"They're here! Run!" Several people screamed. But it was too late. Before they had time to turn away, they were obliterated in a massive explosion.

"Heheheheh! I got fourteen, what about you?" Said a young woman with short blonde hair and blue eyes, laughing with a man next to her, with near-shoulder-length black hair and the same eyes.

"I think about," He paused and counted the number of charred bodies. "Sixteen."

"Did not, you liar." The woman scoffed.

"Did to. See?" The boy turned pointed to two civilians who were somehow not killed in the blast, and a thin yellow beam shot from his finger, destroying them completely. They both laughed as though they were playing a fun little game. But then to these people, this was all it really was. Ten years ago, these sinister androids were set loose upon the unsuspecting world to terrorize all humanity. Though the Z fighters, a powerful team of super warriors, had tried to stop these two nefarious androids, they were too powerful for even their incredible might. Now, ten years after the androids were first set loose on the world, the only one standing between them and humankind's extinction is one young man, the son of Son Goku, the strongest member of the Z fighters, Son Gohan.

"This has gone far enough!" The two androids turned around to see a man with short spiky black hair and an orange fighting gi. He was striding down the road at them with a look of pure hatred. The androids simply laughed.

"I was wondering when Gohan'd show up." Said the boy. "It just wouldn't be fun without him around." Gohan's stride broke into a run and he aimed a punch straight at the boy's face. His hair suddenly stood on end, turning gold and his eyes became a light green. His fist collided with the boy's face and he was knocked back into a car several feet behind. He smirked. "Not bad." He chuckled, picking the car up off the ground with a single hand. "But not good either." He threw the car at Gohan, who caught it, spun it around about three times, and threw it right back. The woman joined in, kicking Gohan in the gut, then hammer-fisting the back of his head straight into the ground. The boy advanced, smashing the car right on top of him. The car exploded in a flash of golden light as Gohan charged at the woman, and she gave a shove on his left shoulder, flipping him around. She and the boy simultaneously punched Gohan in the head. Gohan collapsed from the pain, and the androids proceeded to continuously kick him as he lay on the ground.

"Enough of that!" They turned to see a young teenage boy coming their way. He had light purple hair in a bowl cut and a very serious look on his face.

"Trunks! What are you doing? Get out of here! You don't know what you're doing!" Gohan yelled.

"I can't take this anymore! If I don't do something, who will?" Trunks said defiantly. He shot a beam of energy from his hand at the androids, who batted it away lazily, and laughed.

"You know something, 17? I think the kid actually means business." Said the woman coolly.

"He's either really brave or really, really stupid if he actually thinks he stands a chance against us. I say we should put this brat in his place. What do you think, 18?" Sneered 17.

"Sounds like fun." Said 18. They both dashed at Trunks, who was soon hit with a relentless barrage of kicks, punches, and blasts until, finally too bruised and hurt to stand, he fainted. "That was disappointing." 18 sighed. "You know, I think I'd like some new clothes, what about you?"

"Please. I like my clothes, thank you very much." said 17. "I'm not interested in girly stuff like clothes shopping. I'd drive you if ya want though." He tore a car door open, threw the people who were hiding in it out on the street, and offered 18 inside.

"No thanks. I'm not a big fan of your driving." 18 sighed.

"You okay, Trunks? Or should I be making dinner for only one from now on?" Trunks' mother Bulma asked two days later when Gohan and Trunks regained consciousness.

"I'm sorry, mom. I was just passing through and I was caught up in the mess." Trunks muttered.

"Just don't let it happen again." Bulma said desperately. "I was hurting when I lost Vegeta, I can't stand to lose you too." She started to tear up."

"Don't worry about it, Bulma." Said Gohan. "He wasn't hurt this time, but I do think that you need to think about our situation, Trunks." Trunks gave a guilty look. He knew that the androids were the most powerful beings on earth, he knew that charging in like a bull was just reckless, but he felt like he needed to do something to fight back.

"Look, I'm sorry." Said Trunks, frustrated. "I just need to do something. I'd rather die on my feet than helplessly at home, and I can't stand how many innocent lives are being lost. Gohan, can you train me?" Bulma opened her mouth, ready to heavily object to this statement, but Gohan raised a hand to her and replied,

"Okay, Trunks. Just promise me that from now on, you'll do as I say, no matter what."

"Promise." Trunks nodded. And in the following months, Gohan trained Trunks in the mountains on the outskirts of the city.

"Okay, Trunks, that's enough." Gohan said one day. He had been trying to teach Trunks how to attain the power of the super saiyan, a vastly powerful transformation known by the alien warrior race they were descended from.

"I don't understand, Gohan. How is it that you can just transform like that so easily?" he asked.

"It isn't quite that simple, Trunks." Gohan told him. "Though it does take a great deal of anger to become a super saiyan, it take a bit more than that. I don't really know how to explain it, but every time I transform, I remember of when I had to witness all of my friends fight and die and how helpless I was. It doesn't just take rage. It takes the absolute need to harness the power and the concentration to control it."

"I still don't quite understand." Said Trunks uncertainly. Gohan placed a hand on Trunks' shoulder.

"Don't worry about it. You'll see one of these days." Trunks flinched as a massive explosion erupted somewhere in the city. "Damn. Don't they know when to quit?" Gohan grunted. "Let's go, Trunks."

"But what can we do?" asked Trunks, unable to catch up with Gohan, who was flying so fast that Trunks couldn't even hope to get within fifty feet of him. The androids had blasted a crater in the city that had spread about 2 miles wide.

"I'm not going to put up with this anymore!" Gohan roared as he landed, smashing a prominent hole where he landed. He was already in super saiyan and his light green eyes glared into the matching blue eyes of the androids, who smirked amusedly at him. Trunks landed next to Gohan, panting slightly.

"Be very careful, Trunks." Gohan said to Trunks under his breath. "If things get too nasty, I want you to get out of here immediately. Got that?" Trunks gave a slight nod.

"Looks like he brought a friend with him this time." 18 teased.

"How cute." said 17. "The kid thinks he can fight us." Trunks, angered by the androids' taunts lashed out at 17.

"Trunks, NO!" Gohan yelled, but too late. 18 grabbed Trunks by the collar and yanked him back. 17 fired an energy beam at him, but Gohan ran forward and defected it with his hand. He turned around and chopped 18's arm away, releasing Trunks, who punched her in the left cheek.

"Didn't your mommy ever tell you it's bad to hit a girl?" She taunted. She punched him square in the chest, tripped him, then while he was still in midair, kicked him several feet, were 17 caught him and threw him into the ground.

"Damn you!" Gohan roared. "MASENKO!" And a gold jet of energy shot from his hands, hitting 17 head on. Knowing 17 was distracted, Gohan charged straight at 18, his left index and middle fingers outstretched. With his free hand, he brushed 18's punch away and caught her around the neck in the crook of his elbow. He rammed her into the side of a nearby building, tearing it down in the process. 17 kicked him in the back and 18 made to shoot at his head, but Gohan was ready for this. Letting himself fall forward, he effortlessly dodged her blast, whirled around and pointed straight at 17 with two of his left fingers.

"Makankōsappō!" Two thin beams shot from his finger tips, one straight, the other spiraling around the first. The blast impaled 17 through his right shoulder, causing him to stagger where his stood, a large gaping hole where the blast hit him. Gohan smiled, relieved the the attack worked the way it should have. "Hey, there's something I want to know." He called tauntingly. "Is that blood or oil?"

"You're not going to get away with that." 18 said coolly. Gohan leapt into the air, 18 following. They exchanged attack after attack in the sky, but it seemed clear to 18 that Gohan had the advantage.

"Not so cocky now that your friend's not here to back you up, are you?" He was right, and 18 knew it. Gohan broke through 18's defenses and sent her hurtling back to the ground. He soon followed and seeing both androids weaken and hurt, he held both hands to one side, building up energy.

"Kame... Hame..." he shouted as a bright blue sphere of energy built up in his hands. He then thrust them in front of himself. "H... uh?" He stopped abruptly, the blue ball of energy fading.

"Go ahead. Finish us off." 17 smirked, a bruised, beaten and unconscious Trunks held by the scruff of his neck in front of him. "That is, if you have the guts to do away with your little buddy." Gohan gritted his teeth, furious.

"That's a dirty move, you cowardly son of a bitch!" He snarled.

"Who cares?" 18 sneered. "So long as it works." This was exactly what Gohan was hoping to avoid. He wanted Trunks to be safe, to be able to run away if things got this nasty, but no matter what plans came into Gohan's mind, the androids could, WOULD, kill Trunks in a heartbeat.

"Here. Take him." 18 groaned, annoyed. She snatched Trunks from 17's outstretched hand and threw him over to Gohan. Gohan caught him and looked at 18 bewildered. Then all of a sudden, 17 lashed out and in a fierce swipe, severed Gohan's left arm.

The pain was so tremendous that Gohan normally would have cried out loudly, but because of pure shock, he didn't make a sound. He just stared at the place where he left arm used to be, his eyes very wide, his mouth agape as though screaming, but no sound came out. His ears rang loudly and his vision was somewhat blurred as he watched his severed arm fall to the ground. It should have taken seconds, but to him it seemed like hours, and without even knowing it, he fainted.

"Wha...? What? Where... Am I?" Gohan opened his eyes slowly, his vision still a bit blurry. The light hurt his eyes and he abruptly shut them tightly.

"You okay Gohan?" He didn't see who it was, but her voice was familiar.

"Bulma? Where am I?" Gohan asked hoarsely.

"You're at my place." Said Bulma.

"Agh. Not so loud." Gohan whispered, clutching a hand tightly to his head. It felt like it was going to split open at the slightest sound.

"Sorry." She said softly. "You're really lucky I found you when I did. Otherwise you would have died of blood loss."

"How's... how's Trunks?" Gohan asked after a while. "Is he okay?" He couldn't see her right now, but he knew by the sound of her voice that Bulma was about to cry.

"Sorry, Gohan. I'm so sorry. He's... he's..." Gohan, who finally opened his eyes, which were currently adjusting to the light, tried to extend a comforting hand to Bulma, but he couldn't feel it. He sat up and looked to his left. Where there should have been an arm, there was nothing. Just a bunch of reddened bandaging where a shoulder should have been.

"I shouldn't have brought him along." Gohan muttered, infuriated with himself. "I knew the risks. I knew what could have happened, but I let him come with me and I let him die. It's all my fault, and now there's no way to stop the and..." SMACK! .

"PULL YOURSELF TOGETHER, GOHAN!" Bulma screamed, tears streaming down her face. "Even in the face of the worst possible danger, your dad never broke down like this, and I have a hard time believing his son would break so easily!" Gohan rubbed the place where she had punched him, the right side of his face shone bright red.

"Sorry about that." He mumbled.

"Don't sweat it." Said Bulma kindly. "Just remember that if you ever lose it, I'll always be here to punch some sense into you."

"I'd like that." Gohan smiled. "So, how's your little project going along?" For that last ten or so years, Bulma had been trying to construct a device capable of time travel, though no one had ever taken her seriously.

"Pretty good. It should be up and ready to go in a few days." Said Bulma brightly. "You should take a senzu bean. "She added to Gohan, who had tried to get out of bed, only to a badly aching body.

"Can't." Gohan grunted.

"Why not? How many do you have left now?"

"Just like my arms, only one left." Gohan said gloomily. Because of the androids' attack, the plant that grew the senzu bean, a magical bean that can heal any wound, died out, and Gohan had kept a small bag of the last senzus in existence, saving them only for the most dire of emergencies.

"Then what better time to take it than right now!" Bulma insisted.

"No. It should go to Trunks." Gohan stated.

"That's noble and all Gohan, but in case you've forgotten he's..."

"Dead, I know." Gohan interrupted. "But it wouldn't be right to waste the last senzu in existence on myself. It should have gone to Trunks, but now that he's dead, nobody gets it."

"Don't be stupid, Gohan if you ate it, you could regenerate your arm." Bulma insisted exasperatedly.

"You think I don't know that? I'm not going to regrow my arm because this," He indicated the place his left arm should have been. "It's a symbol of my failure, and it would be an insult to Trunks' memory to get my arm back just for my own comfort." Bulma was ready to hit Gohan again, but lowered her hand in surprise at this statement.

"That is deep." She said simply. "Really deep. You really are just like your father, you know that?" Gohan grinned weakly. It was about three months before Gohan was finally healed enough to be able to get up and move the way he used to. Bulma had offered to make him a prosthetic arm, but he turned it down without a second thought. By the time he was back up and running, Bulma's time machine was completed.

"Well, this is it." Said Gohan. He had packed up everything he thought he would need for his trip and was bidding his remaining friends and family goodbye.

"Be very careful, Gohan! Please just come back! Just come back alive!" His mother cried tearfully.

"Good luck, kiddo." Said Bulma, patting his remaining shoulder comfortingly. "And if you see Trunks, let him know his mommy loves him." Gohan nodded. "I will. And I'll come back. I promise." He climbed into the time machine, gave a final wave goodbye, and in a bright flash, he had gone.

"Don't worry Trunks. I'll make sure that none of this ever happens. Not again."