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Panting for breath, Trunks sent a flurry of kicks and punches at an invisible foe, pushing his body as hard as he could and ignoring the burning in his muscles that signalled exhaustion. Gritting his teeth, he focused on the make believe androids in front of him, determined to make himself stronger.

Eventually the lavender haired demi-Saiyan dropped to the ground, gasping as he fell to his knees, sweat dripping from his forehead as his body struggled to cool down. Baring his teeth, he pounded his fists against the dry dirt, large cracks appearing as a small crater outline each of his clenched hands.

“I’ll never be strong enough to defeat the androids if I carry on like this!”

Pounding his fists against the ground in frustration once again, he almost missed the large explosion and flare of Ki from behind him. Jumping to his feet, he brushed a stray strand of hair out of his eyes and stared in the direction of the blast. A large plume of smoke was snaking its way through the blue expanse, making its way higher and higher into the sky.

Flaring into Super-saiyan, Trunks leapt into the air, speeding towards what he was certain was the two androids, Juunanagou and Juuhachigou. Several more blasts were heard as he tore through the air, a golden Ki stream leaving a long trail behind him, tracing his path along the sky. As he drew closer to the source of the explosions, a melody drifted through the air, silence following it as if it had paused everything that was able to draw breath. Not affected in the least, Trunks continued following the sound, pausing in the air above what was left of South City when the music came to a halt. Lowering himself to the ground, the demi-saiyan held his breath, ears alert for the slightest noise, nerves on edge as he began to wonder if the androids were still in the area, maybe watching him…

A quick yell focused his mind as his head whipped around, body following and taking off in the direction of the noise, all senses on hyper alert. What seemed like hours later but in reality could have been no more than a minute, a silver flash caught his eye. Running over, Trunks stopped dead at what he saw. On the ground, an elf like man was curled up on the ground, gasping for breath, face scrunched up in pain. As his eyes drifted over the form, it wasn’t the large pointed ears that kept his attention, or the dark orange, almost red hair that formed a Mohawk over the alien’s head. It was the large sword that passed through the young mans chest, the tip glinting red as it reflected the sunlight and the hilt still held by tense, trembling hands. Blinking a few times to wake himself from his shock, Trunks ran over to the figure and knelt down beside him.

“Hey, are you ok?”

Mentally kicking himself, the lavender haired boy wasn’t prepared for the whispered answer.

“Yes.”

Blue eyes widened in shock as two pure emerald orbs gazed up at him.

“Wha…?”

The man’s eyes snapped closed again, face twisting as a rush of pain flooded through his system once again. Instinctively, Trunks gently pulled the tense, gasping form into his lap, letting the alien rest his head against his stomach. Seconds later, the red haired mans features relaxed, his body going limp as his life drained out of him. Trunks didn’t move a muscle in response, just stared at the serene face resting against him and then at the destruction around him.

“This was all something to do with you wasn’t it? Is that why you killed yourself?”

Looking around, the lavender haired boy fired a small Ki blast at the ground, a large hole appearing, making the demi saiyan realise he was still powered up into Super-saiyan form. Taking hold of the sword, he slowly pulled it out of the body, wincing slightly as he heard it rub against the flesh inside the alien’s chest. Pulling the tip out, he placed it on the ground next to him and turned back to the still form, picking it up and carrying it over to the hole. Placing the body in the hole, he paused and looked back at the bloody sword.

“If it was you who stopped the destruction here with that sword, I hope you won’t mind if I use it from now on. You see, I am trying to protect and save this world from two androids, so far they’re both stronger than me, but maybe with that sword to help me…”

Making up his mind, Trunks leant down and unclipped the sheath from the body, laying it next to the hole and then saying a quick prayer to whatever entity might be interested, he began placing handfuls of dirt onto the still form.

An hour later, a raise in the ground was all that pointed to the resting place of the warrior below it, the sun still shining relentlessly, encouraging animals of all sizes into the area which was now desolate of people. Standing next to the grave, Trunks closed his eyes briefly in farewell and turned to approach the sword. Picking it up, he gazed at the rusty coloured blood for a few moments, before taking to the air to look for the nearest water source. Within minutes, he knelt at the edge of a stream, the blade dipped in the cool water, letting the current was the dried blood away. Standing up, Trunks used a small amount of Ki to dry the blade and then sheathed it, turning to look up at the sky as he felt a rush of determination rise up in his chest as he thought of the man he had buried not long before.

“I will win.”