Three women were hanging out in Capsule Corp's basement drinking tea anxiously, until they were distracted by two people that appeared at the top of the stairs.
"My goodness!" blue-haired Launch exclaimed, standing up.
"Hi," Trunks greeted as they descended.
"I'd say long time, no see but we literally just saw you guys," Ranch said, hugging her mother when they ran up to them.
"What's going on, though?" asked Bulma, inspecting her son and then her. "You two look different."
"It's kind of a long story," Trunks said.
"But it can all be summarized by simply saying that Vegeta is an ass-hat," Ranch stated, earning her a knowing smile from them.
Mugs of tea were poured for them as the two began regaling them with their story. They told them just about everything from when they first arrived in the past all the way to Cell's defeat and the aftermath. Bulma was both surprised and pleased to hear that Vegeta had such a reaction to Trunks getting killed.
"Let's back up for a moment," Chi-Chi said suspiciously once they finished. "So you're telling me that the two of you spent an entire year alone together in this time chamber."
"Yeah," Trunks affirmed.
"What's the big deal?" asked Ranch. "We've been going off alone to train for years."
"Maybe, but never for a whole year," she said.
Bulma said, "I suppose what she's getting at is whether or not you two did anything that wasn't training."
"Nope," Ranch immediately answered, taking a casual sip of her tea.
"Yup, we just trained," Trunks said truthfully.
The three women looked at each other and sighed in exasperation.
"I don't know what so surprising about that," Ranch went on, feeling herself grow a bit hot. "It wasn't exactly a romantic setting, and besides the two of us were way too tired after a day of training to do anything else."
"Yeah, as excruciating as it was we decided to hold off," Trunk added casually, causing them to stare.
"So…is this a roundabout way of telling us that you two finally got together together?" asked Bulma.
"I suppose it is," Trunks confirmed.
"About time," all three said in unison before giggling.
Then, deciding not to mince words, Launch brightly asked, "So when can I expect grandchildren?" Trunks and Ranch performed a simultaneous spit take with their tea, causing the three older women to laugh even more.
They were then spared from having to answer by the radio. "Attenion. This is an emergency broadcast! The cyborgs are attacking Parsley City! We urge all people to stay away!"
"That's our cue," Trunks said, growing serious as he stood.
"We shouldn't be too long," Ranch said, as they took their leave.
Once outside they took to the sky in the direction of Parsley City, fully intending to end things with those cyborgs once and for all.
But as they went, Trunks couldn't help but ask Ranch, "Your mom was joking, right?"
"I refuse to believe she wasn't," Ranch immediately answered.
The two cyborgs were wreaking their usual havoc, destroying anyone and anything that they pleased. Suddenly an old man that was pinned beneath a car shot 17 with a gun, which did nothing except make his presence known. Just as 17 was about to take the old man out the two half-Saiyans arrived on the scene.
"Them again?" 18 asked in annoyance. "Let's just kill them once and for all."
Ranch raised her arms to stretch them out as she strode forward and turned Super Saiyan. "Alright, the bitch is mine."
Glowering, 18 aimed her palm at Ranch, saying, "Poor choice of last words." She shot a beam at her, but Ranch casually smacked it away. 18 was so stunned by that she didn't have any time to react when Ranch charged forward punched her, sending her through a couple of buildings and into a pile of rubble.
"That all you got?" Ranch said as she approached the cyborg.
"Now you've made me mad!" 18 raged, getting back up. She powered up and launched herself at Ranch, aiming a punch right at her face. But Ranch just blocked, grabbed 18 by the hair, and swung her once around before slamming her into the ground. She then kicked the cyborg hard to send her into the ruins of another building that collapsed on top of her.
"18!" cried 17. He was about to rush in to help his sister, but suddenly Trunks in his Super Saiyan form appeared above him and hammered him into the ground.
As 17 tried to get up, Trunks stomped down on his back to keep the cyborg where he was. "Be patient. Our turn is coming soon."
The rubble exploded and 18 burst out, but before she could do anything Ranch shot a thin but powerful beam out of her finger at her. Unable to do anything, the beam cut across 18's face, leaving a bleeding gash across her left cheek. It was only now that 18 realized how much danger she was in.
"We're not even," Ranch told her angrily, approaching 18, who was now paralyzed with fear. "Not by a longshot." She backhanded 18, sending her tumbling away. As she went back towards her, Ranch suddenly asked, "What was his name?"
"Wha…what?" 18 stammered, as she gingerly got back up.
Anger coursing through her, Ranch went on, "My mentor. My cousin. The one you and that damned brother of yours maimed and murdered." All the years of rage, grief, and frustration were bursting forth, demanding to be let out in one explosive event. "What. Was. His. Name?"
Her eyes were wide and showed nothing but terror, as 18 was unable to find her voice.
"His name was Gohan, YA BLONDE BIMBO BITCH!" Ranch raised both her palms right in 18's face. "DOUBLE SUNDAY!" The energy beam she produced instantly engulfed 18, and when it dissipated absolutely nothing was left of her except a few scattered ashes.
Trunks then looked down at 17, and said, "Now it's our turn." He picked 17 up by his shirt and threw him. When 17 landed and stood up, his instincts kicked in and he tried to run away. But Trunks disappeared and reappeared right in front of 17, and kicked him.
"No…" 17 managed to blurt out after he got up again.
"Fight me," demanded Trunks, going up to him.
"…wait…"
"Fight me," he said again. Trunks gave 17 an uppercut in the gut, and he before he could collapse, Trunks grabbed him by the collar again and lifted him above his head. "What's wrong? Now that you're outmatched you're too scared to fight? How many people have tried to take you on despite knowing how it'd end? Tell me!" Trunks slammed him into the ground, and punted him away. "Now you can run!"
"…What?"
"Well, clock's ticking," Ranch said, observing off to the side.
17 turned and began to run away in a panicked stumble. As he ran, Trunks cried, "What you're feeling now is how all those you slaughtered felt!" 17 continued to run, while Trunks shot up into the air, produced a ball of energy, and threw it at the retreating cyborg. The attack hit 17, causing a large explosion that left nothing behind.
When the wind caused by the blast died down, Trunks reunited with Ranch on the ground. Without saying a word they embraced and began to kiss on the spot.
They made out for a little while, and then Trunks said, "And now we wait."
Ranch nodded in agreement. "Yup. But until then…" She went back to kissing him.
THREE YEARS LATER
"Eat," Ranch said tersely. "C'mon, eat." She tried to insert the spoon full of peas into Gohan's mouth, but the toddler turned his head away and kept his lips shut.
"Just give it up," Trunks said in exasperation. He then took out a ball of candy from his pocket that he unwrapped. "Here you go," he told his son, who was quick to open his mouth.
But right then Ranch snuck the peas in, causing Gohan to fidget grumpily before he chewed and swallowed begrudgingly. The parents looked at each other and chuckled, wondering how long such a tactic was going to work on him.
"Maybe you two shouldn't deceive him like that," Chi-Chi advised.
"Hey, he's a growing boy that needs his veggies," Ranch said, proudly ruffling her son's black hair.
"Growing is right," Bulma said, eyeing her rather massive two-year-old grandchild. "I swear, if this keeps up he'll end up as big as Raditz."
"Just be glad he doesn't have a tail, otherwise he'd cause even more trouble than he already does," Launch said, experience behind her words.
All of a sudden the conversation was interrupted by an alarm overheard.
Easily feeling his presence, Trunks stood up and said, "Ranch, you should sta—"
"And miss this? I don't frickin think so!" she shot back, joining him. Before they ran outside, Ranch turned around and sternly said to her son, "I better see a clean plate when I get back, ya hear!"
Together they dashed through the open compound to a group of buildings until they came across the alley where it was. They were unsurprised to find the giant, green bug man inspecting the time machine that they had left out in the open. Seeing them approach, Cell said, "So you've come."
"Well once the proximity alarms we set up detected something as big and gross as you approaching how could we resist?" Ranch said mockingly. "You want something?"
"This," said Cell, placing his hand on the hatch. "This is the time machine I've heard rumors about, isn't it? Make it so that I can travel back in time and I just might not make you a part of me."
"And how exactly are we supposed to make a hollow tin can like that work?" asked Trunks with a snarky grin.
Cell's eyes widened. "What are you saying?"
"Oh, did you think we'd be stupid enough to leave an actual time machine out in the open?" she said, hand on her hip.
"That right there's just a decoy," Trunks said. "But even if it wasn't, your plan to go back in time to absorb the cyborgs won't work."
Cell glared at them. "I see, so you've already been to the past."
"Yup, and the perfect form of yours isn't so special," Ranch told him. "All I have to do is get serious and even I can go toe-to-toe with it."
"And as we are now we're more than enough to take you out," Trunks said.
"You're bluffing!" Cell shouted. "The spy robots learned everything about you two! You can't even defeat 17 and 18, and they're weaker than I am."
"Then where are they?" asked Trunks.
Shocked, Cell said, "You were the ones that—?"
Ranch closed the gap and kicked Cell into the air. Trunks dashed upwards and used a blast to launch Cell far away from the rebuilding city, and the two followed.
When they landed in a desolate area, Cell admitted, "You certainly have gotten stronger."
Ranch proclaimed, "Yup, and now we're going to kick your ass." She went Super Saiyan.
Trunks powered up too, adding, "Make sure to enjoy hell once you get there."
"Don't underestimate me!"
Trunks and Ranch charged in on Cell, and from that point on Cell couldn't get to do a thing as he expertly tag teamed by them. Trunks punched him, but before he had a chance to counter Ranch kneed him. When Ranch sent him flying with a roundhouse kick, Cell wasn't able to recover before Trunks hammered him into the ground. He was taking a massive amount of damage with each hit he took, but Cell wasn't too worried because he could regenerate. All he had to do was wait until the right time to stick one of them with his tail.
When Trunks and Ranch were relatively far away, Cell slid to a halt on all fours and whipped his tail out at Trunks. But Trunks simply caught the tail, and Ranch came in to deliver a downward chop that completely cut off his tail.
As Cell shrieked in agony and disbelief, Ranch closed in on him, grabbed him by the neck, and tossed him into the sky. When he stopped in midair, he shouted down at them, "You left me no other option!" He put his hands together, and started, "Ka…me...ha…me…" Trunks then threw the end of the tail that he still held on to, and managed to catch Cell off guard when he hit him in the face.
Instinctively, Cell stopped charging his attack and caught his tail before it fell back down, and it was too late once he realized his mistake. His two opponents had their arms in the air, and once their attack was charged, they let it loose. Cell was instantly overwhelmed, as the energy blast disintegrated him.
Once they powered down, Ranch casually asked Trunks, "So how else should we get Gohan to eat his vegetables?"
"No idea," Trunks replied, as they began to fly back home. "Let's just figure it out before we end up having another."
Ranch made a face. "One's more than enough."