Hey guys, Liz here. We're back at it again with another chapter. Challenges will be dealt, lives will be put on the line, and...some other stuff will happen. (TBH, the fun stuff isn't really until towards the end, but you really should read the stuff that comes before then. Lol). Before we start, just to let you all know, there is a poll up on my profile that you might want to check out. It could have an impact on the story later on. Check it out if you haven't already. Anyway, on with the story!
The Son Squad Ch.51
Month Five
The training was going exceptionally well for everyone. While they were all still trying to figure out how to go beyond super saiyan, the four siblings and their Dad were getting better every day. The extreme conditions of the time chamber weren't even that much of a bother anymore. None of them hardly noticed the intense gravity anymore, and none of them even batted an eye whenever the temperature went from one extreme to the next. It was all just par for the course now. No more overreacting to scorching heat or blistering cold. It was nothing compared to this group that Vegeta had once dubbed as a brood.
Of course, in between these days of training, this quintet of family members knew how to sprinkle in some fun with their training, just to keep things from becoming repetitive. That's what Goku told them all anyway to start off the day. He stood before the four siblings and powered into super saiyan. "Time for a speed test," Goku proclaimed to the half-saiyans with a smirk on his face. "Let's see which one of you can catch me first."
With that, Goku rose into the air and disappeared in the fog that was accumulating around the lodging area.
"Hey, hold on a second, guys," Daichi said before anyone took off. "Let's make this a friendly competition."
"A friendly competition?" Gohan questioned, raising his eyebrow at his brother.
"What kind of competition?" Chiyo pressed her brother, slightly intrigued by what Daichi had to say.
"The first one to hit Dad with an attack or lay a hand on him wins," Daichi replied.
"Okay, but what does the winner win?" Chibi asked, not really seeing this thing as worthwhile.
"Uh…." Daichi hadn't actually thought about that. Definitely should have thought it through before proposing it. He scratched at his chin a bit as he tried to figure out what to do, and then it hit him: "Winner gets first dibs at the showers later, and bragging rights."
It wasn't much, but it seemed like a good deal. The others nodded in agreement. The game was on!
After that, all four half-saiyans quickly powered up into super saiyan and rushed into the fog after their Dad. He didn't show up into view right away, so all four stood back-to-back of each other to try and find him. That's when Gohan was able to pick up on Goku's energy and fired off an attack in the direction he believed his Dad to be. It was actually relatively close because it barely missed hitting Goku by a few inches.
"Not bad, Gohan," Goku remarked, smirking as he made it down to the ground. "You're still gonna have to do better than that, though." He then disappeared again, and the rest of the kids did this to try and find him.
What followed was a series of other energy blasts rushing all over the place, all trying to hit the ever-quick Goku, but he was too quick for his kids. It also helped that they were all working separately instead of working as one coherent team. Of course, he didn't intentionally keep them from working together; they were choosing that independently.
Still, these kids were relatively bright and quickly realized that working alone would not guarantee them any victory. This blasting on their own was just wasting energy. "We can't even land a single attack on him," Chibi growled out of frustration after missing her Father for the umpteenth time.
"At this rate, Dad's gonna tucker us out before we even get one hit on him," Daichi noted, just as annoyed by this as Chibiko.
Thinking the matter over a bit, Gohan and Chiyo suddenly was hit with a realization on how to remedy the situation; "Team up?" They both asked the future duo.
Daichi and Chibi momentarily looked between each other before smirking and nodding. "Team up," They both replied.
"Daichi, Gohan; you both got the firepower. Keep the intensity on Dad," Chiyo instructed her two brothers. It was weird how she took charge of the situation, but this also felt good in a way, like this was something she was meant to do. "Chibi and I will try to use our speed to try and corner him. Once he's corned, you two try hitting him with everything you got."
"Sounds like a plan to me," Gohan said after hearing his sister's idea.
"Better than what we've been doing so far," Daichi agreed.
"Then let's get to work," Chibi proclaimed.
With that, the four siblings split up from each other, now working as a cohesive group, to take on their Father.
Meanwhile, Goku kept his guard up, finding it odd that he was no longer being bombarded with attacks from all sides. At this point, he had no clue that his children had put aside their competition to work together to take him down. All he knew was that there was now a lull in attacks. What are they up to? He thought to himself as he looked for any signs of them approaching.
Suddenly, without warning, a coordinated set of energy volleys came flying his way from his left and right. Goku jumped in the air to dodge them, only to have an energy beam rush at him from above. He tumbled out of the way of that, and an explosion occurred on the ground as soon as the attack hit it. Goku tried to regain his bearings, but he soon found an attack coming from behind now. He dodged the beam by the skin of his teeth before the volleys started up again. This pattern of attacking repeated over and over again, and each time it became faster and faster. The more it occurred, the harder it came for him to dodge. He quickly realized his children were now working together and that he was screwed unless he came up with a plan.
It was only then that he noticed his surroundings and found that he was near the chamber's resting area. He directed fire away from the door and quickly countered the energy volleys by attacking back with his own, causing smoke clouds to form throughout the air and block his line of vision. This led to a lull in the action, and just when Goku thought he was out of the woods, he was tackled down to the ground from behind by Gohan and Daichi. He laid on his stomach and looked back at the two boys now sitting on top of him. "Busted," Goku chuckled as he sat up and dropped out of super saiyan form. "Nice going, boys."
"Thanks, but Chiyo's the one who came up with the strategy," Daichi pointed out, dropping out of super saiyan.
"We just listened to her plan, is all," Gohan admitted, also dropping out of super saiyan.
Chiyo and Chibiko soon came from the air above and dropped down next to the three guys, both falling out of super saiyan at the same time. "So, how about a round two, Dad?" Chibi suggested, giving off a smug look of confidence.
"We should actually clean up, first," Chiyo pointed out, pointing to the damage that was done to the living space. There were holes in the walls and two of the pillars were practically crumbled to bits.
"…Yeah, we better clean that up before Mr. Popo sees this," Goku agreed. "He's scary when he's angry."
"Oh, come on; how scary can he really be?" Daichi questioned.
Goku didn't reply. All he had to do was look at Daichi, and the young man from the future could tell right away that his Dad was serious about Mr. Popo's wrath being something to not trifle with.
Month Six
It was hard to believe that half a year had already passed. It only seemed like yesterday that the group had entered the time chamber. On the other hand, compared to their first day of training, the Son family were definitely more skilled now than before.
Reaching these training benchmarks gave Daichi, and Chibiko confidence for what would happen after their business in this timeline was done. After all, they still had to go back to the future and deal with the issues there. The two were hoping that their Chinku was doing all right and that Bulma was keeping her out of trouble, but there was that part of them that still worried for them. Still, after their training here was complete, and the threat of Cell and the androids taken care of, Daichi and Chibi felt confident that they, along with Trunks, could handle the future's problems without too much issue.
With this milestone of six months, there did come the realization that there wasn't much time left before they'd all have to leave the chamber. Gohan and Chiyo felt pressure in knowing that they still had a lot of work to do before they obtained true mastery over the super saiyan transformation. They had gotten better, yes, but there was still a lot of work left to be done before they considered themselves ready to take on someone like Cell or the androids.
Meanwhile, Goku, Daichi, and Chibi had to tangle with the fact that they still hadn't been able to push themselves beyond super saiyan. The trio all thought that Trunks and Vegeta had been able to do it since Trunks said so himself, but they still weren't sure how the father-and-son duo had managed it. It bothered them how they weren't able to break this barrier by now. Had they wasted too much time teaching Gohan and Chiyo how to go super saiyan? Maybe, but they didn't regret teaching the two youngsters, not one bit.
Sitting down to meditate, Goku, Daichi, and Chibi sat in a semi-circle as they tried to concentrate. What were they focusing on? Well, it wasn't clear what that was. Clearing their minds only got them so far, but it didn't seem to be getting them any closer to unlocking super saiyan. Chibi was incredibly antsy since she didn't like just sitting in one place for a prolonged period. Add on sitting for what accounted for a few days without getting up, and it just spells trouble.
While the three sat there- and Chibi debated calling it quits- Gohan and Chiyo were sparring with one another as super saiyans. They seemed evenly matched with each other, which Chiyo never thought would have been possible a few months prior.
Gohan started things off by charging at Chiyo first, and Chiyo countered by blocking his incoming attack with her arms. She put them up in defense and then went to kick at Gohan's chest. He jumped back before she could do that and then threw an energy blast her way. Chiyo quickly deflected the incoming attack, and it flew up into the air where it exploded. She then charged at Gohan and started throwing a flurry of punches his way. Gohan ducked and dodged most of them, only get hit a few times, before deciding to fight back with his own kicks and punches. They exchanged blows between each other several times before they both dropped to the ground and glared each other down. Neither moved, and Daichi and Chibi took a peek to see what they were going to do next.
The two twins just stared at each other for a few moments before Gohan made the first move and fired off a barrage of energy volleys directly at her. Chiyo countered by dodging most of them and then sending a few back towards Gohan, who quickly jumped back and out of the way and countered Chiyo, who fazed behind him and attempted to kick him from behind. This back and forth of trying to land hits on one another went on for a little while longer until they both stopped to take a break.
"Okay, let's call a time out for now," Gohan huffed, bending over and panting. He thought his lungs were going to give out with how much work he and Chiyo had been putting in as of late. Still, it felt good to be training with his sister like this. It reminded him of training together while under Piccolo's tutelage. The previous three years of training had been more of a family affair than anything, which he didn't mind. Still, he was glad to have this one-on-one time with his twin. It was like reconnecting with her in a way he hadn't done since he was five.
"That sounds good to me," Chiyo panted, sitting down on her butt and trying to catch her breath. She, too, was enjoying this time training with Gohan. For the past couple of months now, she became more and more at ease about the thing she had sensed within Gohan. It hadn't popped up since she had begun helping him control the super saiyan transformation, and she was starting to think that she might have just misinterpreted the whole thing being ominous. She was more than willing to admit being wrong about the entire thing and hoped she was. Weirdly, if she didn't think about the whole situation with Cell or the androids, she was enjoying herself.
Just as the twins were dropping out of super saiyan, they noticed their Dad standing up from his meditative spot. He said nothing to Daichi or Chibi as he then began powering up into a super saiyan right before their eyes. Then, his power suddenly was shooting up beyond that of a super saiyan, with his muscles slightly bulging out and small bits of electricity going around his body. Out of nowhere, he emitted a shockwave of energy that sent Daichi and Chibi flying backward, along with the twins who were standing a distance away. After it seemed like he was done charging up, all the Son siblings couldn't help but stare in shock at what they saw before them.
"Holy cow," Chibi managed to mutter under her breath.
"He…He actually did it," Chiyo stuttered out with eyes as wide as dinner plates.
"There really is something beyond super saiyan," Daichi mumbled out.
"I knew he'd find it," Gohan said with a smile on his face.
Coming out of their shock, all four siblings ran over to their Dad to congratulate him on finally going beyond super saiyan. All of their hard work was finally paying off. They had the ultimate weapon right there, something that was guaranteed to put Cell and the androids out of business for sure.
"This is nothing," Goku stated in a gruff voice after hearing the congratulations from the kids. "I can go even further than this."
Before they could question what their Father was going on about, Goku started screaming again, and his power skyrocketed to be even higher than it already was. His muscles grew even larger than they already were, his hair became even spikier, and more electricity flickered around him. Just being next to Goku almost knocked the four of them off their feet with just how powerful he was.
"This is perfect!" Daichi cheered, the biggest grin on his face. This must've been what Vegeta was so confident about; this was what would put an end to all the trouble with Gero's creations for sure! "Pops, you're stronger than Cell, and the androids all put together!"
"Your power is beyond anything we could imagine!" Chiyo shouted, a genuine smile on her face. For the first time in a long time, she was feeling hopeful, something she thought she'd never feel again. After years of loss and repeated failures, it finally seemed like they'd get a win. "There's no way anyone, let alone Cell, could beat you!"
Goku, however, didn't say a word to anyone as he remained in this yet-to-be-named form. (Daichi was starting to like Ultra Super Saiyan, but he decided to keep that name under wraps for now).
"Honestly, now we don't have to worry so much," Chibi admitted, a small smile on her face. "Cell's going down for sure now."
"No, I can't beat him, guys," Goku finally said, shaking his head. "Not like this. This form isn't enough."
The siblings all froze and looked at their Dad like he was crazy. Did he just say this form- something that seemed like a pipe dream days ago- was not enough to beat Cell? How could he say that when his power seemed like that of ten Cells combined?!
"What? What are you talking about, Dad?" Gohan questioned, being the first of the kids to ask his Father's thinking.
"You're way stronger than Cell is!" Chibi shouted, starting to get irritated that her Dad would say this wasn't enough to beat Cell. He had to be crazy! "Even if he does absorb android 18- which he might very well have done- you out-pace him 10-to-1. What's the problem, here?!"
"Power isn't all we need to beat Cell, though. We need speed, and I can't move much with these bulking muscles," Goku began to explain to the others. "If Cell can out-pace me in speed, all the brute strength in the world won't matter. I'm too unbalanced like this."
Chibi was about to argue with Goku on this when she actually stopped to think about it. Yes, having the power was good, but what good would it do if Cell could just able to dodge it all like it was nothing? He could easily decide to wear Goku down while he wasted all his energy trying to land a hit. Damn it, Chibi thought, her hope starting to fade away. I thought we had a shot at this. But it can never be that easy, can it?
Slowly, Goku powered out of the form, looking somewhat winded after doing so. "Besides, just powering up into the form takes a lot of energy out of ya," Goku admitted, a smile coming to his face.
The others were flabbergasted. How could he be happy after realizing they were screwed? If going beyond super saiyan wasn't going to do them any good, then what else could they do?
As if he could read their minds, Goku answered the question for them: "I have a plan; we'll all try to stay in our super saiyan forms all the time."
"Wait, as in, all the time?" Chiyo questioned, making sure she was hearing her Father's proposition correctly.
Goku nodded back in confirmation. "That's right, 24/7. Well, I guess, except when we're asleep. Other than that, we'll remain in the super saiyan form all the time. We'll make it seem as easy as breathing. By doing that, we'll use our power much more efficiently."
What Goku was proposing sounded crazy to his kids. They never thought of actually trying to stay super saiyan all the time. It sounded like something Vegeta would suggest doing. To Chiyo and Gohan, it sounded like absolute torture. I mean, they just mastered the super saiyan form a few months ago, and now their Dad was telling them that they'd have to make it feel like it was nothing? Heck, Daichi and Chibiko thought that this, too, sounded like suicide. It took them years to master super saiyan, and now their Dad wanted them to make it seem like breathing?
Still, they all couldn't help but notice how their Father was smiling at them even after saying all that. What could have been seen as crazy talk seemed to make them realize that maybe this was him having confidence in them. Why else would he be so willing to go through this craziness? Did he really have that much faith in them?
"What do you guys say?" He asked after giving them all a moment to think about his idea. Goku thought it would seem like the perfect way to train his kids up. He still hoped that they would become stronger than he was, and he saw this as a way of putting himself on equal terms with them to see where they were at. (Of course, he'd keep that to himself for now).
Thinking this whole thing over and realizing there weren't many other options to choose from, the four siblings all nodded in agreement.
"All right. Time to get started."
Meanwhile, outside of the chamber, Trunks had accepted defeat against Cell. He couldn't believe he had been so foolish as to fail to see the flaws in this transformation he had used against Cell. He thought he could fix his father's mistake by allowing Cell to absorb 18, but he let the power blind him to the fact that he lost speed by being in this form. How could he not see this coming? Guess there was no point in overthinking it now, seeing as Cell was going to kill him anyway. He accepted this fate, though, thinking it was what he deserved for charging in without having an actual plan.
Mom, Chinku, Daichi…Chibi, I'm sorry, He thought as he waited for Cell to just get on with it already. I let you all down. I'm not gonna make it home like I promised. Trunks thought about how everyone would react to this: His mom would cry over losing him; Chinku would feel guilty for not going back to the past to help stop this from happening; Daichi would get angry that he let his friend die; and Chibiko would be furious at him for getting himself killed like this. For some reason, his mind lingered a bit more on Chibiko than it did the others. He hadn't realized how much he had missed her during his time in the hyperbolic time chamber until he saw her again. And she had blushed when she had seen him. What did it mean? It didn't seem to matter much now, anyway. He'd never see her or the others again, so why stress over it?
What Trunks didn't know was that Cell was more interested in finding out something had been bugging him for a while. The being that once looked like a giant insect now had a more proper form with a strong jaw-line, a man's figure, and pink eyes. He looked almost nothing like the creature that emerged from the egg before, and even his coloring was different. While he retained the spots he had had in his previous forms, he was lighter in color variation, and his skin was more grey than green. Honestly, he could almost pass as a person in some regards. "Tell me something, boy," He said with his arm extended out towards Trunks, ready to fire off a killing blow at the long-haired young man. "Even though it's nothing in the grand scheme of things, you and Vegeta managed to obtain a considerable amount of power in such a short time. How did you do it?"
Trunks didn't reply. He'd instead take that secret to the grave. For a second, he thought about what telling Cell could mean for his friends. For all Trunks knew, if he told Cell about the time chamber at the Lookout, Cell would just go and kill everyone there in the process. He couldn't risk the bio-android knowing about that. Even if it killed him, he'd make sure his friends would live to fight another day.
"You don't want to answer? Fine, then," Cell said, debating whether or not to just kill this brat right on the spot. It'd be no issue for him. He did it once before to a different Trunks, and he'd do it again to this one, no sweat. "Let's change the question, then: If you had more time, could you get even stronger than you already are now?"
"…Maybe, I don't know," Trunks answered, finally getting the nerve to look up and glare at Cell. "What difference does it make if you're going to kill me? Why ask something like that, Cell?"
Cell chuckled as he smirked at the boy. "Oh, just exploring a few possibilities; that's all." However, just as quickly as the smirk appeared, he dropped it. "Now answer one more question: why hasn't Goku appeared yet? You must know where he's hiding."
"He's not hiding!" Trunks barked back at Cell, glaring him down. "He's training to beat you as we speak! And knowing him, when he comes out, he'll be able to beat you!" Trunks had to believe that. He had been told stories all his life about the father of his two best friends, and he knew that if anyone could stop this twisted creature's plans, it was Goku.
"Interesting." Cell liked hearing that. It must've been the saiyan genes in him that riled him up at the idea of duking it out with "earth's strongest warrior." The thought of fighting Goku was just the most exciting thing that Cell could think of doing with his time. After all, what better way to test himself than be pushed to the brink by Goku? "Then let me propose a contest."
"A what?"
"A tournament is the best way of describing it." Cell went on to tell Trunks about his idea of having a tournament where Earth's fighters all took him on a one-on-one with as many fighters coming at him as possible. He'd give them all ten days or so to prepare for the whole thing and mentioned how they should bring along some senzu beans. It would prove to be an entertaining event for sure.
Trunks, on the other hand, didn't get it. Why would Cell want him to train up to fight again? He could just as quickly kill him right then and there, but he wanted Trunks to get better and come back to fight later? What was his real objective in all this? He demanded that Cell tell him what his real goal in doing all this.
Cell shrugged and replied that he wanted to showcase his perfect form to test his limits. In all honesty, he wanted to enjoy himself now. "I don't even see the point of just trying to destroy Goku anymore," Cell admitted to Trunks with his back turned to the young man. "I'm just looking to have a little enjoyment now. And I enjoy nothing more than seeing the pure terror my form inspires on people's faces."
Trunks jumped back a bit at Cell's explanations, feeling a cold shiver run down his spine after taking in Cell's words. He was absolutely shocked at what Cell had to say. All he wanted to do was inspire terror and fear in others?
"That's it. That's the look." Cell chuckled. "The fact that I don't even have to change forms like before to make you afraid is truly inspiring. Still…" He smirked as he turned to look at the young man behind him. He wanted to test something one more time before leaving.
Right before Trunks' eyes, Cell began to shift in form. Unlike before, where it was just the upper half of his body, Cell's entire body changed shape. The way it wriggled and shrunk made Trunks' skin crawl, yet he couldn't look away. He was so frozen in horror that he couldn't bring himself to look away from the whole display. When Cell was done with his shifting and reorganizing, it was revealed that he now took on the full form of Future Chinku! He looked just like her, from her hair down to her outfit. The only thing that stood out that told Trunks this was Cell were the pink eyes, the one sign of proof that this was not the young woman that Trunks knew. "So, I can change my entire form now," He said in Chinku's voice as he flexed his hands open and closed. He smirked in a way that did not belong on Chinku's face. It was uncanny at best and terrifying at worst. "How interesting. Seems absorbing 17 and 18 did more than just boost me to perfection. I couldn't do this before. I wonder what other forms I could try~."
Trunks growled as he glared at Cell. How dare this monster take on the form of his friend and teacher. He knew all too well what this monster had done to him and the others of his time, so to see Cell parading around this appearance of his victim like it was a toy angered Trunks. "You bastard," he gritted through his teeth. "How dare you-"
"Oh, save it, boy," Cell replied, placing his left hand to his hip. "I just wanted to see what else I could do with this newly perfected body. I don't plan on using this little trick anymore, but it's good to know what I'm capable of now. Unlike you, I know what is and isn't a useful transformation." (Dang. Deep burn from Cell). The creature chuckled in a way that was a mix of Cell's own laugh and Chinku's. It sounded all wrong, like a distorted laugh that was neither human nor beast. "Anyway, just pay attention to the TV; you'll see an announcement soon for my little game. See ya, kid~."
With that, he turned and took off to the sky, dropping his form as Chinku as he took off and left Trunks angry and confused. How could Cell just proclaim he wanted to hold a tournament? Why would he? He obviously had the advantage in all of this, so why risk being defeated by someone stronger than himself? These androids never made any sense to him! Why did they just see humans and life as some sort of plaything?!
Out of pure frustration, Trunks screamed to the heavens and reentered that failed super saiyan ascension state. He dropped to his knees and panted out of tiredness and anger. He failed his mission to make things right. If he had just gotten things right from the start, then none of this would be happening. The people's lives in this timeline and his own wouldn't be hanging in the balance like this. Why couldn't things just go right for once? He stayed like that, thinking over everything, until Krillin and his Father returned to the island.
So the Cell games are still going to be underway. Who will compete? Will the roaster have more competitors than it should? (I mean, with so many kids now, it's a given, but you know what I mean). And what of Goku and the others' training? Find out next time on, the Son Squad.
Thank you all so much for continuing with the story after all this time. It means a lot to me. We're over 30K in views, here, and the number just keeps going up! You have no idea how happy this makes me, and I appreciate you guys for continuing to stick around. Every review and every favorite makes me heart want to burst with joy. Anyway guys, have a good day and remember to wash your hands!
