Stealing a Whole Dusk for You at the End of the World

Chen Mo sat on an ammunition crate and spent about fifteen minutes sorting everything out.

He began with Dr. Gero's tracking robots.

"Gero had started monitoring Earth's powerful fighters even before the Saiyan invasion. The tracking robots he sent out were tiny and flew above the stratosphere. Ordinary ki sensing couldn't detect them at all."

"Those robots recorded all the Z Fighters' battle data, from the Saiyan invasion through the battle on Planet Namek."

Chen Mo spoke at an even pace, every sentence carefully considered.

"I found some of the storage terminals in Dr. Gero's northern laboratory."

"Most of the data was encrypted, but some basic files were accessible."

"The Z Fighters' personal information, their battle power progression curves, skill records. Master Roshi, Tien Shinhan, Yamcha, Chiaotzu. Even records of Goku's growth from childhood to adulthood."

Bulma sat across from him.

She pushed her goggles up onto her forehead and rested the wrench in her hand on her knee, listening without a word.

"I saw the technical parameters for the King Kai Fist in the files. North King Kai had originally taught it to Goku, and Gero's robots recorded the complete pattern of ki flow on Planet Namek."

"I studied the parameters on my own and combined them with Master Roshi's basic training. It took me nearly a year just to barely learn it."

The lie sounded completely convincing. Chen Mo's expression showed no flaws, because he had rehearsed it countless times.

"The blueprints for Cell, Android 17, and Android 18, the existence of the controller, the concept of a time machine. They all came from those files.

"Dr. Gero was insane, but he organized his data very thoroughly."

Bulma finally spoke.

"You're saying you went alone to the Red Ribbon Army laboratory in the northern mountains and dug up Dr. Gero's storage terminals."

"That's right."

"When did you find that laboratory?"

"About a year ago."

"How did you know where it was?"

"One of the tracking robot files had its return coordinates marked." Chen Mo said, "I followed those coordinates and found it."

Bulma stared at him for five seconds.

"You..." Bulma's tone made it impossible to tell whether she was praising him or scolding him. "An ordinary person with a battle power in the single digits, going alone to a Red Ribbon Army laboratory to dig through data. Do you know what that means?"

"It meant I either found something useful or died on the way there," Chen Mo said. "Back then, I didn't have much of a choice."

Bulma pressed her lips together. She did not press him further.

A scientist's intuition told her there were holes in his story. But she chose to accept it for the time being.

Because this man had given her son the last Senzu Bean.

"When you mentioned Cell, you said its goal was to absorb Android 17 and Android 18." Bulma brought the conversation back on track. "What level were the Cell design parameters you saw in the files?"

"First Form. About as strong as the stronger Z Fighters in the early days. After absorbing Android 17, it enters its second form, then absorbs Android 18 to become Perfect Form. Perfect Form was the design limit."

Chen Mo paused.

"The files didn't list a specific value. But Dr. Gero's note said, 'Beyond all known battle power samples.'"

Bulma leaned back in her chair.

"Then this thing is even more dangerous than you estimated."

"What do you mean?"

Bulma stood, walked to the wall, and pulled a sheet from a stack of printouts. It was covered in densely packed energy curve graphs.

"Do you know how far the androids in this timeline differ from the data you saw in those files?"

Chen Mo straightened his back.

"What was the approximate baseline battle power of the original Android 17 and Android 18 in Dr. Gero's design files?" Bulma asked.

"Based on the file projections... around Super Saiyan level," Chen Mo said.

Bulma shook her head.

"Not enough. Not even close."

She slapped the sheet onto the table.

"Half a year before the androids appeared, Vegeta had already become a Super Saiyan."

Chen Mo froze.

Trunks lowered his head beside them.

"After Goku died from the heart virus, Vegeta locked himself in the Gravity Chamber and trained for four months."

Bulma's voice remained calm. "He met the conditions to transform into a Super Saiyan. I saw it with my own eyes. Golden hair. Green eyes. The pressure of his ki cracked the walls of the Gravity Chamber."

Her finger tapped the graph.

"The day the androids appeared, Vegeta was the first to charge in. In Super Saiyan form. Giving it everything he had."

Bulma's finger stopped at a sharply plunging point on the graph.

"Android 17 blocked all of his attacks with one hand."

Chen Mo said nothing.

"One hand," Bulma repeated. "Then Android 18 snapped his spine with a kick from behind. It took less than three minutes from start to finish."

The basement was silent. The hum of electricity through the industrial lights became exceptionally clear.

"Later, Gohan became a Super Saiyan," Bulma continued. "He fought the androids for three years. During those three years, he was the only one who could stand against them for more than ten minutes. But every time, he lost. Every time, he barely made it back alive. Until that time."

Trunks clenched his fist.

"Mr. Gohan went because he wanted to protect me." Trunks's voice was low. "He never came back that time."

Bulma did not look at her son. Her gaze remained fixed on the graph on the table.

"So now you understand. Android 17 and Android 18 are far stronger than what you calculated from the records. Not just a little stronger. They're on an entirely different level."

"There was a huge discrepancy between Dr. Gero's original design specifications and the final products. I suspect he performed at least two further enhancement modifications before activating the androids."

Chen Mo took a few seconds to process that.

Stronger than in the original story. And they appeared later.

Vegeta had already become a Super Saiyan, yet he had still been pinned down with one hand.

He silently revised his estimate of Android 18's combat power.

Previously, he had thought Android 18 was around 450 million.

Now, that number might need to be adjusted upward.

How much higher was hard to say. But Broly had been able to fight Android 18 to that extent, which meant the gap between them was not overwhelming.

Broly had limitless growth potential. Android 18's Eternal Furnace also possessed a similar deep-level restoration mechanism.

Both were monsters that only grew stronger as they fought.

"About Cell," Chen Mo brought the topic back. "You said something happened yesterday?"

Bulma's expression changed.

"Yes. Yesterday."

She walked over to the workbench and picked up a warped metal plate. It bore scorch marks and traces of some kind of mucus.

"Yesterday afternoon. Around the time the battle in the north was halfway through, a green creature flew in from the east."

"Cell."

"Yes. It was in terrible shape at the time. It had extensive burns and lacerations all over its body. It must have been caught up in the battlefield. When it flew over the concentration camp, the warning system went off."

Bulma set down the metal plate.

"It landed on the outskirts and started walking into the camp. I saw what it looked like on the surveillance feed. Like an oversized cockroach. A green shell. A long tail. The tip of the tail was hollow."

A structure for absorption. Chen Mo knew that.

"It walked about fifty meters, then stopped."

"Why did it stop?"

Bulma's lips twitched.

"Android 16."

Chen Mo blinked.

"Android 16 stopped it," Bulma said. "He arrived here three days ago. No idea where he came from. A big red-haired guy wearing the uniform from Dr. Gero's laboratory."

"He said he was Android 16, said he disliked harming life, and then asked whether he could look at the birds around the camp."

Trunks turned his head as well.

"You let an android stay in the concentration camp?"

"He's different." Bulma's tone was certain. "I gave him a full-body scan. He's a purely mechanical type, without the biological enhancement modifications Dr. Gero used on Android 17 and Android 18."

"There was a deleted but not completely overwritten command in his core drive: eliminate Goku. But Goku was already dead. That command had become dead code. His remaining behavioral patterns were all self-learning. He chose not to harm life himself."

"What about his combat power?" Chen Mo asked.

"The scanners can't measure it accurately. His energy output differs from Android 17's and Android 18's. But judging from what happened yesterday..."

Bulma took a deep breath.

"He broke Cell's left arm with one punch."

Chen Mo's eyelid twitched.

"Cell's regenerative ability came from Piccolo's cells. A severed arm would grow back. But Android 16 didn't give it the chance. He kept attacking for about two minutes, beating Cell into the ground and creating a crater ten meters deep."

"Cell tried to absorb him with its tail, but Android 16 is purely mechanical. He has no biological energy. He couldn't be absorbed."

A perfect counter. Cell's absorption ability was useless against a purely mechanical body.

"And then?"

"Cell burrowed underground. Android 16 chased after him for a while but couldn't catch up. After Cell emerged from the ground, he flew straight into the sky. He left the atmosphere."

"Left the atmosphere?" Chen Mo frowned.

"Yes. He left Earth." Bulma walked to the wall opposite them and pulled down a whiteboard. A rough star map was drawn on it, with several points circled in red.

"I used a tracking system modified from satellite wreckage to follow the signal for a while. Cell was headed toward the North Galaxy. There are several inhabited planets over there."

Chen Mo understood instantly.

Cell had gone into outer space to absorb life energy.

He couldn't absorb Android 17 or Android 18 on Earth. Android 16 was entirely mechanical, so there was nothing to absorb from him.

He had changed strategies. He was going into the universe to find other living beings to absorb.

Although absorbing ordinary creatures was far less efficient than absorbing androids, Cell possessed Namekian regeneration and Frieza's ability to survive in space.

He could live in outer space.

"There's one more thing," Bulma said. "About ten minutes after Cell left the atmosphere, another energy signal left Earth. Golden. Extremely powerful."

"Broly."

"That Legendary Super Saiyan you mentioned?" Bulma nodded. "He caught up. The two signals intersected once outside the atmosphere, then moved together toward deep space. After that, they went beyond my tracking range."

Broly had gone after Cell.

Chen Mo's mind raced.

Broly hated Cell. That made sense.

Broly's battle instincts would make him chase powerful energy.

Cell had Goku and Vegeta's cells fused into his body.

The aura of two Saiyans. To Broly, Cell's scent was like a red flag waved in front of a bull.

The two monsters had left Earth together.

One had gone into the universe to find something to absorb. The other had gone to hunt him down.

"So, on Earth right now..."

"It's quiet," Bulma said. "Android 17 is in the northeast. Android 18 is wandering around in the west. Android 16 is watching birds in the camp. Neither Cell nor Broly is on Earth."

She leaned against the whiteboard and folded her arms.

"This is the quietest day we've had in four years."

Chen Mo and Trunks fell silent at the same time.

Only the hum of the ventilation ducts remained in the basement.

Four years of apocalypse. The survivors had hidden underground, living like cockroaches.

And now, because of a chain reaction.

Chen Mo had revealed the laboratory's location, Android 18 had awakened Android 16, Broly had descended from outer space, and Cell had been forced off Earth.

For the moment, only three androids remained on this planet.

And one of them was watching birds.

"Where's Android 16?" Chen Mo asked.

"Up there." Bulma pointed at the ceiling. "He doesn't like staying underground. He said there are no birds singing down here."

Chen Mo stood up.

"I'll go take a look."

Bulma glanced at him. "You're not afraid?"

"Android 16 doesn't hurt living things. That's what you said."

"I said that's his current behavior pattern. I never said I was one hundred percent sure."

"Then I'll gamble on it." Chen Mo headed for the stairs. "I've gambled enough times already. One more won't make a difference."

He climbed the concrete steps, passed through three underground levels, and pushed open the camouflaged iron door at ground level.

Sunlight struck his face.

The sunlight of the apocalypse was no different from the sunlight of a normal world.

The sun didn't care whether the people below were alive or dead. It rose as usual.

The aboveground part of the camp was a half-open clearing, a courtyard enclosed by discarded construction materials.

Several survivors were sorting supplies in a corner. When they saw Chen Mo emerge from underground, they cast wary looks his way.

Chen Mo ignored them. Following his sense of energy, he walked about two hundred meters east.

Then he saw Android 16.

Red mohawk hair. Over two meters tall. The dark blue uniform of Dr. Gero's laboratory. An enormous build.

He was crouching beneath a dead tree beside the barbed-wire fence at the edge of the camp.

A gray sparrow perched on his finger.

Android 16 held his other hand up in front of him, blocking the slanting afternoon sun and casting a small patch of shade over the sparrow.

The sparrow tilted its head atop his finger and pecked at his nail.

Android 16 did not move. Not even the rise and fall of breathing.

A fully mechanical body had no need to breathe.

He simply crouched there without moving, like a statue.

Chen Mo's approaching footsteps startled the sparrow. It fluttered away.

Android 16 raised his head.

His eyes were blue. Unlike Android 17 and Android 18, there was not the slightest emotional ripple in them.

It was not indifference. It was tranquility, like a windless lake.

"You are the new human," Android 16 said.

His voice was low and deep, but carried no sense of threat.

"Chen Mo," Chen Mo said.

"I know your name. Bulma mentioned it just now." Android 16 stood up. Once fully upright, he was a full head taller than Chen Mo. "You saved Trunks."

"It was nothing."

Android 16 looked at him for a long time.

"You have an electromagnetic marker left by Android 18 on you."

Chen Mo froze.

"It is very faint," Android 16 said. "But my sensors can detect it. She placed a tracking marker on you."

Chen Mo's expression changed.

A tracking marker. Android 18 had placed a tracking marker on him. When had she done it? How?

"It was probably implanted during skin contact." Android 16 seemed to read his expression. "A micro electromagnetic pulse embedded into the epidermal tissue. It will not affect your health, but she can track your location at any time."

Chen Mo took a deep breath.

No wonder.

No wonder Android 18 had been able to search through every place he had visited with such precision.

It was not because she had been following his movements. It was because she had always known where he was.

"Can it be removed?"

"Yes. But it requires precision equipment. Bulma's equipment should be able to do it."

Chen Mo stood there for several seconds, processing this.

Then he made a decision that caught Android 16 by surprise.

"Not yet."

Android 16 tilted his head slightly.

"She knows where I am." Chen Mo slowed his speech. "But she has not come after me yet. That means she is waiting. I do not know what she is waiting for, but if I suddenly disappear from her tracking, her reaction will be more unpredictable than if she finds me."

It was the mindset of a gambler. Android 16 did not quite understand it, but he did not ask further.

The sparrow flew back and landed on the branch of a dead tree, chirping twice.

Android 16's attention was immediately drawn to it. He crouched down again and held out a finger.

After hesitating for a moment, the sparrow flew back onto his fingertip.

Chen Mo watched the scene unfold.

A combat weapon capable of snapping Cell's arm with a single punch was crouching amid the ruins of the apocalypse, feeding birds.

"Android 16."

"Yes."

"Why did you stop Cell?"

Android 16 did not turn around. His gaze remained fixed on the sparrow.

"It wanted to kill the people here."

"You do not know these people."

"I do not need to know them," Android 16 said. "They are living things. Living things should not be killed casually."

His finger moved slightly. The sparrow cocked its head at him but did not fly away.

"Birds too. Humans too. Insects too."

Chen Mo looked at his profile.

Dr. Gero had said Android 16 was defective. A personality defect. Disobedient to orders.

Maybe it wasn't a flaw.

Maybe it was the only part on the entire production line that hadn't broken.

Chen Mo stood beneath the dead tree for a while. The wind blew in from beyond the camp's walls, carrying dust and the lingering smell of something scorched somewhere far away.

The evening breeze passed through the camp's barbed wire, making a faint hum.

The sparrow on Android 16's finger finally flew away, vanishing into the deepening dusk.