"Okay, now that you have your papers ready, we'll draw names for who will present first." Mack's English teacher was planning to start presentations of a paper written about stereotypes, when Mike transmitted in at full power.

"Hey," he said as he looked at the teacher. He then looked at Mack.

"Come on, we're in trouble."

Mack gave Mike a confident grin, a grin Mike didn't need to see right now. "No, you're the one in trouble. Now get to class," he said jokingly.

"As we speak, an army of Saiyans is training with the sole purpose of killing us. They're already too strong for us to beat alone, and if we don't train real hard real soon, even Genzo might not be enough."

Mack's face changed instantly. He transformed into a Demonic Saiyan, blasting the desk around him to pieces.

The teacher sat him down on the floor right away. "You will not leave this room," she said. "And you," she said, looking at Mike, "will do so right now."

The bell rang, and Mike transmitted back to math class.

"What's going on?" Alicia asked him, concerned. "You've never been this focused. Are you going to be alright?"

Mike turned to her and sighed. "I don't think so," he admitted.

Alicia gasped. "What do you mean? What about Mack, and Genzo? You'll be fine."

Mike looked sad. "It's not that simple, not anymore. There are too many of them."

Alicia stared accusingly at Mike. "Genzo struck Demonheart at Super Saiyan 3 one time, and killed him. One hit. And then he concentrated on another foe. How powerful can these guys possibly be?"

Mike's eyes lit up, and he smiled. He returned to normal, then became a Super Saiyan again. "You're right. None of them can hurt me, so why should I believe that all of them can?"

He picked up Alicia and twirled her around in the hallway. "We're safe! No one has to die!" he exclaimed triumphantly.

"Now, you have all become much stronger," Rachel told the men. "Now, for the most important part. You must pair up with someone of equal strength."

The men did so, and the pairs fell into a line.

"Now, this half, come with me. The other half, go with Ahmad. I have taught him what all of you will now learn."

She then stood, toes pointing outward, bent at the knees. Her hands were extended straight out, and pointing to the right.

"Now, first you take three steps toward your partner. As you do so, turn your hands in a circle above your head to face them. While you do this, say 'few', drawing out the 'ew' sound until in the new position.

Next, flick your hands back in their original direction. As you do this, bring your outside knee across your inside leg, crossing at the thigh. When you do this, say the word 'shun'.

Finally, set your raised leg back on the ground, extending it fully. This leans you toward your partner. Point your index fingers out on each hand, and have your inside arm's finger meet your partner's. Do the same with your outside arm. When you do this, say 'ha!' You will combine into a more powerful being. The numbers will be split, but the power will increase dramatically."

She grinned. With fusion at my disposal as well, Mike will surely fall. Even Genzo will be destroyed in this way.

Mike wasn't happy.

During the track meet, he had vowed not to use his powers. He was only to do what Mike Welch, the 10th grade kid, was capable of. Mike a.k.a. Lanzo, the mighty Saiyan defender of Earth, was well beyond what was necessary.

However, normal Mike had taken huge strides even without his power. His former shot put personal record of 37 feet 2 inches was shattered by his new record of 43 feet, 7 inches. It wasn't perfect, there was work to do, but Mike was happy.

The discus throw was another matter entirely.

Mike's skill in the discus was barely existent, he had yet to throw over 80 feet. But he was determined to do better today, even without his energy.

After stepping into the circle, Mike prepared to throw. He had his footwork right, but his hands were out of synch. The discus flopped to a pitiful toss of 62 feet, 5 inches. Mike grew angry, but immediately tried to calm himself. You can't throw angry, he thought. Calm is important. He tried once more, and threw no better - 60 feet, 11 inches.

Mike stalked out of the circle, and headed for the locker room. A hot shower and change of clothes might make him feel better. On his way out, he saw Hannah.

Hannah was a girl Mike had just recently developed a liking for. She was average height, with dark hair, a dark tan, and bright hazel eyes - a sharp contrast that Mike found very attractive. She was also Sarah's best friend, so Mike had someone who would toss in the occasional good word.

He smiled warmly at her, but she simply looked away, seemingly embarrassed. Mike couldn't figure out what the crap that was all about. Did she dislike him and want to avoid him, did she like him and was shy, or was there another reason why she always acted like that? He couldn't piece it together, but the slight feeling of hurt that ensued only made things worse. As Sarah walked up to Hannah, her smile returned. Mike no longer noticed as he floated toward the locker room door. She headed over to see what was wrong, and as she approached him he transformed into a Super Saiyan - an obvious sign that all human life should leave him alone, if it wished to remain human life.

But Sarah wasn't human life. She was a proud member of the Saiyan race. She promptly transformed as well, and turned Mike around.

"Are you okay? What's going on?" she asked.

Mike looked at the ground. "I had a bad day. Threw terrible at the discus."

Sarah glared at him. "Bull," she said. "Something else is bothering you. What's up?"

Mike looked up at her, fear slightly visible in his eyes. "Fusion," he said.

Sarah looked at him, puzzled. "What about it?" she inquired.

"They know," he said. Sarah's eyes gave away that she understood, but Mike explained anyway. "The terrorists that Rachel is training have learned to fuse. If two fused people fuse with each other, the resulting power would be incredible. If an entire army fused into one being..."

Mike trailed off, but Sarah knew. If an entire army fused into one being, Genzo would surely fall.

By this time, Hannah saw her transformed friend talking with Mike, and walked over. "What's wrong, Sarah?" she asked, looking innocently up at Sarah.

"I'm going to go train for a while," Mike told Sarah. "Wanna come?"

"No, thanks," she said. "Get Mack, though. We need Genzo to be in top condition."

Mike then transformed his track uniform into battle gear, and transmitted away.

Hannah looked at Sarah, astonished. "You know Genzo?" she asked. "Like, personally? Because I saw his picture on the news and he is so, hot..." Hannah sighed dramatically.

Sarah smiled ironically. "You just saw half of him disappear."

Hannah looked confused. "What does Mike have to do with Genzo?"

Sarah laughed a bit, then headed for the Beaver Dam designated area. "Allow me to explain a little thing called fusion," she said.

Just as Mike was beginning to power up, a blue Mercedes pulled into the driveway. A tall, thin man wearing glasses and a charcoal suit stepped out. He looked awkward, as though even being there was a forced attempt at normalcy.

"Hey, there. I'm John Quarkenbrot, head of special projects at Microsoft." He held out a hand for Mike to shake. Mike quickly slapped his hand, then powered up to begin training.

"I have a device that will help you with your training," he said, shouting over the roar of Mike's energy aura. Mike continued to train.

"This is really great," he insisted. "I have built transforming droids specifically meant to give you a sparring partner. This one is the strongest of the four," he said, pointing to a creature that appeared to be a dinosaur.

"They change into humanoid warriors," John told Mike. "They will provide a whole new edge."

Mike finally shut off his aura, and turned to John. "Look, Mr. Quarkenbrot, I'm busy. And above that, I'm poor. I can't afford that thing."

"Sure, you can," John insisted. "These things will make your training so much more effective. You'll be amazed."

Mike powered up again. "I don't have time for this, Mr. Q," Mike said. "Maybe come back later."

"But-"

Mike had reached his breaking point. He turned to John, powered up and unhappy. "Listen, I'm about to face off against an army of Saiyans. And they can fuse. So I'm not too interested in your dumb robots."

A fire blazed in John's eyes. Who was this damn kid to say he had no time? What, was he too busy training to improve his training? Well, if he was so scared of fusion, John Quarkenbrot would just give him a reason to be.

"Now, this is the important part," Rachel told her army of fused warriors. "Do it again. Find another partner of equal strength, and fuse once more. Do so until this entire army is one, unstoppable being."

The group did so, the powers increasing exponentially each time. Soon, the army had combined into one being, whose power was well beyond what Rachel could hope to control. Jeez, I hope this guy cooperates, she thought to herself.

"With a power such as this, I can fight my holy war alone," the fighter said, his voice ringing out as an entire army's separate voices in perfect synchronization. The effect was ominous and chilling. "Therefore the title of Jihad is fitting."

"Yes!" Rachel shouted. Jihad wasn't even as powerful as Demonheart at Super Saiyan 3 yet, but a little training by each man could quickly make him stronger than Genzo. "The problem is that this fusion only lasts for a half hour. When you include the time it took to fuse, you will only exist for about 20 minutes. Then, you will start to come apart, man by man, until the army is itself again. When this happens, begin training once more. I need to meditate, to prepare for the battle ahead."

Jihad grinned confidently. "No preparations are needed," he said. "I can defeat anyone."

Rachel smiled darkly. "You have no idea," she said.

"Okay, bottom line. Do I have a chance in hell?" Mike asked Sarah after track practice. He wanted to know if it was even worth it to continue trying to get Hannah to like him. If anyone would know, her best friend would.

Sarah smiled apologetically, and shook her head. "I don't think so. She already has a crush. Well," Sarah added, rethinking, "Sorta two crushes."

Mike looked hopelessly confused. "Two?"

Sarah smiled again. "One of them, I can't tell you about. She would be mad if I did. But, she does think Genzo is cute," Sarah added reluctantly.

Mike threw up his hands. "Great," he said, exasperated. "I wanna date her, she half wants to date me, Mack doesn't even know her and she half wants to date him, too."

Sarah looked thoughtful. "You know, I might have an idea."

"Okay, now what's your grand plan here?" Mack asked Sarah, knuckle rolling his Fusion ring.

"I want you and Mike to fuse into Genzo. But, when you do, I want you to think 'submissive'," she said as she pointed at Mack, "and you to think 'dominating'," he said, pointing at Mike. "If I figured it right, You'll still be Genzo, but for Mack it'll be a dreamless sleep as opposed to a dream, and Mike will be in full control."

"So, in a nutshell, you want me to look like Genzo," Mike said. "And Mack will just disappear for a while."

Sarah shrugged. "Yeah, sorta," she said.

Mack flashed a cheesy grin. "Fine, but later on we try this for me," he added.

"Not during a combat," Mike said. "Genzo's mind is stronger and more suited for battle than either of ours. But if you need a date, I'll be happy to take a nap and let you rent out Genzo's body." Mike shrugged. "Assuming Sarah's little scheme even works." The two put on their rings, and Mike set his mindset.

It's all about control. I am the dominant force in this fusion.

Mack did the same.

I'll just do what Mike wants. I'll just go with the flow in this fusion.

When their fists touched, Genzo appeared in the room. He instantly pumped his arm.

"Sarah, it worked!" Genzo said. "It's me, Mike! I'm in full control of this body! It's as if Mack isn't even here."

Sarah nodded. "I know. His presence is strong, but it's dormant. Your body is at full, but your brain is all Mike."

Genzo then picked up a cell phone, and tossed it to Sarah. She dialed Hannah's number, and waited for a response.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Hannah."

"Oh, hi, Sarah! New cell phone?"

"No, it's not mine."

"Oh, who's with you?"

"Hang on a sec."

"It's for you," she said, holding the phone out to Genzo.

"Hey, Hannah?" the dual voice spoke into the phone.

He immediately sensed her surprise. "Oh, my God. Are you serious?" Sarah giggled, overhearing Hannah's stunned reaction.

"Yeah, this is Genzo. Sarah told Mike about your little crush, and I must say, I'm flattered. Mike conned Mack into fusing, and now that I'm back I think I like the idea. Are you doing anything next Friday?"

"Oh, sorry," Hannah's deflated voice responded. "My family is going on a trip." She then quickly recovered. "The week after that, I'm okay."

Genzo smiled. "Alright, make sure you don't blow anyone off. I'm only around when they fuse, I have all the patience in the world."

Sarah then left the room as the two - wait, technically three - people began to talk.