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 99: Residue
Vegeta:
Every act left something behind, a consequence or repercussion. In the case of Frieza, for example, his destruction of the Planet Vegeta decades earlier, is what inevitably resulted in his downfall at the hand of the Saiyans who remained, namely Kakarot, even if his pride hated to hear that.
The consequences Vegeta was now receiving weren't ideal. Firstly, the woman had stopped speaking with him for over a day now. That was noteworthy in and of itself, and the reason was obvious. When one comes home alone, after leaving with another whom she was invested in, it looks very bad.
"He won't be coming back."
"What did you do?"
Was always the best start to a conversation. Worse, in this silence he was left with all the same failures he'd been trying to avoid before. He'd not trained, not yet. He'd not left the premises of the Capsule Corporation even, even if he was just in his room being silent. There were entertainment devices but he ignored them. This was worse than being beaten by Turles, or humiliated by Kakarot. It was to be left alone with the uncomfortable truth. He'd not eaten since the day prior where he overstepped his bounds.
Kakarot's brat's words still left an impact on him, pointing out that the boy had idolized him. Was it that he'd taught him a hard lesson in both cases? Or was it that he'd abandoned him. Vegeta had little use for family, or so he thought. The woman not talking with him, not really seeing his own son, and now being stuck in this room, alone, contemplating his failures, had helped hone his perspective.
Especially given he knew how weak he had become. He was weaker than the Androids, and weaker than the Namek. And despite their comparative weakness as well, Turles and Kakarot would not see this as a hindrance in the way he did. To always struggle to pull himself ahead, while those two seemingly glided to their new levels. He needed to be the first one to discover the next plateau, and he knew it was there. The goal hadn't been reached yet, to become the true legend. Being a Super Saiyan wasn't enough, there had to be a stage that went beyond that.
The Legend must be real, this can't be its limit. I have to be the one to get there first. I have to reach it before the others, most of all Kakarot and Turles. To be behind again, to be left in the dust…
With that power came authority. With that authority came a strength beyond just being the strongest, it meant standing above all others as was his right. The Namek wasn't deserving to stand above him, nor was the Androids, or Kakarot. But who was? He'd made his decision, his deal with pragmatism when he'd come to the agreement with the woman. He'd become a father, and the woman had become more to him than he'd care to admit, even if it was obvious.
Though he knew if it wasn't for their agreement, when he'd come back in yesterday, she'd have likely just told him to leave, rather than to simply not speak with him.
He sensed Raditz's power expand radically for a few brief moments, before sensing the blast in the distance. It was relatively close, but his power didn't seem to fade as if it was dying. This meant that his long-haired, former colleague, was just throwing a fit, as far as he was concerned.
What decisions am I going to make?
That was the question. What did he, Vegeta want? He knew he wanted to be the strongest. He knew he wanted to be the greatest Saiyan who ever lived, and he knew he wanted to secure his future. He wanted to keep the woman, and their son safe. Though she clearly would have argued that protection should have covered the boy, Trunks, as well. Funnily enough, he'd failed where even his own father had succeeded, if that was the case, and even the woman would have seen that.
Turles, the insidious worm that he was, tried to turn his enemies into allies, or at the very least he tried to turn enemies into neutral observers. That was something he noted, the other Saiyan's approach changing after Kakarot had beaten him so badly in West City, stopping him where he failed to stop him. Kakarot surrounded himself with friends and fools, and Raditz had as well until he let his personal ambitions blind him.
Looking at his window for several seconds, the Prince knew that he was having to make a similar decision that the others had, even if he hated every moment of it. In truth, he'd already given in by caring about Bulma and his child, but now he knew he could be jeopardizing that as well by following the course he was on.
If he was going to climb to the top and stay there, he knew there had to be… concessions, even if he didn't feel the full weight of them honestly, he needed to learn and stop butting his head against with a tactic that hadn't worked. He wasn't going to become friends with anyone, or Kakarots bad of fools, but he needed to stop alienating the people he needed.
Opening his door a few moments later, he strode down the hall, standing taller than his height would normally permit, finding the woman's door he knocked.
"I'm busy right now, who is it?" Bulma's voice came through the door, it sounded short.
"It's me," Vegeta responded.
Silence was the response at first, not a word came out. He waited for half a minute before knocking again, and there was more of the same. With a frustrated growl, he pushed through the door with ease, though preventing himself from shattering it as part of the door frame came free as he opened it.
"Oh, I didn't realize you got to just fucking barge into my room without permission," Bulma said, her voice angry.
She was sitting there, holding their son at the moment, feeding him. He was hardly shy enough to turn away at the private moment, but he noticed more about how angry she was just at the sight of him, than what she was doing.
"We need to talk," Vegeta said bluntly.
"Do we? Because when I asked you to do anything you ignore me, or you do the opposite of what I asked. I asked you keep the scanner on so I could get more data, and you freaked out, beat up our son-"
"He's not our-"
"BEAT UP our son," she spoke over him, her anger rising. "And then you come back here, he tries to get close to us, he tried to talk with me, and you're a total asshole to him, and then you nearly KILL him. You came back here, covered in blood, with barely a mark on you. What the fuck made you think I'd want to talk to you right now? I might not want to talk to you ever again. And you blew me off when you came back!"
She hesitated for a moment before her anger broke through again.
"It doesn't even touch on the fact that you beat up my friend's son when we got back to Namek. I thought you were bluffing, but after today, I'm surprised you didn't kill him and shoot up a school bus. What the Hell were you thinking?!"
It'd be easier to refute it, if it weren't all true.
She fumed angrily for several seconds before sighing, hoisting Taro back up slightly as she cradled the boy for a few more moments, looking uncomfortable.
"All I've been thinking about since you got back, was that I just made mistakes since I met you," she admitted to him, her tone sounding just… sad. "Please, just go. We'll talk later."
It might have even been true. There wasn't going to be a later however.
"No," Vegeta replied to her. "We'll talk now."
Normally his tone was harsher, more decisive and domineering, even he knew that, but by Vegeta's standards it was relatively calm.
"You've made the best decisions for you, based on the information you've had. I'm the one who's made the mistake."
Blinking, Bulma stared at him in near disbelief. Hell, Vegeta himself didn't believe he'd said it. It would be the only time he said it as well. Never again was he going to need to tell anyone about his errors, but if he was going to admit a mistake to anyone… it seemed like the only person he could, even if he often couldn't to himself. There was an honesty in it that Vegeta found uncomfortable.
Walking over to her as she sat on her bed still looking at him, Vegeta reached out his hand to the stunned woman, pressing it against the bottom of her jaw and cheek while looking at her. There was an instinctive response for her to close her eyes for a moment before staring back at him again.
"It won't happen again," he promised.
She seemed to struggle with something, looking torn as she stared at him with a painful expression, tightly trying to control it. She didn't brush his hand away, but he did slowly with draw his hand. He was waiting for her response, which seemed to be interrupted as Trunks broke free from her breast, clearly done.
"Just give me a minute," she said, hoisting the child up and moving towards the nursery she had attached to her room.
While she was gone, the Prince was left alone with his words unanswered. He stared around the familiar space to him, noting his surroundings, hopefully not for the last time as she came back into the room.
"I don't want to do this again, Vegeta," she told him, her voice stern, yet still on the verge of cracking. "I don't want to hear that my friends were hurt by you, or that you did something awful, without even good reason. I don't want to hear about you beating our son because you're insecure. And I don't know if I can trust you."
It was the truth, the same uncomfortable truth he'd said only a few moments earlier.
"It won't happen again," he responded again, his own tone more than conciliatory.
When she crossed her arms staring at him, he knew she didn't believe him. In truth, that actually hurt. His own gaze was averted as he realized how far he'd buried himself. It was a strange truth that the only person he cared about other than himself, was the person who was rejecting him now.
"… I…" she started to respond, and he could see the tears welling at the edges of her eyes. "… I… don't…" she stuttered again, her voice wavering. "I don't believe you."
So, that was it then?
The pause that came after the words were said was deafening to both of them. In his entire life, this was the lowest point he'd ever been at. Now it was his turn to not respond. Bulma almost seemed to shield herself as she took a step to the side, not wanting to directly face him, her could hear a soft noise come from her, a sob, as she tried to keep herself composed while he was present.
He was torn, split in two. There were equal parts of him that wanted to just leave all of this behind, to fully detach himself for everyone. This had been a failed experiment, and he was left on his own, as he always truly had been. The lessons he'd learned throughout his life from the time he was a boy, tutored under his father, and then Frieza, up until he arrived on Planet Earth, had guided him right at every turn.
Then there was another path. The path that had guided him least of all, and exposed him to what he was experiencing now. The path of connections with others. The one that started when he'd promised to keep this woman safe from the vengeance of Kakarot's brothers. Where he'd gone into space with her, where he'd had his son. The son he took pride in for being his. It was the path that had led him to become a Super Saiyan. But it came attached with obligations, and it came attached with this, what was happening now.
It came with hurting the people you cared about, without intending it. It came with potentially losing those people even if you didn't want to.
Even when Nappa had died, someone who'd been there with him his whole life, he was indifferent to his fate. Truth be told, he'd have killed him himself if Raditz hadn't, after that failure. But would he have killed Nappa now?
So, did he try to debase himself for one more chance? Or did he walk the path he had always been on, before deluding himself with all this?
The silence persisted as Bulma made another choking noise.
It was a sound he knew he'd only made once in his life. The day Frieza killed him. But hearing it now felt like he was living that day all over again.
You can never go back. You can only go forward.
He made several strides towards her, rather than away from her, before wrapping his arms around her. It was a rare act, he didn't enjoy these moments typically of being close, and he certainly didn't enjoy this one now. A surprised set of blue eyes looked at him as he held her. He couldn't tell her with words that he wanted another chance, or that she was important to him. That was something beyond him, and would always be that way.
His heart finally felt like it was beating again when her own arm wrapped around his back, holding him in turn.
"I can't do this again, Vegeta," she sobbed. "Please. You can't do that again."
"I won't," he answered her, looking back into her eyes, seeing himself through the haze of unshed tears.
Leaning in, he kissed her briefly, something he often only reserved for private moments of another sort, before pulling back from her.
I am Vegeta, the last Saiyan Prince. I decide my own fate.
"What… what are you going to do?" she asked, knowing he was preparing to leave now as he turned towards the door.
"I am going to go beyond a Super Saiyan," he told her. "And then I am going to destroy the Androids. I'll be at the Gravity Room for now."
There was a long pause before he turned his head back towards her.
"I can't promise the boy will return, but I do promise I'll keep him alive."
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Android 22:
The girl was more than annoying that they were keeping her around. The detached, scared human just looked worried all the time, and 17 was playing Captain still, catering to his little pet more out of amusement than anything. She'd come to learn enough about her comrades over these last few days to pick up on their quirks. She could tell that 23 wanted to kill her, 22 wouldn't go that far herself.
It was odd how they were all projects of different origins, different bodies creating different personalities for their processors to draw off of. It was in part biological, even after modification, chemical differences between bodies could create different composures, and different impulses that the processor would adapt to from the body. The other was of course… the ghosts.
The memories these bodies held inside of them, failed to be sealed away. Faint images from the past, they all had them, except 16. Her ghosts were ones of violence, betrayal, and death. Every one of them of a renegade looking out for itself at every turn. There was no affection in any of its adult life, and what fragments of its pre-adult years were not of a happy upbringing. She didn't know what spectres visited the others, but she knew they had to see them as well.
Seventeen and 18 were brother and sister, the resemblance was obvious. Their closeness to one another was born of that, she could tell. They were designed to work in unison, but their twin element went beyond that. There was a familiarity there not shared with the others.
She knew 23, from before. They had sparse run ins. Or rather, their bodies knew one another. He was of higher rank than she'd been in the Red Ribbon Army, but she wasn't under his command directly, at least not often. There was too little she'd seen for her to conclude much else, beyond the fact he was crueller than her body had been. That in and of itself was quite the shock.
Not that she minded being vicious, cruel, cold, or calculating. It was just… so alien as to being here. Outside of the treacherous 20, 21, and 23, these people… these other units, displayed a kind of closeness she had few memories of. They joked with one another, they looked out for one another. Now, on this hunt for Son Goku, and the Insect Monster, they covered one another and worked in unison, even their less worthy, elements. It was a subversion of expectations. By now she'd expected to be on her own, just by nature of the impulses the body itself went through.
Still, her observations were quiet, and to herself, as her eyes turned sideways to the girl.
"You do anything useful?" she asked.
"I… I'm a performer," she answered. "We toured."
We?
Ah, her friends that got killed. Little reference to those three seemed necessary. She almost wanted to correct her to say "you toured", implying that the others were definitely no longer involved, but she decided not to bring on the wrath of the bus driver. Oddly, 17 himself seemed to mellow out once he started playing hero to someone after his savaging from Piccolo. For as long as it amused him, she was sure. Maybe it was some boyhood fantasy, like driving them around like a band of crazy people on a road trip.
"So, how long before our dear leader gets bored and we get to take the guest apart?" Twenty-Three asked, sounding almost excited behind her.
Taking a sideways look at the frail looking thing, 22 hid her disdain before looking towards 18 and wanting to know her opinion on keeping a normal human around, especially the bound-up bag of trauma that this one seemed to be. It was worse that she didn't seem to have a personality beyond 'oh, I'm scared'. Still, 23's inquiry was treasonous at worst, and cruel at best. Her own response felt conflicted, part of her saying they might as well just kill her and dump her off the side of the road due to being inconvenient, and part of her seeing 17 as being in whatever odd way, connected to the fate of this girl.
"Fuck off," she said quietly, not even bothering to look back at him.
"You're no fun."
"When did you figure that out?" she responded.
"Only now, because I remember you used to be fun," Blue said to her.
Her eyes peeled ahead with that comment. When she looked back towards him, he gave her a smile in return. Yea, this was the problem of knowing things about each other, which the others didn't. She didn't have a full catalogue of Colonel Violet's life. Just as she was hopefully… sure…
Looking at 23 in that moment, she felt herself tense. Something had changed in him, since they got to the lab. On the battlefield he'd been cruel and direct, and irrational when losing, but when they got to the base, after his repair, he'd changed noticeable, or came out of his shell much more than the others. Was the inmate running the asylum in 23's head? That question was becoming increasingly valid.
"I'll have fun once my mission is over," she responded bluntly. "If I happen to enjoy myself along the way, that's my business."
"Like you enjoyed nearly killing Vegeta?" Twenty-Three asked in turn.
The girl looked confused as she slid closer to the window as they spoke, but 22 turned her gaze to the other Android again, seeing the mischief in its eyes.
"We've been over that," she commented. "And that wasn't fun for me."
"It certainly looked fun."
"Twenty-Three," Eighteen spoke up after a moment. "No one cares, we'll stop soon, and then you can go pull the legs off a spider or something."
The two blondes glared at one another as her cohort sat back, crossing his arms dangerously as he fumed, though 22 noted herself that 18 had made a conscious decision to end his bullshit, on her behalf.
"So… all of you have super powers?" Lade asked, asking a question she undoubtedly had on her mind since 24 blew up the diner.
"No," she answered quickly, smirking as she did. "We're a bunch of corpses dancing around with machines controlling our every move. Everyone you've spoken to here is just a shell being run by a chip."
A horrified look came over her features as she realized she might indeed, be trapped in a nightmare of a different sort.
An annoyed noise left 17 at the front of the bus as he looked back in the reflect.
"That's one way to look at it," he said, his voice sounding annoyed. "Another way to look at it, is that we have Super Powers and can do whatever we want."
Eighteen seemed to shake her head at both responses before looking squarely at the girl.
"How about none of the above?" she pointed out. "But hey, you'll get to enjoy the trip as long as you're on the bus with us, I suppose."
In the back of the bus, a familiar noise was made as the old man grumbled.
"I hate to intrude, but I believe Son Goku's home is only a few minutes away. We should be preparing ourselves for combat, or for intelligence and recon."
Recon then. I doubt that Son Goku is hanging out at his home if he knows about us.
"Who… who's Son Goku?"
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Android 17:
Who is Son Goku? That was a question he wasn't really programmed to answer, and his organic component deliberately seemed to misunderstand what it meant. He could tell you his general specifications and actions, but he couldn't tell you who he was. It was odd, to know everything a strange could about someone, but he couldn't tell you who he was.
Still, it was a question worth answering, only he wasn't the one who got to it.
"Son Goku is an alien from the Planet Vegeta, alternative name is Kakarot. He stands 5'10, and weights approximately 80 kilograms. His weight fluctuates somewhat based off the amount of ki his body is generating. Son Goku is most noteworthy for stopping the actions of Emperor Pilaf, the Red Ribbon Army, and King Piccolo," Sixteen stated mechanically. "He also did battle with his own species, the Saiyans, when they attacked the Earth, destroying East City, and has traveled to another planet, now identified as what was once, the Planet Namek, a world which has been destroyed. He is also credited with defeating the galactic tyrant Frieza. He also would later be somewhat involved to an unknown extent, in an engagement with an alien from Planet Namek, whom was destroyed as well."
There were a few seconds of disbelief on her face once 17 parked the bus, the wheeze squeaking as the bus came to a grinding halt. He could see it in the reflection of the windshield before he stood up, stretching as he did, his muscles having become stiff from having stat in the bus chair for at least seven hours now.
"Thank you for the history lesson, 16," he remarked. "But I think we're going to find more out about Son Goku here than anywhere else."
"Wait, he… he sounds like a hero," Lade offered immediately. "I mean, he stopped King Piccolo. And he stopped the Red Ribbon Army! Those were monsters, and that's before the Saiyan invasion. He might even stop the monster-"
Walking over to her calmly, 17 smiled as he leaned forward, tapping on the red ribbon emblem on his black shirt, below the left shoulder.
Eyes widened with horror as she realized what the gesture meant. Immediately there was a 'burst' for the door as she got up, before 17 just turned his head and watched her run outside.
"I told you," Eighteen reminded. "We should have just left her where we found her. Now she knows too much."
"I can hunt her down," Twenty-Three offered immediately.
"She'll be back," Seventeen said dismissively, gesturing his hand as he went. "She doesn't have anywhere else to go, and besides, who cares? Outside of Piccolo we're the strongest fighters on the planet. Speaking of which, we've gotta do something about Piccolo."
"Oh, now we should plan for the guy who could kill all of us with a bit of effort," Twenty-Two rolled her eyes.
"Well, sure, I think that the best way to handle it is…"
"I will stop Piccolo, if he intervenes in our pathway to Son Goku," Sixteen said, rising as he did, popping open the back of the bus before he hopped out.
Well, aren't you coming out of your shell?
"You promise, 16?" Seventeen called after him.
"Yes."
Well, that settled that, didn't it? Crossing his arms, he looked at the others as they all began getting off of their seats.
"Alright everywhere, let's go take a visit to Goku's house."
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Lade:
It was a nightmare.
This whole thing was a nightmare. She still saw her friends faces melting in front of her as she stared out from the luggage box that she'd hidden herself in under the seats. Her heart had been still and she held her breath until she almost passed out as she watched that thing walk off the bus. It didn't say a word, but she knew had chuckled as it left.
Now her tour bus had been hijacked by a bunch of people who called each other by number. The leader, 17, had saved her from the monster, but they'd also blown up that diner. They had powers, she knew it after that, which was why they didn't seem concerned at all about the thing that was drinking people. Listening to their banter back and forth was funny, even if she wasn't in the mood for it, and other times it was chilling, when the blond-male… 23… tended to speak. They talked like she wasn't there, or asked her questions like she was some specimen to dissect. It was unnerving, they seemed so human, but they seemed to be almost mechanical all at once.
But the Red Ribbon Army? Trying to hunt and kill someone who saved the world from the Red Ribbon Army? That was all too much for her. They were monsters, just like that thing that killed her friend. She could tell at least 2 of them, maybe 3, wanted to murder her on the spot the second she gave any sign of questioning what they were about.
When she broke free from her tour bus, she ran past a small, quant house in the wilderness in a clearing, before she plunged into the managed forest nearby the home. The brush wasn't dense, but outside of photo-shoots near trees, she was hardly an outdoors-person. Her last boyfriend liked going camping every few weeks until she dropped him before going on tour. That was a whole other matter, because right now as she ran into the woods, she felt winded within a few minutes. She was in good enough shape to play on stage for two or three hours, but she wasn't exactly a marathon runner or even a sprinter. Finally, she felt her feet and legs slowing as she pushed her hand against a tree as she breathed in and out.
The near untamed wilderness around her wasn't as terrifying as where she'd just been, but she had no skills to survive out here.
"It is dangerous out here for someone who doesn't know how to survive here," a calm voice emerged from behind her.
Frantically, she turned her head, seeing the green glad giant from the bus, 16, her eyes widened in horror at seeing him as he stood there.
"You people are crazy!" she shouted. "You blew up that diner! And you're trying to kill people."
The giant seemed bothered when she mentioned that however.
"It is not something that is being done lightly," he assured her. "For the moment, Android 17 is behaving well because he's viewing himself in a more heroic light, this is largely a role-play for him. My analysis of his personality has placed him at being erratic, and easily guided by what amuses him. However, against the urging of several others in our cadre he did insist that we take you from the dangerous environment."
The way this guy talked, it was like he was a machine, entirely a machine. She wasn't sure if she believed what 22 had said prior, but the way the others behaved was far from normal either.
They all have the same eyes.
That realization as she stared at 16 was the part that made her realize a chilling reality may in fact be that they were all somehow… machines, cyborgs, or whatever.
"A few of you seem to want to kill people beyond just Goku," she said harshly.
"This is likely due to the personalities they have inadvertently inherited from their host bodies," he responded.
Oh my god, they are all really corpses?
She felt like she was going to throw up, just a little. A bunch of zombie-robots had saved her from a giant bug-monster that ate people, and were trying to kill someone who saved the world. She didn't know who Son Goku was, but she did know what he did. Those events happened.
"I would tell you that you should only be in environments you are used to, that is why these woods are dangerous," he commented, before looking around them. "Even if they are peaceful, beneath the surface the mechanics of biological life guides their actions. There are many predators in this region, including bears, sabre-toothed cats, and others. It would be ill-advised to be here alone."
The rational side of things was unfortunately beginning to win out as she, with hesitation, took a step away from the tree towards the giant. But he still seemed to be staring at the trees, looking over them. She heard the chirping of song-birds and noticed his head turned towards them immediately, a smile emerging across his face as it did.
In those seconds she forgot about the horrors which she'd seen, or the circumstances she was in. She felt like she was somewhere else, or even in a pocket away from it all, surrounded by something beautiful. Namely, because she was. The radiant forest around her, hinted with the sun's light from the late morning they were at, seemed to offer some kind of protection from her problems. For a second, she closed her eyes and just listened to the trees dance gracefully in the slow breeze on the side of this mountain.
"Wow, it'd be amazing to live somewhere like this," she said. "I mean… it just seems so peaceful."
The massive man remained silent in turn for several seconds before he turned and smiled at her.
"Yes, I enjoy it very much," he answered. "It would be nice to not have to leave it."
That left her with an odd question.
"You could probably survive here, why don't you stay?" she asked.
A bird landed on his shoulder and she expected it to fly away, but instead it just stayed there, it chirped several times before looking at him. The huge machine turned and smiled back at it, totally fascinated with what was occurring.
"One day, I may," he answered, his tone almost no longer mechanical. "But I must kill Son Goku first."
"Why?" she asked, the question having been proposed before.
"… Son Goku is responsible for the destruction of the Red Ribbon Army, and the death of several of the bodies you have seen so far. Android's 23, 24, and myself. Though Android 23's death is indirectly the cause of Son Goku."
"So, your body…"
"My body is a recreation of the original template. The person whom I was designed after was completely destroyed by Son Goku. I am unlike the others."
A machine, a complete, and full robot, it wasn't a zombie like the others then? As soon as he started to speak about his mission however, the bird flew away, as if somehow detecting a change in the nature of their conversation. As he watched the bird go, she could tell that it seemed… disappointed, somehow. Was it even disappointed with its mission? It seemed so reluctant.
A machine that… feels?
Something struck her though, in all of this. The others were all… victims, weren't they? Even if those things would be what she'd describe as inherently good… that would mean 17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, and 24 all had some kind of tragic end to them.
"Who… who are the others?" she asked, her tone sounding quiet as she spoke, but knowing what happened to them seemed like it somehow would reveal to her more than just what they were.
Sixteen paused before smiling back at her.
"You should ask them yourself," he remarked.
It didn't seem rude, or a threat, but some kind of recommendation. It also was, she was sure, designed to help her feel at ease in some way about going back.
"One more question. If you didn't have to kill this Goku guy, would you?" she asked.
"… I…" the machine paused for a few moments, thinking about for what must have been an eternity. "I have no other objective at this time, beyond killing Son Goku. I am unable to answer that at this time, until my task is completed."
Maybe that bus wasn't just a nightmare for her, she realized when she saw his response. Would they all respond in a similar way? She wanted to know, but also didn't want to know. Really, the only one she even thought she could ask was 17. The girls, 18 and 22, looked like they'd strangle her if she got out of line, and 23 did his best to do a Hannibal Lector impersonation any time she came up. Maybe 24? He seemed to be a bit like 16, though he was definitely rougher around the edges. The old guy and the red-head were keeping their distance, from everyone.
From North-City to this. Am I the only person who knows about these things?... And… these things might save the world. They might doom it too. It's all too much. I'm just a bass player and backup vocalist. What the Hell am I doing here being on the sidelines of all this?
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Android 18:
What. A. Dump.
The door lay on the floor, off its hinges as she strode through the front, her blue eyes scanning over ever aspect of the room. Her onboard systems analyzed all of the data seamlessly, feeding her information on needless estimates from the kitchen, attached to the pitiful living room, and even the light fixtures. Every element of what was Son Goku was investigated for any signs of anything. It all came back with nothing. A few pictures hanging on the wall, a few trophies, one clearly from the World's Martial Arts Tournament.
One of the more trustworthy units, 22, walked past her quickly, not scanning the area with anywhere near the same depth before flopping down on the old, ratty couch the Sons seemed to keep. She propped her feet up on their table while looking around.
"This? This is the hole the mighty Son Goku came crawling out of?" she asked, her tone laced with honesty. "This is the palace of the greatest fighter in the world? A man who could have it all, and he chooses this? Did you see that shitty field outside? I think he grows radish's out there or something. It's pathetic."
Briefly, 18 could see a very… humble… home in her mind's eye, not much bigger than this shack, where she could hear arguing. When in context to her host body, this place at least seemed a bit cleaner, even a bit more of a home, than what she herself would have known. If she were the person in question, anyway.
Clearly, 22 was more unimpressed than she was. Smiling slyly towards her counterpart, 18 walked past her, hands on her own hips.
"Look at this," she said to a very small cabinet in the corner. "They keep all of their little achievements in this corner. Look, one is a license for farming, and another's a marriage certificate. Oh, how humble of them."
"I like the fact that they haven't bothered to update the interior in here since they built this rotten thing," Twenty-Two commented. "Half of this wasn't even in style when I…"
Eighteen noticed the pause when she saw 22 blinking several times, trying to snap herself out of it.
"Before… I came online," she managed to recover, though it was pretty bad, and even 18 recognized that.
Without the same snark that 23 would have offered up, the Android felt concern, if not for 22, then even herself. Her counterpart had been the most impacted by her fight with Vegeta, outside of maybe 17's fight with Piccolo. It wasn't physical damage, they knew that. It was the body, and how their processors were interacting with all of them. They were conforming to these bodies, as much as the other way around, but more than anyone 22 seemed lost.
"Are you alright?" she asked, her tone as cold as ice, but there was sincerity in her words.
There was a suspicious look in response, the look that was familiar to 18 somehow. She'd seen it before… before she was online. It was the look of someone who didn't know what trust looked like, but a machine's presence seemed to take over a moment later.
"All of my pathways are open, I had a processing error," she responded, ending any further comment on the issue.
Really, ending what fun they were having at the expense of the Sons, even.
"I'll hang out here and watch the front. Twenty-Four's got things covered outside, see if 17 or 20 found anything useful," Twenty-Two urged before looking out the window a second later, her eyes somehow seeming further away than usual.
"Sure," Eighteen answered. "If anything comes up on diagnostic though, let me know."
Walking down the hall before her counterpart could answer, she looked in one room, seeing 17 in what appeared to be a kid's room.
"Man, this kid's only got books? Are these people for real? What kind of nightmare parents are these people?"
"What's up?" Eighteen asked.
"Just going through this place. Looks like they came out of here in a hurry. You seen 16 or Lade yet?"
Neither of them, though she thought the gentle giant had gone after their wayward pet. Somehow, she knew that 17 wanted the woman around. When they were kids, he'd always wanted to be someone's hero, and now he was trying his hand at it. When Lapis and Lazuli, had been kids, she quickly corrected. Those monikers and identities were possessed by the dead. It was a glitch, just like what just happened to 22, again. How many times was her chip just not catching these errors? The more frequent they became, the closer to normal they became.
It actually scared her.
"I think 16 went after her when she ran into the forest," Eighteen recalled. "Why are you bothering with her?"
"Hey, I saved her from an unknown bug-monster," he responded, smirking as he did. "I guess I'm kind of responsible for her."
"She's not a dog you can pick up off the street and take home," Eighteen reminded. "She is some scared human, who may do something stupid, or be some liability. It's better to cut her loose."
The other android crossed his arms and stared back at her, clearly not happy of being told what to do, but someone had to tell him.
"Fair input, but now's not the time. We'll let her off the leash when get to a city not being eaten by monsters, how's that? She looks like she has the survival instinct of a lemming."
A well reasoned response.
"So, what's with the kid's room?"
"He doesn't have any toys, not even lame ones. The parents of whoever lives here, have literally only given him books. And a lot of these are really special. Listen to this, 'A modern analysis of structural engineering', and 'the biological function of the lower intestine, explored'. They're pumping this kid full of this? Data files says the kid is what? 8? 9?"
"Of all the things to get caught up on, you're caught up on the fact he doesn't have any toys?" she asked him in response, raising an eyebrow as she crossed her arms while staring at him.
"Thank you, 18, for implying that I'm being childish. I'm only making the observation due to the oddity, of it."
"Well, if I find any toys for you to play with in the other rooms, I'll let you know."
An extremely dim view came back at her as he glared. Unable to hide her joy at teasing him, she gave him a small smile before striding out, to find the least friendly, and least wanted member of their cadre, Dr. Gero, otherwise known as Android 20.
The house was small, as mentioned before, she was only a few steps away from the room which contained the doctor. It was right next to the kid's room. A bedroom that seemed cramped, and there was almost an overhead that was filled with supplies and other assortments of extras. They used their bed room as a supply room? This was truly tiny living. Dr. Gero however, seemed to have completed his investigation of the room. Nothing noteworthy came out of it, other than the fact that the wardrobe of the woman was open, and 18 caught a glimpse of some truly ugly attires to choose from. Apparently, no one knew how to dress anymore.
However, that didn't seem to be what Gero was fixated on.
The machine was holding something in his hand. It was a picture frame. Her optics zoomed in, seeing it as being a photograph of what she knew was Son Goku, Chi-Chi, and their son Gohan, the boy looked as though he was 4 or 5 in the picture. They seemed… happy… in the picture, something she'd never really imagined her would-be victim to ever appear as. All of her files showed him being serious, or in the midst of a battle for his life. In that snapped frame, in that instance, she could just see someone who was overjoyed at being with the other two in the picture.
Gero was more than just giving it a glance, he was staring at it, he was almost fixated on it, even. The face didn't reveal anything, but for a brief moment, outside of her normal contempt for her creator, she actually felt… sorry, for him. It was further enhanced when his face twisted into something akin to rage, crushing the portrait. The sound of the glass fracturing and then shattering in his hand, along with the wood snapping into useless chips, was the only thing to break the silence. Still standing for several more moments, the Android stepped back, looking over the rest of the room before he kicked the bed through the wall. The sound of much more dense series of breaks, particularly of wood, was noted.
She'd not even realized 17 was beside her a second later, staring as she was as their creator was left standing before the hole in the wall, before grabbing the dresser and throwing it through the small closet space they had, shattering both it and the building's edge as clothes and broken wood and insulation scattered out onto the well maintained grass outside.
She almost expected 17 to say something, she almost expected to say something herself, but when she turned to him, she found the same pity in his eyes as she had in her own. The look said it all, they weren't meant to see this. The pair slowly walked away, leaving the old man with his own demons.
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Android 23:
A cigarette.
It was a disgusting habit, and the fact that 21 had it sticking out of her mouth right now was disgusting to him in a phenomenal number of ways. He was almost tempted to make the remark that she might as well have something less lewd in there, though he suspected his efforts would see him more than chastised. Especially since it'd been her who had given him such opportunity back at the Red Ribbon Facility when she'd unlocked his processor. He knew what it was now to be free, free of the commands of Android 17, and of Dr. Gero. Free to explain the full depths of his memories, which were intact in a very real way. Now, they were his memories, even if General Blue was very much dead and gone.
The others were grazing through this space like cattle, looking for clues about Son Goku, which was fine, but he doubted they would find any. Perhaps the doctor had some sick fantasy about being in Son Goku's property. Hell, he almost did. He imagined himself hunting down and murdering Goku's family, only for him to find the bodies, before extracting his wonderful revenge upon him. Making him pay for what he'd done to… his host's prior occupant.
Still, all things considered, beyond having to play along with that wretch 17, things were going well, at least at the moment. They'd made contact with Android's 13, 14, and 15. They would be able to deal with the less loyal elements within their cadre soon, and then get back to the business of hunting down and destroying Son Goku and his friends, if they didn't decide to put things on ice and go back to the drawing board.
But he, oh yes, he, was going to get exactly what he wanted.
He'd been eying up 22 and 24 for days now, imaging their lifeless bodies as he pulled their components out of them to incorporate their overdrive cores into himself. His lovely creator, Dr. Rossa, had taken a design tip from Dr. Album and Dr. Gero's playbooks. All together, they could form into a single more powerful organism, especially if the weaker components were dealt with, as was the case for the 20's series, and the 13 series.
Even if his series had been a disappointment, especially against that wretched King Piccolo, he would see new heights of strength, and then the world was to be his.
"Remember," the corpse of his former master remarked. "When the others intervene, only 17, and 18 matter. As soon as 22 and 24 are disabled, you can react to their destruction and take what is necessary from them. After doing so, you'll be able to upgrade to your next level. That should put you on part with the others. You'll be more useful."
"Of course," he answered smoothly.
Imaging all of that power… imaging being the strongest, even if only for a little while, brought him a great deal of pleasure.
They rarely had these private moments to speak of their plans, but this one was in action.
"Dr. Gero and I will be leaving," she then followed up with. "Very soon. Everything has been arranged. Android 16 will also be coming with us, hopefully. Stay with the others until the moment is right to betray them."
A nod came on his behalf once more. He hoped it was 22 that got knocked off first, if only because he hated her much more than 24. It wasn't to say he didn't despise the low ranked fool who was somehow above his status as a General, but 22 was such an arrogant creature as to think she didn't need to take direction from him.
"Can I kill the girl?" Twenty-Three asked, sounding almost elated at the idea. "The human that 17 has been dragging around like a lost dog on a leash?"
"I don't care if you kill the human," she responded, taking a drag on the cigarette. "I would strongly recommend waiting until after, you betray 17 however."
I'm not an idiot.
He glared at her at the accusation, but turned his cybernetic eyes to the Son house as holes started to be punched out of it, as random furnishings and fragments of clothing, wood, and assorted home products scattered out of one side of the house.
"Well, someone has a temper," he chuckled, his eyes darting to the two figures emerging from the woods.
How he hated 16. At least the others seemed to have an edge at some point. This lumbering buffoon just seemed to want to be peaceable with everyone. He was such a pathetic experiment. Why build a killing machine that couldn't even harm a fly? Even now he was trying to help that pitiful human. He'd have been better off to leave her in the woods to be torn apart by wolves. He wasn't even doing it to kiss up to 17, it was obvious he was doing it to treat the weakling with courtesy. Where did that design go so wrong?
"I don't see why you and the Doctor seemed to think that unit is so vital," he remarked. "He couldn't even let our little princess go off on her own."
A more than annoyed look returned to him however, cold as ice, even for an Android's standards. Realizing his folly, he fixed his baseball cap closer to his head as he tipped his head down, remaining against the side of the bus.
"Remember," she said dangerously. "He is more important than you, so watch your words."
"I understand," he was quick to respond. "I'll purge those thoughts from my database."
As if.
In truth, if his final stage was strong enough… he'd kill Son Goku and his friends, and then kill whatever fools Gero had left himself. He'd take the most pleasure of all killing that steel goliath. He wondered if the stupid thing would even fight back.
"Do you know where they'll go next, now that this is a wash?"
"Either the house of Master Roshi, the Turtle Island, or to West City, Capsule Corporation. Those are where Son Goku's remaining affiliates are."
An island, or a city? I wonder where they'd keep him?
Looking ahead, he saw the others as he smiled internally, just as 17, 18, and 22 emerged from the house.
I'll throw my money in on West City, because that's where Vegeta lives, isn't it?
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Android 24:
Trees were passing by again as they were on route to their next destination. Turns out Goku's house was a wash, go figure. He'd not seen anything other than an unprepared field. It was getting close to planting time, his own memories spoke to that, and he definitely knew that whoever ran that farm either had other concerns, or was real shit at their jobs. He was hoping it was the latter, but he suspected it was the former. Either way, no Son Goku, no signs of where he went, it meant they were all on the guessing game again.
And right now, they were making an educated guess, that he suspected was to the benefit of everyone.
"West City," he spoke up, following after 23's remark, and 20's.
They were trying to vote on where to go. So far, only 18 had said Turtle Island.
"West City," Twenty-One said next. "It makes the most sense from a series of logistical points, even if he's not there."
They had enough votes cast no matter what, though it was a farce anyway, if 17 thought they should go to the Island, that was where they were going.
"I've not been to West City before," the leader remarked. "Sure, it'll take less time to get there than that island anyway."
"It would take significant less time if we flew there," Twenty-Three openly protested.
"Hey, 23? Mind shutting up unless I tell you to talk?" the black-haired Android said from the Driver's seat. "I'm really in a good head space at the moment behind the wheel, and you're beginning to obstruct my mood."
Giving a half smirk, 24 sat back in his chairs before turning his attention to 16.
"So," he remarked. "You looking forward to the battle? Because there is going to be one this time."
"I look forward to the peace that will come afterwards," the bigger android remarked.
Strangely, that seemed to be the exact response he'd have expected. Most of his memories took place from a much shorter perspective than his own. This body wasn't the brain's original carapace, and the processor recognized that just due to the mismatch of its files. Still, it knew… someone like, 16, before. Dr. Rossa had selected the remnants of the corpses found near a body on the Red Ribbon's main base. That much he could remember from his own files that weren't locked down.
Well, what was important now was the mission at hand, and he was looking forward to the peace afterwards himself as well. Not to say he didn't want to fight; he'd been built to fight. But fighting against the warriors he'd been faced with last time? He'd take a pass if possible.
In the front seat, the girl had opted to sit closer to the front, which was more than pitiful. If they were in a formal structure, any CO would have given 17 shit for being pussy-whipped, or for taking in local fauna. No pets on the god damn base in the Red Ribbon Army.
Still, the girl seemed oddly nervous, as she should, after running off and slinking back with her tail between her legs. Some mid-tier performer from some band that he'd never heard of before. Yea, that's the kind of human he wanted onboard, watching his back. Still, she looked like she was wanting to ask something, rather than apologize.
"Probably not the best idea to run into the woods," Seventeen pointed out before she could run her mouth.
"Y-yea, 16 was really helpful though. He's really sweet," she offered, leading to 17 giving a short laugh.
"Hey, 16?" he asked in turn with his monotonous tone. "Did you hear that, you're sweet?"
"My skin is comprised of an organic compound, it doesn't offer a flavour, if consumed or tasted, that could be described as being sweet," his big counterpart responded.
"Not exactly Prince Charming either," he himself offered up, smirking as he did, but receiving no applause or accolades for what he thought was a good joke.
Everyone's a critic.
"When we get to West City, you can take off," Eighteen informed.
What a relief.
At least one other Android looked equally relieved, which was 22. Not having this meat-bag around was going to make life a lot easier. No more catering to 17's ego.
The girl looked over at 18, before looking at the others, seeing if this was some kind of bait, or some kind of prank. There was a mixture of relief of her own, but she seemed worried in equal measure.
"Th-thank you, I appreciate what you've all done for me," she responded. "I know I must have gotten in the way."
"I would opt that we terminate you, rather than let you depart," Android 20 spoke up behind him. "However, this would be a decision on behalf of our Captain, Android 17."
A cold stare came from the driver's seat as the Android didn't say a word, but he didn't need to. That look was clearly one expressing an opinion that 20 might get silenced, permanently, for speaking that way. The old man shut his mouth before 24 saw the girl looking scared, again, before looking back to 17.
"I… I actually had a question," she asked quietly, as if all of them couldn't hear.
"For us?"
"No, for you."
Immediately 18 was covering her mouth, trying to conceal how funny it was. Twenty-Four himself couldn't duck his head under his seat, but he couldn't help but thing how ridiculous it was that they were acting like a bunch of teenagers…
They are teenagers.
There was a tragedy there that even he recognized, looking at 18, and the reflection of 17. Most of the others here were full adults… their bodies, were that, de-aged or not, of adults. Whether that be himself, 22, 23, 20, or 21, and that didn't count the machine that was Android 16. The leadership of their cadre were housed in the bodies of children, and housed with biological components that offered up emotions, memories, and feelings of those who were just teenagers. It was one reason they chafed at their orders, but there was another layer to it.
He'd seen child-soldiers before, and he'd been a kid… He remembered these things. He remembered the stark differences in what he saw. These two should have never been host bodies for their processors or other components. Adults should have been chosen, but that was too late now. He felt bad for the people who must have died in those chassis, and he felt bad for those who now took their place.
"Kid," Twenty-Two cut in. "Don't beat around the bush, if you want to fu-"
The bus came to a halt as 17 glared again, this time shutting up, looking away in annoyance.
"Shut up, let her ask the question. As long of course, as that question is mostly about asking how great I am," he said, becoming less serious by the end of it.
Now that everyone's attention was drawn to her, the girl looked even more nervous, but she seemed determined, pressing on, she turned back to the bus-driver.
"What were you like before?" she asked. "Before what happened to you?"
There was a surprise on his face, that was certainly true. He was worried it'd be some naïve, romantic infatuation, but instead it was a question that seemed deeper than it had any right to be. Their dear leader was even caught off guard, looking like a deer in the headlights, or a new recruit who'd just seen someone get shot for the first time.
"An inappropriate question, which unit 17 will not be able to answer-" Gero started.
"One more word, Doctor, and you're going to be in the scrap heap before 23 over there," Eighteen warned, before looking back at her sibling.
When 17 looked back at all of them, he looked like a kid who didn't know what to do, even if he had the cold exterior of a machine.
"We'll talk about that later, when we stop for gas," he told her. "I don't want to do that here."
Not in front of us.
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Android 17:
The truck stopped again as the flickering lights from an old, beat-up gas station buzzed only a few feet away from them.
"Alright, we're making the stop. This place…" he squinted several times out the window. "Has living humans in it, no sign of the bug monster. Let's say… 18? 22? You two wanna sort out the gas."
"Are you and your girlfriend going to go to the tree house?" the purple haired android asked.
Well, that's annoying, and is probably going to continue to be annoying until we get to West City.
Lade seemed embarrassed by the remark, especially given that neither of them had expressed any romantic interest in one another. She'd asked a question, and he wasn't going to answer it in front of the others. Maybe if it was just 18… namely because she knew him. No longer could he even staple that 18 had known his prior self, or that her prior self had known his prior self. It was all bleeding together in the code, one identity bleeding into the other, but he did know that whoever that was before, was indeed dead and gone. He was Android 17, that much he could still hold onto.
Standing up, he stepped off the bus as he looked at the gas station attendant, who looked back at them with some annoyance, a balding old man with a cigar half sticking out of his mouth. Well, that was not only the embodiment of professionalism, it also definitely implied safety. Those were odd things for him to think at a time like this, but realistically, he was trying to divert his thoughts anyway…
My thoughts.
As much as they were programs, pathways run by an operating system across his core processor, they weren't just code being processed anymore… it was his thoughts, that's how he felt about them. He could look below the surface level, he could see the numbers being dialed in, but… somehow, he just let that go. It wasn't going to take long to get to West City, less than a full day at the rate they were driving.
Walking to the side of the building, standing in the dark, only half illuminated by the lights overhead, he could see himself in the past, younger, standing with a bunch of other kids trying to bum for cigarettes from a local gas station in East City. It was another echo. Really, the residue of who this body had been, had become apart of him as much as his processor now inhabited the body. Instinctively he reached for a pack of cigarettes that weren't there.
"Smoke?" Lade asked, reaching for her own pocket, finding an almost empty pack of cigarettes.
Unnecessary, I don't need stimulants like that.
"No, I'm good," he answered.
"Suit yourself, 21 cleared me out almost the other day, I didn't think that you guys would drink or smoke or anything," she admitted.
"We don't have it," he told her in response. "It's not a necessary action. Sometimes it might be a reflex, or the ghost in the machine."
Sticking the tobacco between her lips, she shielded the flame with one hand from her lighter, but it struggled to light. Pointing his own finger up, 17 saw the end of the cigarette lit, her eyes widened as the stick seemed to come alive on its own before looking at him, the carcinogenic item gently burning at the end of her mouth.
"You guys are the real deal," she said, taking a shot drag before delicately taking it out of her mouth and exhaling, just resting her back against the wall and looking at him. "So, what were you like?"
"I said we'd talk later. I didn't say we'd talk now."
"Look, I'm gonna level with you. You and your friends are scary as Hell, but I've seen more things in the last few days than I believed possible. I'll never sleep peacefully again for the rest of my life. I'm scared. I'm scared of everything, and I keep thinking I'm dreaming. But I know I'm not because in all of my dreams I see my friends being sucked into that monster."
Reaching out his hand, 17 gestured for a cigarette.
"Last one," she said, popping it out to him.
Placing it between his own lips, the end of it caught fire as he focused his energy on it before taking a long, familiar drag. When he exhaled the smoke, it felt like walking in through an old pair of runners. It was normal, a return to normalcy, almost. Hell, even just being a teenager, hanging out with someone outside of a stingy gas station, it felt like he was in a gang again.
When he looked past the girl he'd saved at the bus, he kind of was in a gang again, only thing time he was on top of it all. He and 18 had remade the life they had, hadn't they?
"So, why do you want to know?" he asked, seeing her take another short drag before looking at him, blowing smoke as she did.
"I think I've been piecing together who all of you are," she said honestly. "Or, I don't know. You just don't seem like super soldier robots, and it doesn't seem like you'd go and try to hunt down and kill this Goku."
"What can I say? I was programmed to do it, and I'm bored."
"But he saved the world," she reasoned.
"Look, I'm not invested emotionally in killing him, I'm doing it because it's my purpose. It's all our purposes. After that, I'm going to be free to do whatever I want, and the others are going to follow me. We're going to go around the whole world, and we'll be able to do whatever we want. I'll be able to take whatever I want, and do whatever I want. I won't want for anything. Not like I would have before."
He'd revealed, incidentally, that he had a poor background. Well, whatever, that wasn't the end of the world.
"Don't you think it might be better to not look at just what you want?" she asked. "I mean, 16 seems to have a pretty good plan for the future. I think he just wants to be at peace. When we talked for a few minutes, we spent some time just being in the trees. It was… it was really peaceful."
She seemed to choke up for a moment and he didn't understand fully why. Though he quickly realized her friends had been devoured in front of her, this was of course, traumatic.
He didn't want to burst her bubble, but took in more smoke before looking ahead, not wanting to make eye contact.
"So, you were in a traveling rock band? It seemed pretty successful."
"Our promoter got most of it, we were just starting out. Our contract sucks," she admitted. "Nafe didn't read the fine print like he promised, we had a bunch of obligatory tours we had to do, and basically gave up almost all our ticket sales for the first year. We basically got enough money for the bus, and for new gear. It was really exciting through. We got through four gigs before… it happened… I was going to buy a new car once we got past West City. There was this really great orange one I saw, and I knew I had the money to cover it once we got there. No debt, it was going to be great."
"Really? Which one?"
"A CC76X," she answered. "Capsule Corporation Automatic Xtreme Sport edition card. Apparently, it's terrible on gas though."
He gave a half smile before flicking his spent cigarette to the side.
"Hey, if you stick around after West City, I'll grab you one of those," he offered, half seriously.
"I don't want it anymore," she admitted.
That was an odd response. She'd just told him how she was going to tour and scrape together enough cash to buy one of them outright, why didn't she want it anymore?
"You humans are fickle," he noted.
"No, it's not that. After everything I… I just wouldn't mind finding somewhere quiet after all this," she said. "Sixteen said you shouldn't be somewhere you didn't know how to survive in. I… I think I wouldn't mind finding out how to live off the grid and just being on my own."
She'd gone full prepper?
"You can't be serious," Seventeen laughed. "You're going to go try to live off the grid? Where?"
"I don't know yet, it's a stupid idea, I don't know if I could even," she admitted, her stare going a thousand yards past him. "I just know I… I really can't do what I was doing. Every time I think of a crowd, I just think of all those people trying to run for their lives screaming. Every time I think of a city, I just feel like it's stalking me."
Here she was supposed to be asking him the questions, and was spilling her guts instead. But in truth, he didn't mind, she probably needed someone to talk to, and he knew the others weren't exactly hospitable. It'd been amusing, a game, playing the hero to the girl for a few days, but the others weren't into it, and it was getting old… but he felt bad, cutting her lose, if only because of everything they'd learned about that thing that was eating people.
"So, we're dropping you off in West City, and as soon as we get there, you'll think a monster is going to eat you? I'd offer to set you up with the prepper life, but I really don't have time for that," he remarked. "Still, you presented me with something fun to do after Goku's dead, before I get to travel the globe doing whatever I want."
"Hunting down the monster?" she asked.
"It's something no one else has done, so I want to do it. What's the worst that could happen? That thing has about the same chances of hurting me as you do."
There was a skeptical look, but it was reserved. He almost wished she was going to be around to see him slay the monster, just to say he was the first to do it. His smirk grew by the moment, calculating as ever before he noticed a familiar figure approaching from behind. It was 24, and he looked strict and unhappy.
"Sir, we can't find 20 or 21," Twenty-Four reported in. "No sign of them either. I think they bugged out and went AWOL."
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Android 20:
How human they had all become.
Not himself, but his creations were failing their most important test, which was becoming more than human. They were meant to combine the brutal efficiency of a machine mind, with the body of a human, creating a warrior who had no emotional weaknesses. Instead, despite their cold exterior, he could see them all becoming more human with every passing day. Petty rivalries, burgeoning friendships, and empathy were rife amongst even the most brutal killers aboard that pitiful bus. It had taken root before hand, sadly, but he could see it all so clearly now.
Even as he stepped off the bus, pretending to stretch his legs along with unit 21, he saw 23 staring at them, informed as to his departure, just as he intended. General Blue's corpse seemed to be the closest to his ideal, though he knew that he too was governed by his emotions, rather than the cold lifeless dead hand of a machine. The deactivated, dead brains, still had too much say over everything.
His disappointment was so much that he wasn't discouraged, but filled with bitterness over the failure of his vision. Even his own emotions had taken over at the Son house the day before…
Seeing the picture of Son Goku with his wife and son, happy, living a pleasant life after he'd murdered so many and taken his son away from him.
His revenge could, ironically, cloud his own revenge. That was why he'd made this the way he'd desired. Now even that mechanism had been denied to him. But there was still hope. Android's 13, 14, and 15 still persisted, and 23 would be an adequate asset to overturn his treacherous creations, and achieve his revenge, especially if 23 achieved his next evolutionary step by harvesting the necessary components from 22 and 24.
Even Piccolo would welt under and assault from 13, 14, 15, and 23.
And if all else failed…
He knew Cell was out there.
His ultimate creation walked the Earth, something he never dreamed he would see while he still lived. He would need to find him and find how the computer completed his evolution so quickly. It meant that once 17 and 18 were subdued, he could deliver their unconscious forms to him for Cell to reach his perfect evolutionary form.
My revenge will be delivered.
Turning to 21 as they moved around to the back of the bus in the midst of the darkness of the night that had descended, moving away from the light of the gas station, he spoke quietly.
"I will bring 16 with us while 17 is distracted," he pointed out. "Prepare to leave by foot at maximum speed through the forests, heading south."
"Affirmative."
It looked like his wife. It had his wife's memories, and ambitions, and her beauty, from when she was young, but it was just a tool. It was a husk, just as these machines were. When he looked at her, it was bitter-sweet, just as he knew now that his ultimate revenge, would be bitter-sweet.
Rounding the bus from the other side, he saw 16 speaking with 24, before the other giant moved towards the gas station.
"I'll be back," Twenty-Four remarked.
"Unit 16," Gero said, walking towards the giant.
"Hello, father," it repeated back to him, giving him the same soft look, his own son had given him so many times. It was uncomfortable, it was why he never wanted to activate this unit.
It was why he never wanted to see this unit damaged, or destroyed. To lose… to lose his son again, would be a cruel fate. Like 21, it was just a husk, an empty vessel… but it was so life-like. He was surrounded by the world of fantasy he had built for himself, and it felt real enough he could not bear to see it destroyed.
"You will accompany me back to Lab F5, on the southern continent," he instructed. "Authorization Gero B5X27-16."
The only fully mechanical unit would still have its codes interlocked in it, not being interfered with by biological components. He expected it to comply any moment, but 16 just continued to smile at him.
"I cannot do that," he answered. "I must find, and kill Son Goku."
Gero's eyes widened as he heard what the giant said. What was this? His primary task was overriding his override? The battles that could come, both fighting 13's cadre, and Son Goku's friends, especially Piccolo, put the unit in grave danger. Panic overtook him as he repeated himself.
"Sixteen," his voice stern, as if he was talking to a disobedient child. "I am ordering you to accompany Android 21 and myself, you will comply."
A huge hand reached out, laying on his shoulder a moment later. He blinked as he looked at it, before looking back at… back at his son.
"I am sorry, but I cannot comply," the giant said, looking back towards the gas station before looking down at him, trying to measure how much time they had.
There was a care, a consideration there, that he'd never programmed into the machine. It was trying to protect him, despite him obviously disobeying 17's orders. It felt like the soul of the boy he lost the day the Red Ribbon Army died, was standing there with him. It felt surreal, it felt unreal. The artificial things he surrounded himself with, had come alive, as if inhabited by ghosts, even the one without a true body of its own.
When it turned back to stare at him again, it gave a sad, soft smile.
"I understand what you are trying to do, but I cannot deny my purpose. The others will return shortly, you need to leave," he said. "I will forget where you went."
It was hard to speak. His neck's artificial muscles contracted but he found he couldn't vocalize for a moment. The truth was the only thing he found now, and it was the only thing he could say.
"If you go with them," he managed. "You may be destroyed, 16. I do not wish to see that happen to you."
Moving its giant hand from his shoulder, it just stood in front of him, almost like the day his son had gone off to join the rank and file members of the Red Ribbon Army. The day he'd warned him that there were other positions he could take that were safer. He could have been in logistics, or he could have gone back to study to join the research and development team, which he and his mother had been apart of.
It felt like he said the same thing then, as he did now.
"This is something I must do," he answered. "It is all I can do. Please, father, go now while you can."
On his other side, he felt 21 grasp his hand, pulling at his fingers. Stepping back several times while still looking at… what he knew was his true ultimate creation, Dr. Gero felt himself running, but felt as though something that was apart of him was now left behind.
For the first time in a very long time, he felt… loss.
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Author's Notes:
This was a bigger than expected Chapter. The great wave before we reach Chapter 100.
This is the last Android centric chapter. It sets the stage for what is to come. I reread this entirely twice in order to try my best at proofing, but I'm notoriously awful at it, so forgive me in advance, lol.
It was really hard to write some of these scenes. The machines become more human. Android's 17, 18, 22, 23 (in a bad way) and 24 becoming more and more human has been an interesting adventure. I feel bad for Gero even, despite his evil plot. The part where he was looking at Goku's happy family, to me, was him seeing what he himself had at one point, and how Goku had taken that away from him. He's normally cold and calculating, but the rage he felt finally spilled over when he destroyed the Son home. Even 17 and 18, who don't respect him, becoming human enough to realize what was happening.
Gero is a monster, but he's a human being. I'm not even sure he's a pure psychopath because he really, clearly cared about his son. I think most of the canon villains in Dragon Ball, with the notable exceptions of creatures like King Piccolo, Cell, Majiin Buu and Frieza, are just damaged people. Vegeta, Raditz, and Nappa were monsters, but they were made that way by their environment. Gero was made into what he was by the tragedies of his life as well. I'm sure Zarbon and Dodoria, despite being monsters, were products of a system designed to turn them into that, same with most of the Ginyu Force.
For the purposes of my own story, you guys have seen things unfold for characters like Vegeta, Raditz and Turles. They too, are products of their environments. There is a lot of guilt being carried around by all of them, even if they don't want to recognize it.
Turles feels the guilt of knowing he killed his mother, even if he doesn't touch on it often. One reason why he was finally able to reconnect with Bardock was their moment where they had their heart to heart. I think Turles understands that his father is the way he is, because of what "he" did (even if that's not his 'fault'). I think there is a lot of baggage there for him, even just on the fact he was 'born' into being what he is now.
Despite being Goku's opposite, I think there is a window in his soul where Turles has the potential to be the same kind of hero "Kakarot" turned into. That window at first opened due to his perceived self-interest. But now? Turles worked with Goku to stop Slug, and knowingly risked his life to distract Android 18. The monster with a heart of gold, lmao. He's got some big growth moments coming, but nothing compared to…
Raditz.
Raditz carries with him the guilt of having failed to save Violet, which is a major turning point for his character. I remember in Chapter 20 (which was FOREVER ago, lmao) the scenes where he saw what led to him being him. The scene where he was at peace with the monster that Violet was, is oddly serene when I reread it.
I loved writing the contrast of him seeing Bardock going from this playful, almost Goku-esque personality where he just wanted to play and hangout to with his kid, into this brute who just didn't want to deal with anything from his past because it was too painful for him. Raditz himself had that moment when he tried to kill Bulma.
The reason why the Android Saga is about Raditz most of all, is of course as you guys guessed, Android 22's involvement. The coming chapters are going to be a roller-coaster (hopefully, I'm hoping that I have the talent to write this to the depth that I want to, lol), but it all plays out in my head very well, so we can all hope! Lol. Raditz being an underdog most of this story, is going to bear fruit for you when we get to his biggest moments, I promise you. I've got some scenes in mind that send chills up my spine, let's just hope I don't fuck them up!
What lengths does someone go to, to fix their past? When is it okay to let go? What does that mean?
So, here we are on the cusp of Chapter 100. That's crazy to me. Thank you to everyone who has supported this story over the years, and thank you to everyone who pleaded for me to reopen it when I left it on hiatus.
Chapter 100, I'm trying to make very special, so you guys may need to wait more than a week for it. I've made good progress, it's about 25 pages long so far and 7000+ words, but it's coming. I actually have restarted it twice because it wasn't up to standards. It's going to have focuses for tons of characters in it, and I really do want it to be a celebration of many of the elements of the story, while driving the story forward.
After Raditz's "big" chapter, concluding the more complicated elements of this story for some time, Chapter 80 of The Long Road will be fully fleshed out, and released.
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Reviewers:
Blades of Fury: Answered by PM. Lol
Warga: Answered by PM.
Trusen: Answered by PM.
DarkFalconZ: Answered by PM
Guest1: Cell's gonna have a lot of interesting twists coming. I'm really surprised no one's noticed what I've been doing with him, lol.
Thomas-The-TMC: Answered by PM (I think)
Perfect Carnage: Answered by PM.
Mouse From Hell: I can't spoil any of that, lol. There is gonna be a lot of stuff happening over the next 10 chapters or so. Hopefully you'll get the answers you seek :P
Silas: The cast is already too crowded. I know I've made some enemies saying they won't be getting much, but they really won't. Tien has some decent moments planned, and Krillin has an arc later on, but that's all that's planned.
Transformers G1's Prime: Answered by PM.
Guest2: Rematch? Bah, never. That'd be crazy. How could Raditz stand a chance against Cell in any state? Get outta here.
Red Power: I try to keep the characters consistent, lol.
TheItchyCocoon: Answered by PM
Luke: I think King Piccolo is craftier than everyone realizes… ;)
Super Mystic Gohan: Answered by PM.
Guest3: Ultimate Goku? Not sure about that reference.
FabDuwangIsFab: Answered by PM.
Guest4: I actually based the Cell I've been writing entirely off of how I wrote him in The Perfect Monster, a body-horror story I wrote as a thought experiment. So, I have written him before, and in this form! (well, kind of) Turles and Raditz knew one another for a short while before Turles ditched the PTO, but they were never meant to meet one another again. King Piccolo's arc is coming, but only rumblings of it for now. :)
RedHunter87: Answered by PM.
Uraqt393: It's hopefully only going up from here! Lol
Guest5: I really should have, the problems of having a giant cast is sometimes things get lost in the shuffle. :\
Instinct: I'm indifferent to the new forms in DBS. I neither hate them, or overtly like them. They're okay. I'm actively hostile to Super Saiyan 4, I think it's ugly and doesn't fit the overall design of Dragon Ball up until that point. But that's just my opinion, lol. And battles are coming! Chapter 101.
AngryShadow04: Answered by PM.
Herraidous: Answered by PM.
Anon: Yep, Piccolo doesn't understand the significance of that yet, but people are going to put the pieces together. I just wouldn't bank on them doing it within a chapter or two, lol. Everyone seems to really love Imperfect Cell in this. I think people are going to enjoy his many roles in this story, lol.