Super Dragon Ball: Paradise Hysteria

Piccolo's Solace

Piccolo found Super Artificial Human No. 8, Dr. Flappe and Bulma in Bulma's lab. It looked like they had just finished something important when Piccolo returned to report about what had happened. Something in Bulma's monitor entranced all three of them before they heard the door opening and glanced to check who it was.

The three were a curious site, Super No. 8 hunched up in front of Bulma's main lab computer while it ran some background diagnostics and analyzed relevant data, Dr. Flappe standing tall in what appeared to be his natural element, sipping on some hot cocoa with marshmallows while Bulma was taking the helm. Whatever illusions of organization one might have weaved together were dashed and sprinkled by the dimly lit room that only permitted the luminosity from Bulma's main lab computer to give it light. This made the mess of cluttered gadgets, metallic parts, and pieces and discarded tools scattered all over the floor or loosely hanging on crafting tables and inactive conveyor belts even more perilous.

"Good, you're here," Piccolo said, gaining everyone's full attention.

"We didn't encounter any trouble after fleeing from Cell. Young Bulma is well-deserved of her reputation and the high esteem in the scientific society, I must say..." Dr. Flappe reported while scratching his chin.

"It's high praise coming from someone who's considered a peer of my father's," Bulma nodded with a polite smile after turning around in her chair. "We've just received permission from Baby to let Dr. Puri traverse through previously Saiyan-controlled space that now has been transferred to the New Tsufurians, I guess... Dr. Flappe and Super No. 8 told me Cell attacked them. What happened out there?"

"Cell did attack them. Cell believed we were closing in on it and it decided to eliminate Dr. Flappe because Dr. Flappe was involved in Cell's creation and could feed us intelligence on its nature, background, and abilities," Piccolo replied.

"Well, that's hardly true," Dr. Flappe lightly tilted a cup of hot cocoa that Bulma's mother equipped every visitor with and kept on refilling them as well as supplying them with enough cookies to dry one's mouth and drown them in the crumbs. "Cell was mostly Dr. Puri's pet project. However, I've seen the blueprints, and she ran a few issues in its creation through me a few times. She played them off as purely theoretical issues related to the invention of a new model of Artificial Human. If only I'd have known the type she was talking about..."

"Well, whatever the case, Cell thought you had information that it didn't want leaking out," Piccolo shrugged.

"It was so fortunate that you and No. 17 interfered when you did!" Super Android No. 8 exclaimed, pumping his fists like an excited child admiring their hero. "Cell wasn't all that tough, but he had far too many strange abilities to keep track of and I don't think I could have kept him off Dr. Flappe's back for long."

"It's because you can't think like a hardened killer, thank God for that..." Dr. Flappe waved with his hand. "There were enough sadistic Artificial Humans as it was. Out of them all, despite being the roughest around the edges, you're by far the one I'm the proudest of having helped to create."

"You look awfully calm, did you and Lapis actually destroy Cell?" Bulma wondered, looking surprised by how easily someone who could have turned out to be the source of another grandiose universe-spanning catastrophe was dealt with.

"Not quite..." Piccolo looked away, wondering how best to explain this. At that moment, he hated Artificial Human No. 17 for giving him the slip alongside Cell to deal with clueing Bulma and the rest in on Cell. "Cell and Lapis, well... They struck a deal."

"A deal?" A smile vanished from Dr. Flappe's face, however, the prodigious scientist didn't look too worked up about it either.

"B-But... Cell is dangerous! Dr. Flappe isn't safe with that thing alive and roaming free!" Super No. 8 exclaimed in outrage.