LEGEND BELOW

"This can't be happening. This isn't real..." = Normal speech.

''What could have happened?'' = Normal thoughts.

Warning warning warning

Lab 18 has detected a catastrophic system wide failure. Administering a data-feed backup.

. . .

Data-feed backup failed. Calling in administrator command code.

. . .

Call in failed. Unable to locate site director, Dr. Gero. Backup response system activated. System wide analysis ongoing, multiple safety concerns detected. Damage has been detected onsite. All major systems are failing. Requesting assistance from onsite director, Dr. Gero.

. . .

Unable to locate Dr. Gero. Automatic system override activated. Systems failing. All maintenance systems are unavailable at this time. Unable to repair systems before catastrophic system crash. Action code beta 5 initiated. Bringing all Android units online.

. . .

Warning. System unable to comply. Android life support systems one through seventeen have failed. Containment pods one through seventeen are damaged or missing. System unable to comply.

Complete system shutdown detected. All outline systems malfunctioning. Computers powering down. Backup computer powering on.

. . .

Warning. System has detected an Android in pod number eighteen. Pod damaged, life support systems falling. Emergency action required. Bringing pod number eighteen online now. Reviving number eighteen. Initiating command code killgoku.exe now.

. . .

Error message detected. Command code not issued. Bringing Android 18 online now...

She awoke to the sound of hissing mechanical equipment, unable to move her body. Darkness greeted her vision, her eyes not yet adjusted to pitch black setting. She took an experimental breath, the stale air flooding her nostrils. She felt bad, felt wrong.

She could hear other sounds too. Although faint, the sound of an emergency alarm blaring could be heard. She wasn't sure, but she knew that the sound didn't mean anything good. Just over the sound of the alarm, however, she heard what sounded like a prerecorded voice playing.

"System failure. System failure." That's what it was saying. Another breath of broken stale air filled her lungs, further reaffirming to her that something was incorrect about this situation. She opened her eyes again, her beautiful aqua colored orbs casting a small light over her surroundings. She could see it now, the aggressive red light flashing in tune with the warning alarm.

Reaching up, her hands came into contact with a cold solid wall. She felt around her, suddenly realizing that she was fully encased in a solid metal pod. But it seems as if her exploring hands would reward her for her efforts, because the second her fingertips brushed acrossed something, the pod began to hiss. The release clamps had failed, but had fallen away. The pod door opened slowly, a dying metallic screech filled the air as metal scraped against metal.

Then she heard it. It was nearly impossible before, but now, without the door in the way, the sound was clear as day. Thunder and lightning echoed throughout the hollow expanse of a collapsed cave system she found herself in. Fire was everywhere. Everything around her little pod was on fire, or had been reduced to ashes. All around her was the dying remains of what seemed to have once been some kind of science lab.

She slowly pulled herself out of her pod, taking a moment to remember how her legs worked. It was hard, harder then it should have been. Something wasn't right. It shouldn't have been this hard to move, but, it was. Her head felt foggy, as if her memory was fading. She couldn't remember what she was supposed to remember, she couldn't think. She couldn't, it wasn't.

"A-Ah..." She moaned in pain, grabbing at her head. This wasn't right. Something was missing. She felt as if some part of her had been torn away without her consent. But she didn't know what that something was, and that made it ten times worse.

She needed to get out, to get away from this place. She didn't know why, but something about it felt wrong. She went to get out of her pod again, this time having much less of a struggle moving then before. She stepped out of the pod, her leather boot covered feet touching the ground. She didn't even realize that she was wearing anything until just then. There was a puddle of water on the floor, reflecting her image back to her.

She was a beautiful blond, most likely no older then nineteen years old. A little on the short side, not that she really knew that. She was dressed in tight black legging that filled into her tall boots. A tight and short blue skirt clung to her waist. Her chest was covered by a loose black tank top, with a white sleeved blue jacket over that with 'Android-18' embroidered on the right breast pocket. Two bright gold earrings hung from her ears, reflecting the light from the fires nearby. Her lightly tanned skin was almost hidden by the lack of light.

She raised a dainty hand to her face, almost not even recognizing the feeling of it. This was her? This was who she was? Her blue eyes gazed at the image blankly, unable to tear herself away. She didn't know how long she stood there, completely ignoring the dying fires around her. She was only pulled from her thoughts as drop of water fell from the ceiling, disrupting the water's reflection. She suddenly remembered that the place she was in was collapsing.

Putting her dilemma behind her, she ran for what seemed like the nearest exit. Two massive double doors barred her timely escape. She looked all around, but couldn't find any sort of lever or button that would open it. There was a handle on the doors, but the barriers looked way too heavy to even move on her own.

"How am I supposed to-? ah!" The answer to her own question was quickly answered when she gave a quick sharp tug on the door, and to her surprise, she accidentally tore the heavy two thousand pound door off its hinges. She fell to the ground with an indignant eep, her eyes shot wide in shock. "W-What the-!? How did..?!" She could help but question aloud in bafflement. Her hand was still holding onto the now bent metal handle of the door, indentation marks left in the dense metal by her own soft fingers. She quickly threw the handle across the room, scooting away from the slag-heap. Her heart was racing, her mind reeling.

She quickly got to her feet again, before running to the now opened doorway. But when she did, the sight her eyes beheld was anything but good. Her breath left her lungs at the sight. She was standing atop a mountain range, or at least, what used to be one. The forests that once covered the land had since been burnt to ash, leaving a dark colored scar across the world. Off in the distance she spotted what could only be described as a city on fire. Black clouds of smoke filled the skies, blotting out the sun.

She suddenly realized that it was hard to breath, the air around her burning and polluted with ash. She brought a hand to her mouth, trying to block out the smoke. She coughed, the taste of burning flesh filling the air. Her eyes tear up from the smoke, making it hard to see. There wasn't anything she could see that wasn't deviated by destruction.

"O-Oh god..." She muttered in horror. This wasn't real. This, this couldn't be real! Everything was gone, it was all destroyed. She couldn't believe it, she didn't want to, but... There wasn't anything but devastation as far as the eye could see. "What... What happened...?" She gasped, questioning no one in particular.

She needed to leave. She wanted to get as far away from this place as she could. She couldn't stand to look at the horrible sight anymore. She moved. She ran away. As fast as she thought her legs could go. With every step she took she kicked up ash. She didn't want to know what else was part of that ash besides just wood.

She ran for what felt like hours, putting as much distance between her and the strange burning lab she came from. But the only other place was the city, or what part of it remained. She ran there, hoping beyond hope that someone there could help her. She was scared. She didn't know what to do, who to run to, where to go. She didn't know anything, she didn't know anyone.

When she finally reached the outskirts of the city, her hopes were dashed when all she found was burnt remains of a civilization ravaged by something inhuman. Buildings had been toppled, roads torn up. Massive craters littered the land, rubble of the remains filling them. Then, there were the bodies. Littered across the city streets were bodies. People, all lying face down in pools of their own blood. It was horrifying. She felt sick to her stomach just looking at it. And the smell hit her, and she had trouble keeping her stomach down.

She turned away, unable to look at it anymore. She wandered through the city, looking for any signs of life, even though she had a feeling that she was the only one left alive. She wandered for what felt like hours, finding that nothing was left untouched by the devastation. She passed by a destroyed television store, spotting a few of the TVs that were still playing. It was a recording, an old news report, replaying endlessly. The screen was damaged, but she could make out a scene of a city being assaulted by someone. Buildings were being destroyed in a huge fight, beams of energy flying all around. She couldn't make out what was happening. Then a man appeared on screen, his face deranged and covered in blood. Then the recording ended, only to begin playing again.

That face, she knew it. She tried to remember, but nothing came up. Her head hurt, but she just couldn't remember. She fell to her knees, grabbing at her head. This wasn't right! She told herself that everything was all wrong! Why?! Why had the world been destroyed!? What had happened...?

Hours passed as she sat there, her mind reeling in shock. She didn't move, she couldn't move. What would she do? What was she supposed to do about this? Why was everyone dead? Why was she the only survivor over everyone else?

The woman's mind continued to ask these unanswerable questions for days to come, tormenting her mind. She didn't know how long she wandered through the lifeless city, searching. The blond haired beauty spent a week wandering, before she left. Then she followed the highway out of the mega city. She didn't know where it went, but she prayed that it led to somewhere that hadn't been devastated.

However, no matter how far she traveled, she was only greeted with the sight of death and destruction as far as her eyes could see. She traveled that road until she reached another city. It was at this point that she realized something. She couldn't hear anything. She knew that she wasn't deaf, that was for sure. No, that wasn't the problem.

The only sounds she heard, were the sounds she made. Wether it be the sound her boots made when they hit the ground, or the sound of the air leaving her lungs. No birds chirping, no bugs clicking, no leaves flying through the breeze. Nothing. Nothing but the sounds she made accompanied her travels through this lifeless world. All the animals had been scared quiet, or they had all been killed off.

It wasn't just people. She realized with a start. Everything was gone. No signs of life remained untouched by this worldwide devastation. Nothing had been left alone. Nothing at all. Nothing.

Except for her...

One year had passed since she awoke from the cold metallic pod that had been her resting place. Three hundred and sixty five plus days she spent wandering the world, well, what was left of it anyway. Sometimes she would find herself just walking for hours on end, her goal never in sight. Some nights she would stay up, searching the cloudy skies above for a sign of life. Occasionally she would gain a momentary glimpse of the moon hanging in the sky. All fifteen parts of it. The moon was destroyed as well, shattered like a glass ball, the remnants of its surface spread across the horizon.

She hadn't spoken much since the day she left the lab. She couldn't bring herself to talk, even to herself in this situation. Days would pass in total silence, only the sound of the breeze parting her long blond bangs breaking the stagnant air. This silence, she hated it. The nothingness was terrifying, leaving a bad mark on her psyche the longer she had to endure it.

Eventually the beauty wandered into the mega city that was appropriately named, West City. In its prime, West City was probably the largest city on earth, and the most wealthy. Even now, with it completely destroyed, she knew that it must have been a sight.

Above the city stood a tower, the only one still standing amidst the rubble. It was displaying the date. It was the Age 780, in the middle of winter. The woman hugged her arms together, the cold mentioned above having already been affecting her. She was tired. After walking for days and days on end, the blond just wanted to rest. Somewhere warm, out of the freezing lifeless wind. In her search for a place to rest, she came upon the ruins of what once was the Capsule Corporation.

For some reason that name stuck out to her. She could remember a Capsule Corporation from years ago, but... Nothing else came along with that memory. Trying to think about it made her head hurt, and so she stopped.

But the building was still rather intact, and right now, anything that wasn't destroyed was a perfect place to sleep. Without hesitation, she made her way into the compound. The darkness inside was strangely welcoming compared to the freezing cold outside. But even in the lightless interior, she could see perfectly fine, a blue glow radiating from her eyes illuminated her surroundings. With exhaustion tugging at her senses, she searched out the nearest place for rest.

Unfortunately, it seemed that all the bedrooms had been destroyed. She was about to give up when she stumbled across a strange floating four legged pod resting inside of a large open domed room. It was ironic, she mused, that the only place she could find to rest just so happened to be a pod. She had awoken in this horrible world from a pod, and now she was sleeping in pods.

She didn't give the thought another moment of her time, and instead quickly climbed up into the strange ship like pod. She fell into the large chair placed in the middle, slumping down. There was a jacket in there, a light blue denim. It wasn't a blanket, but she supposed that it would have to suffice for the time being.

She silently lay there in the chair for the grand total of five minutes, before it became too much to bear any longer.

"Why...?" She muttered quietly, the first words spoken in a long time. This silence was too much for her to properly mentally handle any longer. A tear fell from her eyes as she stared blankly ahead, the deafening quiet slowly killing her inside. She would take anything over nothing. Anything at all. She was on the verge of craving anything she could find that made noise at all.

A sound escaped her throat, a quiet broken sob, the sound that only someone so unbearable alone could create. She curled up, bringing her knees to her chest as the tears escaped. She just wanted this to stop! The silence, she wanted to never have to endure it again. But she knew that her wishes wouldn't be granted.

She fell asleep that night restless and exhausted, mentally and emotionally. Her night was dreamless, another thing filled with silence that taunted her endlessly. However, at some point during her restless sleep she had managed to press up against something inside of the pod. She awoke to the sound of the pod's hatch closing above her, locking her in.

"What..?" She exclaimed in shock, as the computer console in front of her powered on. The sounds of engines warming up could be heard through the pod. Then suddenly the whole thing began to float up into the air. "No, wait..!" Her pleas did nothing on the form of stopping the machine. Then the world outside of the pod began to fade away, as if it never existed in the first place. She fell back into her chair, away from the window, afraid. She didn't know what to expect, nor what was going to happen. But she supposed that it couldn't be any worse then her fate doomed to live alone in a lifeless world.

Then the pod rocketed off into the void, never to be seen again...

Earth. The beautiful centerpiece of the milky-way galaxy, also doubling as the home world to humanity. Earth was well known for its strange otherworldly events that took place year after year, flying dragons, talking human-like animals, etc. It was also known as the planet that was constantly threatened with planetary destruction, and or total domination.

For over a hundred years now, Earth was subject to pain and suffering, sometimes on a continental scale. New threats would constantly pop up, one after another, attempting to overthrow the balance.

First it was an evil army bent on world domination. This army would eventually meet its end by the hands of a young boy named Son Goku, alongside the future head of Capsule Corporation. With Goku's supernatural strength and superior martial art skills, he tore down the army, saving the world from domination. Then again, years later a strange demon lord took power, taking the world in his hands. This demon lord, King Piccolo, was soundly defeated by a teenage Goku, though not without suffering gave injuries.

Eventually, another threat arose. An alien by the name of Raditz came to Earth with the intention of genocide. However, he was stopped and defeated by Son Goku and his temporary ally, Piccolo, the son of evil King Piccolo. During this battle, Goku would learn of his heritage, that he was in fact, not human, but actually part of the alien race named the Saiyans.

Two more Saiyans similar to Raditz would appear not a year later, seeking the same thing, genocide. A ragtag squad of fighters consisting of some of Goku's friends and old rivals fought off the threats, killing one of the Saiyans, Napa, and warding the other one, Vegeta, off.

However, due to the damage the Saiyans had wrought before their defeat, Earth was left damaged and many people had been killed. In an attempt to reverse the devastation, the group of fighters were forced to call on the power of legend. The Dragon Balls.

The Dragon Balls were seven orbs of immense supernatural power, that when brought together, would summon the legendary wish granting Dragon, Shenron. However, due to complications, they were forced to search out Shenron's home planet to complete their wish.

They would travel there and end up getting involved in a large scale skirmish, with an evil overlord named Frieza threatening to destroy the planet. This battle would take place over days, but the result was eventual victory. The planet and the strange aliens that lived there were saved, albeit suffering some loss. During that battle, new friendships were made, if you could call it that. Son Goku would take up a rivalry sort of friendship with the Prince of all Sayiens himself, Vegeta.

The team would eventually return to Earth, taking a well deserved brake from the constant battles. However, not a short time later, a revived and rebuilt Frieza would come to Earth seeking revenge. Alongside Frieza was his father, the evil ruler named King Cold. Both of these new threats would probably have proved currently unstoppable, if it weren't for the timely intervention by one strange newcomer.

A teenager by the name of Trunks, who would appear as if from thin air to save the day. However, along with his timely arrival would also come a warning. Apparently the teen came from the future, a future filled with death. He stated that he was one of the sole survivors on the planet before traveling back in time. The reason he can back was simple. He appeared to warn the past of the approaching threats, and hopefully prevent his future from happening again.

Soon after his appearance, the silver haired teen would vanish without a trace, flying into the void within his podlike time ship. Now left worried, and concerned for their future, the team would take up their remaining time with training. They were warned that they had three years to prepare for the coming threat that was the Androids. Alongside Trunks' warning was also a short description of the two androids, alongside a blurry picture. It depicted a short black haired man and a short beautiful blond haired woman, around them complete chaos.

The team would try their best to commit those images to memory. Trunks warned them of the year that the disaster started, but he also said that the Androids could have been there on Earth before they went insane and started to kill everyone. With that knowledge in mind, Bulma, the head of the Capsule Corporation and one of Son Goku's best friends from childhood would put out a search for the two androids. They had little to go off of besides a description and a blurry picture, but that wouldn't stop the blue haired woman from trying...

It was midday in the middle of the metropolis West City. The inhabitants were going about their day as usual, living life as it was supposed to be lived. The city was alive with sounds of all sorts, echoing throughout the airwaves like a roaring wave.

Dead center of the city was the massive complex owned by the Capsule Corporation. This complex also served as the home for Bulma, the company's owner, and her husband, The Prince of All Saiyans, Vegeta. But as of recently, the spiky haired warrior would spend more time training then with her. This bothered her like nothing else, but she put up with it because she knew that it was for a purpose.

That and she wasn't doing anything besides lounging around anyway, so what did it matter. The woman was currently occupied with her guests, other members of the team. A few of her and subsequently Goku's friends had come over for a party, insisting that they all take a day off. And who was she to say no to a good party?

So the whole group would spend the night playing games, watching tv, and just generally relaxing. Of course, Vegeta was still too busy training to even think about resting. The night was going just about the same as it had been for the last year now, smoothly. Until the androids showed up, there wasn't much anyone could do besides wait and watch.

As the night dragged on, everyone slowly began to settle down. The night began to quiet, and the tv was muted. Everyone was either passed out or on the verge of sleep. However, in the depth of night, when everyone was asleep and no one was expecting anything, something happened.

The sound of the fabric of time tearing was heard, as only a short distance away from the Capsule Corporation's main building, a void opened up. Out of that void came a ship, podlike in design. In fact, that pod was the exact same one that Trunks had used only a year ago. It landed on the ground softly, barely making a sound.

The motion had activated the complex's camera security systems however, and the whole thing would end up being recorded. But, anyone important would only ever learn of this the next day, when they all awoke to the sound of the intrusion alarm systems going off. Exhausted and barely awake from the night before; Krillin, close friend of Goku's, went to investigate the problem. Upon reviewing the security tape, the short balled haired warrior's blood ran cold.

The recording displayed a pod seemingly forming out of thin air, followed by someone exiting it. At first he had assumed that the mysterious Trunks had returned. But when an unknown blond haired woman appeared instead, he knew something was very wrong.

"No, no no no.. This- This can't be happening!" He exclaimed in stunned horror. The camera wasn't too clear with the darkness and the distance it had recorded from, but Krillin knew. The blurry image displayed was almost a carbon copy of the picture Trunks had given them a year ago. The picture, of an Android. But this one was wearing Trunks Jacket.

His mind was drawing a blank. He didn't know what to do! He wasn't ready! They weren't ready. No one was ready. Trunks said that the androids were extremely powerful, even more so then he was, but Trunks was able to easily obliterate Frieza, a feat non of them were capable of. Goku was stronger then them all, but as of late, the super warrior was suffering from the onset of a heart condition. If the androids were here now, then no one here was capable of stopping them.

"O-Oh I, uh, not good! This isn't-!? I-I need to tell Bulma!" The bald fighter panicked, and quickly ran to the others. Everyone was still asleep, but not for long. He needed to warn them!

"Hey hey hey! Wake up!" Krillin started shouting, doing everything he could to make noise. It had the desired affect, and soon enough they started to stir. "Seriously! You've got to get-!" His rant was cut short, when a hand covered his mouth.

"Krillin, I'm awake, so stop shouting..." Bulma muttered, a yawn escaping her. "What's going on..?" She couldn't help but ask. But from the terrified look on his face, it must have been something bad.

"The androids! They're here!" Silence hung in the air at his statement. Bulma had frozen, along with the others just waking up. Krillin was pointing frantically to a computer terminal that was flashing red. The other members of the team of fighters practically fell off of wherever they were in alarm when they heard that.

Bulma pushed past Krillin, running over to the computer, her blue hair frazzled. And sure enough, a recording of last night's security camera was playing, displaying the walking death machine. Reacting quickly, Bulma wiped out her phone.

"Sound the alarm! The androids are here!"

When the pod finally hit the ground and stopped moving, she dared a peek outside the window. She had thought that she had accidentally powered on some sort of death machine, signing her life away. She accepted death, at the moment not finding any reason to continue living.

But when the darkness of the void vanished, and a light filled the dark, she quickly learned that what she had done did not cost her her life in the end. When the machine stopped moving, the window hatch opened, letting her out. When she took her first step out of the pod, her senses were assaulted with the sights, sounds, and smells of a living, breathing world.

"W-What... What just..." The blond beauty muttered, awestruck by what she was witnessing. "Is this.. I-Is this real?" Her mind was drawing a blank, almost immediately refusing to believe that what she was witnessing was real.

But it wasn't real. She lived in the world of death and darkness for over a year, and nothing had changed. No matter how far she traveled, earth was still just a complete and utter barren wasteland, entirely devoid of life. And so, that meant that this wasn't real...

...Right?

But.. But it looked real.. and.. and it felt real.. and it... it even sounded real. Oh.. oh god's..! Sounds! There were sounds that weren't coming from her! Too much! It was too much!

She nearly fell to her knees, wet tears suddenly exploding from her shining blue eyes. She felt like screaming, and crying, and jumping for joy all at the same time! It felt surreal! It seemed impossible. She had gone so long in the silence, to suddenly have it returned in full was almost too much to bear. She felt like blocking her ears, to stop the onslaught of noise. But she didn't.

She took a shuddering breath, steadying herself against the wall of the building she landed next to. Climbing to her feet slowly, she started to move away, away from the strange pod that brought her here. If the pod was indeed what took her from a dead world and brought her to a living one, then she never wanted to so much as see it again, lest it somehow take her back. She didn't want to go back... She'd.. She'd never go back there! She'd kill herself before she was ever forced to go back.

And so, she ran. She ran, to get as far away from the blessed and cursed machine that took her. It was dark out, just like it was back.. back there, in the other world. But here, here she could actually see the stars! There were hundreds of them, no, hundreds of thousands. There were so many that she was unsure if there was actually a number that would accurately describe the amount of stars. And she could see them, the tiny dots lighting up the pitch black sky above. And the moon, ohh god's above! The moon was actually there, in one solid piece!

It.. It just didn't make any sense! How could..? How could it not be..? Why was everything so..?

''Alive...'' Her mind silently intoned, staring up at the stars. Her attention was suddenly pulled aside by the sound of.. voices.. Voices that were talking. Voices that weren't hers.

She turned to the side, still moving on autopilot. There were people across the way from her, speaking in hushed tones. She could barely make out what they were saying. But that wasn't what she was focused on in that particular moment. For her, seeing other living, breathing people, almost made her heart stop beating. It felt like finally, after all this time, she was no longer alone in the world. It was amaz-

"Get out of the way!" There was a shout, and a screeching of tires on the road. Bright lights invaded her senses, temporarily blinding her. She turned to the source, finding the vehicle speeding towards her. It slid to a stop mere inches from her, the shock throwing her to the ground with an undignified eep.

"What in the hell are you doing, crazy woman?!" The driver shouted angrily, honking at her from his seat. She had been standing in the middle of the road for a while, completely unaware. "You're lucky I didn't hit you!" The man shouted back, before suddenly speeding off without a second thought.

18 sat there on the ground, shaking despite herself. She nearly died just then, the suddenness of it having momentarily stunned her stock still. Some part of her notes the other cars moving her way from a distance, and decided that it'd be a good idea to get out of the road. Blankly, she silently brushed past the others that stood by watching, walking in a random direction. She was so confused, so lost, so...

She grabbed her head with her hands, her delicate fingers rubbing circles on her temples as if it would help her remember something, anything. She hated the fact that she knew absolutely nothing. She knew nothing of the other world, and she knew even less of this one. But... One thing was for absolutely certain.

She was finally free of the hell-scape that she had lived in for as long as she could remember. As far as she knew, there was nothing before the world she awoke to. Before she first awoke in the destroyed laboratory, she had no recollection of her life prior.

But now? Now she was free. She felt like she was about to fall apart, the emotions running through her just too much to handle. She found a dark alleyway, hid behind a wall, and fell to her rear, crying her soul out...

Chapter

1?

End

Author's Note

Honestly, the inspiration for this came to me in a dream. And once it entered my head, it wouldn't leave until I put it into words. So there you go.

I know that it probably came out of nowhere, but I just can't help myself. I'm unsure if I'll continue this...

But, if per say, you all really enjoyed it, I might continue it.