Chapter 4 - Trapped Indoors
Right when the Trux were almost finished with a build meant for Ton-Ton, their luck ran out when a nasty wind storm suddenly rolled in. Ty instructed everyone to get into the garage as fast as possible, but Scrapadactyls and flying debris halted them for a bit.
It wasn't until Skya noticed why the Scrapadactyls were out in the storm, as she skimmed over the horizon to see something familiar in the distance.
"Ty, it's Sylvana! She's stuck out there with Scrapadactyls!" Skya shouted over the wind. Ty quickly followed the Craneosaur's gaze, and wished she was lying when he saw that Sylvana really was stuck out in the wind, and she wasn't moving.
"Skya, come with me! The rest of you, get inside!"
Everyone followed Ty's orders, as he and Skya raced to Sylvana's aid. They noticed that she was completely motionless and slumped over when they reached her, and her eyes were closed.
"What's wrong with her?!" Ty exclaimed out of fear.
"We can find out when we get her back to the garage!" Skya replied as she wrapped her winch around Sylvana's torso, and immediately began to pull. Ty helped by pushing from behind, as they both rushed back to the garage before the more harsh gale forces could catch up.
Luckily, they reached the garage just in time, and made sure to seal up the entrances and windows as tight as they could. And after doing a quick head count, they all focused on the elephant in the room.
"What's wrong with her?" Ace questioned when she and the other Reptools noticed Sylvana's odd state.
"We don't know. We found her like this," Ty explained.
Revvit quickly jumped up onto the unconscious female T-Trux, and leaned against her side to listen closely for any sounds. But there was nothing.
"Hey engine is silent. She must have overexerted herself from trying to escape the storm, and her engine gave out. We will need to jumpstart it," Revvit explained as the other Reptools retrieved a pair of jumper cables.
Revvit then glanced up at Ty with an expecting look, "We will have to connect your engine with hers, and then you must start your own engine when I say so."
Ty's engine heated up a bit at that, "W-What? Why me? Why can't Skya do it since she's a girl?"
"No one else's engine is strong enough to counter Sylvana's," Revvit simply explained.
"Besides, it would obviously take a T-Trux engine to jumpstart another T-Trux engine," Waldo pointed out.
"Duh," Ton-Ton added confidently.
"Fine. Just get it over with," Ty sighed in defeat, as he thought about the feeling of electrically being connected to Sylvana. The Reptools went to work on placing both ends of the jumper cables in the correct places on Ty and Sylvana's engines, and Ty waited for Revvit's signal.
"Start your engine now, Ty! And don't hold back!" Revvit instructed firmly, and Ty immediately revved his engine as hard as he could.
Waves of power past through the cables and into Sylvana's engine, and small strands of electricity sparked over her body. It wasn't long before her engine started up again with a loud rev, and her eyes burst open as she roared from the new sensation.
"Crikey, that was a big one!" Sylvana exclaimed with high energy, but she took in her surroundings in confusion, "How'd I get here?"
"Your engine shut down. We assumed it was from you pushing yourself too hard to escape the storm," Revvit informed.
"Oh, yeah! Now, I remember. I stopped by ta get some more water when the storm came in, but I wasn't fast enough. I tried to use the grip-prods on my treads, but that drained my engine even more. Next thing I know, everything goes black," Sylvana explained in embarrassment, "Which reminds me, how did ya wake me up?"
"We connected your engine ta Ty's, so that he could jumpstart you," Ace pointed out.
"Really? Thanks a lot, Mate. And boy, that was a real wake-up call. You've got quite a kick," Sylvana complimented with a smile.
"Uh, thanks. Can we get these things off now?" Ty questioned sheepishly while referring to the jumper cables that still connected them.
Sylvana winced when she heard the thunderous roars of the wind outside, "Don't sound like it's gonna let up for a while."
"Uh, how long, exactly, is 'a while'?" Dozer huffed.
"By the looks of it—days," Revvit regretfully answered before the last window was sealed up.
"Looks like we gotta keep ourselves entertained, Dude. What do ya wanna do? Huh? Huh?" Ton-Ton questioned rapidly, much to Dozer's annoyance.
"Days? W-We could be here for days? That's too long, I'll never make it!" Click-Clack exclaimed in terror.
"Click-Clack, there's no need to panic," Ty tried to comfort the paranoid Reptool.
"There's always a need ta panic!"
As if to prove Click-Clack's point, the entire garage started to quake and rumble from a strong force outside.
"Whoa! What was that?" Dozer questioned.
"The storm is throwing rocks against the garage," Revvit informed with realization.
"Cool! Maybe we should go out there and catch 'em," Ton-Ton suggested excitedly.
"I think we can all agree that's a terrible idea," Skya deadpanned.
"The only thing separating us from this storm are these flimsy walls," Click-Clack quivered.
"These walls are five feet thick," Revvit reassured, but was also starting to question the durability of the building.
Click-Clack gasped, "Only five feet?! Who designed this place?!"
"Hey, Click-Clack! What don't ya panic in here?" Waldo called from across the room, as he pointed to a small box filled with nuts and bolts.
"My panic room!" Click-Clack cheered as he raced over to the box and jumped inside, "Oh, yeah. That's better."
"Um, this may be a little late ta the party, but have we got enough food?" Sylvana piped up nervously.
"Excellent topic. Take it away, Rev," Ty pointed out.
"We have a finite amount of ore," Revvit began as he and the other Reptools gathered what small amount of ore that was left into a small pile, "We must ration strategically to ensure our food lasts as long as possible."
"I heard a bunch of words, then 'food', and then more words," Ton-Ton admitted in embarrassment.
"He means we have to eat less," Ty explained with a sigh, as the Reptools started handing out small chunks of ore to the Trux.
But the inevitable feuding and fighting was already starting to show when Ton-Ton badgered Dozer about trading ore because the latter's share was bigger. Ton-Ton even threatened to touch Dozer's ore when he specifically told him not to. Luckily, the problem was resolved when Skya offered her ore to Ton-Ton instead.
"I don't like the looks of this. We've only been in here for a few minutes, and some of us are already gettin' at each other's throats," Sylvana pointed out worriedly, which was when another rock shook the garage, "It doesn't help that this storm isn't lettin' up."
"That's alright. We've got each other," Ty added in a cheery tone.
"Yeah! Think of all the fun we're gonna have," Ton-Ton stated optimistically.
"Some of us more than others," Skya muttered under her breath, as she grinned down at Ty and Sylvana.
"Pardon?" Sylvana questioned when she swore she heard Skya says something.
"Oh, nothing."
But as Sylvana looked up at Skya in confusion, she failed to notice the cold glare that Ty was giving the Craneosaur.
Despite their best efforts to keep it together and stay optimistic, the Trux ran out of ideas on what they could do to pass the time. Eventually, everyone just spread out and remained quiet, and ended up either staring into space, falling asleep, trying their best not to fall over from actually falling asleep.
"So, are ya gonna go talk to her?" Skya whispered to Ty, to which he jumped in surprise when she broke the silence.
"What the-? Ok, first off, don't do that. And second, what do you mean?" Ty inquired in annoyance.
"You're stuck in here with the girl you like. This is the perfect opportunity to try and get to know her."
"What makes you think I like her?"
"You're not denying it."
"Whatever. And even if I did like her like that—and I'm not saying I do—what would I say?"
"How should I know? What do T-Trux normally like to talk about?"
"That's just it. T-Trux don't really socialize like Craneosaurs, Dozeratops or Ankylodumps. You get one chance at a good first impression, or else you'll get hit in the face with her tail."
"Jeez. That's harsh."
"Tell me about it."
"Well, she doesn't seem like she's too quick to judge. And I've got an idea. Hey, Sylvana!"
The said female T-Trux lifted her head from her sleepy state, "Yeah?"
"Ty and I were about to play a game of twenty questions. Wanna join us?" Skya asked with a smirk.
"Sure. Beats just starin' inta the abyss until ya slip slowly inta madness."
"Uh-huh—but, uh, I just remembered! I've gotta go clean out my bay, so it looks like it's just you two. Have fun!"
With that, Skya drove into her bay as fast as she could, but peeked her head out ever so slightly to keep an eye on the T-Trux.
"That was weird," Sylvana stated slowly, "Still wanna play?"
"Well, there's nothing better to do. Why not?" Ty sighed in defeat.
"Alright. I'll go first. Um…oh, what's your favorite kind of ore?"
"That's a tough one. I'd have to say either volcanic or original. Now, let's see…favorite color?"
"I've always liked blue. Yours?"
"Definitely red. What's your full name?"
"Sylvana Rexy II. What do ya like ta do ta pass the time?"
"If we weren't stuck in here, I'd be outside playing Capture the Rock or going on a supply run. Where's your favorite place to hang out in the crater?"
"Well, I haven't explored it much, so I wouldn't really know where to go."
"How about I show you around after this storm is over, then?" Ty asked before she could ask the next question.
"It wasn't your turn to ask a question," Sylvana chuckled.
"I know. But would you like me to, anyway?"
She hummed in thought for a moment, "Sounds like fun. It's a date."
It wasn't until after Sylvana had finished her sentence that she realized what she said, and although she meant it as an entirely platonic kind of date, she could tell that Ty was starting to get pretty flustered.
"A d-date? Who said a-anything about a d-d-date?" Ty stammered uncontrollably, as the Reptools face-palmed in disappointment after joining Skya in her little stakeout.
"I didn't mean it like that, Mate. It'll just be a good ol' time between friends, alright? No need ta get all hot under the hood," Sylvana reassured.
"Right…yeah, o-of course I knew that…I-I was just checking to make sure you knew," Ty chuckled nervously.
"Yeah, I got it. Wanna keep playing?"
Just then, they heard Dozer shout at the top of his lungs, so much so that Click-Clack fainted and lost his bits.
"I think someone else needs attention," Ty pointed out as he approached Dozer, "You seem a little on edge, Dozer. You sure you're alright?"
"I'm ok," Dozer denied after panting heavily, "It's just bein' stuck in here with…"
"With what?" Revvit urged.
"Hey, what'cha talkin' about? Lemme guess. Cliff jumping? Ramp jumping? Garage jumping? It's jumping-related, right?" Ton-Ton rambled on a mile a minute, angering Dozer even more. Ty quickly caught on and figured out a solution.
"Got it. Hey, Ton-Ton, come play a game with us—over there," Ty told the excited Ankylodump while pointing to the other side of the garage.
"Awesome! I'm in! What're we playin'?" Ton-Ton asked.
"You up for twenty questions?" Sylvana inquired as she led the Ankylodump away.
"Thanks," Dozer sighed with great relief.
"Don't worry. This storm will end soon," Ty reassured.
Unfortunately, a couple more days past, and the storm still hadn't gone away. And even worse, food and water rations were beginning to run low faster than they had anticipated.
"I'll pass. Just ate," Ty sighed when Revvit brought him a small piece of ore.
"Ty, you ate hours ago. You need food," Revvit pointed out with great concern.
"There's not a lot left. I'm good for now."
Just as Ty said that, he looked over to find Sylvana in the corner with her back arched; she seemed to be clutching her stomach, which could only mean one thing.
"Actually, I'll take that ore," Ty corrected himself, and Revvit happily left the ore with him. What the Reptool didn't know was that Ty picked up the ore and brought it over to Sylvana.
"What're ya doin'?" Sylvana asked, her voice slightly hoarse from the obvious lack of food.
"You don't look too good. You can have my share of ore," Ty explained after dropping the ore at her treads.
"Oh, no. I can't take that. I don't wanna be a burden, and you look like you need it more than I do."
"I insist." To emphasize his point, Ty picked the ore back up with his jaws and held it in front of Sylvana. As soon as she smelled the ore, her stomach growled fiercely, making her curl her torso in pain again. So, Sylvana reluctantly took the ore from Ty and savored the flavor.
"Thanks," Sylvana stated with a warm smile, to which Ty smiled back and turned to leave, but she spoke again, "Um, Ty…can I tell you something?"
"Is something wrong?" Ty questioned with worry.
"Kinda…but it's not your fault. I…I'm scared of small spaces, a-and the thought of slowly starving to death isn't helping…I don't know what to do."
"Hey, everything's gonna be just fine, I promise."
"How can you be so sure?"
"My friends and I have made it through a lot worse, and we're not gonna give up on you. You'll see, this'll all blow over—no pun intended—and we'll be free again in no time."
Sylvana wanted to believe Ty, but more scenarios of how this could all end badly started flooding her mind, causing her to quiver and close her eyes tightly in fear.
"Sylvana, look at me," Ty demanded firmly yet gently, and Sylvana opened her eyes to see Ty's face just inches away from hers, and their eyes locked, "I won't let anything bad happen to you. Just promise me that you'll have a little faith. Ok?"
Sylvana was taken aback. Everything that D-Structs had said about these Trux simply wasn't true; they weren't cunning, they weren't devious, and they certainly weren't annoying—but they could be rather cheesy at times.
"Heh…that was pretty cheesy," Sylvana couldn't help but chuckle.
"I still meant every word of it."
"And I'm very thankful. I feel a lot better."
Sylvana then leaned forward and nuzzled her head up under Ty's chin to show her gratitude, to which the latter tensed up at the unexpected action. Eventually, though, Ty gathered the courage to nuzzle back and comfort her even more. And while the two T-Trux were busy nuzzling, Skya and the Reptools smiled and mentally cheered for Ty. He just might have a chance with Sylvana after all.
I know I could've kept going until I reached the end of the episode like the other chapters, but I just didn't felt like it was necessary. It wouldn't have changed much.
Also, we got some more sweet moments with Ty and Sylvana. I love writing them, they're so cute together:3
Until the next chapter, I'm TRikiD, bye-bye!