Eight years ago on Mars
Shandria was sitting rigidly at the kitchen table, bent over a small radar of sorts and fiddling with the knobs. The television was blasting out information about the weather, yet despite the high volume the wind still roared audibly, lashing rain and sprays of mud against the house.
Suddenly, the door was flung open and two miniature windstorms rushed in.
"Whoa-hahaha!" Vinnie cried, stumbling in the kitchen and slamming the door behind him. He wiped the mud and rain from his face and blinked. "I guess today wasn't a good day for rock climbing, huh Rayna?"
"You're telling me!" Rayna sputtered, trying to clean her face. Vinnie stared at her, his eyes growing wide, and burst out laughing.
"Hey look, you've been crowned Miss Mud!" he hooted, pointing at her waterlogged clothes and wild, mud splattered hair. Rayna scowled at her friend and attempted to smear him with some of the red, wet glop.
"Sensitivity, wow, I love that in a mouse," Rayna said sarcastically. Vinnie was about to retort when Shandria spoke for the first time.
"My son may have no manners, Rayna, but that doesn't mean that I don't. Feel free to shower off if you want. Vinnie can clean up the mess he's made in my kitchen while you're at it." Rayna thanked her and made a triumphant face at Vinnie, who was howling in protest. Shandria, her eyes never leaving the radar, pointed in the direction of the mop. Muttering, Vinnie peeled off his wet clothes, threw on some sweats that were in the laundry room, and went to work.
They continued in silence for a moment, broken only by the weather, the sloshing of the mop, and the steady blips of the radar.
The silence was abruptly broken when the door was flung open again and another figure threw himself in the sanctuary of the warm house.
"Phew!" heaved Thrash, shaking his wet hair and fur.
"No!" bellowed Vinnie, looking aghast at the new puddles. Thrash looked from Vinnie to the puddles then to the mop and back to Vinnie's face.
"Oops," he squeaked meekly. Shandria looked up and couldn't help but laugh at the look on her son's face.
"Thrash!" she called grandly. "Welcome! Make yourself at home while Vinnie finishes up there…or starts over…"
"No way!" Vinnie cried shoving the mop in Thrash's hands. "I cleaned up my mess!
"Oh well, all's fair in love, war, and housework," Thrash said with a philosophical shrug. He carefully hung up his wet jacket, graciously accepted a towel from Shandria to dry his face and hair, and got to work. Vinnie collapsed on one of the chairs.
"Crazy storm out there, huh," Vinnie mused, looking with interest at the lashing rain.
"Yeah, it just about blew me over here," Thrash quipped. Vinnie smirked and nodded, leafing through the mail. When he glanced at one letter, he threw the other documents down and howled dramatically.
"Who died?" Shandria and Thrash both demanded at the same time.
"My next weekend!" Vinnie said empathetically, flinging the letter on the table. "Check it out!"
"Oh, Vinnie, you're so dramatic. It's just a wedding," Shandria said, picking up the document.
"Please say it's not in our district," Vinnie said, covering his face.
"Hate to break it to you, Vin…" Thrash said, reading over Shandria's shoulder. Vinnie growled and buried his head in his arms.
"Oh man, boredom city!" he moaned.
"What's boring?" Rayna asked, entering the room, still toweling her hair. She had evidently raided Vinnie's dresser and was wearing his flannels and an oversized sweatshirt. She prepared herself for his outraged bellowing over the theft of his clothes, but he barely noticed.
"A wedding! I hate weddings! They're so long and…so…wedding-y!" His three companions broke into laughter over his newly coined word. Thrash slapped his shoulder.
"Cheer up, friend, at least you can bring a date," Thrash comforted. Vinnie grunted and Rayna look perplexed. She smiled, however, when Thrash met her eyes.
"Oh, it can't be that bad, it's just one day. Besides," she said, sweeping up her hair and mimicking the haughty tone and stance of their history teacher. "one must follow all of the sacred Martian traditions that has written our history. Whenever two people are married it is tradition that all those in said couple's district should be witness to the union. It is, in a word, tradition." Thrash was rocking back in his chair with laughter at this point, and even Vinnie couldn't stop a chuckle.
"Oh well, what can ya do. So who's the happy couple?" Vinnie asked half-heartedly. Shandria whistled as she read the names.
"Says here the lucky male is none other than Xavier Starvosen, and that his bride is a girl name Zelena…hmm, doesn't say a last name."
"Xavier Starvosen?" Thrash said, pricking up his ears at the familiar name. "He's that new face on the Governmental Council, isn't he?" Shandria glanced up and smiled.
"Wow, Thrash, I'm impressed." Thrash shrugged at the praise.
"What can I say, my mother is a news buff. He's the one making all the noise about the Plutarkians occupying some Martian territory."
"What's he care?" Vinnie asked, doodling rockets and motorcycles on the expensive wedding invitation.
"He keeps on insisting that they're here to take over and such, that they've already absorbed several other planets and that they have their sights set on Mars next."
"I thought they were just seeking refuge," Rayna asked, absently braiding her hair. "That's what the other council members say, anyway."
"Yeah, I guess there's some disagreement. I've heard— " Thrash's voice was suddenly cut off and Shandria leapt to her feet and shrieked. The three youths jumped and stared as she pointed to her radar with a grin that stretched across her face.
"Yes!" she shouted. "A whirlwind has formed! Woohoo!" She dashed out to the garage and bellowed out the door to her husband. "Tread, come on, a whirlwind, let's go!" Vinnie rolled his eyes as the other two gaped at his mother, who was busily checking to make sure her waterproof video camera was charged and ready.
"Aw, Mom, another one?" complained Vinnie with a sigh. "You just filmed one last week."
"Vincent, all weather patterns are highly unique. Tread! Hurry up!"
Tread walked in with a sigh as his giddy wife was jamming on her heavy slicker.
"Shandria, are you sure…"
"Oh come on, are you a mouse or a man?" Shandria chided. Tread held his hands up defensively, his eyes wide.
"A mouse, a mouse!"
"Then come on!" Tread sighed and her outburst, but couldn't help a smile that formed at his wife's excitement. She was the wild one of the family, outwardly restrained and easy going, but with the love for the adrenaline rush that came with dangerous situations. Tread would have been content to just sit and watch from inside.
"Alright, let's go. Vinnie," Tread said with mock solemnity, "if we both die in this crazy venture, you should probably stay with Rayna or Thrash. You wouldn't last a week on your own." Vinnie waved cheerfully.
"Sure, can I have your bike if you go?" Vinnie asked with a grin.
"Ha ha, yeah, and all of my blueprints too. Wouldn't want them falling into the wrong hands."
"Ugh, chill, we'll be back for dinner," Shandria said, practically shoving him out the door. "Bye Vinnie sweetie, see ya Rayna and Thrash!"
"Have fun in the elements!" Vinnie said in farewell. His parents wrenched open the door and hurled themselves into the wind. The door slammed, and Vinnie heard the revving sounds of the engine of the large, heavy duty truck that his parents owned for such situations.
"Whoa, your parents…" Thrash said, trailing off.
"Completely explain you," Rayna finished with a laugh. Vinnie punched her lightly and made a face.
"I don't do stuff like that," he protested.
"True," Rayna conceded. "You don't plan as well…ouch!" Thrash shook his head over them and stretched out, still mulling over the dropped topic of the Plutarkians.
"Hey, you two…" he said slowly. "What do you think? You don't really think they're going to take over, do you? There have been rumors that they did just that with other planets…taken over, decimated everyone, and used up the resources."
"I dunno," Rayna said thoughtfully, playing with the purple stone that always hung around her neck. "I had thought that the official reports said that the people had sold their own planets and continued to live. We have no reason to sell ourselves here."
"Who cares!" Vinnie said, throwing down the pen on the near unrecognizable wedding invitation. "There's only like, what, five Plutarkians here on Mars? My biggest concern is how I can suck the most fun out of next week so I can have it stored up for the colossal boredom that will be my break next weekend."
"I propose video games!" Thrash said, dropping the serious subject.
"I second it!" Vinnie said, rising enthusiastically. Rayna shrugged and joined them as they started down the stairs. Suddenly…
"Hey, Rayna, what's the deal? You're wearing my clothes!"
"Vinnie, your perception overwhelms me."
"There," Charley said with a sigh, putting down a screwdriver and inspecting Modo's helmet with pursed lips. She brushed her bangs out of her eyes and glanced at Vinnie, still in the same position, and then over to Throttle who was talking with some difficulty on a slow, static filled vidcom to Stoker. Modo reached across the table and patted her hand gently.
"Are you okay, Charley ma'am?" Modo asked with concern. Charley shook herself out of her reverie and smiled.
"Yeah, I'll be alright. I was just thinking. Thanks for caring," Charley replied with a smile. Modo nodded, worriedly regarding her pale face and the dark circles under her eyes. He was just about to caution her to be careful, when Throttle entered the room.
"So what did you cook for us, Charley?" Throttle asked, surveying his helmet. Charley straightened, resuming her strong, factual tone of voice.
"I examined the needle and casing that hit Vinnie, the one that you picked up. I used the scanning technology on your bikes to scan in the images of the casing and needle. I then imported the information into your helmets. Now, I don't know much about Martian helmets, but I know that you've used the screens of your helmets to zoom in on objects and target missiles, right?"
"Sure do," Throttle replied.
"Well, if you activate the new scanner I imported, then you should be able to detect the oncoming of the little needles, just in case Limburger's lackeys are waiting to hit you two with the same medicine. I hope it works."
"Sounds real good, Charley ma'am," Modo said with a grin.
"Yep, always looking out for us," Throttle chimed in, squeezing her shoulder. Charley smiled her thanks, and realized suddenly how much she missed Vinnie's exuberant praise, even though she often thought was somewhat annoying at the time.
"So, here's the plan," Throttle said, rubbing his hands together. "We storm Limburger's Tower, but in a way that's as unobtrusive as possible. One of us grabs Fish-head, and the other grabs Karbunkle."
"And then we pound them to pulp until they give us a way to bring Vinnie back!" Modo finished eagerly, pounding and nearly splitting the table with his large fist. He shot an apologetic look to Charley, who had barely noticed. Throttle followed her gaze and sighed, hoping that she wouldn't forget to sleep and eat. Seeing Vinnie reminded him of his conversation with Stoker.
"There's one thing I have to try with Vinnie," Throttle said, stepping to his young friend's side. "Stoker pointed out that there's another way to get him closer to our world, other than pushing him through the years. See, there are various levels of Searchers. Vinnie is in the deepest level, as he is reliving every moment of his life in real time. The second level, however, is a little lighter and focuses on the most memorable parts of Vinnie's life. For example, if he had a day in which one memorable thing happened, the rest of the day would just rush by and he would stop and fully relive the clear memory.
"I think that if I pull him to the second level, then he might be in a shallower coma and may have a slight awareness of what is going on around here. It might also be easier to wake him once we pump Karbunkle for information."
"Worth a shot," Charley agreed. "Think you can do it?"
"I'll try."
Taking a deep breath yet again, Throttle stepped over to his friend and leaned down, touching Vinnie's antennae with his own. He drew in another breath, closed his eyes, and concentrated. With every fiber of his being, he willed Vinnie to draw closer to this world. Modo and Charley watched tensely and Throttle began to shudder from effort, breaking out into a sweat. With a short yell of pain he stopped, backing away.
"Ooh," he groaned, pressing his hands against his forehead. Modo steadied him and Charley ran to get a glass of water.
"Did it work?" Modo asked, trying to keep the urgency out of his voice. Throttle blinked and gratefully accepted the rootbeer Charley held out.
"I can't say for sure," he answered slowly, surveying Vinnie. "I feel that it did, but who knows? At least I tried." Modo and Charley waited silently until Throttle shook himself and rose to his feet.
"Let's roast some fish."