'Ah, where to begin? Well, wow, I received some great reviews and I am so glad that everyone enjoyed the last chapter. I'd like to say thank you to Vetygas and Sayeh especially. Thanks for telling me how to spell suspicion correctly, haha (I can write a 16 chapter story but can't spell a simple word correctly)! Um, and I really like all the suggestions for this chapter. I got some good ideas from you guys and I will try to succeed in pleasing you! So, here is the final chapter to "Dark Past".

Chapter 16

It was only a quick spiraling through blurred shapes and tunnels as the Z fighters were hurled back to their time. The six fighters were sent sprawling through a tear in time and landed on the soft grass of Capsule Corp. They laid spread out and gasping in confusion, trying to figure out where they were.

Goku sat up rubbing his head and looking around. A childish grin spread across his face as he saw the huge, yellow-roofed Capsule Corporation. His other friends sat up with uncomfortable moans and he glanced back at them. His smile quickly faded as he saw Vegeta lying on his side, gasping. He stood quickly and rushed over.

Vegeta looked completely normal, and his once pale skin was regaining color. Goku understood the problem, though. He had been without air for quite some time. The traveling back to his original body got rid of all his wounds. Vegeta's breathing slowed and he cracked open his eyes.

Bright light blinded him, but he needed to know that he was back. He needed to see the white building that he called home. He could have cried as he saw the familiar yard, the strange inventions and gadgets littering the yard, including his gravity room, and the warm, and sweet smelling air of earth.

But then it all hit him. Frieza's nails digging into his throat. He saw the horrid assault that had been relinquished on him. He had lost…again. He practically stood by and allowed the disgusting creature to have his way with him. A sudden, uncontrollable shaking overcame him and he lie on his side and let his teeth chatter, as shame and defeat washed over him.

He flinched as a hand lay on his side. It didn't help stop his trembling.

"Vegeta, it's ok. We're back."

Kakerotto. The fool. He had no idea what had just happened. None of them knew! He heard quick steps running to him now.

"Vegeta!"

His eyes widened as soft, feminine hands wrapped around him. He allowed Bulma to pull him up and hug him. His eyes stared forward, full of despair and pain as his nose buried into her sweet-smelling, blue hair. Her warmth calmed him slightly, but it made him realize more how much he had missed her, and how close he was to almost losing her. Slowly, he wrapped his arms around her.

"I'm so glad you're back."

She squeezed him tighter, but became worried, as he made no response. She released him slowly and drew back so she could see his face. Her blue eyes widened at his expression. He looked completely lost. His usually fiery eyes were shimmering with almost, unconcealed tears. A deep, agonizing pain settled on his face and he looked absolutely defeated.

"What happened up there?" She whispered.

Vegeta's eyes dropped to the green grass and he remained silent.

"It was Frieza," Goku said. Vegeta grimaced at the name. "We had some problems right before we left."

Bulma looked at her husband with deep pity. He did not meet her eyes. Something horrible must have happened if Vegeta was acting like this. She turned her gaze over to her other friends and gasped when she saw the large green, log shaped gem under Gohan's arm.

"Is that it?"

Gohan looked at the ugly object and nodded.

"Hey Gohan, maybe you should run that up to Dende." Krillen suggested.

The teenager nodded and prepared to take off but Vegeta glanced up at him suddenly.

"No." Everyone looked at him. "I will take it. I want to take it straight to King Yemma."

Bulma placed her hands on her lover's hands. The caring contact made the damaged saiyajin uncomfortable. He drew back and slowly stood up.

"Don't you think you should rest?" Eighteen asked. He had just gotten the life throttled out of him after all.

Goku let out a small grin. "Sure Vegeta. I'll take you there."

Bulma stood quickly, her fiery anger now lighting within. "Now you two just wait! King Yemma said that we still have a day left before the jewel runs out. I want you to rest and relax before rushing off."

Goku understood that Vegeta was close to breaking down. He needed to take his mind off the recent events that just occurred, and delivering the jewel was just the thing to do. He also understood that the arrogant prince wanted to talk to Yemma. Anything to help clear his friend's conscience was worth helping.

"Sorry, Bulma," Goku said playfully. "I know that we just got back, but this won't take long."

Before she could protest, Goku grabbed the jewel from Gohan's grasp and Vegeta's arm and teleported them to King Yemma's desk. Several cloudy spirits yelped and jumped out of the way as the two siayajins appeared from thin air. The giant, red-faced king peered down at them. Goku handed the jewel to his friend and gave a small salute and grin.

"Hey King Yemma!"

The surprised king leaned over his desk. "Oh, hello, Goku. Was the mission successful?"

"Sure was. I'll be waiting outside."

The orange clad fighter walked from King Yemma's check in area and meandered away from the long line of newly deceased spirits. The large king looked down at a disgruntled Vegeta. He told all the spirits and worker demons to go wait outside. The room emptied and he gave Vegeta a sideways smirk.

"Rough trip, eh?"

Vegeta glanced down at the floor and held up the jade-green energy piece. King Yemma's large hand reached down and took it gently.

"I'm assuming that you didn't come here to merely hand it over."

Vegeta let out a quick "tsk" and began to turn red in the cheeks. He sure as hell didn't want to go over the entire mission, especially not over what happened right before he left, but he did want to know something.

"Since this was a mission to the past," he spoke slowly, "was everything I did recorded on my record?"

King Yemma gave a knowing smile.

"Ah, but you already did all those things in your past before. I explained that to you."

Vegeta looked up quickly, surprising the king with her his saddened expression.

"But I went back with this mind frame. I went back in my changed ways and I still took joy in killing and destroying!"

Again, the same knowing smile returned.

"Your thirteen-year-old side enjoyed it. But, the entire time you killed and destroyed, wasn't there one side that kept screaming to stop and calm down?"

Vegeta turned his head to the side, remembering his mission on planet Si and the horrific agony he felt after he murdered all the people. Guilt filled him and he felt an overwhelming pain stab at his heart.

"It hurt," he barely whispered. "It was terrible."

The large, red-faced king leaned back in his chair and laced his fingers together.

"Vegeta, remember when you battled Majin Buu, and you were wished back with all the other "good" people of earth, even after destroying all those humans at the World Tournament?"

How could he forget? He nodded, not meeting King Yemma's eyes.

"You got wished back because of your conscience. A cold-hearted murderer would not care if he destroyed lives, but you did. And you do. Mistakes may have been made on this latest mission, but you know and understand that it was horrible and you feel it."

Vegeta raised his eyes again, his heart pounding at his next question.

"When I die again, later, in the future, will….will I be sent to hell?"

King Yemma's mouth slowly smiled again.

"As of this moment, no. Unless you go nuts and begin to ruthlessly murder for no reason and no guilt, that might change."

Vegeta chuckled slightly, but the weight of the pain and shame he felt still did not lift. The giant sitting before him noticed the saddened, empty expression on the saiyajin's face.

"This was not an easy mission, was it?"

Vegeta smirked and slowly shook his head.

"How does it feel to be the hero of earth? No, the savior of the universe?"

Vegeta's dark eyes widened again at this question. He felt the same pride fill him, as it did before when Goku had mentioned it to him. He had no answer, but merely smiled.

"Even though this battle didn't include any action-packed fight scenes or destruction of earth, you still pulled it off. You got the jewel. We would all be lost now."

Vegeta nodded and looked into the black eyes of the giant before him. He didn't need to say anything; Vegeta's expression was enough of a thank you.

Goku met up with his friend as the smaller warrior walked up to him. The orange-clad saiyajin was busily poking at a strange insect that was crawling around at the front of snake way. He stood as Vegeta glanced at him.

"You gave it to him?"

Goku was expecting some snide comment like "No, I threw it away" or "Think before you speak, Kakerotto", but the prince merely nodded, his expression still somewhat empty and sad. Goku placed his hand on Vegeta's shoulder and the two vanished.

….

The doctors in the medical room gaped in awe as their powerful lord floated in the blue liquid of a healing tank. He had been dragged up from the rocky ground of his planet, bleeding and unconscious from an attack by one of the strange guards Vegeta had found. The brown doctor allowed a small smile to appear on his face. The boy had done it. He had finally defeated Frieza. Even if he hadn't landed the final blow, he was certainly the one responsible for the cause of the evil tyrant's downfall.

Meanwhile, Zarbon and Dadoria stared at the two saiyajins before them. It had been about five minutes and every time Zarbon opened his mouth to speak, he'd quickly close it again and pace about Frieza's demolished room. Finally, he stopped pacing and turned to the large fighters.

"Super-saiyajin. A SUPER-SAIYAJIN! Please….explain. I'm at a loss for words."

Nappa glanced at the longhaired Radditz and the two shrugged, feeling just as speechless as the bewildered henchman before them. Normally, they would find some smart-ass comment to reply with, but the scene they just witnessed was amazing.

"We are….just as shocked as you," Nappa replied. He was none too happy that the strange fighters, without an explanation, had taken his prince away.

"This legend. What was the legend?"

Again the two, slow-witted fighters shrugged.

"There are many rumors behind it. Prince Vegeta had spoke of it occasionally, but all saiyajins thought it a myth," Radditz explained. He was still shocked from seeing a warrior who looked identical to his father, Bardock.

Zarbon bit the nail on his thumb and contemplated this. One lone fighter just easily blasted their supposed unbeatable master out a window. He was supposedly a super-saiyajin. The warriors disappeared without a trace along with the little brat, Vegeta. Lord Frieza was, at this moment, healing in a tank. The entire crew was, at this second, without a leader….and free. He thought back to what the golden warrior had said before leaving. He warned them that if they stayed with the evil tyrant, they would be killed in the future.

His heart began to race as thoughts suddenly entered his head. His copper eyes switched from one stern face to another.

"What is it, Zarbon?" Dadoria asked.

The accented fighter stuttered a bit before speaking. What he was about to say would be a death sentence for sure, but he couldn't resist blurting it out.

"I think we should kill Lord Frieza."

A deathly cold silence filled the room and a frigid air blew in through the broken window. Dadoria stared in shock.

"Wha-What do you speak of?"

Zarbon threw his cape behind him. "Listen! We know that that there are warriors more powerful than Frieza. If he was defeated so easily, what does that say about our safety? Think! We'd be free. We should rally up the entire crew and take him down before he wakes up."

Dadoria stepped back, sweat running down his large, pink face.

"You've lost it! You've lost it!"

He ran from the room in a panic. Before he could reach the upper hallways, Nappa, Radditz, and Zarbon surrounded him. He let out a quick yelp of shock before all three fighters fired upon him. The round, pink henchman screamed in pain and exploded. A crowd had formed at the top of the stairs and panicked faces peered at the three powerful warriors. The crew feared the worst. The strongest fighters in the army were turning and killing everyone.

Kui ran forward, seeing the charred remains of Dadoria. His large, purple mouth opened in anger.

"They're going kill us all! Traitors!"

He powered up and launched himself at the saiyajins. Zarbon leapt forward, surprising the two warriors and Kui. The turquoise skinned, pretty-boy slammed his fist into Kui's face, sending him sailing into the crowd.

"Listen to me!" Zarbon hollered, silencing the crowd. "You all heard what that fighter said! We could all die if we stick with lord Frieza! We just saw proof that he can be defeated. What does that say about our safety? I agree that we all destroy him and get the hell out of here!"

Several faces became excited at the notion of freedom while others held expressions of anger and disgust.

"That was a lucky shot!" one fool yelled.

"Yeah, no one can beat Lord Frieza!"

"Traitors!" Kui screamed again. "Kill them! Kill them all! Saiyajins don't-"

Unfortunately for Kui, the soldiers he had fallen into were agreeing with Zarbon. He soon found himself being ripped apart and beaten to death as the crowd suddenly turned into a crazed mob. Blood flew across the walls of the second floor and lasers from guns shot out wildly, slicing through guards and techs and warriors. Zarbon turned to the two war-crazy saiyajins next to him.

"Come, we're going to the medical room."

Leaping over the mass of brawling soldiers, the three fighters sped back down the stairs. They heard loud footsteps behind them and saw an escaped group rush after them; either to help or stop them.

The doctors in the medical room froze as the floor shook and a stampede of feet could be heard. The doors burst open and there stood about twenty or more fighters.

"What? What is going on?" one scared doctor stammered.

"Out of the way!" Radditz hollered.

The doctors' stared for a moment, but leapt out of the way as all twenty or so warriors raised their hands, forming ki and aiming it at the pale lizard floating in the tank. Frieza sensed a commotion outside and cracked open one, bleary red eye. He froze in complete terror as he looked through the blue liquid. His crew! His warriors! They stood before him, aiming their energy directly at him. His eyes landed on the two Saiyajins in front, grinning triumphantly. He placed one bloodied hand on the glass, his eyes huge with terror.

The room seemed to explode with blinding light. Glass shattered, doctors screamed, and Frieza let out a howl of agony as ki spears ripped through him. His already weakened and injured body burst apart and he felt his life drain out of him. His traitorous crew continued the crazed assault, not stopping until they were sure there was nothing left.

One thought passed through his head as he died. How? How did he go from the leading emperor, the strongest in the entire universe, to a pile burning flesh now? He saw the fading images of the sneering Radditz and Nappa as their energy combined with that of his whole crew. His blistering, fading brain captured one last image. A golden super-saiyajin, with furious, green eyes burned into his blinded vision. The little bastard, Vegeta had been right all along. The legend of the super-saiyajin…it…does exist.

The rapid firing ended and the crewmembers stared at the charred flesh and smoldering medical supplies all over the floor. It was over. Their once evil lord Frieza was no more.

The twenty or so fighters slowly walked away from the scene, leaving some very terrified and bewildered doctors. One guard turned and looked at them.

"He's dead now. We're all free."

Walking through the hallways, dead bodies littered the ground. Those who had stood for Frieza and followed him were now dead. Those who wanted to be free destroyed them all. Zarbon stopped and gazed at all the war beaten fighters and smirked.

"Frieza is dead! I am taking his ship and we are leaving here forever! If you wish to join me, meet me in the spaceship in one hour."

The turquoise-skinned henchman walked out to the large, saucer ship. He pressed a button on the side and a large ramp rolled down. His scouter beeped and he turned, facing the usual scowling faces of the saiyajins.

"I never thought there'd be a day where I fought alongside two saiyajins," he sneered.

"Ha!" Radditz barked, folding his arms. "I never thought we'd join forces against Frieza with his pretty-boy henchman."

Zarbon turned to go into the ship. "Are you coming, too?"

"No," Nappa said. "Saiyajins stick together and travel by themselves."

Zarbon's copper eyes softened and he made his way up the ramp. Without turning around he called over his shoulder.

"Sorry about your prince. Perhaps you will see him again in the future."

Nappa and Radditz looked at each other and slowly made their way to their space pods. Nappa opened his door and was about to crawl in, but stopped as he saw his friend gazing at the stars above.

"Thinking about Vegeta?" The large, bald saiyajin asked.

Radditz sighed. His mind was racing. He had just seen a saiyajin who looked just like his father and he had just lost the prince whom he tried to protect for so many years. The tortured child was just swept away like that. What if he and Nappa never saw him again?

"It finally happened," the longhaired saiyajin muttered. "We are free, but our prince is not here to join us."

"He would have loved it," Nappa said. He looked into the sky as well and sighed. "Farewell, Prince Vegeta. At last, the remaining saiyajin are free, due to your efforts."

The two warriors clambered into their pods and blasted into space, free at last.

…

Vegeta and Goku landed on the soft grass again, in the backyard of Capsule Corp. Goku took his hand off of his friend's shoulder.

"Well, I guess I'll be leaving, Vegeta." Again, the prince made no response and Goku turned to him. "Good….good job, Vegeta."

The smaller saiyajin sighed. "I'll be ok, Kakerotto. You don't have to worry."

Goku smiled slightly and pressed two fingers to his forehead. Vegeta felt the wind blow past him as his friendly rival teleported home. His stomach churning, the prince made his way to the back door of his home. Upon entering he heard Bulma's voice coming from the living room.

"And that's why there's nothing to worry about," she explained. Vegeta felt Krillen and Eighteen's ki sitting with her. A small relief washed over him as he easily sensed their energy. "There are so many time lines within a second, within a second, within a second. I mean, two seconds ago is a whole other time line of the past. You guys could travel back through time right now and see a whole new Vegeta. Sure, you guys completely changed the past that you visited, but it won't affect us. It affects that time period, obviously, but it won't do anything to us."

He heard Krillen laugh. "Wow, talk about confusing. Good thing we know you, Bulma!"

His heart lifted as he heard his beautiful wife chuckle.

"Remember when Trunks came to our time? A lot of things changed in our time, the past, but anything that happened to us did not affect his time, the future."

Vegeta smiled slightly. He certainly had fallen in love with an intelligent woman. He took a breath and entered the room. They turned to him and Krillen looked at his wife.

"Well, I think we should go," Eighteen said quickly.

They said bye to the blue-haired scientist, bowed goodbye to Vegeta, and hurried out the door. Bulma smiled warmly to Vegeta and patted the cushion next to her. She expected an eye roll or annoyed moan, but he moved over to her and sat. Before he had left, he wore a loose, long sleeved black shirt and comfortable, loose, gray pants. He returned in the same clothes and she found them very attractive in them. But his face still looked exhausted and defeated. He sat beside her and stared down at the cushions. She placed her hand on his cheek.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Flash! Frieza lay upon him, pain ran through his legs and midsection and the cruel beast laughed evilly. Flash! Black-tipped fingers tore into his esophagus and blood seeped from his throat. Flash! Kakerotto had beaten Frieza again. Flash! The Ginyu Force stood over, kicking him until his bones splintered and blood poured from his wounds.

He shook his head slowly, his heart racing and tremors beginning to race through his body. He felt so…disgusting. He felt filthy, like no matter how many times he would cleanse himself, he'd never be clean.

Sudden footsteps could be heard and his eyes widened as a flash purple flew through the room.

"DAAAADDD!"

A sudden, powerful force clung to his neck and Trunks wrapped around his father laughing with joy. Vegeta felt an intense weight fill his heart and he hugged his son back. Trunks leaned back and looked into his father's face, missing the anguish in his eyes.

"I missed you. I was so bored this whole time! Playing with Goten can only be exciting for so long," he whined, rolling his blue eyes.

Vegeta felt a small, fiery pride at his son's attitude. He was so much like him, and the fact that he was just as annoyed by Goten as he was of Kakerotto amused him greatly. Vegeta ruffled his hair and smiled.

"So, what was the mission like? I wanted to go, but you and mom didn't let me, and Goten and I are like two of the strongest fighters on earth, especially when we're Gotenks!" He leapt off his father playfully and stood in a fighting stance. "I so totally would have whooped ass-"

"Trunks!" Bulma yelled.

The young boy blushed and looked at his feet.

"Sorry, Mom."

She smiled and took his hands.

"Trunks. You're father and I need to talk a bit. How about you go outside and play? In fact, go to Goku's house. He's back, too!"

Trunks grinned at the thought of playing with Goku. Bulma knew that the fun-loving saiyajin would keep Trunks out of the way while she was with Vegeta. The purple-haired child said goodbye to both of his parents and rushed out the door. Bulma turned back to Vegeta, saddened to see him facing away form her.

"Come on, Vegeta," she said softly. "You can talk to me."

He stood suddenly and glared at her. Without saying anything he turned quickly and stormed up the stairs. Bulma sighed and stood as well. She walked up the steps and slowly peaked into their room. Vegeta lay on his side, curled up and his back facing her. He had left enough room for her to lie beside him. She wrapped her arms around him and pressed against his back.

"Vegeta. What happened up there?"

He made no response, but started to tremble slightly. Her eyes widened. Something terrible had occurred. She hated seeing him like this and wished that he would open up to her. Vegeta squeezed his eyes shut as the same flashes of memory struck him again and again. Frieza's horrible advances on him sent waves of cold fear and anger through him. He felt his throat choke up as Bulma held him and he couldn't stop the sudden tears that began to flow.

Bulma felt her husband shake against her and she raised one of her hands up. She caressed his soft cheek and drew her hand back quickly as she felt the sudden wetness. He was crying.

"Oh, Vegeta," she whispered. "Please, tell me. I'm sure you will feel better."

Her heart practically tore apart as a small squeak of a sob escaped him. He curled up more and pressed his face into the warm bed.

"It was terrible," he murmured.

Bulma stroked his arms and snuggled closer, allowing him to speak.

"It was all so real. I…I actually thought that I would be there forever. Every corner I turned, every-every time I walked through the halls, every time..I…I…"

He let out a choked sob and trembled even more. Bulma felt tears well up in her eyes, but she forced them down. Her pain for Vegeta would only make him feel worse.

"It was hell," he whispered. "I was beaten so much. I thought I would die. I was so….so…weak!"

Bulma hugged him more as he sniffled and shook. Poor Vegeta! She felt terrible for him.

"It wasn't fair!" He yelled suddenly. "Stupid Kakerotto…defeating Frieza again. I went through all the torture, and Frieza almost killed me in the end. He would have…his nails….in my throat. He….he…."

Bulma's eyes widened. Krillen and Eighteen told her that he had a rough time, but she had no idea that Frieza had actually intended on killing him in the end. What a cold, heartless monster! Tears washed down Vegeta's face as he remembered all the pain and torture he had felt.

"It wasn't fair," he whispered.

The room grew silent as the two lay together. Bulma slowly ran her fingers along Vegeta's arms and pressed her forehead into his shivering back. The only thing heard in the small room was his gasping sobs. Finally, after a while, Vegeta spoke again.

"Is my life meaningless?"

Bulma sat up and stared at her weeping lover. She let out a small, loving laugh and draped herself over him.

"Meaningless? Vegeta that is absurd. Look at me."

"No."

"Look at me."

The two struggled as Bulma placed her hands on his face and tried to force his stare into hers. Finally, after one strong tug, she got Vegeta to face her. His eyes were red with tears and he sniffled miserably. She placed both hands on his cheeks and stared into his sad face.

"Vegeta," she said sternly. "You had an awful past. You did things that you were trained and forced to do, not knowing right from wrong. You were never given a chance to experience happiness or love as a child. People did horrible things to you." More tears leaked from his eyes, and he tried to pull away, but Bulma held his face firmly. "Just because all this shit happened to you, doesn't mean that you are meaningless. Without you, we would all be in trouble now. The barrier between heaven and hell and the universe would have collapsed and we would have to fight off the dead and evil demons."

Vegeta shook out of her grasp and buried his face in the warm blankets again, his shoulders still shaking as tears escaped him.

"Kakerotto would have succeeded without me. I've done nothing!"

Bulma leaned forward and wrapped herself around his trembling shoulders.

"You've given me love. You have given me the undying feeling of love. I don't know what I would do without you. You gave us Trunks. Without him, we wouldn't be here. And, you gave me this."

She grabbed his hand and placed it on her stomach. She showed nothing yet, because they had just discovered the pregnancy, but he understood. His sobbing became less and slowly, his dark, brown eyes rose. He met Bulma's eyes and she smiled. His daughter. He had given Bulma a daughter and an amazing, spirited boy. He could see the love in her eyes. She was serious, she did care for him.

He slowly sat up, wiping any wetness from his eyes.

"Whatever Frieza did you, whatever you felt back in your awful past….is just the past. You are in the present now. You have so much to look forward to. Don't dwell on the past. You went back to that hell for all of us. That is the bravest thing I have ever seen anyone do. You went back there, went through all the torture and pain, to get an object that has saved everyone….everything!"

She hugged him tightly and he buried his nose in her hair again. He hugged her back and breathed in deeply. He felt an immense weight lift off his shoulders as her words sank in. Indeed, he did have much to look forward to. He had the whole rest of his life with Bulma, Trunks, and his soon-to-be daughter. He couldn't dwell on the past. He had gone through hell, but he had actually saved the day for once. He held Bulma and never wanted to let go. He whispered in her ear, his voice light and kind. "I love you."

'I don't believe it! I'm….done! Wow, I never thought I would finish. Ok, yet again, another story with a cheesy ending, but what can I say, I love these endings. Once again, thank you all for sticking with it and reviewing, I probably would not have finished it without so much support. Well, let me know what you thought and thanks again for reading and reviewing "Dark Past." –Vegetachik7'