Chapter 13

Stepping out of the transporter, which was smoking a little and giving off a buzzing sound, Charley lifted out her case, placed it on the hard, dusty ground and sighed with relief. The peachy coloured sky contained no clouds, of course, and the sun was dim. The scenery was bare, just rusty looking rocks and dusty sand covering a cracked, parched surface. Filled with anticipation and nerves, she sat on her case. All she could do now was wait. As she sat there in the quiet desert, she thought back to the island, where she had sat on the beach, on a very different kind of sand. Her mind then jumped to the life changing message that had popped up on her laptop that morning.

It had been an odd looking, private message, a type that she hadn't seen before. Obviously not the usual day to day sort, they never appeared on her home screen, and certainly not the way this had. When she opened it, it had been a shock to say the least. She remembered it almost word for word, having re-read it so many times.

Charley.

I felt I should wait to tell you this until after we had left.

The damage to the transporter during Limburger's capture was heavy. But before having it scrapped, I spoke to my top engineer.

He seemed to think it may be repairable, temporarily at least. It's not to say it is. He was working on it when I left for Earth.

It would ultimately be your choice if you decided to come to Mars. If you decided not to, no one needs to know. No pressure. But I wanted to give you that choice, just in case.

I instructed him to send it back to its origin if he succeeds, Karbunkle's lab I assume.

It's the least I can do, after all you have done for us.

I know my engineer will do his best. Good luck my friend.

Carbine.

It had been a bizarre message to read, and one of so much uncertainty. Carbine had obviously sent it not long after they had left. As much hope as it had given her, she dared not hope too much, and so tried to just assume the worst. The last thing she wanted was to be devastated if it didn't work. Now, the best result had happened, and Vinnie was still unaware.

Still she sat waiting in the peaceful wilderness. She looked to the horizon, waiting for a sign of life. She knew Carbine would have no doubt warned the Martian mice that the transporter may appear, and that it would be tracked. Eventually, she saw a dust cloud drawing closer, and a Dune buggy type vehicle raced towards her, coming to a dry, scraping halt when it arrived. A gray mouse stood, took off his helmet and greeted her with a nod. Charley didn't recognise him, but why would she?

"You must be Charley. I was sent by Headquarters to come and retrieve you," the mouse stated in a semi friendly manner. He got out of the buggy and put her case in the space behind the two front seats.

"Yeah, thanks," Charley replied nervously, and somewhat relieved that someone had come. She got in the buggy, taking a breath.

The mouse looked towards the horizon, where another dust cloud formed. He started up the buggy and drove towards it. A bigger truck passed them, the gray mouse and the driver exchanged a quick acknowledgment as they passed. "Just picking up the transporter," he informed Charley.

She nodded. "I'm just glad I got here in one piece," she sighed. "I need to thank your engineer A LOT."

The mouse gave a small laugh. "He's pretty good. But it sounds like you're the real genius when it comes to computers, we all heard what you did."

Charley raised her eyebrows. "I wouldn't say a genius, but I'm not bad. It was just a fluke we managed to get to that info, really."

The mouse shook the statement away. "Fluke or not, it's turned everything around for us. You're a real hero in the cosmos now."

Charley felt a little embarrassed, she couldn't think of herself as a hero in that sense. Not like the mice were. "I'm just relieved the Plutarkians have been defeated, at last."

The mouse agreed with a grunt. "One less scum to worry about. Gotta concentrate on rebuilding what we've started now."

Charley felt increasingly nervous as they neared the ruins of Brimstone city. They were getting nearer to headquarters.

The gray mouse noticed. "So er, you decided to come to Mars for good?"

Charley looked at him and nodded, smiling through her nerves. "Yeah. It's where I belong now."

The mouse raised his eyebrows, clearly impressed. "Takes a lot to make that move. Especially as you're the only human. Can't have been an easy decision."

Charley smiled to herself. "Not at first, but easy once I'd made my mind up," she stated. "Throttle, Vinnie and Modo are like my family, they mean more to me than anyone on Earth."

The mouse smiled to himself. "Almost forgotten what they look like. Sure they've got a few stories to tell."

Charley laughed dryly. "You can say that again."

They bumped along the path that led through the broken ruins, leaving the crumpled city behind as they headed for the Freedom fighters headquarters. The underground complex could be entered a number of ways, all very inconspicuous, of course. They entered via a sunken tunnel, hidden by a series of rocks. Charley's heart beat rapidly as they drove along the dim, narrow tunnel. They soon emerged into a lighter, rounded stone cavern, which had several tunnels leading off from all sides. The mouse stopped, getting out and handing Charley her case. She thanked him, looking around. The cavern was empty, but there was obviously life beyond the tunnels.

"I'll let the main mouse know you're here," the gray mouse smiled, walking into one of the tunnels.

"Main mouse?" Charley repeated to herself, wondering if he could mean…

"Well look who's come to join the party," Stoker smiled, walking out towards her.

Charley grinned, "Stoker!" she cried with joy, stepping up and hugging him. "It's so good to see you!"

Stoker hugged her back. "You too, Charley." He stepped back, looking more serious. "Are you OK? I spoke to Carbine not long ago. She told me things have been….difficult."

Charley nodded and smiled, appreciating his concern. "I am now, thanks. It's been a bit of a roller coaster the last few days."

"Sounds like it," Stoker agreed. "Great job, by the way. Plutarkians are hauling their huge, stinking asses outta this galaxy, cause of you."

Charley smiled. "I had no idea what I'd done until Carbine told us. I'm so pleased for you all, Stoker, it's the best news."

Stoker smiled. "The best news is, you made it here, and the others don't even know it yet."

Charley felt her stomach flip. "When will they arrive?"

"Soon. Maybe one to two hours, tops," Stoker looked at her. He knew she was nervous. "It'll be OK, Charley."

She smiled at him anxiously and nodded. "It's gonna be a shock, that's for sure. Especially for Vinnie."

Stoker gave her a knowing look and raised his eyebrows. "Well I have to say, I don't know how the punk managed it, but you both deserve a happy ending."

Charley smiled at him, a tad embarrassed. "Yeah. It kinda came out of left field for us, too."

"Well he's sure gonna be pleased to see ya," Stoker laughed.

Charley gave a small, nervous laugh. She couldn't help but worry at his reaction. She wondered if he would be mad that she'd put him through misery these last three days, that she'd chosen to give up on her career and aspirations for him. It wouldn't be long before she found out.

The ship had at least survived the journey through space. It only had to limp on another hour or so.

The mice had managed to entertain themselves and Vinnie had tried to keep his mind busy with talk about jobs and business to take care of back on Mars. He knew what needed to be done and planned to get straight on with it. Once they were in range and the mice were resting, Carbine had taken the opportunity to talk to Stoker, to fill him in on what had happened, and to warn him of Charley's possible arrival. She hoped that the transporter had made it back, and that Charley had decided to use it, but neither was certain.

Before long, the data showed they would reach the surface of Mars within the hour. The video message finally came through that Carbine had been waiting for. She felt nervous as she opened the channel. Stoker was on the other end. He remained cool on the exterior, greeting them warmly and asking about the trip.

He looked to Carbine, who noticed a small glint in his eye. "You'll be pleased to know everything is going to plan and we're awaiting your arrival, General."

Carbine felt relief wash over her. She grinned, knowing the others couldn't see her face from where she sat. "That's good to know Stoker, thanks," she replied with calm discretion. She now felt nervous, especially for Vinnie, but of course she didn't show it.

The mice were too distracted talking about past times on Mars to notice the exchange, in any case. They reminisced about races, fire fights and near misses during the war. Funny stories, lost comrades and fallen cities. They had been through so much together. Rimfire enjoyed hearing the tales of things that he would have been too young to remember. He also liked to hear the stories about Earth. He had visited once, and so could relate to a point. These tales though, obviously featured Charley, which made him and the others feel awkward to bring up in front of Vinnie now. Vinnie was still reeling from the whole thing, but brushed these stories off in typical fashion, at least on the outside. Charley didn't want him fixating on the past, she was moving on and it was best he did too. He needed to keep busy and distracted, and that wouldn't be hard when they got home.

As they neared the red planet's atmosphere, they strapped themselves in. It wasn't as hard hitting or lengthy as Earth's, but still relatively bumpy, especially in the ship they were travelling in. They all kept their eyes on the ship's walls, half expecting them to burst open at any second as they descended through the thick gases.

Charley sat in a smallish room, which, like the rest of the place, had carved out stone walls, a gray stone floor, and metal girders holding the higher stone ceiling in place. The wooden bed, like the rest of the furniture, was basic, as was the bathroom, but they at least had access to recycled underground water. This was something she'd have to get used to, but the garage had hardly been luxurious. Not like the island's bedroom. Talk about chalk and cheese, she smiled at the irony. Stoker knocked on the wooden door. Charley opened it anxiously.

"They're almost here," he smiled. "You wanna come see?"

Charley took a deep, controlled breath. "OK," she bit her lip and glanced at Stoker, following him out the door.

"Don't worry, they're all gonna be made up to see you," Stoker reassured her over his shoulder.

Charley knew he was right, but it didn't help her nerves. They arrived at the main control room. Charley sat in a corner, watching, whilst Stoker monitored the ship's arrival on a large screen, as other mice sat at the panel beneath it. The ship was represented as a moving blip on a grid on one part of the screen, the other part showed real time footage of the Martian sky.

The blip got lower as a mouse turned to Stoker, lifting his head set. "Ship approaching, Stoker. General Carbine landing in one minute, thirty."

Stoker nodded. "We have incoming, comrades!" he cried, smiling.

Charley watched the footage as a small object appeared in the top right corner, and grew in size with every passing second. Her heart beat hard in her chest. The object became clearer, the ship getting larger as it descended towards the surface. She noted how odd it was to be waiting for the same ship that had left her behind three days prior. Not to mention, now on Mars.

The ship landed a little harshly, with smoke seeping out of various outlets. Charley was relieved it had made the long journey back.

Stoker approached her. "You want some privacy? I can send him back to your room on an errand?"

Charley thought for a second. "Yeah, I think that'd be best," she agreed quietly.

He put a comforting hand on her shoulder, before heading out to meet them. Charley watched the screen for a minute, before walking back to her room. Her stomach was tight, she felt quite sick. She could really do with some of that wine right now.

The ship landed with a thud, followed by creaking. The mice looked around.

"See, we made it!" Rimfire enthused.

"Just," Throttle remarked.

Carbine stood up. "Welcome home, boys," she smiled.

Modo stood next. "We made it back to Mars, Bros," he smiled, clearly happy and relieved.

Vinnie said nothing as they walked to the door. As it opened, the red tinged light flooded in.

A happy crowd had gathered around the ship, consisting of family, friends and freedom fighters.

Rimfire ushered Modo after him. "Come on uncle Modo, Mum, Primer and Grandma are waiting!"

Modo gave a short laugh, following his nephew down the ramp. The crowd became noisier, talking and greeting the mice. Stoker stood at the front of the crowd, welcoming the mice home. Modo joyfully greeted him, talking for a short time before finding his family in the crowd.

Vinnie walked down the ramp, more subdued than usual. He still greeted Stoker enthusiastically. He started to talk to other mice in the crowd, who he had not seen for some years. Stoker put a hand on his shoulder and raised his voice over the crowd, "I need to talk to you, punk." Vinnie nodded to him, guessing what it was bound to be about. Word must've got to him about what had happened. He continued his meetings with fellow fighters, eager to greet the mice they had not seen for so long.

Carbine smiled at Throttle, taking his hand. "We made it," she stated, her eyes misting up.

Throttle pulled her into a hug. "Didn't I promise you we'd come home one day?"

Carbine smiled against him. "I can't believe that day's finally here."

"Come on," Throttle smiled at her, gesturing to the door. Carbine walked out, with Throttle following. He greeted Stoker, before the other mice came to talk.

Stoker looked around, finding Vinnie again. He walked over, catching his eye. Vinnie knew that look, it was time to talk. He made his way through the crowd, following Stoker to a quieter spot.

"I heard things haven't been easy for you, Vin," Stoker sympathised.

Vinnie shrugged a little. "No. But no point in dwelling right? Gotta keep busy."

Stoker nodded. "That's right, punk. On that note, I got some real precious cargo in a room back here. Think you'll be interested in it."

Vinnie looked at him, intrigued. "Oh yeah? What is it?"

Stoker smiled. "You'll never guess."

Vinnie narrowed his eyes, thinking what it could be. "What've you got Stoke?" he asked suspiciously, his eyes lighting up more. "Confiscated weapons? A 'suped up bike?"

Stoker laughed, shaking his head, "No. Better than any of that."

Vinnie's eyes flashed, he looked impressed and bewildered in equal measure. "Well c'mon on, let me go see!" he pushed excitedly.

Stoker smiled, "Room thirty nine, down tunnel three."

Vinnie smiled at him, still confused as to what it could be, but excited to find out. Stoker was obviously trying to cheer him up. It had to be something good, but better than weapons or a bike? Was that even possible? He walked hastily away, as Stoker watched him with affection in his eyes.

Modo, Throttle and Carbine emerged from the crowd, gathering in front of Stoker, having seen Vinnie walk off abruptly.

"Hey Stoke, where's Vinnie off to in such a hurry?" Throttle asked, a tad concerned.

"Carbine?" Stoker raised his eyebrows to her.

Modo and Throttle looked to her, both baffled. Carbine sighed, time to come clean.

She raised her hands in front of her. "OK. I didn't wanna say anything until it actually happened, if it happened, but Charley's here."

Throttle and Modo looked at her in utter shock and confusion.

"Say what now?" Modo blurted out, his eye wide.

"What? How?" Throttle demanded, his mind muddled.

"The engineer got the transporter working when we were on our way home, sent it back to Chicago. I got a message to Charley, had a feeling she'd change her mind. I wasn't sure if it'd work but, it has, and she's here." She smiled.

Throttle shook his head as a way to make sense of her words. "And Vinnie doesn't know?"

"He will in a minute," she shrugged. "That's where Stoker's just sent him."

Throttle and Modo exchanged looks. Modo took a deep breath. "That's gonna be one heck of shock," he pondered.

"Yeah. But how stoked is he gonna be?" Throttle chuckled. They couldn't argue with that, they all were.

Charley sat on the edge of the bed, nervously rubbing her hands, her whole body constantly shifting as she waited. She breathed deeply, her stomach churning. Then she heard them. Hurried footsteps getting closer. She stood quickly, swallowing as the footsteps approached.

He hurried along the tunnel, eager to see what Stoker had. It was something special, that was for sure. He couldn't guess. He went along the room numbers, etched into the rock above the doors. Thirty nine was near the end of the row to the left. He arrived at the door, excited to see what lay behind it.

Charley's eyes widened as the footsteps stopped at the door. Her mouth opened as she took a large breath. Vinnie pushed the wooden door with a grin, his eyes alive with anticipation.

The door flew open, Charley saw him in the doorway, her face filled with relief, but also a little fear.

Vinnie's eyes immediately fell on her. Stopping cold in his tracks, his face instantly turned from excited curiosity to one of utter disbelief. His smile collapsed, his eyes widened. He inhaled a sharp intake of breath. His mouth opened, but there was no sound.

Charley smiled nervously, her eyes misting over. "Surprise?" It was almost a whisper.

Vinnie had not moved an inch. His eyes darted over her, his heart was racing and his breathing became rapid. For a moment he had wondered if she was some kind of hallucination, brought on by tiredness, or the emotional turmoil, only now catching up with him. But then she had spoken. And he knew. He knew she was real, in front of him.

His eyes narrowed slightly. "Ch-Charley?" he stammered, his mind was a haze of confusion.

She nodded and smiled wider. "It's me," she confirmed with a lighter tone.

Vinnie's mouth opened wider, wanting to ask a barrage of questions all at once. "How? What… how?" he blurted, unable to form a sentence. He looked her over, still trying to comprehend she was in front of him.

"The short answer, Limburger's transporter. Carbine had it sent back to Earth, she thought I'd change my mind. She was right," Charley shrugged, her voice shaking as a tear fell down her face.

Vinnie was still totally confused. But the details didn't matter at that moment. He stepped towards her, she did the same, until they were hugging tightly.

Vinnie swallowed, his eyes becoming watery. "I can't believe you're here."

"Me neither," Charley replied against him.

He held her face to look at her, she reached up and held his. Neither could have imagined the day would end like this. "Sweetheart?" Vinnie started, "You came to Mars… for me?" He needed her to confirm the fact, not quite believing it.

Charley smiled, giving a small nod. "Well you told me to do what makes me happy, and I realised, this was the only thing that would."

Vinnie smiled, then a look of concern crossed his face. "Charley, I didn't expect you-"

She cut him off, "-I know you didn't. It was my choice, Vinnie. This is where I wanna be, and where I belong. On Mars, with you guys. With you."

He kissed her, and hugged her again. "I never imagined you'd do this, Sweetheart!" He let out a small laugh, still finding the whole thing overwhelming. "Can you, get back? I mean, with the transporter?" He realised maybe she could have the best of both worlds, quite literally.

She shook her head. "I think I was lucky to get here, it's pretty much totalled. You never know, maybe in time we could fix it… but I'm not thinking about that now."

Vinnie nodded. He realised she wasn't intending on going back. "I still can't believe you did this."

Charley sighed. "I know, it's a lot. Sorry to shock you like that, but hopefully it's a good shock," she smiled a little sheepishly.

"Are you kidding me," Vinnie gave her a look, "this is the most awesome day of my life! I never thought I'd ever see you again, babe," he added with heartfelt sincerity.

Charley smiled at him lovingly. "I know, neither did I. Even once I'd changed my mind, I didn't know if it was too late."

Vinnie smiled at her, hugging her once more. "We gotta thank Carbine for this."

"And her female intuition," Charley added.

Vinnie heard voices, which reminded him that Modo and Throttle had not yet seen her. "Guess the others will be wantin' to see ya."

Charley smiled broadly, "Let's go."

They walked back along the tunnel, out into the open, where the Freedom fighters were still gathered. Charley saw Throttle and Modo standing with Stoker and Carbine.

"Guys!" she shouted, breaking into a run. They turned, grinning, calling her name as she hugged them tightly.

"Charley Ma'am! Of all the things I expected to see today, you weren't one of them!" Modo exclaimed. "I'm glad you decided to join us."

"Sure is good is see you here, babe," Throttle agreed. "Welcome to Mars."

Charley smiled, "Thanks guys! It's so good to be here with all of you."

Vinnie used the time to thank Carbine. After exchanging some words, she affectionately placed a hand on his arm, as he walked over to Stoker.

"That was some stunt you pulled there, old timer," Vinnie told him with a smile.

Stoker looked pleased with himself. "Well I couldn't spoil the surprise of a lifetime now could I?"

Vinnie let out a breath, "You can say that again."

"I'm glad it all worked out, punk," Stoker slung his arm round Vinnie's neck, patted his shoulder, then stepped forward to speak with a solider.

Charley walked up to Carbine with a broad smile, which Carbine reciprocated. Carbine pulled her into a hug. "You made it! I'm glad you're here Charley."

"Me too," Charley replied, before taking a step back and looking at her. "Carbine, I can't thank you enough for what you did."

"Everyone deserves a chance of happiness, and no one more than you. I'm just glad it worked," Carbine held her arms with warm affection.

Throttle, Modo and Vinnie observed the scene around them. Now everything was complete.

"Sure is good to be back with everyone," Modo sighed.

"Finally, everything's fallen into place," Throttle agreed thoughtfully.

"Mars, Charley, and no Plutarkians! Life don't get much better than this!" Vinnie cried gleefully.

Charley and Carbine approached the trio.

Vinnie had been mulling over the last three days. "Hey Sweetheart, what happened about McCyber?"

The others looked to Charley, interested to hear what had transpired.

She sighed, "Jack was great. Once we found the transporter, he knew I'd made up my mind. I signed the garage over to him for rental, I know he'll take care of it. Gave him my truck, my stuff… everything."

Vinnie raised his eyebrows, "Giving up your whole life in a couple of days, takes a lot of doing, babe." He couldn't help but feel guilty, as happy as he was.

Charley shook her head. "It was the right thing to do, and I trust Jack. Sometimes you just have to do what you know's right." She looked at Vinnie knowingly. He nodded to her, smiling.

The crowds gradually dispersed, some going back to work, some back to their quarters, or to spend time with family and friends. It had been a very long day.

Charley and Vinnie were at last left in peace, to gather their thoughts. Vinnie walked over to his bike, which had been taken-or rather taken itself, off of the ship, along with all the other cargo.

"You wanna go somewhere quiet?" Vinnie suggested, getting on.

Charley smiled, getting on behind. "Sure. Lead the way, this is your terrain now."

Vinnie laughed, starting up and roaring into the distance. Before long, he drove up a large red rock, which flattened at the top, where he stopped. Charley surveyed the landscape below. Mostly just a cracked, red ground, scattered with rocks of various sizes. Vinnie gestured her over to the other side of the rock.

He pointed. "There it is, Sweetheart. Not quite as awe inspiring, I know."

Charley looked out and smiled. In the middle of the barren plane, she saw the little garden which Vinnie had mentioned previously. Some greenery, including plants and flowers, grew around a small waterfall and pond. It was a tiny piece of paradise that still existed for the planet, and symbolised hope that it would one day be restored in full.

"It's amazing," Charley gushed, "I can't believe they've managed to sustain it."

Vinnie agreed with a laugh. "Yeah, it's pretty cool."

They sat on the edge of the rock, their legs hanging over. It was quiet, except for the distant sound of the waterfall.

Vinnie put his arm round her. "You can't say other guys have ever shown you stuff like this!" he smiled.

Charley gave a short laugh. "No, a waterfall on Mars is definitely something new to me," she remarked dryly.

Vinnie grinned, "You know I like to be different."

Charley leaned against him, "That's you in a nutshell, Vinnie. You were always different."

Vinnie raised an eyebrow, "But in a good way, right?"

"Yeah. I soon realised you weren't like other guys, underneath anyway," Charley smiled up at him knowingly. "Guess that's why I ended up falling in love with you, huh?" she added thoughtfully.

Vinnie looked down at her with adoration. "No girl's ever said that to me before, you know."

"Well I wouldn't be here if I didn't mean it," Charley told him sincerely.

"Well you know how I felt, it was pretty obvious right?" Vinnie smiled.

Charley frowned a little, contemplating his words. "I knew you cared, and that you fancied me," she teased, "but I didn't assume you loved me."

"Sweetheart, I've loved you pretty much from the first time we met." Vinnie replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Charley raised her eyebrows. "I made that much of an impression, huh?"

Vinnie gave a nod, "You sure did." He paused, looking at her. "You not gonna tease me about loving myself more or something?" He half expected it.

Charley laughed and shook her head. "Nah, not today."

Vinnie smiled, then looked towards the growing shadows, creeping out from the rocks and spilling over the cracked ground. "Today's nearly over, that blue sunset'll be comin' soon."

"I'm glad I get to see that." Charley sighed against him.

"Its not as amazing as the one at the beach," Vinnie warned her.

Charley smiled. "I don't care, we're watching it together, that's all that matters now," she looked up at him.

"You said it, Sweetheart." Vinnie pulled her tighter against him. "And these ones never have to end."

END