A/N: Okay, finally Chapter 5 is here, sorry it took me so long. Gosh I say that a lot don't I. Anyway, sorry there's not as much about Nova in this chapter, but I hope you'll like it anyway. Before we start the story, I feel it's my obligation to thank all of you kind souls who chose to review. Thank you so much by the way.
Kiozona.pop: Glad you like my story!
Cril: Really? That's kind of weird. Better be careful, before your teacher captures you and puts you in a cage with a monkey. Hope you like this chapter too!
LMann: Glad you like my story, thanks for reviewing. That's interesting about the tomato.
Beastfire: I'm glad you can relate to my characters, I have a friend who has a guy who won't leave her alone, maybe that was the subconscious inspiration for this character, who knows? Anyway, thanks for reviewing, here's chapter 5!
AnimeFanGirl11: Yay! Glad you like my story! I don't know, I'm still not convinced about the tomato thing, see, I think it just doesn't have enough flavor to be a fruit. But it doesn't matter, thanks for reviewing!
sprxandnova4ever: Glad you like, it! We'll see how much more SPRX-77/Nova fluff there'll be coming up, stay tuned!
…: What an interesting name you go by. Lol, anyway, glad you like my story, hope you like this chapter too!
Now, on to the next chapter!
Chapter 5
Otto, Gibson, Antauri, and SPRX-77 stood in front of a mirror inside the Super Robot. They were all wearing large black hats (like Private Eye kinda) that covered their eyes. They also had on dark trench coats. If you looked at them the right way, they looked like really short, mysterious people. Chiro walked in dressed in a similar manner.
"You really think this is gonna fool anyone?" asked SPRX-77.
"Perhaps not the best disguises ever, but considering our destination, I believe we'll fit in well enough. Just keep your tails concealed and I believe we'll pass as being near normal," answered Gibson.
"Right team, let's get going. Um… Gibson, you still have yet to tell us where we're headed," said Chiro.
"Downtown Shuggazoom, to the south bar. That is where I heard this man is," Gibson once again responded.
"Well then, let's go team," exclaimed Chiro.
The team walked out of the Super Robot. It was beginning to rain, and they were glad to have those hats, because it kept the rain out of their eyes. They walked among the people of Shuggazoom unnoticed. As they neared the downtown area of town, the quality of things lowered. The people they passed acted much shiftier, and the shops got smaller and more broken down. They then got to the south bar, they entered quietly.
They agreed that Antauri would talk to the bartender because he had the deepest voice, and sounded the toughest. He sat down on a stool and leaned over towards the bartender.
"I was wondering if you could perchance help me" Antauri said. The man just shot him an awkward glance.
SPRX-77 saw quickly that Antauri would not be the best choice, because he definitely wasn't the best at acting tough. So, he hopped up on the stool next to Antauri and spoke up. "What my friend here is trying to say is: Tell us what we need to know, Buddy."
The man came over then, interested. "What's in it for me?" he asked.
SPRX-77 passed a 20 bill across the bar towards the man. He picked it up.
"So, what can I do for you?"
"My friends," he motioned towards the two monkeys and boy behind him, "and I, have heard tales of a man. This man acts quite crazy, and we'd like a word with him."
"You'll have to give me more to go on than that. This is the South Bar, we've got more than a few crazy men here."
"Yeah, well this man says that he's from another world. A fairy tale world. We've heard tell that he hangs out around here. Do you know who I'm talking about?"
"I don't know, my memory's still a bit…sketchy." He rubbed his fore finger and his thumb together.
SPRX-77 rolled his eyes and grabbed the man by the collar, pulling him towards him. "I didn't ask how good your memory is, I asked if you know who I'm talking about."
The man's eyes practically jumped out of their sockets, and the tough guy look completely vanished from his face. "Okay, okay, I'll tell you." SPRX-77 let go of the man, and he quickly regained his composure. "Wow, you're pretty tough for a little guy. Anyway, I believe the man whom you seek is in that room, over there." The man pointed to a door in the corner.
"Thanks," finished SPRX-77, then he lead the way to the door, the other monkeys following.
"Nice job Sparks, you've really got the whole 'tough guy' thing down" Chiro noted.
"What can I say? It's a gift" SPRX-77 answered.
They then reached the door. Not in a patient mood, SPRX-77 used his magnets to quietly rip out the door handle, and then kicked the door open.
They entered the room. It was pretty small and very dark. It contained one window, which not much light showed through because it was still raining outside. The only noise was the gentle tapping of the rain against the roof. There was a desk and a chair on the far side of the room. In the chair sat a thin, hooded figure wearing a cloak. He looked up at them, his hood still shielding his face.
"It was unlocked," the figure said.
"I didn't feel like testing it" SPRX-77 said back. The rest of the monkeys and Chiro stood back, not saying anything since SPRX-77 was on a roll so far.
The figure stood up and walked over to the door. The monkeys heard the strange sound of metal moving as he moved. He went over, picked up the handle, stuck it back in, and then closed the door. He then walked back over to his desk, and sat down.
"What can I do for you?" the hooded man asked.
All of the monkeys knew they had heard that voice before, and pondered to themselves where from. Suddenly, Otto remembered where from. He threw off his hat and jacket, activated his saws, and jumped onto the figures head, sawing the hood off his cloak. Underneath it lay a pink head with a brain inside, and a blue hat on top.
"Scrapperton!" yelled Chiro, also discarding his unneeded garments, and changing in to hyper mode. (A/N: Well, did you guess right?)
The other monkeys followed suit and activated their magnets, drills, etc.
"Oh no," said Scrapperton in his British accent (A/N: that is what it is right?), "Not again! I did think I was rid of you all."
"WHAT are you TALKING about Clear-Head?" SPRX-77 asked.
"Goodness. Well, you should put all of those fancy gadgets away, I'm not doing anything illegal. Tick tock."
As soon as he said "tick tock" the entire monkey team glared at him. They were quite through with hearing him say those words, and they were quite annoyed with it.
"All right. I will try to refrain myself from saying 'tick tock' if you will put away your weapons."
All of the monkeys powered down. Anything was better than hearing him say "tick tock" over and over again. But they all were still quite suspicious, and would be ready to return to attack mode at any event of threatening behavior.
"Thank you. Now, after those disgusting Robo Apes took me away, they had me put in an off-world prison. Skeleton King apparently had no interest in me any more, for he offered no way of escape. I served my time for making a counterfeit planet and mind control and the like. Then, when my time was up, I simply returned here. I no longer had my collection and I didn't feel like making another one, so I came here. I thought I could just avoid you all by coming to downtown Shuggazoom. Although it looks as though you've found me. However, I have nothing to hide."
The monkeys stared at each other questioning whether or not this was an acceptable story. Then Gibson, deciding to believe him, took a step closer to the desk.
"Well Scrapperton, whether or not your story is true is of no concern right now. We're here because we're missing something," Gibson said.
"Ah yes, the yellow monkey is missing. You definitely don't look complete if the complete collection is not present," Scrapperton noticed.
"Yes…well, we've heard tales that you claim to be from another planet" Gibson continued.
"You must be the right guy. I remember you told me about that when we first landed on your…, self-made planet thing. You said something about the age of steam. That's the planet we're looking for." Chiro noted.
"Ah, I see your memory is just as fresh as ever. Tick…"
More Glares.
"Um…yes. I did come from a planet that is stuck in the age of steam. That fairy tale world of Salandra Four. From the Calabrun galaxy. It's quite a distance, but it was my home world. Where I first got my mechanical leg. I've told some people here that, and they've just said that I'm crazy."
"Well, where is it? We need to know to find Nova," Otto asked.
"I'm not very good at directions. Perhaps we can work something out…" Scrapperton answered, "Come here and we can talk about it."
All of the monkeys and Chiro looked at each other. SPRX-77 knew that this might be their only chance to find Nova. He stepped forward to Scrapperton's desk. Antauri whispered to Chiro that he was going to contact some people to make sure that Scrapperton's story was true, and for them not to agree to anything without his consent. Then he left the room to make some calls. Chiro stepped forward to join SPRX-77, then Gibson followed. Otto, who still remembered when Scrapperton had taken him over, was the last one to reluctantly walk up to the large desk.
Nova tried to remember everything Otto and Gibson had ever taught her about self-maintenance. One of them, she couldn't remember which, had told her about some kind of emergency override on how to activate her fists if they were accidentally shut off, but she couldn't remember.
It was in the middle of the night, and she was sure that Calvin had fallen asleep.
She climbed out of the tree she was in. She then noticed something she hadn't seen before. There was a small open window leading back into the house about twenty feet up. She climbed the walls of the cage and went over to the window. She climbed inside. There was Andy: asleep. He was obviously a huge monkey fan. He had posters of them all over his room, some he had even drawn himself.
There were photographs of him and his monkey having fun together, at the park, in the cage, playing chess,…Then something caught her eye. A small button was behind one of the pictures. Nova's curiosity got the better of her, and she pressed the button. She heard a loud noise behind her, and turned quickly to see a large wall sliding back, and she couldn't believe what she saw behind that wall.
What is hidden in Andy's room? What kind of agreement will the monkeys make with Scrapperton? Is he really harmless? You'll have to be ready for Chapter 6 to find out these answers.
