Piccolo's Regrettable Mistake! Cell Escapes Into the City!

Rain pours down on Super Saiya-jin Vegeta as he races to Gingertown. "I sense two powerful ki's." On Tenshinhan's side, things are rather sunny and cheerful, except for Ten himself. Piccolo and Cell stand in the ruins of the city, staring at each other. Cell's tail waves around behind him, but otherwise, he's completely still. An acidic substance falls off of the end of the needle in a droplet, burning a hole in the Earth where it falls. The sun burns down on them and dust is blown about in the wind. Neither warrior moves. "Cell, even factoring in the arm you absorbed, I'm still a lot stronger than you. Get ready." Cell, "You used your head, pretending that you'd lost your arm so that you could listen to my story." One foot slides back a few inches, as if Cell were preparing to spring off it in a quick attack against Piccolo. "How cunning your mind works." Piccolo, "That was the Kami part in me, not my usual self." Cell, "What? So you're the combination of both Piccolo Daimaou and Kami together." Piccolo, "Yes, I am. Now you figured it out?" Cell, "That means the Dragon Balls are gone as well." He stares at Piccolo and a transparent image of Kamisama's face overlays Piccolo. "So no one can use them to come back from the dead again." A grin spreads across his face and he laughs. "No wonder you're stronger." His foot slides back further. "Even still, you only look like the regular Piccolo Daimaou." Piccolo, "You still don't know my true powers. Let me show you what my real powers are like." Cell jumps backward, up onto the ruins of a building. Suddenly, a faint sound can be heard. Piccolo and Cell both turn to see what it is.

Kuririn, "There's no mistaking it. He's fused himself together with Kamisama." Kuririn looks up past Piccolo. "Who's that?" Trunks turns to where he's looking. Trunks, "Probably the monster that came out of that egg." Cell looks up at the new arrivals. "Trunks! Why is he here? He must have come in a time machine to this period." Cell flashes back to when he killed Trunks in the future, strangling the young warrior with his tail. Trunks and Kuririn land beside Piccolo. Cell continues what he was saying to himself. "Stupid fool. Getting killed by me in the future and soon again in this time period." Kuririn, Piccolo, and Trunks stare up at Cell silently for a few seconds. Cell stares back. Kuririn, "That's the monster!" Trunks nods his agreement, his eyes never leaving the creature on the building. Kuririn looks up at Piccolo. "Is he the one who killed everyone in Gingertown?" Piccolo, "Yes. Watch out for his tail. That's how he killed his victims." Kuririn, "Why do I sense both Tenshinhan's and Goku's ki's?" Piccolo, "I'll tell you all the details later. Right now, we have to destroy him." Cell, "Destroy me?" He glances over to his right for a second. "You think it's going to be that easy?" He takes a single step forward. Kuririn, "Are you serious?" Piccolo, "Under these circumstances, I don't see how you could possibly win." Cell, "You're right. I probably do have to leave." Piccolo, "I won't let you escape!" Cell makes no move to leave, only watching him quietly. Piccolo, "Not with that weak Kamehameha you used before." Kuririn, "Kamehameha? He can use Goku's Kamehameha? Why?" Cell, "Not only the Kamehameha, Kuririn. If I felt like it, I could probably perform Genki Dama as well." Kuririn and Trunks gasp. Kuririn, "I'm pretty shocked. He even knows my name. If I tell Goku, he'll be surprised as well." Celll, "Oh! Son Goku is still alive..." Kuririn, "Of course!" Cell, "So, he's still alive." Cell looks back over where he had before, and this time, we see that he was glancing at the sun. "I guess history as I remember it has changed a bit." He looks back to the Z Senshi before him. "I'll definitely get Number 17 and Number 18! You guys will never stop me from reaching Perfection!" He jumps into the air. "There's only one person who could even have a chance of stopping me. It's the only one with the power capable of competing with Number 17 and Number 18, and that's you, Piccolo." Cell jumps up in front of the sun and raises his arms. Piccolo, "What?!" Cell spreads his fingers in front of him on either side of his face. Trunks and Kuririn stare at him incredulously. Kuririn, "This is..." Cell calls out his attack name. "Taiyo-ken!"

A blinding white light washes over the Z Senshi. Cell takes off, leaving the temporarily incapacitated Z Senshi behind. Piccolo rubs his eyes. "Damn it!" Trunks rubs his eyes and shares his feelings. "Damn...!" They begin to recover, but as they survey the area, they find that Cell is not to be found. Trunks, "He escaped!" Kuririn, "Damn it!" Piccolo, "Kuririn, isn't Taiyo-ken Tenshinhan's move?" Kuririn finally opens his eyes. "Taiyo-ken is an easy move that Goku... Even I could do it." Piccolo, "Is that so?" He jumps into the air. Trunks and Kuririn follow him up. The three of them look around, but none can find Cell. Piccolo, "Damn, I can't sense him. He's hiding his ki." Cell runs through a forest, laughing gleefully. "They'll never catch me as long as I keep my ki at a low level." He laughs and keeps going.

Chichi, "EVERYONE!" Her scream startles a crab outside, and he falls off the tree he was climbing. "Muten Roshi-sama! It's Goku-san!" Kamesennin, "What? What's going on?" Gohan, "Calm down, Mother." Chichi, "Just come, everyone!" She turns and runs back up the stairs. The others follow her up. Roshi, "What? What?" He appears in the doorway to the upstairs room, followed quickly by everyone else. "What is it? What's so important?" Chichi, "Quiet down." Everyone huddles around Son Goku. Suddenly, a smile crosses Goku's face. Chichi, "You see it?! Goku-san's smiling!" Roshi, "You're right." Gohan, "He's really smiling." Oolong, "He's back in shape. Thank god." Chichi, "Isn't this great news?" A glint of sunlight is reflected by Muten Roshi's sunglasses. "He's done this before." Everyone looks at him. "Haven't you guys noticed it? This is the same smile Goku gets when he's excited about fighting someone powerful." Yamucha, "Oh, yes!" Gohan nods. Yamucha, "Even while he's dreaming, Goku's probably excited about fighting against those Artificial Humans." Chichi looks from side to side, suddenly very alert. No one notices for a few seconds, but Oolong finally catches her alert and determined expression. Yamucha, "Thinking about fighting while in his sleep..." Chichi even begins to develop a white glow. Yamucha, "I'm so relieved." Oolong, "Hey Yamucha..." Yamucha, "Isn't that great, Roshi-sama?" Kamesennin, "Of course. It sure is." Oolong, "Yamucha!" Yamucha, "What's the matter?" Chichi glares at him. "Chichi-san, it doesn't mean that..." Chichi, "I am not letting Goku-san fight just as he's starting to get better." Gohan, "Mother, Yamucha-san didn't mean it in that way." Chichi, "You shut up! I don't like the thought of any kind of fighting with his health the way it is." Yamucha, "Okay..." Chichi looks around the room with her hands on her hips. "I'm telling this to everyone! Understand?" Everyone agrees. "Well then, show some consideration..." Everyone leans forward on one arm against Goku's bed.

Cell keeps running, eventually coming to a low hill. He jumps down the hill and onto a highway. He stops by the side of the road. "I'll hide from them and absorb as much human energy as possible. And then I'll have enough energy to overtake Number 17." He walks out into the middle of the street and looks at a sign. "My next hunting ground is Nickytown." He chuckles. A bus full of sports players suddenly comes up over a hill and the driver slams the breaks when he sees Cell standing in the road. The driver yells at Cell, "Idiot! You want to die?" Cell, "The one thing that bothers me is the controller that can shut down Number 17." Driver, "Hey, don't just stand there! Move!" Cell, "Shut down, even Number 17 will be destroyed." The driver honks at Cell. "Fortunately, that controller doesn't seem to exist." Some of the bigger players climb out of the van, looking to beat up Cell. Player in red, "What's with you with that freaky costume on?" Player in blue, "Leave this to us." Red, "We wanted to get some exercise anyway. Hey, freakboy, you're gonna get hurt." Cell ignores the growing crowd of football players surrounding him. "One can only hope for so much energy to come along now. But I better take what I can now and then run away before being noticed again."

Cell flies between two of the players and jumps up on top of the bus. The two players fall to the ground. The others walk up to the bus. One of them yells, "Damn it!" The original player in red, apparently of a leadership role, orders them to take "Battle formation!" They get into position and Cell charges them. One of them yells, "What?" Nearby, one of the Z Senshi flies past - Super Saiya-jin Vegeta, to be a bit more precise. Cell, "Vegeta! He hasn't been killed by Number 17. And it appears his powers have increased." Cell jams his tail into the back of the player in red and begins sucking out his ki. The other players jump back. Cell, "I'd better hurry." The other players just watch in horror as their teammate melts into Cell's tail.

Vegeta flies by, completely unaware of what he's passing. "What are these two powerful energy readings? One I never felt before, but the other is incredibly powerful. It rivals the power of those accursed Artificial Humans. I have to see what it is. What could it possibly be?! For real."

Piccolo raises his ki. "Damn it! I should have destroyed it when I had the chance!" Trunks and Kuririn watch his power up. Kuririn, "Awesome..." Piccolo, "I'll never let him become that Perfect being!" Vegeta suddenly stops when he senses the huge ki that's getting bigger. He stops nearby and looks down. "Pi...Piccolo! Unbelievable!" Piccolo finishes raising his ki and looks up at the Saiya-jin Prince. Kuririn and Trunks turn around. Kuririn, "Vegeta!" Trunks, "Father!" Vegeta lands a few feet away and walks up to Piccolo. "Tell me, now! What has happened here?" Piccolo, "It seems that Tenshinhan is also on his way here." Piccolo turns around. "I'll explain everything when he gets here." Vegeta, "Tell me one thing before that happens. Are you really Piccolo? How did you get so much power in such little time?" Piccolo is silent. "Damn you!" Trunks, "Piccolo-san... Piccolo-san and Kamisama joined back together again." Vegeta, "What? Joined?" Piccolo again remains silent. Vegeta, "Just doing that increased his energy to surpass even that of a Super Saiya-jin? Impossible! I've been surpassed by a Namekseijin?" Kuririn, "Hmm? He's here! Tenshinhan." Piccolo, "What do we do with Number 17 and Number 18, as well as Number 16? Even with my super powers, they'll be too much to handle. I'm guessing that killing Cell is the better solution." Tenshinhan joins the rest of them. Kuririn, "Well, Piccolo... no... not Kamisama, ah... What should I call him? Tenshinhan is here!" Piccolo turns around. "Okay, let me explain everything." Everyone stares attentively. "Vegeta and Tenshinhan didn't see it, but that monster is an Artificial Human that was created by Dr. Gero's computer." Everyone takes a moment to react to that.

Meanwhile, Cell is off nearby stealing energy from the remaining sports players. The driver cowers inside his bus, and when Cell finishes, the driver frantically struggles to start the engine. Cell reaches through the window and pulls him out, throwing him into the street. The driver looks back at Cell and tries to crawl away. Cell's tail springs forward. It's not seen entering the man. Instead, some nearby scenery is shown. The man cries out as the needle enters into him and begins sucking out his life. The picture turns a dark red/black.

Number 16 smiles and looks out the window at the passing scenery. Number 18, "Hey, I'm not happy with this outfit. Stop at the next town we run into." Number 17, "I know..."

Cell runs off, looking for more energy. "I guess I'll just have to go out on the town to grab all the energy I can get." He speeds up, disappearing from view as he runs toward the next town.

Kuririn, "No, it can't be." Vegeta, "Our DNA? Even Kakkarotto's?" Piccolo, "That's it. We only have two options at hand before he becomes this Perfect being. We either destroy Cell or Number 17 and Number 18 before he can absorb them." Piccolo pauses and a light breeze sweeps through the area. "I think it will be easier taking out Cell before he gets anymore powerful." Vegeta, "Damn these people, thinking of a Super Saiya-jin as nothing. It gets to me, right Kakkarotto?"

Cell stands on a cliff overlooking a relatively large town. "All of these humans..." He licks his... ah... "lips" and laughs. "Wait for me, Number 17 and Number 18. In a couple of days, I'll run into you guys and absorb you completely." He springs forth, heading for the town ahead and a rather abundant supply of energy from the inhabitants.