blood.

The tables turned and Potatirs quickly found herself fending off near fatal hits from her Prince. Finally, she began to tire and become cranky, she hurt everywhere and it was becoming increasingly hard to move out of the way. In one last desperate attempt to stop the onslaught of attacks, she pulled her legs under her and pushed off the ground, floating high in the air. Vegeta was finding this one less and less amusing; she was expendable. In a smooth graceful motion, he phased in front of the weaker woman and let loose a quick uppercut to her stomach. Potatirs' armor was shattered as she felt his fist connecting with her then begin to pass through her. Gravity latched onto her body and pulled her downwards until she was caught by Corais.

The final scream she failed to emit died gurgling in her throat. The world phased in and out, colors and textures flashed in front of her increasingly blurry vision. The pain was intense; it burned her from the inside out, pulling her into oblivion with sharp stinging fingers. In one final burst of strength, she opened her eyes once more and pulled her numb and bloody hand up to Corais’ face. She traced the pad of her fingertip down her companion’s cheek and smiled once and felt the life leaving her own body. There was the soft press of her lover's warm lips on her forehead then sweet oblivion.

The room was hot and filled with sensuous steam; it spilled over the top of the shower and into the floor. The Chikyuu woman leaned into the shower's hot spray, letting it take her away into her own world. She reflected on everything that had happened since she'd intercepted that fateful message one day in her lab at Capsule Corporation. Pictures of S'Rys floated in her head mixed with those of Corais and Potatirs, her failed escape attempt thwarted by the Prince. Who was the Prince? The water beat relentlessly down on her, plastering her hair to her back.

He was dark and complex, with his own motives. Nothing he ever said made her feel less on edge and she was supposed to live with this man for life? Though they shared the same bed, it meant nothing to her. It was like having a roommate that you never really knew or saw. She saw indications of him when she woke in the morning, but never actually saw him. There were vague remembrances of him in her sleep, but nothing else. She exhaled loudly and leaned into the spray of water, hoping for resolution.

The water supply was running out and quickly losing its massaging touch. Wishing vaguely to spend all of eternity in blissful ignorance, she stepped out and grabbed a towel. Goosebumps formed on her skin as she entered the main room, searching for clean clothes to put on. She kicked the comforter away from the bed. Her clothes were gone, probably taken to be cleaned and not returned. It was cold in the room without the heating feel of the steam on her skin. She turned looking at the door, feeling a presence but no one was there, though the door slid open silently.

Curious, she strode silently into the hall, clutching her towel to her closely. The hall was quiet and undisturbed, only she stirred in its long passage. She turned to go back to her room, but stopped as she heard a quiet sob. Her bare feet padded over the cool floor looking for the sound. Bulma stopped as she passed a window. Her blue eyes transfixed on the stars outside. They didn't move; they just danced in their own light and that of the overhanging crescent moon. It had an ethereal glow to it, entrapping her gaze and bringing forth feelings from the pit of her soul. Where was she going from here? She had nothing left to go home to, not even a home itself. Yamcha and her had broken up permanently; she had no social life to speak of, maybe this is for the best. She sighed and looked out the window from her tiptoes.

Blood dripped off the body's shattered armour, leaving a crimson trail down the metallic hall. She burst through the doors of the med-lab into the tank room and began to push the buttons on the control panel frantically, while keeping Potatirs in her arms. The semi-viscous liquid filled the tank slowly as Corais set her mate in its healing waters. She slid down next to the tank, her hand leaving a trail of blood on the glass viewing panel.

The Prince, increditably angry that someone would leave his presence without his expressed permission, flew down the corridor after the delinquent soldier. He found her in the tank room next to a full tank. His face contorted to a look of utter distaste and hatred as he grabbed the back of her chest plate and dragged her back off to the training room, intending to force her to show the proper respect to royalty.

In the hall, Bulma looked up from the pacifying window as she heard the sound of approaching footsteps. A meek looking pale girl with pointed ears approached her. She gulped once, "Umm....I...I have your clothes...." She mumbled, obviously afraid of the older woman. Bulma took the pile from the girl and thanked her. The young one turned and took off, barely being able to stop herself from running. Bulma just ignored the girl's reaction to her and took off down the hall to get dressed.

She could only watch as the knee advanced towards her in slow motion before connecting with her face, causing her to black out on contact. The Saiyajin Prince touched down on the ground of the training room and snorted at the fallen body of the ilrespecting guard. "Get her out of my sight!" He snarled to Nappa, who'd come to watch the match. The lug obediently pulled the body away from Vegeta's sight.

Bulma pulled on the new clothing she was given; it was very Sayian. The clothing was tight, a little too tight in places for her tastes, but it couldn't be helped. She tugged at her rapidly drying hair as it tumbled into her vision, causing her impossible amounts of frustration. "URRRGGG" she moaned in annoyance and began searching the room for something to tie her hair back with. She spotted her belt lying on the back of the chair. With ease, she snatched it from its place and let her fingers play over the familiar capsules as she sighed with contentment. The familiar click and explosion was heard as she opened one of the well-worn capsules. Her face spread into a smile as she dove her hands into the pile of make-up and other assorted toiletries.

She pulled herself up off the floor after having sat on its cold surface for over half and hour, applying make-up and doing other various beauty routines. Bulma stretched and let the feeling of outward beauty wash over her in contentment. She turned her head from side to side, getting used to the feeling of having her hair piled on top of her head again. Satisfied that the bun would hold, she put her precious belt on and left the room in search of breakfast.

Vegeta sat on the bridge waiting for the officer in front of him to stop his incessant ramblings about news from Vejiitasei. He perked up at the sound of the words mating battle. "WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?" He roared holding back the urge to blast his informant. The humbled guard slouched farther away from the Prince, "You...you...ordered a battle..." His dark eye brows forked together as he got off his throne and advanced towards his underling. "I DID NOT CALL FOR ANY BATTLE!! THERE WILL BE NO BATTLE!!!" He yelled after the fleeing guard, no longer tempted to blast him; he had other problems. He left the bridge with his new problem seething around in his head.

Bulma padded softly down the corridors, trying to find her way to the mess hall in search of food. She fell into step behind two burly men decked out in armor, "...I still don't understand. It just swept the ship, eating everything. I even had to get one of those Chikyuu beds, they're to soft and feathery." The other nodded to the first, "I know, everything here is changed, that anomaly gutted the ship without even touching anything else; kinda like it was forcing us to change the look of our ship." He chuckled as the patrolling guards turned down another hallway, leaving Bulma to walk alone.

She mussed over the conversation she'd overheard in the hall as she reached the mess room. People where inside talking, arm wrestling and sharing war stories. In an attempt to be inconspicuous, she slunk over to the food generator and pushed the buttons as she'd seen Corais do on earlier occasions. Nothing happened. She rolled her eyes and left, not wanting to draw attention to herself, seeing how most of the Sayians had an acute dislike for her, yet didn't outright voice it, she knew it was there. Her stomach rumbling, she walked out of the mess hall depressed. She was hungry, she was lonely and she wanted her own clothes back! As she walked up the empty halls, one piece of wet blue hair came loose from her perfect bun and fell down to slap her in the back. "Ack...baka!" She muttered to herself and smoothed the offending piece back into place. A few steps later the fallen piece had returned to reek revenge on her. Disgusted that her hair was misbehaving so badly, she changed her plans, heading back to her room and not the lower levels. As she neared her room, more pieces began to fall out of her bun until she was thoroughly pissed off. She stalked into the room, sat on the bed and began taking her hair out of its meticulously placed bun.

His royal highness chose that moment to walk into his room, face in a perpetual frown of displeasure. He watched her for a moment, taking in the scent of her freshly washed hair before clearing his throat. She looked up through the sapphire strands that tumbled in front of her face, he pointed to the door. Bulma raised a now perfectly shaped eyebrow and snapped at him, "Not a chance!" She got cocky, using her feelings of loneliness and depression as a springboard to launch her attack. He levelled his deadly glare at her. "Leave." She flicked her hair over her shoulder and hissed at him, "NO! I'm staying right here, you self-absorbed asshole!" He snorted and took a menacing step towards the weak woman. "I am the crowned Prince of Vejiitasei and you will do as I tell you, whore!" Bulma held her ground even though her mind fed her thoughts and fears of him hitting her again. He looked down on her from his three-inch advantage and scrutinised her with dark eyes. In a complete contradiction to his usual character he turned and walked off to the shower.

The adrenaline was still pumping furiously through her veins as she sat down on the bed and took a brush to her hair furiously. She looked down at her clothes and snorted, then pulled out one of her capsules and pushed the triggering mechanism. The explosion cleared and the Chikyuu woman began to root through the box that stood in front of her, finding a pair of faded jeans, a green shirt and a pair of heavy black boots. She looked around the room and decided that 'he' wasn't coming back for another couple of minutes. She pulled off the Sayian garb and started to pull on her own familiar clothing (picture). She pulled on the jeans and did them up, relishing the feeling of the familiar pants. She began to pull the shirt over her head but stopped and struggled as it caught on to one of her earrings. Carefully, she pulled her shirt free of her earrings, grasping and pulled it down over her black bra. She looked up and felt a flush come to her cheeks. 'He' was standing there watching her dress, the pervert, not to mention he was only in pair of tight shorts that made her blush even deeper. "Do you always watch women change, ecchi?" He smirked back at her. "Only when they feel the inclination to do so on my bed." 'Such a complex bastard!' Bulma thought. She snorted and stood up, pulling her boots on quickly. She stood up and began advancing towards the door.

In the blink of an eye she was standing in front of him, the blood lust showing in his bottomless eyes. "You DO not walk away from me! Unless you are wanting to end up like those bitches of yours!" He sneered at her as she shied away from him, the fire rose up and exploded from Bulma, "WHAT DID YOU DO YOU THEM, YOU MONSTER!?!" She took a step at him threateningly. In a smooth and invisible motion to Bulma, he picked her up and slung her over his bare shoulder and stalked out the door, ignoring her beating fists on his back. The Saiya-jin no Ouji smiled slightly to himself as he walked down the hall, he knew exactly how to deal with this problem. He arrived at a pair of red metallic doors guarded by 4 brutes standing at attention. The doors slid open and Bulma craned her neck around his broad shoulders to see her eyes opened wide as she realised where she was. He stepped inside and walk over to a glass-like cell in the corner, he set her down and pushed her inside none to gently, "Maybe after this you'll learn your lesson." He pushed a keypad and the glass cell walls buzzed with electricity before leaving her alone in the dark cell.

The first thing she noticed was that it was dark and damp in the cell, she couldn't see into the far corners and had to rely on her hearing not wanting to touch anything like the walls. For a moment Bulma though she heard a rustling in the cell with her, but brushed the thought off when she made out the dim outline of a loose panel. Her fingers tugged and the loose panelling until it came free in her hands. She snorted at the Sayians and their overconfidence in their abilities. The panel revealed intricate wiring and circuitry glowing dimly in the faint light. The Chikyuu woman cracked her knuckles and got down to work; she was going to leave a nasty surprise for Vegeta-ouji when he came back down here like she knew he would. If she'd profited at all from the psyc classes she took when she was younger she knew he was going to come back and gloat over his own domination of her. In the darkness she smiled and leaned back against an inside wall and fell into a light sleep.

Just as she'd predicted, Vegeta-ouji came back some hours later. Bulma's stomach was growling as she waited for him to touch the keypad. He just stood on the other side of the barrier, watching her intently for a moment before raising his hand to push the buttons to release her. A devilish grin spread over her face as he hissed and held his smoking hand. "Have you learned YOUR lesson?" she teased him cynically. The outside wall stopped buzzing as she stood up defiantly and glared at him. He snorted and slammed his other hand back on the keypad bracing himself for the shock. Nothing happened, everything was silent. "And what are you going to do now? Kill me? Oh wait, you can't kill me." She mocked him from her place. In blind rage he jumped at her, instantly pinning her to the ground under his weight, "Listen to me, bitch! I will not hesitate to kill you, you are of no worth to me." He snarled then pulled himself off of her. She said nothing and kept her face turned away from him. "Get up!" She did as she was told and followed him out of the prison. He lead her to a part of the ship she'd never been to, it was a long hallway filled with doors, she assumed it was the crew quarters. He pointed once with his good hand to a door then turned on his heel and left. Cautiously, she pushed open the door and looked inside, it was a completely gutted room, nothing in there. She took a step in, hearing her footsteps echo in the emptiness.

She turned to leave closing the door silently behind her, unsure of what to draw from this experience. She stalked down the hallway unsure of where to go when a flat voice from a loud speaker began to fill the air, "...planetfall in six and a half minutes minutes, all personal to their posts." She turned and began heading towards her room. Bulma took off running down the hall as the ship began to rumble and shake under her feet. Her balance became nil as the floor bucked and trembled under her feet. Her hands searched for something to hold on to but they found nothing of use. Bulma pushed on until she could see a set of double doors ahead of her; they open antagonisingly slow letting her into her room. She dove for the bed and laid down, feeling the tremors vibrate the ship. Slowly the motions stopped and Bulma let out a breath or relief. She slowly ventured out into the corridor when she was sure it was safe. She found the window she'd stared out earlier and gazed out in amazement. She stood looking at a red-tinted planet with buildings jutting out in massive cities, while people in armor milled about. It was amazing and frightening at the same time. Everything bore witness to their fighting spirits and urges. There was very little beauty in it all; everything reflected war.

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