Hello, I'm a new author on this site and this is my first time publishing a story here. As stated in the summary, this story centers around Mai (the woman from Pilaf gang), takes place around 7 years after the androids' awakening in the future timeline, following the History of Trunks. Many years before Gohan got assassinated, and at this point of time, Trunks was still a little kid, and Mai's age being accelerated due to the wish's side effects. Anyways, here's a little insight of the characters' ages:

Mai : 21

Future Gohan : 17

Trunks : 8

Android 17 : Roughly 7 years as an android

Android 18 : Roughly 7 years as an android

Anyways, let me remind you that this story is somewhat AU-ish so keep in mind that it may not completely follow the canon plot as it contains two crack ships you can guess who. So if you like Trunks x Mai pairing, this story is not for you. If there's anyone out there who still enjoys my amateurish piece of writing, enjoy and R&R, if you'd like. No flames please.

Rating: T (Teen) for Torture, mild swearing, slight suggestive themes

That day was like any other dismal ones in Garlic City. Dark smokes lingered ceaselessly everywhere in the ex-megalopolis- haunting memories and fragments of the urban region's luxurious past being projected through the ghastly shadows. This is an eerie sight that persisted more than eight years. All of this none other than the handiwork of two cybernetic individuals who terrorised and murdered every living being for sport.

Android Seventeen's sharp catlike eyes scanned the area, examining his and his sister cooperative work on the top of an abandoned lookout tower. There are not many things he could toy with. The scents of burnt rotten corpses, blood stains and fire engulfing man-made structures were no longer foreign to his enhanced nose. In fact, he had been unconsciously ignoring them for too long, he didn't realise it was the smell of endless deaths he perceived.

For absolutely no reason, he expelled energy blasts from his palm to reduce what's left from a torn-down financial building into even smaller debris. How he relished in the faint, helpless screams elicited from his victims!

No, the cybernetic man was not alone. Like always, accompanied by his wretched sister. Else he wouldn't have had this casual conversation.

"Oh man. Hey, Eighteen, got any cola? I'm drying up," his index finger pointed at his throat.

"Go chug your own piss, Seventeen. This one's mine." The notorious female twin screeched with a single Hercule Cola can in her hand, tilting her head up to pour its sizzling content into her own mouth directly. She was comfortably seated at remarkable height on the top of concrete-made debris.

Although she was somewhat pale in comparison to her brother in the cruelty department, not a single soul could escape her predatory gaze, unless they could provision Eighteen with her trivial needs, mainly cosmetics and meals. Much unlike her brother who defined the word merciless.

"I hope you step on a landmine and blow up," mildly annoyed, the ebony haired cyborg tucked strands behind his ear. A metallic gleam shone from his left earring.

"Oh shut up. Get your lazy ass move and fetch some over there," she snapped and gestured to a random direction where a supermarket would be, before lazily kicking off the empty can of beverage.

"Don't you like, 'love' your little brother?"

He'd admit having difficulty pronouncing the syllable of 'love', the word was somewhat outlandish to his personal dictionary, even though the sibling affection was the only thing the two were familiar with.

"The only thing I love is to bash your face in."

Seventeen laughed, a rare kind of laughter when compared to his lunatic ones. That retort cracked him up.

In a world where depopulation and destruction were prominent, with barely anyone alive enough to make noises, the twins' silly chatters reverberated and echoed throughout several cities.

On the other side, the chatter and laughter of the murderous androids alarmed the underground resistance formed by survivors. That malevolent laughter helped them pinpoint the approximate location of the androids on the grounds above them. Broken and split up several times, with several deaths adding to the casualty tally, the resistance persisted whilst clinging to hope and dream of an ever peaceful future.

Temporarily housed in a half-intact underground bunker fifteen yards under the surface- shielded by sturdy metallic ceiling and illuminated with a small flicker of candle- the survivor group had been sitting down and formed a circle, running an important discussion for the sake of human race.

"They're so close! What if they found us sooner or later?!" Shouted a teenaged boy with a red dreadlock, in panic. "Probably less than 50 meters... They will- they will..." Running out of breath to properly vocalize his fears, he slumped down on the rocky ground, clutching his own knees. With the oxygen supply running thin, this underground hideout would no longer sustain life within a few hours.

"Calm down, Kasui, or you're consuming our oxygen too much," replied his auburn female comrade, Kanmi.

"How could I be-!?" At the edge of snapping once again, the boy named Kasui acknowledged his own fatigue and discontinued his sentence, panting and buried his face into his knees.

"Everyone, stay focused. I've got a paper detailing the underground tunnels that connected our hideouts, remember?" The female leader, a woman with long, straight onyx tresses and equally dark eyes elaborated to the two, holding out an A2-sized paper with mapped paths and rooms drawn on it. Some were crossed out in red ink, indicating inaccessibility. Either caused by destruction or chain effects in the aftermath of the androids' onslaught.

"Mai...!" All members of the small group of fifteen greeted their leader. One of few people who were not fazed by the android threats. Always donning that vigorous spirit, and showcasing selflessness to help others in the midst of tragedies.

"It's fine, we will traverse this path and turn around right here- let's hope it's not in ruins yet. If anything bad is about to happen, such as fallen debris blocking our way, we can use these alternative paths," Mai disclosed the plan she had in her head.

"That's the Mai we know!" The group cheered, celebrating the joy.

However when they felt tremor from the surface ground and dust fallen from the ceiling, the celebration was cut short…..

They are close. Indeed very close.

There's no other choice than hurry. Using their very brief spare time to grab their bags and goods, the fugitives dashed in the direction Mai was leading, who had been directing the group from the beginning.

Nearly split from the unripe coordination plans, the group hustled for their lives' sake- or even greater- the humanity's sake. The subterranean passageways they threaded were rocky and uneven, just like a reminder how tough life actually is for people in this catastrophic era.

Once, the treacherous little path reminded Kasui who not-so-conveniently tripped over a rock. Acted purely on her altruistic urges, Mai reached out her hand and helped the stumbled boy, before rejoining her group.

"Gah-! For how long do we have to run anymore... Can't we do something else to stop them?" His verbal protest struck Mai in the head.

That question turned unexpectedly deep in Mai's head, as if clicking into something she sought the answers for.

Do we really have to run? Do we really have no choice but to run?

The squad leader almost froze on her steps just to ponder on that question and reminisced about the past.

"Run! The androids are here!"

'It's impossible. They're too strong for us. We got them vastly outnumbered but—*KSSH*- it's- *Ksssssh*- arm- of... on...' Radio transmission abruptly ceased.

Although a single candle provided sufficient lighting in the hidden room deep within a deserted mansion on the outskirts of West City- it wasn't enough to cover for the gloomy atmosphere.

"May their souls rest in peace in the eternity of Heaven," Kriss, a middle aged veteran man in military stood upright, pushed his ashen cloak hood back and hung his head solemnly, inciting prayers for those who succumbed in the Androids' onslaught.

The young, 12-year old Mai stared in horror at the radio transceiver, the sudden cut distressed her. Yet more fallen bodies to grieve for. As moments passed, the dismal ambience intensified...

"It's certain I won't last very long, but do not let anything daunt our spirits to survive. Mankind won't go down anytime soon, my young girl."

This man meant everything for her.

Upon her dissociation with the Pilaf Gang many years ago following a series of unfortunate events that ended up turning the gang into mere infants, he fostered her by selflessly giving her food on her plate, a roof above her head, and fabric around her body. Ever since, he was like a paternal figure to her. Throughout the androids' attacks, he acted as a mentor of correct expertise and taught her how to survive, wield armaments, take cover and defend. Luckily, the wish dragon's curse couldn't exactly mimic the nature of human growth acceleration, and Mai grew up much quicker from an infant to a 12 year old over the course of just four years. The years perfectly molded and shaped her physically and mentally to withstand the Androids' terror.

Indeed the foster father figure who made her the resilient woman she is.

"Dad, what do I do if you're gone?"

"Be strong. Help others. Save yourself. Slowly restore humanity," a glimmer of hope could be seen through his onyx oculars, a smile complemented it well. He patted the young girl's head. Nothing will last eternally, but the hope and dreams of humanity will.

"No matter how strong our foes are, there's got to be a weakness. Find it and disarm them."

The two ended their conversation when they felt tremors above their heads. It's when they realized this fine hideout was inches away from collapsing. The automatons had spotted this place and opted to pulverize it. Driven by instincts to survive, Mai grabbed her adoptive father by his wrist and made an attempt to run with him. However, when she felt a powerful shove in the chest, the girl's usual cheery expression faltered. She and her father were now separated in reasonable distance.

"Prepare for your leave, and take my supply bag with you."

"But! I can't leave you here! Please stay with me until the end!"

A senile chuckle came from him.

"It's useless. I'd only slow you down. Besides, I have tricks up my sleeve. I'll distract them with my secret techniques," was his last banter before pieces of falling concrete blocked them off from each other. Not even a proper goodbye exchanged...

Grabbing the bag without looking back, the energetic girl bolted to the back door of her hideout whilst evading falling debris which would've left mild scars on her petite body.

Run, run, and run. Her survival instinct drove her legs to run as fast and far as possible.

"Dad..." She squeezed her eyes shut, lamenting the unanticipated farewell moment that flashed before her eyes.

She could've sworn she heard that lunatic, maniacal laughter from the place she left behind.

Realisation dawned upon Mai's head when reverie and reality clicked together- she was alarmed by that all-too-familiar screeching laughter from ahead, ambushed when she passed through a narrow path which connected to an opening to the surface. It was too late for her to acknowledge a grave mistake- running so fast none of her comrades could catch up with her, thus leaving those vulnerable souls behind.

"Where are you guys?! Kasui? Kanmi?!" Mai hollered fruitlessly into the darkness, then filled her lungs repeatedly with oxygen. Fresh breathable air was scarce here.

Before Mai could formulate Escape Plan B, she felt her spine connect to the rocky wall.

Shit.

Mai felt her legs going numb from the impact the female android's done to her backbone. She sank on her knees, wincing before glancing up at her towering captor. Those gleaming, metallic catlike eyes...

Her fears confirmed when she heard the female speak.

"Seventeen, we got a new plaything."

"Plaything? Why not kill her and be done with it?" Another voice joined. It was that of the male twin's, who emerged from nowhere... but dangerously close. Probably less than ten meters. His footsteps echoed with increasing volume.

"Killjoy. We're running out of living toys we can pummel for fun."

"Yeah no, it's easier to play if our toy is dead,"

"Why not pick a dead squirrel over a human then?" and so their arguments continued on.

With barely any luminosity reaching her retinas in order to acknowledge her enemies, she tried to crawl away on her feeble knees before a kick in the sternum forced Mai to rethink about her actions.

The kick was not loaded with enough power to break her, yet it angered her.

Steadily, Mai mustered some of her energy and rose to her feet- her bold, challenging gesture astonished both androids.

"Hey, rat, don't ever think of getting past us. Spare us some time to think. We're deciding a perfect torture method for you and your petty friends behind,"

Android Seventeen's menacing glare pierced Mai's as he lifted her body by the collar. Consequently, the vigilant lady felt her own body weight left the ground. Now he could see her features in better details.

"Oh hey. I didn't know a rat could be such a looker."

Our fellow heroine snapped an eye open, scrunching her face in disgust at his compliment. She could also see his glacial eyes paying attention to her physical features. His countenance, framed with jet-black locks, closed in curiously.

"Let me go. I'm not joking with you bastards. Leave me and my friends alone!" Seethed the only human, spitting on the androids' face. The rude gesture successfully made him turn his head away.

The male cyborg's expression stiffened. "Loud bark, no bite. So typical of you heroes... Well, no matter what words you uttered, you'll all end up in the same graveyard so..."

"She looks tougher than any of those petty rats we had come across until now. Let's keep this one around so she can entertain us for a longer time. What do you say, Seventeen? Not every day we can find something durable."

"Frankly, I don't like seeing rats crawling in my territory, but I'll consider your input," a sly grin manifested on Seventeen's steely expression.