Chapter 059 - The Nine Day Plan

It felt strange knowing this would be the last few minutes she'd spend in this bizarre, dangerous white space. She wouldn't have to feel the immense heat and frigidness of the room again and would never have to deal with altering her balance when stepping out into the white outside where the gravity had quickly increased, not that she noticed it anymore. She wouldn't have to share a bed, she wouldn't have to get by on small portions of food because the stocks had run low, she wouldn't have to live in this insane dimension with just two other people for company. Then again it also meant that whatever she'd achieved now was going to be the best she could give; there was little chance of her growing any stronger in a hurry if something bad had happened while she and the boys had been training. This was it.

Nine months passed inside the room.

It was at that point Goku decided they were done.

Opening the door to the outside world seemed quite daunting and she wasn't sure what to expect when they'd join back with their own dimension. The bright light etched through the growing crack of the door as it swung open revealing other colours which she had not seen in a while, different smells she had not been able to pick up in nine months, most noticeably the cool feel of a small breeze passing into the room from outside. As she passed through the doorway alongside Goku and Gohan she could sense several large power levels. Cell's power seemed to have made another colossal increase which worried her. Had he absorbed Eighteen while they'd been in the room? She could sense Piccolo, her father and brother were alive.

What had happened?

Gohan trotted a little ways ahead of them as they wandered through the hallways. It seemed strange being able to breathe so easily, almost like a big sense of relief had washed over her body. Corset welcomed the feel of the small breeze as it passed her cheek; it felt good to be out of that room.

Natural light hit her eyes as she emerged outside of the palace. There were several figures surrounding the entrance, most tall with a couple of exceptions. Tenshinhan, Piccolo, Trunks, Vegeta and Mr Popo were all congregated around the entrance apparently waiting for them. She had a sneaking suspicion all would be surprised to see her, Gohan and Goku emerge as Super Saiyans rather than their regular selves; it had all been a part of Goku's plan to grow used to the form and it had turned out well for all of them.

"Vegeta and Trunks are still here?" Goku asked. "I can still feel Cell's ki too so he must be alive! What's going on?"

Corset looked around at the others; everyone seemed to be here and well. That was a relief. She noticed her father was glaring right at her and immediately averted her gaze. She had a sneaking feeling he was surprised to see her as a Super Saiyan; she could see no other reason why he'd be looking at her.

"So can anyone tell us what's been happening?" Goku asked stepping forward down the couple of steps and onto the tiles of the exterior part of the lookout, Gohan and Corset following and sticking close to him. Tenshinhan started off but Goku interrupted, "Sorry but before you get started, is it ok if we can eat?"

For the second time in a day Mr Popo brought out dish after dish of delicious food as the three Super Saiyans gorged their faces. Corset shovelled rice and chicken and vegetables into her mouth as fast as she could without choking; her stomach had been unsatisfied for so long now, especially since it had turned out none of the three knew how to cook! It was such a welcome sight to see, smell and taste properly cooked food again!

"Wasn't there enough food in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber?" Tenshinhan asked baffled at the display before him and the others. It was almost like watching underfed animals at a zoo or something!

Goku answered something inaudible, a mouth full of noodles buffering the words.

"Alright, Goku," Piccolo growled disgusted, "why don't you try saying it without your mouth full?"

Goku slurped up his noodles, much to Piccolo's grotesque! "... What I meant to say was neither Gohan, Corset or I could cook, so it's been a long time since we've had a good home-cooked meal!"

"I see..." Tenshinhan spoke looking a little surprised.

Corset placed her plate neatly on the small collection she'd already stacked and breathed out, finally full. "Thank you for the food," She lightly nodded her head down at Mr Popo. "That was really good and definitely needed!"

"Yeah, it was great!" Gohan nodded with a grin. "Thank you, Mr Popo."

"... So Trunks, tell us what's been happening," Goku sat back on his hands apparently finished, leaving Mr Popo to tidy up after them.

Trunks, who'd been amusingly staring at all the empty plates before him, looked up and jumped slightly, "... Yeah, sure."

The news wasn't pleasant. Cell had indeed absorbed Eighteen and had become complete. Corset listened intensely alongside Goku and Gohan, her fists clenching slightly as Trunks brushed over the small details. What really dug under her skin was her father had allowed him to absorb the android just so he could have the satisfaction of fighting a tougher opponent! She couldn't believe just how selfish and foolish he'd been; he'd put the whole planet at risk just to satisfy his own selfish pride – again! Corset felt ashamed over his actions; her father had let it come to this. Trunks had tried to stop Cell but even his newfound powers weren't enough. Though what had surprised everyone was Cell's sudden announcement.

"I see... so he wants to hold a tournament?" Goku smiled. "Sounds exciting!"

"Exciting?" Piccolo repeated seemingly taken back.

"Hey, Mr. Popo, do you still have my old clothes?" Goku asked.

Corset pondered to herself. What exactly was this tournament about? She didn't understand Cell's thinking behind it and wasn't sure what the point of it was... He was now supposedly the strongest fighter on this planet; what chance did they have? Then again maybe Goku would turn the tables on him just like he had all the other villains?

Goku's clothes were brought out from the palace when she finally left her thoughts, "I even washed and ironed them," Mr Popo was saying.

She began to wonder where her own clothes were; her armour was pretty dirty and ripped up, not to mention she'd been wearing it for the past nine months straight!

"I'm sure my mother will make you more armour if you ask," Trunks suggested as Goku dressed.

"No thanks, I wanna fight as an Earthling," Goku replied.

Corset smiled. She wanted to follow Goku's example; he'd been a fantastically tough and powerful mentor over the past months. Although she was proud of her Saiyan heritage, she was also proud to say she was Earthling. Since she'd lived on Earth her whole life, she felt perhaps it was right to fight as one of them in her usual clothes. That and her old clothes were far more comfortable to fight in.

"Piccolo, could I have some new clothes too?" Gohan asked approaching the towering warrior. "Can they be like yours? You were my first mentor after all."

Piccolo smiled proudly, "Sure kid. Consider them my gift to you." He extended one hand over Gohan's head.

Corset got to her feet and ran into the palace, glancing around into the different rooms; Mr Popo hadn't been inside here for long so they had to be in here somewhere. She raided every room she came across, checking the furniture and opening the drawers. Eventually she came across her own clothes and smiled, dragging them out from the drawer and getting changed. Although these clothes were still dirty and slightly ripped from her fight against the androids, they were in much better condition than her armour. She'd just get changed when she got home.

When she appeared back outside, Corset was surprised to see Goku'd vanished. She quickly joined the others, "Hey, where'd your dad go?" She asked Gohan.

"He went to go check out Cell," Gohan replied.

"Hey, your outfit's just like Piccolo's," Corset realised smiling. "It looks cool!"

"Yeah, I wanted to wear it since Piccolo was our first teacher," Gohan grinned checking his new attire.

"... That's a good idea..." Corset pondered before turning to the Namekian. "Piccolo? Sorry to be a pain but can I have new clothes too? Mine are a little roughed up and you can materialise things!"

"Alright, stand still," Piccolo placed his hand over her head. With a loud yell from the Namekian, Corset's clothes were suddenly as good as new. She smiled and looked herself over, "Thank you, Piccolo! Sorry to be a pain!"

"No problem kid," Piccolo smiled.

Eyes and gazes were diverted as Goku appeared just a little ways away from the rest of the group.

"What did you think, Goku?" Trunks asked.

"Well frankly I didn't think it would get that much stronger," Goku spoke, "There's no way of telling just how strong he is until the real fight begins... I won't really know until I try but as I am now, I don't think I stand a chance."

"... It's that powerful?" Trunks frowned, "I was afraid of hearing that..."

That wasn't the news anyone had really want to have heard. Corset felt her stomach tie itself in knots but quickly shook it off. She assumed Goku was just being modest; he'd be able to beat Cell when the time came, after all he'd beaten Freeza who'd dominated the Saiyan fighter for most of the fight!

"Use the Room of Spirit and Time again," Piccolo suggested. "You can still use it for another year. We've decided that I'm going in first, then Vegeta, then Trunks. You three could always go in together again or split into two groups with another one of us."

"I'm sorry," Tenshinhan apologised, "there's no way I can compete with something on this level."

"It's alright," Goku smiled, "Gohan, Corset and I don't need a turn. We'll train outside for the remaining nine days."

"... What?" Piccolo looked stumped!

Corset couldn't help but stare at Goku. Was he serious?

"... You'll pass? You won't use the room again?" Piccolo asked seemingly searching for confirmation he'd heard it right. "Why? You still have another day before you've used up all of your time!"

"It'll be ok," Goku smiled. "It gets pretty rough in that room even if you're not doing anything! I'll do better in resting my body."

"Hah! So even the great Kakarrot admits defeat against the rigours of the room," Vegeta chuckled smug to himself.

"Maybe," Goku replied, "There's a point where stressing your body more is torture not training... I've got nothing against any of you guys using the room though. You've probably still got more room to improve."

The smirk on Vegeta's face disappeared, "What did you say? Are you suggesting that you are more advanced than I am?"

"Yeah, a lot," Goku nodded with a playful smile.

"What?"

Corset looked away from her father in an attempt not to laugh at Goku's teasing. Her dad was so easily angered, especially when it came to Goku!

"Good luck everybody," Goku smiled. "We'll see you at the tournament!" He turned to Corset, much to her surprise. "Don't worry too much about training for the next nine days, ok? Take the time to relax and let your body heal from the room. Can you do that for me?"

Corset raised an eyebrow at the Saiyan, "... If you say so..."

"Trust me that's all you need to do..." He turned to his son, "Ready to go, Gohan?"

"Y-Yeah..." Gohan nodded awkwardly waving as he followed his father off the lookout and down to Earth, Corset waving back.

So she wasn't to train anymore? Somehow she felt perhaps Goku was trying to kill her but at the same time she felt she had to listen to him. He was her mentor after all; she would hope he knew what he was talking about!

"So you managed to do it after all then?"

Corset blinked and realised Trunks was talking to her. "Do what? You mean become a Super Saiyan?" She asked, a smile quickly appearing on her face. She felt proud of her achievements; they hadn't been easy to get after all.

"Yeah, you look just like you did in my time," Trunks replied. "... So why's Goku so calm?"

"I have no idea," Corset shrugged her shoulders. "He hasn't said anything."

"... Going back to Super Saiyans..." Tenshinhan spoke up, "You guys are all in your Super Saiyan states right? I always thought it took a tremendous amount of energy to stay as a Super Saiyan, yet you guys all look so relaxed."

"Goku and Gohan – and Corset here – are Super Saiyans without a doubt," Piccolo agreed. "It seems that somehow, they've trained themselves to be able to maintain the state as if it were their normal form."

"Oh... so does that mean you guys can undergo another transformation during battle?" Trunks asked Corset.

Before she could even answer someone else did.

"Idiot! You're not paying attention!" Vegeta barked. "It's obvious they've decided this is their best combat state! If they get used to it it'll minimize the strain on their bodies during battle. Kakarrot has a strategy."

Suddenly and for little reason Goku's ki skyrocketed higher and higher, the tiles of the lookout below their feet beginning to crack under the pressure. He wasn't too far off, about a mile or two underneath the lookout but even from here she could feel the effects of his power-up as if she were standing next to him!

"Wh-What is this energy I'm sensing?" Tenshinhan cried.

"It's Goku!" Piccolo gasped.

Corset stared down at the floor calm and quiet; it was now she guessed he was at Korin Tower. She'd never been to Korin Tower herself but had heard many stories about the place from her mother about Goku in his youth. She wondered why he was powering up...

It stopped.

'That was a fair amount of his ki,' she noted to herself.

"That was incredible..." Trunks murmured. "Was that Goku's full power, Corset?"

"Nope, he's a lot stronger than that," Corset replied. "I don't think that was even half of his power."

"N-Not even... half?" Tenshinhan stuttered. "... What kind of training did you guys do?"

"Piccolo! Hurry up and get in the room!" Vegeta spat angrily. "There's a line backed out here, you know!"

Piccolo soon made his way towards the Room of Spirit and Time, Corset following to wish him luck.

"So are you going in by yourself, Piccolo?"

"Yeah," Piccolo nodded. "I need all the time I can get if I want to get stronger... Sorry kid but I couldn't afford to have you tag along, even if Goku said you needed more time..."

"Wow... You're that serious?" Corset mumbled in awe. "I hope it works out for you. Just before you go in, where is my mama? I thought she was here a yea- I mean, a day ago when Goku took Gohan and me inside the room."

"I'm not sure," Piccolo answered, finally reaching the door. "You make sure you prepare yourself; this tournament will be the deadliest you've ever seen..." He turned and took a deeper look at his former student. "... I can't believe how much stronger you and Gohan have become..."

Corset smiled as Piccolo put a hand on her head. "You make sure you train as hard as you can, Piccolo!"

"Of course."

With that the Namekian disappeared behind the wooden door, closing it behind him.

Corset wandered back out to the lookout finding everyone else still standing around. "Piccolo's just gone in..." She spoke, not expecting an answer from anyone.

Trunks approached her, "Hey, can I ask you something? Has Goku said anything to you about his plan against Cell? He seemed so calm earlier on."

"He hasn't said anything to me," Corset answered. "I guess he's got one but he hasn't told us anything about it..."

Trunks seemed a little disappointed to hear this. "Oh..."

Corset looked down at the floor unsure of what to say. Trunks was right in noticing Goku was calm, especially considering the position the Earth was in right now. Even if she'd managed to become a Super Saiyan and had grown far stronger than before, Corset doubted she'd be able to hold her own against Cell's power. She wasn't even sure if her power was more than enough to match the androids!