Chapter 1 – Hitting New Limits
-Universe 7-
The head of Android 16 lay before him on the rocky battlefield of the cell games, battered and bruised, oil dripping from his neck, staining the ground and leaving a fait scent of the fossil fuel. He spoke with a small smile as he described the beauty he had discovered during his brief activity on the planet Earth and how he had come to love it.
The demi-Saiyan that stood before him, trembling with a mixture of uncontrollable emotions within, looking lost as to what to do in his current situation. The sound of ferocious battles could be heard in the background, the Earth's greatest warriors fought with every fibre of there being to defeat the small blue insect like creators that where attacking and beating them desperately. It added to the turmoil tussling within the depths of his soul. "I've sensed it with my scanners, you have the power. There are those who words alone will never reach. It is not wrong to fight for what is right Gohan. You have to let it go."
The words rattled the youngest warrior of the Z Fighters, something within him, something deep below his surface, was beginning to slip, was crawling from the deepest pit within him, wrestling to come out, to break free, a raging inferno. However, the young Saiyan was terrified of what lay within him, there had to be another way around this for him.
The sound of footsteps slowly approaching the two drew their attention to the orchestrator behind this battle for Earth. A tall bio-android which resembled that of a grass hopper, built with the cells of some of the greatest warriors to ever brace the universe. Cell. The rage bubbled in Gohan just by staring at the monstrous creation.
"As much as I apricate the helping hand 16, we're doing things my way." The tone of enjoyment within the tone of his voice could be distinguished way to easily, adding to the rage of the son of Goku. Though what happened next would be ingrained within the mind of Gohan till the end of his days. Cells foot came crashing down on Android 16's head, shards of metal went flying, along with chips and oil. One chip landed before the young Saiyan, a green light struggling to stay alight, every so slowly did it fade, and with-it Android 16 was gone.
"Yet another fighter you could have saved!" The voice of Cell, every so cocky added fuel to the fire that was Gohan. The young warrior didn't know what to think, an android had sacrificed everything for it's love of life, yet he stood there like a scared little child. He could have saved him! He should have save him! He couldn't simply let the tyranny of Cell continue any longer.
He could feel himself slipping into and endless abyss, and something within him cracked, his body began to be flooded with overwhelming power, a deafening scream exploded from his lungs as his aura of gold ignited to life around him, the ground trembled under his force, incredible winds pulsated of his tiny frame.
Everyone's attention was drawn to him, from the Z Fighters to the Cell Juniors. The both looked on in awe as the sheer power coming from the youth was growing exponentially. The one most shocked by this event was Cell himself who had a front row seat to the explosive energy of Gohan.
The young Saiyan's screams intensified, dust raged around the battlefield, obscuring everyone's vison. His power reaching limits no one could dream of, cracks raced across the ground, the terrain beginning to cave in on itself. The omnipotent pressure was felt all over the world as the very planet shook under the wrath of the young Gohan and those with the ability to sense energy could feel his colossal power across all quadrants of the universe.
Every so slowly did the Gohan begin to contain the unfathomable power he was releasing, and with this the shaking stopped, the winds began to settle, the dust eventually cleared, first where the Z fighters and Cell Juniors. A shock and hope plastered on the faces of those who fought for good, while on the vile little creations of Cell was pure and utter fear.
Next to be revealed by the fading dust was the green terror himself, Cell. He was trembling slightly, visibly shaken by what had just occurred, he quickly regained his composer though, his confident smirk which he had gained from the prideful prince of all Saiyans, the trill of the fight bouncing around his eyes, reminiscent of Goku's own when hungry for battle.
The dust died down around the centre of disturbance. A burning gold aura blazing around him, sparks of electricity coiling around him snapping fiercely, his haired spiked up and looking more defined, a single arrogant bang of hair fallen over his face. His once fearful eyes now cold with fury, tears being the only emotion from the previous Gohan that where quickly disappearing, his mass had increased ever so slightly.
Before all floating above the shattered ground, a new Gohan, one that had broke through the limits, going beyond that of a Super Saiyan, he was an ascended Super Saiyan. "About time! Now the real fight can begin!" Cell words didn't affect Gohan who was drowning in his rage, the only bit of sense left within the powerful young warrior was that he needed to get the sensu beans and help his friends and father.
With speed no one could keep track of the demi-Saiyan struck, stealing the bag of magical green beans from Cell, he then went after the little blue beings that where attacking and torturing his friends. They didn't see it coming, all of them thorn apart in an instant, the sheer force of his hits wiping ever fibre of them from existence.
By the time he had stopped he was in front of the demi-Saiyan from the future, handing him the bag of beans that restored one's energy. "Wha…How?" Gohan turned to his adversary, who was surprised beyond belief, however the bio-android quickly returned to his cocky state. "While impressive, I have to tell you I won't go down as easy!" A chuckle escaped from the lips of the greatest enemy the Z Fighters had every escaped as he got into a fighting stance.
"We'll see!" Gohan's voice held a harsh edge to it, frightening those around him that knew him since he was a child. Cell rushed forward with incredible speed, intending to show why he was perfection, his fist travelled at blistering speeds, going straight for the young teen's head. With the small movement of leaning back his assailant flew over him, the oversized grass hopper swung his other fist below him, yet again he missed, hitting solid ground and causing the cliff to collapse under the might of his fist. His head snapped to the right, his eyes locking onto Gohan who he chased after.
He caught up to the demi-Saiyan in no time flat and began to release a barrage of punches and kicks at his young opponent as the danced through the sky the blaze of their Ki that surrounded them leaving a trail in the sky, gold and gold blazing through the darkening sky. Cell's cockiness soon turned to frustration at not being able to land a single hit, Ki gathered in his right palm, a sphere of blue coming to life. "Stop dodging and fight!" The biological android thrusted his right hand forward, a large wave of energy hurdling towards the young demi-Saiyan who avoided it easily.
The beam of bright blue Ki crashed into the ground, a massive explosion erupted, sending large pieces of land mass flying into the air along with a large cloud of dust. "Where is he?" Cell looked all about him, searching for the hybrid that was pissing him of to no end. A large chuck of rock flew up beside him, however what irritated him was the teen who was standing on under it. He fired off a ball of Ki.
He missed again causing the rock to explode, he went off in pursuit of Gohan, the two travelled from large rock to rock that where falling through the sky. Cell smashing them to pieces as he missed the smaller of the two of them repeatedly over and over, eventually the two landed on the uneven ground staring each other down, small pebbles from the giant rocks above falling upon them.
A small smirk made its way onto Gohan's mug, infuriating Cell even more. "It's time I showed you perfection!" Cell got into a horse riding stance and let out a scream, his power flowing freely as he grew stronger, the earth beneath their feet began to shake. The shaking quickly subsided, and the once frustrated Cell once again had this air confidence surround him. "This is my full power! So, what do you think Gohan?"
A small pause hung between the two strongest warriors on planet Earth. "Is that all?" The sheer dullness behind the question unsettled Cell slightly, and the smirk on his face didn't help the matter. The teen had to be bluffing, he was perfection, the ultimate being.
Cell let out a small laugh. "Nice bluff kid. However, lets see how confident you are when your six feet under!" The bio-android was about to let out another laugh, but immeasurable pain coursed throughout his body, Gohan had his fist planted into his stomach. The shockwave of the punch knocked everyone in the vicinity back and sent Cell on a one-way ticket to the closet cliff face.
The impact caused the cliff to give in and bury the being who had been slammed into it. Gohan floated over to the pile of rubble waiting for his foe to emerge. Cell slowly pulled himself from the heap of rocks, blood and saliva falling from his mouth. He began to cough up a small bit of blood. "Isn't this what you wanted Cell?" The question was given in a mocking tone, Cell was honestly terrified, in one punch he learned his place in the pecking order. He knew he had no chance against Gohan, but he refused to give up.
"Gohan! Finish him off now!" Gohan turned to look at his father, wondering what he was worried about. He had the situation under control and besides, Cell wouldn't be getting off as easily with all the crimes he had committed, no! he would inflict what he had done to all his victims a thousand-fold before ending the wretched creature's life.
Cell sped up into the air, getting a good distance between himself and Gohan before turning back to the demi-Saiyan, he'd have to try another method, he cupped his hands behind his back. "KA ME" He had begun the chant that everyone was way too familiar with at this stage.
"Wait! With that much power…" Krillin seemed to gulp in fear, scared out of his wits, he couldn't manage to finish his sentence. However, Piccolo decided to finish of the line for the small monk.
"And that high up, he'll destroy the planet!" Panic was evident in the Namek's voice, something that was very uncommon.
"HA ME"
"Gohan! Stop him!" Goku's words fell on deaf ears however as he simply waited for the attack that Cell was powering up. "Gohan!" The demi-Saiyan was becoming slightly irritated by his father's attempts to finish this quickly.
"HAAAAAAAA!"
Cell pushed his hands forward his Earth destroying beam plummeting towards the small planet in the northern quadrant. The teen crouched and cupped his hands, his voice barley above a whisper as he began to chant his father signature move. "ka me ha me" A small ball of blue energy gathered in his hands. The planet yet again began to tremble as Cell's Kamehameha wave got closer and closer to the ground. Everyone began to fear that it was the end, Cell had begun laughing like a lunatic, thinking he had won.
At the very last second Gohan thrusted his hands forward with a softly spoken. "Ha." His wave erupted from his palms and ploughed on as if Cells beam wasn't even there. Cell was speechless as the hybrid's beam barrelled towards him, his screams was all that was heard as the Kamehameha engulfed him.
"Did he do it?" Krillin was the first to speak up as the smoke caused by Gohan's energy slowly began to disappear around where Cell was. Vegeta let out a scoff, did the bald human not know how to read power levels. Out of the smoke fell Cell, parts of his body missing, his skin sizzling and burned raw red.
The bio-android hit the ground hard creating a fairly decent sized crater. Gohan walked to the edge of the hole Cell now found himself in, he crossed his hands over his chest, a smug grin plastered on his face. "Gohan! Finish him now! We know you have the power to do so!" The demi-Saiyan let out a sigh as he turned to face his father who was quite a distance away.
"No! I want to make him suffer a bit more."
Those words from his son sent chills down the spine of Earth's greatest protector. He was gobsmacked, he had no idea what to say and while he wouldn't admit it openly, those words made him fear his son. Gohan turned to look down at his enemy who was re-growing his limbs at a snail's pace. Gohan honestly was enjoying himself, watching as Cell grunted in pain has he regenerated, it brought about a pleasure within him, and while a small part of him knew what he wanted to do was twisted, he just didn't care.
Cell slowly got to his feet, his anger outweighing his fear as he strode towards the far superior Gohan. "I will not let you make a fool out of me!" The bio-androids body began to grow, expanding out as his power began to skyrocket. "I WILL KILL YOU!" by the time he got within striking distance of the half human he swung his fist out, wanting to crush Gohan.
The demi-Saiyan simply brought up his fore arm to stop the wild swing Cell let loose. He needed to put a bit of effort to stop the attack, he then pushed back, unbalancing the bio-android. He then lunged forward, planting his fist into the solar plexus.
Cell let out a yell of pain as he hunched over, and his eyes bulged from there sockets, saliva protruding from his mouth. He took several steps back before collapsing to his knees, he began to convulse, he took everyone by surprise as everyone was confused as to what was happening to the monster that had terrorised the whole planet.
A bulge began to appear in his throat, his hands shot to his mouth, viscously trying to keep whatever was coming up from his mouth, he had no such luck however, and the stunningly beautiful android 18 fell to the ground, covered in disgusting juices from within the pit of Cells stomach, her eyes open slightly looking at the Demi-Saiyan before falling into the sweet blackness of unconsciousness.
Cell was going through a rather disgusting transformation himself, rather horrific sounds came from the bio-android as his body changed. Eventually he took the form of his semi-perfect self. "No, no, no, no, no, NO!" Cell looked at himself disbelief. "I was perfect!" He looked utterly defeated.
"How sad." Cell looked up at Gohan as he strolled towards him, fear began to spread throughout his whole body, he was shaking uncontrollably.
"Please…have mercy!" Cell's plea seemed to infuriate the demi-Saiyan, his brows furrowed in pure rage, his fists clenched tightly, turning pale from being balled up tightly. Yet the most noticeable feature was the murderous intent leaking from Gohan's eyes.
"How many?" The hybrid's voice was dangerously low as he asked the question and confused the being with everyone's cells. "How many did you grant mercy to?" Cell's eyes widened, he knew he was not going to receive any mercy, after all why should he when he himself would not have. "Well?"
Cell stared Gohan down. "None." Once that word left his mouth the young fighters knee connected with his face, a shockwave rang out as the once great menace of Earth was set hurdling into the sky as unimaginable speed, the elven year old raced after his enemy reaching him in no time flat, his fist where connected and above his head, he brought them down like a jackhammer. The sounds of bones shattering loudly rung out from the impact, Cell was sent plummeting to the surface where he could do absolutely nothing to stop his descent, his body like a rag doll from the last hit.
He hit the ground with the effect of a ballistic missile. The bio-android's torturer was descending slowly, loving every minute of hell he put the grass hopper like creature through, Cell saw this as his last chance, this would be his last move, the ace up his sleeve, after all if he couldn't win he sure as hell wasn't going to give them that satisfaction.
Having pulled himself back together he started the process that would be the demise of everyone on this planet. Gohan was still approaching at a slow pace, if Cell didn't have his back up plan, it most likely would have terrified him but as he began to bloat up, he couldn't help the triumph smile that made its way onto his face. "you know, your going to have even less luck doing that in this form, though I do apricate the struggle."
Cell let out a hearty laugh as he began to take a balloon shape, of course Gohan thought that he was bulking up to acquire more power. How wrong he was, the demi-Saiyan's right eyebrow raised at the suddenly laughing Cell. "You've lost! I'm going to explode and take this planet with me!" The confidence that Gohan had been showing quickly turned to seriousness as he got ready to attack.
Cell extended his hands out in a stopping motion. "Wouldn't want to do that, any harsh movements and I might go off early!" Cell took glee in watching Gohan crumple to the floor, dread and angry taking hold as he punched the ground in frustration. "Won't be long now! About a minute or so and this world goes KABOOM!" In all honest, Cell felt disgusted with himself, perhaps it was the Saiyan genes within him wanting to win in a fair fight, he had after all wanted to prove that he was the perfect being the ultimate fighter and having not achieved that he felt hallow, pathetic.
Perhaps he had gone about this the wrong way, but with the Earth on the line he felt everyone would bring their A game. Maybe there was a way where they could have tested each other without being enemies, perhaps if he had overcome his programming to kill Goku and the Z fighters they may have been the best of friends, however after all he had done he highly doubted it, maybe they where destined to fight to the bitter end against each other.
As Cell made peace with himself, his opponent berated himself, cursing his arrogance, cursing himself for letting his new-found power go to his head, the ascended Super Saiyan had no idea what to do. He failed, he'd be the cause of so many deaths simply because he wanted to make Cell suffer. He felt disgusted with himself, he should have listened to his father and ended it when he had the chance.
And that's when the two where greeted by an unexpected guest, Goku. "Dad?" The full-blooded Saiyan gave a glance to his child, a small smile on his face.
"You did well Gohan! I'm proud of you! Take care of your mother and tell her I'm sorry." Gohan knew at that very moment what his father was planning to do, Goku's two fingers came up to rest gently on his forehead. "Goodbye son." Gohan made a desperate rush to get to his father, to stop him from sacrificing himself, but it was to late. The balloon like form of Cell and the defeater of Frieza vanished.
The demi-human was shell shocked, his father was gone, dead. His eyes began to water, the tears came next, flowing down his dirt stained cheeks. He slammed his fist into the ground, a small crater formed. All the anger was fading from within him, replaced by an overwhelming sadness.
However, the demi-Saiyan couldn't wallow in his depressed state for long, the sound of an energy beam filled the air with sound and pierced the unprepared hybrid from the future, going straight through the lavender haired adult, killing him instantly.
"Another one bites the dust!"
No one could believe it, standing before them, in his perfect form was the abomination Cell. "How?" It was Gohan who asked the question, but while he may have been shocked his anger was quickly resurfacing.
Cell let out a little laugh "Glad you asked my dear boy! It appears my creator was beyond doubt a genius! You see, as long as one of my cells survive, I can regenerate. Gohan's body began to tremble with rage. "You ready for round two Gohan?"
"This time you won't survive!" Cell was pleased with his foe's response, they two got ready to fight, Gohan in his form that Piccolo had learned him all those years ago, while Cell took on the form of the his father had used, the turtle hermits style passed down by Roshi.
Before the two could duke it out, the Prince of all Saiyans decided to interrupt. "Cell!" The two turned to see Vegeta rush Cell, an enormous amount of energy in his hand, he threw his hand forward unleashing his wrath in the form of a golden wave of energy. It made contact with the bio-android.
An impressive explosion rang out, however, the last full-blooded Saiyan alive decided that it simply was not enough and began to let out a barrage of Ki blasts along with scream after scream. "I'll make sure you can't put yourself back together!" He intensified his attack, throwing out everything he could at the monster that just killed his son.
It eventually got to a point where Vegeta couldn't keep up with the attack any more and had to stop to take a breather. "It's finally over." In the heat of the moment everyone believed him, yet that belief was quickly shattered when Cell decided to emerge from the smoke of the blasts and appear beside Vegeta. "It's over when I say it's over!" With his words spoken he slammed the prideful warrior with a chop of his hands, sending the poor prince into the ground where he created a long trench as his body ate away at the ground.
Cell looked at him pitifully. "And now it is over!" He raised his hand, planning to end the life of the final pure Saiyan. The blast left his finger tips at lightening speed, hurdling towards its intended target. Yet something surprised the green fighter, Gohan was moving to intercept the attack, while he knew the boy would be fit to deflect it, he wouldn't be able to prepare himself in time when he reached his battered comrade. The demi-Saiyan mad it just in time, taking the full brunt of the attack.
The blast shocks the very ground the stood upon, pushing back some of the Z Fighters who simply couldn't stand against the blasts outrageous power. Dust and smoke obscured the two with Saiyan blood, making his friends fear the worst. Soon everything began to settle, revealing both Gohan and Vegeta. Gohan's left side was heavily wounded, his left arm looking deformed from blood and burned skin.
Vegeta looked utterly beaten, he was having a hard time breathing from the single hit he took from Cell. The bio-android didn't know what to say, why did Gohan risk himself for Vegeta. Looking at the two he felt strange, he wanted to say the belonged together and that they were weak, but he remembered back to himself not to long ago, when he was the one that was weak, he had no right to call them that. These thoughts where frustrating the ultimate creation of doctor Gero, so he decided that now would be a good time to end things, this planet and its inhabitants where starting to have too much of an effect on him.
The self-proclaimed perfect being landed on the ground with a soft thud, he watched as his most worthy opponent brought himself to his feet, the injury he sustained from protecting Vegeta making him loose the edge on most powerful warrior at the Cell Games. Gohan stared at him defiantly, ready to continue the fight. "It's about time we end this boy!"
Cell moved into the stance for the Kamehameha wave, planning to turn the planet he was on to dust. The demi-human got in a similar pose, though he was only using one hand. "I agree!" The hybrid knew he was facing an uphill battle, and while a struggle of beams put the Earth in the most danger, he knew he would loose if they where to fist fight, after all one of his arms was pretty much useless, and between him and Cell, Cell was the better fighter. A fight of pure energy was his only chance at winning.
"I'm sorry Gohan."
The Demi-Saiyan's eyes widened as he looked down at Vegeta, it was not something he ever excepted to come from his mouth. Yet it did not shackle him, he couldn't allow doubt to consume him, he had to win, for his friends, for his mother and for his father. "This is the end Gohan." Yet again the hybrid was shocked, Cell's tone was no longer cocky or excited like it normally was, it felt empty and his body posture showed just how serious he was about this and he finally referred to him as Gohan, it confused and unsettled him. Yet the both began the age-old chant.
"KA ME"
Everyone waited with baited breath, this was it, this was what decided who lived and who died.
"HA ME"
Everyone was in the Demi-Human's corner, hoping to god that he would succeed against the wicked creature know as Cell.
"HAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
The two titans of power thrusted their hands forward, the two beams spiralling towards each other at mind boggling speeds. The waves of pure energy made contact, expanding as they did so to a dome like shape, putting shame to towns with its phenomenal size. The ground rattled under the immense power the two where giving out, the ground beneath them began to give out, the whole entire world felt earthquakes that where beyond anything ever recorded in the history of man. City's began to collapse, the earth cracked beneath their feet, as the showdown for the ages commenced. Winds created from the beam struggle was beyond comprehension, casing tsunami's all over the world, flooding great coastal cities, towns and villages.
The plant was violently shaking, people believed it to be the end of the world, the believed Cell had won. The dome of energy continued to grow, it's blue glow being seen halfway across the globe. The power being outputted putting fear in the gods as the power could be felt all the way to the Otherworld.
Cell's wave of destructive power was slowly taking over the struggle, pushing Gohan's energy back. The eleven year old was finding it hard to cope, his young body wasn't made to take this sort of punishment, but he knew he couldn't give up, after all if he did everyone one would die. He couldn't allow that to happen, so he pushed harder, managing to stop Cell's beam just before it engulfed him.
"Special Beam Canon!"
The spiralling beam hit Cell in the back, gaining the green fiends attention as he looked back to see the Namekian pumping energy into an attack to aid Gohan, soon the rest of the Z Fighters followed suit. Tien using his Tri-Beam attack, Krillin using the Kamehameha wave along with Yamcha. Cell's wing like attachments on his back opened and created an incredible force of Ki that knocked the Z Fighters of their feet, yet that didn't stop them. They continued to rise and fight, no matter how little they where effecting the outcome they couldn't let Cell prevail.
Gohan couldn't take seeing his friends get hurt, causing an outpour of power to be unleashed from within him. Gohan's beam began to take back some much-needed ground, beginning to level it back off so that it was even between the two. "Where does he get his power?" it wasn't a question Cell was expecting anyone to answer, he simply spoke out of the stress his body was under from using so much power.
He was created to be perfection, he was perfection, yet perhaps that was his flaw. He wasn't himself, he was multiple beings mixed into one, with a mission programmed within him to kill Son Goku. The only time he actually did something for himself was when he wanted to test his strength, hence the whole Cell Games, but even that could be down to his Saiyan DNA or Vegeta and Goku's personality within him.
Who was he? That was the question and one he would have to answer at a later time, he couldn't afford to lose concentration, he needed to win, so he could forge a new path, one he wanted and not the one laid out by his creator. He let out a yell, pushing his powers to new found heights and pushing Gohan's beam back.
It looked like it was over for Earth and it's inhabitants. Yet from far above came a powerful blast of energy that smacked straight into the back of Cell, unbalancing him and causing him to lose his focus. Cell looked to the source of the blast, finding none other than the Prince of all Saiyans.
This was Gohan's chance, gather every ounce of energy that he could muster he put it all in. He looked like he was about to beat the oversized grass hopper, his wave was going to consume him, yet Cell managed to stop his impending doom, and with everything he had pushed back, yet again bringing it to a stale mate. The two continued to push more and more, going beyond the limits there body should allow.
But they went to far, the power becoming uncontrollable by them. The two waves began to implode into each other, it shrank to the size of about 9 foot in every direction. All the fighters looked in awe at what was happening before them, then it began to pull them in Gohan and Cell where the first to go, being exhausted from the amount of power they had been pumping out, they disappeared. The rest of the Z fighters used everything the had left in their thank not to get sucked in, the body of Trunks fell in, along with the unconscious Android 18.
Slowly the sphere began to decrease in size and power before disappearing all together, the Z Fighters simply stood dumbstruck, not sure what the hell just happened.
-Universe 6-
The eyes of the first ascended Super Saiyan began to flutter, he slowly pulled himself up into a sitting position, grunting at the pain emanating from his left arm, looking down at said arm he could see his wounds had sealed themselves, however his skin was raw red from the burns he sustained during battle. The hybrid's eyes shot open as he remembered he had been fighting against Cell.
Nimbly he jumped to his feet, in front of him lay the deceased form of Trunks and the unconscious form of Android 18, the only sign that she was alive being that she was the rise and fall of her chest. "Finally awake boy." Gohan felt his entire body freeze at the sound of that voice, turning ever so slowly around to come face to face with Cell, the mean green fighting machine was sitting on a rock, legs crossed and looking rather bored.
Cell put his hand up to stop the Demi-Human who was beginning to adopt a fighting stance. "Relax; I don't want to fight you. Besides, I highly doubt you would last long, that and we haven't exactly recovered from the amount of energy we let loose." As much as Gohan hated to admit to himself, Cell was right. They didn't really have the strength to duke it out.
Cell looked at the teen, he may have stopped thinking of fighting him, but the rage trembling behind his eyes told him that he would have to keep up his guard. "Listen Gohan, I know you're not the biggest fan of me, but have you grasped our situation?" This caught the younger fighter a bit surprised, taking a look at his surroundings painted a pretty grim picture. The area they where in was desolate, there was barley any life he could sense at all. It didn't help that he was finding hard to breath.
"Where are we?"
Cell jumped from his perch on the rock. "Earth!" He came to stand beside the Demi-Saiyan, it made Gohan rather uncomfortable being so close to someone he wanted to beat the tard out off, but his statement confused him to no end and frightened, this couldn't be Earth.
"This can't be Earth!" It had to be some sick twisted joke from the bio-android, the Demi-Human just couldn't find the oversized insects answer to be correct in any shape or form, it just couldn't be true.
"I know it's hard to believe, but trust me on this." Gohan was a bit annoyed at how lay back the bio-android was being and trust him, Cell had to be joking.
"Why should I trust you?" The perfect being let out a small sigh, showing his frustration at the current situation.
"Well I did instant transmission quite an incredible distance just to return and fight you, it took me awhile to find the mud-ball but now I can tell you all the planets that surround it with life and what I sense puts us right on Earth, well a planet where Earth is anyway."
Gohan wanted to poke holes into Cell's theory, however, a grunt brought his attention away from his greatest foe to the slowly awakening Android 18. He made his way over to her, kneeling down beside her as she began to stir. Her piercing blue eyes creaked open and fixated themselves on the Demi-Saiyan. "Miss 18, are you feeling ok?"
The only female of the group looked surprised by who was in front of her, the son of Goku was looking at her concerned, yet when taking a look at just how messed up he was, from his left arm which was completely burned, to the cuts and bruises littering his face along with the rest of his body, she had a feeling that she should be asking if he was ok rather than the other way around.
"I'll live." It came out cold, but that was the way she was. A small smile braced the young warrior's face, he was glad she was alright. Cell's shadow cast itself upon the two, gaining their attention, 18 quickly jumped to her feet and got into a fighting stance, but anyone could see the slight hint of fear that danced in her eyes.
The ultimate creation of doctor Gero rolled his eyes at the blonde's antics. "Calm down now, no need to get feisty, we have bigger problems to worry about than your animosity towards me." The words of Cell did little to calm down 18 as the two began to stare each other down. A small explosion caused the two to stop their staring contest to turn to the source of the explosion.
Gohan had blown a man-sized hole in the ground, he turned on his heel, walking towards the once alive traveller from the future, he gently picked him up with his one good hand and dragged his fellow Demi-Saiyan towards his final resting place, he dropped the son of Vegeta into the hole as gracefully as he could with one useable arm. He felt rotten to the core, he failed to save Trunks, was he destined to reap failure wherever he went. He was about to start pushing dirt onto the dead body of his friend when he noticed something, tied to a strap of his armour was a small brown sack.
Picking the sack of the deceased with a hint of guilt throughout his body, the Demi-Human gingerly allowed his fingers to search the contents of the sack, eventually he got hold of what he was looking for. When his hand emerged from the now empty bag he was disappointed with the outcome, in his hand was an underdeveloped sensu bean.
It was smaller than every other bean, even less than half the size of it, he popped the irregular sized bean into his mouth and began to chew, the bitter sweet taste of blandness didn't sit well with him however the end results made up for it. His injuries began to heal however, his wounds didn't fully heal, the bruising was gone and cuts where less noticeable. His left arm which had been mangled by Cell's attack which had been burned and roughed up was now close to normal, but the mark was left, his arm was still red in colour yet no where near as harsh as before he took the bean. Scars could now be seen on the arm.
Gohan didn't look over himself for too long and began to bury his friend, it was the least he could do for him. He couldn't stop the tears that began to emerge around his eyes, this was hard to do. He believed Cell, after all the bio-android could have done away with him in his sleep yet he didn't, and he couldn't think of any reason for him to lie either. So he knew as he buried his friend, it was for real, Trunks wasn't coming back, he was gone.
Gohan's body soon began to tremble, he stopped placing earth over his once ally, tears where flowing freely down his dirty face. He jumped slightly when Android 18 kneeled down opposite to him and began to help, the Demi-Saiyan rub his eyes furiously with his arms and hands, trying to calm himself down. He got stuck into it with her and they began making good progress in putting Trunks to rest.
Cell watched the two, he knew why Gohan was burying the boy from the future, as to 18 he was confused, why was she helping, it just didn't make sense. Deep within the bio-android emotions began to swim, new ones he had never felt before in his short timeframe as a sentient being, if he was to hazard a guess he'd call the emotion eating him up inside guilt.
He didn't have to kill Trunks, he had no real reason, the only person he might want to kill would be the likes of Gohan and that was simply because the son of Goku nearly ended his life. When he was born he had an unimaginable hatred for the Earth raised Saiyan, but he knew it was due to the programming his dear old creator implanted within him.
Ever since he self-destructed his views on reality began to change, no longer was he driven by revenge and wanting to prove he was the perfect being, for once he was at a loss for what to do with himself, he still had the urge to be the strongest, however it felt diminished. Perhaps there was some sort of device within him, placed by Gero so that he would kill the Z-Fighters and become the perfect being, and once he went kaboom, he wiped away any influence the good doctor had on him. He now had an endless amount of choices before him, he could become his own person, not what his creator wanted him to be. His only urge was to fight and get stronger though, most likely down to his Saiyan genes, but he would follow that path for now until he found out what his purpose was.
The teen and adult buried Trunks, Gohan filled the female android in on what Cell had told him, he was also glad of the help, a little smile was on his face as he imagined the lilac haired Saiyan throwing a tantrum about Android 18 helping with his burial. The tears had stopped running down his face, he had composed himself. It wasn't long until the body of the deceased hybrid was covered up, the young warrior turned to his elder, a sad smile on his face, but one that held true thankfulness. "Thank you miss 18."
"Lazuli." Gohan looked at her questioningly, not sure what she meant. "My name is Lazuli." Her harsh, cold tone he had heard before was much softer, there was still a hint within it, but she seemed much more welcoming. The Demi-Saiyan outstretched his hand.
"Pleased to meet you Lazuli!"
The once human took hold of the teens hand, giving it a good firm shake. "It's a pleasure Gohan!" The moment of a new friendship being forged was ruined by the sound of a large stone slamming and sinking into the earth beneath there feet. The duo looked towards their only company to see he had put said stone at the head of Trunk's grave.
Both where angry with Cell, each having their reasons. However, Gohan's fury began to wain as he saw what was scorched into the stone. 'Trunks'. The Demi-Saiyan looked at the Z fighter's greatest enemy with a great deal of confusion, what reason would the insect like humanoid have to do this deed.
Cell easily picked up on the teens baffled features, yet he had no reason to explain himself to the boy. "We should get going, there seems to be a lack of oxygen on this planet." Lazuli stood up and stood defiantly before her once capturer, her readings told her he was weakened, she knew she would be able to batter him.
"Who said anything about we, we're going no where with you!" Her anger was clear as it came out like a dam bursting, yet it didn't seem to faze the tall bio-android.
"Then stay here and die for all I care." Cell began to bring his middle finger and index finger to his head, it was a bluff to try scare the two, his energy was dangerously low, and he wasn't entirely sure what would happen if the planet he landed on was hostile. He needed a great deal of rest to recuperate if he wanted to be self-dependant.
"Wait!" The yell from the Demi-Saiyan garnered the attention of Gero's creations, both waiting with baited breath for what the small titan had to say. "He's our only ride out of here, a truce between us would be beneficial to all." His words got different reactions from the two. Cell was slightly frustrated, the boy knew he was in a weakened state and needed protection, obviously he did take after his father in the brain department.
The blonde was caught between shock and rage. "How can you trust something like that, after all he has done!" She was trying to change the mind of the youngest among them, she sent a quick glace at the being that was a mixture of some of the greatest fighters to ever live, it sent a shiver down her spine.
Gohan let out a little chuckle, it wasn't as cheery as the way he once laughed. "Vegeta has most likely killed billions in his life under Frieza, and I trust him. I'm not saying that I trust him though, however I have to put my anger aside for the sake of survival." Cell couldn't help but smirk, the kid was smart and rational, he was pleasantly surprised about this, perhaps this would be a fruitful partnership.
Lazuli relented, she could push harder but just looking at how relaxed the teen was taking the situation she had a feeling she would be rather unsuccessful and decided not to waste her energy. "Then it's settled! We should get going too, god only knows what we are breathing in on this desolate planet." The teen agreed with the bio-android, the air was harsh to breath in and just felt plain wrong when inhaled.
The human and demi-human walked towards the tailed creature, Lazuli being a bit more cautious with her approach to him. "We'll most likely be dropping into a battleground so I suggest you two be at the ready." Said two where a bit put off by the perfect being's choice of words.
"What do you mean?" Gohan was floored by his statement, he had just gotten out of a life or death battle and now he might be thrust into another one. Cell let out a sigh, rather annoyed that Goku hadn't installed the basics of instant transmission into his son.
"I need to lock on to an energy signal, the higher the energy the better, easier to focus on and find. After all the only reason I made it back to Earth was due to the fact you where still in that ascended state of yours." The smallest of the tree let out a hum of understanding and then placed his hand on Cell's back, this in turn prompted the blue eyed female to follow suit.
They stayed like that for a short period of time as Cell concentrated on where they would end up, his eyes slowly opened as he fixated on his location, a smirk of satisfaction appearing on his visage. "I hope your ready." That was all the heads up the two where going to get as the small group from a different universe left the desolate planet that was once as lush and green as the Earth the came from mere hours ago.
-Planet Madra-
Explosions were going off right, left and centre. A once fertile land was now a war zone, nothing but craters and the bodies of the dead littered the battlefield. A city was the only thing remotely left intact. Destructive blasts of energy where being flung around by two sides.
On one side where a hulking species, their bulk putting the largest of lorries to shame, their faces where practically flat, the only thing protruding from their visage being rather large horns. Their feet where circular, looking a great deal like that of tree trunks, muscles seemed to bulge from their frames. They wore little clothing, mainly around their reproductive organs, there clothes matching the colour of their skin.
From a quick glance at the small army's formation you could tell the race had a hierarchy system based on the colour of their skin. At the forefront of the battle where those of a light and dark grey colour, then behind them providing a protective blockade around their camp where of a bright blue in skin colour, followed by only a handful of deep red coloured beings protecting a large tent. One could compare these space aliens to that of humanoid rhinos.
The name of this conquering race was Sronach, a powerful race that invaded other planets to grow their civilisation. Their foes defended the neon glowing city and had made a name for themselves throughout the galaxy as mercenaries for hired protection and justice. The where human in appearance and wore matching uniforms apart from colour which signified their position within their army. It consisted of yellow straps that held up a piece of sliver armour that covered their chest area the whole way around to their backs, a faded purple under piece that descended between the thigh and knee, underneath that was where body suits that stopped above the knees and a bit after the shoulders. These suits where different colours to show rank, Blue being the highest with brown being the lowest.
These beings where know as Saiyans, and where considered to be heroes of the universe. Between the city and the camp of the invading Sronach many soldiers from either side where battling to the death. On the west of the battlefield a small group of Saiyans fought against their enemies who had the advantage in numbers.
The Saiyans where on there last legs, the battle which had been going on for days was beginning to take its toll. They where surrounded by the rhino like beings, the horns on protruding from their faces glowing, energy growing at the very tip of the pointy feature. One Saiyan stood amongst his peers staring down his foes, ready to take them on.
"Any last words Saiyan?" It came from a red skinned Sronach, his power far surpassing his grey skinned comrades. Pleasure radiated of his visage in waves, his sadistic nature being noticeable to all those present, infecting those of his same species.
The Saiyan who stood before him did not respond in words, instead a white aura blazed to life around him, His wounded comrades cheered him on, he was their only hope at survival and they felt pretty confident he could do it. He was Renso, he was the ace of the entire Saiyan army, having completed missions people would consider suicide. He wore the blue garbs, showing he was the highest ranked Saiyan there. His black hair was tied back into a ponytail, he looked young, yet it was simply a trait from his DNA, he was in his late sixties.
He bore several cuts and bruises but looked ready to take on anything, a look of pure determination blazing in his eyes. He pushed off the ground with full force, cracks appearing in the stone beneath his feet. He reached his red skinned foe with blinding speed, landing a hit on the cocky beast, his fist smashing dead centre into its gut. The Sronach reeled back slightly, surprised at the Saiyan's speed, Renso pushed forward, hoping to take advantage of his shocked opponent, however he was not so lucky. He thrusted forward his right fist, aiming for the rhino like being's head, yet his small hand was caught in the red giants oversized hand. The Saiyan threw forward his free hand only to yet again be stopped in a similar fashion.
Renso couldn't help the small smile that made its way onto his face, the Sronach was wide open. He brought his knee up into the chin of the crimson skinned being, rattling its brain around its skull. The Sronach released his grip on the Saiyan's hands and Renso capitalised, twisting his body to gain momentum and ploughing his foot into the side of his adversary's head, sending him skidding along the ground, creating a defined trench as he did so.
His Saiyan comrades screamed out in joy and those who still had the will to fight engaged with the grey skinned Sronachs. They seemed to come alive with energy at watching their captain's display of fighting prowess. Said captain wasn't happy though, his giant foe emerged from his hole to quickly for his liking, energy gathering at the tip of it's horn, burning a ferocious red, the blast came at him with incredible speed, the ponytailed Saiyan leaped out of the way only to be clotheslined by his large enemy.
The pain was intense as he was sent flying into a group of rocks, he knew he was finished, he had been fighting for close to two days straight now, he simply didn't have the energy to put up a fight against his monster of a foe, if he was at full power he could give the Sronach a good beating with some difficult. He could see the energy growing at the tip of it's horn, he was a goner. Renso let his eyelids fall close, he began to make peace with himself, he had regrets, after all who didn't. He wished he could have passed on all his knowledge to his young apprentice Cabba. The kid showed such potential as a fighter and future leader, he just hoped he continued to grow without his presence.
Then their was his sister, she had become a bit of a ruffian over the past year, flaunting her power over the impressionable and creating a small gang, she was the strongest Saiyan alive, yet she wasted her days away with her little gang of misfits. He should have given her more attention as she grew up, yet he consumed himself with his work, driving her away in the process.
"It's over!" The massive red Sronach screamed in a victorious manner, his ball of energy hurdling towards his target. The Saiyan let out a sigh as he embraced his impending doom, yet he waited and waited, he was expecting to be in horrendous pain as his body burned to ash, however he still just felt sore and insanely tired.
He slowly opened his eyes, and what was before him shocked him to the core. The blast was being held in place by a boy, he was wearing a shredded purple fighting gi, his left arm was red in colour, showing the kid had gotten a nasty burn, it looked less appealing with the scars that accompanied it. His coal black hair defied gravity, the kid had to be a Saiyan yet Renso couldn't recall ever seeing this child, but what really got to him was the boys power. It felt unreal, it just didn't seem possible, he was close to Caulifla in power.
With a grunt of effort, the saviour of Renso pushed the ball of Ki into space, before dashing towards the red skinned Sronach and beginning to pummel him, beating the Rhino like creature into unconsciousness in less than a minute. This display of power caught everyone's attention, the Saiyan's looked ready to cheer endlessly while the Sronach looked absolutely terrified, their commander, one of the strongest of their race just got defeated soundly by a child. The large creature took off running towards their camp in retreat.
With their foes in full retreat the Saiyan's let out a cry of victory, most collapsing to the ground from sheer exhaustion. Renso pulled himself out of what he taught would be his grave and brought himself to sit comfortable on the ground. He kept his eyes fixated on their saviour, taking in any detail he could as the boy walked towards him. The boys clothing confused him, no doubt he was a Saiyan, but his clothes weren't something you would see a Saiyan wear.
"Are you alright mister?" The politeness from the young lad was unexpected, while the Saiyan's where peace keepers it didn't mean they where the nicest bunch to get along with, sure there was the odd exception like Cabba, but when your race was bred to fight you get rather prideful people who seem exceptionally hostile.
The old captain let out a small laugh. "I've seen better days! Thanks for the bale out kid!"
"I just did what anyone would have done in my position." The teen began to scratch the back of his head, humble and honest, he seemed like a good kid, but he looked slightly uncomfortable, yet the elder Saiyan just couldn't figure out why. Then again that wasn't really important at the moment, his team needed to contact in reinforcements to set up camp in this area and put pressure on the Sronachs.
"Just like you to go charging in to save the day Gohan, even when your injured. One of these days that recklessness will get you killed." The voice lacked concern and seemed to just be making a point rather than anything else. Renso turned around to catch sight of a green oversized grasshopper along with a blonde-haired beauty trailing behind him cautiously. He could sense the green being had a certain amount of negative energy flowing around him, it made him feel uncomfortable around the being. Though what really caught him for a loop was the female, he couldn't sense a thing from her and that really put him on edge.
The teen let a small goofy smile spread on his face. "Sorry." Gohan felt like his mother was lecturing him on a mistake from his studies, it was kind of relaxing to hear words like that come from the bio-android, he could definitely tell something had changed within the creation of doctor Gero, he still held his sharp tongue, yet it seemed tamer.
"Gohan?" Renso spoke the name out, it confused him slightly, he was positive the boy before him was a Saiyan, but the kid didn't have a Saiyan name. He caught the attention of the teen who bowed to him in greeting.
"Sorry I forgot to introduce myself, my names Gohan! The two behind you are Cell and Lazuli!" Renso soaked the information into his brain, he slowly got to his feet and made his way over to the boy that saved his and his men's lives. The elder extended his hand which Gohan grasped in a heartbeat.
"It's a pleasure Gohan. My name is Renso, Captain of the Saiyan defence force orange!" Now Renso was expecting many things, however one thing he did not expect was for the eyes of the teen to budge out of his sockets in surprise.
"You're a Saiyan?!"
A/N:
So I'm back with a new story! I was originally going to update Gohan's Journey redone, however when I went back to it I had no idea what I was doing with it. So, this story will be taking over for it, sorry if anyone who liked Gohan's Journey Redone was looking forward to another chapter. This is an idea I've had in my mind for a while, so I hope ye enjoy it so far and want to see more.
If you have any questions or suggestions fire away and ask!
With this story I wanted to try and reform Cell as well as have more freedom, there is so little known about Universe 6 and it gives me a great deal of creative freedom to write this story. While the Saiyan's from U6 seem ridiculously strong in DBS I plan to keep them stronger than U7 Saiyan's yet not at a level where the could fight a Saiyan in base who has absorbed godly Ki into themselves, found it hard to believe Cabba could match Vegeta in base.
Well that's all, until next time, have a good one!