AS22: this is like my second favorite chapter.

Cell: mine as well. For once I'm not being attacked, killed, or crushed by falling rocks.

AS22: I could fix that… (pulls out frying pan of doom.)

Cell: (sweating) not that I'm complaining… R&R!

Chapter 28: The Beauty of a Damned World

1st P.O.V.

Sunlight woke me from a fevered sleep. I still didn't feel very well, but I couldn't remember why. I opened my eyes and saw the red and green colors of the morning sky.

"Do you feel any better?" I looked up toward the voice and saw Cell sitting on a branch above me. He was in a tree that was directly behind my head. We were in a small clearing surrounded by tall grass.

"Maybe." I tried to move, but I got a sharp pain in my leg. I looked and saw a splint wrapped around my right hip, where I vaguely remembered finding it broken in the cave. My right leg was bare, so I figured that he used the material to wrap my leg.

How long have I been sleeping?

"You shouldn't try to move. Your leg is healing slowly, and your ribs -"

"I remember. How long have I been sleeping?"

"About a day. Your fever just broke a few hours ago, but there isn't any guarantee it won't resurface." He sounded so monotone, so logical. Cell is an android, but I didn't remember ever hearing him sound so absolute before.

"I didn't say anything odd, did I?" I asked, trying to act distant as well.

"Actually you did. You confused me with your Teela-hreth and asked me why I saved you from Kooler. You told me all about how he sacrificed his soul to save you then."

"I did, huh? I'm not surprised… even now I can't see any difference between the two of you."

"You can't?" he looked down at me, one eyebrow raised higher in confusion.

"Yeah, Cell even made that same face when I… was sent to HFIL."

"I've upset you again." he jumped down and stood, facing the rising sun.

"No… yeah, maybe a little."

"Tell me about him. How did it come to be that he was saving you from Kooler?" he asked.

"A wizard stole my Angel powers and trapped me in an illusion to kill me. The illusion had me as a normal Sayjin… I was supposed to marry Frieza. But my memory of the real world kept popping up. I was fighting Frieza, Kooler, and King Kold. Kooler went to attack me, and I couldn't move out of the way. Cell saw me and… he teleported between the attack and me. He was already dead… so his soul… was destroyed."

"You didn't wish him back with the, what did you call them, Dragonballs?"

"I tried that. It didn't work."

"I better find you something to eat. Your food was lost in the cave in."

Cell walked into the tall grass surrounding the small clearing.

He really does remind me of Cell… why doesn't that bother me as much anymore? It's getting harder to remember that he isn't my Teela-hreth… but he could still be a good Teela.

(Teela-hreth best friend, Teela friend)

I pulled myself up against the tree and sat up. I was in pain due to my leg, but I had lived through worse. You'd wet yourself if you knew what you could live through. My leg felt like a knife was jabbing in and out slowly, throbbing and stinging all at once.

My armor was mostly intact, except that both shoulder guards and the right leg guard had broken off. There was also a slight dent on the left side over my chest. I figured that was the bad lung.

My life seems to be full of crap like this… but to tell the truth, I wouldn't have it any other way. As the story goes, to live would be an awfully great adventure. And my life is a great adventure. I really can't think of a dull moment… well, I was bored when I was in school with Gohan. I hope Mirai and Gohan are okay.

I watched the rising sun of Planet Vegeta. You know those colors the sky makes that no one can copy? The shades of blue, pink, and purple you get when the sun rises and sets? It's the same with the shades of red and green. No artist could copy that.

I have to save Codie… but how do I stop an Angel?

I reached into my armor and pulled out Bardock's angel pendant. Of all things I had broken as of now, a leg, a lung, my armor, it was still intact but for the already broken wing.

That's what we are… angels with broken wings. Both of us are missing something. I know what she is missing, but what am I missing?

The crystal was so clean and clear, and the red sunlight shining through made the day seem nicer already.

Cell came back into view with an armful of fruit. Each one was foreign to me, and not a one looked like any fruit from earth.

"I hope I found enough. I can never tell with you Sayjins. I'm told they taste good, I wouldn't know." Cell said as he dropped the fruit next to me.

He even feeds like Cell.

"Why are you still here? Won't the Empress be missing you?"

"Maybe…"

"You should go back. If she finds out about us she'll kill you."

"This I know. But I have to get you help first."

"The Rebels won't let you leave."

"Then I can tell her I was held captive. I wouldn't be lying then."

"You can't lie, but you can trick. Make plays on words, stretch the truth, tell only the good part of a story, perhaps?" I asked, smirking at him. I picked up a weird orange-colored fruit with a stem. It was some type of melon from what I knew about fruit. I looked it over, but I'll admit it, I didn't know how to eat it. Cell noticed that.

"You've never eaten a Glorsh Melon before?" Cell asked.

"With a name like that, who would?" I asked. He took it from me.

"Here, you pull off the stem," he gave it a yank, "Then you break it like this." he dug his fingers into the top where he had removed the stem, then he pulled it apart. He handed me the two pieces.

I looked at him as he licked off his fingers.

"How is it?" I asked. He saw what he was doing and stopped.

"Not completely ripe yet, but it's sweet."

I couldn't help myself. After all that had happened in the past week, I let out a laugh at Cell. It was just something funny to see, like Majin Buu and Goku in an eating contest or Vegeta and Bulma fighting over cookies.

"You think this is funny, do you?" Cell asked.

"After a hellish week at Purgatory Prison, yes, it is."

"… How… how was in there, really?"

"You don't know?" I asked him back as I bit into the Glorsh Melon. It was really sweet, almost like a banana.

"I could never bring myself to read any reports or go there myself. Letting you out of solitary was the only time I ever went inside."

"You really do still have a good side."

"Yes, I do. But my love for the Empress- for Katrin changed me. Gero once said to me true love can change your nature." Cell looked off in the distance. He really was a mystery to me.

"Purgatory was Jutir on Planet Vegeta. The food, blah, it makes me want to gag. The beatings weren't the worse I've received, but I've had some bad tortures. But the torture chamber there-"

"You were in there?" he asked, eyes wide.

"I had to clean it."

"... Its Katrin's pride and joy. It's how she… relaxes."

"Sickening." I said as I ate some more of the Glorsh melon.

"She wasn't always like this. She used to hate any fighting at all. She only fought to protect others. She never even fought to defend herself. She used to sing. Our empire was built on trust. It was more like a unity. We'd go and ask other worlds to join in our cause, and most agreed without much trouble. She never used her Angel Powers to make others join our empire."

"Then she lost her child?"

"She wasn't as cold before. It's true she wasn't Mary Sunshine, but she cared. We stopped war, rape… it is true she killed that monster Lios and his entire planet, but she is only mortal. If it had been up to me, I would have kept them alive much longer." He growled as he thought back, "After we lost our son… she grew distant. She howled at night and slept during the day. I did all of the ruling while she was like this."

He stopped. I could tell how much pain he was in just remembering those days. It's the same with me when I remember a death, even if that person came back later. It's the principle, you know? It doesn't matter if they're coming back, the point is that they died, a life ended.

Cell took in a breath and began again.

"Then one night I found her on the balcony. Her wrists had been slashed, and she was threatening to jump. In her condition it would have killed her. She… she heard voices, telling her to jump, to live, to die…"

"My Kais…"

That's why he got so defensive earlier when I said I was crazy like her when I lost my family.

"I was able to save her then. I've stayed near her since. But since then she's used her Angel powers for conquest, until just a few years ago when we had conquered the entire universe. The idea of war still ran through her mind though, so when we discovered the vortex… I know it cannot continue like this. That is why you have to stop her. You are the only one who could stop her. If she is defeated… if she is shown she is wrong, I know in my heart… my heart, what a joke. I know she'd fix her mess and we could rule like we use to."

He has stayed with her all this time… he loves her.

"You keep asking me about love. You shouldn't, you already know all you need to know. I hear it in your voice when you talk about Empress Katrin. You have a heart, Cell."

"But I don't know-"

"Part of knowing what love is, is not knowing what love is. No one does. Sometimes love is smacking you in the face and you don't even know it. When I met Mirai… I didn't want to love him because I knew he'd have to leave, to go back to his own time to stop the androids. We fell in love anyway. When he left, I was heartbroken. But he came back, just for me. He stopped 17 and 18, and Cell, and came back to marry me."

"Marry? Is that like a Bonding ceremony?"

"Yeah, the earth version." I smiled, not able to contain myself, "I also hear the love when you talk about your son."

"It was so wrong… he was so little. He fit in just one of my hands…" Cell looked at one of his hands, as if he were adding reference, "no one should die before they get to know life." Cell's voice was cracking, "I better check the area for trouble. I'll return shortly." He started off toward the grass when I saw his hand go up to his face.

"Cell, you don't have to leave just because you're upset. I don't care if you… if you cry."

Cell turned to look at me. His cheek was streaked with wetness, but his expression hid that. He smirked, trying to look like he was okay.

"I'll remember that." then he walked off.

Wow, Cell, crying. I wonder if… if my Cell ever cried.

I thought back to all the times I had spent with Cell. One particular time popped into my mind.

The judges left, and only Cell and I were alone in the courtroom for a moment. I felt as though I should say something to him, and I think he felt the same. The silence was deafening.

"Cell, I have something I want to say, but I don't know how to say it."

"You don't have to say a thing. I can feel what it is. You're welcome, and I appreciate you, too."

"If only you listened to me all those years ago. We could have fought side-by-side."

"Its better this way." Cell said with a sigh.

"What do you mean?"

"Katie, don't you get it? I love you, but living in the mortal realm with you would make both of us miserable. As long as you're happy, I can be happy. And for you to be happy that means my absence."

"Cell, I'm sorry it wasn't meant to be."

"Are you? Really? You have your perfect family, and a happy life. It wouldn't have been right, us being together."

"Cell, I meant it when I said you were my favorite villain. And I meant what I said just now. Remember that we're still in the temple. We can't lie."

"My escorts will be here shortly. You should go home, your Ki is low, even now. I wish you all the happiness and luck for the rest of your life."

"I wish I could say the same to you. Goodbye, Cell. Stay out of trouble."

I turned and walked out as fast as I could; I couldn't let Cell, or anyone else for that matter, see the tears starting to fall.

If you had ever cried, it would have been then. If only you had listened to me… if only you hadn't been evil… if only-

"Katie, there's something you need to see." Cell said as he came back into view. He was in a hurry, and that made me anxious.

"What is it?" I asked. He lifted me up without asking and just started walking. I held on around his neck.

We walked for a few minutes, deeper into the forest and away from our little camp.

"Cell-"

"Be quiet." His simple statement was obeyed, but more because I was confused than because he had told me so.

Now what is he doing? Where are we going?

"There, look." Cell pointed out right in front of us. I gasped at what I saw. It was so beautiful.

It was a large field covered in wild flowers of every color and size. In the center of the field was an animal like nothing I had ever seen on earth except in legends.

This creature was very tall, and if you picture a unicorn you'd be close, but it didn't really look like a horse. It wasn't white, but silver with a white mane similar to a lion's mane. There was a horn extruding from the head above the eyes that looked so similar to ivory. The horn had to be about 12-15in long. The only dark place on the creature was the onyx eyes. Like I mentioned, it wasn't a horse, but something else, something that is very similar to an Ayokii. It had four legs and a long tail. I couldn't tell from the distance, but I guessed that this creature too had paws, and not hooves, just like the Ayokii. The face was long like a horse, but it had a nose more similar to a canine than an equine animal. Right now it was grazing.

"Earth breeds dogs, and dogs came from wolves. We breed Ayokii from those. They're called Mirna." Cell whispered.

"Oh, wow… it's so beautiful… like a dream."

"I wanted you to see that not all of our universe is horrible. When you fight my mate, remember this moment."

"I thought Ayokii were predatory."

"They are, but Mirna also graze." Cell whispered.

"It's so beautiful. There is nothing like this on earth but in stories-"

"Shh, wait a minute."

The Mirna sniffed the air and looked around. It looked right at us, but it didn't run. Instead it made a sound similar to the howl the Ayokii made. It took a step toward us.

"I don't think it likes us." I said.

"It's testing us. If we move, it will chase us. If it catches us, it won't be pretty. And right now I think it could catch us easily."

"You could just blast it, though, couldn't you?"

"Would you?" Cell asked back. When I looked up at him, I noticed something in his face. It was admiration, like when you get to see your favorite celebrity close up. I remembered 17 and the Pterodon.

"No."

The Mirna pawed at the ground, but Cell didn't budge a step. It howled again, but when we didn't move it bent its head down, as though it was bowing to us, then it went back to the spot it had been grazing at the moment prior.

"We're safe now." Cell said, sitting me down on a fallen long.

"What was that that just happened?" I asked.

"She was challenging us." Cell knelt down too.

"She? Why was she challenging us?"

"You're smart, think about it. What are two reasons animals challenge intruders?" before I could respond, the Mirna walked a little further away, and a small green Mirna stood up next to its mom. It looked the same except that there was no horn or mane.

"Wow, a baby." I said.

"It isn't very old, either. Only males are green, and it doesn't have its horn or mane yet." Cell explained.

"You can tell gender by its coloring?"

"Only with the wild Mirna. The Ayokii have been bred out of that for show. When we had separate tribes on Planet Vegeta, different tribe leaders would ride only a certain color Ayokii for show."

"So then silver is a female color, right?"

"Exactly. Stay still and quiet, we don't want to scare them away."

"Cell… the way you referred to Sayjins a minute ago made you sound like one of them." I said.

Cell just smirked in response.

AS22: see why I like it?

Cell: see why I like it? Mirna are my favorite creatures, just as killer whales are Angel's.

AS22: don't call them killers. They're called Orcas. Killer whale gives them a bad reputation.

Cell: she loves all things sea related, hence why she even fathomed making Tyde and why Katie's element is water. Anyway, R&R.