Bringer of Death

Android Saga - Part 14: Revelation

Android Saga - Part 14: Revelation 

From Chapter 38...Age 783. 

The cyborg looked down. His bandanna and part of his shirt were torn away. The blast had ripped through his upper arm, revealing the gleaming metallic implants that Gero had given him. His eyes wide, he turned to his sister. "I don't know how, 18, but he's good-real good." 

"Stop playing around, 17. If you haven't noticed yet, you're losing. Just get serious already so we can end this!" 

"I've been serious, sis. Now get over here and give me a hand!" 17 said. His sister paled as she realized that they indeed had reason to worry. 17 had never asked for help with anything or anyone before. At the same time, she was excited to team up with him. No one could possibly survive their combined onslaught - she was sure of it. 

Goku interrupted. "You need to give up. Promise to live a life of peace, and maybe I'll let you live-" 

17 and 18 chuckled, looking side to side at each other. 

"-otherwise, come at me together right now and let's finish this. I won't hold back any longer." Peals of thunder from the gathering storm gave gravity to his voice. The first few drops of rain began...a gentle sprinkle. 

Goku had been holding back a portion of his power against 17 so far. His superior strength and speed had allowed him to really enjoy the fight. But he couldn't hold back any more, not now that he was facing both of them. He charged at full strength. 

The three warriors fought fiercely as the storm began to build. Had the two cyborgs been ordinary fighters, this would have been easy. But their abilities were artificial, unnatural. He couldn't sense where they were, and the driving rain obscured his vision. They kept blindsiding him-every time he concentrated his strength in attacking one of them, the other would come in and knock him off balance, preventing him from actually doing real damage. 

To make matters worse, his two opponents worked in flawless concert, never giving him a moment's rest. They communicated instinctively, attacking in perfect rhythm without any discussion or apparent plan. It was the same as when he and Vegeta had fought against King Cold's third form, except now he was the one who was outnumbered. Some warriors fought together seamlessly, but these two fought together more smoothly than any he had ever seen. 

'Here we go again,' he thought, diving away from another perfectly-timed pair of attacks. 

Goku wished he had just a little more power, a fresh burst of energy to give him just a moment's advantage. For months, now, before he had gotten sick at least, he felt that he simply couldn't get any stronger-no matter how much he trained. Whether he sparred in base, powered up in his Super Saiyan state, or used high gravity, he improved less and less. Why couldn't he go any higher? He didn't know, but that no longer mattered. All he could think about was finding some way to survive this fight...a fight he was beginning to regret initiating.

In the present... 

"...yes, and I require another device that can detect android energy signatures," the prince ordered. Oniya had been up most of the night examining the remains of Android 21. Just as she was preparing to rest, Vegeta boarded the ship with a new set of assignments. 

"Of course, my lord. In studying android 21, I have acquired a better understanding of how these machines function. Though they don't all use the same energy source, the wiring should have enough similarities for me to develop a new tracking system. I should have something ready for you within a few hours. Ideally, it will have both the range and relative measurement capacity of an ordinary scouter."