Chapter 48: Beware of Robot

Blue had been following the three kids for some time and now was merely observing. So far he was quite impressed.

'Yo ho ho,' said the Robot as it advanced. 'yo ho ho.'

Blue watched from behind a corner, impressed by it's size and endurance to have lasted all these years in this place. 'What a magnificent little toy…' he murmured.

'Arrr matey!' said the Robot, opening fire with its gun arm.

The three kids dodged away, running for cover as its attack created explosions across the floor. Yet the spiky haired boy leaped forward and dealt a punch to the robots face. Yet to no effect!

'Oh my!' cried Briefs, hiding from gun fire behind what appeared to be a fuel tanker.

The bald child dealt a kick to the Robots chin and the spikey haired child unleashed a barrage of punches against the Robot. Blue was impressed despite himself.

'Both of these kids are experts.' he mused.

The Robot lashed out with it's sword, but the two boys leaped away again. Then landing together they unleashed a simultaneous charge against the Robot. As they came the Robot unleashed a barrage of bullets at them, and they cried out a battlecry.

Leaping over the shots the spikey haired boy landed a punch on the robots face, while the bald one bounced off a wall and slammed it in the back, sending it reeling towards the water. As the boys pressed their advantage, the robot swung round and chopped at them with it's sword, breaking their momentum.

Yet the spikey haired one head butted the Robot on the chin, and the bald one broke it's sword. Leaping into the air, the bald one unleashed a roundhouse kick, only for the Robot to activate rocket skates and surge backwards to avoid the strike.

It then unleashed a massive barrage of bullets which the bald one began to dodge with cries of dismay. The spikey haired one slammed the gun arm aside and the bald one launched an assault in the opening, only to be slammed backwards by the Robots fist. He landed hard and the spikey haired one rushed to his side.

'Get up Krillen,' he said 'we're not done here.'

There was silence between the enemies as they faced each other down. The spikey haired boy and the one called Krillin were panting as they took a stance. 'He's not giving up, is he Kakarot?' asked Krillen.

'I wouldn't have it any other way.' said Kakarot.

Bulma marveled as the durability and effectiveness of the machine. It wasn't every day that you saw a Robot capable of taking on Kakarot. And given how old it was whoever made it must have been a super genius on her own level.

'He must have been built to defend this port.' she said 'Unbelievable, what a Robot.'

There was a silence which stretched out into eternity.

'Shiver me timbers.' said Robot, before unleashing another barrage of bullets.

Kakarot and Krillin scattered and took evasive moves as the trail of shots followed them wherever they went. Eventually they took cover behind a series of boxes and a corner. The barrage continued, blasting holes in the boxes before abruptly hitting an oil barrel which exploded into a cloud of black smoke.

Kakarot and Krillin were sent reeling to either side, once more in the open. Then out of the smoke came Robot and Kakarot race, racing up a set of stairs. Robot fired at him while hovering over the water so it could continue to get a clear shot. Great holes were blasted in the walls as a result. So focused was Robot on shooting Kakarot, that it didn't see the wall approaching. Kakarot halted in time, but Robot did not and crashed head first into the wall, cracking it visibly.

'He did it!' cried Bulma.

'Yay!' cried Krillen 'Wait to go Kakarot you did it, alright!'

'That was awesome kid!' said Bulma.

'Step back you fools!' said Kakarot 'He's not dead!'

Robot broke himself free from the wall and slid back to stare up as Kakarot, red eyes filled with malice. Backetaling it opened fire again, forcing Kakarot to hit the floor. The spikey haired moneky boy kept on running and Robot followed him.

Bulma then looked to the sub. The sub with guns designed for ship to ship combat on it.

'Hey, follow me!' she said 'I have an idea!'

Krillin and Bulma raced up the gangway to one of the guns.

Taking hold of it. Turning it gradually towards Robot they sighted down range. 'A little more…' said Bulma as she got a clear shot at Robot. 'That's it! Yeah!' She pulled the trigger.

The canon fired a yellow orb which shot through to air to slam into Robot. There was a gigantic explosion which shook the cavern as Robot, or what was left of him, was consumed in black smoke.

'Yeah!' said Bulma 'We did it!'

'Look, Kakarot!' said Krillen.

Bulma stopped cheering as she saw Kakarot lying amid the rubble coughing. 'Oh my gosh, I'm sorry Kakarot.'

The smoke cleared and Robot stood before them, completely unscathed. It rushed at them, it's mouth opening in silent fury.

'Get ready to fire another shot Krillen!' said Bulma.

'Gotcha!' said Krillen in terror.

As they adjusted the guns position, they could see Kakarot racing along the walkway once again. Yet just as they were about to fire, Robot surged away well out of the guns firing path. In a blur it began to circle around them, before landing on the deck.

Turning the gun, Krillen and Bulma fired it. Yet Robot moved aside and the shot only crashed into the wall, shaking the room visibly. Krillin and Bulma fled, and soon found bullets being sprayed after them.

Then Kakarot came down, swinging his power pole. Robot caught the power pole and hurled him across the room. Robot began to advance on him. Then Bulma saw a fuel tanker near her, one with the keys still in it's ignition. Getting inside it she gunned the engine and drove it straight towards Robot.

'Oh no you don't!' said Bulma.

Then she realized she was still inside the truck. Opening the door she leaped out moments before it slammed into Robot, slamming him into the submarine before exploding into a massive swath of flame. There was dead silence.

'Is he dead?' asked Krillen.

There was another explosion beneath the water as a plume of water was thrown into the air.

'I guess so.' said Bulma. 'Go team.'

Blue was impressed despite himself. 'They are good. For kids I'd say their darn good.'

Looking up to the ceiling, however, he became worried. Cracks had formed throughout the walls, small ones, but occasional tremors could be felt. He had the feeling that this place had become very unstable in that little showdown.

'Briefs nearly killed us all.' he reflected.

It was over, or so it appeared to Kakarot. Even so he could not shake an uneasy feeling as he looked at the still uneasy water. Something was very wrong.

'Superb technology,' said Bulma. 'and to think he was built centuries ago. By pirates.'

'Assuming the pirates are dead.' noted Kakarot. 'This place is a little too well maintained for my liking. Besides, I feel like I'm being watched.'

'What?' asked Krillen 'Really?'

'Why did you have to say that?' asked Bulma. 'Nevermind, let's get out of here.'

She and Krillen made their way away. 'Come on Kakarot,' said Krillen 'let's go.'

'I'm coming.' said Kakarot, taking a deep breath.

Then something caught him around the leg and he was pulled off the concrete and into the water. Below him he could see Robot. He had grabbed Kakarot with his tail and was lying beneath the waves. Kakarot hauled on the tail, trying to free himself as he was pulled deeper.

Then it was all he could do to keep his mouth shut when he was shocked by electricity. The pain surged through his body, and he groaned in agony. His mouth opened and water began to fill his mouth.

Reaching down he grabbed at the tail again. With a finaly haul of strength, Kakarot tore part of the tail off and swam for the surface. Emerging from the water he surged through the air and landed on the catwalk from before, gasping for breath.

'Are you alright?!' asked Krillen.

'Alright… me who… what…' muttered Kakarot.

Then a section of the catwalk gave way and he landed in a heap at the floor.

'Kakarot!' cried Bulma.

No, it was fine. He only needed a moment to get his bearings and then-

A rock landed on his tail. Okay, okay, so he just needed someone to get the rocks off him.

'Kakarot above you, look out!' called Bulma.

A whole lot of rubble fell on his head.

Kakarot was out of commission. Bulma was just about to tell Krillen to free him when Robot surged out of the water and began firing at them with it's machinegun. In a panic, she and Krillen fled into one of the buildings to escape it. Rushing through the corridors they went through the first door they found and fell to the ground, kicking up dust.

Bulma kicked the door closed and there was silence.

'Nasty…' said Bulma.

'Bulma do you see what I see?' asked Krillen suddenly.

Bulma looked around. Skeletal corpses were lying around them all over the place. One had been hoisted into the air by a hook through it's shoulder. Another looked to have been shot through the head, based on the hole in it's skull.

They screamed and them Robot burst through the wall. Together they fled up a set of stairs, littered with corpses.

'I don't believe this!' said Bulma as they went up flight after flight. 'We're really going to die!'

'Nice update Bulma!' snapped Krillen 'Thanks a lot!'

Rushing up into a series of halls filled with doors they rushed into one that was ajar and shut it behind them. 'In here.' said Bulma 'We've got a bit of time.'

Then she looked up. On the wall were a series of monitors showing various parts of the pirates base. 'Hey check it out!' she said.

'I know,' said Krillen 'we were just there.'

'Yeah,' said Bulma 'amazing!' Looking around she saw a great many instruments around them. 'This must be the command center for the whole port!'

'Really?' asked Krillen 'Were they swashbucklers or scientists?'

Then Bulma saw something on the monitors. A blonde man clad in the uniform of the Red Ribbon Army. 'Krillen,' she said 'we're not alone. Who is that guy?'

'Probably one of the Red Ribbon guys who were following us.' said Krillen 'Maybe the Robot will go after him.'

'Yeah,' said Bulma, looking back to the instruments. 'I wish my dad were here to see this. These old computers would be like priceless antiques to him. He'd flip. Maybe I can turn off old metal breath from here.'

At once she began typing into the computer system as quickly as she could. She began working faster than she'd ever known even she could work. And she had been known as the fastest among all her peers. Her hands flew over the keyboard in a blur, and she thanked the extra speed she'd gotten from training with Yamcha.

'How much time are we talking about here, Bulma?' asked Krillen.

'I don't know,' admitted Bulma 'the system is so old.'

'Well, my dad always says,' said Bulma 'where there's a will, there's a way.'

Krillen rushed back to check the door, then shut it. 'Hurry Bulma!' he cried 'We're next!'

'Darn this thing!' roared Bulma as she typed frantically. 'The file structure makes no sense!' The pirates would have had to have a way to power it down for maintenance sometime! Where was it!

The door burst open behind them and Robot rushed in.

'Bulma!' said Krillen 'Times up!'

'Arg.' said Robot, before raising his gun.

Scanning through the files Bulma could not find a maintenance shutdown. Then she saw something else.

She activated it.

Robot began to glow visibly. Bulma saw a window.

'Bulma, what did you do?' asked Krillen.

'RUN!' cried Bulma.

Kakarot was pissed. The rock on his tail had shifted a bit, and so now he could move. Hauling himself upwards, he flung off the rocks in wrath. He stalked out, looking for his enemy. He knew what he'd do now, he'd get on top of one of those buildings, descend like a lightning bolt and smash the things to bits.

Just like Nam would have done.

Now if only he could find Robot. Or the others.

Then he was thrown back as a blinding light shook him. His ears rang as the entire top half of the building behind him was consumed in flame. Down came Krillin, who landed on one knee. Down came Bulma, who Kakarot caught in his arms and set down.

'Bulma what did you do?' asked Krillen.

'I uh…' Bulma paused. 'I saw a self destruct option on the computer console. I activated it.'

'But…' Kakarot began 'I was going to kill it!'

'Look can we get out of here.' said Krillen. 'I want to leave before that Red Ribbon Army creep finds us.'

'Fine, you guys go on ahead.' said Kakarot.

'Seriously?' asked Bulma.

'I'll fight the Red Ribbon Army guy and you can find the dragonball.' said Kakarot.

'No way!' said Bulma 'What if we find a crossroads and get separated! We're going on mister!'

Kakarot remained silent for a moment. 'Alright fine, we'll go.'

They rushed into the nearby hall, however as they raced along it there was a tremor and the sound of breaking. Krillin looked up, worried. 'This whole place could cave in. We'd better hurry up.'

'According to the Radar, we're practically on top of the dragonball.' said Bulma.

They began to run together, as fast as they could. 'It should be right up ahead,' said Bulma 'just a little bit further.'

Then they came to a crossroads. One path led one way, the other path led the other way.

'Great,' said Krillin 'now what? Which way do we go?'

'It's gotta be this way guys,' said Bulma, motioning to the left. 'come on!'

'What are you basing that assumption off of?' asked Kakarot 'Other than absolutely nothing.'

'Look we have to go one way, and we don't have time for an exhaustive search.' said Bulma 'So let's split up. Kakarot, you go left. Me and Krillin will go right. We'll meet up later.'

'But what if the Red Ribbon guy corners one of us?' asked Krillen.

'Oh come on, their about as credible a threat as paper machete.' said Kakarot 'I think you can handle it.'

'You know, he actually makes a good point.' said Bulma 'Silver and White were nothing compared to us. We'll meet up later. See ya!' And they raced off in opposite directions.

Blue observed their flight and laughed to himself. 'Little naive twerps. They'll find I'm far more formidable than Silver or White could ever hope to be.'

Bulma and Krillin raced along the tunnel until they suddenly came to a dead end with only a well of water. 'It's a dead end.' said Krillin 'What do we do?'

'It might be within the water.' said Bulma 'I hate to say it, but it's the only way.'

They shed their outer clothing and heavy training weights, and Bulma had to admit she enjoyed no longer having them on her. She'd long since forgotten about them, and now she could move freely. Krillin seemed to be similarly happy, although she noted him checking her out.

Still, it was undeniable that she was a very beautiful woman.

Together they plunged down into the water and swam along a passage. It was amazing how quickly they founf themselves moving. All this training had really paid off.

'What?!' said Blue 'I have to get wet? I knew I should have packed my bikini trunks.' He shed his outer jacket so that he was wearing only his pants and boots, giving any lucky onlookers a look at the perfection of his frame. 'Mmm, what a bod.'

Then he dove in after them.

Kakarot continued to run, then paused suddenly to glance back. He sighed. 'Well it looks like that Red Ribbon guy who was following us is going after Krillin and Bulma.' He paused. 'Should I go back?'

Then he looked down the hall. 'Nah, the dragonball might be down this way. And I'm sure Krillin can handle it. He hasn't even taken off his weights yet.'

Authors Note:

Alright, this chapter came out much quicker than the last. Let's see if I can keep this up. On a separate note, Robot is a really badass villain despite having no lines of substance. When I first saw him I figured he'd be killed off pretty quick, but he proves almost completely impervious to everything the heroes throw at him and really gives the heroes a run for their money. This was back when taking an entire episode to kill someone was a really long fight. In the original episode, of course, it was Goku who killed Robot by leaping from the top of the building with one of Nam's Aerial attacks.

I guess I figured I'd give Bulma another notable victory, since in the show it seemed like a very clever way to deactivate him. Basically she is faster than in canon, which means she accessed the data faster and found a way to destroy Robot.

Oh and the program I use to correct my grammar is on the fritz so I'll have to wait awhile before I can fix any mistakes I might have made in this chapter.