Regaining consciousness is an odd, if not uncomfortable experience. Certain senses awaken first while others are left a disorientating mute. His first sense to awaken was the sense of touch, feeling a cool water surrounding him, sparse bubbles tickling his skin as they passed from below him. Hearing came next, but extremely muted from being submerged. He could hear a voice through the water; aside from muffled and distant, it sounded odd… The word robotic came to mind.

Taste and smell came to him at the same time, the stagnant air filling his lungs leaving a foul taste on his tongue.

His thoughts were beginning to flow with some clarity now as he focused back to the voice, "From the cells of the most powerful fighters on this planet. Your mission is to pursue your sibling andriods and absorb them to reach perfection. Upon finding perfection, you will kill Son Goku."

Son Goku… that name sounded familiar… Molten lava came to mind with the name.

The sound of glass shattering surprised him, especially with the sound of splashing water and a meaty thump. Now focusing on opening his eyes he managed to look over in time to see something slide out the door.

Blinking, he pulled his eyes away from the door as he tried to clear his vision and rid himself of the sense of vertigo from using his eyes for the first time in a long while and from gazing through water. Looking around he saw he was in a dark room, the lights previously illuminating the surrounding area shutting off following the shattering glass he had heard previously… the robotic voice was silent now too.

Looking down, he saw he was sitting cross-legged in the bottom of a glass tube, a mask coming from the top to provide him oxygen. He frowned when he saw he was naked, no memory coming up as to why he was there nor how he had gotten there… was he that bio-engineered creature amassed from the cells? Or was the perhaps the other one that already left?

Lifting his hand to the glass, he felt it vibrate under his touch. Putting a little more force allowed for it to shatter causing the water to spray out after it. Blinking as the air touched his eyes for the first time as well as prickled at his skin, he shivered from the sudden exposure of the air. Flexing slightly in an attempt to hasten his blood flow and thus warm himself up. He could feel his blood rushing through him, along with something else… power… something different from his raw physical might he could feel. Ki..? Chakra..? Both words and their meaning and practical uses came to mind followed by more questions as he observed his form.

Why hadn't he atrophied? His eyes were used to this dark lab, the air was stagnant, sealed off except for the hole in the wall where the other former resident crawled out, so he had to have been here for some time at least. But he felt more like he had just woken from a nap, refreshed and ready to run, although still slightly tired.

Walking over to a computer, an oddly familiar yet foreign device, he rested his hand on the keys. The screen lit up in response to the contact, an image of an older man appeared. Tanned skin but heavily wrinkled, a bushy white mustache and a large black dome like hat with the letters RR embroidered across the front. He knew this man to be Dr. Gero but he was positive he had never met this man before.

"So, you have awakened Android 21." The same robotic voice resonated around the lab.

His eyebrow furrowed at the moniker the doctor addressed him with. "Android 21?"

"Yes. You were the last android I designed prior to my death."

The last one that he designed, not created? If the old man didn't create him, how did he end up in this lab? "Who created me if you just designed me?"

"With the knowledge that I was nearing my end, I uploaded my mind into this computer. With my mind having designed you, my computer created you as a follow up to project Cell."

"Follow up? Was Project Cell down here as well?"

"Project Cell was to be my ultimate creation, a union of all the most powerful fighters that have been on this planet during my lifetime. Made to exact my vengeance on Son Goku while ridding me of two other problems, androids 17 and 18. They have betrayed me in the past and I am certain are responsible for my mortal death. You were made to keep Cell in check if he showed the same impulsive behavior towards me and serve as my personal guard. Yes, Cell was here as well."

So the voice he had heard previously was meant for this Cell, not him. While he knew the name Son Goku, he bore no ill will towards him. "If Cell is the accumulation of the most powerful fighters on this planet, what am I and how would I protect you should he have gone rogue?" He felt a sense of self pride for asking these questions, gaining knowledge before running out after the other androids.

"You were created from the DNA of a creature the Red Ribbon Army found buried in the frozen tundra. Although the corpse was dated to be thousands of years old it was still radiating power, this phenomena could have been from the creatures immense power taking this long to disperse or from the preservation the ice provided. Aside from that you have the DNA of Son Goku and aliens known as Vegeta and Piccolo as well as the energy absorption system that I created for my androids 19 and 20."

21 paused, waiting for the computer to continue. Stupid as it was a computer and didn't need to take a breath so stopped communication simply because it was done. "And how would I stand against Cell if he attacked you?"

"You are more powerful than Cell in his current base form. Should he absorb androids 17 and 18, your task would simply be to stall him until I could activate the disarming switch for 17 and 18, reverting him back to his base form and you would be able to destroy him." 21 nodded glancing around trying to think of any other questions he would have before going out in the world. "17, 18, Cell, and yourself are all organic with bionic enhancements. This means that you can gain power, but you will not be able to atrophy. While freshly you are more powerful than Base Cell, training on his part, or absorbing the life force from others, can change that."

21 glanced back at the computer with a frown, "What is my purpose now that your dead?"

He was met with silence as he waited for an answer. The silence was telling enough. With a sigh, he glanced around one last time, hoping to see fabric of some sort. His hopes were dashed as he made his way out through the hole his roomie had made.

Flying was more instinctual than anything as he rose into the sky, looking down at the mountain pass the lab resided in. With a thought, a bright, yellow ball of power filled his palm. Dropping it more than throwing it, he watched as it drilled into the mountain a few meters before detonating, destroying the lab.

Turning his back on the rising smoke, he began to follow the trail of his "Brother", considering now he had no purpose assigned to him, he'd have to make his own.

Hey y'all. It's been a while… yeah… my bad…

Good news! Maybe…

I am considering going through and salvaging my old stories. Improving writing where needed and just continuing on the stories I feel have the self motivating continuation for.

Also, this little potential gem came to mind, which is what is bringing me back. Primarily.

Let me know what you think?

Daeva