It took all of Bulla's energy to catch up to her father. At one point she could've sworn he slowed down to give her a menacing glare, only then to speed up again. She was undeterred. There was no way Vegeta could win against these monsters one-on-one. The best she could hope for was that they could escape and retreat before one or both of them died, but all she could picture was her father calling her a spineless coward.
Clouds up ahead started to darken, and Vegeta flew below them to survey the landscape. The temperature dropped and Bulla's heart sank. Like a prophetic sign of the horrors they were about to meet, the sky rumbled and roared, the black clouds rolling through the sky like ominous demons. A lump formed in her throat when she realized these were almost the exact same conditions Gohan was in during his final battle. She sped up again.
Copper Town was already on fire by the time they flew overhead. It had only been a day since the violence started there, but the androids were making quick work of the city. A large explosion on the city's east side alerted Vegeta and Bulla to the androids' location. Before he shot down to scope out their position, he stopped and let Bulla catch up to him.
"I don't need your help," he sneered.
"I didn't say you did," she shot back. "I'm here to observe my dearest father get his ass handed to him by a couple of machines."
"Tch!" he turned his head from her in disgust. "You have a mouth just like your mother."
"Enough with the father-daughter pep talk. I'm not here to talk you out of fighting them, because I know you won't listen to me. But have you considered that these androids are extremely powerful? That jumping in head first is a stupid strategy?"
A crooked smile formed over his face and he met Bulla's gaze. It was like looking into his own eyes.
"If you're too scared why don't you go back home and play with your dolls."
He tore through the sky down to the burning buildings below. Without even thinking, Bulla was in hot pursuit. This was a crazy idea—the plan being no plan at all—but she quickly learned that arguing with him only incited him more. The best way to handle this was to let it play out and try her best to save him when he ultimately succumbed to their power.
It wasn't hard to find the androids. Another explosion rolled through a nearby building, alerting Vegeta and Bulla to their exact location. If he didn't know it any better, Vegeta thought maybe they were asking to be found.
He landed on the ground nearby, and while the androids looked over at him casually, they didn't stop what they were doing. They let off another blast into what looked like a former office building. Bodies were scattered around. One woman was holding a child who was no older than the Bulla of this time. The older Bulla winced.
"Vegeta, hello," 17 smiled, turning his head just slightly enough so Vegeta could see. A clap of thunder let out up above, sending vibrations through Bulla's body. No doubt it would begin to rain soon.
"So you've been expecting me, I see?" This delighted Vegeta. But his joy soon turned to a searing anger when he saw 18 let out a little laugh.
"No," she said coolly. "We've been expecting Goku."
"Well, you should be expecting me!" He screamed, raising his ki and sending out a burst of light. Another roar of thunder bellowed above, perfectly synchronized as if it was planned. Vegeta's hair turned to gold and his eyes flashed green, and while he seemed very pleased with himself on this transformation, the androids looked positively bored. "Have you ever seen a Super Saiyan before?"
17 ran his fingers through his hair and placed a hand on his hip. Vegeta searched his face to see his reaction, and his anger grew as he felt the android's indifference.
"Sure have," he sighed. "In fact, I first saw it when that beautiful girl behind you did it three years ago."
The words hung in the air. What did he mean? How had he seen this technique three years ago?
"What are you talking about?" Vegeta sneered.
"What he means is, we've been watching you and your friends for a while now," 18 replied. "Well—at least our creator has."
"That's right," 17 chirped. "Better yet, we were made in your likeness. We know your powers inside and out."
The realization was suffocating. Bulla had tried to decipher the androids' abilities for years, pouring over theories and the few documents she had about Gero. There was always one thing she could never figure out: The androids seemingly knew the histories of the Z Fighters, and, more concerning, they knew their techniques. Gohan was the one who alerted Bulla to this. Every signature move the Z Fighters had the androids knew it too.
"How is that possible?" Bulla asked, unable to curb the quiver of concern in her voice.
"Since you'll all be dead soon, there's really no harm in telling you," 17 smirked. "Gero has been collecting your DNA—all of yours—from the time the Red Ribbon Army disbanded to the time this cunning girl beat Frieza and King Cold."
Vegeta gritted his teeth.
"So, yes, Vegeta, I know you. I know your power and your weaknesses and all of the things that make you, you."
Before 17 had a chance to go into further explanation, Vegeta was charging at him in the air. A violent scream emerged from his lips as he closed the divide between them. His fist flew at 17's head. The android stepped back slightly, almost in slow motion, causing Vegeta to lurch forward and miss him completely.
He spun around with a roundhouse kick, but failed to connect again. 17 grabbed Vegeta's leg and swung him around like a ragdoll. He launched him into the ruins of what was once a school, soaring through the building and taking down several half walls before coming to a stop. Debris fell around his head and he lifted himself up on one arm.
Bulla powered up and tried to rush 17 (who looked all but ready to take her down too) but Vegeta's voice boomed over the empty street.
"Don't you dare, you brat!" he screeched, coming to his feet and giving his neck a crack. "This fight is all mine."
There was a split second where Bulla considered defying her father's orders, but she wasn't sure what would come of it. One possibility would be they would team up and overtake the androids, even if to mount a brief counterassault. However it seemed more likely that Vegeta would turn on her, and instead of a two-on-one it would be a two-on-one-on-one.
She rested her arms at her side, which caused 18 to chuckle.
"Do you always do everything your boyfriend tells you?"
"Only when he asks so nicely," Bulla snipped back.
Vegeta charged at 17 again, and this time 17 responded with vigor. He met every punch of Vegeta's, answered every kick with one of his own. Every time Vegeta lunged, 17 moved out of the way with a disturbing ease. It drove Vegeta absolutely mad.
He split off and took to the air, shooting off a flurry of ki blasts which had no effect on 17.
"Your friend Goku tried the same trick," he laughed. "Nice of you to give it a go, though."
Goku's name sent Vegeta over the edge. He released even more power and flew down directly at 17, a blast in hand. Before it released, 17 moved so quickly even Vegeta couldn't see him. In the air behind the Saiyan was the android, who locked Vegeta's arms behind his head. The blast launched away from any target and Vegeta growled.
17 threw him again to the ground, but before he hit, Vegeta managed to swing back upward. He moved furiously fast—though Bulla knew 17 was faster—and managed to throw an elbow into 17's stomach. The android lurched back and Vegeta saw his entrance—an uppercut to the face, followed by a kick that shot him back to the earth.
Below, 18 watched with curiosity. This was more of the fight she was expecting from Goku.
Vegeta wasted no time in forming more ki blasts and sending them where 17 landed. One after the other pummeled into the ground, blowing up smoke and dust all around. Now it was 18 who was incensed. She leapt up into the air but not fast enough. She missed a punch and Vegeta responded with one of his own, sending her soaring backward.
He didn't see 17 rise from the rubble, and because he couldn't sense him, he didn't realize the android was right behind him. With a swift kick to the head, Vegeta was down on the ground again. He quickly recovered to his feet, but both the androids were now facing him.
It had started to rain and it was coming down hard. While they were no more than 20 feet apart, the androids were distorted through the cascading sheets flowing down. Vegeta caught his breath.
"That all you got?" Vegeta taunted them.
"Oh, you want more?" 18 raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Well then, let us give you more."
They flew at him and launched an assault of kicks and punches. Vegeta held his own, but was having trouble managing them both at the same time. A startling thought crossed his mind: Maybe Bulla could help him, but his pride overtook it. While he considered it, 17 grabbed him in a vice grip, shoving him in position for his sister to lay a series of kicks to his abdomen. He doubled down in pain.
18 floated in the air, a mischievous grin on her face, and formed a ki blast that was large and menacing. Gracefully it flew through the air, touching down where Vegeta was attempting to rise again.
When Bulla heard his scream, she decided she had enough. Just as she was powering up, though, she heard the androids let out their own painful yelps. They fell to the ground, grabbing their heads, their cries sounding like animals sent to slaughter. What was happening? Why were they doing this? Was this a technique her father had learned during his training?
But when she looked for him, he was lying in a puddle of growing water, grabbing at his core.
Down the road just past the androids, Bulla spotted a black umbrella bobbing up and down. The androids let out another scream as it drew closer. Underneath it was a short and almost frail looking man. He had a menacing smile.
"Tsk, tsk," he said as he approached the battleground. "I thought my first warning would've been enough, but apparently it was not."
Bulla's eyes shifted to the androids. They had managed to somewhat recover from the shock, but their eyes now bulged with fear. On their faces a story started to appear: No longer were the pair of cocky and confident fighters, they were reduced to mere children at the hands of this stranger.
It had to be Gero.
"Ah, the beautiful mystery fighter," Gero said to Bulla. "I never did catch your name."
"You're Gero, aren't you?" She steadied her voice, but it was dripping with resentment.
"I am." He palmed at a device in his hand and watched as Bulla's eyes followed it. "A friend of Vegeta's, are you?"
Emotionless, Bulla nodded her head. "Something like that."
He grinned mischievously, his mustache curling around his yellowed teeth.
"So I assume you know Goku, then?" Bulla nodded again in silence.
The androids started to get restless again. 17 managed to get into a seated position, his arms shaking underneath him.
"You bastard!" he yelled at Gero. "You...you coward!"
"I am not the coward, you fool!" He whipped around to see his creations floundering in the rain. It amused him and the androids could tell. "You failed to kill Goku like I asked. I thought after our last meeting, you would've changed your tune."
"I thought after our last meeting you would be dead!" 18 shouted. Gero's smile grew even wider and he let out a sickening whoop of laughter.
"Well, I'm not." With his hand still clutching the remote, he gestured to his body. "And, honestly, it won't be long for you two either."
"Plan to kill us like this? Even though Goku is still alive?" 18 shot back.
"Oh no, not at all," he said with an eerie sense of calm. "I have an even greater creation in store for you, one that is going to kill you and all of these pathetic fighters."
"Liar!" 17 shouted, prompting Gero to send another surge of electricity through them. Bulla stood horrified. While they were her enemies, Gero's methods seemed unnecessarily cruel.
"You think I'm lying?" Gero seethed. "Well, you will just wait and see won't you?"
Bulla formed an energy blast in her hand and aimed it at Gero. "You're done terrorizing people, Gero!"
He took a moment to survey her. Rain was pouring down her face and her serious expression was a bit disarming, but he did not fear her. Examining her, he saw she was strong, but sensed a naivete about her, a gentleness he had not known. And so young too—it was too bad he had to kill her.
"I'm the only one who knows how to destroy my monster," he quipped. "If you kill me, you kill the solution."
He glanced over at Vegeta, who was now slowly getting up.
"You and your friend might want to get out of here and warn the others," Gero laughed. "I'm no longer afraid of any of you—including those two"
He turned his back to Bulla and started making his way down the road before shocking the androids once again. Before he disappeared into the downpour, he turned around and looked at Bulla, his eyes lit up with a fire dancing inside.
"You know," he said, a gentle purr in his voice. "You look so much like Dr. Brief's girl. What was her name again?"
A clap of thunder let out above. Bulla was unsure if it was real or if it was the sound of her beating heart echoing against her chest and through the city streets.
"Shame," Gero shouted before walking off. "You're so pretty, too."
His words made Bulla feel sick, but she didn't have time to dwell. She rushed over to her father who gave her a scowl.
"We're not ending this fight—not like this," he screeched.
"Yes we are," she said, tugging at his arm. "We're not going to win now, and if Gero is right, we have bigger problems to worry about."
Vegeta swatted away her hand, but she continued to replace it. He tried shoving her, and when that didn't work, he grabbed her square on the shoulders.
"Girl, you need to listen to me!"
"No!" She shouted, a little bit stronger than she intended to. "You listen to me! You can't win this fight alone. You will die, and for what? So sit down, shut up and enjoy the ride back home."
"You bi—"
But before he had the chance to lay into her again, Bulla had knocked him out cold with the chop of her hand. Part of her worried that her father would never forgive her for this betrayal, but it would not stop her from extricating him from this battle. Her father was stubborn like her, but he didn't have the foresight of knowledge when it came to the androids. If they were this strong, what would his next creation be able to do? And would it form an alliance with the androids?
That didn't seem probable. Clearly there was a rift between Gero and his creations now, and she wondered if there was a way to exploit it. But if they died on the battlefield, there would be no way of strategizing or warning the others. There would be no path to victory.
Putting her father on her back, Bulla shot into the air heading directly into the storm.
