Disclaimer, in case it wasn't obvious. I don't own Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, or really any other property. Thank you.
The Cataylst
Act VI
Chapter 89: Ace
Son Goku: March 2nd
"I can't believe how much you've improved, you're also as strong as I am," Goku laughed as he rested back against a tree for support.
The others had packed it in for training for the day, and that'd just left him and Piccolo. Turles apparently didn't want anything to do with them again, though for how long was always the question. Still, Piccolo's rise in power was dramatic, and even if he thought he knew why, it was nothing to laugh off. Right now, between Vegeta and Turles, he hated to say it, he honestly felt like he needed friends more than usual, and Piccolo was a great friend. That statement would have been hard for him to imagine years ago, and it showed him that maybe being good to people could still help them change.
"Yea, that's when going full power," Piccolo breathed, crouching down and crossing his legs, preparing to relax after they're last big engagement. "I think I can do better."
"We can all do better," Goku laughed, closing his eyes as he did. "I mean, you're doing great right now! I didn't think anyone could keep up with a Super Saiyan, Piccolo. You're way stronger than Frieza or his brother, and maybe even Vegeta, but I'm not sure about that guy yet."
Piccolo looked at him dead seriously a second later.
"I'm stronger than that," Piccolo said bluntly. "This isn't the limit of my power. I can double it."
There was a long stare from Goku as he blinked, looking at Piccolo before his mouth slowly opened at the realization. Piccolo knew Kaio-ken, or some close approximation of it. That… that was unbelievable. But only double it? Before the Super Saiyan form overtook him, Goku could increase his abilities by 20-fold. Why was Piccolo locked into just doubling it? Still, that was totally nuts.
"Piccolo, you… you're serious? Are you telling me your twice as strong as you are now? Man! No one's going to be able to keep up with you! Any doubts I had about the Androids are gone!" he laughed. "Have you told Gohan yet?"
"No," Piccolo answered, looking down before he did. "I'm trying not to rely on it. It's very hard on my body, I need to keep it just encase the situation gets…"
"To the point where you need it, that's what King Kai told me too! So, you can do the basic Kaio-Ken?"
"It's not Kaio-Ken, it's called Demon-Ken, it's my own version, King Kai never taught me the full way to use the technique, I had to fill gaps."
A light went off in Goku's head as he got up.
"So, Vegeta and Turles would lose their minds if they found out about this, so I think we should keep this on the down-low. But I bet I can teach you how to use that a lot better than you are now. Think about it, you can be our ace in the shoe."
"It's Ace up the sleeve, Goku."
"Sure, that too," Goku laughed. "I mean, you already are now. Oh man, this is exciting! I can't wait to start fighting you once you're at your best after this. I wanna see what I need to do to take on that kind of power and win. You've gotta be so pumped for all this."
"This power," Piccolo started, looking back at him seriously. "It had a high price. And we don't know who killed Kami. There is no trace of them. There is a lot of problems on the horizon, Goku. I'm not even sure I'm ready for it."
"Well, let's do our best to get ready then," Goku smiled, standing up from the tree.
"Alright, when I use Kaio-ken, I normally need to focus my energy above this point in my body…"
()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()
Android 24:
The Namekian was hanging in the air while he prepared to go in for the kill. This was going to be a short battle. It wouldn't take more than a few seconds to finish off this one, he was weak enough that the Saiyans outpaced him, and they were being torn to pieces down there right now. The only one even holding on remotely seemed to be the Goku-look-alike, and he guessed it was because he was playing at avoidance.
It was going to be more than easy to deal with this one. His combat sensors went on alert as his first series of attacks were charted out, predicting what the Namekian would do to counterattack. The green alien was going to be overwhelmed in thirty seconds, according to his measurements. This was going to be no problem. Shifting in the air twice before he charted his approach, he never let his eyes leave the descendant of King Piccolo, who seemed to be holding still.
All of these warriors were cracking under pressure, if the battles happening below was any indicator. Launching forward at full speed, he quickly dipped to the side and launched himself into the Namek from his right flank. Feedback from battles involving Goku, Raditz, and Nappa showed the Namek always did poorly from the beginning of an engagement from this attack angle. Swinging his huge fist towards him as he simply passed through the Namek. There was no change in his ocular or motion sensor settings, he was just gone. The computer, his mind, frantically looked for an explanation, anywhere from misplaced flight path to a problem with onboard software.
When the chop hit him from behind, it cut into in the back of the neck. The force of the impact made his left side go numb and his teeth to ache. The nervous system, tied into the machine's sensors, was sent into complete disarray as his body crashed into the side of the mountain, ripping through countless metres of rock before he bounced off, skidding along the road to a shameful halt. Confused sensors analysed the impact as they tried to associate the attack with the target, but 24 himself knew the only thing that could have hit him was the Namekian. It didn't line up with anything he'd been anticipating, and even more than the Saiyans, the level of strength didn't make any sense.
His tank-top torn, he blinked several times, trying to refocus himself before turning to look at what was happening where he'd just been. Android 21 was alone with the three-eyed warrior. He could see that even through the smoke. At the further distance, he could see the split corpse of Yamcha falling away, along with the dead, or unconscious body of Krillin. He tried to speak but his mouth wouldn't open, still trying to recover from how hard he'd just been hit.
It took only a second to see the three still framed images of Piccolo appearing through the air before he appeared in front of 21, she screamed in shock before the Namek disappeared again, this time her body being sent flying towards him, she'd been hit so fast he'd not even seen the Namek do it. Her body was rocketing overhead before something hit her again, this time driving her straight into the ground, right next to him. The crumpled barely moving Android doctor who had helped create him, tried to move, and get up, but just collapsed in the hole.
The target's strength is confirmed. This doesn't line up with anything regarding this target. Nothing on intel says this should be happening.
Android 20 approached cautiously; his entire frame shaken before the skeletal machine looked at him directly.
"Android 24, what is going on?"
"I have no fucking idea, sir."
The machine gawked for a moment as they all started to scan for any sign of Piccolo, or whatever had done this. There was no way that Piccolo was this strong, it just wasn't possible.
Twenty-Two had caught on as well and was now looking for him, and only 23 didn't seem to have clued in at first, before he was scanning the area as well. It was in a motion he'd not seen that the Namek appeared behind 23, his eyes bulging as it happened. The other Android didn't even have a clue before Android 20 finally shouted.
"Behind!"
The Namek didn't attack as 23 rolled back towards a position of strength next to 22. Shakily, 24 managed to climb to his own feet, starting to step forward.
The target didn't say a word, he was just standing there, an intense look in its black eyes. His large hand reached up, grasping beneath his turban before casting it aside. A moment later, the white glowing cloak which had been billowing behind him, was discarded as well. Twenty-Four recognized this pattern of behaviour from the Namek, it was the same thing when he'd fought Son Goku at the World's Martial Arts Tournament, as well as fighting against both arrivals of Saiyan invaders.
This was a gesture that he was prepared to fight them, and it still barely made any sense to the Android. He should have already been face-first in the asphalt. The other targets should have been dead or neutralized by now as well, and many of them were. The fact that this was happening at all still didn't process for him, the reality however, was beginning to take hold as his programs adjusted to what was now going on.
The real question however was, just what the Hell was this? And how were things this off?
"Are you three really having this much trouble with Piccolo? He's not even a top-class fighter," Seventeen said, his tone permeated with a supreme boredom. "No wonder Dr. Gero wasn't even bothering to wake you up. Just deal with him already and then we can get going to kill Goku."
"Did you say, kill Goku?" Sixteen asked.
"See? Even 16 wants this over with."
Stepping forward, he wasn't entirely sure what was happening, but 24 was built for this kind of battle. His sensors were keen, and even if damaged slightly, he was more than certain that he and the others could still deal with this problem.
He was going to need to first see what data he could absorb from all this. Twenty-Three was also seemingly eager to take point. Well, he was certainly going to let him. The more data he collected, the better off he'd be once the engagement began.
()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()
Trunks:
Pulling himself away from the android, Trunks saw as the three machines came together. He couldn't completely understand why yet, he'd only felt a strange power a few times, but that was it. From what he could tell, only Tien and Piccolo were left standing, and he had no idea where Turles was.
The Androids didn't have expressive facial movements right now, except 23, who looked shaken. The other two seemed to be holding it together, but Trunks couldn't understand why they seemed so concerned. He propped himself up against a rock and rested against it, holding his side and just breathing while he looked over the 3 combatants and then looked back at where 23 had come from. Piccolo was standing guard over a barely moving Gohan.
They were worried about Piccolo? Or was this just them forming up to take on the last of them. Looking past the three, he saw the skeleton Android trying to help up the female red-head, and 17 looking irritated and amused.
No, this wasn't just some torturous regrouping, something had gone wrong for them. It was something which Trunks found himself in complete disbelief over, even more so than before. What had he missed? What just happened. Piccolo approached the three of them, walking down the road with confidence behind every step, and it was enough to unnerve Trunks.
No way. Piccolo? But how? They're way stronger than he is. Piccolo's not as strong as my dad, I've sensed his power even a few moments ago. He's weaker than Turles.
"So, you think some speed trick is going to work?" Twenty-Three asked pointedly. "You realize we're going to pick you apart, just like we've done to your friends? You're listed as one of the weaker fighters. The top of the trash heap."
When Piccolo stopped walking, a cold chill ran past the road as the wind picked up. The hardened surface beneath all of them seemed to warm inversely, adding a contrast to the moment as Trunks' eyes tried to following everything that was happening. Behind all of it, he could sense power, a power hidden within.
Twenty-Two eyed 23 before looking back at Piccolo, clearly sizing up the situation.
"I'm so tired of you all playing the supposedly strong and silent type. Tell me, will you scream for me before I take those beautiful ears off your head?" Twenty-Three demanded. "Or are you already out of tricks? Are the games over? You're not so fast now, are you?"
When Piccolo stopped, his face was dead serious as he stared down the other 3 fighters, his stance was one of someone who was prepared. How could he be this confident? What was going on? Was he really strong enough to stop them? He didn't believe it. There was just no way he was doing better than his father did, heck, even him doing as well as Gohan did seemed impossible.
"If you think I'm all show, that's up to you. I've seen you fight, and I'm not worried. Maybe come back after you've had an upgrade. Right now, you're an outdated model," Piccolo challenged.
The look on 23's face was the look of someone who'd been insulted, his eyes peeled back with anger. The android had clearly had enough of whatever was happening, and charged forward, his boots pounded against the ground as his speed increased to where Trunks could barely even follow him, only seeing as he leaped forward, striking straight at Piccolo. Panic emerged in his stomach as he expected to see Piccolo get torn in two. Instead, without even blinking, in a single frame of motion, Trunks saw as 23 glided through Piccolo, his feet skidding along the road as he tried to stop himself.
There was no sound of impact, no shredded blood or gore on the ground. Piccolo's body didn't move as far as Trunks could tell. His breathing was hitched as he felt like he was dreaming. Did that android really just pass through him like he wasn't even there? Was it some kind of hallucination?
The shoulders on the machine from behind tensed up as he started to tremble with a visible rage. The air itself seemed to wave with heat around him as he heard a choke snarled.
Did… Did he … he just passed through Piccolo like he wasn't even there?
Cracking his neck to one side, Piccolo's bones seemingly snapped, as if to let everyone know he was actually there.
"Time to pack up and go home, game's over," Piccolo said bluntly. "I'd not go near Goku's house either."
When 23 finished turning around, his eyes winced with fury several times as he clenched his teeth.
"Alright, enough with the kid's gloves," he said, his tone shakily returning to normal as he composed himself. "I don't think you understand what you're doing. Putting all of your power in your speed might save for you a while, but you'll run out of energy very soon."
His joints started to glow brightly, even through his skin, causing Trunks' eyes to widen at what he was doing. It was the same style of technique which 22 used when she'd beaten Vegeta. Worry permeated his thoughts while he realized exactly what was about to happen. The ground rumbled gently as the machine picked up its intensity.
"Face me!" Twenty-Three shouted, though Piccolo didn't even both to look at him.
There was just a cool response, the solitary figure of the last of them remained calm, but Trunks could feel the resolve resonating through the air.
"That won't work," Piccolo warned.
The Android's face twisted once again into a rage as he blurred out of space and time, rushing towards Piccolo with a speed Trunks hadn't seen before. He passed clear through Piccolo one more time, and this time Piccolo vanished before reappearing a few steps back. Turning immediately, he started throwing punches, chasing after Piccolo's every movement. In reality, he was chasing after where Piccolo had been, just following images that were simply left behind.
"Once I get my hands on you…"
A kick followed, before two more punches, each time he was leaping after him, swinging and striking in every direction before Piccolo appeared in front of the other two Androids, leaving the third one far behind on the road, looking around in confusion.
That was enough, clearly, for 22, as she struck out at Piccolo a moment later. Visibly, Piccolo flipped back before she charged after him. Twenty-Three seemed to realize he'd just been had, again, and turned, charging in towards Piccolo with all his speed and strength. When the melee was joined a second later, both machines mechanically went about synchronizing their attacks. Each kick and punch not intervening with the other as Piccolo moved out of focus from each hit, just moving aside from every strike as his body acted like it'd barely moved as he moved through them, the rain of attacks seemed unending. It was impossible for Trunks to keep up, even the Androids that had just annihilated everyone from Gohan to Vegeta… they couldn't follow him either, or if they did, it was just fragments of his movement, and it was obvious.
In the furious exchange, there were stilled moments of Piccolo shifting his form, a faint green glow surrounding him in the flashed seconds between strikes. Twenty-Two looked undeterred and determined, where as 23 looked so angry that he could split open the earth with one missed strike in the wrong place. The whirlwind only picked up in intensity until Piccolo responded.
Finally, both were kicked out from their feet as Piccolo swept out their legs, he only saw the afterimage of it happening as his jaw dropped. Both machines lifted off their feet, looking completely confused before the briefest glimpse of the now intense green aura caught Trunks eyes, as Piccolo rolled into two kicks in mid air, sending both flying back down either side of the road.
As both flew back, they scraped along the road intentionally, before driving straight back towards Piccolo, whose stance now completely changed. His knees bent and his arms pulled in as power rippled over his form. Surprise covered Trunks features as he realized what was about to happen. He used his free hand to grab hold on a nearby rock to hold himself down as white energy licked off the Namek's body.
Just as the two androids closed in just as Piccolo threw his arms out. Energy rolled out from there, the wave of energy caught both machines as the orb of raw energy burnt in the middle of the battlefield. The intensity of the blast threw shattered fragments of the road scattering as the mountain imploded almost behind them. The clouds in the sky warped as tremendous force-winds blew pas them.
As soon as the light faded, a giant chasm existed where the Piccolo had been standing, smoke billowing out of it and Piccolo remaining exactly where he was.
This is really happening.
The two machines looked half scorched as they shook in the air, their guards up as they slowly lowered them, both of them trembling with what Trunks could only guess was adrenaline. Twenty-Three in particular had lost most of his upper body attire and his cap from the blast, clearly before his guard had been raised.
"YOU," Twenty-Three wheezed. "How dare you!?"
A wave of green energy rippled off Piccolo as he floated there, eyeing both of them, then 24 and 17, before crossing his arms.
"Goku would want me to give you a chance to surrender," Piccolo said. "And I'm going to respect what I think his wishes would be. Give up now, and you'll get out of this alive. This is your only warning."
Twenty-Three just trembled furiously at the response, his lips barring his teeth as his eyes opened with an ever-increasing fury. Already, Trunks could see the familiar glow of enhanced joints appearing through his skin as his body continued to tremble. Energy seeped into the air as heat started to rise around him. It looked like he was getting ready to explode.
"You…. You're making a fool of me! I'll kill you-"
Clapping echoed out from behind them as 17 stepped forward, clearly amused by what was happening. The blond-haired android, and the purple haired one, both turned their attention to the source, and Piccolo's head turned slightly as well in acknowledgement.
"Very entertaining," he said after a moment. "The speech, the bravado, the attacks, but we all know you are made of flesh and blood, and no matter how impressive you seem right now, you are burning the candles at both ends, we are not. So, tell you what. If you surrender, we promise to let your friends go. A few of them look like they might die at any moment. I promise, we'll treat you very fairly. We might even let you live."
Piccolo didn't even flinch as he just hovered there.
"They'd rather die than lose," Piccolo responded bluntly.
"Well, you'd rather die as well!" Twenty-Three shouted before making eye contact with Twenty-Two again, nodding towards her. "You've done nothing to back up your words! I'm fine, and so is she! You're just trying to win on a bluff! You're just flesh and bone! You can't compare to us! And I am not afraid of you!"
"Good," Piccolo said, turning his head slightly to finally acknowledge 23. "But this time I'm going to give you something to be afraid of."
Trembling with a raw fury as he brushed his mouth with the back of his hand, the machine stared back at him hatefully. Trunks could openly see him, and could hear hearing the vibrations of how mad he was.
"You'll give me something to be afraid of? You don't know who you're talking to. You're going to scream in terror when I'm done with you! Do you understand?!"
There was no response at all, and as the silence spoke more loudly than anything the loud Android had to say, it echoed over the battlefield they'd chosen here on this rural, battle scarred highway. The fury resonating off of 23 in particular was something Trunks could feel almost resonating through the air. Piccolo had pushed the machine over its limits, and it couldn't handle it, clearly. It took only a few seconds for him to sense their motion, but he could barely follow it.
Thrusting one hand out, energy coalesced around 23's palm before the blue energy sparked to life, a huge resonating orb of energy formed a moment later, starting for only a brief second a golf-ball scaled orb, to the size of a freight truck. Fed into by the machine as 23's lip cured into the fury he'd demonstrated so far, the orb started to pulse with raw energy as it stabilized at its enhanced size. When he lunged forward, the ball of energy launched at Piccolo directly, slowing seemingly before impact.
"Piccolo! Move!" Trunks shouted, his lungs breathing for air a moment later as he still tried to recover.
The flash of blue light appeared in front of Gohan's mentor, illuminating his features, bleeding away all colour, save for what was tinted by the blue light. It was as if he was only an outline, a stencil of his own shape. Piccolo's body didn't move, at least not at first, as far as Trunks could see, only following fragments of the movements. He did see Piccolo's face briefly flinch into one of effort before Trunks only saw the orb of energy go shooting straight into the sky. It swung upwards before passing through the clouds. For a brief sliver of a second, a blue star opened in the sky as the clouds swirled and were swept away by the intensity of the blast. A bath of the blue light washed over all of them in the midst of the blast.
But standing in the middle of all of this, was Piccolo, his one arm extended. As the light faded, his arm descended back down to his side, his eyes locking onto his attacker with a steeled look.
The two Androids had two very different reactions. Twenty-Two seemed focused on him, her eyes now staring intensely, but even for the less emotive of the two machines, Trunks could tell that she'd just become unnerved. Twenty-Three on the other hand, looked completely shocked. His eyes were staring into the clouds where his attack had gone, his body braced backwards, his jaw still agape. Blinking only once, the Android's face twisted back to one of hatred. For a brief second, the machine took a step back, it's hatred amplifying as it did. It took one look back towards 17, before looking with an intensity towards Piccolo Trunks hadn't seen.
"I'm going to rip off your head, and shove it down your mangled throat!" he finally shouted, his voice having left the realm of the rational.
A wave of force rolled off the Android a second later. Across from him, he could see 22 taking on its battle stance.
The two machines shot directly at Piccolo, their moves striking past him again. The blur of motion scattered across the road and the near-sky above them as Piccolo's body blurred between hundreds of attacks. Trunks could hear the frustration coming from the two machines before the sound of thunder echoed out.
Twenty-Three floated over the trench below Piccolo, his mouth dropping, this time in stunned agony as Piccolo's green energy covered elbow slammed into his gut. Trunks had to blink again or he'd have missed it, save for the gagging noise the machine made as he started to hover back, his hands moving to his abdomen, his entire frame shaking from the force of the blow.
"Ah…. AhhhahhHhhh…. Hhh… ahhhhh… ah…" the noises broke through the silence as 22 carefully backed up, her comrade clearly suffering heavy damage.
Piccolo slowly relaxed his stance back to one where he seemed prepared, moving his elbow in as the android almost fell out of the sky for several moments. The obvious dip in his ability to remain in the air, and now with blood rolling down his chin, left 23 clearly in a state that was worse for ware. Trunks couldn't believe what he was seeing. Rage burned in his eyes as they started to glow blue, before he spat blood out furiously.
"Am I just a joke to you?" he asked, his tone furiously. "Do you know who I am?!"
Much like 22 before him, something seemed to click behind 23's eyes, like there was something beneath the machine.
"No," Piccolo responded. "And I don't care."
The other 20's series android floated into now, the bigger one from before.
"Shape up," it ordered the other two before narrowing its eyes on Piccolo. "Target is obviously stronger than anticipated. Stop being selfish and stop melting down. Cooler heads, people."
The purple haired one nodded towards him, while 23 quivered for several more moments, his eyes cracked with fury as he slowly started to calm down. His entire frame seemed to relax as he breathed in, his blue eyes glowing briefly, before he set his sights on Piccolo.
"I've let this one get under my skin, haven't I?" he asked the others before looking back at Piccolo, smirking as he did. "It's no matter. I'll follow your lead 24, the three of us will make short work of this one."
The three of them circled only for a few moments, each one taking up a point around Piccolo. Anxiety rushed through Trunks as he realized he couldn't do anything to intervene, and everyone else was already finished except Tien. When he saw the human in the air, he could see the look of helplessness on the human as he scanned the battlefield, just as he had been doing.
The three of them seemed to be waiting for the right opportunity, a cue to once more launch their assault. There was a nervousness that Trunks could feel between the three stoic figures as they clearly made their final adjustments before their attacks.
He's finished. There is no way he can keep this up, and against three of them?
The attack commenced in a full force assault only a fragment of a second after his thought had finished. Quietly, he anticipated to see the three rip the green defender apart. This time, it didn't take long, the bodies blurred together into a mosaic of kicks and punches as they tried to made a connection. The rapid assault sent shockwaves through the air as the fight blurred between a hundred different spaces around them, each fragment in time he saw revealing Piccolo's efforts to dodge the incoming blow, or block them. In a flash of pure motion, Piccolo's form vanished.
The female almost clipped the smaller blonde before the three of them pulled back. Their eyes darted seemingly in all directions. Any hostility that the blonde one seemed known for didn't appear as he frantically searched in all directions.
"Where the Hell did he go?" Twenty-Three asked. "It has to be some kind of trick. He's not been actually here. A moving after-image-"
The air, even from where Trunks was slumped against the wall of rock behind him, swept up around him like a hurricane. Thunder exploded out after 24's body vanished from the other two before a huge pile of rubble tore apart across the road in front of them. The Android was being dragged through the ground. It hit the asphalt so hard and fast molten chunks of the hard surface scattered from the point of impact and the point his body tore through the ground. From where he was, Trunks couldn't see much more as the Android's body flinched, trying to pull up impotently Trunks saw Piccolo's form appear above him, driving a haymaker into the Android's head. This set off the second boom, this time exploding the road outwards around where the fist had made contact, blasting the Android a dozen metres beneath the ground before the entire side of the cliff-faced road slipped down, sliding into the valley below in a massive landslide, cutting off the road directly in front of Android 17.
Seventeen was a monster in his own time, and he'd always seen him as cocky, arrogant, or vicious. For the first time in his life, Trunks suspected he saw a look of mild surprise on the Android's face before Piccolo vanished again.
The remaining two seemed more than hesitant to continue the fight, at least at first. Twenty-Three was trembling with fury and anxiety, but didn't move, at least not at first.
"Are you done?" Piccolo asked.
All it took were the words as the Android roared, launching himself forward in a fury. Rearing back his right arm to strike down, Trunks didn't even see the counterattack land before 23 even had a chance to begin his assault. Piccolo's body, glowing in a green aura, was already inside the machine's defenses, colliding with the Android's stomach with his own right arm. Immediately the machine hunched over, gagging in pain as his hands shot to his stomach as he floated in the air, but only briefly.
Piccolo had already moved past him, faking towards the last Android as 22 seemed to raise her defense, pulling back to avoid being the next one attacked, but Piccolo had looped back as soon as she was on the back foot. Twenty-Three tried to pull himself together, only for a huge blow to come into the side of his head. Even from this distance, Trunks could swear he saw the lights go out behind 23's eyes as Piccolo's fist crashed straight into his temple. Dropping rapidly through the air in a complete free fall, and aided by the force of the attack sending him straight down, 22's body cracked into the edge of the chasm Piccolo had created earlier when he'd unleashed a wave of energy from his body. Clipping off the side, his frame bounced off before rag-dolling from there, his frame once again smacking into the side of the rock as his body twisted unnaturally and out of control on its descent into the dark pit at the bottom, outside of anyone's view.
The last Android tried to move back, her own eyes writhe with surprise as she tried to track her opponent, only for Piccolo to disappear once again for Trunks, and likely for her as well, appearing behind her, his feet crashing into her back. The Android was sent careening towards the edge of the canyon, before he appeared in front of her again, kicking her straight into the air and blasting her back again from above, the machine twisting in the air as her body was projected into the sky, outside of its own control. When he appeared above her once more, it was a massive axe handle blow, driving it into the machine's lower back, that sent the body of the Android went spiraling towards the ground, out of control, about to crash into the hole where 24 was already laying before Piccolo flashed into existence in front of her, driving his elbowing into her gut as the landing post. It almost looked like the Android would be torn in two, before Piccolo cast the body in front of the other three Androids. It didn't even move as it laid sprawled out in front of the others. There were only a few brief noises of pain from the downed machine.
Breathing in and out with control, but clearly with labour, Piccolo stared at the remaining three machines.
He… he… he beat all three of them.
()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()
Android 17:
At first, he just thought his sensors were malfunctioning as he had trouble following Piccolo's movements. But no, in fact, he discovered that this was the real him. A split second before anyone made contact with him, a green energy field appeared around him and then things went out of control. That was when he was moving faster than he could follow, that was when he was doing immense damage to his fellow androids. Looking down at the barely moving body of Android 24, who was trying to get up, but seemed to have the life sucked out of him by only two hits, he then turned his eyes to Android 22, who was completely out cold, her mouth left agape as her eyes stared blankly into the sky. Looking up at the warrior in front of him, 17 narrowed his eyes dangerously.
The rest of them just hadn't seen the technique in use, but he understood what was happening. Piccolo could take brief moments of immense speed and power and use them to his advantage. A speed and power which, Android 17, determined was not enough to last against him in anything resembling a prolonged engagement. These other, inferior models, wouldn't hold up to his own power of course.
"Do you want to take him on, 16?" Seventeen asked, if only wanting to collect more data from how this fighter engaged. "I'd like to see what you can do."
"I will only fight Son Goku," Sixteen responded. "I refuse to fight anyone else."
"Are you broken or something?" Seventeen asked.
"The 16 model was designed to solely destroy Son Goku," Dr. Gero said. "It is his only directive. He will not fight anything other than him."
What a stupid design. He has almost no personality and only wants to fight one guy? Why would he be this incomplete? What a complete waste of time.
Rolling up his sleeves, 17 looked at the green warrior in front of him before brushing some of his hair back, making sure he was ready for the big fight. Because unlike the others, he was going to show this thing that he wasn't someone to just be walked over. All the other machines here were inferior to him anyway. The solution to defeating this one was faking out the attack, and letting his brief window of increased power evaporate, before going for the killing blow.
Smiling at the Namekian, 17 took several steps forward.
"I hope you know that I've got you figured out," he said. "The others systems weren't sophisticated enough to see that technique you were using. Well, mine were sufficient. I just wanted to let you know that before we engaged in this charade of a fight you've been putting up."
The other warrior didn't seem moved at all as 17 let him know all about his advantage. He was still confident? That was fascinating. Seventeen would have thought some of that would have evaporated once he realized just how alone he was, without any support. Stepping over 22's body as she finally started moving, dragging herself away from the fight, he just heard a groan from the other android while he closed the distance with the Namekian.
"Don't tell me your going to keep giving me the silent treatment," Seventeen said, smiling as he looked up at him. "If you think you're going to get ahead by playing hard ball with me like you did the others, you're going to be in for quite the surprise. I'm not so easily beaten."
"What's there to say?" Piccolo asked him in response. "You're going to lose if you fight me."
Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, 17 let the last comment slide as he opened his eyes, staring directly at the other warrior as he put his fists up, clearly taking a defensive stance. It looks like he just assumed he was as weak as the others.
Alright, I guess it's time to show him I'm not going to be so easily duped like the others.
In a lightning fast motion, 17 shot a punch straight at Piccolo's head, not intended to land the blow, trying to fake him out and wait for him to use his technique. The punch never landed, as it was expected not to. He was going to shift to a defensive stance before the other warrior could make a move, but instead, Piccolo didn't move.
Pulling his arm back, he saw a pair of onyx eyes looking back at him without any sign of intimidation. He knew the attack wasn't serious? A half smile emerged on 17's face, but internally he was cursing that the Namek had caught on before the tactic had even marginally worked. Well, that scrapped that plan. This guy really was something special if he was able to keep a level head even when he had a warrior like himself in front of him.
"Well, I can see you're definitely in-tune with your surroundings."
"…"
New plan, challenge the tactic. Pouncing forward with all his speed, striking out with a right punch, 17 saw him dodge to the side, his entire form blurring with pure speed. Rolling in the opposite direction as he pulsed his energy to the opposite direction, 17 dodged what could have been a devastating kick before sliding against the round and bounding back towards Piccolo. Swinging his foot up in a vertical kick, 17 only just missed his target, who saw the attack coming at the last moment. The surprise on his target's features at the quick motion told him that it was not expected. Throwing his arms up as a guard, 17 felt the big man's fist connect with his guard, sending him flying back, but leaving him undamaged.
When his body slammed into the wreckage of the mountain, he used his legs and the side as a springboard, once more throwing himself back at the big fighter. He needed to keep up the pressure to find the moments of weakness in the formation. The green glow around the Namek hadn't dispersed yet, which was more than fine for him. Every moment he was using it, he was hoping it was draining away his stamina. There was a reason why Piccolo had been using it infrequently to push his attacks, that much 17 was sure of. It made even more sense that he'd lured the others into brief engagements before dodge and strike, and 17 aimed to undermine that at every turn.
This time, 17 twisted his body before the attack came in, striking out at Piccolo's left side, and he was met with a block, he'd made contact, meaning he had a stable foe to fight against. The two of them clashed as his punches shot forward, each blow aimed at Piccolo's centre of mass, even if striking at the core just to give the least opportunity to avoid him. Even as his blows were blocked, that was fine by 17's book, he needed to keep him distracted.
Keeping up his own onslaught was no problem, as 17 knew he'd never tired from exerting attacks.
Offense was so much a focus, 17 only barely dodged a counterpunch, disrupting Piccolo's entire assault before he connected with a hard-left hook catch him off guard. Every sensor he had was focused in on the green goliath as he tried his best to keep himself honed in on the fight. Piccolo's cheek swelled to one side his head fell back, his body curving back from the blow, but his eyes not leaving his. Kicking straight forward, trying to capitalize, 17 found Piccolo let himself fall back several feet to act as a dodge before he rocketed back towards him. Blocking another strike, his confidence secured, 17 connected with another shot, this time catching the Namek in the side of the body before they blurred into a flurry of motion. There was a slipup however, just as he went in for what he perceived was the beginning of a combination to finish this declining power, 17 found his palm strike shot past Piccolo's head, as if the other foe had figured out the pattern of assault 17 had been using. The entire world almost fizzled out for a second as Piccolo's response caught him in the side of the head, a large green fist cracking into his reinforced temple.
When his body twisted, 17 felt a harsh kick hit his side. His ribs felt like they were going to snap in a hundred pieces, but his body contorted enough with the strike before the third hit game, a straight right punch to the face. Blood jetted from his nose as his body was sent plummeting back towards the ground, his back slamming into the wreckage of what had been the bus. When he bounced off of it, he hovered in the air.
Angrily, he wiped the blood from his nose onto his sleeve, before seeing the Namek point one hand at him.
"Game over," Piccolo said.
In front of 17, there was a wall of light. His eyes bulged as the tornado of energy was launched at him, seemingly sucking the light out of the world as it came towards him.
()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()
Piccolo:
The last one had been tougher than expected. He'd been running at times four, the entire time so far and it was eroding his body, just as Goku had warned him. Even with his healing physiology, it was just the exhaustion it caused to keep running at this high level that was the killer. The ki blast had been enough to level a city and everyone in it. The black-haired one really was the strongest, as far he could tell. The others had all been strong enough to pick apart Super Saiyans, but each one only took a few hits to get his point across. Twenty-Two and Twenty-Four were both still barely able to move on the ground, and Twenty-Three was languishing in the bottom of the pit beneath them.
It was even a surprise to Piccolo however, when floating where he'd fired the blast, was a bubble of green energy, with a battle-scarred Android 17 sitting in the heart of it. He tried to hide his shock, but Piccolo knew at least some of it showed through. This one was definitely tougher than the others. If his Demon-Ken x4 hadn't completely overwhelmed him like the others. The only way this was working was by keeping things short, and he needed to finish this one off before he could finish the job on most of the others.
He'd done damage, but he knew these things didn't tire. Pain started to bulge out of his left shoulder as Piccolo prevented himself from wincing. Apparently, his own exhaustion was going to be a problem, and soon. He needed to keep up the perception that he was a rock though. If he went down, everyone was dead, and not just Yamcha. The fact he'd failed to intervene in time to save him was something he'd need to carry with him. He'd trained with Yamcha for three years, and he was gone in a flash because of these machines.
Gohan, even if it was the Gohan he didn't fully know, was laying back there half dead. Vegeta might die on his own any minute, but Piccolo could still hear him breathing, even if that was fading. This all came down to him. It was funny, if he'd seen what his life would be all those years ago at the World's Martial Arts Tournament. He always mocked or laughed at the idea that Goku stood up for his friends and intervened on their behalf. Now, here he was, the last bulwark from preventing his friends from getting killed.
If anything, that was what was going to keep him in this fight. He wasn't even sure how he was going to handle the giant after he stopped this guy, his own stamina might not last long enough for that. Descending to the ground once again, Piccolo landed on his feet as the Android landed across from him, it's face written with anger, undoubtably because he'd challenged its power. This one had been flaunting its strength to the other Androids, and it didn't like being put in this kind of position.
He understood, when Goku did this to him, he was upset as well.
"I see that you're upset," Piccolo said bluntly. "Losing is apart of life. If you give up now, you'll live long enough to learn to deal with that."
He's going to be raging mad after that, so I've got to plan this out.
Heat was rising off the ground where the Android stood, the amount of energy, ki or not, being built up was having an impact on the environment as he prepared to launch his attack. Prepared himself, knowing that this thing was going to be coming at him with its full speed and power. Pushing things to five might be what was needed. Pushing things to six was as far as he'd ever taken this, even when operating at a much lower power level. If he got to six, and didn't die from the exertion at the level he was running at, he'd win, but he'd be so fried he'd not be able to fight once he couldn't maintain the form anymore.
Damn it.
If Goku were here, he knew there would be at least one more person helping him, and that might make the difference. Turles was the only fighter still up, he could still sense his power, but even that was fleeting.
He's avoiding fighting. Smart.
Before the Android could attack though, Piccolo heard something behind you.
"KILL. YOU!" Twenty-Three shrieked as he lunged at him from behind, his lack of true ki making him a nightmare to track.
Engaging his Demon-Ken x4, Piccolo threw his leg back, kicking into the blonde-haired Android's gut. He froze in place, his eyes bulging out of his face almost as he was left gagging in open space before Piccolo swept around, using his momentum to strike hard and forward, punching the Red Ribbon creation in the back of the skull. Like a dead weight, the machine went flying forward, ploughing into the skeletal Android 20, sending the pair flying.
The only problem was, that distraction had created the window which Piccolo knew 17 could exploit. A diving punch came in from above him, striking the side of his temple as Piccolo was knocked off his feet, being thrown towards the side of the ruins of the cliff that still barely stood next to the devastated road. Regaining control, remaining in his enhanced state, Piccolo launched into the air, pouncing upwards to get a better vantage point, but the Android was already on him, moving faster than he had before. The first punch was dodged, before Piccolo blocked the next. Suddenly, it turned into a flurry of an exchange as both of them barraged one another with their assault, much to Piccolo's surprise, the Android, despite being slower, was still managing to keep up.
He's banking on his stamina.
The realization hit Piccolo as he gritted his teeth, knowing that it was getting close to decision time on how to deal with this.
"You're going to get tired," Seventeen laughed in-between hurried punches and kicks. "What will you do then, Piccolo?"
Managing to catch 17 after a bad punch on his part, Piccolo's own fist connected, letting him slip past the other warrior, driving himself towards the ground on purpose, landing on a clearing above the highway which had been so thoroughly destroyed. Immediately across from him, his adversary landed, rubbing his jaw from the strike as he smiled at him, the break was going to be all of a few seconds if 17 kept to his tactic, so that meant now was it. It was do or die.
The green field around him intensified as Piccolo braced himself, growling as he did. The air around him stilled before swirling in a hurricane of power. The ground started to rumble as he felt his muscles tighten to a level he'd never felt before. Every move would bring a price, so this had to be it. Pieces of the earth started to slowly rise into the sky as the rocks and clumps of dirt started to rain upside-down from the ground. Soon, boulders followed, before chunks of the mountain started to rise off of the ground, the multi-ton stones just started to rise from their home on the surface of the Earth.
"Even at your best, you won't be able to stay ahead for long," Seventeen confirmed confidently.
Demon Ken, times 6!
The rocks, fell.
A grunt of low pain escaped him as the energy transferral was complete. Already he could feel the candle burning, indeed, at the two ends he feared they would before. The Android roared as he brought his power to the fore, dashing towards him to strike right through him seemingly. Instead, he passed by Piccolo as he took to the side, seeing the Android moving in almost slow motion. Trying to keep his breathing even, even as his power drained everything from his body, Piccolo managed to hold it together. When the Android turned on a dime, sliding off one foot and striking out towards him again, Piccolo simply moved aside, before seeing another kick swing past him, and a dozen hurried punches. Each strike was increased in its frustration as he saw all the confidence in 17's face turn to rage. A series of kicks shot past him as Piccolo moved from side to side. Unnatural energy flicked off every strike as more energy was put into every attack. The speed and strength of the new assault was barely even noticed as another barrage of kicks came at him. Piccolo could only wait so long as he looked for the opportunity to end this fight decisively.
"Why can't I hit you!?" Seventeen shouted, frustration finally getting a hold of him.
Piccolo gave him the only response he deserved. When one punch came too far into him, he finally struck back. With the full reach of his arm, wrapped in green energy, Piccolo landed a straight punch on 17 as he leaped in the air to strike down at Piccolo. The blow was so hard his cheek malformed around his fist, his head seemingly trying to shoot off his body as his blue eyes almost turned white. Striking out with his knee next, the blow hit the exposed and undefended stomach on the Android next. It was hard enough that he immediately ejected blood from his mouth, seemingly barely knowing where he was. It took only a side longer before Piccolo launched him into the air with a pulse of his energy.
Seventeen flipped and spun through the air for almost a kilometre, breaking the sound barrier two times before he threw his arms out, screaming in exertion and anger, a shockwave resonating off of him. Piccolo however, was already there. Despite the scale of difference between the two of them, Piccolo saw the android strike down towards him furiously, dodging the punch well before it could have ever landed, he came back around from his opposite side, spinning into a giant kick, smashing into the Android's ribs, feeling one buckle and crack under the power of the strike. Launching him forward again, Piccolo followed, surpassing him at four times the speed before appearing above him, driving both his arms into him in an ax handle smash, focusing in on the same area his kick landed. This time, a yelp of agony echoed out before the Android shot straight towards the ground.
Appearing beneath him, Piccolo shot his leg straight up, cracking it into the side of the machine's chest, sending him flailing wildly straight back up, before appearing above him once again. This time, the Android, blood leaking down the left side of his face from his eye, and just above his eyebrow. Spitting venom, the combatant struck out at him from below, swinging his leg past him. Sweeping around once again, Piccolo coming in closer, delivered a harsh, short punch straight to the sternum. The impact was strong enough that the boom of the hit echoed out through the air, rolling through the clouds and thundering down to the Earth below. His eyes coming out of focus again, 17 lurched forwards, uncontrollably hawking up a splattering of blood, just missing him as he wheezed before Piccolo focused his energy one more time, driving his fist straight into the Android's agape face. The entirety of his body launched back and down, for a brief second Piccolo even thought his enemy was finally unconscious. When his frame smashed into the road below, it did so violently. A cloud of debris, smoke, and dust cast up into the air as the road itself started to crater inwards, before another, though much smaller, fissure in the road appeared as rocks crumbled and fell inwards, causing a small mountain slide into the valley below.
From where he was in the air, he let himself slowly power down, slowly descending from above as the hole where the Android was showed little evidence of life. A hand however, rose out of it, clinging to the side of the asphalt on the side of the fissure as 17 pulled himself up, his clothes ratty and torn, his body bruised and broken, spitting up blood one more time, he just heard furious breathing as the machine took another step forward, his power seemingly unaffected by the events.
"I'm… not… FINISHED!" he yelled.
Yes, you are.
Energy flowed into the machine's hands, and Piccolo didn't want to give him the chance to pull off whatever he was doing, especially with the danger to the others. It was time to put this down.
Green energy wrapped around him once more as Piccolo pushed himself back to his limits, blurring down at full speed, extending both of his legs as the shockwave his body made through the air boomed around him a dozen times. Both feet collided with the Android's head to the left side, where his head had been bleeding. The impact of the hit was enough to annihilate the remains of the road which 17 was standing in, and send explosive waves of force rolling down the canyons and valleys around them. Finally, Piccolo could see the light go out in the Android's eye before his body tore through the side of the mountain, smashing through it. Passing out the other side, he saw the body of the Android shred through another plateau, before a dust-plum appeared at a third one as the Android was sent back a hundred kilometres through solid rock.
There was no bounce back, or wave of energy coming back through the pathway Piccolo had forged with 17's body. There was just a long new crevasse through three mountains. The rolling sounds of thunder and destruction still echoed through the vast valleys as the gigantic mounds of stone and rock started to crumble into themselves, still slipping and sliding from the destruction.
When his feet touched down on the sunken hole in the road, he finally felt the green power escape him. Every muscle in his body failed all at once, and it was all he had left just to remain standing.
Turning his head, Piccolo found himself back where the battle had started. Android 24 had pulled Android 23 up, hoisting him to his feet by his arm. Blood was streaming down the side of the Android's face, and it was clear that 23 was out. The larger Android was staring at him defiantly, but was clearly too nervous to make a move. The girl, Android 22, looked… scared… out of all of them. She was trying to hide it, and had barely managed to get herself even to her knees as she stared back at him, trying to pull herself up again, her knees buckling. He'd likely fractured something in her back which was increasingly the difficulty for her, not that he had any qualms with doing it.
"This… this can't be," the skeleton uttered, staring at him with its blue optics. "This kind of improvement is incalculable. Android 17 should have been more than sufficient to annihilate Piccolo…"
The machine then looked at the hole the Android had made before looking back at him, the one-armed monster turned its gaze to the others on its team, before it turned back to him, as if trying to figure a way out of their situation.
They'd won. Or rather, he'd managed to do it. He'd stopped them. It took everything he had. The big one was still standing, but he didn't seem keen to fight. The others were all too damaged to really fight back. All he needed to do was find the Senzu Beans, he just had to buy the time needed, turning his head and looking back, he could see Tien gathering up Krillin and placing him next to Trunks, and the still unconscious Gohan.
The real problem was, was that he was bankrupt. There was nothing left to fight with. If any of these things figured that out, even as damaged as they were, he might not be able to hold his own for longer than a minute.
Turles's energy had finally almost completely declined, and was in an increasing decline now as well. That likely meant he was dying, like Vegeta. It only took a moment for Piccolo to look up, seeing a seething Android 18. She had some battle damage as well, but it was nothing that'd hinder her. He needed time.
Shit.
()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()
Author's Notes:
Well, that's a pretty huge departure from the canon encounter. Things are only going to depart more! Lol. Poor Raditz hasn't even gotten to the new battlefield yet, but fear not, when Is aid this was his Saga, it really is. This is just the opening for it. :)
Also, I hope everyone enjoyed Piccolo's role in this! I'd been saving it since I wrote Kami "disappearing". Demon-Ken slowly becoming more and more an equivalent to Kaio-Ken is, as demonstrated here, utterly devastating, as Piccolo's base power is just huge. I really hope that I did 17 justice, as he's such a monster he was still able to keep up with x4 Piccolo, it was only when he went all out and went x6 that he finally completely overwhelmed him. As you can now see, things are going to be very different from the canon. Though I'm not going to say how different :D
In my head, 22, 23, and 24 are about as strong as 17 and 18 in the future (the "weaker" ones who had trouble putting Gohan down). So, I put main timeline 17 and 18 about as far above them, as Android 16 is above them :)
I really hope people enjoyed this! I'd been keeping Piccolo concealed for a lot of chapters. I've rewritten this one to add more detail like, 6 times. I really wanted it to be something special, as it really represents where things start to deviate much more wildly from the canon. I've got so many plans, I'm afraid I won't be able to do all of them. Expect chaos! Chaos everywhere!
Update's coming a bit early. Tomorrow and Saturday I'm quite busy (though at home, I may not have time to post this), so you're getting a Thursday update instead of a Saturday update.
I know times are tough at the moment, but I do intend to try and keep this as a weekly update, at least for the next little while. I would of course, appreciate reviews! Everyone stay safe.
()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()
Reviewers:
Blades of Fury: Turles is just playing a different game than the others. He'd get annihilated too, lol.
Transformer's G1's Prime: I hope this chapter met your wild expectations. :)
Perfect Carnage: You found out!
Super Mystic Gohan: I hope this answered some of your questions :P
FabDuwangIsFab: Future Cannon Gohan was stronger. He took longer to recover, came closer to death multiple times while recovering, his ki bonus was bigger. He's weaker than Cooler, Goku, Piccolo, Turles, and Vegeta. Same's true for Trunks, whose also weaker than Gohan. They're certainly stronger than Frieza, King Cold, Goku on Namek, but they'd not be on-par with Goku and Turles when they fought Slug. Don't worry, they're not going to be like this forever, lol.
Instinct: Everyone's so obsessed with pairings. Also, Krillin's got a pretty decent arc in The Catalyst. Remember, Raditz is 'weak' right now, and is one of the main characters. Just because someone's weak, doesn't mean they aren't important. :)
RulesofNature626: I deliberately didn't write from Piccolo's perspective for tons of chapters in order to try and conceal what he was thinking, in order to conceal the fact he was stronger than everyone else, lol.
Thomas-The-TMC: Goku's the lynch pin of Dragon Ball, along with Gohan. I really never wanted to deviated from that, even characters like Turles and Vegeta are impacted by Goku.
RedHunter87: I totes lied to you when you asked if Demon-Ken was what Piccolo was doing. I just didn't want to answer that and spoil it, lol.
Luke: I think Turles is antagonizing 18, rather than flirting with her. He's just trying to play things smart.
Guest1: Outside of Yamcha dying, I think this brawl was a step more brutal. I definitely enjoyed writing Piccolo climbing past everyone else, largely thanks to his being able to multiply his power.
DarkFalconZ: I hope this particular fight meets expectations.
AquarianKing: I love Yamcha. He was my favourite character as a kid, lol. This is sort of a buyer beware point. Yamcha before, took off with Goku and helped get him well. Now? Being on the battlefield he shouldn't have been on? There were consequences. I love Turles vs. Dodoria. I reread it recently, and even though I want to rewrite it, that moment where he says "unfortunate business" just works, lol. Thanks!
TheSkyBreakerV1: 22 is the corpse of Colonel Violet, restored, but Violet is definitely dead. 23 is General Blue.
Jetiq: I loved writing it, lol.
Ultimate Savior: We're not there yet. :P
Silas: Yamcha! Lol
WriterOld: Responded by PM.
Anon: This chapter actually answered your main question. lol