Biker Mice from Mars
Hard Luck Trilogy
Part 3
What's His Frequency Karbunkle?
Chapter 16
"Ahhh, Chicago." Limburger purred to himself contentedly. He leaned back in his extra padded and structurally reinforced chair as he looked out the window of his Luxuriantly Large Purple Helicopter as it hovered over the pit site of his Tower.
He was watching the large fireball flare as it rolled across the night sky. As the Fireball grew in intensity, so did the malevolent glee in his inhuman fisheyes! He hadn't replaced his mask yet and was enjoying the feeling of the humid air across the scales on his head.
Dr. Karbunkle had informed him that the Falling Space Bin wouldn't be impacting on the City anymore (Hence why He was hovering above it and not getting his big fat fish posterior to someplace safer like oh, say Florida!
It was circling the planet, but Karbunkle did reassure him it would be destroyed in the sky above them, so he was guaranteed to see the show! The only downside was he was not to be saved the inconvenience of having to demolish the City himself, but one must learn to live with the little bumps upon the road of life. He much preferred POTHOLES!
He laughed as the Space Bin Flared again! Karbunkle spun around in the copilot seat next to Fred the Mutant, who was flying the Helicopter, to stare apprehensively at his employer. "Why whatever is the reason for that look of trepidation on your face my dear disquiet doctor?" Limburger sighed. He hated to look away. He didn't want to miss the Climax!
"Er, I was just wondering why you didn't seem to be concerned by the fact that 2 of the Mice have somehow managed to escape, and return to Chicago?" Limburger sighed theatrically and hesitated before looking away from the window to give Karbunkle a look of wearied impatience.
"Remind me again which of the two vermin it was that escaped?" He asked wearily. "The Big Dumb One and the Hyperactive Adrenaline Junkie!" Karbunkle replied.
"Well, there is your answer my dimwitted domestic, we are at long last finally VICTORIOUS!" Limburger said all but salivating! Karbunkle looked at him like he was having a stroke. "How is that again?" He asked slowly. Not sure how the Plutarkian would react.
"It is because, You Hydrocephalic Headcase, we have Destroyed the One Advantage those Vile Voles had over us!" He hollered at the quivering doctor! "And before you can ask, that Advantage was their UNITY!" Karbunkle got a gleam in his goggled eyes. He was starting to understand.
"The Vermin that is about to be Incinerated is their Leader!" Limburger continued, starting to relish the topic at hand, which was the long overdue, and painful demise of his most despised adversaries! "Without Him to lead them, the other two will be easily swept from the gameboard!"
Karbunkle gave a nasty little cackle and rubbed his talon-like hands together weakly. "Compiled with the loss of him, and even that inept blue bungler, it will be like a Sledgehammer Blow to their morale!" Limburger could just imagine what their anguish would taste like! Oh, how he wished he could bottle it and savor it forever!
Limburger turned and stared back up out of the window! The night sky suddenly brightened up as if the Sun had suddenly appeared! The Fireball grew until it broke up and rained down harmlessly into the atmosphere, the chunks burning up into ash!
Naked euphoria washed across Limburger's green scaly face! He stumbled back and fell into his chair! He sat silently staring forward for a few seconds until a look of pure evil glee took over him! "YES!" He Bellowed! "Yes, yes, yes, burn for eternity, you Miserable Martians!" He laughed and spun around on his chair!
Karbunkle and Fred joined into! Fred for one found the idea of burning forever to be a fun concept, he was kind of jealous! Karbunkle joined in because He also wished all the most dreadful fates on the Mice too, and because he was a good little bootlicking minion!
As the Illumination for the Fireball above them faded, it was replaced by a bright blue glow from beneath them! They were so caught up in celebrating the deaths of despised enemies they failed to notice it, at least until the Helicopter was bracketed by a deluge of thick dust and debris slamming into the underside of the vehicle!
Limburger howled in panic as he was sent flying from his chair and rolled around the helicopter interior like a runaway purple bowling ball! He came to a stop when he slammed into the interior fuselage! "WHAT'S HAPPENING! He bellowed!
"I don't know!" Karbunkle hollered back, he had wisely fastened his seatbelt, and was saved from the humiliating treatment as Limburger! Fred somehow managed to keep the copter from crashing out of the sky, as much as he was tempted to! The Matter Transporter in the Tower Pit spewed debris up non-stop! Fred fought to keep the Helicopter afloat!
Limburger managed to pull himself up off the floor and look out the window! Something else flew past them in the torrent of dust and debris pummeling them from below! Limburger stared at it in utter disbelief! His scaly green face went pale! "No, no, NOOOOO!" He screamed! "It's Not Fair, Not Fair, I Won, I WON!"
Throttle and Hard Luck riding on Dently careened up into the Night Sky! Dently's two side jets ignited, and they flew out of the dust and unsteadily flew or fell towards the City below them! Limburger was on the verge of having a full-on Fit!
Karbunkle looked out his window. "They're not the only thing that's back." He groaned. Limburger, frothing at the mouth turned on him! "What do you mean by that you, you…" He struggled to form an insult to hurl at him as he too looked down out of his own window. His face fell even more.
"Oh, Fuhhhh…" He started to curse but was interrupted when the Roof of the Limburger Tower came Rocketing up out of the Spatial Displacement Portal below! It slammed into them! The Helicopter crashed thru the roof and send down into the Tower! They hung there for a few seconds before gravity took hold and pulled them down!
They crashed down into the Pit below! The Limburger Tower had Returned to Chicago! The Building stood there almost Proudly and Defiantly, albeit severely damaged and charred! It was still for a few seconds before it collapsed down into a pile of rubble!
Dust and smoke rose from the fresh ruins. A voice full of frustration and despair could be heard rising from deep within it. "That's it, I'm going on vacation." Limburger painfully moaned.
Charley, Modo, and Vinnie sat on an empty street corner a few blocks from the Limburger Plaza, or Crash Site. 2 of them sat Dumbfounded as they watched the Spectacular Display of Chaos that just played out in front of them.
They had just retrieved Charley's tool kit from the Last Chance and were racing back to the Transporter Platform in the pit as fast as they could when they were stopped by the show and the fact that pit was no longer empty!
"What in the Flaming Bleu Cheese was THAT!?" Vinnie all but yelled out! Charley just sat there on Throttle's black cruiser and stared dumbfounded with her jaw hanging open. It amazed her how after the last few years, she was somehow not immune to such sights, after all, she had seen since the Mice had appeared in her life!
"What, what was it, what'd I miss, what!?" Modo agitatedly asked! He was getting really irked by this having to wait for someone to tell him these things! Vinnie and Charley sat there and tried to form the words to describe what they just saw to Him!
"Gosh, Modo, there was a Giant Fireball, and, and well, Limburger's Tower, and Explosions, and, and just….IT Was FRIKKEN Awesome!" Vinnie yelled out exasperated! "Can you put that in Non-Vinnie-Babble, someone, anyone, please?" Modo groaned.
Vinnie tried but his tongue just wasn't up to the task. Charley still looking skyward, her eyes nearly doubled in size, but didn't come close to the size of the wide smile that grew on her face! "If you thought that was an awesome sight, Vinnie, this one is Way More Awesome! "She cheered and pointed up into the sky in front of them!
"WHAT!?" Both Vinnie and Modo shouted, Modo in blank ignorance, but Vinnie, His eyes grew just as big as Charley's when he spotted what she saw too! "WOO HOO, It's the Guys, Their Safe Modo their Safe, LOOK OUT!"
Vinnie barely got that warning out, before He, Charley, and Modo's bike Lil Hoss all peeled rubber to get them out of the way of the Plummeting Motorcycle that came to a bouncing somewhat controlled crash landing towards them at high speed!
Missing them by a mouse hair, Throttle, and Hard Luck cannonballed thru where they had just been standing! Dently's tires and brakes screeched and screamed as they went into a standing spin until they slammed into a pile of trashcans and boxes in the alley next to the Trio!
Miraculously, They somehow managed to stay upright on both wheels, albeit said tires were all but shredded and smoking. The Mice were pretty much in the same condition. "Oh, whoa!" Throttle gasped as he shook his head and tried to pull his paws off Dently's even more twisted handlebars. He had squeezed so hard they felt all but glued to them!
The Trio raced over on their motorcycles and jumped off, Charley ran up while Vinnie somehow controlled himself to hang back to take Modo's paw and lead him over! Throttle's Bike beat them all there and happily beeped at its Returned Master!
Throttle smiled at it and reached out and lovingly patted its headlight. "Hey, Lady I missed you too!" He sighed with an exhausted but happy smile. The Trio caught up and stood there, all 3 wanting to jump forward and hug them, but bumping shoulders, inadvertently holding each other back!
They instead hurled a barrage of rapid-fire questions at him, all of which pretty much boiled down to "Are you Ok, What Happened, and How are You still Alive!" Throttle could only stare back at them and smile.
"As soon as I figure it out, I'll let you guys know." He joked. Hard Luck, his arms loosely wrapped around Throttle's midsection and his head buried in his shoulder, let out a muffled groan.
Throttle chuckled again, and patted Dently on his drooping Camera Eye and nodded his head at the Unconscious Martian behind him. "Couldn't have gotten back without the boys help!" Dently let out a weak squeak from his horn.
The Trio was silent for a second before they once again started yammering over each other again! "Hey, Hard Luck, wake up!" Throttle called back while nudging at the Blue Mouse behind him with his shoulder. Hard Luck moaned again and tightened his hug around Throttle!
"Oooh, Pala, Gimme 15 more minutes, and I promise I'll try to not screw up the mission this time, I promise!" He mumbled while he nuzzled his nose into Throttle's shoulder! "Hey!" Throttle gasped! "Uh, you smell pretty good today, Pala!" Hard Luck mumbled again and hugged harder and nuzzled his nose deeper with a smile in his voice.
"Pala?!" Charley, Vinnie, and Modo blurted out! Vinnie and Charley gave Throttle a slanted look. Modo and Throttle blushed slightly. "MUSKET WAKE UP!" He hollered! Hard Luck jerked awake at hearing his real name again!
"Huh, what, who, where ouch!" Hard Luck garbled as he tried to bring himself up to (what passed for him) full awareness! He looked up and around, then noticed that he was still tightly hugging Throttle! He quickly and embarrassedly pulled his arms off! "Heh, uh sorry, heh, uh what'd I say?"
Modo couldn't control himself anymore! "HAHA, Oh Little Brother, I'm so glad you're OK!" He yelled and stepped forward and clumsily got his big left arm around the smaller Martian and nearly squeezed the life out of him!
"GURRGHH!" Hard Luck gurgled as he was lovingly scrunched! "Hey Modo, I just got him back in one piece, you break him you get to glue him back together!" Throttle cried out trying not to hurt himself by laughing too hard.
"Oops, oh heh, sorry bout dat!" Modo mumbled and eased off. Hard Luck groaned again but hugged the Big Mouse back. "Oh, ow, I'm really happy to see you too Big Bro." Hard Luck said leaning against the Martian Mountain. Modo smiled sadly. "Oh, I wish I could say the same Lil Bro." He sighed sadly.
Hard Luck looked up at him. "Huh, whattya mean by…. hey what's wrong with your arm?" He asked as he noticed His Big Bro's cyborg arm in its sling! He then looked up and saw Modo's dull glassy eye not staring down at him.
Hard Luck's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets! "Oh, Oh Cheese, Oh Cheese, I remember, Oh Modo, I'm So Sorry!" He stammered! "Ah, it's Ok, I don't blame you, it aint your fault Lil Bro, it's all that Stink Face's fault. He did this somehow, it aint yer fault!" Modo said trying to reassure the smaller Martian.
"No, no come here!" Hard Luck called out and re-hugged Modo and pulled him back to him! "Hey, I said is Ok, I mean…" Modo started again but Hard Luck cut him off. "No, that aint what I mean!" He said and shoved his left paw up under Modo's right-side armpit!
"OH, Hey that tickles stop it!' Modo guffawed and wiggled around! "Hold Still Ya big Goof!" Hard Luck snapped! A Loud CLICK snapped out! Hard Luck barely managed to duck under the Metal Arm as it shot out of its bandana sling like a piston, and his eye glowed bright red!
"WHOA, MAMA!" Modo cried out! "My Arm, I can use my arm, and I can see, Hey I Can SEE!" He cried out as if he couldn't believe what had just happened! Throttle, Vinnie, and Charley all cheered and patted him on his big shoulder! All 3 ecstatic for their Big Friend's magical recovery!
"I just switched you back on, what, you Didn't know you have an on/off switch?" Hard Luck asked incredulously! "I got an…?" Modo mumbled confused before he broke out into an uncontrollable fit of laughter and using both his arms, this time took up both Hard Luck and Throttle in a Mighty Martian Mountain-sized hug!
"GUURRGHH!" Both Mice called out as they were lovingly crushed and all but lifted off Dently's seat! "Oh, Uh oops, heh sorry!" Modo chuckled and let go, dropping them both back on to Dently! All three groaned painfully at the landing!
"Oh, man you gotta tell me what all went down up there, I mean that was one of the most Awesome Stunts I ever saw, Oh Man, I wish I could have been there, but then I was kinda there, and I did do some pretty radical things up there myself, but I mean, Augh, ya gotta tell me what happened!" Vinnie raced off, his happiness at seeing Throttle again, and getting mixed up with his jealousy at missing some action!
Throttle rolled his shoulders and stretched his arms, trying to relax some of the pain and tension out of them. "I wish you could have been there for it Vin-man, really I do." Not sounding as he was being 100% honest.
Vinnie opened his mouth to respond to that but just smiled and pulled back his fist as if to punch Throttle in the arm. "Hey, if I had been there, maybe you two could have gotten back in better shape, cause serious bro, ya both look pretty banged up." He smirked.
"And on that, I agree with the Big Loudmouth!" Charley chimed in with. "All of you could do with some first aid, especially you two!" She said while looking at Throttle and Hard Lucks many wounds. Vinnie looked almost jealous as he looked at his far fewer and smaller cuts and bruises on himself.
"Awww we are all just so happy dat your pretty widdle baby face didn't get no more messed up than it did, yes we are little guy, we sure are!" Modo said in his best baby talk! He pinched Vinnie's cheek on his unmasked side. "Bite Me!" Vinnie snapped while blushing.
"OK, you knuckleheads, I am gonna have my hands full mending the boo-boos on both Bikes and Bikers, so let's get back to the Last Chance so I can get you all mended up!" Charley said going into full-on Mother/Mechanic Mode.
A chorus of Ok, Yeah, Sure thing Sweetheart, and Yes Ma'am came from the Mice as they all made to get on their individual bikes. Throttle moaned softly as he stiffly lifted one leg up as he tried to climb off Dently.
"Yeah, let's get the Fromage out of here!" Hard Luck muttered and just as painfully and stiffly as Throttle tried to get off Dently's seat! A little too eager, and not paying as much attention as he should, He failed to notice his metal leg getting one of its jagged edges caught on a section of Dently's Chassis!
"Hard Luck Look Out!" Throttle shouted! "Uh Whoops!" Hard Luck gasped as he lost his balance and fell forward! "AAAHH!" They both cried out as they tumbled back against Dently, who fell back against the Alley Wall! "BRRAAWK!" He squawked!
Dently banged against a couple of trash cans, and boxes and bounced back, knocking into Throttle's backside! "Ouch!" He cried out as he was reminded of said sore backside! Another Loud Rip sounded out as what remained of his pants snagged on Dently and they parted ways!
Clad now only in his black vest, and boots, and bright tight red shorts, He once again bumped into Hard Luck, whose feet tangled with his, sending them both to crash to the Alley floor! 'Oof, Ouch, Ugh!" The two of them cried out!
"Hard Luck, you clumsy…" Throttle growled as he pushed off Hard Luck and stood back up. "Throttle, your, you are. I mean…" Charley gasped while pointing then she blushed bright red and closed her eyes while also covering them with her hands!
Vinnie bit his lip but couldn't stop it! "BWAHAHAHAHA!" He exploded with uncontrolled laughter and fell over the top of his red bike, fits of laughter rolling off him! Modo's now working eye nearly popped! He tried to fight it but couldn't help it! He laughed so hard he nearly fell off Lil Hoss!"
"What the...?" Throttle rasped as he looked down and saw his red shorts! He bent and comically crossed his arms in front of him and pressed his knees together! "HARD LUCK!" He shouted! His face blushing nearly as red as his shorts!
"AAAAHH!" Hard Luck gasped out! "Oh, Throttle, I am so sorry, I didn't mean to, I mean, that is I…' He fumbled as he tried to stand up himself! RIPP SNAP! This time it was the seat of his pants that gave out, as did his belt which snapped in two in the back!
Hard Luck stood up, and his pants fell to his knees! His green shorts with yellow spots in full view! "Uh, Hard Luck!" Modo called out while pointing at him! "I hate when this happens!" Hard Luck groaned, and awkwardly tried to pull his pants up while turning his back to them! "Hard Luck!" Modo yelled out again!
"Huh, what?" He asked then realized his back was facing Charley who peeked between her fingers and saw the big hole in the back of his pants! "EEK!" She gasped and recovered her eyes! Vinnie nearly suffocated!
Hard Luck spun around and stepped in front of Throttle, doing his best to hide both of their predicaments. "Uh…Oops?" He weakly whimpered. Throttle glared at him over his shoulder before, He too just had to start laughing! "Oh, you are one of a kind Hard Luck, in so many ways!"
Throttle leaned on Hard Luck's shoulder and just let the laughter out, laughing so hard tears flowed out of his eyes. Charley had to join in! Hard Luck gave a few half-felt chuckles then just groaned feeling humiliated.
A few minutes passed, and helmets were returned and Throttle, with a loose piece of cardboard wrapped around him to cover his dignity, got on his own bike and Charley taking her normal spot behind Vinnie, and Hard Luck, with an old newspaper covering the hole in his pants, riding behind Modo as Dently was attached to Lil Hoss to be towed to the Last Chance, made their way back to the Garage to mend, repair and just be grateful they were all alive and still have a City to call Home!
Up in the Night Sky, with Dawn quickly approaching on the Horizon, the last few remnants of the Space Bin burned like Falling Stars as they fell! The City of Chicago was blissfully unaware of yet another disaster it had been saved from!
Saved by the Biker Mice from Mars!
Up Next
The Epilogue!
