Tauria: Hiya everybody :) Yes, I know I have fics to work on. But this idea was stuck in my head and if I didn't write it down I'd go nuts! In my defense, it's a one-shot... a super duper long one-shot...
Chiro: -_-
Tauria: heh, heh. Anyway, I'm not too happy with certain parts of it, but... I did the best I could with a one-shot. I wanted to elaborate more, but I didn't want to over do it, and not work on my other stories...
Chiro: -sigh- Tauria doesn't own SRMT
When All Is Lost...
"It's the final stand," Chiro said. "After today, the war between the living and the dead will end... One of us has to die," he said softly, waiting for the villain to approach.
Things did not look good for the allies and Hyper Force. All of the army they had built up had been captured or killed.. It had started with the pilots, as they were usually searching the planet for scouts. They had been easily taken out at first, but they had gotten smarter. But eventually only Sprx was left. Then ground patrol had been taken out. Then the scientists were targeted, and no one knew how it was happening. They still didn't know. It continued like this, with people disappearing overnight, with no noticeable pattern no matter how many scan Gibson had ran. It had continued until all that remained was the original team, and Jinmay.
Today they would make their final stand, and live or die. Shuggazoom's freedom or eternal slavery. That was their options. It was a no brainer.
"Are you sure this scheme will work, Gibson?" Antauri asked calmly, gazing out to the horizon as Skeleton King and Mandarin approached.
"Of course," Gibson said softly. "It has to work... I spent months on this... I've done the very best that I could with this plan..."
"We know, brain strain. We know..." Sprx swallowed. "I don't want to be the pessimistic one, but... just in case... I want to say it's been great working with you guys. You're all family to me... Even you brain strain... And Nova... I love you."
"I love you too, Sprx," Nova said quietly.
"And remember... no monkey team member is ever alone," Antauri said quietly. "And death is only the start of a much greater journey."
"You guys have been my family too... Different species or not," Chiro said, swallowing.
"It's been wonderful having brothers and a sister like all of you," Gibson agreed.
"And it has been wonderful spending time with you all," Jinmay nodded. "I love you Chiro."
"And I love you, Jinmay."
"Yeah... We're all one big family... And we'll see this through the end." Otto said. "Despite what might happen..."
Then, the Skeleton King approached. "Hello, Hyper Force."
"Skeleton King." Chiro acknowledged.
"So it is here we have our final battle... you will lose."
"I don't think so," Chiro growled.
"Banter is always fun... but why don't we just cut to the chase," Sprx snarled.
"For once, I agree with you," Mandarin sneered.
It did not take long for the battle to start in full force. Skeleton King, being the dirty, under-handed villain he was, called an army, and they fought for hours, upon hours, but the Hyper Force came out victorious. No one had noticed Mandarin's sudden leave from the battle. No one noticed Skeleton King's evil smirk. But everyone heard the loud explosion that had echoed through the planet. It signaled the loss of Shuggazoom's heroes... The loss of the war... The loss of freedom... and worst of all... The loss of hope.
Only one member of the Hyper Force survived... and that was Jinmay. But only because Skeleton King had plans for her. He would show Shuggazoom what had become of their beloved Hyper Force, by the grieving and imprisonment of Jinmay, Shuggazoom's last hope. It was now that Skeleton King was truly a king. It was now that he could begin his plans to rule the Universe. It was now that he could finally show the world their worst nightmare. It was now that the Hyper Force was gone.
-o-
Three Years Later
Three years later, Skeleton King had every citizen in Shuggazoom working for him. They did whatever he told them, and those who didn't were sent to holding cells, to wait for the torture chamber. Those that continued to disobey, were executed. Eventually, most Shuggazoomians succumbed to his will. But there was that foolhardy person every once and a while.
His dungeon was designed in a very simple manner. The first floor was used for the holding cells, the second was where he sent those to be executed, and the third only had one way to enter, and none knew that way but Mandarin and Skeleton King. That was the chamber used for the allies. There was also a food drop, since it was really just one big cell at the end of a hall. Most of the allies had given up hope by now, but a few still dared to hope.
Jinmay usually sat in a corner, and thought about everything that had happened. She had tried being strong at first... Tried rallying people, tried convincing herself that Chiro and the Monkey Team were not truly dead, but... it had all failed in the end. Every great once and a while, she would talk about an old adventure, or try and raise people's hopes, but truthfully? She hadn't had much hope herself since Chiro and the team had died. It was no wonder that it didn't work on the others.
"The ships are ready when you are, my lord," the orange monkey said. He looked as if he was wearing an armor of bone, and one of his eyes had been permanently injured, making everything blurred from that side. One of his hands was like a lobster or crab's claw (once again, made of bone) and the other hand was not. That hand currently rested on a key pad, that had been specifically designed for him.
"Send them off, Mandarin." A tall figure in a black cloak stood beside him. He wore a long dark cloak that covered from his shoulders down. His arms were pale and bluish, and a small rectangular device held his cloak on. It flashed many different colors. His eyes were only the sockets, and were black as tar, and colder then a winters night. His head was a skull of crystal, and was a light purple. He held a staff in one hand.
Mandarin clicked a few buttons on the keypad, and several groups of ships left the Citadel, and headed towards the different planets they had been sent to. "Is there anything else, your excellency?"
"Yes... One last thing. There is a special book I need from the remains of the Super Robot. It will have not been destroyed by the explosion... It is a special Grimoire Gibson picked up along one of their travels. It has a few spells I would like to try out myself."
"Of course my lord. I will retrieve the book at once."
"Good. And when you get back, I will have another job for you... You shall find it much more challenging."
The orange monkey smirked and left the fortress. He headed towards the ruins of Shuggazoom. The new Shuggazoom had been built near the fortress, and was more like a prison then anything. Undead guard were everywhere, and a curfew had been put into place. Factories mainly populated the place, and some crops grew in some fertile land a few miles away. Civilians were shipped back and forth by buses each day to the crops.
Mandarin soon reached the city, and headed straight for the Robot. Even when it blew up, the Robot still stood. It was made with well-made armor, and the Skeleton King had confessed that he had no idea what it was made of. The Alchemist (who still lived in Skeleton King... though he was quite weak) was keeping it and may other things about the team from him. He still had not relinquished those secrets, and sometimes Mandarin doubted he ever would.
Mandarin entered the Robot, and quickly searched the place. The floor was covered in ashes, like it had snowed black instead of white. He soon found the book, and took it back to Skeleton King. He was delighted to find out what new evil this book could create.
-o-
"C'mon Jinmay? Just one more try," a young boy with red hair and green eyes said to the girl in the corner. "The others need your encouragement."
"Nothing ever works, Johnny. Just face it," Jinmay whispered. She had pink hair, which no longer stayed up in her usual pigtails. Her eyes, usually a pretty green, had dulled. "We're stuck here... Forever. Nothing I can say is going to change that."
"You need to give them hope... They need to know that they can still trust their Hyper Force... Even if only one member is left," Nee-Kee-Ta said.
"What good will hope do us at this point? There is no one out there to rescue us."
"When my village was being attacked by the Mantadons, we had lost all hope that we could ever do anything about it. We were resigned to starvation... Resigned to the life we would leave," she said softly. "Then, Chiro came. He restored our hope, and helped us fight, despite the fact all of their powers had been drained. We were in a hopeless situation, and yet the appearance of the heroes... their determination... They brought our hope back. We need your help to restore the hope for these people."
Jinmay frowned. "But I'm not a hero like Chiro... Most of the time I wasn't even there for his adventures..."
"But you helped! You were there for more of his adventures then us... and besides, you can't just give up! You have to keep trying!"
"It's been three years... I'm all tried out..."
"Third time's the charm," Johnny Sunspot tried.
"Funny, but it didn't work."
The two sighed. They left.
"Well... once again, that's out..." Johnny frowned.
"We may as well look for a way out," Nee-Kee-Ta said.
Together they gathered the few who still believed they would one day get out, and be free again, and searched for a way out. Eventually, they got tired, and found places to sit. "We need to find a way out soon," Mobias Quint said. "Or I'm afraid there will be no one left to look."
Johnny nodded. "The numbers of those who want to help are dwindling... They're joining the others, in moping about..."
"Like that does us any good," Nee-Kee-Ta hissed a bit. Her tail twitched.
"Calm down, cat girl. We'll get out," Suupa said. "It might take a bit, but as long as all of us keep on going, then we'll have enough people."
"I just hope Jinmay snaps out of it..."
"We all do, Johnny. We all do."
-o-
Mandarin presented the Grimoire to Skeleton King. For a bit, they tried out the spells within the book, before he handed the book back to Mandarin.
There is another planet that I would like to take. It is called Earth, and is full to the brim of humans almost. However, they are not as technologically advanced as many of the human planets we have conquered. I want you to find out what the planet is like, on all the different parts you can get to. Once you give me a good report, I will begin creating an army, and you will cause mayhem with that book. Nothing obvious... Just curious happenings."
Mandarin bowed. "I will serve you well, my lord."
"See that you do. I will see you upon your return."
Mandarin bowed again, and left. He got everything ready for his journey, and headed towards planet Earth.
-o-
A boy with dark black hair and sapphire blue eyes walked down the street of the city he called home. He looked calm, and at ease, though he walked with a slight limp. It wasn't long before he approached one of the many houses down the block and went inside. "I'm home!" he called, placing his backpack on the ground.
A girl with blonde hair and blue eyes came in. "Good to see you Justin. It's about time you got home... Why don't you just take the bus?"
"I have to get used to walking on my leg again... If I don't, it won't work as good."
"So skipping the bus helps that?"
"Who are you, my mother?"
The girl rolled her eyes. "Come on. Aiden made snacks."
"Cool!"
She shook her head as they walked into the kitchen. "Would it kill you to take the bus?"
"Yes."
Another eye roll.
A boy with red hair and brown eyes gave them a slight wave. "Hey guys! Practicing with that leg again, Justin?"
"Sure am."
The boy laughed, then winked at the girl and said, "Lookin' good Em."
She rolled her eyes. "You just saw me five minutes ago."
He laughed. "Sorry Em. Can't help it."
"How's everyone doing?" Another black haired, blue eyed guy came in.
"Good... Great food by the way," the red haired kid said.
Aiden chuckled. "Thanks, Ryan. Justin, are you on that leg again?"
"We discussed this! I said I was gonna practice!"
"Yes, but that doesn't mean skip the bus. Keep it up and I'll let Nicolas know."
Justin gave a sheepish smile. "Got it. I'll take the bus."
A few hours later, Justin headed out on his usual walk, designed specifically by Nicholas to help his leg. However, about halfway into his walk, he heard a voice in the woods. It wasn't usually his style, but something compelled the boy to eavesdrop on the conversation.
"Yes, my lord. I have arrived on Earth. I will begin my research as soon as possible… I already know some, from the bit the databanks carry about this place."
"Very well," said a much colder voice. It was the kind that sent shivers up your spine. "I expect to hear from you in a week's time. That should be more than enough time to gather the research that you require."
"Yes, my lord."
The caller hung up, and the other speaker moved through the forest with ease, not leaving it, or going in Justin's direction. Justin let out the breath he did not realize he had been holding, and raced back home, no longer caring about what was good for his leg. He had just witnessed plans for the end of the world.
'It can't be… Not here… Not now…' were his only thoughts.
-o-
Mandarin spent the next week hacking databases, and doing some exploring. He learned everything and anything he could, avoiding humans at all costs. He didn't know how they would react to him, and did not want to start a panic… Nor alert them that there was an alien among them.
It was not long before he called his master. "I have gathered the necessary information. I have sent it to you via the usual methods."
"Well done, Mandarin. Now, begin causing mayhem… the army and I will be over as soon as we can."
"Of course my lord." Mandarin bowed and the phone call ended.
Mandarin grabbed the Grimoire. This was going to be fun.
-o-
"Jinmay," Chiro said softly, standing in front of the girl.
"Chiro? What are you doing here? You're supposed to be dead!"
"I know. But… I needed to tell you something. Something important."
"What is it?" Tears began forming in her eyes. Oh, it was so good to see him again, even if it was in a dream… She missed him so much…
"I need to tell you that you shouldn't give up hope… and don't let the others give up either. No shadow can last forever. The sun has to come out sooner or later. Be the sun Jinmay. Don't wait for someone else to be the sun."
"But… Chiro… I'm just one girl…"
"With an army at your back. You just have to know how to get them ready. Do your best. That's all I ask. Good luck."
"Wait!" She called.
He looked at her. She clutched him a tight embrace. He held her close.
"I miss you so much," she whispered.
"And I miss you, Jinmay."
She let him go, and kissed him briefly. "See you… someday."
He smiled, and left.
-o-
Jinmay awoke with a start. She headed over to where Johnny Sunspot, Nee-Kee-Ta, Suupa, and Mobius Quint sat. "I'm ready to try again," she said softly.
They looked up at her. Her eyes had brightened, and filled with hope and confidence. She certainly looked like she was ready.
"Alright. Let's go then."
Jinmay stood on top of some overturned crates at the back of the room, and got everyone's attention.
"Hiya guys… Look, I know that losing the Hyper Force was hard. They were really one of the few things that kept anyone hoping anymore. I understand that. I was disheartened for a long time afterwards. It was really tough. I had no idea what to do, or anything. All I could do was relive that moment in my head over and over and over. It was terrible… But, I was visited by a dream… A dream of Chiro. And I feel… I feel deep in my heart that it was truly him. He told me, that no shadow can last forever… One day the sun will come out. He told me that I don't need to wait for the sun, when I can be the sun. And now, I'm passing these words on to you. Who would want to stand by and wait when you could do something about it? I'm asking you all to put some faith in me, and the others who know that one day we can and will get out of here. It's time to show Skeleton King he's not as safe as he thought. We need to avenge the Hyper Force! To avenge all of the deaths that occurred! To avenge Shuggazoom! We need to prove to the world that we are going to fight. And fight we shall." Jinmay stepped down. It was nothing like her usual speeches… this one was much more passionate, and full of the life and vigor that the others had missed. It would take a while, but if Jinmay would stay in this spirit, it wouldn't be long at all.
Some of the people in the crowd, the ones who had only succumbed to weakness recently, were easily invigorated, but some of the others, weren't quite as easy. It took some time, a few months, but now… most of the allies were back in business. There were a few that still hadn't been convinced, but Jinmay said that they could convince them once they were out.
"Now, we can't move everyone, unfortunately, or Skeleton King would notice. We'll come back for the rest of you as soon as we can… Just don't lose hope, okay? Remember, you have to make your own light sometimes in a world of shadow." They nodded. Jinmay walked over to the small opening they had managed to create. A few of the allies climbed through, followed by Jinmay. "We'll return soon… I promise."
They raced to where the Monkey Team had hidden their weapons, and got as many as they could carry. "We can set up base in the old ruins… Too many people go there… I got it. We'll have to use the Alchemists lab until another base can be found."
They nodded, and headed there as quickly as possible. They ran into few guards, and soon reached what they were looking for.
-o-
"Are you sure you wanna do this?" Ryan said. "Your leg isn't ready yet…"
"Is Nick's invention ready yet?" Justin asked.
"Yeah… But… He says it may not work like the old one…"
"I don't care. That little orange creep needs to be stopped. "
"I agree but we can…"
"I want to be part of this. I don't wanna sit on the side lines this time."
"Alright… your call."
Justin and Ryan headed over to Nicholas's lab. "Are you ready, Justin?"
"As I'll ever be." He stood in the machine, and waited. Eventually, there was a strange tugging and twisting sensation in his leg. He nearly cried out at the pain it was causing him. He grit his teeth, wincing. Eventually, the pain stopped. Half concerned his leg had been torn off, he looked down. No… he was healed. His leg worked again. He grinned. "It worked, Nick!"
"Good," the man smiled. "Come on, Aiden said to meet him…"
They went to the living room with Nicholas, where everyone else was waiting.
"This is the day we have both dreaded and looked forward to since the day we arrived on Earth, so long ago, as refugees," Aiden said. "We must now take off our disguises, and get back in gear. We have some training to catch up on, that we were unable to do thanks to Chiro's leg."
The others nodded. Where five humans had been, five monkeys replaced them. Only Justin had not changed. Only Justin remained human. He pressed the pendant on his chest, and his outfit changed, and his hair became much spikier. They went down to the basement, where a special room was kept. They trained like never before.
The Hyper Force was back in business. And they were not gonna lose again.
-o-
Mandarin had been causing so much mayhem in the past few days, he was exhausted. He rested against one of the trees near his forest hideout. It was so much fun, using the book to make people shriek in fear, and panic… It was good, being a villain. Particularly when the Hyper Force was gone.
"Hello Mandarin."
Mandarin frowned. He knew that voice… but where… where could it be from… there is only one person he could think of, but that was nonsense… he was dead….
Mandarin opened his eyes and was met by none other than Chiro, the hero who was supposed to be dead.
"You're dead," he said.
"So was Skeleton King," came Chiro's retort.
"Hmm… Good point." Mandarin lunged at him with his claw.
Chiro blocked, wincing from the impact. He was out of practice. His leg had been out of commission for a long time, which meant fewer training sessions.
However, he had five monkeys to back him up. Once it seemed like Mandarin was getting the best of him, Nova delivered a quick punch, and Otto sliced off his claw. Mandarin retaliated by lunging at Otto, but was shot out of the way by Gibson. Chiro shot him with Chiro Spearo as he raced towards Gibson, and then Sprx hit him with 'Electro-Vibra Force!' Antauri used his claws to deliver the final blow. All of them were exhausted.
"We did good today team, despite the fact we're pretty out of shape. We'll mail the orange slime ball to a prison in a couple days. For now… do we have a cell that will hold him?"
"Sure do. It was in the ship we brought you in."
"Good… Do you have the Grimoire?"
"Sure do, Kid."
"Alright. Did you find anything else about his orders?"
"Yes… Skeleton King is scheduled to be here by tomorrow!"
Chiro cursed. "Alright, change of plans. Otto, are those ships you and Gibson have been working on ready?"
"Sure are Chiro."
"Good. Do they have weapons?"
"Plenty."
"One for each of us?"
"Yup."
"Good. Alright, let's load up. We've got some business to take care of."
-o-
"So, what are we doing first?" Mobius asked.
"Well, we need to get some more people. Just a few at a time, and from different areas…. Then we can start attacking supply ships, and taking out factories and stuff. But we need more people first."
"You got it. Where to first?"
She showed them on the map. "There."
They nodded.
The operation moved quickly and effortlessly. They got three families, and then left. They explained what was going on, and headed back to the lab.
From there, their freedom fighter organization only got bigger. They got more people, and freed more allies. They stopped executions, and took out supply ships. Skeleton King got smarter, but so did they. Each day, their plans got bigger. Each day, they struck new blows against Skeleton King. Each day, they got a few steps closer to freedom, even if it didn't feel like it.
-o-
One Year Later
The Hyper Force had been combating Skeleton King away from Earth… They had enlisted the help of the governments, having Otto build the army men ships. It was usually simple to show them what to do, and then they fought, keeping Skeleton King at bay. Soon enough, the attacks stopped. The team decided it was time to go home.
Abandoning their aliases as the Smith family, they left. Soon, Shuggazoom was once again in sight, after a three days travel (as well as a few minute pit stop to discard Mandarin). They landed, but were not met by happy cheers. Instead, a group of people surrounded the vehicle, demanding to know who they were and why they were there.
"They're not formless or undead," Chiro smiled slightly. "That's a good sign..."
Jinmay stepped through the crowd. "I demand that you show yourself, as the leader of the Freedom Fighters."
Chiro grinned. He stepped out. All of them gasped.
"W-who are you?" Jinmay growled. "Is this some kind of trick? A game? Well you know what... it's not funny."
"This isn't a game, Jinmay. The explosion... it didn't kill any of us. I don't think it's safe to talk here."
"Its not. Take us to the Alchemist's Lab. You can explain yourself there."
Chiro nodded. They headed back to the Alchemist's lab. Once there, a meal was brought, and Jinmay demanded that he explain.
"When the explosion happened, it didn't really affect the monkeys metal parts. They had some really bad burns, don't get me wrong. Antauri was the only one of us not that badly hurt. He got each one of us into a ship, and flew us off. He took care of everyone's wounds, but was at a loss of what to do with me. It was really bad. We almost had to amputate my leg, but thankfully, it healed. I got some pretty nasty scars though, and was in a wheel chair for two years. It wasn't safe for us on Shuggazoom, so we had to leave. We wanted to take you with us... We wanted to rescue everyone, but it was beyond our abilities then. Also... all of our spirits had taken a hard beating. We used the last name Smith, and each of us had an average sounding name... Sprx was Ryan Smith, Nova was Emily Smith, Antauri was Aiden Smith, Otto was Michael Smith, and Gibson was Nicholas Smith. We told them we didn't know our real last names, and that we just decided to share one, though none of us were related... When Mandarin came, my leg had only recently gotten to where I could walk on it. I had been doing everything I could to strengthen it, but after Skeleton King decided to take over Earth, we had to take a chance and use Gibson's newest Power Primate healing ability speed up machine. It worked, and we protected Earth. Then came back here."
Jinmay nodded. "I was in prison for three years after your disappearance. Many of the allies, including myself, had lost hope. I was one of them, until I received a dream..."
"I sent that," Chiro said.
"I guessed that. The dream bolstered my spirits, and helped me convince them everything was going to be okay. I escaped and since then we've been trying to rescue anyone we can, as well as stop him from getting his supplies... Now, we have a plan to get rid of Skeleton King once and for all.
"Let's hear it, then."
Jinmay smiled. She told it to them, not leaving out a detail.
-o-
Chiro awoke in a comfortable bed. He fidgeted.
"Chiro! You're awake!" Gibson smiled. "It's good to see you up again. You took quite the blow."
"Is Skeleton King gone?" Chiro croaked.
"Yes. The plan worked."
"Good..."
"Once your better, Jinmay says we have to start freeing the other planets he's taken."
"Of course."
"Now, drink this." Gibson gave the boy a glass of water.
Chiro eagerly downed it. He drank a few more glasses, and then sat up. He winced as his bruises hurt him, but since Gibson was making no moves to stop him he stood. Gibson helped him to where the others were waiting.
Jinmay gave him a gentle embrace. "Glad to see you up and about again."
"As am I," he chuckled.
After the rest of the greetings, Chiro said, "So what now?"
We Will Be There
Tauria: The ending really sucks, but it was the best I could come up with at the moment. I hope you like, even if I don't think this is my best work :)
Chiro: -shakes head-
Tauria: Anyway, like I said, random idea... That somehow turned into this. Please leave me a review telling me what you think!