Disclaimer: Akira Toriyama?? Nope, that's not my name!
Author's Note: *smiles sheepishly* Wow, I can't believe this! I didn't think that anyone would like this fic at all! Thank you for the kind reviews! :)
Anyway, here's chapter three. We're getting closer now!
***
Trunks stealthily edged his way through a large hole in the barbed wire fence surrounding Capsule Corp. Carefully looking each way just inside to make sure he hadn't roused any of the security guards, he then kept going in the general direction of the main compound, sticking to the shadows and trying not to make any unnecessary noise.
West City was an absolute mess, he had found out upon the moment of arrival back in his timeline. Not that it normally wasn't, but it seemed that the Androids had decided of late to come out and desecrate the area even more. The few people who still lived there, those who were too poor or too weak to leave, refused to leave their dwellings, peering nervously out of cracked windows and trying to keep a low profile. It seemed that Trunks's suspicions had been correct; the infamous duo had indeed been busy during his absence, and also feeling murderous at that.
He managed to get into a small side door without being seen. It was dark inside, and the air smelled strongly of a combination of motor oil and decay. The floor was littered with loose tiles and useless machinery, all coated with a thick layer of powdery dust that stirred as he walked around. It seemed that no one had even entered this section of Capsule Corp in years...
He shook his head sadly at all the decay as he walked deeper and deeper into the eerie darkness. It was hard to believe that he at one point had called this derelict ruin home, not to mention it having been one of the biggest technological strongholds in the world, where state of the art machinery was made and many scientific breakthroughs were accomplished. The place where he, his mother and father, and his grandparents (dead in the first attack on West City) had all lived...
(But look at it now. Half the rooms in this place aren't even livable anymore. No, now it's the main base for those two monsters.)
Yes, unfortunately, Capsule Corp, formerly the place where many investors and businessmen had flocked to and begged to be a part of, was now a symbol of fear for the people of West City and in the lands surrounding. Because of its modern facilities and advanced technology, the Androids had quickly taken it over and set it up as their base of operation. It was well-known that some of the labs had repair machinery that the Androids often used to maintenance and regenerate any of their worn out parts. They had even taken the staff hostage, forcing them to be slaves or to service any machinery needed to keep them running. Yes, Capsule Corp was now their main lurking place, and definitely where you could find them when they weren't destroying everything in sight.
After a few twists and turns in the Western Sector, Trunks finally made it to the lab area. He had been here before quite a few times, both with and without Gohan, to either steal things for his mother or to just spy. Therefore he knew everything there was to know about the regen machines, apart from what his mother had explained. But that didn't matter anymore now. Especially since his main objective of today was to destroy them.
They all went up in the same puff of smoke, melting into a complicated mess of tangled wires and twisted parts. Trunks smiled as he lowered his outstretched palm. Now they couldn't heal themselves during the battle. He had actually thought of doing this before, but it hadn't really mattered back then, as he had been unable to damage his enemies much anyway. But it was a whole different story now...
He sat and waited. They would come. He knew they would come. If they were around they would definitely have heard the explosion in the lab area and would arrive to see what had happened to their equipment. Time was on his side...
After about five minutes he heard the heavy footsteps coming down the hall towards him. They both showed up, side-by-side, both with faces that would have made the toughest fighters wet themselves.
But Trunks just grinned. Brushing the dust off his dark blue jacket, he took a step forward to greet them, trying to fight the nervousness that was threatening to engulf his stomach. He had never felt more afraid in his life. But also never more assured. The time had come to see just how strong he had really become...it was, in fact, now or never.
18 gritted her teeth. "So...it's you," she hissed, staring over at the smoldering lab area behind him. "I bet you're feeling pleased with yourself, aren't you?"
Trunks shook his head. "Not particularly," he replied quietly.
17 smirked and tossed his head. "I bet not, now that you're way in over your head. Tell me, did you think a stunt like that would actually increase your chances of winning?!"
"Not as if it would anyway, not with your pathetic human strength," 18 snorted. "You'd think that after we killed your little friend with ease that you'd get the idea, but I guess some people never learn. Am I right, brother?"
He nodded arrogantly. "But never mind all that. I'm sure we're boring you half to death. Why don't we just make this quick?" With that he strode over towards Trunks, a sadistic smile steadily taking over his face.
However, Trunks, for once, was a lot quicker. With lightning fast speed he closed the distance between them in a split second and, before 17 had even realized it, grabbed his arm and began twisting it.
17 struggled within Trunks's grasp, but he was unable to escape. "The...hell?" he gasped, unsuccessfully trying to free himself with his other arm. "Last time, you couldn't- couldn't even---how'd you get so strong?!"
18 watched impassively, her arms crossed over her chest. "Looks like we'll have a challenge for once, brother," she mused, making no move to help him.
Trunks just grabbed harder, feeling satisfied as he felt the crunch of wires and metal under his fingers. "This is for everyone," he said quietly, his voice starting to quaver with anger. "This is for my family. This is for my friends. This is for everyone that you killed. It's time to pay for what you did." Before either Android could react he had powered up into a Super Saiyan in one brilliant flash of golden light.
It was time to get down to business...
***
"Well, won't you say ANYTHING?! Talk already...say something!"
"..."
"Listen, this won't go away if you just turn your back and refuse to say anything!"
"What is there to SAY, woman?! It was a mistake. All of it."
"And is that ALL?!"
"I have nothing else to say. Now if you've finished with your pointless babble-"
"Now you just wait a minute, you coward! If you just think you're just going to run away from all this-"
"You're treading on thin, THIN ice, wench!"
"Wench, huh?! Is a wench all that I am to you?! Just something that you're going to use whenever you want and then discard when you're done?! "
"..."
"You're always like this! You're never gonna change!" It was then that her pent-up frustration suddenly changed to cold, venom-filled fury as she screamed the words that she had been itching to say for so long. "I- I HATE YOU!! I DON'T JUST DISLIKE YOU, I REALLY HATE YOU!! WHAT I EVER SAW IN YOU REMAINS A MYSTERY! I HATE YOU SO MUCH THAT HATE ISN'T EVEN A BAD ENOUGH WORD!"
"And maybe that's for the best, woman," he spat dejectedly as she stormed out of the room without even a glance behind.
***
Trunks did a victory loop in the air as he sped off towards home, his heart feeling lighter than it had in years. Things were finally looking up. Finally...
It had been the shortest battle ever, even shorter than the brief encounters he had had with them before in which his only aim had been to get far, far away. Finally...the Androids were dead, and by his own hand. He hated the explosions, he hated the sound of his fists connecting with their half organic parts, hell, he hated battle in general...but this particular battle was one that made him happier than he had ever been. Now he could go home and tell his mother about his deeds with joy and immense pride.
He grinned as he stared a few hundred feet below, at the pale ground that was heavily riddled with craters and signs of destruction. He could now fix everything, to make the world green and happy again; with a little work from everyone the world could eventually become like the past that he had had a glimpse of. And he could also carry out his plan...
He touched down onto the ground a few minutes later, near the familiar run-down house with its messy yard, which was cluttered with the capsules and machinery that Bulma liked to work on in her spare time. Puar, looking like a little pink blur, immediately flew out to greet him, screaming in her usual high-pitched squeal, "He's back! He's back!"
And she was right. After this last task, which he was going to start as soon as possible, he was going to be back. Permanently.
Bulma, upon hearing all the commotion, ran out herself, her cerulean hair bouncing around in its ponytail behind her. The Bulma that Trunks had always known looked almost the same as the Bulma in the past; she had aged quite well despite the terrible things that had been going on in the world around her. Her steadfastness had been the one thing that he could always rely on.
"Oh, it's you! I was starting to get so worried!" she exclaimed, wrapping her arms around him tightly.
Trunks smiled as he looked into her deep blue eyes, now welled up with tears that were threatening to spill out. (This is the last time you'll EVER be worried, Mom, I'll make sure of that.) "It's okay, everyone's okay," he soothed, returning the embrace. "It just took a little longer than usual, I'll explain later. But it's all over. The Androids there are no longer a threat." He did not care to add that the Androids everywhere, in any time, were no longer a threat as well, but he would wait on that one. She needed to be sitting down when he dropped THAT bomb on her.
She continued to smile. "That's great, that's just great," she replied quietly. "I did what I set out to do, then."
Puar, hovering around above them, wasn't one for mushy greetings. "C'mon c'mon!" she screeched. "Let's get some food! Let's celebrate! I wanna hear about everything! EVERYTHING!"
***
Fifteen minutes later they were all sitting at the rough kitchen table, eating bread and sipping on some weakly brewed tea made of herbs found in the forest. Starvation ran rampant in the world, mostly because the Androids either destroyed the crops or the land that they grew on, but Bulma's household was more well-fed than most. Mt. Paoztu was not only sort of a remote area, but it also had the forest around it, which had enough food for any if you could find it.
"So tell me what happened," Bulma finally voiced, staring at her son piercingly. "It sounds like everything was a little more complicated than we expected."
Trunks opened his mouth to reply, but Puar quickly cut in, "Tell me how Yamcha was! Is he okay? Did he fight?"
He smiled. "Well-" he started, suddenly reminded of their conversation the previous night. "he's all right---I guess. He never really fought, though. He never would have stood a chance anyway..."
The little cat-like creature giggled. "Good! He hasn't changed! Yamcha's so gentle, he wouldn't hurt a fly! He's broken a few hearts, though!" Needless to say, both Trunks and his mother at to roll their eyes at this one (though perhaps for different reasons).
Trunks continued with his story. "I won't bore you with every detail, but it looks like some things in the past were changed because of me," he explained, sipping at his tea. "Goku's virus, for one thing. The virus hit him later than it was supposed to, and we had to fight without him for awhile. And then the Androids were a lot stronger than the ones here. It was a good thing everyone was prepared...." He shuddered at one particularly nasty memory, when he had been forced to cut in during Vegeta's fight with 18 just so he could save his life.
Bulma nodded. "But they're dead?"
"Not dead, but harmless. They don't seem to wanna fight anymore. It makes me want to puke, but it seems that 18 has a little crush on -get this- Krillin!"
"Holy crap..." She looked as shocked as he felt when he had witnessed it all.
"But that's not all. Once the Androids were out of the way, we had to fight something else that Dr. Gero was responsible for. Cell."
"Cell?"
"Yeah, and he damn near killed us all too. Both me and Goku died. I was revived, but Goku -well- couldn't."
"WHAT?!"
"Yeah, he's dead. Gohan managed to get Cell, but Goku sacrificed himself. So yeah...he's dead. Everyone else is fine, though."
Bulma was awed. "Wow," she breathed, "Our time machine- I never would have thought..."
"Well, it's a good thing you did it!" Puar chirruped behind a huge mouthful of bread. "Except for Goku, everything there looks better! And all thanks to you, Trunks!"
"Yeah..."
***
It was a beautiful, starry night outside, one in which it would be a crime to stay indoors. Trunks, Bulma, and Puar had decided to go out and enjoy the cool breeze and the ethereal beauty of the sky. Puar, however, had gotten bored and was already curled up into a little pink ball and snoring loudly beside them, leaving mother and son to talk about deeper matters. They sat together out in the middle of the lawn, discussing the strange events of the past few days in further detail.
"So- how- how was-" Bulma began hesitantly after a long silence. Kami only knew she had been trying to keep her mouth shut until Trunks decided to bring up the subject, but the question continued to pound inside her. Had he seen anything strange while back in the past? Had it bothered him, or had he suspected all along? She longed to be more direct...
"My father, you mean?" Trunks cut in, crossing his ankles. "He was just -well- himself, I guess." He looked at her reprovingly. "You never told me how grumpy he always is!"
"Er -well- that's just the way he is. You get used to it after awhile."
"Once I got to know him, it wasn't so bad. I trained with him for a year, you know, in a chamber that stops time. We had to be nice to each other." He then fell silent. There was no way in hell that he was telling his mother about the talk with his father right before his departure. Not yet, anyway.
Bulma frowned, but didn't talk either. It was Trunks that broke the silence a minute later with, "But enough about that! How were things back here while I was gone?"
"Oh, fine. A couple of stupid bastards tried to rob the garden of what food it has, but a few shots from my laser and they were all tripping over each other."
"Serves 'em right for trying to steal."
"And then I heard on the radio a week ago that all the Desert Metros- north, east, south, and west, have been flattened. And then West City again just three days ago. They must be looking for a fight again, Trunks..."
It was then that he decided to come out from the truth. "Um...Mom, tell me something: is our family prone to swift, sudden heart attacks?"
She looked puzzled. "No...Why?"
"Well -uh- we don't have to worry anymore. I killed the Androids when I got back this morning. I barely broke a sweat fighting them. But it's true. They're dead."
Her jaw was practically scraping the floor. "WHAT?!" she gasped. "Trunks! You shouldn't have! You could have been killed! What a reckless thing to do!"
"But a smart thing," he replied with a smile. "I've gotten quite a bit stronger lately, and I thought it was time. But they're gone. Dead. We can start rebuilding."
"Really?"
"Really."
"Oh Kami...I- I never- never DREAMED-Oh, Trunks!" She began to wail, burying her head into his chest and sobbing. "It's over, isn't it? It's really over! We don't have to worry anymore!"
"Yeah, exactly," he voiced softly. "We can get the world up and running again, stop the starvation and poverty, even move back to Capsule Corp if you want..."
"Well, of course!" she said in a firm voice, her crying dissipating as quickly as it had started. "That place was our home before those monsters destroyed it! In fact, we start tomorrow!"
"Might as well...everyone in West City knows what I did. Maybe even farther, by now...But I have to tell you something," he started, having decided to start his plan straightaway. "I can't help you for the first ten days or so."
She looked up. "Why not?"
He gritted his teeth. He hated deceiving her like this, but he wanted to surprise her when she saw everyone that she loved alive and well. "Well, Dad was telling me about how much stronger he got in space," he lied through his teeth. "More resistance and everything. I want to train up there for a little bit. You know, get a little stronger, try to get to the second ascension...I want to be a challenge to anything that might come our way in the future." At least THAT part was true. Cell was due to arrive in this timeline in about three years.
"Are you sure? Can't you wait a little longer?" she prodded, a concerned look on her face.
"Just ten days, Mom. Ten days is all I need- and I'll be right back here working as hard as anyone."
She touched his shoulder. "All right. Just be careful. Space can be dangerous...I learned that much when I went to Namek." She cleared her throat. "We have a good ship in our hangar. It's got a gravity machine and everything, and I'm sure no one's touched it since it's password activated. We'll go to Capsule Corp tomorrow and get it, and then I'll stay behind to begin the clean-up."
Trunks nodded. "So it's decided, then."
She squeezed his hand. "Just be careful, Trunks, that's all I ask...There's something I have to tell you when you get back. Something that you'd better know."
He wondered at this, noticing the look on her face indicating that something was just not right, but he nodded anyway. "All right..."
***
It was another sleepless night for Trunks. Staring out at the full moon and tossing and turning restlessly in his bed, he could do nothing but think about his plans for tomorrow.
Again, a lot had happened in twenty-four hours. The trip back to his timeline, the final battle with the Androids, and that weird conversation with his father. What a day...
Everything was in place. He had a ship, he had his mother's support (although she didn't know about his little scheme just yet), and he even had the coordinates for New Planet Namek. The only problem was finding the Dragonballs once there. But compared to what he had just been doing, that would probably be a snap...
A peaceful grin spread across his face as he finally drifted off to sleep. Once he had revived everyone, everything would be back to normal.
Author's Note: Whew! I actually think of that one as one of my better chapters. I had trouble getting into it during my first two. Right now I'm working on seven (I've been working on this fic for literally months, whenever I've had time), so expect updates to come pretty frequently for at least awhile.
Trunks will be on Namek next chapter, so expect the revival and the consequences of it to happen fairly soon. Then the perspectives and points of view will start to shift towards Vegeta and Bulma. I know I'm not very fast paced, but I want certain things to build up so that it's not looking rushed later.
Thanx for reading and, hopefully, reviewing! *Makes big brown puppy-dog eyes* Whether you liked it, hated it, or have suggestions in order to improve certain parts, I'll appreciate it!