Android 18's brows arched in suspicion. "I knew it. There is something you're hiding."
In the Dragon Ball Super manga, Android 17 had indeed taken in the tiny Cells and kept them on a deserted island as sparring dummies, which already hinted at a strange resonance between androids and the Cell lineage. But this was the kind of thing that was better left unpoked.
Levos forced himself to stay calm. "Whatever I'm hiding or not hiding doesn't stop you from chasing your own happiness. We can talk about it next time. See you."
He spun around and strode for the edge of the grove.
"Chasing happiness? That's such a weird thing to say." 18's lazy voice floated behind him.
In the next instant she blurred and cut him off.
Levos stopped.
18 lifted her right fist casually and pushed it forward.
Levos's gaze tightened. "What are you doing?"
"You really do talk like you're up to something," 18 said evenly, not a ripple in her voice. "But that's not important."
Her fist pressed to his chest.
Levos relaxed a fraction. He didn't sense any killing intent from her.
But in the next heartbeat, her hand slid up, hooked his collar, and yanked him down.
Levos's pupils shrank.
Soft warmth brushed his cheek.
He felt 18's breath, and the light, damp touch of her lips.
Time froze.
Levos's head went completely blank. For someone who'd faced down Frieza, hit Zamasu, and walked in and out of angelic pocket dimensions, this was somehow the most shocking thing yet.
"W-what are you doing?" His eye twitched madly as he tried to steady his voice.
Android 18 dropped back down from tiptoe. On her cool, beautiful face, a playful smile curled.
"Heh. Didn't think someone this handsome would be this pure. What a waste."
With that, 18 turned and shot into the sky.
Levos stared after her for a full second before it finally hit him.
He'd just been toyed with.
He was about to chase her down and demand an explanation when a multicolored streak of light ripped down from the sky and crashed straight into the courtyard where the banquet was being held.
A powerful ki.
Someone big was here.
Possibly someone who could decide Earth's fate.
He shelved the 18 problem for later and teleported back to Capsule Corp.
The courtyard, which had just been ringing with laughter, was deadly silent. Everyone was tense, alert, and ready to fight.
At the center of the standoff stood two purple cats.
One was lean, elegant, and radiating ice-cold authority.
The other was rounder, but full of roaring temper.
Levos recognized them at a glance.
The God of Destruction of Universe 7.
Beerus.
And next to him, the tall, graceful attendant angel Whis.
Between Beerus and Champa, murderous intent rolled like a tidal wave.
All the Earthlings had clustered behind Champa, watching this pair of uninvited gods with every muscle tensed.
"Hey! Who are you?" Goku blurted out, head tilted. "You look like a skinnier version of Lord Champa!"
Beerus turned his head and glared.
Goku's body jolted violently.
"W-what?! Why can't I move?!"
Everyone's faces changed.
Just a look and Goku was paralyzed. This guy's strength was terrifying.
Champa took two steps forward, shielding Goku. The pressure on Goku vanished.
Supreme Kai Shin quickly warned, "Goku, don't act rashly. This is most likely our Universe 7's God of Destruction."
"What?"
Everyone froze.
Champa grinned, baring fangs. "Beerus! You actually found Earth! What? You here to fight me?"
Beerus's face was dark. He ignored Champa and swept his gaze across the courtyard.
"Hmph. I came to see what you think you're doing trespassing in my universe."
Every word dripped with killing intent. The Earthlings' hearts seized.
"Don't try to scare me, Beerus," Champa sneered. "I knew you'd show up, so I waited right here."
"So you still think you're the master of Universe 7?" Beerus's eyes narrowed into a slit.
"I never said that. But is that how you treat a guest?" Champa shot back.
"You don't count as a guest to me," Beerus said coolly.
"What did you say?!" Champa exploded. "You bastard! Don't forget if it weren't for me, your whole universe would already be gone!"
"Hmph. Funny, because from where I'm standing, you're the one who's been stirring up trouble in my universe. What, was this all your own little scheme?" Beerus stared at him, full of suspicion.
Champa was furious. "Idiot! Why would I do something so stupid?!"
"Then swear you didn't sneak around in Universe 7 without telling me," Beerus pressed, eyes chilling.
"Hmph!"
"What's wrong? Can't swear?" Beerus looked like he'd already caught him.
"You damned cat, don't falsely accuse me!" Champa roared. "Don't you know, if it wasn't for me "
"Lord Champa." Vados's tone sharpened. "This time… you were in the wrong."
Champa's eyes flicked and a bead of sweat slid down.
Beerus kept pressing. "Go on, keep talking. Weren't you the 'good guy'?"
"Hmph!" Champa snorted and changed the subject. "Anyway, your universe is in huge trouble. You're about to get reaaal unlucky. Hehehe…"
Beerus's brows pulled together. A hint of worry flashed in his eyes.
"Oh?" Goku perked up. "Lord Champa, what kind of trouble is our universe in?"
Piccolo's face sank.
"You guys don't know?" Champa blinked.
"What's going on?"
Everyone from Earth was baffled.
"Oh, right. Levos hasn't told you yet," Champa said.
Every head turned toward Levos.
Great. Thanks, fat cat.
Levos's expression grew solemn. "Even if I tell you, there's not much you can do."
"What is it?"
"Levos, don't shoulder everything alone."
"Yeah! Even if we can't fight gods, you should still tell us."
Levos sighed and looked at Vados. Matters involving the Omni-King really weren't things he should announce himself.
Vados smiled. "Then I'll explain."
A little while later, she finished telling them that the Omni-King was planning to erase Universe 7 and Universe 10.
"Erase… the entire universe?!"
"Then everything we did was for nothing?"
"How can this be? The world just went back to normal…"
Everyone was shaken.
"Yes," Vados said mildly. "Even Lord Beerus is on the erasure list."
Beerus's aura deflated. He slumped a little, sounding almost depressed. "Tch. Didn't think I'd just gotten revived and now I'm gonna die again."
Then he seemed to remember something and turned to Champa. "By the way, Champa do you know who resurrected me?"
"Why would I know that? I was just sightseeing in your universe!" Champa said with a pout.
"Oh? Is that so?" Beerus's face clearly said I don't believe you.
"Hmph! Believe it or don't. Someone else did it, has nothing to do with me!"
By then, no one on Earth cared about the two cat-brothers bickering.
They were already huddled together, trying to figure out how to not get erased.
"Levos, you already have a plan, right?"
"And even if you don't, we can brainstorm together!"
Since the secret was out, Levos laid his options on the table.
"…These are the only moves we have. The only real way to keep Universe 7 is to crack it from the Omni-King's side."
Levos spread his hands helplessly.
"No wonder you've been so absent-minded and even skipped the party. It was because of this…" Everyone finally understood.
Future Trunks looked at him with real admiration. "I didn't think Mr. Levos would catch the key point from my future timeline. Getting Goku to make friends with the Omni-King… that's a brilliant idea."
Old Kai, though, was not optimistic. "The Omni-King is supreme over all universes. Even Supreme Kais can barely get an audience. A mortal becoming his friend… it's hard to imagine."
"Elder," Supreme Kai Shin said, "we don't have any other way now. Goku's heart is special. Maybe he really can befriend the Omni-King and save our universe."
Levos frowned. He wanted to stuff a sock in Shin's mouth.
But then again, the Omni-King didn't exactly get "jinxed," so maybe it was fine.
"But how do I make friends with him?" Goku scratched his head. "I don't even know him."
Future Trunks, Old Kai, and Shin all looked a little lost.
"What if… we just tell the Omni-King that the Goku from another timeline is his friend?"
"No!" Shin rejected it instantly. "Time travel is a serious crime. If the Grand Priest finds out, Mr. Trunks will be in enormous trouble."
Future Trunks's gaze, though, was firm. "If I can save the universe, sacrificing myself is nothing."
"But Trunks…" Bulma looked worried. "You're not alone. You still have Mai."
She scolded him gently. "Even if you want to sacrifice yourself, you can't drag someone else with you."
Future Trunks lowered his head.
"It's okay. Really. If we can fix things, I'm happy." Future Mai still chose to stand with him.
"No. I won't just watch you sacrifice yourself." Trunks held her hand tight.
"By the way, Trunks, since you're from the future, can your time machine still work?" Piccolo asked.
Levos's eyes lit up.
As expected, Piccolo was sharp.
Whether it was to have Trunks go back and fetch help, or to send him and Mai somewhere safe, if the time machine could move, they had another route.
Future Trunks understood right away and shook his head regretfully. "Back then, the Beerus from my time warned me many times, so I only prepared one trip's worth of fuel. To collect it again now… we don't have enough time."
Everyone's expressions dimmed.
Levos sighed inwardly.
Time machine fuel was a pain to gather. And Earth had been rolled back twenty-five years.
Most of Bulma's charging equipment simply didn't exist anymore.
"Still, it's worth trying," Levos said, looking toward Bulma.
"Yeah." Bulma nodded gravely. "Even if all the charging systems are gone and we don't have extra fuel, I can rebuild it if I have enough time."
"Dr. Hydo, Kikono, and Pilaf should be able to help too," Levos reminded her.
The people Levos called on immediately brightened.
"Great! Lord Pilaf, we can help again!"
"Leave it to me, Lord Pilaf!" Pilaf puffed up proudly.
Dr. Hydo grinned. "When it comes to science, you can rely on me."
Kikono said respectfully, "I'll follow Mr. Levos's instructions. Time travel is new to me, but I'm very interested."
Right then…
Beerus narrowed his eyes and looked at the people getting ready to leave with Bulma.
"You do realize," he said, voice going deathly cold, "that tampering with time is a serious crime."
"To dare to challenge the dignity of cosmic law right in front of a god… this planet has no reason to exist."
As he spoke, a rotating purple-black sphere of Destruction energy formed in his palm.
Bulma and the others froze and looked straight at Levos.
Levos's heart sank.
Too careless. He'd actually discussed time travel right in front of a God of Destruction.
"Lord Beerus, we…" Future Trunks looked wretched, ready to kneel.
Levos stepped forward and pulled him up. "Lord Beerus, if we're talking about the true culprit behind time manipulation, it should be Zamasu. Trunks only traveled because he was trying to save his world."
"Hmph! And did he think about the consequences before he did it?"
"Once you use a time machine, you create a parallel space-time full of unknown variables."
"Your Universe 7 is probably a mess right now because of that," Beerus said coldly.
Future Trunks's face darkened.
Levos quickly reminded him, "Trunks, didn't the Beerus from your timeline promise you something?"
Trunks's eyes lit up.
"Lord Beerus, please let me explain what happened in my timeline."
Champa shouted from the side, "Beerus! If you blow up Earth, I won't let you off!"
"Shut up!" Beerus glared at him. "This is my universe. You don't get a say."
He spun the destructive energy ball lazily and fixed his eyes on Trunks.
"We still have a little time before everything's erased. I'll listen to your excuse."
He dragged a lounge chair over and lay back.
Future Trunks immediately began telling his story.
After a short while, Beerus's face went completely dark.
"So in that timeline, the fused Zamasu turned into a tumor for the entire universe, and in the end even His Majesty the Omni-King erased him. Then what about this universe's fused Zamasu?"
Future Trunks hesitated, unsure if he should tell the whole truth, and looked off to the side.
Following his gaze, Beerus saw Whis walking over with a tray of brown, crispy-looking balls he'd never seen before, eating happily.
Whis wandered over to Vados and blinked. "Oh? Sister, what happened to your body?"
Vados sighed dramatically. "To help your Universe 7 deal with that mess, I suffered so much. I'll definitely get scolded by Father, wuwuwu~"
As she said it, she even wiped the corner of her eye with a finger.
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