"A-Are you two alright? Can you hear me?", called out a worried voice.

Both Mafin and Begu opened their eyes, and they looked around at their new surroundings. The duo appeared to be in sort of cavernous laboratory, and they were each residing on two large, metallic tables.

Right next to the duo, stood a rather tall woman. She had massive locks of auburn hair, bright blue eyes, and wore a pair of thick-rimmed glasses, as well as golden hoop earrings. She also wore a red-and-blue checkerboard patterned dress, heels that were the same colors as her dress, black arm stockings and leggings, as well as a large, white lab coat.

The woman sighed in relief, "Oh, thank goodness. You're awake. I was worried that you gentlemen hadn't survived the crash."

Mafin sat himself up, and said, "Thank you for bringing us here, but...who are you?"

"I am Android 21.", replied the woman, "I am a researcher that formerly worked for the Red Ribbon Army here on Earth."

Mafin introduced himself, "My name is Mafin, and the person sitting next to me is my friend, Begu."

" 'Sup.", said Begu, who sat up as well.

The woman smiled, "It's a pleasure meeting the both of you."

Mafin smiled back, "It's a pleasure meeting you too."

Begu added, "Same here."

At that moment, a larger, physically imposing man walked in the room, "21, I have urgent news."

The man looked down at the two newcomers, then looked back at Android 21.

He asked, "Who are these individuals?"

Mafin's eyes widened at the sight of this large man. He had a red mohawk, bright blue eyes, and wore smaller gold earrings. He also appeared to be dressed in some sort of green body armor, complete with combat boots.

The Pesutorian, intimidated by the man, nervously stammered, "U-Um...hi...?"

Mafin turned to Begu and whispered, "He's gigantic!"

His friend nodded in agreement, "Yeah, he's a pretty big dude."

Android 21 then explained, "These gentlemen here are Mafin and Begu. I found them near the wreckage of some sort of spaceship."

The large man nodded and looked back at the two.

He said, "Greetings. I am Android 16."

Begu smiled, "Nice to meet you, big guy!"

Mafin added, "...Y-Yeah. Nice to...um...m-meet you..."

Android 21 then asked, "Now, what is it that you wanted to tell me?"

Android 16 replied, "I was about to inform you that the human soul experiment on Android 18...has failed."

21 exclaimed, "What?!"

16 said, "It is unknown why, but upon releasing the soul, it did not link up with 18 as originally planned, and it escaped the laboratory."

21 nervously asked, "D-Do you have any idea on where the soul could have fled off to?"

16 replied, "Negative. I can only hope that it has reunited itself with the original host."

21 clutched her heart in a fearful fashion, "No...This is bad. That...that was my last hope in gaining some sort of—"

At that moment, Begu cleared his throat, prompting both 21 and 16 to turn their attention back towards him.

Begu calmly asked, "You guys having an important conversation?"

The two androids nodded back yes in response.

"Good, good. Now then...WILL SOMEONE TELL US WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON?!"

21 nervously flinched, while 16 remained stoic.

Mafin glared at Begu for his insensitive yelling, and looked back at the pair of androids, "Apologies for my friend's outburst. But, he is right. It would be nice to understand the current situation at hand."

21 awkwardly rubbed her arm, "My apologies."

The woman explained, "Currently, here on Earth, we're facing a massive issue. Clone fighters are running amok as we speak. Sadly, the Red Ribbon Army created them. My research had finally given us a way to fight back. Finally, I had found a method of stopping the clones using linking technology."

She let out a deep sigh, "And I believed it would have worked, had the human soul not decided to flee the laboratory..."

Mafin asked, "Why did you need it in the first place?"

21 replied, "What we were trying to do...was to utilize this linking system. It would have involved the human soul taking control of a fighter's body, but only for a few hours."

Mafin repeated, "Taking control?"

Begu questioned, "You mean like...uh...some sort of real life video game?"

Android 21 answered, "Precisely. The fighter would still be conscious, but his or her physical actions would have been taken over by the human soul."

Mafin shivered, "That sounds rather unsettling..."

Begu reasoned, "But at least we don't have to worry about it anymore. That soul is probably long gone by now."

21 sighed, "Unfortunately..."

"Good to know. So, why am I here?", asked an unfamiliar voice.

Everyone turned their attention to a third new figure standing near the doorway.

It was a woman who had short blond hair, and blue eyes. She wore a purple, long sleeved shirt, light blue jeans, and small blue boots. The blonde woman also had a very serious look on her face.

"Android 18?!", exclaimed a shocked 21, "You're already awake?!"

Android 18 nodded in response, and walked inside.

She said, "I heard everything. What I want to know is why the hell was I brought here in the first place?!"

21 answered, "Fighting in these matches did require a powerful body. That is why I chose you."

18 scoffed, "Well, you could have just had 16 tell me that from the beginning!"

"You're right. I should have done so from the start. I'm really sorry.", said 21, who sorrowfully closed her eyes, ashamed by her actions.

18 rolled her eyes, "Whatever."

Mafin then spoke up, "So, what happens now?"

16 replied, "Now, we have to exterminate the clones. This is our final chance to acclaim victory over these violent lifeforms. This crisis will be a mere memory, once our task is complete."

21's eyes widened, "Oh, 18! I just remembered something!"

18 inquired, "What is it?"

21 smiled, "I assumed you would need some fighting clothes, of course. I had some prepared."

She grabbed a large white bag that was lying underneath Mafin's table, and pulled out a new outfit, which rested on a hanger. The outfit consisted of a denim jacket, and a black shirt with long white sleeves (which also had small stripes on them.)

Begu whispered to Mafin, "Why the heck was that underneath your table?"

Mafin merely shrugged, having no idea how to respond to that question.

18, on the other hand, was severely disturbed by the outfit.

21 continued, "The design...it's based on what you wore, when you were still a fighter."

18 snapped, "Hell no! There's no way I'm wearing those! B-Bad memories!"

21 smiled, "But these clothes are so cute! And they were really fun to make!"

Mafin raised an eyebrow, "You made those? All by yourself?"

21 happily nodded in response.

The Pesutorian looked around the room for a brief bit, then looked back at the researcher.

Mafin scratched his head in confusion, "Umm...I don't really see any sewing machines nearby..."

21 replied, "I didn't use any! With the help of my Namekian DNA, I just used a clothes beam to make them!"

The duo cocked their heads to the side, and they both inquired, "Namekian DNA?"

21 stated, "I'll explain later."

She turned back to 18, and grinned, "I must say 18, you are beautiful, so I'm sure they'll look great on you!"

18 growled, then sighed, "I don't really have a say in this matter, do I?"

21 frowned, "Well...the choice is yours. You can return to your loved ones, and try to face the clones with them...or you can join us, and we can quickly end this matter, once and for all."

18 thought it over for a moment, considering her options.

She let out a deeply aggravated sigh, "Alright. I'll join your stupid little group. We need to destroy those clones and end this, as soon as possible!"

The blonde woman grabbed the clothes from the researcher, and glared at her, "Oh, and if we lose, I'm gonna bill you a fortune in damages!"

21 nervously gulped, "R-Right. Now, um, please go and change clothes in the next room. The rest of your new clothes are in the white bag."

18 glared at 21 for a few more seconds.

Then, she grabbed the bag with her free hand, and silently walked out of the room.

As the metallic doors closed afterwards, 21 looked back at Mafin and Begu.

She questioned, "Are you gentlemen willing to help us with this mission as well?

The duo looked at one another.

Mafin said, "I really want to help these people out. Do you want to help these people out?"

Begu nodded in agreement, "Yeah, man. I don't wanna live in a world where there's evil clones rampaging everywhere!"

Mafin said, "I wholeheartedly agree."

They looked back at the researcher, and exclaimed, "We're in!"

21 smiled warmly, "Thank you both. I really appreciate this."

She let out another sigh, "It's just a shame that the link system was a complete failure. I can't believe this happened a second time."

Mafin questioned, "A second time? What do you mean?"

21 explained, "18's link isn't the only one that failed. Android 17, who is the brother of 18, had his link severed as well...immediately after he awoke. So, the only other option we can do, is fight back without—Uggh!"

At that moment, she clenched her heart in pain.

Begu exclaimed, "The heck?!"

Mafin worriedly asked, "Are you okay?!"

The researcher panted heavily, "I-I'm running out of time here...there isn't much left..."

21 gazed at the palm of her shaking hand, "We need to hurry...or I...can't stop..."

Mafin nervously asked, "Wh-What does that mean?"

Begu agreed, "Yeah, you're not making any sense..."

21 took a few deep breaths to calm herself down.

She then sighed in relief, and looked back at the duo, "I deeply apologize for what you just witnessed. I've been enduring these painful moments for quite some time."

Before the duo could ask what just happened, 18 walked back into the room, dressed in her new outfit. Unbeknownst to her, she was also followed by another unfamiliar person.

"Talk about a blast from the past. I think you're a bit too old for that get-up, 18.", said the new person, who was leaning by the doorway.

He had black hair with blue eyes. He also wore an orange scarf, a black shirt with white sleeves, light blue jeans, and blue sneakers. The duo assumed that this was Android 17.

18 rolled her eyes at 17's comment, "We don't age, idiot."

17 smirked, "I'm aware. I'm messing around."

18 then asked 21, "What did you need him for?"

21 replied, "He was another test subject for the linking project. Unfortunately, it also failed."

18 turned to face her brother once again, "Then why are you still here, 17? Shouldn't you be at your job?"

17 replied, "They have other people currently doing my job for me, so it's whatever."

He folded his arms, "I was about to leave this place...but then I figured it might be fun to team up with you again, just like old times."

21 smiled warmly at everyone present in the room.

She said, "Thank you. Thank you all so much. I'm really counting on you here."

16 spoke up, "Now, let's move out. Follow me."

He proceeded to walk out of the lab, and the rest of the group followed him.

Both 17 and 18 were directly behind 16, while 21, Mafin, and Begu trailed behind them.

As they walked down a large hallway, Mafin looked at Begu, and said, "Hey, um, I was thinking about talking a bit more with Android 21. Do you want to join me?"

Begu perked a brow, "Why are you interested all of a sudden?"

Mafin smiled, "She seems like a really nice person to chat with."

Begu shrugged, "Eh, alright."

The two walked a bit closer to the researcher, and Mafin cleared his throat, getting her attention.

21 looked over, and saw the duo walking next to her, "Oh! Hello, gentlemen."

Mafin waved at her, "Hello! Um, I was just wondering how you're doing. I mean, aside from this whole crisis that we're facing."

21 sighed, "Honestly, the only objective that is currently on my mind right now...is this."

"O-Oh.", said Mafin, who then awkwardly rubbed his arm, "Sorry for asking."

21 shook her head, "It's fine."

The group proceeded to walk down another hallway.

21 then said, "Although, I'm also quite curious about you two. Why did you come here? To Earth, I mean."

Mafin explained, "Well, at the encouragement of our sensei, Begu and I traveled all the way over here to train with Goku, a Saiyan who lives on this planet."

Begu added, "And to get new jobs!"

Mafin nodded in agreement, and elaborated, "We're former members of the Galactic Patrol. Even if it doesn't look like it."

21 raised an eyebrow in confusion, "Galactic Patrol? I've never heard of them."

Begu chimed in, "Basically, they're space cops. They go out, search, and arrest many different alien criminals throughout the galaxy."

21 nodded, "Hmm. Sounds exciting!"

Mafin awkwardly chuckled, "That's what we initially thought..."

Begu winced, "...Yeeeaaah. We got stuck with the lamest job. Guarding the entrance to the Headquarters."

21 blinked, "Oh."

Begu sighed, "Bottom line, it wasn't fun for us..."

Mafin shrugged, "At least we got paid well."

21 smiled, "That's good."

The group exited the hallway, and finally arrived outside the cave, and the duo saw their battered up ship sitting near the entrance.

21 explained, "I placed the vessel directly near this cave, so you won't have to worry about where to find it."

Begu grinned, "Woo-hoo! Sweet!"

Mafin happily said, "Thank you, Android 21!"

21 chuckled, "Just call me 21."

Mafin nodded, "Right!"

21 then asked the duo, "I wonder, are you two gentlemen capable of flight?"

Begu smirked, "Heck yeah, we can do it!"

Mafin agreed, "We've been taught well by our master. We just need to focus for a bit."

The duo closed their eyes, and proceeded to concentrate on manipulating their energies.

After a few seconds, they immediately started to float upwards.

Both men opened their eyes, and they grinned at each other.

21 happily said, "Excellent!"

She looked up at the sky, and stated, "Now, let's go."

Everyone floated away from the entrance of the cave, and flew off into the sky.