"...And that's the story so far.", sighed Mafin.
Begu said, "So, to recap, we gotta save the present from being attacked by these other androids, train harder than ever...and 21 wants to train as well?"
Mafin nodded to confirm, "Correct."
Begu shook his head, trying to process everything. This day was just getting crazier and crazier...
Mafin added, "And I'm going to be the first one to help her train."
Begu perked a brow, "Wait. You're gonna be her first one?"
Mafin smiled, "Mmm-hmm. The others and I decided that we're each going to train 21 in a daily fashion. First day is me, second day is Krillin, third day is Goku, fourth is Piccolo, fifth is both Tien and Chiaotzu, and the sixth is Yamcha. After that, the teaching sessions will rotate back over to me again."
"Sweet! That's awesome, dude!", grinned Begu.
The Octorian believed that with the help of these teachers, and their various fighting styles, 21 was sure to be a massive powerhouse!
He then asked, "So, is that why 21 is staying at Capsule Corp. for the time being?"
Mafin replied, "Yes. 21 doesn't want to risk damaging Kame House, so she's staying over there until this whole situation's over and done with."
"That's a smart decision. Very, very smart decision."
Begu let out a big yawn and scratched his back, "And I am very tired..."
Mafin chuckled, "Yeah, we should get some rest."
Both men got onto their respective beds.
Mafin turned to face Begu, "I'll see you when I get back in tomorrow."
Begu quietly nodded, and dozed off into a deep sleep, while Mafin looked up at the ceiling.
There was only one person on his mind at the moment, and that was 21.
He hoped that she was doing alright at her new home.
Meanwhile at Capsule Corp...
21 took off her glasses and placed them on a nearby dresser.
She pulled out some stereo headphones from the dresser's top-left drawer and put them on. Afterwards, 21 plugged the cord into a new, black MP3 player that Bulma gave her, back when the android first started her job.
She then lied down on her new, queen sized bed, very similar to the one she had back at Kame House.
The android began scrolling for some of her downloaded music, and found the album Sky Sailing: An Airplane Carried Me To Bed.
It was from the same artist named Adam Young (also known as Owl City), who made the pop hit Fireflies. That song always came on the radio every time 21 was working at her job (which was being a scientific researcher).
Listening to it always made her very happy, and the same goes for this album, which she was just now playing again for the third time.
As the first song started, 21 looked up at the ceiling. She hoped that both Mafin and Begu were doing alright, especially Mafin. Being the first one to start training her must weigh a lot on his mind.
Soon, the android began drifting off into a deep sleep.
21 was now in a dark void, and all she heard was a creepy, high pitched voice laughing maniacally.
Everything felt so cold, and it felt like fog was everywhere.
"Who are you? Wh-Where are you?", fearfully asked 21.
"You can't escape me for long..."
The maniacal laughter resumed, and suddenly, a mysterious pink tail began wrapping itself around 21's neck and mouth.
Soon after, a white-haired, pink skinned version of 21 teleported in front of our 21's face.
She wore a golden choker, a black tube top, dark stockings on her arms (along with golden bracelets on her wrists), baggy white pants, as well as dark, golden tipped heels.
The creepy doppelgänger also had black sclera and red pupils, and she was smiling in an unsettling manner, revealing her fangs...
"GAAAAAAH!", screamed 21, waking up in a cold sweat.
While panting heavily, she looked around and saw that the doppelgänger was gone, and she was back in her room.
Even though 21 was safe and sound, that dream still felt so...real to her.
21 let out a deep sigh, and rubbed her forehead.
After a while, she laid back down to resume sleeping.
The next morning, Mafin flew over to Capsule Corp's grassy backyard, still dressed in his Turtle School uniform.
He saw 21 in the middle of the area, stretching her legs out. The Pesutorian landed, and 21 walked up to him. She was wearing a simple red and blue colored tank top, black sweatpants, and red sneakers. Her glasses were resting on top of her head, and her massive brown hair was tied up into a ponytail.
Mafin blushed upon seeing her new appearance.
"W-Wait a minute...why am I blushing?", nervously thought the Pesutorian.
"Greetings, Mafin!", smiled 21, "I'm ready to begin."
Mafin shook off that earlier thought and said, "Uh, yeah! Let's do this!"
He held out the palm of his hand, "Alright, first, we'll start off simple. I need you to punch my hand."
21 nodded, and proceeded to gently punch it.
Mafin smiled, "That one was good, but a little too soft. Try again."
21 did so again, but with more force.
"A little bit better, but try again, and this time, really try-"
All of a sudden, the Pesutorian was sent flying into the Capsule Corp. building by the android's punch.
Shocked at what she just did, 21 shouted, "MAFIN! ARE YOU OKAY?!"
She heard Mafin shout back, "YEAH! I'M FINE!"
A few seconds later, Mafin returned to the backyard.
He stated, "Okay, 21. Now, I'm going to need you to do ten push-ups, three times each."
The android nodded, and placed her glasses in her pocket.
She then got down to a push-up position, and managed to do her three rows of ten, with ease.
21 sat up, exhaled, and asked, "How was that?"
Mafin nodded, "Nice! Now, I'm gonna need you to do the exact same number of sets, but this time, with twenty push-ups."
21 smiled, "Right!"
She went back to her position, and got straight to work.
Upon doing her next set, the image of the pink doppelgänger appeared in her mind once again. She closed her eyes and continued, trying to ignore it, but the unsettling image still persisted.
"Um...21! You can stop now!", exclaimed a fearful Mafin.
21 gasped for air and fell on her stomach.
She sat up, and looked at the ground around her. There were small hand-shaped craters imprinted on the grass, a sign that she went a bit too far. Again.
Mafin sat down next to her, "Are you okay?"
21 shook her head no, and explained, "Just now, I saw a evil, pink version of myself, and she was smiling in a deeply disturbing manner. And the same thing happened last night. I believe that she might represent 'Crazy 21' coming back to haunt me."
Mafin's eyes widened, "How is that possible?!"
"I don't know.", replied the android, "I've been taking that alien medicine for the past six months, yet for some unknown reason she still appears in my mind!"
21 let out a frustrated sigh, and rubbed her forehead.
She said, "Sorry. I got us off track. Do you have any ideas on what I should do?"
Mafin placed a hand on his chin, and thought about what to do.
He suggested, "Maybe...you just need to move onto a new exercise? Y'know, to get your mind off of that image?"
21 thought about it for a second, and agreed, "I think that could work."
Mafin sighed with relief, "Okay. Let's continue."
So, over the course of the day, 21 worked on many different exercises, such as sit-ups, jogging in place, and jumping jacks. With Mafin's help, she also learned and practiced various strikes, jabs, blocks, and kicks.
Eventually, several hours had passed, and it was now midnight.
Mafin let out a big yawn and smiled at 21, who was busy jabbing and kicking at the air, "Alright, I think we're good for today."
21 stopped her set, and walked over to the Pesutorian.
She wiped the sweat off her brow, and exclaimed, "Phew! That was a great session!"
Mafin happily nodded, "I agree! You were wonderful today, 21!
21 smiled warmly at Mafin's compliment.
She placed her hand on his shoulder, "Thank you, Mafin. I really couldn't have gotten through today's session without your help."
Mafin blushed and exclaimed, "Y-You're welcome! Well, I, uh, better get going!"
21 happily said, "Okay! Good luck with your own training!"
Mafin grinned, "S-Same to you!", and gave her a thumbs up, all while still blushing.
The Pesutorian turned around, and quickly blasted off into the sky.
Mafin mentally slapped himself, "Why did I blush again?! I don't have a crush on 21! I...I just don't! That would be ridiculous!"
He flew scross the sky for several minutes, and throughout that time, he kept thinking to himself, "I don't have feelings for her! She just looked really pretty today! Th-That was it!"
Mafin shook his head and sighed. He should really be focusing on something else, like his next training sessions with Begu.
And...maybe read some more of Guide to The Universe?
Oh, wait. He finished it off three weeks ago. Darn.
He could watch some movies with Begu, but then again, those were only reserved for Fridays.
He could hang out with Yajirobe again, but they really wouldn't have that much to talk about. Not with all of this hanging on the line.
Well then, maybe he could...he could...
Huh. Besides training with Begu, Mafin didn't really have anything else to do.
The Pesutorian let out another deep sigh, and looked downwards to see where he was.
All he saw was the ocean. Nothing but the endless swaying tides, stretching out for miles, and miles.
Now that he thought about it, he never actually flew off in complete silence, all by himself at night. He was always accompanied by Begu, or the Dragon Gang, or a random Frieza Soldier, or even his parents.
It made Mafin feel...lonely.
It also made him contemplate some things.
Like, if everyone does survive this big, brutal fight, and peace is restored, what will he and Begu do with the rest of their lives? He never really gave that question much thought.
One thing was for certain though: he could never return to Pesutoria, because not only would Begu be alone here on Earth, but it would only just remind the orange alien about that day.
And speaking of that day, the idea of possibly ressurecting Octoria, as well as each of the duo's parents with the use of the Namekian Dragon Balls, was still a matter that Mafin had yet to discuss with Krillin.
The orange alien shook his head once again, "Maybe I should think about someting else. Something a bit more positive..."
Mafin began reminiscing on the night he read the last few pages of the Guide. It was actually kinda peaceful. He didn't hear any snores coming from Begu, which usually happened when the Pesutorian stayed up to read, so that was good.
Oddly enough, 21 decided to stay up with Mafin, out of genuine curiosity for the material he was reading. Which meant the only noise he heard was the sound of pencil hitting paper as the android rapidly jotted down various details about different planets in her notebook. It got to the point where she even went back to the first half of the book, and jotted those planets down too. She was extremely focused that night, and she really wanted to learn about the various beings of the universe.
Mafin softly chuckled. He had to admit: whenever 21 was in her studying zone, and so fascinated by whatever she learned, she was kind of...cute.
That's one of the many things the Pesutorian liked about her. He also liked the way her blue eyes brightened whenever she got excited, as well as the cute way she tended to put on, and adjust her glasses, and the way her hair looked a bit messy yet beautiful at the same time, and the way her voice sounded.
It sounded so warm, honey-like, and melodious.
Plus, her heart-melting smile. She looked so adorable, smiling like that!
And the way she tended to bow politely in front of everyone. That was-
Wait a minute...
Mafin immediately stopped flying, and blushed a deep crimson, "Oh, wow. I actually do have...feelings for her..."
He then looked down and saw that he accidentally passed by Kame House. Mafin quickly blasted back over to the small island, and knocked on the door. He gazed out at the ocean and thought, "I wonder if she's available to hang out on Sunday."
The Pesutorian touched the back of his mullet, "Because if so, then I think I need a haircut."
Author's Note:
Hey guys! It's me, Story Nado!
I just wanted to say something about that Sky Sailing bit, which I feel that some of you are either confused or curious on:
1) I actually got into SS, as well as Owl City in general, this year! More specifically, during the summer. For OC, it was around the middle of May, and for SS, it was late July.
2) I do have an MP3 player, and it's a very old one. But, I actually don't have SS on it. I wasn't even aware of SS back when it first came out, which was 2010.
3) The reason why I put it in the story, was mainly Author Appeal. Plus, I also wanted to show that the time period we are following our heroes in, is really set in the past, whereas Kappukeki would be from a time that moreso resembles the late 2010's.
So, yeah! There you have it, folks!
I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I'll see you all next time! Take care, and stay safe!