Why did he keep doing that? Wondered Bulma, as she furiously typed on the Saiyain computer provided to her by Cumba. Why did that obnoxious Prince keeping coming to annoy her? Ever since her first day at the lab, her second day on Vegitasei he has been visiting her at the lab each morning to…pick on her. He insulted her, smirked at her attempts at insulting him. Matched her insult for insult and if she tried to ignore him say such things to her that made her lose her temper in record time. Bulma wondered if this was some sadistic Saiyain way of… of what she did not know. She could not tell.

She had tried to talk to Cumba about it. He usually hovered near the edges of the room when she and Vegeta went at each other wearing a stupid smirk on his face and a glint in his eyes that told Bulma he knew more about Vegeta's strange behaviour that he was being let known. But when she confronted him, he only smiled and told her to stay away from the king. Sula too was no more forth coming. When Bulma tried to talk to her about Vegeta she just told her to be extra careful about the other slaves and to keep herself from getting even remotely involved in their politics and quickly changed the subject. So far she has been able to keep herself from getting tangled into the slave political web. But avoiding the king was not an easy task.

No sooner had Vegeta and Cumba walked out of the door, three Saiyain scientists had walked in. They carried a Saiyain transport pod behind them. Dropping it in front of her they had told her that she had six months till the celebration to mark the kings ascent to the throne to show them how to encapsulated it and thus anything they so choose. Bulma found that that was a task that could actually be achieved much faster than that for she found to her utter amazement and some Saiyains were geniuses regardless of which scale they were measured by. But she also knew that it was something she should try and delay as long as she could. Which basically meant that she was going to have to find a way to stretch what really should take no more than two months to something very, very close to six. Sighing she admitted to herself that it was not going to be easy.

The Prince kept her angry and emotional almost every waking hour and more often than not he invaded her dreams. She did some of her best and fastest work when she was angry and emotional. In short she was just itching to show the Saiyains everything and given the intellectual capacity of the three who where trying to learn from her, capsule factories would be up and running in little less than three months. Damn, it. Damn it all. Why did these things have to happen to her? Why the hell did Vegeta always have to pick on her? Although she had to admit that if he did stop visiting her and goading her into fights he would miss him. Wondering where the hell that came from Bulma ruthlessly wrestled herself back to work.

'It's time to hand over the hybrid, Kakarott.' Declared one of his guards, 'You're father is here to pick him up.'

Goku looked up at him with eyes glossy with un-cried tears and said in a shake voice, 'If he is my father than let him come and see me. I would think he would be keen to see me after so long, or did he send me away just so he never had to see me again?' he wondered as he clenched Gohan in his arms.

'I never sent you anywhere!' Came a very effected voice from somewhere behind the guard. Goku narrowed his eyes to try and catch a glimpse of the figure. The figure stepped into the light and Goku and Gohan both felt their eyes widen. There in front of them stood the near mirror like image of Goku, 'I never sent you anywhere.' Declared Bardock once more, 'You had already been sent away before I returned from my mission to say yes or no. I had nothing to do with what became of you.'

Both Goku and Gohan stayed stock still as they took in the new comer. But in time Goku asked softly, 'You wanted to keep me?'

'I don't know what I wanted. I never got a chance to find out.' Said Bardock with a little bit too much emotion for the liking of all but Goku and Gohan.

'But,' Goku persisted, 'if you could go back in time would you have kept me?' he asked. The importance he placed to the answer of that question surprised even him.

Bardock shrugged and said quietly, 'If I could go back in time I would change many things, but as I changed them the future would have changed with it. If I could go back in time I might choice not to conceive you in the first place. After all your mother did die trying to give birth to you. I could choose to alter the future by removing you from her womb before you were due to be born so that both of you might have survived. Or I could go back and tell my past self to hurry back home so that I might have been present during your birth and your mother's death, instead of having to hear of both from a communications officer who could careless what happened to a third class squad commanders mate and child.' He fixed Goku with a hard unreadable stare, 'And yes, if I could go back in time I might have found a way to get to the planet before you were sent to Earth. But the point is we can't go back in time. We don't have the luxury to see in advance the consciousness of our actions and every unexpected event that mar our hopes and plans. So we do the best we can and just wait to find out what happens as a result.' Bardock looked out of the small window in the room up towards the sky, 'There was no way I could have known that your mother would go into labour two months before she was suppose to. I didn't know that my decision to deal with my…grief' he goaded out as if feeling such an emotion was some how a sign of weakness, 'before I faced you was going to lead me to come home to find out that I was too late and that you had been sent to a planet whose name could not be revealed to me for fear that I might interfere with the curling process. I didn't and couldn't know.'

'Curling process?' repeated Goku with a touch of anger in his voice, 'Is that why you people send your children to other planets? To see if they are strong enough to deserve to have a life.'

Bardock fixed Goku with a cold stare, 'Not all of us send our children and not all children are sent. But those who are sent, are sent because their parents or the kingdom itself demands that the infant prove itself worthy to bear the name of Saiyain.' He glanced down at Gohan, 'Although Kakarott, I can't help thinking that despite all your insistence on finding out what I would have done had I got a chance you are glad that you where sent.' Goku looked away and said nothing. At length commander Bardock growled, 'Enough of all this muss hand-over the kid. You might not have turned out to be a true Saiyain warrior but there is still time for the brat.'

Gohan clung to Goku tightly. But Goku lightly peeled him of and whispered, 'Don't worry Gohan, you'll be fine. I'll find a way to get us home.' Laughter from the other occupants of cell as Gohan began to cry, 'Don't worry, don't cry and remember I love you.' So saying he gently took him over to Bardock. Not wanting to stay a moment longer in the presence of his earth-Saiyain son, least he showed even more emotions, Bardock scooped up Gohan in his arms and marched smartly out. Gohan looked back at his father with tears still rolling down his cheeks like a waterfall. Desperately praying to all deities he could think of to let this not be that last time he saw his father and Bardock was praying to all deities he could think of to let his grandson not breakdown into loud wails as he heard of him breaking down into on earth. He was getting old and he didn’t think his ears could stand that kind of torture.

The guards shoot Goku contemptuous looks as they exited the cell. One of them muttered just as he shut the door, 'I admire your spirit Kakarott but the chances of being alive in six months time is none what so ever. For even if you by some grace of good luck survive your battle with the prince the king would surly have you killed. Something truly incredible would have to happen for you to survive and to be allowed to return to Earth.' So saying he slammed the door shut and marched away to his post.

Goku slumped down against the wall and began to cry. Never in his whole life had he felt so powerless. Never in his whole life had so much doubt in his own ability had creeped into his mind. Never in his whole life did things look so bleak that even he could not see a silver lining of the cloud. 'Don't despair Son Goku.' Spoke a voice in his head.

'Who? Who's there?' he demanded as he bolted to his feet. His eyes darting all over the room in an attempt to find the intruder.

'Calm down, I am King Kai.' Said the voice in his head, 'Kami was persuaded me to help you train for your upcoming fight with Vegeta. Hopefully even with long distance training you will be able to get strong enough to defeat him.' Said King Kai with confidence.

'Wow, you really think I can be as strong as Vegeta?' wondered Goku.

'Well, we never know unless we try. So get to sleep. Tomorrow bright and early we start training.' Said King Kai.

'Whatever you say King Kai.' So saying Goku jumped into bed and pulled the covers over him. It was a little hard for him to get to sleep at first. Thoughts of Gohan clouded his mind but soon exhaustion set in. After all nothing tired him more than deep thinking on hard topics and his conversation with his father made him think and think about things that were neither simple or easy to grasp.

He didn't say much. Just showed Gohan to his room and told him to get to sleep and left. Gohan stood some minutes in his new room taking everything in. It was a well furnished though snug room with one window that looked out over the cliff on which the house stood to the parched brown mountains flecked with green. He had a table mounted with a Saiyain computer that he did not know how to operate. His bed was large enough to accommodate his father and his uncle. A small closet sat in one corner stuffed full of armour and battle suits that smelt new enough to still be in the store. Gohan had a serious suspicion that they were in the Saiyain equivalent of a department store bare hours before his arrival.

But perhaps the article of furniture that most surprised Gohan was a large bookcase filled with books on all sorts of things. There were books on battle and war strategies. Books on biology, chemistry, physics, philosophy, maths and some very weird books about meta-physics and other things that Gohan knew his school teacher back on earth would dismiss as rubbish. Climbing on the bed Gohan wondered at the point of placing that bookcase and those books in his room when suddenly a realisation dawned on him. This used to be his grandfather's room. That's why it was so well furnished, that's why the bed was so big.

Suddenly he felt every uncomfortable. He didn't want to take his grandfather's room. Jumping down he walked determinedly to out of the room in search of Bardock. He found him in an much, much smaller room, on the other side of the house with a bed that was almost half the size of his. Bardock was lying on the bed. From the pale glow of the light from the hallway Gohan could see that his eyes were closed. But at his entrance Bardock opened them and sat up. 'What is it?' he demanded, wondering if the brat was afraid of the dark or something.

'I don't want to take your room.' said Gohan resolutely.

Bardock's eyebrows went up in surprise. 'The room that I gave you is not mine.' He said firmly, 'It hasn't been my room since your… since your father went to earth. So just go to sleep. You aren't displacing anyone.'

Gohan looked up into Bardock's face as if searching for some mark of falsehood. But when he could not detect any he nodded and turned to leave but found that he didn't want to. He had never spent even an hour away from his mother and father and now his mother was light years away and his father on the other side of the landmass. Turning back towards his grandfather he gave him the look his parents would have instantly recognised.

Bardock had never seen the look but he was smart enough to know what it meant. He growled and scolded Gohan for being a weakling and ordered him to go back to bed. But the look did not abide and Gohan did not stir an inch. Left with little choice Bardock told him that Gohan could sleep on floor next to his bed if he promised to be very, very quiet. Brightening up as much as a person in Gohan's situation could Gohan ran into his. Gathering up some bedding Gohan promptly set up a bed on the floor and as soon as thoughts of his parents stopped going through his head he went to sleep.

Bardock waited till Gohan was fast asleep before stooping down to pull him up. Muttering to himself about going soft and cursing Kakarott for producing such a weakling he tacked Gohan into the bed and he himself lay down on the floor, his years in the purging squad making the hard floor appear as comfortable to him as his soft bed.

It really should not take her that long. Thought Bulma as she paced in her room waiting for Sula to appear. Her shift should have been over hours ago. What could possible be taking so long? Not being able to stand it any longer Bulma set out in quest of her friend. She did not know where exactly the dinning hall for the solders were but hey how hard could it be to find something so large. Specially since there was just so many places a KI less being with no tolerance for the gravitational stresses of Vegitasei like Sula and herself could go.

But it was very soon clear to Bulma that she had strongly underestimated the Saiyain's abilities to create totally confusing mazes. It was not long before she was totally lost and the more she tried to find her way out the more lost she became. At length she came to this huge door decorated with these weird curving that looked almost like naked women? Slowly Bulma pushed open the door and stepped inside.

Like the slaves quarters and the scientific wing the floor of this room was made entirely of the low gravity tiles. Which was a clear indication whatever this place was it meant for the use of slaves. She walked about the large room dressed with elaborate draperies and furnished with soft velvet sofas and richly carved tables groaning with delicate pieces of decorations. Soon she came to a small wooden door. She could hear movement on the other side. She cracked open and peered inside.

A bunch of women of all species were crowding around someone dressed in cloths that reminded Bulma of a harem. The harem! Bulma was in the harem. Suddenly a dread washed over her and she knew she should not be here. When the girls blocking her view of the woman forming the centre of there attention parted allowing her a full view of Sula dressed just like the other harem girls only in a material far, far richer in quality. 'Sula.' Bulma cried out. Flinging open the door she walked up to her friend, 'Sula, what are you doing here?' she asked as she stood in front of her.

Sula looked up at her with her green eyes and Bulma felt her knees tremble. There was no recognition in her eyes, only a bare hint of awareness. Her eyes were cold, almost dead. It was as if someone had reached in and tore away her awareness, her life, her soul. Bulma back up desperately trying to tell herself that the woman before her was not Sula. But it was there could be no doubt about it. Her eyes travelled down to her hands at the back of one palm was etched the impression of a Lilly. Bulma screamed, that was her friends trademark tattoo. This living dead thing was her friend, this was Sula.

Screaming Bulma ran out of the room. She did not know where she was running. She was barely aware she was running. Left, right she ran blindly barely staying on the white tiles. Tears welled up in her eyes as everything she had ever heard about the harem began to spin in her head, increasing her speed, decreasing her sense of direction. Suddenly she ran into what felt like a solid. Falling backwards she nearly missed the while tile. But a pair of hands shot out and soon she found herself gazing up into a pair of onyx black eyes encased in a steel blue Ki shield.

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