"These are some of the latest models, b-but they're unfinished! They shouldn't be released by any means!" Gero stuttered, pointing towards two of the large body-sized capsules within his laboratory, "T-They're hard to control! Impossible, even!"
Right now, we were deep within the man's laboratory, and he was pointing towards two capsules with the numbers '17' and '18' on them. I didn't need my prior knowledge of this world to know this was Android 17 and Android 18 within them, and after a bit more prodding, they would be released to the world.
Or, more specifically, into my Empire.
"How long have you been working on them?" I asked simply, genuinely curious, as there wasn't much timeline on how long Androids 17 and 18 had been locked in these capsules, and I didn't know how close to the Androids in the series they would be already.
"Only a few years," Gero responded, still not looking happy about having to bend to my whims, but he was also armless, so what was he going to do about it?
Notably, he at least had one hand now, as I had allowed him to reattach a 'spare' hand he had sitting around in his lab, which he had impressively done in only a few minutes.
"Do they have infinite energy already?" I asked bluntly, not even trying to charade the fact that I knew about how Gero was researching a method to create unlimited energy.
It would be annoying to tiptoe around subjects and try to force people into the conclusions I wanted, so my approach to revealing my prior knowledge about this world was to just be blunt about it. If I wanted to know something, I would just say it - regardless of whether I should know it or not.
It wasn't like anyone could tell me I was wrong, nor do anything about it. I was Frieza - I could smush pretty much anyone aside from Beerus and Whis in Universe 7 like a bug right now.
"H-How do you know about that?!" Gero stuttered, staring over at me with wide eyes.
"I know a lot of things. If you react like this every time I say something like that, then you'll become too annoying to keep around," I replied blandly and bluntly, causing Gero to stiffen as he nodded quickly.
So far, Bulma still largely reacted in the same 'how the hell do you know that?!' manner, but she was both pleasant to be around and pleasant on the eyes. Gero was neither, so while he was a fellow genius, I didn't mind threatening him a bit more.
"O-Of course! They, ah, do have the regenerating energy modules installed," Gero nodded a bit shakily, "They're essentially ready for release, but since they can't be controlled, I've been keeping them in there."
Well, that explained a bit why he was waiting so long to go after Goku. He could've just done it himself, considering how powerful he was, but I guess he was banking on the androids to do it for him - androids which, considering they had instantly killed him upon release in the series, he couldn't control.
"Release them," I said simply, causing Gero's eyes to go wide.
"R-Release them?! B-But, they can't be controlled! Seriously, a remote to destroy them is the only way to keep them in check!" Gero refused vehemently, "I-I am working on a much more secure model - Android 19! He has an energy-draining module just as I do, and will follow whatever orders I give!"
I simply glanced over at Gero, raising an eyebrow at him, "Did I ask about that? I'll answer for you - No. I said to release them."
Gero still looked conflicted even as his back stiffened from my gaze, glancing around panickedly as he seemed very intent on not releasing the two androids, "W-Wait! There's another one, too! I-It's not quite finished, but i-if you just give me some time, Android 21 will be much better than these two!"
I blinked at his words, actually becoming interested. Android 21? The female and ultra-powerful android was under construction right now?
She was a bit of an anomaly, as she had never appeared in the mainline show, and even her origins were unknown. Depending on the source, she was anywhere from Dr. Gero's former wife turned into an android to a robot who had both never been a human or known Gero. I hadn't expected her to be here, but it was a pleasant surprise.
"Release them," But that didn't change the fact that I was interested in Android 17 and 18 right now. Android 21 wasn't finished, so Gero could work on that another time.
"B-But-"
"Release them," I said again, narrowing my eyes as I stressed the words, "You don't seem to understand that this isn't a partnership, Dr. Gero. I like to keep positive relationships with all my subordinates, but remember your place. If I say to do something, you do it."
Gero's back stiffened as I let my power flare up a bit, causing him to nod shakily.
"O-Of course! My apologies," He stuttered a bit, walking over to a nearby table and grabbing a remote with his sole hand, then stepping up to the two capsules. He pressed a button on the side of the one labeled '17,' and then again on the other one.
The two doors swung open at the same time, revealing two figures standing completely still within the pods. Slowly, the first, male android, opened his eyes. He stepped forward, looking like he was in his late teens or early twenties as he had shoulder-length black hair, a mischievous-looking face, and a thin body.
The female one followed a second later, her eyes opening slowly as she stepped forward. She looked similar in age to the male one, with shoulder-length blonde hair, a pretty face, and a thin body.
"...Dr. Gero," Android 17 spoke first, his eyes very unsubtly glancing at the remote in Gero's hand, "How are you?"
How the hell did Gero not notice that? I guess power couldn't make up for a lack of awareness.
"Good, you remember me," Gero nodded approvingly, glancing over at me nervously, then back to the androids, "Y-You two have been released earlier than planned because Frieza-"
"Lord Frieza," I corrected, smirking lightly as Gero nodded rapidly.
"Because L-Lord Frieza wanted you both to be," Gero gritted out, not looking happy about the title, but still saying it anyway, "The plan to kill Son Goku has been put on hold, but that doesn't mean that you have no purpose. Fr- Lord Frieza-"
I smirked as Gero corrected himself from just a glance from myself, and then continued, "W-Will still have a mission for you to complete. And, remember that with this controller, I can destroy you at any moment, so you'll do what I- a-ahem, what Lord Frieza says!"
"That remote?" Android 18 tilted her head at Gero's final words, looking cutely mischievous as she placed her finger on her chin in mock confusion, "What remote?"
"What? Did your eyes fail from being in there for so long?! This one- a-ah!" Gero cut himself off as he raised the remote, holding it up to show Android 18, and then promptly realized he wasn't holding anything anymore.
"You mean this remote?" Android 17 smirked, raising his hand as he moved so quickly that Gero didn't even see him steal the remote from his hand.
Unfortunately for Gero, while his energy-draining module could sap the energy from anyone he grabbed, it wasn't a permanent boost. He had lost a majority of his power boost when his hand exploded, and then the rest had slowly trickled out over the last few minutes, and he was left at around twenty million in power level. There was a big difference between gaining power on your own through training, which became a literal part of not just your body, but even your soul, and stealing bits of power from someone else.
"Well, it would be a shame if I- what?" Android 17 then cut himself off as he looked down at the remote in his hand, getting ready to crush it and then kill Gero, only to find… nothing.
"Yes, this remote," I smirked, lightly raising my hand and showcasing to him that I was, in fact, the one with the remote. "You're quick, but not that quick."
I was being honest - Android 17, and probably Android 18 as well, were both quick and powerful. My scouter seemed to be malfunctioning a bit as I looked at the two, not exploding, but just zipping between various numbers as it didn't know what to do with their 'infinite energy.'
But that was fine, because I could simply sense their energy. The whole 'infinite energy' part of them had never made complete sense, as it was like having infinite stamina, but also… power? Energy and power levels were very closely tied, so it made sense that my scouter couldn't make sense of the two, but my brain could.
I could only make rough estimations, but they were both, at best, around four hundred million. Even then, I might've been overshooting them a bit.
Either way, all that mattered was that they didn't stand a chance in hell against me. Though I should make sure they know that.
Android 17 and 18 both tensed, their eyes going wide as I suddenly held their lives in my hand. Then, their eyes went even wider as I squeezed my hand - crushing the remote into a bunch of small pieces.
"W-What?" Android 18 stuttered out, looking shocked and confused as the only thing that could control them was suddenly destroyed.
Gero took it even worse, as he stared at me with wide eyes, stepping forward and looking down at the crumbs of the remote with horror, "W-What are you doing?! I only have one of those! Now, there's no way to-"
"I don't need something like this to control them," I said simply, cutting him off as I brushed the final few pieces of scrap off my hands. "I assume they value their lives, correct? That's enough to keep them under control."
"T-That's exactly what that remote was for! To destroy them if they go out of control!" Gero huffed, his eyes glancing between me and the Androids rapidly, "They have unlimited energy! If they go berserk, then there will be no way to stop them!"
I ignored him, just casually walking up to the two androids, who both tensed as I approached them, "No way for you to stop them. I could defeat them both with my pinky finger."
I was exaggerating a bit, as they weren't that weak, but my words definitely made them nervous. 17's hands balled up into fists as he narrowed his eyes at me, ready to fight as I approached the duo.
But he blinked in confusion as I just stepped past them, instead stepping up to the pod behind them. I casually pressed the button, letting the door swing open as Android 16's eyes snapped open.
The man was much larger and bulkier than the other two androids, as he had a muscular physique and a spike of orange hair shooting out from the top of his head. He was also wearing a thick green plated armor, which looked much more protective than the rather regular clothing the other two androids had on.
"Son… Goku…" The android said a bit robotically as he stepped forward, his mission already ingrained in his mind, but I placed a hand on his shoulder as I stopped him from moving.
"All of you - your mission has been discarded. You will not kill Son Goku," I said simply, but a smirk formed on my face as I glanced back at 17 and 18, "But, you will complete another mission for me."
"Hah, you're crazy if you think I'm doin' anything you tell me," 17 smirked back at me, apparently still as cocky and careless as I expected, despite the light fear in his eyes, "You just destroyed the only remote, so why would I- GUH!"
He was cut off as I vanished - reappearing in front of him, and casually slamming a fist into his gut. He slouched over my fist for a moment, spit flying from his mouth, and then was sent rocketing backward, crashing into the wall as his body was folded. It crumbled around him as he slumped, eyes wide in pain as he clutched at his stomach from the blow.
"S-Seventeen!" Android 18 called out, looking over at her brother's slumped body and then back at me nervously.
"Relax. It's a simple mission." I said casually, shaking my head at their nervousness, and waving my hand dismissively, "One of you will come with me, and the other two will stay here. You can do whatever you want on this planet, just don't kill any Earthlings or cause too much trouble. I'll be coming back regularly from now on to check on your progress. As for the mission, you won't be killing Son Goku. Instead, every week or so…"
I couldn't be here on Earth to constantly press Goku's progress forward, so, as any good tyrant did, I would delegate my work to my subordinates.
"Just beat the shit out of him."
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AN: Thank you for reading! Sorry for the short break in updates, I was dealing with some health issues, but they will be more frequent again! The next chapter will be posted in a few days!
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