Chapter 17: Betrayal
3rd P.O.V.
I can sense her here… she managed to make it through behind us without being detected, but I can sense her. Did anyone make it through with her? Has my mistress sensed her as well?
Dark Cell looked through the window of the castle as the red sun rose in the distance. Planet Vegeta had been his home now for about 35 years. He was grateful to his mate for the rescue, but also ashamed he couldn't fulfill his programming and that he needed the rescue.
Codie still slept, but Dark Cell calculated it would only be a few more hours until he woke up. His system was being shifted to fit in with his new life. New memory files were being loaded into his programming, and a temporary shutdown was needed.
I feel something new… guilt? When I look at the boy I feel this guilt. But I shouldn't, I've committed worse acts than this without remorse. I've killed for pleasure and for… love for my mate. Because she wanted me to kill. I still do not understand this love… perhaps Katie can tell me, but do I dare betray my mate again?
The memory of the kiss popped into his head. He took out the picture again.
"Bah! Love isn't real." he went to rip the picture, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. Instead, he placed it back into his armor.
I have to know… is this the fate of an android? To always need to know but never comprehending the knowledge?
Dark Cell walked down the hall of the castle.
I have to know, and she can and will tell me. She is the only one who can.
Dark Cell walked out of the castle and once off the grounds he started flying toward Katie's Ki signature.
Unbeknownst to him, Empress Katrin was watching him.
What is he up to? He hasn't been the same since we took the boy.
She was sitting on her black throne of lies, sitting with her legs crossed and leaning to one side, holding her chin as she thought. Kakorot burst into the throne room.
"Empress, Emperor Cell was just seen leaving the grounds, just as you predicted." Kakorot said, stepping up to Katrin's throne and kneeling.
"Follow him. Report to me once he gets to his destination." He nodded and got up, heading toward the door, "And Kakorot, don't get caught."
XxX
1st P.O.V.
The sun was merciless as we marched through the forests of Planet Vegeta. Unrelenting heat and bright light made the walk very difficult. When I looked back to Gohan and Mirai, I saw how bad it really was. Their faces were red and covered with dirt and sweat. I imagined I looked about the same.
I had powered down out of SSJ4 form once the sun was high. It was just too hot, and then there was the factor of the Scouters. Even though in SSJ4 form, I could lower my Ki well below SSJ level. A Scouter would pick it up anyway, no matter if my Ki were lower or not.
"Hang on, guys. The caves should be over the next hill." I called back.
"We could have been there by now if we could fly." Mirai said.
"Yeah, well, we can't chance it." I sighed.
"And this heat would make it hard to fly anyway." Gohan added.
We made it to the top of the hill, and the caves were right where they were supposed to be.
"There they are, the ancient home of our ancestors." I said, grinning.
"What do you mean by that?" Mirai asked.
"Before the Sayjins ruled the planet they lived in caves. In fact, it was those exact caves right in front of us. These caves spread out for miles. My grandfather lived here. Your grandparents lived here." I said. I was in awe, I found my lost roots.
"That's great and all, but shade and water would be nice too." Gohan said. Something in his tone wasn't right. I turned to him.
"Gohan, are you alright?" Mirai asked.
"No, I'm… not…" Gohan started to fall forward.
"Mirai, grab him!" Mirai was closer to Gohan than I was. He easily caught Gohan, "Let's get him to the shade."
We made our way down the hill, which was easier said than done with Gohan out of commission.
We walked into the mouth of the cave and found a place to set Gohan. I knelt down and looked closer at him.
"He's got sunstroke, doesn't he?" Mirai asked.
"Yeah, and any longer out there you might have too." I replied, looking around for water somewhere in the cave.
"What about you?" Mirai asked.
"I may not be use to this heat, but I was born on this planet and built for the environment. You and Gohan were born on earth, and even then you're half-breeds."
"Hey!" Mirai snapped.
"I didn't mean it in a bad way Mirai."
"I know, but…"
"I understand. How long was it between my death in your time and your trip to the past?" I asked.
"About a year. We used your core, just as you made us promise."
"I know. I'm gonna look for water, it appears to be dried up here. I'll be back soon."
"Be careful out there." Mirai said, grabbing my arm. I turned and kissed him hard, wrapping my tail around the small of his back.
"Don't worry, I will be."
XxX
Every source of water I came upon was dirty, and to tell the truth, I didn't have a way to get any water back to the cave.
The Empress may rule the universe, but she polluted her home world. If I still had the Angel power I could clean it-
"Maybe you do have your power…"
I stopped and looked around, but I didn't see or sense anyone around. It sounded like a group of people chanting.
"The darkness has the power, the light has the power…"
"Hello?" I didn't get a response.
"The darkness has the power, the light has the power… Light and darkness are always equal…"
"Hey! Who's out there?"
"True love means going against your nature for the ones you love…"
The voices stopped.
"Always equal… going against your nature?" I repeated.
"Do you always talk to yourself?" I turned to this new voice, and it was Cell again.
"Damn." I hissed, taking my stance and looking around.
"You can relax, I came alone." He responded, sounding entertained as he held in a chuckle.
"I'm glad you think being on guard around an enemy is funny." I said, retracting my pose. He stopped laughing.
"I still have questions." He said.
"I won't answer them. I came here after my son and that's all. Does anyone else know we're here?"
"Do you mean 'we' as in the two of us, or as in your friends?" he replied with his own question.
"What do you think?" I responded, playing cool.
"No one knows you're here as far as I know, and until that last remark I figured you to be alone."
"Good, now go home before you force me to kill you. I have to find a source of clean water." I turned to go, but I kept my guard up.
He may still be the good Cell deep down, but his loyalty is to his mate. He is the enemy. I forgot that once and he killed Mirai.
"The only clean water is in the cities."
"Damn." I growled, stopping.
"Why do you wish to avoid killing me?" he asked.
"I told you I wasn't going to play guru to you Cell."
"Is it because you don't like killing, or is it because I remind you of my counterpart?" he pressed on.
"You're just as stubborn as my Cell." It was my turn to chuckle. I turned back to face him again. One eyebrow was higher than the other, and he was watching me intently. My statement confused him.
"Stubborn how?"
"Let's go back to your first question. To the question about killing. I hate to kill. I don't kill unless I have to, and that has only happened a few times. You also remind me of my dear friend. You're stubborn like he was as well. You want one thing and you'll pursue it to the end."
"You've never killed for pleasure?" he asked.
"I don't like talking about it… but I did once kill for pleasure."
"Why did you, then?"
"I was under a spell… it released the darkest part in my soul. I killed many innocent people at one time… but I don't like to talk about it." I still have to hold back tears from remembering that day.
XxX
"Katie is Katherine, and Katherine is Katie. You have to get that by now."
"The only way we would believe that is if you did something really bad." Goku said. I smiled.
"You mean like this?" I moved my arm and powered a blast aimed toward the audience.
"No, you wouldn't-"
"Yes I would." I blasted. The screams and the smoke and fire filled the background. The looks on the faces of my friends and family then excited me, now it sickened me.
XxX
"You know the joy, so why do you fight it?" Cell asked.
"It wasn't joy!" I shouted, "It was sick and wrong. For a moment I lost my armor of love… and I lost myself."
Cell stared at me, trying to figure out something. What that was, I didn't know. Maybe he was trying to find a reason to believe me, or perhaps a reason to join me. Maybe he was trying to figure out love. Right now, I figured, he thought of love as only a physical thing. He had never seen true love or any other form of love.
"You push away the darkness and my mistress uses the darkness. You are… like light, she is like darkness. But know this, I love that darkness."
Wait… I am light, she is darkness… when the light and darkness embrace, balance will follow. That's what Baba said. But embrace how?
"Something I said interests you?" he asked.
"Never mind." I replied, shaking my head.
Suddenly I felt several energies around me. When I looked away from Cell I saw several Sayjin warriors. Kakorot was in the lead.
"There you are. Thanks, Emperor Cell. Milady's plan worked perfectly."
"You! Why did I think for a moment I could trust you!" I screamed at Cell as Sayjins swarmed on me. Cell just watch, stone face to all of it.
"Let me go!" I powered up, but I couldn't concentrate long enough to gain any power as I was overpowered by hundreds of Sayjins, "Dammit, let go!"
"You're going to prison, cousin. Your crimes against our Empress can't go unpunished." Kakorot laughed as a collar was snapped around my neck.
"Damn, not Ki suppressing collars again!" I snapped.
"You'll enjoy prison. If the rotten food doesn't kill you, your cell mates most likely will." Kakorot laughed as the soldiers dragged me off.
AS22: R&R!
Katie: you put me in jail!
AS22: Yeah, but don't worry, you can handle it.
Katie:…