~Chapter 28: The Cell Game~
At about 10 AM on the day of the Cell game, we sat around the lookout waiting for Goku.
Piccolo was talking. He was trying to make plans for what we would do afterward if we won the Cell Game, depending on who had died.
"It's really a good thing we've got a new set of dragon balls," I said. "I mean, I'd already been revived with the last set, and Goku too."
"Oh no!" said Dende.
All eyes were on the small Namekian. "What is it, Dende?" said Gohan.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he kept mumbling.
Dende told us that the dragon balls he had made had the limitation of only being able to revive a person once, like Kami's. Worse, since he'd made them with the rocks of the old ones, everyone who'd been revived with that set - Muten Roshi, Chaozu, Bora, Goku, and I - could not be revived. Dende could have made them without that limitation, but then we would've gotten only one wish. He was sorry. We should have warned him.
I asked him if he could change them. No, he couldn't. He could still make a new set, but there was no telling how long that'd take - probably even longer than a hundred days, since he'd just expended a lot of energy. That wouldn't do any good, though - dragon balls couldn't revive anyone killed before the balls themselves had been created.
"Oh..." I said, and I sat down. I felt like crap. My heart raised itself into my throat.
"You don't have to come, Kuririn," said Piccolo. "I doubt you'll fight anyway, so if you're worried about dying, you can stay up here with Dende."
I considered that. It made sense, but it seemed so cowardly - I don't know why. I told them that I would come anyway. I had to support Goku, I said. After all, he couldn't be revived either, and he had as much chance of dying as I did.
Hence, when Goku did arrive at the lookout, the mood wasn't exactly cheerful. Goku himself was, however - the picture of happy-go-lucky if I'd ever seen it. It didn't make any sense - there was no reason for him to be that confident. We weren't even sure that he was stronger than Cell.
I told him about the dragon balls, but the news failed to make a dent in his demeanor.
"We just have to not die, right? It's no big deal."
I glared at him. Had Goku lost his sanity?
Turning to everyone else, he said, "It'd probably be more impressive if we brought everyone. Hold on."
He put two fingers to his forehead, disappeared, and reappeared shortly after with Tenshinhan. He repeated the process, this time returning with Yamucha.
"Yamucha," I said, "Are you--"
He looked at the floor. "I'm only going to watch."
So, the seven of us, leaving Dende, left for Cell's arena. We got there a few minutes before noon. Cell was still standing in the middle of his arena. Vegeta was already there. Number 16 was there, as was - groan with me, please - Mr. Satan.
A total of ten contestants showed up for Cell's game - I was a little surprised that no one else had come, but relieved. The less people involved in this, the better. Of course, just three of those ten would end up actually fighting Cell. Television viewers may have recognized me from the Budokai, and Yamucha from his baseball career. I doubt that anyone recognized Goku, with his bright yellow Super Saiyan hair and blue eyes. If anyone recognized Piccolo, they probably panicked.
Number 16 came up to me after we landed. The red ribbon crest on his armor had been replaced with the Capsule Corp logo.
"I wanted to thank you, Kuririn," he said. "It's because of you that I've been fixed."
I was happy to hear that. I smiled at 16. He was definitely good. I had no doubt at all.
Goku offered a friendly handshake to 16, but he didn't take it. He said something about having been created to kill him. I guess that it's difficult to overcome programming like that.
"Well," said Goku, "I guess I'll go first, huh?"
I was surprised that Goku wanted to go first, but I concluded that he probably didn't want anyone else to get hurt. Everyone agreed to let Goku go first. Well, almost everyone.
Mr. Satan, with his ludicrous cape and champion wrestler's belt, yelled something at us. A reporter from television that was accompanying him came over and shouted in our faces. He asked us if we were making some kind of joke.
"I thought that even the most ignorant hick in the world had heard of the Great Mr. Satan! He's the strongest warrior in the world! He's a genius!" It made me sick to my stomach to hear the man's sycophantic dribbling. I'd never seen such unjustified arrogance. Mr. Satan looked onto the reporter's spectacle with approval.
I eventually convinced Goku to let Mr. Satan to go first. It was obvious that he wasn't going to stop making a fuss until we did. Moreover, I have to admit I was kind of looking forward to seeing him be trounced by Cell.
I honestly have no idea what was going through Mr. Satan's head. At first, I thought he might have had some plan, but the moment he brought out a stack of roof tiles to demonstrate his awesome strength, I realized that he was just an idiot to the core. I don't think I need to say that his attacks had no effect on Cell. It was mean of him to have the world place their hopes on him like that. I shudder when I think how many people must have given up hope when he was knocked out of the ring by Cell with a single backhand. Somehow, though, Mr. Satan survived Cell's little tap and was gearing up to fight again. I slapped my forehead - didn't this guy EVER get it? I think Vegeta put it best - Mr. Satan was "The World Champion of Morons".
Of course, when Goku stepped into the ring we knew that the real fight had begun. The tension was very heavy. Goku looked as confident as ever as he faced off against Cell.
Well, Goku, I thought, here's your chance. Show us why you're so confident. I prayed that it all wasn't some sort of colossal bluff designed to give us some measure of hope in the days leading up to the Cell Game.
I looked around. Almost everyone looked as nervous as me, even Piccolo. I sensed everyone's ki, and even accounting for the Super Saiyan transformation I knew that no one else was strong enough to give Cell a good fight - this was it, for better or for worse. Of course, in retrospect I can see that I didn't feel Gohan's ki very carefully...
The fight started out at a level that wasn't really so spectacular. It was far beyond me, but I knew that for them it was just a warm-up. Of course, it must have been enough to wake up Mr. Satan. I don't care how thick-headed you are, when everyone starts flying around at amazing speed and launching blasts of energy, you have to have second thoughts.
When they faced off again, I remember Goku's expression changing. He now looked the picture of seriousness. What did that mean? I don't know. I felt so helpless that it almost seemed I wasn't really there, that I had transcended my body and was watching from the clouds.
Both fighters powered up, releasing tremendous energy. I was barely strong enough to hold my ground against the shockwaves. Their ki flares were bright and enormous. When they engaged, Goku beat Cell around a bit, but it was obvious from watching Cell that he wasn't really trying. Still, their speed was incredible. I almost couldn't follow it.
Cell smiled. "Ka... Me..."
I panicked, brought down to Earth again. What in the Hell did he think he was doing? A Kamehameha at that power level would destroy the whole world!
"Ha... Me..."
Goku panicked as well. "Stop it, Cell," he screamed. "Stop it!"
"Ha!"
I closed my eyes and held up my arms in a futile block. I was knocked away several feet by the force of the blast. When I could see again, however, Goku and Cell were standing on the arena, same as before. As far as I could pick up from their conversation, Goku had jumped into the air to get Cell to aim away from the Earth and used Instant Transmission to escape the blast. We all breathed a massive sigh of relief. I was sweating through my clothes. I felt as if someone had put a gun to my head and pulled the trigger, then laughed and said, "It wasn't loaded, man. You should have SEEN your face."
Goku and Cell began to fight again, and both looked serious. However, it became apparent all too quickly who it was that had the advantage. They were both insanely fast - I couldn't believe how fast they were! - but Cell was definitely faster. And stronger. While most of Goku's blows struck air, Cell's hit Goku hard. Goku just couldn't keep up. My resolve sank. It was looking more and more like we had no shot at this. Yet, I couldn't help but wonder - if Goku was so much weaker than Cell, why had he been so confident? Had he underestimated Cell? Put too much stock in his own abilities? Neither of those things sounded like Goku. Something was wrong.
I guess I should have seen what happened next coming. Cell destroyed the arena. I never really expected this battle to remain that farce of a martial arts tournament.
Moving away from the smoking crater where the arena had been, the fighters made use of their new expanse of terrain. Cell threw numerous ki blasts down at Goku, missing him but pummeling the poor Earth. Then Goku flew up above Cell and began to charge up a Kamehameha.
"Wait a minute," I said. "There's no way..."
It was the same situation as before. If Goku fired a Kamehameha at that level, it'd destroy the world. He was wrong if he thought Cell would dodge like he did. Cell planted his feet and held his ground.
Goku continued to charge up. I smiled, knowing it was a bluff. Goku obviously had some plan. There was no way that Goku was going to destroy the Earth.
I cast a glance at the crazy look on Goku's face.
Was there?
For a moment, I felt a little dizzy.
Of course, Goku did not destroy the Earth. He used the Instant Transmission again to appear right next to Cell and direct the Kamehameha at him. I cheered. I'd known all along that Goku had a plan, I told myself. I'd been sure...
The blast had blown off most of the upper half of Cell's body. Yamucha, for one, cheered aloud that we'd won, but I knew better. I wasn't sure if Goku knew about Cell's regenerative powers. "Tell him," I told myself lamely, but my lips would not budge.
Too late, I finally shouted, "Look out, Goku! Cell can regenerate!"
Sure enough, Cell's husk stood up and grew back. I will never get used to seeing things do that. Never. I'm breaking a cold sweat just thinking about it. Brr.
The fight resumed hotter than ever. It was still on TV at this point, but you couldn't catch most of the action. Goku pushed himself harder and harder, finally hurting Cell so badly that he put up a massive barrier. This, even the television viewers saw.
Things still looked hopeless. Goku'd had the upper hand for a moment, but now he was gasping for air, and Cell was barely fazed. Cell and Trunks urged me to give Goku a senzu, but it didn't seem like the right thing to do. Even if Goku was back at full power, I didn't think Goku could handle even the weakened Cell. What was there to do?
Goku looked up at Cell defiantly.
"I give up," he said.
Everything froze.
"You're too strong for me," said Goku. "I surrender."
There was a general clamor to the effect of "What the hell?" What did Goku mean? He couldn't just give up.
Cell very gravely informed Goku that if there were no fighters left to challenge Cell, then everyone on Earth was going to die.
"But there is one more person to fight you," said Goku. "I'm pretty sure he can beat you."
Goku turned around and scanned over every one of us. I had no idea who he was talking about. What was he trying to pull?
Finally, Goku exclaimed, "It's your turn... Gohan!"
Everyone stared at Gohan. He looked extremely uncomfortable. Piccolo went into hysterics.
Goku came over to us very calmly and said that Gohan was stronger than we'd ever imagined. That some of his hidden power had finally been brought out. To prove his point, he asked Gohan if, at any time during the battle, he thought that it looked too hard for him.
Gohan admitted that he never had, and even said that he thought Goku had been holding back. It was unbelievable, but at the same time, it felt so obvious. Gohan always had been capable of amazing things...
Gohan faced off against Cell. He did look and feel stronger than ever, and it was something of a relief. Maybe we still had a shot at this. At the same time, though, I felt sad. Gohan had never liked fighting, and he was just a kid. I loved Gohan, and it didn't seem fair to me for all of this pressure to fall upon him. But there's no fairness in war, is there? You just do what you can.
Things seemed to be going pretty well, until a mistake was made. It happened before Gohan and Cell even started fighting.
When Goku asked me for a senzu, I wasn't quite sure why he wanted it. He wasn't fighting anymore, and Gohan was still fresh. Yet, I gave it to him. I didn't see any reason to question Goku.
"Hey, Cell!" said Goku. A fire alarm went off inside my head.
He threw the senzu to Cell.
I was furious! Never in my life had I felt so maligned, so betrayed. My fists shook as I watched that cocky Cell chew his senzu. "Goku, you moron," I thought. "You've doomed us all."
When asked, in very explicit language, what he was thinking, Goku only said that he wanted it to be a fair fight.
A fair fight? Can I possibly convey to you how exasperated I felt to hear that? This was not the time for fair. This was the time for do whatever the hell we can to stop that maniac, fair or not. I gave Goku a dark look.
"Don't try to blame me for what happens," I said. Goku just smiled.
Gohan powered up. His power was phenomenal. It made my head hurt.
As they fought, I could see that Goku had been right about at least one thing - Gohan was faring better against Cell than his father ever had been. He could more than keep up with him. Cell eventually got the better of him for a moment and knocked him into a cliff wall. Cell was already gloating over his victory.
Gohan said something to Cell. He spoke quietly, so I didn't catch it. I did hear Cell's shouted reply, though - "What? You don't want to fight me?"
I felt a small tear at my heart that spread to engulf me with a warm ache. Gohan-kun, you were ahead of your time.
Gohan told Cell why he thought Goku had counted on him. Ever since he was a kid, whenever he got so angry that he lost control he had more power than he knew...
"Oh, no", I thought. Gohan didn't know what he was doing. People like Cell always react the same horrible, predictable way to a challenge like that.
Cell didn't disappoint. "You've made me want to piss you off just to see if you're telling the truth."
Cell began to beat up Gohan. With every blow, my fists and my teeth clenched tighter. I didn't know about Gohan, but I was certainly angry. I wished a thousand times, pleaded for the power to help him. I received no response. Gohan, for his part, fought back a little, but not enough. Cell soon had Gohan in a powerful hold and was slowly crushing him.
"Well?" shouted Cell. "Aren't you angry yet?"
Man, that Cell pissed me off. I was surprised, though, to hear a calm and quiet statement from Goku several feet away.
"We just have to wait until Gohan gets angry," he said. "Then he'll have the strength to beat Cell. I know he will."
I looked at him in disbelief. His own son was having his bones crushed, and he still wasn't upset? Was still playing his bluff? I nearly lost it. Piccolo saved me the trouble.
"Goku, you are wrong," he said. "Gohan doesn't like to fight like you."
Goku looked shocked.
"Do you know what Gohan is thinking right now?" shouted the Namekian. "He isn't thinking about getting angry or overcoming Cell! He's thinking, 'Why isn't my father coming to rescue me from pain and death?'"
Goku looked nervously down at Cell and Gohan. Gohan was really having a rough time. It didn't look like he could survive much more.
More quietly, Piccolo continued, "He's thinking that his father values a fair, manly fight more than his own life."
I looked at Goku. Waited. He kept staring at his son.
Finally, something turned over in Goku's mind. He realized something important. For a second, he looked panicked, then determined.
"Kuririn!" he yelled. "Give me a senzu!"
Yes! Yes! I rejoiced. This was more like it. THIS was our Goku!
But it was too late. Before I could give Goku the senzu, Cell appeared in front of me and stole them. Gohan tried to attack, but Cell only kicked him out of the way. It was a nightmare.
It was then that Number 16 made his last move. He flew to Cell and gripped him.
"I'm sorry, everyone!" said 16. "This will kill all of us, but it's my only choice! I have a powerful bomb inside of me... I'm going to self destruct along with Cell!"
I wilted. Remembered what Dr. Briefs had told me. Everyone else was in suspense, but not me. I knew what was going to happen - nothing. Bulma and her father had removed the bomb.
Cell tore 16 apart with a ki blast. I snapped my head away, shut my eyes. It wasn't fair... Poor 16. He'd beaten all of the odds and become a good person, only to be senselessly slaughtered.
I didn't have any time to cry for Number 16's unfortunate loss, though. Events quickly turned in such a way that I was no longer just an observer. Cell eerily counted us and then released these... inexplicable little mini-Cells. He called them "Cell Juniors". Actually, they looked kind of like a cross between Cell and me. They were a bit shorter than I was.
They were so powerful! I couldn't believe their power. How was Cell able to produce such beings? One of them faced off against each of us. I tried so hard to fight, but it was too fast and too strong for me. I felt angry with myself for being so weak, but a quick glance showed that Piccolo and even Goku, weakened by his fight against Cell, couldn't do anything against them either. Only Vegeta and Trunks could really fight them.
I tried to prepare a Kienzan, but there was no time. The damn little thing hit me and kicked me until I couldn't see, and then threw me against a wall. I lost consciousness. I woke up after being fed a senzu by Trunks. By that time, all of the Cell Juniors were dead, but it seems to me a great injustice to have this gap in the story. I know it's cheating, but why don't you just read Gohan's account. He dictated the following to me.
---
It hurt me very deeply to see all of my friends being beaten up like that, but I still couldn't release my power as I was supposed to. I certainly felt angry enough, but I was still held back... by something. Was I afraid that I would replace my father? That I would lose control of myself? Kami, I don't remember. I was eleven years old. I just remember that it hurt a lot, and I wanted to get angry, to do anything to stop it...
No, I'm fine, Kuririn. I just needed to catch my breath. The next thing I knew, the head of the artificial human called Number 16 landed next to me. Mr. Satan had thrown it - he had some bravery, at least. It seemed strange to have that disembodied head talking to me, but it had something important to say. It... 16 told me that I could fight, that it wasn't a sin to fight for righteousness. But it was what he said last that really got to me. I remember exactly what it was... "Protect the nature and animals that I loved". Who would have thought... I wanted to pick up that android, tell it that it was going to be okay, but he seemed almost happy.
Then Cell stepped on him. He crushed him like an insect, and I just lost it. I became so angry that I transformed into the Super Sayian 2. Actually, I became filled with such anger and black, ugly hatred that it left a mark on me. (He places a fist over his heart).
...No, I'm fine. Really. (He smiles brightly) That was a long time ago. I hope that I've helped you with your book, Kuririn-san.
---
I'm sorry, I know that this is supposed to be my story, but I just thought when he told me that that it was more meaningful than anything I could have written.
When I got up, one glance at Gohan confirmed that he'd transformed. We wouldn't get around to calling what he'd achieved 'Super Saiyan Level 2' for a while.
Cell also powered up. I'd had no idea that all this time, Cell had still been hiding so much power. It felt like just his power was going to destroy the world. To Gohan, however, it seemed to be nothing. He fought Cell effortlessly, and I realized something alarming about Gohan's power level - I couldn't sense it. It had finally happened, someone had gotten so far above me that I couldn't tell just how far. I had no reference point anymore. I knew it was really high, but that was it. Sensing Gohan's ki was like hearing white noise. I did know that it was greater than Cell's.
It was unbelievable to see him beat up Cell so badly, so casually. Near me, Vegeta shook where he stood. I guess that he could sense the full extent of Gohan's power.
Desperate, Cell tried his Kamehameha toward the Earth again. As the blast tore with astounding force toward the Earth, we all trembled. But Gohan only ripped through it with an even larger Kamehameha. Goku had had no idea how right he had been about his son's power.
Cell floated in the air, devastated.
"Now, Gohan," said Goku, "Finish him off!"
Gohan turned around, and he had this look in his eyes... "It's too early, father. He must suffer more."
Oh no. Not like this.
Goku was horrified. He begged his son, pleaded with him, but was ignored. Poor Gohan! I never thought I'd see him - the most harmless, sweet kid I've ever met - acting like that. We should have known when we were pushing him that something like this would happen. That he'd get too far into it.
Cell lost it and started making stupid mistakes. Gohan hit him so hard that he looked as if he was going to throw up. He did, but what emerged from his mouth was something I'd resigned myself to never seeing again.
Number 18.
Oh my god! Should I grab her? Is it possible that she's still alive?
Cell mumbled something I didn't hear. Then he started to expand. He became like a giant, ugly balloon.
"Ha ha ha," croaked the monstrosity. "In one minute I'll explode... this is the end of you bastards!"
It hit us like a brick. We'd been so sure that we'd won, but what were we going to do now? We couldn't attack, that'd just make him explode faster. We couldn't do anything but despair. After all our efforts, this was the end of the Earth.
So, we just sat there and waited.
It isn't fair, I thought. We've been through Frieza, through so many things. Can't we ever be let alone? Is peace too much to ask?
Goku stepped forward.
"Sorry, everybody," he said, "But this is the only way I could think of to save the Earth."
He teleported to Cell and placed a hand upon him, and then two fingers upon his own forehead.
"Tell your mother I'm sorry, Gohan," said Goku.
Then, he and Cell disappeared. Somewhere far away, Cell exploded, killing Goku and Kaio-sama.
I dropped to my knees. Goku was gone. It hurt so badly. What a hero Goku had been. What a friend he'd been. I just wanted to collapse and never get up again.
But then I saw Gohan screaming and beating the ground, and I thought that life had to go on. It wasn't right to dishonor Goku's sacrifice by being too unhappy.
I walked up to Gohan and sadly put a hand on him. I smiled as best I could.
"It's okay, Gohan," I told him. "It's over. You both finished him off."
"It's my fault... I killed my father..."
I shook my head. "Without you, the world would have been destroyed." I made him stand up. I told him that even though he'd died, Goku seemed happy that he (Gohan) had become so strong.
Though I was sad, I was also happy in a slight way. After all, the Earth had been saved. I walked over to 18's limp form and lifted her. She was coated in some kind of slimy film from the inside of Cell, but she was alive. I breathed a sigh of relief. Held her close to me and got my gi all slimy.
"What are you doing with that cyborg?" said Vegeta. "If it's still alive, kill it!"
I told him no, that she wasn't bad. He hmphed at me but made no move to do anything.
But it's never over when you think it's over, is it? Life just isn't that easy.
A cloud of dust was suddenly thrown up where Cell had vanished, and a ki blast emerged from it and went straight through Trunks, killing him. Cell was back.
Cell now looked more confident than ever, and his ki flare was insane. His power felt like Gohan's now - I didn't know how high it was. He'd somehow not only survived, but gotten even stronger! He told us that he'd managed to regenerate. That he hadn't been planning on that, but he was just lucky. I had flashbacks to Frieza emerging from the crater.
Suddenly, Vegeta screamed and attacked Cell. It took a second for it to dawn on me that he was upset because Trunks had been killed. I wasn't even sure that Vegeta was capable of caring about other people.
As much as Vegeta put into his attack, it was useless against Cell, who came at him from behind. I tried to warn Vegeta, but Cell was too fast. Cell knocked him to the ground and tried to kill him, but Gohan saved him at the last moment.
However, in saving Vegeta, Gohan took a ki blast in the arm. After that, he couldn't use that arm at all.
So, Cell prepared one last time a blast that would surely destroy the Earth. Once again we were all rendered helpless. Once again we all had to sit around and await our execution.
With his one good arm, Gohan prepared a blast with one arm to counter Cell's.
"It's no good," said Piccolo, "Gohan's ki is weaker." Everything we knew about ki told us that if two blasts hit each other, the one with the greater ki will prevail. When the blasts met, Gohan's blast began to be pushed back, and we prepared for the worst. Yet, at that moment something happened. Was it a miracle? Did Gohan just get his second wind? Whatever it was, Gohan's blast came back and overcame Cell's.
There was a terrible blast and a deafening noise.
Then, there was a deep silence.
Cell was gone.
--END OF CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT--
At about 10 AM on the day of the Cell game, we sat around the lookout waiting for Goku.
Piccolo was talking. He was trying to make plans for what we would do afterward if we won the Cell Game, depending on who had died.
"It's really a good thing we've got a new set of dragon balls," I said. "I mean, I'd already been revived with the last set, and Goku too."
"Oh no!" said Dende.
All eyes were on the small Namekian. "What is it, Dende?" said Gohan.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he kept mumbling.
Dende told us that the dragon balls he had made had the limitation of only being able to revive a person once, like Kami's. Worse, since he'd made them with the rocks of the old ones, everyone who'd been revived with that set - Muten Roshi, Chaozu, Bora, Goku, and I - could not be revived. Dende could have made them without that limitation, but then we would've gotten only one wish. He was sorry. We should have warned him.
I asked him if he could change them. No, he couldn't. He could still make a new set, but there was no telling how long that'd take - probably even longer than a hundred days, since he'd just expended a lot of energy. That wouldn't do any good, though - dragon balls couldn't revive anyone killed before the balls themselves had been created.
"Oh..." I said, and I sat down. I felt like crap. My heart raised itself into my throat.
"You don't have to come, Kuririn," said Piccolo. "I doubt you'll fight anyway, so if you're worried about dying, you can stay up here with Dende."
I considered that. It made sense, but it seemed so cowardly - I don't know why. I told them that I would come anyway. I had to support Goku, I said. After all, he couldn't be revived either, and he had as much chance of dying as I did.
Hence, when Goku did arrive at the lookout, the mood wasn't exactly cheerful. Goku himself was, however - the picture of happy-go-lucky if I'd ever seen it. It didn't make any sense - there was no reason for him to be that confident. We weren't even sure that he was stronger than Cell.
I told him about the dragon balls, but the news failed to make a dent in his demeanor.
"We just have to not die, right? It's no big deal."
I glared at him. Had Goku lost his sanity?
Turning to everyone else, he said, "It'd probably be more impressive if we brought everyone. Hold on."
He put two fingers to his forehead, disappeared, and reappeared shortly after with Tenshinhan. He repeated the process, this time returning with Yamucha.
"Yamucha," I said, "Are you--"
He looked at the floor. "I'm only going to watch."
So, the seven of us, leaving Dende, left for Cell's arena. We got there a few minutes before noon. Cell was still standing in the middle of his arena. Vegeta was already there. Number 16 was there, as was - groan with me, please - Mr. Satan.
A total of ten contestants showed up for Cell's game - I was a little surprised that no one else had come, but relieved. The less people involved in this, the better. Of course, just three of those ten would end up actually fighting Cell. Television viewers may have recognized me from the Budokai, and Yamucha from his baseball career. I doubt that anyone recognized Goku, with his bright yellow Super Saiyan hair and blue eyes. If anyone recognized Piccolo, they probably panicked.
Number 16 came up to me after we landed. The red ribbon crest on his armor had been replaced with the Capsule Corp logo.
"I wanted to thank you, Kuririn," he said. "It's because of you that I've been fixed."
I was happy to hear that. I smiled at 16. He was definitely good. I had no doubt at all.
Goku offered a friendly handshake to 16, but he didn't take it. He said something about having been created to kill him. I guess that it's difficult to overcome programming like that.
"Well," said Goku, "I guess I'll go first, huh?"
I was surprised that Goku wanted to go first, but I concluded that he probably didn't want anyone else to get hurt. Everyone agreed to let Goku go first. Well, almost everyone.
Mr. Satan, with his ludicrous cape and champion wrestler's belt, yelled something at us. A reporter from television that was accompanying him came over and shouted in our faces. He asked us if we were making some kind of joke.
"I thought that even the most ignorant hick in the world had heard of the Great Mr. Satan! He's the strongest warrior in the world! He's a genius!" It made me sick to my stomach to hear the man's sycophantic dribbling. I'd never seen such unjustified arrogance. Mr. Satan looked onto the reporter's spectacle with approval.
I eventually convinced Goku to let Mr. Satan to go first. It was obvious that he wasn't going to stop making a fuss until we did. Moreover, I have to admit I was kind of looking forward to seeing him be trounced by Cell.
I honestly have no idea what was going through Mr. Satan's head. At first, I thought he might have had some plan, but the moment he brought out a stack of roof tiles to demonstrate his awesome strength, I realized that he was just an idiot to the core. I don't think I need to say that his attacks had no effect on Cell. It was mean of him to have the world place their hopes on him like that. I shudder when I think how many people must have given up hope when he was knocked out of the ring by Cell with a single backhand. Somehow, though, Mr. Satan survived Cell's little tap and was gearing up to fight again. I slapped my forehead - didn't this guy EVER get it? I think Vegeta put it best - Mr. Satan was "The World Champion of Morons".
Of course, when Goku stepped into the ring we knew that the real fight had begun. The tension was very heavy. Goku looked as confident as ever as he faced off against Cell.
Well, Goku, I thought, here's your chance. Show us why you're so confident. I prayed that it all wasn't some sort of colossal bluff designed to give us some measure of hope in the days leading up to the Cell Game.
I looked around. Almost everyone looked as nervous as me, even Piccolo. I sensed everyone's ki, and even accounting for the Super Saiyan transformation I knew that no one else was strong enough to give Cell a good fight - this was it, for better or for worse. Of course, in retrospect I can see that I didn't feel Gohan's ki very carefully...
The fight started out at a level that wasn't really so spectacular. It was far beyond me, but I knew that for them it was just a warm-up. Of course, it must have been enough to wake up Mr. Satan. I don't care how thick-headed you are, when everyone starts flying around at amazing speed and launching blasts of energy, you have to have second thoughts.
When they faced off again, I remember Goku's expression changing. He now looked the picture of seriousness. What did that mean? I don't know. I felt so helpless that it almost seemed I wasn't really there, that I had transcended my body and was watching from the clouds.
Both fighters powered up, releasing tremendous energy. I was barely strong enough to hold my ground against the shockwaves. Their ki flares were bright and enormous. When they engaged, Goku beat Cell around a bit, but it was obvious from watching Cell that he wasn't really trying. Still, their speed was incredible. I almost couldn't follow it.
Cell smiled. "Ka... Me..."
I panicked, brought down to Earth again. What in the Hell did he think he was doing? A Kamehameha at that power level would destroy the whole world!
"Ha... Me..."
Goku panicked as well. "Stop it, Cell," he screamed. "Stop it!"
"Ha!"
I closed my eyes and held up my arms in a futile block. I was knocked away several feet by the force of the blast. When I could see again, however, Goku and Cell were standing on the arena, same as before. As far as I could pick up from their conversation, Goku had jumped into the air to get Cell to aim away from the Earth and used Instant Transmission to escape the blast. We all breathed a massive sigh of relief. I was sweating through my clothes. I felt as if someone had put a gun to my head and pulled the trigger, then laughed and said, "It wasn't loaded, man. You should have SEEN your face."
Goku and Cell began to fight again, and both looked serious. However, it became apparent all too quickly who it was that had the advantage. They were both insanely fast - I couldn't believe how fast they were! - but Cell was definitely faster. And stronger. While most of Goku's blows struck air, Cell's hit Goku hard. Goku just couldn't keep up. My resolve sank. It was looking more and more like we had no shot at this. Yet, I couldn't help but wonder - if Goku was so much weaker than Cell, why had he been so confident? Had he underestimated Cell? Put too much stock in his own abilities? Neither of those things sounded like Goku. Something was wrong.
I guess I should have seen what happened next coming. Cell destroyed the arena. I never really expected this battle to remain that farce of a martial arts tournament.
Moving away from the smoking crater where the arena had been, the fighters made use of their new expanse of terrain. Cell threw numerous ki blasts down at Goku, missing him but pummeling the poor Earth. Then Goku flew up above Cell and began to charge up a Kamehameha.
"Wait a minute," I said. "There's no way..."
It was the same situation as before. If Goku fired a Kamehameha at that level, it'd destroy the world. He was wrong if he thought Cell would dodge like he did. Cell planted his feet and held his ground.
Goku continued to charge up. I smiled, knowing it was a bluff. Goku obviously had some plan. There was no way that Goku was going to destroy the Earth.
I cast a glance at the crazy look on Goku's face.
Was there?
For a moment, I felt a little dizzy.
Of course, Goku did not destroy the Earth. He used the Instant Transmission again to appear right next to Cell and direct the Kamehameha at him. I cheered. I'd known all along that Goku had a plan, I told myself. I'd been sure...
The blast had blown off most of the upper half of Cell's body. Yamucha, for one, cheered aloud that we'd won, but I knew better. I wasn't sure if Goku knew about Cell's regenerative powers. "Tell him," I told myself lamely, but my lips would not budge.
Too late, I finally shouted, "Look out, Goku! Cell can regenerate!"
Sure enough, Cell's husk stood up and grew back. I will never get used to seeing things do that. Never. I'm breaking a cold sweat just thinking about it. Brr.
The fight resumed hotter than ever. It was still on TV at this point, but you couldn't catch most of the action. Goku pushed himself harder and harder, finally hurting Cell so badly that he put up a massive barrier. This, even the television viewers saw.
Things still looked hopeless. Goku'd had the upper hand for a moment, but now he was gasping for air, and Cell was barely fazed. Cell and Trunks urged me to give Goku a senzu, but it didn't seem like the right thing to do. Even if Goku was back at full power, I didn't think Goku could handle even the weakened Cell. What was there to do?
Goku looked up at Cell defiantly.
"I give up," he said.
Everything froze.
"You're too strong for me," said Goku. "I surrender."
There was a general clamor to the effect of "What the hell?" What did Goku mean? He couldn't just give up.
Cell very gravely informed Goku that if there were no fighters left to challenge Cell, then everyone on Earth was going to die.
"But there is one more person to fight you," said Goku. "I'm pretty sure he can beat you."
Goku turned around and scanned over every one of us. I had no idea who he was talking about. What was he trying to pull?
Finally, Goku exclaimed, "It's your turn... Gohan!"
Everyone stared at Gohan. He looked extremely uncomfortable. Piccolo went into hysterics.
Goku came over to us very calmly and said that Gohan was stronger than we'd ever imagined. That some of his hidden power had finally been brought out. To prove his point, he asked Gohan if, at any time during the battle, he thought that it looked too hard for him.
Gohan admitted that he never had, and even said that he thought Goku had been holding back. It was unbelievable, but at the same time, it felt so obvious. Gohan always had been capable of amazing things...
Gohan faced off against Cell. He did look and feel stronger than ever, and it was something of a relief. Maybe we still had a shot at this. At the same time, though, I felt sad. Gohan had never liked fighting, and he was just a kid. I loved Gohan, and it didn't seem fair to me for all of this pressure to fall upon him. But there's no fairness in war, is there? You just do what you can.
Things seemed to be going pretty well, until a mistake was made. It happened before Gohan and Cell even started fighting.
When Goku asked me for a senzu, I wasn't quite sure why he wanted it. He wasn't fighting anymore, and Gohan was still fresh. Yet, I gave it to him. I didn't see any reason to question Goku.
"Hey, Cell!" said Goku. A fire alarm went off inside my head.
He threw the senzu to Cell.
I was furious! Never in my life had I felt so maligned, so betrayed. My fists shook as I watched that cocky Cell chew his senzu. "Goku, you moron," I thought. "You've doomed us all."
When asked, in very explicit language, what he was thinking, Goku only said that he wanted it to be a fair fight.
A fair fight? Can I possibly convey to you how exasperated I felt to hear that? This was not the time for fair. This was the time for do whatever the hell we can to stop that maniac, fair or not. I gave Goku a dark look.
"Don't try to blame me for what happens," I said. Goku just smiled.
Gohan powered up. His power was phenomenal. It made my head hurt.
As they fought, I could see that Goku had been right about at least one thing - Gohan was faring better against Cell than his father ever had been. He could more than keep up with him. Cell eventually got the better of him for a moment and knocked him into a cliff wall. Cell was already gloating over his victory.
Gohan said something to Cell. He spoke quietly, so I didn't catch it. I did hear Cell's shouted reply, though - "What? You don't want to fight me?"
I felt a small tear at my heart that spread to engulf me with a warm ache. Gohan-kun, you were ahead of your time.
Gohan told Cell why he thought Goku had counted on him. Ever since he was a kid, whenever he got so angry that he lost control he had more power than he knew...
"Oh, no", I thought. Gohan didn't know what he was doing. People like Cell always react the same horrible, predictable way to a challenge like that.
Cell didn't disappoint. "You've made me want to piss you off just to see if you're telling the truth."
Cell began to beat up Gohan. With every blow, my fists and my teeth clenched tighter. I didn't know about Gohan, but I was certainly angry. I wished a thousand times, pleaded for the power to help him. I received no response. Gohan, for his part, fought back a little, but not enough. Cell soon had Gohan in a powerful hold and was slowly crushing him.
"Well?" shouted Cell. "Aren't you angry yet?"
Man, that Cell pissed me off. I was surprised, though, to hear a calm and quiet statement from Goku several feet away.
"We just have to wait until Gohan gets angry," he said. "Then he'll have the strength to beat Cell. I know he will."
I looked at him in disbelief. His own son was having his bones crushed, and he still wasn't upset? Was still playing his bluff? I nearly lost it. Piccolo saved me the trouble.
"Goku, you are wrong," he said. "Gohan doesn't like to fight like you."
Goku looked shocked.
"Do you know what Gohan is thinking right now?" shouted the Namekian. "He isn't thinking about getting angry or overcoming Cell! He's thinking, 'Why isn't my father coming to rescue me from pain and death?'"
Goku looked nervously down at Cell and Gohan. Gohan was really having a rough time. It didn't look like he could survive much more.
More quietly, Piccolo continued, "He's thinking that his father values a fair, manly fight more than his own life."
I looked at Goku. Waited. He kept staring at his son.
Finally, something turned over in Goku's mind. He realized something important. For a second, he looked panicked, then determined.
"Kuririn!" he yelled. "Give me a senzu!"
Yes! Yes! I rejoiced. This was more like it. THIS was our Goku!
But it was too late. Before I could give Goku the senzu, Cell appeared in front of me and stole them. Gohan tried to attack, but Cell only kicked him out of the way. It was a nightmare.
It was then that Number 16 made his last move. He flew to Cell and gripped him.
"I'm sorry, everyone!" said 16. "This will kill all of us, but it's my only choice! I have a powerful bomb inside of me... I'm going to self destruct along with Cell!"
I wilted. Remembered what Dr. Briefs had told me. Everyone else was in suspense, but not me. I knew what was going to happen - nothing. Bulma and her father had removed the bomb.
Cell tore 16 apart with a ki blast. I snapped my head away, shut my eyes. It wasn't fair... Poor 16. He'd beaten all of the odds and become a good person, only to be senselessly slaughtered.
I didn't have any time to cry for Number 16's unfortunate loss, though. Events quickly turned in such a way that I was no longer just an observer. Cell eerily counted us and then released these... inexplicable little mini-Cells. He called them "Cell Juniors". Actually, they looked kind of like a cross between Cell and me. They were a bit shorter than I was.
They were so powerful! I couldn't believe their power. How was Cell able to produce such beings? One of them faced off against each of us. I tried so hard to fight, but it was too fast and too strong for me. I felt angry with myself for being so weak, but a quick glance showed that Piccolo and even Goku, weakened by his fight against Cell, couldn't do anything against them either. Only Vegeta and Trunks could really fight them.
I tried to prepare a Kienzan, but there was no time. The damn little thing hit me and kicked me until I couldn't see, and then threw me against a wall. I lost consciousness. I woke up after being fed a senzu by Trunks. By that time, all of the Cell Juniors were dead, but it seems to me a great injustice to have this gap in the story. I know it's cheating, but why don't you just read Gohan's account. He dictated the following to me.
---
It hurt me very deeply to see all of my friends being beaten up like that, but I still couldn't release my power as I was supposed to. I certainly felt angry enough, but I was still held back... by something. Was I afraid that I would replace my father? That I would lose control of myself? Kami, I don't remember. I was eleven years old. I just remember that it hurt a lot, and I wanted to get angry, to do anything to stop it...
No, I'm fine, Kuririn. I just needed to catch my breath. The next thing I knew, the head of the artificial human called Number 16 landed next to me. Mr. Satan had thrown it - he had some bravery, at least. It seemed strange to have that disembodied head talking to me, but it had something important to say. It... 16 told me that I could fight, that it wasn't a sin to fight for righteousness. But it was what he said last that really got to me. I remember exactly what it was... "Protect the nature and animals that I loved". Who would have thought... I wanted to pick up that android, tell it that it was going to be okay, but he seemed almost happy.
Then Cell stepped on him. He crushed him like an insect, and I just lost it. I became so angry that I transformed into the Super Sayian 2. Actually, I became filled with such anger and black, ugly hatred that it left a mark on me. (He places a fist over his heart).
...No, I'm fine. Really. (He smiles brightly) That was a long time ago. I hope that I've helped you with your book, Kuririn-san.
---
I'm sorry, I know that this is supposed to be my story, but I just thought when he told me that that it was more meaningful than anything I could have written.
When I got up, one glance at Gohan confirmed that he'd transformed. We wouldn't get around to calling what he'd achieved 'Super Saiyan Level 2' for a while.
Cell also powered up. I'd had no idea that all this time, Cell had still been hiding so much power. It felt like just his power was going to destroy the world. To Gohan, however, it seemed to be nothing. He fought Cell effortlessly, and I realized something alarming about Gohan's power level - I couldn't sense it. It had finally happened, someone had gotten so far above me that I couldn't tell just how far. I had no reference point anymore. I knew it was really high, but that was it. Sensing Gohan's ki was like hearing white noise. I did know that it was greater than Cell's.
It was unbelievable to see him beat up Cell so badly, so casually. Near me, Vegeta shook where he stood. I guess that he could sense the full extent of Gohan's power.
Desperate, Cell tried his Kamehameha toward the Earth again. As the blast tore with astounding force toward the Earth, we all trembled. But Gohan only ripped through it with an even larger Kamehameha. Goku had had no idea how right he had been about his son's power.
Cell floated in the air, devastated.
"Now, Gohan," said Goku, "Finish him off!"
Gohan turned around, and he had this look in his eyes... "It's too early, father. He must suffer more."
Oh no. Not like this.
Goku was horrified. He begged his son, pleaded with him, but was ignored. Poor Gohan! I never thought I'd see him - the most harmless, sweet kid I've ever met - acting like that. We should have known when we were pushing him that something like this would happen. That he'd get too far into it.
Cell lost it and started making stupid mistakes. Gohan hit him so hard that he looked as if he was going to throw up. He did, but what emerged from his mouth was something I'd resigned myself to never seeing again.
Number 18.
Oh my god! Should I grab her? Is it possible that she's still alive?
Cell mumbled something I didn't hear. Then he started to expand. He became like a giant, ugly balloon.
"Ha ha ha," croaked the monstrosity. "In one minute I'll explode... this is the end of you bastards!"
It hit us like a brick. We'd been so sure that we'd won, but what were we going to do now? We couldn't attack, that'd just make him explode faster. We couldn't do anything but despair. After all our efforts, this was the end of the Earth.
So, we just sat there and waited.
It isn't fair, I thought. We've been through Frieza, through so many things. Can't we ever be let alone? Is peace too much to ask?
Goku stepped forward.
"Sorry, everybody," he said, "But this is the only way I could think of to save the Earth."
He teleported to Cell and placed a hand upon him, and then two fingers upon his own forehead.
"Tell your mother I'm sorry, Gohan," said Goku.
Then, he and Cell disappeared. Somewhere far away, Cell exploded, killing Goku and Kaio-sama.
I dropped to my knees. Goku was gone. It hurt so badly. What a hero Goku had been. What a friend he'd been. I just wanted to collapse and never get up again.
But then I saw Gohan screaming and beating the ground, and I thought that life had to go on. It wasn't right to dishonor Goku's sacrifice by being too unhappy.
I walked up to Gohan and sadly put a hand on him. I smiled as best I could.
"It's okay, Gohan," I told him. "It's over. You both finished him off."
"It's my fault... I killed my father..."
I shook my head. "Without you, the world would have been destroyed." I made him stand up. I told him that even though he'd died, Goku seemed happy that he (Gohan) had become so strong.
Though I was sad, I was also happy in a slight way. After all, the Earth had been saved. I walked over to 18's limp form and lifted her. She was coated in some kind of slimy film from the inside of Cell, but she was alive. I breathed a sigh of relief. Held her close to me and got my gi all slimy.
"What are you doing with that cyborg?" said Vegeta. "If it's still alive, kill it!"
I told him no, that she wasn't bad. He hmphed at me but made no move to do anything.
But it's never over when you think it's over, is it? Life just isn't that easy.
A cloud of dust was suddenly thrown up where Cell had vanished, and a ki blast emerged from it and went straight through Trunks, killing him. Cell was back.
Cell now looked more confident than ever, and his ki flare was insane. His power felt like Gohan's now - I didn't know how high it was. He'd somehow not only survived, but gotten even stronger! He told us that he'd managed to regenerate. That he hadn't been planning on that, but he was just lucky. I had flashbacks to Frieza emerging from the crater.
Suddenly, Vegeta screamed and attacked Cell. It took a second for it to dawn on me that he was upset because Trunks had been killed. I wasn't even sure that Vegeta was capable of caring about other people.
As much as Vegeta put into his attack, it was useless against Cell, who came at him from behind. I tried to warn Vegeta, but Cell was too fast. Cell knocked him to the ground and tried to kill him, but Gohan saved him at the last moment.
However, in saving Vegeta, Gohan took a ki blast in the arm. After that, he couldn't use that arm at all.
So, Cell prepared one last time a blast that would surely destroy the Earth. Once again we were all rendered helpless. Once again we all had to sit around and await our execution.
With his one good arm, Gohan prepared a blast with one arm to counter Cell's.
"It's no good," said Piccolo, "Gohan's ki is weaker." Everything we knew about ki told us that if two blasts hit each other, the one with the greater ki will prevail. When the blasts met, Gohan's blast began to be pushed back, and we prepared for the worst. Yet, at that moment something happened. Was it a miracle? Did Gohan just get his second wind? Whatever it was, Gohan's blast came back and overcame Cell's.
There was a terrible blast and a deafening noise.
Then, there was a deep silence.
Cell was gone.
--END OF CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT--