"So, how is he?"
As he spoke, Goku and Bulma stood next to each other as they regarded the deactivated body of Android 16, who had finally agreed to shut himself down in order for Bulma to slowly work towards "repairing" him in an effort to eliminate his simplistic directive of murdering the Saiyan warrior. Bulma chuckled in response to Goku's pointed inquiry, the weight of the last seven hours of her life upon her more than evident in her tone.
"Oh, it was a little tricky. I've dabbled in robotics before, obviously, but I've never tried to program anything quite as complex as this guy, much less reprogram! Still, I...mostly succeeded."
Goku frowned at that as he pondered just what Bulma wasn't saying. "'Mostly succeeded?'" he asked, prompting her to reluctantly elaborate.
"Well, truth be told, I was able to purge most of the whole 'Destroy, destroy!' programming from his operating systems, but without it, he doesn't really have all that much to begin with. So, I decided to get rid of the ugly bits and put the rest of it to use in a more...constructive direction." Her evasive phrasing only served to confuse Goku more, who found himself growing slightly concerned.
"And what do you mean by that?" he asked, to which Bulma remained silent for a moment before finally giving in and clarifying even further.
"When he wakes up, he's gonna want to fight you. Like, all the time. Non-lethally, of course, but that's pretty much gonna be his sole purpose in life unless he finds something else." Goku was left to ponder that for a moment before he simply chuckled to himself.
"So what you're saying is that I should send him Piccolo and Tien's way?" he asked, to which Bulma laughed out loud as she contemplated their reactions.
"Oh, man, they'd hate the fact that you've got a way stronger rival now!" she said, still chuckling as Goku thought about it a bit longer.
"Well, if it makes them feel any better, I can't imagine he can get much stronger than he is, being a robot and all, so if Piccolo and Tien keep training until they're stronger than me, they'll also probably get stronger than him too before long." At this, however, another question occurred to him, one which he had been wondering about ever since Android 16 was activated. "Say, do you have any idea how he got to be that strong anyway? As far as we knew, the twins were the strongest of Dr. Gero's creations, and even they aren't as strong as me or Vegeta, not to mention the Gohan from his future." Bulma brought her hands together, eager at the opportunity to finally dig into what she had found with someone other than her father.
"Okay, so get this," she began as Goku drew all of his attention to her. "Now, part of his power came from those weird energy absorbers he's got embedded into his palms, but even without them, his base power is still pretty insane. Around as powerful as you or Vegeta can get as a Super Saiyan, so either of you could have probably taken him...were it not for those gems of his. At first, I was racking my brain trying to figure out how Dr. Gero could have built something so powerful with his limited resources, and it wasn't until I delved deeper into Android 16's memory files that I finally got both the schematics for Android 16's various components...and the history of where he got them from." As Goku leaned forward intent upon learning more, Bulma continued with the enthusiasm of a lecturer. "Dr. Gero went through fifteen previous androids before finally making Android 16, as well as three proper "Android" models after him: the twins, 17 and 18, and an 'Android 19' who was scrapped once the means to make those 'Saiborgs' of his practically dropped into his lap. Every single one of those purely artificial models was deemed a failure and destroyed, with one exception that I'm told you would be familiar with." At this, Goku nodded in recognition.
"Eighter, or, uh, Android 8, I mean, yeah. Man...it's been a while," Goku replied, idly thinking about popping over to Jingle Village at some point to see how they were doing.
"Mhm. With him safe and sound, that left Dr. Gero with components from fifteen other models to use...specifically their reactors," Bulma explained, causing Goku's eyes to widen.
"Wait a second, you're saying that he-?"
"-Daisy chained sixteen different artificial ki generators together, resulting in a combined potential energy output exponentially greater than the sum of their parts? Yeah, yeah he did," Bulma confirmed, a little bit smug about having uncovered that particular piece of information and savoring Goku's reaction of wide-eyed astonishment. It was, oddly enough, strangely nostalgic.
"Man, you really are the smartest!" Goku added, causing Bulma to blush slightly at the praise before another question occurred to him. "But wait, that still doesn't explain why he wouldn't use 16 in the future. With power like that, he could've..." Goku trailed off, not particularly eager to finish that sentence, while Bulma picked up on that and looked somewhat uncomfortable herself.
"Well, uh, that would probably be due to something else I found in his memory files," Bulma remarked carefully before pulling up the file on a holographic video device she had cobbled together in her spare time. As Goku watched the brief recording play out before his eyes, he couldn't help but wince as the camera that the redheaded figure used to record his video call abruptly cut out just as a massive beam of blue ki tore through the room...and the rest of the Red Ribbon's headquarters. Once the video ended, he and Bulma looked at each other for a moment, the latter silently reaching out a hand for the former to take as he contemplated what he had done.
"So that means he was-?" he asked, to which she wordlessly nodded. "And that means that I-?" he asked before she nodded again, causing him to turn towards the deactivated Android 16 and find himself unexpectedly filled with some slight sympathy for the old doctor that had devoted the remainder of his life towards plotting his death. He definitely wasn't about to condone Dr. Gero's actions by any stretch of the imagination, particularly considering how his most powerful creation continued to wreak havoc in the future timeline that Future Vegeta had come from. Even still, if nothing else...Goku could at least understand what drove the man to do what he did.
He had wanted to kill the man who took his son away from him too.
"I can't be the only one who thinks that was too easy."
As Future Vegeta spoke, the rest of the Earth's warriors and several of their respective partners were sat at various locations in one of the lounges at Capsule Corporation, having elected to remain on standby just in case Android 16 suddenly activated once Goku was returned from the deserted planet that Future Vegeta had taken him to. Tien gave the Saiyan side eye with all three of his eyes, while Krillin simply rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.
"You have an interesting definition of 'easy,'" Tien remarked, his skepticism evident.
"Not to mention, you know what they say about looking a gift horse in the mouth!" Krillin added on, to which Yamcha nodded in agreement.
"I'll say. Any battle where I don't lose an arm is a win in my book," Yamcha said, causing Future Vegeta to wince as he realized he'd never actually formally apologized for any of what Nappa had done under his command to the people that had actually been injured.
"Ah, right, I've been meaning to apologize for that. I know it was technically Nappa who actually cut it off, but as you know, somebody was quick to point out that the crimes of one's minions still count, as it were," Future Vegeta said, to which Blonde Launch smirked as she reached for something that she kept in the back pocket of her shorts. Yamcha simply shrugged.
"Eh, it got better," he said rather nonchalantly. "And hey, if anything, all the speculation from my fans about how that happened is its own form of repayment." Future Vegeta chuckled awkwardly along with Yamcha before turning to Tien.
"I should also apologize for the battle with Nappa leaving you in a coma."
"Naturally," Tien said, in a tone which made it hard to tell just how he felt about that.
"And for you being shot through the chest in his final moments."
"Eh, I'd just stuffed your soul into a rice cooker for all eternity, I kinda had it coming," Master Roshi argued jokingly, to which Future Vegeta chuckled uneasily yet again.
"And for Nappa, well, killing you, again."
"...Thanks," Chiaotzu said after a moment's pause, seeming to be rather caught up in some internal dilemma that only Tien and Blonde Launch seemed to recognize immediately.
"I would point out that leaving me an inch from the grave was all you, although to be fair, I had already replied in kind," Piccolo remarked with a smirk of his own, one that made Future Vegeta genuinely chuckle for the first time since he sat down.
"Indeed. I still feel a bit of stiffness from that little bout," Future Vegeta remarked as he gestured towards the area where he had been hit with a two-handed Special Beam Cannon blast. "But even so, I am sorry. I must admit I'm surprised by how nonchalant most of you seem to be after everything was all said and done, but...I can't say I don't appreciate it." In the corner of his third eye, Tien spotted Blonde Launch finishing her recording of Future Vegeta's apologies and turned all three eyes upon her with a disapproving expression.
"Launch, he's already humbled himself enough while he's here, I don't see the point in rubbing it in," he said, prompting Blonde Launch to laugh.
"What, Future Me wanted video proof of him actually apologizing for things! I'm just making sure she gets her wish!" Blonde Launch said in defense of herself, to which Future Vegeta couldn't help but laugh out loud.
"Rest assured, Launch, she has already gotten vindication on that front," Future Vegeta clarified before looking at the woman's present-day counterpart and smiling slightly. "It really is amazing to properly interact with you all outside of a battlefield or a crisis situation, as...well, comrades or acquaintances at the very least." The rest of the group nodded; even if Future Vegeta was demonstrably not the same person he had been before, they hadn't really known him in this incarnation long enough to really call him a friend. "I can't help but be taken back to that time all those years ago when I see you all looking so young and vibrant again." As he looked around at the rest of them with a somewhat nostalgic look on his face, Chi Chi opted to finally clear her throat and speak up for the first time since they had all sat down, with a somewhat pointed look on her face.
"Well, if you'll excuse me, I'll go meet up with my husband. He's probably just about done checking up on the redheaded death robot by now," she said dryly, about to walk away when Future Vegeta piped up, having just remembered something important.
"Ah, yes, one other thing: me and Kakarot were discussing the possibility of utilizing the Hyperbolic Time Chamber on the Lookout to train together for nearly two years, so that I may hopefully be ready to defeat the Cell of my time sooner rather than later. Kakarot seemed eager at the chance to face me again after all this time, particularly since he never got the chance to face me on Namek. However, he worried that, since the Hyperbolic Time Chamber is technically an alternate dimension apart from Earth, entering it in order to train would constitute a violation of your...arrangement. Therefore, I was hoping to obtain your permission for us to do so." By the end of his request, Future Vegeta found himself becoming slightly nervous as Chi Chi simply stood there, the imperceptible clenching of her fist the only indication that she was upset.
"I see," she said simply, in a tone that Future Vegeta had learned to fear almost as much as Future Bulma's. "I'll be sure to keep you posted," she finished before slamming the door, leaving the room in a rather awkward silence for a few minutes before Piccolo, apparently under duress from a certain voice in his head, attempted to lighten the mood at the recommendation of another.
"I suppose he will be 'sleeping on the couch tonight,' as it were," he said, his dry delivery of the joke somehow making it even more humorous to the warriors assembled, with even Future Vegeta nervously chuckling while Blonde Launch and Master Roshi both fell to the floor as they were overcome with laughter. Piccolo groaned as Kami chuckled in his mind.
"Timing, my young friend, it's all about timing."
"Oh, shut up, old man."
"What were you thinking this time?!"
"Now, Chi Chi, I know the timing isn't great, but-!"
"First you show up half-dead on our doorstep after Vegeta of all people stopped a planet-exploding ball of death from blowing you up!" Chi Chi began in a way that made it clear to Goku that he would not get a word in until she was finished. "Then, as soon as you miraculously recover from a deadly heart virus for which there is currently no cure, you wind up spending almost a day alone on a deserted planet! And now that you've finally come back from that, you're gonna go and disappear into another dimension for the next two years of your life, and I'm just supposed to be okay with that?! No! You promised that you'd stay with me as soon as you got back from space, and I swear to Dende, I am going to hold you to that, do you understand me?!" As Chi Chi finished her rant, Goku found himself distracted by a minor detail within her argument.
"Okay, I know I was off the planet for that whole thing, but have you and the others been using Dende's name in place of Kami's regularly since he became the Guardian, or-?"
"Honey, focus!" Chi Chi interrupted, bringing Goku away from his tangent and back to the matter at hand. He laughed in his classic reassuring way that, as much as Chi Chi loved hearing it, had long since stopped working when it came to getting him out of trouble.
"Look, Chi Chi, I understand why you're upset, but I promise you, this is gonna be the last time. Literally; after this, the Time Chamber won't even let me in anymore, unless I somehow die and get revived again to reset the clock. And, as honestly tempting as it might be for me to do that to get more training in at some point, I wouldn't risk it even if I hadn't also just heard about an alternate timeline where dying of the wrong thing led to me being dead dead and everything kinda going to heck." Having found himself lost on another tangent, one pointed look from Chi Chi was enough to get Goku's mind back on track. "The point is, I promise that I'll be sticking around after this. No more exceptions, no more alternate dimensions, none of that. Just two days for you and Gohan, and then I'll be back! Easy as that!" At this, however, Chi Chi sighed.
"Two days for us, but two years for you," she pointed out in a somewhat mournful tone. "I can't imagine being out on your own in space for four months was all that easy to begin with; do you really think you can handle two whole years away from everybody, with only Vegeta for company?" At this question, Goku chuckled good-naturedly.
"Aw, c'mon, this future version of Vegeta doesn't seem that bad!" he said in Future Vegeta's defense before an idea occurred to him. "Besides, if we're lucky, this'll be all he needs to become stronger than this Cell guy, and then he can go back home to his family in the future way sooner than he might have otherwise! Don't you think that's worth a couple years of my time?" At this, Chi Chi admittedly found herself stumped before she sighed.
"You make a good point," she conceded before shaking her head. "But I still don't know whether I'm entirely comfortable having me and Gohan miss two whole birthdays of yours." Goku chuckled again before quickly thinking of something to make Chi Chi feel a bit better.
"Well, to pass the time while I'm gone, maybe you could start planning a two-in-one birthday party for the two of us! Invite everybody over, get them to bring gifts, make four cakes-!"
"Do you really think everyone's going to be able to eat four-oh wait, I forgot who I was talking to," Chi Chi said dryly before playfully ruffling Goku's hair as he thought of something else.
"And just think about this: a lot can happen in two years' time," Goku began with a slightly mischievous smile on his face, giving Chi Chi pause.
"...Meaning?" she finally dared to ask, allowing Goku to prepare the coup de gras.
"Imagine if, the moment you saw me come out of the Time Chamber, I had...a full beard," Goku suggested, barely holding back his snicker as he watched Chi Chi's face turn crimson at the mental image that Goku's remark had generated.
"That...was low, Son Goku," Chi Chi countered before Goku's raucous laughter became contagious and she was left giggling at the situation in spite of herself. Only Goku seemed able to disarm the usually strict and straight-laced Ox Princess so, and she loved him all the more for it. When the two of them were left in silence, Goku decided to speak up.
"I promise, from the bottom of my heart. This'll be the last time," he said, causing Chi Chi to sigh as she moved in to hug her husband, having finally made her decision on the issue.
"Alright, you can go...on one condition," she said, causing Goku to nod once in agreement.
"Name it," he said expectantly, leading to her pausing as she laid it out for him.
"Wait a week, at the very least," she said simply, with the desperation in her voice making it clear to Goku that she needed him to listen to her on this. "Preferably a month, if Vegeta is willing to wait that long. You don't need to do anything special; I've got Piccolo doing most of the work around the house. All I need is for you to be around." At this, Chi Chi paused, trying to figure out how best to explain what he had missed. "Gohan, he's...he's been doing better, but he's still having difficulties after...after everything that happened. I've done everything I can do, but you...you more than anyone understand the weight on his shoulders. You need to talk to him. Please."
Goku could only stand there stunned; he'd had no idea, but all the same...he was sad to say that it didn't exactly surprise him. He had never had too much trouble coping with the realities of his life when he was a kid, but at the same time...his world had been smaller then. The most dangerous threat he'd ever had to face while he was as small and tiny as his son was King Piccolo, and comparing that demonic scourge to all of the threats that Gohan had to deal with from an even younger age than when Goku had started out...there was no contest. Goku knew that his wife was right, although he wasn't sure how much he would be able to help. He'd never been super great with words, and if he was being entirely honest, a part of him was worried about what he might hear once he sat down and tried to talk to Gohan about everything that had happened.
Everything that his son had suffered, on some level, because of him.
"I'll talk to him," he said firmly. "And I'll talk to future Vegeta, see if I can get him to wait a month before going in. I figure he's probably got things to keep him busy." He tried for a chuckle that didn't quite work for a joke that didn't quite land, as Chi Chi instead sighed in acceptance that she had more or less gotten what she wanted in exchange for this final trip away from her.
"Just remember: you aren't staying in there a second longer than you have to, okay?"
"Got it, but like, I literally can't; I'll be trapped forever if I stay any longer."
"Sweetie, that is not helping my anxiety about this situation."
"Sorry, sorry," Goku said consolingly before that same smirk passed across his face. "Should I make sure to come out of the chamber with a full beard?"
"No!" Chi Chi cried out in protest, turning crimson yet again before leaning her head back onto his shoulder. "Yes," she whispered, causing Goku and eventually Chi Chi to laugh a little to themselves once more before they pulled away from their embrace and looked into each other's eyes.
To say things hadn't been easy for them would have been an understatement. There was the arranged nature of their marriage coupled with Goku's complete misunderstanding of the concept, of course, not to mention the initial turbulence of their dramatic reunion at the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament and the rise of Piccolo. Even after all of that had settled down and they enjoyed several years of peace, there was still the complete cavalcade of horrible circumstances in recent months that had nearly succeeded in tearing the two of them apart from each other time and time again through no fault of their own. And yet, despite all of the challenges that they faced, they faced them together, and neither of them would have it otherwise. Although they'd known it in their hearts for some time now, everything they had been through only served to reinforce it more:
She truly loved him.
He truly loved her.
And that's all there was to it.
"Well...she said yes."
This statement, delivered by Goku as he addressed the crowd assembled at Capsule Corp while Chi Chi took off on Kintoun towards home, pleased Future Vegeta the most, who breathed a sigh of relief at not having permanently incurred her wrath.
"Splendid! Are you prepared to depart immediately?" he asked, to which Goku chuckled.
"Nah, Chi Chi wants me to wait a month," Goku replied, to which Future Vegeta nodded. From his perspective, it seemed more than fair after she had been separated from her husband for several months with no clue as to his condition. Although no longer quite as urgent, he figured he might as well do what he had been planning on doing now anyway.
"Very well!" Future Vegeta said. "Roshi, if you would do the honors, as we discussed?" he asked, to which Master Roshi chuckled as he focused intently on Future Vegeta's mind for a moment, plumbing the depths of his memories until he got the information he needed.
"Hoo wee!" he exclaimed once he had finished. "Well, this'll be tricky to figure out, but certainly worth the effort!" he remarked, causing Goku to cock his head in confusion for a moment before understanding dawned and he looked at Future Vegeta indignantly.
"Hang on, why share your memories of how to do Instant Transmission with him and not me?" Goku asked, bummed that he wouldn't get to learn the technique just yet. Future Vegeta simply chuckled as he looked at his old rival.
"Because, Kakarot, unlike you, Roshi will actually teach it to everyone else," Future Vegeta explained, leaving Goku speechless as he reckoned with the brutal accuracy of that assessment.
"Okay, point taken," he conceded with his trademark relaxed chuckle. "Can I at least learn it while we're in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber?"
Future Vegeta sighed. "I think it would be better for us to focus on refining the Super Saiyan form together," he argued. "You may have greater raw power using it than I do, but I have far greater experience using it in a manner that is far less physically draining. I think we can both learn from each other when it comes to this transformation."
Goku nodded. "Alright, fair enough. So, you mind taking me home? It'll be nice to visit the place now that the situation isn't quite so dire, plus...I've got some stuff I need to do," he remarked, to which Future Vegeta nodded in turn as he put two fingers to his forehead.
"Of course," he replied before teleporting both himself and Goku to his home, leaving the room silent for a moment before Master Roshi spoke up.
"So, it'll probably take me a while to get the hang of this, but I'd be alright with staying at your place while I figure it out, if you'll have me," Master Roshi suggested to Blue Launch, leaving Tien and Chiaotzu somewhat concerned while Blue Launch simply smiled.
"Of course, we'd be happy to have you," she replied, deciding to trust that the old man wouldn't get up to any funny business while he was staying with the three of them. As irritating as he could be sometimes, a part of both personalities found themselves missing living at Kame House.
"In that case, I'd prefer if we left immediately," Tien remarked, keeping an eye on Master Roshi to try and sense any sign of ill intentions on his part. Finding none, he wordlessly nodded towards him as Blue Launch got up from her chair.
"Well, alright then! I'll go ahead and whip up my famous Daikon-whoa!" she exclaimed as Tien swiftly moved to pull her into a bridal carry, only to giggle slightly as she realized what had happened. Without another word, the two took off into the sky, leaving Chiaotzu and Roshi to talk.
"You sure you're up for however many weeks of those two being adorable and reminding you of how frustratingly single you are?" he asked smugly, to which Master Roshi simply chuckled.
"I admit, I was jealous of Tien for a bit, but dying again made me reflect on some things; namely, that I should put my own pupils' happiness ahead of my own. I'm simply glad that Tien's finally found someone who cares about him," he said, being entirely serious while Chiaotzu simply waited for the other shoe to drop after a brief pause. "And who's also smoking hot!" he added gleefully, accompanied by his trademark wheezing laugh. "Seriously, I don't know what it is, but I'm clearly doing something right when my students find themselves hooking up with babe after babe after babe! First the Ox King, then Goku, then Tien, and now even Krillin's found somebody nice!" At this last remark, Krillin began blushing slightly as he tried to wave the compliment off.
"It's not like that," he countered weakly. "We only just met recently, and I-I don't even know whether or not she likes me that way!"
"Trust me, boy, she does," Master Roshi said with a smirk as Krillin scoffed.
"And how exactly do you know that-?" he began before his eyes widened as he remembered that his master could read minds...and subsequently began blushing up a storm. "I'm gonna go back to Kame House and check on the twins, you guys have fun training!" he said quickly before taking off into the sky, barely having the presence of mind to fly out the open skylight instead of simply smashing through the roof and leaving a hole in the building. Master Roshi began laughing even more as he turned back to look at Yamcha, who was busy smothering a laugh himself.
"And, of course, before he even started training, Yamcha here managed to score with-!"
At that precise moment, Bulma came in with one of Android 16's massive arms looped around her shoulder, evidently helping him as he briefly had to relearn how to walk. With her unexpected entrance, Master Roshi fell dead silent as Bulma caught the tail-end of what he was talking about and looked away awkwardly while Yamcha facepalmed at his master's awful timing.
"Ah. Right. Forgot that, uh, didn't work out," he said, unable to add anything else as both Bulma and Yamcha glared at him. Faced with the specter of Bulma's wrath, Roshi decided that discretion was the better part of valor and took off into the sky with Chiaotzu snickering behind him. As the two former lovers were left unsure how to follow up that disaster, Piccolo groaned before getting up from his own chair and announcing his departure.
"Well, since the threat seems to have passed and all of you seem to have completely forgotten that I am here, I will get back to doing something actually productive with my time," he said grumpily, readying himself to take off before Android 16 unexpectedly put a hand on his shoulder, leaving everyone else on their guard for a moment.
"You are the Demon King Piccolo, rival of Son Goku," the android stated simply.
"Not a demon, or a king anymore, but essentially, yes," Piccolo replied.
"I am also a rival of Son Goku," Android 16 added, causing Piccolo to chuckle.
"You propose an alliance, then?" he asked, to which the android nodded.
"The probability of either of us surpassing Son Goku with the other's assistance is greater
than the probability of either of us succeeding alone by 17%. Ergo, this is a mutually beneficial arrangement." With the android's explanation, Piccolo simply nodded.
"Then let us get to it," he said before the two took off, leaving Bulma and Yamcha alone.
"Sorry about Master Roshi," Yamcha eventually said, to which Bulma tried to wave him off.
"Nah, nah, it wasn't your fault. He's just a dumbass," Bulma replied, to which Yamcha found himself earnestly chuckling as he thought about his mentor.
"He's at least smart when it comes to martial arts," Yamcha argued, to which Bulma shrugged in acknowledgement before the two fell silent once more.
"Soooo...have you, uh, have you seen anyone lately?" Bulma asked, not sure what else to ask in this situation. Yamcha gave her a pointed look.
"Well, considering I've been back on Earth for hardly any time at all, I haven't exactly had many opportunities. Not to mention the only women who visited King Kai's planet were Fortuneteller Baba and this one 'Princess Snake' lady who apparently wanted him to testify in a divine suit against King Yemma for custody of her kids." At this, Bulma blinked a couple times in disbelief before Yamcha's next question threw her for a loop. "How about you? You've had a couple months to look around. Find anyone you fancy?" he asked, to which Bulma sighed.
"I haven't really been looking for a new boyfriend, to be honest. Or a girlfriend, for that matter," Bulma admitted. "After twelve years of on and off again, I kinda just want to be single for a while, you know?" Yamcha nodded in agreement with her reasoning, only for what she said next to throw him for a loop in turn. "Although, as far as one night stands go...Android 17 is rather handsome," she said, getting a certain look in her eye that Yamcha knew all too well.
"Bulma," he said in a fruitless effort to dissuade her, only for her to continue.
"Not to mention his augmentations raise all sorts of fascinating biological questions-"
"Bulma!" Yamcha cried, beginning to blush as the cursed conversation went on.
"Oh, what, Krillin can go fool around with a hot cyborg and I can't? I don't think so!" Bulma countered, to which Yamcha sighed with a fond, if somewhat exasperated, smile on his face.
"Never change, Bulma. Never change," Yamcha said before looking up towards the open skylight. "Anywho, I've been meaning to get something for Puar, so...until next time?" he asked, to which Bulma simply smiled, glad that they could still be friends after everything.
"Until next time," she said, waving him goodbye before he decided to get one last line in.
"If you bang any hot cyborgs, do me a favor and don't tell me about it," he said with a bit of
playful snark in his voice as Bulma scoffed.
"Oh, please, I was only 60...70% serious about that," she countered, to which Yamcha
chuckled, knowing his ex far too well to believe that statement.
"Of course you were," he said before taking off. "See you later!" he called out as he faded
from view, leaving Bulma alone in her laboratory. Just how she had wanted.
"Yeah," she said after a second, an indecipherable feeling in her chest. "See you."
It was a brisk fall evening in West City as Yamcha made his way downtown, walking fast, as he made his way to a comic book store which he knew had just received the latest volumes of all the manga that Puar liked. Yamcha never really understood the appeal in them, personally, but if it made Puar happy, it was more than worth the brief trip from his apartment and back. As was typical for an outing like this, Yamcha's appearance attracted plenty of stares from passersby no matter how well he succeeded in disguising himself: try as he might, his scar was just way too distinctive. He had quickly learned to tune out the whispers about where he had been all those months ago and what had happened to his arm, although he would occasionally be sure to remember the most outlandish of his fans' theories about it to share with Puar and his friends whenever they hung out. As he had predicted, nobody had yet landed on the true cause of his miraculous recovery; he promised himself that if anybody ever did, he was going to give that person an autograph and a check for a million zeni (which could technically also count as an autograph). Dende knows that they'd deserve it.
After making his way into the store itself, it was a simple matter to move around at a speed slow enough that he didn't knock anything over, yet fast enough that he could travel the length of the store and snatch all of the volumes he sought in a matter of minutes. He was so focused on obtaining these volumes, however, that he failed to notice a figure with stunning blue hair who was too absorbed in a book of her own to notice him in return. With a loud crash, the two collided and their respective books were strewn about everywhere as they both fell to the ground. Yamcha quickly moved to gather up all of his books before grabbing the stranger's in order to return it to her, an apology already on his lips before he even got a proper look at her.
"I'm terribly sorry about that, miss-" Yamcha began before his words died in his throat at the woman lying on the ground before him: a gorgeous young woman who seemed to be roughly his age, sporting a beautiful red dress and a green army jacket which, along with her noticeably muscular build, suggested that the woman was no stranger to strenuous physical activity. Left incapable of uttering anything other than a drawn out stunned exclamation, Yamcha was thankfully spared the prospect of embarrassing himself in front of this beautiful woman when she spoke up instead.
"Oh, it's no problem; this happens to me all the time," the woman replied easily, chuckling a little and waving her hand dismissively as she accepted the book Yamcha offered before her. "But thanks for grabbing that for me, mister-" she began before she found herself in a similar position to Yamcha, although thankfully much quicker at recovering once she realized just who she had bumped into. "Oh my gosh," she muttered, pointing a shaking finger at him in disbelief. "A-are you...are you Yamcha?!" Although Yamcha was no stranger to his fans being stunned upon meeting him, seeing someone so beautiful so eager to have run into him gave the human warrior the confidence boost he needed to recover from his stupor and flash her his literally trademarked smirk.
"The one and only," he replied smoothly, helping her off the ground as she squealed with delight.
"AHHH, this is amazing!" she cried happily, her book almost entirely forgotten as she turned her attention entirely towards him. "Oh man, I have so many questions! How did you get that scar over your eye?! Where were you after those aliens invaded?! What happened to your robot arm?! Why did you and Bulma Briefs break up four months ago, and was it related to how you both disappeared the month before that?! How do you keep your hair so spiky?! I HAVE TO KNOW!"
Although somewhat overwhelmed by the woman's enthusiasm, Yamcha kept up his relaxed appearance as a daring question entered his mind.
"Well, I would love to tell you all about that, miss, um-"
"Maron! Maron Maillot! Now tell! Me! EVERYTHING!" As her volume had begun to attract the attention of the other customers, Yamcha quietly paid for both his manga and Maron's own book as he continued to speak with her.
"Maron; a lovely name for a lovely lady," he said smoothly, taking a particular satisfaction in seeing her blush at the compliment before he continued. "As I was saying, I would love to tell you everything, but if I may be so bold, would you perhaps be willing to discuss this...over dinner?" The request, coupled with an especially flirty look on his part, had the desired effect of leaving Maron with shaking knees as she stuttered out a response.
"Ah, um, dinner! Yes! I would love to!" Maron replied, quietly muttering "Oh my gosh!" to herself over and over again as Yamcha thanked the familiar-looking human man at the counter for processing their orders, wondering whether he had seen him at a World Martial Arts Tournament as he walked her out of the comic book store.
"Great. Just give me one moment; I gotta drop these off at my place," Yamcha said, keeping a close hold on his friend's manga as he prepared to take off.
"Wait, but won't that take a super long time-?" Maron began to ask before Yamcha disappeared in a burst of air that buffeted her dress, catching her off guard as he flew away at speeds faster than she could possibly track. After what felt like no less than a minute, maybe two, he returned as quickly as he had departed, notably bereft of manga and dressed in a black suit and tie that he kept around for photo shoots and other formal occasions. Maron was left in stunned silence for a moment before she asked the first question that popped into her head.
"Can you take me with you next time?" Maron asked with a dazed expression on her face, prompting Yamcha to wink at her.
"Only if you promise to hang on tight," he replied smoothly as he held out his arms for her. With a giddly giggle escaping her lips before she could stop herself, Maron climbed on in such a way that she easily fell into a bridal carry in his arms, looking up at him with wonder in her eyes. "Now then, fair lady, where to?" Yamcha asked, giving Maron a moment to think the question over before replying.
"You know, I think Lee's is still open," she suggested, to which Yamcha beamed at her with excitement in his eyes.
"Aw, man, my boy Lee with the great cup of tea? Aw, hell yeah, let's go!" he cried, taking off at a speed that would get them there fast, yet not so fast that it would leave Maron terrified or gasping for breath. Fortunately for Yamcha, she instead seemed to be just as excited at getting to fly across the city as he was at the prospect of sampling the former martial artist impersonator's excellent cuisine. Seeing her smiling and laughing in her arms left him compelled to smile and laugh along with her, and while it was certainly too early to make any assumptions about where things were going, Yamcha began to feel something deep in his heart that he had only ever felt with one woman and one woman alone:
He may be the luckiest man on the planet.
Ah, what a charming and idyllic start to another time of peace. However could it be disrupted? =)
Figured that a calm down chapter was due after the last one pretty much condensed the entire Hermit Android Saga into a single chapter, lol. Placing the Maron and Yamcha scene within the story was a bit of a toss up between ore and post "old foes" shenanigans, but I think setting it up early works better. I also had Goku and Future Vegeta busy training in the Time Chamber for the first half of this originally, but decided to give that honor to a certain other pair that'll be revealed soon enough.
Hopefully the monthly schedule hasn't been too much of a turn off for y'all; let's look at the reviews!
Zeon Paralysis Crystal says:
"Considering their entire planet was destroyed and listening to Bulma's common sense back up by Future Vegeta's humility. That may've been for the best. Wonder if Future Cell will meet Future Badibi.
Yeah you just open a shit ton of possibilities. The main one is the Majin Buu Arc since the Hyperbolic Time Chamber was not in use. The Z Fighters may have to learn Teamwork again Demon Realm Style."
That is honestly a good point; unlike the original story, I'm writing this version of events with the canon knowledge that Future Babidi showing up and causing problems is a thing that happens in the future timeline. Never would've considered having the two meet up, but with that in mind...I may have an idea on that front. Unsure how well it'll be received given certain details I have in mind, but I suppose we'll have to just see what happens.
Dragon B0b says: "Just remember, power levels exist solely to be mocked." Very true, and honestly, I was gonna get rid of them around when DBZ chucks them out, but ended up deciding against it for reasons I honestly can't pin down other than force of habit. Sort of a Dread Pirate Roberts situation, really: "Nice work this chapter, power levels. Rest well. I'll probably kill you in the morning." ;)
And finally, The Rocha, who left an even bigger review than last time, says:
"The Android Saga, but everyone is being super extra logical and reasonable." There's a "Defeated with Facts and Logic" joke in here, but that's beneath me. ;)
"Vegeta: *teleports behind u* "Everything personnel, doc." Where's that from, anyway? I first heard it referenced in the last Henry Stickmin game, but I never did sit down to try and figure out where the joke started originally.
"I like how Vegeta respects the humans more here, perhaps even more than his canon self." Yeah, I feel like modern Dragon Ball has a habit of just kinda resetting Vegeta's character a bit because they don't know what to do with a more mellow Vegeta that actually loves being in this massive friend group. Plus, it just made for a really cool line to drop right before said humans absolutely wrecked Dr. Gero's shit. xD
"Those last thoughts of Gero were kinda sad. Deep down, he was just a resentful man who lost everything." Yeah...too bad this version of him never made the time to have his Saiborgs perform brain surgery. Seriously, though, 19 had to have helped Gero do that; there's no other explanation for why Android 20 exists. xD
"Hahahahahhaha Gero angry that no one appreciated the Saiborgs pun. I feel ya doc, I feel ya.
You know, I can see why the Saiborgs were trouble in the Future Timeline. A few saiborgs weren't much trouble for the humans and Piccolo. Dozens of the things rushing the heroes all at once en masse, through? THAT, I feel could have been one sticky wicket."
As explained in that chapter, the problem with the Saiborgs was less that they were any stronger or swarming the fighters themselves, and more that they were so widely spread out with one attacking every region on Earth that the Z-Fighters literally couldn't deal with them all at once before some unlucky place paid the price.
"Old foes... well its not Gero for sure. Freeza, Cold and Cooler are dead and gone. The only "Old Foes" I can think of:
- Other former Red Ribbon soldiers and mercs that are still around (I think... Colonel Violet and Hasky are still around?).
- Crane School (Master Shen, Tao Paipai, althrough she escaped then you could include Yurin here)
- Present Vegeta (still evil as F because he went through zero character growth in this Namek saga)
- Ginyu Squad and Armored Squadron (still around)
- Also Future Cell, but that's only old in relation to Vegeta, and he seems to be interested in doing things "the manual way" in the future."
Interesting guesses. Of those, the Red Ribbon and the Crane School are smart enough not to mess with the Z-Fighters at this point, and Future Cell won't be showing up just yet. As for the others, though...wait and see. ;)
"- So you're going with the "Gero made them evil" explanation as to why the Future Androids turned wacko. Interesting. Its the fanon I have found the most logical for why 17 and 18 went so crazy. Present Twins were just a bunch of malcontents with powers."
Yeah, same here, plus I figured it was the best way to effectively nip any potential threat they posed in the bud and add them onto the team as easily as possible.
"Master Roshi wing-manning the pupils. A true king. Also like the subtle nod to Roshi as Tien's second master." Master Roshi really said "Is anyone going to take these formerly misguided young men under their wing?" while pointing at Tien and Chiaotzu, and didn't wait for an answer. ;)
"Android 16 as 16 19... interesting. Android 16 able to drain is scary as heck. Android 16 is a funny case of a killbot that is badly programmed and rather than going all killy, goes all... non-killy because his instructions are very specific. Sometimes I think Dr. Gero is pretty much DBZ Dr. Wily - great at making high-powered weapons, not so great at programming them to be smart or obey him. Obviously, Cell is Gero's Zero (hey that rhymes)."
Yeah, as elaborated upon here, giving him energy draining is part of my justification for how 16 can still be so strong even after I nerfed the twins so much, with the other part being that Gero literally recycled everything else to make 16 as absurdly deadly as possible without burning resources. Also, love the comparison, lmao.
"I like your explanation as to why Piccolo can use the Kaioken but it doesn't do much for him. Its SUPER logical - Kaioken boosts the user's ki by harming the body and its life energy. However, Namekian biology automatically heals Namekians with Ki when they are wounded. A Namekian using kaioken would result in a loop where the Namekian boosts his ki and hurts himself which results in his boosted ki being used to heal the body which is then hurt by the kaioken which is then healed by Namekian biology..."
Yeah, that's basically the logic of it. Admittedly, the one problem it creates is what exactly to do with Piccolo now that can help him keep up. Max Power Gigantification was part of that effort, although I've yet to think of a situation where he would really jump to use it, so I'm still tossing that issue around.
"Yeah, everyone being more friends makes so much more sense. I like how the girls drifted together due to their shared circumstances, and how we got some interesting developments like Piccolo and Tien training together. Tien and Launch are a wholesome relationship, not gonna lie. Its interesting to see Tien trying to understand Launch better and vice-versa. Thanks for answering my review!"
Of course! I like having a lot of different points to respond to, and as I've mentioned, I like that the more slice of life elements of this fic are appreciated! =)
Anywho, with all that said, no real power levels this go around, except for one that's a bit jokey, but also a bit of light foreshadowing.
Maron: 50, unfortunately bringing Launch down to fourth place among the Z-Fighter girls now that 18 has shown up to break the scale in half. But exactly how did Maron achieve such strength on her own? That, dear readers, will be answered in due time...
Until then, however, let me know what y'all think in the reviews, and take your time! With a month in between updates, there's definitely enough time for y'all to speculate and comment on as much as you want before the next chapter proves or disproves any of it. ;)
With all that said, thank you all for reading, stay safe, wash your hands, wear a mask and get vaccinated if possible, have yourselves a fantastic night, and take care.