Chapter Text
[Opening Song: Moonlight ( Mega Man X6 OST)]
An All New Timeline?
The Start of a New Adventure!
Age 780, in another timeline where all but one Z-Warrior ceased to exist.
Countless cities lay leveled in the wake of the Android's restless assault raging on for years on end. Without anyone strong enough to stand up to their might, Android numbers 17 and 18 were free to treat the world as their own personal playground, killing anyone and anything that dared stand in their way.
In one section of West City, known simply as Parsley City, a string of explosions were going off throughout the streets, caused by one very angry Android 18.
"Jeez, sis, cool down a little, why don't you?" asked 17. "I never saw someone get so worked up over a video game!"
18 growled at her brother's snark as she blew up another building. "For once in your life, can't you just shut up?"
Meanwhile, within the wreckage, a frail old man locked his sights on the twin demons of Earth, a six-chamber revolver locked and loaded in his hands. "For my family…" he whispered to no one, taking aim at 17's head as steadily as he could.
BANG!
The bullet did nothing but deflect off of 17's cheek, instantly earning his attention to the man. He quickly fired off another bullet in fear of the slowly approaching android but to ill-effect. Again, and again, he pulled the trigger, bang, bang, bang, bang! Until nothing but clicks came out of the revolver. But at that point, 17 was already in front of the old man, a sadistic smirk plastered on his face.
"Not bad," he taunted. "Had it been anyone else, you'd probably be feeling better by now."
The android crouched down, grabbing hold of the old man by the head, who was pleading for his life at that point. Reaching to his hip, he unlocked the holster holding his own pistol, aiming it straight towards his head. "Nighty-night, gramps!"
Right as 17 was about to pull the trigger, a powerful beam of energy forced him to release the man, backstepping to narrowly avoid the attack and to regroup with 18, as it collided with the side of a nearby building. "The hell…?"
His answer came in the form of the last remaining Super Saiyan of the Future. Trunks, having returned from his past endeavors dealing with Cell, stood against the twin Androids. "17… 18… this is the end for the both of you!"
17, however, wasn't fazed by his bravado, chuckling slightly as he holstered his gun. "Listen, Trunks, was it? Last time we fought, we sent your sorry butt flying to the next town over. You sure you want to repeat that mistake, buddy?"
"I have had enough of this brat!" 18 exclaimed. "I really need to blow off some steam, so you're dead no matter what!"
Right as 18 was about to step up, 17 put a hand on her shoulder. "Hold up, sis. You kill him now, and we'll never get any decent entertainment around here anymore."
18 only smiled at his brother's so-called concern. "I'll be sure to savor every agonizing scream of his…" She raised her hand, firing an energy blast at the Z-Warrior…
…only to hit nothing as Trunks disappeared from her sight.
"Behind you!" 17 warned.
Caught off-guard at the message, 18 was met with surprise as Trunks delivered a punishing hook that sent her flying across the rubble. When she stopped, 18 slowly rose up with caution, now realizing that this wasn't the same emotional boy they humiliated last time.
Anger slowly overcame her as she recovered, eyes locked on the one who punched her. "Damn you!" She spat with malice. "YOU'RE DEAD!" 18 took off charging at Trunks, ready to deliver a retaliating strike, only to fail as he once again evaded it within a blink of an eye. She started swinging wildly at the air, hoping to hit him at least once, but was countered as Trunks grabbed a hold of her fist, giving him a clear shot to use a Ki wave to push her back. 18 used her airborne time to fire another energy shot, only for Trunks to evade it by slightly tilting his head to the side.
18 struggled to keep her footing as she slid back to 17 before coming to a screeching halt. "You… son of a…!" she swore. "I HATE YOU!"
"You hate the fact that you're powerless," Trunks countered. "Now you know how everyone else felt, when you invaded their homes and leveled their cities. Now you know how my master Gohan felt when you mercilessly killed him in cold blood all those months ago. You may have evaded judgement time and again, but no more! It's time to pay for all the lives both of you crudely stole."
"He heh, nice speech, kid," taunted 17. "But you're no match for the both of us!" With a confirming nod, 17 and 18 rushed towards Trunks, hoping to catch them off guard with their combined might. Trunks saw through their tactic as he phased through their punches, blowing away 17 with a Ki-charged strike as he kicked away 18.
She fired off a barrage of Ki blasts, hoping to slow him down, but Trunks bulked his aura to deflect through the volley unharmed, standing face to face with Android 18 as he raised his palm to her face.
"THIS IS FOR GOHAN!"
In one move, a huge burst of energy fired off at 18 point-blank, overwhelming her to the point of nothingness as the dust settled… just in time for 17 to witness the aftermath.
"I- impossible…" he stuttered, glaring at the Saiyan who killed his sister. "You bastard…! I'll kill you before you could even regret what you just did!"
Trunks then turned to 17, not even famished from delivering the finishing blow, vengeance still glowing in his eyes. "You think life is all about you… What about the others? The ones that you two killed!"
Taking off faster than light, Trunks sent 17 pummeling to the ground with a boot to the face, before launching off of him to take to the skies, firing one last Ki-beam straight downwards towards the stunned android, killing him in the wake of the blast.
As he landed, Trunks reverted out of his Super Saiyan state, his hair falling down into its lavender color as he helped the old man out from the rubble. "You don't have to worry about them anymore, sir."
"M… my family…" he softly spoke.
Trunks gave him a reassuring nod, knowing all too well the pain he's going through. "I lost someone who was like a father to me… Believe me when I say I understand…"
Age 783, three years following the Androids' death.
With the help of Bulma, cities all over the world were rebuilding, and people were recovering from the devastating attacks caused by the Androids. Just outside of Capsule Corp., Bulma was just about finishing preparations on the very time machine Trunks used to travel back to the past. Now that victory is his, he decided to travel back in time to tell Gohan and the others the good news. "Don't worry about me, mom. I'll be back soon."
"I know that," Bulma said, leaping down from the time machine. "But as your mother, it's my job to be worried."
"I think you worried too much for one lifetime," joked Trunks. "Besides, you deserve this peace as much as anyone else."
"…I guess you're right about that, huh?" Bulma agreed. "Then… just come back safely, Trunks."
Meanwhile, behind one of the buildings, a green humanoid-bug creature was waiting ominously for the perfect time to use the time machine himself. Unfortunately for him, Trunks knew he was coming a mile away, evidenced by his smile being quickly replaced by a stern face.
"Mother," said Trunks. "I know this is sudden, but I need you to go back inside, now."
Bulma was understandably confused by her son's sudden request, and probably would've made a quip about her son having someone special to worry about had she not noticed the serious look on his face. With an affirming nod, she hurried back inside before anything could go down.
As soon as Bulma went inside, Trunks turned around to one of the buildings. "I know you're there, Cell," he called out. "Since you can't find the androids, you plan on killing me and stealing my time machine, just to achieve your perfect form, aren't you?"
"WHAT?" exclaimed Cell, as he slowly stepped out from his cover. "But how did…?"
"Your trick already worked in one timeline, but I won't repeat the same mistake in this one."
The Bio-Android pondered as he heard Trunks' words before slowly chuckling at the conclusion. "Then it seems you're well aware of your fate then, young Trunks… but I will make sure you suffer nice and slowly for taking away what was rightfully mine…" Cell angrily growled as he inched his way to his opponent, curling up his tail underneath his wings. "Your power level is much higher than I anticipated… but it doesn't matter how much stronger you get! It's just MORE ENERGY FOR ME TO FEED ON!"
As fast as he can, Cell uncurled his tail, aiming it straight towards Trunks with the intent to absorb his power into his own, but misjudged the sheer velocity of his speed as Trunks quickly sidestepped out of the way, grabbing his tail with an iron grip. "Using your tail as the first attack?" taunted Trunks. "Please… you're so predictable!" Powering up to Super Saiyan, Trunks pulled on Cell's tail, flinging him closer to himself, as he winded up a dashing punch to send the both of them into the far wastelands away from the city.
As they got closer to the grassy area, Trunks reeled back his other fist, delivering a nasty blow to Cell's face, launching him into one of the many rocks that made up the area. Cell slowly recovered, coughing from the settling dust as he saw Trunks land himself. "I see you pack quite the punch… but why don't you stop and think twice about the situation?" he said, much to Trunks' un-amusement. "Do you really want to throw your life away trying to face me? Just fly away and let me use your time machine, it will be our little secret…" Cell's bargain fell on deaf ears, as Trunks still stood tall without uttering a word.
"Is that silence supposed to represent your final decision? Then DIE!" He then fired off an energy blast which Trunks was able to dodge no problem, countering with an energy shot of his own. Cell deflected the shot back at Trunks, who redirected it into the air with a backflip, before charging straight at Cell. He raised his arms to block the oncoming assault, expelling a Ki wave to push his opponent away. Trunks recovered in time to sway each punch in Cell's rush, leaving him wide open to a heavy smash in his stomach. The stagger gave Trunks ample time he needed to fire a shotgun burst of energy point blank, flinging the Bio-Android across the battlefield.
As he was flying, Cell quickly spun himself around, applying all the force to his feet to bring himself into a skidding halt. "You dare make a mockery of ME?" he yelled out. "Then I'll have to eradicate you once and for all!" Cell clasped his hands together in front of him, before positioning his arms to his side, as a familiar blue glow charged in between his palms. "Recognize this attack, Trunks?"
Trunks knew all too well just what Cell was planning, so he quickly appeared before him, grabbing his tail, breaking his energy and his concentration as the Hybrid Saiyan trapped him in a powerful swing, launching him into the air.
Knowing that Cell was stunned from the attack, Trunks took the opportunity to deliver one final blow to the menacing android, as a powerful aura covered him in a dome of energy, focusing upwards.
"THE NIGHTMARE IS OVER, CELL! DIE!"
A powerful burst of energy rose up into the sky, swallowing Cell whole as it was too much for his regeneration to handle. The blast kept going until he disintegrated completely, without a single cell remaining.
As soon as he was gone, Trunks reverted back into his base form, sighing in pride as the final wall preventing peace was torn down by his hands. "Gohan, Goku, Father… Thank you all."
"So, are you sure that's all you need?" Bulma asked her son once more, who just came back from his final battle with Cell. Once again, the time machine was primed for take-off, with Trunks and Bulma standing right in front of it.
Trunks grabbed the small case of capsules just in case, putting it in his jacket as he gave an affirming nod. "Yeah, thanks, mom."
"Remember to come back safely, okay?"
"Don't worry, I will," having said his goodbyes, Trunks flew into the cockpit of the time machine, activating the ignition as he lowered the glass dome. He turned to his mother, giving out one last wave which she returned back, before the soft hum of the engines grew louder, causing the time machine to rise up into the air. And in a flash, it was gone, now traveling in the fragile stream of time.
Trunks traveled in anticipation as he made his trip to the past. Three years have been since he met Gohan and the others of another timeline, and he was wondering how everyone has been since then. After all, his timeline has been in an era of peace for a while now, so what do you do in a world with no worries for a greater threat?
As Trunks was going through the possibilities, he saw a warning blare on the control panel.
"What the-? Stabilizer Malfunction?" He tried to correct it from within the cockpit, knowing that stopping now would be suicide given the timestream's delicacy. But no matter what he did, the problem seemed to be growing worse, as the time machine started to violently shake and go off-course, sending him to a bright flash at the end of a random stream.
Age unknown, somewhere on Earth.
Trunks woke up with a weak groan, opening up the cracked cover to almost fall out of the tilted time machine located in what appears to be an alleyway, having two of its turbines busted thanks to the malfunction.
Damn, thought Trunks as he inspected the damage. I sure hope this doesn't take forever to fix.
The Hybrid Saiyan then turned his attention to the streets outside, noticing how peaceful and quiet everything was. It'll be bad news if people saw me with my sword, he concluded. Unhooking his sword buckle, Trunks placed his weapon inside the cockpit before pressing a button on the side of the time machine, and in one quick POOF! The large machine transformed into a tiny capsule, which he placed in a carrying case inside his jacket. As soon as that was taken care of, he flew to the rooftops, scanning the city he was in for any clues.
Everything feels so different here, Trunks observed. Am I even in West City anymore?
It was then Trunks noticed a giant tower within what he assumed was the center of the city. Maybe from there I can observe how long this city stretches out for without drawing attention to myself, Trunks thought, probably realizing that these people haven't seen a flying person before. It's worth a shot. Using his super speed to his advantage, Trunks leapt from building to building, moving faster than anyone could register.
The pink ears of a rabbit-like creature perked up as she felt the strange, yet faint energy move across the city at lightning speeds. "Did you feel that?"
The other creatures, one a blue dog-like fairy with the other being a yellow bear-like, nodded in agreement as this new energy source made itself known. It wasn't malicious like the dark forces they were used to, but was powerful enough to still raise a few alarms.
The three creatures began to track the movement of the source, before confirming the determined destination of whoever it might be. "It's heading to that tower!" the blue creature shouted. "Sharuru! Lance! We got to move!"
Wasting no time, the three creatures began to home in on the energy source, cautious over whether it might be friend or foe.
Meanwhile, two girls were walking through the tower as part of their school trip, with the blue-haired girl, Rikka, sighing at her friend Mana, who abandoned her earlier to help a lost girl find her mother. While Rikka shouldn't be surprised, it was concerning seeing Mana constantly carry the weight of what might as well be the world upon her shoulders. "Sometimes, I wonder why you're so keen on helping everyone, Mana."
"Because there's nothing wrong with helping others, no matter how trivial their problems might be!" Mana replied. "Besides, I feel so great whenever I see people happy!"
Rikka should've known Mana would reply with something like that. "No offence, but that generosity might get you into trouble someday. What if you took up a task that's impossible even for you?"
Mana tapped a finger on her chin, implying that she never thought of a situation like that before. "Guess I'll never know if it's impossible unless I try, right?" she countered. "Besides, who says I would be going at it alone? I can always count on you, Rikka!"
Mana smiled as she gave her friend a warm smile and a wink. While Rikka appreciated the gesture, it was obvious she was still wary of Mana's charitable nature. "Sometimes, you're too optimistic for your own good…"
Out of nowhere, Mana squealed in excitement. As Rikka wondered what's going on, Mana pointed straight towards a crowd of people surrounding a certain purple-haired idol, who was just trying to make it through the barrage of fans alongside her agent. "I can't believe it! We're visiting Clover Tower the same day as MakoPi!"
Rikka was well aware of who Makoto Kenzaki, or MakoPi as she was known in the entertainment business, was. A popular idol single who made it big overnight without any public knowledge of where she came from. She thought nothing of it though, Rikka was well aware of how idols come and go in the industry. "I… think we best steer clear from that," Rikka suggested to Mana. "It looks like she's overwhelmed enough as it is."
Mana ignored her warnings, however, and made a dash towards the idol, excited to actually meet someone famous for the first time in real life. As she got closer, Mana soon saw Makoto lose her hairpin in the middle of the ruckus. Mana knew that the hairpin held some sort of value to the idol, so she decided to try her best to find the trinket among the scurrying legs of MakoPi's fans. Through sheer luck, Mana was able to recover the hairpin, and began to move against the sea of fans to get closer to Makoto. "Excuse me! Ms. MakoPi!"
Makoto's manager stepped in front of her, understandably perceiving her as just another one of her fans. "Excuse me, Miss. If it's an autograph you want, then-"
"You dropped this," Mana ignored the manager, holding out the hairpiece much to Makoto's surprise. Though not without hesitation, Makoto recovered the hairpiece from Mana's hand, placing it back on its rightful place on her hair.
"Thank you," Makoto sheepishly said, before stepping into the elevator with her manager as the door came to a close, leaving a beaming Mana smiling.
"So cool…" Mana said to no one in particular.
Trunks could only stare in confusion as he observed the landscape, even from his current elevation. Neither in Gohan's timeline or his own has he ever recognized a city such as this, and quite honestly, the existence of the thousand-meter tall tower he's currently standing on should've tipped him off big time. Trunks pulled back on his left sleeve, trying to use the GPS on his wrist to see if it can make any sense of his current location.
…Nothing. Trunks sighed as he leaned back on one of the walls. Just where and when did the Time Machine send me to?
Meanwhile, Sharuru, Raquel and Lance were all keeping their distance from the mysterious visitor, hiding behind one of the ledges away from his point of view. "Why is he just standing there?"
"Do you think he's waiting for someone?" Raquel asked.
"Whatever the case, we have to make sure he's not up to anything sinister!" Sharuru stated. Even though they were tasked with finding those with righteous hearts to combat evil, they couldn't rest easy until they knew for sure whether or not he was friend or foe, and they would observe him for as long as it takes…
"…There's no reason for you three to hide," Trunks spoke up. "I could already sense you were there the entire time."
Trunks' statement alone threw Raquel and Lance in a loop, panicking loudly as Sharuru tried to calm the both of them down. Meanwhile, Trunks could only stare at the commotion with confusion, cautiously moving towards the ledge so he could see who exactly was on the other side. His eyes widened in surprise and confusion over the forms of the three creatures, who were all looking back at the Hybrid Saiyan, two of them obviously scared out of wits end. Trunks, who was only blinking, tried his best to compose himself in front of the three fairies. "H-hello…?"
Raquel and Lance immediately rose up, screaming in fear, as Sharuru tried to calm the both of them down. Trunks stepped back as well, stunned from the fairies sudden outburst, as they flew past him to the other side. Sharuru, on the other hand, simply ascended to meet Trunks' eye level, keeping a calm demeanor. "Sorry about my friends," she apologized.
"Ah! N-no no! It's fine!" Trunks responded, still reeling back a bit from the shock. "It's just that… I've never met something like you three before. Just… what ARE you?"
It was a question Sharuru should've seen coming. After all, they were supposed to remain hidden until they found the warriors they were looking for. Despite this, she couldn't leave the Hybrid Saiyan hanging. "Well, my name is Sharuru, and the ones who flew past you are Lance and Raquel."
"SHARURU!" Lance exclaimed in surprise from his friend's decision. "What was that for? Don't you know we're not supposed to tell civilians who we are?"
For some reason, Trunks couldn't help but feel a little bit offended by that. Feelings aside, he decided to speak up, "Well, my name is Trunks, and she never explained WHAT you were, only your names."
Raquel and Lance turned to Sharuru, almost with expressions reading "You CANNOT tell him." However, Trunks has already seen them in their entirety, so their threat was for naught. Sharuru flew closer to Trunks as she took a sigh. "Do you promise not to tell anyone?" Trunks was confused by the condition, but nodded anyways, allowing Sharuru to explain. "We are not from this world. In fact, we are the last fairies to escape from the darkness that has befallen on the Trump Kingdom."
The Future Warrior's eyes widened in surprise as he learned of their refuge origins. They're just like me… he thought. I know how it feels to lose everything you cared for to something you couldn't stop… Trunks instinctively clutched his hands. "This Trump Kingdom… what happened to it?" he asked.
Sharuru nervously quivered as she thought back to the horrors she had witnessed. "The Selfish invaded us without warning" she began explaining, her voice obviously lowered and with a slight pain. "They started ripping the psyches out of all of the people, turning them into ravenous monsters… The Pretty Cure Warriors tried to fight them off, but…" The pink fairy trailed off as she tried to block off visions of fighters of a once proud kingdom suffering undignified deaths at the hands of the black-hearted monsters and their commanders, with Raquel and Lance knowing all too well what she was referring to. "B-but all's not lost!" She quickly lifted up her own spirits in spite of the pain as Sharuru continued. "Because we're on a mission to find new warriors, those with the pure-hearted strength to finally push back the Selfish once and for all!"
Pure-hearted strength… Trunks thought in silence as he took in the severity of the situation. If Goku and Gohan were here, they'd have no problem facing them. Yet… The hybrid Saiyan raised his head as he looked back at Sharuru. "Then take me back with you."
The fairies were naturally caught off guard by such a request. "W-wait, what?"
"If you're looking for strong warriors, then allow me to fight for you!" Trunks offered. "Whatever these Selfish are capable of doing, I'll strike back even harder!"
"L-listen, Trunks," Raquel started to speak. "It's not that-"
THUMP THUMP
The sudden, menacing energy pulse was enough to put everyone on edge, as Trunks immediately went on the defensive for any surprise attacks, once again catching the fairies off guard. "You felt that too?"
"How could I not?" Trunks answered. "It felt like it was close… was that the Selfish you were telling me about?"
"No doubt about it," Raquel answered. "Come on! We haven't a moment to lose!"
With a final confirmation, Trunks and the Fairies flew to ground level, evading the public eye as they hunted for the dark energy.
[Eyecatch: Dragon Ball Doki Doki]
The rest of Mana's day continued on with one more surprise, as a man named Johnny Okada offered her a charm just like the one Makoto was wearing earlier today. Though it may look normal, Mana swore she felt something within her soul unlock upon wearing it for the first time. Skeptical at first, Mana eventually did decide to keep the charm after Johnny gave it to her free of charge. Saying her goodbyes, she met up with Rikka to get in line to the top of Clover Tower…
…Only to be caught off guard by how long the line was. "Woah!" she exclaimed. "I can't believe there's so many people here!"
"Well, the line wouldn't have gotten this long if you didn't run off by yourself earlier…" Rikka retorted with a bit of annoyance in her voice, prompting an apology from her friend.
It did take a good amount of time for the girls to get inside the building from the outside line, as Mana saw the girl she helped earlier, named Michiko, alongside her mother about to go up the observation deck, with Mana wishing her a good time up top.
Meanwhile…
A lone man groaned in frustration as he checked how much time had passed on his phone. "Man… how much longer will this line be? Felt like I've been here for hours…" He looked around him, seeing everyone minding their own business as a dark thought entered his mind. "Maybe I should just cut ahead… but…"
It was already too late, as a dark energy pulsed from his heart, signaling the attention of a young boy, with demonic yellow eyes and a dark purple jacket. He turned to the man in his dilemma, walking slowly with malicious intent.
The man turned to the boy, feeling him tug at his sleeve. "Hm? What do you-?"
Mana and Rikka turned to the attention of people screaming, only to be horrified by what they saw.
The young boy, with his hand plunged deep within the man's chest, forcibly ripping out a black crystal heart from his body, leaving him comatose for everyone to see. Mana immediately rushed to the man's aid, scared and confused as she slowly turned to the boy. "W-what did you do to him?"
The boy responded by kicking Mana hard in the chest, sending her skidding across the floor as Rikka came to help her up. The girls looked back at the boy as he held the crystal heart in front of him, red and black lightning emitting from his hands to the heart as he gave out an evil laugh. "Alright, heart, SHOW THEM YOUR DEEPEST DESIRES!"
Mana and Rikka were frozen in fear as the saw the heart mutate before their very eyes, growing more and more crab-like in appearance, as eight legs and two pincers sprouted from the heart in each side, all while growing to the point where its height easily towered over the civilians witnessing its metamorphosis. "SELFISH!" the beast roared, shaking the entire hall.
The girls watched as the monster observed its surroundings, as the beast grew more and more agitated from the overwhelming amount of people present. With an angry shout, the beast started to attack the innocent civilians, slamming its pincers down to the ground as the floor erupted under its might, terrifying the populace into scattering. The beast then charged recklessly through the building, not paying attention to anyone caught in its way.
"W-we have to get out of here, Mana!" Rikka responded, noticing the pained look on Mana's face as she was no doubt forced into an ultimatum. With hesitation, Mana agreed to Rikka's decision, as they carefully made their way towards the exit and hopefully, to safety.
That is, until Mana saw the monster burst through the elevator doors, climbing up along the sides with its legs and pincers. Michiko… Mana's eyes widened as she thought about the girl up at the top.
Mana's stop brought forth confusion from Rikka, wondering what could be troubling her friend. "I'm sorry…" She swiped her hand away from Rikka, ignoring the cries from her friend. Mana rushed towards the stairs in an attempt to intercept the monster.
Mana knew she was way over her head with this one, but that didn't matter to her right now.
…Because this is a matter of life and death.
It took an effort for Trunks to push his way into the tower, but that was to be expected when people are running away in fear, as well as the fact that Trunks didn't want to bring any attention to himself in such a crowded space. As soon as he got into the empty hall, he growled in frustration at the wreckage that had befallen on what was once a peaceful place. "Damn it, we're too late!" he cursed.
Soon after, Sharuru took notice of the purple-coated boy flying towards the wrecked elevator shaft, getting the other fairies attention as well as Trunks' "T-That's…!"
It didn't take long for the boy to notice the fairies and the intruder. Mockingly sticking his tongue out to them, the boy fired a dark energy blast that crumbled the elevator shaft close, believing to have cut them off.
Trunks got up to the crumbled debris blocking them, and, flashing into his Super Saiyan state, fired a Ki blast straight at the rubble, blowing it to smithereens. The sheer strength summoned effortlessly surprised and scared the fairies. "Come on, we haven't got time to lose!" He shouted, flying up the now open elevator shaft with the fairies by his side.
"Please refrain from pushing and enjoy the view in an orderly manner."
Up at the tower's highest point, a group of people were staring in awe from the city-wide view the Clover Tower provided them. Among the visitors was the small girl Michiko, happily enjoying the view with her mother. It should've been a relaxing time for them…
…but the sudden growing rumble of the ground caught the populous by surprise, looking around in fear and confusion for the source.
BOOM!
"SELFISH!"
The sudden attack from the monster sent everyone into a frenzy, desperately trying to escape. Among those caught in the rush was Michiko and her mother, who's escape was cut off by the raging dark monster. The two screamed in terror as the Selfish raised its pincer into the air, ready to strike.
Luckily for them, they were saved in the nick of time by Mana.
"Are you two okay?" Mana asked, recovering from her rescue tackle to see Michiko's unharmed face, now smiling brightly towards her savior. With a shaken nod, Mana quickly directed them to the open door to escape, and as soon as they were gone, Mana slumped in exhaustion. "Oh man, what a day…"
The highlight of the situation, at least, was that Mana got a glimpse of the outside world through the apex of the tower. Too bad it didn't last, as she had to dodge another attack from the Selfish at the last second. The monster howled in frustration, trying to snuff the girl out for taking up its view. And this got Mana very angry.
"Alright, that's enough!" She yelled, planting her feet as she turned to face the Selfish. "Who do you think you are, attacking others just to get your way? A lot of people poured a lot of sweat and tears to make this tower stand, and it exists for everyone to enjoy!"
As the lecture went on, the Selfish became more and more confused at her words, as all it did was irritate the monster. Cutting off Mana with a roar, the crab Selfish aimed its pincers towards Mana with malicious intent.
Only this time, Mana was the one who was saved.
A golden flash appeared before her, striking the Selfish, causing it to stagger across the room. The flash landed on the ground, giving Mana time to fully see the one who saved her. Just one man did that? She thought with confusion.
Trunks turned to Mana, seeing her standing stiff. "Get out of here, go!" He commanded. "I'll take care of this creep!"
As Trunks took his stand, the three fairies arrived to see the damage the Super Saiyan did on the Selfish, both surprised and scared of his power. However, out of all of the fairies, it was Sharuru who grew the most worried as she saw Trunks stick out both of his hands. A golden orb of energy glowed in front of his palms.
"I'll make sure you'll never hurt anyone else ever again!" Trunks declared, ready to fire off his attack.
"STOOOOP!"
Trunks was caught off guard by Sharuru's sudden screaming, not expecting the small fairy to ram into his face, breaking his energy concentration. He struggled to pull the fairy off, surprised by how tightly Sharuru was gripping onto his face. After a moment of struggling, he was able to pull her off, staring down at her with a very annoyed expression. "What do you think you're doing?" He yelled.
Sharuru squealed a bit under Trunks' anger, but quickly composed herself. "I'm really sorry for charging at you like that, but you can't use that attack!"
"And why not?" Trunks questioned.
"Because his heart still beats!" Trunks froze as Sharuru blurted that out, not fully understanding what the fairy meant by it. "The person who had his psyche torn out was forced into this form! If you launched that attack, it would've destroyed his psyche for good!"
Sharuru's warning resonated with Trunks for a moment. Had she not stopped him, Trunks would've killed someone. But if something isn't done, then that monster would just go on to attack more innocent lives. He turned back to Sharuru with a blank expression. "What do we do now?"
Sharuru said nothing, floating past Trunks as she stared face-to-face with Mana. "Oh, hello…?" Mana said almost hesitantly as the pink rabbit fairy studied her face. She gasped as Sharuru suddenly grabbed her face, concentrating hard as if she was trying to sense a hidden energy deep inside Mana…
Thump thump…
Sharuru floated back in surprise from the latent energy surging from Mana's soul, confusing the young girl even more. Eventually, the pink fairy regained her composure and confronted Mana once more. "What's your name?"
"Mana Aida. Nice to meet you," she greeted with a warm smile and a gentle handshake, surprising both the fairies and Trunks in her calm demeanor. "But who are you?"
"My name is Sharuru, a fairy from the Trump Kingdom," Sharuru briefly explained before spinning around, a pink puff! cloud enveloping her body before revealing herself as a phone-like device. "Mana, use my power and defeat that Selfish!"
Mana looked at Sharuru's transformation before looking back at the crab recovering from Trunks' surprise attack. "Selfish? That crab thingy?"
"Hurry up and transform!" Trunks commanded Mana, getting into a defensive position as he flashed his power against the revitalized monster. "I'll buy you some time!"
Mana looked at Trunks with a bit of surprise, staring at her means of supposedly transformation once more. She silently closed her eyes before giving out a nod of determination. "Alright, I'll do my best!" The young student turned and planted her feet at the monster's direction, whipping her arm high into the air. "TRANSFORM!"
…
Mana waited a brief moment expecting something to happen to her, but could only respond with confusion to the unchanging situation. Raising Sharuru into the air once more, Mana shouted. "TRANS-FORM!"
"If you're trying to do something, then hurry up and do it!" Trunks yelled out, blocking an incoming claw strike from the beast at the last second.
Why isn't anything happening? Mana wondered, looking at herself and Sharuru, who's silent expression failed to ease any of her worries. She felt awful seeing Trunks hold back for what might as well be a lost cause, and the fact that she couldn't do anything to help did nothing but add to her frustration and sadness. It was the first time in a long time Mana felt useless, and she hated every second of it. The crab monster roared in frustration over Trunks' persistence, and decided to leap over the Super Saiyan in his brief recovery to try and strike Mana instead, eliciting a panicked response from Trunks. Mana tumbled back under the beast's force, unable to defend herself for what's to come…
...until the window behind her shattered at the arrival of a new fighter.
Trunks Saw as the figure glided gracefully into the battlefield. A young girl, with purple hair tied up and curled into a ponytail, in a white dress patterned with purple accents and ribbons, with a purple spade badge placed over where her heart lay. All eyes were on this new character, the monster included, giving her the perfect opportunity to strike back. A surge of pure-hearted energy emitted from her, manifesting in her right hand that glowed into an energy saber. "FLASH!" she shouted, raising her arm into a slashing-motion. "SPADE STORM!"
With those words, the energy slash the mysterious fighter made manifested itself into a surge of piercing spade-tipped energy arrows, all aimed directly at the monster too dazed to defend itself. The monster's figure started to contort, unable to fend off the arrows that started to strike at its very being. "Love… love… LOVE!" The monster weakly chanted, before the effects of the arrows resulted in the monster being converted back into the crystal heart Mana recognized from what the boy ripped out of one of the patrons down below.
Trunks looked up to see the aftermath of the situation, noticing Mana's safety, the monster's disappearance, and the mysterious figure standing tall. "What happened?" Trunks asked her.
"I cleansed it," she bluntly stated in a cold tone.
'Cleanse it?' Trunks thought to himself, thinking over as he saw the crystal heart flying back to its owner. So that's what those three fairies meant when they say about how those monsters must be purified… Does that make her a Pretty Cure?
"Now then," Trunks was taken out of his thoughts as the warrior began to direct her attention at him. "Who are you?"
Mana looked at the warrior, gritting her teeth before getting between the both of them. "Hey, he helped save me, just as you saved him!"
"It's okay, Mana. I got this," Trunks told Mana, causing her to look back at him with a confused look. Seeing the determined expression on him briefly told her all she needed to know, yet still kept on guard just in case. "I'm not here to hurt you, if that's what you're wondering. That crab saw me as an enemy as well."
"And he would've finished all of you off if you didn't interfere, Cure Spade!" Mana and Trunks were caught off-guard by the appearance of the new voice, looking to the hole on the side of the wall to see the young boy that ripped the crystal heart out earlier.
"Hey, that's-!" Mana gasped.
"So you decided to show yourself at last," Trunks growled at the boy. "People almost died because of you!"
"Yeah, so?" the boy nonchalantly replied, eliciting a look of fear from Mana and a deep, angry glare from Trunks.
Right as Trunks was about to make his move, both he and Cure Spade looked up to see the ceiling suddenly explode open, forcing him to jump away from the rubble, leaving the stunned Mana defenseless as from the rubble, emerged another crab claw. Trunks stopped himself mid-air as he tried to dash back to save her, but was forced to watch as Cure Spade pushed her out at the last second, getting trapped by the monster's pincers herself. "Damn it! Another one?" Trunks witnessed in frustration as he dashed up into the open roof.
"Knew you would screw up, Ira," Trunks looked up to see the source of the new femenine voice, this one being much older and wearing a purple/white jacket that only had a sleeve covering her right arm, with a matching hat to boot. "But I'll give you this: At least you drew out the last Pretty Cure."
"Marmo!" Ira yelled at his partner. "So you just watched as my monster got destroyed so you can take the win for yourself? You're so selfish!"
Marmo rolled her golden eyes from Ira's rant, before her vision fell onto the appearance of Trunks. Her face changed from annoyance to intrigue, as her smile widened just by merely scanning his admittedly impressive build. "You know what?" Marmo said, licking her lips at her new prize. "You go ahead and handle the brat. I have something else to claim…"
Ira gave Marmo an honest look of confusion before brushing off what she meant with that last part. After all, he wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth if it meant reclaiming his lost pride. He turned around to meet Cure Spade in the eyes, a sadistic smile growing on his face…
Trunks looked at the scene above with seething anger, his fists clenching at the Selfish Duo's apathetic nature. His golden aura flared once more as he turned to the bystanding Mana. "Unless you can figure that transformation out, then get out of here. I don't want you getting hurt."
Mana was taken aback by the future warrior's bluntness, trying to voice her argument only to be cut off by him again. "I know you want to help, but right now, you're a liability! Even though I can't do much against the Selfish monster, I can at least save Cure Spade!"
"But it's my fault she's trapped in the first place!" Mana blurted out with determination and anger, wanting to do whatever it took to set things right. "I can't just stand aside and do nothing, mister. I have to help!"
Trunks said nothing to the young Mana, giving one last commanding glare before dashing upwards to the new battleground. He scanned the field to see Spade still stuck in the crab monster's iron claw, with Ira overseeing her punishment. Trunks locked on to his target, ready to strike, until a purple flash intercepted him, soon taking the formation of Marmo. "Well, well… what do we have here?" She taunted.
"Get out of the way," Trunks commanded, not eager to deal with Marmo's antics as of late.
Marmo gave a light sneer to Trunk's response, crossing her arms at his brashness. "Is that how you greet every woman who takes interest in you? Lighten up. The fact that I'm speaking to you is a complement to how… dashing you look."
"If you're asking for a date, forget it," Trunks stated. "I don't waste my time with monsters like you."
Trunks brushed Marmo aside as he continued his trajectory towards Ira, earning a growl of frustration from Marmo. "Playing 'Hard-To-Get' are we?" Marmo growled, flicking her wrist as a purple vine whip materialized in the palm of her hand, curling up in a neutral position. "Fine by me…"
Marmo whipped her arm at Trunks, who failed to respond in time as the vine began to coil around his body, biding his arms to his sides with pained grunts. He turned to see Marmo's smile grow sadistic, lifting and slamming the trapped Saiyan down to the ground as Marmo followed suit. Trunks could only gasp in surprise from the impact, still entangled in the whip as Marmo landed in his field of view. "Didn't your mother ever teach you to treat women with respect?" she mocked, walking slowly towards the downed Trunks with echoing steps. "I would've asked nicely for you to be with me, but since you spat in my face, I'll just have to make you learn how to respect the hard way!"
With a grip of her fingers, Marmo sent a surge of electric energy that traveled along the vine until it impacted Trunks at full-force, forcing out screams of pain as Marmo took glee in his suffering. However, during her pleasure, she failed to notice Mana Aida, crawling out of the hole with Sharuru in hand, preparing to set things right.
Regardless of how fruitless her efforts were, Cure Spade still struggled to escape the claw grip of the Selfish monster. But no matter how much she wiggled or squirmed, the monster remained committed to keeping her in its grasp, a fact Ira reminded Spade of when he flew into view. "Why don't you just give it a rest already?"
Spade only shot Ira an angry glare. "I have nothing to tell you! Let me go!"
The young Selfish general could only sigh at her futile resistance, hovering closer to the trapped Cure. "How stupid do you have to be to keep your loyalty to a kingdom that no longer exists? Because you think you can save them? Newsflash, Cure Idiot, they brought their fate upon themselves." Cure Spade's eyes widened at Ira's accusation, an expression Ira decided to capitalize on with a brief smirk. "I saw them when we unleashed the Selfish upon them, and I realized something… people care more about themselves than others when it's their life on the line. So unless you want to know what that feels like, I recommend you quit messing around and tell the truth. Where is Princess Marie-Ange?"
Even when faced with Ira's speech, Spade still found resistance to his words, keeping her cold demeanor as she looked at the youthful Selfish General in the eye. "I don't know… and I certainly would never tell you!"
Ira backed up a bit, his blank expression viewable as he sighed and turned to the Selfish monster. "Crush her."
The monster obliged to its master's words, increasing the pressure of its grip, forcing out a tortured scream out of Spade that echoed throughout the Clover Tower. Every second the claw pinches tighter is another agonizing second that would lead the last Pretty Cure down to her eventual death, and Mana was having enough of the villains' cold blooded nature today. She climbed to the roof, Sharuru in hand, as she glared at the Selfish. "STOP IT!" She yelled, rushing towards the monster. "LET HER GO!"
Her outburst didn't go unnoticed, however, as Ira warped down to Mana's position, catching the young student off-guard, to deliver a devastating back-handed slap that knocked her off balance, sending Mana tumbling to the floor with a harsh bruise on her cheek.
"You're really becoming a pain in the ass, you know that?" Ira said without a hint of emotion in his voice. He hovered over Mana with a menacing aura as he reached for his left palm. pulling out a blade of energy that soon manifested itself in the shape of a jagged scimitar, rusted and scratched from countless battles. He said nothing more as he raised his blade up high, ready to get rid of what he considered to be nothing than a mere footnote.
Mana's eyes widened at the sight of the blade, but she panicked even more upon hearing Trunks scream out in pain as well in his fight against Marmo. What should I do..? She thought with tears forming in her eyes. It's my fault they're gonna… Everything around her went silent as she looked fearfully at Sharuru, silently saying her name in response. In this time, Mana could only do one thing: The wish gesture she learned from her late-grandmother. All you have to do is draw a heart on the palm of your hand, and make a wish… Please… give me the strength to protect everyone!
For a brief moment, nothing happened…
[Insert Song: Moonlight ( Mega Man X6 OST)]
...until a bright light flashed from Sharuru, engulfing Mana to block Ira's sword. The force applied caused it to launch out of his hands, impacting the Selfish's claw, who roared in pain as it released the weakened Spade. "WHAT?" Ira yelled in disbelief, witnessing Mana's second wind as she started to stand up.
Mana was confused as to what to do next, still taken aback by her new aura that seemed to be reacting to the charm she was given earlier. "Mana!" Sharuru called out to the girl. "Place that charm onto me and shout 'PRETTY CURE LOVE LINK!'"
With an affirmative nod, Mana wasted no time in placing the charm onto the transformed fairy, turning to look Ira dead in the eye before shouting out the words given to her. "PRETTY CURE! LOVE LINK!"
The golden aura surrounding Mana intensified, as pink pure energy began to manifest from Sharuru and onto Mana, transforming her very being. Her hair grew out shifting from pink to blonde, swirling into a ponytail that curled below her waist, as her outfit started to take the shape of a white dress with pink accents, similar to Spade's own attire, only this time with a heart-shaped brooch forming onto her chest. Mana could feel herself growing stronger from the transformation, earning a scared look from Ira. "N-No way…!"
Meanwhile, Marmo was blinded and curious of the source of the mysterious light, withdrawing her attention from Trunks long enough for the energy shocks to weaken. Now's my chance! Trunks thought, starting to rise himself, gathering up his Ki before letting loose an exploding yell while delivering an energy burst that disintegrated Marmo's whip. The Selfish General cried out in sharp pain as the energy burn trailed back to her hand, looking to see the rejuvenated Trunks glaring down at her once proud self. "W-what the hell are you?" Marmo asked in disbelief.
"Abundant love! Cure Heart!"
"My name is Trunks. A Super Saiyan from the future… and right now… I'm here to STOP YOU!"
It's the beginning of a new frontier, as the Super Saiyan Trunks and the newly christened Cure Heart make their stand to turn the tide of the battle! But the long road ahead won't be easy for them. It would take every ounce of their strength to overcome what's up ahead.
Find out what happens next time on Dragon Ball Doki Doki !
[Ending Theme: I.D.E.A. ( Mega Man X6 OST)]