A/N: Sory this took so long, guys; A, it was a difficilt decision to make, even with your advice, and B, I'm saddled with double research projects right now, one for hisory and one for culinary. For culinary I picked Sicily, though it took some arguing and threats on my part, and what I basically have to do is a 3 page historical essay, which I could do in my sleep, find some recipes and type up a menu. For history, I'm doing "The Troubles" in Northern Ireland, the history of the conflict between the Irish Republican Army and the Ulster Volunteer Force, two violent radical groups on opposite sides. I don't even know why I'm telling you all this! I think I said it all in Drunken Lullabyes...


Oh, Mel...if only he'd been there for her.

Monkey watched the two silently for a moment, and then turned away; he had definitely misjudged Wylde. The younger Maniac wasn't even trying to put the moves on her! He was just holding her, trying to comfort her, but something told Monkey Wylde needed Mel as much as she needed him.

And so, he let them be, and made sure they weren't disturbed until they were both asleep.


The next morning at breakfast, Monkey was far from growling at Wylde in his usual manner, and the Maniacs enjoyed a general peace for the first time in quite a while. Taro was still a bit miffed at Mel, though he didn't say much about it, and Porkchop and Monkey were talking about some project or other involving the big rig. Tork watched the closest thing he had to a family eat and interact, and he felt content with his place in life.

Back on the Teku side of the cafeteria, however, things were not so great. Kurt and Shirako were being unusually affectionate, and Karma seemed to be heavily irritated over that. Nolo didn't have a problem with them being together, but he didn't want to take sides, and didn't feel much like arguing anyway. Vert still hadn't returned and the leader of the Teku was very worried. What if something had happened? Despite appearances, the blonde could be a little unstable, and though he would never admit it, it was a quality they shared. Nolo didn't even want to think about what he might have done. He pushed his Trix away dejectedly, just in time to hear a Suzuki motorcyle engine echoe through the garage. Nolo rushed to the garage. Vert parked the bike, taking off his helmet, and smiled at Nolo sheepishly, his shoulders sinking a bit.

"Hey," he said.

"Hey yourself," Nolo answered. Even though he was glad to see his friend, he was highly upset that Vert had left in the first place, and crossed his arms, glaring at the blonde. Vert cringed, and Nolo looked at him concerned. He walked over to his teammate and put an arm around his shoulder, leading him away. "I'm sorry, man, I just don't know why you left. What's up?"

"I got too full of myself, Nolo. That's why I was doing so lousy in the realms." Vert's eyes softened like they always did when he was depressed, and he looked away. "You're probably better off without me, anyway. I'm not the king of the road I used to be, I'm only holding you back."

"Hey, man, that's not true. C'mon, don't be like that! Really, it's-"

Nolo was cut off by the Realm alarm, but he could still tell his pep talk was getting through that thick skull, but only just barely; Vert smiled at him a little, and headed for Reverb. The leader of the Teku wished he'd been a little nicer; they faught sometimes, but really, Vert was a good friend, and he had problems, something deep seated, so the way he acted wasn't really his fault.

On the Maniac side of the garage, Taro and Tork were already starting Rivited and Power Bomb, respectively, while Mel was seeing off her boyfriend.

"Be careful, honey," she said, kissing him. Wylde smiled, and whispered to his Kitten that everything would be alright, while across the room Kurt and Shirako repeated the ritual, and both brothers headed off to their cars. Mel raised an eyebrow, looking Shirako up and down, but shrugged and decided it was none of her business. Nolo and Vert followed the Wyldes into the Junk Realm, and that was that.


The Junk Realm was littered with debris; everything had a rusty appearance to it, and the drivers had to keep their wits about them only to narrowly avoid the spiked wrecking balls and magnetic pendulums swinging above them. Still, true to their nature, they had fun with it. Wylde had old Judas Priest blasting from his speakers, and Kurt teased him over it. Honestly, how had no one figured out Rob Halford was gay until the nineties?

"'Turbo Lover?' Christ Markie, I'm gay, but that's really gay."

"Pfft! At least I'm not holding tickets for a Backstreet Boys concert, unlike some older brothers of mine who shall remain nameless. Cough-Kurt-cough!"

"Oh, you win this round, little bro, but this race ain't over yet!"

"And what, praytell, are you implying?"

"That I'm gonna whip your ass by a mile."

"Like ta see ya try, creampuff!"

He listened to them joke over the comm link and a knot formed in his stomach; Nolo wanted to be happy for his teammate, that Kurt wasn't fighting with his brother anymore, but it only reminded him of his fights with Vert. Once again, he was alone in a crowd; one of many but the only one, and he hated it. Why did he have to feel like this? Why was he always alone? Was it just him, or... No. He knew who it was. Nolo knew who was to blame. Tone was only twenty three when he crashed the summer before and Nolo would never be able to forget the sight. Exhaling slowly, the leader of the Teku shifted and floored it to catch up to Tork. This time, he promised himself, he wouldn't let him get away.

Tork, meanwhile, had bigger fish to fry; the Metal Maniacs who'd entered the Realm were being chased down by a sweeper. He knew they couldn't outrun it forever and if they didn't figure something out fast, they were scrap metal. Too worrried about the sweepers, he barely swerved in time to miss something that resembled a medievil flail swinging from a pole like a giant, menacing tetherball, and nearly fishtailed off the road, but he regained his balance and continued, taking the lead.

Tork watched the road more carefully now, and didn't notice Synkro sneaking up on him...


Back at the Acceledrome, Monkey and Porkchop were secretly preparing the big rig, Old Smokey, for her final run; the way things were going, the only way to stop those damn sweepers was to let them pick on something their own size, and Smokey was the only vehicle who fit the bill. It would be dangerous of course, but Monkey had fitted the truck with Nitrox 3 and an EDR, so they weren't worried. And Lani had said it was a waste of time! This'd show her! After a quick look around, Monkey gave Porkchop the all clear and the two of them entered the Junk Realm.

Mel whistled to herself as she made her way to the elevator, and suddenly stopped in her tracks; Old Smokey had roared to life and was barreling down the track to the portal, blue flames trailing from the wheels. Staring for a moment, she ran up the stairs instead because the elevator took too long, and told Lani what was happening. The older girl's jaw dropped and she opened the comm link to the truck.

"Are you crazy?! What are you two doing?!?"

"We're driving Old Smokey..." the two sang in unison. "Porkchop's at the wheel; And when we get to the Junk Realm, we'll make the Drones squeal!!"

"What? Oh, God, you're not saying what I think you're saying!!" Lani screamed to them.

"Aww," Monkey said, cheerily, "I didn't know you cared!" And with that, they were met only with AC:DC blasting from the speakers.

...I'm on the highway to Hell, the highway to Hell...

Lani gasped at their choice in tunes and contacted Dr. Tezla.


He was catching up, now, tunnel vision leading him towards his goal; not to win, but to kill. Tork had no idea what was coming his way, and even if he did, he would never have even noticed it. The head of the Maniacs had the ability to completely block out distractions, only paying any attention to the road, and that was one of the qualities that Nolo both admired and despised about him. He wished he had that kind of concentration, but he hated being ignored. Hated it. Why didn't he pay any attention to him? Why was he being ignored? Did Tork think he wasn't good enough? Was he not considered a threat? Why didn't he notice him?! Nolo couldn't stand it any longer, and made his move, sideswiping Power Bomb in an attempt to run Tork off the track, but it was no good; the Maniac sped up and steered inward, cutting Synkro off.

"What the hell, Pasaro!" he bellowed over the comm link.

"About time, Maniac. I been tailing you for a while now, " Nolo answered him. "I bet you thought I'd forget, didn't you? You thought I was just gonna let bygones be bygones? Well, no dice, chico. This ends here and now."

Nolo tried to ram Tork, but he swerved out of the way. "Dammit, Nolo, you're acting crazy. Cut it out."

Nolo only laughed at him. "I'm only giving you what you deserve. An eye for an eye, murderer," he practically purred. "And a life for a life."


A/N: Yeah, Nolo has issues, the full axtent of which shall be revealed later on. I know I'm teasing you here, but I enjoy it, so you'll just have to wait. This chapter was getting too long, so it's a two parter.