The newly born Ultimate Android marveled at its own body by scanning its arms and puffed chest from all the sides it could. The presence of two Super Saiyans before it couldn't have mattered any less to the inflated colossus of muscle and steel. Despite being in an identical predicament, the reactions of Gohan and Vegeta couldn't have been any more different. Whereas Gohan shivered in shock, Vegeta snarled in his desperate need of retribution against the monster that had pummeled his toddler son into unconsciousness.
"The Ultimate Android?" Vegeta growled out while shaking his fist out in front of him. "That's a fitting name, you can be the last heap of trash we toss out into the scrapyard!"
The golden-haired Saiyan King vanished in a golden halo, appearing before the distracted Ultimate No. 20 with a nothing-held-back blow. A dull clang clamored from the point of impact, yet the lumbering machine didn't move one inch nor did it notice Vegeta's attack. Switching the weight of his entire body, Super Vegeta drove an elbow slam into the lower abdomen of the large Android yet received just about the same effect. The Super Saiyan leaned his body down on his back while thrusting both his feet out into the bottom of Ultimate No. 20's chin, but all it caused was painful reverberations in Vegeta's own knee caps.
"Damn you!" Vegeta hissed. "Don't you dare ignore me! You will acknowledge my revenge for what you did to Trunks!"
"Oh… My apologies, Vegeta," the Ultimate Artificial Human turned to the Saiyan King. Whether it be unmatched stupidity or badassery, Vegeta's eyes didn't widen or falter upon a mound of muscle thrice his size, who had utterly been ignoring Vegeta's punches turning his full attention to him. "Have you attacked me? I've been so absorbed in studying my new form that I haven't noticed."
"You cocky bastard, I'll give you something to notice!" Super Vegeta clenched his fist, spreading his arms out to the sides as surges of golden electricity began converging around him. An unrelenting and uncompromising aura of pure gold expanded from Vegeta's whole body, creating a shimmering golden nova of energy around him, while stray jolts shot out in all directions. Everywhere around the Capsule Corps Star radars and various gadgets blew out from the incalculable pressure to their systems of being forced to deal with Super Vegeta's swelling power. "Final Flash!" Vegeta roared with whited-out eyes.
The beam released a sizzling shriek before unleashing its full might. Aside from its ridiculous build-up and the absolutely preposterous amount of Ki that it channeled, the Final Flash was impressive also because of the unparalleled level of control that Vegeta had over such a psychotic and all-out explosive technique. Despite its incarnated destructive power, the Final Flash assaulted only its target and its target alone, sentencing all but those unlucky to have ended up in its crosshairs and their immediate surroundings for total obliteration, but leaving everything else mostly spared of its endless potential.
"My, my…" when the voice of Ultimate Gero reached Vegeta's ears from the snuffing volume of his Final Flash and the first patches of an electromagnetic barrier emerged from the smoke was when Vegeta's eyes widened in complete terror. He had polished the Final Flash to be the apex technique to annihilate anything in its path. A technique that channels previously unseen amounts of Ki and not just a percentage of Vegeta's own Ki, but an amount dwarfing it, and yet… "If I had known you to be capable of such grade-A effort, I'd have perhaps remade myself to be an Energy Absorption type Artificial Human…"
"D-Don't fuck around with me…" Vegeta muttered, staggering back as he took on a defensive stance in complete terror of the enemy's brutal repayment of his full force attack. "The Androids, Kakarot, and even the Legendary Super Saiyan… The Final Flash is the ultimate technique in the universe, befitting a Saiyan King. All bow down before it…"
"Apologies, Your Majesty. My knees just aren't what they used to, so I took the liberty of skipping out on the whole courtesy bowing part…" Ultimate No. 20 smirked while disabling the shimmering, round field of humming energy around him that had protected him from Super Vegeta's Final Flash. In a flash, his right arm hammered down, sending Super Vegeta hurtling straight down like a gnat swatted aside.
Super Vegeta gasped when a tight lock secured both of his ankles. Before he could hit the bottom of the core chamber, Ultimate No. 20 grabbed him and smashed him against the wall. The ruthless impact made Super Vegeta spit out slobber and lose most of his bulk while barely maintaining a flickering Super Saiyan form. Utterly uninterested in his slumping and powerless toy anymore, the oversized Artificial Human hurled Vegeta aside while slowly elevating himself to level with Gohan.
"You seem entirely different from that savage, boy…" the Ultimate Gero crossed his arms while staring the frozen in fear boy down. "You were already aware of the drastic difference in our power even when I was still a Super Android. Perhaps it is the human genes in you that give you a superior battlefield perception and an ability to restrain your savage nature for your own good, unlike the Saiyans."
"You've absorbed the Artificial Humans that built and held you restrained, what do you intend to do now?" Gohan barked back with panic still oozing from his voice. He wasn't sure what he was buying the time for. "Your wife and son are far away in outer space. They don't want to conquer the planet anymore!"
"Rule the world? Perhaps it would be only natural, given that I am the strongest and the most intelligent human in existence. A true Ultimate in every sense of the word. I must say… I'm a tad curious if I can invent something more perfect than I. Yes. The ages-old Omnipotence paradox. No challenge more befitting an Ultimate mind in an Ultimate body than that, I suppose…" the Ultimate Android burst into laughter before Gohan. "Can you believe it, those redneck buffoons would have wasted this ultimate power on something as trivial as a Saiyan purge?"
"Then… You don't plan on exterminating the Saiyans?" Gohan gasped.
"That is a task beneath the Ultimate Artificial Human. After crushing the Saiyan King effortlessly, I've come to realize that there is no challenge in such a task. It's strange but… I don't believe I care to finish the job and kill Chayote anymore, either. After all, had I not died trying to kill her, I'd have never been reborn as an Ultimate Artificial Human," Ultimate No. 20 began laughing again before numbers began counting up on his black vizor and the register of a significant battle power made him turn behind him and notice Vegeta placing Trunks' limp body in a hallway before hovering out to face the ultimate threat again.
"Crushing the Saiyan King? Don't make me laugh!" Vegeta barked out while shaking a tattered and dirty glove out in front of him. Parts of his Saiyan armor had chipped and torn off his side, exposing his right shoulder and peck to the elements and bruising while the rest somehow clutched to his body still. "Kakarot's brat may have stacked his pants, but I'll never let you go for what you did to Trunks!"
"Your obsession with your child shall be your undoing, King Vegeta," the Ultimate Gero shrugged with a content expression on his face. "I too used to be this way. I'm afraid that clasping to one's creations is natural for a maker, however, what came to me alongside with this ultimate intelligence and power is that being worried over one's creations is counterproductive. What good is giving one's life for a flawed offspring when you can make a superior one to take its place?"
"You ultimate asshole!" Vegeta powered up with a sudden burst of vigor, igniting a shining, golden aura around his body while his hair spiked up ludicrously and his muscle buffed up while producing crackling electricity around his whole body. "Trunks may be a hybrid kid made alongside an insufferable Earthling woman, but he is still the Saiyan prince, even if it's just half, the blood of super-elite runs in his veins, and with his mother's unendurable personality, it'll make him into a perfect warrior to lead the Saiyan race one day!"
"Such a regret that you cannot ascend past this trivial trait," the Ultimate Android shook his head. In a blink, the mound of muscle and metal appeared before Vegeta and knocked the Super Saiyan spirit out of him with a single crack to his jaw. With the helpless Saiyan royalty ragdolling through countless walls and computers, crashing through many laboratories and chambers on his way to getting stuck in some scrap litter, the Ultimate Gero had to restrain his punches after pursuing Vegeta and punishing him with a merciless beatdown.
After briefly withdrawing from the battered King of Saiyans who hung in the scrap wreckage with only pathetic wheezing and grunting to signify he had survived the beatdown, the Ultimate Android extended his hand and created a baseball-sized scarlet energy blast that he flung at Vegeta.
A thunderous crack and an expulsion of a crimson energy pillar followed by a hectic dissolution of smoke and raw force punched through the side of the Capsule Corps Star. Vegeta's broken body flew off into the upper layers of the atmosphere with serene tranquility in his expression. The Ultimate Artificial Human admired his work through a hole, totally unbothered by the drawing vacuum and the absence of oxygen to breathe, for he no longer relied on such trivial things. A teal-colored beam engulfed Vegeta's body, drawing the beaten warrior back inside in a swift scoop.
"Ah, yes… Dr. Brief's brilliant daughter… What a remarkable invention you've got in your hands. I'm afraid I'll have to vacate you from its premises in order to study it myself and see how it can assist me in solving the omnipotence paradox," the Ultimate Gero cackled in utter glee as he began his slow and methodical advance toward where he imagined Bulma to be hiding out. Even if he struggled to find her, this game of hide-and-seek would've served as a fine challenge to his unmatched wits and it wasn't like there was anything or anyone who could've stood in the way of his ultimate body anymore.
"Tsk! That ruffian, he's just blasting everything apart! I can't just beam him away unless he's distracted and can't use his electromagnetic pulse to disrupt the quantal matter beam," Bulma growled, ripping into a stack of blueprints laid out on her table as she stared at the monitor surveying the Ultimate Artificial Human's actions. Being unable to find Bulma using his radar sensory, the Ultimate No. 20 decided to just start blasting and causing damage, hoping that, eventually, Bulma will present herself to spare herself the tremendous losses and the gruesome death of choking on the vacuum in the wreckage of a cybernetic planetoid orbiting the Earth.
"Videl-san, you should let Bulma-san beam you home. This is getting really out of hand and you can get hurt or killed," Gohan turned to Videl who just mashed her hands together with a miserable expression behind the two.
She wasn't a fool. Seeing the man whom Gohan described as much stronger than him be brought into the lab all battered alongside his son who was barely old enough to count his age on the fingers of both hands really conveyed the message of just how ruthless and powerful the enemy was. She'd be no use again, just like against that white-haired ruffian. She's no good to Gohan and Bulma in the supporting role either. Those two were quite clever and while Gohan wasn't on Bulma's level of technical knowledge of various scientific subjects, his thought process and strategic knowledge often surpassed Bulma's own reasoning.
These two made an awesome team and Videl couldn't stop feeling like the third wheel.
"You should call Chayote-san…" Videl spoke up. "I know that you two have been on bad terms but… I've trained with Chayote-san and I don't think she'd like to see you hurt or dead. In fact, I think that she'd hate knowing that you didn't call her when your life was in danger."
"Chayote? Forget about it. You heard what she said, didn't you? If I beam her up, she'll do exactly what that Ultimate Blowhard is doing–blow up my Capsule Corps Star. Besides, she's not strong enough to gamble on her mood either way. Damn it, we just need some time… I'm sure Vegeta will power way up after recovering this once. Maybe he'll do it this time?" Bulma stood up and shoved the chair aside with her hip as she approached the hanging, unconscious and beaten to a pulp Vegeta's body.
"I can buy us time!" Gohan pumped his fists and pulled out his tie, flinging it aside while stretching out. "Dr. Gero is unbelievably powerful, but his fighting style is simplistic. If I can get a proper read on his moves, I can stall him out for a bit."
"Are you sure, Gohan-kun? I'd rather not have to tell your parents about you getting killed at my space station. I should rather just beam Son-kun up to deal with this," Bulma nibbled on her index finger, considering her options of how to best play this out. "Also, isn't it about time for Krillin to recover?"
"Krillin-san won't be enough, and I don't want my dad anywhere near Dr. Gero. He claimed that he's not gunning for him but who knows what will pop into his head when he faces dad or Chayote-san? Not to mention, dad just can't help himself and fight without cutting loose and wrecking everything around him. I believe that's not an option for you, Bulma-san," Gohan shook his head even if he hesitated before doing so. The Android Conflict taught him that his father's way of rushing and fighting every bad guy may have been wrong and sometimes one had to understand whom they were facing and adjust their strategy of dealing with them accordingly.
"Gohan-kun… Don't go…" Videl called out to Gohan just as he smacked himself on the cheeks and turned to rush off. "Look at what that machine did to that man. It's not above beating up kids either. Maybe Bulma-san is right and we should leave this to someone else?"
"I just can't help it, Videl-san," Gohan smiled. "Even if I disagree with my father on some things, I'm still his son. When I see bad people doing bad things, I can't help myself. Besides, if I leave this to Krillin-san or dad or someone else, they might get hurt or killed. I've already stood on the sidelines enough. I will not be terrified to act anymore. All I need to do is buy time and distract Dr. Gero from blowing up the station. You two stay safe."
"Sheesh…" Bulma flopped in her chair and spun around before ramming her cheek with a knuckle. "He's a lot like his father sometimes, even if he makes his case in a lot more soft-spoken way."
"What a peculiar station. There does not appear to be a single weak point. No fuel storage units, no central processors. Not even the core appears to be vital to it…" the Ultimate Android strutted confidently through infinite hallways, extending his arms and unfolding the shut and secured doors of solid adamantine alloy like paper with just his electromagnetic impulse shock waves. "It appears that there may not be a simple way of destroying it without blowing all of it up at once…"
"Stop!" Gohan yelled out from the other end of the hallway, rushing out into the open and taking a stand in front of the passageway. The teen considered a surprise attack, but if he could get the self-proclaimed genius inventor talking, he'd buy loads more time. Plus, it wasn't like Gohan had the power to exploit the advantages of a surprise attack anyway. "Stop blowing everything up! Leave this station now!"
"I'd thought that a boy with a sharper mind than most would understand how impressive this station is. It is Dr. Brief's daughter that should leave. Her limited brain capacity and flawed understanding and morality don't allow her to realize this station's true potential. As her superior, as the Ultimate Artificial Human, I am entitled to this spectacular technology so I can utilize it in the most optimal way," Ultimate No. 20 proclaimed, pointing at himself with his thumb while striking a cocky, pearly-white grin.
"I won't let you hurt anyone else!" Gohan took a fighting stance and burst with the Super Saiyan aura all around him, powering up to the max in a split instant as he prepared to do his best against this immovable threat.
"If you were your most Ultimate self, you might accomplish that mission. As you are now, it is fruitless. The fact that, like King Vegeta, you even attempt to tackle a task you are unfit for fills me with disappointment. Unfit creations are obsolete. I can only hope that your father's second project is more able to live up to its grand potential," the Ultimate Android spread his arms wide, adopting a wrestling pose.
Enveloped with a golden shine, Gohan took off by kicking off a radiant golden halo. Just as Dr. Gero prepared to intercept him, the teen extended his hand and fired an explosive Ki burst at his opponent. This not only provided him with a distraction but also shifted his momentum for a switch in position. The Ultimate Artificial Human didn't move, accepting the burst of energy as is yet he opened himself up by trying to hammer the rushing Saiyan into the ground.
Gohan used this opening by unleashing all of his force at once and bolting at his opponent with a crashing left. The resulting shock wave bent out the room into a round shape with a concussive shock wave while Gohan hurried to exploit this opening. A right cross, then a flying kick while the teen wound back his left for a charged power blow. The problem was that his mountainous opponent barely flinched from Gohan's attacks, therefore connecting with jabs and kicks barely scored him any advantage and did little as a setup for his power strikes.
Red dots lit up on the two different sides of the Ultimate Android's black vizor. That same instant, scorching energy eye beams sought to perforate Gohan and send him down and out. As if having read the ease at which his unflinching opponent would find a spot to counterattack, Gohan vaulted over the Ultimate Gero's bald head before rolling on it and switching his position for a high kick to Gero's temple just as the Ultimate Artificial Human turned to follow him. Stomping both feet in the Ultimate Gero's face, Gohan rolled back and put some distance between his opponent and himself with a light panting.
"Most impressive. I see that you've studied the art of hand-to-hand combat!" the Ultimate Artificial Human clapped his hands with a faux complementary expression on his face. "I too am processing the vast archives in Artificial Human No. 13's Data Input archives as we speak. I cannot say I find it fascinating at all, it's all quite rudimentary and pointless to me but to each their own…"
"Tsk…" Gohan grunted, feeling painful twinges in his wrists, his elbows, and knees as striking this walking juggernaut felt like slapping a mountain with a banana peel, hoping for it to crumble. The best-case Gohan could hope for was not to see his limbs tear and collapse from hitting something he had no right of striking in the first place. Time… He just needed time. Also, it would've helped if Bulma was right to count on Vegeta and the Zenkai to push him high enough to challenge the Ultimate Android.