Taming the Saiyan Prince: Bulma and Vegeta

XXXIV

Chapter 34

Last Time on Dragon Ball Z…

Trunks' heart ached as he watched his father suffer. "NO FATHER! He is walking away… That can't be good! Father would never walk away like that unless it was something serious! NO I WON'T LET YOU DIE DAD! I THINK I'M FINALLY FIGURING YOU OUT!" Without a second thought, Trunks powered up to Super Saiyan level and charged into battle to save Vegeta. "FATHER!"

…

Drawing his sword Trunks mightily wielded it towards 18. Although he swung it at her with everything he had, the android simply blocked it with her metal arm causing the tip of the sword to shatter upon impact! Trunks gasped in horror, "How could they be so strong already? I used this against the androids in my time and they were never able to shatter it!"

Vegeta also stared at the scene in disbelief but not because of the broken sword. "He would risk his life to save me?" The Prince couldn't believe it! Even after he had been so harsh to Trunks before here he was trying to save him! "Idiot…"

Even though Vegeta was a little touched by his son's intervention, he was kind of correct about the 'idiot' part, for it allowed 17 to enter the fight as well. Trunks whirled around just in time to see the long haired boy's fists collide with his face. The next thing he felt was the cold, scratchy earth beneath him. "No…I must save father!"

Vegeta watched the whole scene angrily. "I told them to stay out of it! I told him not to get in my way! Why is he helping me? I have given him every reason not to help me so why? Ugh! I DON'T CARE! I… I don't… Fuck it all!" He couldn't even lie to himself anymore. Everything was all wrong! He was supposed to have defeated the androids by now and his son, Bulma, and the others were supposed to be groveling at his feet! Kakkarot should be dead at his hands! But here he was a lump on the ground, holding his shattered arm in pain, watching his only son getting beaten up for trying to save him. And he cared… that was the real kicker. A rage began to build with each blow that was being delivered to his and Bulma's son. He tried to tell himself that the rage was directed towards Trunks for getting involved but deep down he knew that wasn't it. He had vowed to protect him, like his own father should have but once again he found himself on his knees and powerless.

Trunks' entrance into the fight caused a chain reaction with the other Z fighters (minus Krillin) to follow in suit. "What are they doing? Why are they getting involved too? They are supposed to wait for Kakkarot like bugs on wall! What the hell is going on here? I don't need help! These ridiculous fools! I DON'T NEED HELP!" Vegeta growled as he watched the Namek get kicked away by 17. "Now they are all going to die… I was supposed to be able to stop this! I am the strongest being in the universe! I AM A SUPER SAIYAN! So why can't I win? I thought a Super Saiyan could never be defeated… that's why I worked all these years… I dreamed of this status all my life! And for what? What now?" Just then 17 grabbed Tien in a headlock and began to pull with all his might. "NO! The battle isn't over yet! I can still stop this!" Vegeta powered up and shouted at 17 in a warning tone, "ANDROID!" Pushing back the pain in his arm, Vegeta jumped into the air to stop 17 from decapitating Tien. However, he was stopped when 18 grabbed hold of his ankle. Looking down at the girl she once again began to take upon the appearance of Frieza. "No! Snap out of it!"

"You should have kept your little friends out of this, Vegeta!" 18 sneered.

Meanwhile, Trunks had recovered from his first beating and began to charge after 18 in an attempt to free his father. Vegeta's heart tightened as he saw 18 catch sight of his son. "NO! DON'T!" He called out but it was too late. 18 swung the Saiyan Prince's body right into Trunks' causing him to lose consciousness and his Super Saiyan status immediately.

He couldn't move. There was something broken in every part of his body. All the years of disappointments, failures, and work in vain had led up to this moment. This was the climax of defeat for Vegeta. "And to think…Today was supposed to be the day when all my dreams came true… I actually believed that…"