Tauria: Well, here's the sequel to Trapped. It's a lot longer, and I hope you all enjoy it. I had fun writing it :) I hope you enjoy it!
Disclaimer: SRMTHFG, I own not. (Sorry, I've been dying to do a Yoda disclaimer! XD)
Remembering
By: Tauria
It had been so long since I had been here… Even though I still remembered very little, I was glad to be home. I looked around for the familiar faces that had haunted my thoughts ever since the battle against him had begun. I was not disappointed, though it was not a familiar face that I was greeted. It was by the sight of my home… the place I had trained in… traveled in… lived in, ever since I found it on one of my many explorations.
I walked over to it, and felt the weariness of battle begin to settle in my bones and muscles. My eyes darted around the city, noticing the curious stares that watched me. I frowned inwardly. Was I so different? Or had it been so long?
Looking through each face, I noticed something. I recognized some of these faces! Though I was not altogether sure that I was remembering them right. These children that I had grown up with were adults. I almost frowned. I knew that I was still fifteen, almost sixteen. So why did these people look like they were so much older than I was?
"Chiro?" A female voice startled me from my reverie. I turned my head to see those familiar green eyes, and pink pigtails. I wondered vaguely who she was talking too.
Suddenly, her arms wrapped around my torso in a tight hug. "Chiro! It's you! It's really you!" She was laughing and crying all at once. I hugged her back, but found no words were escaping my lips.
Chiro… Yes. That is my name. But what is hers again? I don't remember… But I want to remember. It is then that I realize just how much I have forgotten. The only thing I can remember is faces, and how to battle. I swallowed.
"It's so good to see you, Chiro. Oh, the monkeys will be so happy! Antauri has been so worried ever since she confined you to… Wherever she sent you. We've all missed you so much!" And then she was tugging my arm, leading me towards the structure that was my home.
She led me through the foot, and up to the torso, where the -monkeys? Is that what she called them? - monkeys were sitting.
"Team, look who I found wandering the streets of Shuggazoom!" She was so happy, and the monkeys looked positively overjoyed. I swallowed, and smiled.
"Hey guys," I said, my voice scratchy from all of the use I had been putting it through. "It's good to see you again."
"Chiro, are you alright? Where is Skeleton King? Is he dead? Did you kill him? Are you really here? I'm not dreaming, right?" The green monkey bombarded me with questions, and I had no idea how to answer them. But I tried.
"I'm alright. Skeleton King is dead. I killed him. I'm really here. I don't think you're dreaming…"
"Chiro," the silver monkey spoke, blue eyes glistening. "How have you been?"
"I've been fine," I responded, wishing I could remember who they were. "As fine as one can be fighting eternally almost, anyway," I added as an afterthought.
"Are you tired?" He was quick to ask. "I do not know how her magic would have affected that…"
I was silent for a few moments. I ached all over, and I was very tired. I nodded, deciding that I would not trouble them with the fact I could not remember. Besides, I hadn't slept in so long that sleep sounded inviting.
He led me to my room, which I was grateful for, as I could not remember the way. He bade me goodnight, and I crawled into bed, closing my eyes and succumbing into inviting blackness.
-o-
The next morning, I awoke to the gentle shaking of the yellow monkey. "Come on Chiro. It's time to get up."
I slowly sat up, and gave her a small smile. She returned it before leaving my room so I could change. I did so, and tried to remember the way to the kitchen. The scent of food wafted into my nostrils and I followed my nose. The rest of the team was already there, and I took the only empty chair left.
I began to eat, savoring the flavor of the light brown discs in front of me. A sticky, sugary dark brown substance covered them, and my taste buds, so long deprived of food and drink, danced. It was only then that I realized exactly how hungry I was. I ate plateful after plateful, and it was so much that the monkeys stared at me in wonder. Even the green monkey, who was eating almost as much as I, paused to give me an odd look.
I shrugged. "How long have I been gone?"
"Twenty years," the silver monkey whispered.
My eyes widened some. "Twenty?" my voice cracked.
They nodded.
"Well, I have not eaten, drank, slept, or rested at all in twenty years. We could not stop fighting. The only things that got tried in that place were our muscles - er, my muscles – so we had no need for sleep." After finishing this sentence, I drained my glass of whatever liquid happened to be in it.
The monkeys exchanged glances.
"Would you mind if I ran a few tests on you?" the blue monkey asked. He had an accent I could not place. It was as if I was meeting them all over again, and I didn't like it. I hated it. I hated Valina even more… She had taken me away from my family, making me forget. Had I stayed there any longer I was sure I would not even remember faces.
"What kinda tests?" I asked warily.
"I need to see the affect this has taken on your body," he explained.
I thought a moment. "Alright…"
After I finished eating, he led me to another room, and had me sit on a metal surface. I waited for him to begin. He did his many tests, none of which involved pain on my part, thank goodness. When he finally finished, he was frowning.
The others came in to hear the results.
"None of you are going to like this. First off, his aging has drastically slowed. He will not begin the aging process again for at least another fifty years, and even when he does, it will take him many years to appear as if he has aged another year."
"At least we won't outlive him, like we thought we would," the red monkey put in, though he still looked extremely worried.
"Second, for the next few weeks he's going to be very weak. All those years of no food, water, or rest will begin to catch up with him, and once he's got some more food in him, don't be surprised if he sleeps for days on end. Third… He remembers nothing. He knows we are his family, because he can remember images, but names elude him. And we are his primary memory. The rest of it will come back once he relearns names."
I blinked. How had he…? Oh. I knew I should have paid more attention when he did those tests. Apparently he had somehow gotten me to talk.
"So, you're saying the Kid has no idea who we even are?"
"I didn't even know my own name until she hugged me," I decided to say, gesturing towards the pink haired girl. Fresh tears were rolling down her cheeks, and I gave her a comforting smile… Or at least I hoped I did. I was not used to smiling anymore.
The red monkey's eyes widened. "Seriously?"
"I didn't know who I had been fighting all these years either, until he said Skeleton King's name," I gestured at the green monkey. "The only thing I could remember was Valina sending me there, and colors. Green gold, blue, green, black, pink, red, silver, white, orange, purple, black…" I recited. "I remember faces, but only yours. Others I can grasp for a moment, before they drift out of sight again. I didn't even remember what any of your voices sounded like until you spoke."
All of them looked extremely worried and sad. The blue monkey had gone pale. It was obviously worse than he had thought.
"I don't remember what we were eating for breakfast is called. I don't remember what this place is called. I barely remember who I am, and I don't know why I can shoot green energy or lightening from my feet and hands. I can't remember what I've done, and I don't know why I had to fight Skeleton King all those years. Every time it seems like I'm going to remember, it drifts out of grasp again." As I let out all of these terrible truths, the magnitude of what I didn't remember scared me. It scared me so much that hot waves of tears began to cloud my vision and stream down my cheeks, leaving sticky lines in their wake.
"So you don't remember anything?" The red monkey asked.
The yellow monkey hit him. "Chiro, we can help you, alright?"
I nodded.
The silver monkey spoke. "We are the Super Robot Monkey Team Hyper Force Go. You are our leader, and the Chosen One. I am Antauri, second in command. The yellow monkey is Nova, combat expert and third in command. The blue monkey is Mr. Hal Gibson, the science officer and doctor. He prefers to be called Gibson. The red monkey is SPRX-77, though he prefers to go by Sprx. The green monkey is the mechanic Otto. The girl is your girlfriend Jinmay. Together, we protect the Universe from evil… Mainly the Skeleton King, though thanks to you that threat has been removed."
The yellow monkey then took over. "We live within the only city on Shuggazoom, which is called Shuggazoom City. Our home is the Super Robot, and it is also our ship and fighting vessel."
Then the blue monkey chipped in. "You are in possession of the Power Primate, and are the second human recorded to have it. It enables you to understand us without a translator, and gives you the unique abilities you mentioned earlier."
I nodded, digesting the information given to me. Slowly, memories formed. I remembered meeting them, and training. I remembered becoming their leader, and I remembered some of our many adventures. I remembered the first birthday I spent with them, and the first time I met Skeleton King. I smiled.
"I'm beginning to remember now…"
Tauria: Yep, another vague ending! XD Anyways, hope you enjoyed it! And I'm sorry about the lack of updates on Backwards, Losing, and Heart of a Machine. I make no promises about when I will update, but I'm trying to get the next chapters written xD I promise! XD