Disclaimer: Super Robot Monkey Team Hyper Force Go! and all characters and events related to them are not mine; they are property of Jetix Animation Concepts and Ciro Nieli.
In Response to Chapter Nine's Reviews…
leavingyouforme: Aww, don't worry about having missed out on my updates. Computer crashes happen. I was a little concerned, but not worried. You're certainly welcome to submit reviews in previous chapters to list specifically what you did or did not like in them. Yeah, writing out Mandarin showing emotion was tough, but I'm glad you think I pulled it off. I was actually a little scared that the transition from hate to acceptance was a little bit rushed. Oh well. As for your comments about Chapter 8, I guess I should have explained that part of Chiro's outburst better. Chiro had no clue the Monkeys and Jinmay were still alive. In his rage, he wanted to destroy everything evil associated with Skeleton King. That's why it reached out into space, to destroy Mandarin clone and Skeleton Droid. When that was done, Chiro's anger was appeased to a point that the Power Primate didn't reach the Monkeys. About Jiro's training, it's a little bit of both: he is a quick learner but Chiro also passed on some of his skills to him. I guess I should have made a stronger point that Jiro's favorite subject in school is history because of Chiro's role. I know he's becoming a little bit like a carbon copy of Chiro, which is kinda essential for a humorous twist in this chapter, but this chapter will also list differences between father and son. … Whew, I've said a mouthful…
4Evermonkeyfan: Yeah, I never liked bulky Mandarin or the clone, either. I loved writing Otto's part, but it was kinda hard for me to have him cry. He never cries in the show. At least, I don't recall if he did or not. I actually debated to myself whether or not I was going to go through with Otto crying. And actually, I don't know if 'fellahs' was a typo or not. I've seen it spelled both ways but decided to have the H in there because made the word sound softer as it is pronounced.
Emerald Shapeshifter 777: Yes, Otto is my favorite, too! I knew it had to be him who would open the others up to accepting him.
NoRatCat: Yeah, I would've wanted a fight between Mandarin and his clone, too. However, I've seen that often enough in other stories, and I felt that my attempt would only end up being a copy of theirs. And that's why battles are so hard for me to write, because I'm scared they won't be original. And besides, it doesn't make much sense to me that Skeleton King and all influences of his evil would be destroyed while the clone survives, yet another thing I've seen in other stories.
Chapter Ten
"To defeat our enemy, we must know our enemy," Mandarin was quick to point out. "What are Brainiac's abilities? Is he omnipresent?"
"Most assuredly not," Gibson immediately answered, much to the relief of most of the others who didn't know such a complex word. "He may control the computer functioning the entire laboratory, but he is not a living part of that computer. Only when his ocular cameras lower to the glass and the speakers activate can he interact with us and we with him. We know this because that red light is an indicator that the speakers are activated."
"Good," Mandarin answered. "That means not only can we discuss the plan in secrecy, but more importantly it tells us that when he is performing a function, he is blind to everything else that happens. That makes the chances of success significantly higher.
"Now, we must be prepared for two methods of accomplishing the same task, for we are not certain which move Brainiac will make. I allowed myself to be captured because I know that he is fascinated with our Robot Monkey operating system, and he may desire to take me from this cell and examine me the same as he examined you. If that happens, I will use the Power Primate to contact the Super Robot and our allies within. The Super Robot, along with one of our allies will perform a frontal assault outside the lab to distract him from me. While that happens, our other ally will successfully sneak inside and aid me in escaping the examination, and at that point we will free you from this cell.
"However, it is more likely that Brainiac will want to follow through his plan and take the four of you to the all-out battle. If that happens, it is crucial that you do not fight them. Take a stand and refuse to fight, even when they battle you. While you are gone, I will send the signal to the Super Robot to begin the frontal assault just the same. However, I will also initiate the back door programmed in your operating systems."
"Mandarin, that will force us to reboot our systems in the middle of a battle," Nova pointed out.
"I am well aware of that, Nova," he replied. "In fact, I'm counting on it. If you four refuse to fight and they still strike you, it will come across to Brainiac as if all of your strength is spent. Sprx, you said that when Tempest defeated you, Brainiac told him to stand down."
"That's right," Sprx began, "but I don't understand how that's going to help us."
"Don't you see, Sprx?" Antauri asked. "He commanded Tempest to stand down because he still needed you in the other fights."
"Correct, Antauri," Mandarin replied. "And if your operating systems shut down for those brief moments while refusing to fight, he will order his creations to cease while most likely sending you to someplace where you can be repaired. The reboot will give each of you a brief burst of energy when you revive that should allow you to dispose of any escorts. The frontal assault will distract him of this, and you will know the way back to the cell. By that time, our ally will meet up with you and help you in breaking this cell."
"Ooh, a sneak attack," Otto cooed excitedly. "I like it. We break out from the inside!"
"Exactly, Otto," Mandarin smiled.
"Mandarin, you do realize that as soon as Brainiac discovers that we are out of our cell, our escape will not run smoothly according to plan," Antauri felt the need to point out. "He will not allow us to make our way to the exit in which you had entered."
"I have considered that possibility," he answered. "And I am also aware that timing is vital to either plan and that our margin of error is very small. Should anything go wrong, I do have a back-up plan prepared."
"What back-up plan?" Gibson asked.
Mandarin grinned. "Our ally."
Chiro and Jiro continued to watch the monitor displaying the lab in the distance. It was very unnerving for both of them to look at that accursed building, and Chiro knew it because he had been in there once. If it hadn't been for the Super Robot and Slingshot, he most likely would never have come out alive. But Jiro didn't know the reason why he felt so nervous.
The father looked down at his son and smiled. If it hadn't been for his previous experience as leader of the Hyperforce, Chiro would have thought that his son was dressed in a uniform, one that made his son look very handsome. But Chiro knew better. This was no ordinary uniform; Jiro was in Hyper Mode, transformed with the Power Primate by use of the communicator Chiro had given him.
He figured that this would have happened to his son sooner or later; in the last few days Jiro spent training and honing his natural skills, Chiro could easily see that his son was developing his own essence of the Power Primate out of what Mandarin had given him. Though Chiro didn't really realize it until recently, he knew that his son was even more special than proud parents would normally see in their children.
The Hyper Mode uniform Jiro wore was very much the same as Chiro's: white with gray boots and orange gloves. And his face was almost exactly the same as Chiro's, the same white forehead and the same orange stripes down his cheeks. But there were considerable differences between Jiro and Chiro, too. Jiro's boots were shinier than Chiro's, looking almost like dark yet polished silver. The orange on Jiro was lighter and brighter. Jiro didn't have a scarf around his neck; he had a bandanna around his forehead. Also, Jiro's hair didn't have quite the same style as Chiro's did. And of course, the most obvious difference between father and son were the eyes, one pair of dynamic blue, the other of intense green.
"You scared?" Chiro asked.
Jiro paused for several seconds before slowly nodding.
"Good," Chiro replied. "You can tell when a great battle is about to take place because you're scared you don't know what will come out of it. Only a fool wouldn't be scared before a great battle. And besides, this will be your first. First battles are always great battles…and usually the scariest."
"I want to make you proud of me, Dad," Jiro sighed.
Chiro smiled and looked down at his son. "You don't have to do anything to accomplish that. I am proud of you, no matter what you do. And I know you'll do fine."
Jiro looked up at his father. "How do you know that?" he asked timidly. "How will I know my way in that lab? How will I know my path?"
Chiro chuckled and held his son's hand. "I once asked Antauri the very same questions. He told me to look inside myself and to trust the Power Primate to guide me. If you can do that, you will find your path."
A series of beeps caught their attention, and both of them looked at one of the scanners below the main monitor. "That's Mandarin's signal," Chiro stated.
"But which way are we going?" Jiro asked.
"Give me a minute to decode the signal."
Jiro waited anxiously as his father typed into the controls. He looked up at the monitor displaying the lab, and he could almost feel his blood boiling at the very sight of it. There's a kind of courage that comes only from being utterly and sincerely terrified; Jiro could feel that courage creeping from his heart and making its way into every muscle in his body.
"Plan B," Chiro finally announced.
Jiro nodded. "Plan B it is." He then went to the orange elevator and stepped inside.
Sprx nearly fell from lack of balance upon being roughly thrown into the room, and Gibson did fall. While Otto helped his brother to his feet, Nova looked around. The room was again dark and seemingly empty, just as it always was shortly before the battle would begin.
"I trust that you enjoyed the company of yet another like yourselves," Brainiac's voice taunted. "As surprised as I was when my ocular interface first processed your images, nothing could have prepared me for seeing a sixth one. How many more of you are there?"
But none of the four Monkeys said anything.
"Very well," he replied after waiting several seconds. "Whether more of you exist or not, I will soon discover anyway. But for now, testing must resume. Myst, Tempest, Espina, Bruno. Enter, and let the battle begin!"
Four lights turned on, each one shining on a different chamber that was opening. The Purple Monkey, the Gray Monkey, the Pink Monkey, and the Brown Monkey took their positions; facing the Yellow Monkey, the Red Monkey, the Blue Monkey, and the Green Monkey.
Mandarin examined the area outside the cell as best as he could through the glass wall. It seemed that his guess was correct; because Brainiac was so focused on the battle he was staging between the eight monkeys that there was no activity anywhere near the cell keeping the other two locked up.
He glanced back at Antauri, who only gave a silent nod. He then closed his eyes and extended his cyber-ears.
Jiro crept along every dismantled robot and every broken wall he could find to edge his way across. And the closer he was to the cursed laboratory, the more afraid he was of getting caught. Mandarin had crept along just as quietly, and it was even easier for him to get close not only because of his skill but also because of his size, but Jiro saw what seemed to be a fatal mistake for Mandarin which turned out to actually be his ruse for getting inside.
But Jiro had nothing to his advantage except pure instinct.
"Easy, Jiro," he whispered to himself. "Just take the next step, get nice and close, but don't move in until Dad gives the signal."
Inside the cockpit of Torso Tank One, Chiro waited anxiously. The grip his hands had on the controls tightened and loosened every now and then so they wouldn't become stiff. The last thing he needed were fingers that wouldn't reach a critical button due to inflexibility.
He was sweating, but not because the cockpit was warm; he was sweating in worry. Fifteen years of believing the Monkey Team was dead were now ending. Fifteen years of empty pain and silent loneliness about to disappear forever. And in their place, a lifetime of joys such as Shuggazoom never has seen or ever will see again.
The fate of those joys rests on the success of this one battle about to begin.
"I hope Mandarin knows what he's doing," Chiro whispered to himself. "And I really hope Jiro remembers his training."
"We've had enough of this!" Nova shouted. "Nothing can come out of this but pain. Why can't you see that it's wrong to force us and them to fight like this, Brainiac?"
"They do it of their own will, Monkey Team," the voice of the evil brain stated.
"Spiked Punches!" Espina's almost-meek voice exclaimed, launching her maces straight into Gibson's abdomen. He groaned at being shoved back, and the dents he already had in his chest deepened but did not penetrate through.
"Their own will indeed," Sprx growled after he managed a dodge roll to avoid Tempest grappling his ankles like he did during their solo fight. That was a move that Tempest called the Cast Lashing.
"Double-Edge Double Attack!" Bruno exclaimed, his baritone voice drawing Otto to attention as the Brown Monkey twirled his axes in front of his chest expertly. Nova saw the attack too and was able to pull Otto away before the blades could even shave off a strand of fur.
"You're just manipulating them to be your slaves!" Gibson yelled when he managed to get free from Espina with some help from Sprx. "You have robbed them their freedom of choice!"
"Choice is a dream," Brainiac replied.
Immediately, the four replicated Monkeys ceased their battle for a moment, just long enough to repeat obediently, "Choice is a dream."
"We will not fight them!" Nova shouted. "We will not fight enemies who don't know what they're fighting for!" Then, hardly knowing what she was doing, she looked at Myst, who was ready to launch another of her water bullet attacks. And she shouted at her, "Snap out of it! Brainiac doesn't care about you! He's only using you for himself!"
Myst stood still, those pink orbs with no pupils staring emotionlessly at her.
Nova silently pleaded with all her heart that the soul within Myst would break through like it started to at the end of their first fight.
But that moment didn't come. As Tempest lashed his grappling hooks and wrapped all four of the heroes together, they suddenly shut down.
"What?" Brainiac asked. "Stand down, all of you! Hmm…could it be possible that all of their energy is expensed? Yet I was unable to gather new information from them. My monkeys, return to your chambers. My robots, take our prisoners."
But the moment two robots each had two monkeys in their magnetic claws, the room began to shake somewhat violently. Brainiac's monkeys made no reaction and simply continued obediently into their chambers.
Brainiac, however, reacted very strongly. "The Prometheus prototype is attacking! Destroy it!"
Jiro watched carefully as he leaned against the lab wall, his eyes focused on the Super Robot and the surrounding area. He stared for a long time as it first launched the Antenna Blast, then the Finger Missiles. But he didn't move until he saw similar robots in different colors and shapes approaching the Super Robot.
"He fell for it," the boy smirked. "Great job, Dad."
He turned a corner and looked up a building. The side of the metal was crude, making several ledges that were suitable for handholds and footholds for climbing, just like a rock wall. Being very careful to watch where he was going, he climbed higher and higher up until he reached a vent, where he used a discarded crowbar to removed the vent cover and crawl in.
Mandarin looked over at Antauri in surprise. When he used the back door program, the Silver Monkey had immediately fallen on his back. This confused Mandarin at first. Wasn't Antauri the one who had said that the back door was reprogrammed to reboot instead of shut down?
But as quickly as that thought had come, a new one arrived. "Oh, of course," he chuckled to himself. "The Silver Monkey was completed after my clone replaced me. There was never a need to reprogram the back door in the Silver Monkey operating system."
He approached Antauri and was able to get him to a sitting position. But just as he removed his gloves to transform a hand into the reactivation tool, a familiar whir caught his ear.
"This is early…" he muttered suspiciously as he glared at the glass wall. Indeed, the robot that had brought him to the cell approached and opened the door. And just as the ocular interface lowered and the speakers activated, Mandarin found himself pulled into its magnetic grasp.
"What is this?!" he shrieked.
"Have you not noticed the recent trembles?" Brainiac's voice asked through the speakers. "Your Super Robot is here to attempt to rescue you and the other monkeys. I am to make certain that doesn't happen."
While the entire lab continued to shake and tremble, even causing a minor quake every now and then, the two robots carrying Brainiac's test subjects continued their journey effortlessly.
Nova was the first to wake up. She felt new energy pumping in her body from the reboot, but she knew that it was only temporary. She knew that she had to make her every move count.
Without turning her head in order to make the robots less suspicious, she looked to her right. Sprx was in the other claw of the same robot carrying her. And looking to her left, she found Otto and Gibson held captive by the other robot. The three of them were slowly reviving.
When all four had caught sight of each other, Nova gave them all a small but swift nod.
Instantly, all four activated their weapons.
"Laser Lock Drill!"
"Magna Tingler Blast!"
The two attacks forced the robot holding them to release them all. Gibson and Sprx had to perform a roll to move away from the robots while Nova and Otto landed on their feet and turned around.
"Scritch-Scratch Doom Thrower!"
"Boom Boom Wake Up!"
Since their attack was swift and hard, the two robots were easily startled, but not yet defeated.
"Thunder Punch!" another voice suddenly shouted, and a vent cover suddenly popped off a wall behind the robots. They turned around in surprise as a figure clothed in orange and white emerged from the open vent and gave both of them a swift kick. The four Monkeys watched as the new arrival managed several punches and kicks before finally defeating them.
He then turned to look at the Monkeys.
"Chiro!" Otto exclaimed in delight.
"Way to go, kid!" Sprx grinned with a thumbs-up.
"Your timing is impeccable," Gibson stated with a smile.
"We knew we could count on you!" Nova giggled.
The four were so happy and excited that they didn't seem to notice that their hero didn't look quite like they remembered. They did find it somewhat odd, however, that the scarf was tied around his forehead. And perhaps it was just a trick of the light, but they could almost swear that the normally blue eyes were now green.
They were, in fact, talking to Jiro, but he looked so much alike to Chiro that they didn't notice a difference in their excitement.
"No time for chit-chat, team," Jiro told them. "Let's go find Mandarin, Antauri, and Jinmay, and get out of here."
Nova nodded. "This way, Chiro."
Jiro had half-expected that there would be some extra security measures along the hallways, so he always lingered behind somewhat to make sure he covered the rear. But it proved unnecessary; they arrived at the cell without a scratch.
How surprised they all were to peer through the glass and find Antauri deactivated and Mandarin missing.
Immediately, Sprx looked up at the forcefield controls and electrocuted them. With a loud CLICK, it deactivated; and Nova, Gibson, and Otto immediately went to work on breaking the glass. It took longer than expected because no one had realized how thick it was, but once one simple crack was made, it took only seconds to break through.
Gibson was the first to reach the Silver Monkey's side, so he was the one to reactivate him.
Antauri made a somewhat harsh groan as he revived. "First time for everything, I suppose," he moaned. He then up at the young human. "Chiro?"
"Where's Mandarin?" Jiro asked. "We thought he was with you."
"Great," Sprx growled. "He betrayed us again after all."
"No way, Sprx," Jiro answered. "I know Mandarin well enough to know he wouldn't do that."
Most everyone blinked in surprise at that statement.
"Look!" Otto shouted, pointing at the other side of Antauri.
Nova's eyes widened in surprised. "Mandarin's gloves!"
The whole group looked at where Otto pointed and knew that Sprx's accusation was wrong. If Mandarin had betrayed them, no matter what the reason, he would have taken his weapons with him.
Jiro picked up the gloves and put them on over his own gloves. "Something's gone wrong," he growled in determination. "Let's go save him."