The arrival of Son Goku was not quiet. It was heralded by the roar of an engine and the screeching of tires as a stolen Red Ribbon snow-speeder drifted around the final bend leading to Muscle Tower.
I watched from the roof, standing on the edge like a gargoyle. My arms were crossed, the green veins on my chest pulsing in rhythm with the reactor below.
"He's here," I said to the wind.
Saibot materialized next to me, his silhouette jagged and eager. The Saiyan. We fight?
"We test," I corrected. "But first, we welcome the guests."
I looked down. The speeder parked at the gate. Three figures hopped out.
Goku, bundled in a thick blue parka.
Suno, wearing her usual winter gear and looking entirely too comfortable leading a stranger to my fortress.
And Android 8—"Eighter"—the Frankenstein-monster pacifist who had defected from the Red Ribbon Army.
"Wow!" Goku shouted, looking up at the grey spire. "This place is huge! And look, the gate is already open!"
"Mr. Saibot keeps it open now," Suno explained, pointing. "He says locks are for people who are afraid."
"Mr. Saibot?" Goku tilted his head. "Is he a nice guy?"
"He's... complicated," Suno admitted.
I decided to make an entrance.
I didn't jump. I simply stepped off the ledge and allowed gravity to take me. Halfway down, I dissolved into smoke, swirling around the trio before reforming solid ground ten feet in front of them.
THUD.
I landed in a crouch, one hand on the ground, the green fire in my chest illuminating the snow. I stood up slowly, unfolding to my full seven-foot height. The cartoon bear sticker Suno had given me was still on my mask, a ridiculous contrast to my horrific appearance.
Android 8 gasped and stepped back, shielding Suno. "Warning. High energy levels detected. Threat."
Goku, however, didn't flinch. He stared at me with wide, curious eyes. Then, he sniffed the air.
"You smell like old dirt," Goku said bluntly.
"And you smell like monkey," I rasped.
"Goku! Be polite!" Suno scolded, stepping out from behind Eighter. "Mr. Saibot, this is Goku. He's looking for his grandpa's ball. The radar says it's in the tower."
"I know," I said. I reached into a pouch on my belt and pulled out the Two-Star Dragon Ball. I tossed it up and caught it. "General White was using it as a paperweight."
Goku's eyes lit up. "That's it! Can I have it?"
"You can earn it," I said, closing my fist around the ball.
"Earn it?" Goku grinned, dropping into a fighting stance. He shrugged off his parka, revealing his orange gi. Even in the freezing cold, he didn't shiver. "You mean a fight?"
"Goku, no!" Suno yelled. "He's really strong! He beat the whole army by himself!"
"I wanna see!" Goku bounced on his toes. "Please? Just a spar? I can sense you're way stronger than General White. Your Ki feels... heavy. Like a big rock."
I looked at the boy. This was the legendary Goku. The savior of the universe. Right now, he was a child. A prodigy, yes, but raw.
"Fine," I said. "But not here. The tower is my home. I don't want you breaking my windows."
I pointed to the frozen lake a mile down the valley.
"The arena," I said. "If you can land one clean hit on me—a hit that actually hurts—you get the ball."
"Deal!" Goku shouted.
The Frozen Lake
We stood fifty feet apart on the ice. The wind whipped across the flat surface. Suno and Eighter watched from the shore.
"Ready when you are!" Goku called out.
I analyzed him. Power Level: roughly 180 to 200 at this point in the timeline. I was sitting at 850. It was a mismatch. But Goku had instincts that defied math.
"Begin," I whispered.
Goku vanished.
He was fast. Faster than the eye. He appeared instantly in front of me, delivering a flying kick.
I didn't block. I turned intangible.
Ghost Phase.
Goku passed right through my chest. He stumbled, sliding on the ice. "Whoa! You're a ghost!"
"Physical attacks require a target," I said, turning around.
I raised my hand. Shadow Telekinesis.
I gripped his shadow on the ice. Goku froze mid-step.
"Hey! I can't move!"
"Your shadow is your weakness," I lectured. "You are bound to it."
I flicked my wrist. Goku was flung across the lake, skipping like a stone across the ice. He recovered quickly, flipping in the air and landing on his feet.
"That's cool!" Goku laughed. "My turn! KAME..."
Blue light gathered in his hands.
"HAME..."
"Energy beam," I noted. "Predictable."
"HA!"
The blast screamed toward me.
I didn't dodge. I opened a portal directly in front of me. The Kamehameha entered the portal.
I opened the exit portal directly above Goku.
The beam crashed down on his head.
BOOM.
Steam rose from the ice. Goku was lying in a small crater of water, coughing.
"Ow..." He sat up, rubbing his head. "That was my own attack!"
"Why hit you when you can hit yourself?" I asked, floating a few inches off the ice.
Goku stood up. His expression changed. The playful grin vanished. He looked focused.
"Okay," Goku said. "No more games I'll use my tail."
He uncurled his tail.
He rushed again. But this time, he didn't run in a straight line. He zigzagged, using the Afterimage Technique. Dozens of Gokus appeared on the ice.
"Which one is real?" the echoes shouted.
I closed my eyes. "Eyes deceive."
I sensed the vibrations in the ice.
"There."
I punched to my left.
My fist connected with Goku's face. He flew back, but he twisted in mid-air, pushing off the air itself, and came back with a counter-punch.
It hit me.
CRACK.
His fist struck my fused mask.
I stumbled back. It didn't hurt—my durability was too high—but the impact force was surprising.
"I hit you!" Goku cheered. "Do I win?"
"I said a hit that hurts," I growled.
I decided to ramp it up. 20% power.
"Saibot. Duo formation."
My shadow clone peeled off the ice. Now there were two of us.
"Two against one?" Goku grinned. "Fair enough!"
We attacked. Saibot went high; I went low. It was a coordinated assault of Sub-Zero's freezing strikes and Noob's teleport slams.
Goku struggled. He blocked Saibot's kick, but I swept his legs. He jumped over my sweep, but Saibot hammered him down.
Goku was getting thrashed. But every time he got up, he was a little faster. A little sharper.
He's learning, I realized. He's adapting to the tempo.
Goku backflipped away, panting. "You guys are awesome! But I have a new move too!"
He put his hands together.
"Jan Ken..."
"Rock, Paper, Scissors?" I scoffed.
"ROCK!"
Goku lunged. I prepared to block a punch.
But mid-lunge, he shouted, "SCISSORS!"
He poked me in the eyes.
"ARGH!" I recoiled. My green fire eyes flared in irritation. It was a dirty move!
"PAPER!"
He slapped me—hard—right on the exposed glowing veins of my chest.
SLAP.
The impact stung. Not because of the force, but because he hit the raw magic.
I gasped, stepping back.
Goku landed, grinning. "That hurt, right? You flinched!"
I rubbed my chest. The stinging sensation was real.
"Yes," I admitted. "That was... annoying."
I dismissed Saibot. I reached into my belt and pulled out the Dragon Ball.
"You have instincts, boy," I said, tossing the ball to him. "Dirty, childish instincts. But they work."
Goku caught the ball. "Yay! Thanks, Mr. Saibot!"
He bowed respectfully.
I looked at him. This was the moment. I could ask to join him. I could go with him to Bulma, to the Briefs family. I could get better tech.
But I looked at the tower. I looked at Suno shivering on the shore.
"Goku," I said. "The Red Ribbon Army is not done. They will send mercenaries. Tao Pai Pai is coming."
"Tao who?"
"A man who kills with a tongue. Be careful. He is stronger than you are right now."
"I'll be fine!" Goku gave a thumbs up. "I'll just train some more!"
We walked back to the shore.
"You're not coming with us?" Suno asked, looking disappointed.
"My place is here," I said. "I must fortify the North. But..."
I looked at Goku.
"If you ever need to hide a body... or if you need someone to do the things you are too 'good' to do..."
I handed Goku a small, black stone. It was a piece of solidified Netherrealm rock.
"Break this. I will come."
Goku looked at the stone, then pocketed it. "You got it! Thanks for the spar!"
Goku and Suno hopped onto the Flying Nimbus (Suno could ride it because she was pure of heart; I definitely could not). Eighter waved goodbye.
"Bye Mr. Saibot! Bye Saibot!" Suno waved.
I watched them fly off into the distance, a golden streak against the blue sky.
"He is bright," Saibot noted, re-merging with me. "It burns."
"Yes," I said, touching the bear sticker on my mask again. "He is the sun. And we are the shadow."
I turned back to the frozen lake.
"Now," I said, my eyes narrowing. "Let's see what Dr. Gero left in his database about 'Cell'."
I walked back toward the tower, the wind howling my name. The Z-Fighters had a new ally, even if they didn't quite know what I was yet. And the villains of this world?
They had a new predator.