Bulma's Lab

[Queen of Cunts]

He lay on the floor, humiliated. This was the proof that he didn’t have what it took to protect his family, or the others on the ship. If Vegeta had wanted to, he could have destroyed them all right there and then, and there was nothing Krillin could have done about it. That was why he was ignoring his constant taunts, his desperate attempts to engage him in conflict - he knew that he wasn’t a threat.

It didn’t matter. All the training, all the constant pushing against his limits, and it was worthless. Once again, he was at someone else’s mercy. That never seemed to change. Just when he thought he was making progress, just when he thought he was clawing his way back to strength, it never made a difference. Someone would always come along who could put him back in his place.

He was stupefied, barely even comprehending as the green-skinned alien lifted him from the floor and placed him on the bed. He didn’t trust her, or the other alien who was present. He couldn’t, after all the damage the non-humans had done on Earth and Namek. But it was an act of kindness that almost brought him to tears. Tears he couldn’t show, for fear of endangering everyone else in the room with his weakness.

The kindness was all the more pronounced considering that she was one of the strangers he had almost injured during his sparring with Gohan. The pain made him woozy and talkative, despite how much it hurt to breathe. He was punch drunk. Further proof of how much progress Gohan was making.

“I’m sorry,” he said, “for what I did on the Deck. I put a lot of people in danger. It wasn’t my intention, but... He’s the closest we have to a hope of beating Frieza. I need to get him ready or even more people are going to die.”

He swallowed hard, choking on the emotion and the crushing pressure in his chest. When he spoke again, he could barely stop his voice from quivering.

“Vegeta killed his father - his real father - back on Earth. After he showed him mercy. I-I should have killed him when I had the chance!”

The last words flew from his lips in a spittle-soaked wail. He breathed hard, trying to calm himself. “-should have killed him - showed him mercy-“ he gasped, collapsing back against the bed and slipping into a dull stupor.

He wondered if he could see her, and why he was still thinking about her. He had killed her. She wasn’t here either.

[redpyrocat]

Everion bit her lip. He wasn’t a monster after all. Her tail coiled around her legs, she understood his desire to push Gohan. She gently placed a hand on his shoulder, he needed to calm down. She started to sing, her voice sweet and soft.

The song was in her native tongue, it was the song that had been passed down from generation to generation. It was started by the survivors who were replanting the trees; this song was full of the hope that her people have had for a brighter future. She knew that Krillin wouldn’t understand it, but she hoped it would calm him.

She finished the song, and looked him in the eye. She smiled at him.

“Krillin, you are a good man, you shouldn’t think so poorly of yourself. You didn’t know what was going to happen. Try not to live in the past. That won’t help Gohan. From the little that I have seen, he looks up to you. Krillin, he wants you to be proud of him. Don’t forget that…you are his family now.”

Her eyes glazed off for a second, as she remembered her own family and home…the ruined forest, and the dead was overwhelming. Even though the cleanup had started before she was born, there was still so many bodies that are still being found. Everion didn’t like to think about what has happened in the past. It was beyond her control…she did have the chance to stop the suffering of others.

She blinked, returning to reality, and cleared her throat, “I’m sorry for your lose. Believe me when I say this, I will do everything in my power to help…”

[nightriddler]

Bulma sighed inwardly. It was disheartening and disappointing that her opinion on these matters meant so little to Krillin, even at the expense of his own health. They had already lost so many, and he didn't care to tally up the count both for her and for Gohan just to prove a point to Vegeta. Like that would ever bring Goku back. And yet, she wasn't surprised by his reaction. Something about Vegeta that just did this to him, changed him, made him worse. As brilliant as she was, she had no idea how to stop it.

The only good thing that had come out of the brief scuffle (if you could even call it that) between Krillin and Vegeta was the Saiyan's remarkable restraint. Bulma's breath had caught in her throat with panic and worry for her friend, but Vegeta had only harmed Krillin's ego and pride, which she was grateful for regardless of how it made Krillin feel. She had been exhaling in relief when she'd made brief eye contact with Vegeta before he left, and she found herself even more curious about him. How could he show so much restraint and apathy towards everything, even when blatantly challenged to a fight?

Bulma turned away and sighed. She listened to Krillin's words while drawing out a cigarette pack from her pocket, lighting the cigarette when Everion responded. Taking a slow draw, her anger calmed down into disappointment. This wasn't what Goku would've wanted for any of them, not for Gohan, Krillin, or her.

"Krillin IS a good man, but he can be a moron sometimes," she finally said, her back towards all of them while she exhaled more smoke. "Just about everyone here has experienced losses." She turned around and frowned, looking Krillin over. "But that's no excuse to go after Vegeta like that when you have broken freaking ribs."

[Turtle]

"I can definitely attest to the importance of avoiding further injury while convalescing," Tomta said quietly, still feeling rather out of place. She'd gotten the basic idea of what had happened between the Earthlings and the other Saiyans, but it was still something of a shock to hear it recounted with such emotion by someone so close to the situation. And while she's never really known her own parents, or felt particularly attached to any sort of surrogate parental figure, but she understood that it was generally considered an incredibly close and important bond, and felt a stab of sympathy for the half-saiyan boy.

"As important as Gohan is, you're also among our strongest fighters," she said eventually, after mentally struggling with some form of apology or condolences to the Earthlings. "It would be an awful waste if you put yourself out of commission."

[Queen of Cunts]

The lizard lady’s song stirred the conflicting emotions inside him as he lay on the verge of unconsciousness. The lilt of her voice became almost a warble when she sang in her native language. It was beautiful, in an otherworldly way, and unlike anything he’d heard before. It began with such melancholy that he felt a kinship with it, but as it changed, as the emotion behind it turned from loss to hope, that was okay too. He didn’t want it to stop. It was almost a shame when it did.

She and the other Saiyan woman seemed so gentle. He couldn’t understand how they’d ended up here. It all seemed like some kind of terrible mistake. Didn’t they know what this ship was for? Where it was going?

“What are you people doing here, anyway?” he asked, trying not to let his breathing hitch, “don’t you know what we’re all here to do?”

He grunted, lying still for a moment. If he couldn’t even stand having his ribs broken, how was he going to stand against Frieza... Or Vegeta? He scowled to himself at the thought.

Last time he’d fought with Frieza, he’d run home with Bulma and Gohan like some kind of coward. For all he knew, that was what had brought Frieza’s wrath down on the whole Earth. He closed his eyes and tried to push the thought out of his mind. It didn’t matter what had caused it. It was their problem to deal with now.

Of course, the fact that Vegeta had practically led him there still enraged him. If the Saiyans had just stayed away from Earth in the first place, none of this would have happened.

He narrowed his eyes at the woman in the corner. “Why couldn’t your kind have just stayed away from my planet?”

It wasn’t the kind of thing a good man would have said. They’d got it wrong. That wasn’t the person he was. He would have given anything to introduce them to Goku. Then maybe they’d have seen what a good man really looked like.

[sexystrife]

There had been times Gohan would think back to his days as a small child with his father, resting in the thick of the woods upon Mount Paozu with his head upon his father’s lap. He could remember how the sunlight bled through the canopy in spots, and how the soft light would illuminate the foliage beneath his tiny fingers whenever he would move. His father would always smile and tussle his hair, maybe recant fantastic stories of his youth before finally going home. Such little things would fascinate him so; the very idea of a world outside his mountain home almost seemed ludicrous at the time. Gohan cherished every calm memory, and every story he could remember his father telling him on those sunny days in the forest clearing…Even if it, at times, made him sad.

Remembering such things kept him together at times he thought he might fall apart, and allowed him to remain strong. Every time he felt that urge to cry he could almost hear Piccolo berating him, telling him to bite him lip and quit his crying. He was a man now, there was no more room for crying and there was no more room to act like a child.

How wrong he was.

Gohan had been awake for some time, unable to fall back asleep after the familiar Ki of the saiyan prince made itself painfully aware to the young teen. He’d remained calm, keeping his eyes closed after the skirmish had been over and listened to every painful word Krillin allowed to fall from his lips. There had been times when he’d seen his mentor raw with emotion, simply unable to keep whatever mask he’d placed over his face on any longer. Bulma had told him many times that Krillin was a man not used to keeping his emotions inside, very much the extrovert that wore his emotions on his sleeve. Good or bad. Even after everything that had happened he was still the same man. So it was certainly no surprise what had come next, those words that he directed at Tomta stirred something within the pit of the young demi saiyan’s stomach that he could not shake. The small warrior withheld a groan as he slowly sat up; bunching his scarred hands into the blanket Everion had gifted him with as he locked his gaze onto Krillin. Gohan’s face fell, and his expression molded into a look of restrained sadness.

“I’m a saiyan, Krillin.”

[redpyrocat]

Everion stared at Krillin; his words did not match his voice. Was he trying to prove something? She didn’t think she would ever understand. She opened her mouth to speak and froze when Gohan sat up and spoke. Her eyes widened, he’s a saiyan too? That surprised her; she thought saiyans had tails…

Krillin’s words must have been very cruel then; after all, Krillin would know this fact…right? His expression alone broke her heart. She could understand his pain. Krillin was the closest thing he had to a father, and he said such hurtful things. His forced calm was more painful then tears ever could be. Everion wished she could do something, anything, to ease his pain. Knowing there was nothing she could do, she walked over to Gohan. She wrapped the blanket around him, she wanted to hug him, but was afraid to cause him more physical pain.

Mo leapt back onto Gohan’s head. He leaned down, his eyes level with Gohan’s, and nuzzled his face. He then sat back up, and croaked loudly at Krillin. He gave a sharp nod, as if he was finished scolding Krillin, and made a nest in Gohan’s hair.

Everion couldn’t restrain herself from hugging Gohan anymore. She wrapped her arms around him. She rested her chin on his head, and held him for a short time. She knew that he needed someone to show him some love. Krillin didn’t seem to like to do much personal interaction. She released him and gave Krillin a disapproving glare. She walked over to him, and frowned.

“I would think you of ALL people would know this fact…Bad Krillin.”

[Turtle]

Tomta didn't seem to react to the accusation, head cocked curiously to one side. "My people," she echoed experimentally, testing the unfamiliar words as they rolled off her tongue. She could barely remember her own people, her parents not-quite memories formed by suggestion. Tomta remembered pain, (absently clasping the badly healed bones of her left wrist) , and disappointment, but their faces never quite settled into something she could recognize. She'd been displaced, not really belonging here or there, thoroughly alien even on Arcos, and only really belonging, in some sense, on the trade planets populated entirely by the displaced.

The only constant in her life, shuffled constantly from planet to planet, had been the Kold Empire and the Planet Trade Organization. And while she'd never kept with Vegeta and his men, really, she still had far too much to answer for to argue with the bald human's assertion of her guilt.

"Gohan," she said, tearing her eyes away from the small human to the half-saiyan boy as Everion gathered him in her arms. "How are you feeling?"

[nightriddler]

Bulma turned around, putting her cigarette down in an ashtray. She would have rather been punching Krillin right in his broken ribs instead, but she refrained. She knew he was upset, especially towards Vegeta, who got nothing but rage and hatred from him. She understood - hell, she'd felt the same towards Vegeta for a very long time, and even now wasn't entirely comfortable around the prince.

Still, the other Saiyan woman in the room had nothing to do with that, and the look on Gohan's face was enough for Bulma to take action. As much as she hated to see either of them hurt, she could handle seeing them both in physical pain. But she wasn't going to let one hurt the other in any other way, not if she could help it.

Her eyes settled on a little brown bag that was on a far shelf, lost in the chaos of her belongings. She had roughly fifteen senzu beans left, but they were usually a last resort so she could make them last as long as possible. She had another three tucked away safely in a capsule for experimenting on, in an effort to somehow replicate their healing magic. It was a project she hoped she could figure out before the beans ran out.

Bulma retrieved the small brown bag when no one else was looking, and removed one bean. Gohan healed pretty fast, she figured he'd be fine without one. She walked over and stood over Krillin, her blue eyes sparkling with a mixture of frustration and rising anger as she glared down at him.

"Now you listen here. I don't care HOW bruised your ego is right now, you're not going to disrespect her," Bulma waved in Tomta's direction as she angrily continued, "She had nothing to do with what happened on Earth, she actually helped carry you in here, so you ought to be thanking her instead of insulting her."

Bulma dropped her palm down none-too-gently on Krillin's chest - not hard enough to injure him further, but still with enough strength for him to feel it. When she removed her hand, the senzu bean was there for him.

"You take this, and get out. Come back when you've calmed down and you're not being a jerk anymore, and when you remember that she's not the only one you're hurting when you say things like that."

Bulma went back to retrieve her cigarette, taking a much-needed draw. She slowly exhaled, and then added over her shoulder, "And you WILL help me fix that wall."

[sexystrife]

Bulma’s tone only made the room all the more awkward, how he wished he’d of kept his mouth shut.

Gohan lowered his gaze, having found his mentor’s mask had fallen back into place and once again hid his eyes beneath his bangs.The demi saiyan inhaled slowly, shutting out the noise around him for only a moment as he composed himself. He wasn’t listening to the others, not now, he simply wanted to go to his quarters and sleep off the lingering ache from his spar. He was silent, tense within Everion’s embrace as though afraid if he relaxed she would very well explode.

“M’fine, really.” Gohan finally said, his earlier sadness nowhere to be seen as he gently removed himself from Everion’s grip with a smile and gently dug Mo from the depths of his sable locks. The small frog croaked and eyed the young boy with a clinical eye that almost unnerved him. Gohan smiled gently, giving the frog a friendly stroke before handing the small creature back to Everion. “Bulma,”Gohan began softly, trying his absolute best to garner the other woman’s attention without angering her further.

“Listen, I’m gonna go to bed, I’ll be here in the morning to help you with the wall, ok?” The teen left no room for the woman to say any more as he turned from her and approached the other two women, “Thank you Miss Everion, Miss Tomta, for helping me back here today. Sorry for all the trouble…” He bowed lightly, gracing the both of them with a warm smile before finally turning away and exiting the laboratory.

He would feel better in the morning.

[Queen of Cunts]

For a moment, he remembered why Bulma had always scared him. It was only after Goku had died that he’d actually realised she wouldn’t have been a danger to him even on her very best day. But there was a way that she carried herself, the absolute confidence that seeped into her movements when her temper took over, that had often made him feel vulnerable. Sometimes, he still saw flickers of that. Today was probably the first day in a long while he’d felt that sudden stab of awkward fear. He hadn’t been this weak since... Since Namek.

He’d always wanted a family more than anything, and now that he had one, it wasn’t quite what he’d imagined. For one, they’d always been smiling more in his head. This existence had made him realise how much like family the old crew had been - brothers and sisters and the closest thing to a father he’d ever known. He missed them. He always missed them, but right now it was killing him.

It was probably why he was doing such a bad job with Gohan. He’d never known what a family really was. He understood it in an abstract way - a father always put the needs of his child first, and they certainly didn’t train them to potentially die in a battle against an immortal warlord.

He wanted to explain to Gohan, he wanted to tell him that he wasn’t a Saiyan - not the way everyone else thought he was. He hadn’t worked for Frieza like the others. He hadn’t gone from planet to planet wiping out all life just to save his own skin. The name “Saiyan” was only a slur because of what that race had done. Because of what it had chosen to do to save itself.

The woman had carried him here, that was true, but for all he knew she could have been on a ship coming to kill them all right now if Frieza hadn’t turned on her race. Cowards were always quick to cling to other people, and dragged them down in doing so. The Saiyans always acted like they were superior, but as far as he could tell, not one of them had joined for any reason other than guilt.

No, Gohan was human. As human as his father had been. Maybe Goku had been strong, maybe he’d always had a knack for fighting, and maybe he’d been born with a tail, but he had always been human. If you were willing to fight and die for a planet, you couldn’t possibly be considered an alien. The Saiyans had been invaders, destroyers, murderers. Goku had been none of those things.

They only tried to lay claim to him because he was strong. Krillin would have claimed him even if he’d been weak. He’d still have been Goku.

“You can keep it,” he said, closing his fingers around the senzu bean and tossing it clumsily back to Bulma, “we might really need them later. I can handle a little discomfort.”

Truth be told, this was more than a little discomfort. He could hardly breathe. It felt like he was sucking air through a damp cloth. Every intake rattled in his aching chest. But it was okay. He was okay with that.

He’d have to bite his tongue and try to keep his anger in check in future. He’d seen what happened when all a person had to contribute was anger. And he couldn’t lie. He couldn’t say things he didn’t believe. That only left keeping his mouth shut.

Bulma was right. He needed to be thinking more about Gohan, and he could do that one thing for him.

“The kid didn’t break your wall, you know?” he said, scratching at the back of his head. His hair was beginning to grow out again. God knew when he’d have another chance to shave it. “It was me. Of course I’ll fix it. Maybe Gohan can train with...” He gestured to the lizard lady. “...while I do.”

It was probably already too late to be civil, so he just pushed himself up and limped to the door. Maybe Bulma could build bridges while he was recuperating. He staggered out of the lab and down the corridor towards his chambers.

[Queen of Cunts]

Zasha

Appezia had been mostly quiet since she’d had her angry face on, save to offer directions. She just needed a good seeing too, Zasha was quite sure. A bracing round of combat always served to level one’s head. Still, she understood that her sister in arms didn’t mean the things that she said. There was no way that a prideful Saiyan could not be disgusted by their Prince’s sudden turn. She was merely showing it in a different way. Perhaps her reverence was intended to remind Vegeta of his heritage. Yes, that must have been it, because there was no possible way she could have actually respected him.

For her part, Zasha would continue to try scorn.

They reached the room where Appezia assured her she could have her human made well again. That was good, because it hadn’t really moved much. Zasha was wondering if the human hadn’t had enough cho-co-lart. Clearly it was a medicinal product.

She entered and immediately was struck with a sudden awareness. There was something, an aroma hanging in the air, slightly acrid yet oddly sweet, cloying. It was strange. Ordinarily, she would have jumped at the opportunity, quite literally, to test the power level of the other Saiyan, and the green thing, whatever it was. But this aroma demanded immediate investigation.

“<You!>” she demanded of the blue-haired woman, still speaking Saiyan, “<what is that in your mouth?!>”

She realised that this being was also a human, and therefore wasn’t likely to understand her, so she started to mime with her fingers the same motion that she was making. She brought the V back and forth to her lips, then pointed at the white, smouldering stick with urgency.

“<That. I want that. Give me the mouth-fire.>”

In all the excitement, she completely forgot about the insensate human draped over her shoulder.

[Turtle]

"She wants what you're smoking," Tomta informed Bulma out of habit (at the risk of being excessively obvious) when the other Saiyan woman went untranslated. It was only then that she noticed the thing slumped precariously over Zasha's shoulder, that soon wouldn't be. She stopped the progress of the sliding thing, that she now recognized as the human girl from the bridge, with one hand, though Zasha was so tall she had to hover to do so. She looked considerably worse for the wear than she had been previously.

"<What happened?>" She instantly regretted the question, both for the cringe worthy accent she had in her native tongue, and for further drawing the much stronger woman's attention.

[redpyrocat]

Everion stared at the new woman who came into the room. She was so strange looking….and so TALL. Everion’s eyes widened, and she walked right on up to her.
She looked her up and down, amazed by the size of her muscles and how masculine her body was. Everion’s mouth feel into an O shape, as she saw her long black hair. Her hair was such a contraction to her body.

Everion noticed that the human from before was on her shoulder. The stranger seemed to careless about the poor human that she haphazardly tossed onto her shoulder. Everion gasped, what happened to her? The last time she had seen her, she was not like this. The poor human looked like she had received one hell of a beating.

Mo let out a terrified croak, and rocketed off her head, launching himself on to Tomta’s face. He flailed his legs, nearly falling onto the floor, before he was able to clamber onto her head. He buried himself in her hair, he blinked and stared at Everion. He knew what she was going to do.

Everion did a flying leap, and climbed up the tall woman to removed the human. She carried the limp woman to the free bed, and laid her down. She then looked around trying to figure out how anything worked here. Everion finally gave up and looked at Bulma, gave her a weak smile, knowing that she knew what to do.

She then marched back up to the stranger. She frowned up at her, but she still wanted to know more things about her. She climbed up her again, her chest expanded as she took in as much air as she could.

“Hi my name is Everion. What’s your name? Where are you from? Why are you here? Why did you hurt her? Are you a Saiyan? You have a tail like one, so you must be. Where did you get the scar? Are you a man or a lady? How tall are you? Do YOU have any candy?”

[nightriddler]

As much as Bulma was upset with Krillin, she would've rather him stayed so she could keep an eye on him and make sure that he would heal properly. She would've rather both him and Gohan stayed, actually; but she didn't fight either of them leaving. Maybe it was for the best so that cooler heads could prevail, and she knew they would both recover from their injuries with some rest anyways. Though admittedly, she would've felt better had Krillin taken the bean. No matter how frustrating he was sometimes, she hated seeing him in unnecessary pain if he didn't need to be.

She shook her head, cursing the man's stubborness, but let it go. He was right, they might need the beans, especially with the inevitable battles that were looming in the distance. She didn't like thinking about that. As much as Krillin and Gohan pushed each other to their limits, she knew that neither of them intended to truly kill the other. But the threat of those fights in the future was different. It made it hard for her to sleep sometimes, imagining the thought of losing one of them. Or worse - losing both. If she could've kept both Krillin and Gohan locked up in her lab, and let the others fight in their place, she would have. They were all she had left.

But they would all fight, no matter what she thought. All she could do was support them however she could. She figured she'd check in on Krillin later and make sure he was alright.

Bulma barely had time to put the senzu bean back where it belonged, when she heard others enter her lab. She irritably grumbled under her breath about her work being delayed for the rest of time, but when she turned back around, her eyes widened in surprise.

The woman before her was definitely Saiyan, but she couldn't remember her name to save her life. Bulma gulped a bit when it seemed the woman's attention was directed squarely at her for some reason. The Saiyan woman let out a stream of rough-sounding words that Bulma didn't understand, but her blue eyes grew curious at the motion she made.

On cue, Tomta provided the translation. Bulma gave her a grateful look before removing her cigarette from her mouth, blinking a couple times.

"Oh. I didn't know Saiyans smoked."

Her mind instantly went to Krillin, who hated her de-stressing habit and was never shy about telling her so. This would be another mark in his book against Saiyans, to be sure. The thought for some reason almost made her laugh, even though it saddened her on the inside.

She looked towards the Saiyan woman and extended the cigarette to her, offering a smile. "Here. I brought plenty, so you can have this one. Knock yourself out!"

It was at that point that Everion went over to the Saiyan woman, making Bulma shake her head. And people said SHE didn't have a sense of self-preservation. She frowned though when she saw the injured human that Everion retrieved and laid down.

"Geez. You guys are really doing a number today," she whispered under her breath.