Fumetsu no Senshi Tachi Z
An Alternate Mirai Dragon Ball Z Fan Fiction by Aoikami Sarah
Part Two - Chapter Three
Bulma threw her arms around Gohan and talked at him a mile a minute.
"Whoa, slow down! What did you find out? Can we beat him?!"
"I think so!" She patted a bag she had around her shoulder. "Let me just put this sucker together." Bulma opened it and dumped the contents on the ground. About ten capsules fell out. She picked these up and began popping the caps and throwing them away from herself.
"Bulma, we really don't have time for this."
"Just give me a second!" she snipped at him as her hands flew to work. "Anyway, I can tell you what I know at the same time! First off, according to Dr. Gero, Cell's goal is to reign over the entire universe by collecting all the energy from every living thing in it. Gero knew that he went completely insane when he made Cell. He recorded his fall into madness in the diary I got out of his own head."
Gohan sat down, amazed and watched her. "Koneko's fighting Cell right now."
"Really? How's she doing?"
"I don't know. She'll hold out for maybe ten minutes if she doesn't dig down for her true power," he murmured.
"Well, I believe in her. If she could destroy Juunanagou… Oh! Guess what?!" Bulma shook a screw driver at him. "Cell told you he's perfect, right?"
"Yeah..."
"Well, he got that way by absorbing both Jinzouningen."
"What? Both? But he was destroyed!"
"I know, but when ya think about it," she said as she danced around the steadily growing contraption, "Our wish was to revive everyone killed by an android. Koneko sort of figured that out a while back but I chose to ignore her because the idea of him kicking around scared the crap out of me. Pretty stupid, right?"
"Uh, yeah…"
"There." Bulma stood back and admired the machine. It was almost six feet tall and looked sort of like the Eiffel tower on crack. It had what looked like a satellite dish with two, thin-barreled gun-looking things jutting out from its middle. "I call it the SLo-FO or Super Low Frequency Oscillator. What do you think?"
"It's great!" he cheered, but scratched his head. "Will it kill Cell?"
"Well, no. That's up to you. This sucker will blast him with two very low frequency sounds. When the beams cross the amplitude will be doubled creating a sub-sonic frequency jarring enough to give Cell the tummy ache of his life!" Bulma struck a pose and thrust her index and middle fingers into the air. Gohan blinked at her. She sighed and folded her arms. "Which will cause him to expel one, if not both of the Jinzouningen he has consumed and force him to revert to Imperfect Cell."
"Oh, wow, Bulma! You're so great!" Gohan jumped up and hugged her.
"I know, I know." She blushed.
"Ok." Gohan put one arm around her and one arm around the machine.
Dende and Popo waved sheepishly at them and wished them luck as they vanished.
.x.
Meanwhile, Koneko was getting a severe beating at the hands of Cell. She had tried every trick she could think of but he seemed to know what she would do before she even had a chance think about doing it. Again and again the teenager was slammed down on to the granite fighting surface, which was beginning to look more like a gravel bank.
She hauled herself out of another crater and struggled to get to her feet. Her uniform was torn and blood oozed from several lacerations all over her body. She powered up as much as she could.
"Koneko! You can do it!" Polian cheered. They both knew that she couldn't.
"That's it!" Cell goaded her. "That's closer to your true power!"
She pushed herself up to Super Saiyajin level two and charged Cell once more. He side-stepped her and spun around, chopping her thigh with the underside of his right hand. Koneko cried out as her femur snapped. Cell took advantage and slammed his fist into her abdomen. She spit up a good deal of blood as the monster rained blows down on her. Her hair returned to its normal, lavender color. It wasn't until his fairly sensitive ears picked up a strange, low, humming sound that he stopped hitting her.
"What the…?" he wondered and looked to the source.
Bulma bared her teeth as she aimed the device at the monster. The guns swiveled and locked into place.
"Take that, bug!" she shouted and flicked a switch. To the onlooker, this seemed like something incredibly foolish to do. The machine didn't make a perceivable sound to Saiyajin or Human ears. Polian and Cell heard it loud and clear. The Namekjin held his ears and backed away. Cell dropped Koneko, but before he could put his hands up, the sonic rays began to do their job.
Cell held his stomach and made a face.
Gohan stood clear of the weapon. "Is it working?!"
"Hell yes!" Bulma grinned. "Get Koneko out of there!"
Polian took his hands off of his pointed ears, ran out and scooped the girl out of the gravel. Gohan watched Cell intently.
His body contorted and he began to wretch.
"Come on, you sonofabitch, give us Zen'i back!!" Bulma shouted.
Finally, Cell bent double and vomited out a Jinzouningen. Gohan raced in and snatched up the android before it hit the ground. He was shocked to see black hair under the layer of slime. "Oh no!" he shouted.
"What?" Bulma looked to him as he touched down near his friends.
"It's Juunanagou!"
"What...? But, he went in first." She wasn't looking at Cell anymore and didn't realize that she had moved the crosshairs off of her target. Cell screamed and powered back up again.
Gohan thought fast and scooped up Bulma as well. Cell shot an energy beam at them and blew up the offending weapon. He was significantly weakened and mad as hell.
"All right, you don't want to play fair!? Fine. I'm changing my rules. You give up - I kill you. You fall out - I kill you, or, I just kill you!!"
"Fine with us." Gohan sneered. "Polian, you want to give it another go?"
"No. Koneko needs my help."
Gohan and Bulma looked at him strangely.
"Uh, ok." He turned to face Cell. "Looks like it's my turn." Gohan lifted Juunanagou up and made sure he was unconscious before dumping him on the ground. He stepped into the ring and removed his cape.
.x.
Polian picked up Juunanagou and Koneko and urged Bulma to follow him out of sight of the battle grounds. Once they were around a smallish mountain, Polian laid them down and put his hands on the half-Saiyajin.
"And just what are you doing to her?" Bulma frowned and asked him.
"I'm saving her life." His hands glowed and he closed his eyes. "I haven't done this in years, so it may take a while."
Bulma was confused but nodded.
Koneko's eyes fluttered open. "M-Mom?"
She kneeled down and held her daughter's hand. "I'm here, Koneko-chan."
"Please, Juunanagou…"
"Don't worry, he's offline." She wiped some of the blood from her face.
"No, fix him."
"What?"
"Reprogram him. He can help us."
Bulma looked to the android and shook her head.
"Please, Mom. We can't lose again."
She bit her lip and reluctantly pulled her capsules out of her bag.
.x.
Gohan met each of Cell's blows with blocks and began to get confident. Cell on the other hand was getting nervous. He flipped back and snarled at his opponent. "Why don't you turn up the juice, Gohan? Why are you denying me the pleasure of defeating you at full power?"
"Well," Gohan smiled. "Like Polian said. It pisses you off. That and I don't need to go that far to beat you. Now you're the one who's pathetic, Cell."
.x.
Bulma finished inserting the interface she took from the lab into Juunanagou's head just as Polian finished healing Koneko. "Polian, I thought only members of the Namekjin Dragon Clan could heal?"
"You got it. It's a long story, ok? Go help your mother." Polian frowned and leapt up into the air to return to the battle ground.
She shrugged, thanked him and joined Bulma.
.x.
Cell became winded as Gohan laid on the damage. He pulled away and tried to think of what to do.
Gohan smiled and waited, knowing that Cell was getting madder and madder every second. His smile fell though as Cell began to chant some very familiar words...
"Ka… me…"
.x.
Koneko took over the keyboard, found and deleted the two evil applications instructing the Jinzouningen to kill and enjoy it. Then both women unplugged him, stepped back and waited.
Juunanagou's eyes flicked open. He sat up on the ground and scratched his head. He heard the fight in the distance and his eyes grew wide.
"Juunanagou, are you all right?" Koneko asked tentatively.
"Wh-What have I done?" he muttered and stared at the Earth, his brows arched in remorse.
Bulma pouted. "Look, freak out later, ok?"
He looked up at her with those perfect, cold, blue eyes. "I killed your husband and I raped your daughter. Why did you help me? Why do you pity me?"
Bulma repressed the urge to punch him in the face and said calmly, "I hate you, but we need you. So quit feeling sorry for yourself and get out there and help Gohan! Your sister's still in that thing, you know? If you give two shits about what little life is left on this planet, you'll snap out of it and help us fight this thing!!"
Koneko bit her knuckles, fully expecting Juunanagou to tear her mother's head off. Instead, he slowly stood and looked to the battle field.
.x.
"Ha… Me…"
"I don't think so." Gohan growled. "That belongs to my father! You have no right! KAAMEEHAAMEE!!..."
.x.
Juunanagou, Koneko and Bulma joined Polian at the edge of the ring. Bulma had to hang on to her daughter so as not to be blown away as the two combatants powered up.
"HAAA!!" both shouted and fired off the famous attacks. Cell's came down from the sky and Gohan's up from Earth and it was clear to see that Gohan's was far more powerful. Cell's beam was consumed by Gohan's and finally he was pushed backwards. Then he screamed out as the energy disintegrated his body and forced the remains into outer space.
Gohan powered down completely, turned and smiled to his cheering friends. He took a deep breath and began walking back to them. Polian stopped clapping and stared up at the sky.
"Zen'i," he whispered.
Juunanagou looked up as well. "Juuhachi."
"What the hell is he doing walking?!" Gohan frowned as he noticed the Jinzouningen.
Koneko stepped in front of Juunanagou and tried to explain. "He's all right now, just like Zen'i was..."
He glared at him. "Yeah, but this one killed me."
Juunanagou met his fierce eyes. "I'm sorry, Gohan. I'll be sorry for the rest of my existence for everything I have done to this planet."
Everyone looked at him in wonder. Distracted, they didn't have the upper hand as an energy blast hurtled out of the sky. They all turned in time to see it hit one of them.
"Mom!!" Koneko screamed as the thin beam lanced Bulma through the heart, killing her instantly.
Cell descended to Earth, his tail was short and his features were humanoid again. He was emitting a huge ki and grinning from ear to ear. "Damn," he cursed. "I hit the weak one. Oh well."
Koneko cradled her mother's body in her lap, completely shocked. Gohan balled his hands into fists.
"What do I have to do to kill you, Cell?! Tell me! I'll do it right this time!!"
Cell laughed, mocking his bravado. "As a Namekjin, I was able to regenerate from a tiny portion of my brain which remained after you blew me up. And as part of Furiza, I am able to exist in the vacuum of space and as a Saiyajin I have returned far more powerful than I was before I was defeated!!"
Gohan screamed, powered up to level two and charged Cell, head on. At first, Cell was obviously more powerful and Gohan took several hits. But with every hit, Gohan's heart bled a little more. The rage inside him built up exponentially as he was slammed back down to Earth. Just before he jumped back up into the air, Gohan burned the image of Koneko holding Bulma's lifeless body into his mind. He growled and flew directly at Cell.
.x.
On the ground, Polian watched the fight with his teeth barred. "Damn it! I can't do a damn thing to help!!"
Koneko looked up to him absently and blinked. Then she looked to Juunanagou who, rather than following the battle, was staring at the ground. His brows were knitted together and he pouted like a child.
The teenager clutched her mother tighter and sucked in a deep breath. "What the hell are you doing just standing there?! Gohan and you are the only two people who can even come close to beating Perfect Cell! Mom was right! Stop feelin' sorry for yourself and fight!!"
"No, I'm not strong enough." He continued to sulk. "You killed me."
"Don't give me that, I know you let me and Zen'i kill you! You wanted to die, I saw it in your eyes! Even then, guilt was nagging at you. The only way you'll get rid of that feeling is if you help us! Please, Juunanagou!"
He bowed his head, set his jaw and charged into the fight.
.x.
Gohan slammed his fist it into Cell's face then Shunkan Idoed to his back and kicked him into a nearby rock outcropping. It was only a few seconds before the grinning monster came back at him. Suddenly, an energy beam out of nowhere hit Cell in the face. Although this startled Gohan he was so focused that he took advantage of the diversion and buried his fist in Cell's abdomen. This combination put Gohan a level above Cell and he used this opportunity to beat him relentlessly. As he fought he spied the source of the stray blast.
"You...?" he grimaced at the Jinzouningen who took a fighting stance. Juunanagou nodded at Cell. The only thing that mattered to Gohan at that moment was winning. Even if he got help from someone he hated.
Gohan upper cut Cell towards Juunanagou who put his hands together and croqueted his head, batting him back to Gohan. They did this three times until Cell caught on and managed to hover between the two men.
"This is ridiculous!" he shouted. "You can't win!"
"Yes we can!!" Gohan shouted and powered up. He nodded to the android to do the same. "Masenko!!"
Juunanagou frowned and put the base of his palms together. His energy beam wasn't very large, but it hit Cell before Gohan's did, pinning him in place. The Masenko was huge and Juunanagou had all he could do to get out of the way in time.
The force of the blast tumbled those on the ground head over heals. An enormously bright flash of light, brighter than the already blinding attacks preceded the sound of the explosion. The world over, everyone left alive turned to see where it had come from. Cell screamed as the power of Gohan's rage did its work. He disintegrated for the second time that day.
Juunanagou floated back down to Earth as the debris which had been Cell fell all around him.
"Juunanagou! Quick!" Polian shouted as he raced towards them. "Zap the little bits of him before he regenerates again!"
He nodded and pointed his index finger at a piece of greenish-black matter. A thin beam emitted and vaporized it. He walked around, scanning with his enhanced android abilities until he had destroyed every last bit of the menace he had unleashed.
Gohan watched him do this and walked slowly back to the women. Koneko was still sitting on the ground, her arms tightly wrapped around her mother. He squatted down in front of her and held out his arms. Reluctantly, Koneko gave her to him. Polian and Juunanagou joined them.
"We did it." Koneko whispered.
Gohan wrapped Bulma in his cape and picked her up. "Yeah, we did."
Polian folded his arms. "This is way too depressing. Haven't you forgotten something? Bulma's never been dead before, has she?"
His eyes widened. He looked to his friend and a smile formed on his face for the first time all day. This infected everyone else but the Jinzouningen.
Koneko looked to him innocently. "Juunanagou, would you help us collect the Dragon Balls?"
As usual, the android pouted, but looked out to the rubble-filled battle ground and whispered his sister's numerical designation. He nodded and followed them as they flew off to the west.
.x.
The sun was just rising as Koneko and Juunanagou returned with the number six, three and four Dragon Balls. They joined Polian and Gohan and dropped the orbs down together. Next to them was a human form under a white sheet.
The balls began to glow. Shenlong snaked up into the now darkened, dawn sky and asked them for their two wishes.
Gohan swallowed hard. "Please resurrect those who were innocent and killed in the last two weeks."
"I will bring back everyone but Cell," Shenlong repeated and granted the wish.
The sheet stirred and Bulma moaned. To her right, the figure of a woman materialized. Bulma stood up and Gohan tackled her. Koneko hopped up and down in place, her hands clasped together and smiling with tears streaming down her face. She waited for her turn to hug her mother.
Polian's fang poked out as he smiled at Zen'i. She looked at her hands and blinked.
"Yup," he grinned. "You're alive. And I've got a wish for you." Polian looked to the dragon. "Shenlong, can you make the Jinzouningen human?"
"No. I cannot. Their power exceeds my abilities."
"Figured," the Namekjin moaned.
Zen'i stepped forward and took his hand. "Thanks. It's the thought that counts."
Bulma had heard this and called up to the dragon. "Then can you remove the self-destruct mechanisms from them? I can't do it without blowing us all to kingdom come!"
Everyone was shocked at this request, no one more so than Zen'i and Juunanagou, who were unaware they possessed such devices to begin with.
"Your wish is granted," Shenlong agreed.
Zen'i felt as if a weigh over her chest had been lifted. She was at loss for words for a moment. Her eyes widened. "Wait, 'them'?" She turned and saw the new member of the group. "Juunanagou?!"
Koneko gave a goofy grin to Zen'i's questioning look.
"Juunana!" the blonde cried and hugged her brother tightly.
"Hey." Juunanagou smiled slightly and returned the hug.
"Are you here to stay?"
He shook his head. "No. I need to think." He let her go and lifted slowly off the ground. "Later, Juuhachi."
Koneko blinked at the Jinzouningen. "Juunanagou..." she whispered and was amazed to find herself worrying about his feelings. She then remembered what she was waiting for. She turned back to get her hug and nearly fell over. Bulma and Gohan were kissing, passionately, completely oblivious of their audience. Polian rolled his eyes.
"Mom?! Gohan-san?!"
Polian clapped his hand on her shoulder. "Well, you had to grow up sometime, Kiddo."
She threw his hand off and barked at him. "I'm twenty years old now, Polian! I just didn't know!!"
Zen'i chuckled lightly and smiled at them in wonder.
Bulma and Gohan came up for air and laughed at Koneko's red face. The sun rose on the new day and the Z Warriors greeted it with mirth.
People everywhere woke up, alive, and laughed and cried for joy.
The world was safe again, for now.
To be continued…