Author's Notes: An experimental little fic, set
in Mirai Trunk's timeline. Focuses on what a 'normal' human might
experience. Constructive criticism always welcome.
Disclaimer: Don't own DBZ, certainly not making any money off
this. Hasu is mine, so is Nobara and Tsubomi ^_^
By Kami's Grace
Chapter 2
The next day, Hasu slipped out of the old school building. It was early morning, the sky just turning from gray to a warm pinkish hue in the east. Hasu took a second to admire the beauty of the sunrise, then moved away quickly through the tangle of half-fallen buildings nearby.
Not long ago, when she was helping bring in an injured man, she had passed by a place that had caused her to feel something. She couldn't describe it, it was like some instinct was telling her that what they needed was there. She had tried to convey this to the scouting party later, but they said the area had been searched. Hasu wasn't usually one to pay attention to 'hunches', but this once she was willing to think maybe some spirit was guiding her. After all, if they didn't find a source of clean water soon, the refugees would begin to suffer.
With this in mind, Hasu headed toward the spot she had noticed. It took her an hour or so, but she managed to find it. The area was a patch of overgrown shrubs, stuck in the crevice of a tumbled down wall. Hasu forced her way through the branches. Droplets of blood fell on her robe as she broke the small limbs and they in turn scratched her skin. The few feet to the other side seemed to take forever to reach.
Finally, she broke through. Hasu found herself in a forgotten garden. A wild array of flowers spilled color everywhere. Oranges, yellows, blues and reds danced against a blanket of dark green. The air was heavy with the perfume of the blossoms. Hasu stood in awe, feeling almost overwhelmed at such natural beauty after seeing only decay for so long. Her eyes touched every inch of the garden. She looked up to where a mansion must have stood once, but now was long gone. Hasu's gaze eventually settled on a small shrine under a cherry tree and her ears picked up the faint rushing of water.
Hasu went to the shrine and knelt before it, offering a prayer of thanks. Then she quickly searched out the source of the rushing sound. She soon found a spring, with grasses overhanging its edges. A small taste of the water confirmed it was pure and most likely natural. With shaking hands, she pulled out a scrap of paper and the stub of a pencil. She made a map of the spring's exact location.
Hasu examined the map several times, making sure she hadn't confused her directions or left out any landmarks. She had to be certain the scouting party could find the garden easily. At last, satisfied she had done her best, she tucked the paper away and headed back to the bushes. A part of her pleaded to stay a little longer, just a little while. But she ignored it. There was no time to waste on such a whim. So she pushed on through the bushes. She checked to see if anyone was around before she completely stepped through. Seeing only empty walkway, Hasu left the garden behind.
Not five minutes later, a loud explosion rocked everything around her, causing her to fall against an abandoned storefront. Hasu's heart quickened pace as she tried to determine the direction of the blast. A dust cloud swept over her, obscuring her sight. She stumbled into an ally, trying to escape the chocking dust. She felt a sliver of relief as her frantic mind assured her the garden was in the opposite direction of the blast.
Hasu froze as the sound of running footsteps came towards her. She quelled the beginnings of panic by telling herself the androids didn't run...at least that was what she had heard. She peeked out of the ally and saw that it was an obviously frightened boy. Tears streaked his face, sobs mixed with his heavy breathing. Just as he passed, Hasu reached out and grabbed his arm. The now terrified boy struggled as she tried to get him into the safety of the shadows. The boy began to scream, so Hasu immediately clamped a hand over his mouth.
"Hush," she whispered to him. She peeked out again, this time to see if anyone was right behind him. The boy looked around at her. Seeing that she was a human, he relaxed and nodded his head. Hasu returned her attention to him and removed her hand. She asked, "What is it? Is it them?"
The boy nodded again, frightened tears running down his face. "They're...they're chasing me!" he said in a choked whisper.
Just then, a soft, cold voice said clearly, "Come out boy. Don't waste my time with your game of hide and seek. Wouldn't you rather be with your parents?"
Hasu listened as approaching footsteps came slowly toward the ally. She turned questioningly to the boy. He mouthed, "They killed my parents"
Hasu felt anger well up inside her. 'What sort of devil tortures a child?' She took the boy firmly by his shoulders and looked into his eyes. He was about to speak when she shook her head. She took out the small map she had drawn, with the location of the spring, and placed it in one of the boy's fisted hands. Then, she leaned down and whispered in his ear.
The boy looked at her in surprise. He frowned and Hasu knew he was about to protest, so she again placed a hand over his mouth. She gave him her best 'obey me' look and turned him to face into the darkness of the ally. She gave him a small push to get him started. The boy glanced back at her once, questioning, then hurried as silently as possible down the ally.
"Huh...so there you are." Hasu heard this murmured not far away from the mouth of the ally and knew the monster had heard the boy's retreat. She took a deep breath and stepped into the light to face the monster
Hasu was surprised by what she saw. A dark-haired young man, maybe a few years older than the boy she had just sent away, stood before her. The young man himself seemed surprised as well.
"Oh my," he said in that same soft voice, "you're not the boy I was searching for."
Hasu remained silent, his statement barely registered in her mind. She wondered if she had made some sort of mistake. She had never seen the androids herself, or heard a clear description of them. But she couldn't mistake that voice, it was definitely the one that had called to the boy earlier. And what he had just said... As she pondered this, another figure joined them, landing neatly behind the young man as if flying were an everyday thing. This one was a young woman, appearing to be the same age as the young man. She had golden hair.
"What have you got here, 17?" the young woman asked, peering over the shoulder of the raven haired youth. "I thought you were playing with that boy?"
"I was, but he seems to have slipped by me...for the moment," replied 17. He didn't bother to glance back at his companion.
Hasu shivered at the casual way the two talked about the boy. She had made no mistake.
"Well, what should we do with her, 18?" 17 said, giving the young woman a sidelong look. "Play with her or let her go?"
18 seemed to consider this a moment, crossing her arms and staring directly at Hasu. Hasu met 18's gaze, looking into the android's eyes, and felt a cold chill. 'They're so...empty' she thought.
"She seems very quiet," 18 stated, with only the barest touch of curiosity. "I wonder if she is mute?"
"Shall we find out?" asked 17. He smiled coldly.
Before Hasu could react, 18 leapt over her android brother and elbowed Hasu in the stomach. Hasu gagged as bile rose quickly in her throat and her breath was forced out. She dropped to her knees. 18 stepped back a little, her expression not much changed.
"Hmm..." 17 bent close and grabbed a handful of Hasu's hair. He jerked her head up with it. "I thought I heard something, but I could be mistaken."
"Maybe you should try?" suggested 18, lifting an eyebrow.
Lightning quick, 17 struck Hasu across the face. Hasu cried out softly in pain, but bit back most of her reaction. 'I'm not going to give them what they want' she thought defiantly, her cheek throbbing. She glared back at 17. A small trickle of blood escaped the corner of her mouth.
"Hmph," 17 frowned, clearly not pleased. 18 made a slightly amused sound. 17 hit Hasu again, this time driving a fist into her left shoulder. Hasu's cry was louder. Agony seemed to burn a trail down her arm. She was certain she had heard a 'crack'. Cradling her arm, she ground her teeth against the pain.
17 gripped Hasu's chin hard with thumb and forefinger. "Well now, that wasn't so hard, was it?" he asked casually. Hasu just glared.
"Hmph" It was 18's turn to look displeased. She crossed her arms again. "Why don't you finish her off, 17?"
Without letting go of Hasu, 17 looked back at his sister. "Impatient, 18? I'm just having a little fun."
18's scowl deepened. "She's not even fighting back. She could at least scream, beg or cuss. This is boring."
17 gave a soft snort and turned back to Hasu. He gazed into her eyes, then smiled. "Oh, she's fighting back all right. See how she refuses to show how much pain she's in?" To emphasize his point, 17 released Hasu's chin, then grabbed her left arm and gave it a vicious twist.
Hasu couldn't stop the scream as muscle and bone separated. She nearly passed out from the pain. Her mind went blank.
18 didn't look impressed but she remained silent.
17 once again gripped Hasu's chin and forced her to look him in the eyes. "Hmmm...you know, 18 has a point. You haven't struck out once or begged for mercy. Most humans do one or the other. Why don't you?"
Hasu shivered. The cold voice penetrated the numbness of her mind, compelling her to answer. She felt like vomiting but managed to answer in a surprisingly steady voice. "I'm not a warrior. I have vowed to respect all life. I won't break that vow...even with you."
17 frowned, seemingly confused by her answer. "Foolish," he said. "You're 'respect' won't save you, if you mean it keeps you from fighting back. It also doesn't tell me why you aren't begging."
Hasu actually smiled at this, the smirk bordered on being mocking. "I know begging won't make a difference. You have no mercy, so why ask for it?"
As an answer, a hand drove into Hasu's chest and sent her flying backward. She landed hard on the ground. Nausea and vertigo washed over her, making the world dance at impossible angles. It took her a moment to realize the blow had come from 17. The boy android walked over and looked down at her.
"18 is right, you are no fun to play with." He raised a hand and faced the palm toward her. A light began to gather in it.
Hasu struggled into a sitting position, though she had no intention of trying to run. Instead, she stared into 17's eyes. The gathering energy almost blinded her, and pain shot through her head. A sense of peace began to settle over her, as well as a thought. 'He doesn't feel anything..... They can't feel...anything...' Hasu felt herself begin to smile sadly.
17 frowned at this, and lowered his hand a fraction. "What? What is it, why are you smiling? Do you want to die?"
"No," Hasu said calmly. It was true. There were many things she still wanted to do, to experience, to atone for. But wanting to live didn't mean she was going to. She had done what she had set out to this morning, that at least was something. She had that. She focused again on the android. Her shoulder and arm were blissfully numb and the vertigo had gone. "I've decided something..."
"What is that?" 17 prompted impatiently when she didn't immediately continue.
"I pity you," replied Hasu.
"What?!" 17 actually growled.
"She's insane," said 18 from behind her brother. "She's obviously not thinking clearly. Kill her and be done with it."
"You're right, 18," said 17. He laughed darkly. "Humans are the pitiful ones. So weak, so easy to cause them pain."
"At least we feel pain," Hasu said, her voice almost sad. "And not just pain...but joy, love, hate, regret...sometimes it feels like a lightning storm inside our minds. But it lets us know we are alive." Hasu noticed she didn't feel any anger or hatred now toward the androids. She found she really did pity them. "I've heard rumors that you two were human once. If you were, then you've lost a whole world. Maybe that's why you're doing this, causing pain, because you want it back...you want to feel again."
"Shut up!" shouted 17, for once not talking in that soft, cold voice. He brought his hand back up to aim at Hasu.
"I'm sorry for you," Hasu said. "You're the ones seeking death...you want to feel pain, you want to know you're alive, that's why it disappoints you when you 'play' with humans and can't find one who matches you in strength. They can't give you what you want. I hope you find another way, before you gain what you seek."
"ENOUGH!" screamed 17, his face contorted. The energy he had gathered in his hand was released. A second before it surrounded Hasu, something milky white seemed to skim along her skin, perhaps steam formed by the moisture in her body being superheated. Whatever it was, it was quickly stripped away, the fierce energy turning Hasu to ashes. But even to the end, she gazed into 17's eyes.
17 continued to blast the area for several seconds longer, until he felt a hand on his arm. The energy gradually lessened until it had stopped altogether. He lowered his arm and looked back at his android sister.
"She was wrong, 17, obviously delusional," 18 said in a firm voice. "You know how fragile human minds are."
17's angry face relaxed into a smirk. "Of course...you're right 18," he said. "She was a...disappointing...toy."
The two androids stared at each other for a moment. Then they turned in silence and leapt into the air, off to find a more satisfying diversion.