Chapter 13: Cell

            Gohan and Videl were only centimeters away from being together when the Chamber suddenly shut off and the door flung open, Trunks’s voice crying out.

            “Gohan! Videl! Where are you guys?” he yelled.

            Gohan set Videl down and ran out.

            “We’re right here, Trunks. Why is the Chamber off? The time isn’t up yet,” Gohan asked.

            “There’s bad news. I think time is up…Cell is just outside our hideout, and I think he’s trying to find a way in,” Trunks said nervously.

            “So I guess this is where I come in?” Gohan asked sarcastically.

            “Afraid so,” Trunks replied.

            “Alright then. Time to go!” Gohan said, walking out of the Chamber.

            Gohan walked out into the crowd of all his friends. Just as he was about to go on, he remembered something.

            “Hey, Trunks,” Gohan said.

            “What is it?” Trunks answered.

            “Where is my mom?”

            Everyone went silent. Gohan looked back at Trunks and gave a questioning look.

            “She…ok, this is what happened,” Trunks started.

            “Right before Goku left to fight Cell, Chichi started to throw a fit. She was almost insane because she thought she had lost you and her husband was about to go and fight an android that could kill him without thought. She had to be held back while Goku left. When we let her go, she ran straight out of the hideout and toward where Goku and Cell were fighting. She…she didn’t come back.”

            Gohan stood staring at Trunks, speechless.

            “Gohan, are you ok?” Videl asked, putting a hand on his shoulder.

            Gohan nodded, tears brimming in his raven-colored eyes. He wiped them away harshly, turning around.

            “Where’s Cell now?” he asked, his voice taking on a deep, threatening tone.

            “He should be somewhere close…probably just outside the entrance,” Krillin said.

            “I’ll be back as soon as he’s dead…shouldn’t be too long, either,” Gohan said, his voice promising Cell a very painful death.

            Gohan walked toward the entrance, his face pressed into a very Saiyan-like scowl. He slightly resembled Vegeta as he walked proudly toward what had the chance to be his death.

            “If anything goes wrong, all of you get away. I don’t know if you’ll get very far, but it won’t hurt to try. I don’t want any of you to come out and try to help me unless I ask, alright? If I don’t come back then you can assume I’m dead,” Gohan said, not showing the least bit of nervousness or fear.

            He opened the door and stepped out. Videl followed him, trying to keep herself unnoticed.

            “Cell?” Gohan called as soon as the door was closed (Videl had somehow managed to sneak away before Gohan saw her).

            “Who has called me?” a voice called from a little ways away.

            Gohan, to avoid letting the creature find out where the door was, walked out into the open and searched for Cell before he was found.

            He came across a disgusting…thing. It was about as tall as Vegeta, maybe a little bit taller, and had a distorted face twisted into hostility and hatred.

            “Who are you?” the creature said.

            “Nothing less than death,” Gohan replied.

            “I’m sure…but where did you come from?” the creature asked.

            “That’s none of your concern. Your only concern is me,” Gohan said. “If I didn’t know any better I’d say you were Cell.”

            “Yes, I am. You look a lot like that weakling I killed some time ago. He had a crazy woman running after him, and he was easy to kill once I disposed of her. He said a strange name right before he died,” Cell said.

            “What name?” Gohan asked, knowing exactly who Cell was talking about.

            “He said the name ‘Gohan,’ I think…yes, it was ‘Gohan.’”

            “Well then, you’ve just met the man whose name that is,” Gohan noted.

            “So you’re Gohan? I’ve been waiting for you. I felt your power and that’s why I’m here…your friends can congratulate you…you’ve just led them to their death!” Cell announced.

            “Is that so?”

            “Yes, it is. You should prepare for this, it could get ugly.”

            Cell put up a deformed hand and blasted a huge hole in the ground. Below them, the hideout was exposed.

            “Hello down there! Your savior has failed! Haha!” Cell laughed, jumping down into the hideout.

            “No!” Gohan yelled, and jumped down after him.

            Cell was already advancing on someone when Gohan landed. She was a beautiful woman, with blond hair and sharp, menacing eyes. She stood up and put her hands out, as if guarding something.

            “Get away, Cell,” the woman said.

            “18!” Krillin yelled, lunging to protect the woman.

            “Go, Krillin! I can protect Marron!” 18 said.

            “No, you can’t…not for long!” Cell said.

            His tail whipped out from behind him and the tip opened. In a matter of seconds, 18 was sucked up into the tail and a white light was surrounding everyone.

            Cell was laughing like a maniac. When the light cleared, Cell had changed.

            He was taller now, taller than any of them. His face looked more human. His tail was tucked out of sight and he had strange wings. His head had a strange set of horn-looking things. Purple lines went down his face from his eyes to his jaw line. He had the appearance of something like a snake, just like…

            Gohan knew instantly that this was the figure from his dream. He began to laugh at Gohan, a mocking voice now present.

            “Hello, little Saiyan! Do you like my new form? It’s about ten times stronger than my most previous form,” Cell said, flexing his hands around.            

            Gohan began to fume with anger.

            “Oh, look! I’ve angered him! Oh, no!” Cell laughed, standing there, mocking Gohan with his every breath.

            “This may not be so funny in a minute, Cell!” Gohan threatened.

            “I’m positive it won’t!” Cell chuckled.

            He flew up above Gohan and into the world above the hideout. Gohan growled and followed him. They flew up into the sky high above what used to be Capsule Corp.

            “Cell, it’s time for you to pay for what you’ve done to Chikyuu,” Gohan yelled.

            “So you want to fight me, do you?” Cell laughed.

            “No,” Gohan replied, “I want to kill you.”

            Cell’s smirk faded then.

            “You should watch your mouth, boy!” Cell shouted, throwing a strong ki blast at Gohan.

            Gohan deflected it.

            “Is that all you can do? Wow, from what the others told me, I figured you’d be a lot stronger,” Gohan sneered.

            Cell snarled and lunged at Gohan. Gohan blocked every one of the throws Cell threw. It was beyond easy for Gohan…but that was his mistake. Cell threw everything he had at the young half-Saiyan (or so he led Gohan to believe).

            “This is almost too easy!” Gohan laughed.

            Cell stopped then. He had noticed movement below him, and stole a glance down.

            “Really? You might not think that in a moment, boy!” Cell sneered, smirking and looking down.

            “What are you looking at?” Gohan asked, looking down and getting his answer.

            Videl was below, watching the fight from what seemed to be a safe distance.

            “Goodbye, little girl!” Cell screamed down at her, blasting her.

            “NO! VIDEL!” Gohan screamed.

            He shot his eyes up sharply. His eyes pulled together, his scowl deepening.

            “That was a very big mistake, Cell,” he warned.

            “Was it?” Cell snickered.

            Gohan growled and threw himself at the android.

            “See? You’re so blinded by rage that you aren’t concentrating! Like father, like son!” Cell said.

            “What are you talking about?” Gohan said, stopping his attacks and glaring at Cell.  

“You’re father did the exact same thing when I killed that woman. He didn’t want to believe that she was dead and he jumped at me without thinking. That’s when he was killed by his own attack! You see, I am called ‘Cell’ for a reason. Over the years my creator, Dr. Gero, had sent a microscopic little bug to follow all the greatest fighters in the universe. I have cells from Frieza, Krillin, Piccolo, Vegeta, and hundreds of others…I even have cells from Goku. The only great warriors I don’t have cells from are the stupid half-Saiyan boy that came from the future…and you, Gohan. Oh, if I had any cells from you I’d be unstoppable!”

            “You killed my mother…you killed my father…you’ve destroyed the lives of all my friends…I have nothing now because you destroyed everything…but worst of all? You killed Videl. I’m not going to stand around and take this. The woman I love is dead on the ground below us and you expect me to just leave you alive? I don’t think so,” Gohan said.

            “What are you going to do? You can’t kill me!” Cell laughed.

            “Oh, I can…I can and I will,” Gohan threatened.

            “Are you sure about that? You don’t seem the type to kill. You’re too gentle and pure-hearted to kill. You wouldn’t hurt a fly!” Cell mocked.

            “Neither was my father,” Gohan spat.

            “So he was gentle as well? Really? Is that why he started crying like a baby and begging for his life?” Cell pushed.

            “He wouldn’t have done that. He was Saiyan, and no matter how he was raised he always kept his pride. He wouldn’t sink so low as to beg something of the likes of you.”

            “Are you positive about that? I’m sure that I remember correctly…So, anyway, are you going to kill me now?” Cell said, looking down with boredom.

            Gohan nodded and put his hands up.

            “Ka…”

            Cell looked up.

            “Me…”

            “What are you doing?” Cell asked.

            “Ha…”

            “Wait!” Cell yelled.

            “Me…”

            “NO!”

            “HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!”

            The blast surrounded Cell in a blinding light. When the dust cleared, there was nothing but ashes.

            I must be slipping, Gohan thought, when I killed Frieza there wasn’t even ashes. I really should have trained more.

            But these joking thoughts left his head as he floated sadly down to where Videl’s dead body lay.

            “No…Videl…” he whispered, his tears falling onto her face and then slipping uselessly away.

            “Gohan? You did it! You killed Cell!”

            Bulma had come out of the hideout and was walking up behind Gohan.            “She’s gone…” Gohan whispered, weeping over the fallen body of the girl he loved.

            “I have a way to fix that, you know,” Bulma said mischievously.

            Gohan looked up, ready to try anything.

Videl was back in his life. Dragonballs had brought her back. Gohan was a fool to forget them, but it was better now. He had Videl back and everything was all right. She was finally his, and they could spend eternity in each other’s arms…

…But like a phoenix from the ashes, Cell rose. Gohan hadn’t destroyed him…just most of him…and now he was back, but things weren’t that easy. Cell was very weak. He needed to go through another rest period, a very long one by the looks of it. The advantage? By the time he was done, he would be completely unstoppable. He would be a million times stronger than everyone in the universe combined. He would be restored by the time Gohan had just started to finally rest fully. It would only take him about sixteen years to regenerate everything and more…

            Well, Cell could certainly wait…to him, the result of it was worth it. One more chance to fight Gohan…all he wanted. He would fight him again, oh yes, he would. Not yet, but soon…soon, although not soon enough…

            Now, just a week short of the full sixteen years, Cell waits. His energy is almost at full, and he is ready to battle Gohan once more. Gohan would not expect this…he was too worried about other things. He was too busy paying attention to his family and work to even begin to consider training. He was weak…killing him would be boring at this rate. But as long as Cell could wreak his revenge…that was all he needed. But the one thing Cell did not expect was that three new warriors would be joining the fight…and this lack of knowledge could have been his downfall had he not been so strong. He waits out the final week, and watches what Gohan does. He sees many new faces along with old ones, and he knows that these last moments are unnecessary. Cell emerged from his resting place and notices something funny…

            Gohan and Vegeta have new daughters, each about fifteen years old. That other brat, Trunks, is there, but he is different. An idea shows itself in Cell’s evil mind…he keeps himself unnoticed and sneaks off to his master’s hidden lab…there, he will find exactly what he needs and more. The time has come…the time has come…