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Dragon Ball X #1
[ The Time Vault ]
"You know, I can't help but feel we could really use an extra pair of reliable hands here... My partner and I are an effecient team on a mission, but there's quite a number of time distortions and taking care of them all as they pop up is... Well, it's not always so simple. You know what I mean?" Trunks muses outloud to his peers as he and they both look upon the four time scrolls that lie upon the stationary table at the center of the circular room. Each of those mystic scrolls radianting with a wicked amethyst aura - a cue of a misdeed transpiring within histoy.
"Yeees, I couldn't agree more. These distortions are unpredictable and sometimes even complicated. It certainly wouldn't hurt to have another set of muscles aound to help clean up these messes." Elder Kai voices his agreement with the young saiyan, nodding acknowledgement.
"Well, I'm glad I'm not the only one who thought so, too. Which is why I took the liberty of seeking out another potential Time Patroller. You two have been working hard indeed, so I did my best to find someone who aid in our endeavor." Supreme Kai of Time informs with optimism vibrant in her tone. At such a claim, the other two shoot her curious looks.
"O-oh? Who did you find?" Trunks asks.
"I'd like to know that myself. Did you stumble upon a power and new warrior somewhere?" Elder Kai chimes in with his inquiry.
"Powerful? I'd say so! New? Well.... Let's just say, he's a relative of a certain someone's wife." She answers rather coyly, grinning as she idly scratches just below her right eye. The hint seemingly eludes them both - or at least, for the time being. Trunks immediately adopts a thoughtful scowl as he crosses his arms. Elder Kai on the other hand presses a finger to his wrinkly chin as he looks up to the cieling, wondering just whom she could be referring to.
"The relative of someone's wife..." Trunks repeats within a murmur to himself as he scouts his memories for someone who could match that description.
"Certainly you don't mean the Ox King, do you?" Elder Kai asks.
"Hahaha. Nope! It's not Chi-chi's father, but you're kiiiiiiiinda' close. Can you think of anyone else with a wife who has a close relative?" She asks in return, winking. Undoubtedly finding amusement in her teasing. Seconds of her asking that, Trunk's eyes winden with clarity.
"Wait, do you mean you actually got him to help out!?" Trunks asks in disbelief.
"Maybe! Just... don't freak out yet, okay?" Supreme Kai of Time requests a tad nervously, still upholding a small grin at she presses her finger tips together, forming a bottomless triangle with her hands.
"Hm? Well, where is this mysterious fighter? Shouldn't he have been here some time ago?" Elder Kai presses, forsakening any more attempts at guessing further. Fortunately, he didn't need to do so. The sound of footsteps treading along a marble flooring draws the attention of the three toward the top of the staircase behind Trunks.
"Sorry for the wait. Thought I'd look around a bit." At last, the individual in question comes into view and heads down the flight of stone stairs. He was more or less the same height as Trunks , and now sporting a letterman jacket with a red base and black sleeves that were rolled up half up his arms. The right breast of his jacket bore a red circle with 'TP' at the center of it - the same symbol that's also visible on the back of it, though in a far larger size. An article he wears over his typical attire.
"Android seventeen!" Trunks calls out rather enthusiastically, drawing the attention of the cyborg.
"Trunks, right? The guy from back when 16, 18, and I just busted out of Dr.Gero's lab. Been a while." Seventeen responds in his usual aloof tone, lips curving into a small grin. A calmness that contrasts the saiyan's display of emotion.
It... It has. But, are you really here to help? I haven't seen you since... Well... since Cell. Were you really up for a job like this?" Trunks asks genuinely.
"Yeah, I was. I am. I think it's about time I pull my own weight in helping to protect Earth. Besides, the job pays enough."
"I don't know if that's adequate motivation to be a Time Patroller, #17. Things have changed, myself included. Despite how much stronger I've become, I still stumble upon the occasional notable threat. You--" Before Trunks could finish that notion, the cyborg cuts in.
"I haven't been lounging around and doing nothing, you know. I've become stronger, too. Maybe this job will stick with me, and maybe it won't. I'm here to see if I can make do." Seventeen explains honestly.
"...I see." Was all Trunks could think of to say in response.
"Ahem! Now that we've gotten that out of the way, why don't focus on working together as a team and taking care of these time distortions?" Supreme Kai of Time speaks up to disrupt the atmosphere.
"Right." Trunks agrees and turns to settle onto the scrolls again.
"This adjustment isn't an issue for you, is it, Trunks?" She asks with a tone of gentleness and concern.
"Huh? No. No, no! I'm fine. I have no ill will toward him." Trunks quickly reassures her before turning toward his new peer again.
"I don't know... YOU well at all, but I've resolved my goal long ago. I'm very open and willing to start with a clean slate with you. No worries about that." He adds.
"Likewise. I've got no beef with you, either. Honestly... I still don't have much data on you at all, so it works for both of us."
"Good to know! Now, let's get to work, shall we? These scrolls aren't going to solve themselves." Elder Kai informs.
"You're right about that. Let's get to it, then. Let's see here..." Trunks moves to swipe up one of the scrolls and unrolls it upon the table to lay witness to the content inside.
"Oh. This is when I intercepted Frieza when he came to Earth to find Goku." He explains, and the other three approach to view the scroll, as well. Everything seemed normal up until Cooler, Frieza's brother, suddenly makes an appearance in the middle of the confrontation. Not only that, but their power levels suddenly spike. Outweighing the Trunks of the past capability of handling.
"Yeah... that definitely isn't right." Supreme Kai of Time comments.
"Definitely. I'm not sure how Cooler ended up there, or how Frieza became THAT much stronger, but it needs to be fixed. And since I can't exactly go and fight side-by-side with myself..." Trunks trails off, turning to shoot a gaze toward the male android.
"Looks like you're up, newbie! I hope you're prepared for a fight." Elder Kai finishes in place of the saiyan.
"It'll be more than a bit shaky given the circumstances, but there's enough wiggle room to work with here. That Trunks bears a strong hatred for the androids from his own timeline, so I can't see him being pleased to see you in the slightest. Still, we don't need you to stay long. Just help set things right and nothing more."
"His timeline, you say? Is he some sort of time traveler?" Seventeen asks, looking over toward the Supreme Kai of Time. However, Trunks decides to fill in the blanks instead.
"This is my history. And in this particular part of it, I lived in a reality where you and #18 were cruel, murderous machines. For a long time, it was impossible to stop them. I used a time machine my mother built in order to go back in time and change history. To save Goku and prevent the senseless destruction and murders. Sadly, I learned that I couldn't actually change the future. I could only help create a new timeline where none of those awful things I went through happen. This is when I went back to stop Frieza and give Goku medication for a heart virus that would've killed him later." Trunks elaborates.
"Oh wow. You don't live a boring life at all, do you? I can't imagine what any of that was like for you." Seven comments.
"That's one way of putting it. I'm counting on you to fix it, so be careful when you get there." The saiyan advises before rolling the scroll back up.
"Oh! Before you go..." Supreme Kai of Time cuts in before extending a hand out toward Android 17, palm facing upward. Within seconds, a sphere of yellow-ish energy builds taking form and building. Growing in brightness before eventually dimming and revealing a scouter device with a red lense. She holds it up for him to take - which he certainly does.
"Here, this'll help us keep in contact with you. In addition, it can help you detect people. It's been modified to detect power levels that exceed that of a normal human, so tracking someone down won't be much of a problem. The buttons on the side? The top one activates and deactivates the scouter's power tracking. The bottom one is for communication. Hold it down when you want to speak through it."
"Huh. I see." Seventeen responds while fitting the device onto the right side of his face. Once he finishes doing so, Trunks holds out the time scroll toward him.
"Good luck." The saiyan nods. The moment #17 takes the scroll from his grasb, his body gradually becomes enveloped in a bight light before he's transported away.
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