A/N: It's been quite some time since my last update. I'm a bit disappointed that I didn't get any reviews, but I'll add this one nonetheless. I would like to thank everyone that already reviewed the earlier chapters, though. You guys are the best! (Of course, I you want to leave a second review, I'm not stopping you)

This story might seem to be getting crazier by the minute, but believe me: there is a plot!

Enjoy!

Chapter 25: Enemy of my enemy, part II

"There's a human expression…'curiosity killed the cat', I believe it is"

"Well, since I'm not a cat," he purred, "I do have one little question I would like to ask"

"What?"

A cruel smile played on his beak.

"What happened to that loud-mouthed sister of yours?"

"She's dead"

To Cell's amazement, Mirai Lara still did not show any emotions. Absolutely no pain or sorrow could be seen in her eyes. It was almost like she had built a wall around herself, not allowing anyone to see even the slightest trace of weakness. Determined to get some kind of reaction out of her, he continued pushing Lara's buttons.

"Really?" he chuckled.

"Yes"

"Oh, I do hope it wasn't my fault?" He asked in a mock apologetic tone.

"No, it wasn't"

"Then what killed here?"

She shot him an icy glare, and looked away.

"It doesn't matter"

"Why not?"

"Because," Lara hissed between clenched teeth, "it's NOT going to happen again!"

Cell grinned triumphantly. Maybe Lara's hard shell wasn't that difficult to crack.

"You are going to save her?" he asked slyly

"I WON'T LET HER DO IT AGAIN!" she suddenly yelled. "I tried to stop her… she wouldn't listen! She never listened!"

The once calm and collected Mirai Lara was trembling, her light pink eyes blazing with rage. It only lasted for a brief moment, though. Her anger faded and only an intense look of sadness was left on her face.

"He was gone, but she refused to believe it…" she softly whispered. "Her emotions became her downfall and I'm not…going to make the same mistake…not again…"

Cell blinked when her anger subsided just as quickly as it had flared up. Apparently, Mirai Lara was indeed quite unstable. She looked almost…insane.

"Goodbye Cell" she suddenly said

He regained his composure, and smirked.

"Leaving so soon?"

"Yes, I have some unfinished business I need to attend to"

She tried to fly away, but the malicious android swiftly launched his tail towards her and used it to grab her left ankle, catching her in mid-air. Before she could react, he yanked her back to him and wrapped his arms around her chest (A/N: No, not like THAT, you perverts!) in a bear hug.

"I'm sorry," he softly purred in Lara's ear, "but my business with you isn't over yet"

"I'm warning you Cell…" she growled in a low voice

He chuckled darkly. "Your behaviour is quite puzzling, my dear. You told me that I could blow up this mud ball if I wanted to, but at the same time, you are determined to prevent your sister's demise."

Lara hung her head, her voice was barely audible.

"I don't care if you destroy this planet, simply because I cannot stop you. It's foolish to waste your energy, worrying about something you cannot change." She sighed. "I do ask you to at least think before you act…all this destruction is so…pointless…"

Suddenly, she turned her head towards him and looked straight into his eyes.

"As for my sister, I'm not sure if I can do anything to stop her, but I will try with all my might! Even…even if it kills me"

"Stop her from doing what?"

She stayed silent, which angered him. He did not enjoy being ignored, and certainly not by this arrogant woman! He strengthened his hold, causing Lara to gasp for air.

"I'm growing weary of this little game, my dear"

This seemed to catch her attention.

"Let. Me. Go. NOW!" she growled in a low, threatening voice.

"I'm afraid I can't do that Lara," he taunted, "You see, if you can't tell me the answers I want, I'll have no choice but to get them myself"

Lara's eyed widened in shock and almost immediately, he felt a familiar pain ripping through his brain. She had realised what he was planning and tried to fight back, but her attack had yet again grown weaker. He did not know if Lara had lost her energy, or if he was slowly getting used to the pain, but he wasn't rolling over and clutching his head in agony anymore. Still, it wasn't exactly a pleasant experience. Cell gritted his teeth, fighting to stay focused.

In the meantime, on the other side of town…

"YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK!"

A flock of birds quickly scattered when the screams of a certain blue-haired Uranian echoed through the streets.

"Oh no, not good! Not good! Not good!" Susan panicked when she discovered that the breaks of her hoverbike weren't working as well as they were supposed to. She tried every button and switch she could find, but her vehicle wasn't responding to her commands. She barely managed to jump off just before her bike crashed into a small car that was parked on the sidewalk.

"Whew, that was close!" Susan laughed nervously, scratching the back of her head. "A few more seconds and I would've been road kill!"

Shocked, she looked at the car. What if there had been someone inside? Worried, she rushed over to the crash site and tried to look through the windshield of the buckled vehicle. Unfortunately, all the windows were darkened.

"Hello?"

There was no response. It could've been that it was just parked here, or that the owner had been absorbed by Cell and she would find his or her clothes on the backseat. Of course, Susan wasn't going to take that risk. She had learned from her time on Voyager, that humans were an extremely resourceful race. Maybe a few of them had managed to escape somehow and if that was the case, she was going to find them! She went inside a nearby house and grabbed a chair, using it to break the glass.

"Hello?" she called out again, "is anyone in there? Do you need help?"

Carefully, she tried poking her head through the hole in the window, but a strange force knocked her back several feet. It wasn't strong enough to kill, but it had packed quite a wallop.

"What on Urania was that?" Susan exclaimed, wondering why the entire world was spinning. She looked at the broken windshield. A yellowish forcefield was shimmering where the glass had once been. Suddenly, a mechanical voice sounded from the inside of the car.

"Warning, self-destruct in 10 seconds…9…8…"

"Uh oh…" she mumbled

"7…6…5…"

Susan finally woke up from her daze and hightailed into an nearby alley

"4…3…2…1"

"AHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

The Uranian girl covered her ears and curled up into a ball, when the violent explosion raged past the entrance. When she came out of hiding, debris were scattered around and a smouldering crater marked the spot where the strange…uhm…whatever it was, once stood.

"Man, this really isn't my…eh?" Susan frowned when she stepped in something sticky. She took a closer look at the substance on her shoe. It was yellowish, just like the forcefield. She had no idea what it was, but things only got stranger when she found something that looked like a small piece of greyish metal. It was thick and ridged and looked like some sort of armoury. She had seen it before…but where? She examined it more closely and suddenly it hit her.

"Kami…this metal is Hirogen…"

Shaking all over, she dropped to her knees.

"How is this possible? What are they doing here? And what's with the slime?"

Still shocked, she stood up again and grabbed the holocamera.

"I'd better find that Lara from the future, maybe she can tell me what's going on"

Back at Cell and Mirai Lara…

"LET GO!"

"You…will…not…defeat…me!"

The battle between Cells physical strength and Mirai Lara's psychic powers was still raging. The body versus the mind, an old classic, but this time with an alien twist. At the moment, it looked like Lara was slowly gaining the upper hand. Cell had to use all his energy to stay focused on what he was doing, but he found it increasingly difficult to do so. Not just his head was hurting, but now his entire body felt like it was being torn apart. His vision was steadily turning red and the entire world was spinning around him. Lara was going all out and he knew it would not be long before the excruciating pain would drive him mad.

"I don't have time for this you idiot! I have to finish my mission!" Lara yelled, while struggling to get free from Cell's grip. She had turned away from him again, but he didn't need to see the expression on her face to tell she was beginning to panic. He also felt her weakening.

"I can't…die yet!"

She weakened even further

"I haven't…told…them…"

The world stopped spinning

"Why aren't you feeling…?"

His vision started to return

"Not possible…"

The pain finally subsided.

Cell was exhausted, but quickly recovered. Lara, however, was barely conscious and hanging limp in his arms like a rag doll. After a long silence, he laughed darkly

"My, my, that was very impressive!" He arched his tail and slowly moved the syringe to her neck, "any last words, my dear?"

Lara opened her mouth, but before she could say anything, a familiar face appeared on the scene.

"Hey Lara, where are you? I found your holocamera and I wondered if you might…uh oh"

Susan gulped when she finally noticed that she was not alone.

"Uhm… Maybe I should just come back later…"

"It's no use trying to run," Cell smirked. "If I don't kill you, someone else will." He looked at Lara, who was too tired to comment. "Or at least, that's what our visitor here told me"

"Someone else?" Susan asked nervously, while keeping an eye on his tail.

"And apparently, it's your own fault" he added, remembering the I-won't-let-her-do-it-again thing.

"I don't remember having any enemies besides you," Susan paused and started counting on her fingers, "well…maybe the Hirogen, Vidiians, probably the Kazon too after that little incident three weeks ago, even though Lara was the one who tripped over that rock and set off the alarm…"

Cell's jaw dropped when she continued for what seemed like five hours.

"…the Hazari, Malon and uhm…what was he called again? X or Z or…Q! Yeah, now I remember!"

"My dear…" Cell tried, but she seemed lost in thought

"…the Kadi, the Cataati… Species 8472, but they hold a grudge against practically everyone so nothing special there…"

"You do realise I could kill you at any…"

"And of course the Borg, those guys are just nasty!" She smiled sheepishly. "That's basically it, I guess."

The android sweatdropped, he wasn't sure if even Dr. Gero had that many enemies!

"I…didn't…trip…you…did…" Lara mumbled under her breath

"You pushed me!"

"Only because…you were drooling over….that guard…."

"For the millionth time, I was only observing his behaviour!"

"It looked more like…you were just…observing his…"

Susan blushed.

"ACK! DON'T YOU DARE TELLING THAT!"

Suddenly, something rare happened: Mirai Lara laughed. Not just a fake smile or a sarcastic grin, but real laughter.

"Hahahaha! Kami…how I missed this…"

And with that, she passed out.

A/N: O dear, it seems like I skipped the corny end-chapter author note in chapter 24! Let me try to make it up:

"Things don't look good for our heroes! But than again, what else is new? Will Susan make it out of Basil Town alive? Will Mirai Lara's deep and dark secrets ever be revealed? Why is everyone (including me) letting Cell say "my dear" all the time, when he has only said it once or twice in the actual show? Stay tuned!"

Heh, still think you can be cornier than me?

No?

I thought so.

P.S. I'm currently looking for a beta-reader for this story. If you are interested, send me an e-mail (it's in my profile). Thank you for reading and don't forget to review!