Guest: As interesting as that would be, my plan for Kai is essentially to show how far a full blooded human can go if he really puts his mind to it. After the events of Cell, I always figured that the human characters just kind of gave up, but Kai is meant to be a character that never gives up, and he's staying a full blooded human from start to finish.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
The battle continued raging on.
Yamcha and the rest looked on in anticipation "Yeah come on Goku, that's it! Just keep on going a little bit further, you've almost got him finished off! He's really doing it, he's gonna win this thing!
Gohan promptly shared a look with Cooler 'I don't know how true that is, dad is pretty much on his last legs, so how is he going to pull through on this?'
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
'Come on come on come on!' continuing from where we left off, Goku was hurling a massive barrage of Ki blasts at Cell, one after another.
"That… is… ENOUGH!" with a roar of frustration, Cell unleashed his Perfect Barrier, the entire shield cancelling out all of Goku's Ki blasts and forcing him to break off from his assault as the barrier expanded, but both were left panting heavily "Far be it for me to deny credit where credit is so obviously deserved Goku, to be able to enrage me enough to the point where I have to raise my energy shield is quite impressive. You were able to back me into a bubble, so to speak. A blast as strong as the one you fired earlier should've wiped you clean, and yet here you are still swinging at me."
"Cell… if there was one thing that I gained during the days leading up to this tournament, it was endurance."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, at Mount Paozu…
"Achoo!" Chichi let out a sneeze and wiped her nose "Eesh."
"What did you do to him?" asked Ox King.
"What didn't I do to him?"
"...You're just like your mother."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, at Kame House…
"Dammit dammit dammit!" Bulma slammed her fist into the coffee table "He was so close to getting him too, this is torture!"
"I don't know if he was that close." Master Roshi told her grimly "Keep in mind that Cell had appeared to look like he was on the bring but just look at him now, he's still got quite a bit of latitude left in him, at least a slight bit more than Goku."
"So what exactly does that mean?"
"I hate to say it, but I think our boy has met his match. Judging by the attitude he's been showing, I suspect he jumped into this knowing it was a fight he couldn't win. The question is, if that was the case then why?"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, back at the battlefield…
Cell lowered his Perfect Barrier and shot a smirk at Goku "Correct me if I'm wrong, but if my senses are accurate then your power level dropped like a stone just now. I suggest you eat one of those little recovery beans, the last thing we want is for the festivities to get dull."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Piccolo and the others looked on in concern "This is bad, the last time I saw Goku this winded he was having a heart attack! He can't keep this up!"
"I know, but this is our chance!" Future Gohan whipped around to the others "Just give him a Senzu Bean, once he's back to full power we can all jump in and attack together! If we do that then Cell won't stand a chance!" he received no reply "You know, the magic beans that heal all wounds but are extinct in the future?" still no reply "Okay seriously you guys, if you're just bothered by cheating then you should either loosen your moral codes or stop hinging the fate of the world on deathmatches!"
"It's not that simple." Cooler was the one to finally answer him "Son Goku has not asked for any assistance, and if you know him that even if you did provide it, he would refuse. Whether he wins or loses against Cell, this is his battle and his alone. If you throw him one of those Senzu Beans then he would throw it back in your face, because what hangs in the balance right now is not simply the fate of this world, but his pride."
"But if he keeps going as he is there's no way he'll be able to keep this up!"
"There's no question about it. This is one battle Son Goku isn't going to win."
"What?! Then how can you just sit there and do nothing!"
"Because I'm looking at this realistically. Despite all of the training I myself hae done up until now, the fact is that Son Goku has kept up easily and perhaps nearly surpassed me. He has a true gift for combat, and yet despite that Cell still exceeds even his power. He views that gift as just another one of his playthings."
"And you think we should just stand here and watch that, and do nothing while he loses this fight?!"
"Calm yourself, it's become apparent to all of us that Son Goku has a grand plan up his sleeve for this. He would never go into a battle with stakes as high as this unless he was certain we would prevail, so the question is, what is his plan?"
'Father… whatever it is you have planned, I think I speak for everyone when I say that now is the best time for you to spring it.'
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Cell looked down at Goku and shot him a confident smirk "Oh come now Goku, just what is the issue here? Does your pride not care for the taste of magical beans? Your little display not long ago did force me to sacrifice a considerable amount of power, and slim as your chances of defeating me might be restoring yourself to full power would at least keep things interesting. If I can't enjoy myself then all of this would've been for nothing, not eat the damn Senzu Bean, get back up here and punch me in my perfect jawline!"
"Yeah well, here's thing about that Cell…" on that note, Goku powered down his aura and then proceeded to make every single jaw present and in the fandom drop "I give up."
"I'm sorry I'm rather high up here, what the hell did you just say Goku?!"
"I'm calling it here, I've sized up your power up until now and it's pretty obvious that I can't beat you."
"But we're not finished! I'm not finished! This isn't a victory, I don't even know what the hell to call this!"
"No it's totally a victory, I'm giving up and that means you get the win. Besides, me losing tournaments is kind of a trend when you think about it."
Next came a simultaneous chorus from the two angriest characters present "Every work you just spoke has made me violently angry! Oh great, now I'm agreeing with Cell/Kai! Look at what you made me do!"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Gohan looked between the rest of those present "Okay hold on a second, what does he think he's doing?"
"Well this is father we're talking about, so if I had to guess I'd say he's either saving all of our lives or dooming us all." Future Gohan told him dryly.
"...Yeah that sounds about right."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, back at Kame House…
"What the hell man?!" Bulma bolted to her feet "The guy who never backed down from anything in her life is suddenly just calling it a day?! What the hell is he thinking?!"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Cell looked down at Goku, his expression one of pure disgust "You mean to tell me you're actually calling it quits? That's just pathetic, you mean to end this fight before it barely even began?"
"Yeah, that's about the sum of it." Goku gave a shrug "Congrats Cell, the victory for our fight goes to you."
"Is that so? Fine I guess, but Goku I hope you're prepared to accept the consequences of you choosing to surrender."
"I know."
"You can quit if you want, but if there's no one else to challenge me then I'm going to keep my world and reduce this planet to rubble, the entire human race and everthing else on this planet wiped from existence."
"Hold your horses Cell, this is still a tournamment and there's still one fighter left so you have to take him on first if you want to blow up the planet."
"Oh is that so?" Cell paused, then let out a chuckle "Oh okay I get it, this is a prank. My god, I honestly never expected you to be a prankster Goku, but you definitely got me you clever son of a bitch!" he looked over at the sidelines "Okay so what are we talking about, is it Kai? No I doubt it, I don't even take my own sloppy seconds. The future boy? Oh I doubt that one, he looks like he's about ready to crush coal into diamonds with his spchincter. Cooler perhaps? From what I can tell, he may even be stronger than you."
"Nope, it's none of them. But I promise you Cell, one way or another this next round is going to be the last. If my pick loses then there's nobody on this planet who can beat you, that's all there is to it, but now that I've gauged your power level I'm 100% sure that my pick has what it takes to beat you, there's no contest and that's why I figured I might as well step aside and let him be the one to finish this."
"This doesn't make any sense, you're suggesting that whoever this mystery fighter of yours is they surpass even you in terms of raw power?"
"I'm not suggesting, I'm outright saying it."
"That's ridiculous, even if it were true he would have to be 10 times stronger than you if he wanted to make a difference."
"I don't know Cell, I think you just might be surprised."
"Well then by all means Goku, go ahead and surprise me. Who is this great warrior, give me a name!"
"Alright then, I'll give you the fighter you really want, the one who's finally gonna put your terror to an end." Goku looked over at the others on the sidelines, and he smiled "It's time for you to take over and finish this fight… Gohan."
"...Yep it's officially, we're all going to fucking die." Kai voiced everyone's opinion in that one sentence.
"Oh come on Kai, don't be like that."
"For the second time today, I find myself agreeing with that little shit." Cell noted dryly "I mean of all of the fighters you could've chosen, out of everyone on the entire list he's the one you choose to go with?"
"Say what you will about it now, but I doubt anyone would've guessed him." Goku promptly made his way over to the others and shot a grin at Gohan "Alright Gohan, you're up for this aren't you?"
"Goku, I think I speak for everyone when I say this: What in the name of hell do you think you're doing?!" Piccolo rounded on him.
"I'm sending in the strongest fighter we have, this is what we trained for."
"This is what you trained for, Gohan was never supposed to fight Cell one on one! He was just there to make you stronger!"
"Come on Piccolo, now you're just being insincere on Gohan's behalf!"
"Insecure, and no he's not! He's 11 years old!"
"He was 4 when you stuck him alone in the woods with Kai for 6 months."
"You're his father you idiotic bastard, you're actually supposed to care about his wellbeing from the start! I'm not denying that Gohan's abilities are far beyond what they used to be, but you're going to set him up against an opponent even you couldn't beat!"
"Okay, it's sad when I have to be the voice of reason between Gohan's two dads." Kai noted dryly "As much as I want to tell you what you're doing wrong as a parent, like what Piccolo is doing right now, how do you think your wife is going to react to this?"
"...Oh yeah. That. Oh crap."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
How Chichi reacted to this…
"I AM GOING TO CASTRATE HIM!" that was exactly how Chichi reacted to this, but at the same time she has a certain surprise in store for them.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Goku forced himself not to shudder "Okay, that I'll deal with when the time comes. But in all seriousness I need you to trust me, Gohan has a power in him greater than anything you could possibly imagine. Just think about it, he and Kai have been fighting along side us since they were little against some of the toughest enemies the galaxy has to offer. I remember all too well what I was like back when I was his age, I wasn't even 1% as strong as he is right now. I know for a fact just how capable he is right now, I mean I spent a whole year training him last week."
"Are you really sure about this though?" asked Yamcha "I know that Gohan and Kai both have a lot of potential, but what you're asking of him right now is a pretty tall order, and it's not very realistic considering what we're up against right now."
"I realize that this is a big challenge for a boy his age, but you didn't see what I saw from him when we were in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. I wouldn't be putting him out there if I didn't think he was ready." Goku knelt down in front of Gohan "What do you think about this, did you see Cell hit me with anything you didn't think you could handle? Did you see me go at him with anything you don't have?"
Gohan still appeared to be nervous about the thought "Well I don't think so, but you and him were both holding back, and if you were going all out then I'm sure it would've been a lot different."
"I doubt I could speak for Cell right now, but I was definitely giving it everything I had during that battle. You thought I was holding back, but that was only because you were gauging my Ki against your own."
"Okay back the actual fuck up a second." Kai jumped in "You mean the battle where pretty much everyone here was pissing themselves at the power you guys were putting out, and he didn't think a damn thing of it? I don't know if I should be proud or pissed right now, so I'm gonna choose to be both."
"You do that. So what do you say Gohan, I need you to get out there and win this one for us, and then we'll all be able to go home and enjoy some time off from all of the fighting."
"Well… if you really think I can, then at the very least I can try." Gohan promptly removed his weighted cape "At least I've been wished back by the dragon once, so I know what to expect if this doesn't go well."
"Let me just say one last thing before you go Gohan. I know for a fact that you're so much stronger than you think you are."
"I always did love the faith you and the others had in me dad, but right now I think it's a matter of what Cell thinks." and with that, Gohan flew down onto the battlefield.
Cell on the other hand, he was still less than impressed "So the biggest and most important fight of my life walks away, and in his place he sends in the world's strongest bookworm! Fine, so be it Goku, I'll play along with this little joke of yours. But it's only fair to let you know that while I'm busy pounding your son, I'll be thinking of you the entire time."
"...What have I gotten myself into?"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, back at the Son residence (AKA, part 2 of how Chichi reacted to this…
"WITH A BUTTERKNIFE YOU SON OF A BITCH, I'LL TIE YOU TO A CHAIR FIRST AND GAG YOU WITH A GODDAMN DAIKON RADISH!"
Thus concludes this installment of how Chichi reacted to this.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Kai studied Gohan and Cell intently, his mind racing 'Putting the sexual innuendoes aside, now that I think about it Gohan might actually have a chance at winning this. Cell took as much of a beating as Goku did, if not more, and since Gohan spent a year in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber with Goku, along with whatever Zenkai he got when we had our fight earlier, Gohan should be at least as strong as he is now. Play his cards right, and Gohan could actually come out on top in this fight.'
And then Goku did his thing "Hey guys I was thinking of taking a Senzu Bean, you guys have any on you?"
"Oh yeah, I stopped by Korin's place before we came." Krillin handed him a Senzu Bean "So there you go."
"Thanks. Hey Cell, heads up!" Goku promptly tossed the Senzu Bean to Cell "That right there is called a Senzu Bean, now eat up."
"Are you out of your freaking mind?!" Kai rounded on him in a rage "Did whatever brain cells you have in there suddenly die, in what universe did that seem like a bad idea?!"
"Hey take it easy guys, Cell used up a lot of his power when we went at it, so the way I see it it wouldn't be fair if he didn't fight Gohan at full strength."
"Are you officially deaf to everything you hear, he's gonna fucking kill your son!"
"Hey you said it kid, not me!" Cell shot them a smirk "Seriously Goku, even with everything at stake you still can't help but be a slave to your better nature. It's rather sickening, but all the same I will gladly accept this token of good sportsmanship. But mark my words, I'll be sure to see to it that you regret the gesture." so on that note, he promptly downed the Senzu Bean and brought himself back to full strength "Oh yeah, that's that good shit! Suck it Kale, you bush league super food. Seriously I have to thank you Goku, that does have a little kick to it. Too bad it tastes like rotten fish."
'Well so much for a war of attrition, so I guess it's jumping into the metaphorical shark infested deep end.' so with a deep breath and then a mighty roar, Gohan powered up his Super Saiyan form to its max, revealing an explosive display of power. When everything finally settled back down, Gohan was standing as he was before, only now his aura and hair were glowing gold and surging slightly from the power.
'Okay I have to admit, I wasn't expecting this at all. The kid's been hiding more power than I was expecting, he actually might be stronger than Goku. It's like the kid has become an entirely different person. Maybe Goku was onto something. I guess your father wasn't bluffing after all when he was selling your abilities to me, this is far more appealing than I was expecting from you kid. Still though, he did go a bit far singing your praises. Hate to break it to you kid, but I'm afraid winning isn't in your cards."
"I guess there's only one way to find out." Gohan slowly dropped into a combat stance as he watched Cell return to the ground.
"You really are up for this aren't you? Well then I can only wish you the best of luck, this is going to hurt you a great deal Gohan, but I'm not without kindness. I'll make sure that the pain you have to endure only lasts a second." so on that note, Cell promptly aimed a kick.
Gohan blocked it, then went on to dodge and block a series of punches and kicks and was quick to throw Cell over his shoulder.
Cell took to the air, rebounded and blitzed towards him.
Gohan took to the air to dodge the attack, as well as the follow up kick aimed at his head, and he took the opportunity to kick Cell in the face, sending him flying away 'Okay that's it, so far so good.' he soared high into the air to dodge Cell's next attack, as well as the barrage of punches that followed, before both of them broke away.
"Well you're definitely a lot more spry than the future version of you, but in the meantime let's see how you can handle yourself against my true speed!" Cell suddenly blitzed forward and quickly dealt Gohan a headbutt, then grabbed him by the front of his gi and started repeatedly punching him in the face "Thinking of you Goku!"
'Gotta find an opening when he punches, or maybe hit his blind spot! There!' siezing the first chance he got, Gohan spun himself around and dealt Cell a solid kick to the face, sending him crashing to the ground in a heap, while Gohan himself returned to the ground and wiped the blood from his face 'He got a lot of good hits in because I let down my guard and didn't expect him to be so fast, I'm gonna have to be a lot more careful from here on out.'
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
JF and the others looked on in horror as he watched the battle unfold "Good mother of god, this 10 year old child is currently fighting for his life! Me thinks the Make a Wish Foundation has gone too far this time!"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Cell pulled himself back to his feet and wiped the blood from his lip, and he shot Gohan a smirk full of confidence "Go ahead and keep staring at me like that kid, it's not going to help you in this fight. I have to admit though, you are proving to be quite a treat to knock around, durable like your father yet soft like your mother. But it's only fair to warn you now brat, if you think that the only way to win is to not play then you're playing the wrong game!" he leapt into the air and fired a barrage of Ki blasts, forcing Gohan to go on the evasive, jumping and rolling to dodge every attack.
Gohan dodged and weaved his way around every Ki blast being thrown at him, and as he did he shot a grin over at Kai and Piccolo "You guys can't say that I can't dodge properly anymore now can you?"
Piccolo let out a very tsundere like grunt "I mean, you could be dodging better."
"Oh come on!"
"Dodge!" Cell aimed a kick at Gohan's head.
"Not this time!" Gohan weaved his way around the kick and landed back on the ground a few feet away from where Cell was doing the same.
Cell promptly blitzed behind Gohan and promptly dealt him a brutal series of punches and kicks, leaving him unable to defend himself "Game over kid, at least this way you have someone to blame for getting you into this mess. If it makes you feel any better, I would've tried saving you for last." and then he unleashed a shockwave that sent Gohan crashing clear through a plateau behind him.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
JF and the rest of the Satan entourage looked on in horror "Dear sweet merciful god, I think… I think the boy is dead! Such is the first casualty of the Cell Games, an adolescent that deserved so much better. Can we show that on network television? I mean we're still live right now, so I don't think we really have a choice."
"Pretty sure they can hear what you're saying." Larry pointed out.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Ox King and Chichi could only look on in horror at the sight of Gohan's supposed demise, only for the former to start freaking out when the latter fainted "Chichi! Sweetheart take it easy, keep in mind that you've got another one coming!"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Cell looked at the plateau that Gohan had crashed into, then looked back at the others "So which of those among you wants to try and describe the meaning of filicide to Goku? I mean I would just ask Gohan but, well he's been filicided."
"I'll tell you what the hell it means!" Piccolo promptly rounded on Goku in a rage "What it means is that Gohan is dead you bastard, he's fucking dead! Why couldn't you just listen to us for once, now your own son is dead because of you!"
"As much as I'm all for beating the shit out of Goku or just tearing into him, Gohan isn't dead yet." Kai pointed out dryly "If you had been paying attention, you'd notice that his Ki hasn't dropped in the slightest."
"...Oh."
"Yeah he's right." Goku pointed out.
"Enough of this already." Cell looked up at him "Just face it Goku, you're the only one worthy of the Cell Games, so just go ahead and eat a Senzu Bean already."
"Oh yeah, then who's that behind you?"
"Oh please."
Sure enough, with an explosive shockwave Gohan burst out from beneath the rubble alive and well, and he wiped the blood from his face 'Okay that one definitely hurt.'
"Oh joy. Quite the surprise I have to admit, I shouldn't have taken you for granted kid."
"Can I just say something?"
"I've been humoring you this entire time anyway, so why not? But if you're looking to exchange barbs, I'd recommend cutting your teeth on something similar first, like that embarrassment hiding over there." he jerked a thumb over at Mr Satan.
"Leave him out of this. I know why we're fighting right now, I know why my father threw me out to the biggest wolf on the face of these woods."
"Oh trust me, I intend fully to huff and puff and blow you down."
"I'm only 10."
"And I'm 6."
"Oh. Anyway I don't want to kill you, even if you are an evil monster we don't have to end things like this."
"Seriously? Look I understand your reluctance to continue this battle, but you thinking you could actually kill me is a whole other story. Let's face it, you couldn't make a proper dent in me if I stood here motionless."
"That's not it. My dad put me out there like this because whenever I get backed into a corner, I snap like that guy in the Shining."
"Oh really, you mind elaborating? Enlighten me, seriously."
"When I snap, when I get angry, when I lose my mind, my power skyrockets and everything just goes red. The world around me sort of just fades away. I think the first time it happened was back when Raditz and that other Saiyan Beets came to Earth for the first time, then when I was training with Piccolo, then when Vegeta and Nappa showed up, and there were a few times back on Namek, and I ended up blowing off Nappa's arm, along with one of Frieza's men. Then when the time came to battle Frieza himself, and finally when that evil Namekian Lord Slug came to Earth, and that's what let me tap into my Super Saiyan power so easily. In those moments, I saw everything go red, and I coould only see one thing: the person I wanted to kill. Of course I never actually did manage to beat anyone in the past, Kai doesn't really count, but I think my dad knows that if I snap here…"
"Let me guess, you snap here and you kill me?"
"You said it, not me."
"Is that so?" Cell paused for moment, then started laughing loudly "Threaten me with a good time you have, quite the fascinating story but not a wise one to tell. If you're trying to intimidate someone it helps to know about your audience in me, case in point: Let's just say for the sake of your argument it's true and you have some kind of hidden power just waiting to burst out of you like a volcano, but considering who I am and whose DNA I have in me, let's just assume that I'm the sort who wants to see them first hand!" he dealt Gohan a fist to the face, and elbow to the skull and promptly stomped down on Gohan's head "What the hell are you waiting for, come on and surprise me."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Dammit Kakarot, this is going too far!" Raditz was the next person to round on Goku "Just face it, you're the one Cell wants so just eat a Senzu Bean and get back out there before your own son gets killed!"
"Look just take it easy bro, it's going to be just fine." Goku assured him "I would never have made Gohan go out there if I didn't think he has what it takes, all he has to go is get mad and then Cell is pretty screwed."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Cell continued stomping down on Gohan's head "Yes that's right kid, go ahead and show me this awesome power of yours I should supposedly fear so greatly! Make me suffer, make me beg for mercy, teach me a lesson I won't soon forget!" he stomped down harder, causing Gohan to scream in pain, but when that didn't work he picked up Gohan by the front of his gi and started pummeling him "Come on you little shit, get angry! Seriously, how hard should it be to piss off a 10 year old?! Show me dammit!" he dealt Gohan a brutal elbow to the stomach and sent him crashing into some rocks, and then he continued his brutal assault "Come on kid, get angry and show me your power dammit! I want to see what you're capable of!"
"Enough!" Gohan burst back up from beneath the rubble, leapt over Cell's next attack and promptly kicked him square in the face, sending him skidding backwards 'Take things one step at a time I guess, at least he felt that one.'
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Goku watched the spectacle unfold from the sidelines, the smirk never leaving his face 'Yeah you got that right Cell, give him the business. It's exactly what you want, but when things finally do get ugly for you, you can't say he didn't try to warn you.'
"Tell me." Cooler spoke up "You're reasoning for that boy being the one to vanquish this monster, would it happen to be…"
"Yep, you guessed it already. It should be any minute now."
"...I'm not so sure about that."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Cell pulled himself back to his feet, wiped the blood from his lip and shot Gohan a smirk full of malice "Oh yeah Gohan, if I wasn't going to bring it out of you then I sure as hell am now. I hope you're prepared brat, because now I'm going to see you at full power whether you like it or not." he promptly fired a Death Beam from his fingertip.
'That's-' Gohan was forced to duck to avoid the blast 'That's Frieza's move, the one that he used to kill Uncle Raditz!' he was quickly forced on the evasive by a rapid barrage of Death Beams that followed.
That is, until Cell caught him in a bear hug "So just for the sake of being clear, if you break then I die is that the gist of it?"
"That would be the process of events yes."
"Well then I guess there's only one thing to do now, and that's to see which breaks first." he then started crushing Gohan in his beear hug, causing him to scream in pain "Spirit or body, taking all bets guys!"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Goku looked on with the smile never leaving his face or even faltering 'Yeah that's right, just according to cake.'
This was when Piccolo finally lost his temper "In this endless pile of hay Goku, this is the last fucking straw! If things keep going like this then your son, your own flesh and blood, is going to be slaughter! I've had enough of this and I don't care what you say about it either, this fight is going to end because I'm putting a stop to it!"
"Use your head Piccolo, even if Gohan did need your help you know you wouldn't last ten seconds against Cell! Just wait a little longer, I promise he's almost there."
"Okay Kakarot, now we're all seriously getting concerned about this." Raditz told him "It's not right for you to be so calm in this situation. That's your own son getting beaten to death out there right now."
"I know guys, I get what you're saying but this is exactly what I've been planning on right from the start. Just wait and see, any second now he's going to lose his temper and then you'll see what I mean. All Gohan has to do is get mad, and once he reaches full power Cell won't stand a ghost of a chance in hell. There's no question that he's going to win, despite how bad it might look right now the fact is that he's the only one of us who can win. I'm not going to be around forever, sooner or later death is going to stick, so what then? Someone has to be here to keep things safe once I'm gone, and while I was in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, I realized that that person… is Gohan.
"...Uh huh, I get what you're saying, now let me offer this as a counterpoint while I beat you within an inch of your life. Namek-Ken 40x!" pushing his Namek-Ken to the max, Kai then shocked everyone present by slamming his fist into Goku's skull, forcing him to the ground and then repeatedly punching him over and over again as he screamed his lungs out "YOU FUCKING RETARD!"
"Kai what are you-"
"SHUT UP, JUST SHUT UP AND LISTEN! Face the facts Goku, this is a mistake and you damn well know it! It doesn't matter how much power Gohan has, he's not a warrior like the rest of us are! And besides about this grand plan of yours to take out Cell, does Gohan even know what it is? Do you even know what's going on inside of his head right now?! He's not angry or just fucking around for fun like you and I do, he's in more pain and agony than anything he's ever known before and he's died once already and for all we know he's cursing your name for standing around up here with that stupid fucking goofy ass grin and refusing to step in and pull him out of this! Use that thick skull for a minute before I smash it open myself, all the power in the universe or not he's still just a kid like me, a child whose death warrant you're signing as we speak! All this bullshit move of yours is gonna do is get him killed and even when we do bring him back he'll be left with mental and emotional scars! And you know how I know, it's because I AM WHAT HE WOULD BECOME! I know I act like a fucking psychopath but what the fuck would you expect, my dad abandoned me before I was even born and I lost my own mother when I was three, and the only family that I had was a guy who's part of this whole dysfunctional bullshit of a group! I've seen people die with my own 5 year old eyes before and I've killed people before, yeah I'm only 10 and I have the blood of at least a dozen people on my hands! I've seen the only blood family that I have die by the hand of an alien warrior and my best friend die by the hand of an evil space emperor, both of which when I was a fucking toddler! And now fast forward, I'm 10 and even I get what you don't! GOHAN DOESN'T EVEN LIKE FIGHTING YOU RETARDED WORTHLESS EXCUSE FOR A WARRIOR!" Kai promptly grabbed Goku by the hair and held him up towards the battle "Do you know what he's thinking right now? He's not angry or fighting for fun or playing for time, he's in greater agony than anything he's ever known, and he's probably wondering why his own father, the man he looks up to more than anyone else in this entire fucking universe, refuses to step in and help him when he needs it. Open your eyes and pull that stick out of your ass, no matter how much power he's packing away he's just a scared kid, a kid you abandoned time and time again despite how much he needed you. My dad abandoned me before I was even born, but you're still here right now, so what excuse do you have?"
Goku was forced to look down at Gohan being tortured by Cell, and his expression turned to one of of shock and horror as he listened to Gohan's screams of agony 'Oh god, what the hell have I done? Someone toss me a Senzu Bean. Now." and yet instead of a Senzu Bean, he received a Nail Gun through the chest, courtesy of a still thoroughly enraged Kai.
"Not a chance Palm Tree, you had your shot and you blew it. Keep the Senzu Beans on standby guys, I'm going down there and pulling Gohan out of there myself." Kai's Namek-Ken flared as high as it could, but then he shot a look at Piccolo "That hole in the chest, that one came out of your book Piccolo." he shot him a thumbs up, then charged down towards the battlefield and promptly kicked Cell square in the face hard enough to send him flying, then quickly rushed over and caught Gohan and helped him to the ground "Hey man, you okay?"
Gohan spat out a considerably amount of blood, then looked up at Kai as he staggered his way back to his feet "Kai go back, you shouldn't be down here."
"Forget it, unlike your dad I'm not going to sit here and watched you get killed over a plan that probably won't even work. Short version, your dad is even more retarded than I thought and we're fighting Cell together."
"Kai you really shouldn't be-"
"Fuck, get down!" Kai shoved Gohan out of the way just in time to get a Special Beam Cannon to the shoulder, sending him flying back into a plateau and leaving him in a bloody heap.
"KAI NO!"
As it turns out, that Special Beam Cannon came from Cell "Okay seriously, if that didn't awaken this hidden power then I'm done trying to do this stuff for you. You now leave me no choice but to take out my frustration on your friends over there." so on that note, Cell blitzed over to the sidelines and snatched the bag of Senzu Beans from Krillin right as he pulled it out "Okay just a quick update everyone, like with the actual World Martial Arts Tournament, these are now tournament illegal. Alright, thank you." and he leapt back down onto the battlefield.
"NO!"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
What Cell didn't notice (either that or didn't care about) was Yamcha pulling one last Senzu Bean out of his gi and picking up Kai's blood covered form in his arms "Hey easy buddy, just stay with me long enough to swallow this okay? I promised I won't let anything happen to you, and I won't.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Cell floated back down to Gohan with the bag of Senzu Beans in hand "Okay, I think it's safe to say that I've learned today that not all roads lead to Rome. Torturing you won't do the trick, so let's change up the game plan shall we? I'm going to drag each one of your friends down here and murder them right in front of you until you finally give me what I want from you."
Gohan could only look on in horror "No no no, please don't!"
"Take it easy kid, I'll save your BFF and your dad for last? Hey Kai, Piccolo, you guys hearing that one okay?"
"...I don't get that."
"Of course you don't."
"Please don't do this, leave them out of this! I lied okay, I don't have any hidden power! What you're seeing now is everything I've got!"
"Oh there's no need for you to underestimate yourself, I'm betting a little bit extra motivation is going to be just what you need to really get serious with me."
"Stay away from them!" Gohan pounced at Cell, only to be kicked in the face and send tumbling backwards.
"Stop wasting my time with this pitiful act and sit down, this is going to take awhile. I want to make this nice and slow."
"ENOUGH!" that was when 16 suddenly popped up and grabbed Cell in a brutal bear hug from behind.
"16 what the hell?! Listen buddy, as thrilled as I should be that you're finally coming around to me, but you're timing is anything but ideal!"
"Brobot be careful!" Raditz called out to him "And I don't care what any of you say about me calling him that, you don't judge the robromance!"
"First of all Raditz, no robo. Seriously though 16, what the hell are you doing?!"
"What needs to be done." 16 turned to face the others as well "I know several of you are thinking of taking part in this battle, but all ofyou must stay back! I am going to engage my self destruct sequence! You must take cover! Within my system is a high-yield nuclear explosive! I am going to detonate it, and I will take Cell with me, as is my programmed last resort measure! Do not come any closer, it is highly unlikely you could survive such a blast!"
"I do not consent to this!"
"Your compliance is not a factor."
"You had a chunk of your head missing, how do you remember that?!"
"My systems are more durable than you believed!"
"Brobot don't do this, you still have so much to live for!" Raditz protested.
"It is okay my friend, I see now that this is how it has to be. As long as he lives, Cell will continue to kill and destroy. I see now that this world must be ridded of his evil, regardless of the cost. Cell and I will both perish, and with us this nightmare will end! All of Dr Gero's ambitions, his intentions to conquer the world and shed countless amounts of blood in his quest for revenge upon Son Goku, they come to an end here and now! My countdown has started!" his body began glowing as he prepared to self destruct.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
JF and his camermaman just took in what 16 was about to do, and they were surprisingly calm about what was about to happen "So out of curiosity, what are the odds of outrunning a nuclear explosion?"
Mr Satan, well he was the exact opposite "Find me a bomb shelter, no wait a fridge!"
"I'm guessing that's a 0. Well then what do you say Larry, how about we do it one more time for old time's sake?"
Larry wiped away some of his tears and forced on a brave face "Where there's smoke, there's firecracker sir."
"You're goddamn right."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"GOODBYE!" 16's body was glowing gold as he prepared to self destruct, leaving everyone to prepare for the inevitable blast that would follow… only for the blast to never come, and for the glowing to subside, leaving 16 as confused as everyone else "A critical error has occured. What has malfunctioned, why have I not self destructed?"
This was when Future Gohan finally chose to speak up "You didn't know 16? It didn't work because you don't have an explosive in your body anymore! It used to be there but Bulma and her father found it when they were repairing you, and they decided to take it out."
"Who gave her the right?!"
"I'm sorry 16, but you can't self destruct anymore!"
"But-"
"Well that's interesting." Cell let out a chuckle "You know 16, not that this embrace of yours hasn't been heartwarming and all, I mean my endorphins are just going crazy right now, but I have a child to break. Besides, a mere bomb wouldn't have been enough to destroy me to begin with. Now then, correct me if I wrong but I believe you were looking for a kaboom?"
"If I said no, would you still-" 16 was promptly cut off by a simple Ki blast from Cell that was powerful enough to blast his body to bits, leaving only his head still intact as it rolled over to where Mr Satan and the others were hiding out.
"For the record, the answer to that is yes. Too bad 16, but I'm afraid you'll be joining the growing list of failures created by Dr Gero."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Son of a-!" Bulma slammed her fists down on the coffee table "If I had known he was gonna go nuclear on Cell then I would've left the stupid thing in him!"
"Why did you even take it out in the first place?" asked Master Roshi.
"What are you kidding? Imagine if he had decided to blow his payload the first time he laid eyes on Goku, try explaining that to Chichi! Whoops, sorry I let your husband and child get nuked, but the hypocratic oath and all of that crap."
"You know what Bulma I think you need to relax more, how's about a brewski?"
"I'm still breast feeding."
"Well then two of us are thirsty!" this was met with Bulla cooing in response "Oh yeah, you go baby."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Cell looked around at what was left of 16 and let out a sigh of disappointment "Oh 16, part of me hoped for you to be the wind beneath my wings, but all you've done is take the wings right out of my snails. Now I don't even feel like killing any of the fools over there, except Goku but that's obvious."
Gohan's face lit up with a small bit of hope "So then does that mean…?"
"Yes kiddo, I'm not going to kill your daddies and your bestie. They are."
"The implication being?"
"Let's see here, between Goku, Kai, Cooler, Piccolo, Nail, Yamcha, Krillin, Upa, Raditz nd your future self that makes 10 in total I believe. Now then…" the hole in Cell's tail opened up and started shooting out one slime covered form after another "Oh. OH. Oh my god, I'm never having kids after this."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
JF and the rest of the Satan entourage looked on in a mix of horror and disgust at what Cell was doing "Ladies and gentlemen at home, it would appear that the terrible Perfect Cell is in the process of… doing one of two things, I'm not sure which one but I'm pretty sure we can't show either one of them on network television."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
The Z fighters on the sidelines had their own thoughts.
"I don't understand, how do they just come out without the egg?!" that one came from both Nail and Piccolo.
Yamcha and Krillin shared a look "Life always finds a way…"
"To make me vomit." Kai muttered.
"Wow, this actually seems pretty easy." Goku commented "I don't get what Chichi had been complaining about back then."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Oh god… Okay… I'm done…" Cell finally stopped doing what he was doing and his tail returned to normal, only for his tail to shudder "Oh that's just perfect, it's going to be doing that for the rest of today. You know Goku I've been thinking, and I've decided that your insistence on fighting your progency should be returned in kind. So now I'd like to give you: my children!" he gestured to the small creatures pulling themselves to their feet, looking like small identical copies of Cell, only they were blue "I give you Norio, Dameon, Travis, Curtis, Dale, Jonathan and three others I don't have names for. The last one however, I dubbed as Vegeta Jr Jr."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Oh dear mother of god." Kai voiced everyone's horror "It's like every single nightmare I've ever had fused into one, cloned itself, fucked the clone and then made those!"
"That is so accurate it's horrifying." Nail muttered.
"So you agree."
"I do, also how are you-"
"Yamcha had an extra Senzu Bean."
"...Oh."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Gather around children." Cell was quick to round up the 10 Cell Jr's "Listen up, daddy has set up a play date for you. Now I want all of you to make sure that you share your toys, you don't leave daddy's sight… and you bring me the bodies. But most importantly, have fun!"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Dammit this is bad!" Goku quickly braced himself "Be careful you guys, these little things are stronger than they look!"
"Tell that to the ones who can't take a punch!" Kai powered up his Namek-Ken 40x and broke off from the group, with one of the Cell Jr's following him "Those who can take them on your own, spread out! Those who can't, stick around so you don't die alone!"
"Agreed!" Cooler kicked one in the face and sent it flying, and he promptly followed right after it, with Future Gohan doing the same to another, leaving Goku and the others to fend off the last seven of them.
"You're too slow!" one dodged one of Krillin's attacks with ease.
"You blue blurry little bastard!" pushing his Kaioken up to 20x, Krillin charged at the Cell Jr but was still having no luck.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, down on the main battlefield…
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, with Kai and Cell Jr 1…
Kai stared down his own Cell Jr a short distance away from the rest of the group, his Namek-Ken being pushed high enough to match his opponent "Alright you little shit, come at me!"
The Cell Jr gladly obliged and charged at Kai, unleashing a furious volley of punches and kicks at him in an explosive collision.
Kai weaved his way around every blow and dealt the Cell Jr a kick to the torso, blowing it back into a nearby plateau.
The Cell Jr burst out from the rubble and charged at him again.
Kai dodged and blocked every blow while dealing a few himself, repeatedly striking him in the face.
Eventually, the Cell Jr broke off from his assault and took to the skies, with Kai following right after him, but once they were up there above the clouds they continued trading blows, the shockwaves blowing apart a few nearby plateaus.
Kai quickly broke off their clash when he slugged the Cell Jr in the face and hurled it towards the ground.
The Cell Jr burst back upwards and charged at Kai at full speed, its rage growing as they resumed their clash.
'Well this is honestly pretty disappointing, I mean if I was fighting these things before I had my potential unlocked by that old Namekian with Cooler then maybe, but right now they've got nothing on me.' Kai weaved his way around every strike and dealt the Cell Jr a smash attack to the head, sending it crashing to the ground, only to see a Ki blast burst up from beneath the rubble, but he quickly countered it with one of his own, and then he deflected the second one with ease, as well as the barrage of blasts that followed.
"Die!" the Cell Jr blitzed above Kai while he was preoccupied with the barrage of Ki blasts and attempted to pierce through him with a Special Beam Cannon with a quick but powerful Special Beam Cannon.
"Nail Gun!" Kai quickly countered with a Nail Gun that ripped through the Special Beam Cannon and pierced through the Cell Jr, leaving a gaping hole in its chest "In the worlds of the Terminator: Hasta la vista, baby." he promptly fired an Explosive Demon Wave, which was more than enough to vaporize every trace of the Cell Jr on the spot "Oh come on, was that seriously all it could do?"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, with Cooler and Cell Jr 2…
Cooler stared down his Cell Jr as he dropped into a combat stance "I already know of one monster threatening to destroy the entire universe because of a wretched fool bent on revenge, I don't need to deal with another. You and your master will perish here today!"
"You die here!" the Cell Jr let out a snarl and charged at Cooler in a blind rage.
Cooler cranked his neck to the side to dodge the attack and buried his fist in the Cell Jr's gut with ease, causing it to cough up blood, and then he slugged it in the face hard enough to send it flying into a plateau, before following up with with a simple Death Beam that blew the plateau apart in a matter of seconds.
The Cell Jr rebounded, blitzed above Cell and dealt him a brutal smash attack that sent him crashing to the ground.
Cooler blitzed above the Cell Jr and dealt it a brutal kick to the neck, sending it crashing through a plateau, and then the two of them quickly charged at each other, grappling in a brief power struggle that ended when Cooler flipped the Cell Jr around and slammed his knee square in its face, resulting in the two of them trading even blows that ended when Cooler used his tail to smack the Cell Jr across the face and send it flying.
The Cell Jr rebounded, spat out some blood and then charged at Cooler as it launched a series of punches at him.
Cooler cranked his neck to dodge every blow and started repeatedly dealing the Cell Jr a series of brutal punches and kicks all over its body that nearly left it winded "You're persistent if nothing else, but if your master wished for results he should've made you more powerful. Death Wave!" he fired a death wave that not only blew off half of the Cell Jr's body, but also the entire plateau behind them "Your master clearly overestimated your capabilities, either that or he underestimated my capabilities. Either way, while you have put up a valiant struggle, this is where it ends for you." and on that note, he promptly
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, with Future Gohan and Cell Jr 3…
Future Gohan stared down the Cell Jr in front of him as he flashed into Super Saiyan "For as long as I can remember, my father is the one who enjoys a good battle, the thrill of the fight, and for as long as I'd known him Kai was always the same way. I can't say I enjoy fighting like they do, but if I have to fight to avoid any blood being shed then I will without hesitation. I'm not wasting time, if you're going to come at me then do it already."
The Cell Jr let out a howl as it charged at Future Gohan at full speed, dodging a series of punches but receiving a shallow cut across its cheek, so it let a fist fly forward.
Future Gohan blocked the fist and dealt the Cell Jr a kick to the face, blocking a counter kick in the process and dealing it a swift punch to the gut, before soaring away from it clear across the horizon.
The Cell Jr soared after him at full speed, dodged the series of Ki blasts that followed, blitzed behind Future Gohan and slugged him hard enough to send him flying.
Future Gohan stopped himself in mid air, charged at the Cell Jr and unleashed a rapid barrage of punches that sent the Cell Jr flying, and then he blitzed towards it and followed up with a brutal knee to the stomach.
The Cell Jr winced in pain, but grabbed Future Gohan by the ankle and hit him at point blank range with a Ki blast.
When the smoke cleared, Future Gohan was revealed to have blocked the Ki blast with ease and then slugged the Cell Jr in the face hard enough to get it to let go, and then he promptly flew away again.
Growing frustrated, the Cell Jr soared after him and fired a series of Ki blasts.
Future Gohan danced across the skies in a series of rapid and graceful movements, leaving each one of them to detonate in the distance.
With a fury filled snarl, the Cell Jr burst in front of Future Gohan and slammed its fist directly into his face, only for it to not even affect him.
Future Gohan slowly turned, grabbed the Cell Jr by the arm and slammed his own fist straight into its gut, sending a shockwave coursing through its body and causing it to cough up blood, and then he followed up with a spin kick to the head that sent him crashing to the ground, and then Future Gohan cupped his hands at his side "Ka… Me… Ha… Me… HA!" he promptly fired a full power Kamehameha downwards at full speed.
The Cell Jr rebounded, flew up to the Kamehameha and attempted to catch it, but he was slowly pushed down towards the ground, and once it hit the ground its strength gave out and it was engulfed in the Kamehameha, vaporizing it on the spot.
Future Gohan breathed a sigh as he powered back down to his base form 'Looks like it didn't have enough power to fight back anymore, and from what I can tell Kai and Cooler have already wrapped up their fights too.'
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, back at the main battlefield…
Cell watched with a sense of pride as he watched the remaining 7 Cell Jr's beat the every loving crap out of Goku and the others "Are they not precious, my own little family. At least now once I'm through with this worthless little planet, I'll have someone to accompany me as I trounce around the stars. Perhaps I'll try conquering Namek, wear that hat for a little while."
"No… No…" Gohan's voice was filled with nothing but dread and horror.
"Yeah you're right, that's just the Frieza in me talking."
"Please stop this, I take back what I said about my hidden power! I don't want to fight you, my dad is the one who lives fighting not me! So I'm begging you, I'll get down on my knees if I have to, just rein them in! Give my dad a Senzu Bean and-"
"And there it is, that right there is exactly why I despise you as much as I do! You know what all of them have in common? The Saiyans might be wretched fools, the Namekians might not belong, and the humans might not have a chance in hell, but despite these things all of them are still out there fighting. Not just for their lives, but for this dung hill of a world. But none of them boy, not a one of them, shares that trait with you so vile it drives me to wretch. You Gohan, you are nothing but a coward."
"No, I'm just a pacifist!"
"So a coward patting himself on the back. Congratulations pint size, you can stand tall and proud next to the bodies."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, with the other Z fighters…
Piccolo reeled back from a fist to the face from his Cell Jr, but he quickly retaliated with a smash attack that sent him crashing to the ground, and then he looked over to see that Goku wasn't having much luck "Dammit, this is bad. Yamcha, Nail, listen up! Goku used most of his strength when he was fighting Cell, we're gonna need to back him up!" he hurled his Cell Jr right into another Cell Jr and knocked both of them to the ground "Now go!"
"I'm on it! Kaioken… times… THIRTY!" pushing his Kaioken as high as his body could handle it, Yamcha blitzed in front of the Cell Jr, activated his Wolf Fang Saber, and in a few swift movements he used his Ki blade to cut its body into various pieces "NOW!"
"RIGHT! MYSTIC FLASH!" Nail packed as much power as he could into the Mystic Flash he unleashed, which proved to be enough to vaporize every bit of the Cell Jr on the spot "Quite the impressive move using that blade."
"Thanks, it helps to have a lot of experience as a swordsman, it kind of reminds me of the days before I met Goku and the others."
"I see, well you'd best put that to use."
"No arguments here." with his Kaioken still flaring, Yamcha charged at another Cell Jr, his Wolf Fang Saber blazing as a second one grew on his free hand.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Gohan however, was more focused and equally horrified by the sight of Krillin and Upa both being brutally tortured by one of the Cell Jr's on the ground a short distance away from where he was standing "KRILLIN! UPA!"
"You see what I'm talking about?" Cell jerked a thumb over at the scene "Even those two schmucks are doing their best! Truth be told, I'm surprised they lasted for this long, and by the fact that Yamcha is actually holding his own. I guess Ki blades are gonna become a new trend or something."
'This is bad everyone is in so much trouble! Aside from Upa and Piccolo, none of them up there can be brought back with the Dragon Balls if anything happens to them! What do I do, what the hell do I do?!' his hair standing upwards slightly, which didn't go unnoticed by Cell.
"Well now, it seems that your power level is beginning to flare up a little bit. Perfect, it seems that the rage is building up inside of you Gohan. You'd better show me what you're capable of, your friends can't hold out much longer. Don't be naive boy, Raditz and the others are barely fending them off and any strength your father has has long since been spent. He will fall, and it will be soon. Observe." he jerked a thumb over at where Krillin and Upa were still being beaten senseless by two Cell Jr's.
'Everyone, they're all going to die… all of them… If there really is some awesome power hidden within me… I want to let it out… I have to stop Cell before it's too late… But if I do have this power, then how do I release it?! How do I get angry enough to save my dad, my future self and my friends?! Somebody tell me how!'
"I… won't… I won't let this go on!" Upa gathered enough strength to attack the Cell Jr, only for his leg to be caught with ease "Uh… please don't break my leg."
"Hmm… okay." so the Cell Jr promptly blasted Upa through the chest, leaving his lifeless body to fall to the ground, only for the Cell Jr to get one of its arms and both its wings blasted off almost immediately after.
As it turns out, that blast came from Future Gohan, standing a short distance away from the others with Kai and Cooler by his side "As long as I'm still breathing, no one else is going to be killed by you monsters!"
"Long story short, we're going to town on these freaks." Kai's Namek-Ken aura sured "You guys ready to do this?"
"As if you had to ask." so the two of them promptly charged into the fray.
"So it would seem I was right, they really are two sides of the same coin." Cooler promptly charged after them.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile…
JF and the rest of the Satan entourage looked on in horror "Dear viewers, it looks like the terrifying Perfect Cell has gone full septo-mom, with seven sinister spawns at his command to do his bidding! Tell us Mr Satan, do you have a plan to deal with these terrifying toddlers, these chilling children, these prepubescent predators?"
"Uh…" Mr Satan was quick too pull another excuse out of his ass "You see Jimmy, those things aren't actually children, they're just a bunch of dwarves paid to fight on his behalf! And I'm going to be honest with you, I bet they're not even paying them industry rates. I'm telling you now Jimmy, the way little people are treated in show business is just downright criminal! You know what, I'm gonna go right now and look up their agents, and give them a damn solid piece of my-"
"Excuse me." a voice promptly stopped him in his tracks, and when they looked around they found that it belonged to none other than Android 16, or what was left of him, his head sitting a few feet away from them "I seem to be without a body. Would you mind lending me yours?" he was met with lots of screaming from them "Why are you screaming?"
"Because you're a talking head!" JF pointed out.
"So are you."
"...That is cutting sir."
"I need one of you to give me a hand. I must get close to Cell and the boy, so one of you will need to get me there. I believe I know of a way to finally end this madness."
"What are you crazy, what makes you think any of us are going anywhere near that war zone out there?!"
"...I'll do it." that was when Mr Satan made everyone's jaws drop.
"Mr Satan?"
"I have a daughter at home Jimmy, a little girl about the age of that boy out there. And right now I'm being told I might be able to save the world, and all I have to do is throw this robot's head in spitting distance of that crazy killer bug monster? Sure that may sound crazy."
"No it's definitely crazy, I'm pretty sure Larry and I have been finding God throughout this entire experience."
"Well then, who better to leave it to then the World Martial Arts champion Mr Satan, am I right boys? And besides I told you before Jimmy, it's all a bunch of tricks."
"They are not. You could die." 16 told him flatly.
"Do you have a mute button or something?"
"Not anymore."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, back on the main battlefield…
Cell looked on as the battle against the Cell Jrs continued 'My children have certainly kicked the ever loving shit out of most of them, it's kind of like a metaphor or something. Honestly some of them don't even deserve it, but it's still kind of funny.'
"Hey!" of course Gohan wasn't done trying, though by now it was getting embarrassing "I swear I'm gonna… I'm gonna rip off your head and, uh…"
"Yeah come on kid, you can do it. Just keep pushing a little further."
"And defecate… on your… lunch?"
"Oh for the love of- Now you're just embarrassing both of us. Seriously, how hard is it supposed to be to piss off a 10 year old?"
"Why don't you ask Twitter?" Kai called to him while backhanding a Cell Jr with considerable ease.
"You should be a stomping mess from me taking a toy away, meanwhile your friends and family and even you from the future are fighting for their lives and getting beaten into mulch as we speak all you can do is… cry?" he grew more enraged at the sight of Gohan with tears streaming down his face "And now he's crying like a bitch, are you serious right now?! That's it! Kids put your toys away, we're going home!"
"Wait!" Gohan's cries went unheard.
"And just for the sake of being clear, when I say that I mean just kill them all so I can blow up this shithole and find something better to do. Waste of my fucking Sunday, maybe that bald guy with the cape was right when he said I should wait until Monday."
"Please, just hold on! I'm one step closer to the edge, and I'm about to-!"
"Okay seriously, everything you say to me is pissing me off! You had your chance kid, and in the end it didn't even matter."
"Wait!" that was when 16's head suddenly dropped down onto the scene, having been thrown there by Mr Satan as requested "Thank you for your assistance Mr Satan."
"Oh for fuck's sake, I thought I saw the last of the Hype. New plan kids, when you're done with them I want you to draw and quarter that buffoon." Cell looked down at 16 "As for you, I'm actually quite surprised you're still… Well I was gonna say kicking but-"
"Gohan."
"Alright fine, you talk to him and see if you can get through to him."
"Gohan. Listen to me."
"Android 16…" Gohan looked at him disbelief "What are you-"
"Grow. Up."
"Huh?"
"You act like you are the only one suffering, but I believe that your future self has some stories for you, and I can assume they all end with: And then he died too. And before you start whining about your father, again- and I get it- take a moment to consider that my father made me a soulless killing machine to kill your father. And that doesn't even come close to the complete tragedy resulting from fatherhood that is Kai."
"HEY!" Kai rounded on him from his place stomping down on a Cell Jr "You wanna come up here and say that?!"
"I am a head."
"Then maybe you should quit while you are!"
16 promptly turned his attention back to Gohan "Cell was right. You think you're better than everyone else, but there you stand, the good man doing nothing. And while evil triumphs, and your rigid pacifism crumbles into blood stained dust, the only victory afforded to you was that you stuck true to your guns. You were a coward, to your last whimper."
"So politics in a nutshell, sounds about right." Cell promptly walked up to him "That's pretty sound advice, better than I was expecting from an appliance."
"Of fear and love, I fear not that I will die, but all that I've come to love, the birds, the animals, the nature of this planet, will perish with me. So please Gohan, for the sake of this world and for the sake of yourself, stop holding back."
Once that speech was finished, Cell suddenly stomped down on 16's head, smashing it to blood covered pieces, thus ending him "You know I would say he's gone to a better place, but let's just face it: We both know he never had a soul."
Gohan was too horrified by 16's death to register what Cell said'Android 16… You loved all forms of life…'
Venit aevus ille
O Messiah, O Messiah
Yuduliya~Vele
'You gave up everything to save this world, even if you were just an Android… You died because I let you…'
'I can't do that… I won't watch anymore…'
Yuduliya~Vele
"Hm?" Cell looked up from the remains of 16's head
Yuduliya~Vele
Yuduliya~Iyaliya
'I can feel it slipping… and I won't watch this anymore!'
Feel it drawing nearer, an endless fear that takes you hold
Once the damn finally burst, Gohan let out a primal roar, his golden aura exploding around him as the ground shattered beneaeth him, with even Cell being taken aback by the massive increase in power.
Feel it getting closer, revealing such an evil soul
Even those still battling the Cell Jr's, as well as the Cell Jr's themselves, stopped what they were doing and looked down at the main battlefield, though only Piccolo actually found what it took to speak "Gohan…"
Kai on the other hand, his expression was less stunned and more smirking 'Yeah now we're talking, now go wreck some shit pal.'
I can't surrender at the turning point of destiny
Right now it's do or die; my life is on the line and I will not flee
When the smoke cleared, Gohan was standing in the same place as before, only now his hair was standing on end with the acception of a single bang, his aura was surging and crackling with electricity, the tears brimming in his eyes slowly evaporating into the aura. Gohan had at last completed his transformation into a Super Saiyan 2.
By my power!
Woah~woah, it's clear to me
My spirit grows and I will face this demon
Woah~woah, with burning energy
The Day of Fate has finally come
With his transformation now complete, the last of the tears in Gohan's eyes slowly evaporated into his aura, and his expression hardened ever so slightly in the direction of Cell.
The Day of Fate had come at last, and now the true battle was about to begin.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
This was a secret we have known about Gohan before he was even able to form words in his mouth. Through one battle after another, with the likes of Beets, Vegeta and Nappa, the Ginyu Force, and even the likes of Frieza and Lord Slug, we've caught glimpses of the child's limitless potential. But like with an explosion, it always vanished with the moment it appeared. It couldn't be controlled, until now that is. At last, the beast has awakened and the power has been unleased. Gohan has awoken, leaving Cell to battle a warrior 10 years in the making, but will it be enough to finally put an end to the unyielding chaos this monster has caused? Find out next time on Dragon Ball Z: the Next Generation!
A/N:
And with this chapter, we see the events of the second act of the Cell Games, as well as the moment in which DBZ peaked: Gohan turning Super Saiyan 2, TFS style because let's face it, TFS had the best version of that scene. I'm serious, let me put each version in order: Tfs Z sub Z dub Kai. I grew up with Kai, but it's honestly the weakest of the lot in that moment, but the moment where Gohan transforms is still the moment where DBZ peaked as far as I'm concerned.
Kai tearing into Goku both physically and emotionally was something I knew I was going to do right from the start, both to make Goku realize how big of a mistake it was to give a look at the turmoil he's going through that he's been mostly hiding up until now. Going to town on Goku and beating him within an inch of his life was probably too much, but that's what I see him doing, so I went with it.
I'm just going to clarify that I killed Upa in this chapter for the same reason that I killed Tarble and Tien before, to add a level of suspense and dread that I felt the canon version lacked in some areas. Seriously, aside from Goku and Future Trunks, none of the Z fighters actually died in this arc, as opposed to the Saiyan Saga and the whole ordeal on Namek.
Power levels:
Super Saiyan Gohan: 11.2 billion
Super Saiyan Goku (drained): 2.8 billion
Super Saiyan Goku (crippled by Kai) 1.4 billion
Cooler: 6.5 billion
Android 16: 5.1 billion
Weighted Piccolo: 4 billion
Unweighted Piccolo: 5.2 billion
Nail: 5 billion
Nail (Mystic Flash, full power): 7.5 billion
Future Gohan: 1 billion
Super Saiyan Future Gohan: 7 billion
Kai: 250 million
Kai (Namek-Ken 30x): 7.5 billion
Yamcha: 50 million
Yamcha (Kaioken 20x): 1 billion
Yamcha (Kaioken 30x): 1.5 billion
Yamcha (Kaioken 230x, Wolf Fang Saber): 1.8 billion
Krillin: 24 million
Krillin (Kaioken 20x): 480 million
Upa: 30 million
Upa (Kaioken 20x): 600 million
Cell (against Gohan): 12.5 billion
Cell Jrs: 6 billion each