Chapter Five - Dark Skies

Otherworld:

Shin set his bowl down and stretched. "Your a good cook." he said to the elder Kai before letting out a deep sigh. "Right, guess I should make my daily check of the universe, make sure nothing's out of order." He walked out of his house and took a seat leaning against the hard wall. Closing his eyes he reached his senses out into the vastness of the universe and began searching for anything out of the ordinary. Almost instantly his mind is pulled to the Earth.

"Gohan?" he asked in wonder as he recognized the power he was feeling. His mind quickly found the half Sai-jin who was currently unleashing the strongest Kamehameha Wave he'd ever used. Shin split his focus leaving part of it on Gohan and letting the rest wonder around the gathered group and the destroyed forest. As Gohan's attack came to an end he felt the life leave his body. "What happened on Earth?" Shin wondered as he remerged his focus and looked around the area. He froze as he saw the ruined Son home.

Then he felt a sudden upsurge of energy which drew his attention back to where Gohan and the others were gathered. "Buu!?" he cried in bewildered surprise as a pink blob began to take shape in the sky. The fat Buu was still on the ground with the others so then who was this one? Then he saw him take form and recognized the shape from seventeen years ago when his senses had been first drawn to Earth. "Cell? But... how's that possible?" Shin continued to watch the events on Earth with growing interest.

******

Earth:

Everyone stood outside the ruins of the Son home and eight makeshift wooden crosses. Buu had insisted on setting them up, one for each person who had died. Krillin stood up as he finished carving his son's name on the last of the crosses. With one last look he walked over and stood with 18.

"We should take you to the Lookout." Piccolo said looking over to 18. "It would make it harder for Cell to get to you."

"And run away? Not a chance!" she shouted. "I'm not hiding."

"No one side you would be hiding." a voice said from behind the group.

Everyone turned and Goku brightened up considerably. "Supreme Kai! What are you doing here?"

Shin bowed slightly as the wind picked up and flapped his long hair behind him a bit. "Goku, it's good to see you too." He looked at the crosses lined up in front of the ruins for a moment. "I just wish it were under better circumstances. I saw Gohan's last attack... if I'd known this was happening I'd have come sooner."

"No offense but I don't think you'd have helped much." Piccolo said.

"I suppose not, but I could have done something." Shin shook his head and then looked over to 18. "And you really should be taken somewhere else, if Cell absorbs you he'll be next to invincible."

"No chance." 18 said again. "I intend to get the Dragonballs." she glared daggers at both Piccolo and Shin.

Realizing the battle was one he couldn't win Piccolo decided to drop the subject. "Goku, can you get the Dragon radar from Capsule Corp.?"

"I don't know where it is..."

"I'll show you, just get us there." Vegeta said. His eyes were still locked on the crosses that Bulma's and Bra's names had been carved into. A moment later the two had vanished. A pair of eyes hidden in the woods watched them go then eyed up those who remained.

/Only Goku poses any danger to me, with him gone now is the time to make my move./ Suddenly a wave of pink energy surged out from the trees catching everyone off guard. They managed to scatter quickly enough to not get hit and the wave sped past into the other side of trees. By the time everyone had recovered from the surprise attack Cell already had a firm hold on 18 and his tail was opening to absorb her.

Hope leaped at Cell transforming along the way. As she reached level two she held her right arm out and down at her side. Folding all but her index and ring fingers she charged a small ball of KI which bulged for a moment then flattened out into a disk. With a flick of her wrist the disk sped from her fingers and cut through Cell's wrists yet his hands still held onto 18.

The pink globs stretched out and reconnected to Cell's arms but the disk came back around and severed his hands again. "Damn you girl!" Cell roared as he tried to reattach his hands again. This time the disk spun around behind him and loped off his tail. Cell roared and pitched 18 aside turning to focus on Hope. "That's it girl, now you die!" he roared as his tail re-grew.

Hope smirked, she knew Cell wouldn't get that close, she could see Trunks and Goten lined up out of the corner of her eye. Sure enough, a moment later their voices rang out. "Fuuuu. Sion. Haaa!" Cell turned in shock as the light faded and Gotenks stood smirking at him. Hope had never seen him before so it was an interesting sight. He was exactly like they'd described earlier in the day. Almost 80% of his hair was purple and it was less vertical than it had been when he was younger, looking more like Goten's normal hairstyle than it had when he was a kid.

In a flash of light Gotenks transformed to level three and continued to smirk at the now wide eyed Cell. "What's wrong? To strong for you?" He charged in and swung at Cell but the Biodroid suddenly vanished and came crashing down on top of Gotenks slamming him face first into the ground. Gotenks thrust himself up out of the ground throwing Cell off his back. Turning he fired an energy blast at where Cell was but once again the Biodroid vanished.

A fist lanced suddenly into Gotenks stomach and a point blank KI blast followed immediately afterward. Gotenks was flung into the air and back. Cell jumped, flipped, and slammed his heel into the fusion's face slamming him hard into the ground. As he hit his aura faded and he returned to normal as he slipped into unconsciousness. Turning from Gotenks he caught Hope's incoming fist in one of his own large hands before backhanding her through the trees.

As Cell walked back over to 18 he stretched his arms out and grabbed her tightly again. "No!" Krillin cried launching in as Buu started to charge an energy blast. As Krillin neared Cell's tail moved from where it hovered over 18 and slammed into the short man's head with a loud crack. Everyone stared in shock as his head twisted the entire way around.

"You monster!" 18 cried slamming her legs into Cell as hard as she could but he wouldn't let go. She quit trying to pry his hands off her neck and started blasting him in his face to no avail. 18 looked back at Buu. "Blast us!" she cried.

Buu blinked as he held onto his energy blasts. "Buu would hurt you..."

"I know that! Do it!"

Buu stood there for a moment. He looked over at Piccolo who nodded to him. Turning back he saw 18's head was already in Cell's tail. Quickly the pink blob fired his energy blast as quickly as he could but Cell and 18 both vanished and the attack crashed into the forest. "What? Where Cell go?"

Piccolo shook his head. "This isn't good." he said looking around for any sign of Cell's power. A second later Goku and Vegeta reappeared with the Dragon radar.

******

Goten, Trunks, Goku, Buu, and Vegeta all floated on the outskirts of Satan City. They were waiting for some sign of Cell, some indication of where he was. They knew he was still absorbing 18 or else he'd have attacked. Then it happened, there was a blinding flash of light from within the city and they sped toward the building glow. There they found a crowd of spectators around a glowing dome of energy that had engulfed the transforming Cell.

"Go!" Goku yelled down at the crowd. "Get away from here!" They looked up at him like he was nuts, all except one. Goku smiled when he saw him and quickly landed beside the man.

"What's going on?" Hercule asked. "What is this thing!"

"Cell." Goku replied coldly. "He's already killed a lot of people... even Videl and Pan."

"WHAT! W-what about..."

"Gohan's gone, he gave everything he had in one attack but... this new Cell also has some of Buu in it." Hercule's face paled as Goku turned to look at him. "You have to clear these people out! We don't have much time!"

Hercule nodded and turned made his way to the front of the crowd. As he emerged at the front the murmuring in the crowd died out. "You have to leave this place right now!" Hercule demanded. "My friends and I will deal with this problem!"

"What is it Hercule?" someone demanded.

He wasn't sure what to tell them at first but realized the truth would make them move faster. "It's another Cell!" he cried loudly. "This one's stronger than the last so you have to go, now!" At first no one moved, then the swirling energy vanished and the Pink Cell emerged in his final form, a form the world recognized. Vegeta and the others landed beside Hercule as Cell smirked. Instantly the gathered crowd ran for cover.

"Well now Goku." Cell said smiling. "You still ready for that fight?"

******

"We're getting close to the Dragonballs." Piccolo said watching the radar in his hands.

"What could those Androids want?" Hope wondered as a devastated portion of the city came into view.

Suddenly the sky began to darken. "I think we're about to find out." Shin said as gold light lanced up from the ground. "I would say that's where they are."

They pulled up and landed behind the three Androids. 14 and 15 turned toward them while the Dragon demanded the first wish. Piccolo looked to the others. "I'll handle the short guy. Shin, the big one's yours. Hope, take out the other one before he makes a wish!" The two nodded and all three charged in for battle.