Chapter 6: A Mother's Love
Bulma Briefs intently scanned the skies above Capsule Corp. for any sign of her son. Then she saw Trunks flying low over the city, darting amongst the wrecked buildings and assorted debris. She was alarmed to see that he was carrying a passenger. Even from this distance, she could tell he was injured. "Here we go again," she said grimly.
…….
Trunks dropped down low into the main street of the city. His home was at the end of the road, a cluster of tan domes interspersed with palm trees. He set down in front of the largest of them as his mother came running out of the door to greet them.
"Trunks! I'm so glad you're back. I was soo worried!" She turned to Robbie. "And who might you be?"
"My name is Robbie, Robbie Ba…" He didn't finish, but collapsed to the ground.
Before he lost consciousness, he felt two strong arms pick him up and carry him into the house.
…….
Robbie awoke to find himself in a bedroom in what he guessed to be one of the upper floors of Capsule Corp. He recognized this room immediately. It was where Trunks woke up after his first battle with the Androids at Bridgetown. It was a disturbing parallel. Robbie pulled back the covers to find that his wounds had been cleaned, dressed, and stitched where needed. He suspected that Bulma was the one who had patched him up. She's too good at this, he thought grimly. He was contemplating his wounds when he heard voices outside the door. He recognized them as Bulma and Trunks.
"Why do you have to keep risking your life like this?" Bulma shouted.
"Why do you keep trying to stop me, I'm only trying to save people from those mechanical bastards!"
"I don't have a problem with you trying to help people, but I know that you want to fight the Androids, and I won't let you get yourself killed! Are you really that eager to join Gohan?"
"No, mom, but I won't sit by and let our world be destroyed! One day I won't have any choice, everyone will be dead, and I will have to fight them."
"Trunks, you don't have to keep doing this!"
"Yes I do." Robbie heard a door slam, then footsteps in the hall, coming toward him. The door opened, and a very distressed Bulma appeared. Her hair was falling out of its usually tight ponytail, and there were red streaks running down her face from her eyes. Before stepping into the room, she wiped her eyes and fixed her hair, and a smile came back to her lips as she walked to Robbie's bedside. She was wearing a green sweatshirt and a pair of light-blue capris. Robbie was struck by how beautiful she was. The truth was, he had always had a crush on her, but seeing her in real life took his breath away.
"How are you feeling?" She asked.
"Much better, thanks to you."
"It's no problem. I see people like you all the time." She averted her eyes and shut them tightly to keep the tears from coming back. Robbie didn't know what to do, so he sat there until she looked back at him. "I'm sorry you had to hear all that, Trunks can be so stubborn sometimes, and I worry about him. He's all that I have left to remind me of the past…Goku, Yamcha…Vegeta, especially Vegeta. What am I talking about; you don't know any of these people. You're probably hungry, right?"
"A little."
"Well then, why don't you come downstairs in a few minutes for dinner? We're having one of my specialties!" The word 'specialties' made Robbie's stomach turn slightly, and he was tempted to ask for the location of the bathroom. "We're having fried rice and dumplings!" She was clearly pleased with herself.
"Do you need to wash up first?" She asked.
"Uhh…Yeah." Robbie replied.
"It's three doors down on the right. I'll leave now so you can change." She then handed him a pile of clothes to wear, since his were completely destroyed in their flight from the Androids. Robbie looked down and saw that he was wearing a hospital gown…and nothing else except his boxers. Which, of course, meant that Bulma had to have seen him almost completely naked? He blushed slightly, trying to decide whether to be embarrassed or happy. Then Bulma left, and he changed into the grey sweatpants and white t-shirt with the word 'Capsule' emblazoned across the front. It was obvious that they once belonged to Trunks. They were large, but they didn't fall off of him, so he left the room and headed downstairs.
The stairs opened onto a large kitchen where Bulma and Trunks were busily preparing dinner. They had obviously recovered from their earlier argument.
"Do you guys need any help?" He asked.
"Actually, could you get the ketchup from the fridge? For the rice." Bulma said, matter-of-factly.
"Sure." Robbie grabbed the ketchup from the huge black refrigerator, and then sat down at the table. Trunks and Bulma followed, bringing with them steaming pots and plates of delicious food. The amount at first seemed obscene to Robbie, but then he remembered that Trunks was half-Saiya-jin. In light of this, he now wondered if it would be enough. They both sat down, Bulma to his left, Trunks to his right.
The family and Robbie ate in silence, not because of lack of conversation, but because they were too caught up in the process of eating. Robbie and Trunks were both bent over their plates, inhaling their food. Bulma slathered everything with ketchup, and then began to eat with the same frenzied pace. The phrase "out-of –character" came to Robbie's mind, right before he jammed three dumplings down his throat. He didn't remember ever being this hungry. Of course, he had also never had a day like this before.
Needless to say, their grand feast was a short affair. Ten minutes later, every trace of Bulma's culinary handiwork was gone. She didn't seem too disappointed, however, the fact being that she had devoured twice as much as Robbie himself. Ketchup dotted her chin, and flecks of rice stood out from her green hair. She sighed with contentment, and burped demurely. Trunks sat back in his own chair, sighing in exactly the same way, and released a volcanic belch of his own. Robbie simply sat there, watching the two of them, while thanking God that his mother wasn't there. If that had been the case, bodies would have hit the floor.
However, the bulk of Robbie's attention was focused on how he was going to break the truth about him to Bulma and Trunks. He just hoped they wouldn't be too shocked. Robbie began to speak.
"Bulma, thanks for the meal. It was delicious. And thanks for taking me in, it's been kind of a rough day."
"Oh, it's no problem, honey. I see people like you all the time. Sometimes this place is packed so full, it's like a hotel!" She said, almost cheerfully.
"And Trunks, thank you especially. If it hadn't been for you, I would've been road pizza."
"No problem, kid."
"Now, I've got something that both of you should hear. It's something about me. Trunks, remember I said that I lived with my aunt, and that my parents were dead?"
"Yeah. Are you saying that it wasn't the truth?"
"No, I 'm sorry, it wasn't. I didn't tell you the real truth because it was way too complicated to be explained at the time. The fact is, I'm not from around here."
"Where are you from then? North City? East City?"
"No, Trunks, you don't understand. I'm…not…"
"Where are you from?"
"I'm not from this world!"
A shocked silence followed Robbie's statement. Trunks' eyes went wide and Bulma stared at him. She was the one to break the silence.
"Not from this world? Are you an alien?"
"No, I'm not an alien. I'm human like you, but I come from Earth in another universe. A different Earth, but something bad is about to happen there, and I need Trunks' help."
Bulma and Trunks still stared at him, curiously shocked.
"Listen, I know I can't prove any of this, but…" Robbie was cut off by the appearance of a bright dot of white light. It opened into a one-foot diameter portal, and a small black box flew from it and landed on the table in front of him. It hung in the air, for a second more, then disappeared. All eyes were on Robbie.
With great trepidation, Robbie picked up the black box, which was the size of an eyeglass case and made of an extremely light metal, probably titanium. There was a small slider on the front edge, and Robbie pushed it to the left. The box sprang open, revealing a tan felt interior. On the left was a large red button, in the middle was a keypad, and on the right, a green button the same size as the red button. On the other piece of the case was a small LCD display, which was currently flashing green, the same green as the mysterious unlabeled button. What is this thing? Wait a minute, this came through a portal! It must be from my Dad. Maybe I'm supposed to push the green button? Robbie pressed it, and the flashing green on the display disappeared, replaced by the stern face of Dr. Malcolm Barnes. Robbie opened his mouth to speak, thinking this was a direct line to his father, but stopped when Dr. Barnes started speaking, unaware of his son's presence, he simply listened.
"This message is for Robert Barnes. Robbie, this message is only a recording, but it is very important that you hear my words. There is no way to directly contact you, and I will explain why in a moment. First of all, a word on the device in front of you. It has many features, but you only need to know its primary function: getting you home. This is an uplink to the gate, and when you press the red button, you will be pulled back to our world. This can be used to transport multiple people, as long as they are in physical contact with you. Use this to get the Z-Fighters back here. Second, I have some vital news for you. I have calibrated the machine to be more accurate, thus making the arrival of this black box possible. However, I probably will not be joining you, as I have other matters to attend to here.
Now, you are still wondering why we can't communicate. The answer is simple: time dilation. In short, it is the difference in time flow between one universe and another: the DBZ universe, and our own. In this case, the ratio is 365:1, meaning that for every day that passes here, one year will pass there. We can't communicate because no system would be able to handle the massive amount of data being sent through, since your time flows so much faster, and it would be impossible to decipher anyway. It is for this reason that only recordings can be used.
This brings me to our next problem. The machine has suffered a slight overload due to sending you through. It was a simple problem to fix, of course, but it has left the Gate in no condition to operate for a full Earth day. This, unfortunately, means that you will be stranded in that world for a full year. I'm sorry, son. However, you must keep the Z-Fighters close at hand for the whole year, until the machine is ready for a second transport. Also, see what else you can find that may help us, and bring them back also. Machines, technologies, even magical items; whatever can defeat the invader. Remember this: all of Earth is counting on you. You must not fail. Remember also that I have full faith in you and your ability to complete the task at hand, and that I and your mother love you very much. Good luck.
Robbie clicked the box shut and slumped back in his chair. His father still didn't know about the mix-up, and now he was stuck here for a full year. What was he going to do now?
"Robbie," Bulma began, "what is going on in your world that made you come here? Was that man on the recording your father?" Her eyes were locked with his, and Robbie saw understanding and caring in them. Her hand reached out to touch his.
"Yeah, that was my dad. He's a scientist in my world. Well, a physicist actually. He's the one who built the machine that got me here."
"Robbie, who is that invader your father mentioned?" Trunks asked.
"That's the reason I'm here. My dad knows a lot of scientists in all kinds of fields. One of them is in this group called S.E.T.I. or The Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence. They have all these radio telescopes pointed at the sky, and they're basically looking for signals from alien races or planets.
Well, a couple of days ago, S.E.T.I picked up something. It was an alien radio signal coming from somewhere, but it was in ordinary military code and the message was in English. The source of the message came from somewhere past Pluto. When decoded, they found out that it was a declaration of war on my planet. It said it was coming to destroy everything."
"What is this thing?" Trunks asked.
"My dad told me that S.E.T.I scanned it with their radio telescopes, and found out that it was made with some weird materials and metals no one had ever heard of. They also realized that it looked like a man, only it was seven feet tall."
"Wait a minute. A man made of metal? An android?!" Trunks eyes went blank as all the connotations of that word passed through his mind. Pain. Destruction. Loss. Those things were going to happen to Robbie's world.
"Yes."
"Did your father send you here to save you from it?" Bulma asked.
"No. He sent me here so I could save Earth."
"He sent you alone?"
"Yes, but he didn't know I'd get sent here. We both though the machine would drop me off in the past, so I could get Goku, Vegeta, and the others to come to my world and fight the invader. He tried to send me to a place that wasn't dangerous, but he made a mistake. I think we used the wrong tape." Robbie cursed himself for not keeping his extensive collection in better order. He had a habit of watching the entire Trunks Saga, then 'History of Trunks', which was about this current time. He probably put 'History of Trunks' in the 'Z Warriors Prepare' box, and of course his father trusted him to get the right tape, so it was his own fault that he was in his current predicament.
"Wrong tape?"
"Yeah…um, nevermind. I'll explain it to you later." That was another explanation in itself. Hey, Bulma, did you know that your world is the subject of an anime series? Robbie desperately wanted to avoid that revelation, but it was integral to why he was here. Besides, he didn't want to hold back from Bulma. He was quite taken with her, even though she probably had a decade on him.
"These are dangerous times. Everyone you mentioned is dead. If only you could go back." Bulma said.
"I can't! I have to save Earth, no matter what! Besides, there's still one fighter left. Trunks is the strongest guy on this planet. He could help me. He could fight the android!"
Both Bulma's and Trunks' eyes widened at this statement. Bulma's maternal instinct kicked in again, and she bristled at the thought of her only child fighting anything. She didn't directly attack Robbie, though. She understood why he would ask. Trunks stood up and made to speak.
"Robbie, if what you say is true, then I would like nothing more than to help you save your planet. But I can't leave my world right now. I can't go anywhere else until my own androids are destroyed."
"You won't help?"
"Sorry, kid." With that Trunks turned, and walked out of the room. Robbie could only sit there. Trunks wasn't going to leave with him.
"I'm sorry, Robbie. Trunks is adamant about defeating them. He can't think of anything else until he's reached his goal. He's definitely his father's son."
"It's alright, I'm going to be stuck here for a year. That should be plenty of time." But inside, Robbie was doubtful. After the fight at Bridgetown, Trunks would go to the past. His battles would take a couple of years to finish. By that time, everyone on Earth would be dead, and it wouldn't take the invader long to wreck everything that Robbie cared about.
Bulma began to clean up the dishes. Robbie got up and headed outside to find Trunks.