This is a special chapter, to celebrate my return to writing this, I guess. That means it's gonna be super long and pretty damn cool.
Six months had passed since the defeat of King Cold and Goku's incredible Super Saiyan transformation. This peace was welcomed by everyone, and the fighting life had been somewhat stripped aside for the protectors of the earth. Gohan was beginning to transition back into a normal life, and Goku was doing what he could to support his family.
Piccolo had now taken the responsibilities as the new god of the earth, although he'd be without Dende, who had decided to live his life back on Namek. Tien and Chaozu lived in the tranquil swaths of the world where no human dared to venture, training and slowly becoming stronger.
For everyone, life was normal. Life was like it was before the Saiyans, and before Freeza and others. Although, things would quickly fade into darkness. As we all well know, the coming of the androids would happen at this time, although, androids 19 and 20 would never exist, as Gero would have sufficient knowledge from Goku's fight with King Cold.
A few months before 17 and 18 began terrorizing the world, Goku fell victim to the heart virus, devastating his family and friends. This would urge Gohan to begin training once more, as he thought he needed to honor his father's legacy in some way. The mourning would not last long, as two months later, cities around the world began being obliterated by two unknown mechanical beasts. It wouldn't take much time for our heroes to catch on to the destruction, and attempt to track down and attempt to destroy the androids.
At the top of the world, Piccolo sat, pondering this global crisis. They didn't know what these beings were, and no one could sense their energy. For now, they could only speculate and attempt to track them down as they moved from town to town, city to city. By the time the news report aired, the cyborgs would already be on their way to another populace. This posed a vital problem to the Z fighters.
"Dammit, these two are impossible to find…" Piccolo would mumble as his desperate attempts to locate the two beasts utterly failed. These androids still seek to kill Goku, although they wouldn't know yet that the job had been completed a few months earlier. They'd move from place to place, trying to find information on his location, but mostly having fun killing and destroying.
After a week of mindless destruction, a news report aired stating that the two beasts had begun to attack West City, a stroke of luck to the heroes. This is the biggest metropolis the duo had targeted, which left enough time for Piccolo to relocate there.
Immediately, Piccolo was flying towards the city. Completely oblivious to this, the duo continued their terrorization of the city, ripping buildings apart and tearing apart the ground. It would be a number of minutes, but eventually, out from the distance, Piccolo would charge in and deliver a massive kick to Android 17's face. Having had their backs facing each other, Android 18 wouldn't notice the hit until the sound of a massive explosion and falling debris struck the area. 17 was now buried in mounds of concrete rubble as Piccolo settled atop another smaller pile of broken concrete.
18 turned and stared, puzzled by the events that just took place. Piccolo glanced over and figured that she was the other one destroying the cities.
"You two are the androids?" He questioned 18. She paused for a moment, putting on a blank face.
"Yeah, we are," She spoke after a few moments of silence. As she said this, she began to stand up and face Piccolo. Piccolo looked down from his hill of concrete at the android and stirred up a few questions in his mind. He was puzzled; the androids looked very young, almost like teenagers. Android 18, in particular, was dressed rather oddly. With a blue denim vest and skirt covering a black shirt and black pants, completed with striped white and black sleeves.
Rubble in the distanced shone with a bright yellow glow, and an explosion sent rocks and debris flying high into the air. Bits crashed down with monolithic thuds and other varied sounds. The ground shook as a dishevelled teenager jumped his way out of the cleared rubble. Piccolo recognized him as the one he kicked, Android 17. This one looked different, he donned a black short-sleeved shirt tucked under a belt holding baggy denim jeans on. On his neck he wore an orange scarf, now somewhat torn and raging in the newly created wind. On his ankles he wore some sort of green sweatband, or socks, it couldn't be decided. He wore a white shirt under his black one, this shirt having longer sleeves.
Piccolo didn't expect these two to be the androids. The only appearances of them on film were from a far distance or corrupted camera footage, as in their spree of destruction, they would unknowingly vaporize anything that caught images. As he studied their physiques, Android 17 stepped up and stood aside 18. He looked quite ill mannered in his current state, understandably because he had been kicked moments earlier.
"18, will you let me kill this one?" 17 asked, or mumbled, angrily, to Android 18. She looked towards 17, as she had been looking at the explosion site for the past few moments. Her face became still and lifeless looking again.
"Don't take too long," She replied nonchalantly, and somewhat boredly.
"Okay."
18 folded her arms with irritance and walked to the remains of a shattered building. She seated herself on an exposed I-beam. It slightly shifted under her weight, and scattered dust clouds escaped from within the crushed concrete. A few feet away, 17 stood with his arms limp at his side, stiltedly standing on the rough ground as if to prevent himself from falling.
"And who are you?" He questioned towards Piccolo. Atop the rocks and rubble he still pondered what he had been pondering moments previous. 17's voice and sudden question snapped him back into reality. He prepared to speak.
"I am the god of this world," Piccolo answered. Surprised, 17 became suddenly confused.
"The go- What now? Did the explosions rattle your brain or something? Because you don't look like any god to me," Piccolo stood still as a statue. "Or… You think you're something because you managed to kick me and tear up my clothes? That's hilarious… That, or pathetic. Either one."
17 shut his mouth, and there was silence. Piccolo carefully lifted the white turban off of his head and dropped it into the rubble. A loud booming sound accompanied the incredibly heavy piece of headwear as it collided with the dirtied ground. Next, he hoisted his robe-like shoulder wear up and over his head, letting it drop into a heap on the ground next to the turban. There was another loud booming sound, signifying that this piece was weighted as well. Android 17 was growing steadily impatient at the sight.
"Well, say something. Or are you ignoring me?" Piccolo clenched his fists tightly as veins began to protrude out from them.
"Because, I'll tell you… And I'll only say it once, I'm going to… to kill…" He stuttered as the ground underneath his feet began to shake. His stilted stance became more awkward as he studied the ground, trying and failing to figure out why it began to shake. He looked at 18 for any sort of answer, as as soon as he looked, she pointed up towards the Namekian. He was glowing, a deep blue color surrounding him as his stance widened. 17 then realized the source of the shaking- it was Piccolo. His raw power began to shake the land as he rose his ki.
"Eh-" It was all the android could mutter before his words were interrupted by a fist colliding with his nose. 17 was forcefully thrown into a heap of rubble behind him, as Piccolo, arm outstretched, watched. 18 took her head off her hands and looked towards the explosion of dust with a shocked look on her face. The shaken android in the now crushed concrete stood up quickly, and as fast as he stood lunged at the still Namekian, delivering a hard blow to his neck with his elbow.
It was Gohan who first felt the power, as he was reading in his cozy room. He was still very shaken over his father's death, and had become a recluse for the past few months, soddened throughout with grief and depression he did not understand. He felt the power when he had least expected it, and dropped the book in surprise. It clattered on the floor, one corner and a select few pages now bent. His mouth was slightly agape in reaction, as were his eyes. After a few moments of stillness, he turned to his left towards his door. A nervous feeling befell him as he went somewhat pale.
It was Piccolo, the power was Piccolo. He did not know exactly why, but he worried. It had been long since Gohan felt something like this, and he certainly did not expect Piccolo to be the one to show such power without any warning. He picked up the book slowly and settled it into its bookshelf. His mother was not home at the time, therefore he was free to exit the house and move towards the power. He felt hot, though not from the outside temperature. It was from his fear. Piccolo was at his maximum power, though there wasn't another power accompanying it, no enemy nor anything. It was all alone. In a matter this soothed Gohan, for he did not have to worry about Piccolo being harmed. However, there was a feeling he couldn't shake. A feeling that something was awry. He would have plenty of time to think it through as he flew to the site of the new battlefield.
In the dark and foreboding expanse of space, a single speck came hurtling through its bleakness. Something of a metallic shape, spherical and exact. It was adorned with windows and signed atop with its name, though that is of no importance. It is of no importance despite the fact that this object is Vegeta's intergalactic ship, and it has been his only true possession over the past three years of being completely alone in the cosmos. After his bout with Cooler, he decided to remain silent. He stopped attacking planets, stopped making himself known. When he bought his necessities at various stops around the galaxies, he would be discreet.
Months earlier he found a small fortune of a universal currency while scouring a dead planet. It looked as if it was wiped off the map swiftly, and the spoils were left behind. Since then, Vegeta has been siphoning off of his monopoly instead of stealing more from others. Being a nomad, he has no way to make money besides taking it from others. This has given him a few run ins with the law, but being a Saiyan and one as strong as he is, it is always no issue.
He had an abundance of free time, and used it only to get stronger. He spent day and night pushing his body to its absolute limits, usually overexerting himself and even fainting on rare occasions, only to wake up hours later covered in newly formed scabs and with stiff and sore muscles. He had done this before, but after he became a Super Saiyan he was able to do it with much less difficulty. He'd throw his fists into the sky, send energy blasts of incredible proportions to rain down onto any planet he happened to be on. His physical damage came both from strain and from getting caught in his own attacks rather frequently. These injuries toned his physique and toughened his skin. Under his armor, he was draped in scars.
Besides this, he had an incredible drive. Impressive even for a Saiyan. He'd work himself to near death over and over again, push himself to horrible injury, just to be stronger. Since his battle with Kakarrot on Earth, his one and only goal is to become stronger than him. He had gotten hints of Goku's true power on and off over the years, most notably during his strenuous time fighting Cold. There, he had felt Goku finally become a Super Saiyan, and knew that his training was far from over.
Now he himself was a Super Saiyan. He was the universe's strongest. And he would only be disappointed to figure out that his greatest rival's life had been taken by a mere heart disease. The thing is, Vegeta has set course for Earth, and is heading towards the planet at insurmountable speed in his ship. He felt excited, but would soon only find anger. Vegeta's anger is fickle and unpredictable, and his strength and arrival might be a larger issue than the androids.
Piccolo staged his next attack. He cursed himself for not continuing his attack the first time, and now that 17 was fired up, he would have to make intelligent moves to take down this beast. He didn't know their true power. In fact, rushing in as quickly and as abruptly as this to fight an unknown threat is something that could be considered out of character to the Namekian. As he decided his battle strategy, 17 had already started moving.
Lunging forwards, he kicked off the ground with rugged delicacy straight at Piccolo. Piccolo's mind flashed with counter opportunities, and he adjusted himself to face the new flurry from the android. Before making contact, 17 jumped to the right, appearing behind Piccolo. Surprised but steady, Piccolo leapt forward swiftly in the attempt to avoid any attack from behind. This proved to be a poor decision, as Piccolo discovered. 17 had hid a ki attack under the pile of rubble, and just as Piccolo flew over it, it made an immediate jump up and made contact with the unguarded hero.
A quick explosion followed by a small plume of smoke was interrupted by a quick move from Piccolo. He managed to absorb the brunt of the attack with another ki blast, and landed on the side of a fallen building a distance away. 17 began to sprint towards Piccolo, but Piccolo also had a plan.
He used an ability of his not witnessed by Doctor Gero, and by design, the Androids. Piccolo's arm stretched towards 17, becoming incredibly elongated and malformed. Catching the android off guard, he used the opportunity to latch on to its torso and use it as leverage to fling himself towards 17. As his grappling arm receded back into its normal position, Piccolo was launched back at 17 and collided with a satisfying headbutt. 17 was bounced backwards as Piccolo let go of his arm, but managed to regain balance and quickly zoom back towards Piccolo. Piccolo was surprised by this being's speed as 17 reeled back for a fast punch. It collided, and threw Piccolo a far distance away.
18 only stood in silence. This was unprecedented. She could feel that 17 was using most of his strength, yet he was on equal turf with a natural lifeform. It seemed stupendous in theory, as these androids were the ultimate culmination of science and biology. Piccolo missed the city entirely and landed on his back with a sharp thud on the countryside. This was a place the androids had not laid waste to. A beautiful naturescape, filled with colorful farms and treelines off in the distance. Just a few hundred meters away was the ruins of the greatest metropolis on the continent. A sudden contrast.
"I'll say it, green man, you are the biggest challenge I've gotten since I was released," 17 managed to catch a moment of silence to fit in some words, "But, alas, you are just a challenge. I'll stomp you into the ground soon enough and bury you under West City." Piccolo had been itching to ask some questions for a while, and now that they were in the heat of battle, he felt like it was the right time.
"So… what are you?" He asked with a tinge of curiosity in his voice. 17 looked surprised. Piccolo waited silently.
"Come on, answer me."
"Sorry, it's just that… no one has asked that before. They usually just ask…" Piccolo waited a few seconds more, "They usually just ask why."
"Why… what?" The Namekian pondered. 17 saw this question coming.
"Why we're doing this. Why we're killing people," He thought for a moment, "Shouldn't you know that already? I thought you said something about you being the god…"
"Don't steer the subject the wrong way. I asked what are you," Piccolo was getting slowly more and more annoyed. 17's off subject comments were an irritant to him.
"We're androids, big guy. Well, sorta," 17 answered finally, expecting another question. A few seconds passed, and Piccolo looked as if he was simply waiting for the android to continue,
"We used to be humans, apparently. A couple of teenagers. Gero took us in and turned us into killing machines," Piccolo was shocked by this. He imagined that they were just a couple of incredibly strong hooligans, but that was not the case. He came to the realization that this is why their locations were impossible to find, they only had artificial ki.
"You'd think we'd be pissed that he forcefully turned us into these, but it's actually kinda fun, you know? I can do whatever I want whenever I want. No one can get in my way," Piccolo's face became serious once more, "Not even you."
Out of nowhere, the android kicked off of the ground and was moving directly at Piccolo. 17 dove down and was able to kick Piccolo's feet out from under him, causing his balance to fail. Piccolo began falling to his left as the android sturdied himself on the ground and prepared for his next attack. He kicked the side of Piccolo's head as he was falling, causing him to fly up into the air from the attack's force. The android jumped upwards to follow up, but Piccolo had already come up with a counter. Using a ki blast as a thruster, he boosted himself a few feet to the left. 17 wouldn't be able to correct his trajectory in time, and he zoomed right past the Namekian. Piccolo grabbed 17's feet and flung him back into the ground. A deep boom echoed throughout the rolling hills and a massive cloud of dust filled the area.
18 had caught up with the battle after losing the two for some time, and arrived to see the entire area blanketed in floating bits of dust. Piccolo waited for nothing, and immediately bolted to the location of 17's impact. However, the android had already hid himself in the kicked up dust, taking advantage of his undetectable power level. In the cover of smoke, he landed many an attack on the unknowing Piccolo. Piccolo's plan for an advantage had actually proved fatal.
However, he wasn't out of options. Centering his energy entirely in his body, he was able to let out an incredible wave of power. In less than a second, all of the dust was pushed into the distance as the area lit up with bright flames. 17 was forced back by the sheer weight of the power being expelled, and was buried under a mound of dirt, injured and somewhat weakened.
However, Piccolo had taken an even greater toll, having spent this large amount of energy on trying to damage the android and make it visible again. He stood in the middle of a deep crater, hunched over, arms at his sides. His stamina was drained as he breathed fastly. After regaining himself, he flew upwards to survey the area. He saw the damage he had done, having completely ripped apart the land in a mile radius. He saw Android 18 from afar, but no 17. He looked for at least half a minute, but there was no teenage robot in sight.
Then, he heard something. A barely audible noise below him. Looking down, he first saw 17 rushing at him, and second, a small hole in the center of the crater. Quickly, he realized. 17 had remained under the dirt, and spent some time silently digging a tunnel to the center of the crater. 17 was surprisingly crafty in this regard.
Before Piccolo could move, he was slugged in the stomach by the Android's fist. Out of his mouth came a massive volume of saliva, and he quickly lunged backwards to avoid another attack. 17 noticed his fatigue, and decided to speak up.
"Heh… Even if we have near equal strength, your stamina seems to be running dry. My engine is infinite," Piccolo slowly realized that his advantages were going down the drain. Even with the incredible power obtained from his fusion with Kami and his incredible training, he was losing against a cocky but smart brat.
"I don't care if you're this 'god' or not… Say, shouldn't a god be the strongest being on the planet?" 17 asked condescendingly. Piccolo sneered. He was only getting more and more irritated, and now his mind was racing for a way to win or at least a way to escape. Suddenly, he dropped back to the ground and began looking around.
"What are you doing?" 17 asked from above, "Trying to escape? You'll be happy to know I won't let you. No one gets away with what you did alive." However, Piccolo wasn't running away. He still had an ace up his sleeve, something he could use in the most dire situation. Piccolo had the Light Grenade. It was an all powerful attack he had been spending the last many months correcting to near perfection, he could now charge it and fire it in an instant. As 17 peered from above, waiting for a movement from the Namekian, Piccolo moved his hands together and immediately entered the most of his remaining energy into his hand. With this, he could kill Android 17, and run away in the fury of the attack to finish number 18 at a later date.
As fast as he had began, he fired the Light Grenade at the unsuspecting android. It collided with a crash, and an incredibly bright explosion followed. The booming sound filled the valley, and echoed across the mountains of the distance. A roar of smoke and dust was kicked up from the ground as trees and rocks heavier than cars were effortlessly lifted up and moved from their bed. As the attack raged, Piccolo began his move. He darted carefully across the newly formed crater, and peeked behind him to view the aftermath.
The android lived. Through the billowing smoke a silhouette emerged, and a ruffled android forced away the remaining dust and debris with his ki alone. Piccolo was taken aback. Not only had this beast survived his first explosion, but it had lived through with minor injuries his most powerful attack. At this point, Piccolo was completely gone. His power had waned to the point of no return, and his stamina was entirely dry. The android looked around, and in seconds, spotted the Namekian at the edge of the crater. Angered and hurt, he raised his voice.
"What… did you do? How did you hurt me this much?" Piccolo put on an exhausted smile.
"I thought you'd know… I'm the god of this world. I'm the strongest being," It was a brilliant bluff, but it was only a bluff. Piccolo could only withstand a couple more hits from the android before he wouldn't be able to even stand.
"Shut up about the god stuff… I don't wanna hear it anymore. I'm going to finally put an end to this stupid battle," 17 strained. Piccolo was now fearful. That emotion had just settled upon him; he realized that a way out of this battle was impossible. Like his stamina, he had just ran dry of courage. He backed away as 17 dropped onto his level, onto the side of the crater.
18 viewed the fight from a distance, assessing the two. Like Piccolo, she had already predicted the ultimate outcome of this fight. Piccolo would be killed, laid to rest on this scarred land. The god of the Earth no more. Losing the dragon balls would be only the beginning, the consequences of no god to keep order would be immense. Piccolo was thinking the same, regretting his decision to instantly jump into the fray thinking that he could suppress the threat.
There was something that interrupted his train of thought, and as he saw Android 17 a few inches in front of him, Piccolo could do nothing but stand and wait for the attack to land. A sharp right elbow jammed itself in his jaw, and lugged him into the dirt. Piccolo's mouth began to bleed profusely from several lost teeth, most of which he spat and coughed out along with a large amount of blood. 17 walked to the Namekian's side and raised his foot. With a sudden movement, the boot landed with a thud on Piccolo's chest. His breath stopped as he began to choke on blood and saliva. The ground was stained a deep purple.
From the distance, a scream echoed. The scream of a child. At the source of this scream was the enraged half-Saiyan, Son Gohan. At the speed of light, Android 17 was headbutted directly in the chest by this young powerhouse. His mouth was agape as saliva poured out of it. Like Piccolo, 17 crashed into the ground, kicking up bubbles of smoke and blades of grass. 17 lie on the ground for a moment, stunned. Piccolo, on the other hand, looked up in wonder at Gohan. His life had been saved by his past star pupil. He felt a touch of pride, though most of his thought was pure pain. Gohan's eyes were somewhat bloodshot, and his mouth bled from his teeth tearing into his gums. This wasn't the kind hearted and pure child everyone knew.
Gohan stood, and emanated a frightening ki. Piccolo hadn't felt anything like this from Gohan before. It was an energy full of malice, full of only anger. Although Gohan's enraged power was immense, Piccolo knew that, even in his weakened state, Android 17 was much stronger. Straining his muscles and his energy, he spoke softly to Gohan.
"Go… han… Pick me up and run, please…" Gohan took no notice. His eyes were fixed on the recovering android.
"You… gotta do it... " Realizing it was useless, Piccolo stopped talking and focused on staying conscious.
"Woah… who is this kid… and why is he so strong?" Android 17 asked breathlessly to no one in particular. Gohan remained silent for the next few seconds before beginning to yell at the top of his lungs. As he screamed, his power rose. 18 had finally caught on to the situation, and moved in closer, landing on the rim of the crater opposite to the three. She pondered if she should jump in and attack the kid, but decided to stay out of it for now. She simply stood like a statue with her arms folded. At the sight of the new battle, Gohan kicked off the dirt and flew swiftly towards Android 17. With a quick sidestep, he was able to dodge the enraged child. His extended hand dropped down onto Gohan's neck, and forced him into the dirt. The moment he made contact with the ground, Gohan bounced back up on all fours and zoomed into the air. He began to charge a volley of ki attacks, and lobbed them incredibly speedily towards the android. However, 17 effortlessly pinged every single attack into the distance. Lights and colors filled the sky as the volley exploded in the distance, and a cacophony of noise followed.
Gohan zoomed down directly towards 17 and reeled up for a punch. As he threw it, 17, at lightning speed, kicked the young child in his side, breaking three ribs and knocking him in the distance. Piccolo watched, panicking. He would now be killed along with Gohan, and there was nothing to be done. Nearly all of his muscles were torn, and his lungs were nearly crushed. Gohan struggled to get up, blood beginning to pour from his mouth, staining the foliage below with a dark red color. His rage began to fade as pain dug into his mind. Instead of killing the kid first, 17 decided to return to Piccolo.
He looked down over the dying Namekian, and snatched his neck. 17 slowly lifted the bloodied heap out of the dirt and held him up on his feet. Gohan suddenly noticed what was occurring, and stood shakily, holding his left side.
"Watch this, kid…" 17 muttered. Moments after this, Gohan saw the android's hand stab through Piccolo's chest. A purple coat of warm blood was plastered on 17's hand, and a stream of it dripped down his body in no time at all and began to form a puddle below the two. He dropped the nearly dead Namekian face down into the dirt. His hand was bloodied and dirty, and he smirked awfully. Gohan couldn't register what was happening, though it was more like he couldn't believe it. His eyes began to tear up and a scream from nowhere bellowed in his lungs. He hunched over and rubbed his face furiously with his bloodied hands.
"He's dead now. You'll be joining him soon." 17 shakily said to Gohan.
"He's not dead… He can't be dead…" Gohan was in pure disbelief. The Namekian had stopped moving. It could be easily assumed that there was no life left in him.
Suddenly, something snapped in the young kid. No one knew what it was, he didn't know what it was. Gohan underwent a flood of nearly every emotion all at once and time seemed to stop. His grief had gone over the edge. The death of Goku was the catalyst, and Piccolo was the spark.
Gohan screamed. His voice tore and cracked. The ground began to shake, and his power rose exponentially.
His hair became gold.
Now he was a Super Saiyan.