Disclaimer: I don't own SRMTHFG or any of its characters, just my character and this plot. I do own rights to the planet Celestia Three and the seven Guardian Angels; they're not key factors to this story, but I thought I'd mention this.
Please enjoy while reading and review!
Chapter Two: Of Girls and Guardians
"You're more clever than I thought, Nova," Hayley congratulated, half grunting, as she began to pick herself up.
"Thanks, but don't expect me to get any easier on you," the other girl warned.
The younger girl Monkey simply got back to her feet and carefully sized up her sparring partner.
She had found Nova in the holographic section of the training rooms, apparently waiting for her. That was a little flattering to her. The virtual reality setting surrounding them was that of a meadow on a sunny day. The grass was short, only slightly higher than their ankles, and there was neither a tree nor a bush to be seen. That meant that there were no places to hide for surprise attacks; one thing the girls had in common was that they both preferred the direct approach in battle.
Nova rushed forward again, but Hayley was better prepared this time and threw a fist for her. The Yellow Monkey sliced her arm in front of Hayley's, effectively blocking the punch and forcing the younger to turn around. But as she did, she noticed that Hayley's punch was simply a distraction; the true attack occurred when Hayley's tail caught Nova's ankle and tripped her, allowing a swift kick to land against Nova's upper chest while she was still in the air!
Quickly compensating, Nova activated her jetpack to make her descent smoother and landed about a meter ahead of Hayley. She then launched forward, her hands now her punching gloves.
"Knuckle Duster!"
Hayley jumped back, but she didn't have the time to move away from the attack. But she stood in confusion as the hand suddenly halted just centimeters in front of her nose.
Slightly exasperated, Hayley looked past the hand and into the eyes. "Nova, do you seriously expect that a Monkey Move like that would—?"
Before she could finish, though, one of Nova's fingers popped out of the punching position. That was a surprise in itself, but when the finger actually hit her nose, the attack was just as powerful as one of Nova's typical punches!
Hayley was sent flying into an invisible wall! This was, of course, the wall of the training room disguised by the simulation projector.
Now laying on her back, Hayley looked again at Nova, who was walking up to her seemingly upside-down.
"Sprx thought the same thing the other day," Nova explained.
"Is that a new one?" Hayley asked.
Nova's only answer was a grin.
And a grin was Hayley's reply, as well. "I guess Mandarin was right about one thing."
Instantly, Nova's smile vanished as she suddenly came on top of her! The training session became a wrestling match. Both exchanged blows and kicks, most of which were easily evaded, but their pace was much quicker than before.
"What about Mandarin?" asked an angry Nova while still attacking.
"Never mind," Hayley answered, ducking in time to avoid getting punched.
"What did he say?"
"Really, Nova, it's nothing!"
"Tell me!"
"All right, but you won't like it!"
Their arms interlocked, and Hayley dug her feet into the simulated dirt to anchor their positions. Nova struggled for only a moment before she found that Hayley wasn't about to budge. The two pairs of pink eyes bore deep into each other.
After what seemed like a long while, Hayley said, "When he spoke of you guys in the Citadel of Bone, he included you when he used the term 'brothers'."
Nova was stunned, disgusted, and unconvinced all at the same time. "He did what?"
"Every time he did, I tried to correct him into referring to you as a female. But he told me that when he encountered you, you weren't the Nova you used to be. He said that you had grown by far stronger and more aggressive than the others did. He said that it was like looking at a male who just happened to have a light voice. I didn't want to believe it. That wasn't the Nova I knew."
Nova's scowl became deeper, but Hayley had the sense that the Yellow Monkey's anger was focused more on her than on the fact that it was Mandarin who made the insult.
"But it looks like I was wrong," the younger Monkey continued. "You ARE stronger and more aggressive than I remember. And now I can see why. After I got monkey-napped, you forgot how to be a female. Right? You were like a male before I entered the picture, and you became like one again." She then grinned teasingly. "You know, Nova, I bet you got rid of every single one of your stuffed animals. They reminded you of what it was like to be a female, and you didn't like being the only female on the team!"
"Well, excuse me for not requesting a gender change!" Nova exclaimed, fed up with the argument. She grabbed Hayley's shoulders and lifted her up, tossing her overhead!
Surprised, Hayley landed harshly on the computer-generated grass.
"And excuse me for existing as the only girl on the Hyperforce!" Nova added furiously. "And yes, I didn't like being the only girl! I didn't like the guys rushing to my side as if I was some defenseless princess waiting for her knight in shining armor! Have you ever thought about what it's like to be surrounded by guys all the time?"
Nova was prepared to give another of her "it's tough to be a girl" speeches when Hayley suddenly cried out, "Hey, you had it easy! At least you were surrounded by friends!"
That made Nova hesitate. Hayley didn't just scream that; she was actually weeping. Nova could see Hayley's tears falling onto the floor, making the simulation sizzle slightly to the water/electricity reaction. Her sobs were barely audible, but they were very real.
Chiro had told the Robot Monkeys about the torturous experiments Skeleton King had put Hayley through in the Citadel of Bone, but this was the first time that Nova actually realized it. Hayley had been in more danger than Nova knew, danger of being lost to the powers of darkness…just like Mandarin.
And perhaps she was still in some of that danger. The Hayley that Nova knew wouldn't have pushed such an argument so hard for so long. Quite the contrary, really.
Changing her punching gloves back into her monkey hands, Nova slowly approached her and placed a hand on her shoulder. Hayley cringed for a moment but soon relaxed.
"Come on, Hayley," she encouraged, her voice soft and tender. "Let me show you something."
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Hayley looked around in concern and confusion. She had been in Nova's quarters on several occasions in the past. She was, at first, surprised that Nova had indeed kept most of the stuffed animals that the two girls used to play with together during their spare time. But Nova led her to a secret nook that was behind her sleeping pod. She removed a box that was hidden there.
The box was simple enough. The only interesting thing on it was the lock that kept it shut, which Nova quietly undid. Then, after making Hayley promise not to tell the others, Nova opened it. Inside were two small plush toys.
One was a bird that was so golden yellow that it made the sun seem pale in comparison. The claws and beak were a deep red, and the wings looked like lava. Its eyes were tiny topazes (yellow jewels) that looked like they could burst into flames.
The other seemed much like a horse, but wings that resembled clouds were graced on its back. The animal itself was mostly a light blue color except for the hooves, which were black as the night sky. This creature's eyes were aquamarines (blue-green jewels) that seemed to twinkle like stars.
It took Hayley a while to find her voice again. "What are they?"
"They were gifts," Nova began to explain. "I've had them since before I could remember. I did some research on them, and I found that they're two of the seven Guardian Angels of Celestia Three. Folklore there says that these seven stuffed animals hold some kind of essence, like the tiniest fragment of a spirit. Small enough not to be noticed but still there."
"Guardian Angels?" Hayley echoed, softly despite her surprise. "Gifts? Who gave them to you?"
Nova's face became long with sadness. "That's the thing. I don't know. Maybe they were given to me before I was activated for the first time. That would explain why I don't remember. Or maybe they were given after I was activated and something happened that wiped my circuits clean of the memory. All I do know is, my basic programming tells me that these were gifts."
The younger Monkey looked again at the two plush toys. Could they truly be what Nova found out through her research? Of course, she never knew Nova to lie to her, but this was the stuff of legends…or was it?
"So, what exactly are they?" she asked.
Nova smiled. "I thought you'd be interested. They are the Phoenix and the Pegasus. The legend says that the Phoenix is the fiery Soul of Inspiration, and the Pegasus is the shining Soul of Hope."
"And you said these were two of seven. What are the other five?"
"The Unicorn is loyal Soul of Friendship. The Sea Serpent is the creative Soul of Knowledge. The Thunderbird is the sincere Soul of Passion. The Griffin is the patient Soul of Wisdom. And all six of these are led under the Dragon, the mighty Soul of Strength."
"Hmm, if you have these two, I wonder what happened to the other five."
"I don't know," Nova shrugged. "Maybe they're still on Celestia Three. Or maybe they were given to other great warriors or royalty children. I had thought about asking Antauri or Gibson about them off and on, but I was usually either too busy with my duties or not curious enough to end my boredom with such questions."
Nova then looked at Hayley. "Just remember, you promised not to tell the others about this, so don't go asking about them behind my back."
"A promise is a promise, Nova."
"Here, Hayley. Take this."
How surprised Hayley was to see Nova remove the Pegasus from the box and handing it to her. Hayley felt that the body of the plush was smoother than silk and the wings were softer than cotton.
"Nova…"
"Call it a welcome home gift."
"But, Nova…it was given to YOU."
"That means it's mine to do whatever I want with it," Nova reassured with a smile. "Besides, although I don't know why, I have a weird feeling that it was meant for you."
Hayley wanted to object, to insist that it belonged to Nova, but she took another look into those star-like jewels that made the Pegasus' eyes. "Shining Soul of Hope…" she whispered. "Thanks, Nova."
"Anytime, sister."
Inside, Hayley's soul trembled. She still wasn't comfortable with being called a sister. But she didn't give any outward sign or protest. Instead, the two girls shared a long hug.
Well, looks like the two girls have reached a deeper understanding of each other. More to come in Chapter Three: Constantly a Battlefield.
In response to Chapter One's reviews…
Crystal Persian: Yes, I've thought about the idea you gave me. I'm not sure if I'll be using it in this fanfic, but it's a good enough idea for me to consider writing one in the future. But I will promise you that there will be some Antauri/Hayley moments in the next chapter. I doubt you can call it overprotection, but it's meant to be touching. By the way, your story is looking good. I knew Chiro looked up to Antauri like a father, but referring to Nova as a mother, I never saw that coming! Very nice touch.
love-writer: Those are good guesses. Unfortunately, I will have to keep you guys guessing for at least a few more days. And I'm still loving your current story so far. I look forward to more.
almi-chan: Intentaré escribir mis capítulos de modo que las traducciones de Inglés/Español sean más fáciles para usted. A veces los americanos que somos no saben nuestra lengua inglesa para ser difíciles hasta que encontramos a persona que primera lengua no es inglesa. Debo saber probablemente que mejor que la mayoría de la gente; Viví en una estación militar en Japón la mayoría de mi niñez. De todas formas, soy feliz que usted está gozando de esta historia.
(In English this means, "I will try to write my chapters so that English/Spanish translations will be easier for you. Sometimes we Americans do not realize how difficult our English language really is until we find people whose first language is not English. I should probably know better than most people; I grew up on a military base in Japan. Anyway, I am happy that you are enjoying this." This was translated by http/babelfish.