The next chapter and still I don't own the Biker Mice from Mars, I only own the storyline and some of the characters I've come up with in my imagination. Hope you like it and please review!

-SpaceFlora

p.s. slight revision done

The New Dawn of the Red Planet

Chapter two

Welcome Home

Modo woke up to a loud noise. The engines of the spacecraft were suddenly humming loudly back and forth which meant that they were trying to break from the fast speed the ship was travelling through space. That could only mean that they were on Mars. They were home! Modo quickly got up from the bunk and rushed to the command centre where Carbine was drinking something hot that steamed in her cup while looking at the meters (honestly, did she ever sleep?) and the scene that was opening infront of them. Modo noticed Throttle and Vinnie were already up and they all looked at the red planet that was coming fast towards them, well it seemed that way, of course it was the other way around and they were rushing towards the planet.

The closer they got the more details they could pick up from the surface of the red planet. First there was only red everywhere and high mountains here and there and it seemed like there was nothing more. Ofcourse the mice population lived in the caves and an area that looked deserted from above, could still be inhabitated with a large population. But closer the craft came to the planet, there started to rise towers and big facilities made out of steel. You can't hide the entire planet inside the caves after all.

The area where they were landing soon was the Martian Mice' Army Base. The bros looked at the scenery and it looked like even Vinnie was anxious to set his foot on the home ground again. Modo wondered how long it'll last before his lil' bro would sink into the river of misery again. Carbine took a seat and started to talk to the command centre down at the Army Base. The soldier who was controlling the ship started to press buttons and apparently unlock some of the automatic functions to manual mode and then put his hands on a box-shaped wheel.

"Landing started, General." He quickly announced and Carbine nodded and gave the bros a look but had to turn her look away, trying to prevent a laughter that was to escape her mouth. The three macho male mouses looked eager as kids. The General just continued to sip her hot beverage and smile to her cup. There's nothing like the feeling when you get home after a long time. She then remembered something and put the mug away and went to one cabin and took few items of clothing. When the bros gave her a curious look she only gave them a smile and threw them their Freedom Fighters' vests and tank tops.

"Come on, put these on! You're now entering an area where there are infact some codes and regulations how to be dressed...That look..." Carbine vaguely pointed their naked upper bodies.

"...may have worked in another planet... But in the Base you're not wandering around half-naked..." Carbine raised Throttle an eyebrow. Vinnie gave the pieces of clothing a look on his hand.

" ...and hide my studly body?! C'mon this was after all a gift from the Gods to the people of Mars!" Vinnie gave a cry and his bros were laughing at the glimpse of the usual Vin but put changed the clothes on.

"We're at the moment training a new generation of soldiers... And I don't want them to get bad influence from you guys." Carbine joke and sat down and made a gesture for the bros to do the same.

" I suggest you to take a seat before the ride gets bumpy. Landing a spacecraft can be a tricky job..."

x

x

After the landing Modo searched for his bag and threw it over his shoulder as he got in line to get out of the spacecraft. It was a rather dim and massive hall they entered. There were soldiers and people working at the Army Base hurrying around, doing their tasks, many of them curiously taking a good look at the ones who were walking out of the spaceship. It felt odd to enter the Army's Base, after all during the time they were shot to Earth, Freedom Fighters and the Army still were two separate forces. It seemed to interest also the soldiers in the Base who noticed them wearing the Freedom Fighters' vests. Mars had been only just starting to build itself again and one of the things that had changed was that one branch of Fighters had joined the Army. Stoker hadn't been that thrilled of the idea and he had declined to work with the new government. But after the war it was a sensible career move so to speak for a lot of Fighters who just didn't want to become normal civilians again to join the Army.

"Just out of curiosity, babe..." Throttle talked to Carbine.

"Why did you give us the Fighter vests and didn't make us to wear the Army clothes? We could've fit in better and not catch any attention..." Throttle talked as he looked around the Base and the looks that the soldiers were giving them.

"Speak for yourself, I like the attention...!" Vinnie said as he waved to the soldiers around them like the Queen of England.

"Well...Since technically you're not part of the Army...See, you'd have to make a contract and all... If you want to continue to play with the guns here on Mars...you'll have to get into the Army rows. There is no more Freedom Fighters as combat forces."

"So, what? We're currently unemployed?" Modo joked.

"It's a bit messy after the war and everything... We've been trying to get things working and all. And that means that there has been fusion between the Fighters and the Army into a certain limits. Mars doesn't need resistance right now...Although my uncle seems to disagree but he disagrees with everything." Carbine said as they reached the ground and she turned to them.

"You're officially rebels without a cause right now. You come to see me, if and when you want to have a career as professional soldiers. Meanwhile... " Carbine looked around and then back to the trio and offered her hand.

"Mars would like to thank you for your service."

Throttle looked a bit baffled but shook her hand and so did Vinnie and Modo, too. She then smiled and nodded.

"Welcome home, boys!" And she left. The bros gave each other a look.

"Well, that was harsh, your girlfriend just fired you..." Vinnie snickered to Throttle, who snorted.

"Yes, well... To get fired one should have a job in the first place... And with the Fighters we didn't exactly write down our names on anything...Didn't know it meant we're currently civilians. It's the burocracy I guess..." Throttle rambled on.

"No more Freedom Fighters..." Modo sighed. They had been fighters (or soldiers if you will) for so long the idea that suddenly they're civilians was hard to comprehend.

"Ah knew that we all hoped that one day there'll come a time when the Freedom Fighetrs were no longer needed...But now it's just feels weird. Ah can't even remember how to be a civilian. What does that even mean?" The grey furred mouse asked from Throttle who shrugged his shoulders.

"It means, no firearms, boys..."

"What?! First we have to wear these stupid clothes and now we can't even raise hell?!" Vinnie cried, sounding desperate.

"Man, what's the use to come home when you can't explode stuff?! What am I gonna do with all my adrenaline?!" Vinnie's eyes started to become bigger and bigger, like a panic was waiting him around the corner.

"I need my fix...! My daily-dose of blowing things up!"

Throttle sighed, realizing that'll actually be a massive problem in the future but for now he didn't know what to answer to them. Luckily he didn't need to answer anything because a young soldier suddenly approached them and nodded respectivaly and handed Throttle a note that was folded.

"Sir, from a friend, sir." The boy nodded again, looking at the floor and then hurried away.

They looked after the kid but then turned to the note in Throttle's hand. He opened it up and read it out loud.

"The Silver Door. 8 pm"

"Silver door?" Vinnie asked but noticed the meaningful look on both Modo's and Throttle's eyes.

"Wait, what? What is it? Why you two know something that I don't?!"

"If you sometimes listened to something else beside your own voice you could know something too..." Throttle flashed a quick smile, but decided to drop it and go easy on his bro this time.

"Let's get something to eat first, I'm sure we're all hungry. There's plenty of time until it's 8 o'clock."

x

x

Modo put down his plate of steaming hot mallo soup. Mallo soup was a traditional Martian soup made out of mallo snails that were crawling in the bigger cave systems. Vinnie was already slurping away his soup and Throttle deep in his thougths was only stirring the soup with his spoon. Modo tasted the food and let the taste of it sit awhile inside his mouth before he swallowed.

"Oh man, nearly as good as my mommah's" He then said and couldn't control himself more and attacked the plate with his spoon.

Throttle vaguely smiled at them both. He wanted to quickly ask Vinnie how he was doing but decided to drop it since clearly he wasn't thinking about Charley at the moment. Throttle was a bit worried about the future. Well, actually, he was terrified. Like Modo had been pointing out: What does that even mean to be a civilian? They had been in the rows of the Fighters from as young as 15 to 17 years old. First they were doing some odd jobs for the Fighters: cleaning the bikes, carrying hundreads of boxes, doing whatever they were told to do. Then they were trained to become Freedom Fighters and after that they were handed guns...And they were sent out onto the battlefields.

It had been taken a couple of years before Stoker realized their potential and before they became one of the best Fighters Stoker had. As soldiers they had seen things no one should ever witness and they had done things they didn't want to talk about. But that was all in the past now, that only visited them in their nightmares. And now... If they weren't Fighters anymore... What did it mean? Been a fighter was their whole identity, it was who they were. Taking that away could mean trouble. Throttle knew that not all the soldiers could just continue with their lives after the war. They all had their traumas.

Silently lost in his own thoughts he started to think about all the other Freedom Fighters, their comrades. Where they were now? Have they reluctantly joined the army rows? To "get their fix" as Vinnie had stated. How are they coping with their past? Throttle thought about taking this up while alone with Carbine or if he someday meeted Stoker again, wherever he was.

His thoughts lingered towards Carbine again. It was good to see her again. And she had looked good when he first saw her after a long time when she had stepped out of the spaceship in the Wrigley Field. It's odd to think that she's at the top of her career, a General, and he's currently "unemployed ex-rebel". Well, they always were different but how will their lives entwine again after all these years he had spent on Earth? Long-distance relationships are something else, they were actually on different planets! Can that even be a relationship? Suddenly Throttle got nervous to even thinking about meeting with Carbine. What's next?

He felt an elbow hitting his side and he startled and gave Vinnie a rude look behind the fieldspecs.

"Earth calling Throttle! Sorry, Mars calling Throttle! Man, it's hard to keep up with in which planet are you on..." Vinnie muttered, his plate empty. Throttle looked at Modo who was currently wiping his plate clean with a piece of bread. Throttle looked at the clock on the wall of the little bar they were in, near the Army Base. He was slightly aware of the other mice staring at them in secret. Maybe it was a long time since they've seen a Freedom Fighter and even during the war some people had been cautious about them, not really sure how to deal with this rebel bunch. Maybe the people around them were a bit worried since the Fighters shouldn't even exists at the moment. The Freedom Fighters' Headquarters had been turned into a Medical and Research Centre, the clever fighters who could do all the programming and coding and the medical staff got to stay there while the soldiers had to choose Army or unemployment. That's the decision they also have to make.

"Sorry, I was just deep in my thoughts I guess..." Throttle finally got to say, different scenarios and questions still racing through his mind.

"We still have about 5 hours until it's time to meet whoever is behind that note.."

Modo leaned to his elbows, looked at Throttle and then straightened his back, stretching.

"Aight... Ah think Ah'll be headin' to my mommah's house. Ah'll have enough time to drop in there to make a quick visit."

"Okay..." Throttle nodded and then turned to Vinnie who suddenly seemed gloomy again. Maybe when thinking about visiting loved ones he was reminded of Charley.

"I think I'll just go out and ride the sands..." He muttered and left the table without giving them a glance. Modo looked after him.

"Man, Ah'm worried about him..." He lowered his voice on a deeper baritone level.

"Yeah...Love's a tricky business..." Throttle sighed but then tapped the table a couple of times.

"And speakin' of tricky business, I think I'll go meet the General..."

Modo didn't answer to that, he only had a knowing smile on his face while standing up. Throttle noticed his smile but didn't comment on it, just took his Fighter's vest that he had taken off and gave it a look, wearing his own leathers still.

"Now that the Fighters are history, these things will be collectibles... Rarities..."

"Yeah, like ourselves..." Modo made a snort and they left the bar.

x

x

Modo was to head towards his momma's house that was an hour away from the Army's Base in Brimstone City. He was riding the red sands on the sunny afternoon (although on the fourth planet from the Sun it's not as bright as it is on Earth), Lil' Hoss purring excitedly, recognizing the familiar sand underneath her wheels. Modo patted his beloved bike murmuring. "Yeah, Ah know Lil' Darlin'... Can't believe Ah'm home either! Let's blast through the sands like in the good ol' days!" He then revved his bike more, taking the scenic route towards his mommah's house (Scenic route means in Mars more or less more sand).

Then after riding 15 minutes he suddenly realizes how close he was at The Freedom Fighters' old Headquarters. The old one along with the Monastery on top of it were pretty much demolished during the war but the new Medical and Research Centre was now standing in the distance, rising from the same place. He gave it a thought and then decided his momma won't get mad if he comes to greet him a couple of minutes later and so he turned Lil' Hoss towards the old Headquarters. The bike gave a high pitched beep and Modo laughed. He was really feeling the same happiness as Lil' Hoss to ride once again towards the directon where the Headquarters once used to be. Maybe he'll see familiar faces there since some of the workers at the Research Center used to be his fellow comrades. Well, if he was really honest he wanted to see one familiar face particularly.

x

x

Carbine was making her usual rounds at the Army Base as he spotted Throttle, walking towards her, wearing his leather vest instead of the Fighter ones and missing the tank top, his chest bare. She rolled her eyes and gave a slight sigh.

"So, you wanna know what happens when you're rebelling against the direct orders in the real world..?" She asked as soon as he was in the distance of hearing her even somewhat properly. Throttle zipped his vest and flashed a smile.

"Don't wanna end up falling to the Pit of Ever-lasting Doom..." He flashed a smile but immidiatly remembered the incident few years back when he and his bros were about to do just that, due to her orders. He gave a deep sigh.

"Sorry, didn't mean to bring that up... "

"That's okay..." Carbine looked a bit ashamed.

"If it's any good, we've actully stopped using the Pit of Ever-lasting Doom... We can all agree it's a bit old-fashioned and also Mars is not under the Martial law anymore..."

"I hope you've at least invented something that sounds as dramatic?" Throttle gave a slight smile and Carbine relaxed and even laughed a bit. That made Throttle to smile more. She had such a nice laugh, contagious. Unfortunately it was as rare to hear her laugh as to see plants on Mars. The soldier that was making rounds with Carbine was excused and they were left alone. Suddenly Throttle's mind was blank. Carbine looked at him but then turned around to lean her back against the wall.

"Can you believe we're standing here? After all we've been through?" She asked with a sigh.

"Honestly? No. I can't..." He started. Their looks met each other.

"I've missed you." Carbine softly said. Throttle gave her a look. Looking at her now she suddenly seemed like the young innocent girl she was as they met just before they had both decided to join the rivalry teams.

"Babe, I've missed you too... But..." Throttle was to say he was scared but didn't. That would sound weird. He cleared his throat and for some reason, Carbine gave him a look that somehow was understanding, like she knew exactly what he was feeling. Their moment was cut short since a siren suddenly started to ring loudly. Carbine didn't look startled, though, only stopped leaning against the wall, straightened her uniform and gave Throttle a quick look.

"Gotta go. It's just this rehearsal...For the soldiers we're training..."

Throttle only nodded back.

"But..." Carbine stopped and turned around on her heels to face him and took his hand to hers.

"If you're up to meet me later, we could go somewhere to eat...? The cafeteria here serves eatable food?"

Throttle nodded and gave a little smile.

"That sounds good."

"See you then, babe." Carbine smiled and left and on her way she shouted something to some soldiers who quickly started to follow her. Throttle decided to go for a ride and maybe check if he could find Vinnie somewhere. He was feeling a bit anxious for his bro, not knowing what that adrenaline-junkie was going to do with all that spare time before their meeting at 8pm. He must send Vin's and Modo's bikes the coordinates anyway, where to meet in just a few hours. The coordinates weren't exact ones since he didn't really know where they were going and what to find there. "The Silver door." Throttle muttered. "Man I thought you were only a myth."