You guys, thank you so much for the reviews!
To answer some of your questions or comments:
Youkai55: You're absoluty right. Sometimes it's tempting to think you guys have seen the all episodes, so you know how, in this case Darla, looks like. Plus, sometimes I'm so caught up with everything that still is about to happen, I may be a little sloppy sometimes.
I will try to pay attention to it. Thanks!
L. Villarreal: Glad to hear you think they're cute together! I've been busy for years to collect all the episodes, and yes, all of them are in English. Keep an eye on youtube, sometimes they pop up there. But be quick, because most of the time they got deleted pretty fast, something about the rights and stuff.
wolftattoo: The girl with the blue eyes is Kiwi. Throttle was thinking about her because he was curious about her story, not because he's in love with her. Bit by bit, they find out. I've already revealed that Kiwi's parents got killed in a bike accident. After that, Kiwi got into a heavy depression. She doesn't work or go to school at the moment, because when the mice arrived, she was too sick to do so. And her parents were rich, so she has enough money, since she has inherited everything. Later on, there will be more details about the past. Both about Kiwi and about the mice.
On with the next chapter, a bit longer than usual. :)
Chapter fifteen
It was a cold and rainy day. Since the mice hated it to be outside in the rain, they were busy in the garage with tuning their bikes. Kiwi was sitting at the desk, reading a book. She sighed happily and switched a page. It was such a nice and peaceful day. Suddenly…
"AUTSJ!"
Kiwi almost threw her book in the air because of the sudden scream. She looked at the source of the noise in the form of a white furred Martian Mouse. By the looks of things, he had cut himself while he was placing something back on his bike. She wanted to help him, but he suddenly let out a stream of words she didn't recognize. Well, given the reaction of Modo, it probably was a good thing too.
"VINCENT! That is not how you talk in front of a lady!", the grey furred giant yelled at him.
Vinnie looked at him with a outraged look on his face.
"Really? I cut myself and instead of.. I don't know, asking me if I'm okay, you're yelling at me because I said some things that she doesn't even understand?", he snorted in disbelief.
Throttle quickly intervened.
"Vinnie, go clean that wound. Modo, help him. You know you're the only one who can right now."
Vinnie wanted to protest, but Modo grabbed him and dragged him with him. Kiwi looked at Throttle, a slightly amused look on her face.
"What language was it anyway?", she asked, sitting down again. Throttle sat down next to her.
"Martian."
"You guys have your own language?", she asked, somehow surprised. But then again, it's actually way more surprising that they could speak English.
"Yeah, well… It's an very old language. And hard to learn. Me and my bro's are the last generation who's learned it at school. You know, before the war started and we still had schools." He sighed and stared at his hands, clearly sucked back in time.
"Then how is it possible you guys speak English so well?", Kiwi asked, a little hesitated, not knowing if she needed to leave him with his thoughts or not.
But Throttle looked back at her.
"Well, the answer to that question requires a little history lesson. A very long time ago, some professor on Mars found out about Earth. His name was Professor Milestone. Back then, the mice population were way ahead in technologie than Earth, we still are, actually… But this professor, he traveled to Earth to studie you humans. Some said he was obsessed. Maybe he was. Anyway, he found out that people on Earth spoke many languages, but English was the most common. In his eagerness to learn everything about you, he learned the language from a friend who he had made on Earth. Someone who he could trust. Someone who wanted to learn just as much about Martian Cave Mice as the professor wanted to learn about the humans. Anyway, long story short; English slowly became the new spoken language on Mars. It's way more easier to learn than Martian, since that language is ancient and has a lot of difficult sounds. The professor wanted to make sure that we could communicate with people on Earth, that we were able to continue his investigation if he died. Nobody did though, because they weren't that interested in Earth as him, but everybody agreed that English was a better language to learn than Martian. So, I guess that's his legacy."
Kiwi was impressed with this story. All this time, they knew about Earth and about humans. And the people on Earth still hadn't found out about the things that were going on on Mars.
"Wauw, that's a very interesting story. Really, it's so weird you guys already know so much about Earth and we're still in the dark about everything that is happening in the galaxy. We don't even know the planet Plutark…"
Throttle chuckled.
"That's because, no offense, humans aren't that smart, present company excluded. And we know how to keep a low profile."
Kiwi smiled. He was right. Since she knew the mice, she already had figured out humanity still had so much to learn. Not only about technologie, but also about being forgiving. Being there for your people. Family. Love.
"How was it like? Mars? Before the war?", she asked.
Throttle thought about it and then smiled.
"It was great. Mars used to be a green planet. Of course, there was more sand and dessert than forests, but…", he trailed off, suddenly looking very sad.
Kiwi gently took his hand.
"I'm sorry, Throttle. I didn't mean to make you sad… We can talk about something else, if you want?"
But Throttle shook his head.
"It's not the fact that you ask that makes me sad. It's the fact I hardly can remember how it looked like… I try to remember, but all I see is the destruction… the karkas of something that once was a beautiful planet... "
Kiwi didn't know what to say.
"I'm so sorry… that this happened to you. To your home. I can't imagine what it must feel like…"
He suddenly looked at her and grabbed her hands tightly.
"We will make sure you'll never know. We'll defeat Limburger, one day. We'll make sure that he's not gonna ruin this planet like he did to our home. No more."
Kiwi felt tears in her eyes.
"You mice are always acting so macho, but really, you are such sweet guys… Fighting for a planet that isn't your home…"
"It is our home now. And it always will be. Thanks to you."
Kiwi rubbed his cheek.
"Thanks. For being here. For us. For Earth. For… me…" she trailed off.
"Family, remember?", Throttle whispered.
She nodded.
"Yeah… You said you had no family left. Is there anyone else waiting for you? You know… a girl?"
She felt him tense. Oh shit. She must have hit a nerve.
"If I'm asking too much, you need to tell me, I…"
"No, it's okay. But like I've said before, nobody's waiting. Not anymore…"
"Is she…", Kiwi asked, but she didn't couldn't say the word. Dead.
"No. She's not dead. She's the general of the Freedom Fighters now. We're just… not together anymore…" He took a deep breath and smiled a little sad at her. Poor Throttle.
"I'm sorry to hear… what happened between you?"
"War happened. We're all devoted to save Mars, but she… well, it drove a wedge between us. War changes you. In a bad way."
"Did it change you in a bad way?"
He needed to think about that question.
"I don't know, actually… I try to stay close to myself. But I did some things I'm not proud of. But I try to learn from my mistakes."
"What's her name?", she asked, but Throttle shook his head.
Okay. Too far. Next question.
"What about Modo? Does he have someone waiting for him?"
"No. She died. And this is not my story to tell."
"I know… God, poor Modo. I just don't understand how you guys have the strength to go on with your lives. To laugh. To make fun. To fight…"
"It's all we have. We need to make sure the ones we've lost, didn't die in vain. Giving up is just not an option…"
"And ehm… Vinnie? Does he…" Kiwi trailed off again. She felt her cheeks turning red.
Throttle studied her face. He looked her in the eye. And he saw it. He finally had figured out what was going on between these two. First Vinnie, now her…
"No. There was someone, a long time ago… But again, not my story to tell…"
Kiw felt surprised. And Throttle saw it. Of course. There weren't that many things the tan furred mouse didn't notice.
"I know what you're thinking and I can't blame ya. But despite his flirting, he doesn't fall in love that easily. He just loves the attention."
Kiwi nodded, not showing how his words cut right into her soul. She was right all along. Another reason to never tell him how she was feeling.
Throttle saw her reaction, despite the fact she tried to hide it. It made him feel bad, but it wasn't his place to tell her that Vinnie was feeling the same way about her. No, this was something they needed to figure out by themselves.
"Why is Modo the only one who can help him?"
Throttle looked at questionably, confused because of this sudden change of subject.
"You just said; you're the only one who can help him right now."
"Ah. Well, you know how he reacts on doktors. Modo is the only one he trusts enough to help him when he's wounded."
"Ah, okay… You really don't know what happened to him?"
"Ask him. Maybe he'll tell you."
Kiwi looked up surprised. Why would Vinnie tell her and not his bro's? What… Throttle grabbed her hands.
"Listen, the war affected us all. We all are damaged, somehow. But Vinnie… Well, he handles things differently. He is a very complicated mouse. But you already figured that one out, I guess…"
"Yeah... " Kiwi was biting her lower lip. She felt the words burning on her tongue, but something stopped her from saying it out loud. Maybe that would make it real. She had vowed to herself that nobody may know. But she could trust Throttle…
"Throttle…", she looked at him, her eyes almost pleading.
Throttle gave her that smile. That smile that said; 'I know. And it's okay.' That's why she loved to talk to him. He never judged. He understood.
"Sshh.. I know, Kiwi. I know", and he took her in his arms. She held him, and suddenly the words did find their way.
"I think I'm in love with him…"
Throttle let out his breath. After a long silence, he cleared his throat.
"Carbine… Her name is Carbine…"
When Modo and Vinnie came back into the garage, Throttle and Kiwi were doing their own thing, as if the conversation never had taken place. Kiwi looked up from her book.
"You okay, Vinnie?", she asked, a little worried. But Vinnie waved it away.
"Yeah, just a scratch, no biggie. It takes a lot more to take the Vinman down, sweetheart."
She saw the small piece of bandage around his finger. She nodded and rolled her eyes at the same time. It was so tempting to make a joke about his fear for medical help, but she didn't. That would be too harsh.
She looked at Modo. Now she knew he'd lost another loved one, next to his parents, she couldn't help feeling sorry for him. She was curious about the story, but now wasn't the time.
She turned her attention back on her book, but she couldn't concentrate. The only thing she could think of, was the mice. About their lives. The war. The damage. The losses. Vinnie. There was so much she wanted to know. There was so much she wanted to ask him. But she was scared. Scared that she would chase him away with her questions. Truth to be told, she needed him. He knew exactly how to make her calm. He knew how to make her laugh. He knew how to help her. And the weirdest thing was; he probably didn't knew all this. He probably wasn't aware of it. But that was the thing… They looked a lot like each other. Both damaged and both sucked at talking about their feelings… It would never work. So, she decided to keep some sorta distance. Not too far away, but certainly not too close.
After days with rain and wind, today was finally a good day. The sun was shining and no cloud in the sky. It was still cold, but hey, at least it stopped raining.
"Bro's, I really need to blow something up. And I mean like, right now", Vinnie complained and jumped on his bike. "Let's check how that stinkface is doing. Please?"
Throttle chuckled and shook his head, but he agreed. He also could need some action. A couple of fights, some explosions…
"Alright, let's go."
"YES!" and Vinnie already drove outside. Throttle and Modo mounted their bikes. Kiwi was at the bank for her monthly appointment. So, not much to do around here now anyway.
They followed Vinnie and drove to LP. And it turned out to be a good thing. Suddenly, the sound of explosions was loudly heard and they saw buildings crumble into the dust in the distance.
"Wow, looks like we got right on time, bro's. Really, talk about good timing. But then again, it was me after all who dragged you guys out of the house", Vinnie said with a arrogant smile on his face.
"Let's ride", Throttle sighed.
An hour later, they were standing on the roof of the building across LP. They could look right into Limburger's office and he was looking way too happy. He was talking to himself and looking at a map from Chicago. Vinnie smirked and grabbed his gun. He fired and the glass shattered. That took Limburger's attention.
"Heeeeeey, sewage breath!", Vinnie cheered and waved his gun around his finger before putting it back in his holster.
Throttle was leaning with his arm on Modo's shoulder and smiled.
"We thought you were a bit hasty with your new project…"
"Yeah, yeah, so we thought; we help out by moving some of your explosives around", and Modo pointed down.
Limburger looked down out of the hole where the window used to be and sighed. More than 10 boxes, filled with TNT, exploded and the whole building rocked.
"Oh my…", and Limburger lost his balance and fell out of the window. He let out a loud scream, but his grabbing hands found grip by another open window, a few floors lower.
The mice laughed.
"Ha! Get a grip, stinkface!", Modo laughed, shaking his head.
"Hahaha yeah! Is this what they call… clutch play?" and Vinnie mimicked how Limburger had wildy grabbed around him to find something to hold on to. They burst out into laughter.
Limburger, who was still hanging out of the window, glared at them.
"I shall have the last laugh, you miserable rodents. For I observe you have overlooked one of my explosive charges…"
The mice stopped laughing and looked down. They saw Karbunkle waving at them, holding a wick that was attached to say at least 20 boxes of TNT.
Limburger laughed out loud. The mice looked at each other.
"Uh oh…", Modo squealed.
"Guess this blows our plans, ey bro's?", Vinnie asked, but still a smile on his face. He wanted explosions after all. He could only be happy that he for once got what he'd asked for.
They ran to their bikes, but their sensitive hearing could hear that Karbunkle had lighted the wick. And when they revved their bikes, a deafening explosion rocked the building. The floor started to shatter, and the mice had no time to fire their jets. The floor broke and they fell down, along with their bikes.
"Shake, rattle and roll, bro's! It's time to do the rock hop!", Throttle ordered.
Vinnie's face lit up.
"Yeah, I can dance to that! AAAOOWWW!"
They revved their bikes, jumped on another piece of rock and landed on a floor that wasn't collapsed. But that wasn't gonna take long, so the mice split up to find their own way to get out of the building as soon as possible.
Throttle took the stairs.
"Man, and they tell you the stairs are safe in a emergency", he said with a shaking voice, trying to drive as fast as he could on a stair and avoiding falling rocks at the same time.
Modo drove straight towards the lift and blew the doors open with his arm cannon.
"Ground floor, please", and he jumped into the shaft. With his metal hand, he grabbed the cable and slid down.
Vinnie just drove through the building, like always, without a plan. When he looked forward, he saw a huge hole in the floor. He hit the brakes, but his bike just drove over a big, metal plate and he slid towards the hole.
"Woooooowwww" and he fell down, his bike still on the metal plate. He quickly jumped off his bike and tried to steer the plate, like he was surfing. That worked.
"Yiiiaaaoooww!", he cheered happily. When he was down, he ditched the plate and jumped on his bike. He hit the accelerator and just before the building collapsed, he flew out. He saw Modo and Throttle standing a few feet away and joined them. He hit the brakes and pulled off his helmet.
"Yeaahh, some pretty studly moves there", he smiled.
"Well, mighty nice of you to say that, Vinnie", Modo smiled at him.
Vinnie shook his head.
"Not you, bro. I was talking about me!"
Throttle sighed and leaned with his head in his hands.
"What a surprise…"
"Yeah, you're always talking about you", Modo said, pointing at Vinnie. "But we do some pretty good work too, you know!"
Vinnie shrugged, a little blush on his cheeks.
"Yeah, well, but…", he stuttered.
"That's right, big fella. We're not just hanging around", and Throttle waved his hands.
Vinnie opened his mouth, but then…
"You wretched rodents!", they heard Limburger yelling. Throttle looked up and a big smile appeared on his face.
"Speaking of hanging around…"
Modo and Vinnie both looked up too, Vinnie more than happy with this distraction.
"How dare you escape certain destruction, again!", and Limburger tried to climb into his building. But his pants didn't agree with his movements and tore, right on his ass. The mice could see his red, with cheese decorated, underpants. Limburger looked at his butt, his eyes wide.
"Oeh…"
"Sorry to let you down, cheese fin!", Modo said, laughing.
"But speaking of let down…", Throttle said, his finger slowly reaching for a button on his bike.
"It's time you feel the gravity of the situation", Vinnie finished and he also reached for a button. They pushed it and cannons flew out.
"NOOOO! Please, not like this…", Limburger cried, but the rockets exploded and his building went down. Again.
"AAAOOWW!", Vinnie bounced on his bike while they drove away. "Just what I needed!"
"Like I said… We do some pretty good work too!", Modo repeated, while looking at Vinnie. His white furred bro raised his hand and they high fived. Modo smiled satisfied. Vinnie's way of saying he was sorry and that Modo was right. Good. That was gonna be at least 2 months with less bragging. Then the whole thing would start all over again. But that was then. Now is now. And for now, it worked.
A burning sun. Red sand. Sizzling heat. The penetrating smell of blood. He was lying on his belly, he could feel the hot sand against his fur, the burning sun on his back... Throttle looked up, squeezing his eyes against the bright light. He saw his bike lying next to him, heavily damaged. What happened…
His heart stopped a beat when he saw the explosion in the distance. No…
He scrambled on his feet, but fell down again. Pain jolted through his body and he looked down. A deep, nasty looking wound in his side. Blood was streaming down. Drip. Drip. Drip.
The already red sand sucked it up, consumed it, making it even redder. He looked at the base again. He needed to keep going. He couldn't give up. His reason and his life…
He moaned and gritted his teeth. He took a few deep breaths and slowly rose to his feet again. A scream escaped his mouth. The pain was unbearable. But no giving up. Slowly, he stumbled to the base. It looked like he was walking through quicksand. But no giving up.
Finally, after a journey that felt like hours, he reached the entrance. Cool air filled his nose. He left the burning heat of the sun behind him when he stumbled inside. No giving up. He grabbed the wall to support him. He looked up and his heart stopped. He fell on his knees. No…
He tried to crawl closer. No giving up. His reason and his life. But the pain overpowered him. Overwhelmed him. It dragged him to a place he didn't want to be. Dark. Cold. Lonely… No...
No giving up. She needed him. He stretched his hand. She didn't respond. He tried to say something. He tried to call her name. No giving up. His voice failed on him. The darkness slowly took over. The last thing he saw, were her eyes, staring back.
Lifeless eyes.
Lifeless eyes, but still full with judgement. No…
"Carbine…"
Throttle jerked upright, soaked in sweat. He was breathing heavily, his heart almost exploded out of his chest. He looked around wildly, but he couldn't see anything. Shit. Where was he? He… His glasses. He grabbed them. Really, it was some sort of automatic reflex, since he still had no idea where he was. But when he put on his glasses, it started to dawn on him. It was a dream. Of course it was. Jesus… He threw away the blanket, that was sticking to his fur. He shook his head and almost ran out of the room. He needed air. Fast.
He burst outside, into the garden and fell down on his knees. The cool grass brought him back to reality. He let out a deep sigh and slowly, he calmed down. He was staring at the grass, deep in thoughts. Suddenly, a hand on his shoulder.
"You okay, bro?"
Modo's deep voice. Throttle looked up. The grey furred giant looked back friendly.
Throttle slowly climbed on his feet again.
"Yeah, I guess… man…", he sighed, his voice even more husky than usual. Modo sat down at the picnic table closeby and Throttle joined him.
"I heard you storming outside. Well, at first I thought it was Vinnie, but when I came outside, I saw it was you. Nightmare?"
It wasn't the first time the two bro's were sitting together in the middle of the night. War was devastating. War gave you nightmares. Deeply hidden fears became real. Well, it felt real. Like your brain was playing some sort of sick game. Throttle knew his bro would never judge. They both never judged. They were just there for each other when needed.
"Yeah… About Carbine. Man, I hadn't really thought about her in a while, but I talked to Kiwi about Carbine a few days back and… well, I guess that's why I suddenly dream about her again…"
"You talked to Kiwi about Carbine?", Modo asked, half shocked, half curious. Not that his bro never talked about her, I mean, he wasn't Vinnie after all, but still…
Throttle chuckled, but it didn't sound joyfull.
"Yeah… She asked if we had a girl waiting for us back on Mars…", Throttle said softly. He looked at Modo and saw his face clouding.
"You told her about….", Modo started, but he couldn't say her name. He had never mentioned her name again after he'd lost her. He just couldn't.
"No. Only that you've lost someone, but that's all bro. It's your story, not mine. Tell her when you're ready. If not, no big deal."
There was a long silence. Throttle looked up at the sky, searching for the small, red dot that was their home. Carbine. Man, how much he had loved her, how much he still loves her, actually. How painful it was to lose her. To lose her like this. To stand under her command, and the only time she talked to him was to give him an order. His ears drooped. He missed her. He had tried to deny it, he really had tried to move on, but truth is… he missed her a lot. Well, she had made her choice. And he needed to accept that. But that was hard. Sometimes he caught himself wondering if it maybe was less painful if she just had died. He just couldn't stop himself. But to know she was still alive and kicking, to see her every day, to be with her in the same room everyday, being so close to her, and yet so far away… That was killing him. Since he was on Earth, he hardly had thought about her. Maybe it was a good thing to be here. Even if it still felt wrong because he knew Mars needed them, he had needed this. They all had needed this. And he was gonna come back. Someday…
He shivered. The sweat had turned cold in the fresh air. He clapped Modo on the shoulder.
"I'm gonna go back to bed, big fella. Thanks and good night."
Modo mumbled something back, clearly deep in thoughts. Throttle let him. He walked back inside, but when he wanted to walk into his room, he suddenly heard a loud bang. He followed the noise and opened Vinnie's room. Apparently, he wasn't the only one having a bad night. The white furred mouse was twisting and turning and had knocked down the lamp off his nightstand in the proces. Throttle sighed and closed the door again. No matter how bad nightmares were, his younger bro handled them way better in his sleep than if he was awake. Best thing to do was let him sleep. Throttle had learned that the hard way. When he was lying in his bed again, he stared at the ceiling.
Life… It definitely ain't a straight road…
Days past by, and the nightmares slowly faded away. Vinnie was his usual cheerful self, Throttle had found his calmth again and Modo… well, Modo was a little quieter than usual. But he would pull through. Throttle knew he would. He also knew that he had no choice. But maybe that's what's keeping them on their feet, instead of being consumed by fear, sorrow and despair. Giving up just wasn't an option. But it didn't make it less painful. Less heavy.
Vinnie was lying on the couch, his feet on Kiwi's lap and his tail loosely wrapped around her wrist.
Kiwi was reading a book and Vinnie was turning listless through a magazine he had found. Not that he really was interested in it. But he was bored, alright. He suddenly jerked upright.
"Heeey! What's this?", he yelled. Throttle could hear the excitement in his voice. That could only mean trouble.
Modo, who was sitting on the other couch, looked over Vinnie's shoulder.
"Military hardware exposition", he read out loud.
"New weapons", Vinnie continued, his voice high. "COOL!"
Throttle joined them and saw a big advertisement for, indeed, a military exposition. With a picture of a huge ship that was, by the looks of things, heavily armed.
'The Annihilator' was its name, according to the advertisement. The tan furred mouse rubbed his chin.
"Now center, Vincent. It's not so cool if the wrong hands, or should I say fins, gets a hold of this goodies", he said.
"Yeah, we all know a certain stinkfish who would be all over this stuff like slime on a bucket", Modo agreed.
Vinnie jumped on his feet, clearly having one of his… let's just say; happy moments.
"Okay, okay, okay. So what would you say if we jumped the gun and guard the goods before the goons get there?", he asked, talking so fast they hardly could understand him. Kiwi hid her smile behind her book.
Throttle and Modo looked at each other and smiled.
"Let's ROCK…"
"... and RIDE!"
They were gone before Kiwi even could say a word. She giggled and focussed on her book again.
The mice walked into the building, looking around them. The place was deserted. They walked past the old objects from the military, including cars, tanks, weapons…
Vinnie spotted the big attraction he was looking for and walked closer to it. His bro's followed him. Vinnie looked at the big dome, that was made of milk glass and blocking their view of the Annihilator. The doors were closed and a sign told them they couldn't enter.
"Ah man… Looks like the star attraction is still under wraps…", Vinnie pouted, immediately bored again.
"We're not here to sightsee, Vincent", Throttle said, slightly annoyed. Honestly, that boy's obsession with weapons was concerning sometimes.
But suddenly, the whole dome exploded and the mice quickly did a few steps back, holding their arms above their heads to protect themselves for the glass that flew around. Vinnie smiled.
"Well, we may not be here to sightsee… But there's a sight to see!", and he pointed at the big ship. It was huge and indeed, full with impressing looking weapons.
"Uh oh… It's those offensive creeps", Modo said, pointing at goons that were standing next to the ship. Of course they were right again. Limburger wanted this toy.
"Well, let's manage our own offensives!", Vinnie cheered, his fingers in the shape of a gun.
"Yeah, we will give them a real arms display!", and Modo raised his arm cannon.
"That's right! With some of our own heavy artillery", and Throttle activated his knuck-knocks.
Vinnie almost bounced on his feet. His bro's were always so easy to convince, so easy to make them just as eager to fight as him. But then again, they were bro's after all.
They run towards the goons and Greasepit. The latter jumped in the air when he saw the mice coming straight at him.
"Yous guys handle them hamsters", he said to the goons, but he suddenly got pushed away and fell on the floor. A big, robot looking man came into view.
"Stand clear, soldier. My name is the Pulverizer and I'm gonna tear out your whiskers and use them to floss my teeth!"
The mice stopped and looked at the new villain, hired by Limburger. It was indeed a robot, but with the uniform of a army officer. He was huge, and his face looked like a real face, with a light green skin. And given the way he treated Greaspit, he must be a general. The robot raised his hand and shot at the mice. They quickly jumped out of the way.
"Sooooo…. Giant's got a power fist, ey?", Modo asked, climbing on his feet again.
"Well, as it happens, so do I", Throttle smiled and he activated his knuck-knocks again. He walked towards the villain.
"Come to uncle Throttle… you hamfisted headcase!" and Throttle attacked. But the general dodged the attack and Throttle slammed his fist into an ancient tank that was standing closeby.
"WOW!", and the whole thing exploded. Throttle lay on the ground, a little dazed.
"Missed… hehehe", he chuckled.
Meanwhile, Vinnie and Modo were fighting the goons. They jumped behind a large pile of empty rockets to find cover for the laser shots that were fired on them. Vinnie rubbed his chin, looking at it. Modo smiled.
"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?", he asked his younger bro. Vinnie looked at him and smiled back.
"I'm thinking what you're thinking."
They quickly grabbed the two metal poles that were holding the rocket shells together and the whole pile collapsed.
"Let's roll!", the two mice cheered.
The goons saw the huge amount of shells rolling towards them and quickly jumped between four military cars to search cover. Vinnie grabbed a flair, lit it and threw it. The cars exploded and the goons… well, were no threat anymore. Modo and Vinnie high fived.
Throttle was still having his hands, well powerfist, full with the the Pulverizer. He jumped behind a car to avoid a shot and gritted his teeth. He grabbed the car and threw it, with help of his knuck-knocks, towards the robot. But the Pulverizer was prepared. He raised his fist and shot his powerful laser, coming out of his fist. The car flew away, right towards Vinnie and Modo. Luckily, they could avoid it that it crushed them, but the Pulverizer was standing before them all of a sudden.
"I almost pity you, you rat buzzards!" and he was about to hit them, when he heard a dangerously low voice behind him.
"Pity yourself, pal…"
He turned around and saw a very angry Throttle standing in front of him.
"You tried to bruise my bro's…" and he parked his fist in the general's face. The robot flew away and crashed through a wall, closeby the Annihilator.
"You guys okay?", Throttle asked, while looking at his bro's. But Vinnie was still smiling.
"Man! This is one rockin' party!", he cheered.
"Yeah, but if we're gonna dance, we're gonna need our partners", Modo agreed and he whistled.
The bikes flew inside and they jumped on it. They drove towards the big ship and stopped in front of it.
"Well, time to finish this", Modo said nonchalant, like they were taking a stroll downtown.
"You got it, bro's. Let's ROCK…"
"...and... oh... ", they trailed off when they heard the engine of the big ship. The massive thing slowly rose into the air, with Greasepit and the Pulverizer in the cockpit.
"Well, it looks like the main attraction just decided to put on a little show after all!", Vinnie said, looking impressed at the big ship that flew towards them.
The bro's popped a wheelie and fired their jets. They flew over the ship and fired their lasers. But it was no use. Not even a dent.
"Oh man, this thing got skin thicker than a week old hotdog", Modo said, looking behind him. The ship turned it's guns and fired at them. The mice revved their engines and quickly drove away.
"Man, we're gonna take this trash can out, before it hurts some innocent folks!", Throttle yelled and they blasted their way out of the building.
"Yeah! Like us!", Vinnie agreed.
The mice drove full speed, but the big ship easily caught up with them. A big rocket exploded close behind them and the explosion was too powerful. The mice flew of their bikes, crashed into a empty building. Another rocket made sure the building exploded and burried the bro's under rocks. The mice got knocked out immediately, but the bikes managed to send a stress signal to Kiwi, since they didn't got caught in the explosion.
"Guys? Guys?"
Vinnie moaned. Did he hear Kiwi's voice? He pricked his ears. Yeah. It was her. And she was scared, he could tell. He slowly opened his eyes, but he couldn't move. He was stuck between two big rocks. Ugh, he needed to get out of here. He gritted his teeth and with a ferm jerk, he managed to get his hand out. He felt Kiwi's hand grabbing his.
"Vinnie! Oh my god, Vinnie, are you okay?"
Her voice. The panic. He just couldn't stand it. It gave him the power to get loose and with all his strength, he threw away the rock that was lying on top of him. Fresh air filled his nose and he saw Kiwi. Her beautiful, blue eyes, filled with worry and fear. He slowly got up, stretching his muscles.
"Man. That thing packs a serious punch…", he growled. Kiwi's hands flew over his body, to check him on wounds. But next to some scratches, he was fine.
"Jesus, you sure had me scared this time…", she sighed, closing her eyes for a moment.
"So, you were worried about me, huh sweetheart?", he winked at her. She glared at him.
"Of course I was worried about you, you stupid macho mouse. Now, help me to free your bro's", she yelled, way too agitated.
Vinnie snickered.
"Must have hit a nerve…", he whispered and he gave her that arrogant charming smile of his. But he turned around and started to throw away rocks. Soon after, he got his bro's out. After a quick examination, they turned out to be fine too.
"What is gonna happen to Chicago now that Limburger has the Annihilator in his slimy hand?", Kiwi asked, looking at them.
Throttle walked to his bike. "Well, if past performance is any indication, I'd say the big cheese is about to put a severe hurt on the windy city."
"Right", Vinnie said, lifting his bike back on her tires again. "So, I say we put a hurt on him!" and he revved his engine.
"Hold it! Hold it, we can't just charge in this time", Throttle said, holding his hand up to stop his way too eager bro.
"Ah man… Buzzkill…." and Vinnie leaned with his head in his hands.
Modo, who also was back on his bike, looked at Throttle.
"What do you got in mind, Throttle?", he asked, knowing a plan was brewing in his leaders head.
"A little battle armor of our own. Let's ride!"
"Yeah! This time, it's war!"
"Great idea, to use metal plates to protect your bikes", Kiwi said, looking at the mice who were working to wrap up their whole bikes with metal plates. They had found them at the old junkyard close by Kiwi's house.
"Yeah, I'd like to see that flying swiss army knife cut through these babies", Modo nodded, while screwing a plate on the front of his bike.
Vinnie was already done, looking on a small distance at his work, a proud smile on his face.
"Here ya go, babe. The biggest guns and the most armor!"
But his bike wasn't too happy about it. She revved her engine, beeping angrily, and popped a wheelie.
"Oops… maybe I overdid it…", Vinnie chuckled, a little embarrassed.
"Hmmm… Maybe it's not a good idea to ride so heavy…", Throttle said, looking at Vinnie's bike. As usual, the white furred mouse had outdone himself again. He shook his head, slightly amused.
"It's just temporary. Just until we trash old stinkface his new toy…", Modo said to his precious bike, who was also not amused about this whole thing.
Only Throttle's bike seemed to accept it. But then again, his bike was the same as his. Calm. Knowing what needs to be done. Accepting things like they were.
Vinnie decided his bike needed to stop her whining. No way he was gonna leave his biggest rockets behind, only because she wasn't happy about the weight.
Girls and their weight… ugh.
They drove through the streets, into the direction of the big ship that was flying above the city. When the Pulverizer saw the mice, he immediately opened fire on them. But this time, he missed. The mice came closer and also opened fire. They aimed at the wings and that worked. The ship rocked, but held it. It lowered it's cannons and fired at the mice. It hit Vinnie's bike and because of the impact, his bike flew backwards.
"Waaoowww!" and he smiled when he got his bike back under control.
"Takes a knocking…" and he revved his engine. '... and keeps on rocking!"
He drove back towards the ship and shot two of his biggest rockets, laughing loud. The explosion was deafening and the ship flew away because of the hard impact. But it still wasn't really damaged. It came back and fired his laser. But the armors protected the mice and the bikes.
"Hey, these battle shells do their job!", Modo smiled, happy his bike was fully protected.
"Yeah, now it's time that we do ours", Throttle ordered.
"Let's ROCK… and RIDE!"
They fired their jets, drove under the ship and turned. Now they were following the ship and they shot their laser at the bottom of the ship. Even if it didn't stop it, it did get damaged.
The mice split up and Throttle followed the ship on the left. He used all his fire power and the ship turned right. There, it crossed Vinnie, who stopped his bike facing the ship. The ship also stopped, floating above the ground.
Vinnie pushed a button and cannons came out of every hole he had made in the armor. A evil grin almost split his face in half.
"Come on… Hit me with your best shot…", he provoked. The ship, or actually the Pulverizer, did what he asked, but the laser bounced back because of the armor and hit a building. The top exploded and rocks rained down.
Vinnie nodded impressed.
"Whoaa, not bad. But now, try this!" and he fired four huge rockets. The ship exploded and crashed against another building.
"Cool, the armor is holding up", Throttle said, looking at the smoking hole where the ship had crashed. Vinnie opened his visor, held his fingers in the shape of a gun and pretended to blow away smoke..
They suddenly heard the ship's engine again. Apparently, it still wasn't destroyed. It flew back to the mice.
"Let's nail that goony gun ship", Vinnie growled, his voice low.
"One hammer, coming up!" and Modo fired a rocket. It maybe wasn't that big as Vinnie's, but it still had effect. But not enough.
"We just gotta knock a little louder", Throttle yelled.
"Hey, that rings my bell!", Vinnie cheered.
"Let's do it!"
They hit the accelerator and drove towards the heavily damaged ship. They fired rockets at the same time and the front of the ship exploded.
"We got our opening. Let's make the most of it", Throttle said.
"Looks like mister big shot is gonna give us a hand", Modo pointed at the the general that was standing in the cockpit, furious.
"Aaaooww, what a rush!", Vinnie cheered, popping a wheelie. This was just one amazing day.
Just like Modo had predicted, the general shot with his powerfist. Throttle catched the laserbeam with his armor and passed it on to Modo.
"Yours, Modo!" and Modo passed it on to Vinnie.
"Vinnie! Set up for the smash!"
Vinnie tried to jump into the air, using his jets, but his bike was too heavy. The bike did came loose from the ground, but not high enough and tumbled backwards. It made a few somersaults and Vinnie landed back on his tires, just when the laser hit the front of his bike. Vinnie flew backwards because of the force of the laser and because he wasn't prepared since his stunt completely went wrong. He crashed through a advertisement board and landed next to his bike. He chuckled, shaking his head.
Miraculously, the laser did hit the ship and that was the final touch. It went down and crashed on LP, that exploded into a million pieces.
The bro's stopped in front of the remains of the tower.
"Another job well done, bro's", Throttle said, looking at his bro's with proud.
"Yep! Let's head back home and get these armors off our rides", Modo suggested.
"Nahhh, let them wait. I'd say root beer and dogs first, bikes later…", but his bike had it. She threw Vinnie off and he landed hard on the ground, again.
Throttle and Modo laughed out loud.
"I don't think your bike sees it quite the same way, Vinnie", Throttle chuckled.
"Okay, okay, okay. The dogs can wait. Let's get out of here before this bike got anything else to say", and Vinnie jumped back on his bike.
"Alright, you motorcycle mad men… Let's ROCK…", Throttle yelled, popping a wheelie.
"... and RIDE!"
I can tell ya, this was a hard chapter to write, especially the part with the ship.
A lot is happening at the same time and sometimes my English isn't good enough to describe it all.
Anyway, hope you guys enjoyed it! Please review :)