The Courage of Your Convictions

Part 2/4

By Catherine Johnson

Rating:  NC-17.  Graphic language and depictions of male/male sex, 

rape,

and torture.

Fandom:  DragonBall Z

Pairings:  Goku/Vejita, Vejita/??

Mood:  Dark, violent, death

Continuity:  Post DB manga/AU?

Archive:  Please ask first

MiSTing:  Please ask first

Notes:  This is my reply to the "Saiyajin Judo" Challenge on the

saiyanslash ML.

This story features  S&M/B&D and both 

consensual

and non-cons male/male sex.  If any of this bothers you, please don't 

read

it.

More notes and disclaimers at the end.

     No sooner had Gilbert left the little hovel through the door then

Vejita left through the window.  He flew quickly, hoping to put as much

distance as possible between himself and his temporary home- and the 

boy

he'd just left- lest his pursuer find out about them.  He'd gone less 

then

a mile before he was blindsided; someone or something slammed into him

roughly, knocking him out of the sky and to the ground.  Taking a 

second to

recover, he quickly looked up to find out what he'd run into.  It was 

as he

feared.  *He* was here.

    The figure hovered in the air, the familiar golden glow around him

lighting up the dark sky.  He was smiling cruelly down at his prey.  

Vejita

had come to hate that look, though he hated the way it made him feel 

even

more.  The man lowered himself to the ground and walked towards the 

small

Saiyajin, the smirk never leaving his face.  "Well, well, there you 

are, my

pet.  You were harder to find than usual.  Been drinking, have we?  

Alcohol

messes up your ki... but then I guess you were counting on that.  But 

it's

not enough to stop me from finding you.  You'd do well to remember that

next time you try to drink yourself into a stupor."

     Vejita stared up at the man impassively.  He had run out of 

reactions

to the madman's rantings.  Getting angry didn't help, humoring him 

didn't

either.  So he sat there, letting the other man set the tone of the

confrontation.  He hated being in such a weak position, but he'd 

learned a

few years ago there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it.  Finally, 

the

taller man was standing directly in front of him, looking down at him 

as if

he were merely an insect to be crushed under his shoe.

     "Oh, my pet... why do you continue to fight me?  You know you 

can't

win.  You never could.  Even when you were at your best, even 

unrestrained

from any sense of morality or obligation, you only beat me because I 

let

you... and because you tricked me.  You'd save yourself a lot of grief 

if

you'd just give in."

     "You know me better than that, Kakarot."

     The twisted Saiyajin smiled.  "Yeah, I guess I do."  With that, he

kicked Vejita in the face, knocking him onto his back.  Then he stepped

forward, resting a foot on the smaller man's chest.  "Ahhh... it would 

be

so easy to just crush you... break all your bones.  Call it payback for

that time... you remember that time, boy?  Back when you still had a 

tail?

The Great Oozaru Vejita.  Now look at you.  A cockroach under my shoe."

     "But you won't kill me... I'm too much fun to play with."

     Another twisted smile.  "True, true.  But I can cause you a HELL 

of a

lot of pain... I wonder how much you could stand before you passed out?

Shall we find out?"

     Vejita steeled himself; though he knew he probably couldn't truly

prepare for whatever Kakarot might have in store for him.  A few 

seconds

ticked by; they seemed to stretch into hours, though, as the insane

Saiyajin stared down at his quarry.  He was about to speak when:

     "Hey!  What's going on?"

     //Oh, shit.  Shit, shit, shit.//  Kakarot's head snapped up, and

Vejita turned to see the young man he'd hoped to spare from a fate 

worse

than death standing in the street, staring in shock at the scene in 

front

of him.

     "Well, well... who might you be, little boy?"

     Clearly unaware of who he was addressing, the boy stared at the 

tall

blonde man defiantly.  "What are you doing to him?  Leave him alone!"

     //Oh, Gods, kid... you've no idea what you've done.  You can't 

even

comprehend what you're dealing with.//

     Kakarot's green eyes narrowed.  "YOU'RE telling ME what to do?  

Boy,

you're not only young, you're monumentally stupid."

     "Kakarot, he doesn't know who you are.  Leave him-"

     "Oh, and now YOU'RE going to tell me what to do?!"  The foot 

resting

on Vejita's chest pushed down; he felt a rib or two crack before it

relented; and even then only slightly.

     "You're... Kakarot?"  The boy's eyes widened.

     "You got it, fuckwit.  And you..."  He stopped, and looked down at

Vejita suspiciously.  Then, faster than even Vejita could track, he 

moved

over to Gilbert, who let out a cry of shock as the tall man seemed to

appear next to him out of nowhere.  Grabbing the boy, he leaned in 

close,

sniffing him.  Then he turned to Vejita, who sat up, favoring his left 

side

a bit.  "Well, I'll be damned.  A little younger than you usually like 

'em,

eh pet?"

     "I'm old enough," the boy snapped.  Kakarot responded to the boy's

obstinacy by smacking him in the face.  The boy fell to the ground with

another cry, and sat up nursing a bloody nose.

     //Be glad he didn't take your head clean off, boy,// thought 

Vejita.

     "I wasn't talking to you, bitch."  He turned back to Vejita.  "Was 

he

a good fuck?"

     //Oh, Gods.  How do I answer *that*?  If I say yes, he'll get

"jealous" and kill him- or worse.  If I say no, he'll figure he's not 

worth

sparing, and kill him- or worse.//

     "Well, pet?  Was he?"  Without turning to the boy, he kicked him 

in

the side, knocking him back to the ground.

     //Damned if I do, damned if I don't,  Hell, at this point, I'm 

pretty

much just DAMNED.//  "He was... yes, he was good."

     "Well, well... that's good to know."  With that, he grabbed the 

boy

and pulled him to his feet.  With a sneer, he ripped the boy's clothes 

off.

Then he pushed him back to the ground, so that Gilbert landed on his 

back.

The boy was whimpering at this point, but showing less resistance than 

he

had earlier.  "Roll over, bitch."  The boy didn't move for a second;

probably too scared to process what Kakarot had told him to do.  The

Saiyajin gave him another kick.  "I said ROLL OVER, BITCH!"

Walking forward, he put his foot on the boy's head, pushing it into the

pavement.  "Now... don't move unless I move you, or tell you to,

understood, dog?"

     "Yes," came the muffled, sobbing reply.

     "Good boy..."  Moving back down, the Saiyajin's eyes slid down the

boy's body.  "You're right... he does look like a fine piece of ass."  

With

a perverted smile, Kakarot used one foot to spread the boy's legs,  

Then he

dropped to his knees between them and pulled his dick out of his pants.

"And now, little boy, you'll find out what it's like to be fucked by a 

TRUE

Saiyajin..."

     "No!  I won't let you do this!"  Vejita got to his feet, gathering 

up

a ball of ki to fire at Kakarot.  His own actions took mere fractions 

of a

second, but his opponent was faster.  The next thing he knew, a large 

ki

blast was being fired at him, sending him backwards into a nearby 

building.

He heard Gilbert let out a scream, and Vejita was touched by the boy's

concern; but the blast did little more than shake him up a bit.  He 

climbed

out of the hole his body had made in the wall and ran towards Kakarot,

determined to prevent him from harming the boy.  He was met with a blow

that sent him reeling again, though this time he was able to stop 

before he

hit anything.  Kakarot walked over to him, kicking him hard.

     "Stay down, bitch.  I may not kill you, but you won't get very far 

if

I start ripping off limbs.

     "Don't worry," Kakarot continued, "I'll get to you eventually, 

dog.

But for now you'd better pay attention.  You know you're mine, pet.  

And

I'm going to show you what happens when you forget that."  With that, 

he

moved back over to Gilbert and knelt between his legs again.  "And now,

where was I?  Oh, yes..."  Grabbing the boy, he began raping him.  

Vejita

didn't know which he found more disconcerting; the boy's cries of pain 

and

fear, or Kakarot's laughter and vulgar comments and suggestions.  Of

course, raping the boy wasn't enough for the deranged Saiyajin; he 

began

beating him, as well.

     Finally, the boy stopped moving.  But Vejita could hear him 

whimper a

bit; he was still alive.  Kakarot looked down at the inert form, and 

ran a

finger along Gilbert's blood-slicked thigh, then up his back.  He 

grabbed

the boy's hair and pulled his head up, causing the boy to whimper a bit

more.

     "Still alive," said Kakarot with a note of surprise.  "You're 

stronger

than I gave you credit for..."  He leaned down and licked blood from 

the

boy's neck.  He turned to Vejita.  "What do you say, pet...?  Want a 

turn

at him before he dies?"  His smile turned more malevolent than usual.  

"Or

maybe you'd like to wait till after...?"

     //Gods, Kakarot... have you added necrophilia to your growing list 

of

perversions?//  Vejita turned away in disgust.

     "No?  Pity... I think he could handle a good hard fucking or two 

more

before he gives out..."  Vejita just turned back to glare at his fellow

Saiyajin.  Kakarot sighed.  "I guess I'll have to do it, then."

     A few minutes later, it was over.  Gilbert was finally dead, and

Vejita felt a bit more at ease knowing that the boy's torment was 

finally

over.  He thanked every god he could think of that Kakarot didn't make 

good

on his implied threat to continue violating the boy's body.  Instead, 

he

moved back and smiled at his handiwork.  He wiped some blood from the 

boy's

face.

     "Beautiful.  I can see why you wanted to screw him.  I just hope 

it

was worth it..."

    //No.  Nothing is worth what you've done, Kakarot.  Gods, I was so

stupid.  How could I have been so fucking selfish?//

     Finally, Kakarot got up and walked over to Vejita.  He grabbed him 

by

his hair and he pulled him to his feet.  Vejita attempted to squirm 

away,

but the larger, stronger man had no intention of letting go.  "Now, 

now,

bitch... you should know better than that by now.

     "After your little..."  He looked over at the boy's body.

"Indiscretion, I *should* keep a better eye on you.  But, what can I 

say, I

like to think you're smart enough to learn from your mistakes.  So, I'm

going to let you go for now.  But you *will* be at my house at 

midnight, or

else.  Do you understand?  My house.  Midnight.  Be there."  With one 

last,

twisted grin, Kakarot took to the air.

     It took a few moments for Vejita to get his brain into gear and 

start

moving again.  He crawled over to Gilbert's body.  "I'm so sorry... 

please

forgive me."  He carefully moved the boy's limbs, getting his body into 

a

more natural, "comfortable looking" position than Kakarot had left him 

in,

then he closed the boy's eyes.  After doing that, the Saiyajin removed 

his

own shirt and used it to cover Gilbert's face.  Finally, removed his 

pants

and draped them over the boy's waist to give him some semblance of 

decency.

He sat on the sidewalk next to the body, stark naked.  But he didn't 

care.

He'd never been particularly modest, and he certainly didn't feel he 

had a

right to be in this situation.  After a few moments of mulling it over, 

he

came to a decision.  He took the doll and set if aside.  Then he 

created a

small ki ball and used it to set the boy's body on fire.  It was 

Saiyajin

custom to burn the dead, and not knowing what the boy would have wanted 

to

be done with his remains, Vejita decided to honor him in this way, 

instead.

//Kakarot doesn't know our customs.  If he did, he'd never leave the 

bodies

behind for me to cremate.//  As soon as the makeshift funeral pyre had 

died

down, Vejita carefully began gathering up the ashes.  He took a small

portion of them between his fingers.  In his native tongue, he 

whispered

softly, ""  Then he licked the ash from 

his

fingers, swallowing it.  In ancient times, the Saiyajin believed 

swallowing

some of the ashes of the dead gave you their strength and spirit; even

though they knew better now, many Saiyajin had continued to practice 

the

custom up until the destruction of the planet.  While it was customary 

to

consume only the ashes of blood relatives and mates, Vejita felt he 

could

be forgiven for breaking with tradition this once.  This done, he 

gathered

the rest of the ashes and got to his feet.  The night had grown still;

there was no longer any wind to speak of, so Vejita concentrated, 

sending

out a wave of energy that scattered the rest of the ashes to the four

winds.

     After watching Gilbert's remains disappear into the night, Vejita

headed to his temporary home.  While he was unaffected by the cold 

night

air or modesty, he still felt the need to go to the apartment he was 

using

and get a change of clothes.  That done, he took to the street, rather

enjoying the simple act of walking.  He looked at his watch; it was 

about

10:30.  He sighed.  It'd been a busy day, but he wasn't about to forget 

his

obligation.  Turning, he headed for the west side of town.

     The Saiyajin walked through the cemetery slowly.  Though he didn't

follow Earthling customs of death, he honored them, and regarded the 

graves

with the reverence and dignity he knew they deserved.  He finally came 

to

the grave he'd been looking for.  Vejita had visited his son Trunks' 

grave

several times since his death, but tonight was different; it was the 

first

year anniversary of his death.  It had been Trunks' wish for a Human

burial, and even after all that had happened, Vejita had respected that

wish.  He had cremated Bulma and Bra, and even Trunks, but he's also 

given

Trunks' ashes a proper burial, and even a tombstone.  Oddly, Kakarot 

seemed

to know about the grave, yet left it alone, as far as Vejita could 

tell.

He had thought the demented warrior might desecrate his son's resting

place, but every time the Saiyajin Prince visited it, it appeared

undisturbed.

     As he regarded his son's grave, Vejita thought not only of the 

young

half-breed who's been cut down in his prime, but of all the people he'd

lost to Kakarot.  Bulma, his mate.  She might have been a "mere" human, 

but

she had the fire and spirit of a Saiyajin.  There was also Bra, 

Vejita's

daughter.  She was like her mother in both good and bad ways, but 

Vejita

loved her unconditionally.  Her loss had been especially hard for him; 

he

hated to think of what Kakarot might have done to her before he killed 

her.

Then there were the others:  Yamucha, Tenshinhan and his little friend

Chaozu... They were Humans, but they fought hard for their planet, and

Vejita had to admire their determination.  There was also the Namekjin,

Piccolo, a former rival of Goku's who'd become a somewhat reluctant 

ally...

and then become his enemy again.  Even <>, Goku's teacher, hadn't been

spared his wrath.  Nor had Kuririn, Goku's oldest friend.

     All of them were gone now, and Vejita was left with... Nothing.  

No

soul mate, no offspring, no one he could call a comrade.  And the only

other member of his once proud race had lost his mind.  He hadn't been

Kakarot's biggest fan, but he had to admire his strength.  He might 

even

admit- to himself at least- that he liked him.  But that was gone now.  

The

man he knew as Kakarot was all but dead, and in his place was a 

monster.

Oddly enough, he found himself also thinking of Gilbert.  He'd barely 

known

the boy, barely spent a few hours with him, and it had ended up costing 

the

boy his life.

     Vejita ran his fingers across the writing on the stone:

     Trunks Vejita Briefs

Heir to the Throne of Vejitasei

    Proud Saiyajin Warrior

    Loving Son and Brother

     //Trunks... what do I do?  A boy died tonight because of me.  All 

of

you died because of me.

     But then, that's pretty damn selfish of me, isn't it?  *You* died, 

and

all I can think of is my own grief...

     He's got to be stopped, Trunks.  He can't be allowed to go on like

this.  But how?  He's so strong.  And without any morality to keep him 

in

check, he's reaching levels of power even I can't understand.//

     A hand rested on his shoulder.  "Father.  Please don't be sad.  

We're

very happy, and we're together.  Mother and Bra don't blame you.  And

neither do I.  *He's* the enemy, father, never forget that."

     Vejita turned to his son, who smiled.

     "He must be stopped.  But I don't know how."

     The purple-haired vision tilted his head in thought.  "I remember

something you taught me once, father, about how to defeat a more 

powerful

enemy by giving into them."

     Vejita nodded slowly, remembering the lesson as well.  "'Conquest

through submission'."  Trunks nodded.  "But... you're suggesting I...

submit to Kakarot?"

     The boy smiled again.  "I know you're a proud man, father.  I know 

how

hard it is for you to bow to anyone.  But it's the only way.  You know 

it

is."

     Vejita turned the idea over in his mind, then nodded again.  

"Yes...

it is.

     Trunks... I... I know I have to.  But I'm not sure I can."

     "I am.  You'll do what you have to, father.  For me, and mother.  

For

Bra.  For all the others he's abused and killed.  For that boy you 

honored

tonight by tasting his ashes.  You *can* do this, father."  With a 

last,

sad smile, Trunks waved and vanished.

     The proud Saiyajin Prince took a slow, deep breath.  "Yes.  I can.  

I

will."  Closing his eyes, Vejita steeled his resolve, and headed off to 

his

rendezvous with Kakarot.

~ Flashback ~

     It had started about 5 years ago.  The Son family had decided to 

go on

a trip to <>.  Goku declined, though, wanting to spend time training 

Ubuu

instead.  Later that night, Capsule Corp had gotten a call:  There had 

been

an accident.  The plane had exploded, and no one had survived.  Even 

the

half Saiyajins and little Pan, strong despite being only 1/4 Saiyajin, 

had

been killed.  And since the deaths had been "natural", the Dragon Balls

would not bring them back.

     Understandably, Goku had become consumed with grief.  There was 

guilt,

too, Vejita felt.  Guilt that he hadn't been there, either to save them 

or

at least die with them.  But no, his selfishness, his desire to spend 

time

with a virtual stranger rather then his own flesh and blood, had robbed 

him

of them.  He had fled into the wilderness.  Vejita had let him be for a

bit, then he had gotten worried about his fellow Saiyajin, and went 

looking

for him.  But Goku hid himself well, and Vejita was never able to 

locate

him.  Finally, over a year later, Goku came back, bringing the darkness

with him.

     When Vejita had heard of the destruction of Satan City, he'd 

thought

at first of a natural disaster.  But as more cities fell, the 

realization

that some*one* was causing it had prompted him to seek out the culprit.

But he hadn't been prepared for what he encountered.  He could still

remember watching Kakarot's cold green eyes as he casually continued to

burn the city as Vejita watched.

     "Kakarot... what are you doing?"

     "My job, Vejita.  Wasn't I sent to this horrid little mud ball to

eliminate  the inhabitants?"

     That had thrown Vejita for a loop.  He was going to kill everyone 

on

Earth?

     "Kakarot," Vejita had protested, "This isn't you!"

     That was the first time he heard that sickening laugh he'd come to

know so well.  "Oh, but that's the irony of it, Vejita; this IS me!  

After

all, I only became-" he said the name like a curse- "'Son Goku' after 

that

little... accident in the ravine.  But that was a mistake, and I see 

that

now.  I've... recovered."

     Vejita had shuddered at the cold tone in Kakarot's voice.  He

continued trying to reason with the mad Saiyajin, but nothing seemed to

reach him.  So he took the next step, albeit hesitantly, and attacked 

the

larger man.  It was then he discovered just how powerful Kakarot really

was.  In their previous encounters, Kakarot had always held back, 

perhaps

subconsciously, due to his sense of morality.  His desire not to kill 

even

his enemy, much less any innocent who might get caught up in the 

conflict,

had always caused him to pull his punches, even if only very slightly.  

But

this time he felt no such compunction, and Vejita had gotten the 

beating of

his life.

     Despite the beating, Vejita refused to back down.  He did what he

could to try and minimize the horrors Kakarot was subjecting the Earth 

to,

from fighting him directly to helping the survivors of his attacks and

warning people ahead of time if he could.  And he continued to try to 

talk

to him as well, though that avenue became more and more futile as time 

wore

on.

     Not long after that, Kakarot got bolder.  He began announcing 

himself

to the world; he called himself "Kakarot the Destroyer", and was smug

enough to sometimes even reveal where he intended to attack next.  Even

with the advanced warnings, though, many cities just weren't ready for 

the

power and horror Kakarot unleashed on them.  It was clear to Vejita 

that he

used these "announcements" more to terrorize people than to warn them.  

It

was a game to him, like shooting someone then telling the witnesses 

that

they were next.  Hell, Vejita had done that himself once or twice back 

in

the days when he still used his powers to kill and destroy.  The 

reformed

Saiyajin couldn't help but be rather sickeningly amused at the change 

in

positions between him and his rival-turned-enemy.  Once, Kakarot had 

saved

the world from Vejita.  Now, Vejita was finding himself trying to save 

the

world from Kakarot.

To Be Continued.