Chapter two - Showdown with an Android.

There was a rattling sound as the large tin door slid up allowing the group of nine entry to the base. As they stepped inside Gohan saw Yamcha, Krillin, Tien, and Piccolo leaning against the opposite wall. At the sight of them Yamcha's eyes went wide. "Bulma..." he said softly before running over and hugging her. Vegeta growled but a quick glare from Gohan stopped him from doing anything else.

After a moment Bulma managed to get Yamcha off of her. "I don't believe it." Yamcha said stepping back. "We'd all thought you were dead..."

Bulma shook her head and looked toward the girl who had driven them there. "Things are more complicated than that." the girl said at last. "This isn't our Bulma."

Tien stepped forward and looked at the both of them quizzically. "What do you mean Videl?"

Bulma sighed and walked over to a near by table, Gohan and the others followed and they all took a seat. "I'll explain as best I can." she said after a moment of silence. "I invented a teleporter. Trunks here," she glanced at the little Sai-jin. "Was goofing around in my lab and caused some kind of rift in the device. As best as I can tell the rift either altered history creating this world, or sent the five of us into another universe. The point is, I'm not the Bulma you knew."

Yamcha and Krillin sighed. Piccolo grunted. "So you mean this entire world could be the result of some kid goofing around? Terrific."

"So who are these other people?" Tien asked.

"What?" Gohan looked confused. "You don't recognize any of us?"

Tien shook his head. "No, should I?"

"Maybe not in this world." Bulma said. "But in our world you all knew each other and fought together. Maybe you should explain everything that's happened to make the world like this? If this was caused by a time distortion then knowing when time shifted will help me to shift it back."

"It's been some time..." Tien said. "For years there were stories of a child attacking cities, even military stations. However nothing major happened until the 23rd Budokai. The tournament was just about to begin when someone calling himself 'The Supreme Being' laid west to all of West City followed shortly after by the destruction of Capital City."

Bulma sighed. "Anything that separates this guy from everyone else?"

"He seemed to know us." Krillin said. "We'd never met him before but when he made his world announcement that he was our new king he mentioned us all by name and told us not to try and interfere if we wanted to live for long. We'd gotten together to take him on, after training for a few years, but when we got to Capital City, where he'd had his palace built, we knew we didn't stand a chance."

"He was fighting against someone else. A guy who... well he looked kind of like you." Tien said with a nod toward Vegeta. "The battle was unbelievable. Even more so when 'The Supreme Being' used the Kamehameha wave since we knew he wasn't trained by Master Roshi. After that battle we pulled back, we didn't have a chance against him."

"We even took some of Dr. Gero's plans and built us a few of his Androids, Sixteen through Eighteen. They didn't do much better than we would have. That's when Kami and Piccolo decided to fuse." said Yamcha.

Bulma leaned back in her seat. This still didn't make much sense to her. "I need my computer." she said at last. "It should have recorded whatever happened that may have caused this."

Videl nodded. "I'll take a team with me to get it." she said. "If there's a chance to stop this world from ever being then I'm all for it."

"Wait up." Gohan said. "I'll go with you, just in case."

Videl glared at him for a second but didn't say anything. "Fine." she said at last. A moment later the two of them were in an air car zooming over the streets of Old West City toward where Bulma's computer was. "So what's your name anyway?"

"Gohan."

"Gohan huh?" she smiled. "That's a nice name. I've been wondering though... why aren't you in this world?"

Gohan shook his head. "Not sure, Bulma would know better. I may not have been born in this world for some reason, or died when I was younger."

She nodded. "So what's your world like? If there's no Supreme Being then it must be peaceful."

Gohan smiled. "It has been for the last seven years or so... but we've had our problems too. When I was young my dad and I went off into space in search of the Planet Namek to use their Dragonballs. When we got there a tyrant named Frieza was there too. My dad managed to win but Namek was still destroyed.

"Then when he got back we got a warning from the future about androids that were coming to kill us. It was hard but... in the end we won again but we came really close. My father died in that battle." he said sadly. "I could have saved him but..."

Videl looked over at him at stared at his face a moment. Then something he'd said clicked. "Planet Namek? There's Dragonballs on a planet called Namek?"

"Huh?" Gohan turned to look at her. "You didn't know?"

Videl shook her head. "No. When Piccolo and Kami fused hoping to become strong enough to stop The Supreme Being we thought that was the end of the Dragonballs. Where's this Namek and how are there Dragonballs there?"

"Bulma knows where it is, and the Nameks created the Dragonballs. That's how Kami was able to make the set here on Earth."

"That doesn't make any sense." she said. "How'd the fact that Nameks created the Dragonballs let Kami make a set?"

Gohan blinked at her. /I guess they never learned about Namek or that Piccolo's an alien./ "Piccolo's a Namekian." he said at last as Videl brought the air car down to ground level. "That's how. We found out about that years ago."

"He's an alien." she said in awe.

"He's not the only one." Gohan said as they got out of the car. "My dad and Vegeta are aliens, Goten, Trunks, and I are only half Human."

Videl stared at him as he walked over to Bulma's computer. There, still in the middle of the room, was the Teleporter as well. "Better take that too." he said. "Bulma's probably going to need it to undo this." He looked over the computer first and found the button to put it back in it's capsule. Then he did the same for the teleporter. "Alright, I've got them, let's go."

"Go where?" a voice called from above. Gohan and Videl turned to look and saw a short purple man floating in the air.

Videl's eyes went wide. "Android Fifteen!" she cried in shock.

It laughed, with a big grin, that looked especially odd with it's small head. "Hello Videl. I thought you'd come back after whatever your friends left behind so I figured I'd wait for you."

"We have to get out of here!" Videl yelled.

"Don't worry." Gohan said giving her the capsules containing Bulma's computer and Teleporter. "I'll handle him. He's nothing compared to what I've dealt with."

"No, Gohan! You don't understand, he's too powerful..." she was cut off as a white aura exploded around Gohan and he charged up into the air after the Android. He threw a powerful right hook that caught the Android off guard and connected with a crack to his face shattering his sunglasses.

"Why you!" he cried. "You have no idea what you're getting yourself into little man."

"Me little?" Gohan said with a smile. "You've got room to talk."

The Android growled before kicking Gohan in the stomach and sending him into a near by building. "Heh." it snickered. "That takes care of him."

"Oh no! Gohan!" Videl cried.

Suddenly a loud scream erupted from the building as white light flashed inside seeping through the cracks and smashed walls. Videl stared at the building along with the Android. Suddenly the white light turned gold and the building exploded. As the debris and dust cleared Gohan floated there with golden hair and a golden aura. In a flash he charged in toward the startled Android.

The thunderous crashes rang out almost non-stop as Gohan let loose a flurry of punches and kicks which the Android was having trouble blocking. "What... what are you!" it cried pulling away from Gohan's furious assault. "There's.... there's no way.... you.... you can't be human!"

As Gohan floated there glowing he remembered something he'd heard his father say to Frieza. Sure he'd not been there but his dad's voice carried pretty far, especially when he yelled at the top of his lungs as a Super Sai-jin. "I am the hope of the universe. I am the answer to those who cry out for peace. Ally to good, nightmare to YOU!" he screamed the last part throwing his arms back and flaring out his aura as he built even more power.

Suddenly a gold streak of light whizzed through the air and slammed into the Android knocking it through six buildings. When it came out Gohan was there waiting. Catching the little purple critter in one hand he turned and flung him into the ground. As he started to charge in a light flared out of the hole in the ground. An instant the Android was floating in front of a now motionless Gohan, a light blue glow surrounding his body.

"I'm out of your league kid." it said coldly. "You caught me off guard earlier but not again. I'm more than you can handle."

"I don't think so, I've dealt with things stronger than you."

"Doubt that." the Android said cracking its neck. Then it vanished. Gohan recoiled backward as the small machine slammed both of it's feet into Gohan's stomach. His mouth went wide and his eyes bulged as the air was forced from his lungs. As Gohan began to regain his senses and look for the machine again it came down from above and slammed both feet into the top of his head knocking him into the ground.

With another large grin the Android pulled back it's arms and laughed before unleashing a barrage of powerful energy blasts. Videl ran for cover as a stray blast hit her air car blowing it into bits. Moments later, when the attack came to a halt, she saw the entire block laying in ruins, completely leveled.

"Oh no... Gohan!" she cried flying toward where she'd last seen him.

"Heh. Heh. Don't think I forgot about you girl." the Android laughed dropping down to eye level with her. Slowly it raised one of it's short arms and pointed a small palm at Videl's hand. A soft blue glue surrounded his palm as a deep blue energy ball formed in front of it.

The Android stopped as gold light began to seep up through the rubble below it. It looked down first, then turned as a pile of debris lifted into the air circling around Gohan. "Leave her alone." he said calmly, with an edge Videl hadn't heard from him since they first met a few hours ago. She could also see the look in his eyes, and it scared her slightly. She was glad she wasn't on the receiving and of his current glare.

The Android frowned, extremely upset that this pest wasn't dead. With a snarl it fired the KI ball at Videl but the attack missed completely and hit the building that had been behind her. "What the hell?" the Android asked startled.

"To fast for you?" Gohan's voice called down from the sky.

The Android turned and stared in disbelief. "How can you be that fast?" he called up. Gohan just smiled. The Android growled and launched into the air but Gohan vanished from sight. The Android pulled to a quick stop and turned to see Gohan set Videl down on a roof top and then suddenly appear right in front of him. Suddenly it turned and sped off into the distance. Gohan had the urge to follow it but was more concerned with getting Videl to safety.

He landed beside her, no longer a Super Sai-jin. "Come on Videl. Let's head back." She just nodded with a shocked look still in her eyes.