TWISTED TIMELINES
Chapter Four
Vegeta nearly choked on the smoke and dust swirling through the air as he flew through Sazebo's streets. Flames raged out of control all over the city, people were panicking and running in every direction, and buildings were coming down one after another.
My God, it's like a war zone, he thought as he dodged another falling block of concrete. Beneath him, another group of people nearly trampled each other fleeing down the street away, and he felt heat wash over him as a nearby building exploded in a ball of fire and debris. No stranger to destruction, he was still rather unnerved by the absolute chaos below.
He could sense the energy of the others weaving and crisscrossing over the remains of the city, but so far, none of them were having any luck in figuring what had caused the mass damage.
This is ridiculous, this kind of chaos doesn't just happen…
Suddenly a deafening explosion rang out up ahead, cutting his thoughts short. He dove downward and touched down on the street, peering through the drifting smoke. Through the haze, he saw two figures standing in the middle of the road, oblivious to the bedlam around them. As he approached, they turned as one to look at him.
One of them spoke, a low, slightly husky voice. "A distinct power level. Non-human in origin."
"I will identify it," said the second, its voice higher pitched, and Vegeta started as its eyes flickered brightly for a few moments.
"Warrior, Saiyan male, sub-class A, identified as Vegeta."
"Excellent. He will provide us with ample energy." Together they advanced on him. The prince narrowed his eyes, gauging their power level. Hah, it's virtually non-existent, taking these two down will be easy.
"I don't think so," Vegeta snapped, crossing his arms across his chest, ignoring a warning bell going off inside his head. He watched as they came closer, and he now saw that they were two males – one tall and thin, with long white hair and an aged, almost angry face, the other short and fat, with an almost innocent doll-like expression. Both of them were dressed in bizarre-looking clothes, and wore hats with the same insignia on them.
"Are you responsible for this?" he demanded, the warning bell in his head growing steadily louder.
"Yes," replied the shorter of the two. They stopped about ten feet away from him, their eyes fixed on him with a disturbing intensity.
"Why?"
"Why?" the taller man repeated, seeming surprised that he would even ask the question. "For the simplest reason, of course. Because we can."
Vegeta threw his head back and laughed. "With a nothing power level like yours, how could you two possibly have caused all this? Do you have any idea what real power is?"
"Yes, we do, actually. And we would have no difficulty destroying you as well, Saiyan."
"Me?" Vegeta echoed. "You're human, how can you just-"
Both figures smirked.
The warning bell in Vegeta's mind finally got his attention.
No power level.
"No…" he said slowly, looking from one to the other. "You're not human. I don't know what you are, but you're not human."
"Correct," said the shorter figure.
The prince stared at them both. "But if you're not human, then… what are you? You have no power level, no life force that I can detect at all!"
"That is because we are not alive," replied the taller of the two.
"We are androids."
Growling, Vegeta angrily raised his power level, feeling the familiar rush as his senses were heightened. "I don't care what you are, trash is still trash and should be disposed of."
The two androids smiled. "You would be wise to reconsider attacking, Vegeta," said the shorter one. "We are both quite familiar with your power and your techniques."
"Is that so? Then you both should realize that I'm going to pound you into the ground!"
"Vegeta!"
The prince glanced up and saw the others arriving, touching down on the street one by one.
"What are you all doing here?" he said in exasperation.
"We sensed the increase in your power," Piccolo said matter-of-factly. "Giving your propensity for showing off, it seemed wise to come check on you."
"The next time I want a babysitter, I'll ask for one," Vegeta snapped. "I don't need anyone's help, so just stay out of my way."
"So who are these guys?" Krillin asked as he looked at them both warily. "They're both kind of funny looking, but they give me the creeps."
Yamcha, however, was staring at the two in dismay. "That symbol," he said, pointing at the insignia on their hats. "That's the symbol of the Red Ribbon Army!"
Krillin turned to look at him. "But that's impossible, Goku destroyed the Red Ribbon Army years ago!"
The taller android spoke. "That is true, but because of his soft-heartedness, Son Goku let Dr. Gero escape. We are the results of Dr. Gero's genius, his determination to best Son Goku for destroying his army. What good was it if a singly boy could wipe out the greatest of soldiers in a single attack? So Dr. Gero studied Goku thoroughly over the years, and created a fighter capable of defeating Goku once and for all."
"Created…" Tien said in confusion.
"They're androids," Vegeta said shortly. "You can tell for yourself, neither one of them has a power level. And for dead people, they look pretty active."
"Androids?" Krillin backed up a step.
"Yes," said the tall android. "I am Android 20, and this is Android 19. We were both created by Dr. Gero to be the ultimate fighters, powerful enough to kill Goku and realizing Dr. Gero's revenge."
"But why destroy the entire city?" Piccolo asked them, folding his arms across his chest.
"For two reasons," Android 20 responded. "First, we decided to test our powers on the civilian population. Second, if nothing else, Son Goku is predictable. Whenever innocents are threatened, he immediately arrives to save them."
"But Son Goku is not here," Android 19 stated.
"He will arrive soon enough."
The Z Warriors started and looked at each other, then back at the Androids.
"But… but Goku's dead!" Krillin blurted out.
The Androids' eyes widened. "That is not possible."
"It's true, Tien said. "He died six months ago of some strange heart virus."
The Androids looked at one another, their eyes flickering again as information passed between them. Then they turned back to the Z Warriors, rapidly assessing their power levels.
"According to our database, there are seven significant power levels on this planet. Six of you are here. The only one not accounted for, then, is Son Goku."
"Your database?" Piccolo asked in surprise. "You mean you know who we are?"
"Warrior, human male, sub-class B, identified as Krillin," said Android 19.
"Warrior, Namek male, sub-class A, identified as Piccolo," said Android 20.
"Warrior, male, half-Saiyan, half-human, sub-class B, identified as Gohan." Android 19's eyes momentarily glanced over the boy and he flinched.
"Warrior, human male, sub-class A, identified as Tien."
"Warrior, human male, sub-class B, identified as Yamcha."
"But there is still one power level detected on this planet that is comparable to yours, and it is not here." Android 20 addressed the group as a whole. "And if Son Goku is dead, as you say, then who does that power level in West City belong to?"
"Oh, my God…" Vegeta whispered.
To be continued...