Trunks was frantically running down a beaten alleyway. Sweat dripped down his forehead as his stamina began to weaken. Every step he took was one step deeper into his pride being lost. Instead of fighting the threats that faced him, he ran away from them, waiting for Gohan to save him. What would his father think?

Androids 17 and 18 had it in for Trunks. He was a meddling brat that didn't know his place. The evil humanoids had killed Goku, Krillin, Piccolo, and even his father Vegeta. All Trunks had in this world was his mother Bulma and his best friend Gohan. Instead of protecting his mother, he ran away, fearing for his own life. Even from the beginning of their chase, Trunks could tell they weren't going at their potential speed. The androids were toying with him; waiting for him to lose all of his energy on his own before they beat him to a bloody pulp. Why they were allowing him to live this long, he didn't know. He always had the philosophy of defeating the enemy while he had the chance, unlike his father, who enjoyed to test his limits lebih so. The many pertanyaan that were running through his head finally led Trunks to stop the pursuit.

"Have anda been working out, kid? You've ran further today than anda have in a while," Android 18 komentar facetiously.

"You're not trying to hit on this wimp, are you, 18?" Android 17 asked.

"Hehe.. Nah. I wouldn't even hit on his big Gohan friend. Though I am gonna kick on him!" Android 18 replied, as she kicked the cornered Trunks in the jaw.

Trunks wiped the blood off of his face and rubbed his jaw, "Good, because Gohan wouldn't want anda anyway, metallic freak!"

Android 17 did a vanishing move, coming as physically close to Trunks as possible, "That's my sister you're talking about, pal. I suggest anda take it back."

"Never! I won't let anda two get away with this any longer!" Trunks shouted as he punched Android 17 in the chest.

"Take it..." Android 18 quietly said. She vanished behind Trunks, "back!" she shouted as she kicked him once more, this time from behind. Android 17 dodged Trunks' flying body and watched him hit the nearby building. Trunks began to collect himself as best he could, staring at the androids, uncertain as to whether atau not he should try to retaliate in this condition.

"How would anda like it if I talked badly about an important lady in your life, Trunks?" Android 17 hypothetically asked.

It took him a moment to realize exactly what he meant, "You stay away from my mother, anda monster! She hasn't done anything to anyone!"

"All the other people we've killed.. they didn't do anything to anyone... Do we look like we care?" Android 18 asked.

Trunks, unable to think of a retort, began to charge his aura. He knew he was going to become a Super Saiyan this time, he was certain. The wind began to turn as his hair began to stand up. The pavement below his feat began to crack. He gripped his fists in one final push of power, until-

It was all a dream.

Trunks awoke to see his mother hovering over his bed, "I have breakfast ready, son. Gohan says to meet him outside when you're done; he wants to talk to you."

Trunks didn't say a single word. He just hugged his mother, thankful that she was still alive.

After eating his food, he eagerly rushed outside to meet Gohan.

"Mom berkata anda wanted to talk to me.."

"Right. Trunks, I don't think it's a secret that the androids aren't letting up... Our efforts aren't doing anything at all to them.."

"No! Don't say that, Gohan! I look up to y-"

Gohan interrupted Trunks, "Let me finish... I think it's pointless for anda to train anymore. There's just too much of a gap between anda and the androids.. Even if anda trained until anda were as old as I am, there'd be no way anda could defeat either of them. Even I can't do it, and I spent my childhood fighting people like Frieza and.. your dad."

Trunks, once again, was without words. He didn't know how to react to what Gohan had just told him. He'd never questioned what Gohan told him. Gohan was his mentor and always had an answer for everything, it's just that this time the answer wasn't what Trunks wanted to hear. He literally had dreamed of going Super Saiyan, and now Gohan was urging him to quit chasing that dream. He was on the cusp of something he had strived for his entire life, only to have the idea crushed.

Gohan continued, "I'm going to continue my training, though... If I work harder than I ever have, I could maybe take them on. I just don't want anda to get hurt, Trunks, anda have to understand. I know that you've always been taught to never give up; so have I, but sometimes that isn't how it works during desparate times like this."

"But Gohan... anda were in danger when anda were training with Piccolo! Why can't anda take a risk with me like he did with you! anda turned out great!"

"I wasn't the last of my kind when I was training with Piccolo... I was much less of an asset. When Piccolo was training me, I was just a whiny, spoiled brat. There were several other Saiyans out there, still alive... anda and I are the only two alive right now, Trunks. If something happens to me out there fighting, I want anda to stay alive at all costs."

"I guess I understand..." Trunks muttered. He gave Gohan one last look, and walked back inside.

Gohan knew that Trunks had lebih things to say to him, but didn't out of respect. He decided he would bring it up later, after letting all these thoughts simmer in Trunks' head for a while.

Trunks couldn't sleep that night. All he wanted was to sleep, so that he might have a dream similar to last night's dream.. Where he was the hero, where he achieved the Super Saiyan transformation. He looked at Gohan across the room.

Trunks hopped out of his tempat tidur and ran into the streets. He was going to prove Gohan wrong. He berkata that he couldn't fight against the androids. Trunks knew he could. He flew into the air and began to scan the location for the androids.

"Where could they be?!" Trunks shouted to himself.

"Isn't it past your bedtime?" Android 17 sarcastically asked, as he vanished immediately in front of Trunks, almost identically to how he did in Trunks' dream.

"I'm going to shut anda off, android!" Trunks yelled as he sent out a dynamic combo of hits against Android 17, each one bouncing off of him, leaving him unscathed.

"You're interrupting my beauty sleep, bug!" Android 18 had just vanished behind him. She grabbed Trunks oleh his head and lifted several inches, now bringing them at eye level, "You think you're tough because anda stay out late? Well let me tell anda something. You're not. You're weak, just like your pathetic father!"

"Don't anda badmouth my dad!" Trunks shrieked, ignoring the pain his cranium was feeling. His hair began to rise slightly.

"Girls don't like guys with short tempers. We better shut anda up before anda end up being a problem." Android 18 said. She swung her arm back, and then thrust it meneruskan, ke depan into Trunks' stomach, creating a hole in his abdomen, which bled profusely. She threw him from the skies in which their confrontation took place and onto the ground as harshly as she could. The pavement where he landed gained a gigantic crater.

Gohan heard the chaos outside. He ran into Bulma's room.

"Bulma, I can't find Trunks! I think something may have happened! Come outside!"

They immediately saw the crater. The androids watched them above, not interested in creating their demise just yet.

"No! My baby! Trunks! Trunks!" Bulma cried after seeing her only son wounded on the ground. She and Gohan kneeled down to see him.

"M-mom... Give me a hug" Trunks simply stated.

Bulma hugged Trunks tightly. Every single line of her family was now dead. The only person in the world she had to protect her was Gohan. The androids left the scene undetected oleh Gohan and Bulma. It would be there that Trunks would die.

Over the course of the selanjutnya few months, Gohan remaind pacifistic. He did indoor training as to not keep himself out of shape. Bulma, meanwhile, was working on her time machine desain that she had been working on for some time before Trunks' death. Gohan had talked to her about it for a while, as his realism slowly sank in, realizing that fighting the androids was a futile effort. Not wanting to crush his dreams and knowing that he had potential, Gohan was planning on sending Trunks to the past. He wanted Trunks to be able to meet Vegeta.. Gohan gave up the opportunity to see his mother and father again so that Trunks could see his father once. He was going to save the surprise for closer to the time that the time machine was constructed. Gohan secretly didn't want to get Trunks' hopes built up, only for the time machine to not work properly, but he would never tell Bulma that.

Nonetheless, the hari soon came. Gohan was the only hope for the past. It was his goal to venture into the past, cure Goku's jantung virus, and help the Z Fighters prepare for the android attack. (End of chapter one!)