A Wonderful Life

By: SomeRandomPerson648

Chapter 24: Clash of Souls

A/N: Hey guys! So in writing the last chapter I decided to leave it off on a cliffhanger, why is 16 worried? Well, don't worry about that right now. Anyway, here is Chapter 24!


Cell and the group headed towards the next Machine with a a renewed energy in their flight. As they flew Cell continued to teach 21 a few more things in his effort to keep 21 alive in the event of another battle, and to stave off the boredom of flying for too long

In the end he managed to teach 21 how to sense ki, and he also told her about ki signatures. But it wasn't just 21 who learned, Zangya and Turles were also taught the same technique, seeing as how they didn't know it already. As hard as it was to sense ki with the suppressing machines active, they each had a grasp on the matter

When they arrived to their destination they found a great amount of drones near the mountain side, this time it was twice as many as before, yet still not as much as the city assault

"It seems that they are smart enough to know when to protect the machines." Cell said as the drones almost immediately turned around to face them. Just then they began to fire ki blasts towards the group

Their aim was mainly off, and their distance was far but Cell used his mental powers to swat away the sparse few that nearly hit them. Even so, there were so many ki blasts that the group's vision was mostly obscured

"Looks like they know our faces too." 13 remarked as Cell called for everyone's attention

"It seems we have to deal with them if we don't want any problems. 21, you will go alone and straight for the machine, we will protect you." Cell said as 21 nodded

With their plan set, Cell used his ki to surround everyone with a weak green over shield, except himself. He then led the charge as he flew through the rain of fire as everyone followed close behind. As they got closer and closer, the ki blasts became much more precise, landing devastating blows that whittled away at Cell's body and strained the shields. Yet none of the others were harmed, so Cell's strategy was working

Once they reached the drones, Cell released a fairly strong wave of ki with the purpose disrupting all of the drones. The drones all stumbled, and the shower of ki blasts dissipated for a second before resuming. This time there were also many drones that went forwards to have a physical fight with the enemy, regardless if they were in the crossfire or not

21 dashed after the metal door of the hidden hideout near the side of the mountain, a shower of energy attacks flew over her as she searched for the panel that opens the door. However, a hand broke through Cell's shield and grabbed her by the collar before throwing her towards the fray of Androids

"Well Well Well! I never expected to see you here Cell! We should have a nice long chat!!!!" A sinister voice seethed angrily at the entrance of the hideout

Cell turned to see Bojack, along with the rest of his pathetic crew, mere ants admits the chaos. Still, they were undetected by the hoard of drones that were focused on Cell and the others, allowing them to move into action

"Damnit, now of all times." Cell groaned in frustration as 21 flew next to Cell, having to avoid drones along the way

"Oh and by the way, I made a friend! I'm sure you know him well." Bojack said as something hugged Cell from behind. It had a surprisingly strong grip, the arms were pink and squishy and melted onto Cell's skin like dough over a hard surface

"You let Buu die!!! Now me Buu absorb you!!!" A skinny Majin Buu yelled angrily as it's body attempted to absorb Cell. He immediately shot a powerful ki blast that propelled him out from within Buu, only to run directly into a drone's open arms

"Cell! Let me help!" 21 said as she dodged a drone from lunging after her, and evading another volley of energy attacks

"No. I'll deal with those two, you help Turles and the others." Cell ordered as Majin Buu dashed forwards and attacked the exposed Android, meanwhile Bojack got behind Cell and attacked him

"But if you're not careful I could lose you too!!" She yelled with a worried tone, ignoring the relentless (And tiring) rain of basic ki attacks that came after her

"I said get to the others 21! I can take care of myself!" Cell ordered just before a fist went through the back of the drone that held him and pierced through the unguarded Cell

"I didn't think you cared so much about anyone other than yourself...maybe I'll snap her neck after I'm through with you!" Bojack chuckled as backed away to launch a volley of ki attacks at the sturdy Android, joined by Buu from a distance

"We can't let him be! Come on, we'll give it our all!" 21 thought as the soul inside her glowed fiercely, also wanting to do its part

As the controls to her body were taken over, 21 could feel a strange feeling at the pit of her stomach, like an untapped power waiting to be released. She yelled as she strained herself into releasing it, and eventually she was successful. Her body exploded, creating a bright pink aura that blinded the surrounding drones. When it died down, 21 was in awe as her eyes scanned her body

Her red and blue dress was gone, and was replaced by more Majin clothing. Her skin was pink, and she wore baggy white pants the looked just like Buu's. Her pants went up her stomach a little, and there was a strange golden belt with the similar 'M' symbol. She wore black high heels with gold outlines, and there were two golden rings that wrapped around her ankles. She wore a black tube shirt that exposed her stomach and neck area. The black cloth on her arms stayed the same, but she also had two sets of two golden rings that wrapped around her wrist. She also had black colored nails, and a large pink tail that was on her lower back, and went through a hole in the pants that was made for the tail. She had white hair and eyebrows, and there was yet another golden ring that wrapped around her neck nearly

21's elegant and eccentric new form drew many eyes as she inspected herself strangely, now wearing newer and more revealing cloths. Her skin was pink, her hair was white and...was that a tail? But of all the changes she felt and say, the change in her personal aura felt different, she now exuded power unlike ever before

"Wow...I didn't know I could do that." She thought. The soul, along with everyone else that witnessed her transformations were just as surprised too

"That...can't be good." Cell spared a thought before he took the opportunity to release himself from the bloody assault of ki attacks and fly circles around his two assailants

However, the soul and 21 were interrupted by the never ending swarm of ki blasts that flew from every direction. Quickly gaining their bearings, the soul easily avoided the blasts and began to attack, tearing through drones with a newer ease. Every swing flung them around like dolls, her jabs punched fatal holes into the drones and her kicks ripped limbs apart. Not only was she strong in her own right, it was as though while the soul inside of her fought, the more I could ignore the suppression of the machines

Meanwhile, Turles and Zangya were facing off against Bujin, Bido, and Kogu, her crew and family

"Bojack told us some time ago to put an end to ya. Said something about being a coward. Too bad, I really liked having you around." Bujin spat as the others chuckled mischievously

"Yeah, it's too damn bad we have to kill our little toy now!!" Kogu exclaimed as he unsheathed his blade

Zangya was frozen in fear. She was the weakest of the group and having the rest of her team against her was something that she always dreaded whilst on the team...and now she was the enemy, no matter what she would say against it. Not only was she an outcast against her own will, but there was practically no reasoning with the men that now had an excuse to kill her

Turles, however, had a different idea

"A leader who turns on the only one who survived a battle eh? Now you just remind me of my old commander." Turles remarked as he stood firm next to Zangya, almost taking part of the offense personally

"Who the hell is you again?"

"The one who's gonna kick your ass, that's what!" Turles exclaimed as he readied his fighting position. The others bursted into laughter

"You two, against us three?! That's a foolish mistake!!"

"Then let's even those odds buttercup." 13 said from behind Bujin

Before he could react, the back of his head was grabbed tightly and slammed into the unforgiving dirt below. With the hand still on his head, Bujin's face was mashed repeatedly against the ground several times

The other two space pirates were caught off guard. This gave Turles the opportunity to dash forwards and punch Bido freely in the face, launching the big lug away

Zangya was especially taken off guard by the motions. She didn't expect Turles to defend him like that, she expected him to just let her take care of it herself, as she's come to expect from everyone around her

"What are you standing there for?" 15 asked from beside Zangya. She hadn't noticed him floating right next to her, his shades created tiny lights as he stared at the confused Kogu

"B-but...this is my fight..." Zangya said in disbelief. She never expected them to take care of her problems, it just wasn't something anyone has ever done for her

"Sure, whatever." 15 ignored Zangya's personal dilemma. The little lights on his shades finished as he smirked, now knowing more than before

"Gotcha."

Without realizing it, Kago was suddenly under attack by a strong bombardment of ki blasts that stung him fiercely, taking him out of his thoughts

"Go help 14." 15 ordered continued to blast Kogu with a bombardment of ki attacks

Zangya snapped out of her trance as she looked around to find 14. Instead she witnessed as every drone locked onto the pink Android 21 as she glided through the field, destroying countless drones with every motion she made. Around the edges of the horde was 14, attacking one drone at a time with much more difficulty, unable to rip and tear like 21 or Cell could. The female Heran dashed after 14 as she joined in attacking one drone at a time, doing her part while others solved her problems

Meanwhile, Cell avoided a pink beam that was meant to turn him into chocolate. He struggled to avoid the two superpowers, not because they were very strong, but because anytime he would stop, Majin Buu would attempt to absorb him or shoot a candy beam at him. Bojack was also a pain, as he shot fairly powerful beams that would knock Cell off course and disorient him. If only he had the energy available to knock them out with one fell swoop, but even ignoring the ki suppressing machines, he was just running out of steam to last

"You can't run forever Cell! I dare you to kill me again!!" Bojack yelled as he launched yet another ball of energy

"We'll see about that!!"

Although he could easily turn and kill Bojack, he had to formulate a proper plan for Buu. With him constantly trying to absorb Cell and turn him into candy, if he stopped for anything then he'll lose. Though he wasn't so sure about the candy beam being able to turn him successfully into candy, he couldn't take his chances

After a full minute, 13 had managed to kill Bujin by blowing him up with a large energy blast, with little difficulty. He went on to help 15 catch Kogu off guard as well, blasting him out of the sky and eliminating him like his friend

Turles had managed to overpower Bido, since the only advantage Bido had was that Turles was extremely weakened. This forced Turles to use more ki just to bring himself into fighting state. The act left Turles, quite literally, clinging to life as he had to float to the ground and catch his breath, yet his victory over the hulking brute was swift

21 had also managed to destroy all of the drones, with minor help from Zangya and 14. After doing so she and the soul took initiative, dashing after Cell and attacking Buu, who was taken off guard

Cell saw his moment, and he immediately turned to throw a powerful ki blast towards Bojack, who was taken off guard and was easily vaporized in an extremely anti-climactic fashion, but leaving Cell huffing by the effort

"Glad you two could join." Cell gasped as he regarded the soul and 21. He took notice of the form, remembering what 21 had said about a Majin sample, but unable to connect any dots in the heat of combat

The soul nodded as Buu recovered in the distance to see 21, in a familiar form. Buu had an utterly sinister realization as he sensed 21's energy signature. Dull as it was, it knew exactly who she was

"You...you are Buu! You come back now." He said simply as he held out his right hand towards 21

Suddenly, the soul lost it's control as just then a hidden darkness was released from within 21, forcing the soul to battle for control as 21's body gripped it's hair and wriggled around

"GAH!!!!" She screamed as 21 could feel her soul tear apart and her body lose its senses, sight from her eyes flickered, her breathing panicked and labored while her sense of touch was gone

"What the hell?" Cell questioned as he sensed the great turmoil within 21. The fighting caused 21's aura to be released, which created great gusts of wind that pushed everything back, revealing a power far greater than Cell could anticipate

He attempted to help by using his metal powers to invade 21's soul and assist the soul with the fighting. However, whatever it was that caused such distress inside 21 warded Cell away easily

Just then, the darkness from within 21 stopped struggling and instead allowed the latch of Buu to take it like a fish in a very small pond

21 gasped audibly as a glowing dark red aura appeared over her body, which then manifested into a dark red ball that formed in front of 21

She then slowly began to tip over the air as the soul inside tried desperately to take back control over the dying 21. But there was nothing to control anymore, a body completely unconscious and unresponsive

Before 21 could even start to fall Cell held her in a bride position before flying to the ground and setting her down gently

Cell looked up to see Buu, playing with the red orb that was supposed to be 21's soul. He opened his mouth wide and swallowed the orb of energy, having a large bump that went down until it reached the stomach. But now there was a deep turmoil inside of Buu. He screamed as his mind, personality and very being shifted and molded into something that was similar to Buu...but not quite

After a few seconds of this later, Buu's body hung limp in the air, it's head facing upwards at the sky rather creepily

Cell flew upwards to float in front of Buu's body as it began laughing maniacally, as it did so Buu's clothing changed into a solid pink color, along with Buu's face, reverting Buu to look more like a mold of himself

Hud body shifted and formed to look like 21 in her Majin form, the laughter also became lighter and more feminine. Then the body molded, coloring the clothing from the mold as the laughter now resembled 21's voice. When everything finished, the former Buu now looked and sounded like 21 in her Majin form, except her eyes were black with red pupils and her voice was filled with a malicious tone that was far unlike the 21 they knew a minute ago

"Oh it feels good!! This...power!!" Majin 21 said as she released her ki, this time her aura was a blood red light that was still restricted behind the machines' suppressive power, but even then everyone nearby could feel the power that was being displayed, a mere portion of what was really there

Cell was shocked by the display of power. By his rough estimations, this newer and more sinister force was just as if not stronger than he was now, only it had no form of fatigue to hold it back

"Hm, so you must be Majin Buu...or at least the part that roamed within 21." Cell said. He had a hunch that a segment of Buu infected 21 from the first time he felt her ki, a spec of evil that hid within her. At the time he though he was thinking things the wrong way or was mistaken, but now he was privileged to say he was onto her from the very beginning, he just didn't know it

"That's right, but you can call me Android 21, since I was created and molded by her!"

"What do you mean created? You should still be Buu?"

"That's where you're wrong." She countered. "See while I was originally Majin Buu, I've taken on a new identity, the same one I've created for myself for the past year. Even if I'm not like her, I am still Android 21 in face. body and soul!"

As 21 finished her monologue she stared intently at Cell with a deep hunger in her eyes that sent a chill down his spine, a predator meeting it's prey for the first time. She licked her lips and her body twitched

"You're going to make a good candy! But I want to see you suffer! Everyone will suffer for me!" She yelled as she appeared just before Cell with an untraceable speed, knocking him out of the sky


16 flew towards where his radar located 21's energy signature. As he flew his scanner picked up a battle between an unknown power that has showed up before, and Majin Buu

"I am too late." He said as he redirected his course towards the Z team, which was fairly close by

As he did so he felt 21's energy signature flare up before dropping out of his scanner. Just then Buu's signature warped and became...different, no longer registering as Buu

The Majin Buu/21 hybrid then began to fight with Cell, and it almost immediately began to win


Bulma's ship finally made it to Goku and 18's location. They arrived to see a fairly small island which had mainly trees save for a small beach. On the beach, Goku and 18 fought against a small group of drones

"Kamehameha!" Goku yelled as he shot a blue beam towards a Vegeta drone. The drone, however, launched a nameless Galick Gun in anticipation. The beams clashed for a second before a 17 drone came in to punch Goku out of the beam clash

18 herself was on the defensive as six other drones attacked her from all sides, trapping her

It was then that 17 came in and kicked one drone away, while Future Trunks kicked another

"Ha!!" Prestina yelled as she launched a powerful beam from behind the Vegeta drone, pushing it forward

"Big Bang Attack!" Vegeta yelled as he shot the blue ball of ki towards the fake Vegeta, causing the drone to slowly melt before the core finally exploded

"Ginyu Force, assault formation C!" Captain Ginyu said as he fired his milky canon towards one drone, while Jeice's Crusher Ball was launched behind the drone, trapping it and causing it to blow up

Recoome and Burter used the same method, as Recoome used his eraser gun and Burter used a blue variant of Jeice's Crusher Ball

Guldo, however, used his icicle to hit one drone straight through it's core, causing it blow up

One drone was punched by Nappa, who then kicked it away towards Goten and Kid Trunks. Both kids relentlessly punched the drone several times before they eventually created enough dents on the chest that it made a hole, allowing Goten to shoot the exposed core

The last drones were destroyed by one death beam for each drone, each beam hit the cores precisely, causing them to blow up like all the rest

"Hey sis." 17 said casually as 18 looked at him with an angered expression

"What took you guys so long?" She questioned as she looked at her ripped clothing

"The ship isn't that fast."

"So, long time no see Frieza. Turned over a new leaf?" Goku teased as he dropped his Super Saiyan form. For some odd reason, his Super Saiyan 2 form was much harder to hold than normal, which makes him wonder about his Super Saiyan 3 form

"Oh don't worry, this alliance is only temporary." Frieza said evilly as he played nice. He wanted to truly savor the moment he kills Goku, and now was not the time to attempt it

However, there was a loud voice in his head that struggled to get Goku's attention

"Goku. Goku!!" The voice of King Kai yelled as Goku finally noticed

"Oh hey King Kai, you're awake?" He asked aloud as King Kai seemed to panic and stutter a moment

"It's Cell!" He said, straight to the point

"Cell? What is he doing?"

"No time to explain! Get to Cell and help him before he gets absorbed!!" King Kai yelled as Goku was confused

Cell was about to get absorbed? By what? But that also means that something must be beating him pretty badly

"On it!" Goku exclaimed as he raised his fingers to his forehead quickly. It took him a lot longer than it should, but eventually Goku was able to teleport away from the group of Z warriors


A few minutes passed since the start of Cell and '21's' fight, and it was not going well at all for the bug-like Android

With Cell still not properly recovered from his battle that happened hours ago, he was also not at full power, leaving 21 to drag him across the dirt with effortlessly. With Cell tired, it was only a matter of time before 21 would stop toying with him

21 dashed after Cell as he flew in loops, trying to at least buy some sort of time. Using her ki enhanced speed she quickly caught up to Cell and grabbed him by the leg, throwing him at the ground yet again. She easily outpaced and overpowered the Bio-Weapon

Before she could persist, everyone minus the original 21 appeared in front of her, blocking her way after Cell in an attempt to stall

"How noble. But move, I want to start with a hearty appetizer!" 21 threatened as she dashed forward to begin her small assault on the weaklings

Turles was the first to attack as he lunged tiredly after 21, whom effortlessly dodged the lunge and slapped Turles with enough force to launch him into the ground below, and knock him out of the battle

Zangya followed up by shooting a few ki blasts and then attempting to kick her opponent. 21 took the blasts head on without needing to block, and then dodged Zangya's lunging kick. She then placed her hand over Zangya's stomach and shot a beam that propelled the Heran into the ground, knocking her out as well

14 and 15 both prepared two yellow beam attacks that hit 21 head on. However, within the dust the Majin Android launched two powerful balls of red ki after the two Androids, blowing each of them up to pieces of scrap metal that fell to the ground below

13 then shot a large and strong red ball of ki that had a small red trail behind it. It was launched towards the dust to meet a simple yellow ball of ki that shot through the red ball, dissipating it

The Android managed to dodge the ball, only for it to blow up and send him flying almost a full mile away by the sheer force

The dust dissipated to reveal the frustrated 21. When she looked at the ground that Cell landed on, the only thing left was a crater. Suddenly, Cell appeared from behind with a red blade of ki at hand and caught 21 off guard, slashing at her back and slicing her torso and legs apart. When he did so his red blade dissipated as Cell lost the remaining energy needed to properly sustain the blade, and the fortitude to maintain it

Just then 21's tail shot up and grabbed Cell by the neck as the floating torso and legs floated into place and melded themselves together like clay

"You're such a feisty snack! You would probably even be the main course!" 21 said before she whipped around and caved in Cell's chest with the full blow of her punch, doing it again and again, watching as the craters popped out like a stress toy only for her to force it down again

After a few moments of toying, 21 tossed Cell away, his body flying limp and drained of stamina. His body burned and ached everywhere, his regeneration caused his body to burn more and more for every wound he patched. He stood to face 21 with limp shoulders and gasping for air. His body had already reached it's limit once, and he never recovered properly. Because of this, his ki was now spent, leaving him at the mercy of Majin 21

"Damnit..." Cell thought as, for once in his life, he didn't truly want to die. He had set a strong goal to help 21, and with his death he would be unable to complete his objective. Not to mention he's definitely not in good terms with the Z team to be revived again

21 walked forward as she smiled menacingly, yet upset that she felt no fear coming from Cell as she approached him. Instead, he stared at her with a grim acceptance, not afraid of what came next

"That was a nice little fight, but all delicious things must come to an end!" 21 exclaimed as she raised her right hand, the end of her index finger glowing pink

Cell closed his eyes as he felt regret over having to leave 21 alone so suddenly. She was a warm soul, and she treated him with kindness, something that no one has ever done before. There was irony in the moment. And it was that for the first time ever, the being that wished death more than anything in the world...didn't want to die

"I trust the Dragon Team will take care of the rest. As they always do..."

"SUPER KAIOKEN FIST!!" A voice yelled as suddenly, Goku dashed in from the sidelines and slammed his fist into 21's face, launching her several feet away

Goku had his Super Saiyan 3 form on yet his aura was heavily tainted in a blood red energy, making his whole body seem like slightly different shades of red. The Kaio Ken seemed to forcibly pour out more energy than the machines could suppress, but at a grave cost

The heroic Saiyan immediately cupped his hands to his sides as a bright red ball appeared inside his hands, gritting his teeth. Every movement of his seemed forced and strained, not a positive sign for Cell or the Saiyan

"Kaioken Kamehameha!"

Only seconds passed before Goku fell out of his combined form leaving him in his base form shaking and gasping for breath, his quick thinking leaving him at the brink of collapse. The red beam of energy dissipated as well, leaving no trace of 21's form

But a few moments passed before a small pink cloud appeared from thin air. The cloud then grew slowly before it created a large blob that then quickly shaped the mold for 21. The mold finally colored the face, clothing and hair

When her face was colored, she was visibly livid, with a crazed look on her face. A second ago she was on the verge of tasting her sweet spoils! Instead she bit dirt

"No! How could you! The main course is mixing with the appetizer!! Now my whole meal will taste bad!" 21 ranted before she shook her head in a strange frustration before finally calming herself down

"Fine. I guess I could eat a few smaller sized snacks before I begin. Ta Ta!" 21 said as she floated in the air before flying away, leaving a tired Cell and Goku to live

The two stayed still as they stared off in the direction that 21 had left. After a little while, Goku turned to face Cell, who still huffed pretty heavily

"I know that you were helping Android 21, now where is she?" Goku cut to the chase. How and when he became so informed was a mystery, but it didn't matter to Cell

"You just missed her, she left a second ago." Cell deadpanned, shocking Goku. He was fighting 21? King Kai said they were partners earlier

"You mean that was her?" He asked in confusion. King Kai also said that she was Jin from Bulma's place. But that didn't look anything like her, aside from the hair shape

"Half of her, or it's a new being that lived inside her. It's hard to explain at the moment." Cell said as he walked over to the original 21, who was passed out in her Majin form. Cell also sensed that the soul inside her was barely active, still and silent

"You'll have to come with me for now." Cell spoke telepathically towards the soul

Just then, a faint white glow was seen within 21's body. Soon the glow formed into a sparkling white ball of energy that floated gently over 21. Cell outstretched his hand, and the ball moved towards his hand. Once the ball touched Cell it formed from a ball, into faint white lines that retreated within him

Before long, Cell felt the incredibly warm presence of another soul inside of him. It was warm, like a blank slate that could only glow brightly, untainted. The soul glowed a little, somehow speaking to Cell in a way that he could easily understand, but not explain

"She'll be fine, let's give her some rest." Cell thought as the warm soul seemed to get a little colder for a second before going back to normal, like a saddened reaction to 21's state

However, the soul noticed a large difference between 21 and Cell. 21's soul was bigger, brighter and pleasantly warm, at times hot even. But Cell's was far more different. It was cold, barren, with traces of darkness as well as light thrown around. But the two opposites didn't seem to fight, but instead existed for the sole sake of existing

Wordlessly, Cell carried 21 in his arms, the cold body almost seemed dead in his hands save for the soft, silent breathing that he heard. He turned to see Zangya with one arm wrapped around the weakened Turles, barely able to stand by how much he's exerted himself, and the earlier attack he received. 13 held a few pieces of the fallen 14 and 15, however Cell knew the true purpose for those

"It seems that we must recover our losses before continuing. I shall be in charge while 21 is out." Cell declared as everyone nodded, not that he wasn't already or anything

"Alright then, let's head inside the hideout and recover, we can't do anything about the machines at the moment." Cell said as he floated towards the hideout, with everyone in tow. Cell was smart, yes, but he had no knowledge of coding or how to work and deactivate the machine, he simply knew its purpose as Dr. Gero programed him to know

As the tired and defeated group retreated, Goku felt bad as he watched them trudge away. Even though he fought them all not too long ago, seeing them so tired was not something he wanted to see, even Cell seemed depressed, humiliated by his earlier defeat

"Hold it!" Goku yelled as he flew towards the group. They in turn faced the hero with scorn. What did he want now? To eradicate them while they were down?

"What is it? I'm sure you don't plan to finish us without a fight."

"No, I don't want to kill you. I can take you to the others and we can regroup." Goku offered as Zangya and 13 looked shocked. Turles was too dazed to know what was happening, and Cell thought about the offer

Goku was pure of heart, sure, and an honorable warrior too, fine. But for what purpose was he to allow his enemies to regroup? They haven't even reconciled yet and the man was already willing to take them in without question

"Fat chance. You're planning on taking us out." Zangya spat, a reasonable conclusion for anyone that didn't know Goku already

"She's got a point. You're plannin' on killin' us while we're vulnerable." 13 added as well

"I'm not I swear!" Goku pleaded

"And what of Vegeta and the others? Do they know you're even here?" Cell asked, otherwise Goku wouldn't be so willing to take him in of all people

"They don't. I came here as soon as King Kai told me you were fighting Android 21. If I hadn't, she would've absorbed you wouldn't she?" Goku speculated, making Cell and the others silent

"Listen, the others and I still haven't forgiven you for what you did to us. But if you're against 21 then I know you're not our real enemy, and without me she could come again at any moment and take you out. So...we can put our differences aside for now."

Cell remained silent, everything Goku was saying was true this time around. Without the Senzu Beans or Senzu Pills there was no hope for them since 21 was out there. Hell, she might have a reason to come back once she realizes her other half was still alive

"I'll make sure that the others don't harm you...and I'm sure we can give a Senzu Pill to her too. It wouldn't be right if she died when I was able to help her." Goku offered, pointing towards the unconscious woman in Cell's arms. He didn't want to mention it now, but it was strange how attached to her Cell was, maybe he owed her something?

"...Fine. We can recover for now. I'd hate to put down a good offer." Cell accepted as Goku floated towards him

"Grab on." He said as he touched Cell with his left arm. Everyone latched onto Goku as he brought his right arm to his head, and placed two fingers on his forehead

...

...

"Doesn't this usually waste less time?" Cell strained

"It's hard to sense ki with this force that's preventing me from using my full power. I'm sure you and 21 had something to do with it?"

"Guilty." Cell confessed, making Goku sigh

Eventually, the small group teleported away from sight


Future Trunks and the group waited around the island impatiently, biding their time for the Saiyan to appear. They saw Goku teleport away and figured it was something important. Why he didn't warn anyone was beyond them, but now they needed to wait for him to come back

However, what they didn't expect was for Goku to come back with Cell, Zangya, Turles, Android 13, and an unknown Majin woman

"C-Cell?!" Vegeta gasped as everyone turned to look at the group in shock. Why would Goku bring their sworn enemy into their group?!

"We need a few Senzu pills." Goku informed everyone as he floated up towards Bulma's ship, which was parked on the sandy beach

Cell carefully set down 21, while Zangya set down Turles as well. Just as he let go of the woman, a flying fist came after him, landing square in his cheek and causing him to stumble back in pain

"Just what the hell are you doing here!" 18 demanded with an angered expression. Behind her, 17 was ready to prepare an attack in his hands. Zangya and 13 were also confronted by Future Trunks

"I was made an offer to recover our loses. My group here isn't in the best shape." He said as the four turned to see who he referred to

Zangya was bruised, blooded, and her clothing was ripped. Turles breathed heavily, his armor was gone and left him in his underwear shorts. There were scars all over his body, along with dried blood in different places. 13 was scratched and dented in places, and he had a machine core in his jacket pocket that stuck out, on it, it said '14' on the front of it. The unknown woman looked fine, but she was passed out, with an extremely faint ki signature. The immediate question was what could've happened in such a short time that left all of them like this, but the next was also just as pressing

"And why shouldn't we pay you back killing us for the second time?!" Vegeta demanded as he walked up to the fallen Cell, now more confident after seeing him in such a weakened state, like a house of cards that just needs a gust of wind to take care of him

"Guys, please let them be." Goku said as he flew in with four Senzu pills at hand, only to be stopped by his son

"Dad please, at least answer the question." Gohan asked with a mixture of concern and apprehension. His dad had a history of being lenient on villains, there were countless results of that, but Cell was still actively plotting against them as far as he knew

"Oh? And which Cell is this? I'm assuming it's the one that sent you lot to OtherWorld is it not?" Frieza asked from the sidelines, surprising the group of villains

"Frieza? I didn't expect you to be with this group." Cell asked, confused

"I've made an alliance with these fools. My forces and goodwill for their survival," He answered, gesturing to the Ginyu force, "I'd introduce myself and my group, but I assume you already know who I am."

"Likewise."

"Guys please listen, Cell isn't our enemy here." Goku stated, making everyone perk up

In that moment Goku explained to everyone what King Kai told him, as well as what he was able to gather. Android 21 and Cell were the ones to revive everyone, but they had a fallout. Now Android 21 was the one running rampant

"That still doesn't explain what he's after." Vegeta added, staring intensely at Cell

"And who is she?" Prestina asked. "Sis and i can't recognize her at all."

All eyes were on the beaten Cell, who sat next to the unconscious form of 21. Hours ago he stood gleefully over their ashes in the battlefield, now he sat before them all, tired and beaten. A form of pride welled up from within him, shamed that he was reduced to such a new low

But unlike his prideful, arrogant other self, survival was his most pressing matter. If he didn't play his cards right then he and the others would be terminated on the spot. While he wouldn't feel particularly bad for the others if they were to die because of him, 21 was the least deserving of such a fate. If anything, it would be ironic for the Z team to kill what was essentially one of their own, a good spirited, pure of heart woman that Cell promised he would help. And getting her killed was far from that

Sighing to himself, the Bio-Android stood from his place and looked at his sworn enemies with his chest held high, making sure that it was clear he wasn't hiding anything. He made sure to stand just in front of 21, in case anything were to happen

"I will tell you everything. No tricks, no lies, but the full truth as I know it."

It took a while, but Cell was able to inform the team of everything that has happened. From 16's alliance to 21, her plan to absorb every revived fighter, as well as her strange separation from her original self and another, darker self. It shocked everyone to know that the woman that laid in the ground was the original 21, whom he helped revert the progress of the evil 21's plans

It also shocked them to know that 21 was split in two, the evil half taking control of the once Majin Buu. Frieza especially perked up upon hearing the legendary Buu's name. He saw the slim freak only briefly in Hell, tearing apart the underworld with powerful tantrums. To think he was transformed into something more powerful and irrational was worrying

"There's no telling how much stronger this new threat is. I'll have to play it safe and kill her before she can threaten me later." The emperor thought as he payed attention to Cell

"And that's all I know." Cell finished. "The evil 21 is likely out absorbing as much as she can, growing far stronger than I am now. And if she manages to absorb us all, there's no telling what will come next."

"And why are you so willing to help stop her?" Vegeta demanded to know, trying to find some excuse to blast Cell to pieces

"Because I made a promise to this 21, and if anything I'm not a liar. Isn't that right Vegeta?" Cell shot back, making him more angry

"If we don't help them then 21 can absorb Cell, and then it'd be impossible for us to defeat her." Goku reasoned, trying to further convince his friends

"After the evil 21's defeat I promise to leave this planet. Not for good, but at least to further convince you all of my seriousness." Cell added

"And how do we know you won't just come back to kill us again?"

"You don't." Cell responded. "But when I give my word I take it seriously, that is what I've prided myself in doing thus far."

He knew he was out of his depth by this point, and he sure as hell wasn't going to make a promise he knew he couldn't keep. But so long as it would get him out of his current situation, then he was willing to see it through. Because by all he knows, saving 21 is the only thing left for him to do in this world, and his one act of true goodwill that he's ever done

His monologue about promises, however, fell upon deaf ears. None of the members of the Z team knew him well enough anymore to verify if what he said was true or not. It was still boggling for them to believe he was going to save the planet on the flip of a coin because he 'gave his word?'

But there was one person who believed him fully and completely, and that was Prestina. Not because she trusted him, nor because she liked him, but because of the promise he made to her roughly a year ago


"But if it makes you feel any better, I'm certain that you will see your family, one way or another."


"He really did keep his promise, even after I betrayed him." She thought. "Even after he threatened me, he brought my whole family here to see me."

Through the silence, Prestina walked forward to face Cell, trying her best not to show any fear. As she faced him, she could almost feel the bruises she felt while she was fused with her sister, and the feeling of despair that came with seeing her friends die before her

Silence spoke louder than anything as the two ex-friends looked at each other, neither feeling particularly sorry for their current standing. Prestina chose her side and Cell chose his, it was only just that their friendship ended the way it did. But for the moment, Prestina was willing for speak Cell and his actions, if only because she was the sole being that understood what Cell meant by keeping his promises

"Did you really make that promise to her? That you'd help her?" Prestina asked, noticing the way that Cell stood in front of 21 rather defensively. The promise was the only logical reason why Cell was so willing to defend himself and his team, and if it was true then that would make things a least a little more understandable

"I did. I'm not one to make empty promises."

Prestina took a moment to clench her shaky hand, memories both good and bad arose as she stared at Cell, all of them conflicting. He promised to help her reunite with her family, and then in the same day he attacked her and her new friends. She reunited with her family after a year of missing them dearly, and in the next hour watched her friends die one by one. As scary as it was, he wasn't lying. He doesn't make empty promises

"...Then you really will leave Earth after this?"

"I will."

Minor surprise overtook everyone around. Was Cell really serious about this? It didn't mean he wouldn't come back, just that he'd be out of their mind for a while

Prestina seemed more certain of herself once the declaration was made. His goals were still uncertain, but for the moment his will was firm

"Then I believe you, just this once."

Wordlessly, Goku gave Zangya and Turles their Senzu Pills before giving the final two to Cell

"This doesn't change anything." Cell whispered under his breath

"It does." Goku smirked, learned a redeeming quality in Cell

Cell turned his attention to 21 as he sat in a meditative position next to her, taking a pill for himself and feeling a cold relief and energy wash through his body and revitalize him

"Alright, let's see what we can do." Cell thought as he outstretched his right hand. Small and faint white ki lines flew from Cell's arm to 21's body as he let the soul leave him. He outstretched his mind and began to invade 21's mind


Darkness

That is what was left inside 21's soul. After her battle with her evil self, she was left with almost no energy to spare, leaving her parked at the edge of life, in a state of constant near death. Everything she once had was ripped away when the evil 21 made her escape

Inside the darkness, an imaginative figure of Majin 21 sat cradled into a ball with her tail wrapped around her. She was filled with memories that she couldn't recall, surrounded with a body that she couldn't recognize

Emptiness was all that surrounded her

However, there was a faint glow that caught her attention. She looked up to see a bright white ball light up the area around it. Right next to it stood Cell, in his Perfect form

21 sat confused as she stared at the two. They looked and felt vaguely familiar, yet she couldn't recall why

"...Who...are you?" She asked, the sound of her voice echoed through the darkness

"Who are you?" Cell redirected the question as 21 sat confused

"...I don't know...I'm just...here...Why am I here?"

"Why you're the true owner of this soul of course! You are Android 21. Mother of the late Gebo Gero, former wife of Dr. Gero, and currently the one attempting to save this planet." Cell said as 21 looked oddly at him

However, 21's mind and heart began to put things together upon hearing the names, remembering exactly who they were and what they meant to her

"...right...I'm the owner of this soul...thank you for reminding me." She said as she stood up, the darkness eventually went away as the place was covered in a white light

Yet 21 noticed that Cell had a dark aura, despite the light that surrounded him. Like an unlit corner of a room. Not evil, but rather hopeless. Lonely...empty...

"Are...you ok?" 21 asked. He waved off the question

"I'll be fine. Right now you should wake up." Cell said as he slowly faded away from sight, leaving 21 alone with the soul

"Right. I should wake up." 21 said as her figure slowly disappeared as well, but never left


Cell opened his eyes once he left 21's consciousness. A few seconds later, 21 slowly opened her eyes

"...Cell...where are we?" 21 asked, staring at the sky

"Well," he chuckled, "currently we're in an unknown island, surrounded by the Dragon Team, while in the middle of saving the planet." Cell reminded her calmly as she looked around to see the Z team, along with Frieza and the Ginyu force in the distance

"Right. I forgot that we were doing that." She said as she slowly rose to her feet, along with Cell. She could recognize everyone through photographs of data that was collected throughout the years, except the two pink girls

When they rose the crowd stared at them with hatred. It didn't matter to everyone what Cell was doing or who he was helping, he must be killed before he could kill again

"Hi, the name's Goku." The Saiyan said, outstretching his arm for a handshake. "I've heard a lot about you."

"I'm Android 21," she responded, "I've heard a lot about you too."

"So, what to next?"

"Well...we should really shut off the machines that are restricting your power." 21 said as Cell nodded along

"Sounds like a plan."