Highlights: 1 Despite her marital status to Kakarot, something seems to be brewing between Vegeta and Bulma. Whether that thing is infatuation or hatred is anyone's guess. 2 Bulma drinks the senzu tonic, a powerful item created by combining the DNA of Kakarot, Bulma and a senzu bean. Gives the user regenerative abilities vastly superior to the average human, as well as allowing the body to adapt and get stronger throughout the duration of a fight. 3 With the threat of Frieza constantly looming overhead, The Z-warriors found themselves busier than they had ever been, with little to no down time. Becoming the pillar of strength for the resistance to the evil emperor meant that Kakarot's time especially, was scarce. Feeling the growing distance between his parents, a desperate and lonely Gohan catches a glimpse of his inner darkness.

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'Clack… clack… clack..'

Vegeta strode down the spaceship's corridor in a cool and confident manner. All in all.. It had been a very productive six months since Kakarot had given him the gravity watch. His powers had increased exponentially.

The proud prince still refused to train with anyone other than his right hand Nappa, and of course that primarily consisted of Vegeta showing off and Nappa showering him with praise. Quite frankly a single punch from Vegeta was likely to obliterate the large oaf, especially as he was now.

Nevertheless he remained true to his word and began meeting with Kakarot and his brother once a week. He even occasionally went to the mess hall to eat his food.. far from the others of course.

They discussed a wide variety of topics but nearly always it circled back to one of two matters. They needed more men.. They needed something big to defeat Frieza. To that end they now found themselves here.. On the outer edge of the North Galaxy. They were mere days from their intended destination, where they would pick up the saiyan Turles, who claimed that he had somehow found a way to defeat Frieza.

Vegeta scoffed at the very notion of course. Looking to his left, out one of the long side windows of the ship, the prince contemplated the mysterious saiyan about which little was known.

Despite his uncanny resemblance to the fool Kakarot, there was no blood relationship that Vegeta was aware of. Turless had actually been born to a very wealthy and powerful elite family, and his strength showed it. It was his ruthlessness and cunning that truly made him a threat… Be that as it may he was still nothing compared to Vegeta.

Even still.. for just a split second there was a tiny whisper in the back of the prince's mind.. 'Could he have found the key to becoming the legendary su.. No. Impossible.'

He shook his head and doubled his pace, aiming to return quickly to his private quarters. After only a few quick stomps the prince froze. Roughly five meters ahead of him was the Earth woman with the blue hair.. Bulma froze in a mirror image of the prince. Her breath hitched in her throat and a flash of fear ran across her eyes. The prince smirked and stuffed his hands in his pocket, stalking closer to the woman. She eyed him warily as he swiftly eliminated most of the distance between them.

She tried to keep her breathing steady.. For a second she dared to hope he might just walk right past her, as the corridors were rather wide and the prince's trajectory was two arms lengths to her right…

Unfortunately, the man stopped when the two were practically side by side. A confident smirk was plastered on his features. "Woman." He said simply. She flinched before taking a deep breath and schooling her features. She leveled the prince with a glare. "My name's not 'woman', Vegeta. And I don't appreciate this little attempt at a shakedown or intimidation farce or whatever it is you think you're trying to do." She said matter of factly while crossing her arms.

The prince took a step closer and snorted. "I don't think I'm doing anything, woman."

Her breathing became shaky, heartbeat quickening. "T-Then what do you want?" She asked hesitantly. Vegeta frowned and stepped back. He crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes. "I am the prince of all saiyans, the destined ruler of the entire universe. I have everything that I could ever possibly want." He paused to let the weight of his words sink in. "It's.. what I need." He finished, seeming to struggle to find the words.

Bulma straightened her posture and raised an eyebrow. Despite how the prince made her feel.. however that was.. she was a scientist at her core. When she saw a puzzle she had an inherent need to solve it… And Vegeta's entire existence was the most complex type of puzzle there was.

Vegeta saw that the woman seemingly had nothing to say, or else she didn't know how. He sighed and for a second she couldn't help but notice how unusually vulnerable the gesture made him appear. It seemed as if.. The burden of even a self perceived crown, was a heavy one. "What is it that you see in that damn clown anyways?"

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Bulma blinked several times, caught completely off guard by the question. It took her a few minutes to realize he was referring to her husband. She opened her mouth seemingly as if to say something but then she slowly closed it. She chewed the words in her mouth for a second as if they were rubbery and unwilling to form. "Because he was there.." She said honestly. "He's always been there for me. And he always will be."

Vegeta frowned and looked down slightly, deep in thought as he contemplated what the Earthling said. Not because of his power or status.. Not because he could protect her or crush her enemies.. But because.. He was there? The prince couldn't understand.. Vegeta looked up with a scoff and glared at nothing in particular. "Whatever." He said offhandedly, turning to continue off to wherever it was he had been heading before running into Bulma.

She stared at his back as he left, feeling like things were making less and less sense by the day. Before reaching the end of the corridor he turned back just enough for their eyes to meet one last time.

"He may not always be, Bulma. Thank you.. For coming. For the watches. For everything." He turned and left swiftly, leaving the woman with a mixed expression of bewilderment and uncertainty. Several moments after the door had slid closed she slowly turned back in the direction she had previously been heading. Her destination was the science lab. She had finally finished her little experiment.. Truthfully she would have been done a month ago but in the last two months of traveling she had been seeing less and less of her husband.

She didn't blame the man of course.. It wasn't his fault that he was more or less the pillar that gave them all strength and kept them improving. Whenever he wasn't training, Kakarot spent countless hours with each and every one of the rag tag group. He even began spending time with the prince and his lackey. Kakarot improved everything and everyone he touched, that's just the man he was. And obviously he couldn't be everywhere all at once… Still.

She thought back to what the prince had said.. 'He may not always be…' It certainly didn't sound like a threat.. more like a warning or a piece of advice. Like he actually cared..

The saiyan's voice echoed in her head like a haunting dream that just wouldn't go away. And how did Gohan feel about all of this? He was incredibly smart and he knew that his father was busy working to protect them from Frieza but he was just a child. She knew the boy missed his dad dearly at times, only getting to see him a few hours a day anymore whereas before the two were inseparable.

He was so much like his father that at times, she would have flashbacks to when they were young. Everything seemed so simple in those days, without the looming threat of universal war overhead...

*Science lab a few minutes later..*

Bulma took a deep breath to steady herself, both physically and mentally. She looked down at the small glass vial in her right hand. Within it was a bubbling, green liquid that almost looked like acid if one didn't know any better.

She closed her eyes for a moment and thought about her home and the family she had left behind. Her parents.. her friends. Then she thought about her son and how, in her current state, there was no way she could ever protect him. She thought about her husband and the other Z-warriors.. How hard they all tried. Meanwhile she spent half her days safe behind the sealed doors of a lab, never putting any real physical effort into anything.. She felt downright useless sometimes.. But no more.

Her eyes snapped open and a fire burned within them. "Today, the power of science makes a difference!" She popped open the vial and downed it's contents in one large gulp. She shuddered as the liquid ran down her throat.

It didn't taste bad per se, kind of like a leafy green. The feelings that came with it however, were somewhat unpleasant if she were being honest. "Gah..!" She gasped, falling to her knees. "Didn't expect it.. to burn this much.."

She was wincing and beginning to sweat as a fire swept through her. The woman tried to straighten but instantly doubled back over. "I knew re-writing my genetic coding would be painful but this seems.. a tad ahhh!... Excessive.." She squealed. "*huff* *huff* And this is coming from a mother who gave birth to a saiyan child with no epidural!"

Bulma crawled her way over to the far wall of her lab and with a gargantuan effort, managed to press a red button that read: 'Sanctuary mode.' As soon as she did so, massive doors made of some type of obsidian metal slid down around the room, effectively rendering it soundproof. It was a good thing that she had, she decided.

She was certain the rest of the ship's crew would have heard her screams, which persisted for several torturous hours before she lost conciousness.

*Crew's quarters: Gohan, Bulma and Goku's room.*

Gohan sat on the edge of his bed and brushed his long spiky hair behind his head. Honestly at this point he was beginning to look like his uncle Raditz.. He snorted as he looked down at a photo of him and his parents, which showed the three hugging and smiling brightly. He traced the surface of the photo with his small fingers. Specifically the image of his father.

"Daddy.. Even though I know you're getting stronger to protect me and mommy.. Even though I know it's because you love us.. I just miss you so much.." Tears began to stream down the boy's innocent face as he clutched the photo to his chest. Sobs overtook him. "If.. If only I wasn't too afraid to fight.. If only I was strong.. Daddy wouldn't have to be!" He yelled angrily.

He was ashamed of himself.. He hated how weak and useless he was.. He clenched his fists and felt his heart pounding in his ears. His rage grew inexplicably with each beat. The boy had no way of knowing it but his eyes began to flash a deep crimson, and a mysterious dark energy flared up around him.

The boy's Ki continued to spike and surge, rocking the entire spaceship and leaving the Z-warriors gasping and stumbling in confusion.

Vegeta, within his private training chamber, gasped. "What!? Are we being attacked!?" He bellowed, scrambling to his feet.

With Kakarot and Co..

"Jesus Goku what the hell is that? Is that Vegeta?!" Yamcha yelled over the trembling, powerful vibrations of the ship. The man in question had a grim look on his face. "Somehow.. I don't think so." He said, narrowing his eyes.

'Where are Gohan and Bulma's Ki..?' He thought with mounting despair in his chest.

Raditz, Nappa and Piccolo's training chamber..

"Holy hell.." Nappa mumbled, turning pale and beginning to sweat. "Who is that?" He asked incredulously, looking at Raditz, then Piccolo. Raditz shook his long spiky mane. "I have no clue.. Kakarot definitely doesn't have that kind of aura and his friends aren't nearly that strong.."

Piccolo meanwhile crossed his arms and frowned, resummoning his weighted cape and turban.

"It's the boy.." He answered factually. Raditz and Nappa sucked in a breath, looking at him as if he'd just told an inappropriate joke.

Seeing as the two clearly expected an explanation he sighed and rubbed his nose. "Goku's son is part saiyan, and part human. For whatever reason that reckless combination of saiyan potential and human emotion makes the boy's power extremely volatile. Tell me, gentlemen.." He said, looking seriously at the two. "..Has there ever been a saiyan hybrid before?"

The two saiyans shared a harrowing look, speaking in unison as they instantly came to one unanimous conclusion. "No…"

End of chapter 20.