Hours passed and Vejita remained in the entrance of the med. lab. Nappa and Raditz had reported to their posts, hurrying in there work as to return as soon as possible.
Taking a seat, Vejita looked to the entrance, "Father?"
Motioning for his son to stay seated, the king approached, taking a seat himself, "I demand you tell me what's going on." He said calmly.
Vejita sighed, "Kakarotto's sick, real sick. I'm worried." He said, the situation causing him to open up far more than he normally would.
"What concerns me is the way you protected him… It seemed like something a dominant warrior would do for his mate… Was it?"
"Fuck," Vejita muttered, sighing as he looked to his father, who surprisingly had a tranquil look on his face, "Yes… Yes, it was."
"That's what I thought. So, what do you think I should do about this?" the king said, leaning back in his chair.
"I… I don't know." Vejita mumbled.
"Me either," the king sighed as well, "Who all knows?"
"Nappa, Raditz, the physicians here, and you."
"Good, good. I don't want this getting out. I'm guessing you have Nappa and Raditz under control. I'll take care of the doctors. You're really worried, aren't you?" the king questioned, somewhat surprised by the new creases on his son's face.
The king got his answer in the simple silence, "I see. Do you mind if I wait with you? Surely seeing the king waiting as well will hurry them, ne?"
Vejita smirked, remaining silent.
****
Nappa rushed into the large white-walled med. lab, Raditz right behind him. It was growing cold out and darkness was soon to follow.
"Sire," Nappa said, he and Raditz pausing to bow, seeing that the king was there as well, "How is he?"
Just as Vejita finished shrugging an "I don't know," the doctor approached him.
"Sire, we've finally finished." The man said, pulling up several chairs, two for the bodyguards, and one for himself.
"Well?" Vejita growled in impatience.
"The seizures are just as he said. His lack of life force causes him to panic while in instinct mode. He thinks he's dying, and the feeling of bond separation causes his pain and convulsions. I'm afraid we have yet to conceive of a cure, but we are working on it diligently."
Vejita nodded, letting his gaze remain on the floor.
"May I ask the reason behind his lack of life force? Perhaps it would help us a bit." The doctor questioned, pulling out a clipboard and taking notes as his prince explained everything that had happened.
"I see, I see… Interesting. Oh, and his tail seems to have been fractured a number of times." The doctor said with a puzzled look on his face.
"Battle injury." The prince said quickly, refusing to allow the physician or his father know of the rape.
"Yes, I see. Oh, and congratulations."
"Congratulations?" Vejita questioned, his brows furrowing in confusion.
"Yes, his cramps, dizziness, pain, the blood… See, the seizures were becoming so severe that his body was trying to warn him with these symptoms. If they continued, he could have suffered from a miscarriage."
Vejita's vision completely evaporated, confusion filling his skull, "Miscarriage?"
"Yes, the boy's about three months pregnant." The doctor said, smiling like a fool.
Noticing his son's difficulty in finding words, the king spoke up, "How is that possible?"
"Oh, well, I'm guessing the boy's eighteen…"
"Twenty." Raditz corrected, just as confused as everyone else.
"Yes, that makes sense. During the time of his birth, many low class soldiers had been injected with a serum, which enabled their reproductive system to alter dramatically in certain situations. See, at the time, you had just become king, Sire," the doctor said, pausing as he gestured to the king, "And the great battle that had occurred just before had taken so many lives that there weren't many Saiyajin. Desperate situations call for desperate measures."
"I never ordered such a thing." The king said, eyeing the doctor.
"Oh, well, it was ordered long ago by a king whose name I don't even know. It's standard procedure; however, I've just never come across a case of male impregnation. It's quite exciting."
"Exciting?" Vejita growled, "Hn. Where is he? I want to see him."
"Of course, Sire, but I'm afraid he's unconscious. We have him sedated until we come up with something to do about those seizures. One more and he may lose the baby."
"Vejita, I want to see you as soon as you're done here." The king said, heading back for his throne room after receiving a nod in reply.
"May… May I come?" Raditz question as his prince started off, following the doctor.
Vejita smiled on the inside, what a concerned brother, "I don't care."
Nappa watched as the three of them headed off to see Kakarotto. He'd have gone along, but he had a few errands to run just before nightfall.
****
"Kakarotto…" Vejita gasped as he stepped into a small white-walled room, "Why is he so pale?"
"I'm… I'm not sure," the doctor said, hurrying over to check all the monitors, "Ah, it seems he's ready for more nutrition. Hmm… I thought the nurse had already filled it…"
The prince smirked, "He eats three times the average Saiyajin."
The doctor chuckled lightly, "Yes, I see. I'll be right back with another."
Stepping closer to his mate, Vejita inspected the tubing attached to the boy's inner wrists, nose, and mouth. It made him look so weak. Suddenly, there were tears stinging the backs of his eyes. Glancing over at Raditz, Vejita knew the young bodyguard was upset as well.
Soon the doctor returned, "There we go." He said, exchanging the empty canister in one of the large machines with a full one.
"How long is he going to be like this?" Raditz questioned, a bit of annoyance in his tone.
"Not sure, but it won't be too long. Due to the urgency of this, I've sent for an expert from the planet Shinju. He's a bit old, but he's handled cases similar to this. See, he's served as a private physician for past kings." Receiving nods from both the bodyguard and the prince, the doctor smiled pleasantly before leaving the room.
"Well, I better go, I've got a few more duties." Raditz said, turning and reluctantly leaving the room.
Sighing, Vejita kissed his mates hand ever so gently, "I'll be right back." He whispered.
****
"Father?" Vejita called, as he knocked on the large door.
Soon it slid open to reveal the king sitting at a rather large mahogany desk littered with documents, "Ah, come in."
"You weren't in the throne room, so…" Vejita said, explaining his reason for coming to his father's personal quarters. He hadn't been in the room since he was a small child and felt quite awkward as he stepped inside, the door sliding shut behind him.
"It's fine. Have a seat."
Vejita did as he was told, "What is it you wanted to see me about?"
"This bond you have with the boy. I want you to know that if circumstances weren't the way they were, I'd have the boy executed to rid of it, even if it was possible it could end your life as well," the king said rather sternly. His tone changed to something softer rather quickly though, "But after everything's over, there probably won't be many females left, and an heir will secure your safety. I suggest you tell no one though. At least not until you've returned and things are back to normal."
"I hate this. I don't want to become king." Vejita spat.
"Nonsense!"
"What's the point? Being king guarantees I'll live a short, busy, unhappy life, spending my days in a crowded throne room rather than with my mate and child."
The king was silent for a moment, considering his son's angry words, "Being king means you have the power to change things. Perhaps you can make it easier on yourself, make it easier on everyone. The gods know I wasn't the perfect king."
"Perhaps." Vejita said, growling in irritation.
"Enough of this. Go back to him."
With that, the prince quickly rose from his seat, hurrying out the door and too his mate.
The king smirked, chuckling lightly, "So arrogant and powerful, yet still he's love sick."
