"Dragonball AS: Ultimate Cell Saga"

Chapter 84- "Darkest Hour"

By- Tiny

Gohan's aura flared wildly as he threw blow after blow at the bio-android who had caused so much heartache simply because he wanted revenge on the one who had humiliated him so very long ago. Gohan could feel the energy around him and knew instantly that things weren't going to be getting much better, since everyone else was dead or missing. He could feel another old enemy, Nappa, and his grandson, Apio, heading for the battlefield at top speed, plus the three that were standing at his side against the monstrous Cell.

Other than that, there was nobody else on the planet with any kind of strength to be measured, not even the young children or their parents. Gohan, the four other Saiya-jin warriors, and Videl were the last hope for what appeared to be an already damned world, but they were not about to give in to desperation, not with so much on the line. Even Turles, who had nothing more than his pride to preserve, was not backing down from the horrific bio-android, even though he was outmatched, and Gohan admired that greatly.

"You disappoint me, all of you," Cell huffed, "I had thought I would get a better challenge from a group of Saiya-jin and a Saiya-jin's mate, but I guess you can't live off assumptions."

"We're not done yet, you son of a bitch!" Mirai spat, channeling his ki into his sword, "You are going to pay for everything you have done to this planet and it's people!"

"Big talk from such a small fry," Cell smirked, "Go ahead boy, give it your best shot. That trinket of yours won't even leave a scratch on my ultimate form!"

"We'll see about that!" Mirai roared, jumping into the air, "TAKE THIS!!!"

Cell moved to the side as though to sidestep Mirai's strike, seeing that it was heading for his left, but miscalculated his maneuver as the hybrid from the future teleported to Cell's side and brought the blade down into his side. The pain that surged through the bio-android's body was unbelievable, considering how weak Mirai was in comparison, and felt as though Cell was being torn apart from the inside. The Saiya-jin hybrid smirked widely as he sliced clean through the bio-android's waist, cutting him into two halves that thumped hard against the ground.

Turles, seeing an opportunity, jumped in over Cell's upper half and blasted every last bit of him into nothing but dust in a brilliant flash of dark red light as Cell's upper half screamed out loud. The Saiya-jin man just smirked as he went to blast the lower body away as well, anxious to end this nightmare and move on, but it was not meant to be as the bio-android's legs swung up and kicked Turles in the face. The Saiya-jin man soared backwards as Cell regenerated his upper body and chased after him, slamming a fist hard into Turles' stomach.

Blood soared out of the Saiya-jin's mouth as Cell brought another fist down into his ribcage, cracking about five as he continued to hammer him with powerful blows to his body. Turles could feel himself becoming numb to the excruciating pain his body was being put through, knowing that he would be returning to Hell very soon, as he closed his eyes and awaited the final blow. The move never came, however, as a powerful slammed hard into the side of Cell's head, knocking him clean to the other side of the forest as Turles looked up to see the angry face of his savior.

"You people really should be more cautious around him," Nappa grumbled, "Cell doesn't play fair, he plays to win and nothing is going to stand in his way save a stronger opponent. Since none of us are more powerful than him, we need to be extra cautious."

"Easy for you to say, old man," Turles growled, "You haven't had to fight him yet head to head. He's much harder to fight then you give him credit for."

"You should listen to your friend, you weak old fool," Cell chuckled, stalking towards his prey, "Even Gohan, the most powerful Saiya-jin alive, cannot defeat me in combat. What makes you think you can?"

"Because he's not alone!" Gohan snapped, walking up beside Nappa, followed by the other two Saiya-jin, "Even if it is the last thing we do, you will pay for all that you have done to our families!"

"Very well," Cell smirked, falling into stance, "If you all wish to meet your family again, then far be it from me to let you down!"

Videl could no longer see the battle taking place, seeing as everyone had moved away from her a reasonable distance, but she could definitely sense what was taking place between her husband and the monstrosity, Cell. Gohan was getting tired, as his power was beginning to falter, but anger still pulsated off of him like there was no tomorrow and that kept him going on. The three warrior's with him were also radiating with anger and malice towards the bio-android, but none of them near as much as the hybrid Saiya-jin, save maybe Mirai.

The human woman was tired though, too much so to even try and fight on against such an unbelievably powerful foe, and was about to fall asleep on the ground when another, weaker energy approached. She recognized the signature as that of Diive's son, Apio, and he was moving quickly away from the battlefield towards her, as though she were dying or something. And then it hit her, just as she let the thought of death cross her tired mind, that she really was dying, her formerly strong ki signature fading away with every second.

The young man knew this as well, as he had sensed it on the way over to fight Cell, and arrived on the scene just in time to pop a small, brownish colored bean into Videl's mouth. The human woman chewed thankfully on the bitter tasting medicine and then swallowed, all her injuries and depleted power shooting back up to full in a matter of mere seconds as she rose to her feet shakily. Taking a quick glance graciously in the Saiya-jin's direction, Videl prepared to take off towards the battlefield, but was stopped when Apio's hand shot forward and wrapped tight around her wrist.

"You shouldn't go out there," Apio shook his head, "It's too dangerous, for either one of us, as long as Cell is still fighting."

"But my husband is out there!" Videl snapped, "That monster has taken everything from us, including our children, and I intend to see to it that he pays dearly for all that he has done!"

"I can understand your pain Videl, but do you really think getting yourself killed will solve anything?" Apio sighed, letting her go, "Pan and Medon wouldn't want you to rush in foolishly, even if it did seem the only course of action. We must put our faith in a higher power now and hope; hope that our surviving friends and family can do the job."

Videl was dumbstruck at how mature and level-headed Apio was being in this whole situation, considering the fact that his entire family save Nappa had already been killed. She could tell it was not the case, however, when Apio sat down on a nearby stone and began to weep, his body rocking back and forth like a rag doll being shaken by small child. The young man had seen so many die in such a short space of time, including feeling the life forces of both parent's extinguished at the hands of a most merciless group of warriors, and it was clearly too much for him to handle.

Her motherly instinct taking over almost instantaneously, Videl rushed over to the young man and cradled him in her arms, rocking him back and forth as he continued to cry into her shirt. Videl herself felt like crying for everyone that had been lost this day, the darkest in human history since the Evil Shenlongs years ago, but kept her face calm and soothing for Apio's sake as he rose to his feet, wiping the tears from his eyes. Videl immediately got up and stood beside him, gazing off in the direction of the momentous battle taking place between Cell and the other Saiya-jin men.

"I'm certain everything will be fine, Apio," Videl tried to comfort him, though she herself didn't believe it, "My Gohan, when he was only a small boy, defeated this monster that nobody else could and became a great hero in the eyes of his friends and family. I'm certain that he will once again be able to pull it off now."

"I don't know what to think about all this Videl; so much has happened to us all so soon, but I'm sure of one thing," the young Saiya-jin sniffled, "We're going to need something more than a hero to win this battle."

"Something more?" Videl inquired, "Like what?"

"A savior..."

NEXT TIME: The battle with Cell is reaching new heights as the remaining warriors who can stand against the bio-android give it their all, risking what little they each have left to save the Earth. Things look bleak, however, as Cell continues to get back up and come at them for more each time, pulling the Earth into a day of darkness. Has the bio-android finally gained the revenge he sought after so long, or is his day of reckoning about to being? Find out in the next installment of Dragonball AS!!!!!!!!