Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Against All Odds ❯ The Plot ( Chapter 1 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Disclaimer: If I owned it I would be rolling in it.

Chapter One:

The Plot

Bulma Briefs was a woman with a plan. She was going to pull that lizard down from his throne built from the flesh and bones of innocent people and beat him bloody with it. Well maybe not her specifically but she was going to be the mastermind behind it. Frieza was going to fall and she was going to laugh as she watched.

Frieza had purged her planet fifteen years ago when she was twelve. He sent his men out to collect the strongest and smartest people of her world then maliciously slaughtered the rest of the inhabitants without remorse. He then sold the beautiful planet to the highest bidder.

It had been years since Bulma had seen another human being. She didn't even know if the others who had been taken still survived. She had beauty and brains and with those tools at the tender age of twelve she had learned to navigate the dangerous eddies of Frieza's court. She quickly became the Ice-jinn's favorite and rose to the top among his numerous scientists.

Now that she was firmly entrenched as a court supporter, she could put her plan in motion. She knew that she could put together a rebellion that could topple the ice-jinn's empire, but that would not stop him. A few rebel warriors with laser guns could never kill him and he would just come back to reclaim his throne, even if he had to do it alone and unaided by an army. What was sick was that he was strong enough to do it.

So the most logical conclusion was to find someone strong enough to kill Frieza and take over his throne. However, this plan was inherently flawed. Absolute power corrupted absolutely. Even if she could find some pure hearted fool strong enough to defeat Frieza, he would probably end up just as bad as the tyrant or too stupid to rule such a vast empire. Once she came to the conclusion that she couldn't save everybody and that someone had to rule, the plan became easier to live with. She would find someone with the potential strength to defeat Frieza, make a deal with that person for her freedom and hope for the best.

The candidate for the new ruler of the universe had to have certain qualities. He or she had to be strong obviously, with the ability to become even stronger. Most importantly they had to be intelligent. It wouldn't do to have an incompetent ruler on the throne, not that she hadn't thought of it. She could put someone easily manipulated in charge, then she could be the power behind the throne. In the end though, that would cause more problems than it was worth and she didn't want to be in entrenched in court for the rest of her life anyways. She already had a quiet little planet picked out where she could retire too.

The candidate would have to have political savvy as well. After all they would have to rule the empire. Charisma wouldn't hurt either.

Lastly, they would have to hate Frieza as much as she did. What she would be proposing was treason, punishable by death. Just approaching this person would be signing her death warrant. She had to be reasonably assured that her offer would be well received.

The problem was finding someone who fit the criteria. So she decided to start at the top and work her way down the list. The strongest people under Frieza were the Ginyu Force. She diligently combed through their personnel files reviewing their power levels, strengths, weaknesses and their psychological profiles. Of course the files were top secret but it took her all of ten minutes to break the encryption.

First on her list was Guldo. His power level was the lowest of the group and his only real skill it seemed was the ability to stop time when he held his breath. An interesting trait, to be sure, but absolutely worthless to her. Jeice was a pretty boy who didn't have a thought beyond seducing the next young thing, male or female, that came his way. Which wasn't necessarily bad, but images of unwilling pleasure slaves parading through the streets to the palace made her stomach turn.

Recoome was just too stupid. Burter was unflinchingly loyal to Captain Ginyu and would do nothing without his mentor's consent. Which led her to Ginyu himself. As strongest of the Force members, he displayed average intelligence with the potential and drive to become stronger. He obviously knew his way around court politics and was a leader of men.

In short, he was perfect for the job. There was just one blaring problem. Last week he had dragged one of Frieza's warriors through the streets of the capital to Executioner's Square. Once there he had the man disemboweled while he was still alive and his innards set on fire. The man's crime was commenting within hearing of the Captain that pink was an undignified color for an emperor.

She scratched him off her list.

Next up were Zarbon and Dodoria, Frieza's `pets'. Zarbon already worked for her gathering information he gleaned from Frieza during `pillow talk'. He was clever and sly and in many ways he reminder her of herself. He too had come to court at an early age. He had no technical genius to fall back on but had quickly climbed the political ladder of power by using his almost painfully good looks. He had remained Frieza's courtesan for a near impossible ten years. He quickly adapted to appease his lord and was an artist when it came to court life.

Of course like her, he hated the Ice-jinn with a passion and entered into the world of espionage with the consummate skill of a master. Zarbon did have some fighting power and there was no doubt his strength could be increased, but like her he had no desire to rule. He was an invaluable asset and she would ask that he be freed from his servitude, but he would not move against his Lord visibly.

Which left Dodoria. That fat slug sold out his own people in order to ensure his own survival. Even Frieza was disgusted by him, but he made a good lap dog and so he was kept around.

She was beginning to get discouraged. All of the most powerful fighters were unviable prospects and she was running out of options. That's when she heard the latest rumor that was flying around the lab. Gossip was always rife in the court and she usually just ignored it, knowing that she would get the real story sooner or later from her various sources, but this caused her ears to perk up.

Prince Vegeta had defied Frieza once again when he refused to purge a planet whose inhabitant's power level was laughably low. He said that it was beneath him to fight such weaklings. She had heard of the Monkey Prince of course, everyone had. People were amazed that he and his two bodyguards, the last of their race, were still alive. He made no effort to disguise his hatred of Frieza and was punished for his insolence quite often. No one understood why the emperor kept him alive.

Bulma quickly finished up the project she was working on and left the lab. One of the benefits of being the head scientist was that she could come and go as she pleased.

Once she was in her quarters she pulled up Prince Vegeta's profile and examined it quite thoroughly. She found some interesting points on Saiyan anatomy that she had been unaware of. For instance their telepathic skills and most importantly their ability to gain even greater strength after being mortally wounded in a battle.

Bulma practically wiggled with excitement. So far so good. He tested at above average intelligence with high scores in problem solving and statistical reasoning. He was taken from his homeworld when he was ten, but not before he had begun his training to be king. He was now leader of a small force that went on planetary purge missions. Distasteful, but he met the requirements for political awareness. Even if he chose not to dance to Frieza's tune and try to advance his position in the court.

Lastly, he hated Frieza. His planet and entire race had been destroyed by the Ice-jinn personally and he waved his thirst for vengeance like a war banner. It really was quite amazing that he was still alive.

She pulled up his psychological file as a last thought and sat back in her seat stunned. Coupled with his advanced ability to reason was a complete lack of emotion. He knew the difference between right and wrong, but he just didn't care. The only emotions he did seem to display were his disgust for the Ice-jinn and an unreasonable amount of pride. Other than that he was completely stoic, not even crying out during his numerous beatings. This was why he was still alive. He was the only one who could carry out the Emperor's darkest deeds without remorse or mercy. He was ruthless and extremely deadly.

She paced around her rooms questioning the logic of putting a cold blooded killer on the throne. He would be just as bad as Frieza if not worse. She furrowed her fingers into her hair in frustration as she spun around in circles until she collapsed onto her bed. She lay there for several minutes staring at the ceiling.

The fact of the matter was that she was no martyr. She wasn't out to overthrow Frieza to free the millions of people enslaved under him. She came to the realization long ago that she couldn't save them. Her goal was her own personal freedom and the freedom of her few co-conspirators.

In Vegeta's file it stated that he did have some sort of twisted honor code. If he agreed to let her go when it was all said and done then he would do so. Could she in good conscious topple one tyrant only to install a new on the throne? Could she sacrifice the safety of millions of people just for her own happiness? The answer was yes. If things stayed as they were the same people would be miserable, if Vegeta turned out to be a tyrant, they would still be miserable, but at least she would be free. Like she said, she was no martyr.

She sat back down at her desk and began to set her plan in motion.

She was already a great favorite of Frieza's and she cultivated that regard carefully. She was his "precious genius" and he denied her almost nothing. All he needed was one last push and he would be right where she wanted him.

The Monkey Prince's punishment for his latest misdeed was exile to a distant star base in the Vega Quadrant. This as it turns out was perfect because it housed a large, fully equipped and most importantly, abandoned lab.

Only three other bases had the same set up and she could easily make excuses as to why she wouldn't want them. Frieza was notoriously generous when he was pleased with someone. The greater his pleasure, the greater the reward. All she had to do was make him happy and she would oh so sweetly ask him for a favor.

Bulma had been holding a secret close to her heart for the past fifteen years. She had been waiting for a time when it would be most beneficial for her to reveal it. The secret was her father's patented capsulation process. She fretted at giving the tyrant such powerful technology but she knew that this would provide her with the push she needed and was her best chance for success.

She waited a few months after the monkey incident so she didn't arouse any suspicion of her motives before announcing her astounding "break through".

Frieza was most definitely pleased and Bulma was hailed throughout the galaxies as the top scientific genius ever known. A ball was thrown in her honor and everyone was invited.

She attended the ball clad in a gorgeous dark purple gown shot through with silver thread. She knew that this was Frieza's favorite color and she did look stunning in it. She laughed, she danced, she sparkled brightly for the emperor and when he was the most receptive she approached him.

The scaly ice-jinn held out his hands as she neared, his effeminate voice ringing out through the crowd.

"Ah, my Precious Genius, you look beautiful tonight."

She placed her hands in his as she replied with a practiced ease of a courtier. "You do me a great honor, Sire, but I could never compare to your magnificent form." She stood before him her eyes lowered primly while he preened at her praise.

"You have done your empire a great service. Your discovery will help us to grow stronger." His slippery tones slid over her causing her to shiver with distaste. She desperately tried to ignore the cries of her conscience as she thought of all the deaths her invention could potentially cause.

"I live to serve the empire and it's illustrious Ruler." She executed a perfect curtsy before him. His pleasure knew no bounds and he chuckled in delight. Her behavior was carefully tailored over the years to be pleasing to the Ice-jinn.

"M'lord," she started shyly, "There would be something that I would ask of you."

"Oh?" A sly look entered the lizard's eye.

She nodded her head that was still demurely downcast. "After devising the idea of the capsules it took me eighteen precious months to produce my first prototype and six more months to complete the project. That was time wasted, when you could have taken advantage of the technology months earlier. If only I was in a different environment. The distraction of court intrigue and the stress of protecting my work from those nasty traitors that would betray you, slowed my work considerably. However, if I could move my lab off Capital World to somewhere more remote and surrounded by my most trusted assistants I could produce more quickly for you. Though it would pain me to be removed from your exalted presence, it would in fact be more beneficial for you and the empire, M'lord."

Frieza grinned, he was not a fool and he recognized her tactics, be he could find no fault with it. She played the game well and after her contribution to his empire she did deserve a reward.

"What did you have in mind, my sweet." His high pitch voice was like nails on a chalkboard to her, but she displayed no outward emotion.

"After careful consideration I have settled on Primus Starbase in the Vega Quadrant. It is remote enough to allow me the peace and quiet that I need with an already equipped lab. With a few modifications it will be more than enough to satisfy my needs, Sire." Her demeanor was still subdued with a hint of coquettishness thrown in. She dared to raise her eyes to the powerful Ice-jinn, blushing prettily at the same time. For all her brains, Frieza never considered her a threat. After all she was just a weak woman.

He considered her request for a few moments and although he would miss his Precious Genius he did agree that her remote location would probably make her more productive, besides it would keep her out of trouble from court intrigue. More importantly, it may keep her alive as she would more than likely become a target of her more jealous rivals.

He nodded sagely as he addressed her. "I find your request to be quite reasonable. You may remove yourself and a team to Primus. I will miss you my precious, but I look forward to seeing your inventions."

"Thank you M'lord. You are a most generous Master." She purred.

"Yes, I know. Now go and dance and enjoy your ball."

She curtsied to the Emperor and quickly moved away, carefully schooling her features to hide her exhilaration. She had done it. She had removed herself from Frieza's presence, gaining access to the Saiyan Prince who was exiled to Primus for the next five years.

Within the week she had her lab packed up and team of seven assistants ready to accompany her to their new home.