Cosmic Crisis 2 - The Return of Orion

Chapter 8 - Unexpected News

Natalie looked at Bra in astonishment.

"A what?" she asked. Bra gripped the object tighter, causing pain to lurch through Natalie's body again.

"A tail." Bra exclaimed. "Let's go show daddy!" Natalie took the tail from Bra's hands and felt it, realizing that it was hers!

"I have a tail!? What!? How can this be possible!?" she cried out. She ran into the living quarters, Bra following close behind. She stopped abruptly when she saw Vegita. Bra soon caught up.

"What do you two want?" Vegita asked, eyeing them suspiciously.

"Natalie has a tail, daddy!" Bra exclaimed, grabbing Natalie's tail once more, causing Natalie to become paralyzed in pain. Vegita immediately shot up, looking at Natalie in disbelief.

"What the HELL!?" he shouted, racing over to where the two stood. He grabbed Natalie's tail and squeezed it, causing her to cry out. "This is a SAIYAN tail!" Vegita's voice was heard throughout the building, causing Bulma to look up from her work.

"What is it this time?" Bulma sighed, heading for the living quarters. When she reached the living room, she stopped in her tracks when she saw Natalie out of the rejuvenation tank.

"How did she get here?" Bulma asked, not noticing the tail.

"I got her out, mommy!" Bra said proudly.

"That's mommy's little scientist!" Bulma said, scooping her daughter up into her arms. She noticed the concerned look on Vegita's face.

"What's the matter, dear?" Bulma asked, unaware of the situation. Without saying a word, Vegita held up the tail. Bulma almost dropped Bra when she saw it.

"What the HELL is that!?" Bulma cried, inspecting it.

"What does it look like, woman? This tail belongs to a Saiyan!" Vegita said. Bulma glanced over at Natalie, who was obviously confused.

"Natalie? A Saiyan?" Bulma cried, setting her daughter onto the ground and walking over to the girl, grabbing the tail and squeezing it. Natalie cried out once again.

"Why does everyone do that?" Natalie shouted, obviously in pain. Bulma swayed side to side, unsure of what to do.

"Natalie, come with me." Bulma said, ushering Natalie towards the science wing. When they reached the room adjacent to the one Bulma was working in previously, she had Natalie sit on the table in the room while she went to get some equipment. Vegita walked into the room and leaned against the doorframe, watching Natalie as her tail twitched involuntarily. Bulma returned in a matter of moments, carrying a microscope, a syringe, and some sort of computer.

"You're not going to give me a shot, are you!?" Natalie asked, cowering in the corner.

"I have to! I need to do some tests with your DNA." Bulma said, wiping Natalie's inner arm with an alcohol soaked cotton ball. She then took the needle and inserted it into Natalie's vein, getting a sample of her blood. Natalie whimpered in pain and looked away as Bulma drew her blood.

"Ironic," Vegita started, "That you can fight aliens and clones with ease, but you can't even handle a small needle."

"Vegita you're the same way! You won't even let me tear a band-aid off you!" Bulma retorted. Natalie stifled a laugh while Vegita grumbled. Bulma placed a drop of Natalie's blood onto a slide and inserted it into the computer. After pressing an array of different buttons, a display appeared on the screen. Bulma facefaulted while examining the sample, discovering that she was, indeed, Saiyan.

"Well? Did you find anything?" Vegita asked impatiently.

"What are you looking for, anyway?" Natalie asked. She had no idea of what was going on. Bulma continued to examine the screen, realizing that the girl was not just Saiyan. She was mixed with another species, and it wasn't human. After gathering all the information, she switched off the screen and turned to face the two. Vegita was tapping his foot impatiently and Natalie was looking at her with a confused expression.

"Natalie." Bulma started. "Do you know the name of your race?" she asked. Natalie produced a sweat drop and looked down at her hands.

"Sidra-jin." She muttered. How she knew her race was beyond her, but she somehow knew that she was right.

"Do you know who your parents are?" Bulma continued interrogating the girl.

"I only know my mother. She came to me in a dream once. She never said anything about my father." Natalie replied. Bulma turned to Vegita.

"She has a mixed bloodline. Half Saiya-jin, half Sidra-jin." Bulma said to the full-blooded Saiyan prince. "From what I know, her father must have been a Saiyan."

This new information surprised Vegita. Natalie was a Saiyan? That meant...

"Can she go oozaru?" Vegita asked, crossing his arms.

"Vegita I don't know. It's possible, but I don't suggest that we try it." Bulma replied.

"Oozaru?" Natalie said with a strange expression on her face.

"Well why can't we try it? Unless you want to lock her in the house every full moon..." Vegita commented to Bulma, ignoring Natalie.

"Full moon? Huh?" Natalie was still confused.

"Vegita don't get smart with me! I'm saying it would be dangerous." Bulma continued.

"SOMEONE LISTEN TO ME!" Natalie screamed, startling the arguing couple. "Thanks." She said after getting their attention. Seizing the opportunity, Vegita grabbed the girl and headed outside.

"Vegita come back here!" Bulma cried, racing after him. "I swear, Vegita! You're sleeping on the couch tonight!" Vegita carried Natalie outside and powered up a blast.

"What are you doing!?" Natalie cried, thinking that he was going to blast her.

"Quiet girl!" Vegita yelled at, covering her eyes with his free hand. After a few more seconds, he was finished powering up. He threw his ball of energy towards the sky and it stood in place, resembling the full moon. Vegita then uncovered her eyes and held her head in his hands, forcing her to face the light. Nothing happened.

"Vegita let me go!" she cried, struggling. He let her fall to the ground with a thud, and sent a beam into the sky, exploding the ball of light. He then walked back inside to face an angry Bulma.

"Vegita kindly explain yourself!" Bulma shouted, her hands on her hips. Natalie staggered in, seeming to have a terrible headache. "What did you do to her!?"

"I was just testing her, woman." Vegita said, facing away from his mate. Trunks then came down the stairs, finally finished with his shower.

"W-what are you doing?" he said, looking at the three with a confused expression on his face.

"Trunks what's oozaru?" Natalie called to him. Trunks hadn't been there when they discovered her tail. The Saiyan boy walked down the stairs, intending to be filled in on what he missed.

"How do you know about oozaru?" Trunks asked suspiciously while Bulma and Vegita argued in the background.

"I'll explain later. What is it?" she demanded.

"It's the Saiyan transformation when they look at the full moon..." Trunks said, trailing off. Natalie's tail twitched, revealing itself to the young warrior. Trunks' eyes became large when he saw it. "What the HELL is that!?" he cried, lunging forward to grab it. Instinctively, she blocked him with her hand. He looked up at her with one eyebrow cocked.

"No. Don't touch it." She said, wagging it back and forth mockingly. Since his tail had been removed, as well as all the other Saiyans' tails, he had never seen one before. Vegita stepped in and interjected.

"She has a tail, boy. What does it look like?" he said rudely. Trunks looked up at his father, bewildered.

"Natalie? S-she's a -?" he broke off.

"Saiya-jin." Vegita finished for him. Trunks facefaulted and fell over.

"Half Saiya-jin, actually." Bulma said, stepping in. "She's mixed, like you and Goten. BUT," she continued. "We don't know if she has all of the same traits as you two because she is mixed with a different race."

"She doesn't transform." Vegita commented. "I wonder if she would go Super Saiyan." Bulma turned around, shooting him threatening looks.

"Vegita I don't want you to train her. You'll work her too hard and she'll hurt herself." She said sternly. Vegita acted like he had no idea of what she was talking about.

"What makes you think I was intent on doing that, anyway?" he argued back. Natalie glanced at Trunks with a dry expression. As if they could read each other's thoughts, they both headed upstairs, leaving the two bickering people behind. On the way up, Natalie made sure to stay behind Trunks to prevent him from grabbing her tail. Trunks walked into his room, followed by Natalie. He looked up at her, watching her tail twitch.

"How does it feel?" he asked, studying it curiously.

"Weird...but natural." She replied.

"It all makes sense now." Trunks said. "I used to wonder why you liked to fight so much, and why it came so naturally to you. Now I know."

"What does this mean for me?" she asked. "Am I going to be different with a tail? What am I going to do at school?" she belted out question after question.

"Mine was removed at birth." Trunks replied. "I don't know a thing about them." He could see the worried look on her face. Suddenly, her eyes welled up with tears and she began sobbing.

"I'm so confused!" she cried, tears streaming down her face. Trunks held the shaky girl in his arms, trying to calm her down. "Why can't I just be normal?" she said in between sobs. Bulma and Vegita, whom had obviously reconciled, walked by, observing the distressed Saiyan girl.

"Is she okay?" Bulma asked, walking into the room and standing next to the crying Natalie. Trunks shook his head sadly, shrugging his shoulders. Vegita looked o as his son held the girl in his arms. He grumbled and walked further down the hall to the master bedroom. "We're heading to bed. Call us if you need anything." Bulma said, kissing her son on the forehead. She glanced down at Natalie with sorrow in her eyes and left the room, shutting the door quietly behind her. When she entered her room at the end of the hall, Vegita was leaning against the wall, obviously ticked off.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Nothing." He muttered. Bulma became annoyed and crossed her arms.

"If you think that's going to convince me, you'd better try harder." She said. "Now really. What's bothering you?" she persisted.

"Woman, if you're not going to leave me alone until I say something, then I'll tell you. Haven't you noticed? Our son has grown fond of the girl." He replied, looking into her eyes with a distraught look in his own. Bulma stepped back in surprise.

"Vegita he's just watching out for her, that's all!" Bulma replied.

"Oh is that all? Well maybe you haven't noticed the way he looks at her, or they way they touch." He said, getting worked up.

"Oh, Vegita." Bulma said, walking over to her mate. "He's growing up. It's going to happen whether we want it to or not." She said, running her hand down his back.

"It's sickening. I don't like it at all." He continued.

"Well let's get some rest. Worrying won't get us anywhere tonight." Bulma said, lying down on the bed and slipping under the covers. Vegita grunted and joined her, flipping the light switch on his way.

Meanwhile, in Trunks' room, Natalie had managed to calm down for the most part. She was still a bit shaky, but otherwise, she was fine.

"Trunks I'm sorry." Natalie said, running a hand through her brown hair, looking somewhat frustrated.

"Natalie you don't have to apologize. I've grown up knowing I was different. I can't even imagine what it would be like to be hit with something like that all at once." Trunks said reassuringly. She looked up at him, her eyes still watery from crying.

"Thank you for understanding." She said, leaning towards him slowly. She rested her head on his shoulder softly, sighing with relief. It had been a long day. She had a way of recovering from incidents like this quickly, but they would always come back to haunt her. A chill ran down her spine and she shuddered. There was something...something there. She didn't know what it was, but her instincts told her to turn around. She did so, seeing nothing but the west wall of Trunks' room.

"What is it?" Trunks asked, looking down at her.

"I-I don't know. There's something very close...I can sense it." She said, this time standing up and looking around the room. She ran out on the balcony and scanned the outside. Her tail twitched anxiously. Trunks followed her outside and placed a hand on her shoulder, causing her to jump.

"Natalie?" he asked, stepping next to her and looking into her eyes, now wide with fear.

"Can't you feel it?" She asked, her eyes darting around at the slightest movement, the softest rustling of tree branches, the tiniest gust of wind. The hairs on her neck stood in end as if a sudden chill had embraced her body. Trunks looked around as well, confused with the situation.

"There's nothing out there." Trunks said. "Come inside, Nat, you're scaring yourself." He begged, putting a hand on her back and giving her a nudge towards the inside. She took one final glance around the yard and gave in, following Trunks inside. She shut the door to the balcony behind her, and spun around to face inward. She gasped in horror as a figure stood before her, grinning evilly.

"ORION!" she cried, backing against the wall. Orion said nothing, but proceeded to fold his arms and laugh mockingly. She covered her ears to keep the noise out of her head. It continued to reverberate around the room, filling the entire building with its evil tone. She screamed an ear splitting scream, falling to the floor. Trunks stood in a daze, not moving. Natalie glanced up just as Orion charged a blast, hurling it toward the young Saiyan warrior. Trunks didn't even flinch as the energy slammed into his body, producing a gaping hole in his chest. He looked at Natalie one final time before falling to the floor, dead. She let out an exasperated cry, her eyes wide in horror. She opened her mouth and released the loudest, most shrill cry ever emitted from her body. The only thing she could see was Trunks' dead body, lying on the floor without movement. She continued to scream while Orion's laugh penetrated her skull, driving her insane. She forced her eyes shut, still seeing Trunks lying on the floor in his own blood. She raised her head to the sky, crying out to the stars. Orion stood, his face twisted in an evil smile as he laughed the all-familiar laugh.

Natalie's body jumped up and she opened her eyes, focusing on the world around her. She felt strong arms around her, holding her down. She screamed once more, trying to break free. When her eyes finally adjusted, she looked around her world. She was in Trunks' room, but everything was intact. He eyes raced to locate Trunks' body lying on the floor, but there was nothing. She inhaled sharply, trying to make sense of the situation.

"Natalie." A soothing voice said.

"What!?" she cried, trembling violently.

"Natalie wake up." The voice continued. It was Trunks' voice! Trunks' arms were around her! She turned to see his face, looking at her, deeply concerned. She broke down into more uncontrollable sobbing as Trunks held her still. She could hear Vegita and Bulma talking, standing next to her. They sounded worried. She could still hear Orion's laugh, ringing in her ears. Trunks' dead body remained fresh in her mind.

"She's having a nightmare..." she could hear Bulma's voice echo through her head. Natalie fought to keep breathing, her chest burning in protest. She thought that she would explode with anguish and pain. Finally, after a few minutes, she had finally passed out and gone completely limp in Trunks' arms. If it weren't for her heart beating incredibly fast, she would've appeared to be dead. The three stood there, watching the girl as her body tried to return to the rhythmic patterns of life.

"What do you suppose brought this on?" Bulma said to Vegita, who was staring at the young girl intently.

"There's something eating at her. You can see it." Vegita replied. "We need to figure out where these clones are coming from. They may be the source of this confusion." Bulma looked at her husband in shock. All she had expected in reply was a simple grunt or "Hmph". She glanced over at Trunks, who had an equally surprised expression on his face. Vegita proceeded to leave the room, returning to the master bedroom. Bulma glanced over at the clock on the wall. It was almost midnight. She and Vegita had awakened when they heard the screams. Natalie stirred in her sleep, letting out a slight cry.

"Trunks just get her into her room and make sure she gets to sleep. We'll deal with this in the morning." Bulma said, leaning on the wall for support. This whole ordeal was very tiresome and draining. Trunks grunted in reply as Bulma walked out of the room.

"I swear." She thought to herself. "He acts more and more like Vegita every day."