Chapter 10:

Shared History

Trunks stared at Charisma with his mouth agape. His gaze dropped back to the picture in his hand.

"We'll have to figure out what that other machine is all about later," he said. "Right now, though, I'm concerned about this second time machine of mine. I mean, I'm sure this is the same time capsule I used to come here from the future. Krillin, ask my mother if she knows where this is."

Krillin abided and held the mic to his mouth. "Hey Bulma! Where was this other time machine found?"

Bulma pursed her lips in thought. "Well I'm not sure, exactly. But it looks like it's somewhere out in the West 1050 area. Are you going?"

"Yes!" replied Trunks. "I've got to check this out."

"All right! Then I'm going, too! I'll meet you there!" she said cheerfully.

Trunks and Krillin exchanged confused looks. "But…do you think that's safe?" Trunks asked.

"Trunks," Bulma said knowingly. "Remember, mother always knows best."

"Well, I'll be going, too," Charisma announced assertively. Noticing the wide-eyed stares from the others, she shrunk a little. "...if you don't mind, that is." she quickly added.

"You, too?" grumbled Krillin. "I think you've put yourself into quite a bit of danger for one day, don't you think?"

"Yes, me too!" Charisma shot back, nearly causing Krillin to fall out of his seat. "I can defend myself if necessary. Don't you have any faith in me?"

Krillin fell silent before chuckling nervously. Krillin had taken Charisma under his wing as a pupil for the last three years and came to care about her as if she were his little sister. He struggled to grasp that he may have been acting a little too protective for her own good. Upon realizing this, he cleared his throat and regained his composure.

"Of course I do. But this isn't your typical battle. It's not something to take lightly."

"I'm not taking any of this lightly!" she retorted. "I got my ass handed to me just like everyone else. I know this isn't a joke. More importantly, I...may have some information that might help...about that other machine that was found…"

"What do you mean by that?" Yamcha asked.

Charisma sighed and crossed her arms. "I don't mean to keep you all in the dark or anything...but I need to talk to Trunks about this before anyone else...alone."

Charisma did not expect anything less than confused and concerned stares from everyone. 'I don't have any reason to keep hiding the truth about where I came from very much longer,' she thought, dropping her hands to her sides and clenching her fists with nervousness. 'I wonder if they will believe me…'

"That other machine that was found months ago, a half hour south of West City…" she said softly. "I may know some things about it. You're gonna have to trust me on this one, you guys."

"Wait…" Yamcha said, seeming to understand what she was hinting at least in some way. "Does this have anything to do with your amnesia? Are your memories coming back?"

"Something like that…'' she said carefully, wincing internally when she was reminded of the fact that her friends still believed that narrative. Looking up at Trunks, her legs suddenly felt a little weak as his blue eyes bore into hers. "So, what do you say?"

"Yes," he responded. "We do need to talk."

"Hey, Trunks," Gohan called him and walked over, breaking the tension. "Is it okay if I come along, too? I won't get in the way."

Chi-Chi looked up at him. "Gohan…"

Gohan turned around to look at his mother. "Don't worry about me, Mom," he said reassuringly. "I'll be fine. Gee, it's not like I can't take care of myself."

"Listen to me!" she growled, suddenly lifting up a stack of books and smiling sweetly. "You're staying put until all your homework is done."

The gang looked at her strangely, before falling over with complete exasperation. Gohan stood up slowly and protested. "But Mom, I'll finish it all when I come back!"

Somehow, he was able to convince her to let him go. Within a few minutes, Trunks, Gohan, and Charisma stood side by side as the plane's side glass door opened. Trunks looked down at Gohan then up at Charisma. They shared a nod, signaling that they were ready to go. With that, they both hopped out of the plane and flew off.

...

The trio soared through the skies on their way to investigate the strange time capsule. An aura of uncertainty and nervousness fell upon them as they did not know what to expect next.

"Trunks," Gohan said. "Is it really true that the Androids have destroyed everything in the future?"

"Yes," Trunks confirmed. "The Androids have managed to pretty much annihilate our entire population. Some of us escaped from West City before it was destroyed and now the only way to survive is to hide in secret bases underground."

"That sounds horrible!" Gohan lamented.

Charisma frowned, knowing all too well what life in a bunker was like. "It truly is a horrible way to live," she said. "Not being able to step outside at any time for fear of being killed...being locked inside for so long you forget what the sunshine feels like. It's an absolute nightmare."

Trunks looked over at Charisma sympathetically. Charisma looked back at him and nodded her head knowingly with a sad smile.

"I can't imagine living like that," Gohan said. "Do you think we can find some way to stop the Androids before they destroy this world, too?"

"Yes," Trunks said, looking forward again. "…I do. I don't doubt that Dr. Gero would've known about Android 17 and 18's rebellious nature. He wouldn't have taken the chance to activate them unless he had some way of turning them off again. Buy in the end, the Androids destroyed the only person who had any knowledge of their weaknesses. Nonetheless, I'm confident that we can still find a means to deactivate those monsters."

Gohan and Charisma nodded.

"Once we figure out how to turn them off, we'll be able to prevent them from taking over this world and I'll finally be able to take back what's left of mine."

"That's great, Trunks!" Gohan smiled. "I really hope you're right."

Trunks nodded with a smile. "Well, that makes two of us."

"Me three!" Charisma added cheerfully. She took a deep breath, breathing in the fresh air and letting out a sigh of relief. 'We definitely have a chance of saving this world and saving our future, too. The moment I've waited for, the glimmer of hope I've prayed for all these years is finally here…' Her eyes fell to Trunks and she smiled to herself. 'And it's you, Trunks.'

...

It took about another ten minutes of flight for the trio to reach their destination. Being more or less familiar with the area, Trunks checked his watch to confirm that they were in the right location. "All right, we're coming over West section 1050."

"Let's check it out!" Gohan announced with enthusiasm. They three split up into different directions in order to effectively comb as much of the heavily forested area as possible. Fortunately, it didn't take long at all for them to find the time capsule.

"Trunks!" Gohan suddenly yelled, his voice echoing throughout the forest. His voice caught Trunks and Charisma's attention immediately. "I found it!"

Trunks landed beside Gohan and within a few seconds, Charisma arrived as well. Gohan proudly pointed toward the old time machine which was almost completely overgrown with moss.

"That's it all right, Gohan," said Trunks. "Good work."

"This is great," Charisma said jovially. "I didn't expect that we would really find it this quickly."

"Well, should we just wait for Bulma to arrive?" Gohan asked.

"Yes, I think that might be best," Trunks said. Trunks came closer to the machine and began inspecting it closely.

Charisma twiddled her fingers nervously and felt her heartbeat in her throat. "Say…" she mumbled as she looked up at Trunks. "...I think we should go somewhere and talk alone, Trunks."

He turned to face her. "Yes."

Charisma turned to Gohan with an apologetic look. "Please don't take this personally, Gohan. But we're going to find somewhere to talk alone for a little bit."

Gohan nodded. Although he was a tad curious, he understood that they needed time alone. "It's all right. I'll wait here for Bulma to arrive and make sure she doesn't get lost."

Charisma smiled at him. "Great! We won't take long."

...

Charisma and Trunks found a small log and a rock to sit on under a shady tree not far from the time machine. As they sat across from each other, they shared a somewhat intense stare that just made this moment much more stressful for both. At the same time, that stare was filled with just as much curiosity and fascination as it was filled with tension.

Charisma did her best to not tremble due to her nervousness. However, she couldn't help but feel intimidated by Trunks' stare which could cut right through anyone just as well as his sword could. Charisma noted how much Trunks' gaze was just like his father's: piercing, unwavering and intimidating. It was something she never noticed when they were children.

Unlike Vegeta's eyes, though, Trunks' eyes held a gentleness together with their strength. Charisma's uneasiness seemed to dissipate somewhat on realizing just how much she missed those deep blue eyes of his.

As Trunks stared at Charisma, his eyes studying the features of her face carefully, he noted that she really hadn't changed that much at all in the years that passed. Although he found it hard to believe that this was the same girl who he had grown up with for the first eight years of his life, and who he'd missed dearly since they were separated, he accepted that this was truly that same girl. Her eyes, although trembling with fear, were as bright and earnest as they'd ever been. Her wholehearted smile which she had shared with him on the plane flashed into his mind. Her smile was still as warm and captivating as he remembered it.

Charisma looked up into the trees, the shadows of their leaves playing with the contours of her face. Sighing deeply and looking at her hands, fixated on her bracelet, Charisma finally spoke up softly.

"...I owe you a huge explanation," she said. "To be honest, I don't know how I ended up here exactly...but I have a hunch and I'm certain it's correct. My father gave his very life to build that bunker we lived in, and make sure my mom and I were safe. We barely saw him, sometimes for days, sometimes for weeks. We thought he was still working on the bunker that whole time. But even after the bunker was complete, he kept disappearing and we didn't know why."

Her eyes flattened sadly as she recounted the day he disappeared. Although Charisma wanted to explain everything down to the finest detail, she realized that time was of the essence. It wouldn't be too long before Bulma was going to arrive. As such, Charisma instead summarized the events of that day, and she was transported to the present timeline.

Trunks remained silent but his eyes were now on the ground as he processed what he had just heard. "...so your father was working on a time machine of his own for quite some time...I don't understand why he didn't reach out to my mother about it…"

"I wish I could tell you," Charisma said as she shook her head. "I have no clue. I know they didn't leave on good terms necessarily, but not on bad terms either. He probably didn't believe his invention would work. I'm just guessing though. But that's why I'm here…"

"I see."

"The other machine that Bulma mentioned...that's got to be the time machine I traveled in. But since it's already been scrapped, I have no way of confirming that. Based on the location and the description of its appearance, I'm positive that was it." Charisma withdrew her knees to her body and rested her arms and chin on them. "...so, the reason the timeline has shifted so badly...it's because of me, isn't it?" Her frown deepened. "Maybe things wouldn't have turned out this way if I hadn't messed around with that machine...if only I had known…"

Charisma stood up from her seat on the log and bowed to Trunks apologetically. She hung her head as she spoke. "Aunt Bulma worked so hard on that time machine of hers. You worked so hard to save this timeline from the same monsters that have ruined ours...and I ruined your plans to save this timeline from that same fate. I don't blame you if you're mad at me…" Tears stung in her eyes as she tried to blink them away.

Trunks observed her expression and the tense look in his eyes softened. In an instant, he was brought back to that awful day...the last time he would see her. The last memory he had of her was of her little face, drenched with tears, her sobs echoing through the house. That memory was still so fresh. He never forgot that day.

Trunks' fists tightened as he stood up from the rock he was sitting on and approached Charisma. She looked up at him with surprise, forgetting about the tears in her eyes.

Without a word, Trunks pulled her towards him and wrapped her in a tight embrace. Charisma's lips trembled as she looked past his shoulder, breathing in his scent and feeling his body move as he exhaled. His efforts to comfort her and stop her tears seemed to make her tears spill that much more.

"No, I'm not mad at you," he said almost in a whisper, with a softer tone than she'd ever heard him use. "I'm just glad you're alright, Charisma."

Charisma sighed and reciprocated his embrace. She buried her face into his chest, drying her tears against his black tank top. Her hands tightly gripped the back of his jacket. "I've missed you so much…" she cried. "I thought I'd never see you again…we've lost so much time..."

"Don't worry about that anymore. We'll figure a way out of this mess. Trust me…"

Charisma nodded against him. For the first time in a long time, being in his embrace, she felt safe and secure, a feeling she wasn't used to.

Trunks lifted his eyes to the sky. 'I don't know what's going to happen from here on out...but she's still alive and I'm happy.' He looked down at her small form as she nestled against him. 'I promised to always protect you. I plan on keeping that promise. You and mom are all I have left in this world...'

The booming sound of airplane engines interrupted the momentary peace. Charisma and Trunks looked up to see a yellow aircraft soaring over the forest.

"That's gotta be Bulma," Charisma said, sniffling.

"We better go meet her…" Trunks said. He looked down at Charisma and she nodded up at him. Awkwardly, she pulled away from him and wiped her tears with her hands.

"Right…" Charisma agreed. "I'm sorry about all this…"

He smiled at her softly. "Don't worry."

…

By the time Charisma and Trunks returned to the old-time machine, Bulma's plane began to land in front of them.

"Hi Trunks!" Bulma greeted him as she jumped out of the plane. "I'm back! Did you miss me?"

"I…guess so…" he said shyly.

Bulma giggled and proudly put her hands on her hips. "Well tell me. What do you think of the younger version of your mother? Pretty cute, huh?"

"Well…I'd say you really haven't changed that much…" he sputtered.

"You mean then…I'll keep my girlish looks for at least another ten years? This is great!" she laughed happily.

"So anyway," Trunks said, quickly trying to change the subject. "Look at this." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a capsule. He threw it to the ground beside the old-time machine and it popped into Trunks' time machine. Compared to the other, it was bright, shining and practically brand new.

"As you can see," he explained, walking up to it and placing a hand on its clean exterior. "This is the time capsule I used to travel back here in."

Charisma stared up at it with fascination. She looked over at the mossy and rusty time machine beside it. "...so the other capsule isn't yours after all."

"They're both mine," Trunks responded. "Remember, I said we only managed to make one time machine in the future. The two capsules you see here are actually one in the same."

"I don't get it," said Bulma as she caressed her chin thoughtfully.

"Here, look at this." Trunks went over to the old time capsule and along its yellow surface, he scratched out the moss that had overtaken the machine.

"Hope?" Bulma read the text on the time machine, which appeared to have been written on the machine with a black marker.

"Yes…you wrote it just before I left from the future. And you'll find the exact same written on that other capsule."

"But then…what happened here? The old capsule looks like it's been here for a pretty long time."

Trunks and Gohan flew up toward the glass canopy of the machine. "Wow," said Gohan, inspecting it. "How weird…It melted but the blast came from the inside."

"What do you think made that big hole?" asked Charisma.

"Honestly," Trunks replied. "I wish I knew…" He turned to Gohan. "Stand back." Trunks pressed a button on the side and the canopy slowly came open, dropping traces of moss all around. Trunks hopped inside and found two strange bowl-looking things.

"What in the world are those?" asked Gohan. "They look like turtle shells."

"Hey!" Bulma called them. "Let me have a look!"

Gohan hovered down and handed them to Bulma, who inspected them closely.

"So what do you think it is?" Charisma as she came closer to Bulma to take a look as well.

"My guess is…maybe they're like eggshells or something…"

"Eggshells?" Charisma repeated as she grabbed the shells and inspected them. "That's really strange…What in the world comes out of a shell like this?" They turned to look up at the glass canopy.

"Hey, wait a minute," said Gohan. "Maybe whatever hatched out of that egg made that hole."

Trunks took a seat inside the rusted time machine and began pressing buttons on the console. The machine's screens blinked brightly and reflected off of his face. "It looks like there's not much energy left in here. I better work fast…" He tapped furiously at the buttons. "I think I figured out when the capsule landed here. It looks like it was three years ago!"

"Three years ago?" repeated Charisma.

"No wait!" he corrected himself. "It came here four years ago. That might just explain a few things. It means that by the time I battled Freeza three years ago, whoever used this other time machine had already been here for a year. Is it…possible…that he's the one who changed history so much?"

Charisma gasped and thought to herself. 'So it's not just because of me then…?'

"I don't think it's such a good idea to leave the time machine out in the open like this," said Trunks. "I'd better put it back in its capsule."

He exited the old machine and landed on the ground beside it before pressing a button on its side. It poofed into smoke and became a tiny little capsule. Trunks picked it up and began putting it away.

"I'll put away the other capsule," Gohan told him.

"Ok," said Trunks. "Thanks Gohan." Gohan did so and handed the capsule over to Trunks.

"I'll take the weird eggshell thingies if that's alright with you," offered Bulma. "I'm going to try and look into this further. I'm curious about what kind of creature this could be…"

Trunks nodded. "Sure, go for it."

Bulma grabbed the shells from Charisma as Gohan approached. "Bulma," he said. "Listen, I think we'd all better head over to Master Roshi's place."

"Master Roshi's?" she repeated. "But why?"

"Because at any time now, those Androids are gonna show up there and try to fight my dad. But if he's still sick in bed, he won't be able to defend himself. I just think it's best we get over there. If he's not 100 percent healed, we should be able to move him."

"I see. But shouldn't enough of your Dad's friends already be there to help him out, Gohan?"

"I don't think you understand," Trunks cut in. "Even with the combined strength of Piccolo, Tien, myself, and my father were no match against those Androids."

'I helped, too,' Charisma thought with a pout.

"Wow," said Bulma. "They're that strong, huh? So how is Vegeta? Is he okay? Did he go back to Master Roshi's too?"

"He went off alone to train somewhere," Trunks spat. "Man, he's so focused on himself that the thought of helping someone else probably never crossed his mind!"

Bulma chuckled knowingly. "Well, that's Vegeta, all right."

Without saying a word, Gohan slowly began walking toward the opposite direction of the adults.

"Gohan? What's wrong?" asked Charisma.

"I think…I see something…over there," he whispered cautiously.

"What?"

Gohan walked over several feet before peering around a tree. He gulped loudly as a cold chill ran down his spine. "Hey you guys! Come here, quick!"

Alarmed, the others complied and raced over there to see what Gohan was pointing at. "What is it, Gohan?" asked Trunks.

"Behind the bushes! Look!"

Charisma and Bulma both released harmonized, heaven-piercing screams when they saw it. There was a large beetle-looking creature, just sitting out in the middle of the forest.

"What the hell is that?!" Charisma cried.

"That thing is disgusting!" Bulma squealed.

Bravely, Gohan and Trunks both went over to inspect it. Bulma and Charisma both cowered behind Trunks as their curiosity got the best of them.

"Yeah…but what is it?" Trunks said. "I've never seen anything like it…"

"Is it…dead?" Charisma shivered. "Cause it looks dead, and if it isn't dead, then it should be dead. We should kill it! Like, now!"

Gohan poked it a few times with a tree branch. "I don't think it's dead…Looks like it crawled off after it shed its skin," said Gohan, after looking at the crack along its back.

"Shed its skin? Do you think it's like some giant cicada?" asked Bulma.

"I don't think so," said Gohan.

"This might be what hatched out of the egg we found in the capsule," said Trunks with a nod.

"Right," agreed Gohan. "I bet it grew up and then molted out of its skin."

"Wait," Charisma said with a horrified whisper which quickly elevated to a panicked shout. "You mean, some kind of monster shed its skin and now it's just lurking around the countryside?!"

"I'm not sure," said Gohan. "I've never seen anything like this."

"The question is, how did it get here in the first place?" Trunks said. "Did someone send the egg back from the future all by itself, or did someone come back in the time machine along with it?" Trunks peeked into the crack on the thing's back. "Regardless of where it came from, it's totally revolting." He reached a hand in there and felt something squishy. He gasped and pulled out his hand, grimacing at the purple goo on his hand. "It's still wet…this thing must be somewhere close…"

Bulma began squealing frantically as she tossed her head wildly to look around. Charisma stood frozen in her spot like a statue, fists clenched at her sides and trembling with fear. Trunks and Gohan eyes dashed around the forest around them, searching to see if the monster was in fact nearby. The faint sound of movement and twigs snapping poured out of a dark crevice along the side of a tall cliff. Immediately, everyone's eyes drew to that spot, and they waited with bated breath to see what was going to happen next.

Gohan and Trunks braced themselves for battle. Meanwhile, Bulma and Charisma were now embracing each other and whimpering like pansies. The sudden sound of gravel crunching sent Bulma off in the other direction toward her plane, screaming and sending her hat flying. Charisma squealed with terror but managed to get herself to stay. She covered her mouth instinctively and waited it out with the boys.

They glowered eerily at the cliff. It was coming…they could feel something coming. Suddenly, the sound of cute little squeaks cut through the tense air. Three cute little furry woodland creatures popped their heads out from the crack in the cliffside. Charisma, who was on edge, let out a horrified scream that echoed throughout the entire forest and sent birds on nearby trees flying.

Her scream died down into a whimper as soon as she caught sight of the cute little animals and it fizzled away with a deep breath. Trunks and Gohan looked at her with amused stares.

"…Oh…" she mumbled with embarrassment.

By the time they returned to Bulma, she was already jumping onto her plane. "So…Something's out there, right?"

"Right," confirmed Trunks.

Bulma's face contorted into a grimace. "I guess…I should go cause I don't want to get in the way…" she stuttered nervously. "If anything happens, call me at Capsule Corp. Or…I'll call you at Master Roshi's…"

"She's kind of bugged out…" muttered Gohan.

The plane began to lift off the ground as Bulma called out to her son. "Oh, and Trunks, don't be a stranger! Your grandparents would love to meet you!" Without another word, Bulma took off into the distance.

…

Within a few moments, the trio took to the skies to head back to Master Roshi's house. Although the discovery of the second time capsule and the strange monster that now lurked in the world was certainly a cause for concern, Charisma felt much better than she had in a long time after talking to Trunks. She felt odd about smiling as much as she was now, but she couldn't help it.

Trunks spent the majority of the flight back to Master Roshi's house with his thoughts racing and still trying to comprehend just what was going on.

The memories of those days were little more than a blur in Trunks' mind. However, he never could forget the day Charisma and her family said their goodbyes. It took him several weeks to even begin to understand that she was never coming back.

In their next sparring session following Charisma's departure, Gohan had immediately noticed a drastic change in Trunks' demeanor.

"Hey," he said softly. "Bulma told me what happened."

Trunks grumbled angrily and punched the tree beside him, splintering and cracking it at the base. "I hate those Androids! They've taken too much away from me! I lost my father, I lost my freedom, and now I'm losing my best friend, too!"

Gohan looked at Trunks sympathetically. He understood the boy's pain very well. It was a pain Gohan himself was familiar with, especially after losing all of his friends suddenly because of the Androids.

"She's not lost to you, Trunks. Once those Androids are gone from this world…we might not be able to recover all of the lives that are gone, but we will rebuild what's left."

Trunks stopped punching the tree to look up at Gohan.

"That's why...you need to give your training everything you've got," Gohan explained. "You and I...we're the last hope."

Trunks wiped his eyes with the back of his fists. He blinked the remaining tears away.

"Remember everything you're fighting for," Gohan said. "Remember what motivates you the most. Remember your wish to free this world. Remember your wish to reunite with Charisma again. I know it hurts, but this is what's best for Charisma. She will be safer where she's going."

Trunks nodded. "I'm going to give this fight everything I've got."

Gohan smiled at him. "Right. Now, are you ready to continue training?"

Trunks didn't realize he'd gotten lost in his thoughts, until he heard young Gohan's voice break through his memories and bring him back to reality.

"Earth to Trunks!" Gohan said loudly.

"Huh?" Trunks looked over at Gohan. 'How long was he calling me?' he wondered, a little embarrassed.

"Do you have any idea about what kind of creature it could've been back there?"

"Nope. Afraid not…but whatever it was, it was just about the ugliest thing I've ever seen."

"Man! You're not kidding! That thing almost made me sick to my stomach!" Trunks chuckled at that statement. "Hey, you said that it probably got here four years ago, right?"

"Yeah. At least that's what the time indicator read before the batteries went dead. Why?"

"I just find it hard to believe that a creature like that could be here for four whole years without anyone noticing it. Doesn't that seem a little weird to you?"

"Yeah, but what I wanna know is who sent it here and for what reason."

"Well, if it really did travel from the future," Charisma said. "Do you think that may also explain why this timeline went off the rails as much as it has?"

"That's very likely...if one person traveling a timeline can cause a shift, it only makes sense that multiple people traveling must cause even worse damage."

Charisma nodded back at him. She sped up to fly side by side with him. "This is really like a nightmare...and the fact that there's a weird monster lurking in this world somewhere is unnerving to say the least. But at least, we're a step closer to figuring out this mess, don't you think?"

"That's true," Trunks agreed. He looked over at Charisma as she soared beside him. Their gazes met and he felt happiness. 'This really is Charisma...this might not have been the way I thought or hoped to find her…' Trunks softly smiled. 'But I found her...that's all that matters to me.'

Charisma felt her heart throb wildly at his smile. Cheeks burning bright, but happiness filling her heart, too, Charisma smiled back at him wholeheartedly.