"Then stop wasting time do what you need to do!" Piccolo's brow furrowed, his tone sharp. "I've got plenty of questions waiting for you to answer later."
"Alright." Levos gave a firm nod.
Without hesitation, he drove his fist into his own abdomen.
BOOM!
The impact echoed like thunder. Stone shattered, cliffsides crumbled.
Piccolo flinched, eyes narrowing. He rose into the air with a snap of his wingspan cloak. "Tch… I'd better keep my distance."
"Wait!" Levos shouted. He scooped up the unconscious Android 18 and hurled her toward Piccolo. "Watch over her for me just for now!"
Piccolo caught her, grunting, then moved away to safety as Levos resumed pounding at his stomach with merciless blows.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Each strike made him cough torrents of blood. Yet he seemed oblivious to the pain, his voice breaking with desperation.
"Come out! Bulma come out!!"
His face twisted, eyes bloodshot, more beast than man.
The carapace plating over his abdomen split apart, even his torso on the verge of collapse.
Still, nothing emerged.
Crack!
A sharp sound rang out as bones in his chest gave way.
"Kh!!" Levos spat blood, pain ripping through his body, but it could not match the agony in his heart.
He clawed at his own throat. His tail coiled tight around his waist, squeezing until veins bulged.
Anything to force himself to vomit her out.
"Damn it! Why won't it work?!"
His throat shredded, blood pouring freely, pooling on the ground beneath him.
And yet, he gave a wan smile half mad, half resolute and kept punishing himself.
To unleash more power, he flared his ki without restraint.
Soon his mighty frame was riddled with wounds, trembling under its own fury.
BOOM… RUMMMBLE…
The land quaked as if the planet itself was breaking apart. Massive stones toppled like meteors.
Piccolo, carrying 18, darted through the chaos.
The canyon was gone, replaced by a barren crater.
Piccolo's eyes flicked to the limp figure in his grasp, her clothes in tatters. His frown deepened.
The instant Levos unleashed his aura, Piccolo knew the danger such a flare would draw enemies straight to them.
He had never imagined the calm, calculating Levos could be driven to such madness.
And yet here he was, self-destructing in his desperation.
Piccolo felt an unfamiliar weight in his chest worry.
CRACK!
A boulder hurtled at him. With a glance, Piccolo's eyes flashed twin beams, shattering it to dust.
No this couldn't continue.
If Levos burned himself out now, they'd lose a key fighter before the battle even began.
And worse Bulma's sacrifice would mean nothing.
Piccolo made up his mind. He started forward
then stopped short.
The tremors ceased. The roar of ki vanished. Even Levos's energy signature had disappeared.
Two possibilities seized Piccolo's thoughts:
Levos had collapsed, unconscious… or he had succeeded.
He dove into the settling dust, searching.
The ground was scarred and torn, tougher than Earth yet reduced to ruins by Levos's rampage. Piccolo marveled grimly this world's rock was supposed to resist even moon-busting blasts.
Yet here it lay shattered.
His ears twitched. A faint sound. Breathing.
He followed it.
And then
"Levos…"
A woman's voice, frail but filled with relief.
Bulma's voice.
Piccolo exhaled. At last.
If she hadn't returned now, Levos would have killed himself in his frenzy. Piccolo had seen enough to know it.
"Bulma… thank god… huff huff…" came Levos's ragged breathing.
"Levos, what did you do to me? I'm covered in… this stuff?"
Her weak voice drifted through the haze.
Piccolo froze. His brow knit.
The Kami's memories stirred within him centuries of watching Earth, filled with knowledge both mundane and strange. After fusing with Kami, Piccolo had inherited it all. Useless facts, bizarre trivia, ancient secrets buried inside him, always urging to be tested.
And now, hearing Bulma's words, that storehouse of knowledge pushed forward, filling him with suspicion.
He couldn't ignore it.
Levos looked down at Bulma, sprawled weakly on the ground, his throat tight with emotion.
After countless brutal strikes against himself, he had done it just as Cell had once expelled Android 18.
He had vomited Bulma back into the world.
His body was ruined, his strength drained, his evolution regressed.
But none of that mattered.
She was alive.
Covered head to toe in the pale-purple fluid of Cell Max's innards, Bulma gave him a sharp look.
"Ugh… what is this slimy stuff?"
Levos winced, guilt flashing in his eyes. "I'm sorry… I'll clean it off right away."
"It doesn't smell bad, but it's disgusting on my skin."
Piccolo, still hidden in the smoke, went rigid.
Something about this conversation… sounded wrong.
Images popped unbidden into his mind. His face twitched, a bead of sweat sliding down his temple.
No… it couldn't be… right?
For once, Piccolo was rattled.
The dust cleared.
He saw them clearly now.
Bulma, weak but breathing. Levos, torn to shreds but smiling faintly in relief.
Piccolo's face froze.
Levos glanced up and noticed him. "Piccolo, you don't look so good. Did you get caught in my blast just now? Were you hurt?"
Piccolo shook his head rapidly, voice tight. "N-no! I wasn't hurt! And besides… my face always looks like this!"
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