"You leave right now, of course. No time to waste. The boy you're inhabiting is already about to pass on to the next world," Grand Kai said. "Are you ready?"
Cell unfolded his arms and nodded.
In the next instant, the world collapsed before his eyes and he felt very small. It took him a moment to realize that his body had been condensed into a glowing orb that floated a few feet off the ground. Just as he registered this, he was off at break neck speed, zooming past the denizens of the After World. Soon they disappeared and everything became a blur that even his perfectly trained eyes could not decipher. The ride ended just as quick as it had started as he came to an abrupt halt in a very different room.
He did not know much about human buildings, but he knew this one was called a Hospital. The walls were obscenely white and barely decorated with little more than a degree from some school and a few diagrams of the human body. But none of that mattered. What did was the small family below him.
A boy in his teens was laying on a cot, a mouthpiece attached to his face that fogged over with each exhale of the boy's breath. Next to the bed was a short blonde haired woman sobbing on a gray haired man's shirt. Lines creased the man's forehead and his honey brown eyes glistened with unshed tears. His wrinkled old hand was slowly rubbing the woman's back.
Cell stared stonily at them, not the least bit moved by the emotional display. The bio-android waited patiently, hovering above the family. He had waited ten days for the Cell Games, he could wait a few more minutes for this boy to die of natural causes. Finally, the heart monitor went flat and the machine emitted a monotonous tone that filled the room. The woman's sobs reached a crescendo but Cell was focused on the dead body. Slowly, a soul arose from the boy. It lingered a bit, circling around the two, and then flew out. Unbidden, Cell's own soul entered the body.
Once in he became aware of quite a few things. He was definitely shorter than before, which wasn't surprising. The woman's sobs also sounded significantly louder from here. Apparently his sensitive hearing was intact. He tried moving his limbs but found them unresponsive. What was wrong with this body?
"Wendy," he heard the man say gently. "Wendy, look." The woman's sobs quieted a little as she detached herself from the man and looked at Cell. Her mouth fell open, forming a tiny 'o' as joy filled her face and fresh tears lined her eyes.
"Oh Aiden! I'm so glad your alive!" Ragged emotion laced her words. "I..I….I don't know what I would've done if you had left me!" She reached over and hugged him, his face landing directly in her bosom. Cell involuntarily flinched. He had never been… hugged… before. How did he deal with these people? He simply nodded and tried to lean out of the hug. The woman seemed to have no intention of letting him go though.
"Uhm.." he coughed slightly. "Can you release me?"
She stilled and leaned away, though her arms were still around him. "Oh, Aiden, don't what are you saying?" She suddenly gasped and turned towards the man, releasing him in the process. Cell sighed in relief and leaned back. "Oh dad, what if he lost his memories?"
The man stroked his chin. "Well, I suppose it's possible. He did hit his head after all."
A horrified look came over Wendy's face. Before she could comment further, the doctor and a nurse rushed in. The nurse coaxed Wendy into sitting as the doctor began checking Cell's vitals. When he was done, the doctor stepped back, amazement on his face.
"I don't know how, Ms. Destan, but it seems your son has made a full recovery."
The woman's hand flew to her chest as she sighed in relief. She took out a white cloth from her pocket and dabbed at her eyes.
"But doctor, he doesn't seem to remember anything."
"Amnesia is common in head trauma patients," he said, tapping the clipboard he had picked up from the end of the cot. "I would like to keep him over night, run a CAT scan, monitor him some more. He just came out of a critical condition." He scrawled something across the clipboard and then handed it to the nurse. "It would be best if you left now so that Aiden can rest."
Wendy nodded. "Of course, doctor." She turned back towards Cell and stroked his cheek. "Don't worry Aiden. Mommy will be back for you tomorrow."
Cell simply nodded and restrained himself from pulling away from her. Ugh, humans and their affections. Goku had showed such displays of affection to his own son and Cell had found it pointless. Right now he found it repulsive.
The next day came a bit too fast for his liking. Wendy and the other man were now in his room waiting for him to get dressed in some clothes they had brought for him. He was in the bathroom, staring at his reflection, eye twitching.
This body.. was so weak! Oh, he hadn't had high expectations when he realized he would be inhabiting a human body. But this was ridiculous. The body was thin and pale. He could even see the faint outline of ribs. What had this boy done all day? Nothing, apparently. He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. Alright, alright, he could handle this. He was the perfect being, after all.
That's why you were defeated.
Augh! He threw the jeans and t-shirt on, both hanging limply off his frail frame. He glared at the mirror once more and then stalked out of the bathroom.
The car ride back to his new home was almost unbearable. That woman kept babbling, asking him how he was, what he wanted, if he wanted to stop anywhere in particular. Usually he could have just tuned her out but he was agitated. His fingers were tapping against his leg as he stared out the window, elbow resting on the door and his hand propping his chin up.
"Now Robert," she started, turning around in her seat to face him. "You don't have to start school tomorrow you know. In fact, the doctor said it would probably be better if you didn't."
"What," Cell said, turning away from the window to look at her. "Not start school?" That was unacceptable.
"Oh, I knew you wouldn't want to," she said, mistaking his panicked question for eagerness.
"No! I want to! I have to!"
She gave him a strange look. "But sweetie, you really should-"
"I cant let my schooling slip behind," Cell said. Was that a reasonable enough excuse to go to school? He didn't want her confining him to the house. Ugh, to be at the mercy of a such a pitiful woman. Dr. Gero was surely rolling over in his grave.
"Are you sure, Aiden dear? I know the school will understand. You took quite a nasty hit to the head."
"Yes, I'm positive I want to go to school."
She gave him another worried glance. "Well…..if you're positive…"
He sighed. "Yes, I'm quite positive."
Giving a dejected sigh, the woman faced the front again.
His new home was acceptable at least. It wasn't very big, but it seemed alright by human standards. It was a simple one story with blue shingles and a porch that hosted some potted plants. Inside, Wendy led him to the kitchen and tried to feed him some dish that she called his favorite. Did he remember it, she had asked with eager eyes. He decided to try it and almost spit it out. Ugh, what was this? Oatmeal, she had called it? It was lumpy and way too sweet. Disgusting.
After dismissing the food he asked to be directed to his room. He wasn't very hungry and would rather rest. Truthfully, he wanted to get away from her before she tried to feed him something else or hug him. She frowned but reluctantly showed him where he was sleeping.
When he was finally alone he began inspecting the room. It was rather spacious and very decorated in what looked to be hand drawn pictures and paintings. There was a mirror as well, but every last inch had been covered in photographs. Sunsets, boulevards, mountains, people, animals. Some were in color, others were black and white. He stared, inspecting each picture one by one. His gaze stopped. Was that… him!
He picked the photo up. It was far away but was zoomed in on him. It must have been in the ten days before the Cell Games because he was standing in his ring, arms crossed, head bowed. Why hadn't he detected his presence? Odd.. he shrugged and released the photo. It was interesting, but irrelevant to the larger scheme of things.
"Dad, I just don't understand. Does he really not remember anything?" Wendy's voice. She wasn't speaking very loudly, but his sensitive hearing allowed him to pick up her words.
"He'll remember in time sweetheart. We just need to be patient. Keep showing him reminders. That's what the doctor said. The memories are there, they just need to be coaxed out."
"Maybe I should go in there and-" Cell tensed.
"No no sweetie. Just let him be, alright?"
The bio-android let out a sigh of relief. Kami, what was wrong with him? He was the model of perfection- a warrior with the brain to match his muscles- and he was tensing up over a silly human woman who hugged him. He wanted to let his rage out but knew it would attract their attention. And besides that, this body might just crumple at the slightest display of power. He snorted and sat on the bed. Might as well try and sleep, he supposed. He had managed to do so at the hospital and if he could on that lumpy bed then he could in this much more comfortable bed surely. Curse this weak human body!
Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z or its characters and the story is simply for fun and no profit is being made from it.