Disclaimer: I do not own DBZ or have any rights to it.
As he waited for Eighteen to come visit him in the morning, he sat in a meditative pose, his eyes shut and his mind still. A small smile appeared on his face as he felt the power steadily growing within him. When Eighteen had removed his collar, the state of his power had been comparable of a foot being asleep, and the feeling was steadily coming back.
Breathing steadily, he let his senses expand outward to see if he could hear her approaching, though that venture failed. As he began projecting his power outwards, a spoon on the counter began to trembling, bringing a broader smile to his face. It's slowly coming back, and now I can affect the environment around me. After sitting for a few more seconds he heard someone land outside the cave door.
Eighteen opened the cave door with a bag of groceries in hand. "Gohan, I'm here with groceries." Walking into the kitchen she set the bags on the counter before turning to give him a kiss. "Has your power risen again?"
He nodded affirmatively. "Yes, and I'm now able to affect things around him. Soon I might be able to fly, though I don't think I'll pose a serious threat to your brother. I don't want to try forming ki blasts since it might take away my power if you know what I mean."
"So how much weaker do you think you'll be when it finally levels off?"
Gohan shrugged in response. "I can't tell right now. In fact I'm not sure what effect not training would have on me because I've never gone so long without training before. However, my power should've gone up as well because I recovered from the beating your brother gave me. So I can't be sure how it'll all add up."
Eighteen nodded silently. "You'll be reunited with Trunks soon," she said in a reassuring tone, causing him to smile at her. "So how about we put these groceries away." She turned to face the counter and began removing the groceries, handing them to Gohan who put them away. Working together, they were able to put it all away within minutes.
Once everything was in its place they started making breakfast. Eighteen brought some bread out of the fridge and placed some slices in a toaster, while Gohan took out a jar of peanut butter. It was difficult, but after adapting to a one-armed lifestyle, Gohan had developed his own technique for opening jars, though it relied mainly on his above-average strength, which was lacking at the moment.
Eighteen raised an eyebrow as she watched him. "Impressive. I thought I'd have to help you get it open. You've really adapted to having one-arm." Giving him an approving nod, she turned to remove the slices of bread from the toaster before placing new slice and starting it again.
"It's not a perfect technique," replied Gohan. "There are some containers that I can't open. I accepted that fact a long time ago. With only one arm, there are certain things I won't be able to do, and I'd have to do most things differently."
"In that case, I'll be there to help you out when you need it," replied Eighteen. "I feel responsible for putting you in this situation, so I'll do everything I can to help you overcome your disadvantage."
"I feel really lucky to be with you," said Gohan, earning a small blush, though she didn't turn away in embarrassment. Well I guess she's not as shy about compliments anymore. I'm starting to feel more natural around her as well. Gohan took out a knife and began spreading peanut butter over the slice of toast.
"So what are you going to say to him…I mean if he hasn't seen you in around two years he'll want answers." She took out two plates for them as Gohan folded the slices of toast to make peanut butter sandwiches. "Do you think he'll feel betrayed or react with hostility? I mean if you tell him where you've been and that we're a couple, then he'll definitely take it hard."
"I can't say how he'll react," said Gohan. "But I know that he wouldn't blindly attack me. However, I agree that it wouldn't be a good idea to tell him about us outright. Perhaps it would be better to break the news through Bulma."
"Should I come with you for support?"
"No…I don't think it would be a good idea until I tell them about you. People at West City know your face, so if anyone sees you, it'll start a panic, which would cause problems. Its completely likely that Trunks would attack you on impulse, even if I tell him not to."
"Yeah…I guess you're right. Just be careful and fly low. If Seventeen sees you, you'll be dead, even if I'm with you." He placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder, giving her a sweet smile. "Hey, can I at least come with you part of the way to West City?"
"Sure," replied Gohan. "If it makes your feel better." There were ten sandwiches in total, and Eighteen took one, leaving the other nine for Gohan to consume. Even though he was used to lower portions of food, he still had a big appetite. Instead of wolfing the food down like his father would have, Gohan chose to eat like a normal person, albeit at an above-average pace. "This is good. Where'd you get the peanut butter from?"
"I actually found some money lying around an abandoned bank. Nobody was around to claim it, so I took some to buy the groceries in another town."
"So you looted a bank?" Gohan chuckled as she shot him a glare. "Just kidding. I can't blame you for doing that." Their conversation trailed off into the mundane.
As the days passed by, Gohan felt his power increasing in increments. On top of that, it was returning at an exponential rate with each increment yielding a greater amount than the last. Eighteen was a constant companion to him, and though they didn't always have something to talk about, both felt content to enjoy each other's company.
Seventeen punched the wall on his room angrily, careful not to completely knock it down. He was growing frustrated now. Eighteen refused to admit that she was seeing someone, and kept insisting that replanting the forest around North City was her new hobby. Off course he knew that it was absurd for her to change so much without some sort of intervention.
"Eighteen's never had a green thumb," mumbled Seventeen. "I was always the outdoorsman, while she was a city girl. What's happening to her?" He grabbed his hair in frustration. There's no way she could've changed on her own.
The cyborg slumped on his bed, staring at the floor with a crestfallen expression. Everything his mind had been founded on was now under threat. Ever since the day they escaped Dr. Gero's lab Seventeen thought that they'd always be on the same side. Back then be couldn't read her mind, but he might as well have been able to as she agreed with almost everything he thought, and any disagreement was predictable. Now, her new ideas were completely out of the blue and far from Seventeen's comfort zone.
What's come over her, thought Seventeen in a worried tone. Maybe it isn't someone…maybe she just saw a poster or something, but I know that there has to be an outside influence. There's no way Eighteen would suddenly change like this after remaining the same for over a decade. If I destroy the poison that's affecting her, then I might get the old Eighteen back.
Things had gotten boring for Seventeen. The main problem with this was the fact that he had nothing to divert his attention with, meaning that he was forced to think about his sister's 'troubling' behavior. Trunks never showed up when he tried to kill humans, thus drawing further attention to the fact that his sister never came with him anymore. The art of mass murder was never as distracting to him as pitched combat, even with one as comparatively weak as Trunks.
Eighteen and Trunks' absence made Seventeen feel like he was no longer interesting to be around. A rueful smile appeared on his face. Since when did my human emotions start returning? Stuff like this is beneath me. Though he hated to admit it, Trunks and Gohan as well had been important to him, though only as things to amuse himself with as opposed to Eighteen who was his companion. Nowadays, Seventeen began to feel how true loneliness could feel. There were no distractions to keep him company, just a bunch of face-less humans he couldn't care less about.
Getting up from his bed, he walked up to his desk and snatched the deck of cards on it. Card tricks were at least a more distracting than killing humans. They were the best he could come up with right now. After all, for him, killing was a waste if he couldn't enjoy it.
Gohan chuckled happily as his body began rising from the ground. "This is awesome! I can fly again." He began moving around in the air, gradually getting higher and faster. A child-like happiness came over him as he realized how much he had missed his ability to fly.
"Careful not to strain yourself," cautioned Eighteen. She hovered around him in case he suddenly lost power and fell. "Your power might not be as high as you think…maybe you should relax a little."
"Come on Eighteen…I've had less power and flown." He sounded almost like a whining child. "I'm sure I could at least make it to West City. Besides, I took Your advice and stayed here a week after I knew I could fly." A tender smile crossed his face. "I appreciate your concern, but I am a grown man, and I know what I'm doing. You don't need to be worried about me dropping out of the sky."
Returning his smile, she hovered closer to him and shared a brief kiss. "I understand what you mean, but that won't stop me from escorting you. I'm not about to take chances what someone as important as you." She chuckled as a deep red blush crossed his face.
"Right so I think we should go now. The sooner I talk to Trunks. The better. No doubt the time machine I told you about is almost complete." Seeing the skeptical look brought a broad grin to his face. "I thought it was ridiculous too, but if anyone could do it, then Bulma can, and she seemed like she was on to something the last time I spoke to her about it."
"I think they were talking about it when I videotaped Trunks' last birthday. It might be finished right now. We should go right now." Gohan nodded and then they both took off for West City. Eighteen was being especially vigilant to make sure her brother didn't happen upon them. For her, that was a nightmare scenario.
It would take them nearly an hour to reach West City as Gohan was moving at a very slow pace. Eighteen almost felt sorry for him. He was the man in their relationship, yet so far, she'd been playing the role as his protector and they both knew that she could easily carrying him and get them there in a fraction of what it would take at their current pace. She wondered if he felt emasculated in his current condition, though she doubted he was one to dwell on such thoughts.
When they arrived, West City was as barren as ever. The androids had stopped coming here a long time ago, though there was still a significant population living here, compared to the rest of the world. All activity was conducted in secret and nobody moved outside if it was unnecessary, thus, maintaining the guise of a long abandoned city.
Fortunately, Capsule Corp. stood out like a beacon for him. The ruined structure didn't look as if it had anyone in it, but Gohan knew that Bulma would be inside unless she was getting groceries. The crack in the roof wasn't fixed yet, but it served to maintain the image of a run down structure that no normal person would live in.
They landed on the outskirts of the city where nobody could see them. "You should go now," said Gohan. "The people here know your face. We wouldn't want to start a panic. I'll go back to the cave when I've finished talking with them." Eighteen nodded and flew away from the city.
Now effectively alone, Gohan ran through the streets towards the large dome of the Capsule Corp. mansion. Memories flooded back to him as he stood facing the structure. He remembered how it felt to come here and receive a greeting from his surrogate little brother. Now, however, Trunks was a young man and things would be different. He felt somewhat nervous about the encounter to come, but quickly overcame it.
He opened the door and heard someone in the kitchen. "Hello," came Bulma's voice. "Trunks…are you back already?" Now Gohan knew that Trunks wasn't here, but had he gone to the past already. He heard Bulma coming to see whom it was, and decided to stay put until she saw him.
Bulma walked towards the doorway of her home with anticipation. The person at the door hadn't answered her, which made her somewhat anxious. However when she arrived at the doorway and saw Gohan standing there, it was as if she were in a dream. Gohan was supposed to be dead…he couldn't be standing right there.
Gohan chuckled nervously as he saw Bulma staring at him. "Hi Bulma…I suppose you'd like an explanation of why I'm standing here when I was supposedly killed." He was caught momentarily off guard when she ran to him and enveloped him in a hug, but promptly returned it.
"You've got so much explaining to do," said Bulma as she sobbed. She let go and stepped back to get a good look at him. "Chichi…and Trunks, and everyone…they were all so upset! Where have you been…what have you been doing, and why didn't you contact us?"
"I'll answer all of that," replied Gohan as he attempted to remain calm. He hadn't truly realized how much he really missed everyone until this moment. "Could you call my mom after I tell you everything though…there are some things she might not…like to hear."
Sensing his unease, Bulma raised an eyebrow. "Alright…now I'm more interested than ever to know what's been going on. Don't worry, I won't tell Chichi…at least not until I've gotten a full handle on what you're about to tell me."
"Thanks," replied Gohan with a smile. I can always count on Bulma to have a level head…mostly. "Alright...by the way, is Trunks here?"
"No," replied Bulma, shaking her head. "He just left a few hours ago in the time machine. He should be back soon though, since he could just set the coordinates to whatever time he wants." She gave him a proud smile. "He's become a super saiyan."
"I know," replied Gohan with equal pride, earning a surprised glance from Bulma. "I'll explain why I know that." They walked over to the kitchen and sat at the table. "I'll start from when I almost died at the hands of Android Seventeen…"
For those who didn't notice, there was a time skip at the end of the first scene also I don't really feel like describing Gohans explanation in great detail. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter.