Goku wasn't surprised when I appeared. The short Namekian who accompanied me was what caught the Saiyan off guard.

"Dende?!" Goku practically freaked out. "What are you doing here?!"

"I'm here to help." The young Namekian clenched his fists and looked up at Goku. "I'm Earth's new Guardian."

"Okay," Goku responded. "Piccolo?"

"Okay." The Super Namekian walked up to Dende. "Dende, being Guardian isn't an easy job. You need to maintain the Dragon Balls. In addition, you have to protect and oversee everyone on the planet. Are you ready for this kind of responsibility and power?"

"Yes," answered the young Namekian.

"Let's go to the Lookout." Without warning, Goku put his hands on Piccolo and Dende. Then, they disappeared.

Krillin, still laying in his lawn chair, took off his sunglasses. "Are they gone?"

"Yeah," I told him.

"Good." He put the glasses over his eyes and fell asleep almost instantly.

I went inside and sat down on the couch next to Oolong. He and Roshi had fallen asleep, leaving the television on. The program they'd been watching was over, replaced by the news.

"Breaking news!" I heard a woman's voice exclaim. "The Gingertown Monster has struck again, this time in nearby Swatzville!" A picture of Cell's footprint appeared on the screen. "Researchers found a strange footprint with three long toes, suggesting that the creature we are dealing with is over five feet (1.5 meters) tall and isn't a mammal. Other information regarding the beast has been kept confidential."

I turned off the television. "So...Cell's on the move." Then, I sensed something: a burst of energy suddenly appeared. "Trunks!" I used Instant Transmission to go to Goku's house right away.

Gohan and Super Saiyan Trunks were outside. "Is everything all right?!" I asked.

"Define everything," said a cold, familiar-sounding male behind me. I turned around to see the Androids standing there on the path.

"Everything: pronoun - all that exists; all that relates to -"

"Can it, 16," ordered Android 18.

"What shall I can?" asked the robot.

"Ugh!" groaned the blonde Android.

I went Super Saiyan. "You're not getting past us."

"Oh, are you sure?" boasted 17.

"Oh, I'm sure," I replied. Then, I got into a fighting stance. "Let's tango."

Trunks and I jumped at the Androids. I was the first one to actually hit a target: Android 17's cheek. Trunks managed to get kneed in the stomach by 18 right away. 16 just played peacefully with the animals that came up to him.

Gohan snuck up behind Android 18 while she was laughing at Trunks. "HAAAA!" he shouted, releasing a fully charged Masenko. 18 was pushed by it, tripping over Trunks and landing face-first in the dirt. Trunks got up and slammed himself on to her back, using his elbow to cause additional damage.

Meanwhile, I was fighting 17. "My, you seem stronger than I remember."

I punched him where his spleen would be, causing him to double over. "You could say that. By the way, guess what."

"What?"

"KAIOKEN!"

"Kaio-what?" I kicked 17's stomach really hard, sending him into the air. Then, I repeatedly kicked and punched him around for a minute, each blow's shockwave leveling the unlucky trees that were too close.

I ended by double-fisting my opponent into a large boulder, shattering the rock. Then, I flew down and grabbed him by the neck. "Give up before I do to you what you did to Gero."

He managed to say, "Never."

"Are you sure?" When I didn't get an answer, I said, "Your choice." I dropped him on to the ground like he was trash. "Now die!" I chopped his head off and smashed it by stomping on it. Then, I released my Kaioken. Android 17 had fallen.

Trunks wasn't doing as well. Android 18 had gotten the upper hand and kicked Trunks into the woods, knocking down a few dozen trees. Then, she had climbed on to him and punched his face repeatedly. Gohan had been knocked to the side; he was laying on the ground, blood all over his arm, trying to get a Senzu Bean out of his pocket with his "good" hand. Even that hand had a lot of cuts, though. (It was totally not his fapping hand. Wink, wink.)

I rushed over and got my only Senzu Bean out. Then, I fed it to Gohan. "Thanks," he said.

"No problem." Then, I went over and palm-struck the blond Android in the back of her head, forcing her off of my friend. "Trunks, you okay down there?"

He sat up and sent a back-fist into 18's side. "I think I'm all right. 17?"

"Gone."

"What?!" 18 exclaimed.

Before she could react, I pinned her to the ground and motioned for Trunks to go after 16. "Give up before I reunite you with your brother," I told 18 once Trunks and Gohan were gone.

"Never." She was being somewhat selfish, similar to her brother.

I got her in a headlock and carried her over to 17's remains. "I did that single-handedly. Do you really want to be next?"

"No..." Her tears — HUMAN tears — hit my hand. "My brother... What have you done?!"

"He didn't want to give up," I answered. "Now, let me ask you again: Do you give up?"

"Y...ye...n..." She was conflicted.

"What's wrong, too confused?" I mocked.

"Must...override...programming," she mumbled.

"Oh, okay," I said, this time without being rude or threatening. "You're afraid of death, but your programming is telling you to keep fighting. You know what, I'll take that as an 'I give up.'" I let go of her, and she collapsed on the ground in a fit of tears. "Just know that if you ever try to kill Goku, I'll kill you first," I said forcefully. "Got it?"

"Y...yes," she stuttered.

I turned around to face the other fighters. 16 was just standing still, refusing to fight. Trunks and Gohan were in their fighting stances, waiting for 16 to make the first move.

I walked over. "Are you guys going to attack him or not?"

"But I don't want to hurt the animals!" complained Gohan.

"For the last time, Gohan, they're just finches and squirrels!" shouted Trunks. "There's thousands more out in the wild!"

"I enjoy the wild," said 16 randomly. "It has the birds and the rodents."

"16, are you still planning to kill Goku?" I asked.

"Affirmative." The red-haired Android didn't look away from his animal friends.

"What's your plan after that?" I asked.

"I wish to wander into the wilderness and live with bears until my hard drive crashes."

"So you don't want to be evil?!" Trunks was surprised.

"That is correct," said 16. "I am only programmed to destroy Son Gokú, and nothing else."

"How about we make a deal?" I said. "You decide not to kill Goku, and I won't kill you."

"I am required to kill Son Gokú."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"One hundred percent?"

"Affirmative."

"Fine." I reactivated my small Kaioken and ran up to him, scaring away all the animals. While 16 was reaching out towards them, I formed an energy ball in my left fist. "You will not kill Goku!" I shouted. Then, I released the energy ball; it completely disintegrated its target.

Trunks and Gohan were startled by my sudden ruthlessness. "Frui, are you all right?" asked Trunks.

"I'm okay," I said while releasing my Kaioken. "I've just got a lot of adrenaline in my system right now."

Trunks shrugged his shoulders and powered down. I did the same, my blond hair returning to its normal brown.

"What about her?" Gohan asked. He pointed at the still-weeping Android 18.

"She knows not to kill Goku," I said. "We should leave her alone, though; she's not taking her brother's death very well."

Trunks walked up to her and put his hand on her shoulder aggressively. "Just know that if you ever step out of line, somebody will be there to stop and kill you."

She nodded her head. "Okay." Then, she returned to crying. Her constant weeping was starting to make me feel pity.

"We should go, Trunks," said Gohan.

"Fine," Trunks said. "Let's go."

Trunks, Gohan, and I then flew in the direction of Kami's Lookout. Along the way, I told them everything that had happened except that my feet had regrown.

"So Dende is at the Lookout?!" Gohan exclaimed joyously.

"Yeah," I said. "Goku and Piccolo are there, too."

"So Goku's cured." Trunks chuckled. "Today feels like the best day ever. We beat the Androids, Goku survived, and Earth got a new Guardian!"

Hey, guys! Wow, it's been a while. The Androids have officially been defeated, so that's one fewer threat to the world. Another threat has been tamed, too; because 17 is dead, Cell will never become perfect...or will he?

Also, when Android 16 was defining "everything," he was quoting The Merriam-Webster Dictionary (new edition). I have the app on my phone, so that makes it easy to access.

Power Levels:
SSJ Frui (Kaioken x1.1): 1,562,000,000
Gohan (post-Zenkai): 16,750,000 (It was a small Zenkai.)