(The Last Surviving Warriors)
This is the story of a darker world… A world where the mightiest have fallen, and now only two of them were left to defend it from the monsters that live to destroy it, one piece at a time.
But eventually, one of those two would lose his life in a battle against these monsters, and with his death, there would be only one warrior left alive, forced to face the nightmarish hell that was this world, on his own.
As he is forced to deal with the rage and grief he feels over the loss of his friends and loved ones, this warrior continues to fight to save his world and those who still live in it, avenge his fallen loved ones, and restore hope to the world.
His name is Son Gohan, and this is his story. The story of a young man forced to endure the hell that his world has become, and become a beacon of hope for those that still remain.
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This is where our story begins.
'I'm coming dad, please just hang on until I get there.' a young 9 year old Gohan blitzed across the green landscapes of Mount Paozu, his mind racing 'It's been about two years since dad came back to Earth and killed Frieza and his father. It seemed like everything was right with the world too. Yamcha and Bulma got married about a year ago, dad and the others keep training like they always do, and me and Kai are just hanging out, training and having fun like always. I thought it would last forever. I hoped it would anyway. Now dad came down with some kind of new heart virus that's been killing people all over the world, dad is a Super Saiyan and he can't do anything about it! We've tried everything but none of it is doing anything to help, so there's only one more thing we can try. I went to Korin Tower to get a bag of Senzu Beans, a bunch of them really, so if these can't help him then nothing can. I'm coming as fast as I can dad, please just hold on until I get there. I can't bear to lose you like this, not again!'
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Word was quick to spread to the others about Goku's worsening condition, and as such they had all gathered outside of Goku's home on Mount Paozu.
Kai sat by the edge of the river away from the others, his teeth grinding furiously 'All of them can feel it, they don't want to admit it but they can feel it too. Goku's Ki signature is dropping by the second, at the rate he's deteriorating he's going to be dead before nightfall. He ended up getting infected by that new heart virus a few days ago, and nothing they've tried so far has had any effect. Gohan even decided to go get some Senzu Beans from Korin, but at the rate Goku's Ki is dropping, he might not get here in time.' he glanced over as he picked up on an approaching Ki signature, and he let out a sigh 'Well it looks like I was wrong about one thing. I was wondering when you were gonna show up."
Sure enough, Gohan burst onto the scene with a bag of Senzu Beans in hand, but he didn't slow down or even spare any of the others a glance as he burst into the house at full speed.
'Great, this is just fucking perfect. The one thing I didn't want him to have to deal with, the pain of losing the person you care about most and not being able to bring them back with the Dragon Balls, and now it's about to come to pass.' so with a deep breath and a heavy heart, Kai pulled himself to his feet and made his way ito the house.
None of the others bothered to try and stop him.
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Meanwhile, inside the house…
"Guys I'm here, I made it!" Gohan burst into the room so fast he literally ripped the door right off its hinges, not that he gave a damn about it "Please tell me I made it! Please…"
"Gohan…" Chichi slowly looked up from Goku's unconscious form and turned to face Gohan, revealing the tears streaming down he face "Gohan, I… I'm sorry honey… I'm so sorry…" and then she simply broke down sobbing on the floor, leaving the Ox-King to try and comfort her, as futile as it might have been.
"You mean he's… I was too late…" with his vision growing blurry, Gohan promptly fell to his knees, his fists clenched so tightly the started bleeding, and he slammed his fist into the ground out of pure frustration.
It was at this moment that Kai silently made his way into the room, kneeling down next to Gohan and placing a hand on his shoulder, which prompted him to throw his arms around Kai as he then started sobbing into his shoulder. Kai simply wrapped his arms around him without bothering to utter a single word.
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A wave of horror rushed over most of the others waiting outside.
Krillin eventually found his voice just enough to confirm what all of them feared "It's over… He's gone… Goku's really gone…"
Raditz was left just staring into the river and gazing at his own reflection, his grief slowly showing itself through his stunned expression "Kakarot… no…"
Having fallen victim to a radical new virus taking the world by storm, Son Goku had passed on from the realm of the living, leaving his friends and family to mourn over the loss of the greatest warrior the Earth had to offer.
Unfortunately, what none of them knew was that this tragic event was a mere prelude to the set of horrific tragedies that were still to come.
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Six months had passed since Goku's death, and despite the difficulties of that time, those left to mourn him were slowly but surely beginning to move on. That is, until they made themselves known to the world.
In the year 767, on the 12th of May at 10:00 am, on an island 9 miles off of South City, Androids 17 and 18 made themselves known to the world with a massive attack, leaving no survivors from their rampage.
Comnig to avenge the fallen were the remaining warriors, but even they would be proven to be helpless against the power of the duo.
Piccolo was the first of them to face the Androids, and the first one to die as a result, his death also claiming Kami as a result, and without the two of them the Dragon Balls were wiped from existence.
Raditz and Tarble, two of the three surviving Super Saiyans, were the next ones to fall.
One by one, the rest of them fell, starting with Nail, followed by Krillin, Tien, Chiaotzu, Upa and Yamcha all meeting swift and brutal deaths at the hands of the Androids.
When their attack was done and the battle was over, Gohan and Kai were the only ones who were able to survive to fight another day, and without the Dragon Balls to help them, that was the way it was going to stay.
This was the beginning of a new era for the people of the Earth, an era of darkness.
The fate of the Earth was left… with little hope.
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Over the months that followed their initial appearance, the Androids would continue to destroy one small town after another and work their way up, before they finally started to destroy some of the bigger cities.
Gohan on the other hand, he sat in his room, staring up at the ceiling as his thoughts drifted like the winds howling outside 'Is this what life is supposed to be like… to suddenly lose everything in the blink of an eye?' it was then that he heard a knocking sound on his door "It's open."
The door slowly opened, and Kai (now with a scar running down where one of his eyes used to be) made his way into the room "Hey."
"Hey."
"I think you and I need to do some talking, are you up for a game of chess?"
"I guess." so Gohan just slunked off his bed and onto the floor, and the two started engaging in a simple game of chess, moving one piece at a time, but he stayed mostly silent.
"Your game is a lot more off than it used to be, there's no way in hell you're going to beat me like that."
"Whatever Kai, I'm not in the mood to talk." this comment went ignored.
"The Androids are overpowered as fuck to the point where it's just ridiculous, either one of them could take out Frieza without even breaking a sweat."
"Probably."
"So do you have any sort of plan?"
Gohan stayed silent.
"I figured as much. After all, if three Super Saiyans, two Namekians on that level and even me weren't able to even scratch the Androids, then what chance in hell would the two of us have of beating them?"
"We wouldn't."
"Exactly. Piccolo and the others, they were great warriors and good people."
"I know."
"Their people skills sucked though, reminds me a lot of someone else."
"Yeah, whatever." Gohan just calmly made his next move on the chess board.
"Do you have any idea what the hell you're doing?"
"You play however you want, I'll play however I want."
"I'm not talking about the chess board you idiot."
Gohan gave no response.
"Well at least I know you wouldn't do anything stupid or reckless, which is lucky for me. Now that I've lost Yamcha, you're really all that I have. There is still Bulma, but she's still getting over the miscarriage, so she's got enough shit to deal with. Like I said, right now you're really all that I have. The last thing I need is to lose my best friend. You've done pretty well for yourself up to this point, and I know I don't say it much, but I'm proud to have you as my friend."
Gohan stayed silent, he just buried his head in his knees.
"You're sharper than any of them come and you have a metric fuckton of untapped potential, and you're the kind of person the people of the world can depend on in the future. But now all of them are dead, Goku and all of the others I mean. Piccolo and Kami are gone too, so that means that the Dragon Balls are gone forever, and without knowing where the hell the Namekians ended up, there's no chance in hell of bringing the others back. Right now we're on our own."
"Dammit!" Gohan blasted a nearby wall in a moment of rage, his hair flashing goal as frustration reached its boiling point "Just what are you getting at right now?"
"I'm saying exactly what it is you need to hear."
"Will you please do me a favor and just stop talking already, everything you're saying is just making me sick! Say whatever you want about me, it doesn't do anything to change the fact that I'm nothing but a useless coward and a weakling who can't do anything!"
"You'll never hear me say any of that about you, I never have and I never will. Not about you at least."
"Then what is it you want from me Kai?"
"You wanna know what the hell I want?" Kai pulled himself to his feet and looked Gohan dead in the eye "I want you to let it out."
Gohan lost his angry glare, and a crushing sadness began seeping through.
"All of the anger, the sadness and the pain you're feeling, everything that's building up inside of you like a fucking timebomb. You have to learn to let it go, if you don't then you're just gonna end up destroying yourself.
Gohan said nothing, he just gritted his teeth and clenched his fists.
"That's when you finally start healing, and just remeber that no matter what happens I'm gonna be here for you to pick up the pieces." Kai calmly made his way out of the room and shut the door just as he heard Gohan start crying uncontrollably, and he found Chichi standing there and waiting for him "You were listening the entire time weren't you?"
"I'm a mother, it's part of my job." Chichi told him flatly, then let out a sigh "So what about it, is it done?"
"Let him cry his eyes out for now, and then when he's done, give or take a few days for him, tell him to meet me at the Gizard Wasteland in a week. That's gonna be when we start training to rip apart those pieces of scrap metal once and for all.
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7 years later…
"Ladies and gentlemen it's like the apocalypse all over again, Pepper City is under siege by the monstrosities that are the Androids! It's absolute madness, we're watching the recently restored park district going up in a ball of flames the likes of which the world has never seen!"
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Meanwhile, with the Androids…
"Oh man, you wouldn't believe this haul!" 18 stuffed some clothes she stole into a nearby pickup truck that they had stolen awhile back "You see this is why I prefer the inner city shops, they've always got the best brands."
"Yeah chick stuff good to know, now down to business." 17 rolled his eyes and promptly fired a simple Ki blast, blowing the store to hell and killing everyone inside.
"Hey what the hell was that about dude, why did you blow it up? They were giving me free clothes."
"It's not like they gave me anything."
"It was a woman's clothing store."
"Hey I'm perfectly secure."
"Yeah sure you are, is that why you dye your hair?"
"Tch, don't hate."
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Meanwhile, with two of the only smart ones…
With her frustration showing, Bulma promptly shut off the radio "I can't listen to any more of this crap, at this rate I would even take country music back. Damn those two, at this rate the entire freaking planet might as well have gone up in smoke. Everyone living in fear, wondering when they're going to strike next, it's just not any way to live. There has to be some sort of way to stop them."
"There is." that was when Kai stepped into the room wearing his typical crimson gi, now with a scar running along his cheek similar to the one that Yamcha had "Pepper City is a 20 minute flight from here, 2 minutes if I use the Namek-Ken. Stay here and don't go outside, at this rate there's at least a 50/50 chance of scorunging up a few survivors."
"Or you'll end up dying like Yamcha and the others did."
"At least this way I go out like a warrior, so why the hell don't you do something about that giant Namek-sized metal poll you have lodged up your ass?"
"Because you're only 17, I'm 34 and I'm all alone except for you."
"And you've been 34 for about a decade."
"You're not going down there, I'm not gonna let you get yourself killed."
"That's the thing about me you'll never understand, I'm not giving you the choice. Besides, there is about a 100% chance Gohna is on his way there as we speak." and so he promptly blasted off through the open window without another word.
'Kai you little shit… you'd better come back alive or so help me, I know Yamcha would never forgive me if I let anything happen to you, or Scarlet for that matter. If only they could see how much you've grown up, hell you even look like a younger Yamcha now. Please just… don't die on me out there okay?'
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Meanwhile, in Pepper City…
By this point, 17 was driving a car through the wreckage of the city, or what was left of the city anyway, and had started running over the survivors like they were speed bumps "Hey 18 how's it looking, you are keeping score right?"
"Why would I be doing that?" asked 18.
"You told me that you would."
"No, your exact words were, and I quote, "Check this shit out" and then you jumped in a car and started running over people like they were speed bumps."
"Oh come on, is this about that shop earlier?"
"You're honestly just like a little kid."
"And you're acting like it's your time of the month. Fine whatever, let's just get the hell out of here now that you've put me in a bad mood."
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Meanwhile, with the main protagonist of this story…
'Come on, I have to get there!' at the same time, Gohan was flying towards the location of Peppr City at full speed, his mind racing as he did so 'I don't know if I'll be able to do anything at all, but even still I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I didn't at least try.' it wasn't long after this that he finally arrived on the scene, only to find rubble and smoking ruins where the city once stood 'Dammit, I was too late again… Now they're all gone, all of them…' he slowly lowered himself to the ground and began wandering the ruins of the city, grimacing further at the sight of the mutilated corpses the Androids had left behind, but he stopped when he noticed a single hand twitching, and he knelt down and pulled an eight year old boy out of the rubble, albeit with one of his legs missing, as well as one of his arms "Hey, can you hear me? Are you… Crapbaskets, I can't ask if he's okay?'
The boy slowly opened his eyes and looked up at Gohan with tears streaming down his face "My parents… are they…?"
"I'm sorry, but you're the only one that I found."
The boy wasted no time in burying his face in Gohan's chest as he started sobbing "Why… Why are they doing this? Why do they keep attacking us? We never did anything to them!"
"I know… I wish I could answer that…" Gohan pulled the boy into a tight hug in an attempt to comfort him, hiding his own tears in the process 'These children shouldn't have to live through a hell like this.'
That was when Kai dropped down onto the scene, his Namek-Ken aura slowly subsiding as he hit the ground with a soft thud "Another one orphaned by the tin cans huh? That makes 7 this week alone, they're getting more frequent."
"We need to search for any more survivors."
"Don't bother, you can sense Ki just as well as I can, so you know damn well that this kid is the only one."
"I know, but I can't just… I have to be sure that…" Gohan gritted his teeth as he tightened his hold on the sobbing child in his arms, his golden aura surging into life from his rage "How can the Androids do this, how can they be so cruel?!"
"You've asked the same question about all the bastards we've fought up until now, from the Saiyans to Frieza, to Slug and then Frieza again, now the Androids and the answer has always been the same: They get off on killing anyone and anything they don't like for shits and giggles becuase there isn't anyone around strong enough or brave enough to stop them."
"This isn't the way life is supposed to be." Gohan looked down at the boy in his arms, only to see that now he had apparently fallen asleep "People shouldn't have to live in constant fear, and kids shouldn't have to lose their entire families in the span of a few minutes! Why the hell can't things just go back to the way they were before all of this?!"
"Oh yeah, as if that was such an improvement." Kai let out a loud snort "Gohan serious, stop and think about it for a second. When we were toddlers your uncle showed up, his ex co-worker went and kidnapped you for shits and giggles, and then Piccolo killed you and your dad. Piccolo then went on to kidnap both of us, well he kidnapped you and I went with you of my own accord, the Saiyans showed up a year later and killed a bunch of people, including Piccolo. Then we went all the way to Namek, a bunch more people died, we came back, your dad died again, then our teacher, both of our uncles and all of our friends died, and now everyone else has been dying for the past 7 years, either by the Androids or by that goddamn heart virus." this caused Gohan to flinch visibly "Sorry, sore subject I know. Anyway, all of that shit has happened and yet the two of us have somehow been able to survive all of it."
"But it was better!"
"No, it really wasn't."
"Well we can't just sit around doing nothing while people are out there suffering, we have to get out there and fight! We're the only warriors left on the planet strong enough to do it, you've been my best friend for more than 10 years so you know exactly what I'm talking about."
"...Yeah Gohan I do know, and you know something else? I'm starting to relaize just how pitiful you really are."
"What?"
"You heard me." Kai let out a bitter chuckle "You're such an emotional wreck, just like how I had been back when my mom died. That was what more or less desensitized me from all of the so-called magic of the Dragon Balls, knowing that they can bring almost anyone back to life, with the exception of the one person I cared about most." he let out a sigh as he shook his head a few times to clear it "Look man, our mentors are gone, our families are gone, you said yourself that we're the only ones left. Now it's way past time for us to step up, you haven't forgotten the pact that we made have you?"
"...Don't settle for being better when we could be the best."
"You haven't lost sight of that have you?"
"No, no of couse not." Gohan slowly pulled himself to his feet, and the two of them clasped hands "I'm not gonna let you or anyone else down, not anymore."
"I know you won't, now let's get that kid to a hospital, and once that's taken care of the two of us have work to do."
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Several days passed, and things seemed to calm down, if only slightly.
Kai met up with Gohan to being their training, doing so in a remote area a fair distance away from West City "Alright enough screwing around, it's time for us to get started on training for today."
"Right, I can't wait for it." Gohan gave a simple nod as he stood before Kai, now clad in what appeared to be an identical copy of Goku's orange and blue martial arts attire, the only difference being the kanji symbol on the back that read Han.
"I doubt I actually have to say this, but I will anyway. The Androids are more powerful than any other threat we've faced before, either one of them could rip through Frieza like a hot knife goes through butter. They proved that pretty effectively when they killed two Super Saiyans and the two strongest Namekians in the universe. We can't afford to pull our punches anymore, so from here on out it's all or nothing, everything we've got. Are you with me?"
"I wouldn't be here if I wasn't. Now let's do this."
"As if you had to ask. Namek-Ken!" Kai's green Namek-Ken aura flared into life as he suddenly blitzed out of view.
'He's so much faster than he used to be.' Gohan was able to block Kai's initial attack, which then resulted in the two of them trading even blows, sending a series of shockwaves throughout the area they were in, before the two of them broke away "It always amazes me how you've always been able to keep up with me like this."
"Not everyone has the advantage of Saiyan blood and Zenkais going for them, so some of us have to push themselves that much harder to get stronger, and a little bit of creativity can go a long way too, hence the Namek-Ken."
"I can tell you're still holding back on me, this is nowhere near your full power."
"The same could definitely be said for you, but I think it's about time we kick things up to the next level if you take my meaning. Namek-Ken 20x!" Kai's green aura surged even higher, his muscles bulging as he did so.
"That works pretty well for me, now let's do this!" Gohan let out a roar as his golden Super Saiyan aura roared into life, and then he charged forward and aimed a kick at Kai's head.
Kai easily blocked the kick and then dealt Gohan a palm thrust to the center of his chest, the force of the blow sending him skidding backwards, and then he fired a quick Explosive Demon Wave, engulfing Gohan in the explosion that followed.
Gohan spiked his golden aura to dissipate the smoke that resulted from the blast "I know that you haven't even come close to being done yet, so what do you say we finish this."
"Fine by me, how do you think we should do this?"
"Whichever way you think is best."
"Fine by me, you do whichever move you want and I'll do whichever I want. You ready? Now let's do this. Spirit Ball!" Kai gathered his Ki into the palm of his hand and forced the Ki upwards in the form of a large sphere, which he then hurled forward.
"Masenko!" Gohan placed both hands to his forehead and unleashed a Masenko that hurtled directly into the Spirit Ball, the two attacks colliding and the force blowing away part of the cliffside they were standing on as a result. With the end of their brief struggle, Gohan let out a sigh as he powered back down to his base form "Like I said, it never ceases to amaze me that you're always able to push yourself so hard and so far."
"You aim to be the best, it's not something you procrastinate with." Kai breathed a sigh of his own as he powered down his Namek-Ken "It's nowhere near enough though, as we are right now we don't have a chance in hell of beating the Androids. We're not giving up though, we're going to keep pushing ourselves as hard, as far and as long as we have to. The Androids are nothing more than stepping stones on the path to the top, and the only one I want to be up there with me is you."
"And if we're gonna be the best, we have a better shot of doing it together."
"On that we can agree Alright I should probably head back for now, she's probably gonna lose her shit if I'm not back before dark. Or just update her Tinder profile. Probably the latter if we're talking about her."
"Yeah, she's been pretty worried about you since we started fighting the Androids, and you've actually been a lot nicer to her ever since…" Gohan cringed as he cut himself short.
"Ever since Goku died from the heart virus and she had that miscarriage?" Kai finished for him and let out a sigh "Hey I might be snarky as fuck and love screwing with people, but I'm also a realist. I know that there's a time and a place for it, and only when I know people can take that kind of shit. She doesn't need that right now."
"Kai…"
"Alright enough smalltalk and crap, I'm heading back to Capsule Corp. Get plenty of rest for tonight, you're gonna need it for what I've got in store for us tomorrow."
"Right, I know."
"Yeah. You know you could always come and stay with us, we've got enough room for it, even if it is in that underground bunker she set up."
"...Yeah well, I don't wanna impose or anything. I'm fine staying where I am now, I swear I am for real. I've gotta go, I'll see you tomorrow for training." and so he blasted off into the skies before anything else could be said.
'Shit, he keeps avoiding that issue. Ever since his mom and grandpa died from the heart virus about three years back he's been living on his own, and he acts like I don't know. And I thought I had issues.' and so Kai blasted off back in the direction of Capsule Corp.
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Another day came, and the time for training was approaching.
Bulma made her way out of the underground lab and found Kai standing on the scorched grounds of Capsule Corp doing some stretches "You're gonna go meet up with Gohan and train again aren't you?"
"You say that like it's something surprising." Kai noted without turning around to face her "It's not like there's anyone else around to stop the Androids, if we don't then who will? Besides, androids or not I'm still gonna be the best there is, no matter how long it takes me."
"You never change do you?"
"Not in any way that's really important, you know me."
"Of course I do. Well in any case, as long as you're gonna see Gohan-"
"I've already to talk him into staying here but he leaves before I can put the offer. Ever since his mom and grandpa died from the heart virus he's been pulling a Piccolo and living in caves or in wastelands or on deserted islands."
"I know that, I was gonna say to invite him over for dinner and go from there. Keep in mind that the best way to get to a Saiyan…"
"Is through the bottomless pits that are their stomachs. Fuck, I can't believe I never thought of doing that."
"It took me 20 years of being friends with Goku before I figured that out."
"Whatever, just pray to whatever gods exist up there you've got enough food." and so he then blasted off into the skies.
'Just be careful out there, okay?'
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A little while later…
It didn't take long for Kai to make his way to the training grounds, only to find that Gohan was already there doing some stretches "It's not that often you get here first."
"I couldn't sleep that well last night, so I decided to come here early." Gohan gave a shrug as he finished doing his stretches "What about you, did you get enough rest?"
"Well enough considering I'm sharing an underground apartment with Bulma. She snores like a fucking dinosaur, and sleeping on the ground is better than what she's got in there."
"So… are you up for training?"
"It's really one of the only five things I actually like, so you tell me."
"I know, and you've only let me see four of them, which kind of makes me nervous about what the last one could be."
"The world will never know, and you probably won't either until the day I die, which is only gonna be after the Androids are turned back into scrap metal."
"Now that I definitely agree with you on. So anyway about today's training, I actually have this theory I've been working on for awhile. Super Saiyan isn't enough to beat the Androids on its own right?"
"I think we've established that by now."
"Well anyway, here's my theory." he flashed into Super Saiyan "What if I try and stay in my Super Saiyan form all the time, 24/7, at least with the exception of sleeping. I need to make it so maintaining my Super Saiyan form becomes as natural for me as breathing, almost completely effortless, so that I can use my Ki control way more efficiently. What do you think?"
"I think that's something I started doing with the Namek-Ken like two years ago, so I personally can confirm for a fact that it works." Kai spiked his Namek-Ken in a very nonchalant way in order to prove this point "See what I mean? It's pretty obvious by now that we can't outlast the Androids thanks to their limitless energy reserves, so I decided to get creative. It's like I've told you dozens of times before: If you can't win through power, win through creativity."
"So… should we spar now?"
"We could, but that can only get us so far. Let's use today to focus on Ki control, work on the Ki control with your Super Saiyan form."
"Ki control is only about half of the issue, the other is exploding with rage in order to trigger the initial transformation. I just have to think about losing Piccolo and my dad and… and my mom and grandpa and…" he shut his eyes as he gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, many painful memories flashing through his mind.
"Yeah… Hey so change of topic, something that I've been trying to bring up for awhile now but you keep avoiding. Come and stay with us for awhile."
"I… I couldn't impose like that-"
"Don't give me that bullshit, right now you're just living in wastelands or on deserted islands and crap like Piccolo did. You're staying with us now, starting tonight. We were gonna have you come over for dinner and bribe you into staying with food, but then I realized that I don't give enough of a shit to lie to you."
"...If you're sure-" he was cut off by Kai holding out a finger to his face "Okay okay, I guess I don't really have a choice about it."
"You don't. For now let's focus on the Ki control stuff and then we'll head back to Capsule Corp in a few hours."
"Works for me." their auras spiked, green and gold colliding in a brilliant mix of energy "I still remember how my dad told me that Bulma was his first real friend."
"And the one that kind of kicked off a trend for him when you think about it."
"Oh really, what's that?"
"He befriended people that tried to kill him. Think about it. Bulma, Yamcha, the Triclops and the Pokemon, hell even Piccolo."
"...Huh, you know I never really thought about it. But when did Bulma-"
"Back when they first met, apparently she hit him with a car and shot him in the face."
"Uh… okay then. But I guess Piccolo was the last one, keep in mind that Uncle Raditz never tried to kill him, and neither did Tarble."
"True, but it didn't really make a difference. Aside from them we still had to deal with the other Saiyans, then Frieza and his forces, all of whom we butchered."
"We never killed Ginyu and Recoome. I wonder what happened to them."
"God only knows, but we've got other things to worry about right now. Anything else going on in the universe can wait."
"Yeah, I guess you're right."
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Hours passed, and the sun began setting over West City, or what was left of it.
Kai touched down behind the wreckage of the Capsule Corp building, with Gohan touching the ground shortly after, and the two of them made their way into the underground lab "I'll tell you now that living alone with her has been a gigantic pain in the ass."
"I thought you said you were being nicer to her." Gohan pointed out dryly.
"This is nicer, if I wasn't then I'd just flat out say she's a cougar in her 40's."
"You know I can hear you down here." Bulma pointed out dryly from where she was sitting at the table in the middle of the lab "At leastI can say that you're still alive, the last thing I need or want is your ghost haunting me at night."
"Either that or you could just change your online dating profile from single aunt by marriage to just single, one of them gets a lot more hits."
"Good to know, and it's even better to know that you brought a guest with you. It's been a long time since the last time I saw you Gohan, how have you been?"
"Just fine, thank you." Gohan gave a simple nod and a small smile.
"You know I kind of have noticed a pattern lately, feel free to fill in any gaps. One of you goes off to fight the Androids and then both of you pop up together, why does that not surprise me in the slightest?"
"Two reasons mainly." Kai told her dryly "One, he's one of the five things I like. Two, we're the only ones left who can fight the Androids."
"That was a rhetorical question."
"And I gave you a rhetorical answer."
"Of course you did. So anyway Gohan, glad to see you took us up on our offer. We have plenty of room here but we don't have any extra beds, so chances are that two of us are gonna have to share."
"...I think I'll pass." was all Gohan said.
"Well I had to try, anyway who's hungry? I just finished preparing dinner. The Androids have made it pretty hard to get my hands on all the stuff I wanted. Some ingredients have become pretty hard to find, but I try to make up for it with my ability to adapt in the kitchen."
"And feminism marches on." Kai noted dryly, ducking under her attempt to smack him upside the head.
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About a half hour passed, and the three of them had cleaned up and sat down to dinner.
Bulma gave a smile as she served the two of them "You know I'm so glad you agreed to stay with us for now Gohan, it feels like it's been forever since I've even been able to have an actual conversation with you. I miss the good old days, and I still say that travelling to Namek was our all time best adventure."
"Yeah without a doubt, those were the days." Gohan gave a small smile full of nostalgia before he dug into the food in front of him.
"And you wouldn't believe how hard it is to get produce these days, lucky for me I still have one or two greenhouses that I keep underground. Don't ask me where I get the protein from though, for all our sakes."
"I never do, and as long as it's in my stomach and it's not made from people I don't really care about where it's from."
"And just like that, it's like deja vu, like father like son."
"Oh yeah, you really think so?"
"Without a shadow of a doubt, the way that you eat, or more like inhale, and the way that you're so powerful and so gentle at the same time. Plus there's the way you look, especially when you have that gi on."
"Yeah, I guess I've always had this dream of being as strong as my dad. I figured it would be a great tribute to him to wear his old colors, at leat for now."
"Well I know for a fact that he would be super proud of the strong and brave young man you've turned into over the years."
"...I hope that's the case Bulma, I really do."
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A few more days went by, and training continued as normal.
As per usual, Gohan and Kai were going over their training routines in their typical training spot, only now they had taken it upon themselves to take a short break, and he cringed as he rubbed a certain spot on his back "You were right, sleeping on the ground is a lot more comfortable than those beds. Don't tell Bulma I said that."
"Don't bother, she thinks so too." Kai waved it off nonchalantly "But it's the best that she could do given the shortage of materials because of the whole Android thing, and apparently she's too good to sleep on the ground. Plus apparently she says that queen sized beds are for squalid fucks or something along those lines. The fucking Karen."
"Uh huh. Listen, I know I've kind of been dodging the issue, but I do appreciate the two of you letting me stay with you like this."
"You should've been a lot longer, the only reason you weren't is because you've been avoiding it for ages. Like other issues I can think of."
"...You're talking about my mom and grandpa aren't you?"
"You've been avoiding that issue for ages, whenever we're not training or fighting the Androids you'd just fly off on your own and seclude yourself like a hobo, it's like you're too embarrassed or ashamed to see anyone. Even me."
"I know, I'm sorry, it's just… I don't know when it's going to stop hurting. I keep thinking that the pain is going to go away, but it doesn't. Whenever I'm flying back from training or a fight with the Androids, I almost head back to Mount Paozu on instinct, thinking that I'll get to go fishing with my grandpa or enjoy my mom's home cooking… and then I remember that I lost them to the heart virus, just like I lost my dad. Whenever I do try to head out that way, I can almost hear my mom screaming in my ear about me being beaten and broken from fighting the Androids, tell me not to fight them and just keep myself safe. But I can't stop fighting, not when people are still out there suffering and dying. I haven't even been out there since they died, and that was three years ago. I just… I miss them. I really do."
"...I know what you mean." Kai breathed a sigh and ran a hand through his hair "Look I'm not really good at talking about my feelings and all that crap, but I do get it. That sort of feeling is gut wrenching, and it never really goes away, and some days are harder than others. But look, whining and sulking and avoiding the issue isn't gonna change anything or make you feel better in any way that really counts. You're the one who taught me that." then a brief paused filled the air around the two of them "Anyway let's call it for now, I've got a few things I need to take care of so I'll be back later." and so he blasted off into the skies without another word, thought he was flying away from West City as he did 'Fuck, when I did I become the more emotionally sound one between the two of us? Evidently he's got it a lot worse than I did when mom died, and he's clearly worse off than I was too. At least then I was still emotionally stable enough to go over and tend to her grave, so I guess it's only right I do the same for him.'
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About an hour later…
'Okay, it should be somewhere around here…' it didn't take long for Kai to make his way to the mountain ranges of Mount Paozu, gazing around at the view surrounding him 'It doesn't even look like anything around here has changed since the last time I was here, and now that I think about it that was… shit, I think it was back when Goku died from the heart virus. No wonder he's so emotionally fucked up about this place.' it was then that the sound of a loud crash ended up drawing his attention and prompted him to fly towards it 'And speaking of fucked up, there had to be an explosion involved in doing something simple. Fuck, I'd better go check it out. It's times like this I think life would be easier if I didn't have a conscience.' this was when he came across the source of the noise.
As it turns out, the source of it was a beautiful young woman with long black hair kept in two pigtails that reached past her shoulders, and her attire consisted of a white t-shirt and a pair of black shorts, as she stood in a combat stance in front of a number of robots with the Red Ribbon symbol on the front of them "Bring it on you sons of bitches, I'll scrap you and then scrap the other Androids too!"
'Well this chick has spunk, and a nice pair of- Oh right, Red Ribbon bullshit. Worry about the hot chick in the short shorts later.' and so he dropped to the ground in front of the girl, leaving her taken aback by his sudden appearance "Back up a few feet, I've got this."
"What the- Did you just come out of the sky?"
"Yeah so what, it's not like this is the first time you've seen that. Oh shit, is it?"
"No, but it's the first time I've seen someone flying that wasn't raining down fire on cities and slaughtering everyone in sight. Speaking of which, how do I know you're not an Android like the rest of them?"
"Well for one, I'm not raining down fire on cities and laughing maniacally. Second of all, there's this." he nonchalantly fired a simple Ki blast at the robots, obliterating all of them instantly in the explosion that followed "That enough proof for you?"
"Not really, but then again the Androids never cared enough to lie in the past, so I don't see any reason why they would start now." the girl relaxed slightly and exited her fighting stance.
"You're smart, I like that. The name's Kai."
"Call me Videl. What are you doing all the way out here?"
"Doing a favor for a friend that used to live around here. What about you?"
"I was just coming out here to train."
"You're into martial arts." it wasn't a question.
"I've studied them all my life, I learned them from my dad when I was a little girl. I've spent all these years pushing myself with the hopes I could one day surpass him, but then the Androids attacked our city one day and he tried to be a hero and took them on alone and…" she gritted her teeth and clenched her fists.
"Fuck… Wait a second, that sounds familiar. Was he the one who-"
"The guy in the afro that kept saying them blowing stuff up was a bunch of light shows and tricks and the like? Yeah, that was him."
"...I've gotta learn to shut the fuck up."
"No no, it's fine. It was about two years ago when that happened, and ever since I've just been training on my own, pushing myself as far and as hard as I could, so that one day I can take on the Androids and beat them, and avenge everyone they killed."
"And suddenly this sounds familiar to the point where it's uncomfortable."
"That's your story too?"
"That's the story for a lot of people these days, the only difference is I can back it up."
"And you think I can't?"
"To put it bluntly and with absolute honesty, no you can't. Not like this."
"Which means what exactly?"
"Which means that unless you know how to use what your dad thought was light shows and tricks and the like, you don't have a hope in hell of surviving a confrontation with them, let alone actually standing a chance of beating them. And for the record, it's called Ki."
"You know a lot about it."
"I've been able to use it since I was three."
"So then… you could teach me? You could show me how to use it?"
"...Fuck, I'm getting soft aren't I? Fine, I'll teach you the basics but don't expect me to go much further than that."
"I'll take anything I can get, I'll do whatever it takes."
"Good, because I'm not putting up with any unnecessary bullshit. Anyway the key to learning to how to do stuff like flying and blowing stuff up is Ki control, and that's not really that hard once you get the hang of it, but if you want to do it at even a fraction of the level I can or any of the actual masters can then that takes a lot of training."
"Okay back up a second, the key is Ki control? What does that mean exactly?"
"Ki is the stuff that the Androids use to fly around and blow shit up, and it just so happens that their reserves are limitless, which I say is a massive amount of bullshit."
"Well it is!"
"About time someone else says it." Kai held out a hand and summoned a ball of Ki floating above his palm "And this is the stuff I'm talking about, Ki is this hidden reservoir hidden inside your body, every living thing has it."
"And the Androids have a limitless supply of it. Both of them."
"We already established how much bullshit that is. Ki's got a lot of uses, the most basic of which is stuff like this. Now watch carefully and take note of what I do." he turned around and dropped into a stance, his white aura flaring slightly as he cupped his hands at his side, blue Ki building in between his palms 'Yamcha, this one is for you. Ka… Me… Ha… Me… HA!" he thrusted his arms forward and fired severld held back Kamehameha wave, leaving a sizeable hole in the nearby mountain 'Well there's no Dragon Balls around to fix that, but honestly who really gives a shit about that anymore. So do you get it?"
"...Yeah okay." Videl took a moment to snap out of her stupor "So you said Ki is energy that you can use, but where does it come from?"
"Like I said, every living thing in the universe has Ki inside of them, but the problem is that there are so few that know how to use their Ki effectively, even moreso since the Androids killed most of them, my teacher and uncle being among them." this caused Videl to cringe "Forget it, I'm not here to be pitied or anything. Anyway, for the time being you've gotta find it before you could learn how to use it." he sat down on the scorched ground beneath him "So listen up, I'm gonna go ahead and take this one step at a time so you can follow it okay?"
"Fine by me, I'll take what I can get." Videl promptly sat down next to him in a position with her legs crossed.
"Good. now then, the first thing you have to do is quiet your mind and relax." he cupped his hands out in front of her "When you're ready you start to slowly draw our your Ki from within your body." he promptly formed a ball of Ki in his palm, leaving Videl in awe at the sight of seeing it up close.
"Wow, it… It almost looks like I'm looking at a star up close."
"There, so do you get it now?" he dissipated the Ki sphere as quickly as he materialized it "So how about it, are you ready to try it for yourself or do you need another demonstration?"
"I think I'm ready, what's the worst that can happen right?" Videl took a breath and slowly cupped her hands.
"Remember, you have to keep yourself calm or it's not gonna work."
"I know." Videl tried to summon her Ki in her hands, but she quickly ended up getting frustrated with it, which caused her entire body to tense up.
"You're doing it wrong, you have to calm yourself down. Don't let yourself get so stressed out over it, it's not gonna work if you spend all your time beating yourself up to the point where you won't let it come out."
"I know, but…" Videl looked up at at him, tears of anger brimming in her eyes "I need to find a way to make this work."
"...Okay fine, that's enough of that for now." Kai pulled himself back to his feet "Go ahead and take a breather, I've got something I need to take care of anyway."
"And that is?"
"My main reason for coming out here to begin with. It's like I told you before, I'm doing a favor for a friend."
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Meanwhile, with the only surviving Saiyan…
"Hey Bulma." at the same time, Gohan made his way into the underground lab and quickly found that Bulma was already in there, looking rather concerned about something "You okay? You look kind of upset about something."
"No it's not that, it's just…" Bulma let out a sigh "The shipping company that I've been using has suspended all their operations because they were attacked by the Androids. I've been using them in order to send supplies to Roshi and the others on a regular basis, but now I can't, so I'm kind of stuck right about now."
"I can do it for you."
"Really?"
"Yeah of course, it's the least I can do for Master Roshi and the others."
"Oh thanks Gohan, that would be a huge help." she handed him a small capsule "Sorry to put this on you, but could you go ahead and give him this capsule? It's got all of your basic commodities in it, food and water, clothes and a bunch of other stuff."
"No worries, I'm on it."
"Good luck, and make sure to watch out for the Androids okay?"
"Oh believe me Bulma, I know." and so he made his way out of the lab 'So this capsule has all sorts of supplies in it for Master Roshi and the others, and they need all they can get now that they have to live in that cramped submarine.'
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Meanwhile, with Kai and his new student…
At the same time, Kai stood at the bottom of Mount Paozu, in front of two shallow graves that looked considerably worn down, and he glanced back to see Videl standing behind him "You know you didn't have to come with me for this."
"I thought it was only right." Videl told him flatly, then looked past him at the graves "Are they friends of yours?"
"Nope, I didn't really like them and they didn't really like me. One of them anyway. Their son and grandson is a friend of mine, he used to live out here, until they died."
"Was it the Androids?"
"Nope, the heart virus got them first. It got his dad too, about six months before the Androids showed up. This is actually the first time I've been out here since then." Kai turned back to the graves and knelt down in front of them, his voice soft "Yeah I know, I'm probably the last person you thought you'd see here, or want to see for that matter. Look, I think it's safe to say that you, at least one of you, never liked me to begin with, and the feeling was mutual. But I just wanted to tell you that… you don't have to worry. About Gohan I mean. Whatever happens from here on out, I swear I'm gonna take care of him in any way I can. Gohan's my best friend, and he's the only person in the world that really matters to me anymore. There's Bulma, but you already know how that is. Like I said, I'm gonna take care of Gohan, so you don't have to worry about him up there, okay?" he placed a few flowers on each of the graves, then pulled himself back to his feet, then turned back to Videl "Okay I'm done here, let's grab something to eat and then you can have another try at tapping into your Ki."
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Meanwhile, with Gohan…
"Hey Master Roshi, are you guys still down here?" it didn't take long for Gohan to make his way to the submarine (which was hidden off the coast of Kame House), and found Roshi and the others all present "Sorry to drop in like this, but Bulma asked me to come here and give you guys some supplies from her."
"Oh that is a relief Gohan, thank you." Roshi breathed a sigh of relief as he accepted the capsule from him "We heard on the radio that the shipping company we were using was attacked, so the others and I were starting to get worried."
"Yeah… so many lives being ruined by the Androids in one way or another." Gohan let out a snarl as his hair flashed gold for a few seconds "We need to put a stop to them, before they can hurt anyone else."
"...Tell me something Gohan, what exactly are those Androids like?"
"What do you mean?"
"You and Kai have fought with them numerous times before now, so maybe you would be able to provide us with a bit of insight into the supposed monsters that have been terrorizing the world for so many years."
"Well, you already know what they look like right?"
"Of course, we've seen them on the news dozens of times by now." Oolong told him "One of them looks like a teenage boy, and the other one is a girl right? She's actually kind of hot, it took me by surprise."
"Yeah that's them, but you can't let yourself be fooled by how they look. They're monsters in just about every sense of the word, they'll kill without hesitation or remorse and they laugh when they do it. They're as evil and wicked as the likes of Frieza and Slug, only way more powerful than either of them combined. I hate to admit it, but even me and Kai working together hasn't been enough to stop them. Not yet at least."
"Well… that took a dark turn."
"I see…" Master Roshi frowned in thought for a moment.
"What are you thinking about Master Roshi?" asked Turtle.
"They are indeed terrifying foes, but even the mightiest of them have a weakness, as small as it might seem."
"If there is, then we haven't found it yet." Gohan muttered.
"Well in any case, there's only one way to find out. I'm going to have to take a good long look at the two of them myself."
"You what?! But that would be suicide!"
"It would certainly beat being trapped in this blasted submarine like this."
"Master Roshi…" this was when Turtle got his attention "Please tell me that you don't want to meet them for yourself just because one of them is a cute girl."
'Shit! Of course not, do I really look like that kind of person to you?!"
"Yes." was the simultaneous chorus of everyone present, except for Gohan.
"I-It's not like I was asking all of you."
"Master please, you have to think about what you're doing!" Turtle tried to plead with him.
"I know exactly what I'm doing, I don't plan to throw my life away just yet!"
"Okay… well I should probably head back to Capsule Corp, let Bulma know that I was able to get these supplies to you. She's probably worried by now."
"That she would be. Please send our regards to Bulma and Kai, and make sure to be careful on your way back."
"I will, and make sure all of you take care of yourselves." and so Gohan promptly turned around and took his leave of the submarine 'Right, now that that's taken care of I'd better head back and let Bulma know I got the supplies to them. I should probably check in with Kai too, see what he's doing right now.'
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Meanwhile, with Kai…
"Okay, let's get back to it." now that tending to the graves was finished, Kai sat back down in a large grassy field with Videl sitting in front of him "Now remember, you have to keep your shit together or it's not gonna work."
"I know, you're right. I have to stay calm when i do this." Videl relaxed slightly as a light began pulsing slightly in her hands.
"Okay there you go, you're almost there."
Videl's eyes widened slightly as a small Ki sphere flickered into life in her hands.
"Yes you've got it, you're actually better at this than I was expecting. Gohan took almost 2 hours to summon his Ki and I took almost a full day, you're even more naturally talented at this than I was expecting you to be. Credit where it's due, you show a lot of promise."
Videl smiled slightly at the compliment, before her Ki sphere disappeared and she fell forward, leaving her to be caught in Kai's arms, causing her to blush slightly before she snapped out of it and bolted to her feet "So I've learned to tap into my Ki, does that mean I can use it to fly around and blow stuff up like you or the Androids can?"
"With enough practice yeah, but don't forget that you're a beginner. You have to learn how to control your Ki effectively, your body is a lot of mass to try and move around for someone who just learned to tap into her Ki." he was met with a sigh of frustration "Some things can be done fast or they can be done right. Look I get it though, I was the same way when I first started out learning how to use Ki, excited to learn everything I could as fast as I could without giving a rat's ass about the basics and principles. But my teacher, my mom from before she died, showed me how important the basics were and what I could do with them, and it was during that I proved myself to her, giving her the confidence to move me onto more advanced techniques."
"Okay I get it, you made your point. If that's the way I have to do it then I will, just tell me what I have to do and I'll do it."
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Meanwhile, with Gohan…
"Hey Bulma, I'm back." Gohan made his way into the underground lab and found Bulma at work on some invention in the corner "Bulma?"
"Oh hey." Bulma glanced up at him "So how did it go, did you manage to get the capsule to the others on the submarine?"
"Yeah, they were all pretty relieved about it too."
"Glad to hear it, so what did you guys end up talking about?"
"Well…" and so he launched into a full explanation of the conversation on the submarine, along with what Roshi had said that earned a fair amount of backlash "And then he said something about wanting to get a closer look for himself."
"Oh for crying out loud, even when the world is being destroyed that old perv doesn't change in the slightest does he?"
"We interrupt this program to give you breaking news on the Android threat. The Androids have been spotted attacking the suburban area of the NBI district!"
"NBI? Oh shit, that's right near Kame House isn't it?"
"Kame House… Oh crapbaskets, I have a bad feeling about this." Gohan muttered "I'd better head over there to see what's going on."
"Gohan wait, where do you think you're going?"
"To do what I have to do!" and so he bolted out of the lab and blasted off into the skies without wasting any time 'Come on Master Roshi, please tell me you didn't actually do it!'
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Meanwhile, with Kai and his new student…
'No wonder teachers are so pissed off all the time, this is excruciating.' by this point, Kai stood in front of Videl in a clearing within the mountain rage, rubbing his temples "Okay, now it's about the time for you to try flying for the first time. Are you ready for this?"
"I don't really have a choice." Videl told him flatly "I haven't been ready for any of this for a really long time, but I'll do it anywaty."
"Good enough for me. Now remember that for this to work, you have to relax your body but be sure to focus your Ki at the same time, even if they do sound contradictory."
"Right." Videl began focusing her Ki, the ground beneath her feet pulsating slightly as a result of this.
"Okay, you're starting out well. You're getting the hang of it without a doubt, so now all you have to do is push."
"Right." and so with a deep breath, Videl slowly lifted herself a few inches off the ground.
"Alright there we go, and you just learned how to fly the old fashioned way."
"And I'd still be doing it if you'd quit barking in my ear, I'm trying to concentrate!" and she fell back to the ground.
"Hey as far as I'm concerned you don't have anything to whine about, you just got done in a day what took me almost a full week to get, even if I was only 3 at the time."
"...It's not enough." Videl looked up at him "This isn't anywhere near enough."
"You gonna elaborate?"
"I've been training as long and as hard as I have for years so I can bring down the Androids, so I need to learn everything about this I can."
"And that right there is your problem. You're too short sighted in your goals."
"What?"
"You heard me."
"I've spent years training with my closest friend to bring the Androids down, but they're not the only reason for it."
"What else is as important as beating the Androids?"
"Being the best there is. Androids or no androids, I'm aiming to be the best of the best, and that isn't going to change anytime soon. The androids aren't much more to me personally than a few obstacles that stand in the way of that, even if they are destroying the planet and slaughtering those that stand in their way. Remember this Videl, if you're serious about mastering Ki control and everything that goes with it, then you should never set limits on the kind of power you see or want to believe is possible, or anything like that. You should always strive to be the best there is at whatever you do. Of course that's already my goal, so don't think it's gonna be easy. But then again, if it was easy then it wouldn't be worth doing at all."
"Kai… you're really serious about this aren't you?"
"I've lived my life by these rules of mine for the past 14 years. I don't know about you, but I won't be satisfied with just beating the Androids, because I said before that it's short sighted to just think about that. I'm pushing myself harder every single day, and I won't stop until I'm the best there is. If you do the same and aim for the highest you can, you're gonna go far and go there fast. Remember that."
"...You're right." Videl's gaze hardened with burning resolve "You're right about all of it, and I promise you I'll do everything I can to go as far as I can."
"Good to hear, because from here on out you're gonna have to do it on your own."
"Wait what?!"
"I told you before that I'm already training to take down the Androids, everything today was just part of a detour that took a lot longer than I was expecting, and frankly I don't really see myself as a teacher."
"So then… I'm on my own, just like that?"
"I wouldn't say that." he pulled out a capsule and opened it revealing a notebook, and he handed it to her "This journal contains the notes I've made on Ki control and martial arts techniques over the years. At fist it focuses on Ki control, then moves onto the techniques that I learned from my teacher, my uncle and his friends like the Wolf Fang Fist, the Kamehameha, the Spirit Ball and the others. Finish the Ki control basics before you move onto the techniques, otherwise you may end up ripping yourself in half."
"This… is a really big help actually."
"And if it helps there are others you can go to. If you really wanna learn the right way then go seek out Master Roshi, he lives around the Southeast islands, near the NBI district."
"Wait, you mean Master Roshi of the Turtle School?! I thought he died years ago!"
"No idea how that got started but nope, he's alive and living in a submarine with a bunch of talking animals. So he might as well be dead. Anyway if you wanna learn the basics from an actual master, go seek him out. Well I'd better get going, this turned into something way bigger than I was expecting it too."
"Yeah, I probably don't wanna keep you, but first…" Videl suddenly walked towards Kai and wrapped her arms around him, pulling him into a tight hug and giving him a quick kiss on the cheek "Thank you, for all of this."
"...Yeah sure, no worries. See you later I guess." Kai snapped himself out of his brief stupor and promptly blasted off into the skies 'Okay, I wasn't expecting that… No come on Kai focus, you have more important shit to deal with. Right now I'd better head back to Capsule Corp, make sure the others are okay. At least I know that the graves are taken care of, and it is kind of nice to know that me and Gohan aren't the only ones trying to make a difference against those fucking tin cans, and she is kind of hot. Too bad she's missing about 10 years worth of training to be of any real help, but it's better than nothing I guess.'
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Meanwhile, with the Turtle Hermit…
By this point, Master Roshi had found himself in a rather perilous situation that he was trying to talk himself out of, without much luck "Please I beg you to spare me, I'm just a weak old man who can't defend himself."
"Shut the hell up you old sack of bones." as it turns out, the one standing before Roshi was none other than Android 18, and she didn't look convinced in the slightest "You just wasted your last breath."
"Do you not have any conscience, no sense of decency in the slightest?"
"Why the hell would I have something like that, do I look like some kind of fucking princess out of a Disney movie to you?"
"Yes you do, I can see your beauty so you must have beauty in your heart to go with it! You just haven't tapped into that inner beauty lying deep within you!"
"What the hell is your problem? Whatever, I'm out of patience with you, so just go ahead and die already."
'Dammit, it's no use. I'm not getting through to her at all, she really is as much of a heartless monster as Gohan made her out to be.'
"You might as well go ahead and die you pathetic old fat." 18 nonchanalty held out both hands towards Roshi and unleashed her Infinity Bullet barrage, prepared to blast him to hell, when…
"Gekiretsu Madan!" a barrage of golden-colored Ki waves suddenly burst down form above to counter the Infinity Bullet, courtesy of Gohan as he dropped down onto the scene and flashed into Super Saiyan.
"Oh great, I have to deal with you again."
"I'm not letting you lay a finger on Master Roshi, if you're looking for a fight then you'll have one with me."
"Great, first the old geezer and now one of you pathetic brats. It's just dealing with one piece of crap after another today. Fine, I'll just rip both of you apart at the same time and then figure out something better to do." and so she blitzed forward and dealt Gohan a brutal elbow to the face that sent him flying back.
'She's so fast!' Gohan was able to recover just in time to dodge an attack from behind, and then he spun around and unleashed a swift barrage of punches.
18 dodged Gohan's barrage of punches with ease, then caught him by the ankle when he tried to kick her in the head and threw him into a nearby mountain, before firing a Photon Flash in that direction.
Gohan rebounded and used a Ki blast to propel himself above the Photon Flash, then spiked his aura as he charged towards 18, only for her to suddenly blitz out of view "What the-"
"Right here!" 18 blitzed in front of Gohan and hit him with a Photon Flash straight to the chest that sent him tumbling backwards, before charging in to finish him.
Gohan was able to roll out of the way just in time to avoid 18's next attack and dealt her a solid kick to the jaw that sent her skidding backwards, before charging in for a follow up attack at full speed.
Thinking quick, 18 led Gohan to the side of a nearby plateau and blitzed around to leave him to hurtle into the side of it, then dealt him a solid kick to the chest that sent him tumbling backwards a short distance and crashing to the ground with a loud thud.
'Dammit…' Gohan quickly picked himself back up as he wiped the blood from his lip, panting slightly as he did so 'Even on her own she's so strong and fast, it's insane.'
"Huh, it's actually pretty rare for anyone to survive against me this long. I figured you would've been torched by that first blast. I wonder what would happen if I kicked it up a notch." 18 gave a wicked smirk as she held out her hand and prepared another Photon Flash.
'Oh crapbaskets, what am I gonna do?'
"Oh great, so now I have to deal with you again?"
Gohan's head snapped up at the sound of a new voice, and he glanced over to see 17 land on the ground in front of him "17, so you're here too?" he quickly picked himself up and spiked his golden aura.
"You still wanna fight us? Is all the effort you're putting in seriously worth it?"
"Don't bother with him." 18 waved him off "Effort doesn't have anything to do with it, he just sucks altogether."
"So we kill him?"
"And then find something better to do."
"Wait, hold on a second!" this was when Master Roshi suddenly stepped up to the plate "Let this young man go in peace.
"You wanna run that the hell by me again you old fart?"
"If you let him go then you can do whatever you like with me, Roshi, once renowned as one of the greatest martial artists on the planet. My life belongs to the two of you, but you can't lay a hand on this boy here."
"You're kidding right? You don't actually think we give a damn about that? It's pretty obvious that both of you are gonna die here." 18 let out a scoff and held up a hand towards Roshi as she summoned a Ki blast "I'm thinking I'll start with the dinosaur, so it's time for you to go ahead and die old man." she was about to fire it, which prompted Gohan to prepare to charge forward, when…
"Wait hold up a second 18." this was when 17 suddenly grabbed her by the arm and stopped her, earning a dark look from her as a result.
"What the hell is the big idea?"
"This old fart has to have some serious guts to stand up to us, and honestly I'd say that's actually pretty cool."
"So?"
"So I'm actually kind of in a good mood today, since I was finally able to beat the final boss of that game I was playing." 17 then glanced over at Roshi "Fine old man, you've got a deal. We'll let you and the kid live just this once, and probably just take over your house or something in the meantime instead."
"Wait what?!" 18 promptly rounded on him "Why the hell would you do that?!"
"For once, I always wanted a beach house. Second, I've been trying to beat that boss for days and I finally pulled it off, so frankly I feel pretty damn good."
"What the hell? You're saying that because of some stupid game, you're gonna let them go just like that? You're such a child."
"Oh come on, if we kill the kid then that's just gonna be robbing us of more fun we can have later on. That's why I'm letting him go this one time." he then glanced over at Roshi "Just to make it clear though, this is gonna be a one time thing. Next time I see you… you're as good as dead." and so he promptly blasted off, with 18 following right behind him.
With the threat gone for the moment, Gohan dropped back to his base form and breathed a long sigh of exhaustion "They're gone, and that means we're safe for now."
"That was my fault I'm afraid." Roshi turned to face him, his expression solemn "I believe I owe you an apology Gohan."
"For what?"
"These Androids, they're nothing but pure evil, as bad as the likes of King Piccolo. There isn't a single ounce of goodness in them."
"You wanted to try and appeal to any sort of humanity in them, like my dad would've done. I get it, I really do. Me and Kai tried that, and I think Kai tried flirting with her or something, and all that came from it was me getting a hole blasted through my shoulder, and Kai getting one of his eyes blown out of its socket. They're pure evil, like Frieza and Slug, only much more powerful than both of them combined."
"I can see that now. But while they are both incredibly powerful, I think I have been able to figure out what their weakness is."
"You have? But how did you-"
"I could see it just by interacting with them. These Androids, it's clear that both of them take pleasure in the moment, they're controlled by the evil within them and have no true desire to improve themselves."
"What does that mean though?"
"It means that they don't have the drive to constantly push themselves forward and grow. But you do Gohan, both you and Kai, and you also have the courage needed to take them on time and time again. That is the strongest weapon you can have against them. Remember this Gohan, and take this to heart. You and Kai, the two of you are the last hope for this world. You both must continue with your training, and so long as you do your body and mind will do something theirs never could: improve and grow stronger. If there's anyone in this world that is able to pull such a thing off, it's the two of you. I have faith in both of you. The fate of this world and all those who live in it, is in your hands."
"Master Roshi…" Gohan was left in awe by Roshi's speech, and then his gaze hardened with a burning determination "I won't let you down, I promise."
"I know you won't. Goku, if only you could see how your son is growing up, I know you would be proud of the young man he's turned into.'
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Hours passed, and the sun was setting over the skies above West City.
"So let me see if I got this." Gohan glanced down at the mug in his hand, then over at Kai "You said something about getting your first experience as a teacher?"
"That's the short version of it." Kai gave a shrug "And you went to deliver some supplies to what will probably be dubbed as the Kame Sub, trademarking that now, the old perv went to try and appeal to any sense of humanity in them, only to find they had about as much as Frieza did, but now he thinks that their weakness is their lack of desire to improve, so as long as the two of us have any sort of work ethic, we can overcome them."
"That's the whole story anyway."
"Uh huh. Makes sense, even if it wasn't something we didn't already know. That's why we've been training so long and so hard, to beat them and then progress even further, to go beyond any limitations, basically everything I told this Videl chick earlier."
"Yeah, so going back to that for a minute, you think she showed promise?"
"Oh definitely, she learned the basics of generating Ki and learning to fly almost as fast as you did during your first time. Too bad she's about 10 years behind to be of any help, so I redirected her to the old perv."
"You didn't say that to her did you? That's kind of harsh."
"But it's true. I might be snarky as fuck and love screwing with people, but I'm also a realist. I know that with the Dragon Balls around death almost never had any consequences, but now that they're out of the picture that's changed. Now we've only got the one chance, so we have to make it count while we can. We can't afford any distractions or setbacks."
"I know that, but still… Hey by the way, what were you doing over near Mount Paozu in the first place?"
"That was the thing I had to do. You said you hadn't been back there in a few years right?"
"Yeah?"
"Somebody had to take care of their graves." this caused Gohan to tense up to the point where his grip shattered the mug he was holding "Look man, I know how you feel. Trust me, if there's any single person in this entire fucking universe who knows how that feels, it's me."
Gohan said nothing, he just looked down at his lap, sadness in his eyes.
"I know better than anyone how it feels to lose the people you care about most, and to lose them in one of the only two ways that can't be undone by the power of the Dragon Balls, whether we still have them or not, so I understand exactly what you're feeling right now, what you've been feeling for the last three years. But you know what the difference between us is?"
"What?"
"I understand that moping, sulking, feeling sorry for myself and avoiding the issue isn't going to change anything. You taught me that lesson a long time ago, even if it did take awhile for it to sink in all the way. I'm past that point in my life, and you should be too."
"What do you mean?"
"My mom and Yamcha, Piccolo and even Nail, they left me a lot of stuff. Some lessons were more important than others, but that doesn't change a damn thing about it. The same can be said for you too, a ton of priceless things and memories you hold with you every day. The day of us acting like ignorant little shits is over, and now we have to step up."
"How so?"
"The days of us being students is over, now the time is ours to make our own, to become teachers in our own right. It's not gonna be easy, but nothing worth doing in life is. Eventually you're gonna be the one teaching people how to use the Masenko, and they're probably gonna be calling you Master Gohan or some shit. Like I said, we can't be kids forever, because that part of our lives is over, especially if we want to live up to those that came before us, and surpass the legacy they left behind. Do you understand what I'm saying?"
"...Yeah, I think I do." Gohan slowly pulled himself to his feet and gave a small smile "Thank you Kai, truly."
"Forget it. The morale of this whole epic speech is, don't dwell on the past feeling sorry for yourself the whole time, and at least go tend to their graves every now and then."
"Yeah, I'll… I'll be sure to do that. Soon."
"Good, now make sure you keep your shit together, because tomorrow we've got a lot of work ahead of us. Anyway I'm gonna hit the showers. Later." and so he promptly made his way out of the room, leaving Gohan alone with his thoughts.
'Kai is right, I can't dwell on the past anymore. But one thing I know for sure is that if we want to uphold the legacy that dad, Piccolo, Yamcha and everyone else left behind, we need to defeat the Androids and bring back peace to this world and eveyrone in it.'
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Hours passed, and darkness had long since fallen.
"The area surrounding West City had suffered numerous casualties today, as the androids 17 and 18 continued their rampage. As such, residents located in nearby areas have been given the order to evacuate immediately."
"Dammit…" Gohan gritted his teeth as he shut off the news report, then glanced over to the side, where he could see Bulma sleeping on on of the beds and Kai meditating on the ground 'All of you, please just hang on for a little while longer. I promise you, I'll come back for good once the androids are gone… However long that might be…'
A/N:
Well here it is, the first chapter of my spinoff from DBZ: Next Generation, and a hell of a lot faster than I was expecting too. Like I said in the summary, you'll need to read DBZ: Next Generation before you read this fic in order to understand all of the context behind it, because this is based on the alternate timeline of the events of that story. This chapter covers the events of the History of Gohan chapter from the main story, albeit with a few tweaks and changes here and there, as well as a few additional features that will be shown later on. Oh yeah, and I'm still going to be doing power levels for this story, so you can find those at the bottom of the chapters I upload.
Speaking of which, I probably should explain a few things before I close out this chapter. The main inspiration for this story came from when I spent a week binging the new DLC for Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot, specifically DLC pack 3, Trunks: the Warrior of Hope. It covers all of the events in Future Trunks' timeline, including the History of Trunks, what happens in between the times he travels back to the past, him interacting with the other surviving members of the group, him killing the Androids and Cell, and even a surprise after that. I will be covering all of that in this story, along with a few other bits of content.
Like I said, there are a few tweaks and changes in this chapter compared to the future timeline in DBZ: Next Generation. The most notable one os that Kai meets the Videl of this timeline fairly early on, and even teaches her the basics of Ki control before sending her (and Erasa by extension, as will be seen later on) to train with Master Roshi. Looking back, I thought the inclusion of Erasa in the future timeline was a little bit rushed, so this way I can flesh it out a little bit more, give her and Videl some more development beforehand.
Power levels:
Future Gohan: 3 million
Super Saiyan Future Gohan: 150 million
Future Kai: 8.2 million
Future Kai (Namek-Ken): 16.4 million
Future Kai (Namek-Ken 20x): 164 million
Future Videl: 20
Future Master Roshi: 840
Future Android 17: 380 million
Future Android 18: 370 million