…FOREVER…
A songfic by Robster80
This fic was written on Sept. 11, 2001. The song used here is "Who Wants to Live
Forever?" by Queen. They own it, not
me.
Discalimer: I only
own the character Blue Goblin. Everyone
else is owned by their rightful distributors (Viz, Funimation, Etc.)
Cell walked
out of the Tendo Dojo, for what he knew would be the final time in his life, or
at least for a long, long time. Ranma
was dead now, and Cell had just informed the Tendos and the Saotomes. As he took each step farther away form the
Dojo, his heart broke even more as memories of Ranma flooded his mind.
There's no time for us
There's no place for us
What is this thing that builds our dreams
then slips away from us?
He
remembered that evening well. Ranam had
come to the Mega Mansion broken hearted, Akane having rejected him for the
final time the night before in favor of Ryoga.
Then Friezor attacked without warning.
In the end, Ranma had defeated him, but the teen had given his life to
do it.
What was
worse was that TK, Ranma's youngest and favorite cousin, had seen it all. Ranma had given his life for him gladly, and
it hurt him so much.
Who wants to live forever?
Who wants to live forever?
Cell
suddenly stopped. He found himself at
the bridge Ranma would usually hide under as a peaceful spot from his chaotic
life. The Android slipped under it and
sat down, staring at a teapot lying nearby and the remains of a previous small
campfire. Ranma must have been here
earlier, before he came to the mansion.
The pain
became too much. For possibly the first
time in a long time, he wept bitterly.
Ranma had been more than a friend to him. He was like a much-loved son.
There's no chance for us
It's all been decided for us
This world has only one sweet moment
Set aside for us....
Ranma's
viewing was packed as family, friends, and a few Mega Avengers who had known
briefly or heard of Ranma. They came to
say goodbye to him, and give their condolences to his family. Cell saw TK there, but he never approached
him. He feared the boy blamed him for
not being able to save Ranma. And Cell
knew he had every right to believe that.
Who wants to live forever?
Who wants to live forever?
Anyone who
tried to speak to Cell never got his response.
He was still in loss. When he
approached the coffin Ranma's body was lying in, he placed his MA badge into it
alongside other small trinkets that others had placed within it. You deserve this more than I do, he
thought as the tears continued to flow down his face.
Turning
away, Cell walked out of the room, and headed for the door.
"Cell,
wait!"
The Blue
Goblin ran up to his former enemy turned friend, followed by Frieza. "Cell, don't go beating yourself up over
this," Blue said. "No one saw it
coming. No one could have saved him-."
Who dares to love forever
When love must die...?
This made
Cell feel worse "I could have," he
exclaimed. "All my power, and I just
let him die like that! Him, whom I
loved like my own son, whom I wished Gale could have been like if I hadn't been
evil!" He faced the open door. "But I failed him… His blood, like so many
others, is on my hands. But his blood
will never wash away."
Frieza put
his hand on Cell's shoulder. "I fail to
see why we have to bury Ranma anyway.
We can wish him back with the-."
"And what's
for him to come back to," Cell snapped.
"Akane's the only reason he would ever want to come back to life, and
she's cast him out of her life. His
love for her means nothing to her, so he's better off not coming back."
"Cell-."
The android
turned away again. "I'm leaving the
team for a while… I… don't know when…
or if I'll come back. I need to be
alone." With that, he walked out the
door, and then flew into the sky.
Frieza put
his hands together slowly and closed his eyes.
"God be with you, Cell."
Blue could
only nod in agreement.
So touch my tears with your lips,
Touch my world with your fingertips,
The sky was
black on Ranma's funeral day. Distant
thunder gave early warnings of the coming storm as TK and others stood to see
Ranma's coffin being buried. "Blessed
are the dead that are rained upon," the preacher added to his sermon before
everyone began to leave.
Cell hid in
the shadows of a nearby tree until everyone had gone. He watched from afar as the coffin was slowly lowered into the
ground and covered in shoveled earth.
Once no one was around, he made his way slowly to the tombstone as the
rain began to pour down on the land. As
if his strength was gone, he sank to his knees, never taking his eyes off the
stone.
And we can have forever,
And we can live forever--
Forever is our today....
"I couldn't save him," he said.
"Sometimes
people don't want to be saved."
The voice
was very familiar; so Cell didn't need to turn around to see you it was. "Hello, Burter. …Why are you here?"
The big
blue alien sighed. "Came to pay my
respects. I hardly knew the kid, but I
felt right in coming to the viewing and funeral. No parent should ever have to bury their children."
Cell
nodded. "Whether the parent is good or
evil. You and I know that more than
anyone else. …He was my son,
Burter. He was like Gale reborn and
raised properly."
Who wants to live forever?
Burter was
silent form this. He, too, had his only
child taken from him right before his eyes.
He never wanted anyone, not even Cell, to experience that pain. To have your hopes die with your own flesh
and blood. The day Cell killed Gale,
his real son, burned into the memories of all who witnessed it. They watched as Cell held his son's dead
body close and wept. "…I'm so sorry,"
he said finally. "If… If there's
anything I can do…"
Cell didn't
move, but an idea formed into his mind.
"Ranma's cousin TK is now the heir to the Saotome School of Martial
Arts. But… he'll need training. Training only people like us can give him,
if he wishes to succeed Ranma fully."
Burter saw
where this was going. TK would need
training, especially if should the time come when Friezor would return for
revenge. "You can train him-."
"I can't. I don't know… if I can face him… not yet…"
Who wants to live forever?
"…Then I
will train him."
"Thank
you," Cell said, but Burter had started walking and was too far away to hear
him. It didn't matter to him anyway if
he was thanked or not. We both will
have our revenge… TK and I…
Forever is our today....
The rain
kept pouring down, but Cell never felt it prick his skin. Finally, he stood up. "I won't fail you again," he said to the
tombstone. "I'll watch over TK in
secret… and make sure he succeeds you in everyway possible. This I promise you." As he flew off into the rainy evening, a
ghost of a young teen with black hair and a pigtail stared off after him.
"Thank
you… father…"
Who waits forever anyway...?
The End
