Past Battles

Warning: Violence and death in this chapter.

Note: Just what missions did the bros do before they met Charley?

The subject came up somehow when the mice were deep in their cups. And the moment someone mentioned it, the celebration stopped and the room became sombre. Old souls in young bodies stared into their cups or into the distance and the stories began. One by one, they unburdened their souls and Charley watched, tears streaming down her face as some spoke with no emotion and others could barely speak through too heavy tongues and tears.

At some point, it was Vinnie's turn. The mouse, unusually quiet, let the silence stretch before with a notably quiet voice he began to speak. "The bros and I were part of a convoy. Modo and I were the escorts, Modo the muscle and I was the distraction. Should we be attacked." He took a mouthful of his drink. "When the enemy attacked, I would provide the noise, keep the enemy preoccupied so Modo and the army could do some damage." Vinnie sighed. "We didn't know we were heading into an ambush. We also didn't know we were being followed and Throttle couldn't tell us. You see we were in a large crater, almost 930 miles wide and just as many miles deep, and because of this our radios were practically useless." He sighed again. "We should have gone around the crater, but that would have added weeks, if not months to our journey and there was a storm coming in. With no real shelter and vulnerable people in our convoy, we simply couldn't afford to stop."

"We had no choice but to face the shadows of the crater." Modo input, after Vinnie went quiet. "Vinnie led the way, being lighter and faster on his bike. I followed the convoy, watching their progress and keeping an eye out for any danger. The children were excited, not yet aware of the danger we were in and excited by everything new. Mothers had to keep hold of their excitable cubs and fathers were teaching the children about all the new things they were seeing, telling them all about the crater and how we believed it was the remnant of the first ocean on our world. I heard one father pointing out the naturally carved stone from wind & rain and the damaged, burnt and sharp stones from the impact of meteors and asteroids. It added an air of joyful learning to the whole journey."

"But it was not to last." Vinnie continued. "You see we were walking into a perfect disaster. The years of bad storms and their erosion of ancient stone, the tunnelling of sabre-tooths and the impact of bombs and weapons-fire had weakened the floor of the crater. In some places the stone was paper-thin, but we didn't know until it was too late. And with enemies following us, by the time we realised the danger we simply couldn't turn back."

"A rogue clan of mice showed up, having followed our tracks for weeks. They themselves had lost many of their females and some of their hunters to storms and wildlife that survived on the surface of Mars. They were seeking to replace their lost members and knew we transported vulnerable people. Therefore, easy prey to rogue clan." Modo added. "They knew because they had seen large convoys travelling to and from our colonies, they had noted that we transported food and people somewhat regularly between our settlements. And they had been observing us for weeks, watching and waiting for the perfect moment to strike."

"They probably thought we knew about the weakness of the cavern floor. If we had known we'd have stopped and been cornered by nature and these rogues." Vinnie stated. "Our ignorance could have been our saving grace if not for…" He trailed off and Modo placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Of course, the Plutarkian's were watching too." Modo said. "So, by the end we were dealing with rogue mice who had no loyalty to their kin and sought only to take, Plutarkian's who wanted to take and destroy all of Mars and nature herself. Not that we knew that until the end."

"It was almost as if the Gods wanted us dead. And we would have died that day if not for our secret." Vinnie stated. "We were, maybe, two days into our journey when the rogues made themselves known. Their screams and cries frightening the children and innocents who immediately swarmed together, immediately doing what the rogues wanted them to do. The rogues, you see, were herding the people, making them into a tightly woven group. They considered Modo, the four army escorts and I the threat, and Modo the bigger threat so he was immediately swarmed by the largest and strongest of the rogue clan. As for me, they were attempting to push me and the escorts farther from the civilians, whether to kill or capture us, I don't know. I never got to find out."

"An old veteran, one of the civilians, took the initiative, he got the civilians into the cars and pushed on, trusting Vinnie, the army escorts and I to deal with the enemy." Modo continued. "It would have been effective too. With the strongest of the rogue clan dealing with me and with Vinnie and the other bucks giving the rest a run for their money, there were few left to chase and overcome the civilians."

"But then there was a loud crack, the sound of earth splitting and then it was followed by the screams." Vinnie stated. "I'll never forget those screams." He shuddered, his red eyes watery and his voice trembling. "And the people we were protecting were just…gone."

"The ground had swallowed them and their pursuers whole. At first, we thought they'd died. In my horror, my enemy got the upper hand. The rogues were horrified too, but the way the saw it, if they couldn't have the civilians, they could have us, new warriors to their clan once they beat and subdued us into obedience. But then I heard it. The cries of women and children. A child begging his father for help and I realised the people I was sworn to protect were alive and I just stood up, forcing the rogues off me."

"I think the rogues were terrified." Vinnie chuckled, albeit the laugh was strained but it was the first sound of genuine laughter since the stories began. "We got a second wind, driven by the cries of help from the innocent. Modo was destroying the fiends, sending them running with their tales between their legs."

"If they could run after I was done with them." Modo stated darkly, his eyes glowing with remembered rage.

"I rushed to provide a distraction, throwing grenades and keeping them off Modo as he approached the hole and found that somehow, by some mercy of the Gods, our people had lived. They were not even that far down and with a little bit of climbing and perseverance, they could climb out. We'd lost a lot of our supplies, but our people were alive and that was the most important thing. So, once the rogues fled, we worked on getting our people out before the Sabres were drawn to the scent of blood and food."

"But the rogues hadn't gone far. And we had not actually fought the whole group. There were more who arrived near the end of the initial fight and who were watching our rescuing the civilians with interest." Modo continued after a swallow of his drink. "Their leader was one of the biggest mice I'd ever seen, all black and scarred. He'd seen many battles against other rogue clans and the plutarkians, but there was nothing good in his heart, only greed and hate."

"Our rescuing the innocents gave them a second wind." Vinnie added. "They had thought they'd lost what they were after. They'd lost the supplies, but the people were still easy prey and without the cars we had nowhere to run."

"But they had stupidly thought Modo and Vinnie and the armed escorts, four in all, were the only guard to the caravan." Throttle stated, speaking for the first time. "When we were preparing to leave with the convoy, we agreed that all the guards shouldn't be seen. You see, we knew the convoy was an easy target, not only because it carried food and civilians but because the soldiers escorted the convoys, and with our numbers dwindling, any soldier killed or taken was a devastating blow to the Freedom Fighters and our species as a whole. So instead of being with the convoy, we were trailing behind wearing camouflaged uniforms. For our plan, we chose the tan, brown and reddish-brow furred mice of the army escorts to enact our plan. We coated our bikes in tarp and covered any shiny metal parts with brown paste. These colours were less noticeable against the hard cold stones of Mars." Throttle took a long drink from his glass. "We were, maybe a few hours behind the main group. Close enough to observe, far enough away that we weren't easy to spot ourselves."

"And Throttle here is a crack shot with a sniper." Vinnie grinned, it was not a happy grin, it was a cruel grin, almost a smirk, like Vinnie took pleasure in the deaths that followed at Throttle's hands (or rather shots), but considering the story Charley did not blame him or fault him for his satisfaction and the death of these monsters.

"We saw the rogues follow the convoy and we followed the rogues." Throttle continued as if not interrupted. "As the convoy went into the crater, the rogues watched from the rim, waiting for something and we knew we had to act."

Vinnie laughed. "I can't tell you the joy we all felt when suddenly the enemy we saw stood on ridges disappeared one by one. By the time the rogues knew what was happening our back up had killed or incapacitated over half of the rogue clan. All that was left was the brute of a leader and about five male mice, two of which were barely old enough to wield a weapon and were blatantly terrified."

"Throttle's team disappeared as quickly as they arrived, blending in with sand and stone." Modo stated with a smirk. "The leader was furious."

"In his rage he grabbed a child, a young boy only two years old at the most." Vinnie added. "It was his last mistake."

A cheer went up from the listeners, all knew what Modo would do when a child was threatened. And Modo grinned. "For how big and experienced he was, he was clearly reliant on his men. This was a leader who knew how to beat a rival one on one but who had not seen a true fight in years. It was likely since being leader of his small tribe he'd spent most of his time throwing his weight around and relying on the warriors of his clan to fight his battles for him. So, although it was a worthy challenge, beating him was much easier than his physique implied."

"The moment the black brute was defeated. The others surrendered pretty quickly. They saw this black beast as unstoppable, that Modo defeated him had turned their world upside down." Vinnie smirked. "And we gathered the incapacitated survivors and gave them an option. They left and never bothered our settlements again or joined our people. Most chose to leave, but some, like the two young bucks chose to join us. They weren't initially trusted of course, but additional men against our enemy was welcome and with our species facing extinction it was a morale booster to some."

"But we had no time to celebrate." Modo added. "We were being watched. The Plutarkians had been watching the whole thing. Hoping the rogue clan and the convoy destroyed each other and then those fish could come and finish us off and collect what was left and undestroyed."

"One moment we were taking a breather, thinking about our next course of action, and the next we were surrounded. A stinking fish soldier pointing a weapon at every mouse's head, regardless of whether we were rogues or not, we are all the same to them." Vinnie answered.

"But once again, our secret plan came to fruition." Modo laughed. "You see Throttle and his team hadn't gone far. They had positioned themselves along the ridgeline with their rifles in hand. And let me tell you, there is nothing better than being in a seemingly hopeless situation and watching the enemy, who seemed to have the upper hand, fall one by one."

"It was silent." Vinnie said, his voice distant as if reliving the moment. Charley wondered if perhaps he was. "One moment I thought we were going to die. The next the Plutarkian soldier next to me had a deep blue hole in his head. Blood poured like a fountain and then he fell. I looked at the others and one by one the fish fell, until panicked, the remaining fish fled."

"It may have seemed cowardly to disappear." Throttle stated. "But we knew that there was no time for respite. The convoy would be a target as long as it was outside a settlement, so my men and I immediately went into ready positions, and it was lucky we did. If not, the Plutarkians would have got us too and we'd all be captured or dead." Throttle sighed. "Honestly, I don't know why the Plutarkian's never targeted us. Maybe they arrived after our initial attack and didn't know we were there, maybe they lost us in the chaos and thought us dead. Regardless of the reasons, we were fortunate because it meant we were able to strike without warning and save our fellow mice a second time."

"But…" Modo swallowed audibly. "In the chaos we hadn't realised that we had not saved everyone. You see, we thought the majority had survived the fall into the crater's hole. But that wasn't true."

"Some more survivors began to appear other the sharp edge of the hole. Our people working together with the rogues. Somehow while we were fighting up top, the survivors of the fall had come to an agreement to climb out and rescue all they could. Some had indeed fallen deeper. A few falling into a sabre's nest and being torn apart by the beasts." Vinnie shuddered, tears rolling over his soft face fur. "What was worse was listening to screams as those who were desperately climbing were dragged back by cruel tentacles or were kicked or pushed in competition to escape the hole."

"In a strange twist of fate, the rogues who we'd fought worked with us, pulling supplies together to craft ropes to help drag people out of the hole. A few rogue warriors even dared dive into the hole themselves, risking life and limb to save people."

"We'd began the journey with forty-three civilian mice, by the time we rescued all we could we were down to twenty-nine." Vinnie stated quietly. "Fourteen mice. Seven men, four women and three children, killed by the fall or…worse."

Modo was trembling when Charley in her shocked horror had reached out to grasp his arm. She saw every mouse present bow their heads, there were few dry eyes present and those not crying seem to have drawn into themselves, staring into space and not really seeing anything.

"As disarrayed as the convoy was, the surviving rogues, didn't band together to overcome the convoy." Throttle continued quietly, breaking the silence. "We later found out that with the black beast of a leader dead, the next in line took the lead. You see the clan didn't necessarily work like a democracy, the strongest warrior, the second in command usually took the lead unless he was defeated in battle. The new leader was a white mouse, just as scarred as the black mouse but he was different. He didn't seem as cruel."

"He wasn't." Vinnie answered. "He was impressed by our fortitude. He told us that he hadn't agreed to targeting the convoy as he too knew that with the Plutarkian threat our people could not afford to be divided. He disliked us, because he believes as many rogue clans do, that we should live nomadic lives, taking only what we need and no more, and he sees our settlements as cancers since the bigger the settlements, the more we have to take from Mars, therefore destroying her natural beauty slowly with our greed. But he also admitted that his opinions were null and void when so much of the world he loved was already taken from us by the Plutarkians. He swore that his clan would not fight us anymore, and that they would find some land further afield to call home, away from the Freedom Fighter settlements. He also swore, that due to the circumstances, any information they find out about the Plutarkians will be passed on to the Freedom Fighters and that should they find a Freedom Fighter in need they would offer shelter for healing and escort them back to safety."

"But there was a price to pay." Modo added. "The Tribe Chief, Jorvick made it clear that the clan would only help if it was important or necessary. They were not to be sought out for any other reason. They were not friends to the Freedom Fighters and they were no allies. If they were to come across any Freedom Fighter groups far from home and in clan territory, they would capture these mice and keep them for themselves."

"So, it was very important for us to know where Jorvick and his clan went, as such we station soldiers at the boundaries of our territories, watching for any sign of the clan. They've been spotted far north and they never seem to come close to our own territories, but markers have been placed to make sure our soldiers and people never cross that boundary." Throttle explained to Charley.

"We had no real choice but to accept Jorvick's deal." Modo stated. "With so many injured civilians and guards, we had no real way to fight another battle. Besides, the rogue warriors looked just as tired as we were and with so many dead, we didn't need another bloodbath so soon after. Jorvick agreed, that at least for now, we'd help each other out. The rogue clan had the means to transport people, and we had the weapons and the more capable soldiers since Jorvick knew we had allies on the ridges."

"Jorvick admitted, that having seen how quickly the Plutarkian's were killed it would have been suicide for his clan to even try to capture us when there were capable warriors watching our six." Vinnie added. "He'd eyed the ridge with fear, no doubt trying to see how many soldiers we had hidden, but other than a couple of glints from the scopes of rifles, he couldn't see anything to indicate Throttle and our men were there."

"For about a month, we travelled with those rogues. The civilians, were absolutely terrified, keeping their distance and refusing to engage with the other mice. The armed escort, Vinnie and myself positioned ourselves between the clan and our people." Modo stated. "Fortunately, Jorvick and his clan didn't take offence, they seemed amused at our fears and even encouraged it. Although one rogue warrior took a shining to one of the pups and the pup to him. You see, a four-year-old girl who'd broke her leg in the fall had been rescued by this red-furred warrior, Jared, had gently wrapped her in his tail and carried her from the hole and back to her mother. She was enamoured with him after that, giggling whenever he looked her way and he seemed equally enamoured with her, giving up his rations to let her and the other children eat a little more. He was a good man."

"He chose to join us in the end. He ended up marrying the child's mother and becoming a stepfather to the girl and four other orphaned cubs. His wife, Gloria and he work an orphanage and school now, he teaches them about the wilderness and how to defend themselves from animals and what signs they need to be aware of in the wilderness." Throttle chuckled.

"At the end of the journey, when we saw we were close to home, we split off, the civilians, armed escorts and I moved away from the rogue tribes' vehicles and nodded respectfully. Jorvick had nodded back and made to leave. He'd only gotten a few miles out when Throttle's team came flying back to base, their bikes causing a cloud of dust to follow in their wake." Modo stated,

Vinnie laughed again. "I would have loved to see their faces when a small army of mounted mice went flying past their convoy!"

Throttle smirked. "Jorvick looked shocked. Very shocked." He told Vinnie. "We may not have been a very large number, twenty at most but he saw we were well armed and prepared for battle. I doubt that he knew just how in danger his clan was until he saw us and how many we number. I suspect he thought the convoy may have only three or five snipers so when twenty of us came flying over the ridge he was shocked and then I saw his face turn to realisation. He had nodded at us, acknowledging our number and strength and driven away as we returned to base."

"But if there were twenty of you, why did you need the rogues' convoy?" Charley asked. "Surely you could have carried the survivors on your bikes?"

"Not everyone had bikes, for one thing, between the twenty of us, we had thirteen bikes. So, most of us were riding double. And we had twenty-four guards, including my team and twenty-nine civilians but only fifteen bikes. It would have been impossible to get everyone home. We'd have to leave some behind. Something we'd never choose to do unless absolutely necessary." Throttle answered.

"We lost too many people that day." Vinnie stated softly. "But we proved to a rogue clan that we Freedom Fighters were no push-overs. We earned their respect and since then they have filtered information to us that have saved many lives. Often, they find out things before we do, since they are wanderer's, they see and have on occasion rescued and returned some of our people. It is a distasteful alliance at times, since we've lost supplies and people to them but it has also been an invaluable alliance at times."

"But thanks to them, we are still here and thriving." Modo commented. "If the fates had had their way, we'd all have been dead that day."

"Plutarkians, nature, rogue clans, the fates threw everything at us that day and although it cost us a great deal, we survived." Throttle added. "If that doesn't prove that the Freedom Fighters have perseverance and a will to live and fight, I don't know what does. And as long as we breathe we'll continue fighting until our world is our own again and we no longer lose people to the Plutarkian's or the rogue clans."

"Hear, hear!" The group cheered.

As one the Martians drank and after a few moments the stories began to become more and more cheerier. Stories of heroics instead of loss filled the room and the aura of loss and devastation was replaced with the sound of cheers, joyful conversation and music once more.

Charley watched this all-in awe, admiring how these battle-hardened souls found something to smile about, something to celebrate when everything seemed so grim.