Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Chapter 1: Something Different

Another day, another crazy bridal appointment.

The shop was bustling with activity, vases and pots flying off the shelves as the busy hours of the day wore on.

He sighed as he put together yet another bouquet of roses, baby's breath, tiger-lilies, wrapping them up in paper and tying them with a ribbon.

It was the same old song and dance as he came out from the back room to restock the rack at the front of the store and nearly got mobbed the second he did.

"UWAH!"

Chiro stumbled back, hitting the shelf behind him as the flowers were forcibly ripped from his hands. He narrowed his eyes, crossing his arms.

He hated wedding season.

Especially when it dealt with these types of bridal parties that didn't make a formal appointment and just walked in and acted like they owned the store.

It was always the same thing. Fervent brides, mothers and mothers-in-laws, who all had their own visions for the "perfect day" and Shuggazoom forbid if even a single petal was out of place.

"HEY!" A voice bellowed from the counter. "I saw that! PUT YOUR HANDS ON HIM AGAIN AND SEE WHAT HAPPENS!"

The bridesmaids and the bride grimaced, looking towards the counter.

Behind it was a woman with long black hair, wearing a pale green blouse and a dark green pencil skirt.

Her icy blue eyes flashed with rage as they narrowed.

Chiro smiled wickedly at the bride.

"Now you've done it." He snickered.

"I just wanted my order and he was moving so slow-"

"That's my brother and this is Hanamura's Botanicals, not KAREN'S BRIDAL." His sister snapped at the bride. "I'm the owner and I reserve the right to fire my clients… So… you have two choices. You pay for it and leave or you pay and leave. Need I remind you I squeezed you in at the last minute?"

"... Is there a third option where I get the rest of my arrangements?"

"If you apologize. Now."

"M-Ms. Mila, I'm sorry-!"

Chiro slid behind the counter, ducking behind his sister.

"Siiiis, they're scaring me…" He whined, resting his head against her arm, flashing her an innocent look.

Mila's glare intensified as she pointed at the bride.

"Pay me. Now. Then get out."

"I'll tell everyone-"

"Losing my patience~!"

Chiro covered his mouth, stifling a chuckle.

His sister usually was cordial and polite with nearly every client… but her limits were the very reason he was behind her.

If the owner's brother was disrespected, Mila was not going to do business with them. That was her policy and had been in place for years.

It still made him laugh to see it happen though.

He brought his arms around her, sighing heavily.

Mila's gaze softened as she looked down at her brother, ruffling his hair a bit before looking back at the person in front of her. Her softness immediately melted back into glare as she waited for the person to swipe their card. They were having a hard time getting their card out of their purse with how frantic they were. Finally, they managed to pull it out, swiping it into the card reader.

The register beeped loudly…

Chiro quickly ducked into the backroom, covering his ears.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN FRAUDULENT CREDIT!? ARE YOU TRYING TO RIP ME OFF!?"

Yep. She's done. She's 100% done with wedding season. If we're not careful, it's gonna be the funeral season.

He made himself busy, sweeping up spilled potting soil and tending to the plants in the back room.

These ones were going to be used as fresh stock the second the bridal party was gone… though he made a note to check the greenhouse later on to be sure.

Alright, that order was picked up-

"AND DON'T COME BACK! I KNOW PEOPLE! I WILL GET YOU BLACKLISTED!" Mila's voice echoed.

Chiro shuddered.

Sometimes, he wondered if he was just lucky his sister never turned that rage on him.

"Oh, you can do no wrong!" She had once said while giving him a look full of adoration. "There's nothing you could do that'd upset me."

Hope that works now too.

He looked over his shoulder before pulling out his holo-phone, checking a map he had made of the city in one of the drawing apps. He had a big red circle around a specific area.

The outskirts of the city, abandoned by all. Prime spots for finding rare plants, lost items…

And potentially, something decent to sell or fix up.

Or a dead body. I'll accept any and all oddities the city wants to throw my way.

The boy smirked, already picturing the possibilities.

A lost gold ring I can pawn off for some arcade money…

A crystal for Mila or some new plant for the shop.

Or…

Something. Just give me something new!

He didn't mind working at the shop. Hanamura's Botanicals was the family business after all and after Mila, he was set to inherit it one day if she chose to retire or leave it to him. He was already comfortable running orders, making floral arrangements - though they were nothing in comparison to his sister's elaborate creations.

"Ichi?"

Chiro grimaced, letting out a groan.

Mila poked her head into the backroom, a look of concern on her face.

"They're gone. You okay?"

"Fine. Honestly, I just wanted them out."

"Next time, tell me you just wanna kick them out."

"Did we get paid?"

"I had to call the bride's mother but yes." She grinned. "Which means I can pick something up for you for dinner later."

Chiro's eyes widened in wonder.

"Hot pot? Hamburgers?"

"Possibly~" Mila's eyes glinted with mischief as she smiled. "Not like you haven't been working hard or anything."

"And I brought home straight A's." He grinned.

Mila squealed, rushing over and pulling him into a tight embrace.

He let out a laugh, shaking his head.

"Mila!"

"Kya!" She squealed, nuzzling the top of his head. "You're so smart!"

"Miiiiilaaaaaa! Knock it off! That tickles!"

She grinned, nuzzling him more.

"Good!"

Chiro laughed harder as he squirmed to get away, his sister quickly joining in.

"YOU'RE MESSING UP MY HAIR! HELP!"

"BWUAHAHAHA NO ONE CAN SAVE YOU NOW!"

"Haaaalp!" He laughed.

Eventually, she let go, fixing up his hair.

"Try to be safe today."

"... How-"

"I know things, Ichiro." She gave him a stern look. "And I remember the last time with Cas."

"Chiro, just Chiro, not Ichi or Ichiro, we talked about this, Sis." He cringed. "And that was one time."

No it wasn't.

She wasn't going to argue that right now though.

"I know…" She sighed, crossing her arms. "But Ichi's cuter…"

Chiro stuck his tongue out, grimacing.

"I hate it."

"I know~"

Chiro rolled his eyes, chuckling.

"Alright, alright. Now for real… how?"

"You're not as sneaky as you think." She crossed her arms, raising an eyebrow. "Just tell me where you're going." Her gaze softened. "Please."

Chiro sighed before showing her the map on his phone with a bit of an eye roll.

"Don't take it back."

Mila looked over the map, grimacing…

Truth be told, she hated his "urban exploration" phase. This had been happening for months now where he would find abandoned buildings and rush through them… and not every single one was safe.

Especially when one of his friends and he would go and run around abandoned buildings as if it was their personal playground.

Considering last week…

She eyed the bandage on his cheek.

He covered it with his hand, giving a sheepish look.

"You don't have to worry about me. I'm fine."

Mila sighed, smoothing his hair down.

"Just check in often, okay? I want you home for dinner BEFORE five. Can you do that for me?"

He nodded.

"I can totally do that. I'll be careful, I promise."

"Okay… then you can go - but ONLY if you call me the second you're on your way home. Got it?"

"Got it!"

He cheered, hugging her tightly before rushing out with a large cheer.

"THANKS, SIS! YOU'RE THE BEST!"

The broom clattered to the ground as he practically threw it in his rush to get his things upstairs.

Mila sighed, chuckling as she watched him go.

"This is what he's turned out like… Hope you two don't mind…" She said softly, looking up at two pictures hanging above the door. "He's turning out like you, Mom."

I just hope he'll be okay.

She shivered as she wrapped her arms around herself.

I feel like someone just walked over my grave… ugh…

She shook her head, hurrying upstairs as well, grabbing a bundle of dried herbs off the coffee table in the apartment.

Mila dug through her pocket, producing a lighter.

Sage.

Sage fixes everything.

oooooo

The edge of the forest was overrun with weeds and long grass. Towering, old trees loomed overhead, their lush canopy creating shade.

Some bore large red fruit that threatened to fall at any moment, warmed from the sunlight.

Chiro practically bounced on his feet as he hurried inside, the cityscape forgotten behind him.

This part of exploring was the best.

The hustle and bustle of the city fading into a hum then eventually silence as he trudged further inside, disappearing into the woods.

It was like his own private world all on its own, the overgrown vines and grass shielding him from sight.

The stream off in the distance, a low hum as he made a careful note to avoid it as he hurried past it.

Chiro adjusted his backpack as he looked around him at the scenery.

It was so still… so quiet. Not even the insects were making sound as he traveled.

He looked around, scanning the forest floor.

Gotta find something that'll really blow the last present outta the water…

"Sis…?"

Mila had her head on the shop counter, her shoulders trembling as thunder boomed outside. With each sound, she tensed up more, trying to keep still in her chair.

But it was no use, he could see everything.

He rested a hand on her shoulder as she looked up miserably.

Chiro dangled something in front of her eyes, swinging it back and forth.

A pendulum made up of a shining quartz, the lights inside bouncing off of it in rainbow facets.

Mila's eyes widened in shock, a smile blooming on her face as she turned to him.

"I swear, you are the best!" She squealed.

"I try. You were really upset about the last one going missing so… I did some digging." He grinned.

Mila sat up, bringing him into her arms, hugging him tightly.

Chiro sighed happily, bringing his arms around her.

This was the part that made all the searching worth it.

Mila rested her head atop his.

"How did I get so lucky?"

"I dunno."

He was determined to find something else to cheer her up. She was always working so hard…

Sometimes, he went through older buildings, looking for things to fix and sell for pocket change and other times he looked for things for himself. That was just the nature of urban exploration.

And other times, it was just fun and seeing how far he could push his limits with climbing through abandoned structures and swinging across them.

Things that would turn his sister's hair gray.

However, that was not his agenda now.

Today, he was determined to find something for Mila instead.

Especially after the morning she had.

He grimaced, looking over her shoulder at the chart she was following.

"That does not mean what I think it means." He said, crossing his arms. "Come on, you know better."

"I do not know better. You have way too much faith in me." Mila grinned as she looked down at her masterpiece. "This is ART!"

"What am I gonna do with you?"

"Help me make "Hope you get divorced Karen!" bouquets?"

"How bad did this one tick you off?"

"The reason is in the bouquet name. Now, hand me the orange asclepias."

"Yes, Ma'am. Anything else?"

She shoved her coffee cup across the counter towards him.

"Use your words."

"Coffee please?"

Chiro chuckled, shaking his head.

He smiled, stretching as he continued on.

He supposed, he should've just been glad that ire had never been directed at him.

At least, not directly.

For the most part.

I just have to stay outta any major trouble and bring home good grades. I got it pretty good all things considered..

He looked around before spotting a red can, abandoned in the middle of the forest.

He took a running leap, kicking it as hard as he could, cheering as it went flying, with a rattle.

"And he scores! The crowd goes wild!" He called out. "Chiro Hanamura wins again!"

Chiro laughed as he ran ahead, giving the can one more kick…

Before he tripped up as something hard caught his foot, sending him falling forward…

Hitting something cold.

And to his eyes, something he couldn't see.

He looked up, running a hand along a smooth surface… to him, nothing but forest for miles could be seen.

He knocked on the surface as it rippled under his hand.

Chiro was puzzled, as he took a step back, reaching out once more brushing his hand against it.

There was a green light under his palm, before a panel slid open revealing a corridor ahead.

Whoa…

He grinned.

Now THIS was something new.

Chapter Text

Chapter 2: Ignition

Chiro poked his head inside the doorway before leaning out, looking around him again, feeling the wall next to the door.

Still invisible, still rippling every time he touched it.

His heart skipped a beat as he pondered what this might be, the grin permanently on his face as he bounced with excitement.

He took another step back, looking it over.

The doorway didn't disappear, it remained open, a set of lights turning on one by one, lighting a path inside.

Now THIS was what he was talking about when he said he wanted to find something worthwhile in the outskirts!

"This is so cool…!"

Already his mind was racing with the possibilities of what he might find inside.

An old hidden base from the days of old or some kind of strange secret lab.

He ran a hand through his hair, taking a steady breath.

"This is like something out of the Sun Riders or StarBlazers…!"

Chiro hummed in thought.

He checked his holophone, noting he still had a few hours left before he had to head back home.

Besides… what Mila didn't know, wouldn't hurt her.

With that thought in mind, he assured himself that he would be in and out. He might have to come back tomorrow with more supplies - but this was a chance he just could not pass up.

He hurried inside, a skip in his step.

"After all, destiny waits for no man!"

Inside the corridor was a stark white metal, with a floor that lit up in a pale green light under his feet.

He looked around, furrowing his brow. There wasn't much in this entrance way. The most he noted was a set of colorful warp tubes in six colors. He cautiously walked over to one - a blue one and peered upward.

He couldn't make out anything but judging from the construction, it was some type of elevator.

At least, that's what he thought.

He eyed the orange one, wandering in.

The tube was dusty, causing him to sneeze as he stood inside it.

Under him, the disk that made up the elevator shook… and before Chiro could react, the door outside slammed shut as the elevator rushed upwards.

His heart skipped a beat as he let out a yelp.

"UWAH! HEY! LEMME GO!"

It came to a screeching halt as he fell out, flying across the floor with a groan.

Chiro rolled onto his back, trying to catch his breath as his eyes adjusted to how dim this new room was. He craned his neck, noting it was huge, rivaling the greenhouse behind the shop.

There was a mechanical hum running through this room, reminding him of the fish tank he had when he was seven.

He sat up, rubbing the back of his neck with a wince.

Where had he even wound up? He got up, rifling through his backpack, producing his holophone, using its flashlight app to illuminate the room.

It reminded him faintly of the bridge of the Yamato from StarBlazers with seats and what appeared to be some kind of command center in front of him.

The floor hummed under him as a set of lights came to life behind him, illuminating the room in a hue of colors as he whirled around.

Chiro's eyes grew wide as he stumbled back.

The other elevators weren't elevators…

They were holding something…

He approached the tubes, narrowing his eyes.

Floating, suspended in some kind of liquid were five monkeys. They were a little smaller than he was. Maybe a foot or so shorter. What really caught his attention, however, was their appearance.

They all had metallic arms and parts of their tails replaced with metal as well. Their heads were covered in helmets and they appeared to have some kind of antennae on the sides of their heads instead of ears.

While their eyes were unfocused in stasis, he couldn't shake the feeling they were watching him as he walked down, looking at them all up close.

He noted three all had the same black eyes, one had pink eyes and then…

He stopped short in front of the purple tube.

The monkey within it was covered in black fur, with his chest and muzzle being the only dabs of white on his body. His eyes were an eerie green that seemed to glow in the darkness of the room.

A chill went through Chiro as his heart skipped a beat.

Something was very familiar about all of this. He couldn't put a finger on where he would've seen five cybernetic monkeys before though.

He snapped a picture with his holophone to show Mila later - to maybe jog her memory so she could help him remember.

Chiro nearly tripped, as he backed up into some kind of orb shaped chair in the middle of the room. He groaned, rolling his eyes.

"Are you guys trying to kill me?" He called over at the monkeys, chuckling. "Cause keeping this room this dark would do it.."

He had to find a light.

Finding a light first, worrying about his silent company could come later.

He looked around, maneuvering towards the large control panel in the room.

The first thing that caught his attention amongst the dozens of buttons and switches, was a large lever in the middle.

He grinned.

Weird cybernetic monkeys, some kind of secret base… and a handle bigger than every other switch.

Oh this is just like something out of StarBlazers!

… Or a horror movie.

Mostly StarBlazers and the Sun Riders!

Chiro was practically bouncing with glee at the possibility.

Please… Let this be something good.

He grabbed the lever tightly.

With a small prayer for luck, he pulled it.

In an instant, electricity shot up around the handle as a bright green energy followed suit, flowing into him.

Chiro's eyes grew wide as a warmth spread through his body, the energy taking shape all around him, lifting him upwards.

The energy crackled around him as a loud roar echoed through his ears… Images dancing before his eyes…

A boy, in his late teens, walked through the jungle, a long cloak covering his shoulders. Beside him, was… the black monkey from the tube.

He was looking up at the boy with concern, touching his arm gently, saying something Chiro couldn't understand.

He chuckled.

"I promise, I'm not going anywhere. You don't have to worry about me.."

Chiro hesitated before calling out.

This was too weird. Where was he?

"Hey! Who are you?"

The boy craned his neck, his blue eyes warm and gentle.

He turned completely to face him.

Chiro recoiled, stunned.

He looked….

Like him. Older and wiser… Much taller… but he recognized his own face.

The boy chuckled, reaching a hand out, a green orb of energy forming in it.

"You'll understand soon. I promise."

The orb flew right at him, entering his chest. Chiro placed a hand over his heart, looking up stunned.

"Wh-What do you mean? I don't-"

"Take care of them, won't you?"

His head hurt as he cried out, bringing both hands to it. The room swam as the energy around him swirled as it lowered him gently to the floor before fading.

Chiro wasn't entirely sure what had just happened.

The static was still flicking off of him, his body warm. His fingertips tingled as he tried to get up.

His legs collapsed from under him.

Whatever had happened, had drained all of his energy.

There was a hissing sound nearby. He tried to lift his head to see what it was.

The first thing he could focus on was the black monkey as he wandered out from the tube, looking right at him.

His eyes went wide as they landed on Chiro.

That dream…

"Take care of them, won't you?"

There were voices now as he noted the other tubes had opened up as well.

The monkeys all wandered out as their chattering turned into words… words he could perfectly understand.

The yellow monkey nudged the black one with a fond smile before noticing he didn't react at all.

She followed his gaze, letting out a sharp gasp.

"What in the world!?" A… he couldn't tell if the monkey was red or a very deep shade of pink, looked down at Chiro with a mixture of shock and concern. "When did you get here?!"

"He's not moving…" A green monkey said, his tail curling in concern. "Is he…?"

"Alright, everyone, calm down."

Chiro looked up, his head still swimming… everything was blurring together.

Was this some kind of weird dream he couldn't wake from?

Did he electrocute himself?

Monkeys couldn't talk.

Everything was fading fast.

They were talking but he couldn't hear anything.

The boy's eyes slid closed as he let out a long sigh.

"Whoa! Is he okay?"

"He lost consciousness, move!"

"Easy with him…"

Everything blurred together as it all faded into nothing.

oooooo

When Antauri awoke, the last thing he expected to find was a child lying on the floor.

The boy's eyes were open, glowing a bright green… but no one was home, his gaze blank as he looked up at him.

He couldn't have been older than thirteen, maybe fourteen, his messy hair falling into his face.

Antauri could sense it however… the power that coursed through their very bodies, was near.

This child…

Nova hurried to him as soon as her tube had opened, squeezing his arm.

She would later admit, the first thing she was focusing on was running to her brother after years of not being near him.

Following his gaze, her heart sank as she noticed the boy, letting out a sharp gasp.

"What in the world!?" Sparx exclaimed, "When did you get here?"

"Um…" Otto spoke up. "He's not moving… He's not…?"

"Everyone, calm down!" Gibson exclaimed, making his way past Sparx and Otto.

Gibson hurried over to the boy, kneeling to his level.

"Can you hear me? With us?"

The green glow faded from his eyes as they slid shut.

Gibson cursed quietly under his breath.

Of course this was how it was going to begin.

"Whoa!" Nova gasped. "Is he okay?"

"He's lost consciousness." He frowned, looking him over.

There weren't any marks he could find immediately - he'd have to take a closer look but…

Something was familiar.

Where have I seen you before…?

He shook his head.

He could worry about that later.

Antauri moved closer, kneeling before the boy.

"Any answers you wanna give us, Antauri?" Sparx narrowed his eyes.

"Hey." Nova whispered.

Antauri closed his eyes, resting his hand on the boy's head.

There was a surge of static that enveloped his hand in a bright green.

Everything faded away around him.

His body was cold, struggling against the current.

He couldn't get his head above the water…

Something…

No…

Someone broke through the surface of the water, diving down for him.

"Take him! Just take him!"

That voice…

Antauri let out a gasp as his senses returned to him, recoiling.

No…

It couldn't be…

"Antauri…?" Nova asked, keeping her voice quiet.

"I… I'm fine." He took a deep breath.

Try again…

Brushing the boy's hair out of his face, Antauri focused once more.

The boy looked up at the stasis tubes, his eyes wide in wonder.

His blue eyes gleamed with newfound excitement before he looked around him.

The command center was dark…

He tripped up as he made his way to the console.

As soon as the child's eyes landed on the lever, a grin formed on his face.

The boy took a deep breath before reaching forward.

Power surged through the child as a loud roar echoed through the room.

Bright green energy formed around him, taking shape into that of a massive primate as it let out a powerful roar.

The energy lost shape, lifting him up, surrounding him as the boy's eyes faded from blue to bright green…

As the stasis tubes opened, he floated to the floor, struggling to stand before collapsing…

Antauri exhaled slowly as he came to.

He frowned, stroking the boy's hair.

"Well?" Sparx asked. "What'd you see?"

"There's no doubt… Just as I was told, someone who would lead us found his way here."

Otto frowned, rubbing his arm.

"So, he's the one?"

Antauri nodded, turning to face the others.

"Yes. This boy is The Chosen One." He narrowed his eyes.

"He's a KID!" Sparx exclaimed. "He can't… I… Antauri, we can't put a kid through this!"

"For once, I agree with Sparx." Gibson frowned. "He's just a boy."

"A boy who did what most humans couldn't." He pointed out. "I could see it… The Power Primate is within him."

Nova took a deep breath, making her way over, kneeling beside Antauri.

"Then it's our job to make sure he can handle this."

Antauri gave her a grateful look.

She nudged him.

"H-Hey."

"Nice drama."

Antauri sighed, shaking his head.

"We'll banter later. For now," he turned to Otto. "Can you go and prepare the sick bay?"

"Y-Yeah." Otto sighed shakily as he hurried off, looking back at the mess he was leaving behind.

I hope we're not doing something wrong here.

"Sparx, Nova, go and find our spare uniforms please." Antauri looked down at himself, grimacing. "I believe we could all use a change of attire."

"You got it." Nova got up before she doubled back, hugging him tightly.

"What did I do for that?"

"I haven't seen you in years, let me hug my brother."

Antauri brought his arms around her, sighing in relief.

"We'll make up for lost time later." He looked over at Sparx. "I trust you can keep her out of mischief."

Sparx smirked.

"Oh, so now you approve."

Antauri narrowed his eyes.

"Shush."

Sparx nodded, looking back at the child, his gaze turning concerned.

"Hey… he's… he's gonna be okay, right?"

"I have no doubts about it." Gibson scoffed. "At least with me around."

Nova grabbed Sparx's arm.

"C'mon, they got it under control."

"Ahuh, you just want some alone time."

She dragged him along as he let out a yelp.

"H-Hey! Easy on the arm!"

"Dork."

Antauri cringed as the elevator left.

"Well, that solves one issue…"

"Now the second one." Gibson got to his feet. "Come on, let's get him settled."

Antauri held out both hands as the boy was enveloped in a soft glow.

He was lifted up, cradled by the energy.

"I still don't know how to feel about this. When you mentioned a Chosen One years ago…" Gibson shook his head. "I assumed we'd be dealing with an adult."

"So did I… However, just as before, we'll handle it."

As they started to walk off, Gibson gave him a worried look.

Antauri's shoulders were tense, his tail curling around his waist.

Something wasn't right still.

"What's on your mind?"

"I'll… explain later."

"What else did you see?"

Antauri stopped short before he hurried on ahead.

"I expect a full answer, Antauri!" Gibson called after him. "You can't avoid it!"

"I said, I'll explain later."

"I expect you to."

Otto poked his head out of a room at the far end of the command center.

"Hey, I got the power in the Sick Bay back up!"

Antauri turned to Gibson.

"He's all yours."

"Right this way."

Still… He couldn't shake that familiarity when he looked at the boy.

There was something familiar and it wasn't the power he now held.

He took a deep breath.

Questions later, attending to his patient first.

Chapter Text

Chapter 3: Monkey Business

The water was rushing up all around him. There was smoke, it choked him as he coughed on it, trying to tug his seatbelt free.

He looked around, fearful.

"Hello!?" He called out. "Someone, please!"

"Vitals are all normal. He should be waking up any moment now."

The water was rising, a large wave crashing over the car as his seatbelt was knocked loose finally.

Unfortunately, as the current started to sweep him away, further down.

Chiro was knocked around by the waves, disoriented… confused…

Where had that voice come from?

"HELLO!?"

Everything ached as he came to.

His headache was back with a vengeance as he hissed a little.

The first thing he heard was some kind of monitor. There were voices nearby, discussing something…

"So uh… that device we found with him, stopped making sound. I think the battery died."

His phone. Vaguely he wondered if it had been ringing for a while now.

Surprised it didn't die when I got electrocuted…

AsTHAT lovely thought settled in his mind, everything rushed back to him.

Monkeys.

Strange secret base in the woods.

His phone died.

Weird energy and visions.

Monkeys.

His phone died after ringing nonstop.

Mila is gonna kill me!

That was the thought that made him shoot up on the bed he was laying on with a shout.

"WHERE'S MY PHONE!?"

His shout startled the person beside his bed as they let out a yelp of surprise.

"Well, that's one way to wake up."

Chiro looked over, his eyes widening.

It was one of the monkeys… the blue one to be exact.

He looked… different now.

He was wearing an outfit, made up of a pale grey/blue tone, with a tunic, pants and a blue scarf around his neck. There were also white stripes on his cheeks.

Chiro rubbed his eyes, shaking his head.

He looked at the monkey again, his eyes widening anew.

Yep.

He was still there.

"Yes, your eyes do not deceive you." He spoke up, a chuckle escaping him.

Chiro practically deflated back onto the table he was on, rubbing his head.

"Mn… Okay, so that wasn't a dream."

"No… but I do have a few questions for you."

"Only if I can ask a few."

"Very well. Now, can you tell me your name?"

Chiro raised an eyebrow.

"Ichiro Hanamura but I prefer going by Chiro - and don't even call me Ichi."

"I see we both have similar feelings about our names. Mine is Dr. Hal Gibson - though I prefer Gibson." He explained, typing something into a datapad.

Chiro chuckled.

"Yeah, I mean, it's an alright name - but no one except my sister's called me Ichi since I was like six."

Alright… I'm sitting in some weird lab, talking to a robotic monkey and we're… just chilling.

I guess I asked for this, huh?

Gibson gave him a gentle look.

"How are you feeling right now?"

Chiro shrugged.

"Kinda achy all over. Nothing I can't handle though." He grinned. "You should've seen me after this one really bad spill when I was exploring an abandoned building-"

"You did what!?"

"Yeah." Chiro raised a hand, miming someone falling from a high place. "I went SPLAT!"

Gibson's eyes widened, mortified.

"How are you…" He looked him over with his eyes.

"Oh, no, that wasn't recent! That was last year!"

"ICHI WHAT DID YOU DO!?"

"Uh… I… went splat?"

"ICHIRO HANAMURA!"

Chiro grimaced.

Mila was not happy with him after that one.

… RIGHT. MILA. KILLING ME. PHONE.

WHERE IS IT!?

"Uh, so Gibson… About my phone…"

"That device of yours?" Gibson grimaced. "It… stopped functioning a few hours ago. You've been unconscious for… roughly six hours?"

"... Excuse me… What?"

"Yes. It's about ten in the evening now." He checked the clock on his datapad. "Actually, I standard corrected, it's 9:45-"

Chiro's eyes widened before he let out a quiet curse.

"Language!"

"I'm gonna die." He laid back down on the table, folding his arm over his eyes. "I'm dead. I'm so dead."

"By what, prey-tell?"

The door to the room slid open with a whoosh as someone walked in.

"Hey, is he up yet-Is he okay?"

Chiro lifted his head up, seeing a green monkey in some kind of mechanic outfit… and in his hand was…

"My phone!"

The monkey held it up, revealing the screen was still dark.

He gave a sheepish look.

"Sorry, I didn't get it charged back up - I didn't wanna break it trying to fix it."

"N-No it's fine! Is my backpack still here?"

Gibson sighed.

"Otto, your timing couldn't have been better. Are the others situated yet?"

"Yep! Command Center's power is up and we found the MRE's!"

Gibson grimaced.

"Lovely…"

Chiro stuck his tongue out.

"You guys eat that stuff?"

"Unfortunately." Gibson looked up at him with a concerned look. "Do you feel well enough to get up?"

Chiro nodded, getting to his feet.

Otto hurried over an excited smile on his face.

"Are you okay now?"

"Huh? Oh…" He rubbed the back of his neck. "Guess I kinda scared you guys, huh?"

"A little - but it's okay. Gibson's our chief scientist and doctor, so we knew you were in good hands!"

Gibson smiled, holding his head up higher at that.

"Indeed. There's hardly anyone out there with my knowledge."

Chiro chuckled.

"Then I got very lucky. So, I've met two… where're the others?" He crossed his arms. "Pretty sure I saw five of you when I got electrocuted."

"What? You didn't get electrocuted." Gibson scoffed. "I wouldn't be letting you walk around if you did!"

"Yeah, you didn't have a scratch on you." Otto added, tilting his head.

"Then… what…?" He sighed. "You know what? I don't wanna know." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Already having two weird dreams was enough."

Otto jumped up, grabbing his arm, leading him out.

"Come on then! We can tell you everything!"

Chiro yelped, picking up the pace, to keep up.

"W-Whoa! Otto, where are we going!?"

Gibson sighed, chasing after him.

"Easy with my patient, Otto! Don't break him now!"

oooooo

Mila was freaking out. She was pacing up and down the greenhouse, her phone pressed against her ear as she tried calling for what felt like the 600th time in the last few hours.

Her brother hadn't come home yet.

She knew boys got into things, she knew that all too well… but this was getting ridiculous.

Mila's grip tightened as she paced up and down a section of cosmos, their bright colors doing nothing for her darkened mood.

Her mind was going through a million scenarios as she brought her index finger to her teeth.

Don't do it. It took you almost 7 years to break the habit, come on…

Ichi, where are you?

Her chest tightened.

She had promised herself she would wait here, where he could find her instead of going off on her own… but as her call failed for the umpteenth time that hour, she couldn't ignore it anymore.

Chiro was missing and someone needed to find him.

She sighed shakily, hurrying upstairs.

The apartment was so quiet now. The hardwood floors creaked under her boots as she mentally swore for not taking them off but she had more important things on her mind.

Sorry, Mom, Sorry, Dad, I know, I know, super disrespectful!

She found her car keys, a jacket…

And grabbed a first aid kit just in case before rushing out and locking the shop behind her, turning the sign to "Closed."

She would've closed hours ago but staying open kept her sane.

"Ahah, one "Forgive me for being stupid!" style bouquet, Ms. Mila?"

She had a forced smile on her face as she nodded, turning and rushing into the back.

She let out a quiet sob, her heart racing as she went through the flowers in question before hurrying back out, wiping at her eyes.

"R-Right here, Sir. Something for the Missus again?"

"Yeah, I screwed up real bad and kept the restaurant open way too long- Are you alright?"

Mila took a shaky breath.

"Please, tell me you've seen Chiro."

He frowned.

"I'm afraid I haven't. He usually says hey on his way back here but I haven't seen him yet. I'll keep an eye out and if I do, I'll tell him to come straight home."

"Thank you." Mila sniffled. "I… I don't know what I'd do if…"

"Hey, hey, easy… It's gonna be okay. Your brother's a fighter."

Mila checked her holophone, entering in an app.

She had promised herself she would never use this feature…

But it was long past the time for that.

Getting into her car, she took a deep breath to try to steady herself.

Her hand trembled as she tried to start the ignition.

She hated driving at night.

Just takes me back to that awful night…

The water was everywhere, I thought I was gonna be swept away.

Her phone beeped, revealing the last known location of Chiro's holophone.

The map revealed the outskirts to her just like Chiro had that morning when he left.

I'm gonna have to do some hiking but… I'll find you.

And when I do, I'm gonna hug you so tightly…

AND GROUND YOU FOR ETERNITY!

oooooo

Chiro shuddered as he was led along.

"Are you alright?" Gibson asked.

"Yeah… Just felt like someone walked over my grave." Chiro grimaced.

Or like Mila's digging mine… Ohh man after I get this all cleared up I gotta get home!

It wasn't like he forgot, far from it.

But he also had no idea what he was in for right now and he wanted his answers. Once he had his answers, he was pretty sure he could at least convince Otto and Gibson to guard him from his sister's wrath.

"... Hey, Gibson, weird question: do you know how to make tranq darts?"

Gibson gave him a bewildered look.

"Why in the world would you need that?"

Chiro grimaced.

"No reason."

My big sister is gonna turn me into mulch and all this cool stuff is gonna be pointless when she gets her hands on me but it's FINE!

He shook his head.

No.

Whatever this was leading to, he didn't have time to worry about whether or not he was going to get grounded - he already made peace with that.

It was then he looked up as Otto came to a halt.

He was in the main room once again. He got a good look at it all, looking upwards, now that the lights were on, whistling.

The first thing he saw as his neck was craned upwards was the metal connecting with lush greenery above him. The walls were made of the same stark white metal that the lower level had.

There were several large monitors along one wall, another showed a portal to the outside, the darkened sky confirming what Gibson had told him… it was pretty late.

Six chairs were in the center, shaped like domes… what caught his attention though was what was happening above one of them.

One of the monkeys was… floating. His eyes closed (as far as Chiro could tell), his hands resting on his knees as he floated above it. He too wore a uniform, but unlike Gibson and Otto, it appeared he chose to go with just a pair of pants and a belt.

Chiro looked down at Otto and Gibson, pointing to the monkey with a bewildered expression.

"I know you're there." The monkey chuckled, his voice warm as he turned to Chiro. "I'm glad to see you awake. How do you feel?"

"F-Fine… um…" He rubbed his arm. "I guess I'm confused, kinda outta it and uh…"

My phone is dead, Mila's gonna kill me and oh yeah, talking monkeys and weird visions and… yeah.

"You have many questions."

Chiro nodded.

Before they could continue, there was a loud yelp coming from one of the elevators as the red monkey hurried out, covering his head, the yellow one hot on his tail.

"GET BACK HERE! YOU BROKE THAT ON PURPOSE!"

"NOVA, FOR THE LAST TIME, I DIDN'T MEAN IT!"

Nova let out an enraged yell as she lunged upwards.

Immediately, the floating monkey held a hand out, forcing her back to the ground.

"Nova." He gave a stern look. "I'm sure Sparx didn't mean it."

She narrowed her eyes.

"Antauri, he was being an idiot AGAIN."

"Hey, in my defense, that piston is old! It needs to be replaced and I'm not the mechanic!" Sparx scoffed. "And for the record, it's nothing major-"

There was a crash from abov, as everyone's gazes went upward.

Sparx shrugged.

"So, part of that one bed collapsed. No biggie."

Antauri sighed, rubbing the side of his face.

Patience, he reminded himself. They would all need time to figure themselves out again.

Especially now.

He turned to Chiro, noting the boy was trying to quietly back away towards his backpack, the boy's shoulders tense.

"Apologies for this."

Sparx and Nova looked up as they realized the newcomer was looking right at him.

Chiro chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck.

"I-It's fine. No harm done."

Sparx rubbed the back of his head.

"Listen, Kid, did not mean for it to start like this." He grinned sheepishly. "Just one of those things, y'know?"

"Yeah… We're excited to meet you though." Nova gave him a grin. "Not every day we get a new member."

He was just about to look for his charger when that hit him like a ton of bricks.

Chiro looked up stunned.

"What!?"

Sparx looked at Antauri with an annoyed look.

"Smooth! You didn't tell him!?"

"He just woke up, Sparx. I was going to give him a moment."

"Okay then Dr. Brainstrain forgot."

Gibson sputtered.

"SPARX!"

Chiro whistled, getting everyone's attention.

"Hey! The "Kid" can still hear you all. So… let's go over some basics then. I have questions, you guys can give me answers, so, let's start over! I'm Chiro!" Chiro smiled. "I already met Gibson - thanks again for fixing me up."

Gibson smiled.

"Anytime."

"Otto too… Then you're Antauri.." He pointed at the black monkey.

"That's correct, I'm the second in command of the team." He bowed his head. "And the advisor."

Chiro hummed in thought.

"Okay…" He pointed at Sparx. "Then you're the leader?"

Sparx's grin widened.

He already liked this kid.

"I'm already getting promoted! You hear that!"

Nova smacked him with her tail, folding her arms behind her head.

"Nope. He couldn't lead his way out of a paper bag."

"Thanks…" He rubbed his head, giving her a glare.

"Then… Nova is it? You are?"

Nova shook her head.

Chiro looked over at Otto and Gibson.

"Nope." Otto shrugged.

"Absolutely not. I have enough on my plate keeping these four alive and healthy." Gibson scoffed.

"Oka, then who is-AHA!" Chiro let out a cheer, jumping up as he produced a long white cable from his backpack. "I knew it was in here!" He turned to Otto. "Hey, where can I plug in my phone?"

Otto grinned.

"I know a spot."

Chiro handed over the cable and his phone, giving a quick bow of his head.

"Here, just please bring it back? Thank you!"

"Can do! Go ahead and start, I'll be back!"

He hurried off.

Chiro sighed in relief.

Maybe he would get to live to see tomorrow.

Sparx rolled his eyes.

"Of course. Kids and their tech… What, got a hot date?"

Chiro scoffed, shaking his head. He held his head up higher as he moved to the center of the main room.

"No, no, no. I have a very logical reason for being concerned about that first." He held up a finger. "There's an old legend here on Shuggazoom… That if you're out past your curfew and your phone dies, a horrible monster, called your big sister will materialize out of nowhere and turn you into mulch!"

He shuddered.

He could already picture Mila's disappointed look.

Yeah, calling her the second that phone is charged…

Antauri narrowed his eyes.

"Then we will ensure this is quick. Please, have a seat."

Chiro sunk down into the orange chair, sighing a bit at how comfortable it was.

"Now… as for who we are proper, we are known as the HyperForce." Antauri began.

"Though, we've gone by a few different names." Sparx cut in. "One was a real mouthful."

"Otto picked it, don't be mean." Nova whispered.

Chiro's eyes widened anew.

"So… Wait… Wait…" He grinned. "Does that mean you guys are superheroes!?"

Antauri chuckled.

"If that's what you would prefer to see it as… yes. We were created to protect Shuggazoom City from dark forces and natural disasters. It was our goal to ensure the city was able to thrive."

"And we kicked butt and took names! We took out all kinds of baddies!" Sparx boasted, holding up a hand as it transformed into a large red magnet. "We were kind of a huge deal y'know!"

Chiro leaned forward, propping his chin up on his hands, completely mesmerized.

This was like something out of a dream…

Or a wish come true.

Nova nudged Sparx out of the way.

"We saved the day countless times…" She frowned. "And then well… it was time to rest."

"Rest? From what?" Chiro furrowed his brow.

Though… now this was starting to sound familiar. His mind was racing as he tried to recall.

Something was familiar. Maybe he had seen them in passing when he was younger? Or in a history book?

No… That's not it…

Antauri sighed.

This was going to be the hard part.

"We went into stasis seven years ago due to not having a leader of our own anymore… He…"

His heart skipped a beat.

He could still hear the screams in his ear.

"I'M A FAILURE! THIS PLACE IS HOPELESS!"

"Get ahold of yourself-"

"IT'S ALL HOPELESS! LOOK AT THIS!"

Antauri swallowed hard.

Chiro got up, moving over to him.

"You don't have to tell me. I don't need to know." He said softly. "There's stuff I don't wanna go over with people I just met either."

Antauri let out a shaky sigh giving him a grateful look.

"Thank you…" He took a step back. "Bottom line, we need a leader now that we've awakened."

"Why can't you do it then?"

Antauri floated up to Chiro's eye level properly.

"Because I wasn't the one who awakened us. Our leader is whoever found our base and pulled the lever."

Chiro's eyes widened.

"What!?"

He pointed at himself, speechless. His mouth opened and closed trying to process it.

I mean it makes sense, but… Me?!

Me…

Why me!?

Chiro ran a hand through his hair.

"I…" He let out a groan. "Oh man, I just passed out like a dork!"

"You didn't exactly plan that." Sparx pointed out.

Antauri rested a hand on his arm.

"No one starts off perfect."

"Antauri, I don't even know how to throw a punch!" He held up his hands.

I make flower arrangements, not fists!

Antauri chuckled.

"Then we will train you. Simple as that."

Chiro looked up apprehensively. All that bravado about destiny he had when he found this place, was long gone.

This was real.

This was actually happening to him.

He let out a sigh, sinking to the floor.

"Where do I even start?"

Otto hurried over to his side.

"Well, you're not freaking out. That's a good sign!"

He laughed.

"I guess that's true… But seriously, you guys are sure? I'm a kid… I still have school…"

Gibson scoffed.

"I've seen what your world's curriculum looks like. That simply won't do. I'll teach you myself."

"We all will, Kid. Besides, you won't have time for boring human school." Sparx grinned. "After all, how can you learn to fly a ship?"

Chiro's eyes widened anew.

"A ship?"

Nova went over to him.

"Yup! It's huuuge! We each have our own vehicles - and being the leader, means you get the best one."

Chiro jumped up, re-energized, as this was all setting in.

"Alright!" He laughed. "I mean, hey, why not!? What could go-"

An alarm chimed overhead.

"MOTION DETECTED! FLOOR LEVEL CAMERA!" A mechanical voice rang out, as the monitor buzzed to life.

"Bring up the visual of the base's outside." Antauri ordered.

Otto rushed over, typing in a few commands as the camera focused on one spot in the forest.

"Enhancing audio."

A figure came barreling through the brush, their long hair filled with leaves, using a flashlight to look around the forest.

Chiro got up, taking a closer look.

And then the figure looked up as his blood ran cold.

"Oh… crap and a half." He breathed.

The worried face of his sister greeted him as she looked around.

She couldn't see the base even though she was right in front of it.

Chiro looked down at Sparx.

"Remember that legend about the monster called "your older sister" who will turn you into mulch?"

Sparx nodded.

Chiro pointed at the screen.

"That's mine."

"O-Oh… OH crap!"

Chiro grimaced, nodding.

"Can you guys tell Mila what's going on? Cause I'd like to not be mulch."

Gibson sighed.

"That's an impossibility. She won't understand us."

"But you're speaking perfect Shuggazoomian.." Chiro looked at Antauri. "Why's that an issue?"

"What you hear, Chiro, is your language… but only you can understand us."

Otto hummed in thought.

"Well… not entirely but I don't have a translator ready made… I'd have to look through some stuff."

Gibson scoffed.

"You'd need an audio enhancer that could stimulate her brain to understand our advanced language, Otto. You can't just whip that up in a few minutes."

"Gimme ten then!" He hurried off, a grin on his face. "I can try!"

Chiro covered his ears, as on screen, Mila took a deep breath.

"ICHIRO!"

I'm dead.

Chapter Text

Chapter 4: The Longest Night

Okay, think, think, think…

This is a lot… I'm now the leader of a team of robot monkeys. My sister's out there about to have a meltdown, if she's not already having one…

Crap, crap, crap, what do I do, what do I do…

Chiro exhaled sharply, trying to figure out what he was going to do… or even say.

This was worse, he decided, than the time he went and fell in an abandoned warehouse with his friend. At least a broken arm was easier to explain than robot monkeys and becoming a superhero overnight.

This is absolutely gonna go worse than the time I brought that fish tank home and set it up in my room… She was annoyed but the fish didn't bother her and still doesn't. This is gonna…

Oh I'm gonna die.

Forget "You could never do anything to upset me," she is actually gonna kill me. He thought, running a hand through his hair.

Part of him really wanted to just stay there and avoid his inevitable doom.

But he knew the longer he stayed up there, the longer he was making his sister wait on him and worry.

And on top of that, also guarantee she would actually turn him into mulch.

I'm dead, I'm dead, I'm so dead…

"Okay… Okay… I got this." He took a deep breath. "I'm gonna go down there and talk to her."

"Kid, you need some reinforcements?" Sparx asked, looking up at the monitor, grimacing.

It was hard to watch.

Seeing how desperate Mila was as she cried out for her brother, stumbling in the dark.

Chiro's heart broke as he saw her trip before letting out a frustrated cry.

"ICHI! Where… Where… Where… PLEASE JUST COME BACK!" Her voice echoed.

She was holding a flashlight in her hands, tears welling up in her eyes from sheer terror and worry.

She looked around wildly, letting out another yell.

"CHIRO!"

A lump settled in his throat.

"I'll go alone. I'll… I'll be right back!"

Before anyone could reply, he was gone as the orange tube descended…

Nova reached up, turning off the monitor.

"I can't watch this… This is their business."

Gibson crossed his arms, his eyes narrowed in concern.

"Nova, she's stumbling around in the dark-"

"It's still wrong." Sparx cut in, agreeing with her.

It wasn't a pretty sight. Their awakening was supposed to be a momentous occasion but there was now a brand new complication in that…

Gibson sighed, leaning back against the console.

"I'm just concerned she's going to injure herself before Chiro gets down there."

"That's the kid's sister. He knows her. Just hope she won't drag him away before an explanation."

"ICHI!"

Sparx grimaced.

Although he wouldn't deny, that was hard to hear.

That panicked tone, the look of total fear…

He was all too familiar with that from days past. People who looked to the Hyper Force for help in their darkest hour…

He brought a hand to his throat absently.

Couldn't do a thing about comforting any of them.

That was the downside of it.

Nah…

Sparx shook his head.

It's not like back then…

Although…

"Hey… I want a promise from everyone in this room." He spoke up.

Antauri raised an eyebrow.

"What's on your mind Sparx?"

"We can't let Chiro wind up like Mandarin did…" He frowned. "I can't watch that happen again."

Gibson exhaled sharply, elbowing Sparx.

"Sparx."

"Hey, I have every right to be worried here. We thought the Chosen One would be an adult but now we gotta be a lot of things. We're responsible for him now."

Sparx gestured to the monitor.

"Which means, we have to catch him up and pray the bag of bones hasn't figured out he woke us up! We're asking a LOT here. He's excited but how long is that gonna stay?"

Antauri narrowed his eyes.

"We won't allow him to wind up like that. I will do everything I can to ensure that."

"Good…" Sparx exhaled slowly. "Sorry, sorry, I just… This is a lot, okay?! First we wake up, then surprise, the Chosen One is a KID and now… and now what?"

"We'll just have to do what we can to guide him." Gibson said. "The Power Primate courses through him… and I doubt it'd pick someone who couldn't wield its power."

Antauri smiled faintly.

"I couldn't have said it better myself."

"And… what are we gonna do about the big thing?" Nova asked, wringing her hands. "That's gonna be harder to explain than the leader part."

Antauri floated to the floor, walking over to the monitor, flicking it on.

The image of Chiro hugging his sister appeared on it. He muted the audio so they weren't eavesdropping.

"I believe for now… it would be in his best interest if we kept that aspect to ourselves. Just for now… until he's a little more adjusted."

"So, what? Wait until the bag of bones shows up and tells him?"

"Sparx!" Gibson hissed.

He didn't like the idea either… but he wasn't seeing much of a way around it.

It was late, they were exhausted from the adrenaline of the day and now, they were going to be up for at least a few more hours clearing any negative air to Chiro's sister.

"This will be a temporary thing, right?" Gibson asked, his gaze narrowing.

"It will. Once he's more comfortable, I will tell him."

Nova sighed, leaning against her sibling.

"We have no idea what we're doing, do we?"

Antauri sighed shakily.

"We will… It's going to be an adjustment, but we will… and we have little choice. We need to get him up to speed and ensure he's safe."

Gibson sighed.

"Well… congratulations everyone. We're parents now."

Sparx rubbed the side of his face.

"Ohhh we're off to a great start with this…"

WHAT ARE WE GONNA DO!?

oooooo

"Ichi!"

The wind was blowing hard around her, causing her hair to fly about. She could feel it in the air, tangling in her hair, clinging to her fingertips, she could practically taste it…

The energy here was so different. Each step was like wading through the ocean.

A strong presence hung in the air, hanging around her like a thick fog, as if to say "I'm here and I know you are here."

The fear welling up inside her she knew all too well. Her body trembled as she traversed the outskirts, her heart racing and yet, somehow finding a way to leap up into her throat.

"ICHIRO!" She called, waving the flashlight around.

She hated this. Every minute of it, she was inching closer and closer to the edge.

Stay calm… Stay calm…

It's not raining…

It's not…

Flooding…

Mila shuddered, trying to shake it off… She could never forget though.

The way the water rushed over her head, trying to pull her under. Her clothing and jewelry weighed her down as she struggled against the current.

She sputtered, gagging on the water as she grabbed onto a light post that had fallen over.

Her hair was plastered to her face as she struggled to breath, coughing up water here and there. Her lungs burned with every breath.

She looked around, using the light post to shimmy herself out of the water and onto the only bit of dry land there was.

As she stood on the rubble, looking around, her heart sank.

The entire city was flooded, the current growing stronger with each minute.

The wind howled as if the whole planet itself was crying out in pain.

"I have to get home…" She muttered.

She wasn't sure if "home" was even still standing.

But she had to find them…

Thunder rumbled overhead as she looked around her, trying to think of something… anything…

She had to find her family.

She had to get home.

Even if her body hated her for every step, she had to find a way home.

"STOP!" She gripped the side of her head, exhaling shakily.

She couldn't afford to panic now.

No… Forget it…

Forget all of it…

Bury it…

Mila shook her head, sniffling as she fought down another cry.

She couldn't afford to break down.

Not now.

Not ever again as long as she lived.

She had promised herself she would always keep it together for his sake.

"You can do no wrong."

Whatever happens, don't be angry, don't be angry… I'll just be content with seeing his face again.

I'll be happy if he's safe.

"Mila!"

Mila froze, looking around.

That was Chiro's voice.

"Ichi!?" She called out.

She could barely see, it was so dark. Her flashlight was barely doing anything. It was like shining it into mud.

Like a ghost, he appeared before her rushing up to her.

Her heart leaped into her throat as a relieved smile bloomed across her face.

"Ichi!"

He threw his arms around her, kissing her cheek.

"I'm sorry." He murmured. "I'm SO sorry.'

Mila wrapped her arms tightly around him, her body trembling anew.

"Ichi… Thank goodness…" Her embrace tightened as she brought an arm up to his head, smoothing his hair back, peppering his head with relieved kisses, tears running down her face. "You scared me to death…" She murmured.

Chiro's heart sank as a lump settled in his throat.

"Mila…"

I didn't mean for this to happen…

"I'm sorry." Chiro looked up at her, cupping her cheek, wiping away some of her tears. "I'm so, so sorry."

Mila cupped his face in her hands, pressing her forehead against his.

She had been so angry when she left, fear, taking over…

Yet, here he was.

He was safe, right in front of her.

His presence was so strong.

She breathed a sigh of relief, closing her eyes.

All was right in her world.

"No TV for a week." She whispered. "No urban exploring for a month."

"That's fair." Chiro sighed. "That is more than fair. I… I scared you really bad."

Her eyes opened, still glassy but stern as she pulled back, moving him to arm's length.

"Why didn't you answer me?" She asked. "Do you have any idea how worried I was!?"

"My phone died." He sighed. "And I uh…"

Mila raised an eyebrow, looking him over. She noticed the bandaid on his face was gone, replaced with a square of gauze instead. It didn't look normal though. It had a pale blue tint to it and it almost looked like it was bonded to his skin.

"Wait, when did this happen?" She tilted his cheek to the side. "Who did this? When did you get this patched up?"

Chiro's eyes widened.

Gibson must've changed it, when I was out. Geeze he's thorough…

"No? Um… I…" He took a deep breath.

This was not going to be easy to explain. At all.

Mila raised an eyebrow, her gaze stern..

"Ichiro. Tell me the truth, I won't be mad. What happened?"

Chiro grimaced.

"You promise not to ground me even worse?"

Mila narrowed her eyes.

"It depends."

Chiro took her hand in his, leading her along.

"Just… come with me."

Mila sighed, following him.

Now that he was with her, her body was already relaxing.

She took a deep breath, trying to slow her heart rate down.

"Now, promise not to get mad? OR weirded out?"

"I'll try to keep calm. How's that?"

Chiro chuckled, shaking his head.

"Trying Is good… Really good.."

She's gonna KILL me…

Mila looked up as he led her towards where he had appeared from… resting his hand on a reflective surface that rippled under his hand.

A sense of dread washed over her.

A green light illuminated his palm as a large door opened up above him.

All the years she spent playing horror video games and listening to podcasts about crime across the galaxy were screaming at her.

She let out a sharp gasp, pulling him behind her.

"Uwah! Sis!"

"Nope, nope." She shook her head. "I've seen enough horror movies to know this part. This is usually where someone gets killed!"

"Mila, there is nothing dangerous inside." He reassured her.

Except for the Electrocution Switch but I think that was a one-time thing…

I think.

Mila looked down at him, wincing at the innocent smile he had on his face.

He hugged her arm, resting his head against her shoulder.

"Nooo, stop that. Stop being cute." She groaned. "That's not fair. I'm supposed to be FURIOUS right now."

He looked up at her, with a pleading look.

"If you give this a chance, I'll never go inside another abandoned building."

Mila sighed, weighing her options sincerely here.

Go inside the obvious death trap or never have to hear Chiro describe a bad fall as "splat" again, from urban exploring.

… Goddess, I am a terrible parent. I shouldn't be doing this.

She let out a frustrated sigh.

"Fine, fine, fine." She held up a finger, pointing it at him. "BUT, if there's an axe killer or an alien looking to suck out my brain through a straw or a tube containing a screaming disembodied forehead, we're leaving."

Chiro opened his mouth to protest that nothing happened but decided against it as that was going to open a can of worms he really didn't want to be unleashed yet.

Instead, he nodded before leading her inside.

The inside illuminated, revealing the metal covering the ground floor of the place.

Up ahead, were the six elevators, all in different hues… off to the right, appeared to be some kind of hangar door.

Chiro grinned, eying it.

He could hardly wait to go and see what was in there but he had more important matters to worry about.

"Now, I want you to keep an open mind, okay? I made some new friends."

Mila grimaced.

"They're not green, are they?"

I'm already regretting this.

Ohh please don't have zombies up there. Please don't have zombies…

"One is." He chirped, leading her over to the orange elevator, grabbing her arm tightly. "Alright, step on this with me at the same time."

Mila looked longingly back at the doorway towards the forest.

… No more splat, no more splat, no more splat. You're doing this for your sanity, Mila.

Hesitantly, she stepped onto the platform…

In an instant, it began vibrating under their feet before shooting upwards.

"ICHIRO HANAMURAAAAAAAAHAHAHAAAAAAH!"

Mila's scream echoed through the base as the elevator jerked to a stop.

Just like her brother before her, Mila was sent flying across the metal floor the moment she let go.

"AAAAH!"

THUD!

The cold floor rushed up to greet her face as she laid there, limbs splayed out, face down.

"Ow…."

I. Hate. EVERYTHING.

Chiro grimaced, giving her a concerned look.

"Are you okay?"

She didn't lift her head.

"Peachy." She muttered.

A slow clap caught their attention as Sparx got up from his chair.

"That was an excellent re-entry there."

Gibson grimaced, hurrying over.

"Excuse me, Miss, are you alright?" He asked, momentarily forgetting the language barrier.

Mila lifted her head up… Her eyes widened, her jaw dropping open.

Before her, was a blue monkey in some kind of outfit and armor… and he was chattering at her.

"Sparx, that wasn't funny." Chiro looked towards Mila. "That's Sparx in the red and the blue one's Gibson. He's nice."

Mila shook her head, sitting up slowly.

She wasn't sure what was going on.

She looked around the room, baffled as her brother walked over to - was it Sparx? And began talking to him like they were old friends, responding to the monkey's chatter as if they were having a normal conversation.

This was… a little too familiar for comfort.

Wait…

Her mind was racing.

It was all coming back to her now.

They used to have monkeys patrolling the streets now and then or helping during natural disasters. Her father had said once upon a time they fought monsters but they had missed out on that era by a few years.

"It's honestly a blessing. Your mother grew up on Shuggazoom and… she has quite a few memories of when things were really bad. She came to Earth to get away from it all…"

"And then you had me?"

He ruffled up her hair.

"Yeah, our siren song to the stars."

Mila shook her head.

No, that wasn't it.

She looked at each one, pointing with a finger, mumbling to herself.

"One… two… three… four…"

She put a finger to her chin.

Wasn't there six?

I remember six…

Chiro looked over at her.

"So… she really can't understand you guys?" He asked Antauri, keeping his voice low.

He could tell she was trying not to freak out from the way she was reacting. She hadn't even bothered getting off the floor and had just opted to sit up.

She brought her index finger up to her lips before shaking her head and going back to drumming it against her leg instead.

Her eyes were wide in alarm as she looked around, fighting the urge to go and run out of the entire base.

And her old habit's trying to pop up. Ho boy…

"Unfortunately, without the power you obtained - the Power Primate, she will need other means." Antauri explained.

"Of course if what Otto is working on doesn't work I have a few ideas." Gibson cut in. "But they'd take time."

"You're not playing with her brain." Chiro said without thinking.

Mila's head snapped in his direction, mortified as her hands went to her head.

"EXCUSE ME, HE WANTS TO DO WHAT?!" She yelped.

Sparx looked at Gibson, raising an eyebrow.

"Smooth, Brain Strain." He rolled his eyes, "You impress all the ladies with that?"

Gibson growled, getting in his face.

"Well excuse me for not pre-preparing a language implant for a human!"

"You're excused!"

"Hey! What'd I just say? No experimental surgery!" Chiro sighed.

Mila's jaw dropped open.

"EXCUSE ME, EXPERIMENTAL WHAT?!"

This is worse. This is absolutely worse than zombies!

Chiro turned back to Nova, rubbing the back of his neck.

"I don't think introducing you guys without Otto's thingy is gonna be a good idea…"

"No kidding." Nova frowned.

She had been really looking forward to having another girl to talk to but it seemed this one was ready to bolt back to civilization screaming the whole way.

"Who's Otto? Which one's Otto?" Mila asked. "Not the one who wanted to do something to my brain, yeah!?"

She was too focused on what was going on in front of her to realize one of the elevators had just arrived.

"Hey guys! Guess what I just made-" Otto stopped short, already sensing the tension in the air.

"Um… slight complication." Gibson spoke up.

"She's scared." Chiro blurted out.

Otto frowned, his tail swishing thoughtfully.

Well, that wasn't part of the plan. He was hoping it would be a good surprise.

He carefully walked around Mila, making sure to give her a wide berth as her head snapped in his direction.

He leaned in a little, gripping the device he held in his hands… Something about her was familiar.

Wait…

I've seen her before.

It had been a long time ago - before they had gone into stasis. He would always stop at the flower shop in the business district during patrol to admire the plants outside and enjoy a bit of quiet time.

Otto leaned up, sniffing the flower in front of him, sighing happily. He always loved patrolling near the shopping district. There was always so much to look at.

The flower shop, in particular, always had a big display outside of it the owners put out.

The door opened up with a bell's ring as a young woman walked out with a watering can, stopping short.

She was dressed in all black, dark makeup around her eyes. In her other hand was a guitar case, that she slung over her shoulder.

"Well, color me surprised."

Otto looked up, smiling sheepishly.

This was always the awkward part, getting caught by civilians.

She smiled, looking at the display.

"Pretty huh?"

He nodded.

The woman reached over, plucking the flower he had been admiring before offering it to him.

"Here you go, little cutie."

Otto's smile grew, taking it.

"Thank you!"

She giggled before giving a wave over her shoulder as she walked away, her dark hair getting blown by the breeze.

"Hey!" He grinned. "I know you! You gave me a flower once!"

Chiro's eyes widened, looking at his sister.

"You met her?"

"I met him-Oh!" Her eyes widened, before heaving a sigh of relief. "You were that little cutie who loved the snapdragons!"

Now it was coming back.

That was a long time ago…

She eyed his hand, noting it was hiding something.

Otto held it up, giving her a gentle look.

"I promise, it's not gonna hurt and make this all a lot easier to understand."

Chiro smiled.

"He says it's not gonna hurt you, Sis."

Mila ran a hand through her hair, drumming her fingers against her leg.

"Okay…" She breathed after a moment. "Okay."

Otto made his way over to her, showing her what he had.

It was a device that would hook around her ear, resembling a white and blue hearing aid.. Though it had a certain symbol on it. She eyed Otto's belt, noting it had the same insignia.

She held still as Otto moved her hair out of the way, placing the device, being as gentle as he could.

Mila closed her eyes tightly, her entire form tensing up. Despite the memory, she wasn't sure what was going on entirely still or what they wanted with her and her brother.

There was static for a second as he stepped back.

"Alright, how's that?"

Mila's eyes widened, gasping.

"Oh my gosh."

Otto cheered, pumping a fist in the air.

"I knew it would work!" He held out a hand. "My name's Otto!"

"M-Mila Hanamura…" She took his hand gingerly, shaking it.

"Yeah, you guys run… What was it… Hanamura's Flowers… No…"

"Hanamura Botanicals!" Mila and Chiro both spoke up, proud smiles on their faces.

"That's the one!" Otto laughed. "I used to really love the displays that were always out there. Do you still do that?"

"Mm-hm! The next seasonal display goes out next week!"

For a moment she forgot herself before she looked around once more.

She took a deep breath.

Okay. Calm. Calm.

I am calm…

I'm zen…

"Okay, so… you're Otto." She pointed to the others. "You're gonna have to tell me again who they all are cause I don't think I caught anyone's names."

"But I-" Chiro grimaced at the glare he received. "Right, panic mode. You didn't hear anything, did ya?"

"Not really. I heard "playing with her brain" and assumed there would be a straw involved."

"Seriously, no more horror movies for you… but anyways, guys, go on!"

Nova bolted over to her first, grabbing both of Mila's hands in hers, shaking them furiously… nearly sending the woman flying as she tried to hang on.

"Yipe!"

"Hey, I'm Nova! It's so good to have another girl around!"

Mila laughed.

"Oh, don't I know how that feels. Oh goodness, you are the cutest!" She looked her over. "I love your dress!"

Nova was wearing a pale yellow and white uniform that ended in a little skirt with a belt with what she could only assume was the team's emblem.

She grinned, holding her head up.

"Why thank you! And of course, you already met Otto."

"Yeah and Hekyll and Jekyll." She smirked, nodding at Gibson and Sparx.

Their eyes widened as their jaws dropped open.

"Excuse you!" Sparx sputtered.

"I have a name you know, young lady!"

Nova and Mila busted up laughing, high fiving each other.

"Alright, I like you already!"

Chiro clamped a hand over his mouth, trying very hard to fight down a laugh.

Alright, now she's getting comfy. Good.

Sparx huffed before smirking, holding his head up high.

"Well, my name is SPRX-77, one of the ace pilots of the team!" He exclaimed. "You can call me Sparx!"

"I'm Dr. Hal Gibson… Do not call me Hal, just Gibson, please." Gibson crossed his arms. "I'm the chief science officer, secondary pilot and medic of the team."

"Quick thing." She pointed at Chiro. "That thing on his face was you?"

"Ah yes. It's an artificial membrane, similar to a skin graft but without surgical measures needed. It'll become natural tissue in a few days." He explained. "I admit, I may have acted out of bounds."

Mila nodded thoughtfully.

"No, not really. I was getting worried about that cut and he wouldn't let me see it."

Gibson gave Chiro a stern look.

"Oh really?"

"Hey, this isn't about me right now."

"That was when you went splat!" Mila snapped. "It absolutely is about you right now!"

"Splat? Again!? Young man, we are having a discussion about personal safety."

Chiro grimaced, rubbing the back of his head.

Great, there's two of them. One Mila wasn't bad enough, now there's two…

"Alright, so Nova, Maverick and Goose."

"Excuse me, what did you just call me!?"

"I am NOT a Goose!"

Chiro groaned.

"Really? You couldn't hold yourself back?"

Mila grinned.

"Sorry, opportunity presented itself."

Chiro looked at the team, giving a shrug.

"This is what I live with."

Nova snickered, nudging her.

"Yep, I definitely like her. Can we keep her?"

Mila grinned.

"We'll see." She looked over at Chiro and Antauri, raising an eyebrow. "So, am I gonna get an answer while we're here? Cause while they're ADORABLE-"

"Hey." Sparx muttered. "I'm not cute."

"Yes you are, don't deny it." She said without missing a beat. "I'm sure you didn't show them to me to convince me to let them move in."

"Not… really." Chiro rubbed the back of his neck.

Mila's smile faded into a look of concern, bringing a hand up to her ear, absently running her nail over the device hooked around it now.

It was all incredible, yet, her stomach was doing flips.

"What's really going on here?"

Chiro looked at Antauri, giving him a pleading look.

"Antauri, can you…?"

"I believe it would be better to show you both the reality of why we were created." He explained, as he floated upward once more.

Cupping his hands together, he created a ball of swirling black and green energy.

"Whoa…." Chiro grinned. "That's so cool. Think I could learn to do that?"

Antauri chuckled, warmth in his gaze.

"I have no doubt." He took a deep breath. "Now…"

Swiftly, he separated the orb into two and sent them flying at each sibling respectively.

Chiro held his head up, holding still as Mila tried to recoil away.

The orbs phased into their heads as their eyes glazed over.

Before they knew it, everything was swirling into a colorful blur.

Chapter Text

Chapter 5: Connections

Chiro let out a gasp as he opened his eyes anew.

All around them, the outskirts, that had turned to an overgrown, dangerous mess, was now a well maintained park. There was a path they stood upon now, that led to a massive tree behind them.

Chiro whirled around, looking up at it, letting out a low whistle.

Mila looked around, craning her head in every direction.

What was going on!?

"What the actual freaking heck…?!"

She took a few steps backwards, nearly bumping into Chiro.

He moved ahead of her, now that he was getting a proper look at it all.

"Wow. This looks just like in Mom's photo albums."

"Except with less pixels." Mila chuckled, weakly craning her neck, trying to see anything she actually recognized.

There was a low rumbling in the distance as a huge cloud of dust kicked up… heading right for the park.

There was the loud roar of engines as a large pack of motorcycles appeared out of nowhere.

Manning each one, was some sort of skeletal creature, its eye sockets blank.

Mila's eyes widened in horror as she took a step back, pulling Chiro behind her.

"Whoa! What is that!?" Chiro exclaimed.

"Trouble." Mila deadpanned.

"We were created to combat evil such as this. 50 years ago." Antatuis' voice echoed around them. "An ancient evil arose out of the Zone of Wasted Years… No one knew where he had come from…"

In an instant, five colorful creatures appeared, their weapons raised as they charged into the fray.

"We battled day in and day out, never knowing when his forces would appear."

"Who?"

Mila swallowed hard, her heart racing in her chest.

She knew part of this story.

"Dad, why did Mom leave her home?" Mila looked up from her astronomy homework, the planet chart revealing the quadrant of the galaxy where Shuggazoom was. She pointed it out to her father. "I mean, Earth is a LONG way from there."

Her father sighed, sitting beside her, taking off his glasses to clean them.

"Mila, you have to promise not to bring it up in front of her…"

"I promise." She propped her chin up.

"When your mother fled her home, it was during a war torn time. There were heroes who tried to protect it… but an ancient evil wanted it for some reason."

"What was it?"

"No one knows his true name…"

Mila was broken out of her reverie by Antauri's voice speaking the same words her father once had told her.

Before her, a twisted cloaked individual rose up as Chiro craned his neck upwards at it, mortified.

"He's a disgusting creature, a horror made up of the dead." She recited. "He torments all who cross his path, just for pleasure, for joy…"

Chiro looked up at her, stunned.

Her eyes were narrowed in hate, her hands balling into fists.

"Yes…"Antarui continued. "She's correct. We best know him as…"

The figure turned to them, his face nothing but a skull made of pure crystal, his eyes nothing but red as he stared them down. His cloak was shredded as he carried an ornate staff with a sickly green gem on the handle.

"The Skeleton King."

Chiro swallowed hard.

"He's the enemy."

He could sense it, even within the projection. There was a darkness rolling off of him in waves, his bones creaking as he leaned down, staring right at the two.

He had to be at least nine, ten feet tall…

They were dwarfed in comparison.

Mila brought her arms around Chiro, pulling him in protectively.

Even looking at it made her stomach twist in knots.

Chiro swallowed hard as the projection drew in closer, a sinister chuckle escaping him.

"Antauri, don't bring that thing any closer!" Mila hissed.

Chiro shivered, huddling close to her.

Water was all around him, sweeping him farther and farther away from the car. He struggled to get his head above water, swimming futility against the current.

A wave crashed over his head as he was swept under.

A low chuckle echoed around him as a set of red eyes watched him…

Chiro pulled away from Mila, pushing her behind him.

"Ichi…?"

"I know him…" He looked up at her. "Mila, they told me I was supposed to lead them. I get it now."

Mila clenched her hands into fists, looking up at the Skeleton King.

"Mom knew that evil… and we got a taste of it when we thought it was safe to return."

Chiro looked up at the Skeleton King, narrowing his eyes.

This makes a little more sense…

"The flood… From seven years ago." He looked up. "He did it, didn't he!?"

An orb of energy appeared before it shifted into the spiritual form of Antauri. His gaze was concerned as he looked over the Hanamuras.

Mila's eyes were full of disgust and hatred, her mouth twisted into a sneer as she glared upwards… a lone tear rolled down her face.

Chiro growled as he took a step forward, rearing a fist back.

Antauri caught it before he could.

He hated doing this but he knew that he didn't want Chiro to be surprised or unprepared.

"I fear you already understood."

"Yeah…" Mila brought a hand to her eyes, wiping at them. She pointed at Skeleton King as his image transformed, clothing shifting into liquid, the skull shifting to whitewater that crashed against the ground.

Chiro shivered, backing up.

"The Great Flood. He was… He was trying to take us all out? Why?"

Antauri rested a hand on his shoulder.

"Because he feeds off the destruction of planets and worlds. Corrupting souls through despair… through grief. The rawest emotions we possess he feeds off of. Nothing brings him greater pleasure. He views this planet as if it's his feeding ground."

Chiro gripped tightly onto his hand, looking up at him.

"Then it's my job to stop him. I won't let him destroy my home! Or…" He closed his eyes. "I won't let him do what he did to us, to another family."

Mila squeezed his shoulder.

She looked at Antauri, her eyes cold.

"Take us back. Now. He's had enough. I've had enough."

Antauri nodded, closing his eyes as energy surrounded the trio, causing the vision to swirl around them as everything faded to gray.

oooooo

Chiro gasped as he came to, stumbling back.

Mila groaned, rubbing her head before she lunged up, steadying her sibling.

"You okay?!" She looked him over, holding up two fingers. "How many fingers?"

"I'm fine!" He shook his head. "I'm fine…"

Antauri sighed as he looked them both over.

"Now you understand why, I hope."

Chiro looked at the team before turning back to Antauri…

And to his surprise, gave a broad grin, his eyes gleaming with determination.

"I'll do my best!"

Mila let his shoulders go as she sank back to the floor, shaking her head.

"No."

Chiro looked at her, his gaze softening, kneeling before her.

"Hey…" He turned her head in his direction. "I'm gonna be okay."

Mila's eyes were shiny as she brought him into a tight embrace.

Her heart was pounding, her mind racing through every scenario possible.

"No… No, no, no…" She pressed a kiss into the side of his head.

Chiro hugged her tightly, stroking her back in circles.

He wouldn't lie and say he wasn't scared himself. The very thought of what he had just seen made his stomach twist into knots.

But the idea of that threat hurting his sister was enough to make his decision.

"Perhaps tonight's not the night to make any final decisions." Gibson spoke up. "It's rather late and clearly something happened in there."

Mila shook her head.

Not my brother.

Not my little boy.

Chiro leaned up, kissing her forehead.

"Mila, I'm right here." He brought her hand to his cheek. "See?"

He knew when she was like this, she needed to ground herself first.

And with him being her primary concern, he knew she needed to focus on what was in front of her. Not what was in her head.

She let out a heavy sigh, nodding.

"I'm not mad." She whispered.

"I know." He nodded. "You're scared. Freaking out and probably reliving stuff I don't even remember."

"All of the above."

Chiro gave her a gentle look.

"Let's sleep on it then. Gibson's got a point. It's really late, we're tired - and none of us ate."

Mila nodded numbly.

She was still processing what she saw but he had a point. The adrenaline was gone now, her body heavy and exhausted. She wanted to just crawl into her bed, close her eyes…

And sleep for at least two years.

"Alright. Now, come on." He got up, helping her to her feet. "Can you drive?"

Mila opened her mouth before shaking her head.

"No."

"Then we'll stay here." He looked over at the monkeys with a sheepish look. "There is at least uh… one bed that's human sized, right?"

Sparx grimaced.

"Uh… that was the one we broke."

Otto jumped up.

"I can work on it! Just gimme a few minutes!" He gave a salute. "Just count on me!"

Mila smiled a little, watching him go before turning to the others.

She bowed her head.

"I'm sorry."

"No, no!" Nova shook her head. 'You didn't do anything wrong! That was a lot to go over at once!"

"To be fair, I think it was just poor timing. Low blood sugar, exhaustion and then learning something… like that. It's a perfect mixture of panic if I ever saw one." Gibson frowned, his gaze gentle. "If there's anything I can do, please tell me."

"We will, Gibson." Chiro smiled.

Sparx went over to them.

"Hey, I could get you two some MRE's…"

Mila scrunched her nose up.

"That sounds horrible."

"Oh believe me, they are."

"... No ramen?" Chiro cringed. "At all?"

Sparx grimaced.

"Well…"

"Otto, we're gonna get busted." He looked around, trying to keep an eye out. "We're supposed to go into stasis soon. This crap'll go bad."

"You wanna eat MRE's in who knows how long it'll take?" Otto held up a red package. "I checked, this stuff'll outlast us!"

"Alright, but if you die from food poisoning, I'm putting Death by Soup on your grave."

"Actually, I think we can do something like that."

Chiro heaved a sigh of relief.

"See? We'll have dinner too."

Mila nodded, rubbing her eyes.

"I just wanna go to bed."

Chiro rubbed her arm.

"We can sleep soon but you can't sleep on an empty stomach."

Sparx cleared his throat, heading to the red elevator, motioning for them to follow.

"C'mon, we'll scrounge up some food then off to bed with the both of you."

He wasn't sure what to make of this all himself.

Chiro led his sister away as she turned back, her gaze cold as she looked at Antauri.

I know you're not telling us the whole story.

There were only five monkeys in what you showed us.

Why didn't you show us number six?

As the siblings disappeared from sight, the tension from the room seemed to leave with them.

Nova heaved a sigh of relief, leaning against her chair, her tail curling up around her.

"Well, I think that went… okay?" She looked up at Antauri. "Though boy if looks could kill. Antauri, what did you put them through?"

Gibson narrowed his eyes.

"Yes, what happened there?"

Antauri closed his eyes, a pang of guilt bubbling up.

"I fear I may have shown them far too much too soon… And I got confirmation of something I was suspecting."

"Care to fill us in?" Nova stood up straight, adjusting her scarf. "Be nice to be in the know."

Antauri floated down, dropping to his feet, folding his arms behind his back.

"Do you two remember the night of the Great Flood?"

Gibson inhaled sharply.

The rain was coming down in sheets, thunder and lighting rumbling overhead.

Everything was being washed away. Despite their best efforts, it was a struggle.

Mandarin was trying to shout orders over the waves crashing against the rubble but it was so difficult to hear him.

He had looked over his shoulder for just a split second before his red optics widened in horror.

Before any of them could react, he had thrown himself into the water.

"MANDARIN!" Antauri called out.

Gibson followed with his eyes where the leader was swimming…

He dove under the water, vanishing for what felt like hours but was only a few seconds.

"I knew it…" He murmured. "Chiro… no, he couldn't be."

Nova brought both her hands over her mouth.

No one had forgotten that night. Not when THAT happened.

Antauri opened his eyes, giving a nod.

"It's not just his power."

Gibson crossed his arms, looking away.

Sometimes in stasis, he still dreamt about that moment.

He looked down at the boy. He was unconscious, his hair plastered to his face, his little school uniform torn. There were other injuries that would need to be attended to but that would be for later.

"Come on… Breathe…"

They were all trembling from the cold, the wind was howling, threatening to blow everything away, with the water's wrath… but he was not going to give up.

Not here.

He couldn't remember how long he had been doing chest compressions for at this point.

"Come on… Come back…"

The boy coughed… and coughed harder as Gibson swiftly rolled him onto his side as he spat out water.

"You did it!" Nova cried out.

Gibson tuned out the sounds of his teammates, patting the boy's back.

"There's a good boy. You did great."

"To think… the boy we saved…"

"Is upstairs now. He's gonna lead us." Nova looked over, concerned. "You gonna be okay?"

Gibson looked up, giving a nod, smiling a little.

"I will be. If anything, I'm glad to see how much he's grown since then."

Antauri turned away from them, walking over to the command center.

"I promise, if we can avoid it, he won't be in that position again."

Nova nudged him.

"Did you know back then?"

Antauri turned to her, shaking his head.

"I didn't… Honestly, I think even if I had sensed anything, we were all more focused on him at that moment."

Gibson walked over to Antauri's left side, resting a hand on his shoulder.

"We're going to be focused on him from now on. He's not just the Chosen One or our leader. That's OUR child now too."

Nova rubbed the back of her neck.

"Hope we can do a good job."

"No hoping here." Antauri narrowed his eyes. "We have to."

For everyone's sake.

Chapter Text

Chapter 6: Wake Up Call

Chiro hadn't even looked around the room they were led to before crashing on the bed.

Mila had followed suit, the most they had managed was getting their shoes and coats off before collapsing beside one another.

Chiro yawned, his eyes opening slowly as he looked around the room he was in.

The bed was pretty large, a massive overhead light above it, that he was pretty sure was recycled from the med bay he had been in. He chuckled, closing his eyes again, curling back up on his side.

He couldn't blame Otto for using what he had. The night before had been so hectic.

If I wind up staying here, I'm telling 'em I don't wanna risk surprise late night surgery.

He snickered.

Just like in that video game I got a few months ago.

He could already imagine it, Gibson dressed in a set of scrubs and a lab coat, making a pose with his arm outstretched.

"Let's begin the operation!"

Oh gosh noooo.

… Wonder how he'd react to it though. Be kinda funny.

He turned over, his head landing on his sister's arm.

It was hard to believe it was all real… They were staying in some secret base, run by a team of cybernetic monkeys.

He sat up, looking down at her.

Mila was always the last one to wake up.

They used to joke when he was younger that he rose up with the sun and she with the moon.

He nudged her a little.

"Mila…" He whispered. "It's morning."

Mila scrunched her nose up, rolling onto her side.

"No."

"Come on…" He poked her shoulder a few times.

She tried shrugging him off… pushing on his face instead by mistake.

"BLEH! HEY!"

She sighed, putting her head face down.

She swore, she had the most unhinged nightmares the night before.

She didn't even bother opening her eyes. She just curled up more, shrugging the covers up over her again.

"Sorry, did I get you?" She mumbled.

Chiro growled a little, already reaching for his own pillow.

"Yes!"

"Good."

He rolled his eyes, before flopping down beside her again, deciding against petty revenge…

For now.

The morning was young.

"I had the worst dreams last night…" She sighed, turning over to face him, opening an eye. "I dreamt you unleashed a pack of crazy, rabid monkeys…"

The door slid open.

"About that." Chiro tapped her shoulder.

Mila rolled over, coming face to face with Otto.

He smiled, giving a wave.

"Morning."

Mila sighed, propping her chin up as she smiled.

"Alright, worth getting up for that." She said, turning to Chiro. "Still, no TV for a week. No urban exploring for a month."

Otto furrowed his brow in confusion.

"What?"

"Who cares about that?!" Chiro jumped up, striking a pose, as the bed shook.

Mila yelped, holding onto the mattress.

"Chiro!"

"I'm gonna be a superhero!" He cheered. "I'll never go urban exploring again!"

Mila cussed under her breath.

She knew there was going to be a catch with that punishment.

Great, now he'll go splat  professionally.

Otto tilted his head.

"Uh, is she okay?"

"Not a morning person." They both said before Chiro jumped off the bed, grabbing up his shoes and jacket. "Once she gets food in her then she starts to act like she's actually alive and not just a talking plant."

"Ohhh like Gibson without his coffee."

Mila rolled back onto her side, closing her eyes.

"You guys go do whatever. Don't let him do anything dumb…" She mumbled.

"Okay, Sis." Chiro leaned over, kissing her head. "Love you."

She smiled, sighing happily.

"Love you too."

Chiro turned to Otto.

"Let's get outta here and let her sleep."

They crept out, turning the lights down behind them.

Mila yawned, just starting to drift off…

"So, when do I get to see the mecha? And better yet… pilot it?"

Her eyes snapped open as the door shut.

"THE WHAT!?"

She sat up with a start, scrambling for the door, grabbing up her boots.

THUNK!

Slamming right into the door as she cussed again, much louder this time.

"OW! SONOFA-"

oooooo

Sparx hummed a little tune as he rifled through the kitchen cabinets. He found plenty of MRE's, though he was definitely going to ask about going into town to get some real food later.

The Hyper Force's kitchen wasn't anything grand. It was paneled with white metal, the table and chairs hovered above the floor thanks to an anti-gravity device that balanced them any time the floor shook - made ensuring nothing went flying when a monster came rumbling by much easier… and currently, had one blue monkey leaning over his folded arms, his tail hanging limp.

"So, didn't sleep at all eh?"

"Be quiet-" Gibson cut himself off, clamping a hand over his mouth. "I didn't… I didn't…!"

Sparx smirked.

"What? We're starting that already?"

"Don't you dare." He mumbled. "It's too early for this."

Sparx held up both hands.

"Alright, alright, I'll back off." He opened up a drawer, holding up a box. "Score! I told you we saved some!"

Gibson lifted his head, grimacing.

Sparx was proudly holding up a box of instant coffee packets.

Why? Why did I do that? It's not even the good kind…

"How expired is it?"

Sparx checked the date.

"It expired… Three years ago."

Gibson propped his chin up, his tail swishing lazily. He supposed as long as it was still in the individual packets it should still be safe. It was certainly better than nothing.

After a moment, he nodded gravely.

"That'll do."

"I'll start the kettle then. Doubt Antauri's tea survived."

"No but after last night, I admit, I think he deserves it a little."

Sparx snickered.

"So I'm not the only one who thought he went a little overboard in "I'm the big brave smart advisor, lemme scramble your brains with my awesome power and show you evil's face." last night?"

He nodded, looking around to make sure he wasn't nearby.

"Did Nova tell you what happened after you left?"

Sparx hummed as he set the kettle on as the stove started up with a click.

"You mean, the fact that our kid and the kid we saved are the same one? Yeah. How do you feel about it?"

"... I'm going to restock the med bay." He sighed. "And reinforce the seatbelts in the tank myself."

Sparx laughed, shaking his head.

"You're gonna be one of those protective parents, aren't ya?"

Gibson chuckled, smiling a bit.

"Maybe just a little."

That was still a novel concept, he had to admit.

The kitchen door slid open as Nova walked in, stretching her arms over her head.

"Good morning! I trust no one's poisoned themselves with expired food yet?"

"Not yet! You're just in time to see Gibson do it though." Sparx snickered. "We found the coffee."

Nova looked at him, disgust written across her face, sticking her tongue out.

"How OLD is that?!"

"Seven and it's three years expired!" Sparx held it up, shaking the box. "You want some?"

"I'd rather drink one of Antauri's veggie shakes."

All three winced, remembering it.

Nova drew a star over her heart, mentally thanking the Power Primate they didn't have anything in cold storage.

THUNK!

"OW! SONOFA-!"

They all looked up at the ceiling.

"Guess Mila's awake." Nova grimaced. "That didn't sound good."

"I don't hear any bodies hitting the floor, she's fine." Gibson shrugged.

"You know, note to self, never let you operate without caffeine." Sparx grimaced. "You are CRANKY without it."

The door opened once more as Otto hurried in, Chiro in tow.

The boy's eyes were wide in wonder, a big smile on his face as he looked around, before it faded a little.

Sparx looked over.

"What? Disappointed?"

The boy chuckled, giving a shrug.

"I don't know what I was expecting. Otto was showing me around on the way down and I guess I thought it'd be… Something. It's a kitchen though."

"Yeah, we got MRE's and coffee."

Chiro raised an eyebrow.

"Huh?" He eyed it. "Is that safe?"

Sparx set two mugs on the table, of… what appeared to be a pale brown liquid.

"That… doesn't look right." Otto cringed. "I don't want any."

"Me either-wait, how old is-"

THUD!

"OW! WHY DO YOU FLOAT EVERYWHERE!?"

"Ngh! You know, a simple "Excuse me." would have sufficed!"

"LIKE I PLANNED THIS!"

The door slid open again as Mila and Antauri entered, glaring daggers at one another.

Antauri's fur was on end, side-eying Mila with a displeased look as he rubbed his forehead.

Mila was cursing quietly, having both hands on her head.

"Ooowww, that really hurt."

"Are you guys okay?" Chiro asked, worry etching itself across his face.

Mila took a seat at the table with a loud huff.

"I don't wanna talk about it."

Antauri floated down to his own seat, sighing.

"The feeling is mutual."

Mila looked down at the mug in front of her, a small smile coming to her face.

"Aww, Ichi, you're such a good kid."

"Uh, Sis, you probably shouldn't-"

"Let him take credit. I made it. It was in storage though." Sparx cut in.

"Still, thank you."

"Wasn't much trouble. Gibson's useless without the stuff, so I made an extra mug in case anyone else wanted any."

"Well that's sweet of you. Not bad, Maverick."

Sparx rolled his eyes.

"We'll talk about that later."

"When you see that movie you'll be thankful."

Mila took a deep breath to calm herself.

Alright, at least there's coffee. Coffee will make everything so much better…

"So, Gibson, we're both the only non-morning people around here, huh?"

Gibson nodded, pulling his mug over to him, eying it apprehensively.

She shrugged.

Alright, not talkative before coffee. Don't blame him!

"Well, cheers to coffee then." Mila held up her mug.

Everyone was deadly quiet as the two took a sip from their respective drinks…

Instantly coughing and sputtering.

"OH MY GOSH!" Mila shrieked, setting it down. "That is HORRIBLE!"

Gibson shook his head, pushing it away.

"I thought we might have that problem. That is disgusting."

"That's what you get for saying the expired coffee was okay, Gibson!"

"YOU GAVE ME EXPIRED COFFEE!?" Mila exclaimed. "Are you trying to kill me?!"

"To be fair, instant coffee is still edible for 20 years past the date…" Gibson murmured.

Mila inhaled sharply before getting up.

"That's it." She said in an icy tone.

Chiro shuddered, taking a step back.

Oh no…

She's really mad now.

She took a deep breath before digging in her pocket and pulling out her car keys, the look of rage building anew, eying each monkey and then Chiro before looking down at Otto.

Immediately her mood changed, a smile on her face.

"You wanna go shopping with me and get outta here?"

Otto tilted his head.

"Are you gonna keep being mad?"

"Nope, because I need to get out of here and I'm going to go and get coffee… and I'm hoping you know what everyone likes to eat and drink?" She gave him a pleading look. "Please?"

Otto hummed in thought.

"I'll buy you breakfast."

Otto grinned.

"You got yourself a deal."

"Alright, awesome, c'mon." She offered him a shoulder as he climbed up.

"Drive safe." Chiro smiled.

She gave a peace sign over her shoulder as she started to head for the door.

"Otto, see what the city is like now." Antauri looked over. "And… please be safe out there."

Otto smiled, giving a thumbs up.

"Don't break anything before I get back!"

With that, they were gone.

Gibson laid his head back down on the table.

Chiro cautiously went over and poked his head.

"Uh… Gibson?"

"For the next two hours, no one talks to me. I don't care if Skeleton King decides to appear, he can get in line."

"Seriously, we should never let him near his scalpels when he's like this." 

Chapter Text

Chapter 7: Training Daze

The planet was within sight… After seven long years he could finally sense them…

Shuggazoom, home to one city… at least, one city that still stood. Its oceans and the wild lands around it, an endless source of danger for its citizens, their city was their refuge…

He chuckled, holding his staff up, gazing into the crystal as the reflection in its facets began to shift.

It wasn't long before he could see him now.

A young boy with dark hair and shining blue eyes. He was sitting with five colorful monkeys outside of the base. talking, laughing… He was content, his posture relaxed as he enjoyed a breeze that blew through the area.

The facets shifted again, revealing a war torn battlefield, another boy, this one blond with orange and black streaks in his hair, running away from a monster, flanked by two tigers.

It flickered again, as a young girl ducked from an attack, a humanoid rabbit landing in front of her to shield her.

A boy surrounded by dragons as he looked around in shock.

Everything was shifting as it did so long ago.

He sneered as he forced it to reveal Chiro's face in particular once more.

"Enjoy your days now, Boy… but our game has to resume. After 50 long years you appear before me now…" The king chuckled, his bony fingers gripping the staff tightly. "You and those like you will soon fall to my reign of darkness."

He looked up at the monitors aboard his ship, waving his hand.

"Let's see… What will I use to test you first…"

The first image he saw was a young man in his twenties, a long blade in hand, dodging enemies left and right. He was agile as he expertly leaped over each one, cutting them down mercilessly, his long hair flying out behind him, green eyes shining with rage…

Before his knees buckled as he fell forward, his sword clattering across the ground.

"Hmm…" He scratched at his chin thoughtfully.

No… Not quite yet.

He'll be punished for that mistake later.

As each monitor revealed part of his massive ship that served as the hub for all of his creations, he soon decided on what he considered a classic.

"I think for the boys first test… Formless shall do…"

It is your move, Boy.

Let's see if you can make it to adulthood this time.

oooooo

No one spoke about the "coffee incident" in the days following.

Mila had returned with Otto and a slew of groceries and had spent the rest of that day throwing out everything expired she found… and the MREs.

"Wait! What are you doing?"

"Goose, Maverick, you two can try to stop me but if you poison my brother, I'll be permanently your problem."

"... Sparx, go get her another garbage bag."

"Sir yes sir!"

Instead, it was time to get the base fully ready and find what "normal" looked like now.

"So, I'll drop out-"

Mila choked on her rice, sputtering as she hit her chest.

"GACK!"

She looked across the table, her gaze narrowed.

"No. You can train with them but you come home after and you're still going to school."

"Gibson said he could teach me way more than school!"

"I'll… talk to him. I still need to process all of this…"

Chiro huffed.

"Fine."

"Don't give me that pout after I had to drink liquid wood chips. I feel like you owe me a little compromise here."

He figured he shouldn't push his luck with the rate he was going. He knew his sister better than anyone…

And he knew she was throwing herself into work and pretending everything was fine to her customers and high profile clients for the sake of keeping things "normal" for his sake.

Instead of rushing home to do homework and work a couple of hours, he was, instead, running home to get his duffle bag and book it across town as fast as he could so he could train.

He grimaced as he trudged down the now familiar path to the base.

His first round hadn't exactly been "fun" for anyone involved.

That was the hardest thing, if you asked him.

The training room was made up of black metallic paneling, an eerie blue glow coming up from between the tiles under their feet.

On the far cover was a control panel Gibson was currently typing a command into.

He and Mila were sitting against the wall, staying close to each other, talking quietly.

"So, what do you think'll happen?" She asked, keeping her voice just above a whisper.

Chiro looked around.

"I'm not sure. I mean… We worked on the punching stuff. I can throw a decent one now."

"I swear, if they break you…"

A set of metallic pillars rose up from the floor.

"Chiro!" Antauri called over to them. "It's time."

Chiro took a deep breath, pushing himself up off the floor, dusting himself off. He looked down at Mila, giving a shrug.

He walked over, getting into a defensive stance.

Antauri's eyes narrowed, flicking his fingers, as the metal shivered to life. shifting and transforming… as two eerie, green claws replaced his hands, made up of solid energy.

Chiro's eyes widened.

Nova looked between them.

"Ready… and… FIGHT!"

Chiro rushed forward, rearing his fist back.

"HYAH-!"

And five minutes later was running for his life as he was trying to dodge every attack sent his way.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"

"DUCK!" Mila called out.

He dove for the ground as Antauri's claws narrowly missed his head - he was avoiding actually landing any blows for real…

But the heat from the weapons still was present as he fell forward…

SPLAT!

Right onto his face.

"Ow…"

Antauri winced.

"Perhaps we need to go back to the full basics…"

Mila lunged to her feet, starting to storm onto the field until Otto flew in front of her using his rocket pack.

"Let me at him-"

"I got her!"

Chiro grimaced, rubbing his face.

"I guess they really do make it look easy on TV…" He groaned. "Can I try again?"

"NO-"

"Of course."

But that had been two weeks ago. He was making leaps and bounds as far as basic combat went…

Today was going to be a good one too.

They had held off on a proper sparring match until he was used to fighting harmless holograms and dodging punches, zero weapons involved.

As he approached the base, he noticed something was off.

Until now, they had been using the camouflage shield he had encountered the first time… as he approached now, he could see it fully.

The base was massive, at least 3 stories in reality, made to resemble a great tree. The 'bark' was made up of a mix of metal and some kind of material to make it appear realistic. He ran his hand along it, noting it might've been a mixture of both.

He craned his neck upwards. The roof was hidden by lush, thick greenery that, as he squinted… he stifled a laugh.

Whoever designed the thing had a sense of humor, he decided, noting that it did produce fruit…

"Bananas?" He chuckled. "Really?"

Still, the place gave off a welcoming vibe. He couldn't help but be drawn in every time, even on days he was exhausted from the prior day's work out, he was still eager.

He placed his hand on the touchpad, walking in without effort. He threw his backpack in the corner, stretching his arms over his head.

He'd take care of his homework later.

Besides, I gotta see if I can wear Gibson down to help me with it… I bet if I tell him, it might help sway Mila he'll jump on it.

He sighed.

He understood why she was still insisting he stick to some kind of routine, but he had to admit, that was getting old. He didn't want to keep dealing with the same things…

The itchy uniform sweater.

The teachers with their droning voices.

Urban exploring, usually with results like falling into a well or unfinished basement.

The same thing, day in and day out, for years.

It was all so… so…

BORING!

Now, every day was something new… Exciting. Learning a new technique or exploring a section of the base he hadn't' before…

No one had let him even BREATHE near the hangar yet but he was getting there.

"I'm saying, once we know you can hold your own in battle on the GROUND then and only then are we gonna talk about piloting." Sparx said as he polished his weapon - a giant magnet, until it shined, revealing his reflection grinning back at him. "Trust me, I was eager too but you gotta run before you can fly."

"Oh come on…!"

"Take it up with Antauri, not me."

Oh, I'll take it up with Antauri alright.

I'm gonna beat him today and then I'm gonna get into that hangar!

Chiro hurried into the orange elevator.

In seconds, it shot up as he let out a yelp of surprise.

That was STILL on the list of things to fix around here.

As it rushed upwards, he braced himself as it opened up to the main room, lurching on the last few feet as it sent him flying.

"UWAH!"

This time, he was prepared as he reached forward. The moment his hands met the floor, his entire body contorted to follow as Chiro rolled into it on his side. The second he did so, he used the momentum to pop up again, upright.

"YES!" He cheered, pumping a fist into the air. "I DIDN'T GO SPLAT!"

"I see the training has been taking some effect."

Chiro turned around, seeing Antauri was already waiting for him.

"Yeah, a little… by the way, how come mine's the only one still doing that?"

Antauri grimaced, his tail curling up a bit.

"We're still figuring that out, admittedly. Otto plans to work on it again after our sparring match today."

Chiro grimaced, rubbing the back of his neck.

"You're… not gonna actually try to beat me up right?"

Antauri's gaze softened as he let out a sigh.

Am I really that intimidating…?

"I will do my best to simulate a real life scenario but I will not actually try to harm you."

Chiro cringed.

He kept shuffling backwards at every attack aimed in his direction. He was doing a fairly good job, he thought of avoiding any punches aimed in his direction…

Until Antauri grabbed his ankle, using his tail to bring Chiro down, slamming him HARD into the training room floor.

THUD!

"OW!"

If that was holding bac, with no claws, what's today gonna look like…?

And that was just with Antauri…

Chiro shuddered.

I thought Nova was gonna break me.

There was no way out. He had to find some kind of diversion.

Nova was hot on his heels and as she lunged for him, she managed to barely get ahold of his shirt as he ducked out of the way.

Spotting a distraction at the control panel.

With a wicked smile, he broke into a sprint…

Right towards Gibson.

He put up his hands, shaking his head.

"NONONO-"

Chiro scooped up the scientist without much effort, swinging around with him in front of his face.

Nova stopped short, her fist inches away as Gibson leaned his head far away from her.

"Oh, that was just dirty." She scoffed. "Clever, but dirty."

Gibson craned his neck, his eyes alit with rage.

"Put. Me. Down. RIGHT NOW."

"You're being too hard on yourself again."

He sighed as he hefted his duffle bag higher up on his shoulder.

"I had to resort to basically using Gibson as a meat shield because Nova was gonna use my face to mop the floor. I think I should be a little harder on myself."

Antauri floated up to his eye level, his gaze stern.

"You're still learning. Nothing came to anyone easily… and you've made good progress. That was in the first few days."

"Says the guy who whooped me yesterday." He chuckled, shrugging.

"I did not "whoop" you as you said, I was merely… being creative." Antauri chuckled.

"Riiiight, being creative," he says. More like "I'm getting even for bringing your crazy sister around this place and making my life harder" am I right?"

"Let's… get to the training room. Go and make yourself presentable." Antauri cleared his throat. "And please, this time, avoid using one of our teammates as a living shield."

"So, I'm right." Chiro called over his shoulder, as he hurried off. "I'll see you upstairs!"

Antauri sighed, shaking his head.

What were they going to do with that boy?

oooooo

"So…" Sparx started as he lined up with the others along the south wall. "Odds of the kid actually lasting more than two minutes?"

"He managed three last week." Otto offered, giving a shrug. "There's hope."

Gibson scoffed, adjusting his scarf.

"Speak for yourself, he only got that third minute because he used me as a shield. I didn't see him gunning for either one of you."

"Cause you won't throw him. You're way too soft on him during matches." Sparx snickered. "You're like, the total opposite of Nova and Antauri. The second he hits the floor, you're all "OH CHIRO, WAS IT AWFUL!?"

"No I'm not!"

Nova covered her mouth, stifling a laugh.

"I thought between you and Mila, you were gonna kill Antauri that first day, Gibson."

Gibson crossed his arms.

"Well, excuse me!"

"You're excused." The other three chorused, all with matching grins.

The orange elevator dinged… as once more, Chiro had to roll into a fall as he went skidding across the floor.

"You NEED to fix that." Sparx grimaced. "You good!?"

"Yeah!" Chiro whirled around, his eyes lighting up with a newfound confidence. "Are you guys ready to see Antauri finally lose?!"

Otto and Sparx busted up laughing instantly at that.

Nova giggled, shaking her head, leaning on Sparx for support.

Gibson rolled his eyes, crossing his arms, a smirk on his face.

Instantly, the boy's face fell into an annoyed look.

"Oh, come on!"

"You've been…" Sparx wheezed. "Saying that for two weeks…"

"I mean, if you use the "Gibson Shield" again… maybe!" Nova giggled.

"Excuse me, he will be doing NO SUCH THING!"

Chiro couldn't help it, as he joined in, shaking his head.

"Pffftahahaha! You guys suck!"

The sound echoed through the room as Chiro's tension melted away with it.

Sparx looked over at the elevators, making sure Antauri hadn't appeared yet.

"Although, quick tip, watch the claws, forget his footwork. You've been focusing a lot on watching where Antauri's moving versus when he's gonna strike."

"I noticed that as well in our sparring sessions." Gibson hummed in thought.

Chiro grimaced.

"Gibson, you never even actually hit me though…"

"I TOLD YOU!" Sparx cackled, elbowing his brother. "You are way too protective!"

Otto scratched his chin.

"I mean, the most I can say is, do your best and don't worry too much about winning, just survive as long as you can. We're still training."

Chiro nodded, taking a deep breath.

"Right."

"And, for the love of all things wonderful in this universe…" Gibson gave the boy a stern glare. "Do NOT even look over here."

Chiro rubbed the back of his neck, laughing nervously.

"Ahahah… I know, I know… And if I do get the crap beaten out of me…?"

"Don't tell Mila!" Sparx grinned. "Or we're all in the stew!"

The black elevator chimed as Antauri walked out, looking over with an unamused look.

"Do not even remind me of that…" He rolled his eyes.

Chiro whirled around with a grin.

"Hey! Ready to lose?"

Antauri smirked.

"Are you speaking to yourself, Chiro?" He raised an eyebrow.

The boy gave a mock wince, doubling over as if he had actually been hit.

"Oh, that hurts! Ow!"

Sparx winced, stifling a laugh.

"Oh geeze, Antauri, that was brutal. I don't think even Gibson could fix that burn."

Gibson shook his head.

"No, no I can't."

Nova rolled her eyes.

"Ladies, ladies you're all gorgeous!"

Once more, laughter echoed throughout the room, bouncing off the walls…

That was the best part about all of this. The monkeys couldn't remember the last time any type of training ever resulted in moments like this. There had been a few… but they had been fleeting.

With Chiro, everything had changed so fast, yet they welcomed it at the same time.

Antauri smiled before his gaze turned serious.

"Ready?"

Chiro swallowed hard, giving a nod.

He took a deep breath, to steady himself.

It was all training.

Nothing bad was actually going to happen.

Nova moved from the south wall to the middle of the room.

Antauri and Chiro both dropped into defensive stances, circling around Nova, all mirth fading away from their eyes.

She raised her hand up, her rocket pack firing up.

"And… FIGHT!"

She flew up, dodging as Antauri lunged forward.

His hands quickly transformed into his claws as he flew right at Chiro's face.

Chiro dodged it as Antauri went flying across the floor.

In a moment, he was back up as Chiro started moving backwards, weaving around each slash.

His face was completely calm, a playful smile on his face.

Antauri furrowed his brow.

This was new.

Where did this confidence come from?

He growled, going for his legs instead, moving to sweep them out from under him…

Only for Chiro to backflip over it, propelling himself away from his opponent.

He was so quiet, instead of the usual yelling or running.

Something was different.

The others noticed it as well, watching as Chiro was effortlessly keeping up.

"Something's wrong…" Gibson murmured. "He's never like this."

Otto shivered.

"Why do I feel like I've seen that before?"

Chiro wasn't sure how to explain it but for some reason it wasn't such a hard feat to keep ahead of him this time. It was difficult - the last thing he wanted was to get a taste of those claws across his face… but somehow this was… familiar.

Antauri had never used the same attacks against him twice, so it was hard to prepare for any of their matches… and yet…

"Ah, ah!" He chuckled as he dodged and weaved around the black monkey. "You're being reckless, you're not thinking with your heart, you're thinking with your head… I know what you'll do next."

Antauri growled, lunging up, performing a spinning kick right towards his chest.

Chiro held up an arm blocking it with ease before his fist came around…

CRA-ACK!

Antauri let out a screech as he went flying, barely catching himself.

"WHOA!" Sparx gasped. "Did he just!?"

Nova cheered, pumping a fist in the air.

"He got the first strike!"

Antauri rubbed at his face, narrowing his eyes.

Chiro's eyes were glazed over as if he was in some kind of trance, a cocky grin on his face that hadn't been there before.

The boy's fists came up in a defensive position, holding still.

"Come on. Are you afraid of me now?" He asked, his voice steady.

Not at all how he was the day prior.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH HELP!"

"Chiro, get back here!"

Something's wrong…

"Chiro?"

Chiro chuckled.

"Come on, Antauri…"

His eyes glowed green for a moment, his fists glowing as well.

"Come and fight me for real."

Antauri narrowed his eyes, getting into position.

"Wait! Antauri, somethings up!" Sparx called over. "Maybe you should knock it off eh?"

"No… He wants a fair fight…" He took a deep breath. "He's going to get one."

Chiro and Antauri circled each other, staring the other down.

Chiro was sizing him up.

"Phase and daze!"

Antauri narrowed his eyes, lunging upwards, his claws outstretched.

"PHASE AND DAZE!"

Chiro waited, counting the seconds he had…

Ducking down and grabbing him by the tail as he swung around.

"Sorry!"

"ACK!"

This time, he went flying clean across the room, hitting the wall.

"NGH!"

Chiro panted as he walked to the center of the floor, static kicking up at his feet, his eyes glowing brighter.

"Had enough?"

Antauri panted looking up at him.

The team were all stunned into silence as Chiro looked around him.

No one had been sure what it would look like when his powers would kick in… but it appeared they were kicking in now with a vengeance.

"Come on!" He called out. "I'm not done yet!"

Antauri got to his feet, staggering a bit

That last attack was a surprise but not an unwelcome one.

So, his gifts are waking up.

No one was sure what to do.

Rarely did they cut into each other's matches but Chiro was still upright.

He was also looking at them with that same smile, sizing them up as if HE was the master, not the student.

"Chiro! Snap out of it!" Antauri called over. "You're going to tire yourself out!"

"Nah… I'm just getting started." He craned his neck, his smile going from cocky, to gentle. "I didn't hurt you did I?"

Antauri had to take a step back…

He knew that look.

SHING!

"AUGH!"

His opponent dropped to one knee, holding a hand up to his face. "Ngh, you got me good there…"

"A-Are you alright? I went too-"

He looked up with a gentle smile, pride in his eyes.

"You're doing amazing."

He snapped out of it, shaking his head.

Where had that come from?

Regardless, this session had gone from training to something else being at work.

"Give him what he asked for. Tire him out." Antauri ordered.

Sparx narrowed his eyes.

"Something you wanna share with the rest of us?"

Nova looked up at Chiro, concerned.

"It's starting, isn't it?"

"Yes… And the sooner we wear him down, the sooner OUR Chiro comes back."

Chiro got into a stance as the team stepped forward.

Their hands all transformed into their weapons as they circled him.

The boy's entire body was becoming enveloped in a bright green net of electricity as it crackled in the air around him. His hair was being blown around by it as he sized them up.

Chiro smirked, dropping into an offensive stance, giving the "bring it" motion.

"Come on and fight me!"

Chapter Text

Chapter 8: Crashed

His eyes and his mind were open in a way they had never been.

He wasn't entirely sure what was happening if he had to be honest. The warmth, the electricity… all of it was familiar now to what he experienced just two weeks prior, upon pulling the switch that fateful day.

But the flashes in his mind were new.

"LADY TOMAHAWK!"

Nova's fists were coming at him at a rapid pace, the yellow and pink weapons emitting a warmth he hadn't noticed before.

He barely dodged the barrage, letting out a sigh of relief as he dove to the side.

He lunged upward, performing a spinning kick.

His heart was racing, as was his mind as these flashes came and went as fast as they appeared.

He was completely surrounded now.

"Chiro! Can you hear us!?"

"Kid, snap out of it!"

Their voices were so far away from him even as he looked right at them.

Nova growled, slamming both fists into the ground as the floor began to shake.

He wobbled, stumbling as he tried to outrun the incoming quake…

Only for Otto to appear in front of his face.

"Sorry, Chiro…" He said genuinely, his gaze worried as his tail wrapped around the boy's waist, throwing him right towards Gibson and Sparx's direction.

The boy went flying, flailing for a moment…

Rolling into it as he wound up upright again.

"Hey!"

Sparx cursed under his breath.

Chiro didn't even seem to notice something was wrong as the energy swirls around him grew in size.

"So, we gave a thirteen year old a bunch of combat training, that hasn't stuck at all but somehow he's kicking our butts." He remarked. "How did we get from point A to point B? Anyone wanna explain that?!"

Antauri narrowed his eyes.

"His powers have awoken but… he shouldn't know any of this. He's predicting every attack and meeting it."

"Then we should try something new." Gibson replied, his eyes narrowing.

Chiro rushed by them, Nova and Otto doing their best to wear him down, staying on either side of him so he couldn't fully outrun them.

"I don't think magnets and electricity are gonna make a good combo." Sparx, growled. "You know, I really should blame you, Antauri."

"Why is this my fault?"

"You didn't tell him-HIT THE DECK!"

Nova managed to grab the boy, throwing him right towards them.

"AUGH!"

Antauri thrusted his hand forward, using a forcefield to catch Chiro.

The boy was struggling in his grasp as he was brought closer to eye level.

"Hey! I taught you better than that!" Chiro cried out. "That was low!"

Taught us better…?

"He's completely drunk off the power primate. Great going." Sparx sighed. "And I thought we'd see him wipe the floor with just you."

Gibson frowned.

"Chiro… We're right here. Please calm down…"

"Put me down!"

Antauri brought him closer, reverting his claws back into his hands. He reached up, placing two fingers on Chiro's forehead.

He closed his eyes, focusing entirely on the energy coming off of the boy in waves.

"Hear us… You're okay…"

Chiro's eyes grew heavy as his body began to relax, the crackling electricity disappearing with it.

He blinked, the green fading into blue.

Chiro was baffled when he looked around. The training room was a mess, everyone was looking at him with a mix of exhaustion and concern.

"Antauri…?" He whispered. "What happened?"

Antauri chuckled, shaking his head.

"You beat us."

Chiro's eyes widened.

"I did what!?"

Antauri shook his head.

"We'll talk about this later… for now…" He focused once more as energy went from his own fingertips into Chiro. "Rest."

His eyes slid closed as the exhaustion coursed through his body as if to remind him of what had happened.

"Mgh…"

My head hurts…

oooooo

There they all were once again hurrying into the Medical Bay with Antauri levitating Chiro like he was the most delicate thing in the galaxy.

"Easy… Steady now, right here." Gibson was hurrying ahead, already getting his scanners ready, his mind still reeling from what happened.

One minute, Chiro was his normal self, laughing, smiling… and the next…

"Come on and FIGHT ME!"

He shook his head, shivering a bit.

Antauri's heart was heavy as he lowered Chiro carefully onto one of the beds.

"I taught you better!"

What did he mean…?

No… I should've anticipated this. I was too focused on him being able to defend himself. I completely neglected coaxing out his power gently… not…

The boy's head fell to the side, his breathing heavy. His body was still letting off some faint green static that coursed around him every few seconds or so.

This… Oh, Chiro…

The rest of the team were in the doorway, trying to stay out of the way… not quite ready to lose sight of their boy just yet.

"Gibson, is there anything we can do?" Otto asked, rubbing his arm.

This hurt to watch.

"Take him! Just take him!"

Their leader's voice was lost over the wind but they couldn't mistake what he was holding onto in one arm, trying to scramble for the pavement with the other.

Just like the last time.

Gibson sighed, pointing at Antauri.

"The only one I actually will require help from is him. I would suggest the three of you figure out who gets the "pleasure" of telling Mila what happened."

Sparx grimaced.

"Is there any world where we can just skip that part?"

Nova sighed, her hands on her hips.

"Nope. If it was the reverse, we'd want her to tell us."

"Nova, your compassion is great,but she's nuts."

Gibson looked over, narrowing his eyes.

"Everyone without a medical license can leave."

Everyone looked over at Antauri with glares that just read "DOOM" across their faces.

"Oh no. I'm not done with this one. You savages can have him after I'm done with him." Gibson scoffed. "Get in line."

"Oh, I see how it is. Alright, we'll go alert the crazy." Sparx chuckled. "Good luck, Antauri! Maybe you'll survive to see tomorrow!"

Otto sighed.

"I have a license but I'll keep Sparx and Nova outta trouble."

"HEY-!"

Antauri growled under his breath.

"Like I meant for this to happen-!"

It was already too late as the door slammed shut.

Now it was just the three of them.

Gibson sighed as he looked over at Chiro.

Even getting closer to him,was causing his fur to stand on end from the static.

Antauri frowned, making his way to Chiro's side, looking him over.

The static was getting worse, the boy's face twisting up into one of discomfort as it shuddered around him once more like a net.

"He's going to wake up positively drunk, as Sparx put it, on the Power Primate, hence why I decided it's your turn to step up." Gibson explained, pointing from Antauri to Chiro. "You will channel Chiro's excess energy into yourself. I can't touch him at all like this or I'm going to get electrocuted."

Antauri grimaced.

He knew that tone.

Gibson was absolutely, positively livid with him.

He sighed, floating up to the boy's side, settling beside him.

"This is all my fault. I should've done better."

"Yes, yes, it is actually. Because quite honestly, I think we should've told him what being the leader truly means… but you wanted to keep it a secret."

"He's not ready." He denied. "It's too much pressure… He's so young…"

"He's too young for this but the fact is we're clearly meant to play a bigger role." Gibson turned back to him, his gaze stern. "We were never informed the Chosen One was going to be a child but we knew he was going to be here. We knew he might not know how to use his gifts… YOUR job was to do that. Yet, I think part of you is afraid of that." Gibson narrowed his eyes, a low growl building at the back of his throat.

"I know…" Antauri turned away from Chiro, his tail hanging low at the ground, his gaze downcast.

"You're afraid of what his destiny means… aren't you?"

Antauri lowered his head, sighing heavily.

He couldn't deny it.

Gibson was entirely right in that regard. During this entire time, he had been focusing on getting Chiro caught up with combat, mostly out of sheer fear he wouldn't know what to do with himself, even if he had his powers. He thought he had more time.

That he was doing the right thing… but today taught him otherwise.

Chiro was unpredictable in every way shape and form and it seemed the powers that be wanted to remind him he wasn't simply "The Chosen One" if the way he behaved was any indicator…

"I taught you better!"

"What do you think he meant?" Antauri asked. "That he taught us better…"

Gibson sighed.

"I'm not sure, Antauri. As Mila oh so helpfully put it, "Cryptic bull-crap" is your territory, not mine." He smirked. "Now, get on with it."

Antauri grimaced.

Part of him wondered if this was actually a procedure or if Gibson was making things up just for the sake of petty revenge.

He decided, even if it just meant he'd be blasted into a wall from a surge of power, at least it was taking some of the burden off of the boy.

Chiro whimpered as the electricity sparked into full blown energy, rushing around him.

Antauri's eyes widened, reaching for his hand.

"Chiro!"

Chiro gripped his hand tightly as Antauri cried out from the shock of it all.

Steady… He's been dealing with this building up for weeks…

Take responsibility. I could've prevented this but I messed up.

I can't do that again.

Now…

Calm…

He closed his eyes, focusing on what he was experiencing. After the initial surge wore off, he didn't experience pain… just warmth and a sense of static surrounding him….

But there was something else here.

"Hello!? Is anyone here!?"

Chiro's voice echoed through his mind.

Chiro!?

"Please… is anyone even… here?"

He growled before allowing his mind to go still.

Hang on… I'm coming…

Antauri fell forward beside Chiro.

"Antauri!?"

Gibson cursed, shaking him.

The static wasn't an issue anymore… but it was with great displeasure he realized.

"Well great, now I have two patients…"

oooooo

Chiro was lost… He was lost all over again.

The jungle was a strange and unfamiliar place to him. He had never wandered outside of the city's limits until two weeks ago… and he certainly had never been near the Zone of Wasted Years as the historians called it.

The trees were massive, towering overhead like skyscrapers, creating a darkened canopy. The vines hung low, creating a confusing territory.

He was pretty sure he passed a giant spider web but he would really rather not think about that.

"Hello!? Is anyone here!?" He called out.

He had just been in the training room hadn't he? Where was he now?

Was this part of it? No…

No, they would've told him, he told himself.

A tree limb snapped as he whirled around.

And another…

Before him, the branches were falling, creating a path in the dirt… leading him somewhere.

He swallowed hard.

He really hoped he wouldn't regret this.

Chiro took a shaky breath, before starting to follow it.

Chapter Text

Chapter 9: Chosen

Antauri let out a sharp gasp as he opened his eyes… The winding tree tops being the first thing he spotted as he sat up slowly, rubbing his head.

He hadn't done this in a long time. It was one thing to bring one into his own astral field… it was another to dive into someone else's.

He looked around as he got up, climbing up one of the trees for a better vantage point.

Where was he?

"CHIRO!" He called out, his voice echoing through the jungle. "CHIRO, CAN YOU HEAR ME!?"

Cra-ack

Cra-ack.

Antauri narrowed his eyes, peering down below at the dirt laden path…

Heaving a sigh of relief as he spotted a familiar shock of black hair.

The boy's head was down… wearing some kind of cloak around his shoulders.

Antauri jumped down, hurrying after him.

"Chiro! I'm here-" His words died in his throat as the person turned around.

He was tall, a long dark cloak over his shoulder, the underside being a bright orange. He wore a white jacket and pants with a long orange scarf. His facial markings resembled the ones Antauri and the team sported.

The young man's eyes widened, before smiling sadly.

"Sorry… That's not me."

Antauri was baffled, looking him over, a low growl building in his throat.

"Who… are you?"

His gaze softened, kneeling to Antauri's level. He slowly shook his head.

"You know me."

There was a chill down his spine as he looked up at this… Other Chiro. His presence was familiar, yes, but… something was still wrong here.

He took a step back.

"I think I would remember if our boy suddenly grew up."

The young man put a finger to his lips.

Around them, there was a tremor that shuddered through the ground…

Thud!

Thud!

Thud!

The young man stood up, stepping aside as he pointed to an opening through the trees.

"You don't need to worry about me. Worry about him… Please, just tell him. He's scared… I'm scared."

Antauri's heart skipped a beat.

"I taught you better!"

"I'm scared."

"Come on and FIGHT ME!"

The young man looked back, sadness in his eyes.

"I'm sorry…" He whispered.

Antauri moved closer.

"Who are you, really?"

The young man smiled, closing his eyes.

His entire form was encased in a pale green light as he vanished from sight illuminating the path that lit up ahead.

Antauri's mind was racing… but all of it came to a sudden stop when someone ran through the opening, his eyes wide in fear…

Chiro… wearing the same uniform the man before had.

The boy's eyes widened when he spotted Antauri.

"A-Antauri…?" He stopped short.

It couldn't be… could it?

Antauri frowned, hurrying to him.

"I'm right here, Chiro."

Chiro looked behind him before looking back at Antauri.

"What happened? I was training with you guys and then-Is this part of it?"

"No, no…" Antauri shook his head. "Your powers awoke and you ran amuck. It was a team effort to get you to calm down."

Chiro's eyes widened.

Everything was coming back to him now… The strange visions, being able to predict what was coming towards him.

Antauri having to channel some of his energy just to stop him finally.

"I…" He ran a hand through his hair. "I am so sorry… Antauri, I didn't mean to do that! I-"

Antauri held up a hand, his gaze gentle.

"There is nothing to apologize over. Your powers awoke without you being properly prepared. There was nothing you could've done…" He sighed. "I'm the one who owes you an apology, Chiro."

"W-Why?"

"Because, I was supposed to help you with that. I was supposed to train you, to help you find grounding techniques for when that happened… I failed you in that regard. It should've been a good experience and instead…."

Chiro grimaced.

"I ran around like a feral gremlin?"

Antauri winced.

He supposed that was an appropriate description.

"Yes… I'm sorry."

Chiro sighed as he sank to the ground, sitting before his mentor.

"So… I'm asleep right now?" He asked.

"Correct… Your powers are still quite volatile so I was channeling it into myself." Antauri explained, looking him over, still pondering what he had seen before.

The resemblance right now to Chiro and the entity he had seen was uncanny.

Chiro tilted his head.

"Was it… making me sick or something?"

"I was the only one who could get near you without getting shocked. Even Sparx wasn't able to fend it off."

"Gibson is gonna freak out on me, isn't he?"

"... Potentially."

Chiro sighed, rubbing his face with his hands, looking down at his gloves.

"So… what happens now? I wake up, get medicinal wrath and go back to work?"

Antauri shook his head.

"We need to discuss something…"

Ow… Why did he phrase it like that? Chiro thought, wincing a little.

"O-Oh? I thought we just did. I'm not mad, you're not mad, Gibson's gonna have a total freak out and probably lock me in the med bay for a day."

Antauri gave him a stern look, crossing his arms…

That look lasted all of two seconds as he let out a long sigh, sinking to the ground beside him.

This was going to be the hardest conversation they had.

He wasn't used to being in this role at all. He was aware that he would have to be a mentor now, not just the second in command…

This would've been easier if he had been here to help…

"Chiro… There's been something I've been avoiding telling you. I couldn't tell you honestly why I thought keeping this was a good idea either…" He started, before rubbing the side of his head in frustration. "I should've never done that. You're already under so much pressure…"

Chiro swallowed hard, looking down at the ground.

"Am I in trouble?" He asked quietly.

"What!?" Antauri shook his head. "No, no, you aren't."

"Promise?" His voice cracked. "I know I'm not perfect but I'm trying and-"

"Chiro, please…" Antauri got up, resting a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it gently.

Chiro looked up, his eyes shiny.

"I promise… You aren't in any form of trouble at all. I should've told you sooner…"

Chiro nodded, not trusting himself to speak.

He had to admit, so far out of everyone, Antauri was the hardest to get a solid read on.

The others, he was quickly finding little ways to get to know them better, but… it seemed, so far, all he had were his combat lessons. He didn't even know much about him, besides snarking on occasion.

"Are you alright?"

"Y-Yes…"

Not even halfway into this and I'm messing it up.

Alright… Calm yourself.

He took a deep breath.

Focus…

He's a scared child who has the universe's weight on his shoulders.

He thinks it was an accident.

That we just randomly decided to put him through this…

"Chiro, I want you to think back to that first day… What do you remember the most?" He asked.

Chiro hummed in thought.

That entire day was a blur now but… something stuck out to him.

"I promise, I'm not going anywhere. You don't have to worry about me."

Chiro hesitated before calling out.

This was too weird. Where was he?

"Hey! Who are you?"

The boy craned his neck, his blue eyes warm and gentle.

He turned completely to face him.

Chiro recoiled, stunned.

He looked….

Like him. Older and wiser… Much taller… but he recognized his own face.

The boy chuckled, reaching a hand out, a green orb of energy forming in it.

"You'll understand soon. I promise."

The orb flew right at him, entering his chest. Chiro placed a hand over his heart, looking up stunned.

"Wh-What do you mean? I don't-"

"Take care of them, won't you?"

"There was someone there… He looked like me." Chiro frowned. "Older but… he was like me."

"Was he in the base or was he in a dream?"

"A dream, for sure. I'd have remembered someone else being in there besides me."

I'm going to look into this more… but for now…

Just get it over with. Don't keep him in the dark anymore…

He supposed it was a nasty habit he had picked up during his time with the Veron Mystics. He had become accustomed to keeping things hidden, close to him until he needed it.

Antauri's eyes closed as he focused on the scenery around him.

In moments it began to change and shift. The trees became enveloped in crystal, twisting and turning to form wide pillars. The rocks and grass became as smooth and reflective as glass… Even the sky seemed to take on a different hue as it shined brilliantly.

Chiro's eyes widened, looking around him.

"Where…?"

"This is a place known as Korolodol. This was where I was trained a long time ago in the ways of the Power Primate." He explained.

Chiro winced as a sharp pang shot through his head.

"I'm from Korolodol…"

"A Mystic Apprentice is that so?"

"No… More like a failure…"

There it is again…

Antauri narrowed his eyes, noting the way Chiro had shifted.

"A long time ago, when the Skeleton King's forces had resurfaced, I came here to seek guidance… and I was told there would be something quite miraculous."

He brought both hands together as a large green orb formed in it… It dispersed into a harsh wind as the scenery changed again….

Showing a temple made up of the same crystal, words in an ancient language he couldn't quite understand etched into it.

There were several cloaked figures standing on a pedestal in the center of the room…

Antauri looked towards the door, sighing a bit.

He could see himself walking in, completely unaware of what was to come… Guilt creeping up, as he thought back to how that day truly went.

I hate that it hurts too much to allow the rest…

I can't face him again… This is hard enough as it is…

It's hard enough doing this part  alone.

Chiro's eyes were fixated on the cloaked figures…

Something was familiar about them but when he looked closer, a chill went through him.

"He who will wield the fate of destroying the Dark Ones has been reborn in this world." One of the mystics spoke.

Behind them, the crystal flickered as if it was a screen, as an image appeared… of a young man, with his back facing away from everyone, an icon of a monkey sitting on his shoulder, a large lightning bolt in one hand.

"The Chosen One, will need your guidance and your help in fulfilling his true purpose." They continued on. "The Power Primate's wild energy lives within him now and shall only grow as time goes on. You will meet him when the time is right."

The past image of Antauri lifted his head, giving a nod.

Chiro's eyes widened.

"What…?"

Antauri put a finger to his lips.

"This ancient game began 50 years ago… Now, it is up to you to help him win it. Do you understand?"

"I do…"

Chiro's head swam as he tried to process it… His heart was racing as the scene played out in front of him.

Antauri looked at him, concerned.

"Chiro?"

"No…"

"It's not easy being given the task you have."

The boy sighed, folding his arms behind his head as he leaned against a work table. He was talking to someone, dressed in a long cloak but he couldn't see his face.

Chiro tilted his head…

The boy could've been his twin. His hair was longer, tied in a short ponytail at the nape of his neck, but the rest…

It sent a chill through him.

"Yeah, try, nothing I ever do will be good enough. I swear, Master Zan hates my guts!"

"He doesn't hate you, he's intimidated, my young friend. Don't let that discourage you."

The boy scoffed, before wandering off.

"Sure…" He sighed. "Eventually I know I have to go back… But not now."

"In that case, why don't you stop moping and come help me?"

The boy grinned, before running over.

"Only if you let me work on your big project."

"That depends on if you can do the work."

"-Hiro? Chiro!"

Chiro let out a gasp, as he snapped out of it, the vision fading away to the temple floor.

Antauri was in front of him now.

His gaze was full of concern, his hands on the boy's shoulders.

"Antauri…" Chiro's voice cracked. "It wasn't an accident I found you guys, was it?" He asked.

Antauri shook his head.

"No, Chiro. This was something fate decided a long time ago." Antauri squeezed his shoulder. "You saw something, didn't you?"

"Yeah… I think I saw myself." He rubbed the back of his neck. "But it was another time… Another place."

"Another life." Antauri murmured.

"Yeah… That." Chiro looked up, his gaze serious. "So, this is what's been eating at ya since we met?"

"Yes… There wasn't any doubt in my mind that day… and there's no doubt in my mind now." Antauri smiled gently.

Around them, everything was fading away into a gentle green light as it began to surround the two.

"You are the Chosen One."

Chiro smiled, closing his eyes… The energy around them was gentle, enveloping them completely… As if they were being enveloped in a warm embrace.

That was a strange thought and yet, it made too much sense now.

So, everything happens for a reason after all.

Chapter Text

Chapter 10: Yours is an Empty Hope

There were voices all around them… Concerned voices of the team as Chiro and Antauri broke through the fog they were under.

"Mgh…?" Chiro's eyes opened slowly.

This was familiar. Waking up, lying on one of the Med Bay tables, the loud noises from the monitor echoing in his ear.

Ow!

Was this what a hangover felt like!?

Gibson appeared in his field of vision, relieved.

"Are you with us, Chiro?"

He nodded.

"Where's…?"

Antauri let out a hiss of pain as he came to, bringing a hand to his forehead.

Ugh, I don't think I've had a headache this bad since…

THUD!

"WHY DO YOU FLOAT EVERYWHERE!?"

Two weeks ago… right…

"Antauri?"

His head snapped up, relief coursing through his system.

Chiro smiled tiredly.

"You okay?"

"Ngh… I've had worse." He grimaced. "You?"

"Hungover."

Gibson stifled a laugh, running a hand through the boy's hair.

"Somehow it doesn't surprise me. As Sparx so "helpfully" described it, you were basically drunk off sheer energy."

"Yeah, Antauri filled me in, in there…"

Gibson stopped short, looking up with a warning glare in Antauri's direction.

He winced, moving back on the bed.

"Hey, don't be mad at him." Chiro cut in. "He told me the truth."

"Then… you understand why that happened then?"

"Yep."

Gibson took a step back, bringing a hand to his chin, before giving a shrug.

"Then, I suppose there's not much left to discuss, is there?"

Chiro sat up carefully, his head in his hands.

"Ow…"

Antauri moved closer, rubbing a circle on his back.

"Shh…"

"One moment, I'll get the painkillers."

Chiro nodded.

"I don't suppose healing energy's on the menu, huh?"

Antauri chuckled.

"Not today… but someday in the future, perhaps."

Chiro nodded.

"Right."

The door to the Med Bay slid open as three very worried faces peered through.

"Hey, is the kid up-" Sparx looked up at Chiro, before heaving a massive sigh of relief. "Oh finally."

"Chiro!"

"Everyone, don't overwhelm him-" Gibson cautioned… but it was too late.

He was nearly slammed into the monitor next to the table as the others rushed over.

"UWAH! SAVAGES, THE LOT OF YOU!"

Chiro's eyes widened before he yelped as he was tackled back down by a horde of very relieved, very concerned monkeys.

Nova wrapped her arms around his neck, letting out a small churr.

"You're okay!"

Sparx ruffled up his hair.

"Way to stir up drama, Kid!"

Chiro chuckled, smiling sheepishly.

"Didn't mean to."

Otto hugged him tightly, sighing in relief.

"Don't ever scare us like that again."

Chiro nodded, bringing his arms around them as best as he could.

He looked over at Antauri and Gibson.

"Come on. You're not getting out of this."

Antauri chuckled, moving closer, leaning against Chiro's shoulder.

"As long as you do not mind… I believe we all needed this."

Gibson sighed, smiling as he crossed his arms.

"What are we going to do with you?"

Chiro smirked, his eyes flashing green.

His heart skipped a beat as the energy coursed through his system once more… but it was gentle, not a shuddering net of electricity… just warmth.

"Teach me everything."

oooooo

The greenhouse was quiet, for the most part. It was lush, filled with rare flowers and plants of all kinds.

This was her paradise away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

She walked carefully around, checking them over for any damage. Her fingers deft as she swiftly snipped away any brown or discolored leaves or petals.

Anything she cut away, she put into a little jar she carried with her.

Mila sighed as she examined one plant in particular, the orange cosmos.

They were lush and their colors, as usual, were vibrant but they still made her heart sink a little.

These were plants Chiro had been cultivating himself and she had to admit, she was proud when he had success.

He's so busy. He barely has time for this…

A twinge of guilt ate at her as she thought back to the conversation they had a while back.

How he looked at her with disappointment.

The way her heart raced when she witnessed his first training session and had to stop attending them in fear of not being able to stop herself from interfering.

She sighed, running a hand through her hair.

Maybe I should reconsider after all. One semester where he's not in public school, say I'm homeschooling him.

They can't do crap about it anyways. I'm an adult, I'm his legal guardian-No…

I'm his parent.

There was no replacing that.

… That's it, isn't it?

Mila rubbed at her eyes, trying to keep herself calm.

She was afraid of the future and what it would change for their family. She had worked her tail off to keep Chiro happy and healthy.

The idea of being replaced… of never seeing him, scared her bad enough her heart clenched at the mere thought.

They don't know everything about him though.

They can't replace the fact I know him better than anyone. They can't replicate that…

Was that it?

Was that what she was so afraid of?

Her stomach dropped as it settled in.

She was disgusted with herself at the thought, shaking it out of her head.

No.

Nothing changed that much, she told herself.

They were still family.

That was still her kid.

No one can take that from me…

Her grip on her sheers tightened, her knuckles turning white.

No one's trying to take him from me, you idiot.

Are you THAT insecure, huh?

What am I doing…?

She sighed heavily, rubbing at her eyes, looking around.

It was hard though, wondering if she was even doing the right thing.

Wondering how her parents would've handled it all.

Her mom especially, she had been SO protective of Chiro when he was younger.

What would they have said?

Dad… would probably get apprehensive but he loved all that super sentai stuff. He'd probably be just as happy about it as Chiro…

And then Mom…

… I don't know…

I just know I don't know what to do…

She sniffled a little.

"Mom… I wish I could've asked you about all this stuff." She murmured. "You would've known what to do… I don't… I…"

She let out a frustrated yell, kicking a watering can across the room as it clattered across the floor, water spilling everywhere.

"I DON'T HAVE THE ANSWERS I NEED!"

Her voice shook as she threw down her sheers and let out another scream.

"WHY THE HECK DID YOU LEAVE ME TO DO THIS ALL ALONE!?"

Her voice echoed through the greenhouse as she panted, trying to calm down.

Steady Mila… C'mon, calm down…

You have to keep it together.

If Chiro comes home and sees you upset…

She took a deep breath.

"Ichi's safe… He's with his…" She frowned. "He's with his team. I'm here… I still have to keep a roof over our heads…"

She sighed shakily.

I don't know though…

It was like a weight on her, dragging her down every time it rushed to the forefront of her mind.

The image of that creature, towering over her and Chiro.

His eyes as if they saw right through her.

He has to fight that.

And that monster…

That monster took everything from us.

That was the hardest part about it.

She had spent the last seven years trying to manage her grief, Chiro's grief, the weight of what felt like the very planet itself, laying itself across her back and weighing her down.

She went from a college student, to a parent in the matter of a few short hours, that seemed more like years.

The lights above flickered.

She looked up, confused.

They did it again.

She swallowed hard, taking a step back.

The greenhouse shook on its very frame as the shelves of plants began to rattle.

Outside, there was a loud engine roaring.

Nononono…

Her heart raced.

"No…" Her voice shook as her heart raced.

The temperature of the greenhouse was dropping rapidly.

A sickly green mist appeared as the lights continued to flicker…

POP!

One bulb at the far end of the green house shattered, exploding in its socket.

Mila's eyes widened as she shook her head backing up.

"No, no…." She whined. "This isn't real…"

POP!

Another lightbulb shattered as the mist grew thicker.

Around her, the plants began to droop as if the life was being sucked right out of them.

Healthy flowers she had just pruned, withering up into a sickly, brown and dropping dead at her feet as she moved backwards.

Mila put her hands to her head, letting out a nervous laugh, despite it all.

I've definitely cracked. This is it, I've lost my mind from stress and this is the BIG one…

Yes! That was her answer!

This isn't happening right now. I'm dreaming. This is a nightmare.

This was a bad dream… Right?

It had to be.

"It's not real…"

POP!

"It's not real…" She chanted repeatedly. "It's not real, it's not real, it's not real…"

The dying flowers and trees around her twisted and shifted, scraggly limbs all reaching towards her.

The mist grew thick, surrounding her.

Mila whimpered, her eyes stinging as she kept moving backwards, looking around for some kind of exit.

The door to the main part of the shop was too far away.

"Huh, I could install an extra door here." Otto had offered when they made a stop to get Chiro's gym attire on their way back from shopping.

"Maybe a different time."

I should've listened…

Her heart leaped into her throat as out of the mist rose shadows, twisting and turning around.

"I'll see you after training!" Chiro had called over his shoulder, hurrying out the door.

"Be back before dinner, okay?"

Chiro looked over his shoulder.

"You wanna come with me?"

She shook her head.

"No, I got work here."

POP!

"I should've been there…" She whispered.

Ichi…

I'm so sorry.

The light fixture above her shook and swung, the light flickering.

The shadows became solid mass… Shadow, turning to ooze, becoming enveloped in a layer of bone.

Their arms outstretched as long blades made up of a sickly green bone appeared.

The mist swirled as the figures skulked towards her.

"No…"

POP!

Mila screamed, covering her head as the light above her shattered, glass scattering all over her and the floor.

"NOOOO!"

She looked around for something… anything…

She grabbed up a flower pot, hurled it at one of the entities, dodging to the side as its blade came down…

Right where her head had been.

"Mila…" Her mother's words echoed in her mind.

"If you were in a situation where you had to fight or die… Which would you choose?"

"I… I would choose…"

She growled as the figures turned around, easily chasing after her.

She knocked over shelves and pots as they shattered in her wake.

I'm not going down easily.

I won't leave him alone too!

"I'M GONNA FIGHT!"

The monsters were slowed only for a few minutes as she dashed across the green house, throwing things over in her wake.

She grabbed up the pressure washer she used to clean the concrete, turning it on at full blast right at one of the creatures.

It shrieked as its arm was sliced clean through before it regenerated.

She swore heavily, throwing it to the side, leaving it on as it bounced around.

The door was so close.

She could see the light of the storefront.

I'm almost there…

Come on, come on!

The mist grew thicker as it trailed into the shop.

She looked behind her, seeing the creatures were struggling to get by the chaos she left in her wake.

She couldn't afford to stop now.

Mila spotted the broom she kept by the door as she finally made it… grabbing it and stomping on the side of it with her foot.

"Come on!"

Creak!

It wasn't budging, so she kept at it, while looking up to be sure she had the time.

Thud!

It was getting closer.

"C'mon…" She whined.

"Why the heck do you keep this old thing around?"

"It'll have its uses one day, Ichi."

And that day…

CRA-ACK!

It broke off, revealing a long sharp nail at the end.

She grinned.

That day was today.

Mila held it up, brandishing her new weapon.

THUD!

She yelped, looking behind her…

The mist was all over the shop now…

The light fixtures above were swinging wildly.

The doors to the glass display cases were slamming open and closed.

THUD!

THUD!

THUD!

More shadows began to swirl upwards as she backed up against the register.

POP!

POP!

POP!

Glass shattered all around her as the light bulbs above exploded, the glass in the cases shattering from the force.

The shadows took form, as it began ooze and then bone…

Mila growled, brandishing her weapon.

She let out a scream, dashing forward.

SHING!

Stabbing one right in the chest.

It looked down at her weapon before looking up at her.

Mila grinned.

"Got you-"

It raised its arm up, slamming into the side of her head.

She shrieked, as she was knocked to the side.

It turned, hitting her in the side with her own weapon as she was sent flying.

She rolled across the floor, the glass crunching under her, as she slammed into the front counter.

Her back exploded with pain as it reverberated through her entire body.

"AUGH!"

Wonder how much Gibson's charge to fix this is… She thought faintly. I gotta move… gotta get up… I gotta…

The creatures skulked towards her in the middle of the room as a new form began to take shape.

A woman, with a long dark dress, her skin a sickly gray, her hair was black and hung at her waist, her neck creaking mechanically as she looked down at Mila.

Mila looked up at her, dazed.

"Go away…" She murmured. "Please…"

The woman chuckled, snapping her fingers.

"Sorry, but I have a use for you… Take her away."

Mila shook her head, forcing herself to her feet. She winced as the glass cut into her palms, sliding as she tried to make a break for it.

One of the creatures blocked her path.

"Hm… A feisty one are we?" The woman chuckled. "I believe I know what to do with you…"

The plants had all dried up and died as before…

She pointed to them as they became enveloped in a sickly green glow, morphing and changing into massive vines.

They lunged towards Mila, grabbing her legs, pulling them out from under her.

She went down, hitting the floor HARD as something scattered across the room, flying out of her vest pocket.

"AUGH!"

She was lifted up again, upside down before she was swung hard into the wall opposite of her.

Her head slammed into the wall above the display case as pain bloomed in the back of her skull.

THUD!

"AAAAAUUUGH!"

She slid down to the floor, too dazed to move, her head spinning as it all blurred together.

She tasted copper in her mouth… the back of her head damp now as she smelled copper in the air anew.

"No…"

I'm sorry…

As everything blurred together…

Her phone started to ring.

Chapter Text

Chapter 11: Fight As One

He never hated his phone more than at that moment.

It was pressed up against his ear so tightly that the heat from the internal battery was right up against it.

The team was quiet, concerned as they watched him pace up and down the command center. The moment he had been allowed to leave the Med Bay, he grabbed it to call Mila.

"I should've done it." Sparx whispered to Nova as they watched Chiro walk by them, once more. "I was just so worried I-'

"It's not your fault." Nova whispered back. "Who could've predicted this?"

Chiro closed his eyes, listening to the ringing.

This wasn't normal.

"You got Mila!" Her voice cheerfully called out as the phone went to voicemail. "Sorry if you missed me, leave me a message and I'll get back to you as soon as I can!"

He let out a frustrated growl as he pulled the phone away, hanging up before dialing again.

This wasn't right.

His heart sank with each ring.

"Maybe her phone is dead?" Otto suggested. "She might've forgotten to charge it."

Chiro shook his head.

"No, that never happens. She hasn't forgotten to charge it in seven years…" His voice cracked a little. "Mila, please, just pick it up…"

His breath hitched in his throat.

Was this what he put her through?

His heart sank as he thought back to that first night.

How she was crying, running through the outskirts, looking for him.

The way she looked at him like he might disappear again.

I'm so sorry…

I'm so sorry, Mila…

Please, just pick up the phone…

Please…

"Please…" He pleaded. "Please…"

"You got Mila-!"

Chiro let out a frustrated yell, throwing his phone towards the wall opposite to him.

Antauri winced, stopping its momentum seconds before it slammed into the wall.

The boy ran both his hands through his hair, shaking his head.

"Something's wrong. I can feel it. She'd never do this… She's NEVER like this. NEVER!"

Chiro looked up, his eyes glassy.

"I… I need to go. I need to go home!"

"We get that." Nova got up. "Let us go too, make sure she's alright."

"Yes and perhaps, if it is a mechanical error, we can at least provide an alternate method to reach her." Gibson offered. "It would be much more effective than that."

Chiro nodded, starting for his own elevator.

Sparx grabbed his arm, before he could.

"Hey, it's gonna be okay."

"I… I hope so…"

oooooo

Chiro yelped as he tried to hold on for dear life.

When the monkeys said they'd go along too, he didn't expect them to use their rocket packs to carry him.

Shuggazoom was so far down below, his heart leaped into his throat.

Maybe if he was the one in control of his ascent he'd have enjoyed it but the only thing his mind kept conjuring up was how fast he'd become one with the pavement if someone slipped or lost their grip.

"There." He pointed out the store, the second he saw it.

"Hang on!"

The second his feet hit the pavement, he was rushing for the door, stopping short.

The door to the shop was made up of a large glass pane door with the logo for "Hanamura Botanicals" etched into it, with flowers and leaves surrounding it.

It was completely shattered now, the pieces crunching under his feet.

Chiro's breath hitched in his throat as he started to run inside, only to be pulled away.

"Hey!"

Antauri squeezed his arm.

"We go in together."

Chiro bit his lip before nodding, reluctantly allowing them to go ahead of him as he followed suit…

The inside of the shop was worse.

Chiro's heart nearly stopped as he turned around slowly.

All around him, flowers in vases and display cases were dead. Shriveled up, dried, or decayed as they drooped or covered the floor.

The glass on the display cases were gone. He couldn't tell which was the door, the cases or the dozens of broken pots and vases at this point.

All he could think about was how did it get this bad so fast?

He was only gone for a few hours!

It was so quiet. The only noise being from the glass under their feet as they ventured further inside.

Sparx looked down, his eyes widening as his stomach lurched.

There were bloody handprints on the floor.

He nudged Gibson quietly, pointing to it.

Gibson frowned, nudging Chiro along before he could get a good look at it.

"Mila!" He called, hurrying towards the backroom, brushing him away. "Mila! Come on, this isn't funny!"

Nova hurried after him, her hands transforming at the ready.

This wasn't right.

"Mila… Where are you…" His breath hitched, swallowing hard. "Sis, come on…"

She wasn't anywhere… The backroom was dark, the lightbulbs shattered. He opened the secondary door to the greenhouse…

And was hit instantly with a wave of nausea.

Something had been here.

He could barely see anything.

"What… What happened here?" He nearly tripped over a fallen shelving unit. "How did it get this bad?"

"Chiro… I don't think she's here…"

"Then where?" He turned around. "We had security systems, why didn't they go off!? Why didn't the cops show up!? If it got broken into… If…" His eyes widened.

What if she got hurt?

What if someone…

No…

In the main area of the store, Antauri wandered around, trying to get some sort of impression…

He closed his eyes, reaching out with his senses…

His hand brushed against the wall…

It took a moment… before he saw it clearly.

Mila's panicked breathing and her screams.

"AUGH!"

Her head slammed into the wall as the pain surged through his own head as she slid down to the floor.

He could taste copper in his mouth.

There was a darker presence all around him.

"No… Please…"

The phone started ringing.

"Antauri."

He snapped out of it, looking over at Sparx.

He was pointing to the wall he had been touching.

A smear of blood decorated the wall high above them.

"What'd you see?" He narrowed his eyes. "Relate back to this?"

"She was thrown up there…" He rubbed the back of his head. "She's injured but I didn't…" He frowned. "Her life didn't end here. She's still very much alive, she's just… gone."

"Missing… Likely taken by whoever did this." Gibson noted. "However, judging from all of this… She fought. She didn't go down without creating a problem for whomever abducted her."

Otto's tail curled up around him, wrapping his arms around himself.

He hated finding scenes like this.

Give him an enemy to fight, or someone to rescue, that was easier… It wasn't easy by any means, but it was better than getting there after…

"Sis!?"

Chiro's voice echoed through the building. They caught a glimpse of him as he bolted up the stairs towards the apartment.

The door was still locked.

He took a deep breath before digging through his pockets for his house key.

"Chiro!"

"Hey!"

Antauri motioned for silence, following him up the stairs, keeping quiet.

Chiro fumbled for the keys as they dropped to the floor with a quiet clatter.

The boy stared down at them before he let out a yell, kicking the door as hard as he could.

BANG!

Antauri grimaced, taking a step backwards.

"Chiro…" He took his hand. "She isn't here. Going in there won't solve anything. Look around you."

Chiro followed Antauri's gaze down the staircase.

The glass was everywhere but the stairs or the stairwell.

"She… She never made it up here… Did she?"

"No… An ability I possess allows me to sense what happens at a scene after the fact… I saw your sister." Antauri furrowed his brow. "She fought. She fought with everything she had… but she didn't perish here."

Chiro let out a long sigh, running his hands through his hair.

"She's not…" His voice cracked as he swallowed hard, trying to keep it together. "She's not…"

"No. She's alive."

"Then… Then I need to find her. We need to-" Chiro started rushing down the stairs. "We need to get a move on, get back to base… Otto! Can you track her translator!?"

"I… I can try-"

All around them the temperature dropped rapidly, turning their breath to vapor.

Outside, an army of engines roared to life,as the streets filled with a sickly green fog.

The team's fur stood on edge as they got into position.

"We ran out of time." Sparx muttered. "Great…"

Otto took a shaky breath, to steady himself.

"We don't have time for this." Gibson growled.

Through the windows, motorcycles whirred by, all manned by soldiers made of sickly green bone, their bodies made up of black ooze given shape. Their bikes were made up of the same bone.

Foot soldiers lumbered after them, their arms transforming into massive weapons as the citizens in the streets screamed.

Chiro's chest clenched as his blood ran cold.

The fog settled at their feet.

He looked around, feeling around gingerly…

His hands came around a wooden handle, lifting it up.

It was the old broom his sister had insisted on keeping around. The brush had been broken off, revealing the long nail at the end.

"She fought like Hell." He murmured. "My turn."

With that, the Hyper Force ran out into the streets of Shuggazoom, weapons at the ready.

The formless horde was all around them, flooding the streets…

Yet…

The focus wasn't on the citizens.

For the team, flashes of battles long past echoed through their minds. Of formless that happily chased and attacked the public.

For them to be patiently waiting… watching them as they moved into the street.

It was unsettling.

It was quiet…

It was so quiet.

"Is this normal?" Chiro asked, brandishing his weapon.

"Absolutely not!" Gibson scoffed.

The fog grew thicker, blinding them momentarily before it began to swirl,as a harsh wind blew through the area.

Shadows began to swirl up around them as the fog formed a portal on the ground.

The monkeys pushed Chiro behind them.

"Something's coming!"

"Get ready!"

A form floated up from the portal…

A woman, in a long flowing black gown, her skin a sickly gray, her hair hanging around her waist, tangled and disheveled. She smiled as she floated above the team.

"Hello, Simians…" She sneered, her eyes glowing brightly.

"And who are YOU supposed to be!?" Nova growled. "I think I'd have remembered you!"

The woman's smile grew, holding her head up high.

"I am known as Valina, the Skull Witch." She explained, snapping her fingers as all around them, the formless got into position.

Some revved up their engines in preparation for the charge.

Others, larger more lumbering masses, readied their weapons.

"Tch…" Chiro narrowed his eyes. "I don't have time to deal with this."

"Oh?" Valina laughed. "Like you didn't have time to be home?"

A chill went up his spine, as his heart sank.

No…

Please don't tell me…

Please…

"Let's play a little game! The Skeleton King wants to see what he can do… If you can get to me, you get a prize!" She grinned wickedly.

"And what kind of prize would we want from you!?" Sparx growled.

Valina smiled, snapping her fingers.

The portal glowed as twisted thorny vines made of shadows appeared, pulling something up towards it.

Her head broke through first, tilted forward… a head of dark black hair, that as the tendrils traveled up revealed a woman in a long denim vest, a black t-shirt with a crescent moon on it and dark tights… Her clothing was shredded. Her body was covered in cuts and bruises.

Her black combat boots were caked in red.

Their blood ran cold as it hit them what they were looking at.

"MILA!" Chiro cried out.

Mila was unconscious, her arms tied above her head as Valina pulled her head backwards so they could get a good look at her face.

A trail of blood ran down the front of her face and the corners of her mouth, mixing with the red lipstick she always wore. Her piercings on the left side of her head were missing, the other side barely hanging on.

"You can have this pathetic husk of a human back." Valina looked down at her. "She put up quite a fight, the naughty little thing. If she would've just been cooperative, I wouldn't have had to break her."

Chiro's eyes stung, as he looked up at his sister.

"No…"

"LEAVE THE GIRL OUT OF THIS!" Antauri called out. "She has nothing to do with this!"

The others exchanged a concerned gaze.

This was an entirely different situation now.

We have a hostage…

An army…

And a kid who has a broomstick…

Sparx narrowed his eyes.

This isn't going to be an easy fight by any means.

Valina chuckled, raising an eyebrow.

"You're adorable, if you think I'm going to give up my one bargaining chip." Valina snapped her fingers

Mila was raised higher until she was right beside Valina, her legs swinging idly.

Her head fell forward again, as her hair shielded her face.

"The rules of the game are simple… Survive and get the girl back, or die trying. Good luck!"

With that, Valina soared upwards, her shadowy vines, dragging Mila along like a puppet on her strings.

Chiro's heart raced in his chest, as a low growl built in his throat, the grip on his weapon tightening.

"Battle…" She snapped her fingers. "BEGIN!"

All around them, the formless lunged forward.

"GET DOWN!" Nova grabbed Chiro, pulling him away as one slammed its massive blade into the ground where he had just been standing.

His sneakers slid on the pavement as he tried to get his footing anew.

"That's it!" She growled, lunging upwards, bringing both of her fists together.

It had been far too long.

She thrust her hands downward, focusing as a jolt of energy coursed through her.

"LADY TOMAHAWK!"

The ground shook and rumbled under the sheer force, making the formless stumble as rubble shot forward, piercing through their bodies. They imploded moments later.

She smirked, the warm energy coursing through her hands… an all too familiar feeling swelling in her chest.

Chiro's eyes were wide, looking at the carnage before him and back at Nova.

"That was… AMAZING! Nova, how did you do that!?"

"Oh trust me, we'll teach you all this and more-AT YOUR BACK!"

Chiro whirled around, using the broomstick to block an attack as the formless forced him backwards, making him bump into Nova.

She wrapped her tail around his waist.

"Don't be mad!"

"Huh-"

Nova flung him upward.

Chiro yelped as he soared above the fight before he got an idea.

Think back to that moment…

"HYAH!"

He rolled into the momentum as he descended back down towards the fight. He reared his arm back, throwing the broomstick, nail-end first.

"TAKE THAT!"

SHING!

SPLAT!

He rolled into the landing, popping back up on his feet.

"Got ya! How do you like that!?" He looked up at Valina with a glare. "Not so tough are you!?"

A shadow loomed over him.

The others were too busy with their own foes to realize it.

Chiro picked up his weapon, thrusting it forward as the formless' arm came down…

It pierced its chest just as its arm transformed into a massive mallet, striking Chiro HARD as it flung him far away from it.

The boy cried out as he was sent flying back, right into the brick wall behind him, his head bouncing off of it with a CRACK!

"AUGH!"

He was dazed as he slid downward, red decorating the wall where his head had collided.

Holy Shuggazoom did that HURT.

"CHIRO!"

Otto and Gibson exchanged a look, growling building in their throats.

Otto's hands transformed into whirling green saws, his eyes taking on a green glow as he began to spin.

The wind picked up around him as it became swirling green energy.

"WHIRLING DESTRUCTO SAWS!"

He disappeared as a green whirlwind appeared instead, the blades hidden within it as he flew forwards, shredding through the foe before him.

Gibson rushed over to Chiro's side, getting in front of him, his drills drawn at the ready.

"Are you okay?"

He groaned, his head in his hand, as a headache bloomed in the back of his head. He felt it as it came away damp.

"No."

Otto's whirlwind blew by them again as enemies loomed overhead.

"I GOT YOUR BACKS!"

Gibson heaved a sigh of relief before hurrying over to Chiro, examining his head.

He grimaced, noting a rather large cut on his head.

"Hold still. This is going to sting a bit."

"Huh-"

He focused as a green gel shot out of his drill, landing on the injury.

"Yowch!" Chiro yelped, trying to move back. "Gibson, knock it off, I need to fight-"

In a moment it faded away, as did the injury. He rubbed the back of his head.

"Whoa…"

"Only for superficial cuts, anything worse we'd need more." Gibson confirmed, before pushing him away as he thrust his other arm forward, the drill whirring.

Right into the center of a Formless Sentry. It exploded as they ducked to avoid the debris.

"I get the feeling she's trying to get us with numbers." Chiro muttered.

"The odds are high. Formless aren't usually pushovers like this… What's her plan?"

Chiro looked up, his heart sinking as he focused on Valina and Mila.

"Do you think we'll get her back?" He asked, his voice shaky, as he got back to his feet.

His body screamed at him to rest, even for a second longer but he was already grabbing up his weapon.

Gibson narrowed his eyes.

"We're going to do everything we can."

Chiro nodded, looking around him.

Wave after wave flooded the streets with bone and black ooze… skulls, with soulless eyes that stared right into his very core.

His heart skipped a beat.

This isn't like the Sun Riders…

He swallowed hard.

This is real…

"What are we gonna do…?"

Gibson got in front of him as Otto hurried over as well so Chiro was between them.

"We're going to keep you safe so you can save your sister." Otto promised. "Just count on us."

He smiled a little.

"You guys…"

"Now, time for some impromptu lessons."

"Really?"

"No time like the present!" Otto grinned.

"AAAAHHHH!"

He quickly pulled Chiro lower as Sparx flew over their heads.

Sparx activated his rocket pack, keeping afloat, panting as he aimed his magnets.

"HEY, ANTAURI, HOW ABOUT DON'T DO THAT AGAIN!?" He yelled across the battlefield. "I ALMOST WENT THROUGH THAT WINDOW!"

Antauri growled, barely dodging a blade aimed at his head.

"Sparx, save the frivolity for later!"

Sparx scrunched up his nose.

"He calls THROWING ME frivolity! Can you hear this guy?"

Nova pulled him down by his tail as a blast of fire rained down from above them.

They looked up, seeing Valina had aimed her fingertip right at them.

"Sparx, I'll kick his butt later for you. Deal?"

He grinned.

"A lady fighting for her man, I like it!"

Nova rolled her eyes, before throwing a punch.

"DUCK!"

He ducked down as Nova knocked the head off the formless above them.

He stared at it, swallowing hard.

"Yeah, that was kinda hot."

"Thanks, Maverick." She smirked.

Sparx sputtered.

"DON'T YOU DARE START USING THAT!"

"Sorry, can't be helped-At your back!"

Sparx cried out as a blade slashed through his jacket, grazing him, as he stumbled to the side.

"Augh…" He gripped his side.

Nova hurried to steady him.

"You okay?"

Sparx grimaced.

"Just… really pissed off."

All around the two, static built up in the air making their fur stand on end, as it gathered around Sparx.

He pointed one hand upward as it transformed into a magnet, a glowing orb of pure electricity formed within.

"MAGNO BALL BLAZER!" He cried out as it shot forward.

Antauri flew upwards as it barely missed him, right through several formless at once.

"Sparx, are you alright?"

"Go and kick that witch's butt got it?"

He nodded, looking up at Valina.

There was one chance he had.

But if I get this wrong…

Chiro looked up, spotting Antauri.

He followed his gaze to where he was looking…

Just in time to see Valina grab Mila's hair, turning her head down towards the fight.

"Can't you see? They're taking their sweet time! Seems they don't want you back. Who could blame them?" She sneered. "It's not like she's useful to your plight! A weak human girl…"

Chiro growled.

"SHUT UP!"

Antauri narrowed his eyes.

"Do I have permission?"

Chiro nodded, pointing at Valina with his weapon.

"TAKE THE SHOT!"

Antauri nodded, flying right at Valina as energy coursed through his body.

A warmth built up through his chest to his throat.

He took a deep breath.

"MONKEY MIND SCREAM!"

His voice faded into a haunting wail as a massive wave of energy built up with the sound shot forward, its siren song flying right for them.

Valina sneered.

"Not too fast."

She swung her hand to the side…

Bringing Mila right in front of her.

The team's blood ran cold.

"NO!"

The attack hit as Mila's body was stunned, twitching as she let out a loud scream, her senses returning to her anew.

"AAAAAAAUUUGH!"

No…

Guilt surged through Antauri.

This was what he had been afraid of.

It didn't hurt any less to watch it happen.

No… A mistake…

Chiro gasped.

"MILA!"

His blood ran cold.

His sister was looking down at them, wide awake now.

Her body twitched as she tried to get control of it again.

"So you are useful." Valina grabbed her hair, forcing her head back.

Mila cried out.

"LEGGO! PUT ME DOWN!"

Valina leaned in close.

"I guess the wrong ones died that night!"

Chiro growled, his eyes taking on a bright green hue.

His heart was racing, he was seeing red…

It was one thing to attack him.

It was another to put his sister in harm's way and say that.

"I said…"

He threw aside his weapon.

"SHUT UP!"

There was a warmth that flooded his system as energy began to surge around him in a net.

In an instant, it enveloped him in a bright green light.

He was laying on the ground, cold but his sister was there. She was leaning over him..

Why was she crying?

"Ichi! Oh thank Goddess!" She screamed, sobbing as she hugged him tightly. "You're alive… Oh thank Goddess…"

She's always worried about me…

It was like he was free falling.

"What do you want to protect?" A voice echoed in his ear…

It was so familiar and yet so distant…

But he knew his answer.

"There's only one thing I want to protect…"

His clothing changed in an instant. His t-shirt and jeans shifted into a white uniform, with navy buttons, his hands becoming covered by dark blue gloves, with orange accents. A belt with the Hyper Force's emblem snapped around his waist, as his hair became messier, falling into his eyes.

A green glow overcame his eyes as the energy formed around his face, taking the shape of a mask with orange stripes.

He dropped downwards as the energy around him faded as he landed, the last of it becoming a long orange scarf that he wrapped around his neck.

Valina's eyes widened in horror.

"NO!"

My Lord said his powers weren't active…

He was just a weak human!

Mila's eyes widened as she realized what she was looking at.

"Ichi.." She mumbled.

This is real…

A small grin came to her face, tears coming to her eyes.

He did it… He really did it!

"THAT'S MY BOY!"

The Hyper Force was stunned as they looked at Chiro, pride swelling up in their chests.

They dropped into offensive stances, all around him.

"On your signal Chiro." Antauri looked up at him. "And I'm sorry."

"No need. She played dirty." He grabbed up the broomstick off the ground.

He focused as electricity crackled around it.

He spun it above his head as the broomstick was transformed in a burst of light, a long blade replacing the nail as the broom itself became a long orange and white staff.

"HYPER FORCE! GO!"

Chapter Text

Chapter 12: One Family

"HYPER FORCE! GO!"

How long had it been since they heard those words?

It wasn't that long ago, yet it seemed like hundreds of years.

The team exchanged wicked grins before they dashed away from Chiro, lunging up.

"GO GET HER!"

Suddenly, they were all around Valina.

A dizzying myriad of color as the monkeys soared around her, their weapons charging.

She flung Mila around in every direction but no attack was coming.

"AUGH! HEY!"

Mila swore under her breath as her body dangled limply.

Everything ached and even if she could move right now, her body was screaming against it.

Her head pounded as she craned her neck, wincing as it popped, trying to watch where the attack would come from next.

Oh please don't hit me again…

"HEY, SKULL WITCH!" Sparx called out.

"You know what we do to people who mess with family?!" Nova sneered.

Chiro took a running leap, using his weapon to vault himself upward.

Antauri flicked his wrist as the boy soared higher.

"We teach them a lesson."

Valina and Mila looked up.

Mila grinned.

"NO!" Valina shrieked.

Chiro sneered as he soared right towards them, thrusting his arm back.

"GET AWAY FROM MY SISTER!"

CR-AAAAACK!

Valina shrieked as the spear collided with her as her head flung back with a mechanical creak.

Her hold on Mila loosened temporarily as lightning surrounded them both.

The tendrils around her wrists slipped away as Mila fell free.

Mila let out a scream, as she fell free, flailing as her senses came to her anew once more.

"NONONO-!"

Two sets of hands, grabbed onto her arms, stopping her momentum.

She let out a strangled noise, looking up.

Otto smiled, sighing in relief.

"We got you Mila."

"You going our way?" Nova asked as they floated downward.

"Ahahaha I've never been happier to see you guys!" Mila laughed shakily. "Holy crap… Holy crap.."

Gibson and Sparx grabbed Chiro, moving him away from Valina at a rapid pace.

She growled, moving forward, charging up a blast in her hand.

"Hey, Antauri, does she have permission to hit me?!" Chiro grinned.

"What does he-"

Antauri growled.

"No, she does…"

He let out another haunting wail, as the blast surged forward.

"NOT!"

Valina shrieked, as it hit her dead on this time, sending her flying into the building opposite.

She groaned as she tried to get her bearings.

"You'll pay for this, Simians… I'll be back…"

A swirling portal opened behind her as she fell through.

"And when I do, you'll live to regret it."

"We'll be waiting!" Chiro called out. "And you can tell Skeleton King I send my regards!"

Valina snarled as the portal closed.

The formless that remained disappeared into a sickly green mist as it rolled out of Shuggazoom.

Chiro heaved a sigh of relief.

"It's over?" He looked up at Sparx and Gibson.

"Yeah, Kid." Sparx grinned, giving him a proud look. "And we couldn't be prouder of ya!"

"How do you feel?" Gibson asked. "Anything hurt?"

"Not anymore." Chiro smiled. "I feel great actually…" He looked up at Antauri.

Antauri smiled, heaving a sigh of relief as he floated back down to the street.

As soon as Chiro's feet hit the ground, he ran over to his sister, throwing his arms around her.

"Are you okay?"

Mila cringed as she slowly brought her arms around Chiro.

Now that she was on the ground, her body was screaming at her in every direction.

"I'm alive." She hugged him tighter. "Ichi…"

Chiro rested his head against hers.

"I'm here… I'm okay. You're okay.."

Mila nodded, shakily, sniffling as her eyes welled up.

She looked up at the sky, then back at the ground.

I could've…

I really almost…

Oh gosh…

Her knees buckled, under her.

"W-Whoa, easy!"

Chiro steadied her, holding her upright.

"I… I got really dizzy." She groaned, closing her eyes, trying to make the planet stop spinning so fast.

My ears are ringing…

"I know, I know… Hey Gibson! Otto!"

"Let me take a look."

"We got her!"

Mila closed her eyes as everything blurred together around her.

"Thank you… Ichi…"

Chiro chuckled, stroking her hair.

"It's okay Sis, you can rest now."

oooooo

As the sun set over Shuggazoom, the sky was dyed a brilliant hue of orange and gold…

As if the cosmos itself was celebrating the Hyper Force's first victory under the new age.

"Yowch! Hey, be a little gentler will ya!?"

"I said, HOLD STILL!"

Gibson sighed as he worked on patching up Sparx.

The Medical Bay was full, much to his chagrin. He had made the incorrect assumption that there had only been a few injuries.

Taking a glance around the room, he had been proven wrong.

Antauri was sporting a rather large gash on his cheek, grimacing as Otto placed one of the artificial membranes over the wound.

Nova had a few bandages on her face but she was standing at Sparx's side, holding his hand.

"Hey, quit squirming around, you want a crooked scar?" She asked with a small smirk.

"Do you think scars are attractive?"

She looked up with a very serious gaze.

"I think he's delusional."

"Please, I told you that years ago." Gibson scoffed.

Sparx rolled his eyes.

"Top notch bedside manner, Gibson. Is this covered by my insurance too?"

"Keep that talk up and you can pay me by cleaning my lab."

Sparx grimaced, looking up at Nova.

"Oh no, you dug your grave, you can lie in it." She narrowed her eyes. "Why are you like this?"

"Oh excuse me for getting stabbed-YOWCH!"

"Alright, we're all done. Any other injuries you want to tell me about? Now's your chance."

"I'm good, I'm good. Just lemme recharge." Sparx sighed in relief. "Thanks."

Gibson nodded, sighing as he leaned back against the bed, looking over to one section of the room.

Mila was laying down on a bed, covered up by a blanket, a monitor quietly displaying her vitals above her.

Chiro's transformation had faded away, the boy now back in his regular clothes. He was sitting beside her, holding onto her hand.

He had long since fallen asleep, slumped over, his head resting on his arm.

"That cannot be comfortable." He sighed.

"No… But we can easily remedy that." Antauri closed his eyes, focusing.

In moments, Chiro was lifted up and tucked under the blanket with his sister, huddling under her arm.

Mila hugged him tighter in her sleep, resting her head against his.

"We're going to have to watch out for them both. They already know what the kid's fighting for." Sparx sat up carefully, leaning on Nova for support.

"She's not gonna be too happy about that."

Otto grimaced.

"Let's just not tell her what happened to the store for a few days… okay?"

"Not until you fix it?"

Otto nodded.

Already his to-do list was a mile long in his head but that was going to have to be bumped up to the top.

Everyone shuddered, imagining what that reaction might look like.

Antauri frowned, rubbing his arm.

"I just hope she'll be alright. That attack…"

Gibson shook his head.

"Her body was stunned but there appears to be no lasting damage. Her eardrums are fine as well. You didn't deafen her."

Antauri heaved a sigh of relief.

"Thank goodness…"

"AUGH!"

I never want to hear that sound again…

He stifled a yawn, shaking his head.

Gibson narrowed his eyes, clapping his hands together, getting everyone's attention.

"Alright, alright, we're having an early night. I'll sleep down here to keep an eye on these two. Nova, make sure Sparx doesn't do anything stupid."

Sparx looked up at Nova, a grin coming to his face.

Nova rolled her eyes, smiling as she helped him to his feet.

"C'mon, Maverick."

"Stop it!"

Gibson chuckled, shaking his head.

"Those two are something else…"

"Yeah, just making up for lost time. They have seven years to catch up." Otto snickered before he straightened up. "I didn't get beaten up, so you don't have to worry about me."

"If anything you did the most damage out there." Antauri nudged him a little. "You did well out there my friend."

Otto perked up.

"All in a day's work!"

"And all in an evening's rest." Gibson pointed to the green tube. "I saw that look, you are not going over there to start tinkering. Fix it tomorrow."

Otto deflated, his eyes drooping.

"But… But…"

Gibson narrowed his eyes, growling low in his throat.

Otto grimaced.

He knew the signs anywhere, Gibson was in full swing "Combat Medic" mode and there was no reasoning with him there.

"I believe Gibson is right. Today was a long day… Emotionally and psychically."

Otto nodded, looking over at the Hanamura siblings with a worried look.

"You promise, they'll be okay if we leave?"

Gibson's gaze softened, squeezing his shoulder.

"I promise."

"Good. Then, I'm gonna go unwind. I need some quiet time."

"Not too overstimulated I hope?"

Otto held up a hand, grinning.

"I'll be fine, just need some alone time."

With that he was gone, up to his room.

"Now, Antauri-"

"I'm staying."

Already, he was making himself comfortable on the floor, resting his hands on his knees, his eyes closing.

Gibson grumbled.

"I swear, you are so stubborn."

"Says the monkey who practically poured coffee into an IV."

"Antauri."

"Shh, they're sleeping."

ooooo

She was somewhere soft… It was nice and warm as she huddled further under the blanket.

For a moment, she thought she was home, huddled in her bed.

The entire apartment is quiet, waiting to hear the tell tale sounds of her brother waking up and getting ready.

As she opened her eyes, Mila winced a bit at the sounds that broke through.

Monitors, beeping steadily, something akin to a fish tank bubbling somewhere further away.

A weight was on her arm, along with warmth.

What… happened last night…?

It took her a second, before everything came rushing back.

Falling!

Oh gosh…

And…

"Hyper Force… GO!"

She didn't imagine that.

Her brother had transformed before her very eyes, using powers beyond imagination…

To save her.

Mila craned her neck to her side.

Chiro was huddled up to her, his hair messier than normal, his arms wrapped around her, his head on her shoulder.

Mila brought her arm up, stroking his hair.

"Mn…?"

His eyes slowly opened, looking up at her, before letting out a gasp.

"Mila!" He sat up. "O-Oh gosh are you okay? How do you feel?" His eyes were wide, looking her over with his eyes before looking up at the monitor.

Mentally, he cursed himself for not asking Gibson to tell him what those numbers meant.

Wait, I should get him, uh-

He sat up too fast as a dizzy spell took over causing him to sink back down onto the bed.

"Hey, hey…" Mila brought her arms around him, turning so they could face each other. "I'm right here, sweetie. I'm right, here."

Chiro's eyes stung, huddling closer.

She was safe… She was still alive.

I didn't lose her too…

He sniffled a bit, burying his face in her shoulder.

"M'sorry I wasn't there!"

"W-What?"

Mila was alarmed as she rubbed his back in circles like she had when he was younger.

"Hey, hey, you didn't do anything wrong." She murmured, keeping her voice low.

Chiro shook his head.

"I should've been there…"

"And what? Gotten taken too?" Mila shuddered, just imagining it.

If there was anything her experience in the greenhouse gave her, it was being thankful Chiro had been out of the house when it happened.

Guilt welled up inside her.

"I should've been there."

It's true.

He's not the one who needs to say he's sorry.

That's my fault.

Chiro shook his head, keeping close, holding onto her shirt sleeve tightly.

He wasn't ready to let go yet or get up yet. He just wanted to stay there.

Just for a few more minutes, he wanted to pretend the rest of the universe didn't exist.

"Hey, Ichi." Mila tilted his chin up so their eyes met. "I'm an adult. It was my job to protect you, not the other way around but you did it anyway…" She frowned. "I'm the one who owes you an apology."

Chiro raised an eyebrow, baffled.

"But… I've been worrying you for weeks."

"And I've been an idiot who was too blind to see that I was interfering with something bigger than the two of us." She shook her head, sighing as she rolled onto her back again, looking up at the array of equipment above them.

She scrunched her nose up.

"Please tell me they didn't rip me apart and put me back together while I was out."

"Haha." He nudged her. "C'mon, what do you mean?"

Mila brought an arm around him, kissing his head.

"I'm saying, I know you're special. You've always been. You read earlier than other kids your age - you read earlier than I did. You walked earlier, talked earlier… It's like you were ready to live your life before you even realized what that meant. You're wicked smart, you're kind… Stubborn but so am I."

Chiro chuckled.

"Sis…"

Mila smiled, her eyes misty.

It was still crazy to think about. It was all so overwhelming trying to process it all.

"This is where you have to be. I don't have to like it. I'm not gonna pretend this all doesn't scare me… but…" She sniffled, wiping at her eyes. "Yesterday taught me a lesson… I really let you down."

"What!?" Chiro sat up, startled. "Mila, you didn't let me down! I scared you to death! I get what I put you through now."

Mila shook her head.

"Nope."

"But… I didn't know where you were…"

Mila chuckled.

"And I'm sorry I scared you… but there's nothing that's scarier to a parent than losing her kid. If any of my actions caused you to miss training that you needed to get better at fighting…"

Chiro looked down at Mila and back towards the Med Bay doors, wondering if it was too late to call Gibson in.

She hit her head? I mean she did but… maybe hit it harder? Did that attack scramble her brain!?

She's actually upset on my behalf for this whole thing? Last I saw her, she was still all "I'll think about it"

"Don't go running to get Goose."

"You're gonna have to memorize their names sometime."

"Ichi."

Chiro chuckled, rolling his eyes.

"I can't believe I'm HAPPY to hear that you know."

"I knew you didn't hate it." She smirked.

"Yeah, yeah…" He sighed, flopping back down beside her.

"I know what we're gonna have to talk about and I don't wanna have to do it…"

"But we have to anyway." Chiro propped his chin up on his hand. "So, what are we gonna do? From here."

She sighed.

She didn't want to.

Part of her was still screaming to grab Chiro, run far away, get a ticket all the way back to Earth, change their names and pretend none of this ever happened.

Maybe start a rice farm and breed fancy koi fish.

But she knew deep down she'd never be able to pull him away from all of this.

The way his eyes had lit up, the way she hadn't seen them in years… Even now, hidden behind the concern… there was a light in his eyes that hadn't been there before.

The monkeys were protecting him, just like I would've.

She held up her arm, noting it was covered in bandages and membranes to accelerate the healing process, all the way around her fingers even.

"I know, this is what you need to do. I can't make that choice for you… In fact, I don't think it's my place to interfere with destiny." She sighed. "I knew you were special, like I said but… this is still a lot for me to process, Ichi."

"Because of the danger?"

"Yes but what scares me more is the idea that I'd push you away from me because I was too determined to keep you safe. I was…" Her eyes stung as she closed them tightly.

Come on, just spit it out!

"I was afraid of losing you okay!? Of losing our bond, of you not telling me things! I should've been there, I should've been there every single day but I was too afraid to!"

Chiro was taken aback, a small frown coming to his face.

"They're not gonna replace you." He took her hand into his. "Mila, you're my sister. You'd never get replaced by anyone… You know that, right?"

Mila shook her head.

"Nah… I know that now but they can teach you things I'd never be able to. So… I have to start making arrangements. We need to figure out your schooling situation… And then, I need to check the paperwork to make sure I'm not doing anything wrong if you decide to stay here…"

Chiro's eyes widened as his heart skipped a beat.

"A-Are you for real!?" He asked, grinning. "You mean that!?"

"After what I saw, I think you just proved it to me… You can handle yourself." Mila smiled. "You can stay here."

"YES!" Chiro let out a cheer. "OH YOU ARE THE BEST SISTER EVER!"

"BUT- you are not getting rid of me that easily!" Mila sat up, with a bit of difficulty, wincing as her side twinged in warning. "Ngh… Do you understand me? I will be here every single day."

Chiro chuckled, raising an eyebrow.

"What? You're gonna sell the apartment?"

"Oh no, I am not sleeping here." She laughed. "But I will be making sure you're taken care of and I wanna make sure they don't forget you're still thirteen. Sound good?"

"Sounds great… Aahhh Sis!"

He threw his arms around her tightly.

Mila yelped.

"OW! OW! Ichi, my ribs!"

"Sorry, sorry!"

The med bay doors whirred open as Gibson ran in, followed by the rest of the team, alarmed by the sounds coming from inside.

"What on Shuggazoom is going on?!"

Chiro let out another cheer, jumping off the bed, running over to the team.

"SHE SAID I CAN LIVE HERE NOW!"

"Hey, hey, WITH conditions!" Mila held her side, trying to get up. "You ain't getting rid of me that easily-OW!"

Gibson hurried over, pushing her back onto the bed.

"Alright, ground rules then. You are NOT moving for at least a week! Until you're fully recovered THIS is home."

"What?" Mila looked past him at Chiro. "Why am I in trouble now!?"

He shrugged, grinning.

"Don't look at me~"

Gibson narrowed his eyes.

"Second: You'll have to take off work until then as well."

Mila's jaw dropped open.

"NO!"

"YES!" Chiro cheered. "THIS IS THE BEST THING EVER!"

"Goose-I mean Gibson, can't we be reasonable here? I mean you're gonna get what you want too! I'm pulling him out of school!"

"Excellent but the point still stands."

Mila groaned as she fell back onto the bed, with a sigh… and a small laugh.

"Alright, alright."

She looked over, smiling as she watched her brother jump around, celebrating.

The smile on his face was worth the ache in her heart.

We're gonna get through this.

Just like always.

Her head fell back against the bed with a sigh.

He's special… Fate has something in mind for him…

I just hope it doesn't mind me being there too.

Chapter Text

Chapter 13: Recovery Reverb

Mila was left to her own devices after a rather eventful morning. Mostly just to try to rest and calm down. She had managed to convince Gibson to let her at least walk around the base a little bit to stretch her legs. She caught a glimpse of herself in the reflective metal of the walls and groaned in irritation.

She looked rough. Bruises and artificial membranes on her face, her arms still wrapped in bandages and wearing her pajamas because she needed something comfortable to wear.

It was still hard to process. Her little brother was going to be moving out of her home soon, years before she ever thought she had to think about it. Even the thought made her heart clench with anxiety.

Maybe part of this "walk" around the base was more so snooping than she'd rather admit.

To be sure Chiro would be growing up in a safe environment here too.

Walking into the orange elevator, she waited for it to activate and momentarily forgot that this was the broken one… Too late, she realized it, when it vibrated, instead of just moving.

"Oh shi-!"

Mila was cut off with a shriek as it shot upwards.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"

The elevator came to a screeching halt, jerking on the last moment as Mila was sent flying out of the thing.

The floor rushed up to greet her face as she tried to brace herself.

SPLAT!

And that was how Nova and Chiro's combat training was interrupted as Mila laid flat on the training room floor, her limbs splayed out.

Nova and Chiro both cringed in sympathy.

That could not have felt good.

"Mila?" Chiro hurried over to her, helping her up. "You okay?"

"Anything hurt?" Nova rushed over as well, giving the woman a worried look. "You took a pretty bad beating the other day too…"

Mila rubbed her face, glaring at the elevator behind her.

"I should take a freakin' sledgehammer to that thing…"

"Please don't. Just don't use it."

"How does Ichi even use this thing?"

Chiro grinned.

"I don't go splat."

Mila narrowed her eyes, taking off one of her black cat slippers.

Chiro's eyes widened in horror, recoiling back.

"NO-!"

She threw it as he ducked.

"Splat huh? I'll show you a splat!"

Nova watched the two interact as she was scarily reminded of when she and Antauri were much younger.

"Nova…" Her brother narrowed his eyes before pouncing on her, the two younglings rolling across the lab floor.

"HEY!"

"Ahem!"

The two froze, looking up at their eldest sibling.

Boy, Mandarin's death glare worked on us as kids…

Nova snickered.

Mila and Chiro stopped bantering, turning to her.

"What?" They both asked.

"Sorry." Nova laughed a little, her tail swishing in amusement. "You guys just sounded like when Antauri and I were little."

Mila's jaw dropped open.

"NO-!"

Chiro busted up laughing at his sister's expression.

"Oh no, Nova, you struck a nerve."

"No, I do not sound like him!"

"You sounded pretty close." Nova admitted. "He wasn't always that calm, y'know?"

Mila put her face in her hands.

This was a low moment. Oh this was definitely a low moment.

Compared to Obi-wan Kenobi… Great…

This is a really low moment now.

… Come to think of it, what did I even walk in on?

"Sorry, I interrupted something didn't I?"

She looked around, surveying the training room. The massive pillars had risen out of the floor, various weapons displayed on it.

Her heart skipped a beat.

Nova grimaced, noting the panicked look on her face.

"Mila, I'm gonna be honest… You probably shouldn't be in here right now."

"Is the safety on?"

"What!?" Nova exclaimed, crossing her arms. "Of course! What idiot would turn it up to level ten?"

"There's a what!?"

Chiro cleared his throat, helping Mila to her feet.

"Okay, I think that's enough for you. You probably should go finish resting up-"

Mila whirled around, walking over to the control panel, looking it over.

"WHY IS THERE A LEVEL 10!?"

Chiro and Nova exchanged a look.

"Well, I see Mila's feeling better." Nova shook her head. "This is gonna happen a lot isn't it?"

Chiro ran a hand down his face.

"You have NO idea… Sis! Remember, all that crap you said? Trusting me to make good decisions, all that about how clearly I was meant to be here?"

Mila looked up and sighed.

"You know what? I don't wanna know…"

She walked over to the green elevator.

"I'm gonna keep walking around… Have uh… a good training session, I guess?"

"We will. Don't get caught overdoing it." Nova called over. "We'll hang out or something later, yeah?"

Mila craned her neck and smiled.

"I'd really like that actually. Love you, Ichi!"

"Love you too, Mila. Don't go too nuts, okay?"

"I won't." She nodded, giving him a gentle look. "See ya soon."

As she left, Nova and Chiro exchanged a look.

"I think that went well, yeah?"

"She didn't try to turn off the training simulator… I'm STILL worried."

Chiro still wasn't sure if his sister was actually okay with all of this or if it was still the concussion talking. Admittedly, while he was relieved she was okay with him furthering his training and even agreeing to let him live with the monkeys…

He was going to wait a few days to see if it really stuck.

"Alright, back to work!" Nova nudged him back towards the training area. "C'mon, c'mon."

"Uwah! Okay!"

oooooo

As the elevator arrived at the next floor, Mila wandered out, fishing through her pants pocket for her phone, deciding she needed to relax a bit. She smiled at her lockscreen picture.

It was a picture of herself and Chiro, making goofy faces at the camera. She was ruffling up his hair while he tried to take the picture, both of them having big grins on their faces.

Her heart sank a bit as that feeling of anxiety formed around her heart again. She looked back towards the elevators, pursing her lips together.

No. She told herself, shaking her head. She needed to let him train in peace. With her recent experience, the monkeys had proven themselves to put her brother first when it counted.

Mila unlocked her phone, putting her earbuds in, grateful they hadn't been damaged either.

Although I guess getting hit with Antauri's attack at close range, it's a miracle I didn't lose my hearing…

"AAAAAAAUUUGH!"

Mila shivered a bit. Valina had been… terrifying. The vile things she hissed in her ear, the way she knowingly swung Mila around like a ragdoll as some sort of human shield.

All for the purpose of hurting her brother and his team. To make them hurt her on purpose and Antauri had been the one who unfortunately it worked on.

She wasn't mad about it. If anything, she was just grateful Chiro hadn't been hurt in that scuffle.

Besides, not like he wanted to do that. Sure, Antauri's a pain to try to understand but I know he didn't want to hurt me on purpose.

He's not petty like that.

Her heart skipped a beat as she thought back to what happened to her store and tried to shake her head free of the memory.

She turned her music up as loud as she possibly could stand to drown out her thoughts.

This was how Mila coped. Her music, her mind becoming one as she tried to focus on anything but what was happening.

Mila swayed along to the music, trying not to over do it but doing anything to clear her mind.

It wasn't the first time she used her music to cope with something that had happened. Her background in music was both a talent and a crutch at the same time.

Not having her guitar was literal torture but her fingers were not in any condition to be playing. So, she would have to settle for her greatest instrument.

Mila closed her eyes, imagining she was anywhere else. Imagining the stage, her pajamas transformed into her favorite outfit for her old band.

In this moment, in this single moment, she was her old self.

She started humming as it built up into the crescendo following along to the music.

Focus on this.

Nothing else.

The powerful music that made her heart slow as she focused only on the song.

It was okay, she reminded herself.

Life didn't always go the way you planned it.

As she walked down the halls, she peered into one of the doors that was cracked open, seeing Gibson hard at work, focusing on some type of chemical.

Judging from the wicked grin on his face, it could not have been anything good.

She took out an earbud, leaning on the doorway.

"So, is that for helping or hurting?"

Gibson looked up as his safety goggles retracted back into his helmet, giving her a stern look.

"I'll answer if you can answer a question of mine. Are you overdoing it?"

"Nope. The elevator tried to make me overdo it though -seriously, when is Ichi's being fixed?"

"Mila, our to-do list is a mile long. It will get fixed at some point. Until then, please don't use it." He paused. "... Are you alright?"

"Hmm? Yeah, a little sore, but nothing that bad." She moved closer, taking a close look at the bubbling blue liquid. "What is this anyways?"

"Actually, this is for you." Gibson explained, holding it up to her eyes.

Mila raised an eyebrow.

"Oh?"

"It's a rapid growth plant food. Given the damage to your store and how Chiro spoke of how hard you worked on those plants, I felt it was only right to help restore what was lost. We'll test it properly once you have some seedlings to work with."

"Okay, note to self I'll get some started… I'll have Ichi grab my old hydro-garden. That thing may not be the best way to grow commercial plants but for a test it'll get them going."

"Excellent."

"... Okay I'm just asking because you looked a little too smug when I was walking by, I'm not gonna have an Audrey II situation, yeah?" Mila asked.

Gibson was baffled, staring at her, his tail swishing in a curious manner.

He swore, sometimes the words that came out of that woman's mouth were utter nonsense to him.

Mila stared back at him, with a questioning look.

"Pardon?" He finally asked. "What the devil is an Audrey II?"

Mila's face fell into a hurt look, putting a hand over her heart. She dramatically bent forward, letting out a loud gasp.

"You really know how to hurt me. Dang, you guys don't know ANY of the good stuff?!" She exclaimed.

Gibson groaned, rolling his eyes.

He knew exactly where this was going.

"Gibson, come on! Science fiction should be your thing!"

"Mila, need I remind you I am a warrior, a scientist and a doctor? I don't have time for leisure like this-"

"It's a movie! It's like, an hour and a half! You don't have time to relax for that long?"

Gibson narrowed his eyes, crossing his arms.

"I'm going to regret this. What are you talking about?"

Mila's eyes widened, her jaw dropping open horrified.

No, she did not hear that right.

She didn't.

Come ON!

"Oh my gosh, I need to educate you guys hardcore… Little Shop of Horrors?"

"Pardon?"

Mila inhaled slowly.

"That's it. I'm gonna tell Ichi you guys need to be educated."

"You will do no such thing!"

"Bonding exercise, I bet I can sell him AND Obi-Wan Kenobi on that."

"... Obi-what?"

"... Antauri. It's the name of a mentor who also spouts cryptic bull crap."

Gibson snorted, trying so hard not to laugh at that moment.

He needed to be serious. She was not supposed to even be in here.

"Oh?" Mila grinned. "Did I just catch you laughing?"

"Pfft no."

"... So… think he'll realize it if I call him that?"

Gibson looked out the door to be sure Antauri wasn't walking down the hall before shaking his head.

"He won't. We never had this conversation."

"Okay…" Mila's grin only grew as she took a seat at the stool next to him. "So, is there some sort of drama I'm missing here?"

"Oh no, I'm not telling you anything. Now, shoo." Gibson waved her away. "Go, get out of here."

"I won't tell anyone… and I'll buy coffee in bulk when I can go grocery shopping."

"... Okay, maybe just a bit. But we never had this conversation."

Mila gave him a sneaky smile, propping her chin up on her hand.

"Tell, tell…"

Oh, this is gonna be too good…

It was a concerning moment for everyone involved when the others walked by and heard Gibson and Mila laughing, while they talked as Gibson worked on his project.

"... Should we be worried they're friends now?" Nova asked.

Chiro shrugged.

"I… I don't know actually… We should probably go."

"Go?" Sparx asked. "Kid, we gotta stop the apocalypse from happening."

Mila looked over.

"We can hear you guys!" Her grin turned wicked. "And Gibson was just telling me some VERY interesting things."

Nova put her hands on her hips, giving him a glare.

"Oh did he?"

Gibson scoffed.

"Please, it's stuff you were mad about too."

Nova rubbed her temple, deciding she didn't want to know.

"You know what? I'm gonna go see my brother." She headed off for Antauri's room.

"And I'm gonna… go too. I don't want any part of this." Chiro took his chance to escape.

Otto and Sparx exchanged a look before looking back at Gibson.

"It was Antauri wasn't it?" Sparx asked. "The Chosen One thing?"

"Yup." Mila grinned, getting up and going over to him. "By the way Sparx, I wanted to ask you a BIG favor-"

"Never," he scoffed. "Whatever it is, I don't want any part of it."

Otto tilted his head.

"You didn't even let her finish."

"Yeah?" Sparx rolled his eyes, with a smirk. "I know it's gonna be trouble."

Mila smiled, giving him a pleading look.

"Please?"

Sparx looked away, his tail swishing irritably behind him..

"No!" He snapped. "That puppy-dog eyes routine doesn't work on me. Quit it!"

"I'll make you and Nova lunch so you can go on a date somewhere."

Sparx was debating internally now. On one hand, if he turned her down, no one would ever know. He could walk away from it guilt free.

On the other hand…

Taking Nova out after the long few weeks they've had to finally have some proper ALONE time, where there wasn't any fighting or battles, just them and maybe a nice afternoon just to themselves…

He shook her hand.

"Awright, you got a deal."

"You won't regret this." Mila grinned, mischief gleaming in her eyes.

From the way she was looking at him, Sparx was already regretting it…

"C'mon, Maverick, let's walk and talk." Mila started walking away with him. "See ya, Goose! Good talk!"

"STOP CALLING ME THAT!" Gibson called out.

"Yeah we're gonna talk about this nickname…"

"No, we're not or no lunch for you and Nova."

"... I hate you."

"Love you too!"

Otto scratched his head, watching them go before looking back at Gibson.

"... You guys confuse me. If you don't like the names, why do you still answer them?"

Gibson bit his lip and tried to ignore it.

"Gibson?"

"... Maybe they're not so bad."

"... You like them."

Gibson sputtered.

"NO!"

Otto snickered.

"This means you and Sparx agree on something."

Gibson lowered his head to the lab desk, mentally cursing his youngest brother for this.

"Stop it. Please."

"Never."

oooooo

The kitchen was bustling with activity, savory smells escaping it into the rest of the base.

Whatever he had thought Mila was planning, this was not it.

"Alright, run the knife over the fish skin to loosen up the scales. None of us wanna eat that." Mila instructed, leaning against the counter.

Sparx raised an eyebrow.

"Why?"

"Because it tastes nasty." Mila grimaced, shaking her head slowly. She sighed, looking down at her hands. Most of her fingers were still wrapped in artificial membranes. Washing her hands was fine but she didn't feel comfortable handling food like this… so, her solution was to pick Gibson's brain to figure out who was the least likely to give everyone food poisoning.

Which led her to spending this time cooking with him.

"Duly noted." Sparx grimaced. "Also, what're we gonna do for Antauri? He's vegetarian, he won't eat this." He held up the fish he was handling, giving it a little wave as it swayed back and forth.

Mila grinned.

"Don't worry. Otto already filled me in on that. I got him covered too."

Sparx shook his head, chuckling.

He had to admit, everything he had tasted while they cooked so far had been incredible. He made a note to try some of these recipes himself later.

"So, you make this stuff a lot?"

Mila nodded, crossing her arms, watching as Sparx went onto the next step.

"Yeah… I grew up eating this stuff when I was on Earth so I keep these same recipes. It's a comfort." She smiled, her gaze softening.

"Got it. Any particular reason for this stuff?"

"Because it's Ichi's favorite and while I'll be here as much as I can… I know there's gonna be times where I might not be able to be there to cook him dinner. Like if you guys go somewhere… Ichi mentioned you guys got a base on the moon too?"

Sparx stopped short, looking up at her, furrowing his brows.

Mila had turned her head but he could see how tense even talking about it made her.

He couldn't blame her. If it was his kid who had this fate, he would've been just as worried.

"Hey, Mila? I'm… sorry we didn't tell you sooner about the whole destiny thing."

"Sparx, believe it or not, I kinda figured that out when Antauri did the whole "Jedi mind trick" thing." She shuddered. "You know, he could've just used his words."

Sparx groaned, rolling his eyes.

"I'm sure Gibson told ya how we really felt."

"That you were all against it and all kinda did a mutiny on him?"

Sparx grinned, pointing his knife at her.

"Right on the nose!"

Mila snorted, grinning.

"Duly noted."

It was quiet as Mila looked through her phone, going over the recipe before selecting some music, turning it up.

Sparx raised an eyebrow, but said nothing as he listened for a moment.

Mila watched him out of the corner of her eye, giggling a bit when she saw his tail swishing to the music as he cooked.

"Okay, you're a pain in the butt but this is some good tunes." He had to admit. "Alright, what's next?"

"Alright, next, we're making the croquettes. They don't have any meat, just potatoes and vegetables. Also, start slicing those sweet potatoes uber thin, 'kay? We're battering and frying those."

"So… Antauri doesn't get to hog all these right?"

"Oh heck no!"

They laughed as Mila turned up the volume on her phone, the music echoing through the kitchen.

That was the sight that greeted the rest of the team as they made their way to the kitchen.

"Whoa…" Chiro looked at it all, impressed. "Mila, you didn't…"

Gibson gave her a stern look.

"I thought I said no overdoing it-"

"Cool it brain strain or you won't get any of this misu stuff." Sparx smirked.

"Miso." Mila corrected.

"I cooked it all, she just told me what to do."

"Oh… Well then thank you-Wait what did you call me?"

"Boys.." Nova grabbed them both by their antennae, forcing them to sit down at the table. "Cool it."

Mila stifled a laugh.

Otto's mouth watered as he took a seat eagerly, already filling his plate up.

"Ohhh this is gonna be good. What's this? How about this? This?"

Mila giggled.

"It's all for you guys. There's even stuff without meat for Antauri."

As the team hurried to tuck in, Mila and Chiro exchanged a smile, sitting beside each other.

Chiro rested his head on her arm before he started to eat.

"Whooaa! This is great!"

"Nice team up, Maverick!"

Sparx and Mila high fived with a laugh.

The chatter and conversations around the table… her brother beside her.

Mila sighed, smiling as she ate her food with a thoughtful look.

This is nice…

This is how it should be for him…

Oh boy, I don't know if I'm ready…

But I will be.

Mila looked down at her brother, smiling, giving him a kiss on the head.

"Love you, Ichi."

"Love you too, Mila… Thanks again for being so cool." He grinned. "And I'm proud of you. You didn't freak out at the training room level."

"She didn't!?" Sparx laughed. "That's a new one."

"Watch it! I'll still be here every day. I ever find out it gets to Level 10, one of you will be getting the shoe."

Chiro laughed, as his sister and his team bantered.

Now this… was perfect.

I can't wait to see where it goes from here.

Chapter Text

Chapter 14: Chiro's Girl

It had been an adjustment the last couple of months.

From that point onward, the Hanamura siblings were figuring out their new "normal" and what that looked like for their family.

Chiro had moved into the Hyper Force's base while continuing his training and finding he was thriving fully immersed in it. There wasn't a hard time limit, he had all the time he wanted to focus. His mind and body were challenged in ways it had never been before.

Mila could see the change in his confidence. While Chiro never lacked it, it only grew and the change was a welcomed one.

The light in his eyes, the way he carried himself… although, not to say everything had been perfect.

Mila found herself not sure what to do with herself a lot of the time. Refurbishing the store had been a massive project in and of itself.

It was up and running now but that had been an… experience to say the least.

"WHAT THE FU-"

Mila covered her mouth, bouncing in place anxiously as she looked at the damage to her store. She had managed to convince Gibson to let her leave the base just to stretch her legs, provided someone was with her.

And checking in on the store, she decided it was a massive mistake.

She groaned as she looked at the large bay glass window that made up her store front.

"Oh nooooo…" Already the numbers were tallying up in her head.

The broken pots, the display cases that kept flowers fresh, all of it had been so pricey when her parents had bought them. She had gotten good at keeping them running but broken beyond repair?

Her heart beat faster, as she whined a bit, bouncing even more anxiously.

"Holy Shuggazoom…"

How much was this going to cost to fix?

Otto popped up beside her, his hand turning into a wrench.

"Just leave it to me! I'll have you back up and running in no time!"

"Uh, let us actually help, Mila. All of us." Nova cringed. "We all kinda feel responsible that you got caught up in this."

"Do I have to chip in any money?"

"No!"

Mila gave a shaky thumbs up before her knees buckled under her anew as Chiro caught her arms.

"Okay, that's enough sticker shock. Back to base."

She looked back at the store, shaking her head.

"Hnnnn, this is gonna be normal, isn't it?" She mumbled.

Chiro grimaced, rubbing her shoulder.

"We'll try. Now, come on, let's get you back home."

"And you moved out… Oh gosh you are moving out…"

In retrospect, she was pretty sure she was freaking out more about Chiro moving out at thirteen, versus her store being decimated.

But yet again, this was all part of their new normal as a family…

It was a novel concept to have a big family again. It was just her and Chiro for the longest time.

She supposed she forgot what it was like. To have other people around, to have people she could rely on…

I hadn't had that in… a long time…

Mila had kept her promise of being there every day too. There wasn't a single day that went by that her day didn't start at the base like it did now.

It was nice to have other people to cook for again.

Just not when it seemed no one was getting up yet.

Mila checked her phone, noting all of her timers were going off in such a few minutes.

Oh… I'm gonna enjoy this.

She smiled wickedly.

There was an intercom with a button that she had learned would filter through to the individual rooms in the base. One for each room, though if she slammed her hand against all of them, she found it would open up the entire comm system.

She cleared her throat, doing a few vocal exercises.

In her mind's eye she saw it. She wasn't in the kitchen, she wasn't wearing an apron and her work clothes… She was on a stage before hundreds of people, the comm instead, her microphone as she took a deep breath.

"We were here, grieving the saddened faces…" She sang softly into the comm as it hummed to life under her fingertips, her voice carrying on through the speakers, creating a soft echo.

She grinned as her song turned into a loud guttural scream.

"CONQUERING THE DARKEST PLACES!"

Her note continued on as years of vocal training came back to her in that instant.

The reverb grew as she held onto it.

Followed by startled yelps, screeches and the sounds of sleeping pods or doors opening.

"MILA!" Chiro yelled through the comm. "WHY DID YOU DO THAT!?"

"WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!?" Sparx screamed a moment later. "COME ON!"

"Ugh… Why?" Antauri muttered.

"You guys are late, the food is done. Get your butts down here or you starve." She said before taking her hand off the comm and starting to plate up the food she had made.

She was all too aware she was likely going to meet her end if she didn't make sure the offering was worth it.

The first to appear was Nova as she stormed into the room, growling under her breath, slamming her fist into her open palm.

"MILA!"

"Oh, hey, good morning!"

Mila's smile melted away as she realized, perhaps, her little plan had worked out too well.

"Uh… Coffee?"

Antauri narrowed his eyes.

"Team, I believe it is time Mila experiences one of our most sacred traditions."

Sparx growled, his right hand transforming into a magnet.

"Yeah, me too."

Mila swallowed hard.

"What-What do you mean by that? Does this involve a straw?"

Nova grinned wickedly.

"You're gonna wish it involved a screaming forehead."

oooooo

She gulped as she was led to the elevators. Internally, she was running through a few different escape routes.

If looks could kill, the looks she was getting right after breakfast would've made her spontaneously combust into a thousand small explosions.

"I mean, I fed you guys. I got up when I didn't have to."

"And do not take this as discouragement. The food was quite delicious. However…" Gibson cleared his throat. "This needs to be done."

"Sis, that was the third time this week. You gotta pay for it." Chiro stifled a yawn, folding his arms behind his head. "I love ya, but this is gettin' old."

"Besides!" Otto chirped, "We haven't even shown you this section! And it's pretty important!"

If I grab Chiro and ru, we might make it to the car and across town… Then from there, we could get to the Space Port, I could buy a one way ticket, we could escape to Earth, change our names, I'll start a rice farm and no one will ever find us.

She shook her head.

No, no, knowing my luck, Antauri can read minds.

Man, why am I being punished!?

As she descended down the green elevator with Otto, her mind kept racing.

"You know, it's really a good thing you came over so early! We needed help with this but uh… It's kind of a big job and a lot of things need to be fixed up first."

Mila was startled out of her thoughts as she looked down at Otto. His tail was swishing happily as he talked, adjusting his scarf as he did so.

At least one of them wasn't thinking about throwing her to the formless.

The rest of the team soon joined them.

"So, where are we going? Where are we-Wait, this is the front door!" Mila gestured to the front opening as it hit her where they were. "Am I getting tossed out!?"

"Nope." Chiro grinned. "I've been wanting to show ya this for weeks but uh… Gibson kinda thought you might not be able to handle it."

Mila narrowed her eyes, turning towards Gibson.

"Oh… REALLY!?"

He held up a thermos filled with coffee, giving her a sour look.

"Right, right."

Off to the right, was a large set of doors that had a colorful number pad beside it.

Nova easily entered the code without even hesitating as the doors slid open.

A cold breeze blew through the lower level as they all followed her.

Chiro practically ran ahead, excitement already bubbling up.

He had seen it before, but now…

This was going to be different.

I'll finally get to PILOT IT!

As the team filed in, they waited as Mila hesitantly came up behind them.

A large shadow loomed over the woman, her heart racing as she realized it covered the entirety of the strange room.

It was a hanger of some kind, with tools and equipment littered all over, darkened by the shadow above her.

She slowly craned her neck up, her heart leaping into her throat.

Looming over her, its optics dim, its face serious, was a massive robot.

It had to be at least 35 stories tall, made up of an array of colorful metals. One arm was blue, the other was red. Its legs are gray, its 'boots' yellow and green. Its head was covered in black and green metal. In the center was its orange torso.

Mila's knees buckled as she sank to the floor, staring up at it, her jaw dropping open.

She thought that the quip Otto made all the way back then was just a nightmare.

"T-That's a… That's… That's…" She stammered, trying to put her racing thoughts into words.

This wasn't real.

She nodded to herself.

This was a horrible nightmare. One of Antauri's twisted mental projections.

Yes. That's what it had to be.

Nothing else made sense.

Chiro grinned.

"The Super Robot!" He cheered proudly. "Mashiaro!"

Mila took a deep breath, throwing her head back… letting out a guttural scream.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

"And it can turn into six separate ships!" Otto grinned.

"Yes, all of us have our designated places." Gibson nodded.

Mila stammered, pointing up at it, then back at her brother, shaking her head.

"NO! ABSOLUTELY NOT! HE CAN'T EVEN DRIVE!"

Chiro grinned, trying to help Mila back to her feet.

"Remember all that talk about trusting me to take care of myself? Make good decisions? Entrusting that the team would NOT do anything stupid with me?"

MIila groaned, putting her head in her hands.

"I really said all that crap didn't I? OKAY, BUT WHY AM I DOWN HERE?!"

"Well, the thing is… We need to clean it. And this platform goes all the way up there."

Sparx pointed above them.

Mila groaned.

"I'm gonna hate myself for this, aren't I?"

"Yep."

That was how she found herself clinging to Chiro for dear life, as the platform around them began to rise with a loud CREEEAAAAAK.

The monkeys were completely calm, like it was just another morning to them.

Chiro had a big grin on his face as he looked around, his heart soaring at the thought that soon this was going to be part of his everyday life too.

Who needs to drive a car? I'M GETTING TO DRIVE A ROBOT!

It wasn't long before they were standing atop the robot's head, the wind picking up around them, blowing their hair and clothes around them.

Mila looked around her nervously.

Where did she even start?

Was she supposed to do this solo?

How?

She looked over the side, shuddering as her stomach did a somersault.

Suddenly, she was wishing she hadn't gotten out of bed that morning.

"Is it too late to go back to bed!?"

"Way too late." Chiro grinned.

She sighed as she looked at him.

He was wearing his favorite shirt, jeans…

And the new jacket she had gotten him.

She smiled a little.

Glad it fits as well as I hoped…

It was a white bomber jacket with orange rectangles on either sleeve, mimicking military marks, with a large orange arrow like symbol that formed together when it was closed.

On the back, was a symbol in the shape of a monkey's head, in shades of blue, with a small antennae and lightning bolts. The Hyper Force emblem they all wore proudly.

"Here…"

Mila handed him another box as he packed up the last of his things.

Chiro was baffled,as he lifted the lid up slowly, his eyes widening.

He looked up at her stammering.

"I-Is this!?"

"It's not exact but…"

He quickly tried it on, turning left and right in the large mirror on the wall, an excited gasp escaping him.

"IT'S JUST LIKE STARBLAZERS!"

He nearly tackled her as he hugged her.

"SIS!"

It blew around in the wind as Chiro shivered, zipping it up fully.

Mila sighed, moving closer, ruffling his hair up.

"You are so lucky I love you."

"Eheh?" He chuckled, smiling sheepishly. "You know, you don't have to do this…"

"Nonsense, how hard could it be? I just gotta do this section right?" She asked, pointing to the head.

Part of her was screaming "Yes, yes, take me back down to the ground level!", the other half figured she did kind of have it coming to her.

And I'm still his legal guardian. Can't let him drive something messy…

Although, if he'll clean this up, I wonder how his room is going…

Click!

Mila looked down, seeing Nova had snapped a set of rings around Mila's ankles, attached to long cords.

"What the heck is this?"

"This is how we clean the robot." Nova grinned. "You gotta go at a certain angle."

"... I don't like this." She looked over at Antauri. "Is this how it's done?"

He nodded.

"Yes, it's a technique we've developed years ago. It's a part of our discipline as well - no rocket packs, merely relying on each other and building trust as well."

Mila looked away, swallowing hard.

She looked over the edge of the robot's chassis, her eyes widening, as her heart leapt into her throat. She thought for a second it might actually break free and run.

Yeah, I'm taking Chiro, running to the nearest Space Port, taking a one way ticket back to Earth and changing our names. Then I'll start a rice farm.

Yes.

That'll do.

I'll farm rice, Chiro can raise fancy goldfish or something SAFE.

Sparx hurried over, handing her some type of gun filled with cleaning solution and a pack that slipped over her shoulders containing more of it.

He cleared his throat.

"See, when you jump off the robot, you gotta turn and aim upwards so your gun fires at the grime and blasts it away. It's really easy actually."

Mila looked at him as if he was speaking another language completely.

"Yeah, what about you guys? What are you doing?"

"Someone's gotta hold onto the cord."

Mila looked over the edge.

"Okay…"

"Now… One last thing Mila…" Antauri cleared his throat.

"What?"

"... Hand your pack and gun to Chiro."

She was dumbfounded as everyone busted up laughing around her.

Her face burned red before she huffed, shrugging off the pack and gun, handing them to her brother.

"You all suck!"

She stormed away from the ledge, sitting cross legged under the head of the massive robot.

Chiro snickered, giving her an apologetic look.

"Awww, don't go away mad."

Mila grumbled before she sighed, laughing a bit.

"Okay, you guys had me going there. How long were you gonna let it go on for?"

Antauri smirked.

"Oh, that was just about long enough."

"... W-Wait did you just pull a prank?"

"I would call it a… lesson in reading your opponents."

Mila rolled her eyes.

"Whatever you say, Obi-Wan."

Antauri blinked, before making his way over to Chiro.

The boy looked down at him with a curious look.

"Is calling me Obi-wan a good sign?"

Chiro grimaced.

"Hate to break it to you Antauri but she hates Star Wars."

"... What's Star Wars?"

Chiro gasped loudly, bringing a hand over his heart.

"Oh man, you really do know how to hurt a guy!" He sputtered. "You don't know that either!?"

"Kid, we like, get no Earth broadcasts and we didn't get a TV until you moved in." Sparx pointed out.

"Point taken. So… wanna make this a little more fun?" Chiro asked, making his way to the ledge.

All around them, the team were ready, holding tightly onto the bungee cords.

Mila swallowed hard.

I don't like this…

"Oh? What's the plan?" Sparx smirked.

"Last one to finish his side does the other's chores?"

"Oh, you are on. To make it worse, it's chores here and-" He pointed at Mila. "Loser has to work a shift during her next wedding gig!"

"You are ON!"

Mila rolled her eyes, smirking.

"Don't do anything stupid, Maverick!"

"DON'T CALL ME THAT!"

Gibson snickered, clearing his throat to hide it.

"You gonna talk all day or do this?" Nova laughed. "You're just stalling cause you're gonna lose!"

"Ooooh!" Otto and Chiro mock-gasped.

"Call the burn ward!" Mila laughed.

Gibson rolled his eyes, chuckling.

"Please, even I couldn't treat that."

Sparx's jaw dropped open.

"Hey, HEY!" He pointed at Chiro, growling, letting out a small screech. "You are going DOWN kid! That is it!"

Chiro shrugged, looking over the edge one last time.

Over the last two months, they had worked to get the area the Tree Base was in cleaned up. Now, it was a proper city park like it had been so long ago. No more overgrown brush, the trees trimmed back to a healthy state, lush and green.

Mila had made it her passion project to keep herself busy and it was her greatest pride at this point. Lush and green plants, manicured grass.

Flowers in colorful hues that represented each member of the team.

It was like the base had always been in view. Even now, he could see people walking along the path, past the stream, where kids now were fishing.

It was like it had changed overnight.

"I'll protect this place."

Right…

Chiro and Sparx walked to the edge, their cleaning guns in hand.

The wind blew their clothes and hair around before they lunged forward propelling downwards.

"AH!"

Chiro tried very hard not to laugh at the noise his sister let out during his descent.

Rapidly, he and Sparx started firing, knocking grime off of the robot's surface, revealing shining metal underneath.

As he fell, he took a look around for a moment… just a moment.

"HYAH!"

A girl was playing a game using some kind of long stick and a net, hurling a ball at her teammates as they ran across the park's field. Her long pink hair blew in the wind as she lunged upwards, her green eyes narrowed in determination.

Whoa…

Chiro had never seen someone like that around here before.

"KID!"

Chiro shook his head, firing anew, motivated as he was propelled upwards again by the bungee…

He flailed momentarily midair before falling downwards again.

SPRAAANAG!

"WHOOOAAA!"

Mila and Gibson cringed as they watched.

"You know… this is a really inefficient way of doing that…" Gibson remarked.

"It's to get all that energy out." Antauri chuckled. "He'll be fine."

Chiro growled, noting Sparx's side was steadily getting cleaner.

He adjusted the settings on his gun, firing upwards.

He was distracted however yet again by the team playing below them. The same girl kept catching his eye, the sun shining off of hair as she lunged upwards.

Whooaaa….

PEW!

He misfired, twice, as the tether was cut with the pressure from the water.

Sparx's eyes widened in horror, as he bounced back upwards.

"CHIRO!"

"AAAAHHH!"

It was like slow motion. He was falling…

The monkeys rushed forward, Mila picking up the pace as she lunged forward, grabbing tightly onto the cord. It stung as she tried to grab onto it for dear life.

She slid off the edge as Nova grabbed hold of her legs. The shift in weight nearly knocked her off the robot as Chiro yelped, dangling more.

The people in the park had stopped to watch the spectacle of the Hyper Force's leader, hanging by a literal thread.

"I GOT YOU!" Mila's heart leaped into her throat, racing a mile a minute. Her hands hurt as she tried desperately to hold onto the cord, wrapping it around her wrist twice for good measure.

Come on, come on!

"We all do!"

Antauri grunted, using his claws to hang onto the robot's edge.

"Just hang in there… Sparx, Otto-!"

"We're on it!"

Chiro looked up at Mila's face, his blood freezing with fear.

"Sis-!"

The cord frayed more as it tugged her forward, before…

She cried out as the cord slipped from her wrist.

NO!

"ICHI!" She screamed.

Her heart skipped a beat.

Chiro reached out for her as he fell the rest of the way down, bracing himself for impact…

One second he was falling…

"OH NO YOU DON'T!" A voice cried out as someone darted right under him.

Chiro yelped as he landed in the arms of another person. They stumbled a bit but kept steady.

"Hey… Hey, you okay?"

Chiro's heart was racing, the blood had rushed to his head as he tried to catch his breath.

He looked up, dazed… before the blood rushed right to his cheeks.

The girl from before was holding him now. She was looking down at him, concerned.

The sun was bouncing off of her hair, illuminating her from his perspective…

He was sure she was talking but all he could focus on was her eyes.

Oh… Oh wow…

She's strong AND cute…

"-You okay? Hey!"

He shook his head, breaking out of his reverie.

"A-Ah yeah, I'm fine." He squeaked out, crossing his arms, trying to play it cool. "I totally meant to do that."

He was trying SO very hard not to focus on the fact that he fell roughly twenty feet…

The girl smiled, giggling a little.

"Oh, really?" She asked, raising an eyebrow, grinning a little.

"Yeah, I noticed you playing um…"

"Lacrosse?"

"Yeah, that!"

The girl's giggle turned into a full blown laugh as she stumbled back leaning against the foot of the robot so she didn't lose her grip on Chiro.

"You… You shot your bungee cord on purpose!?"

Chiro's eyes widened, furrowing his brow.

How had she noticed THAT?

He looked over at where the rest of the team she had been playing with was… They were all looking at them with either grins or looks of concern.

How'd she get here so fast? That was like twenty feet away…

He brushed it off.

"Totally~" He grinned. "After all, how else was I supposed to meet you? Um…"

"Jinmay." She giggled. "My name is Jinmay."

"Pretty-I-I mean that's a pretty name!"

"And yours?" She tilted his head, her gaze softening.

It was hitting him now that a girl had him in a bridal carry, his head was VERY close to hers… the gentle scent of cherry blossoms wafting off of her hair.

His heart skipped a beat.

"It's…"

"ICHIRO HANAMURA!"

Crap.

Antauri let go of Mila's arms as she hit the ground running.

"Are you okay-" She stopped,short, her hand coming to rest over her mouth.

All of her instincts were screaming at her to run over, to fuss, but…

She couldn't.

Chiro's eyes weren't on her at all. He was focused on Jinmay, his face dusted a bright pink.

She was smiling down at him, her gaze warm.

"Ichiro huh?"

"Y-Yeah.. That's me…"

Oh my gosh…

"Chiro!"

"Are you-"

"Guys, guys…" Mila whirled around, holding her hands up. "Give him a second."

Antauri narrowed his eyes, looking behind her at what was happening, raising an eyebrow.

Oh, I've seen that look before… He eyed Sparx out of the corner of his eye. Only it was directed at Nova.

"Who is that?" Otto murmured.

"She moved like lightning. I caught a glimpse when I was trying to get untethered." Sparx remarked, crossing his arms.

It was still baffling as he looked over from where the girl had come from to where she was now.

"She was way over there then suddenly - BOOM! Saved the day!"

Nova sighed in relief.

"Just glad he's okay…"

Otto looked from Chiro to Jinmay and then back at Sparx and Nova, a wicked smile coming to his face.

"Well… at least we know one thing about him now."

Sparx narrowed his eyes.

"What?"

"He's better at this than you are Sparx." He patted his shoulder.

"WHY YOU-!"

"I mean…" Antauri cleared his throat. "How long did it take for you to finally confess to Nova?"

Sparx rolled up his jacket sleeves.

"Antauri… I just want FIVE minutes."

oooooo

"So, you sure it's okay to ignore them?" Jinmay asked as she looked up at where the monkeys were.

She had to admit, it was incredible seeing them closer. She couldn't understand a thing they were saying but it wasn't every day the town heroes suddenly were nearby.

"Trust me, Mila's got 'em covered." Chiro chuckled. "Though uh… C-Could you put me down now. please?"

Jinmay's eyes widened as she stammered.

She hadn't even realized she was still talking to him like this.

"O-Oh gosh!" She quickly set Chiro back on his feet, dusting off his shoulder, letting out a small squeak. "I-I'm so sorry!"

"It's cool, it's cool!" He rubbed the back of his neck, blushing. "I… Wow, that was still an awesome save. Thanks again."

"A-Anytime…"

"JINNY!" A girl called over. "Come on!"

Jinmay sighed, rubbing the back of her neck.

"Right, I still have things to do today… You deal with this stuff?"

Chiro looked over his shoulder at the monkeys with a small grin.

He shrugged.

"Yeah, all the time. Practice right?"

"Right. I suppose if I wanna find you.." She looked around them, a playful smile coming to her face.

She wants to find me again!?

Oh…

Oh I need to fall off the robot more often.

Every day if this is what happens.

Chiro nodded quickly.

"I, yeah I…" He cleared his throat, trying to compose himself. "I'm always here or at my sister's store, Hanamura Botanicals… but… I also got a phone…?"

Jinmay's eyes lit up.

"Number exchange?"

"Sure thing! I-I mean if you're cool with that."

She giggled.

"I think so."

Chiro nodded, fumbling for his phone, before holding it up so she could copy the number down into her own phone.

"So… where are you from? Sector 10? 12?"

"I'm still figuring out what all that means." She explained. "I moved here last month."

Chiro smiled, giving a small bow.

"Allow me to welcome you properly then to Shuggazoom City."

"Well, you certainly made an impression." Jinmay smiled, waving over her shoulder. "I'll see you around… Ichiro?"

"Chiro!" He blurted out quickly.

"Chiro then." She smiled. "I'll call you."

"Y-Yeah… you too."

Jinmay giggled before hurrying back over to her teammates as they ran off, picking up their equipment anew.

He stood there for a few moments, shell shocked, at the whole exchange.

Chiro shook his head before looking at the number now in his contacts.

"Yes…. YES!" He cheered, pumping a fist in the air.

I GOT A CUTE GIRLS NUMBER!

… I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I'M DOING!

Mila waited until Jinmay was far enough away before bolting over, squealing.

"Oh my gosh, Ichi!" She hugged him tightly. "Look at you!"

"M-Mila c'mon…." He chuckled, smiling sheepishly. "It wasn't that huge of a deal."

"Yeah it is!" She looked him over. "Now… You okay?" She tilted his chin up. "Didn't hit your head on the way down?"

"I'm fine! Surprised you managed to hold back-"

"CHIRO!"

"UWAH!"

THUD!

Chiro sighed as he sat up slowly.

"So, you wanna explain what that was all about?" Sparx asked, ruffling up his hair.

"UWAH! SPAAAARX!"

"What happened, Chiro?" Antauri asked, concerned. "Are you sure you're alright?"

Chiro shrugged.

"I mean, I feel okay? Kinda in shock but… Yeah! I'm fine!"

Nova sighed, shaking her head, smiling.

"Good because that's not happening again."

Otto grimaced.

"Yeah, we'll be… figuring out a different way to clean the robot."

Sparx scoffed, pointing upwards, revealing his side was all shiny…

While Chiro's had a spot still dirty.

"Nah, it works out great. The kid missed a spot-"

Mila leaned over him, her eyes wide, a wicked sneer forming across her lips.

"I know where you sleep."

Sparx yelped, getting out of her way.

"Note to self, stop making you mad."

"Good!" She crossed her arms. "Alright, considering THAT went OH so well, what's going to happen next?"

Chiro sighed as he got up, stretching.

He knew exactly what was on the schedule.

"I think we had meditation?"

Antauri nodded.

"Good, cause I think I'm gonna need it."

Chapter Text

Chapter 15: Love Don't Come Easy

Antauri had noticed something was up first.

Chiro had always been prompt about his training, putting his all into it. Some things he didn't grasp instantly but that was expected.

He had been making leaps and bounds though in such a short time, they all had noticed it but now…

There was something else going on behind the boy's eyes that took him away from the moment. He was still paying attention but it was fragmented.

However, now it was common to notice him clearly lost in thought thinking about something else or sneaking his phone out during his lessons to check it.

Chiro was currently sitting in Antauri's room as part of his training with the Power Primate. Specifically, learning to still his mind so he could one day reach that place they had been once more.

Meditation came first. Once he mastered that, everything else was supposed to be easier… but Antauri noticed, as he went about his room lighting some large candles and incense, that the boy was fidgeting.

"Something you want to share?"

"W-What?" Chiro shook his head. "No, no, nothing."

Antauri raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms.

It was written all over his face. Chiro wouldn't look him in the eye, instead eying where his phone was.

Antauri looked over at the device.

"What is on there that has you so distracted?"

"It's…" Chiro sighed.

He supposed he had been out of it the last few days…

Brriiiiing!

"I GOT IT!"

He practically dove for his phone.

"If it's your crazy sister you tell her we're in the middle of sparring!" Sparx called over from the middle of the training room.

Chiro answered it.

"Hey!"

"Chiro!" Jinmay's voice came through, making his heart flutter. "Hope this isn't a bad time."

"Bad time? Noooo, not at all!"

"Ahem!"

"Okay, actually a bit of one. Can I call you back in like 20?"

"Sure!"

"Well…" He mumbled something under his breath.

He lowered his head, his face turning red.

Antauri tilted his chin up.

"You can tell me anything. I hope you know that."

"You're not gonna get mad at me?"

Antauri smiled, shaking his head.

"You could never do anything to do that."

Chiro heaved a sigh of relief, leaning his head back.

"Okay, awesome… SO um… That girl from last week? The one who caught me?"

"Yes?"

"She's been… calling me and texting me."

Antauri hummed in thought.

"Are you uncomfortable?"

"What!? No!" Chiro shook his head. "No, Jinmay's great! She's funny, she's nice… she's…" His face heated up anew, as he thought about something in particular.

"She's…?"

"Can I just… show you?"

Antauri sighed.

This sounded far too familiar to when Nova and Sparx had started becoming interested in one another.

Not to mention…

"Antauri, what are you looking at?"

Antauri gasped as his concentration broke, looking up at his master.

"N-Nothing, Master Xan."

Xan's eyes narrowed, his tail swishing in irritation.

"Antauri… I'm not blind. Care to tell me what's going on?"

Antauri sighed… his eyes locking with a set of blue ones that were looking at him fondly from a distance, a small giggle being heard.

"... There is… something I need to tell you."

I wasn't much better when it came to her and me…

"Alright, but after this, no more phones during your lessons. Understand?"

"You got it!"

Chiro practically sprinted across the room to grab his phone, pulling up an image before showing it to Antauri.

Antauri leaned over, taking a look at it.

Jinmay had texted him a picture of herself. She was wearing a long red yukata with cherry blossom patterns across it as if she was encased in a whirlwind of petals. Her long hair was pulled up into a bun with some of it hanging down in a braid, a set of pins, also resembling cherry blossoms, sticking out of the bun.

She was smiling at the camera, warmth in her gaze.

"She's… adorable." Chiro sighed wistfully. "She gives me that look and I just MELT!"

Why does this sound familiar…? Antauri thought.

Oh wait…

"Is it just me or is Nova being cute?"

Antauri gave Sparx a bewildered look, following his gaze…

Just as Nova hurled Gibson across the training room floor.

"AAAAHHH!"

THUD!

Antauri rolled his eyes.

"Need I remind you, Sparx, of how I truly felt about your relationship with Nova before?"

"Don't get "shot gun" brother on me now."

Oh… Right…

Antauri cleared his throat.

"I see… Then I have some advice for you, if I may?"

"Huh?" Chiro raised an eyebrow, confused.

"Don't act like Sparx."

Chiro busted up laughing.

"PFFTAHAHAH! Yeah, I think that'll be easy!" He snickered.

"Very good… Now, please let's get you back on track. I'm glad you've made a friend but you need to focus too. Alright?"

"Yeah, yeah."

Chiro took one last glance at the phone.

"Are we still meeting up tomorrow?"

"You know it."

Yeah, I'll get back on track.

It'll be okay.

Chiro took a deep breath, closing his eyes.

For now, he had work to do.

Antauri sighed, shaking his head.

What are we going to do with this boy?

oooooo

The store was running better than ever. Hanamura's Botanicals was busy - wedding season was wrapping up and that meant endless bouquets and table setting arrangements.

Mila sighed as she balanced her phone between her ear and shoulder.

"And you want your mother in law's bouquet to mean that? Are you sure?"

"This witch has been stomping boundaries for too long!"

"You got it. I'll have it delivered to you bright and early tomorrow."

She hung up, jotting down the order on a notepad.

Mila looked up, glancing around the store, sighing a bit.

It was still hard to believe that just two months ago the entire place had been decimated. Everything living inside of it dead and dried up.

Now it was like nothing had ever happened.

"You sure this isn't gonna kill them?" She asked, looking between Gibson and her flower pot.

Little seedlings, a bright green, poked out of the soil.

Gibson was stirring something in a vial before adding it to a spray bottle, handing it over.

He grinned, mischief gleaming in his eyes.

"Trust me. You'll never go back."

She hesitated before spraying it over the seedlings…

In a matter of minutes, they were fully grown, back to the stage her prior flowers had been at.

Mila's eyes grew wide in wonder before she let out a squeal, scooping Gibson up into a tight hug.

"YOU ARE THE BEST!"

He let out a small screech, trying to wiggle away.

"MILA! CHOKING! NOT HUGGING!"

"Sorry, sorry, I'm just so happy!" She squealed, nuzzling the top of his head.

Gibson sighed, chuckling.

"Happy to help…"

I really owe him and Otto some extra snacks. I'll pack them a bento or two…

Goodness knows Gibson forgets to eat enough as it is…

For now, though, get through these last arrangements so I can take a break.

Right now, the store was empty, aside from herself. Over the speakers above her, a steady stream of music floated over the store.

All was right in her world.

Ding!

The door opened, catching her attention.

"Hello, welcome to-" Her words died on her lips as her eyes grew wide…

There was a young man, around her age, looking around the store curiously.

He was tall, his skin pale, wearing a muscle shirt and jeans… What caught her attention though, was his long dark purple hair that trailed down his back and the tattoos on his arms. One of a fox in white ink, looking up at a crescent moon on his left arm… The other, a small animal skull surrounded by flowers on his right arm.

He looked over at her, revealing a set of gleaming green eyes.

Her heart skipped a beat.

Oh gosh…

He's…

Oh wow…

She cleared her throat.

"W-Welcome to Hanamura's Botanicals!"

He chuckled.

"Thank you very much."

She nodded, giving a small bow.

"Just let me know if there's anything you need."

Outside, Mila was as cool and put together as ever when working with her customers…

On the inside, she was trying so hard to keep her heart from racing.

As the man walked around the shop, she tried to make herself look busy…

But she kept looking up every chance she could.

Dang…

Wonder if he works out.

The man furrowed his brow, looking over a set of roses and cosmos before looking up with a sheepish smile.

"Um, weird question… Do you happen to have plants for installation?"

Mila nearly jumped before nodding, pulling out a catalog and a pen.

"Right here. We have a lot of different live plants. I can have them arranged for delivery and I will hand install them myself."

The man made his way over, looking through it.

His brow furrowed as he examined each of the pictures, biting his lip a little.

He looked up after a moment, completely confused.

"So… This is another weird question…"

"Oh?" Mila tilted her head. "Is something wrong?"

"Do ya have anything from Japan?"

Mila smiled, knowingly.

The man's accent was a tell.

"Indeed so. You happen to be from Osaka?"

The man blinked, bewildered.

"Y-Yeah. How'd ya tell?"

She giggled, twirling a bit of hair around her finger.

"Your accent. I can recognize that anywhere." She pointed to herself. "I'm from Hokkaido."

"Ahh, I used to love going there with my family. Hokkaido had the best food."

"Didn't it!?"

The man nodded, chuckling.

"Yeah, my favorite was hot piping croquettes. But the real gem was-"

"Imochi?!"

The man grinned, snapping his fingers.

"That's the one!" He chuckled. "Though my favorite has to go to a good okonomiyaki."

Mila smiled, sighing wistfully.

That brought back very pleasant memories.

"Goodness, I haven't had that in ages-Ah!" She shook her head. "I'm so sorry! I started rambling and-"

"No, no… It's nice someone else gets it." The man chuckled. "There's stores around here that have things from home but… it's not the same, y'know?"

She nodded, sighing a bit.

"Don't I know it… Erm, sorry." She bowed her head. "I'm Mila Hanamura."

"Ren Kanno." He chuckled. "Sorry, I should've done that first."

"No,no!" She shook her head rapidly, a blush coming across her cheeks.

Ren shrugged.

"Still." He smiled sheepishly. "Now…"

He went quiet, looking over the catalog, humming in thought.

Mila fell quiet, bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet.

For some reason, her heart wouldn't stop racing.

Okay…

Admit it Mila.

You got a thing for guys with long hair.

I mean…

She bit her lip.

She was so rusty at this. Back on Earth she never had the opportunity to properly date.

She had a few dates on and off…

One her parents had especially not approved of.

Ren was quiet, his head bobbing a bit to the music. He paused as he went to flip another page, furrowing his brow.

Mila fumbled with her hands, concerned.

"Is there anything I can do?"

Ren jumped, smiling sheepishly, as he shook his head.

"No, no! I…" He pointed up at the speakers. "I know this song."

Mila's eyes lit up anew, her heart fluttering.

"You like metal and rock?"

Ren smiled, brushing his hair out of his face, his face turning pink.

"Love it."

"Do you know it though? Truly?" She smiled playfully. "What's coming up next?"

Ren fell quiet, listening intently to the music, closing his eyes, humming along a bit, his brow furrowing.

"Once upon a night we'll wake to the carnival of life!"

He reached out to her with a flourish and a warm smile.

Mila giggled, clearing her throat.

"The beauty and this ride ahead, such an incredible high!"

Ren smiled, his eyes lighting up.

"It's hard to light a candle, easy to curse the dark instead!"

They both busted up laughing, a second later.

"Okay, okay, I am sorry. I just keep…"

"No, no, it's my fault! I pointed out the music!"

Mila blushed, giggling, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear.

What am I doing?

I don't have time for this stuff… but…

She looked him over again the second he turned his gaze back to the catalog book.

Goodness, he is cute…

I…

… Should I?

She took a deep breath.

It was now or never.

"So…"

"Hm?" He looked up.

She looked down at the paper.

Looking up at her was a brilliant array of carnations and camelia's.

Devotion and long lasting love…

… Oh what the heck?

She leaned over the counter.

Ren blushed, leaning back a little.

"Are you a carnation? Because I'd like to devote my time to getting to know you more."

"You would?"

Wait… Carnation?

He rubbed his chin in thought.

"Yeah, I would." He chuckled. "I mean… Be better than being around just my co-workers all day."

Just who are you? She thought.

I mean…

Mila wondered for a moment if she was going too far… but the way his gaze lingered…

"I mean… It'd be nice." Ren shrugged a bit, blushing a little."I don't really know anyone here yet…"

"Just moved here?"

He nodded.

Her gaze softened.

"That's hard. I know it took me forever to memorize everything."

"I still get lost thinking sector 11 is the shopping district instead of the transit tunnel." He rubbed the back of his neck. "It's really dumb I know-"

"No, no… Maybe I could…" She shrugged, "I dunno, show you around and we could get some food somewhere?"

Ren's eyes grew wide, pointing to himself.

"Yes, you." Mila gave him a playful grin. "What do you think?"

"I'd like that. Oh! You probably need my number right?"

"Yes but I'd need it for the order anyway."

"Ah right, I am so smart… Lemme just-"

Ren checked his phone, cussing a bit under his breath as he noted the time.

"Ahhh crap, I gotta go get my sister from lacrosse. Can we talk more about this and maybe you could pick out something?"

Mila's eyes widened.

"You want me to… Oh no, that is such a personal thing."

He flipped through the catalog.

"Alright um… I need plants that will look good while guests walk into a large establishment. Like, say… an inn?"

"An inn…" She flipped through the pages. "Water outside?"

"Big pond."

"Alright, how's this? I'll make a list and I'll bring it when we hang out next."

"That'd be great." He blushed. "T-Thank you. Are you sure about all that?"

Mila smiled, her gaze softening.

"I think it'll be wonderful." She giggled.

He quickly jotted down his number, Mila doing the same on a couple of spare business cards.

"I'll see you around then?"

"Yeah…"

She walked him to the door, watching as he hurried out.

Sitting outside her store was a large motorcycle, painted black with purple flames on the side.

"Whoa!"

"Oh… this isn't gonna be a worry is it?"

"No, no!" She grinned. "It's a gorgeous bike."

He smiled.

"Thank you."

He put on his helmet before hopping on, revving up the engine.

Mila waved, watching him go…

Before he disappeared around the corner, he caught her eye, speeding up, popping a wheelie.

She swore her heart took off flying as well.

… Oh, GOSH.

I JUST GOT A GUY'S NUMBER!

She let out a loud cheer, jumping up.

"I GOT A HOT GUY'S PHONE NUMBER!" She squealed, running back inside.

She spun across the floor, letting out a louder squeal as she put his contact in her phone.

"I'M GONNA GO ON A DATE!"

THIS IS A WIN!

"Whoohoo! Take that Valina! Take that Skeleton Jackwagon!" She cheered. "You can't ruin it for me this time!"

About an hour later, a text popped up on her phone.

"So… Are you free tomorrow? I know a great place to get some unagi?"

She nearly dropped her phone.

"YES! Meet up at 2PM?"

"Sure thing!"

"It's a date!"

She squealed, jumping up again.

"YES!"

Maybe things were finally turning around in her favor.

Chapter Text

Chapter 16: Another Night, Another Day

Mila yawned as she looked through the fridge, debating what to do for breakfast this morning.

Her mind kept drifting back to the night before with meeting Ren.

In her mind's eye, she could see him clearly.

Those eyes, that smile…

Those arms were nice too…

And oh gosh…

That. BIKE.

She blushed, shaking her head.

Calm down. It's one date. It's ONE-

"Mila?"

She let out a loud gasp, whirling around, spotting Chiro behind her.

He was still in his pajamas, his eyes tired.

"Ichi!" She whispered. "Don't scare me like that!"

"Sorry, sorry." He stifled a yawn. "Wanted to catch you before anyone else did…"

"Hm?" She frowned. "What's up?"

He sat down at the table, resting his head on his arms.

"I need a huge favor. Like… defcon levels."

She rested a hand on his back, concerned.

"What's on your mind sweetie?"

"I… I have a date."

She covered her mouth, stifling a small squeal.

He chuckled, rolling his eyes.

"I know, I know."

"When?!"

"Today at 1 PM."

Mila stopped short.

… Gosh, the timing.

"Well… just so happens I got one too… at 2 PM." She bit her lip. "So, what's the favor? Need flowers? A corsage?"

"Actually, a corsage is a great idea…" Chiro stretched, leaning back, sighing a bit. "No, it's got to do with the monkeys."

"What? Did they do something?" She looked out of the kitchen. "Do I need my shoe?"

Chiro shook his head rapidly.

"No! No! Nothing like that! I… Mila, I… I need you to cover for me. If anyone calls looking for me…" He gave her a pleading look.

Mila winced.

Oh no.

Don't encourage this.

Do not.

That is a horrible parenting mistake.

This is a terrible one in the making but…

"MILA!"

She yelped as a hand reached into the pod capsule she was laying in before a head joined, revealing the furious eyes of her mother.

"Mama?!"

"You are in SO MUCH TROUBLE young lady!"

Mila winced.

She had done so much worse at his age.

"Okay. Look, we didn't have this conversation. Got it?"

His eyes lit up.

"You are the best-"

She held up a finger.

"I'm only doing this once. After this, you tell them that you two are past the texting stage and want more time together. You gotta do this yourself. Got it?"

Chiro nodded, a grin coming to his face.

"Can do!"

"And this better not come bite me too. Understand?" She gave him a stern look. "I'm not gonna come save you if you get busted."

"Deny, deny, deny. Right?"

"Darn right. Now, c'mere!"

He brought his arms around her, sighing happily.

"You are the best!"

"Oh, Sweetie, you have no idea. I'm just happy this is your teenage rebellion. I did SO much worse as a kid…"

"How bad?"

"... I'll tell you one day." She chuckled sheepishly. "Let's just say Mom had every right to kick my butt."

"Ohh… Oh…" Chiro's eyes widened. "You did something really bad didn't you?"

She ruffled his hair.

You have no idea.. I was such a brat.

"IT'S NOT A PHASE!"

SLAM!

Uuugh I was such an edgy teenager… I was such a PUNK.

"Yeah. Big Sis made a lot of mistakes." She sighed, "Now, come help me make breakfast?"

"Aww man-"

"I'm covering for you!"

"What's first?"

oooooo

"Hyah!"

She blocked the punch aimed in her direction, spinning around, delivering a swift kick to her opponent's side.

He winced before grappling with her, sending her flying across the floor.

Jinmay yelped as she landed before popping back up on her feet.

She dropped into a defensive stance, panting a little.

This was just another part of her morning.

Across the garden, barely breaking a sweat, stood her brother. A young man in his late 20's with long dark purple hair and luminous green eyes just like her own.

He smirked, crossing his arms.

"Ready to go again?"

"When are we going back to swords?"

"Soon enough." He walked over to her, kneeling to her level. "I wasn't too rough was I?"

"No but you officially owe me now." She looked up at him, a mischievous grin coming across her face.

Ren sighed, grinning as he helped his sister to her feet.

"Alright, what else do I need to add to my to-do list?"

"Well, first things first…" She eyed the muscle shirt he was wearing. "You're not going out like that are you?"

"What!? What's wrong with it?!"

Jinmay narrowed her eyes, going over to where their phones had been laid out, picking his phone up.

She cleared her throat.

"Uh, wanna meet at 2 PM?" She read out, her voice lowering in volume to mimic her brother's. "Do you have any idea how doomed you are if you go out like that?"

Ren sighed, looking down at himself.

A simple black muscle shirt, blue jeans and black sneakers.

He didn't think it was that bad. Sure, he'd have to change into a clean version but it was fine, wasn't it?

They were just going to hang out… right?

Although…

"Master Kanno!" The front desk manager yelped. "What are you DOING!?"

Ren looked away from the sleeping face of his sister, who he was carrying on his back. He lowered his head, looking at the manager over the frame of his sunglasses.

"Arriving at my new home?"

"Dressed like that!? In front of the guests?!"

"Like if I walked around the Inn like that?" He rubbed his arm absently as he looked up at it with a grimace.

The gardens they were in right now were lush, exotic plants creeping up all over, creating a shady cover for the guests or the staff if they so wandered outside of the Inn's walls.

The Inn was at the furthest end of the city, a reinforced electrified fence providing a safe view of the jungle that creeped in on this side. Often the plants would rustle, catching the attention of the guests.

The massive gold and red building towered over them as if it was looking down on Ren in particular.

His chest clenched as his hand gripped at his left bicep, partially covering one of his tattoos anxiously.

He wasn't used to this.

"What…?"

He read the email again, his jaw dropping open.

Jinmay poked her head in from the kitchen.

"What's wrong?"

"A chance… Jinmay we have a CHANCE!"

And that chance is now looking down on me…

Ren swallowed hard.

His mind was racing as he thought over his to-do list before he could even broach the idea of heading out.

I need to order more food, both the kitchen and the eatery on the south side of the Ryokan are running low.

After that, I need to order Jinmay some new lacrosse gear. She's already wearing down her shoes again…

Training…

I need to contact Sensei later…

His heart skipped a beat, shaking his head, taking a shaky breath.

He's gonna be so angry with me…

I'm going to be in so much trouble but I… I'm gonna break if this keeps up… I need a day to REST…

Jinmay frowned, grabbing his arm, squeezing it gently.

"I'm here. Look at me."

Ren's head snapped in her direction, his eyes wide in alarm.

Jinmay took a deep breath.

Ren inhaled shakily in turn.

"Exhale… slow now…"

They stood like this for a few minutes, breathing until Ren's shoulders slumped.

He groaned, rubbing the side of his head.

"How is it I'm an adult yet you're the one who can pull me back down to Earth?"

Jinmay shrugged, giving him a hug, startling him, his arms spreading out wide.

"Because I know you?"

Ren's gaze softened, bringing his arms around her, stroking her hair.

He wasn't sure what he did to deserve someone so patient as his sister but he counted himself lucky.

Three years in and he was still convinced, he was messing up.

I'm not trying to be Dad or Mom though.

She doesn't need another one of either.

She needs me.

He narrowed his eyes.

And I will do whatever it takes.

He moved her to arms length, his eyes full of warmth.

"Alright, how about we go and take care of our chores, then you can pick out something. Sound good?"

Jinmay batted her eyelashes, placing her finger under her chin.

"One more favor?"

Ren yelped, turning away.

"NO! NOT THE FACE!"

Jinmay giggled, ominously moving around him so he had to look anyway.

"You know you can't say no to this face~" She grinned mischievously.

Ren rolled his eyes, crossing his arms with a huff.

"Do not even try with me young lady."

She whimpered a little.

Ren winced, cursing under his breath, kicking at the dirt.

"Awww come on! Okay, you win, you WIN! What do you want!?"

"Can you convince the head chef to make me a couple of bentos?"

Ren grimaced.

"Oh, you are evil. Right before the lunch menu too."

She smiled innocently.

"Pretty please?"

"Uuugh."

He reached over, patting her head.

"Fiiine!"

"Yay!" She cheered, throwing a fist into the air. "Awright, back to work!"

"It can't be helped I suppose." He mumbled, chuckling. "So, when am I gonna meet this guy you keep talking about?"

"Later! When I meet this mystery girl of yours."

His face heated up.

Mila's eyes lit up, a bright smile coming to her face.

"The beauty of this ride ahead! Such an incredible high!" Her voice echoed through the store, the joy that carried with her voice, infectious.

"You can meet her later too."

"See? Balance."

He nodded.

"HELP! MASTER KANNO, WE HAVE A PROBLEM!"

He winced.

It was time to get back to work.

He made his way over to the doorway, looking back at his sister, giving her a pleading look.

"Nope." She crossed her arms. "I don't wanna deal with that today."

He groaned before heading inside to get changed.

"One minute, Akatsuki! I need to change!"

"Well, hurry up!" He called back. "She wants to talk to the manager!"

"Great…"

Jinmay sighed as she checked her phone.

A picture popped up on her notification as her face flushed.

Chiro was smiling at the camera, his cheeks dusted pink as he held up a pink carnation to the camera.

"Thinking about you. I can't wait to see you again."

He can't wait to see me…

He's thinking about ME.

All of the bravado she put on in front of Ren melted away as her heart fluttered.

She put her phone down, covering her face with both hands.

"Be still my heart…"

She smiled.

Maybe moving to Shuggazoom was a good idea after all.

oooooo

Chiro paced nervously back and forth, checking the time on his phone… and making sure he wasn't getting any calls.

So far, so good.

"I'm gonna head out now, bye-!"

A hand landed on his shoulder, pulling him back.

"Hup!"

"Where are you going?"

He craned his neck, grinning down at Otto.

"Gonna go visit my sister."

"Oh! Tell her we said hi then!"

"Just be back in time." Antauri narrowed his eyes into a stern gaze. "Understand?"

"Yeah, Kid, you got a LOT of lessons later on." Sparx looked up from polishing his magnets. "Pilot training, tactics, quantum psychics - don't make us wait. Got it?"

"Tell my sister that." He laughed, waving over his shoulder. "I'll see you guys later!"

Mila looked behind her in the mirror at her brother.

He was still wearing his custom jacket, his hair was combed to try to tame it but parts were still sticking up. He was wearing a simple black shirt under it with a koi fish pattern across it in orange and white.

He was checking his phone, letting out a shaky breath.

"So, are you nervous about the date or nervous because you're playing hooky?"

"Yes to both."

"Oi." she rolled her eyes as she finished applying her eyeshadow.

She had to admit, this was new territory for her as well.

Mila's biggest worry was over dressing or under dressing.

She didn't have formal wear aside from intricate yukata for special occasions… Or "business" attire like pencil skirts and blazers that she wore only when she had to attend parent/teacher conferences at Chiro's old school.

"Be honest, is it too much?"

He looked her over, giving a shrug.

"I don't think so."

Mila looked down at herself as she stood up… a stormy gray dress with a chain overskirt, long stockings covering her legs. The dress seemed to shimmer as she walked, the cloud-like designs of the skirt moving with her.

She hadn't worn it in nearly seven years…

As she looked at herself in the large mirror in the room, she could still see it…

Hear it…

"Conquering the darkest places!"

Her voice carried on, echoing as her heart filled with joy.

Alongside her on the stage were her bandmates as they sang in sync with their center performer.

She smiled as she looked out at the crowd.

She shook her head.

Those days are over, Mila…

"It's too much."

"No."

Chiro got up, taking her hand in his.

"It's you. It's all of you. Good, bad and awesome." He grinned.

She smiled, hugging him quickly.

"I'm so proud of you."

"Heh, be proud of me later once I don't screw things up."

He checked the time before hurrying out of the room.

"Sorry to hug and run but-"

"No, no, by all means!"

An engine's roar echoed from down below, catching their attention.

Mila and Chiro exchanged a look before hurrying downstairs towards the shop.

Absently, she picked up her newest broom, already positioning it to where she could break off the handle.

She was picturing hordes of skeletal soldiers, ready to strike…

Instead, what was waiting outside was a black motorcycle with purple flames painted on the side, the rider wearing a leather jacket and his helmet.

Behind him was a smaller rider, wearing a dark pink dress with bright pink frills and sneakers to match. She took off her helmet, letting out a relieved breath, undoing a clip she shoved into her pocket as her ponytails fell free around her shoulders.

Mila and Chiro exchanged a look before rushing outside.

The man took off his helmet just as a breeze picked up, blowing his long hair around.

There was a hurricane of butterflies in Mila's stomach as his gaze met hers.

His eyes widened.

"Mila?!"

"Ren?!"

Before either could react, Jinmay jumped off the bike, rushing over to Chiro.

"I missed you!"

"I missed you too!" He chuckled, blushing. "It's… It's really good to see you again. I know we were texting and all but…"

Jinmay giggled, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

"It's different being in person…"

He looked behind her at Ren and Mila.

"So… who wanted to tell me that your brother was the mystery date for my sister?"

Jinmay grinned mischievously, lowering her voice.

"This works out for us I think… though, we might need to step in sometimes. " She whispered.

Chiro nodded, looking her over, his cheeks turning pink, anew.

She's really here…

She's really right in front of me…

"Oh, one second!"

"H-Huh?"

She giggled before running back over to the motorcycle, grabbing a bag that was hanging off the handlebars, slinging it over her shoulder.

"S-So um…" Mila cleared her throat. "Small world, huh?"

"Very…" Ren's cheeks were pink as he looked to the side, smiling sheepishly. "If this is too weird…"

"No, no!" She pulled Chiro over. "This is my little brother, Chiro. Chiro, this is Ren."

"Nice to meetcha!"

"You too, kiddo. My sister's been raving about you for a while."

Jinmay's eyes widened before she elbowed Ren HARD in the side as he let out a small hiss.

"Ow! Hey!"

"I… I wasn't."

"Yeah, like Ichi here wasn't pacing for the last hour." Mila mumbled to Ren.

Ren smirked.

"I getcha." He cleared his throat. "Ahem."

Jinmay went over to Mila, bowing her head.

"It's a pleasure to meet you again. I'm sorry my brother neglected to tell me about you fully."

"HEY!" Ren exclaimed, his face burning red. "Jinny!"

"Oh, it's okay." Mila smiled, giggling a bit as she bowed as well. "It's a pleasure to meet you too… and I am SO sorry MY little brother hasn't properly introduced us until now."

"MILA!"

Jinmay giggled.

"Sorry we're early but I wanted to be sure I was on time to pick up Chiro." She turned to Ren, giving him a stern look. "Right?"

Mila and Ren exchanged a look, standing closer together.

"I-It's fine…" They both murmured.

Jinmay and Chiro exchanged a smirk, raising an eyebrow.

"Well… if it's not too much trouble then can we head out? Not that I'm not interested in knowing more but… time waits for no man." Chiro cleared his throat.

Plus, I'm so dead if I don't show up at some point today. Way, way later today.

"Right. You two crazy kids go on and get outta here!" Mila shooed them away. "Have fun, be safe."

"Remember our deal!" Chiro called over his shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah, you remember it too!"

Ren tapped something on his phone as Jinmay's beeped.

"I wired you some extra money. Don't spend it all in one place."

Jinmay's eyes lit up, smiling as she waved over her shoulder, following after Chiro.

Ren chuckled, shaking his head, looking in Mila's direction.

He looked her over, letting out a low whistle.

Her hair was swept back in its usual ponytail, a large hair pin of a silver butterfly pinning part of it out of her face. Her eyes were covered with a smoky eyeshadow.

His face heated up.

Man, I underdressed…

He was wearing a leather jacket, under it, a dress shirt and a vest that were both black in color and black slacks. A necklace of a skeletal dragon hung around his neck.

"So, what does she wear?"

Ren scratched the side of his head.

"She's a goth."

"Oh good, you two match then, punk."

"Jinmay, I dunno about this-"

"Shush."

Mila blushed, looking him over, turning away.

This isn't fair…

His hair gleamed in the sunlight, his gaze gentle, as he leaned back, against his bike.

Ren smiled as the hurricane in her stomach turned into a category five storm.

He's prettier than me!

"S-So… Where to?" She asked, smiling sheepishly. "Also, so sorry about that."

"Hm? What's there to be sorry about?" He tilted his head. "If anything, I should've given you a heads up that I was showing up early."

And he's nice too.

Dangit.

She took a deep breath to steady herself.

"You're entirely right." She grinned. "So, where to first?"

He smirked.

"Get on and we'll figure it out from there."

She locked up the store, grabbing up a small box off the counter, throwing it into her purse before heading out.

She hopped onto the back of his bike, hesitating before wrapping her arms around him.

"This okay?"

"Perfect."

The engine roared in her ears as her heart leaped into her throat.

With a laugh, Ren sped away as Mila held tightly onto him.

Wherever the day was going to take them…

I hope it's a good one.

Chapter Text

Chapter 17: 2 Dumb Kids

The Artemis Botanical Gardens was one of Shuggazoom City's many splendors, with its lush greenery and large trees that loomed overhead.

People walked in and out, passing by a large fountain in the center of it all.

Jinmay's eyes were wide as she looked around in wonder.

Chiro smiled, his gaze warm as he watched her, chuckling a bit at the look on her face.

It reminded him a lot of when he first went to this place as a kid.

"Whoooaaa! Lookit, lookit!"

"Ichi, slow down!"

Heh… Good times.

Today, the gardens were sparse as they ventured deeper within, walking under a large gazebo blooming with flowers in the shape of tiny stars, their sweet scent wafting around them.

"What do you think?" He asked.

"It's so pretty!" Jinmay squealed a little, bouncing on her heels. "I didn't even know we had something like this."

"It's one of our many wonders. You know, a lot of people on Earth think Shuggazoom is all tech and no greenery besides the jungle."

Jinmay blushed a little.

"Guilty." She smiled sheepishly.

"Nah. My sis thought the same thing until my folks brought her here."

She tilted her head.

"And you?"

He pointed to himself with a grin.

"I got the opposite problem. I've only heard about Earth. I was born here."

"Ohh…" She giggled. "Well, that explains a bit."

"What?"

"Your accent. It's really cute."

He flushed bright red, turning away a little, trying to hide it.

What does she mean? I talk like sis does…

"It's… different. It's not Hokkaido and it's not here either… It's you." She smiled.

"Eheh?"

He chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck.

"It's not a bother?"

"Nooo. Chiro, I'm just happy I finally get to hear your voice." She pouted a little, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "I was worried I'd never get to hear it. You're so busy."

"Trust me, I thought I was too." He laughed. "I mean, it's great, don't get me wrong. The monkeys are amazing… You'll really like 'em." He ran a hand through his hair.

He wasn't sure about how the team would feel about meeting her though.

He had his talk with Antauri but he wasn't sure if the others had noticed as much as he had…

Or how they'd feel if he even got into a proper relationship.

That part made his stomach twist in knots at the guilt.

Right around now he was supposed to be at his tactics lesson and his combat training.

Jinmay reached over, taking his free hand in hers.

"What's the matter?"

"I'll… tell you a different day." He smiled a little. "Enough about me, tell me about you. What's the mysterious Jinmay up to these days?"

"Mysterious? Now you're turning up the charm." She laughed.

"I can be charming!"

"When you wanna be."

Chiro chuckled, pulling her a little closer.

"C'mon, don't leave me hanging. How's that uh… sport of yours?"

"Did you really forget its name?"

"You never talk about it when we text!" Chiro laughed. "You can't get mad at me for that!"

"Well…" She smirked. "Lacrosse is going great. We're playing against another school in a few weeks… Maybe you could come cheer me on?"

"Of course! I'd love to!"

Jinmay giggled.

"Then it's a date."

He blushed.

"Well, watching you play isn't a date…" He mumbled.

Jinmay's smile grew as she leaned in, blushing a little.

"Oh?"

"Going out to eat after would be." He smiled sheepishly.

Jinmay's face burned bright red, matching the roses they were walking through currently.

She let out a small squeak.

"A-After?"

"Yeah… Unless you're busy after?"

She shook her head rapidly.

"N-No! No! The girls and I usually just go somewhere to eat or go back to my place. They wouldn't mind! Gah, Luna and Nebula haven't stopped harassing me about you."

"Oh? They ask about me?"

"A little." She smirked. "A girl has to have her secrets you know."

"Am I a good one?"

"Maybe." She winked.

Chiro chuckled.

"Glad to know…"

"What? Don't you tell your friends about me?"

He grimaced.

"I'm usually too busy… I'm lucky if I can hang out with Mila or what we're doing now. I haven't seen my one friend from school in almost a month."

I tell Cas about her and I'm never gonna hear the end of it and then he'll blab it to the entire city.

"You should."

"I'll try. That guy's a workaholic too."

And the biggest pain in the galaxy next to my sister.

Jinmay sighed dramatically, leaning on him a little.

"I have work to do here too, I see."

"Oh?"

'Ren's one too."

"So is Mila…"

Jinmay's face fell.

"You mean to tell me we left two workaholics alone?!"

"Uh… yeah?"

"... Oh dear."

"Yeeeaaah."

She sighed dramatically.

"They'll just have to endure."

Chiro nodded, blushing as she huddled closer to him.

They came to a stop at a bridge that overlooked a pond.

Chiro smiled, leading her over to the edge, pointing down.

Jinmay looked, letting out a small gasp.

Dozens if not hundreds of large, colorful koi fish were swimming about, their scales glinting in the light.

"Beautiful…" She smiled. "Reminds me of ours."

… Hah?

"You have koi?"

"Mm-hm. They were my aunt's but we inherited them." She smiled. "I love them though. They're all so cute. They have their own personalities too, more like wet dogs than anything else."

Chiro nodded.

"I getcha," he chuckled. "I have ranchu goldfish at my sister's place."

"Ohhh those are cute!" Jinmay squealed a little. "They're so pudgy!"

You're cute. He thought but kept it to himself.

"So, you mentioned you lived in an Inn when we were texting… Which one specifically?"

Jinmay gave him a confused look as she lifted her head up.

"Sakura Ryokan?"

"Oh…" Chiro nodded before he stopped short turning to her.

"I swear man, one d,ay we're gonna see the inside of that place." His friend, Castor, had remarked one summer day as they walked home from school. They had taken a detour to stop at an ice cream shop in this particular sector before moving on.

Chiro looked up at the massive gold and red building, letting out a low whistle.

"THAT ONE!? T-The big one?"

"Yeah, why?"

Chiro leaned back against the bench.

"No reason." He squeaked.

JUST THAT I'M ON A DATE WITH AN HEIRESS.

Oh gosh, she is way out of my league…

"You're not gonna get weird are you?"

Chiro looked up, his eyes widening at the worried look she was giving him.

He narrowed his eyes, shaking his head.

"Never." He huddled closer to her, reaching for her hand, hesitating a bit…

Before squeezing it gently.

Jinmay let out a small noise, her face turning red.

"Jinmay, if you'll have me… I'd like to see where this goes."

"Pretty bold to say during our first date…" She smiled, gazing at him with warmth in her eyes.

She leaned in, hesitating a bit, before nuzzling his cheek.

"I like it."

A huge grin bloomed on his face as he turned bright red, a bit of static sparking around him.

"W-Wow."

Jinmay giggled, her hair floating up a bit with the static.

"And what is this?"

"A-Ahaha… I…" He cleared his throat. "I like you too…"

Jinmay huddled up to him, resting her head on his shoulder.

"This okay?"

He smiled, resting his head against hers as they watched the koi swim down below.

"More than okay…"

Is this a dream?

C-Can I have this?

Am I allowed to?

He closed his eyes.

As long as he was there with her, that was all that mattered to him in that moment.

Nothing else existed.

He brought an arm around her, nuzzling the top of her head.

All that matters is right now.

"So… when do you wanna eat?"

His stomach growled as he let out a sheepish chuckle.

"Uh, would right now be okay?"

"Mm-hm!"

Chiro and Jinmay laughed, as they hurried off to find a spot to eat.

Man this is great…

What could go wrong?

oooooo

Antauri sighed as he walked through the base, looking around.

It was quiet.

Far too quiet.

He had to admit, in the time since they were woken up, the Hyper Force had grown used to Chiro's presence. His infectious laughter or how the room lit up when he walked in.

There was one problem…

He was late.

I can only assume, either something came up at the store or Mila isn't paying attention to the time.

Though…

A twinge of guilt bubbled up at the thought of immediately placing blame on the eldest Hanamura.

Mila hadn't once tried to outright stop Chiro's lessons…

Not since that first day.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

And maybe two weeks ago with the robot.

He hadn't found him in the upper level, so it was time to check in with the others - though, he had a feeling he wasn't going to like the answer.

As he descended in his elevator, his concern only rose.

The first thing he noticed was Sparx sitting in his chair, polishing his magnets, his entire body tense, his fur standing on hand.

Nova was sitting beside him, rubbing his arm, trying to comfort him.

"I swear, when I get my hands on that punk…"

"You're gonna make sure he never leaves your sight again? You sounded like Antauri and Gibson there." Nova murmured.

Antauri cleared his throat.

"Antauri can hear you."

They both yelped, looking up at him in shock.

Nova furrowed her brow.

"You haven't seen Chiro either?"

"No. I came down here to ask the same thing. He missed his tactics lesson." Antauri explained, crossing his arms.

Sparx scoffed.

"Kid blew off pilot training too. Which I didn't think he was capable of, given how excited he was before." He rolled his eyes.

"Oh, are we discussing our favorite AWOL teenager?" Gibson called as he came into the room from his lab, his fur bristling. "Because that boy missed his lessons with me as well!" He snarled.

"What did he miss this time?"

"EVERYTHING!" He seethed. "I had a full lesson plan!"

Nova sighed.

"And with how it's going, no combat training either…"

Otto looked up from tinkering with the control panel, his tail drooping.

"Is he okay? Think something happened again?"

"No!" Sparx shook his head. "It couldn't! It wouldn't! We'd know! … Right?" His voice shook a little. "We'd… We'd absolutely know…"

Not again.

"He was at Mila's, right? Why don't you call him? If his communicator doesn't pick up, use his phone." Sparx looked at Antauri. "You're the second in command."

Antauri growled a little.

"That sounds like avoidance."

Gibson smirked, elbowing Antauri a little, momentarily putting aside his anger.

"Why, Antauri, it sounds like you don't want to do it." He said, squeezing his shoulder. "Why ever could that be?"

"Stop it." Antauri muttered.

"Yeah, it's almost like Antauri values his life. Not like Mila's gonna murder us all if we lost her brother." Sparx grumbled. "Besides, Antauri, you're "Chief Dad" outta the lot of us..."

Antauri rolled his eyes, before closing them.

"Very mature." He sighed, extending his antennae, activating his comm lines.

Why is he only MY kid when things like this happen…?

"Monkey Team to Chiro, please respond."

Static crackled before the sounds of rustling followed.

"What's that?" A girl's voice asked in the background.

"Huh?" Chiro's voice picked up as well before there was a distinct click.

Antauri's eyes snapped open with alarm before he growled, his teeth baring.

"What? What's wrong?" Nova asked in alarm.

Antauri NEVER made that face.

"You haven't looked that mad in years!"

"He hung up on me." Antauri narrowed his eyes. "He… actually… HUNG UP ON ME."

Gibson squeezed his shoulder.

"Breathe, recenter yourself-Call his cellphone. He can't ignore that."

Antauri nodded, taking a few deep breaths to steady himself.

Chiro was a teenager. He supposed these types of things were bound to happen… Although, he suspected the reasons why…

"You can tell me anything. I hope you know that."

"You're not gonna get mad at me?"

"You could never do anything to do that."

Steady… You might find yourself breaking your word…

However, I have a bad feeling about this…

He thought back to that conversation and how Chiro had been acting that day in particular.

"Okay, awesome… SO um… That girl from last week? The one who caught me?"

"Yes?"

"She's been… calling me and texting me."

… He wouldn't.

He couldn't…

He didn't.

Antauri exhaled sharply before entering Chiro's phone number into his comm database.

It rang once…

Twice…

"Hello?" Chiro's confused voice came through. "Who's calling please?"

"You are in big trouble."

Chiro cringed.

"Uh… Uh… Wh-what do you mean?"

"You told us you were with your sister. Now, I heard a voice and that certainly was NOT Mila. Do you want to explain yourself now or in person later?" Antauri crossed his arms.

The others heaved a sigh of relief, realizing he had gotten a hold of him before irritation returned at what the boy had just done.

"Uh…" Chiro gulped. "You see, I have a perfectly logical explanation… I… I…"

Antauri narrowed his eyes, his fur bristling.

"Ichiro Hanamura."

Chiro shuddered. Now he knew he was in real trouble. No one on the Hyper Force used his full name.

"... I'm on a date." Chiro mumbled. "Antauri, please, it's that girl."

He did.

Antauri narrowed his eyes.

"I would love to meet her once you're ungrounded. I'll be calling your sister to alert her as well."

"W-What?!" Chiro yelped.

No, no, this couldn't be happening.

Mila was supposed to cover for him!

This was not part of the plan at all.

"I'm sorry, was I not clear enough? I am calling your sister because as of right now, you are in big trouble. Report back to base immediately."

Chiro groaned.

"Yes, Sir… Antauri, I'm sorry-"

"I mean it. Where are you right now?"

"The Botanical Gardens…"

"You have one hour to get home. If you're not home then, I'm going to come get you. Got it?"

"Yes, Sir…"

Chiro sighed.

Man… Why me!?

"Glad to see we agree. I look forward to hearing how it went."

"Chiro? What's wrong?" The girl's voice echoed in the background.

"Uh, Jinmay… We need to talk. Antauri, I'll see you soon."

"Very well…" He sighed. "... You can walk her home but I expect you back when I asked. Understand?"

"H-Huh?"

"I don't want your friend wandering the city alone. That's all."

"Y-Yes, sir! See you at home!"

Click!

Sparx raised an eyebrow.

"That was merciful."

Antauri exhaled slowly.

"Trust me… It won't be." He entered Mila's number. "Time for part two."

I need backup.

Chapter Text

Chapter 18: You're Something New

Mila's eyes were screwed shut, holding desperately onto Ren's torso, her face buried in his back.

Her heart was racing. She was pretty sure they dropped her stomach somewhere between the store and the first stoplight… and she was sure her breakfast was going to join it soon with how nervous she was getting.

THIS WAS NOT AT ALL HOW IT WAS WHEN I RODE ON DAD'S BIKE! HE HAD A SIDECAR!

"You okay?" He called over the wind as he weaved through traffic with ease.

"NEVER BETTER!"

"Good, because we're here." He chuckled.

Ren's motorcycle slowed to a stop as he rolled up to their destination.

He took off his helmet, before looking down at Mila.

"You can open your eyes now."

"Okay, awesome. I wasn't sure." She cleared her throat. "I-I'm fine."

Ren raised an eyebrow.

"Never said you weren't… Was this too much?"

"No, noooo." She laughed nervously. "No, this is great."

"Why are your eyes still closed then?"

Mila slowly opened her eyes before they widened in shock.

Ren grinned, taking a step back, waving his arm with a flourish.

"Ta-da…!"

Standing before them was a tall, massive building made up of gold and red, with a bridge leading down it from the street. Fog trailed out from the water features on either side of the bridge.

Mila nearly fell off of the bike when she realized where she was.

"N-No way… Uh, Ren, this place is super expensive and-"

"What?" He chuckled, shaking his head. "No, no… It's mine."

"Hah!?"

Ren took both of her hands, helping her up, offering his arm to her right after.

She hesitated before taking it, following after him.

Ren's eyes narrowed, though the smile never left his face.

Their footsteps echoed on the wooden bridge as gentle music flowed out from within the building.

Mila was dumbfounded, looking around her perplexed. Her mind was racing, trying to catch up with what her eyes were looking at.

Mila turned to Ren before looking up at the massive Inn.

He couldn't have been serious, right? No way!

"You're kidding me."

He laughed a little.

"No, I'm not. Sakura Ryokan is my business."

Mila's jaw dropped.

"I know you said you owned an Inn but a LITTLE heads up would've been nice!"

He stopped short, frowning a little.

"Would that have made you rethink it?"

"What!? No!" She huffed.

She huddled closer to Ren as a few women in long, flowery kimonos walked by them.

She looked down at her outfit, with its cloudy skirt and the artificial raindrops that freckled her skin from her arm bands' holo sensors.

I'm so underdressed…

Her face flushed with embarrassment.

I should've picked something else, this is humiliating-

"You know, I'm glad you didn't mind the way I was dressed." He chuckled sheepishly, breaking her out of her reverie.

Her head snapped upwards, baffled.

"Hah?"

"I look more like a punk than a Master Innkeeper right now." He smiled, rubbing the back of his neck. "Truth be told, I wanted to bring you here because the spring menu is so good and the eatery outside has okonomiyaki as its spring special.."

He wondered for a moment if perhaps this was a bad choice.

She probably wants something better from me…

Mila's face burned as she buried it in his arm.

Oh gosh his arms… They feel nice too…

Focus, Mila, focus!

"Well, let's get a move on then." She mumbled.

Ren perked up before leading her inside, where they were greeted by several staff members.

"Welcome home, Master Kanno!" They chorused, relieved that he was back so soon.

The front desk manager was giving him a harsh glare, looking him up and down.

"Yes, I see you decided to go with that…" He sighed.

Ren smiled, though it didn't reach his eyes.

"Yes and I brought a date home, so please, welcome her kindly."

"Yes, Sir. Welcome to Sakura Ryokan…"

"T-Thank you." Mila mumbled.

Ren nodded before taking off his boots, exchanging them for sandals.

Mila did the same with hers before he helped her to her feet.

"Let's get you fed now, hm?"

"Y-Yeah."

The winding hallways of the Inn were colorful as they walked down. She noted a few of the screen doors having large illustrations of spider lilies covering them.

"Do you like spider lilies?" She frowned.

Such a sad flower…

"My aunt did… and I admit, I've grown fond of them too. I do want to grow them."

Mila bit her lip, nodding a little.

Why, though?

She loved MOST flowers but there was a very good reason why she refused to grow spider lilies or sell them at her establishment.

Ren looked back at her.

"I know they carry some rough meaning but I really love them. They're beautiful and resilient. You have to admire them."

He's cute but I gotta judge him a bit on this…

"I suppose so… So, that's what you wanted me to special order?"

"Ahaha… I still don't know. Maybe. We haven't had luck growing them at all… they always died." He frowned. "It's weird…"

Mila shook her head.

"No. It's the soil. Shuggazoom's soil has high alkaline levels and that kills spider lilies. They're not really that resilient…" She looked up at one painting in particular…

A man surrounded by them, holding his blade up, the flowers almost consuming him as if they were flames, twisting around his arms and legs, trying to drag him down, his gaze terrified as he looked down at the flora.

She shuddered.

His aunt liked this stuff!?

Ren hummed in thought.

He hadn't considered that. He looked back at her with a warm smile.

"I didn't know that. Honestly, I thought I just had a black thumb." He laughed.

Mila smiled, shaking her head.

"Not at all. It's hard to know when you first get here how plants react. We'd have to put down special soil just for the plants. It'd add to your installation cost but the flowers would thrive."

Yet here I am breaking my own rule…. Maybe just one order.

One.

ONE order then no more spider lilies.

"We'll discuss it after lunch." He winked.

"Yeah…"

It wasn't long before they were seated in one of the tea rooms overlooking the gardens in question.

The tatami mats under her were a comfort as she leaned back on her seat with a small sigh.

Everything was so familiar, yet so foreign.

"So…" Ren cleared his throat. "You… really okay with all of this?"

"Huh?! Yeah! What'd make you think otherwise?"

"I thought you might've hated this."

"No, no." Mila sighed, rubbing the back of her neck. "Ren, you gotta understand, I've never known anything like this." She played with her ponytail a little.

She wondered how Chiro's date was going in comparison.

"Well, I hope to spoil you more then." He winked. "Now, shall we?"

She smiled, nodding a little.

"S-Sure."

"Do you like sushi?"

Mila's eyes lit up.

"I'll take that as a yes."

It wasn't long before they were served as plate after plate was laid out on the long table before them.

Ren wasn't even baffled, he just smiled at the stunned look on Mila's face… and the way her eyes lit up as she looked over every dish.

Even on Earth, the luxuries in front of her, was something she never had before.

"Oh WOW!"

"Eat as much as you want."

"You mean that!?"

"Absolutely!" He laughed. "I ordered it for you, silly."

"Eheh?"

They both put their hands together.

"Itadakimasu."

Mila picked up her chopsticks, digging in with a gusto.

Aaaaaahhh I'm gonna have to keep this one!

Ren chuckled.

"You like it?"

"Love it!" She grinned.

"The head chef will love to hear that. He made Jinmay some lunches for Chiro too."

"Ohhh lucky kids." She giggled. "Hope they're having fun too."

"Yeah… Gotta say, still not used to her being interested in dating." Ren grinned sheepishly. "I feel like I'm supposed to be against it but… She's happy so.."

"Nah, I get it." Her gaze softened. "You still catch yourself thinking she's still a little kid and then get a big ol slap in the face with reality, right?"

He nodded, sighing a bit as he took a sip of tea.

"Just a touch. I work hard for us both but I feel like I make a lot of mistakes." He grimaced. "Parenting's hard."

Mila sighed heavily.

She knew that feeling all too well.

"Trust me… If there's anyone who gets that feeling it's me."

"Oh?"

Where do I even start?

Monkeys.

Evil skeleton creatures busting my shop.

Monkeys.

Evil skeleton obsessed lady beats the tar out of me.

Freakin MONKEYS.

My shop windows get busted and Chiro's suddenly a mc'freakin magical boy….

FREAKIN MONKEYS.

She exhaled slowly.

"I could tell you stories."

He leaned over, propping his chin up, a wry grin coming to his face.

"Do tell, do tell."

"Well first off, he's a great kid, don't get me wrong, barely actually gives me any trouble… but ho boy when he does-"

"You wanna just scream?"

She groaned.

No, more like if I thought I could, it'd be two tickets to the space port, living out of a van and starting a rice farm! Far away from all this insanity!

"You don't know the half of it. There was this time he and his maniac friend decided to go urban exploring and teach themselves parkour using StarTube."

Ren cringed, his grin disappearing as horror etched itself across his face.

"He didn't."

"He did."

"Mila, Mila, GREAT timing!" His friend said, trying to stay in front of her, his violet eyes apologetic. "Look, there's a perfectly logical explanation-"

"Can it Cas. Where the HECK is my-"

She looked down at a hole in the ground.

Chiro was laying at the bottom of it.

He waved up at her.

"Hi."

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?"

"Nooooo!"

"Yeah! He went SPLAT! You?"

"Jinmay's never given me that much trouble… Honestly, most of my problems was trying to balance kendo and running her to lacrosse practice." He cringed.

"Kendo eh?" She smirked.

He lifted his head higher, pride in his eyes.

"17 years I was champion of my high school's kendo club when I was still there."

"Oooo, he's cute and he can kick some serious butt." She grinned. "I like that."

His face burned bright red, stammering nervously.

HOW IS SHE DOING THIS!?

His heart was racing as he tried to focus on his food.

"S-So um… yeah. Jinmay's never done anything THAT crazy. At least… Not that I know of…"

"Honestly, I've done worse than Chiro. I'll take stupid crap in an abandoned building or the woods over the stunts I pulled when I was an edgy teenager."

He cringed anew.

"Oh, you have no idea…" He grimaced.

She smirked.

"What? Could it be the young master who has some secrets of his own?"

"H-Hey!" He laughed. "Not really, I just made some mistakes too. I'm not perfect." He took a bite of sushi, looking out at the gardens.

"Really?"

He let out a long sigh, throwing his head back.

It was so humiliating to even contemplate he hadn't even fully processed it yet.

"You're gonna think it's stupid and by association, that I'm stupid."

Mila smirked.

"Can't be that bad. Lay it on me. What's it like being the rich heir to a big fancy place like this?"

Ren looked around to be sure no one was about to come in, even going as far as to get up and open the door looking around before closing it.

He sat down, leaning over the table, his gaze darkening.

"They won't let me do anything for myself anymore!"

"What!?" Mila laughed. "Oh no, what a shame to have to be waited on hand and foot-"

"No! No, it's worse!" He shook his head, his eyes growing wide. "Mila, when we lived in Osaka, I managed my parents tiny Inn and we had maybe five guests at any time. It was easy to deal with, I could also cook for them and so did Jinmay. We managed!"

"And?"

Ren groaned, running a hand down his face.

"They won't even let me cook for myself anymore. I have to bribe the girl at the eatery out back to let me cook in her kitchen if I want a snack!"

Mila sputtered, clamping both hands over her mouth.

Ren's eyes narrowed into a warning look.

"Don't laugh."

"Okay." She snorted, clearing her throat. "How bad?"

"Okay so, we were closed a couple of weeks ago for a day and we decided to throw a little staff party. Y'know, food, some of the really good sake, that kind of thing, yeah?"

She nodded, raising an eyebrow.

Ren's voice lowered into a hushed tone, glancing over his shoulder anxiously as if one of the staff members was going to burst in any minute now.

"Aoi! Is there anything I can do?" Jinmay asked, her eyes glimmering with excitement. "Please let me help?"

"Oh uh… Well Lady Jinmay, I don't think I quite can…"

"Please? Please?"

"Okay, you can help me with actually making the sushi. Sounds good?"

"YES!"

Ren poked his head into the room, pointing to himself.

"Anything I can do?" He asked with a bright smile. "I'd love to help!"

The girl cringed.

"Oh, Master Kanno I uh… Maybe you can wash the rice?"

He grinned, hurrying over and taking the pot into his hand.

"Yes! Finally, something I can do-"

"YOUNG MASTER! YOUNG LADY!"

Jinmay and Ren both groaned as the front desk manager burst into the room.

His eyes were blazing with fury and disgust as he snatched the pot of rice out of Ren's hands.

"How dare you! Making the master wash rice…"

"Akatsuki, I'm a grown man and I've cooked for myself since I was Jinmay's age!" He pleaded.

"Nope. I will handle this." He started to walk away.

Ren's eyes widened at the sheer disrespect before chasing after him.

"H-Hey! I wanna do it!"

"NO!"

Mila couldn't hold back anymore as she busted up laughing, falling backwards onto the tatami mat.

"PFFFTAAAAHAHAHAHA!" She shrieked with laughter, hitting the floor with her hand.

Ren's face melted into one of sheer displeasure, huffing.

"Told you not to laugh!" He tried to stifle a snicker.

"You're not even allowed to wash rice!?" She wheezed. "What are you allowed to do?"

"Dress myself." He groaned. "Train Jinmay with self defense and practice kendo… Oh and ikebana but I'm terrible at it."

That did it as she laughed harder, tears brimming at the corner of her eyes.

"OH MY GOSH!"

He chuckled, crossing his arms, as he leaned back.

"Yeah… it is pretty stupid."

Gosh her laugh is adorable…

I can't believe I said all that…

Mila giggled, sitting up and wiping at the corner of her eyes, her shoulders shaking with mirth.

"I can't believe that…"

"Believe it. It's my every day."

"Wanna trade? I'll be glad to take all that spoiling off your hands." She grinned.

He laughed.

"Who knows?" He smirked, gesturing dramatically towards the gardens. "One day, this too may be yours, loud intrusive employees included!"

Mila hummed in thought.

"Hm, I mean there would be perks… You're really cute and nice… and Jinmay is a total sweetheart." She shrugged. "I really can't see the downside here, Ren."

Ren's eyes widened as he turned bright red, looking away bashfully.

He drummed his fingers on the table, though she didn't notice it.

"You really think I'm cute?"

"Yeah?" Mila giggled.

"W-Wow…"

She grinned, her eyes gleaming.

He swore his heart was trying to escape his chest with that look.

"Ren, I mean it. I wanna come back here again."

"Maybe I could get you a room here and you and Chiro could have a little vacation from all the stress. Sounds like he puts you through a lot."

She busted up laughing anew.

"Oh, ohm let me tell you-"

Her phone started ringing, the starting riffs of her favorite metal song beginning.

Ren raised an eyebrow, frowning a little.

"Who's calling you?"

Mila scrambled for her phone, nearly dropping it onto the table before finally answering.

"Hello?"

The phone line let out a crackle before a voice came through.

"This is Antauri."

Her eyes widened before she narrowed them in annoyance.

She was already picturing it.

Something broke into her shop windows.

Or this was the fateful call Chiro was asking her to cover for him about.

This better be good…

"Antauri!" She exclaimed, her voice oh so cheerful despite the coating of ice around her words. "So good to talk to you but now is really not a good time! Can you call back later?"

"No, now is in fact a good time. We require your presence back at base to deal with a… problem."

She narrowed her eyes, rolling them so far she thought for a moment they might just pop out and roll down the street.

"Is Chiro safe?" She asked, taking a deep breath.

Please don't let this be one of those "He got hurt" calls…

"He's on his way back."

She bit her lip, already guessing that something went awry somewhere in the minutiae.

"Listen, Antauri, this is a really crappy time. I'm kinda busy-"

"Kinda busy?" He asked, exasperated. "I don't think you're too busy for this. We… need your specific area of expertise."

"Oh my gosh, Antauri, spit it out NOW, I'm on a DATE!"

Ren grimaced at the volume.

"Are you okay?" He whispered.

She held up a finger, closing her eyes, pursing her lips together tightly, mentally counting down.

She usually didn't mind getting calls asking for help in regards to Chiro's upbringing but this was one of the times she genuinely hoped she didn't have to get involved. At all.

After all, she had warned him that if it came down to it and he got in trouble, she wasn't going to try to get him out of it.

Though now it was backfiring on her and interrupting HER date.

"Is this just one of those romantic holidays? Because Chiro informed me he had been on one as well." Antauri asked. "And it comes back to this issue. He's been missing all day and didn't tell us where he went."

She groaned, putting a hand to her face.

Don't say anything, don't say anything to incriminate yourself…

She exhaled sharply.

No.

She couldn't let this one go. She just couldn't.

"Alright, that's it. We're discussing this when I get back to base and I'm gonna be angry now! This is over his date?"

"Mila, he lied and I cannot let that slide-"

Mila growled, slamming the table in front of her.

Ren jumped, bewildered at the sudden shift.

"Seriously!? There is no reality where this is THAT important that you five ADULTS can't handle a kid for at least two more hours. I'm not going to come rushing home. You figure it out until I get there!"

"Mila, I…" He sighed.

She laughed, shaking her head, floored that she was even having this conversation right now.

Seriously? She thought. I let my brother move in with you guys and you can't handle the first teenage rebellion?!

She exhaled slowly.

"No, no, no Mila this or Mila that. Mila is busy. Goodbye and see you later-"

A loud alarm blared in the background as Antauri let out a small gasp.

"What the heck is that!?"

"The threat alarm. Stay where you are. We'll get this under control and discuss this later."

"Oh!" She laughed, shaking her head in disbelief. "The conversation we're gonna have isn't even remotely gonna be close to what you think it is!"

"Just stay put."

"Ahaha… Good try." She hung up, exhaling slowly.

She could worry about finding creative ways to throw Antauri off the robot and make it look like an accident later.

Now, it was time to shift into gear.

Because her brother was still out there and something was heading their way.

Ren's gaze was full of concern as he reached across the table, taking her hand in his, rubbing his thumb over her knuckles.

"Are you okay? That sounded pretty bad."

Heat rushed to her cheeks before she shook her head.

"No!" She pinched the bridge of her nose. "I'm gonna kill Antauri later!"

Ren tilted his head, scrunching his face up.

"Who's Antauri?"

"One of five pains in the butt. It's a long story." She got up, letting go of his hand. "I'll tell you later."

"What can I do to help?"

Mila bit her lip.

Like it or not, as much as she personally wanted to avoid Ren getting involved…

His sister was with her brother.

"Can I borrow your bike? I'm gonna go get Jinmay and Chiro."

Ren's face fell into one full of concern.

"Can I ask you a favor then?"

They started to head out as Ren ran into one of the staff members.

"Master Kanno, there's alarms blaring outside!"

"Activate the shields and tell all guests to head to the lower level." He called over his shoulder.

Mila swallowed hard.

"So much for a good first date, huh?"

"I'm gonna ask one thing… I have to protect this place too. If something gets past those shields.."

A chill ran down her spine as she pictured it…

Dead roaming the halls, finding the lower level… attacking innocent people…

She swallowed hard.

"You're seriously trusting me? What if I can't.."

Ren pressed something into her hands.

He gave her a gentle smile, pressing his head against hers.

"I have no doubt in my mind, you'll do great."

Her face burned but she grinned confidently as she held up the keys to the motorcycle.

"I'll make ya proud."

"And we'll make up for this."

Mila ran out, grabbing Ren's helmet on her way out, a katana strapped to her back.

This was the craziest thing she had done…

Yet, as her heart raced with adrenaline there was something else stirring…

I wanna do this again…

Minus the trouble…

And minus Antauri interrupting me!

Oh, his life is OVER when I get my hands on him!

Chapter Text

Chapter 19: Don't Fear the Reaper

THWACK!

"AUGH!"

Sparx cried out as he was thrown across the street, landing in a heap. He lifted his head, warily, wondering when things had gone to crap so quickly.

People were screaming… running for the shelters Otto and Gibson had installed so many years ago that only now were being used. It was the team's job to keep them safe from harm but this horde of formless was not backing down any time soon.

The entire Hyper Force was doing what they could but even in this…

They were keeping an eye out for one of their own.

"You know, maybe we should tell the kid to duck for cover. We can handle this, can't we?"

Antauri growled, blocking an attack coming in from his right.

"No. The formless will hunt him no matter where he roams. Even if we told him to go straight home he would still be found."

A cry caught their attention as a woman was slammed into a wall, separating her from her child.

Her child fell, landing right in the path of another as the formless raised its scythe high over its head.

Gibson and Otto leaped into action.

"NO YOU DON'T!"

Otto dove in front of the boy, whirling around, as he sliced cleanly through the formless at the waist.

"Stay away from him!"

The child sniffled, huddling close to Otto.

He gave him a reassuring look, patting him on the head with his tail.

"It's okay kiddo, you're safe."

Gibson growled, finishing off the opponent on his side before helping the woman to her feet.

"Are you-" He sighed before signing. "Are you alright?"

She nodded before hurrying to her child, scooping them up.

"My baby! Oh thank goodness…"

Otto nodded before nudging her along as she hurried away towards the bunker closest to them.

He growled, whirling back around to face their foes.

Now, he was really mad.

A twinge of worry clung to him.

I hope…

I hope everyone made it to the shelters safe and sound…

Oh, please be safe, Chiro…

It was then as he craned his neck up…

The day was about to go from bad… to worse.

The formless, all suddenly stopped in their attacks, craning their necks skyward.

A swirling portal of energy was above them now as a figure peered through.

"No…" Nova shook her head. "Not again…"

A chuckle escaped them as they lunged from it, floating downwards.

Clad in armor made of bone, encasing his abdomen, a long cloak flowing behind him, was a young man, his long hair flowing in the wind as he landed before the monkeys.

He wore a mask of a skeleton partially covering obscuring the top half of his face, his red eyes peering through. Aside from his armor, he was dressed in all black and purple, his hands covered by gauntlets made of the same bone as his armor.

"My, oh my… I'm quite the lucky man. All five monkeys caught in a barrel for me." He looked them over, tsking a bit. "Although it looks like Valina was right - you guys ARE terrible at this. Where's your leader?"

"And who are you supposed to be!? The Skeletal Cosplayer!?" Sparx shouted.

The man threw back his head, laughing.

"Oh, that's rich coming from the pink one."

Sparx snarled, his magnets charging up.

Nova put a hand out in front of him.

"We're not telling you where he is."

The man sneered.

"Fine… then I suppose it's only fair to give you a proper introduction. They call me…" He snapped his fingers, a scythe appearing in hand.

The weapon crackled with purple energy as the blade of the scythe glowed brightly.

"The Reaper!"

He dashed forward with that, slashing directly in the team's direction, a large beam of energy shooting forth from it.

"GET BACK-!"

There was no escaping it. The beam found them as purple electricity shot up around them.

"AUGH!"

It burned… it burned through their entire cores as they struggled to stay standing.

The Reaper laughed, shaking his head.

"Wow… It's a wonder Valina had trouble with you! Oh right, you're worried…"

"Ngh… You won't get away with this!" Otto called out. "Chiro's coming…"

The Reaper smiled, dragging his weapon along the ground before raising it high above his head.

"That's exactly what I'm counting on."

The scythe charged, crackling with dark energy.

"Now… who wants to be sent to the afterlife first?"

oooooo

His heart was racing.

Something was wrong. He could just feel it.

Chiro was running as fast as he could, trying to avoid any fights if he could.

The formless were after him and Jinmay now, doing everything in their power to stop him.

Jinmay yelped as a blade came in close.

Chiro pulled her down as they ducked, the blade slicing across his cheek in the process.

"NGH!"

"Chiro!"

He panted, forcing himself to his feet.

"M'alright…" He got up. "You wanna play the hard way, huh?"

"Chiro-!" Jinmay got to her feet. "What are you-"

Chiro took a deep breath, placing both hands over his heart… the energy around him was warm and familiar now.

The green energy enveloped his entire body, blinding Jinmay momentarily.

As it faded, the boy she knew was reborn anew.

The white uniform, the navy gloves and boots… and his orange scarf, that now flowed in the wind.

Jinmay's eyes grew wide.

"Chiro…"

Chiro smiled at her before turning to face his foes.

"Jinmay… there's something you need to know about me."

His fist crackled with electricity, as he reared his fist back.

"I'll do everything I can to protect you!" He took a deep breath. "THUNDER PUNCH!"

THWACK!

The formless before him was gone in an instant.

Chiro grinned before he grabbed Jinmay's hand anew as they ran.

"Whoa! Where are we going!?"

"This is the shopping district - Gibson and Otto built a bunker under my sister's shop so she could be safe in case of emergencies." He explained. "When you get inside, please, I'm begging you, go to the backroom and go behind the Asclepias - there's a hatch. Open it and close it over your head. We'll get you, I promise!"

Jinmay narrowed her eyes, picking up speed, grabbing a pipe off the ground.

"Oh no you don't."

"What!?"

"Where are your monkeys?" She asked.

Chiro grimaced.

"Likely where the sirens started going off. Two blocks from here."

"Then go to them." She smirked. "I can take care of myself, you know."

"How…?!"

Jinmay dashed ahead, lunging upward, stabbing a formless right through the chest as it imploded with the force.

She landed, twirling as she grabbed another's arm, throwing it over her shoulder effortlessly.

"SCREE!"

SPLAT!

She picked up the pipe, twirling it in one hand, throwing her hair over her shoulder.

Chiro's jaw dropped.

"Whoa…"

That is…

She's…

WOW.

She smiled confidently.

"Go to your team." She narrowed her eyes, her smile turning into a smirk. "I can handle myself, you know!"

"Are you sure?"

She smiled, nudging him along.

"Ren taught me how to protect myself from anything or anyone. I'll be fine, promise."

Chiro's heart skipped a beat.

He knew she was capable… all of the conversations they had late at night taught him that much.

This wasn't what he was expecting though when she mentioned offhandedly that her brother taught her self defense.

"Jinmay… I swear I'm gonna make this up to you!"

She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

His face burned as heat rushed to his cheeks.

"Go." Jinmay nudged him. "Be safe and take them down."

"Heh… I'll do my best. Stay safe. The shop is a block down."

"I know the way." She rested the pipe over her shoulder, whirling around to face the horde approaching.

She sneered.

Now, this was her style.

"And I won't let them stop you. Go!" She got into a ready stance. "I'll protect this sector and the people in it!"

With that, they parted…

One towards the last known coordinates of his team…

The other, into a horde of the living dead.

"COME AND GET ME!"

Chiro took one last glance over his shoulder as he broke into a sprint.

Jinmay spun around as if she were performing ballet, swinging the pipe through the air as if it was a sword.

The head of the skeletal figure beside her exploded on contact, ooze raining down all around her.

I am so lucky.

He grinned, his determination renewed.

Now, to get back to my team.

oooooo

The Reaper laughed as he dodged one of Sparx's magnetic attacks.

"You stupid simians really think you can save the Chosen One!?"

Nova lunged upwards, slamming her fists into the ground as it shook under him.

"LADY TOMAHAWK!"

He planted his scythe into the ground, using it as a makeshift vault pole, leaping over her…

Before kicking her swiftly away from him.

"AUGH!"

She slammed right into Otto as they went flying.

Otto whined a little as he tried to get up.

"Why… He's just a human… Why won't he just…"

The Reaper sneered, resting his scythe across his shoulders lazily.

"This is just too easy." He laughed. "You're all pathetic! This is the threat my liege was so afraid of?"

Antauri narrowed his eyes, taking a deep breath, building up the energy within.

It was now or never.

The Reaper whirled around, looking right at him with a cocky grin.

"You're really going to try that? Sure would be a shame if some innocent got in your way again…"

How did he-

The Reaper's gaze was cold.

"Yeah… I know all about that. The Hyper Force brings justice and righteousness… Until someone innocent needs their help." He leaned down, getting up in his face. "You know, Valina plays that audio file all the time because it gives her some sick amusement. Personally… I don't think… What was her name? Ah yes…" He sneered. "Mila appreciated you hurting her."

That's it.

Antauri growled.

"Your first mistake was getting cocky."

"Oh-"

"MONKEY MIND SCREAM!"

He let out a haunting wail of energy as the man was blown back.

"AUGH!"

Antauri scoffed.

Don't speak her name again…

He was knocked backwards, his weapon flying across the street, embedding itself in one of the formless.

It looked down at it, tilting its head.

"You idiot!" The Reaper hissed, grabbing the hilt of it. "Sorry to do this pa, but-"

SHING!

"I need this!"

Antauri growled, getting back to his feet, hurrying over to his teammates.

"Are you alright?"

Gibson rubbed his head, helping Otto back to his feet.

"He's just a human. He can't be this strong."

Antauri looked over, watching as the man casually spun his scythe, staring them down with amusement.

"A human that the Skeleton King clearly took over. He's nothing but a puppet."

"A puppet doesn't make snide remarks to deliberately do that." Nova pointed out, keeping her voice low. "No one else should know about what happened…"

Antauri held up a hand, motioning for silence.

"And he wants to kill Chiro. Are we going to stand by and let that happen?"

The entire team's gaze turned cold, as they resumed battle steady stances.

Their uniforms ripped, cuts and bruises decorated their bodies, their enhancements scratched up…

But they knew the answer.

"NEVER!"

The Reaper sneered.

"Oh? Are you going to die for The Boy?"

The team wasn't looking at him.

Their gaze was shifting above him, relief etching itself across their faces.

The Reaper tsk'd under his breath, looking up… his eyes widening in alarm.

In an instant, he was kicked right in the abdomen by a falling teenager.

"AGH!"

Chiro smirked, using him to propel himself over The Reaper as he landed before the team.

"I see you left me a bad guy."

Antauri heaved a sigh of relief.

"We missed you."

"This is bad, Chiro. He's not like the formless!" Gibson called out.

Chiro smirked.

"Good. Let's give him a real fight then." His gaze narrowed. "Ready?"

The team nodded, hurrying to his side.

"Hyper Force! GO!"

Chapter Text

Chapter 20: The Damage Is Done

The field was a flurry of motion.

The screams of the living and the dead intermingling as the Hyper Force went in with everything they had.

The Reaper at the center of it all, commanding the formless.

He moved around them, waving his scythe as if he were a conductor as the dead soldiers moved in sync to his commands.

The Hyper Force was struggling to keep up. For every formless that was killed, another popped up to replace it, lunging right for them.

The Reaper smirked, noting Chiro was struggling against a particular one.

The boy side stepped its attack, going in for the kill..

The Reaper sneered, aiming his scythe right at him, swinging hard.

"CHIRO, WATCH OUT-!" Sparx cried out.

The energy wave cut through the air in a dark crescent shape as it hit Chiro dead on.

"AUGH!"

Chiro yelped as he was sent flying, skidding across the ground.

His ears rang as his head bounced off of the ground, dazed momentarily.

What is this guy made of...?

"CHIRO!"

Antauri rushed to him, getting in front of him.

"Are you alright?"

"Y-Yeah... Gibson wasn't kidding." Chiro shakily got to his feet, charging up an attack. "So, what hasn't worked?"

"Everything." Sparx deadpanned. "Can't break the armor. The scythe is going to either cut you or electrocute you and when he doesn't feel like fighting, he directs the formless."

Chiro cringed.

This was a lot worse than he suspected...

He thought back to Jinmay and hoped she was safe.

He thought about Mila and prayed she was somewhere safe. That Ren was keeping her out of trouble.

If a foe like the Reaper had appeared before either of them...

He shuddered, shaking that thought away as he got back to his feet.

"Hey you!"

The Reaper tilted his head, smiling.

"Oh? You wanna talk trash again?" He aimed his weapon. "Your pets tried that and see where that got them!"

Chiro growled.

"They aren't pets... they aren't stupid... or useless... or broken..."

His hands burned with energy as electricity crackled around him.

He slammed his hand into the ground, pulling up a spear made of pure electric energy.

"THAT'S MY FAMILY!!!"

He charged forward, aiming right for the center of the Reaper's armor.

The Reaper parried it with his scythe, pushing back against his blade.

"Ah, ah, ah." He sneered. "Your inexperience is laughable. Too bad really. You could've had a better trainer... Mine taught me all you were supposed to learn."

Chiro's eyes grew wide.

"What!?"

The Reaper's sneer grew, his voice lowering.

"They're hypocrites. You know you weren't the only leader, right?"

Chiro growled, pushing further, forcing the Reaper to take a few steps back.

"You don't scare me!"

"Oh but I should... I know what that one did. How can you even look at him?" He nodded towards Antauri. "He hurt your precious sister, didn't he?"

Chiro gasped.

"How-"

"I know a lot. Valina talks about it all the time... The games she played.." He scowled. "And to think, they sent a child without any training to do that too."

"I chose to do this."

"Correction. You were chosen." The Reaper sighed. "I'm sorry they failed you."

SHING!

Chiro cried out as his blade was knocked away from him, flying through the air.

SHING!

"CHIRO!"

The boy hit the ground, gripping his arm, red soaking the fabric of his uniform.

"Agh..." He pulled his hand away as it trembled, looking at the damage. "W-What... How..."

His heart was racing in his chest.

The Reaper smirked.

"Had enough?"

Chiro looked up at him, his eyes trembling in fear.

"No..."

"THAT'S ENOUGH!"

Gibson fired a shot at his legs as ice encased them.

Otto propelled off of him, swinging his saw down.

"YOU GET AWAY FROM HIM!!!"

The blade was caught as the Reaper sighed.

"My teacher was right. You neglected a pretty big part of his training. Tell me... where did you stash it?" He grinned. "I bet you guys still have it, don't you?"

Otto growled.

"The only thing we're stashing is you."

"Six feet under." Sparx growled.

"Mm-hm. More talk." The Reaper sighed, shaking his head. "As he is now, he's not even worth killing."

Chiro swallowed hard.

"You're not gonna do that."

"Hm... Not today." He shook his head, resting his scythe across his shoulders. "I mean, it'd just be unfair. Your fighting is sloppy."

SHING!

He cracked the ice with ease before resting his weapon over his shoulders anew.

"I'm actually quite bored right now. It was fun, don't get me wrong." He smirked. "But I don't think I was given the full story here."

The team surrounded Chiro, trying to shield him from any future attacks.

"I'm so bored..." He sighed and chuckled. "It really is such a shame, I was hoping this Chosen One would be a real fight." His gaze turned cold as he stared the team down. "Perhaps next time I'll actually have a challenge."

A swirling portal opened up beneath him as he began to sink down into it.

Antauri let out a haunting scream, trying to get one more attack in...

But before it could collide, he was gone.

As the formless dissipated into smoke and faded from view...

All was quiet...

It was too quiet.

"Augh..."

His head snapped in Chiro's direction.

Gibson was putting pressure on the injury, trying to keep him from moving.

"S-Stop, Gibson that hurts!!!"

"I know Chiro, I know. I'm sorry."

"How bad is it?"

Gibson moved his hand away, cursing under his breath.

"We need to get him back home. Now."

Chiro looked up, swallowing hard.

"It's worse than it looks huh?"

Gibson grimaced.

"... We'll discuss this at home. For now, let's move."

Chiro looked down, his mind swirling with thoughts...

Except one kept coming to mind in particular.

"We just lost... didn't we?"

Gibson gave him a stern look.

"You're still alive. That's a victory in my book." He looked over at the others. "Let's get going, NOW!"

oooooo

Mila couldn't shake the dread washing over her as she rode further and further into the city, looking all over for two teenagers in particular.

"Come on, where are you-"

A formless was in her way, standing in the middle of the street amidst thousands of broken fragments of bone and ooze...

Standing in the middle of it all, armed with a pipe, her clothes dirtied from the fight...

Was Jinmay.

She was panting but the grin on her face was there permanently.

A chill went through Mila.

She reminds me of Chiro, like that...

As that thought darted across her mind it hit her...

Jinmay was by herself.

"HEY!" Mila called out. "Outta the way!"

The formless and Jinmay both looked up in surprise before Jinmay lunged to the side.

The formless wasn't so lucky as Mila rammed it with the bike.

"YOU SON OF A-!"

SPLAT!!!!

Jinmay took a few steps back, stunned.

Ren's bike was covered in formless ooze and SO many scratches as Mila came to a complete stop, panting.

"What the heck...?"

Mila looked at her, her gaze stern.

"Get on. I need to get you home... also..." She unstrapped the katana from her back, encased in a pink sheath and tossed it to her. "Your brother sends his regards but I think you didn't need this."

Jinmay caught it with ease before getting behind Mila on the bike, holding on tightly.

"I didn't... I'm sorry, I made you guys worry like that."

"It's fine." She looked around, sighing in worry. "Where's Ichi?"

"He went to go help the team." Jinmay explained. "I told him to go on ahead."

Mila's eyes widened before she groaned.

"Of course he did. I mean, I expect him to - this is his job too... but why am I not surprised?"

"Because it's Chiro?"

Mila groaned, lowering her head.

"Because it's Chiro."

Still, she couldn't shake the dread that was washing over her.

The smoke that began to rise around them as the formless' remains faded away did nothing to reassure her.

She revved up the engine but before she could drive off, her phone began ringing loudly.

Mila cussed under her breath anew before answering it.

"Hello!?"

"Mila..." Otto's voice came through, his voice cracking. "Are you safe?"

"Otto." She sighed in relief. "Oh, thank goodness. I was ready to kill Antauri. Are you guys okay? Is Ichi with you?"

"Yeah, he is but-"

A yelp in the background caught her attention as her heart leapt into her throat.

"What's wrong?"

"He got hurt. He'll be okay but can you get here now? He really needs you too."

"... I'm on it. Take care of him for me until then please."

"I am. We all are."

"Thank you."

She hung up, quiet before she screamed, hitting the handlebars angrily.

Jinmay yelped, startled as she leaned back away from her.

"W-What's wrong!?"

"It's Chiro. Can I drop you off or-"

Jinmay wrapped her arms around Mila's waist, holding on tightly.

"I'm not leaving either. If he's hurt, I wanna take care of him too."

Mila smiled, sighing a bit.

"You know, you're gonna be a great sister in law."

"Heh, I could say the same."

With that, Mila drove off towards the base, her heart racing as she tried to keep her cool.

"He got hurt..."

Ichi, what happened?

I should've been there.

... Yeah, what use could I have been? She thought bitterly. Get kidnapped again? Beaten up?

... I could've taken that hit.

She knew deep down if Chiro could read her mind, he'd have been mortified at the things that were rushing through it.

Mila knew those thoughts wouldn't help anyone. She tried to discard them... to focus on what was going on right now...

It didn't help though as her mind wandered.

Please... be okay.

I'll worry about the petty crap later but please... be okay.

Chapter Text

Chapter 21: We Gotta Hold On

Chiro swore, sometimes, he forgot that there were technically two medics on the team. Otto was usually delegated to fixing up their enhancements.

Right now, he was getting a firm reminder as he was being fussed over, for lack of a better term.

"Hm… Doesn't look like it went down to the bone. I think you can suture it up without much issue." Otto moved a scanner away from Chiro's arm that was currently wrapped in gauze.

He sighed in relief.

"So, I'll be okay."

Otto smiled, ruffling his hair up a little.

"We'll have you better than new in no time, Chiro. I called Mila too."

"Please tell me you told her we had it under control?" Gibson asked as he got everything he needed ready.

"I did."

Chiro sat up a little, eying the tray next to the table he was on.

"I'm gonna have to get used to this, huh?"

"Unfortunately."

Otto moved to Chiro's other side, grabbing onto his hand.

"Here, hold on as tight as you need to."

Chiro nodded, closing his eyes as his grip tightened.

This was the part he really didn't like about his new position as leader.

"Alright, Chiro, ready?"

Chiro shook his head.

"No, but go ahead anyway."

"Just focus on me." Otto said, giving him a gentle look. "You're gonna be okay."

Otto started stroking his hair, trying to keep him distracted and calm.

If it had gone two inches deeper…

We'd be talking about fixing him up in a completely different way.

"S-So, you never mentioned specifically what you specialized in. Gibson's got like every PHD under the sun…"

"Oh! Orthopedics." Otto smiled. "When I was learning to fix up our prosthetics and armor, I wanted to learn how to fix up the parts of us that were still organic too. Bone structure's part of that."

"Not to mention it goes back to your usual wheelhouse, huh?" Chiro opened one eye, giving him a small smile.

Otto chuckled, his tail swishing bashfully.

"Maybe just a little."

"Yeah-Ow!"

"I'm sorry." Gibson apologized, setting the syringe aside. "Just a local anesthetic. That'll be the last of the pain, I promise."

Chiro leaned his head back, debating if this counted under his punishment.

"Am I still grounded? Antauri was pretty pissed off at me earlier."

Both monkeys' eyes narrowed into a look that sent a chill down the boy's spine.

Whoa, that was the first I ever saw that about Antauri, geeze.

"You're not grounded." Otto shook his head. "Why would we ground you after what you just went through!?"

"I lied though."

Otto sighed, shaking his head.

"We didn't exactly set a good example. We kept your destiny from you. That's equally on us, isn't it?"

"I… I guess."

"However, young man." Gibson interjected as he kept focused on his task. "You're still going to make up for the classes you missed and you will be reporting here to make sure this is healing properly at least once a day. Got it?"

Chiro heaved a sigh of relief.

"Loud and clear, Gibson… I'm really sorry."

"We forgive you. I'm sure the others are just as eager to get in here once we're done."

"If Mila doesn't get into a fight first…" Otto muttered under his breath.

Chiro raised an eyebrow.

"Is there something I missed?"

"He interrupted your sister when he was done with calling you. She was on a date." Otto explained.

Chiro cringed.

"Well, it was nice knowing Antauri."

Otto and Gibson both bit their lips, trying not to laugh.

"It's not funny." Gibson mumbled.

Otto snickered.

"It's a little funny."

"Just a smidge." Chiro chuckled.

Least they didn't get hurt too bad…

Man… I just wanna go to bed after this though…

"WHERE IS HE!?"

All three let out a long sigh.

"So it begins." Gibson sighed.

"Please, tell me you're almost done."

"Just about…"

Gibson snipped the last of the suture thread, re-wrapping the wound with gauze, anew.

"There."

Chiro heaved a sigh of relief, sitting up.

"Thanks, Gibson."

He nodded, giving him a gentle look.

"Anytime. Now, remember our deal."

"Yessir. Make up for missing all my classes today and make sure to take it easy on the arm."

"Atta boy."

Chiro smiled, getting up, making his way to the door.

"Thanks you two-"

"One more thing."

Chiro whirled around confused before Otto wrapped his arms around him.

"Otto…"

"I'm really glad you're home safe."

Chiro smiled, hugging him back.

"Me too, Otto. I promise, I'll try to be a better kid."

"We'll try to be better parents. Although, I think you got one waiting."

'Yeah, time to go face the music-"

Like a bat flying straight out of the fiery pits of Hell, she appeared.

Mila's hair was windswept, her clothes stained with black splotches, some parts of it torn-Was her makeup running?

Chiro took a step back unconsciously before she came in close.

She was about to bring him in for a hug but hesitated now that she had a proper look at him.

"Oh, oh, Ichi…" She whispered, her brows knitting together in worry. "What on Earth and Shuggazoom happened?"

"Mila, Mila, I'm okay-"

"Ichiro Hanamura." She narrowed her eyes.

Ahhh crap, crap, crap…

Chiro swallowed hard.

"Uh…"

He quickly pushed Otto in front of him as the monkey let out a loud shriek at the jostling.

"Hey!"

Mila crossed her arms.

"Losing. My patience." She looked around. "Where's Obi-Wan? I wanna talk to him for FIVE minutes."

"Antauri's probably resting. The fight took a lot out of us."

Mila nodded, humming thoughtfully… before she began to walk away.

Chiro's eyes widened before he chased after her.

"Mila, Mila, what are you doing?"

She found the nearest comm, that, like the one in the kitchen, filtered in through the entire base.

"By the way, I brought your girlfriend home with me since I didn't want her out after dark alone. I gotta call my stupid date for not picking up his cell too."

Chiro cringed.

Now, he knew how mad she was.

He stopped short.

Wait.

Girlfriend?

He whirled around, momentarily distracted as he spotted a familiar shock of pink hair… and a very nervous girl, standing by herself in the corner as Sparx and Nova were trying - and clearly having trouble coaxing her away from it.

"Okaaay, Otto! A new translator please?"

Otto gave a salute, hurrying off.

"You might wanna stop her by the way!" He called out.

"Stop-MILA!"

It was too late as she slammed her hand over a button, highlighted with black and green LED's.

Mila cleared her throat.

Chiro tried to grab her hand to pull it away.

"No, no, no-"

She brought her free arm around him, pulling him away…

Before letting out a guttural scream into the comm line.

Not even any specific song, just hitting that high note as loud as her lungs would allow.

Distinctly, there was a startled sound and a thud.

"MILA!"

Mila grinned viciously.

"I look forward to our discussion about what happened today, you little crap!"

Chiro was mortified looking up at her.

"You didn't just do that."

"I did." She exhaled slowly. "Okay… little better."

"Good. Can you let go now?"

She hugged him again before letting him go, sighing as she looked him over anew.

Another gauzy patch of artificial membrane decorated part of his face, his upper right arm wrapped in gauze and he was sporting a fair bit of bruises across his face and arms.

She frowned, cupping his face in her hand.

"How bad does it hurt?"

"Not as much as it did before."

She eyed his arm.

"Gibson numbed it up. I can't even feel it right now." He explained hurriedly. "I'm okay now, I promise."

"This isn't…" She stopped herself, exhaling sharply. "You know what? I'm gonna save being pissed off after your girl leaves. She doesn't need to hear more of that."

Chiro's eyes widened.

"What are you gonna do?"

"Nothing."

"Mila-"

"I said nothing." She ran a hand through her hair, cringing. "Gaaah, I think I got formless ick in it too."

Chiro grimaced.

"You wanna go tidy up?"

"Ren's coming to get his sister and his bike. I'm not taking off my makeup until then."

Chiro opened his mouth to point out the current state of said makeup but decided against it.

"... Are you mad at me too?"

"No. I'm mad exclusively at Antauri." She huffed, crossing her arms. "As far as I'm concerned, you're fine. I told you I'd have your back. I didn't snitch."

King of Cryptic BS… Gonna kick his tail…

He smiled, wrapping his arms around her quickly.

"You are the best sister ever."

"You might wanna take that back later."

"Nah, I won't… Though you might wanna say sorry for that."

She gave him an incredulous look, thumbing towards the black tube in particular.

"Do I look like I'm sorry?"

"... Right, I forget. Karen bouquets. You know what? Leave me out of this one."

"Good. Don't worry, I won't embarrass you… By the way."

Chiro turned back.

Mila gave him a thumbs up.

"Be good to that one. She's a keeper."

His face heated up, burning bright red.

"Go."

Chiro nodded, hurrying over to where Jinmay was.

She was looking around, playing with one of her ponytails. Her clothes were a bit roughed up, having taken the chance to wash her face free of any remnants of the fight.

Although she would be the first to admit, it was awkward since she knew two of the monkeys were trying to talk with her but the language barrier was… difficult.

She perked up as soon as Chiro walked over, throwing her arms around him.

"Whoa!"

"Sorry… You okay?"

"Everyone's asking that… I'll be fine." He gave her a gentle look. "And we'll fix the language stuff in a few minutes."

"Huh?" She looked over his shoulder at the room he had emerged from. "... Not in there. right?"

Why does everyone think Gibson wants to experiment on them like some mad scientist? Is this Don't Dehydrate or something?

Mila thought it, now Jinmay?

"Nooo, no, no. It's an external thing."

Jinmay heaved a sigh of relief, huddling closer to him.

"Good… Is everything um…" She lowered her voice. "Is Mila mad at us or…?"

"She's mad for a lot of reasons." Chiro grimaced. "Most of them have been caused by this whole thing since it started. This is an old grudge."

"Okay… Not me?"

"No."

Chiro brought her in for another embrace, resting his head against hers.

"Never you."

Jinmay smiled, relaxing into his arms.

Now, this was where everything was right in her world.

"Promise?" She asked.

Chiro pressed his forehead against hers, gazing into her eyes.

"I mean it. I promise, I'm making it up to you for today too."

"I dunno. After going the long distance route for a while, this was the most exciting first date I could've asked for." She laughed a little. "Maybe next time I can drive shotgun in that tank you were telling me about."

"You told her what?!" Sparx exclaimed.

"What did he say?"

"He said he'd be happy to show you how it works." Chiro grinned. "I think it'd be fun. We could even get ya your own uniform."

"M-Maybe not that far." Jinmay laughed a little. "We'll see. I'm not sure how helpful I'd really be."

"How helpful-Jinmay, how many formless fell to just a METAL PIPE?"

She hummed in thought.

"I lost count. There weren't many left. Mila actually ran over the last one."

"... She what?"

"I DID! AND I'D DO IT AGAIN!"

"See?"

The sound of two elevators arriving caught their attention as everyone looked up.

Otto cheerfully walked out of his, whistling a tune under his breath, a brand new translator in hand…

While Antauri walked out of his, looking downright ready to murder anyone who so much as looked at him funny, his fur on edge from irritation.

"Hey you two. Geeze, Otto, that was quick."

He grinned proudly, holding his head up high.

"I made a big batch last time in case of problems."

"You're the greatest."

Antauri sighed as he took a good look around before his gaze landed on Mila, a low growl escaping his throat.

"Yeah the feeling is mutual buddy." She whispered.

… What did I do to deserve this? I was a good student. I was a good second in command before all of this.

Chapter Text

Chapter 22: He was a Punk. She played guitar

As far as he was concerned, there were more important matters to be discussed than what was playing out before him.

He exhaled slowly, rubbing his temple.

Although now, as he noticed who was with Chiro, he was debating against bringing it up at all.

Breathe… It's been a long day…

Chiro's safe.

The city is safe.

The Reaper is… out there.

He couldn't shake that.

The laughter, the scythe as it swung down…

All of it was unlike what they had faced in the past. Sure, there had been villains aside from the Skeleton King himself but he usually preferred monsters or natural disasters to do his dirty work.

The rare times people got involved…

He shook it off.

He didn't want to dwell on it.

"I see we have a guest." He eyed Mila. "Is this your idea?"

"Yes, because she was worried about Chiro." Mila crossed her arms. "She's just staying until her brother can come and get her and the bike he loaned me."

"Very well."

Chiro looked over, smiling as he waved him over.

"C'mere! I want you guys to meet her properly."

Antauri grimaced a little.

"This is… a rather big deal, isn't it?" He whispered.

"You're basically his Dad now. So yes, your son introducing his first girlfriend is kind of a gigantic deal, Obi-Wan."

"We're going to talk about that nickname later."

Mila smirked but said nothing.

He unfortunately already knew that answer.

With that, he made his way over as the others already were making themselves acquainted with Jinmay.

"Oh my gosh it's so good to have another girl around!" Nova exclaimed, shaking her hand. "Hope you come by more often! You're a spitfire, aren't ya?"

"M-Me? A spitfire?"

Chiro laughed, bringing an arm around her shoulders.

"You bet she is!"

"Thanks for watching out for Chiro, the kid means a lot to us." Sparx chuckled. "The name is SPRX-77 but you can call me Sparx."

"Or Maverick." Mila spoke up.

"No." Sparx said without missing a beat, his tail curling a bit in irritation. "Just Sparx. Not Sparky, not Maverick, just Sparx."

Jinmay stifled a small giggle.

"I'm sorry, I just… I know that movie. From what Chiro tells me, that's not an insult… it's the biggest compliment."

"... Wait, is it?"

"He hasn't seen it!? Chiro, you're depriving them, you're awful!"

"Hey!"

"Ichi keeps putting off movie night!"

"Mila!"

Sparx chuckled.

"But yeah, there's me, you already met Otto… and this is my less handsome twin Hal." He elbowed his sibling rather hard.

Gibson let out an annoyed growl, elbowing Sparx in turn.

"Ahem. It's Hal Gibson and do not call me Hal. Just Gibson will suffice."

Jinmay gave Chiro a bewildered look.

He shrugged.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet all of you." She smiled, giving a small bow of her head. "I'm sorry I haven't had the chance to properly introduce myself yet." She gave Chiro a stern look out of the corner of her eye. "Next time, we'll figure out a proper schedule."

Chiro winced, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Eheh?"

"Chiro?"

Chiro jumped, looking at Antauri, bewildered.

"Oh uh, Antauri I was just-"

Antauri took a deep breath.

"I apologize for being a bit late to introductions. This is the girl you were telling me about?"

Chiro's eyes widened a little before he grinned.

"Yeah. This is her."

Jinmay looked over, grinning a little.

"Hey. Sorry you had to yell at Chiro earlier."

"Jinmay!"

Antauri grimaced.

"I apologize that was your first impression of me. That was… not how I am typically. I'm sorry about that. Allow me to properly introduce myself." He bowed his head. "I am Antauri, the second in command of the team and one of Chiro's mentors."

"Yeah, an overprotective Dad." Sparx quipped as the others tried their best not to laugh.

"I am not that bad!" He seethed.

"You are so that bad." Nova grinned, nudging her brother playfully.

Antauri sighed, shaking his head.

"Nova, please stop…"

"Never."

Jinmay stifled a laugh.

"Well it's nice to meet you too. Again, I'm sorry for all the trouble I caused unintentionally today."

"What!?" Otto exclaimed.

"Jinmay that was on me." Chiro frowned. "That was all me being dumb."

"Cause you wanted to see me." She pouted a little. "I didn't know you were THIS busy."

"We'll figure it out, we'll figure it out!"

Mila smiled as she watched all of it unfold before her.

Despite her grievances… She had to admit, what was playing out now was sweet.

Her brother, completely and totally proud of his newfound family and introducing them to someone who meant a lot to him. Everyone was safe and sound for the most part.

That's my boy…

Okay, maybe Antauri can live.

For now.

She let herself slide down to the floor, sitting down, heaving a huge sigh of relief.

"ATTENTION!" The intercom beeped, startling them. "Motion detected outside."

Chiro looked up.

"Alright, bring up the visuals."

Otto ran over to the console, entering in a command.

The monitor lit up, revealing the now darkened park as a young man stood outside before the base.

He was looking over the bike Mila had left beside it before trying and knocking on the trunk of the massive tree in question.

Mila and Jinmay perked up.

"Who is that?" Nova asked.

"My brother." Jinmay cut in, hurrying over. "That's Ren!"

Chiro sighed, bringing his arms around Jinmay.

"This means you gotta go home, huh?"

She giggled, resting her head against his.

"I know… I'll call you later, okay?"

"Promise?"

"I promise."

Mila got up.

"I'll walk you out. C'mon." She made her way for the orange tube… and then hesitated before hurrying over to Nova's instead.

Jinmay looked at Chiro with a questioning look.

He shrugged.

"She went splat one time."

"TWICE YOU LITTLE PUNK!" Mila called over before disappearing from view.

"Oh… oh." Jinmay shook her head. "Well I won't… It's been fun." She turned to the monkeys, giving another bow of her head.

"Sorry again about earlier. When it's less hectic, I'd love to have you all at our inn for a night or two. On us."

"Does that include free food?" Otto asked, a grin on his face.

She winked.

"You know it."

"Yes!"

Chiro chuckled.

"See you soon."

"See you."

With that, the girls disappeared from view.

Chiro sighed wistfully, leaning back against the console.

"Man… what a girl."

Gibson grimaced, looking over at Antauri.

"Now he does sound like Sparx."

Antauri grimaced.

"Unfortunately."

He also sounds like me…

oooooo

"I'm sorry your date got interrupted, Mila. Ren was really excited about it." Jinmay explained as she stepped out of the blue elevator.

Mila sighed, giving a small shrug.

"I was excited for it too. It's okay though… I got a good idea of what kind of guy your brother is." She smiled.

"Really?" Jinmay asked, tilting her head. "So… you'd date him again?"

Mila's face burned a little, her heart skipping a beat.

"I'd like to. He was such a gentleman, truly. Maybe I shouldn't be telling you this…"

"No, no, please do!" Jinmay squealed a little, stopping in front of her.

She grinned mischievously, bouncing a bit on the balls of her feet.

After all, it took him forever to even pick out an outfit… Finally had to do it for him myself.

She thought as the memories of that morning came rushing back up.

Mila laughed, shaking her head.

"Nope, I should really stop there."

"Did you like the Ryokan?"

"I did." She nodded. "The food was phenomenal."

"Next time, eat at the eatery, not just in the tea room." Jinmay smiled knowingly. "Once you eat one of Aoi's meals, you'll be a regular customer."

Mila laughed a little.

"I don't know, my budget might not be that flexible."

"Then you'll be there as one of Ren's guests. Just like I said to the monkeys, you're all welcomed, just call us a day or two ahead to prepare a couple of rooms."

Mila smirked, stifling a small snicker.

She could already picture the monkeys practically spilling out of the typical yukata for guests at such an establishment.

"They might need the child sized robes."

"We can do that."

Mila busted up laughing.

"Okay, you got a deal! It'd be pretty cute."

"Plus, might get Antauri to finally relax. He doesn't seem like he lets himself."

"Oh, I could tell you stories about that one." Mila muttered before she shook her head. "Okay, we've kept your brother waiting long enough."

"Awww…" Jinmay sighed. "I know but I didn't get to talk to you much."

Mila reached over, tucking a bit of the girl's hair behind her ear.

"You can always stop by the store if you wanna talk one on one. Girl time's important too."

Jinmay smiled, wrapping her arms around Mila tightly.

"Thank you."

Mila's arms spread out a bit in surprise before her gaze softened, hugging her back.

"Anytime kiddo. I mean that, okay?"

"I do. Can you help me pick out something for Chiro before the Tanabata festival comes around?"

"I can." She chuckled.

With that, she hit the command on the door for it to slide open…

Just in time to find Ren fussing over his bike, trying fervently to wipe off any formless remnants from the paint job.

His face was screwed up in horror as he took inventory of every single scratch that marred the black and purple paint.

"No, no, no… My baby." He whispered. "What happened to you!?"

He eyed a distinct crack on the headlight, shaking his head.

"What the actual fu-"

"Language!" Jinmay exclaimed, cutting him off. "You know better!"

Ren looked up, relieved at seeing Jinmay… before mortification returned as he noted who was standing right behind her.

"Oh… Oh this is a low moment right now."

Mila smirked, crossing her arms.

"Hi."

"... Hi."

Jinmay ran over to him, throwing her arms around him tightly.

"Ren!" She squealed. "I missed you!"

"W-Whoa! Jinny!" Ren laughed, hugging her tightly, spinning her around. "Good to see you too. You okay? Nothing hurt?"

"Nope!" She held her head up proudly. "All your training came in handy. I didn't even need my sword!"

Ren heaved a sigh of relief.

"Good, good-Wait, what did you use?"

"I found this one using a metal pipe to beat their heads in." Mila said. "She's pretty strong. She saved my brother from a bad fall when they met too."

Ren looked down at her, a gentle look on his face.

"Yeah, she's pretty special, isn't she?"

Jinmay giggled, shaking her head.

"Nooo."

"Yesss." He ruffled her hair up before looking up at Mila. "Thank you."

"Anytime. Sorry, today kinda went to Hell."

Mila took a few steps away, looking up at the night sky, her gaze darkening.

"We have a certain someone to thank for that."

Ren grimaced.

"Y-Yeah-"

Jinmay elbowed him as he let out a sharp gasp.

"Jinmay!" He wheezed. "What was that for?!"

"Ahem. A gentleman would make it up to the girl, wouldn't he?" She asked, giving him a stern look.

Ren winced, rubbing his ribcage.

"Nnn we're discussing this later."

Jinmay scoffed.

"Oh yes but it's not the discussion you're thinking about!"

"Jinmay!"

Mila stifled a small laugh as the two siblings glared at each other.

That brought back memories…

"I-It's okay. Not like he planned for it."

Mila made her way over to him.

"I liked what we experienced so far."

Ren smiled, bringing a hand to her cheek, rubbing his thumb across it.

Mila's face was dusted pink as she leaned into his hand.

Sure, it hadn't been much of a date but… She liked how it felt.

How her heart was fluttered in her chest just standing here.

Ren's gaze was warm as he leaned in a little before moving her bangs out of her face.

"H-Huh?"

He pressed a kiss to her forehead.

"Call me tomorrow. I'm gonna make it up to you in spades." He whispered.

Mila sputtered, her heart racing anew as she tried to process what had just happened.

"I-you, just-Okay… Okay."

Ren chuckled.

"Sorry. Too much?"

"No!" Mila exclaimed before clearing her throat. "I mean, that was… that was cool. Uh-uh… Yeah. Let's do this again soon."

"It's a date."

"Yeah…"

Ren got on his bike, revving the engine as Jinmay hopped on behind him.

He craned his neck, giving her one last smile.

"Sayonara, Mila."

"Sayonara. Ren…"

She watched him go as the wind picked up around her.

As the bike disappeared into the night, she leaned back against the base, sighing wistfully.

Wow….

Mila made her way back inside, taking a glance to the side as she looked at her reflection in the metallic walls.

Her smoky makeup was running in trails down her face, her lipstick smudged, some of it covering part of her cheek from when she had absently swiped at it. Her shimmering dress was caked in grit and grime.

Her hair was tangled and partially matted… at some point, she had lost her hair clip.

Her face screwed up in horror as she realized there was a good bit of… was that BONE? Stuck in part of her hair!?

HE KISSED ME LOOKING LIKE THIS!?

She fell to her knees, throwing her head back.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Chapter Text

Chapter 23: Hey Brother

Uuuugh I can't believe they let me walk down there like that…

Mila had practically bolted for the nearest shower as soon as she had managed to pick herself up off the ground.

She refused to talk to anyone, just shouting a vague "I'M STAYING HERE TONIGHT!" over her shoulder.

At some point, she had stashed some clothes of her own over there, having spent a few nights a week over there at any point now. She had pajamas, casual clothing and her work clothes just in case, along with a makeup bag.

Scrubbing her face free of makeup, swapping her formal wear for pajamas… and deciding to just give up on her hair for the night after finally getting it clean again.

Part of it stuck up from static that she was convinced was caused mostly by hanging around Chiro now.

She wiped the steam off the mirror, glancing at herself, wincing.

That certainly was a look.

The dark circles under her eyes that her makeup oh so carefully concealed told a vastly different story of how she had actually slept the night prior and how her body was currently doing.

She looked… gray if she had to be honest. Though she hadn't been sleeping much as of late.

Stress'll kill ya, that's what Mom always said…

… Yeah, n,o that's probably gonna be my cause of death at this rate.

Does insurance cover "death by stress, caused by robot monkeys"?

Every muscle, every part of her cried for sleep but she pressed onwards, making her way to Chiro's elevator.

She still had a monkey to murder.

Nodding to herself with that decision squared away, she stepped inside.

Momentarily forgetting that the elevator still wasn't quite fixed as the platform vibrated under her feet.

With a shriek, she ascended.

"I HATE THIS PLACE!"

OF COURSE IT BEHAVES ITSELF FOR CHIRO! NOT ME THOUGH!

It screeched to a stop as she fell forward.

"UWAH!"

Her arms flailed as she tried to brace herself for the cold floor as it rushed up to embrace her face anew.

Only for her momentum to be stopped as she floated upside down.

"I believe we'll be avoiding more injuries today." Antauri cleared his throat, using a free hand to keep her from falling.

Mila sighed.

Forget murder.

She was too tired for that.

The moment her slippers met the ground, she marched over to the center of the room.

"Alright, I'm sure you guys have more pressing matters to discuss but I wanna make ONE new ground rule!" She looked over at Chiro. "Is that okay?"

Chiro sighed, looking up from his tablet, trying to catch up on some homework.

"Yeah, go for it."

"What!?" Sparx yelped. "Kid-"

"Hear her out."

Mila smiled, giving him a nod.

"Thank you." She took a deep breath. "Now…"

Her eyes narrowed into a glare, fixing it on the Hyper Force with a vengeance.

"Here it comes." Nova whispered.

Mila took a deep breath… before she completely deflated, exhaustion washing over her anew.

Chiro got up, hurrying over to steady her as she took a shaky step forward.

"W-Whoa, easy sis," He frowned, raising an eyebrow. "You look like crap."

She closed her eyes, sighing, chuckling a little.

"Thanks, it's a favorite look of mine."

"You should really sit down."

She sighed, rubbing her face with her free hand.

"Look, I just humiliated myself in front of a guy I really liked so let's make it quick. Are you guys in the middle of something important NOW?"

"No." Gibson sighed. "We were going to discuss tonight's battle but decided to delay that to tomorrow as Chiro needs rest and quite frankly, I think all of our nerves are shot."

She nodded.

"Alright, I'll make this quick… Please, for the love of the Gods and Goddesses of the universe itself, do not call me to just decide a PENALTY. Unless someone is dead or dying, please just let me enjoy my day off."

Chiro grimaced.

"It won't happen again, Sis."

"Thank you. Now… I'll be in my futon if you guys need me."

Mila stumbled back to the orange elevator before she decided to take Otto's instead.

"You didn't tell her." Antauri gave Chiro a concerned look.

Chiro shook his head.

"What good would it do to give her nightmares? I'll tell her tomorrow. Hyper Force… Let's go to bed."

oooooo

As night fell over the base, the Hyper Force retreated to their quarters for the night.

Chiro was so wiped out, by the time he was heading for his room, he nearly collapsed against the door as it slid open.

"Easy, Chiro…" Nova whispered as she helped steady him. "You're almost there."

"You guys are fussing too much." He mumbled. "I only hurt my arm. You and Antauri didn't have to escort me there."

"We wanted to."

Soon as the boy was in his bed, he was already drifting off as his head hit the pillow.

Nova brought the blanket up around him, minding the futon on the floor.

"You had a long day."

"I did… am I still grounded? Otto and Gibson said no but I wasn't sure…"

Antauri winced.

"No…" He shook his head. "You've been through enough."

Chiro heaved a huge sigh of relief, rolling onto his left side, minding his injury.

"Awesome… G'night guys."

Nova smiled, ruffling his hair up.

"Goodnight, Chiro. If you need us you know where we are."

Antauri nodded, adjusting the lights.

"Always."

The two headed out as the door slid shut behind them… as soon as it did, Nova leaned back against it, her tail curling up around her.

She lifted her head, motioning towards the elevators.

They kept quiet as they rode their respective tubes down to the main level, trying not to make too much noise.

As the door whirred open, allowing the night air to flow inside, the two moved to sit under a fruit tree in the area.

The park was so quiet this time of night. Nothing but the sound of running water from the stream and the wind that blew their fur and clothes around.

Nova brought her knees to her chest.

"What is on your mind, Nova?" Antauri asked, sitting across from her.

She looked up, her brows knitted together in concern.

"That stuff that… that monster was yelling at Chiro. He was mentioning things only we should've known about, Antauri… about…"

Nova trailed off, closing her eyes, bringing her tail around herself.

Antauri frowned, reaching over, resting a hand on her knee.

"I know." He said, softly. "I know… I miss him too."

"I shouldn't let it get to me, I know…" She growled, her tail unfurling, snapping around the air like a whip. She slammed it into the tree behind her as the metal tip of it bounced off. "I just keep thinking, if we're at the point where the ENEMY is telling Chiro about him… I dunno, I feel like we're doing him a disservice then."

Antauri frowned, moving to sit beside her.

"Mandarin was a lot of things. The end of his time here wasn't all that he was."

"Is." Nova corrected him. "He's still alive he's just not…" She looked down again. "... He's not okay. I don't know if he'll ever be okay. Did they even keep us updated on him?"

Antauri sighed.

"No… I can't get in contact with the facility."

This wasn't a conversation he wanted to have, yet he knew he couldn't avoid the subject forever.

Mandarin hung over the Hyper Force like a ghost. His presence was everywhere, yet nowhere.

A shadow that hung around the corner, out of the corner of your eye and when you looked, gone.

"You know, the first week Chiro was with us, I kept forgetting. Everything was so overwhelming and new and… I went to that room and for a minute forgot." Nova laughed bitterly. "I forgot my own brother lost his mind…"

Antauri reached over, squeezing her hand tightly.

"Nova… You don't need to relive it."

"No. Right now, I need to. Because the ENEMY wants Chiro to know before we can tell him. Did we even move his old weapons?"

Antauri opened his mouth then decided against it.

Nova raised an eyebrow, scoffing a little.

"I thought so." She gave him a sour look. "Still sealed in the wall panel?"

"Nova, let's not do this now…"

"Antauri, don't you dare run away from me with that cryptic bs. I'm your sister."

"You are… I suppose I can't run from it any longer."

Antauri shook his head, huddling closer to her as the breeze picked up anew.

They were quiet for a moment, enjoying the night air before Antauri spoke up again.

"Chiro has his tenacity."

"Yeah… He's wicked smart, almost too smart for his own good. He had us on the run today, didn't he?"

Antauri leaned his head back with a heavy sigh and a low growl in his throat.

"I really don't want to talk about that part anymore."

Nova smirked, giving him a knowing look.

Antauri was trying to play it off like he was unbothered but the way his tail was tightly wound around his waist said it all.

"You're embarrassed." She said in a teasing tone. "My big brother's actually embarrassed."

Antauri looked away, mumbling under his breath, his fur bristling. He would usually keep this side locked up tightly but Nova somehow always brought it out of him. She knew him better than he even knew himself…

And he knew she was right.

Nova poked his cheek, laughing a little.

"Nova, do we need to be doing this?"

"It's helping, isn't it?"

"I suppose…" He sighed, looking up at the stars.

Out here, the light pollution from the city didn't quite reach.

He could see it all oh so clearly as the cosmo's loomed overhead, millions of lights dancing across the skyline.

His grip on Nova's hand tightened.

He knew, deep down, what he was doing was wrong. That hadn't even been a question. He knew it was from the first time he suggested it.

The wound surrounding their former leader's absence was still raw though.

It was an ache he wasn't ready to acknowledge, yet now he was being forced to do so.

In one way, they were mourning his loss.

In another way, he knew burying his memory wasn't fair either. To himself, to the rest of the team.

To Chiro.

"I knew it was wrong to keep his destiny from him… but this… Nova, I did not want to hide him. I never did. I just," Antauri's voice cracked. "I keep thinking about how I have no idea what I'm doing. Comparing myself to him and wondering how he would handle it and then…" He growled low in his throat.

"Antauri?" Nova asked.

"Call me the worst but there's parts of me that can't stop being angry he isn't here with us. He should have been here. He should have been helping us with him." He chuckled bitterly. "Sometimes, I genuinely resent him for that. Isn't it pathetic?"

Nova brought an arm around his shoulders.

"It's not pathetic." She whispered. "He's our brother. It'd be like if Sparx or Otto lost it. Can you imagine those three dealing with it?"

"No… I really can't. I just keep going over it in my head. What to say, how to react, what do I actually reveal… I got us into a bind…"

"I know. I think we're all feeling that to some extent… but lying isn't the answer."

Antauri was silent, before he gave a nod.

"I'll tell him soon."

"How soon is soon? Be honest with yourself. Are you READY to face it?"

Antauri looked back at Nova, his gaze serious.

"I'm not going to let the Reaper use Mandarin's memory to intimidate Chiro."

Nova smiled, resting her head against his, purring a little.

"That's the Antauri I know."

"Heh…" He cleared his throat. "Now that we have this matter settled… How long do you think Mila will hold this grudge for?"

Nova busted up laughing.

Antauri looked at her, mortified.

"Stop it!"

"Antauri!" She wheezed, hitting the ground with her tail. "Have you ever heard the phrase "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned?"

He groaned, rolling his eyes.

"I swear, I could just throw you into space."

"Try me."

Chapter Text

Chapter 24: I'm Still Here

"After your checkup, I want to speak to you privately, Chiro."

Chiro nearly choked on his rice, taking a long swig of water to clear his windpipe.

"What!?"

Everyone was giving Antauri bewildered looks… aside from Mila, whose head was resting on the table, nursing her second cup of coffee.

Antauri sipped at his tea, keeping his cool.

"It's something I've decided is the right time to tell you. You'll understand soon."

"Uh… Okay." Chiro looked down at his breakfast.

He couldn't help but remember the few times he had been summoned to the principal's office in school.

Mila looked up, exhausted.

"Does this involve me?"

"No."

"Awesome."

Thunk!

Otto leaned over, poking her head.

A quiet snore escaped her.

"... I think she's dead."

Chiro sighed as he shook his head free of that memory.

The morning had been uneventful, knock on wood, aside from a good deal of catching up on missed school work and promising to call a friend later to update him about the "mystery girl" situation.

Aside from asking Otto to make sure Mila got home alright, because with the way his sister was behaving that morning he was partially convinced she might just take a nap in the middle of the park.

"Look, I know she loves plants but don't let her take a nap in the flowers."

"I won't!"

Vaguely, he wondered if this was part of a lesson he missed out on.

His lessons with Antauri tended to focus more on matters of the mind, versus straight up combat nowadays, trying to get his powers in check properly.

He raised his fist to knock.

"Come in, Chiro."

A chill went down his spine.

I'm never gonna get used to that.

The door slid open with a soft woosh.

Immediately, the scent of sandalwood and the sounds of running water caught his attention.

Antauri still had one of the most impressive rooms in the entire base.

He stepped inside, minding the small stream he walked over, trying not to trip on it (again).

Antauri sat in the center of the room, his eyes closed (as far as Chiro could tell).

"Seriously, you need to tell me how you do that whole "I know it's you" thing." Chiro chuckled, sitting down across from him.

Antauri chuckled with a small smirk.

"All in due time." His gaze softened. "How did it go?"

"Oh! Gibson said it's healing up okay. He added more synthetic membranes to help. It doesn't hurt as much as it did when I woke up though."

"That's good, that's very good."

"That isn't why you called me here though." Chiro's smile faded a little. "I know you."

Antauri sighed, waving a hand as a panel in the floor before them opened up.

A panel rose up, revealing two metallic gauntlets in a dark coppery orange color.

Chiro gave him a puzzled look, picking one up.

"I thought Otto would be the one giving me new weapons. You holding out on me?"

"No. Chiro, we need to talk."

… WHY DID HE WORD IT LIKE THAT!?

Antauri was dreading this conversation.

No matter how many times, he went over it in his mind, no matter how little sleep he actually got the night prior, trying to figure it out…

He was just going to have to rip off the bandage.

Chiro swallowed hard, setting down the gauntlet, looking up.

Antauri was tense, his fur bristling, clearly lost in thought.

"This is a joke. This is pathetic! I'm not going to be replaced!"

"Mandarin, the Verons wouldn't bring it up if it wasn't-"

"AFTER ALL I DID FOR THIS PLACE, IT'S NOT ENOUGH!? Didn't I give my EVERYTHING!?"

"Mandarin please-"

SHING!

"GET AWAY FROM ME!"

"AUGH!"

I'm a horrible brother.

Why am I still angry with him?

Why?

Breathe….

Don't be a horrible mentor because of it.

"Do you remember what the Reaper was trying to tell you yesterday?" He asked.

Chiro swallowed hard, his heart skipping a beat.

For a moment, he was back there, looking directly into those eyes.

He nodded slowly.

"Y-Yeah, I do." He frowned.

Now he was getting a better picture.

Antauri had only reacted like this to the first time they met as well.

"It has to do with your first leader, doesn't it? He kept trying to tell me something, about how… how something was missing."

"Unfortunately, yes. I believe it's time we have that talk."

Chiro nodded.

Antauri floated down so he was right in front of the boy.

"Chiro, there is no easy way to say this." He sighed.

Just say it. Just say it.

"Chiro, there was a sixth monkey."

He closed his eyes, bracing himself.

What…?

Now this was awkward.

Chiro rubbed the back of his neck, not sure what to say to him at the moment…

Oh boy, he's not gonna take this news well…

"Um… Antauri, I hate to break it to you… but I'm not shocked about that. I knew about that."

Antauri's eyes snapped open, looking at him stunned.

He didn't hear that right.

He didn't.

Chiro grimaced.

"Um… You know, when I woke you guys up, I was doing some research of my own. I don't know all the details - but it was kind of hard to miss your mugs on the front page of the Daily Trauma from back then."

He did hear that right.

Antauri exhaled sharply.

"What?"

Chiro looked down.

"You guys were clearly hurting and something was bothering you. So, I tried to ask Sis since she has more memories of back then than I do… She said it wasn't her place and to look it up at the library. So, I went there and looked at their historical files." Chiro glanced up. "I'm sorry. I didn't want to hurt you."

Antauri leaned his head back, chuckling as he shook his head.

Of course, after all that effort to keep it a secret… To keep it to themselves, to deal with.

Their clever boy had already figured it out and was trying to be weary of how to handle it as well.

Suddenly, as if all the air was sucked out of him, he fell backwards, quite undignified, letting out a laugh.

"Aahahaha… After all this pressure I've put myself under… you knew?"

"A little. Are you mad at me?"

"No!" Antauri shook his head. "I have been wracking my brain all night trying to figure it out and here you are… You really are a clever one."

Chiro smirked.

"Kind of have to be. You guys want a strong leader who can take care of you guys too."

And…

Keeping an unspoken promise.

"Take care of them, won't you?"

I will… I'm still gonna do that.

He took a deep breath.

"That's why I didn't react to it. Whatever that jerk had to say clearly wouldn't be the whole story. I don't know that monkey's name though…" He looked down at the gauntlets. "You guys don't pressure me to talk about MY parents so why would I do that to you?"

Antauri stood up, bringing his arms around Chiro tightly.

The boy's arms spread out in surprise before he wrapped them around Antauri.

"You've been hurting for a long time, haven't ya?"

Antauri sighed shakily.

"Seven years… I didn't want to put more pressure on you-Oh who am I trying to fool? I wasn't ready to face it. I wasn't ready."

"Shh… You don't need to relive it, you know."

"I said the same thing to Nova… but she talked sense into me." He pulled back, his gaze serious. "I refuse to let that monster taint my brother's memory."

Chiro picked up one of the gauntlets, a small smile on his face.

"Can you tell me about him?"

"I can… Mandarin was my older brother, mine and Nova's specifically-erm… Is. He was the first of us who was modified to be as we are now. He was our leader, strong, wise, powerful.." He sighed. "Chiro, you would've learned so much from him…"

"Did he… Did he pass away?"

"No…" Antauri shook his head. "Mandarin is not dead… as far as I know. It happened a long time ago. Mandarin…" He sighed.

Once again, it was like he was there.

A spirit, looming over them, watching…

"Over the course of our time on Shuggazoom, he became obsessed with protecting it. To his detriment. Perhaps now, we're overcompensating for not seeing it with him…"

"Antauri?"

Antauri looked away.

"It was after the Great Flood. There was such a loss of life that… that none of us could prepare ourselves for mentally. Least of all him…"

"You said Skeleton King feeds off of grief and the despair of others… He got him, didn't he?"

Antauri's face was solemn as he conjured up an image with energy.

A proud, orange monkey with a uniform that mirrored Antauri's, wielding the gauntlets Chiro had before him now. A long blue energy sword, from one, a shield on the other. He had dark orange optics, a cocky smirk on his face, as he stood beside Antauri in the image, his long orange scarf blowing in the wind.

"When the flood washed away the lives of our citizens… it also took my brother's mind with it."

Chiro reached over, using his hand to dispel the energy.

"Antauri… You don't need to keep going." His gaze was serious. "I'm not going to wind up like him. You can tell me more later but I can see how it's getting to you."

"I… I did not want to keep it a secret." Antauri's voice shook, "I felt like I had to. I'm sorry, Chiro."

"I'm not mad. Though… how about we both tell the others. huh?" Chiro offered. "Sounds like this is something, they all should get clued in on too."

He nodded.

"Chiro, I'm proud of you. I hope you realize that."

Chiro smiled, giving a nod.

"I do."

"And I think, if he had the chance to know you… so would Mandarin."

"Thanks, Antauri." Chiro grinned. "And… never be afraid to tell me this stuff, okay?"

"I'll try harder, I promise. I need to step up again."

"Hey… no one's perfect. You guys need to stop being so hard on yourselves."

Antauri chuckled, shaking his head.

If he truly gave you a chance…

He'd be surprised.

oooooo

The arena was his least favorite place on the ship. When he was brought here, he knew he was no longer human.

He was nothing but a pawn in an ancient game. He was there to be observed, to ensure he never changed his mind…

And to train his body, his mind against everything his opponents might send his way.

His heart was racing, his chest burned with every shaky breath he took.

There was no backing down.

Formless were coming in at every side, big hulking forces with long arms that ended in massive mallets made of sickly green bone.

The man rushed in the opposite direction, bolting for the wall nearest to him, using it to propel himself up and above them all.

His scythe activated in that moment as he swung it down, a massive beam of energy slicing through the forces without much effort.

The man was flailing as he fell. using the staff of his weapon to swing around before landing on his feet finally.

There was no armor, there was no special gear to aid his body's natural strength.

Just his jeans, a tank top and sneakers.

That's all he needed, along with his blade.

"Hah… Hah…"

His body screamed for rest, his bangs plastered to his face with sweat.

"Is that all you got!?" He called out.

A lull was not something he savored.

There was no such thing as a break aboard the Citadel of Bone.

He coughed as his lungs burned, desperate for any form of rest.

SHING!

A loud rumbling above his head caught his attention as he looked up.

The ceiling was made up of stalagmites of pure bone… as one began to fall his way, crumbling into thousands of shards.

The man yelped, spinning his scythe, managing to deflect a few before making a break for it.

The exit gate was blocked off by more bone fragments as he bolted in another direction.

"Tsk, tsk…" A voice from the shadows, hummed. "You're really going to try that?"

"I… I need five minutes. Just five." He pleaded. "Please, Sensei…"

An orange blur shot out of the shadows and before he knew it, he was disarmed, slammed head first into the wall.

His head bounced off of it as pain bloomed in his skull.

"AUGH!"

As his head fell forward, it was lifted up by the edge of a blade.

The man was dazed as he looked up at his teacher.

An orange monkey stood before him, wearing light orange pants, a belt with the Hyper Force's emblem. His helmet was mostly darker shades of orange, a pattern mimicking a skull across it, with a bright gem in the center. His feet clawed, encased in special boots that allowed him free movement.

His scorpion-like tail grabbed onto the Reaper's Scythe, effortlessly activating it without even needing the use of his hands.

"You falter, you die. Simple as that. Now, on your feet again, Reaper… Or should I use your true name?"

The man glared at him.

"Sensei… please…"

The monkey sneered.

"There is no break in war. On your feet! Or I can report you to our liege."

His eyes widened in fear before he was on his feet again, grabbing his weapon away from him.

"There's a good boy. Now… Show your master what you've learned."

The Reaper lowered his head before he dropped into position.

"What's the point? That boy isn't even worth the effort. If our Master's so afraid of him, why doesn't he just wipe him out?"

"Are you questioning him? After all he did for you too… Did you forget?"

"Mandarin-sensei… Don't you feel a little guilty?"

Mandarin narrowed his eyes.

"That's a pleasure I'm not allowed to have anymore."

He lunged, slicing at the man's side, only to have it blocked.

"Keep fighting or die. That's the only choice we have now." He narrowed his eyes. "Unless you want her to die again."

The man's eyes widened in fear.

"No…"

"Then, accept fate for what it is."

The man lowered his head.

"Yessir…"

"There's a good student. Now… Again."

The Reaper raised his blade, his green eyes narrowed.

"En-garde!"

Chapter Text

Chapter 25: This Lie is Love

As spring began to shift into summer, the warm weather was welcomed… but with it, brought changes all around as well.

The Hyper Force had shifted to focusing once more on Chiro's training, the boy now taking the time to learn how to use the different weaponry they had at their disposal.

On top of finding balance to spend time with Jinmay. The girl frequently invited herself over as soon as she could get away from lacrosse or her own work at the Ryokan.

Somehow, they had gotten a lull in activity and they were not going to waste a single moment getting both Mila and Chiro caught up on training.

Chiro stared down a holographic recreation of The Reaper.

The man's scythe was held at an angle as the holographic clone approached him.

Everything about him that the team could remember, along with the footage from the street cameras provided the "blueprint" for the holographic clone.

He chuckled as he moved in, lifting his scythe up.

Chiro took a few steps back, trying to slow his heart rate down.

This time, the entire team was at his side. There was no one on one training when it came to this foe in particular.

No one wanted to relive what had happened before.

The clone lunged right for Chiro as he dodged out of the way.

Otto moved in right after, launching his energy saws on their chain around the reaper's scythe in an attempt to disarm him.

The holo-clone whirled around, using the momentum to send Otto flying instead.

The green monkey yelped as he skidded across the floor before he was on his feet again.

Gibson and Sparx exchanged a nod before focusing their energy attacks.

"MAGNO BALL BLAZER!"

"SPIN SHOCKER!"

The Reaper's hologram shrieked as it was hit dead on, knocked across the floor.

"NOW!" Chiro called out.

Nova slammed her fists into the floor as the room trembled.

Antauri lunged over the hologram, claws outstretched.

His heart raced as he imagined just for a moment what he TRULY wished to do to this foe…

"Are you ready to die?" The hologram mocked him.

"No…" Antauri growled before slashing the clone across the face.

In a burst of pixels it vanished as he dropped to the floor, catching his breath.

"Whoa!" Sparx was a bit stunned. "That was brutal."

"Pardon me, I'm… getting some frustrations out." Antauri flexed his claws a bit before they turned back to normal.

Nova made her way over to him, squeezing his shoulder.

"He's right there. You're okay." Nova whispered. "He's safe."

Antauri looked over to where Chiro was.

He was looking at him with concern as his hyper mode faded away, revealing his usual shirt and jacket.

"I think that's enough reliving the "worst day ever" in the last few months, yeah?" Chiro made his way over to Antauri. "You okay?"

Antauri looked away with a heavy sigh. He had to admit, he was frustrated. While the Reaper hadn't made another appearance YET, he was preparing himself for the inevitable.

He supposed part of it was in fact processing it.

"I will be once this threat is taken care of." He replied, clearing his throat. "We'll revisit this scenario later. You still have quite a bit to learn. Next time we'll focus on the weaponry side of things."

Chiro's eyes lit up, giving his mentor a hopeful look.

"You mean…?"

"Yes… You can learn to use them."

"YES!"

The others exchanged a concerned look.

"What does he mean by that, Nova?" Sparx asked.

Nova shrugged.

"Don't look at me."

"You're his sister, you know how to read cryptic, mystic BS-"

"Just because I know it doesn't mean I'm fluent." She scoffed. "Besides, not like you're fluent either."

"Hey!"

Otto hummed in thought, looking around, mentally doing a headcount of everyone in the room.

"... Say, aren't we missing one?"

Chiro rolled his eyes.

"Five… four… three…"

His elevator arrived as Mila practically spilled out of it with a start.

"Nice to see you too. You plan this?" Chiro asked her, shaking his head.

"The one time I'm late! One!" Mila huffed. "And nice hello there!"

Nova smirked, raising an eyebrow.

"So, what was the excuse?"

Mila tapped her index fingers together, biting her lip with a sheepish grin.

"Ahaha… well um… I have a perfectly good explanation…"

Gibson narrowed his eyes.

"You weren't with that buffoon." He deadpanned.

Her smile grew even more sheepish.

Sparx groaned, putting a hand to his face.

"You're STILL with that guy!?"

"What?!"

"Mila Hanamura!"

"Oh, don't you Mila Hanamura me Gibson-!"

Chiro winced a little. He couldn't blame Sparx and Gibson entirely for their opinion of Ren.

He hadn't exactly made the best first impression.

In fact, oh boy their opinion of him went out the window as soon as sis started talking.

As he thought back to it, he cringed.

"Wow… So these are the mysterious monkeys." Ren leaned down to get a good look at Sparx and Gibson in particular. "So cool."

"Thanks but personal space, Kid." Sparx looked up from his "History of Space Flight" book.

The way Ren was looking at him… he didn't like it.

Mila had eyes completely for the guy though.

"Yeah, that's Goose and Maverick."

"Sparx and Gibson." Chiro interjected.

"So… which ones which?" Ren asked, with a grin. "Pink or blue?"

"PINK!?" Sparx exclaimed, growling. "Listen here you dense-"

"Now, now, Sparx…" Gibson grabbed his shoulder. "We shouldn't judge him too harshly. He is of… lower intelligence than us, clearly."

Mila gave them both an "I'm watching you" glare.

Although neither could shake off the glare Ren gave them… as if he did understand them… but then he turned to Mila.

"What are they saying?" He asked with a curious look.

"They're saying they're SO happy you stopped to visit."

Chiro rolled his eyes, putting a hand to his face.

"Ohh I thought they were talking crap." Ren laughed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Last thing I want is to really offend your family, y'know?"

He dug into a plastic bag he had with him.

"I did bring a present though."

Sparx and Gibson exchanged a look.

Ren pulled out of the bag, a bright yellow…

Bunch of bananas.

Sparx's eyebrow twitched and Gibson had to drag him away from the man.

"YOU DENSE SONOFA-!"

Ren blinked and looked at Mila.

"What'd I do? What?"

Chiro pinched the bridge of his nose.

He really couldn't blame them for that one.

"I'm just saying Mila, if he can't tell pink from red then he's not worth your time." Sparx pointed out. "Also, I'm not forgetting the bananas!"

Mila scoffed.

"It was one time. He didn't know."

"HOW COULD YOU FORGET TO TELL HIM THAT WE HATE THOSE THINGS?!"

"You're the only one who gets that angry over it and they were REALLY expensive too."

Otto shrugged.

"I thought they were yummy…" He mused. "I mean, bananas aren't my favorite but he was tryin'..."

Nova nudged Sparx.

"Let's just get back to it. How long do you have?"

"Two hours." She smiled. "Then it's date night."

"Got it. Alright everyone, back to work!"

oooooo

Maybe this was a mistake…

Mila scrolled through the songs on the screen, eying Ren out of the corner of her eye.

He had been acting normal up until now.

The loud revving of his motorcycle caught her attention from her apartment.

She leaned out the window, spotting him down below, waving up at her.

"Mimi! Come on! We're gonna be late!"

She grinned.

"You have any idea how long it takes to get this look right?!"

He laughed, shaking his head.

"Typical!"

She hurried down, throwing her arms around him, nearly knocking him off of the bike in question.

"Whoa!" He yelped, hissing a bit.

Mila pulled back, stunned.