A/N: yet another late chapter - and again, I'm sorry about that. But hey, busy times cannot last forever, right? Right...?


"I suppose this should be enough to illustrate the situation," Senior said with a grim expression as he looked away from the images on the screen – he had seen enough already. But on the other hand, he had figured out it would be a good idea letting Monkey Fist see with his own eyes what the Lowardians – what only two Lowardians and their weapons – had been capable of in only a handful of minutes. He needed to know something more about the enemy they were facing, after all.

Monkey Fist didn't reply immediately, his eyes fixed on the screen, his expression unreadable. "Only two of them did this?" he finally asked, observing the ruins of what had probably once been a mall.

"Not precisely – it was only two of them, but they had hundreds, maybe thousands pods like the one you saw earlier. I don't know how, but they had managed to shut off the power on the whole planet, and they caught us by surprise. We couldn't put up much resistance," the old man said with a shrug, his grim expression turning into a slightly amused one as Hana began playing with his ascot, cheerfully babbling something.

Monkey Fist scowled at the child – he had to think of a way to dispose of her sooner or later, he decided – before turning back to the screen. "I must admit it's quite impressive," Monkey Fist admitted, barely holding back a smirk – once he gained control of the Power of Yono, that would seem nothing "then again, the fact they were indeed stopped by Drakken makes it seem…less admirable."

Senior raised an eyebrow. "Do you think of this as…admirable, Lord Fiske?"

"Page," Hana muttered, and the Monkey Fist grimaced for a moment before replying.

"Don't you?" the monkey man simply said, gesturing to the screen "as a villain, you will certainly agree that it is quite impressive, although not as much as the Power of Yono once I'll unleash it," he allowed himself to smirk at the thought, and he suddenly felt eager to start working on his powers again, even though the training room Senior had reserved to him hadn't been set up yet.

The old man sighed. "I have to admit that it is impressive, and that I could have even admired their efficiency. But, at the light of the recent--" he trailed off as he saw Monkey Fist's posture suddenly stiffen, his smirk turning into a frown as he stared at the screen. Senior followed his gaze, and he sighed as he realized what picture he was staring at. "Sadly, nothing was safe during the attack, and many invaluable treasures were destroyed all over the world. A shame, a terrible shame," he said, shaking his head.

Monkey Fist was barely listening to him, his eyes fixed on the ruins of what had been the East Wing of the British Museum. He didn't speak for a few minutes, and when he spoke again his voice was shaking in suppressed anger. "They wiped away the treasures of over two million years of history," he seethed, gritting his teeth "from all over the world."

Senior raised an eyebrow, mildly surprised. He knew that Monkey Fist had no qualms stealing from museums if he needed some mystical item, and he had never seemed to care if items he didn't have any use for could be damaged, thus he was surprised to see how much the destruction of so many artefacts seemed to anger him. Then again, the old man thought as he shifted Hana in his other arm, he had once been an archaeologist, an explorer and, to a certain extent, a naturalist – some habits die hard, after all.

He was about to speak, but before he could utter a single word the door buzzed open and a rather nervous-looking WEE agent – agent Delta, according to the uniform – walked in. "Excuse me, sir – the training room has been settled up," he informed them, and Senior nodded.

"Very well, thank you. If you wish to rest another while before--" he began, turning to Monkey Fist, but the monkey man immediately trailed him off.

"I've rested enough already. If you'll excuse me, I better be going," he said dryly, a grim expression still on his face as he walked past the WEE agent and through to the door.

"Wow, I wouldn't want to be the one that guy is mad at," agent Delta said, whistling – what the heck, he could at least stop being all uptight while Gemini wasn't around.

"Neither would I," Senior said with a sigh, reaching out to switch off the screen and sitting back with Hana on his knees "I only hope his anger will work for us and not against us."

"Oh," the agent seemed suddenly unsure and glanced down at the child. Gemini hadn't let them know much about the details, but after trading some information with a few GJ agents – and man, they all better hope neither Dr. Director or Gemini would ever know about it – he knew that the monkey man seemed to possess some kind of ancient power and that the child was the key to control him…or something close, anyway. It was something so hard to believe that they all had their good share of doubts.

"Is there anything you need?" Senior asked, noticing the agent hadn't moved from his spot.

"I…" the agent blinked in surprise, used as he was to Gemini's lack of patience and imperious orders "well, I was wondering…is it true that you can keep him in check by using the kid against him?" he dared to ask,.

Senior nodded, his lips pulled in a tight line as he glanced down at the giggling child. "Yes, it is – but I hope it won't be necessary. I don't fancy the idea of using a little girl as a weapon."


"C'mon, Wade, we gotta keep trying! You said you'd help me," Ron protested as Wade shut off the robots.

"Ron, let's take a break – we aren't getting anywhere here," Wade said with a sigh, leaning back against the seat and scratching his head as he observed the still intact – and now deactivated – training robot in the middle of the room "I don't understand – why can't you make that happen anymore?"

"I don't know," Ron repeated for what felt like the millionth time, a frustrate grimace on his face as he glanced down at his hands "Sensei said I'm blocking it myself, or something like that, but he said nothing I could do to unblock it."

"Nothing?"

"Okay, fine, maybe he said something, but it was the usual stuff about destiny and acceptance and whatnot, but…really, you know me, I don't get that stuff," he said with a somewhat sheepish grin before frowning again "he makes it sound like it's no big deal, but I don't know what to do. It's always been a come and go thing. I cannot control it," he said with a sigh. If Wade couldn't come up with something, no one else could – no one but Money Fist, and he wasn't exactly dying to ask his own arch-enemy to help him gaining control of a power he had stolen from him right under his nose.

"Hmm…" Wade thought for a few moments, tapping his chin – not that coming up with something was easy for him: honestly, magic was not his field "you know, maybe you're trying too hard now. After all, when you first used this…power, you didn't even know you were using it. It wasn't your own will to trigger it. Maybe you should keep training with your battlesuit for now – I could shut it off at some point without warning, and maybe you'd use your powers without realizing it. It could be dangerous situations to trigger it."

Ron's face immediately brightened. "Yeah, that could work!" he said enthusiastically "let's give it a try!"

"Okay, get ready, I'm reactivating the robots in three…two…one…"


BOOM!

"Eep!" Drakken shrieked, stumbling forward and immediately crawling over the nearest table as a sudden explosion caused the walls of the lab to shake. "What…?"

"Och, blue boy, watch it!" Killigan snapped, getting up from the floor and glaring at him – it looked like he hadn't been the only one to stumble on the ground "are ye trying to kill us?" the golfer shouted, quickly glancing at the corner where DNAmy was working until a moment before. "Are ye alright, lass?" he asked. Not that he cared, of course, it was just…well…

Amy nodded, coughing a little because of the smoke. "Yes, I'm fine. What happened? Did anyone get hurt?"

"Blue boy made stuff blow up. Again."

"Whoa, Drew, I thought you learned to keep this stuff from happening, seriously!" Motor Ed protested "and now I let the screwdriver fall into the engine – I'll have to make a mess to get it back!" he complained.

"Hey, it wasn't me!" Drakken protested, getting back on his feet and brushing his lab coat "I wasn't even touching anything, I was just--"

"Let ze loser alone, it vasn't him – he vouldn't have ze brains to come up vith zhis!" Dementor cut him off, stepping in the middle of the lab with a triumphant grin on his face – well, on the portion of his face they could see – and holding up something vaguely resembling to a bazooka.

"So it was ye who made this mess!" Killigan shouted, "what the heck were ye thinking, ye--"

"Hey, wait – was it the Lowardian stuff samples that you made blow up?" Motor Ed asked, turning to look at a corner of the lab where they had put some samples of Lowardian material for testing their weapons – it was empty, and the ground was blackened by the explosion.

"Looks like you're smarter zan your cousin," Dementor said with a grin, still holding up that…bazooka?

"Hey, that's not true! I'm more smarter than him!" Drakken protested, and Killigan snickered at Motor Ed's annoyed expression.

"More smarter?" Dementor repeated with laugh "ja, zat really proves how smart you are!"

"Uh?" Drakken gaped, not quite getting what his rival was alluding to for a moment.

"Seriously, Drew, you're getting English grammar lessons from a non-native speaker!" Motor Ed pointed out, grinning a little – that was what he got by claiming he was smarter than him. Seriously.

"Aye, I wouldn't brag about being smart if I were ye," Killigan grinned, leaning more comfortably against the wall – he had to admit, watching those two bantering was quite fun once you got used to it.

"Oh," was all Drakken said before shrugging "well, don't change subject – we're talking about being evil here, not about grammar, and I'm a smarter than you are!" he said triumphantly.

"You're not! You're just a…!"

"They really should stop being so mean to each other," Amy said, shaking her head a little "why can't we all get along?"

"Because we're bad guys and not a bunch of do-gooders?" Killigan suggested.

"Oh, right. Good point," she said with a shrug before turning to look at him with a bright smile "but I still think you're a real softie inside!" she added, poking his shoulder.

"Not again, lass!" Killigan grunted, but it did nothing to stop her giggling. Why couldn't she stop being so disturbingly cheerful anyway? And why the heck did she think he had gone soft or something? Soft. Him. The thought was just laughable.

"Seriously, stop yelling you two," Motor Ed finally spoke up, stepping forward with as if to prevent the two rivals to harm physically harm each other "what was up with the explosion anyway? You could have totally told us you got something without trying to blow us up. Seriously."

Dementor didn't even seem to hear his complaints, and his satisfied grin showed back on his face as he was reminded of the reason why the arguing had started in the first place. "Zat was just a little demonstration," he said, holding up the weapon he had been holding the whole time "behold my…er…vell, it still needs a name, but…behold!"

"Hey, careful with that thing – don't point it at me," Drakken protested, stepping behind Motor Ed – who, on the other hand, didn't really seem impressed.

"A bazooka? Dude, I don't think that would work against aliens. I mean, seriously. They surely tried it out already last time."

"Zhis is not a bazooka! It's…vell…just look!" Dementor exclaimed, pointing the weapon towards some samples of Lowardian metal that had once been part of a pod. Something similar to a bright yellow ray came out from the weapon and hit the Lowardian materials. For a moment nothing happened, then the scraps of…whatever it was turned white hot only for a moment before exploding.

"See?" Dementor said triumphantly, turning to look at the others "it accelerates ze moleculesuntil zey lose cohesion, and ze result--"

"…is an explosion," Killigan finished, looking actually impressed for once "ye know, this is a really good one!"

"Of course," Dementor boasted "and ve could buy much larger ones! And zey only vork vith ze molecules of ze alien materials – no risks of accidents vith zhis!" he added, pointing the gun at Drakken to prove his point. His rival yelped and raised his hands as if it could really protect him somehow, but nothing happened as they ray hit him.

"Ooh, this is really smart," Amy said, looking rather impressed.

"Yeah, imagine their faces when their stuff blows up in their hands – this totally takes the cake, seriously," Motor Ed said, giving Dementor a thumbs up and gaining himself a glare from his cousin.

"It doesn't – my acid is better," he protested "and I have the Flower Power!" he added for good measure.

"It burns, doesn't it?" his rival taunted him, clearly satisfied by the fact he had managed to outshine him again. Not that he ever doubted he would, of course.

"It doesn't – everyone knows I'm the genius here!" Drakken said, folding his arms with a grimace and glancing away, ignoring the fact no one in the lab was paying any attention to the argument anymore. Well no one but Frugal Lucre, but it didn't mean much since he had just walked back inside the lab and hadn't seen the whole argument anyway.

"You vish," Dementor muttered before turning his back at him, a broad grin still on his face.

"I think you are the greatest genius," Frugal Lucre muttered, but his words only made Drakken roll his eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, thanks," he muttered sulkily before falling silent, faintly wondering if Shego would drop by to visit anytime soon.


Despite the anger still consuming him, Monkey Fist couldn't hold back a satisfied smirk as he landed on his palms and then sprang back on his feet, the robot's head rolling on the ground to hit the wall nearby – despite the months of immobility, his body seemed to be responding well to the training: the only effect had been having his muscles stiff and aching for a while, but now that he was getting used to moving again he was certain he would be back in shape in no time.

His smirk, however, vanished as his eyes rested on what was left of the robot. Oh, how wished it was one of those aliens, he thought in anger before quickly shaking his head as if trying to clear his thoughts.

He wasn't quite sure of why witnessing the destruction they had caused to the British Museum – and most likely to many other museums and archaeological sites around the globe – bothered him so much: if he ever had to, he knew he would have destroyed anything in his way. He probably shouldn't even have cared, but there was a part of him that was crying out in outrage upon witnessing the loss of so many treasures.

"Old habits are hard to get rid of, I suppose. But they will pay. I swear they will," Monkey Fist muttered aloud, still glancing in distaste at the remains of the robot. He had never been fond on such technology and he had always disliked the idea of using a robot for training – how useful could it be, fighting and unanimated object without even a brain? – but it seemed to be his only choice for now. For a moment he had considered asking for his monkey ninjas to be brought there for him to train with them, especially since they probably hadn't had a proper training session in months, but he had eventually decided against it: his new powers could show up unexpectedly, and that would put anyone training with him in mortal danger.

He better keep training with unanimated objects until he could control his powers – and after that, he could turn his attention to…other targets. A grin curled his lips at the thought, but it quickly vanished as he turned to glance at the scrolls he had brought with him in the training room. No matter how well his body was working with simple training, he still couldn't manage to unleash the Power of Yono: he had tried during the training already, but he had no success.

No matter, he thought, sitting on the ground and picking up a scroll. It's here – I know it is. I only have to learn out to unlock it, and these scrolls are the key. They have to be.


Dr. Director sighed as she leant back o her seat, thankful of the fact Senior's lair had a small screen in each room to communicate with the outside – should any of her agents ever witness her current conversation, she was pretty sure she wouldn't be able to show her face in the GJ headquarters again without causing some snickering.

"Yes, mom, I did have breakfast – and yes, I'm fine," she said, holding back a sigh as she glanced at the aging woman on the screen. She didn't exactly know what had made her think it would have been nice contacting her mother in the protected location she was to reassure her she was fine, but she was regretting it already.

"How are things going there?" she asked, taking a mental note to make sure Team Possible could contact their families as well – after all, they had been taken there without even getting a chance to say goodbye to their loved ones. As much as she hated to think about it, she knew there could be no other chance for them to speak with their families.

Her mother shrugged. "Oh, fine enough, but it's kind of boring. These people won't tell me anything," she said, glaring sideways to a few GJ agents to her left.

"Mom, it's the protocol – civilian are not to be informed unless the danger is immediate," Dr. Director repeated for the seventh time.

"Oh, you and your protocols," her mother rolled her eyes in mock exasperation, chuckling a little, then she changed subject "how about Sheldon? Is he there too?"

Thinking about it, Dr. Director would have rather had her keep asking if she did have breakfast or if she has spotted any 'interesting guy'.

"He's in another area," she lied quickly – she knew their mother had not idea her son really was a criminal, but she couldn't remember what lie Gemini had told her about his…job "he's fine. I'll tell him you asked."

Her mother nodded with a sigh. "You two never stop to get me worried," she said with a smile before turning serious "Betty, I want you to be honest – how bad is the situation?"

Dr. Director hesitated – it was confidential information she couldn't share with a civilian, but she knew her mother wouldn't accept that explanation. "Things are under control for now," she just said, then she forced herself to smile a little "don't worry for me and Sheldon, we'll be fine."

The older woman nodded. "I understand. Tell Sheldon I said hi, and…well, take care of yourselves."

"We will, don't worry."

"And, Betty?"

"Yes?"

"I'm proud of you. Of both of you."


"That guy is going to be in deep trouble if he doesn't show up in five minutes," Gemini muttered to no one in particular as he absentmindedly scratched Pepe's head, causing the chihuahua to yelp in appreciation. Frugal Lucre was supposed to bring him out for a walk, but he hadn't shown up yet. He was going to remind him how little patience he had as soon as he showed up – why on Earth had he decided to hire that incompetent fool anyway? Oh, yes – because Pepe seemed to like him as a chew toy. The thought made him smirk a little, but his smirk turned into an annoyed frown as someone knocked.

"Who's there?"

"Agent Gamma, sir – a package was delivered for you from the Hench Co."

Gemini blinked – he hadn't been expecting anything from the Hench Co. – before pressing a button to open the door. "Leave it here and get lost," he ordered as agent Gamma nervously stepped in and put the package on the desk "if you meet Lucre, tell him he better be here in a minute if he doesn't want to be obliterated."

"Yes sir," agent Gamma said quickly before stepping outside, clearly relieved by the fact nothing he had said or done had caused Gemini's anger. Alright, they weren't in the WEE headquarters and there were no trapdoors their leader could use to dispose of them, but that mechanical hand of his was still dangerous.

"Now, what do we have here?" Gemini muttered, letting Pepe sit on the desk and reaching to open the package, and he frowned in confusion as he saw a mechanical hand inside, identical to his own "what…?"

"I figured out you might want to have it improved – just in case of emergency," a known voice said behind him as the screen on the desk switched on, causing Gemini to grin.

"Jack," he greeted, turning back to the screen "you have a perfect timing, as usual."

Jack Hench chuckled. "A good timing is essential for any businessman. You should know."

"I see," Gemini said before turning his attention back to the new mechanical hand "improved, you said?"

"Yes. We changed the explosive in the missiles with the one Killigan came up with, since it can damage Lowardian materials, and we made it more resistant and able to carry more ammunitions. And, if you look closer, you can see a small button near the wrist…yes, that one. It can create a small force field as a shield."

"Seems amazing," Gemini's grin widened as he took off his mechanical hand from the stump and replaced it with the new one "but I guess it shouldn't surprise me. How much do I owe you?"

Jack Hench dismissively waved his hand. "We'll talk about the price later – you're a good customer."

Gemini raised an eyebrow. "Good?"

Hench chuckled. "You know what I mean," he said before pausing, observing him as he began to try out his new hand "my offer of giving you a bionic eye is still valid," he finally said "I'd make you a good price."

Gemini grinned, still flexing his mechanical fingers. "I'm flattered, but the answer is no," he clenched his new hand, clearly satisfied by it. Not that he expected any less from the Hench Co. "this is enough already."

Hench didn't seem surprised by his answer. "I see. I suppose not even offering you that bionic eye for free would make you change you mind, would it?"

"No. It isn't about money," Gemini said, his left hand reaching up to touch his eye patch "it's a reminder."

"It happened years ago," Jack Hench said reasonably, but he knew it was a lost cause. He liked to think of himself as a neutral, successful businessman that simply did his job, and he had always thought of villainy as a business that – like all kind of businesses – should be separated by personal issues. He would have normally told Gemini that there was no need to hold grudge, that it had been just business – losing limbs was one of the risks villains were subjected to, after all – but he had known the leader of WEE long enough to know such arguments wouldn't work with him. After all, his rivalry with the head of Global Justice was personal and far from being 'just business'.

"A good reason why I should be reminded of who's my enemy every day," was Gemini's predictable reply.

Hench sighed. "You're too stubborn for your own good," he said, but he didn't insist any further.

Gemini frowned. "You're starting to sound like my sister," he pointed out "and that is bad. As in a bad way of bad, not a good way of…er…" he paused, then he shrugged "just stop speaking like my sister, alright? I know what I'm doing."

The other man nodded, slightly amused. "You won't hear anything like that from me again. In this case, I can only wish you good luck. Should you or GJ need anything else, you know where to find me."

"More stuff for free?" Gemini grinned "I thought this went against your policy."

"Usually, yes – but it's in my best interest helping to keep the planet safe. It would be rather hard to keep running a business without a planet to stay on, wouldn't it?"


Monkey Fist gave a frustrated snort as he threw another scroll away, his features twisted in a grimace. "What a waste of time," he muttered in disgust as the scroll hit the wall and fell on the ground. So much for Global Justice's unlimited sources, he though cynically before sighing and sitting back on the ground, his chin resting in his palm as he let his gaze wander through the training room – after some simple training he was satisfied by how well his body had reacted, but now there was very little point in going on while he wasn't able to unlock the Power of Yono.

As long as he couldn't unlock the power in him, all the information GJ had gathered had no use for him. Well, not exactly: at least now he knew some information he had been unaware of until then – such as the detail that the Mark of Yono would turn into stone its bearer in case of defeated. Had he known that before, he probably would have thought about it twice before allowing the Yono to pass down the Mark to him, Monkey Fist mused with a scowl as he glanced at the back of his left hand.

He couldn't see the Mark now, but he knew it was there – which was one more problem. As long as he had that Mark, being defeated by the Han or anyone else would result with him turning into stone again. The only way he could avoid the risk would be passing down the Mark to someone else, much like the previous Yono had done to him – but then he would be forced to do the bidding of whoever wore the Mark like a slave, until his master was defeated and became the new Yono, setting him free from its influence. And Monkey Fist simply refused to be a slave: he would get back into his petrified slumber rather than becoming a servant!

One more reason to awaken the power inside you as soon as you can – the fact you cannot use it doesn't mean you won't be turned into stone if defeated.

The monkey man shook his head almost angrily. He knew it was true – ironically enough, being the bearer of the Mark of Yono and being unable to use the power made him more vulnerable than ever. One defeat would be enough to turn him back in a stone statue, and there would be no second chance. An eternity as DNAmy's living room ornament wasn't a much better thought than an eternity of servitude to him.

He had to awaken the Power of Yono resting in him, he thought with a scowl, and he had to do it now. He knew he had the power, he could sense it, but he couldn't do more than that. It felt like there was something preventing him to access to the power, but he didn't know what, and it was frustrating beyond belief.

None of the information Global Justice had provided him was of any help – actually, from what he had gathered, it seemed that the Yono was supposed to have immediate access to the power: that it could take him time to control it was a given, but he should have been able to awaken it since the very same moment he had been released from his stone state. Why couldn't he?

Monkey Fist tried to hold back the frustration that thought never failed to fuel and sighed as he took a lotus position. Not even meditating had helped him to figure out what the problem was yet, but trying to focus on the dormant power in him still seemed to be his only possibility to unlock it somehow – at least, it was the only way he could think of until he could find some new information.

He had to keep trying.


"…and then I only add the chocolate chips before putting them in the oven," Amy said cheerfully as she finished to set up the DNA mixer and typed something on the keyboard "it's much easier than it seems, really."

"Chocolate chips, oven," Frugal Lucre muttered as he wrote it down on a block notes – those cupcakes were absolutely delicious, so it wouldn't hurt bringing the recipe to his mother as soon as the emergency was over…if they managed to avoid extinction, that was it. And if he managed to survive long enough as Pepe's caretaker – that wasn't exactly what he had in mind when he had asked to be recruited as a WEE agent. He didn't even get a proper uniform, and sometimes he wondered if Gemini had really wanted to let him become a WEE agent in the first place. For a moment he considered trying to protest, but the idea was quickly discarded – the leader of WEE was definitely the last person he wanted to have mad at him. Well, maybe not quite the last one, but close enough. "Thank you, Ms. Hall – my mother will love them."

"Oh, you're welcome," Amy chirped, causing a certain golfer to snort in annoyance – did she simply have to be that friendly to everyone? It was just annoying watching her chatting with that guy, he thought. He should have gone to eat something with the others rather than staying there with Amy and Lucre. Why had he stayed anyway? Oh, right – because he didn't want to listen the bantering between Drakken and Dementor.

"Och, aren't ye supposed to be doing something more useful than telling him how to bake cupcakes?" Killigan asked "and shouldn't ye be taking Gemini's psycho dog out for a walk anyway?"

His words caused Frugal Lucre to jump on his feet, glancing at his watch. "Oh, dear, I completely forgot!" he exclaimed, nearly panicking – his boss wasn't exactly known for his patience with henchmen, especially when his beloved pet was involved "I have to run – thanks again, Ms. Hall," he yelled, rushing outside.

"Call me a Amy!" she called after him, waving, then she frowned a little as she turned to Killigan. "Not need to be so grumpy all time, you know. We were just chatting," she chided him "what's the problem?"

"Uh…" Killigan hesitated – what was the problem anyway? – before shrugging. "We have an invasion coming, lass – one would say it would be a good reason to get something done instead of losing time chatting about pancakes."

"Oh, don't be silly, it only took a minute. And everything is ready anyway – I can start creating nasty beasties any moment."

"Ah," Killigan blinked "why aren't ye?"

She smiled a little sheepishly. "Well, there is one little problem," she admitted "it's about the mind control chips – Dementor said I should put them on the creatures' forehead, and…" she paused, her sheepish smile widening a little "well, I don't know how to put the chips on their heads – they're big beasties, you know, and we cannot reach their head when they're standing. I wouldn't want to have them on the loose causing trouble in the lair…" she said a little worriedly. Maybe they should wait for the others to get back in the lab: they surely could think of a way to take care of the problem.

Killigan shrugged. "Och, is it all?" he said "that's no big deal, lass – I know how to take care of this."

Amy blinked. "Really?" she asked, sounding rather surprised.

"Aye – one doesn't need to be some genius to figure it out," Killigan said a little smugly, grabbing one of his gold clubs – the fact he had brought them with him in the lab had caused some hilarity among other villains – and walking in front of the DNA mixer. He observed the device for a few moments, then he took a few steps back and nodded to himself. "Fine, now give me that mind control stuff and get that thing working," he said, faintly hoping the mind control chips would be resistant enough to not break once he hit them. "…what?" he asked as he noticed Amy was staring at him, looking rather puzzled.

"Well, it is really nice of you helping me out, but maybe we should wait for--"

Killigan snorted. "I know what I'm doing, lass. Get me that stuff, and ye'll see!"

Amy hesitated only for a moment before doing as she was told – she was really curious to see what he had in mind. Besides, she thought with a small giggle as she grabbed the mind control chips, even though he was a tad rough, it was nice of him helping her out. As far as she could remember, she thought with a slight frown, her Montykins had never done anything like that.


"Okay, let's take a break."

"But, Wade…!"

"Ron," the boy genius really yelled, clearly exasperated.

"…okay, maybe we could take a break after all," Ron said quickly, but he was unable to hold back a sigh as he sat on the ground.

Wade hesitated. "Well, it didn't go that bad," he tried to cheer him up, deactivating the battlesuit "you're getting really good with the battlesuit."

Ron gave him a weak grin. "Oh, yeah, right. Booyah," he said, but his voice clearly lacked of the usual enthusiasm. Only a few days before the fact he was actually managing to put the battlesuit at good use would have cheered him up, but not now. He hadn't managed to use his powers again – there hadn't been one single spark of blue, no bursts of strength, and the robots had nearly killed him every time Wade had tried to shut off the battlesuit without warning. Good thing the boy genius had always been quick to reactivate the shield.

It looked like Sensei was right – somehow, he was holding back his powers, and he had no idea of how he could get over it. Unless…well, now that really seemed the only solution, Ron thought, shuddering a little.

"So, what now?" Wade asked.

Ron shrugged. "Looks like this isn't working – if I want to use the freaky monkey magic here, I'm going to need some help from someone that knows how it works."

"You mean Monkey Fist?"

"Who else?"

"He's going to kill you just for asking, Ron."

The other boy sighed. "Yeah, probably. Monkey magic sucks."


The room was completely silent except for Monkey Fist's steady breathing as he at in the middle of the room meditating, his eyes shut, his mind drifting in the somewhat soothing darkness of his mind. Oh, yes, he could feel the Power of Yono in him – it was strong, he could nearly feel it boiling in his chest, waiting to be unleashed…but he couldn't reach it, no matter how much he focused on it: if only he could create a bond between his mind and the power! That would let it flow freely in him and--

Proceeding for attempts, I see.

As the all too familiar voice suddenly spoke from the darkness Monkey Fist almost snapped out of his trance, startled – but he still had enough self-control to stay focused.

Yono?

No, I'm not. You are.

It took all Monkey Fist's will to not let his anger take him over and snap him out from his trance, but he somehow managed to stay focused again, ignoring his own anger. Well, almost.

You have some nerve to show up again!

Excuse me?

You had me turned into stone! You betrayed me!

Oh, please. You told me you wanted to follow the Path of the Yono, and I gave you what you wanted. It's hardly my fault if you were foolish enough to agree without even knowing what it was about.

Monkey Fist repressed a growl, his eyes still tightly shut – he hated to admit it, but he was right. He had agreed to follow that path without fully knowing what the consequences could be. Still, that unpleasant turn of events had given him something: the Power of Yono. A thought suddenly hit him – if he didn't know how to use it, the previous Yono did. It was worth a try.

Why are you here?

Let's just say I decided to give you some advice. You haven't even been able to unlock the power, I see. And before you ask yes, I know what is preventing you from using the power.

How did you know…?

Well, I'm the previous bearer of the Power of Yono; as long as you have the power, it creates a connection between my mind and yours – how do you think I'd be able to speak with you otherwise?

Monkey Fist wasn't sure he liked the idea.

You can read my mind?

More or less: I can only know some of your thoughts, and take a look to a few memories.

In this case, I have to ask you to stop. I don't precisely appreciate having someone else in my mind.

Killjoy. Who is the woman with the gorilla body?

Oh, for heaven's sake…! Of all memories I have, did you have to pick the worst one?

She doesn't look so bad.

Excuse me?

With the gorilla body, I mean.

Once again, it took all Monkey Fist's willpower to not shudder the thought.

Oh, for the love of…are you here with the purpose of making me sick?

Not exactly – then again, you might not like the news I have for you.

I thought you could tell me what is preventing me from unleashing the Power of Yono.

Of course I can. But I doubt you'll like it.

Let me decide if I like it or not – tell me what I have to do!

You cannot unleash the Power of Yono because there is another power resting in you – just a fraction of another power, and very weak, but it's still enough to keep the Power of Yono blocked to not be overcome.

It took a few moments for his words to sink in Monkey Fist's mind – the previous Yono had been right; he didn't like it at all.

Are you telling me…?

Yes. The part of Mystical Monkey Power in you is clashing with the Power of Yono, keeping you from unleashing it – those two powers were never meant to be together. If you want to unleash your new powers, you have to get rid of Mystical Monkey Power.

No! Mystical Monkey Power is all I was ever after!

It's your only choice.

You can't expect me to give up on anything I ever worked for! I won't!

In this case, you will have neither of the powers.

You're lying!

And I should lie to you because…?

Anger boiled in Monkey Fist's chest, and it took him an awful effort to stay focused and not let his anger snap him out of his meditation and interrupt the contact.

I refuse to believe you!

Whether you believe me or not is no longer my problem. I told you what I had to, so now I'll be all too happy to wish you good luck and get back to my vacation.

Vacation?

The fact I'm speaking to your mind doesn't mean I cannot physically be somewhere else. I have to admit I missed quite a lot of things in the past few…what year is it again?

You are taking a vacation?

Well, forgive me if I decided to take one after spending centuries as a stone statue. You should do the same – especially since you won't accomplish anything unless you get rid of Mystical Monkey Power.

No! Never!

In that case, you might as well forget anything you have in mind for the Power of Yono, take a vacation and enjoy life – which, unless the planet is destroyed, will last all eternity. Might I suggest you the Fiji Islands?

A cry of rage broke the silence as Money Fist snapped from his trance, his eyes reddened with fury. "No!" he shouted to the empty room "it can't be! There must be another way!" He fell silent for a few minutes as if waiting for an answer, panting slightly after his outburst. But, predictably enough, no answer came from the empty room.