An Anniversary to Remember

A Road Rovers Fanfic

Story By: Phoenix710

Summary: Hunter and Colleen's first anniversary is upon them, and Hunter has a very romantic evening planned for the beautiful Collie he loves. He takes her out to dinner at the Italian restaurant Bellissima's, and they share a nice, romantic dinner. However, while they're talking out in the courtyard after dinner, before heading home, they are ambushed by renegade soldiers led by Colonel Tobias Strach, leader of the terrorist group "Black Dawn". While Hunter fights off several of Strach's men, Strach has his men sedate Colleen, and then they take off in Strach's Armored Personnel Carrier. Shaken, and beside himself with grief and fear for his wife, Hunter returns to headquarters, so that he can form a plan to save Colleen. Strach then delivers his demands over the world's satellite TV channels: Both the United States and Great Britain are to hand over to him ALL of their nuclear weaponry, and both countries are also to pay him a total of $110 Billion, within a week, or Colleen's execution will be televised via live satellite feed. Can Hunter save the one he loves, or will their first anniversary be their last?

Disclaimer: I do not own Road Rovers, or any of the characters associated with the series. Road Rovers is a registered TM of Warner Bros. Inc. However, Cassie and Alexander (Hunter and Colleen's twins), Samantha, Colonel Strach, and the Stealth Rover are all products of my imagination. The Military equipment that I refer to in this fic, such as the Su-37, T-90, Colt .45, etc., are properties of their respective countries' military forces.

Rated K+ (Just the normal amount of violence you'd expect from Road Rovers.)

Chapter One: Their First Year Together

It was just after nine in the morning, and Hunter was on the computer in the bedroom that he and Colleen shared at Road Rover Headquarters, checking prices for Italian restaurants in the area, since tonight was the first anniversary of his marriage to Colleen. He found that Bellissima's, the same restaurant that they had eaten at after capturing Osama Bin Laden, had the best prices. He picked up the phone and dialed the restaurant's reservation number. After waiting for a few minutes, Hunter heard the receptionist pick up. "Hello, Bellissima's Italian Restaurant. How may I help you?" Hunter answered, "Hi, my name's Hunter, of the Road Rovers. I'd like to make a reservation for tonight, to celebrate the first anniversary of my marriage to my wife, Colleen." Checking his book, the receptionist asked "Is 6:30 this evening convenient for you, sir?" Hunter said "Yes, that's fine. We'll see you later." Hunter then hung up the phone, and took out the gifts that he had purchased for their anniversary. The first one was a painting that he'd ordered from a shop that did custom works of art for any occasion. It showed Hunter and Colleen standing together, hand in hand, under a beautiful starry night sky, with the moon high overhead. Above the moon, in white letters, set into a red heart, was 'Hunter and Colleen-Together Forever'. In the background, mixed in with the sky, were the American flag above Hunter, and the British flag above Colleen. The second one was a white gold ring, with rubies and diamonds set into it, in the shape of a heart. Hunter had even composed a poem for her, which he planned on reading to her once they arrived home. Colleen walked into the room, after having fed Cassie and Alexander, and said "Morning, Huntie. What are you up to, love?" Smiling as he crossed the room and took his beautiful wife into his arms, Hunter said "I was just arranging some things for our anniversary tonight, since I want this to be a night we'll always remember." Colleen kissed Hunter passionately, then said "Huntie, I can't wait. You always have a way of making everything special, and I know that tonight will be no different." Hunter said "I made reservations at Bellissima's, that place we ate at after we caught Osama. We'll need to leave around 5:30, since I made the reservations for 6:30." Colleen was overjoyed; The dog that she loved more than anything, was taking her out one of the most romantic restaurants in the area, and he obviously had something else very special in mind for her, and she couldn't wait to celebrate the anniversary of when she had given her heart to Hunter, just as he had given his to her.

That day at lunch, The Rovers watched the news on TV, as they ate the soup that Samantha had cooked. Blitz and Samantha had recently begun to take a liking to each other, now that Blitz had begun to mature a great deal, since shortly after their return from aiding the Samurai Pizza Cats last year. He had made his peace with Hunter, and Colleen had stopped her incessant teasing of the Doberman. This had worked out well for the entire team, as they could now operate as a well-oiled machine, with no conflicts about who should lead, or who should have the affections of Colleen. Blitz had been overjoyed when Hunter and Colleen had returned from their honeymoon, and he clearly enjoyed the collection of sports DVD's that Hunter and Colleen had bought for him, as well as the souvenir picture book that showed aerial photos of Hawaii's major tourist spots. Samantha had looked through the book with him, and commented that she'd love to go sometime, if the opportunity presented itself. She had also talked with Colleen about her time there, and Colleen had told her how wonderful it had been to just be alone with Hunter for a solid week. Moonlight tropical beach walks, sightseeing, scuba diving, shopping, and some of the best food she'd ever had, plus the fact that she now knew that she would always be with Hunter, made it an occasion that she'd remember for the rest of her life. Hunter had told Blitz the same thing when he'd asked about it, and had also chatted about it with Exile. Exile's response had been "I am so happy for you, comrade! I hope that someday, I can find someone to make me feel like you do with each other." Hunter had smiled, and replied "I'm sure that you'll find someone, Exile. Heck, Blitz and Samantha are starting to get pretty close, so I'm sure that you'll have no trouble finding a girl for yourself one day." After they finished lunch, and cleaned up, the Rovers went to do their own things. At around 5:00pm, Hunter turned off his XBox, after saving his progress on Halo, and headed in to take a shower, so that he'd be clean and fresh for the evening. After he got out, he changed into his formal attire; a navy-blue suit jacket and pants. Colleen headed into the shower next, and then she put on a beautiful red evening dress that made her look, in Hunter's opinion, absolutely radiant. "Colleen, you look even more beautiful than usual!"; Hunter said, offering her his hand, which she gladly accepted. After placing Samantha and Exile in charge of watching their twins, the couple headed down to the vehicle hangar, climbed into the Street Rover, and headed out. They had no idea, however, that this wouldn't exactly be a totally romantic evening.

Chapter Two: Enter Strach and Black Dawn

It was just before morning at Gorovski Airbase in Russia, about 25 miles from Moscow. A Russian Il-76 Transport was offloading a shipment of Su-37 Terminators, the latest Russian fighter aircraft. It was sleek, powerful, and extremely maneuverable. It had thrust-vectoring engines, and a top speed of 1,516mph, and was equipped with an internally mounted GSh-30-1 30mm cannon, and a variety of missiles. The last of the fighters had just been offloaded, when the transport, which had just begun to taxi away for takeoff, exploded in a massive fireball. The perimeter fence around the base was flattened, as several Russian-made T-90 Main Battle Tanks, painted with an unknown insignia on the turret, began a furious assault. The tanks were armed with a 125mm turret-mounted smoothbore cannon, a 7.62mm forward-mounted anti-personnel machine gun, and a rear-mounted 12.7mm anti-aircraft/anti-personnel machine gun. The base's personnel, armed with Ak-47 Assault Rifles, and hand grenades, tried valiantly to stop the invaders, but it wasn't long before the base was in complete shambles. The barracks, officers' quarters, and the command building, as well as the Communications Tower, were obliterated. The only buildings left were the Armory, and the aircraft hangars. Three transports touched down, and men wearing black and silver uniforms climbed out, and began loading the disassembled Su-37's, as well as their weapons, and fuel for the fighters, onto their C-17 transports. One man stepped out and raised a pair of high-tech binoculars to survey the scene. He was a tall, dark haired individual, who wore a golden pauldron on each shoulder, and carried a massive Russian-made MP-412 REX revolver, which fired powerful .357 Magnum rounds, from a six-shot rotary cylinder. He also carried an American Ka-Bar combat knife, which had a 6-inch long carbon steel blade, and a Colt .45 M1911A1 American WWII vintage pistol. This was Colonel Tobias Strach, a renegade U.S. Army officer, who now led the terrorist group Black Dawn. He planned to use the stolen Su-37's as part of his plan to steal the nuclear weapons from both the United States and the United Kingdom, then turn them over to anyone who'd be willing to pay the right price for them. One of his men walked up, and said, "Colonel, the fighters are all loaded, and we're ready to go." Smiling, Strach said, "Excellent. Let us take our leave." Within minutes, the Black Dawn force took off, leaving behind them a completely razed military base. Strach then began to devise the next part of his plan. One of his officers approached him, and said "Sir, perhaps we can use some leverage to make the United States and the United Kingdom a bit more likely to agree to handing over their nuclear stockpiles." Strach turned towards him, and said, "What do you have in mind, Captain Reiner?" Reiner pulled out a newspaper, and opened the page to the section on weddings and anniversaries. He then pointed to one entry in particular. "See this, sir? These two here, Hunter and Colleen, are the two highest-ranked members of the elite canine crime-fighting team known as the Road Rovers. Hunter, the team's leader, is the pet of the President of the United States, and Colleen, their second-in-command, is the pet of the Prime Minister of Great Britain. If we were to grab the Collie, I'm sure that it'd motivate her husband to persuade the President to hand over the American nukes, and the Brits would hand over theirs, as well as the money you want from both countries, in order to fund our organization. I've been on the phone with one of our operatives back in the States, and he says that the two Rovers are eating dinner at an Italian Restaurant in New Mexico, called Bellissima's. We can head down there, grab the Collie, then take her back to our fortress in the Amazon." Strach considered this for a moment, then replied "Excellent idea, MAJOR Reiner. Consider yourself promoted." Reiner thanked his commanding officer, then relayed Strach's orders to the pilot of Strach's personal C-17 Globemaster III transport aircraft, to head for one of their temporary staging areas in the U.S., so they could assemble a strike force for the purpose of abducting Colleen.

Chapter Three: Anniversary Interrupted

Hunter and Colleen arrived at Bellissima's, parked the Street Rover, and headed in. Hunter confirmed their reservation, and a waiter promptly took them to their table for two. A glass of ice water, and a basket of breadsticks was placed on the table for each of them, and the waiter then handed each of them a menu, and said that he'd be back to take their orders in about five minutes. Colleen looked over at Hunter, and said, "Huntie, I never thought I'd find myself here, with you, sharing such a wonderful night. I mean, I was born on the streets, I grew up having to fight for my food, and I never really knew my father. My mum died when I was still young, and then the most wonderful thing happened to me…I was called by The Master, and I met you and the others. I wouldn't give this life up for anything. I love you so much, Huntie, and I always want to be with you, forever." Hunter took Colleen's hands in his, and said, "Colleen, I never really knew my dad either, but I loved my mom. Before I became a Road Rover, I was on the move a lot. I was born in Wyoming, and then I wound up in California, where I was almost put to sleep, before The Master called me. I'm so glad he did, because it allowed me to meet you. Colleen, there's nothing that I won't do for you, and I won't ever let anyone hurt you, the twins, or any of the rest of the team. I love you more than words can say, and that will never change." Hunter then kissed Colleen on the cheek, and then pulled away when their waiter came back. "May I take your orders now?"; he asked. Colleen said, "I'll have the Spaghetti and meatballs, with Parmesan cheese, and a salad with croutons and ranch dressing, and a root beer." Writing Colleen's order down on his notepad, the waiter then turned to Hunter, and asked, "What can I get for you this evening, sir?" Hunter said, "I'll have the Spaghetti and meatballs as well, with Parmesan cheese, and I'll also have the salad and croutons, but make my dressing Creamy Caesar, and I'll also have a root beer to drink." The waiter jotted down Hunter's order, then took their menus, and told them that their food would be ready in about a half-hour. To pass the time, Hunter and Colleen began chatting with each other about various topics, until Hunter's wristwatch beeped. Hunter knew it was the built-in communicator, and he growled lightly, hoping that he wouldn't have to leave and ruin the night he'd so looked forward to spending with Colleen. "Hunter here, go ahead." Exile's face appeared on the screen, and he said, "Comrade Hunter, a Russian base was attacked three hours ago, and several new Su-37 jet fighters were stolen. We're still working on who the culprit is, but Master hasn't issued a recall order yet. Enjoy your night out, and I'll talk to you and Colleen when you get back." Concerned, Colleen said, "Something wrong, Huntie?" Hunter said, "Exile just told me that there was an attack by unknown assailants on a Russian airbase. They stole a bunch of new jet fighters, and they're still trying to figure out who's behind it. Exile said we're still free to enjoy our night out, and he'll fill us in when we get home." Just then, their waiter brought out their food, and Hunter and Colleen banished the news of the attack from their thoughts, and concentrated on enjoying their anniversary. Once they finished eating, they decided to go out into the courtyard for a while. Hunter walked outside with Colleen, and they sat down on one of the benches near the fountain. The moon was out, and the sky was ablaze with stars. Colleen was amazed by the overwhelming beauty of the night, and she said "Huntie, it's so lovely out here tonight…I don't think I've ever seen anything more breathtaking." Hunter pulled her close, and said, "I have, Colleen. I'm sitting here holding her in my arms right now. You are the most beautiful creature in all of creation. Your eyes are like polished blue sapphires, your face is a work of art, and your beauty is beyond compare. I swear to you, Colleen, that I will never, ever leave you, and you will always be in my heart." Colleen's eyes began to mist up with tears, and she pulled him closer, thinking that nothing could possibly ruin this night, until she suddenly heard the distinct chatter of an Ak-47. She and Hunter both dove to the ground, and when she looked up, she saw at least ten armed soldiers wearing silver and black uniforms, all with their weapons trained on them. One of the men stepped forward, and said, "Listen up, Collie. You'll come with us, or the mutt there is gonna get his brains splattered all over the courtyard. I don't think you want to be picking bits of him off that pretty dress, do you?" Hunter growled angrily, then said, "I don't know who you guys are, but you're not laying a finger on my wife!" With that, Hunter charged forward, bent the first assailant's left arm back, then kneed him in the gut, dropping him in an unconscious heap. Colleen, meanwhile, had just judo-flipped another soldier into the fountain, and said, "There, that should cool you off." Turning to help Hunter, Colleen suddenly heard a hiss, then her vision went blurry, as she felt a hypospray go into her neck. "Lights out, pretty lady", said Strach, as he caught Colleen, before she hit the ground. After Hunter had dispatched the last of his opponents, he turned around, and was horrified when he saw Colleen being carried off. "LET HER GO, NOW!!!!!", Hunter said, attempting to move in and save his beloved wife. Strach pulled a smoke grenade off of his belt, and tossed it. It exploded, and Hunter began coughing. By the time the smoke cleared, Hunter made it out into the parking lot, just in time to see Strach and his men place Colleen into the back of an M-2 Bradley Armored Personnel Carrier. He tried to move in, but the APC swiveled its M242 25mm chain gun in his direction, and opened up. Hunter dove for cover behind a wall, and the APC then took off. Fighting back tears, Hunter made his way back to the Street Rover, and headed back to headquarters. He was determined to rescue his wife, and god help whoever got in his way.

Chapter Four: Hunter's Heartache, and Strach's Demand

Hunter arrived back at headquarters at about 11:00pm, and headed up to his room, where he spent the next half hour crying, until Exile knocked on the door. Hunter opened the door, and Exile said, "Comrade Hunter, what is wrong…where is Comrade Colleen?" Hunter replied, "Some goons ambushed us at the restaurant and kidnapped her. I tried to stop them, but they had an M2 Bradley with them, and it opened up on me. I didn't get hit, but they got away with her. I'm worried sick, Exile. I don't know if she's alive, dead, or what they're doing to her right now. I swear though, if they hurt her, I'll make them wish they'd never been born!" Exile said, "Don't worry, Comrade. We'll all help you get her back." Blitz arrived outside the door as well, along with Shag and Samantha. Samantha said, "Hunter, The Master wants us all in the Briefing Room. Someone named Colonel Strach is about to deliver some kind of demand." Five minutes later, the Rovers had all assembled, and The Master flipped on the vidscreen. Strach appeared onscreen, and Hunter said, "That's him! He's the one that was leading those goons that kidnapped Colleen!" Strach said, "Attention, I am Colonel Tobias Strach, leader of Black Dawn. This is a demand to the governments of both the United States of America, and Great Britain. You have one week to turn over to me ALL of your nuclear armaments, from your smallest tac nuke, to your largest ICBM (InterContinental Ballistic Missile), along with a total of $110 Billion Dollars. If my demands are not met, then the British Prime Minister's precious pet will be executed via firing squad, on live worldwide satellite TV. I'm sure that won't sit too well with a certain mutt out there, who leads the Road Rovers. You can find me somewhere in the Amazon Rainforest. So long for now." The video ended, and Hunter slammed his fist down on the table, denting it. Blitz said, "I am so going to bite that pompous scumbag's tooshie, and make his soldiers scream like little girls." Hunter then said, "I've got a plan. We'll take the Stealth Rover, go in under cloak, and since we'll be dealing with those stolen Su-37's, we'll load her for combat. Shag, you stay here and help The Master watch Cassie and Alexander. The rest of you are coming with me. Samantha, you're trained in first aid, so bring some supplies. Colleen might be hurt, and I don't want to lose her after we save her. Exile and Blitz, get the Stealth Rover ready for flight. Muzzle, you'll come with us too, since we might need you for crowd control." The Master said, "Good luck, Rovers. I'll be waiting for your safe return." Hunter then turned towards the team, and said, "LET'S HIT THE ROAD, ROVERS!!!!!"

Chapter Five: Battle in The Amazon Skies

The Stealth Rover, flying with it's cloaking system activated, arrived over the Amazon Rainforest after a three-hour flight from HQ. Hunter had the sensors going over every inch of the jungle floor below them, trying to get a lead on Strach's hidden base. Suddenly, Exile said, "Comrade Hunter, radar is picking up ten bad guys, coming in fast. Targeting computer says that they are Su-37 Terminators, the same ones as were stolen by Strach." Gritting his teeth, Hunter said "Okay, Rovers…let's see what the Stealth Rover can do!" After deactivating the cloaking system and rolling hard to the left to avoid a barrage of 30mm cannon fire from one of the Su-37's, Hunter yanked the stick back, went into a skyscraper climb, then streaked downward. Once he had pulled in behind the enemy fighter that had fired on them first, Hunter flipped the Master Arm switch for the 30mm GAU-8A Avenger eight-barreled gatling cannons to ON. Centering the gunsight on his opponent's fighter, Hunter pressed the trigger on the control stick, and the enemy fighter was nearly sawed in half, and the pilot ejected. Hunter blew a wing off of the second enemy aircraft. The lethal 30mm depleted uranium armor piercing rounds shredded the Su-37's armor like tissue paper, and the entire right wing blew clean off, and some of the rounds tore into the air intake as well, damaging the engine. The pilot bailed, and Hunter told Samantha to tag their landing points on the Stealth Rover's nav computer, so that after they mopped up the enemy fighters, Hunter could download the data into his handheld computer, track down the pilots, and interrogate one, so that they could learn the location of Strach's base and save Colleen. An R-73 Archer heat-seeking missile, identified as such by the Stealth Rover's targeting system, streaked by on the left side, and Hunter deployed one of the Stealth Rover's flares to get the missile off of them. The missile went head on at the flare, and detonated. Pulling a Split-S, Hunter brought the Stealth Rover's four wing-mounted laser cannons online, and let rip. The Su-37's left vertical tailfin, as well as most of the left wing, was slagged instantly by the white-hot energy bolts. Hunter shot down two more of the enemy fighters in the same fashion. Three more of Strach's fighter's came in from behind, and Hunter executed a Cobra Maneuver, which involved pulling the fighter into a 90-degree angle climb, causing the three enemy fighters to streak past underneath the Stealth Rover. Hunter then leveled out, and engaged the QAAM missiles. The first enemy fighter was struck dead center in the right engine, blowing the aircraft in half. The second one was hit in the left wing, and the third one tried to pull evasives, but failed miserably. The lethally accurate QAAM came streaking into his right wing, and completely blew it off. The shrapnel from the destroyed wing shredded the enemy fighter's right engine turbines. All three pilots ejected, and Samantha tagged their locations, as per Hunter's order. Now with only two bogies remaining, Hunter decided to take them out with style. They came at him in tandem, one from the front, the other from the rear, both firing a missile as they came. Hunter pulled a hard diving roll, then accelerated towards the fighter in front of them. At the last second, Hunter pulled up, then went inverted, the Stealth Rover's cockpit passing just inches over the enemy fighter's cockpit. Seconds later, the enemy pilot saw his own wingman's missile streak towards him. He ejected, and his fighter was blown into a fireball. Hunter pulled the same trick with the last enemy pilot, with the same result. Finding a clearing, Hunter landed the Stealth Rover, then he downloaded the locations of the ejected pilots into his portable computer. Hearing noise about five feet away, Hunter motioned for the rest of the team to follow him, and they soon found the enemy pilots. They had regrouped, and were trying to escape back to their base. Hunter jumped one of them from behind, wrestled him to the ground, and said, "Listen up, buddy. You're gonna tell me EXACTLY where your boss is holding my wife…or else!" Smirking, the enemy pilot drew his gun, but Hunter kneed him in the crotch, causing the enemy soldier to scream in pain. Pinning the man against a tree, Hunter said, "Don't try and get cute like that again pal. I'm going to ask again…WHERE IS MY WIFE BEING HELD?!" The enemy pilot spat on Hunter's chest armor, then said, "Hell will freeze over before I betray Black Dawn, you stupid mutt!" Shaking his head, Hunter said, "Okay, I guess we do things the hard way. Samantha, let Muzzle loose on his friends over there. Seeing Muzzle's brand of mayhem should loosen his tongue." Samantha replied, "Sure thing, Hunter." Walking over to the insane Rottweiller, Samantha untied the straps that bound him to the cart, then released the straitjacket. With a fierce snarl, Muzzle launched himself like a torpedo at the nearest soldier, and tore him up beyond all belief. Blitz looked like he was about to hurl, and Samantha said, "Since Colleen's not here, I'll say it…Eeewww…gross!!!" Before long, Muzzle had taken out all nine of the enemy pilots, and Hunter could see that the last one was shaking like a leaf in the breeze. He looked the man straight in the eyes, and said, "Last chance, man. Either you talk, or Muzzle gets dessert." The soldier cracked within seconds, and said "H-here's my map. The base is f-five m-miles due east, across the river." Hunter punched the data from the map into his minicomputer, then punched the soldier's lights out. Exile and Samantha then grabbed the other goons, tied them to trees, while Blitz removed their weapons and radios, leaving them with only their knives, flashlights, compasses, and their canteens and ration packs. After that, the Rovers set off for Strach's base, determined to save Colleen before it was too late.

Chapter Six: Rovers to the Rescue!

After a thirty minute flight in the now cloaked Stealth Rover, Hunter and the others arrived outside Strach's base. Samantha took out one of the guards as he walked past her concealed position. She grabbed him in a choke hold, knocking him out. She then stuffed his unconscious body in a hollow log. Hunter lobbed a sleeping gas-filled tennis ball grenade into the clearing around the base, knocking the rest of the enemies out, while Exile took out the exterior alarm system. Blitz called out with, "I found an air vent. We can use this to get inside and save Colleen, ja?" Hunter looked over, and said, "Nice work, Blitz. Let's go, Rovers. Colleen needs our help, and Strach's gonna pay for ruining our anniversary." The Rovers crawled in one at a time, and began making their way to Strach's control room, after Samantha got the location from a maintenance worker she had captured.

Inside his command center, Strach knew that things were starting to go sour. The ten Su-37's he'd sent out on patrol had been destroyed, and he hadn't heard from the pilots. In addition, the alarms both inside and outside his base were out, and the guards outside weren't responding to his calls. Looking over at the unconscious form of Colleen, who he had been keeping sedated with food laced with chloryl hydrate, he said, "You better hope your lover boy's a good fighter, puppy, or he'll be joining you in the big doghouse in the sky." Reiner ran up to Strach and reported. "Sir, those mutts are almost here. Sections two through seven are not responding, all internal defenses are down, and…" He was cut off, as the two-foot thick titanium door of the command center suddenly exploded. Through the hole came the Road Rovers, and they began taking out Strach's men with a vengeance. Samantha jump kicked one of the guards near the chair that Strach had Colleen strapped to, and then she drilled an uppercut into another one. Exile froze five guards, then bashed another one in the head, dropping him like a rock. Blitz saw one guard take aim at Samantha with an M-16, and he charged forward, clamping his powerful fangs onto the weapon, shattering it. He then pulled out a toothpick, cleaned his teeth, and said, "You've been a bad, bad human. Now Papa Blitzy is going to have to punish you!" Blitz started chasing the guard around, finally cornering him and biting him in the rear. The guard screamed, and was about to run away, when Exile froze him. Strach knew it was over, so he pulled his MP-412 REX .357 Magnum, and was about to aim it at Colleen. He said to Hunter, "Since I'm obviously not going to get the cash and the nukes I want, your precious wife is going to be put to sleep, WITH A LEAD MIGRAINE!!!" Hunter shouted, "NO ONE THREATENS THE LIFE OF THE ONE I LOVE, STRACH!!! YOU'RE GOING DOWN!" Hunter charged forward, and tackled Strach. He smashed the wrist of Strach's gun arm into the wall, breaking it, and Exile then took the gun, as it hit the floor. Strach tried to bring his leg up and kick Hunter off, but Hunter dodged the kick, and gut-punched Strach. He followed up with a right hook to the face, blocked a pair of uppercuts, then smashed Strach's nose with an open-handed palm strike. Finally, Hunter pinned Strach to the wall, and began punching him furiously. Strach's face was heavilly bloodied, and he was just barely conscious. Hunter pulled back to hit him again, and then Samantha and Exile both grabbed his wrist. "Hunter", Samantha said, "We need to worry about getting Colleen back to HQ, and Strach needs to go to Leavenworth, so he can be put somewhere secure until he stands trial." Exile said, "Da, she is right, Comrade Hunter. We cannot kill, even though I know you want to. Samantha says that Colleen's just sedated, and she can counteract the sedatives once we get back to Stealth Rover." Hunter said, "Fine. Samantha, you take Colleen out to the Stealth Rover. Blitz, cover her in case any more guards show up. Exile, you take Strach, and I'll join you." Moments later, Exile wired the base with demolition charges, after downloading all of Strach's data from the computers, so it could be used against him at his trial. He then pressed the detonator after everyone had made it outside and made it safely back to the Stealth Rover. Hunter said "Let's take it on home, Rovers!" With that, the Stealth Rover took off, headed back to Road Rover HQ.

Chapter Seven: A Love that will never die

After the Rovers arrived back at HQ, The Master told Hunter that he and Shag had experienced no problems at all with Cassie and Alexander. Hunter said, "Master, we rescued Colleen, and Strach is down for the count in Leavenworth." The Master said, "Well done, Rovers. You're good dogs. Good, good dogs." Hunter then said, "TO THE POWER OF THE PACK!!!!" The other Rovers responded with a resounding "AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHRRRRRRRRRRRROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" The twins were now sleeping, and Professor Hubert came into the meeting room, and said, "Hunter, may I have a word with you?" Hunter followed Hubert over to a corner of the room, and said, "How's Colleen, is she awake yet?" Professor Hubert nodded, and said, "She's awake, but she's still pretty tired. You can go in to see her, I'm sure she's itching to see you. After all, you two DO have an anniversary to finish, right?" Smiling for the first time in quite a while, Hunter said, "Thanks, Professor." Walking into the medical lab, Hunter found his beautiful wife still in her dress. She, and the dress, had been cleaned up, and she smiled radiantly when she saw him. "Huntie!!! I didn't think I'd ever see you again!" Colleen broke down in tears, and Hunter rushed to her side, taking her hands in his. "Colleen, I'm so sorry this happened. I should've fought those goons off sooner, so I could have saved you." Colleen shook her head, then said, "Huntie, it's not your fault. They caught us totally unprepared. I'm just glad to finally be back home with you and the others, where I belong." Hunter smiled, and hugged her, never wanting to let her go. He then said, "Professor Hubert said that you can come back to the room with me, but he wants us to take it easy for awhile, until you've gotten all your strength back." With Hunter's help, Colleen walked out of the MedLab, down the hallway, and up to their room. Samantha turned to Blitz, and said, "It's nice to have everyone safe and sound. Thanks for saving me back there, Blitz." Blitz smiled, and said, "Ya, no problem. Anything at all for the one I love." Samantha was shocked. "D-did you just say you l-love me?" Blitz said, "Ya, I did." Samantha embraced him, and said, "I love you too, Blitz. Goodnight." Blitz said, "Goodnight, Samantha. See you tomorrow." Blitz and Samantha kissed each other on the cheek, then headed to their bedrooms. Exile smiled happily. Blitz had definitely changed for the better.

Hunter and Colleen had arrived back in their room, and Colleen had checked on Cassie and Alexander, who were fast asleep. With Hunter's help, she made her way over to their bed, and sat down, enjoying the feel of the soft mattress. She had changed into her nightrobe with Hunter's help, and Hunter decided that now would be the best time to give her the presents. "Colleen, I have something here for you. I meant to give it to you last night, but Strach had to interfere." Pulling out the ring first, he handed her the box, and she opened it. "Oh…Huntie, it's beautiful. Thank you so much!"; Colleen said, sliding the ring onto her other ring finger. Hunter then pulled out the painting he'd had done for them, and she gasped "Huntie…I…I love you so much! I will never forget this night, as long as I live." Hunter then said, "Colleen, I have one more gift I'd like to give you. It's a poem I wrote." Hunter cleared his throat, then began reading the poem he had composed for the beautiful Collie he loved.

"To my beloved wife:

Though we were both born an ocean away,

Fate had us meet on that one special day.

From the first, I fell in love with you.

I'm so glad we finally said 'I do'.

Nothing will ever break us apart.

If I were to lose you, it would break my heart.

You mean more than the world to me

I know that meeting you was my destiny.

I will love you now, and forever more.

Love always, Hunter."

Colleen wiped tears from her eyes, then said, "Oh Huntie…that was so beautiful. I love you, and I never want to be apart from you." Hunter climbed into bed next to her, gently wrapped his arms around her, and said, "Colleen, I love you too, and I'll never let you go. We'll remain together forever." Hunter kissed Colleen passionately, then, after looking deep into her beautiful light blue eyes for a few minutes, he said, "Goodnight, Colleen. Happy Anniversary." Colleen smiled, then replied, "Goodnight, Huntie. Sweet dreams." Hunter pulled Colleen close, happy to finally be reunited with the one he loved. Minutes later, Hunter and Colleen were fast asleep. They both knew that nothing would ever break them apart.

The End.