Alterverse

Mythical Powers

I couldn't explain it to them, the feeling of regret and pain on her face when she had to leave. Telling her to go was the hardest thing I ever had to do. I couldn't do it, I couldn't let her go. It hurt as much as watching her battle and die...Cinder was never meant to die, but somehow she did. Only through summons was she brought back to life, and now...she's not the girl I knew anymore.

I'm a terrible person, I let her become this way. I should have cared for her, nurtured her, instead of forcing her to battle. The High Council needed her, they would have taken her...they killed Videl...what was I supposed to do? Let them kill my daughter, too? I can't do this, I can't pretend the answer was the right thing to do. I want my wife back...Cinder's mission is clear. I made sure to train her in everything I knew. If my past self doesn't know what to do, Cinder will...she just needs to show him the photographs.

But...where do we go from here? Even if she succeeds...I would die. I would no longer exist in this time. What will I do? I suppose it's a loss...if she changes time, then she'll change me...but I need my wife back. Videl...wherever you are, just know I love you. I'll...always...love you.

Future

Chains, why was it always chains? Yanking at his wrists, the saiyan tried desperately to free himself from the captivity that had enslaved him. The chains were digging into his skin, ripping at it every time he pulled away from the wall. It was no use, his captors had drained him of what little power he still possessed. There was no way out of this now, not even if he tried. Why bother fighting? He sat on his knees and pulled at the chains once more, giving up the fight.

They covered bases well, he had to give them credit. Even trying to fix things he couldn't manage to do it correctly. They made sure that the room he was held captive in didn't allow him to change forms. He was stuck in his present form, unable to go super saiyan. The feeling, the knowledge, the ability...it was all excruciating. The High Council had taken his daughter...they had taken his wife...he wasn't going to let them take anyone else.

"Let me go!" Pulling at the chains again, he winced and lurched forward from the pain. "Please! I didn't do anything wrong!"

"Didn't you?" The woman stepped into the cell, her heels clicking with each step. The sound was almost deafening in the silent room. Kneeling before him, the woman traced a manicured hand down his chest, seeking the chain he wore, and ripping it off. "Cinder was our top student."

"I don't fucking care if she was the God of all Saiyans! She was a child, and no one needed to do what they did to her! She would have come willingly." Gohan wrestled with the chains again, trying to lunge at the woman's throat and rip at it with his nails. "She was my daughter!"

"So, where is she?" The woman asked, brushing back her long brown locks. "She has to be somewhere in this galaxy. Don't worry, we'll find her when we raid your home."

Gohan's eyes widened, desperation finally becoming clear. If they found the machine he'd built, they would use it to their advantage. He couldn't let that happen, but he couldn't contact anyone else...unless...it dawned on him, but it took him a moment to find the power to do it. He had to do it when the woman wasn't there. She'd taken the last little bit of his life away from him, his locket, the link he had to his daughter. Everything began to fall apart; fixing it now seemed hopeless. "She was a child. Your actions were inexcusable! What if she had died while you were testing on her? What if she had died when you rammed that needle into her neck? Would you have worried about her then?!" The memories were still vivid in his mind, the blood that drained onto the floor, dripping silently in his head still..his daughter's helpless form laying on the examining table while they injected her with serums of different types.

"You seem to be forgetting that Cinder had died once. By your hand." The woman smiled over her shoulder, brushing her hair again. "You pushed her beyond her Saiyan limits, you didn't even care that she could have died, did you?"

"It's not true!" Guilt washed over him; he didn't know what to say to that. He didn't even know what he was saying now. The chains held him back again, forcing him to listen to her words. "She died because she was ill! My daughter changed after you got to her...she went insane; the battle in her head was too much for her to handle!" The last part was nearly inaudible, silent. "...She wouldn't have survived anyway..."

"Good, you're starting to understand now that she could have died at any time. But, she learned Instant Transmission, didn't she? A nifty technique that could hinder us finding her. Don't you realize what you've done? You could have destroyed your own race, just with a snap of your fingers." She turned on her heel, her green skin glistening as she walked through the cell and out the door. The worst thing he'd seen since Buu – and he'd seen a lot of damaging things. This woman had no remorse...

"I failed you." Gohan whispered, his eyes watering. "Everyone, I failed you." His last chance to save his child rested in his hands. Closing his eyes, he focused his little bit of energy on contacting Piccolo telepathically. Piccolo, can you hear me? The man would survive a nuclear blast, as long as his head wasn't detached.

Gohan, it's been some time. What do you need? Are you still in captivity? Piccolo asked, his mental state being disrupted.

Yes. Are you near the house? The student asked, waiting for a response.

I'm right outside, I figured you'd be asking about that. Piccolo rang through clearly.

Destroy the time machine. Make sure there's no trace of it. The words were painful to say, it was all he could do to protect his daughter's memory.

Piccolo froze, his mind reeling with different emotions. Had Gohan just said...? But that would mean Pan couldn't come back to our time! She would be stuck in the past!

I know, and it's painful to say it...but it's the only way to protect her. I don't want them to go after her. If they kill her past self, they'll kill her. Just...this way she has a chance...please, Piccolo. I wouldn't ask if it wasn't my last chance to save her...

As you wish responded the mentor, aiming a beam toward the house, destroying it and leaving no trace whatsoever. It's been done. Anything else you need?

Gather what's left of the Z-Warriors...tell them to prepare to fight against the High Council. Tell them not to worry about me...it's too late to save me. Gohan closed his eyes, trying to focus on his mentor's voice.

Gohan, are you suggesting... Before Piccolo could finish his thought, he felt Gohan's life energy drain away to nothing. It took what little was left to say that last command. Piccolo shook his head and looked at the ground, a moment of silence for the fallen warrior. "Who's left, really? Yamcha, Krillen, Eighteen..." He had to think about it a moment. "Goten, Trunks, and Bra...there is no one else. There's no way we can fix this mess...I sure hope Gohan was right by sending Pan back..."

Present Time

"Why did you do it? Why did you have to torture her so terribly in the battle?" Gohan asked, holding his daughter's sleeping form. He gazed at Cinder, keeping his thoughts on the present moment in time. "If she's you, why did you do it?"

"She can't fight back. Imprinting is an excruciating process, too many overwhelming thoughts and memories could cause her to overload. At her age, with her mental capacity, she could have died from it. I was forcing her to take my energy while I imprinted on her, this way she wouldn't die." Cinder sipped at the tea in her hands and watched Gohan fidget in front of her. "You're questioning if you can trust me."

"Of course I am, you paralyzed her when you first saw her. You barely even gave her a chance to fight back, and you expect me to not doubt my trust to you?" Gohan sighed, watching the older version of his daughter. She did age well, and her skills were remarkable, but he couldn't help but think she was conflicted with something. "How did Videl die in your time line?"

"In my time line, there is a group of powerful aliens called the High Council. They train people, children, with exceptional skills to be better. If they have mutant blood in them, they inject them with more to make them stronger. I wouldn't go...your future self told me I was not to be a part of that fight, it didn't concern us. They kidnapped mother while she was at work, didn't give her a fighting chance. As a mortal, it didn't take much, just a singular bullet between the eyes. They killed her and told us if I trained with them, they would release her...alive. I'm sure you can understand the dilemma with that." The raven haired girl tried to explain the situation to the best of her knowledge. Her blue eyes flashed red a moment, hinting that the conflict was getting worse.

"What are you fighting off?" Gohan asked, leaning forward slightly to stare at her eyes. Her ki fluctuated as well, growing stronger, then dropping below the normal number. He could feel it, her pain. The mental anguish he felt from her thoughts only gave a clue of what was happening in her mind. It must have been rather painful for her, it was giving him a headache. "Cinder?"

"As I'm sure you're aware, I'm only one fourth Saiyan..." She paused, catching her breath from the pain in her mind. Gritting her teeth, she tried desperately to fight off the anger. "They injected me...with blood from a deceased full blood...Raditz."

Gohan's eyes widened with horror. Raditz was the one that kidnapped him as a child; how could he forget that moment? All the thoughts flooded back at one time. "You're fighting off his blood...I've heard of donor recipients inheriting the qualities of their donor, but this is insane. His blood is trying to change you, isn't it?"

"It's the reason I died." Cinder spoke softly, finally calming down slightly. "You thought it was your fault, for training me so hard, but it wasn't you...I died because it was the only way to stop the pain." The pain shot through her whole body, causing her eyes to widen. Dropping the glass in her hand, it shattered on the floor, spewing contents about on the wood. She reached up to her head, tangling her hands in her hair. "I must not...compromise the mission..." Cinder hissed bitterly. "I will not!"

Placing two fingers to her forehead, Cinder vanished, leaving Gohan alone with his thoughts. "What the hell just happened?"

"Alright ladies and gentlemen, it's time for the final match up of the tournament! The explosive Cinder against Zhane! Who will be the winner? Let's watch and find out!" Cinder had half a mind to punch the announcer; he'd been annoying since the day she'd met him.

Gohan sat in the stands, holding Pan in his lap. She was a little big, but he didn't care. He wasn't letting go of her – not after what Cinder had said last night. He couldn't bear to see that happen to his little girl. Videl decided to sit out the tournament today, she said she wasn't interested in seeing the final match up, and she didn't understand why her husband was so obsessive on watching the match with a girl whom tried to kill their daughter.

Both fighters took their stance, Cinder stared at her opponent, her blue eyes blazing with fire. He's suppressing...I should have known he would have held back. Why is he holding back? Cinder smirked at the man in front of her, the age difference wasn't much. He was taller, his hair was much like Goku's, but it was a little more unruly. "It's been a while, Zhane. I didn't know you were still in this time."

The two fighters circled each other, stances still ready. The crowd gazed in wonder at them, wondering when the fighting would start. Zhane zipped at the girl, landing a punch straight to her gut. "Stop talking," He growled with contempt. When she flew into the air, he brought his elbow down on her, slamming her into the ground. "You always did talk too much."

Rolling onto her side, she climbed onto her knees and spit up blood. Unsteadily, the girl climbed to her feet and charged at Zhane, landing a few hits before he grabbed her arm and held it still. "You still fight like you always did; brute strength against a tactician." The words barely made it out of her mouth when he held her close to him, forming a ki ball on his palm. Pressing it to her stomach, he let it go.

"And you were always like your father." Zhane murmured, landing softly onto the floor of the tournament grounds, gazing over at the crowd. Zhane tilted his head back and raised his arms in the air, turning super saiyan. "I know you're hiding, Cinder. Come out and fight me for old time sake."

Cinder appeared in front of him, landing a blow to his neck, the resulting force causing him to glide across the grounds, barely landing inside the ring. "Don't you talk about my father as if you knew him. You never knew him!" Cinder tilted her head back and transformed as well, using instant transmission to appear next to him. Kicking him in the ribs, Cinder rolled him onto his back. Blood poured down his lip, but it was nothing compared to the slash on her stomach. "Zhane, this battle isn't over. You've waited too long to give up like this."

Zhane grabbed her by the ankle, yanking her down. Darting into the air with her firmly in his grasp, he twirled her around, throwing the girl back down towards the ground. Cinder caught herself midway, aiming a ki blast at him. He moved away before it connected. "You'll have to do better than that, Cinderella."

Growling, Cinder gathered her energy and vanished. Appearing next to him, she held her palm flat against his back, using her special summon, she closed her eyes and let it go. Erupting into flames, Zhane began to scream in agony.

"Amazing, folks! She just set that man on fire! Is that against regulation!?" The announcer produced a large book and began to page through it, but before he could find an answer, the charred body of Zhane landed on the tiled floor.

Cinder landed beside him, knowing he wasn't dead, nor was he close to depleted. She held her hand out, her other hand holding steady, and shot one last Kamehameha at his ribcage, crushing them toward his lungs. "You won't die, but you'll suffer an excruciating few days...brother."

With that, she walked out of the ring, leaving him there to suffer. Cinder didn't waste much time changing her clothes. She couldn't stand having the blood of her kin on her body. Gohan raced into the locker room, staring at her orange purple GI. The same one he used to train in. "You called him your brother."

"We share the same blood, yes." Cinder answered, slamming the locker door shut. Turning to the man whom was her father, she smiled lightly. "You're wondering if he is related to you, aren't you?"

"He turned saiyan, which means he has to be related to me if he's your brother. That makes him my ...son." Gohan came to the only logical conclusion, conflicted with emotions. She could have killed him out there.

"Wrong. We share the same blood, that does not mean he is your child." Cinder began to explain, smirking softly. "Zhane was the first example of a mutant; they gave him Raditz's blood and he didn't fight it off...but he was the first to become all saiyan from a human boy. We trained together; we hated each other. The rivalry was impressive. He traveled to this time before me; using a different method than my own. I imagine he waited here for years."

Gohan noticed Pan running up to him, he grabbed her and held her close to him. "Just what are you, Cinder?"

"I am an abomination to science...a mockery of human life. You caused me to be this way, don't you get that? I was a normal girl, just like her until you forced me into being like this." Cinder hissed, her eyes flashing to crimson red. They didn't change back to the crystal blue he'd noticed before, but rather stayed that bloody shade of red.

"Pan," Gohan whispered to his daughter. "Go find your mother, I'll be right there." Pan nodded and ran off, afraid to see what would happen next. "Cinder, this game has gone on long enough. Tell me why you're doing this."

"Because," She began, her breathing beginning to get faster. "You've just died in my time."

"How do you know?" He asked, fear bubbling in his voice. How could she know, she wasn't there! He stepped forward, looking at the girl with solemn eyes. "You were linked, weren't you?"

"My father...in my time, was the only thing holding me back. He was the only thing keeping me from being this monster." The young girl quietly explained, her expression droll. "He was, in a sense, keeping me from creating this abomination of myself. My father and I long had an agreement; he would save me if I helped him. He did save me, but since I couldn't help him..." Cinder fell to her knees, finally crying for the first time in several years. "Now he's dead because of me."

"But he won't stay dead," Gohan said, kneeling beside her, taking her into his arms. "Because I'm still here...and there's nothing that can kill me. Even if your father dies, I'm still here. And you're still Pan, so I know you're not going to die on me. Even if my daughter gets beaten to a bloody pulp in a fight, you're still here." He blinked, deciding that sounded terrible. "As long as you're still alive, I know my daughter is still alive. That's how this alterverse thing works, right?"

"Essentially," Cinder responded, laying her head on his shoulder. "My mission was to protect mother. She died today, that's probably why he died."

"Videl...is dead?" Gohan asked, panic rising in his mind.

"She's alive; I've already managed to alter the future - but if I don't stay on my guard," She hissed in pain, closing her eyes tightly against it. "She may not be alive for long. You've already changed the future by sending Pan to find her..."

"That would mean that those people are here already, how can it be so soon? Why didn't I sense them coming?" Gohan asked, the fear subsiding when he realized his wife was alright, and his daughter would be fine.

"Because their leader..." She paused, catching her breath. Looking into his eyes with her clear blue ones, Cinder smiled. "Their leader is Zhane."

DUN DUN DUN! THATS why she had to get matched up with him in the fight, because if Pan...well, young Pan...did, she would have shown her powers. Zhane was going to kidnap Videl once he saw Pan's enormous powers, and use Pan as his first hybrid, which would make Videl dead that day because Pan declines. Get it? I hope so, cause I barely understand it myself!