Author's Note: Follow up to Data Draft 21 and dedicated to Jessangel249, whose favorite characters are the Cortez brothers.

Disclaimer: The Hot Wheels series is owned by the Mattel Toy Company, "Hot Wheels: Battle Force 5" is owned by Mattel and Nerd Corps Entertainment.

Battle Force 5 Data Drafts

Draft 22: Close Call

'Come on, just a bit further!' Sherman thought as he desperately struggled to get Spinner away from the edge. Cracking was soon heard below him. The cliff wasn't going to last much longer. He needed to pick up the pace or lose him for good.

Though the pair got rid of Krylox after some effort to fend off his clones, Krytus later arrived and sliced the top of the Buster Tank off. He threw the top aside over a cliff with Spinner still in it. The older brother was hanging on for his life by a rope Sherman threw near him.

The terrain proved very troublesome and it was hard to pull something back with deep snow slowing you down, even if you're going at full speed.

"Hey, bro?" Spinner asked, scared.

"Yeah?" Sherman asked back.

"I remember someone saying 'count your blessings before they're all gone'," he told him. "I don't need to do a whole lot of that now."

Rumbling was soon heard. Spinner panicked as soon as he looked down. He couldn't see what was below him from the snow storm, but whatever was down there would be the end of him. He was starting to get rope burns. And the rope was about to snap.

"Bro, don't look down!" Sherman warned him.

"Too late…" Spinner said in a meek voice. "Anyway, I've got a few blessings, and they're all flashing right before my eyes, but there's one thing that stands out the most."

"What's that?"

"You, Little Bro! You, the man who always helps me set things straight when I screw up. The man who helped me in high school so I could graduate with you. You're smart, strong, the man of the hour. I love you, Sherman!"

"You too, Spinner. There'll be more fun times up ahead, I just know it. Just gotta get through this toughie. Then we can put it all behind us and make up with the team."

"I'd give anything to see their faces again! Even my life!"

The rope finally broke and the cliff gave way, sending Spinner falling to an icy doom. "SHERMANN!" Spinner yelled as he fell down.

"Spinner! No!" Sherman yelled in panic and grief.

A loud whoosh entered his hearing. Sherman looked up, then at the windshield to find the SkyKnife making a nosedive down the Cliffside.

"The SkyKnife…Vert! Zoom!" he exclaimed, tears forming up in his eyes.


"Hang on to your helmet, Zoom! It's gonna be close!" Vert warned him as they plummeted down at a high speed.

The two pulled up on the controls, straightening the SkyKnife to jet cruising level while trying to keep their speed. Spinner landed on the front of the combined vehicle unharmed, a portion of the rope in hand despite his burns indicating that he should let go. He looked around and saw the two. Joy immediately swept through him.

They soon got back to solid ground above them. Sherman sighed in relief, and then got out of the tank. The other three got off of the SkyKnife.

"I owe you big time," Sherman said gratefully.

"So I guess we're cool, too, huh?" Vert asked.

"Yup," Sherman said smiling.

"Thank you! Thankyouthankyouthankyou soo much…!" Spinner wept as he hugged Zoom.

"Anytime," Zoom answered as he returned the embrace.

"That leaves Agura and Stanford," Vert said.

Sherman nodded and got back into the tank. He quickly ran some calculations and pinpointed their locations. "The Tangler and the Reverb are northwest 10 miles from here!" he pinpointed.

Spinner got out of Zoom's embrace and wiped the tears from his eyes. "The reunion's been fun, but let's get the others!" he said. He got back into the tank, and Vert and Zoom got back into the SkyKnife. A tremor rocked the hybrid.

"Time's running out!" Vert alerted Zoom. "Let's rescue them and head back to the portal."

They all sped off as fast as they can to get the rest of their teammates.