The ship hurtled through space, two of the occupants training intensely as they neared their destination. One was Trunks, son of Vegeta, scourge of the Androids and saviour of the human race. The other was Pan, daughter of Trunks' master, Gohan. It had been by complete luck that Trunks discovered her as he helped repair the world after the Androids, as he just so happened to be in Satan City when he witnessed the young child easily lift a steel girder like it weighed a feather. Naturally, he had to inquire about her and at first, all he learnt was that she was the granddaughter of Hercule, the World Champion that the city was named after. Then, he found Pan's mother and it was during the conversation that Videl revealed Gohan as Pan's father. To say that Trunks was surprised that his master had a secret fling was an understatement. He always seemed so busy, diligently training and coming up with ways to try and defeat the Androids, that a relationship seemed impossible. After all, Trunks rarely left his side, but Videl revealed that Gohan usually came at night, pressured by the weight of the world he carried and that it was the only time he could really let that weight go, even if only temporarily. At first, Trunks was upset that his master would keep a secret from him, feeling that as brothers, there were no secrets between them (after all, as a young teen, Trunks had once confessed to Gohan about his physical attraction to Android 18 and his feelings of disgust and self-loathing. Gohan didn't judge him any different for it). However, Trunks quickly got over it and decided to do for Pan what her father did for him and he began training her. At first, Videl was uneasy about the idea, but soon came around as she realised it was the best for her daughter to be around someone just like her. For someone who had very little training, Pan was quite the student and she swiftly became adept at the lessons, wanting to be a hero like her father, a man she never got to know and Trunks felt himself reflected in the little girl and he swore to himself that she would not have the same life that he did and he did his best to tell her stories about Gohan so she knew what kind of man he was.

"Masenko!" Pan cried as she unleashed the attack.

Trunks blocked the attack and held it off until it was over and then she flew at him. He deflected her blows, impressed with her speed and skill and how much she'd grown in the short time he'd been training her. He saw an opening in her assault and he struck and she flew across the chamber and slammed against the wall. She winced and Trunks worried for a moment, but she shrugged it off and attempted another assault. This time, Trunks hit her with a ki ball and Pan shoved it aside, unleashing a barrage of her own ki blasts. Trunks blocked the assault with his body and when the young girl finally let up, he put his hands to the side of his body.

"Galick Gun!"

Pan took the blast head-on, utilising every inch of her Saiyan strength to hold the attack off, but the force of the beam slowly pushed her across the gravity chamber. She gritted her teeth, trying her best, but the attack was too strong, there was a flash of gold and Trunks went Super Saiyan and the Galick Gun slammed Pan against the wall. Trunks stopped the move and powered down and floated over to the panting Pan and held out his hand to her.

"No fair," his student groaned as she took his hand. "You went Super Saiyan."

"Combat is never fair," Trunks said. "The tide of the battle can easily turn. You just hope it turns in your favour."

"If I could turn Super Saiyan, that might help," Pan said.

"You will. You will get there, I promise you. You're getting stronger every day. I'm impressed."

Pan smiled at the praise. "Maybe one day, I might beat you."

Trunks playfully winced. "I wouldn't go that far, but you never know. Come on, let's take a break."

He powered down the gravity chamber and left with Pan by his side, the two making their way to the command centre of the ship, where Android 16 was in control, piloting the ship towards their destination. Following his battle with Cell, Trunks had gone to Dr. Gero's laboratory, intent on destroying the madman's work once and for all. While there, he discovered 16's pod and remembering the Android's peaceful nature and sacrifice in the past, he decided to bring the Android to his mother to check the programming (Bulma had freaked at the thought of a third Android, but Trunks calmed her down after telling her about the past version) and awaken him to become a new protector of the planet.

"How close are we?" Trunks asked.

"We are nearing our destination," 16 replied and he pointed at a speck in the distance. "There. At our current speed, I estimate thirty minutes until our arrival."

"Let's not waste any time then," Trunks said as he slid into the co-pilot's seat.

Previous attempts at getting to Namek had been constantly thwarted in the past by the Androids. Now, with them gone, Bulma was free to finally build a ship capable of sustaining flight to the distant planet. It had taken her longer than she thought due to the scarcity of parts, but she managed in the end, because of course she did, she was a genius. She had wanted to return to Namek to see everyone again, but ultimately decided to stay behind, believing she was needed more on Earth to help restore the world.

Namek loomed closer with each passing second and Trunks felt nervousness tightening in his chest. On one hand, he knew the Namekians thought highly of his mother, but on the other, the same could not be said for his father and he worried about what would happen if he told them he was Vegeta's son. Would they refuse to help? Earth desperately needed the Dragonballs, but Trunks would respect any decision the Namekians made, even if it was a refusal. He just hoped they understood Earth's plight.

The ship passed through Namek's atmosphere and Trunks frowned at the sight of the landscape. The world his mother had described spoke of vibrant green-blue lands, mountains and gushing rivers. Here, the world was barren, huge slashes gouged through the ground and dead, broken trees lay scattered around the landscape. The broken shells of the Namekian homes could be seen in the distance and apart from the trio on the ship, there was not a living soul anywhere in sight.

"Where is everyone?" Pan asked. "You'd think they would come running if a spaceship came to their planet. I know I would."

"Let's find out," Trunks said and when the ship landed, he deployed the gang-walk. The rivers were barely a trickle and fish skeletons littered the shores. "What happened here?"

"My sensors are not detecting any life," 16 reported. "However, they are limited: I need to scope the entire planet to see if we are alone."

"Strange. Not even the Dragon Radar is registering anything," Trunks commented, staring at the contraption.

"Maybe it's broken," Pan suggested. "It is old."

The half-Saiyan shook his head. "Whenever she could, my mother always maintained the Radar. I guess she knew that one day, we would eventually get to Namek."

"We should move," 16 suggested. "Perhaps we can learn what has happened here."

The trio took to the sky and not one of them noticed the scout watching them go, sending the message through to its master. As they flew, 16 scanned the terrain, his life detector coming up empty as they passed over wrecked villages. Trunks noticed the skeletal remains of Namekians and he glanced at Pan, worried about her as she looked upon the scenery of death. She looked troubled and Trunks flew to her side, taking her hand in his in reassurance.

"Don't worry, we'll find someone," he said. "There is bound to be someone here." He looked at 16. "Right?"

"Negative," 16 answered. "All signs of life appear to have been eliminated. Reasons are yet unknown." They passed over yet another ruined village and the Android suddenly stopped. "Wait. I am detecting an energy signal. It is very faint. I am having trouble pinpointing its exact location." He slowly rotated in the air, Trunks and Pan patiently watching him and he finally stopped. "This way."

The two hybrids followed the Android as he led them across Namek's ruined surface. They eventually came to a mountain and 16 stopped once more. "It is coming from within this mountain, yet my scanners do not detect a way inside."

Trunks circled the mountain. It was huge and ended in the ocean, easily capable of hiding a village or two inside. The trick was to find that way inside…he paused, looking at the waters below. "You two stay here and keep an eye out."

"What are you doing?" Pan asked.

"I'm going to find a way in."

He sucked in a breath and dropped into the ocean. Naturally, it got darker the deeper he dived and he lit up a ki ball to use as a light source as he approached the bottom of the ocean. As a half-Saiyan, Trunks was capable of holding his breath for longer than that of a regular human, but he could feel the need to breathe creeping up on his mind. If he didn't find an entrance soon, he would have to surface and try again…a sliver of darkness that appeared larger than normal! He put on a burst of speed and approached the sliver and sure enough, it was an opening into the mountain. Praying he didn't enter the home of a dangerous sea beast and in need of another breath, Trunks swam into the cave. Almost immediately, an intense vortex sucked him deeper into the cave and Trunks felt his body's natural instinct to panic with all the water rushing around him, his brain screamed for air, his ears felt like they were going to pop and as he continued to tumble through the dark cavernous depths, his mind raced with thoughts of his mother, his protégé, that he was an idiot who was about to die in the ocean of a distant planet…

Just as he thought he was about to pass out, there was light and Trunks was forced through the surface by the pressure of the rapids and he sucked in a much needed breath, his lungs heaving for air and he coughed, his vision clearing as air returned to his body, his heart pounding in his chest and he took a moment to curse himself for his foolishness. If he had died, what would happen to Earth's defences then? Hadn't he learnt in the past not to stupid things that could end in his death?

Once he was done chastising himself, Trunks checked his surroundings and found himself in a wide cave, the light coming from the torches hammered into the walls. He drew his sword, unsure of what he might find, hoping it was friendly. His senses were stretched to their max as he descended further into the cave, trying to find the energy 16 had discovered. So far, he felt nothing as he moved deeper into the mountain, the torches getting stretched further from each other and he ignited his aura, careful to keep his power level down as much as he could. Deeper and deeper into the winding tunnel Trunks went and he wondered how long he'd been inside, until the tunnel finally widened into another cave and Trunks found the source of the energy: a sphere that contained only a single Namekian in a meditating state. Trunks slowly sheathed his sword and approached the sphere and the Namekian slowly opened his eyes.

"You should not be here," the Namekian growled as a stern warning. "Now, he'll come."

"Who's he?" Trunks asked. "Who are you? Where is everyone?"

Outside the mountain, as the single sun started to set and darkness loomed on the horizon, young Pan looked to the sky and panic filled her tiny body.

"16, what is that?" she cried, pointing to the sky.

16 faced the cause of her alarm, his sensors scanning the massive structure. "Trunks needs to hurry up. We need to leave immediately. We are in great danger if we remain here."