Fated

Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to Dragon Ball Z I also do not own most of the first sentences…

A/N: I am SO Sorry about the long wait and sorry I broke my promise! I was up in Pennsylvania visiting family… and then when I got home with my newly bought games (Hellgate: London and Dynasty Warriors 5) I kinda got absorbed in them and forgot about everything else … err and then I decided to go ahead and play FFX and it's sequel… so you can imagine that plus the job hunting and well… not much time for fan fictions eh? I'm pretty bad at thinking of good action to write but this chapter should be interesting! It's the mighty fight with Cell!! Will our heroes prevail??

H-bomber: Why thank ya! Yes he is, isn't that grand??

Aaron Leach: Thanks! What did you think of the story in whole?

Princesa de la Luna: Sorry it took me so long!

Kate7950: Yes… hurricanes do suck indeed…

Shinen no Hikari: Keep in mind Goku had trained under 10x earth's gravity on King Kai's planet for a long time and then under 100x earth's gravity for a while BEFORE he went Super-Saiyan… he then gradually got used to it and THEN he turned into a SSJ to fight Freeza… Gohan on the other hand, though he was already SSJ (but not transformed….), skipped a couple numbers and went full-out training without preparation… not to mention he did a lot more than his dad ever did! That thing about Gohan having more power because he's half Saiyan half Human is nonsense, he had more power because that's the way he was… think about Trunks, he's exactly like Gohan (in the half-Saiyan way) but way weaker… it has NOTHING to do with it. The ONLY way he became mystic was by Old Kai's training, NOT because he somehow had that power in him - that too is absolute nonsense. Watch the show again and pay attention. I'm sorry if this sounds like a flame but, it's 3 in the morning and I have little patience right now.

Lady555: There ya go!

Rhiannon: Sorry for keeping you in the dark but what would be the fun in knowing everything beforehand? :)

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"And then… after Goku… sacrificed himself… you defeated Cell by powering up to your second ascension and sending the biggest Kamehame wave I've ever seen!" Trunks ended his story of what had transpired in the "saved time-line" as he and his mastered flew through the sky. Gohan squared his jaw and glared into the distance.

"So that monster deceived us and killed my father…" He muttered, feeling the need to avenge his younger version and stop that from happening to someone in that time-line.

"Yeah… but, you were able to defeat Cell and everyone was wished back! …Well… except Goku… he chose to stay figuring he was the cause of all the trouble on earth…" Trunks finished, watching Gohan's eyes drop as they flew. Trunks knew that anything he said would not be enough to comfort his older brother – Gohan lost his father twice… maybe not physically twice, at least not to him but if one thought of it, he and his counterpart – though they lived separate lives – where one in the same.

"I see…" Was all the older man said. "It…. It doesn't matter right now though; we have a job to do." Gohan said, forcing his mind to focus; he could not afford to get distracted in battle, especially if this fiend was as terrible as Trunks made him sound. This battle would decide everything, their roles on the earth, how and if they improved in their training, and if they or the people of the earth had a chance.

"There!" Trunks said, pointing to a town in the distance. "Do you sense… well, yourself? Me? Your Dad? Krillin? Everyone? That's him…" Trunks explained how Cell was part of every one of them and knew their moves… he, however, did not know how much they had changed from the samples Dr. Gero had taken years ago – this made the table turn… or so they hoped.

"Wait… isn't that right back where we started?" Gohan observed as they neared Capsule Corps. Trunks' eyes widened and he nodded.

"Damn! He's trying to go back in time! We need to get him to follow us – we can't fight him in the middle of a city!" Trunks said, his voice holding obvious fear and doubt. Gohan squashed the younger man's doubt with a confident smile and he and the boy rushed down, intending on firing warning shots at Cell and hoping to lure him away. Gohan swooped down, kicking the unprepared and shocked Cell in the head and shooting a few Ki shots at him and then flying off with Trunks slow enough to catch the mechanical fiend's attention.

Their plan had worked; as they glanced back they saw Cell hot on their trails looking very put off. Once the three landed on an open patch of land with nothing in sight the two Saiyans stopped and let Cell catch up to them. As Cell approached Trunks fed off Gohan's seemingly endless confidence in the face of danger, feeling his nerves calm and focus on the threat at hand. Soon, as they stood facing each other, Cell spoke, with as much smug-confidence as Trunks remembered hearing.

"Ah… if it isn't Gohan… my how you've grown! That's not going to help you! According to my data you should be FAR weaker than me! And you!" Cell turned toward Trunks. "You are the son of that weakling, Vegeta, are you not? I can tell… Trunks, I have data on you as well… you should be no threat to me!" Cell laughed and stood with ease in front of the two men.

"Is he always this self-certain?" Gohan whispered to Trunks in amusement; he could sense the creature's power-level – it was next to nothing… he did however know that Cell hid power but he also knew it was still no match for him, especially with he AND Trunks. Said younger man smirked and crossed his arms smugly.

"Yeah… he had a right to sound so sure when I went back in time but… Heh, I doubt he has much bite to go with his bark." Trunks answered.

"HOW DARE YOU IGNORE ME!" Cell snarled, taking a step forward menacingly. Gohan resisted the urge to laugh, knowing it would be immature of him but unable to keep himself from revealing his mirth in his voice.

"He sounds angry." The taller Saiyan commented. Trunks however, did not hide his amusement as he laughed openly, only serving to anger the "perfect" android further. Without further ado the fight had begun; Cell thrust himself backward into the air and sent a barrage of Ki blasts at both of them, as quick and ferociously as he could. When the dust cleared he expected to see bloody limbs and charred gibs… unfortunately for him he saw neither. Instead, Cell saw Gohan with his hands extended into what appeared to be a Ki-Shield and a smug looking Trunks right beside him, both standing unmoving from where they hand stopped before.

"…So, you learned a new trick in the few years you lived? That won't save you again I can assure you." Cell warned, narrowing his eyes and sneering at them. 'Time to end this quickly and show them real power!' he thought as he lifted into the air a bit and got into position. "Kaaaa-meeeee-" he smirked when he saw Gohan's eyes narrow, mistaking that as fear. "Haaaaa-meeeee" Cell was a bit disgruntled when Gohan folded his arms and glared – why wasn't he afraid?? This angered Cell. "HAAAAAAAAA!" Cell let go of the massive ball he had been charging directly in the direction of the two smug Saiyans… boy did he want to wipe their smiles off their faces for good!

Cell watched fire and smoke consume the spot the Saiyans had stood before and laughed gleefully in triumph. "HAHAHA! Thought you could beat me easily did you! Now I am free to go into the past and rid this pathetic world and the likes of people like you!!" But Cell's laugh of joy turned into a shocked and incredulous cough when he noticed movement in the inferno….

Cell watched the scarred figure consumed by the wicked fire around him approach with his eyes, brilliant as emeralds as they were, alit with a fire within him. "You will fall." The tall man said in an eerily calm way that sent tremors of terror up Cell's spine – an unusual feeling indeed, Cell was wholly unused to it and did not like it one bit.

'Im-Impossible… my data on him says he should be far FAR weaker than me… he-he just can't be this strong… and yet… my sensors are functioning correctly! Impossible!' Cell thought in horror. Moments later a second figure approach, his wicked sword shining a radiant silver that contrasted to the inferno around them.

"You were destroyed in the past …you will be destroyed again." The shorter but obviously still very powerful figure snarled.

"NO! THAT SHOULD HAVE DESTROYED YOU BOTH!!" Cell wailed, quivering in fear. How were these… these… demons for real? Gohan knew from the moment he could sense Cell that this fight would end quickly, and for the world's sake it had better – he could not allow Cell to get away and become stronger, they had to end this now. Cell watched hopelessly as the two approached with a sudden, impossible speed and tear him limb from limb… but that was not enough to destroy him…

"Gohan! You have to destroy him with a Kamehame-wave, he will regenerate if you don't!" Trunks warned. Cell's moaned in panic, how did the runt know?? Gohan did as instructed and powered up the biggest Kamehame wave, without it being able to destroy the area around them, and sent it hurtling toward the pieces of what had been Cell.

"NOOOO!" Came a yell of pain and disbelief in the whirling explosion. Gohan pulled Trunks under him, shielding him from the massive blast that shook the land they stood shakily on. Once things had calmed they looked over to see… nothing… nothing of Cell remained, the blast had completely incinerated the machines, and unfortunately the trees near him… The two stood and felt themselves relax finally, letting go sighs of relief and smiling with the sense of victory.

"We did it…" Gohan said happily, scratching the back of his neck and then stretching, trying to get his battle-ready, tense muscles to relax.

"Yeah…" Trunks agreed, feeling a great burden finally being lifted from his shoulders. "We better get back and tell the others the news before they think Cell killed us somehow…" he advised. Their return home was received by plenty of hugs, kisses and pats on the back - they had defeated the threat to the world, the one supposedly more deadly than that of the androids, and returned home unscathed.

There was a small celebration not too long later, after Gohan spoke to the authorities of the "news" of the androids defeat. Even Master Roshi and the rest came out of their hiding to reunite with them and congratulate the heroes of the earth. "Your dad would be really proud of you." Master Roshi said to Gohan with a hug. Gohan hugged the old man back and smiled sadly.

"Yeah… I know." Came Gohan's soft reply as he looked up into the sky where he knew his father was watching.

"You know…" Began Trunks slowly, scratching his chin thoughtfully, much like his grandfather had done when a brilliant idea came to mind.

"I know that look… what are you plotting?" Bulma asked her son with a warning tone.

"Now that the threat is over… mom, why not finish grandpa's project? Build a ship and ask one of the Nameks to be our guardian? Maybe… maybe then we can wish everyone back again! Restore the earth!!" Trunks suggested, his tone becoming more and more excited as he spoke.

"Now THAT is a GREAT idea!" Bulma praised her son, feeling for the first time in a long time a great sense of hope fill her heart. And so the plan was set, Gohan and Trunks would travel to New Namek with the coordinates Mr. Po had left before he died, and ask for a new guardian! With that final thought the group of survivors set off to do the tasks needed for the things to come… but… in this harsh, cruel and twisted world, like the wicked thorns on a beautiful rose, could there really be peace without turmoil?

The End.

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End A/N: I decided to end it here, wow with only one lemon too – go figure - and leave room for a SEQUEL… don't worry, there WILL be one! Yes folks that's right; you were so good that I decided to write a sequel! I can promise you it will have a LOT more action and drama than this one! Expect a few Easter eggs too!

NOTE: By the way, I'm also job hunting and college is starting again soon so I'm not sure how much free time I'll have to keep writing… I'll try my best though but I'll need extra words of encouragement from you readers to help fuel me!!