Super Dragon Ball: Redux Kaizen

Arc 1: C5

(Several Days Later, At The Underground Bunker On Planet Earth. . .)

Three days passed, and activity within the bunker had been minimal. It was to be expected for such a decrepit environment that only contained the bare minimum of necessities. Entertainment and socialization was the last thing on the creator's mind; their funds were placed into a project fueled by feuds and pettiness. The thought alone made the only active figure scratch her head in frustration as she stared at the large screen before her. For the tenth consecutive time today, she was forced to erase all of her calculations and start anew, and with each failure, she wound up dropping more sugar cubes into a large mug of coffee to maintain her sanity. Even if it only served to be of little help as her condition was worsening.

"Damn it all. . ." She muttered, her eyes not paying attention as she aggressively stirred the cubes, "All this time, and I'm still not even close to finding the answer."

Annoyed, she went back to typing away at her keyboard while the sound of a door opening and closing a few feet to her right barely registered. However, she didn't react as the larger android of the two approached with a fresh new decanter of hot coffee. He wasn't much of a talker, though he was still helpful. Seeing as the empty one was still sitting on a pile of papers, he removed it before clearing that table section and placing the new decanter beside her. Despite the look that said she didn't want to be bothered, the larger android still voiced his opinion.

"Shouldn't you take a break, Android 21? You won't be able to ease yourself if you keep going like this. . .," He remarked.

21 felt an eyebrow twitch and glanced at him, "I can't afford any breaks. There's simply not enough time, 16." Feeling her urges beginning to surface, she quickly took a sip of her coffee to quell them before they got out of hand. She sighed.

"The ship dispatched with the clones from that planet has already arrived on Namek. . ." 21 pointed out as she looked at the screen.

16's eyes widened a bit, "Already? Then that means. . ." 21 nodded before he could finish that sentence.

"Yes, 'he' will be revived as instructed by Supercomputer: R.O.C. Once that happens, the rest of the clones will be dispatched as well, and then. . ."

"I know," 16 interrupted, his face scrunched with concern, "There will be so many above-average energy readings that it'll cause your urges to go haywire. Don't worry, I'll stop you from doing anything rash."

She smiled a bit before returning to her coffee with solemn eyes, "Thank you, 16. Though, that's all the more reason I have to keep going. Not just for your safety but everyone else's." Feeling even more motivated, 21 continued her work as 16 stood idly by and watched.

From his perspective, he knew she was trying her hardest to suppress those urges. Truthfully, she had come a long way since the day he was rebuilt from the scraps left behind during the Cell games. For her, it took seven long years for him to be even functional enough to move around, considering their current circumstances. And in those seven years, she fought the urge to devour for the sake of others. He wasn't sure if it was the same for her, considering the aspects of her design were fundamentally different from his own, but after recalling some old files in his archives, she was far too kind. He could tell that some form of influence from her creator made her this way. Passive and reluctant to harm someone. That mindset was likely what drove her to push herself desperately. Because, in a way, she felt responsible due to the lingering memories that made up her being. She was similar to someone he knew before, even though it had been only briefly.

A young boy in the face of a demon who couldn't be reasoned. Gold-colored hair signified the legendary transformation of a warrior race yet wielded by someone who didn't desire to kill. All he could remember from back then was his stunned face after he lectured him on the reality of the world before everything went black for what he could guess was the end of his life. . .Seeing as he had been rebuilt with the planet intact, he was glad the boy honored his final wish. Though now, he was likely to rely on that boy's help again.