Here is the next chapter, up and loaded. Thank you all again for the reviews, favorites, and follows. Glad to see so many enjoying the story. Keep up the feedback since it does help me write better.

Now, to the chapter.

Chapter 12: Kindred Spirits

Trunks rolled out of bed and stretched his sore and stiffed muscles.

It has been two days since Gohan had started to train him and the older boy was merciless. He thought learning how to fly would be easy, since mom told her that all of the old warriors were able to do it and it's such a basic thing, but it was far more difficult than he imagined.

The first day of his training, he had trouble maintaining his energy and could only float for a couple of seconds before crashing into the ground.

It didn't help that Gohan's idea of teaching him was to drop him hundreds of feet from the sky. Thank goodness he was so tough. Seriously, why couldn't he at least learn how to float first before being dropped like a stone from a building?

"Hey, get up!" the voice of Gohan yelled as he walked into the room.

Trunks glared at the older boy. "Don't you knock?"

"You got nothing I haven't already seen," Gohan said dismissively. "Besides, you need to eat so we can get right to training. We got another full day and daylight is limited."

Trunks almost groaned. Who would have thought gentle Gohan was a drill sergeant?

Gohan raised an eyebrow. "What, you thought I was going to go easy on you since you're a child? Well, tough luck, kid. You're not going to get stronger if I coddle you."

"Who are you and what have you done with Gohan?" Trunks asked.

Gohan folded his arms. "Well, I'm your teacher now and I expect only the best from you. If you want to live to fight the androids one day, I'm going to push you to your limits and beyond. Now, get up, wash up, eat, and meet me outside. If you're not outside in an hour, expect harsh consequences."

With that, Gohan walked out of the room, leaving Trunks staring in disbelief. He was beginning to wonder if he bit off more than he could chew when he asked Gohan to trained him. He was acting nothing like the kind, mellow person he knew.

Trunks shook his head.

It didn't matter. He asked for this. He begged to be trained. He wasn't a baby. If he wanted to get stronger, he had to suck it up. If he broke down just from this, how was he expected to fight?

Once he was out of bed, it only took him thirty minutes to wash and grabbed a quick meal provided by his grandmom who always had food ready.

When he got outside, he saw Gohan doing stretches in the yard, careful not to aggravate his wounds.

Seeing Gohan, he wondered if Saiyans healed faster than humans. For what he had seen from people injured by the androids, those who broke bone usually stood in bed for the first couple of weeks and had to be sedated to weather the pain. Gohan treated such things like he had only sprained an ankle. Maybe he just had an ungodly high pain tolerates.

"That was quick," Gohan said, not bothering to turned to face him.

Trunks stared firmly at his teacher. "Of course. I'm not going to back down. Not until I'm strong enough to fight by your side."

Gohan stopped his stretches and turned towards Trunks. "Well, you definitely have the fire, but passion alone isn't going to be enough. If it was, the androids would be long gone."

Trunks didn't speak, but he knew Gohan's words to be true. Passion meant nothing without the strength to backed it up. The monuments that lined the garden were a testament to that cold reality. In this world, only strength mattered.

"Let's get to work," Gohan said, cutting through his thoughts.

For the entire morning, they trained on flying and energy control.

Flying was finally coming more naturally to Trunks. He was able to float and fly for a short distance and even stall his fall once Gohan had dropped him. It was great progressed from the falling stone he was just two days ago.

His biggest problem now was endurance and getting used to the wind blowing in his face. Just a few lapses around Capsule Corp left him sweaty and winded.

Still, even when he was closed to collapsing, Gohan pushed him. Every time he slowed down even a little, Gohan was there to smack him, forcing him to maintain his top speed.

He was closed to falling out of the sky from exhausting before Gohan called an end the flying exercises.

However, Trunks still wasn't allowed to rest. After a short water break, they worked on his energy control.

Learning how to control his power was a nice break from the physical exercises, but they were also boring. For hours Gohan and him sat cross-legged, meditating and reaching for the power within themselves. It was hard to concentrate when his mind kept wondering every few minutes.

"You're losing control of your energy again," Gohan scolded every single time his mind went elsewhere.

Trunks was certain that he was going to hate Gohan by the end of all this.

For over three hours, he's been trying to hold a flicker of energy between his palms. It was an exercise to learned control and endurance, something he sorely lacked.

Despite how simple in implication the exercise was, Trunks was flushed and covered in sweat from holding his energy for so long. What started out as a somewhat easy and mind-numbing tedious exercise was exhausting him almost like he flew cross-country. His face also had an expression of pain as he attempted to maintain his energy.

"Relax and feel your energy," Gohan spoke through his discomfort. "You can't force it."

Trunks cracked one of his eyes opened. "That's easier said than done, you know." He slipped a little and the flicker of energy wavered, almost burning out.

"If you have the energy to complain, you have the energy to do this training," Gohan said in a matter-of-fact voice. "You have another hour before we break."

Trunks grumbled something under his breath as he attempted to regain control of his energy. He was beginning to regret not eating more before coming out to train. His stomach was rumbling and he was thinking more about food than his exercises.

There was also an edge of impatience. When was he going to learned how to shoot energy blasts like Gohan? Why did he have to do these endurance exercises? They were so pointless, especially considering that the androids had unlimited energy. It seemed best in his mind to learned how to hit hard and fast instead of increasing endurance.

"Your mind is wondering again," Gohan said. "You're not focusing."

Trunks almost wanted to yell his thoughts, but held his tongue. Despite his frustrations, he trusted the older boy. Gohan has been fighting longer than he has been alive. He knew what he was doing. He wouldn't live so long in this world if he didn't.

Once the hour was up, the two half-Saiyans took a break and ate a big lunch outside, compliments of Mrs. Briefs. In the last two days, Trunks had eating more than he ever did in the last two weeks.

"You're doing well, Trunks," Gohan said. "You're learning much faster than I thought. At this rate, you will be shooting energy blasts by the end of the week."

Trunks smiled. "You think so?"

Gohan nodded. "You got it within you. I guess I shouldn't be surprise given the genes you have."

Trunks stopped eating. "You mean my dad?"

"Well, both of your parents," Gohan said. "I mean, you have your father's strength and your mother's work ethic. Not to mention, you got your stubborn streak from both of them."

Trunks chuckled at that last part before he became serious. "Hey, Gohan. How much do you know about my dad?"

Gohan stopped eating as he took in the question. "Your mother hasn't mentioned him?"

"Well...when I do ask about him she get this sad and distance look on her face so I don't like to mention him," Trunks said as he stared at his food. "But she told me that he was a proud, stubborn man. He didn't show his feelings easily and was temperamental."

"That's an understatement," Gohan whispered under his breath before he looked at Trunks. "Well, what your mother said was more and less true. Your father was strong. One of the strongest people on the planet, perhaps even the universe. He took great pride in his strength and wanted no one to be his equal. That's partly why he and my father never got along."

"Your father was a Saiyan like my dad, right?" Trunks asked.

Gohan nodded before a sad smile crossed his face. "For most of my dad's life, he didn't know he was an alien. He believed that he was a human and only found out the truth when he was an adult."

"My mom said that he was sent here to destroy the world or something," Trunk said.

"That was his mission, but my dad hit his head and forgot. He was then raised by my great-grandfather to be the gentle person we knew," Gohan said before he chuckled. "It's beyond ironic. Someone that was sent to destroy the world ended up being its savior."

Trunks looked into the sky. "Mom called him a hero and that he was the strongest in the universe. If he was alive….do you really think he could have saved us?" He glanced at the memorials that stood on the far side of them. "Save my father and the others?"

Gohan nodded. "I have no doubt. Between my father and yours, they would have beating those androids eight years ago."

Trunks frowned. "But, didn't he die from a sickness? If he was really so incredible, how could he die in such a lame way?"

Gohan frowned and Trunks swore he saw tears on the edge of his eyes. "I asked myself the same question everyday. Until he died, I truly believed he was invincible."

There was a long silence as Gohan retreated into his thoughts.

"Why did my dad come to this planet? My mom never told me," Trunks asked, trying to change the subject.

Gohan hesitated for several seconds. "Your dad...he wanted the Dragon Balls so he could wish for immortality."

Trunks tilted his head. "What are Dragon Balls?"

This took Gohan by surprised. "You don't know?"

"I think mom mentioned them in passing, but I don't know what they are," Trunk answered.

"Well...Dragon Balls were seven magical orbs that grants any wish to anyone who was able to collect them. We used the Dragon Balls in the past to wished back those who were killed."

Trunks' eyes lit up. "You mean...if the androids are defeated we can bring back all the people they killed!?"

Gohan shook his head somberly. "The Dragon Balls no longer exist. They died when Kami was killed."

Trunks was left in shock. "What?"

"Do you know the story about Kami and Piccolo?" Gohan asked instead.

Trunks nodded. "Mom told me long ago that Kami and Piccolo were once one being who split into two. One good, one evil. Although the evil side, Piccolo, began to become good after he was reborn."

Gohan nodded. "Because they were once one person, they shared the same life force. One couldn't exist without the other. When Piccolo was killed by the androids, Kami died with him along with the Dragon Balls since he was the one who created them."

Trunks lowered his eyes. "So, no one can be wished back."

Gohan sighed and shook his head. "No. Those who are killed are gone forever. I suppose that's how it should be..."

"But...I remember something like this happened before. My mom said that you guys went to Namek to find a new set of Dragon Balls when Earth's warriors fall in battle," Trunks said, regaining some hope. "Maybe we can do it again once the androids are gone."

"That would be nice, but the original Namek no longer exist and we don't know where the new one is. And even if we did, we couldn't get there. The spaceship that we used to reached Namek has been destroyed. Maybe we could use the ship Vegeta used to travel in space, but that haven't flown in years." Gohan looked up into the sky. "Reaching Namek...is even more of a dream than before."

Trunks lowered his head, fully feeling the weight of despair on his heart. He had allowed himself to get his hopes up. He should have known that things couldn't be that easily fixed.

"Maybe...when the androids are gone, we can find the new Namek and repair some of the damage, but it's too soon to think about that," Gohan said as he tore his eyes away from the sky. "It would be cruel to wish anyone back into this world as long as they exist."

Trunks sneered in anger. "I hate the androids. I wish they never existed."

"You and me both," Gohan said, his eyes darkened in rage. "But we will get them. It's only a matter of time. Nightmares never last, Trunks. One day, you wake up and they're gone."

Trunks took in Gohan's words. He hoped that he was right. He didn't want to imagine living in a world were the androids existed for all eternity. But that did bring up another question. One he has been wondering about for awhile.

"Gohan, where did the androids come from?" Trunks asked. "Why do they torment us and the people of this world?"

Gohan bit his lips. "They were created by a madman known as Dr. Gero. He was an old scientist that worked for an organization knowns as the Red Ribbon Army."

"I've heard of them. Mom said that they were a terrorist organization that posed as an army who went around doing terrible things," Trunks said.

Gohan nodded. "Those stories are true."

"What happened to them?" Trunks asked.

"My dad put an end to them. With his own hand, he stormed their base and destroyed them," Gohan stated as his eyes narrowed. "Somehow, Gero escaped and he created the androids to get back at my dad."

Trunks gasped. "So, that's why? But, didn't your dad die before the androids came?"

Gohan lowered his eyes. "Yeah...but it didn't stop that man from activating them, although I don't know why. When he did, they killed him and started their terror on humanity. I don't know why, but the androids are design to despise humans. Or, more specially, anything that isn't themselves."

Trunks tucked his legs under him. "So...your dad is partly responsible for what has happened."

Gohan glared at him, startling the young boy. Gohan has never looked at him like that before. "My dad isn't responsible for any of this. It was Gero who created those killers. Dad did nothing wrong stopping the Red Ribbon Army. If he's guilty of anything, it wasn't slaughtering every person within that base."

Trunks lowered is head in shame. "You're right... I'm sorry, Gohan. I didn't mean to blame him. I just..."

"Wanted to make sense of what has happen," Gohan finished, losing his previous anger. His face softened as he took a deep breath. "I know. Kami knows, I know. There are times where a part of me do blame dad. Blame him for not personally killing Gero when he raided the Red Ribbon Army. But...he couldn't have known. How could he had known that one man he probably never even met would do this. And, if he was here, he would have done everything in his power to save us, even if it meant lying down his life." He looked at his hand. "Because of that, I will never blame him."

Trunks continued to stare at the ground, ashamed that he blamed a dead, innocent man for bringing the androids. No, it wasn't Gohan's father fault. It was Gero's. Still, nothing could be done about him. He was long dead, killed by his own creations. He was beyond any mortal justice.

"Now, let's get back to work," Gohan ordered, wanting to end the morbid subject. Given the mood, neither one of them felt like finishing their lunch.

For days, the two half-saiyans trained. Trunks was now able to fly across West City and his energy control had reached the point where he could fire small blasts. It was more than Gohan could hope for.

Through the days of training, he wondered where Bulma was. He knew that she was alive, since he could still sensed her life force, but it wasn't like her to be away for so long.

Things have been peaceful, but the androids could return at any time. He was tempted to go checked on her, but by the week's end he didn't have to. After over a week, Bulma finally returned home.

"Mom!" Trunks cried happily as he rushed towards his mother, who barely had time to climbed out of the jet plane.

"Trunks, how you been, little man?" Bulma asked affectionately, patting his head.

He wiped some of his tears. "I've been fine. Gohan has been taking care of me."

Bulma was surprise to hear this. "Gohan?" She looked up to see the young man smiling meekly at her.

"Hey, Bulma," Gohan greeted.

"Gohan, I wasn't expecting to see you. It's been months," Bulma said. She frowned when she saw the shape the young man was in. The bruises on his face and arms were fading, but were still clearly visible. She could also tell by the careful way he was breathing that his ribs were damage. "You have been fighting the androids."

"Only briefly," Gohan answered. "I saw them heading towards another city and intercepted them."

Bulma sighed. "You're lucky to be alive."

"Don't I know," Gohan said with a slight chuckle.

"It's no laughing matter," Bulma scolded. "You can't afford to be reckless."

"Speaking of reckless, where were you these last couple of days? Trunks told me that you left the day the androids were sited," Gohan said.

Bulma turned her head, not wanting to make eye contact. "I...I was doing some research."

"Research that you couldn't do here?" Gohan asked in disbelief.

"You guys must be hungry," Bulma said, changing the subject. "I can whip some food for you."

Before Gohan could say anything, she walked past him and made her way to the kitchen.

Thanks to her years of having a growing half-saiyan, she quickly learned how to cooked, although she was no where near as good as Chi-Chi. That girl was a goddess in the kitchen. Still, she was at least as good as her mom.

It was several hours later that the small group was dining together.

Trunks ate eagerly, more than Bulma had expected. Trunks always had a healthy appetite, but he never ate like a ravage dog. He wasn't like his father or Goku who sucked down food like living black holes.

Looking over Trunks, he seemed bigger, more muscular. How did he mature so much in such a short time? She was only gone for over a week. It reminded her of Gohan just before the Saiyans attack.

As soon as that thought crossed her mind, her eyes fell upon Gohan. He has been here since she left. Trunks, who have been too eager to fight, wouldn't just let Gohan heal in peace. Was Gohan training Trunks behind her back?

"Thanks for the meal," Gohan said happily as he patted his budging stomach. "That was good."

"Yeah, thanks mom," Trunks said as he polish the last bowl of rice.

Bulma stared at Trunks for a moment. "Trunks, can you leave Gohan and me alone for awhile. There are some things I need to talk to him about."

Trunks stood up and placed his bowl in the sink. "Sure. I can hang out with gramps." With that, he rushed out of the room.

Gohan also stood up and put his bowls into the sink.

"So, what have you and Trunks been doing since I've been gone?" Bulma asked.

Gohan stiffened for a moment before he answered. "Oh, just hanging out and catching up. Can't do much training until I heal. Hopefully, I will be strong enough to leave in another week or two."

Bulma leaned into her hands. "You're a bad lair, much like your father. You've been training Trunks, haven't you?"

There was a short silence.

"Well, I only taught him how to fly and control his energy. That's all," Gohan said.

Bulma narrowed her eyes. "I expressly said that I didn't want Trunks to become a warrior. Now, more than ever, he wants to train to fight the androids. How could you go behind my back like that?"

Gohan turned towards Bulma and looked her directly in the eye. "I taught him some stuff because we have to prepare for the worst. If I fail to stop the androids, Trunks will be the only one left to fight them."

Bulma forcibly stood up. "What are you saying!? Are you implying that you can't beat them!? Are you just giving up!?"

"Not at all! I want to fight and kill both of those monsters more than anything in the world," Gohan sneered as his eyes lit up in hate. Bulma could see his eyes turned blue. "For Piccolo and the others, I want to see them die at my hand…. But...I'm no fool." He calmed down and his eyes turned back to normal. "There is the chance that I will die without beating even one of them. If that happens….I want to make sure that Trunks is ready. I want to pass down everything I know to him. Something…father and Piccolo couldn't do for me because I was lazy. And...it would be nice to have some back-up."

"So, this does boil down to you," Bulma said harshly.

"In a way," Gohan admitted as he looked his hand. "I have trained for eight years to surpass the androids and I've hit a wall. I'm not Vegeta. It's hard for me to train on my own without someone to spar with. If Trunks can even become half as strong as I am, it would be a great benefit. I can sharpen my skills and maybe Trunks could become a Super..."

"Don't even finish that!" Bulma interrupted. "I don't want Trunks anywhere near the androids!"

"That maybe won't be an option," Gohan stated grimly. "Trunks is growing up. He wants to fight and soon...you won't be able to stop him and neither will I. It's best he learns how to defend himself and some discipline before he flies off the handle one day and does something reckless."

Bulma stood quiet for several seconds. "You know Trunks that well."

"Of course. We're both half-saiyans. I know the despair he's feeling better than anyone," Gohan said, getting a far away expression on his face. "I know what it's like to want to save people and not having the power to do anything but watch. It's terrible. Worst than any death that the androids could hand out."

Bulma sighed in defeat as she lowered her head. She wanted to cry. She knew, despite all her denials, that Gohan was right. As much as she didn't want it, Trunks was destined to fight. "I just want Trunks to be safe," she spoke softly. "I don't want him to die...like the others. Like Vegeta… It isn't fair for a child to be force to fight. He should be worrying about boy things like school, getting a girlfriend, and how not to be grounded. Not the fate of the world."

Gohan chuckled humorlessly. "You sound like my mom."

"More and more I'm starting to understand Chi-Chi. How naïve I was thinking she was being overprotective of you. How does she handle it?" Bulma asked as she ran her hand over her hair.

"She's strong," Gohan answered in admiration. "The strongest woman on this planet."

Bulma smiled and nodded in agreement. She needed to call her after this.

"Bulma, I will do everything in my power to make sure that Trunks don't fight the androids. I don't want him to experience the horrors of those monsters either," Gohan said. "But, he is our last resort. Fair or unfair."

Bulma sat heavily into her chair. "I guess it's selfish to ask for fairness in the world we now live in."

Gohan stared at Bulma. "Since I answered your question, mind answering one of mines. Where were you?"

Bulma sighed before answering. "I was with Dr. Omori."

"Trunks mentioned him. Who is he?" Gohan asked.

"An old family friend. He's a doctor who has been studying time travel," Bulma answered. "I went to him to learn how to make a time machine."

This caught Gohan off-guard. "Time machine?"

Bulma nodded. "Looking at this world...I want to go back to the time before they existed. To warned Goku and the others of their arrival. If they knew, they could become strong enough beat them before all this ever happened."

Gohan took in Bulma's words, leaving him speechless. A time machine? Was it possible to go back and prevent this? To stop the androids' terror before it even began. It sounded too good to be true. Like something only possible in books and movies.

He could save all of them. Piccolo, Vegeta, Yamcha, Tien, Chiaotzu, Krillin. They could be saved. But...

"Even if it was possible, dad would still be dead," Gohan said with a heavy heart. "As strong as we may become, we still need him. Maybe Vegeta would be enough, but..."

Bulma smiled. "We can save Goku too."

This stopped Gohan mid-sentence. "What?"

"We found it, Gohan. We finally found a cure to the virus that killed him," Bulma said, getting strength back in her voice. "If we can take the medicine to him, Goku will be save and he can fight the androids."

Gohan almost collapsed from the news.

A cure. In this messed up world, they actually managed to find a cure to that damn virus? It was unbelievable. It was almost too much to hope.

If what Bulma said was true, then they truly had a chance. Even if his dad wasn't strong enough on his own, surely both him and Vegeta could do something along with Piccolo. Together, they could beat the androids. They could change their fates. They could change their future.

"I see… No wonder you were gone for so long," Gohan spoke barely above a whisper.

Bulma lost her smile and became serious. "But there's still much I need to study. Omori gave me a lot of stuff, but it still isn't enough. There're so many variables when it comes to time travel. And, it may not even work in the end."

"But, it's something," Gohan said with hope in his voice. For the first time in years, he truly felt hope. "It's something to strive for."

"Gohan, I don't think you understand," Bulma said. "Even if we do make a workable time machine, we may end up changing nothing."

Gohan had a confused expression.

"Talking to Omori, he brought up several good points. One of them being that even if we change something in the past, it may not effect us. We may just end up creating an alternative timeline where the androids don't exist, but we'll still be stuck with them," Bulma explained.

Gohan took in Bulma's words. "I understand. What you're saying is that to keep from creating a time paradox, the timeline will split to preserve itself. I remembered reading something to that effect many years ago."

Bulma sighed. "It may all just be a pipe dream, but I want to go forward anyway. Like so many, I just can't sit back anymore. I...we all have been selfish towards you. We've been putting everything on your shoulders while we did nothing. You were just a child when the androids came and we looked to you to make everything better. In our desperation for a savior, we chose to forget the child you were. We….chose to ignore that you're not your father."

Gohan shook his head. "I didn't mind. Even if you guys didn't ask me, I would still fight the androids. It's been hard…fighting alone, but I would do it all again. Until the androids are destroyed or I take my last breath, I will fight them." He looked at her. "I'm not my father. I can never be half the man he was. But…I still have his blood and his heart. I want fight to save this world."

"You're not alone, Gohan. Not anymore," Bulma said with a small smile. "I will do everything I can to research and build the time machine. Even if we can't save this world, it's something to strive for to create a future where the androids don't exist. A world where you can grow up normal with your mom and dad."

Gohan smiled sadly. "That sounds like a wonderful dream. One that is worth fighting for." He turned to leave the kitchen. "You fight for that world, Bulma. And I will take care of this one." He then left.

Some more sweet bonding between Gohan and Trunks. I really did love to write these two. I also enjoyed writing the conversation between Gohan and Bulma. You really get to see their point-of-views and how they are dealing with the trauma of the world they lived in. Despite the androids having no physical presence for the last couple of chapters, you really do feel the despair they left everyone in. This actually makes me hate them more than when they're on scene.

Anyway, until next chapter.