I:Attack:

Chiro awoke from his rest with a start, and realized that Antauri was missing beside him. He saw that the fire on the log from their previous night had burnt out completely, and only a thin trail of white smoke arose from its charred black tip. He also noticed that the usual scarf around his neck was gone. He looked down at his hands- no gloves. He was out of hypermode. Someone must have powered him down when he was unconscious. Startled, Chiro bolted up from the ground and sprinted outside, only to find the silver monkey gathering a bunch of fruit and laid them neatly, on a leaf, beside him.

Chiro let out a breath of relief seeing that his mentor was alright.

Sensing that his leader had awoken, Antauri turned around and smiled, before levitating towards him and placing a few ripe, purple berries onto his palm.

"Do eat this," he said gently, "Gibson once told me that elderberries have incredible medicinal properties for flu."

Chiro scanned the foods in his hand and squeezed one of them between his fingers. Soft, mushy, and very purple. "I've never seen these before," he said curiously before popping one into his mouth, "hmm, sweet and sour at the same time."

"Glad you like it," the silver monkey replied and hovered to Chiro's eye level, placing a hand his forehead, "looks like your fever has gone down."

Chiro nodded and walked to the fruit pile, grabbing a coconut and cracking it open. He passed half to Antauri, who was levitating behind his shoulder. Smiling, Antauri gratefully accepted the offer.

"You look like you haven't slept at all last night." Chiro observed as he drank the sugary liquid. Feeling the cool juice finally flow down his parched throat, it was like being in heaven.

The silver monkey paused and looked at Chiro curiously. "How did you know?"

He tapped a hand to his chin, a habit Antauri recognized whenever Chiro was thinking. "Your movements are slower than usual," he pointed out, "and not to mention that there are dark circles under your... eyes?" The dark haired boy paused, realizing what he had said. He looked over to his mentor and raised a hand to gingerly touch the dark spot under Antauri's blue orbs.

"How is that possible," he breathed out, amazed, "Antauri this is awesome! I think that over these past few weeks your body is starting to become more... organic! Do you know what this means?"

His brain quickly connected all the dots and he cannot help but grin at the outcome. "That means that you're becoming more like the others now! Now nobody can say that you're a machine anymore!"

Antauri kept his gaze straight.

"I can't say that I am very different from the others to begin with." He placed a hand on his torso, and continued. "At the very least, what defines a machine as fully mechanical is their inability to feel emotions. No matter how advanced their wiring can be, a machine is merely another one of mankind's creations. It is made to follow and obey orders without their own will. However," Antauri paused, and Chiro could see his eyes softening, "the silver monkey has allowed me to continue and experience feelings of my own. For example, when you are sick, I feel worried and try to look for ways to cure you. When you are happy, I share the same joy, and when you are stressed out, I am willing to share the burden with you.

Ultimately, even though our bodies differ in composition, we really are more similar than we think."

Chiro ran his hand through his hair as he contemplated Antauri's words. "I guess so," he looked down at the ground longingly, shoulders sagging, "I just wish that the others will know that too."

"Fret not," Antauri replied gently and folded his hands onto his lap, "they will come to, eventually."

Chiro looked up at his mentor. Perhaps it would be wise to allow some time for the others to accept Antauri's new body. He watched as the silver monkey hovered back down onto the floor and resumed his work with the fruits. Sitting beside him, Chiro took the fruit from Antauri's hands and smiled reassuringly.

"I'll handle this," he said, "you need to get some rest."

Before Antauri could protest, Chiro shot him a concerned gaze. "We cannot fight in this condition," the teenager repeated playfully, mimicking Antauri's firm tone from the previous night, "so you need to deactivate and let your body recharge. Then, we can go and find the rest of the team."

"Maybe I have trained you a little too well," Antauri chuckled, but stood up from the floor and made his way to the shelter, "I will let my energy cell recharge. Meanwhile, don't go wondering around, alright? We don't know what adversary is looming out there."

"Yea, sure," Chiro replied casually with a small wave, "I'll wake you up when something happens."

Hearing his mentor's footsteps getting more and more distant, Chiro concentrated on peeling inedible skin off the fruits. Sometimes Antauri tended to work too hard for his own good, so he had made sure long ago to keep an eye out for the second-in-command. It was another one of the mental notes he had added in his mind over the years to look out for his teammates- stop Otto if he ate more than two bags of candy, give Nova a comforting pat on the shoulder whenever her temper shot up, or bring Sprx supper on Thursdays because the red monkey would usually skip dinner for his weekly 9PM drama series.

It was all these traits which made each member unique in their own way, and Chiro had come to love all of them.

Just like how the sun slowly climbed the sky and light started beating down mercilessly on the dark haired teenager's back, time flew by as well. Since his hours weren't spent on thinking about their next battle strategy but instead gathering all the necessary supplies for survival, the afternoon came quicker than he realized. Chiro took a sip of water he had found in a nearby lake and wiped the sweat streaming down his forehead. Noticing that the temperature had risen considerably, he peeled off his red verst and walked inside the shelter for some shade.

The silver monkey's back was leaned toward one wall of the hut, sitting up straight. Its deep blue orbs were empty, and the back's compartment was open, revealing an energy cell connected to different colored wires. Even though there was no supply of electricity available, Antauri was able to recharge his energy cells using fuel stored inside the body- an upgrade that he had requested to Otto after they left Kathori in the safe hands-paws- of Neekita and the rest of her clan.

It was a brilliant idea, and Otto immediately started working on upgrading the silver monkey. One thing that Chiro despised about the upgrade, however, was that Antauri had to be completely shut down once the process started. Seeing Antauri's eyes completely blank reminded him too much of the day that Antauri had fallen into the Dark One's egg, the day when Chiro thought that he had lost his second-in-command forever.

The memories of that day were haunting. The brutal stab by Mandarin, the loss of the Power Primate, and Antauri's sacrifice. Had his mentor not come back, Chiro is not sure if these wounds will ever heal.

The teenager gave himself a pinch on the cheek to prevent his mind from dwelling further into the memories. Everything that happened was in the past. Over. All he needed to do was to make sure it did not occur again. Chiro gazed at the silver monkey worriedly and curled his fingers into a fist.

After a short while, a soft, whirring noise resounded throughout the forest. An android, about a meter tall, emerged from the trees. Its glowing red eyes picked up an inhabited campsite, and traces of infrared radiation around a hut. It zoomed in onto the hut, spotting two figures inside. A tall outline of a boy, and a much shorter outline of another machine beside him. The android nodded in confirmation, and beckoned to the rest of its comrades. They slipped out of sight and into the bushes, an army of five hundred, crawling through them and toward the campsite.

Target spotted.

The sound of metal footsteps caught Chiro's attention. He pressed the badge on his chest for transformation and walked outside, assessing his surroundings cautiously. Nothing. He could have sworn he heard noise but-

A bullet whizzed past, nearly a few inches away from his shoulder.

The androids moved as one, revealing themselves. Slowly, they popped up from under the bushes, loaded ammunition into their metallic arms, and aimed directly at Chiro.

Threat detected. Target locked on.

Chiro licked his dry lips and realized that the android bodies were of similar colors of what the Probe once used to look like- different shades of green. He was heavily outnumbered, surrounded in a circle, one against a few hundred. It was like fighting a losing battle, but he knew he couldn't retreat, not when Antauri was still defenseless. All he could do was hold them off until the silver monkey was fully charged.

Chiro felt around in his pocket and fished out a weapon. He gazed at the knife in his hand. The world has snapped into sharp focus. He could feel the breeze in his hair, and hear the locking of bullets. When he looked at an android, he saw his training opponent back in the Super Robot, and much less of an enemy.

He glided forward with the wind, not wasting even a fraction of a second. His steps are light on the grass. He will aim for the left torso. Not immediately fatal, but enough to paralyze the android and overheat its system, causing a slight explosion. He is five steps away now. Four. Three. On two, he stepped harder, picking up speed to add momentum to the blow. The android straightened up, but it was too late. Chiro thrusted the knife heavily into its body, and pulled out with the same strength.

He jumped up high enough to land on a nearby tree, barely able to avoid being blown up into a million pieces.

Chiro flinched as he saw a few of the android's surrounding comrades get burnt. He shook himself out of it, ran over to another opponent who was about to shoot, and repeated the same actions. Attack before being attacked was the wisest action he could partake in this situation. For now.

When he has destroyed about almost over a hundred of the androids, the first signs of muscle aches start to appear. Using both the knife and his powers took a heavy toll on his body. Panting for breath, Chiro started to aim for an opponent on his right when it dodged faster than he's ever seen something move. Its arm rockets into his stomach, the back of its other hand catching him across the cheekbone. Blue sky and green grass flip back and forth across his vision as he tumbled head over heels. When he gets back up, the back of his head is thudding painfully. Another heavy kick landed on his shoulder before he felt something penetrate through his left ankle.

A bullet.

It was a dull, deadened sensation as Chiro tried to move his injured foot. There was no pain, but he could sense that the bullet was deeply lodged into his bone, like his whole foot had been removed. Warm blood which seeped through the white fabric of his pants turned it crimson red. Chiro took one step forward, and fell down back onto the ground, unable to stand. He gritted his teeth. Damn.

"Chiro!"

Antauri's pupils flickered back into life as he saw his leader being assaulted by an army of androids. He quickly stood up and rushed to Chiro's side, activating a purple energy shield which formed a dome around them, just in time as a rain of bullets came splattering down.

"Antauri!" Chiro's eyes widened as he saw his mentor holding up the shield with a deep violet ghost claw. "You can't be out here! They're coming for you! It's too dangerous!"

"I am not intending to leave you alone," the silver monkey replied, his eyes narrowing slightly in worry at the sight of Chiro's injury, "not with that wound."

Chiro felt his heart beat speed up as he watched Antauri strengthen the shield with another claw. The androids' attack became fiercer, drowning his head with noise. He swallowed. He couldn't lose Antauri, not again, not after he had worked so hard to get his second-in-command back.

"As your leader, that is an ORDER!"

Chiro's voice came out fierce and loud, a kind of tone he had never heard himself use before. Antauri hesitated for a fraction of a second, but firmed his resolve. There were orders he absolutely could not obey, and this was one of them.

"I-"

Before he could reply, the androids stopped shooting. At that moment, Antauri quickly deactivated his shield and picked Chiro up by the waist, jumping back a few feet away to put more space between them. Chiro got up shakily on his feet, and prepared to throw a lightning bolt at the enemies. What he didn't realize was one android which snuck up behind him. It raised one hand and landed a heavy blow on the teenager's head, knocking him out cold. Chiro felt his knees crumple underneath him and his whole body hit the ground, before being enveloped by darkness.

Antauri screeched in alarm.

The androids started to close in, like predators cornering their pray, hungry for bloodlust.

Threat injured. Must eliminate completely.

Knowing that he couldn't destroy them all, Antauri went on the defense. He got on all fours and crouched in front of Chiro's unconscious figure, baring his metallic fangs at the approaching enemies.

"You will not touch the boy," he growled threateningly in an animal-like manner, eyeing the enemy sharply, "I won't let you."

As one android raised its arm, Antauri instinctively moved closer toward Chiro. He bent lower down, just to offer more protection. The silver monkey dug his toes into the ground, and snarled fiercely at the approaching android.

Elimination process. Begin.

This time, thin, red lazer beams shot out of their eyes. Antauri barely had enough time to use his telekinesis to make another energy barrier as one beam almost penetrated through. It took everything in his power to strengthen the shield as the androids wasted no time in heightening their attack intensity into more forceful ones. Thicker red beams tried to permeate through Antauri's blockade to no avail, but the silver monkey knew he couldn't hold this up for long. He needed to find a blind spot for retreat, and he needed it now.

Thinking quickly, his eyes darted around for an opening, a small space, anything, which could allow them to escape. He started to grow worried when there were no possible escape routes. The androids had them sealed shut in their offensive circle. If there was any way that he could-

"Surrender. And we will stop this. Elimination process."

A high pitched mechanical voice spoke up abruptly as all the other androids lowered their weapons in one swift motion . A taller, broader android –the leader, Antauri presumed- made its way to the front of the circle. Antauri kept his shield up, just in case.

"Remove your defense. And the boy will remain. Untouched."

The silver monkey scoured his brain for the plausible consequences. None of the options seemed ideal, but they were backed into a corner. He hardly even had a choice in this situation. Taking a deep breath, he knew what he had to do.

"Chiro," Antauri whispered as he turned towards his leader, untying the scarf around his neck and quickly wrapped it on the wound to stop the bleeding, "I am so sorry."

The silver monkey withdrew his energy barrier. A second later he felt his arms being bound by heavy metal chains as the androids pushed him forward, ushering him to walk with them toward the forest. As a last resort, Antauri quickly sent out a signal- successful this time- to the rest of the team using his antenna ears, and prayed silently that they would arrive soon.

Elimination process, halted. Target captured. Mission: Successful. Return back to base, now.

88888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888

A/N: This chapter is so heavily focused on Antauri/Chiro hmm. Other characters will show up in the next chap ;) I really love it when the monkeys are acting like... monkeys. It's adorable when they run on all fours. Also wanted to liken Antauri's maternal protective instincts to that of a wild animal (idk, lioness?) when she and her child are surrounded by predators. It just seems more natural this way when robot monkeys are pushed to the edge- they revert back to Nature's way of protecting their young. Anyway, hope you enjoyed this :) Thanks for reading!