A/N: Been so long and I'm glad to finally get back into the mix, but just to be clear, updates will be rather slow, especially with my final exam coming up in a couple months time (the last of them all)! This chapter starts with some fun family moments and ends with the onset of the Cell Games! Hope you folks love it! And thanks for all the heartfelt messages of support, since my previous announcement. Just reading them and writing this chapter has made me feel better already and strengthened my conviction to begin my own healing process in due course, so God bless! :D
Just a brief recap: In the last chapter, Goku, Vegeta, Trunks and Piccolo went through some rad training using Bulma's virtual reality simulator and this will play a major role in the Cell Games, when we reach that point. Thus, without further ado, I present to you:
Chapter 71: Let the Games begin
A few knocks outside the Son residence in Mount Paozu prompted a certain raven-haired Princess to head towards the tawny front door.
"Oh, uh- Hello there." Chi-Chi greeted, as she opened it and was met the startling sight of a gigantic, burly figure clad in green and black attire, his red mohawk rippling with the wind. "Can I help you sir?"
"Yes, may I please speak with Gohan?" The unfamiliar giant replied in his robotic voice.
"Gohan?" Chi-Chi's eyebrows shot up in surprise.
"Yes, Gohan is a friend of mine." The robot smiled amiably.
"Hey Chi-Chi, who's there?" Goku ambled towards the entrance door, raising a curious brow, as he surveyed the colossus before him, not recognizing him at all. "Oh hello there."
"Goku." The red-haired Android narrowed his eyes at the wild-haired Saiyan. Even though Bulma and her father had mostly succeeded in reorienting some of his inner workings, a part of him still identified the man before him as an enemy.
"Uh- do I know you?" Earth's hero scratched the back of his head in confusion.
"My name is Android Sixteen." The robot stoically replied.
"A-A-Android?!" The Ox Princess stammered, hand dashing towards her suddenly pounding heart, as she was quickly overcome with a wave of panic and dread.
"Oh, so you're Android Sixteen!" Goku grinned, offering a friendly hand to the giant. "I've heard a lot about you. Pleasure to meet you."
"G-G-Goku?!" Chi-Chi grabbed her husband's muscled arm, standing behind him, in absolute horror.
"Relax Chi-Chi, Sixteen's one of the good guys now." Goku smiled at his wife reassuringly. He turned his attention back to the Android. "Isn't that right, Sixteen?"
Several seconds passed by in deafening silence, the atmosphere palpably tense, before the redhead at last took hold of the cheery Saiyan's hand, albeit with some degree of hesitation.
"I was programmed to destroy you, Goku." The Android asserted, whereby Chi-Chi's misgivings multiplied. Sixteen tightened his grip on the Saiyan's hand, as he continued. "But I have chosen not to follow through with Dr. Gero's commands." He nodded genially, feeling increasingly comfortable in the presence of his former enemy. "I hope that we can be allies and work together, to overcome Cell."
"Sounds great to me!" The wild-haired Saiyan's grin broadened. "I'd be honored to have you with us, Sixteen!"
"The honor is mine, Goku." The robot smiled, before moving on to the subject of his visit. "May I please see Gohan?"
"Oh yeah sure, I'll go get him." Goku nodded, but just as he was about to head indoors, a perturbed Chi-Chi anxiously grabbed a handful of his Gi.
"G-Goku, a-are- are you sure about this?"
"Relax babe, there's nothing to worry about, I promise!" He placed his hands on her shoulders, giving them a comforting squeeze.
Plagued with indecision for a few moments, the Ox Princess reluctantly nodded and her husband promptly headed upstairs. Surely Goku knew what he was doing. He had to.
"So- uh, h-h-how do you know Gohan?" She stammered, as she gandered at the gigantic Android, pressing her trembling hands together in a bid to try and stop them from shaking, albeit with little success.
"Gohan and I met at Capsule Corporation, where I was undergoing repairs after my battle with Cell." The robot replied, before ashamedly lowering his gaze. "Please forgive me, for any discomfort my visit has caused." He lifted his glacial eyes, so they met Chi-Chi's. "I promise you that I have no intention to harm any living being other than Cell, who I hardly consider living."
"Oh- uh- okay, sure." The raven-haired mother replied, somewhat assuaged, yet still wary.
"Hey Sixteen, good to see you again!" An exuberant Gohan made his way to the scene, dashing towards the giant, as he recalled their genial interaction at Capsule Corporation. (A/N: Refer to Chapter 67)
"Hello Gohan." The robot smiled kindly and the pair shook hands. "Would you like to go on a trip with me?"
"Yeah, sure thing!" The Super-Saiyan boy grinned feverishly.
"Whoa, whoa, hold on a second big guy." Chi-Chi placed her arms around Gohan, possessively pulling him against her. "Gohan still hasn't finished his studies."
"Mom." The demi-Saiyan softly protested and whirled around in her grasp. "Come on, I've been studying non-stop for days. Can't I have a little break, please?"
The Ox Princess felt her icy resolve cracking at the imploring gleam in Gohan's teal eyes. She was still having a little trouble coming to terms with his delinquent appearance, but just seeing him right now reminded her that he would always be her precious little Gohan, the apple of her eye. God, she loved this kid so much.
"Come on Chi-Chi, Gohan deserves a break." Goku pleaded his son's case, placing a hand atop his wife's shoulder. "You know he does."
"Alright, fine." She released a dramatic sigh of surrender, before steeling her gaze at the boy. "But you better be careful out there. And come back home by dinner-time, okay?"
"Sure thing, thanks mom!" Embracing his mother goodbye, the half-Saiyan took off with his colossal companion.
A short while later, the mismatched pair landed in the midst of a wildlife sanctuary.
"Wow, this place is amazing!" The boy gushed in excitement, teal eyes sparkling with fervour, as he took in the mesmerizing sights of the forest, gazelles leisurely chewing the countless blades of grass below them, koalas and monkeys languidly splayed out atop tree branches and an array of birds pecking at the ground for morsels of bread and rice.
Sixteen reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful of crumbs. Kneeling down, he placed his hand on the ground, smiling as a flock of doves trotted over and began picking feed directly from his palm, one of them comfortably nestling down on his wrist.
Gohan looked at the scene before him in astonishment, a beatific smile lighting his young features as he observed his red-haired companion.
"Gohan?" The Android shifted his gaze up towards the pre-teen.
"Yeah?"
"What do you see around you?" He asked.
"Uh- What?" Gohan replied, a little caught off guard by the question.
"What do you see around you?" He repeated, more solemnly this time.
"Umm- Nature, I guess." The boy answered, scratching his head in confusion.
"Life." The Android rectified. "Life surrounds us, Gohan." He narrowed his eyes gravely. "And we must protect it, no matter what."
"Yeah, you're absolutely right." The demi-Saiyan frowned and nodded in assent, determined more than ever to emerge triumphant in the battle that lay ahead. His eyes wandered about, slowly taking in the enthralling scenery. "It's all so beautiful, Sixteen." A baby elephant traipsed towards him and when it reached, Gohan began stroking its curvaceous head. The bubbly, brown creature nuzzled his chest, playfully wrapping it's striated trunk around the back of his neck, eliciting a laugh from the boy. "Hey stop, that tickles." Despite his words however, Gohan didn't show any signs of resistance, as he continued caressing the animal.
The robot smiled benignly at the heart-warming scene before him.
"Gohan hey, I thought that was you."
The half-Saiyan turned towards the voice and saw a familiar figure approaching him, dressed in his traditional orange training Gi.
"Yamcha hey, how are you?" The boy beamed, his contagious smile widening as he saw the tiny figure bundled within the burly arms of his friend. "And how're you doing, Natsu?" The half-Saiyan smiled, as he strode towards the father-daughter duo and began tickling the green-haired infant's neck with his index finger, whereby she let out a series of heartwarming giggles.
"Hey Gohan!"
"Hey Gohan!"
This time it was Bulma and Mirai who joined, a certain purple-haired baby huddled inside the arms of his mother, his future alter-ego standing by his flame-haired father in a picnic spot, not far away.
"What are you guys doing here?" Gohan asked curiously.
"Just wanted some downtime before the Doomsday clock starts blaring, I guess." Bulma laughed wryly, her infant boy babbling incoherently and holding his tiny arms out towards his demi-Saiyan counterpart. "Fancy meeting you here though. Small world, huh?"
"Yeah, I guess." Gohan shrugged, before grinning at the infant. "And how're you doing, little Trunks?" He eagerly accepted the ebullient baby into his arms.
"Gohee!" Trunks babbled excitedly, playing with tiny fistfuls of Gohan's golden hair.
"Ouch, watch it Trunks, that hurts." Gohan grimaced a little, though the smile didn't leave his face at all. "And it's Gohan."
"Gohee."
"Gohan."
"Gohee."
"Go-Han." The half-Saiyan pronounced slowly, trying to get his infantile counterpart to say his name correctly. A few seconds passed by.
"Go-Hee." A puckish smirk lit Trunks' face, deep blue eyes dancing with mischief. He was deliberately mispronouncing the older boy's name and it was obvious for anyone to see. Such unruly behaviour would not go unpunished however, as he was about to find out.
"That's it, you asked for it Trunks." Lips pressed against his teeth, Gohan playfully began nibbling the baby's stubby arm, followed by several other unguarded spots on his chest and belly, whereby Trunks was howling with uncontrollable laughter.
"Nooooo noooooo tooohhhp toooohhhhhp hehehehehe!" The younger demi-Saiyan protested, unable to contain his gleeful giggles, as he was subjected to the tickle torture of a lifetime. A short while later, the torture finally ended, yet Trunks continued to laugh, as he hugged Gohan around the face, the older demi-Saiyan grinning through it all.
"Gosh, you two are just the cutest!" Bulma squealed in delight, getting on her knees as she pulled Gohan into a tight hug of her own.
"Bulma." The boy weakly objected in embarrassment, a light blush tinting his cheeks.
"Oh no you don't." The blue-haired woman shook her head, grinning all the while. "You don't get to be that adorable and not get hugged, Gohan."
Nearby, the older Trunks was beaming and even noticed the unmistakable hint of a smile tugging his father's lips at the radiant sight. However, he decided to keep that information to himself, knowing that it would just kill the mood, what with the old man's reserved nature and all. Truthfully, he was surprised that his father had agreed to join this family trip to begin with, yet it was a pleasant surprise to be sure.
Also notable was the fact that despite their shared history with Bulma, it seemed that any bad blood between Yamcha and Vegeta was quashed. Although they scarcely interacted, there was no tension in the atmosphere as may have been the case, years prior. Back then, one would've imagined hell freezing over before the proud and mighty Saiyan Prince ever agreed to go on a joint family trip that included Yamcha, of all people, but it seemed time on Earth had truly changed him for the better.
Half an hour later, Krillin, Tien, Chiaotzu, Master Roshi and Launch had arrived via airbus and soon after that, Goku, Chi-Chi and Piccolo joined as well, having sensed that the entire crew was gathered together in this remote location. A hefty lunch was served thereafter. It was all in all, a truly memorable occasion, filled to the brim with joy, laughter and happiness, so lax and carefree that one would be forgiven for believing that the word Cell referred to nothing more than a portable telephone device, as opposed to a menacing foe that threatened the welfare and existence of not just the planet, but the entire Universe at large.
"All right guys, it's been amazing, but I think it's time we jet." Goku said, tightening the navy blue belt around his Gi. "Tomorrow's gonna be tough, it's gonna be brutal and it's gonna be painful, there's no doubt about any of that." He earnestly looked towards his comrades, one by one. "But I believe with all my heart that when everything's finally over, we'll be the ones left standing. Now who's with me?"
"I am."
"I am."
"I am."
"I am."
One by one the entire crew lent their voices of support to Earth's hero, including Android Sixteen, all except Vegeta, who simply nodded at him, not one for words or sentiments. After the training they'd been through, they now had a meaningful plan of attack, which covered all their bases. Cell wouldn't know what hit him. The biomechanical menace wasn't going to escape this time. He would pay dearly for all his crimes and join his deranged creator in the fiery confines of hell.
The next day…
At long last, doomsday had arrived, yet it wouldn't spell doom for anyone but Cell. The plans were in motion, save one cumbersome wrench, thrown into the mix.
"Today's the day you're going down, you hear me Cell?!" A certain blowhard proclaimed from his position on the periphery of Cell's elaborate square ring, giving the apocalyptic creature a hearty thumbs down. "Your tricks won't save you from the mighty Mr. Satan!"
Dr. Gero's masterpiece rolled his eyes, having seen this buffoon flaunt his rubbish all over television. For reasons known only to him, Cell had acquired a portable television to keep track of current affairs and unfortunately the imbecile before him was one of the major highlights of every news station, though he was ridiculed by all but a few reporters and journalists, among them the infamous brown-noser Jimmy Firecracker, who just happened to be present here to broadcast the Cell Games live and showcase "Mr. Satan's heroic triumph over evil". Relaying this historic event to the masses worldwide was no doubt the dream of any journalist, so much so that some would even be willing to kill for it. Yet they wouldn't be willing to die for it and hence, the four-eyed Firecracker was the only one present. He wasn't particularly heroic himself, but still felt thoroughly sure of his safety, in the presence of the legendary Hercule Satan.
"Did you hear that folks?!" Jimmy animatedly announced before the video camera and pointed towards the doomsday creature, standing stoically with his arms folded, poised to get the real battle underway. "It looks like Cell's in a world of trouble, now that Mr. Satan's with us. I think he knows it too." He pointed a finger towards the gigantic fiend. "Just look at him standing there, stiff with fear no doubt, at the sight of a true warrior, who refuses to back down in the face of evil!" The spirited journalist rambled on, then turned his head sideways, as he heard a bunch of people landing close by. "Oh, what's this? It looks like we have an audience." He looked on keenly, adjusting his glasses and frowning, as recognition hit him. "Wait a minute, it's the contestants from the World Martial Arts Tournament, who stole Mr. Satan's victory from him!" He seethed in rage. "Just what do they think they're doing here?!"
"Hey, who said you could be here?!" Mr. Satan yelled indignantly, glaring at the Z Fighters present, nine of them in all, namely Goku, Vegeta, Piccolo, Trunks, Gohan, Yamcha, Krillin, Tien and of course the newest addition, Android Sixteen, whose Red Ribbon logo had evidently been replaced by a Capsule Corporation one. "This here's my fight, I was here first, so get lost this instant or it won't be Cell you'll have to worry about, it's me!"
"Shut up!" Vegeta shouted at the pompous fool, wishing he weren't here wasting everyone's time with his stupidity, but knowing it was too much to ask for.
"Don't you dare tell me to shut up, you no good phoney!" Hercule held up an angry fist. "I won't fall for your lame-as, laser tricks now so you better watch your mouth or else I'll-"
"Enough!" Cell restlessly cut in, aiming a palm towards the world wrestling champion, completely and utterly sick of his inane blather. While he may've been somewhat entertaining from time to time, at this point he'd just become plain annoying. "I think it's time for you to make your exit and leave this to the adults."
He subsequently fired a Ki blast towards the buffoon. Mr. Satan flinched in fear and instinctively covered his face, however the blow never landed, having been intercepted by a swift counter blast from none other than the Saiyan Prince, much to the astonishment of everyone else present. Hercule meanwhile was wide-eyed and panicking, his heart racing quicker than ever. He had felt the hellish heat emanating from that energy laser and had it not been deflected at the last possible millisecond, he'd have been a goner. At this exact moment, a part of him was beginning to realize that this couldn't have been a trick and that he had in fact been mere moments away from death's door. He could just feel it in his bones.
'Have I been in denial, this whole time?' He thought to himself, trying with every ounce of willpower to brush off such unwelcoming doubts and misgivings, yet unable to do so, as he still felt a burning hot sensation on his chest, pressing his palm against it.
Cell frowned at Vegeta, more surprised than the lot of them that he of all people would save this worthless moron's life.
"Explain." The biomechanical menace demanded.
"I have nothing to say to you, except this." Vegeta answered, narrowing his teal eyes dangerously, at his much-hated adversary. "The only one who's going to die today is you, mark my words, Cell."
A few seconds passed.
"Hmph." The creature arrogantly smirked, though he was admittedly stunned at what had just transpired. The Vegeta in this timeline was nothing like the one he'd emerged from, at least based on all the data he'd acquired from Dr. Gero's computer. If anything, he should've been the one who ended that miserable cretin's life. Then again, he already knew this Vegeta was starkly different, given that he'd teamed up with Android 17 in a futile bid to obstruct his journey towards perfection. On seconds thoughts, he couldn't really call it futile, given that the two of them had come dangerously close to ending him. (A/N: Refer to Chapter 62)
Nonetheless, he could work with this. It only meant he had more leverage over this motley crew should the need arise to use it, though he severely doubted that would be the case. These were his Games after all and he would be the one steering them in whichever direction he pleased.
"As for you." The flame-haired Saiyan turned towards Mr. Satan, infuriated that he'd just saved the life of this abhorrent, narcissistic conman, yet knowing that he could never break a promise to Bulma. Darn her for putting him in this position! Even so, he'd deliberately waited until the last possible millisecond before countering Cell's maneuvre, wanting this idiot to feel some of the pain and come to terms with the fact that Ki wasn't just some parlor trick. If he were half as smart as his daughter, he would've stayed home and let the real fighters handle this. While the girl was infuriating, annoying and touchy to say the least, she was also sharp, astute and open-minded, unlike this idiot. "You don't get to dictate anything around here. You're a loser, so know your place and stay the hell out of our way."
Mr. Satan's mood suddenly shifted from fear to fury and he grit his teeth at the trickster who'd handed him his first ever, humiliating defeat. He was about to reply, yet one deathly glare from Vegeta shut him up. It was becoming clearer and clearer that all his earlier assessments about this group were nothing more than a coping mechanism, on his part. He'd been caught up in his own arrogance and hubris. It only took a near-death experience for him to catch on to the bitter reality, yet the singed hair on his chest told him that should he continue treading this path, he might not live much longer. Was he really just a pompous, loudmouthed blowfish that'd been swimming amongst sharks, this whole time? It sure was a lot to take in. What would the world think of him? What would his darling little Videl think? Maybe this was a good off-ramp, but how could he possibly accept that after all his tireless training, in the lead up to the Cell Games? Surely that didn't count for nothing, right?
"Look, Mr. Satan, I appreciate you coming here, it was very brave of you." Goku stepped in, looking gravely at the wrestling champion and hoping to resolve this diplomatically, rather than coming to blows in what would only end up as a swift and unnecessary embarrassment, for the moustached man. "But as the winner of the last World Martial Arts Tournament, it's only fair that I should be first in line to fight Cell."
"Hmph." Vegeta scoffed, folding his arms askance, as he recalled the final fight of the tournament. He was still somewhat bitter at his knife-edge defeat to his rival, yet he couldn't deny that the clown made a compelling case. Kakarot had beaten him fair and square. Even though he lost however, the Saiyan Prince couldn't deny that it had been a great learning experience, teaching him to keep his guard up at all times and be thoroughly prepared for any eventuality, a sage mindset that ultimately helped him triumph over the seemingly unstoppable Android 18. The flame-haired Saiyan was therefore ready to let his goofy rival take the first crack at Cell.
"You people have some nerve, talking that way to Mr. Satan!" Mr. Firecracker growled, having had enough of the impudence of these shameless trespassers. He walked up to them angrily, mike in hand and cameraman in tow. "Don't you realize that your tricks won't work against Cell?! He's better at them than you are! The only chance we have is true Martial Arts, from the real champion, Mr. Satan, so you should know what's good for you and leave the fighting to him!"
"Get lost, worm!" An infuriated Vegeta threateningly stepped forward, his teal eyes raging with a hailstorm of death and destruction. He'd had enough of the theatrics and was eager to get this thing started already, without another second wasted on these imbeciles.
The four-eyed man gulped and took a few steps back, nearly wetting himself in the process, as he felt just a smidgeon of the cosmic power radiating off of the flame-haired fighter, in palpable waves. It felt utterly unnatural and he was no longer quite as sure of himself, a sheen of sweat covering his thick black brows, heart pounding in absolute terror. Luckily, Mr. Satan came to the rescue.
"It's fine Jimmy, let 'em go first." He put on a fake smirk of arrogance, but deep inside was more than ready to co-operate, knowing that if he seriously went up against Cell now, death was guaranteed. He needed to play this safe, at least for the moment. All his training these last few weeks to overcome the so-called energy tricks, had ultimately been for naught, as evidenced by the burnt hair on his pectorals. He needed to reassess the situation and exercise some damage control, at present. "It'll give me time to study Cell's moves and come up with a good strategy."
"But Mr. Satan-"
"Trust me Jimmy, I've got this." Hercule shook his head. "At the end of the day, I'm the only one who can defeat Cell, so might as well let these guys have their fun."
"Umm o-kay." The journalist nodded hesitantly and moved back to his original position, along with the cameraman. He looked towards the camera and began announcing the news. "Well folks, like the absolute gentleman he is, it looks like Mr. Satan's going to allow these intruders to fight Cell first. We can only hope he develops a solid strategy in the meantime so that when he does inevitably face Cell, he can end this menace, once and for all!"
"Seriously, this guy's the biggest suck-up I've ever seen in my life." Tien rolled all three eyes, disgusted by the obsequious display of so-called journalism that was materializing before them.
"I know right?" Yamcha chucked, at the pathetic farce in the guise of a news report. "I mean seriously, did he really come here to report on the Cell Games or just coddle Mr. Satan's ballsack?"
Most of the crew laughed at the scar-faced warrior's hilarious, yet strikingly accurate jest.
"Ew don't make me picture that guy's ballsack." Krillin mock-gagged, whereby the laughter only grew further.
"Forget about those idiots." Piccolo said askance, before turning solemnly towards his ex-rival. "Goku, you're up. You ready?"
"As I'll ever be." Earth's hero exhaled and placed his fists by his side as he hopped straight into the ring, facing his dreaded foe. "Looks like it's just you and me, Cell."
"Now this, I've been looking forward to, truly." The dastardly creature curled his lips in an evil grin, thrilled to finally come face-to-face with the legendary Goku. Oh, how eagerly he'd been awaiting this. This is what he was made for! His blood cells were galvanized with a raging inferno, knowing that this would be a fight for the ages, with the worthiest of all adversaries. One by one, they would all go down and while Vegeta and Trunks would surely prove to be thrilling challenges in their own right, it was Goku who took the cake, as far as he was concerned. "Let the games begin."
A/N: Thanks for bearing with me guys, hope you loved it, especially seeing Mr. Satan being put in his place by Vegeta. Jimmy Firecracker's quite a tool, isn't he? Also loved writing that ultra cute scene between Gohan and baby Trunks haha. I feel we don't get that enough and I'm sure Gohan had quite a role in Trunks' life, growing up! But here we are at last, the dreaded Cell Games. Let's see how it all plays out! As I said before, I have an incredible outline for this story, all the way to the end of the Buu saga. The Cell Games themselves will be really unique and exciting, so please feel free to review and share your thoughts! Once again, much love!
