Ranch let out a big yawn, and looked up as she heard as the bastard unleash a barrage that undoubtedly leveled part of the city. As tried as she was, Ranch continued to watch over as Bulma, who had been up all night, kept on working. It's been forever since she's seen her kids and her husband, but she had to protect Bulma while Trunks was out there helping whenever the bastard went around murdering people.
The door opened, causing Ranch to tense up until she saw it was just Trunks. Feeling slightly foolish, because if it had been the bastard then he'd have just blown up the building, she went to Trunks as he came down the steps. They hugged and shared a deep kiss.
"How's it going?" he asked when they separated, looking at the vial of blue liquid.
"We still don't have that much," Bulma answered. "Just enough for a one-way trip." When he looked forlorn, she said, "Hey, don't worry, it'll work out."
"It'll be a hell of a gamble, though," Ranch interjected.
Bulma pressed some buttons on the screen, and the vial of liquid was unlatched from the machine it was attached to. "We need to get this to Capsule Corp."
"I'll go," Trunks told them. "You two look beat, go get some rest."
"No, Ranch should go too," said Bulma. "What if he attacks?"
"I agree," said Ranch. "And on the way we need you to get you a ride to mom's place, Bulma. You can rest, and the kids would love to see you."
Bulma nodded. "I'd love that too." She took the vial and sealed it. "Now don't forget, this is our last hope. Don't let this chance get away."
All of a sudden an explosion rocked the building, and quickly Ranch took cover while Trunks shielded his mother. When the smoke and dust cleared, Bulma pushed the vial into Trunks' hands. "Go!" There was another explosion. Trunks looked up to see a figure shrouded in smoke that raised his arm and produced a ball of energy that he meant to unleash.
"WHY'RE YOU ON YOUR ASS? MOVE!"Ranch bellowed, carrying Bulma in her arms.
The figure fired off his attack, completely engulfing the building they were in. Trunks held the vial, and Ranch held Bulma as they sprinted through an alley, keeping their power low since it seemed as if he could now sense their energy.
"Thanks, I thought I was done for back there," Bulma said with relief.
"Don't mention it," Ranch quickly said as they maneuvered through the city. They kept moving, hoping that at no point they'd be caught in the middle of another attack.
They kept on running until they reached a building that they entered from behind. When they knocked on one of the doors in the hallway it opened up for them.
"'Sup," they were greeted.
"Yajirobi?" Trunks asked confused, as the short, fat, bearded man let them in the hideout.
"I literally haven't seen you since the day Goku died," Bulma told him, amazed to see him. "What got you down from the tower?"
"Korin and I left," Yajirobi explained solemnly. "But 18 ended up getting Korin, and he gave me his last bean before he died."
"Sorry to hear that. Are the tower and lookout still there?"
Yajirobi shrugged. "Maybe."
"Really? Damn, in that case it'd have been nice to know about the time chamber back in those days. So what're you doing here?" asked Ranch.
"They told me to either work the door or they'll give my share of the food to a bunch of kids, or some junk," he complained, going back to his corner so that he could continue to snack. "Anyway, I heard you guys were working on a secret project or something."
Bulma replied, "I was, but Black attacked the lab a little while ago. Thankfully I just got done."
"So what now?" asked Yajirobi.
"We make do with what we got, otherwise we'll have just wasted a bunch of time for nothing," Trunks told him. "And I wouldn't get too comfortable if I were you."
"Yeah, we need you to take Bulma to someone who can actually help so they can safely escort her to my mom's place," Ranch said.
"But that means going outside!" he protested. "Can't one of you take her?"
"No, the two of us have to get to Capsule Corp as soon as possible."
"Ugh, alright," Yajirobi begrudgingly said.
After resting up a little, the four left the safe house and took to the streets.
"You two be careful," Bulma said, hugging Trunks and then Ranch.
"Say hi to everyone for us," said Trunks.
"This'll all be over soon," Ranch assured her.
"I know it will," Bulma said confidently.
"Come on, let's go already," Yajirobi said, leading the way.
Bulma and Yajirobi split off to go meet with the rest of the resistance, while Ranch and Trunks made their way towards Capsule Corp. They kept to the ground, keeping their energy suppressed, eventually managing to get within sight of their destination, which was practically untouched. Making a break for it, Trunks and Ranch sprinted for Capsule Corp, knowing that the time machine was inside waiting for them.
But as they ran they stopped when a vortex appeared in the sky. The two stopped in their tracks and gazed upwards anxiously as the clouds burst downward before scattering and revealing Goku Black.
"Trunks, go!" Ranch immediately shouted. Without even waiting for his response, Ranch went Super Saiyan and launched herself at the man in her uncle's form. Black grinned menacingly as he blocked her punch, and they began to trade blows.
"Ranch!" Trunks cried. But as much as he wanted to go in and help her, he knew that it would be pointless. Gripping the vial of fuel tightly, Trunks turned around and began to run towards Capsule Corp again.
When Ranch and Black collided, she only managed to get one solid hit in before Black countered. After they exchanged some blows, Ranch was quickly overpowered, and Black punched her hard, sending her into a nearby building.
As Trunks closed in on Capsule Corp, the windows above him all of a sudden shattered, and it was immediately followed by barrage of energy blasts. The attack may have been weak enough that Black didn't even bother dodging, but it did manage to distract him from Ranch. Trunks stopped in his tracks to look up and briefly wonder who was firing those off, when Gohan and Bulla flew out of the windows as they hurried to the fight to back their mother up.
"YOU TWO ARE BEYOND GROUNDED! GET BACK HERE NOW!" Trunks bellowed with insurmountable rage. He put the vial down before going Super Saiyan and rushing forward to make sure his kids didn't get themselves killed.
As they closed in on Black, Gohan angrily shouted, "Leave my mom alone!"
He and Bulla recklessly charged in, causing Black to smirk and aim his open palm at them. Before he could fire off a blast, though, Trunks had already taken his sword out as he rushed in, and threw it at Black. Seeing the sword come in, Black paused his attack to swat it away. "Move it!" Trunks shouted at the kids, thrusting his arms forward. "Burning Attack!" He let loose a beam of energy that Bulla and Gohan had to get out of the way of.
When the beam hit Black in a large explosion, Trunks grabbed the two kids and sped off as fast as he could to where Ranch had landed. They got to her just as she was getting up and shaking her head, but then her eyes practically popped out of her head as she saw who was with them. "What the hell?"
Trunks began, "Later. Right now we have to—"
"Look out!" Bulla shouted. Black, completely unharmed from Trunks' attack, had produced a ball of energy and hurled it at them. She and Gohan immediately reacted by sending energy beams at the ball, and it exploded on impact, but it was close enough that the four of them were caught in the blast.
Gohan and Bulla were both on the ground unconscious, as Trunks and Ranch, both knocked back to their base form, ignored their aching bodies by getting up and scooping up the kids. The blast, though, had the benefit of causing Black to lose sight of them, so the two snuck as quickly as they could back towards Capsule Corp, grabbing the fuel and Trunks' sword as they went. Once inside the building they went to the basement and found the time machine prepped and ready to go.
Neither bothered discussing what needed to come next. Both knew what had to be done. So as Trunks inserted the vial into the time machine, Ranch gingerly placed the kids in the cockpit. Then while Trunks floated up and leaned inside to work the buttons and switches to activate it, Ranch lightly patted her son's cheek. "Gohan…. Gohan."
Stirring, Gohan weakly mumbled, "M—Mom?"
"Gohan, you and your sister are going to the past," she told him seriously. "When you meet everyone tell them everything that happened. Tell them we need help."
"Huh…but…" He couldn't finish his thought as he passed out again.
Before Trunks hit the button to close the hatch, Trunks said to her, "You should go with them."
Ranch glared at him. "It's better if the both of us cover their escape, and you know it." Expecting that answer, Trunks didn't retort, he just activated the time machine and closed the hatch. He and Ranch backed off as the machine roared to life, before it all of a sudden shot straight up through the building.
Outside, as Black was looking around for the Saiyans, he turned in surprise as the time machine rocketed up into the air, closely followed by his prey as they again transformed into Super Saiyans again.
"What's this, some sort of new weapon?" he asked snidely. When they didn't reply, Black charged up both his hands, and unleashed a barrage their way. Ranch and Trunks ferociously blocked and deflected every ball that had a chance at hitting the time machine, refusing to let any more harm befall their children. The time machine rose higher into the air, defended manically by the pair of parents, until it suddenly disappeared.
Black stopped his attacks and looked at them suspiciously. "And just what did that accomplish?"
"Just you wait," responded Trunks.
"You'll be done for soon enough!" Ranch told him.
"You say that but you two don't have much left to give," Black said, grinning at how exhausted they clearly were. "Time to finish this!"
With a yell, Black charged at them with the intention of killing them once and for all, when they both suddenly placed their palms in front of their faces. "SOLAR FLARE!" Black stopped dead in midair as not only did the blast of bright light completely blind him, but his prey's energy vanished. By the time he got his sight back, Trunks and Ranch were gone.
In the past, on Beerus' planet, Goku and Vegeta were both flying through the air as they both tried to hit Whis with everything they had. As usual it was seemingly a futile effort as Whis just nonchalantly dodged everything, but they still gave it their all. On the ground Raditz was mediating while those two had their turn, because if all three of them tried at the same time there was no doubt they'd immediately clash. Not too far from Raditz, Beerus didn't have a care in the world as he ate the food they brought along.
Whis then swooped out of the way. "Let's switch out," he told them, causing Raditz to look up from his mediation.
"But we just started!" Vegeta complained loudly. "I already have to tag out?"
"You aren't," Whis informed him. "Goku, go rest."
"Ah man, really?" he asked, disappointed.
"Wait, so you mean…?" Vegeta asked, frustrated.
"Yes. Raditz, come on up, please."
Though he did as was told, Raditz still couldn't help but skeptically ask, "You actually expect us to work together?"
"Just train us individually," said Vegeta. "I don't want Raditz getting in my way."
Whis just sighed. "After all this time haven't you noticed? Whenever all three of you are around, you and Raditz refuse to work together, so Goku is getting twice the amount of training. Are you really fine with that? Not only that, Vegeta, but despite being the first to ask me for training you are here a lot less compared to Raditz and Goku."
"That's because I keep getting sidelined in favor of him, so I've been honing my own power!" boasted Vegeta.
"Yes, yes," Whis said dryly. "So, are you two going to cooperate or not?"
"As long as it's for our training then I'll try," Raditz said tersely.
Vegeta spat out, "If I must."
Goku begrudgingly got out of the way, as Vegeta and Raditz took up a fighting stance before they both rushed at Whis. It quickly became apparent that their ability to work together was nonexistent. Both were so focused on trying to get a hit on Whis that they didn't bother to even consider what the other was doing. At least when Goku partnered with either of them they were a lot more tactical, especially when it was Raditz, but the current pairing had none of that. Too often Raditz and Vegeta ended up running into each other, completely throwing them off their game.
It got so bad that Whis took the time to produce some sweets that he snacked on while the Saiyans continued their haphazard attempts at hitting him. Even Goku looked up at them with a dubious expression on his face.
At one point Raditz threw a punch, as Vegeta kicked at Whis. When the punch missed as usual, the kick landed right on top of Raditz's outstretched arm.
"Damn!" Raditz shouted, shaking his arm as they separated. "Would you watch it?"
"How about instead you get out of my way?" Vegeta retorted angrily.
They continued to nonsensically yell at each other, when Whis just rolled his eyes and waved his staff, causing them to disappear.
Goku said, "Whoa! Did you send them to that other dimension?"
Whis replied, "Yes. With any luck they won't end up killing each other and learn how to work together, even if it's a little." He waved his staff again, this time producing a basket of food. "For now let's sit down for a meal."
A strange ship appeared above the lawns of Capsule Corp, catching the attention of Trunks, who was on his lunch break with his friends during their lessons. When the vessel landed Trunks began to inspect it, when the instructor noticed the Capsule Corp logo was on it. That confused Trunks because he couldn't remember his mother working on such a thing. Flying up to look inside, he was shocked to see two unconscious kids inside. "Get my mom!"
Bulma was putting the finishing touches on a device she had built for Vegeta when she got the word. Based on the description she got on the ship that appeared, there wasn't any doubt as to what was going on. She rushed to where the vessel was, taking her communicator out along the way to call Whis. When she got to the time machine, she instantly recognized it and climbed up it to look inside. Expecting to see Trunks and Ranch, Bulma felt the blood drain from her face as she instead gazed upon two children. She immediately ordered that the kids be put on gurneys and taken inside.
"What's wrong, mom?" asked Trunks in concern as they went. "Do you know who they are?"
But Bulma barely heard him as she spoke into the communicator to call on Whis again. "Whis! Pick up already!"
On Beerus' planet, Whis finally noticed his staff flashing. Answering it, he greeted, "Bulma! Calling to offer us more tasty treats?"
"What? No! But I'll get you some if you put Vegeta and Raditz on!"
"Is something wrong, Bulma?" asked Goku, looking over.
"Yes, but it's the other two that I need right now," she persisted.
"Very well." Whis waved his staff again, and Raditz and Vegeta reappeared, both looking much more ragged as they fell on the ground in a heap.
"Never…do that…again," panted Vegeta, getting up on all fours.
"Seriously, I'll endure any kind of torture for the rest of my life so long as it isn't that," Raditz said shakily, sprawled on the ground.
"Well, you two can thank Bulma for your reprieve," said Whis. "She wants to speak with both of you."
Vegeta and Raditz stood up and went over to looking into the staff, both trying with all their might to avoid and ignore the other after weeks alone together. "What is it, Bulma?"asked Vegeta.
"Did something happen with Ranch and Trunks?" Raditz asked apprehensively. What other reason would there be for her to want to speak with both him and Vegeta?
"Yes, but not the ones you're thinking of." The image immediately shifted over to two children lying on gurneys. "OUR GRANDCHILDREN ARE HERE!"
Off screen Trunks could be heard blurting out in panic and confusion, "What?"
Radtiz and Vegeta together exclaimed, "Grandchildren?"
"Hey! You're grandpas!" Goku said enthusiastically, going behind them and patting them on the backs. "Welcome to the club!" He then looked at the image in confusion, and asked, "But how are they already so much older than Pan?"
Raditz began to say, "Kakarot, they're not—" He stopped himself and growled in frustration. "Forget it. We have to get back NOW!"
Vegeta apprehensively began, "Bulma, are you sure that—?"
"Who else could these two be?" Bulma hollered at him. "Get your butts back here!"
"Fine." Looking at Goku, he said, "Kakarot, take us there immediately!"
"Hmm…did I hear that right? They're grandparents?" Beerus said offhandedly, looking at the ensuing conversation.
"Yes, quite the unexpected development," Whis said curiously.
Beerus grinned. "Something tells me this'll be rather interesting. Let's join in."
"Uh, sure I'll take you all back," Goku said. "Is Trunks with you? I need him to go Super Saiyan so I can lock in on his energy." When Trunks powered up, everyone held onto Goku as he teleported away.