Hey y'all!

Thanks for the reviews, very much appreciated!

A little bit more quiet than usual, no problem of course, but I just wanted to use this moment to say to you guys that if there's a part in the story you don't like, you're also free to say that! Feedback, good or bad, are welcome! As long as it being said respectful, I can handle it :)

Anway, here's the next chapter. Hope you guys enjoy! ^^

Chapter forty three

"Does this mean he's dead? Please, Throttle, please, just tell me that he's okay, please…", Kiwi cried, clamping herself at the tan furred mouse.
Throttle could hardly look at her devastated face.
Her pain became his pain. What if Vinnie was dead?
He looked up at Modo again, a shocked look on his face.
The gray furred giant was staring back, his eye wide open.
"Throttle, please… just tell me he's okay!", Kiwi screamed, her voice so high it made his eardrums vibrate. Tears were streaming over her face.
Throttle finally found back his voice again and he grabbed Kiwi tightly by her shoulders.
"Kiwi, look at me. I can't tell you if he's okay, because I have no idea what's happening right now. But back on Mars, we once made a deal with each other. Never ever assume one of your bro's is dead. Not until you got the prove right in front of ya. So for now, and I know how hard it is, but for now we assume he's still alive, you hear me?"
Kiwi shook her head and slid outta his arms. She rolled herself up and held her knees tightly, crying without making any sound. Her whole body was shaking because of her crying.
"Kiwi…", Modo started, but Kiwi shook her head again.
"No… You guys don't feel what I'm feeling right now. I feel nothing! It just felt as if he slowly faded away and now he's gone and that can only mean one thing…", she sobbed toneless, holding herself even tighter.
"Kiwi, we don't know that yet. Maybe he's unconscious, or drugged, or whatever! I refuse to believe he's dead until it's proven otherwise", Throttle said stern.
"God, I didn't even said goodbye! I love him so much and now he's gone and I won't be able to hold him ever again, to feel his fur, to see his smile, to look into those beautiful red eyes, to hear him brag, to see him ride his…"

*SLAP*

Kiwi closed her mouth in pure shock and slowly got upright, staring at Throttle.
"Did you just hit me?", she asked with disbelief in her voice, touching her cheek.
"You were losing your shit, I'm sorry, but you left me no choice. The thing is, Kiwi, living in a war means living with a lotta insecurities. If you let yourself make assumptions all the time without having the hard facts, you're not gonna be able to survive. Trust me, I know. So, see this as a lesson for now; don't ever make assumptions. Don't give up before you know the whole truth. I'm sorry, I don't wanna be this harsh, but right now, it's important that you trust me on this one."
Kiwi heard the emotion in his usual calm and husky voice. That made clear to her that Throttle was also fighting against the fear that he just lost his younger bro. It also gave her the feeling he did take her serious, but he was right. This wasn't the time to collapse already.
She slowly nodded, rubbing her burning cheek.
"Okay. Okay, you're right. I'll try to keep my head clear…", she mumbled, a little ashamed for her hysteric behaviour.
But Throttle ruffled through her hair.
"Don't beat yourself too hard, Kiwi. Nobody said this was easy. You're doing a great job so far, babe."
"Thanks…", she whispered, still with tears in her eyes.
"Hate to cut this moment, but we got company, bro and ma'am", Modo warned them, looking outside.
A black van drove towards the building.
"Kiwi, you stay here. Modo, it's tail whipping time", Throttle ordered and mounted his bike.
Modo did the same, but remained next to the window. Throttle quickly drove outside, hiding behind the small cottage.
Kiwi pushed herself into a corner, her body still shaking. But her head was now clear again.

"Yeah eh, whese here for a good view of the trains", Greasepit said while stopping the van in front of the barrier and looking inside the cottage.
Modo came into view.
"Hey! Try this view, smile ball!", and he punched Greasepit in the face.
It wasn't hard enough to knock him down, since he was using his left arm. Greasepit shook his head and quickly pushed the pedal to the floor. He crashed through the barrier, followed by goons. But Modo was ready. He fired his jets and crashed through the ceiling of the cottage. When he landed, the goons turned their buggies and tried to fire at him, but Modo was not in the mood to play games right now. He fired the laser on his bike and the two buggies flew into the air.
He joined Throttle, who was standing next to the black van.
"Come on guys, we're just getting warmed up!", he yelled angrily.
The side door of the van slowly slid open and a huge robot came into view.
"Ask and you shall receive, sweetheart", it said with a tinny voice. "The Verminator is at your service and I'd say… Let's rock and roll!"
And the big robot jumped outta the van.
"Now what the heck would that be?", Modo called out in surprise.
"Well, off hand, I'd say it looks like your new mechanical arm, bro. But it seemed to be there's a whole new mouse attached… And it somehow looks familiar…", Throttle mused. The robot looked exactly like a Martian Mouse.
But…
"Yoohoo, Modo, Throttle…", the robot yelled and waved at them. "Ready to get… trashed?", and it raised both mechanical arms, opening fire at the two mice.
They quickly made a hasty retreat.
"WOW! How is that thing know our name?", Modo yelled, while popping a wheelie.
"Well, our reputation obviously preceded us…", Throttle answered and regrouped with his bro.
"Attack move forty seven A!", he then ordered.
They split up and turned their bikes towards the robot. They both fired a rope with hook, but the robot seemed prepared and grabbed both ropes before it could do any harm. It quickly whirled it around a big pole that was standing on the roof. Modo and Throttle were caught by surprise by this and lost control over their bikes, since the ropes were still attached. They whirled around the pole and crashed into each other.
"Hey! That was our secret defence…", Throttle squeezed out, sitting on the floor next to his bike.
"Oh momma… That tin turkey knows what we're gonna do before we even do it!", Modo moaned, rubbing his back.
Throttle wrinkled his nose and clenched his teeth. He jumped at his feet and grabbed his gun, his tail lashing through the air. He didn't get that easily angry, but this was annoying, alright. Also, not knowing where Vincent was and if he was okay made him on edge.
"Oh yeah? Well, I'm taking him out!", he growled and aimed the gun at the robot, who somehow looked very smugly.
But when his finger was on the trigger…
"Oooohhh… I wouldn't do that, if I were you…", they suddenly heard Limburger's voice coming outta the speakers on the black van.
Throttle still aimed the gun, but removed his finger from the trigger, while helping Modo up.
"You see, any damage to our interesting little robot, will instantly destroy the tiny little brain that's powering it. The brain of your hyperactive friend…"
Another door from the van slid open and Throttle's gun clattered on the floor when he saw what's inside.
"Vinnie!", he called out, grabbing Modo by the arm.
Vinnie was sitting tied up in a big chair, his body completely motionless. He had a bandage around his head and wires came out of it. Blood was clearly visible through the white bandage.
"Jesus, Throttle, what did they do to him?", Modo breathed, but before Throttle could answer that, the robot walked towards them.
"Hasta la vista, bro's…"
Throttle now understood why the robot looked and sounded so familiar.
It was Vinnie.
But at the same time, it wasn't.
Jesus.
But no time to think. No time to even try to process what the hell was going on here.
Because the Verminator raised its arm again and Throttle and Modo jumped at their bikes and drove away, right before the robot fired.
And it kept firing. Throttle and Modo did everything to avoid the shots. But suddenly, Modo felt his tail burn and he quickly grabbed it, blowing out the flame.
"Ah man, lucky shot, just like Vinnie…", he growled, hiding behind a big truck that was parked on the roof.
Throttle joined him, panic written on his face.
"Listen, we need to think this one out, big fella, there's too much at stake here!"
Another laser hit the floor right behind Throttle and they sped away. The Verminator followed them, smiling.
But when it raised his arms again, Karbunkle's voice echoed through the speakers of the van.
"Not so fast, Verminator!"
The robot turned around.
"What now?"
"We'll finish off those vermin later! Report to Greasepit for guard duty, as planned!"

Throttle and Modo rushed inside the small cottage, finding Kiwi staring out the window. She pointed at the robot, her mouth hanging open.
"Is that…?"
"Yeah. Well, his mind. They holding him in that van over there", Throttle answered shortly, pulling off his helmet and twitching his ears.
Modo also pulled off his helmet, still a shocked look on his face. Kiwi slowly turned around to face them, her mouth still hanging wide open.
"His mind?", she finally managed to squeeze out.
Throttle only nodded, cracking his knuckles. He looked outside, seeing the Verminator standing next to Greasepit, who was installing that weird looking machine.
"What do they want with that machine anyway?", Modo asked, still not knowing how to react on the fact what he just had seen inside that van.
And he sure had no idea how to tell Kiwi what they had seen.
"Kiwi, check the news. They were talking about trains earlier, maybe you can find something", Throttle ordered, still looking outside.
Kiwi quickly recovered herself, but that took her a lot of strength. Giving the behaviour of the two mice, she knew something was horribly wrong.
A part of her wanted to jump at them, to tear out their fur and demand that they needed to tell her what the fuck was going on, but another part stopped her.
Did she even wanna know?
She decided the answer to that question was no and grabbed her phone, opening the news app. She soon found what she was looking for.
"They are opening the new intercity communityline, two trains will come together at the station below us... ", she quickly summarized.
"Hmmm… So that machine is doing something with magnetic powers. My guess is that Limburger is gonna make the two trains crash. That will give enough scrap metal for Plutark…", Throttle mused, rubbing his chin.
Kiwi studied him. His voice sounded so different. He was upset. But like, really upset. She had never seen him this way before.
"Well, then I guess you need to stop them, right?", she asked, not knowing what to say to take away this horrible tension that was sucking the oxygen outta the small cottage..
Throttle ignored her, watching how Greasepit activated the machine. Then, he turned around and looked at Modo.
The gray furred giant put back on his helmet.
"There's gotta be a way to get past metal mouth and fry that machine."
"Yeah, I hear ya, bro. But we've gotta do something new, something he's not expecting, but mainly; something that won't hurt our bro…" Throttle's voice broke when he said these last words and Kiwi felt her heart sink.
What the fuck was going on here?
"Gotcha, gotcha…", Modo nodded, while mounting his bike.
Throttle did the same.
Kiwi opened her mouth, but the look on Throttle's face made her close it again.
"Kiwi, you stay here, no matter what happens, you hear me? Remember your promise. You obey every order I give you. Now's a good time to start", the tan furred mouse ordered her.
Kiwi slowly nodded, her eyes wide open and tears in it. Her lower lip started to tremble, but Throttle revved his bike, nodding at Modo.
"Okay, big fella. It's time to rock and ab live..."

They drove outta the cottage, straight towards the robot, who immediately turned around when it heard their engines.
"Hahaha, alright! It's taaaaail whippin tiiiiime!", it sang tinny.
Modo squeezed his eyes because of the off key singing..
"Oh ugh… gosh… that eh… that's Vinnie alright…"
"Yeah, well, remember; aim at the magnet machine, not the robot", Throttle answered shortly and cannons popped outta their bikes. They fired missiles towards the machine, but the Verminator used both arm cannons to fire back and the missiles exploded in the sky before they even could get close.
"Hahaha! Pretty cool, 'ey?", it smirked.
"Well… at least it stopped its singing…", Modo said, trying to get through to Throttle, trying to take away some of the tension, but the tan furred mouse stopped his bike and stared at the robot.
Modo followed his gaze and his eye grew wide. The robot jumped into the air and after two somersaults, it landed behind them, shooting two ropes outta its shoulders at the same time. The hooks grabbed Throttle and Modo and they were dragged off their bikes. They both felt a hand grabbing them in their scruff and turned their head to look at the robot, who smiled.
"Oh yeah, I'm one big pile of style, and don't you just hate me for it?"
Modo and Throttle were struggling to get loose, but the robot was too strong.
"Annihilate them!", they heard Limburger yelling over the speakers.
The robot walked to side of the roof and stretched both arms, making the two mice in its hands dangling over the edge.
"Deja vu, we've been here before…", Modo groaned, looking down.
"Yeah, but this time it's for real...This is not my idea of a good time…", Throttle breathed.
"Later, bromigo's", the robot said and stretched its arms even further.
"Don't do it, Vinnie. We're bro's. Family…", Modo pleaded at the robot.
"Ah man… I never thought it would end like this… being burned by our own bro…", Throttle added.
The antenna's from the robot suddenly started to glow red.
"He's not dropping us…", Throttle said thoughtful, looking at the robot with a frown on his face.
"Maybe he'd forgot. Don't bring it up…", Modo hissed back.
"Or maybe... ", and Throttle lay a hand on the robot's chest. "Vincent! Vincent, it's us! Throttle and Modo! Your bro's!"
The robot squeezed its eyes, its antennas started to glow brighter.
Throttle felt a pang of relief, maybe his bro was still in there somewhere. But that relief soon faded when the robot opened its eyes again, which were now glowing red and it stretched its arms again.
Throttle closed his eyes, knowing there was no way out. He wasn't planning on shooting the robot, since that could hurt Vinnie. And he rather died than killing his own bro. He heard Modo sigh, knowing the big fella was thinking the same.
The grip of the robot hands started to get loose, but then…
"VINNIE! NO!"
Throttle's eyes flew open and he saw Kiwi running straight towards them. The robot turned around by hearing her voice.
"Kiwi… sweetheart…"
Kiwi almost crashed into the robot because of her speed and lay both hands on its chest.
"Vinnie, listen to me! You're a sweet, kind and generous guy who would never hurt his friends. They are your bro's, your family… Please, let them go. No one can make you do this, not even Karbunkle, you hear me?!"
She looked up into the robots eyes, tears streaming over her face. The robot looked back and suddenly, it let go off Throttle and Modo. They both landed on their ass, but quickly scrambled back on their feet.
The Verminator fell on its knees, eyes closed. By the looks of things, Vinnie was fighting the mindbender. And by the looks of things, it was working too.
The robot fell on his back, smoke came outta its head.
"Vinnie!", Kiwi yelled and kneeled down next to the robot.
"Heeey, big fella…", the robot said weak, grabbing its right arm. "Lemme give ya… a hand… hehehe…" and he ripped off the arm and gave it to Modo, who smiled grateful. He quickly removed the sling and switched the arms.
Better. So. Much. Better.
"I guess… once a bro… always… a bro…", the robot said slowly and after that, it turned off.
Kiwi turned around to look at Throttle and Modo, her face wet of tears.
"Where is Vinnie?", she demanded, her voice low.
"Modo, shoot that machine", Throttle ordered, ignoring Kiwi again.
Modo did immediately what Throttle ordered and when they looked down, they saw that the trains could stop right on time.
So, they gave Modo a new wing and did the hero thing. Now it was time to get their bro back.

Kiwi jumped at her feet and grabbed Throttle by his arm.
"I asked you something! Where is Vinnie!?"
Throttle pointed at the van that was about to drive away, but Modo ran towards it and stopped it. But before he could grab Limburger, Greasepit drove past them in one of the buggies of the goons. Limburger and Karbunkle jumped outta the van and they quickly drove away. Throttle dragged Kiwi with him towards the van and stopped the furious Modo from going after the bad guys.
"Chill, bro! Let them go! We gotta scoop out Vinnie."
Modo nodded and Throttle finally looked at Kiwi. He took a deep breath, looking into her fuming blue eyes.
"Vinnie is inside this van, but from what I saw, he's in bad shape. I need you to stay calm. For Vinnie, okay? We need to do everything we can do for him, but we can only do that when we're calm, you understand?"
Kiwi started to shake by these words, but she nodded.
Throttle grabbed her hand and they slowly walked to the other side of the van. But when Kiwi saw Vinnie, she forgot her promise to Throttle immediately.
Again.
She breathed in sharply and put her hand over het mouth in shock.
"Oh my god…", she squealed, her body completely frozen.
That he was in bad shape was a understatement. Her beautiful, sexy macho mouse was hanging in his shackles, his chin resting on his chest. There was a bandage wrapped around his head, with bloodstains on it. But the scariest thing, there were coming wires outta his head. Electrodes.
Throttle squeezed her hand, letting her know to grab herself together. But that was hard.
She slowly walked closer to the white furred mouse and stepped into the van. She reached out her hand and touched Vinnie's shoulder.
"Jesus, Vin, what did they do to you?"
She touched his chest, feeling his heartbeat under her hand. It was weak, but steady.
"It was his idea", she suddenly heard.
Her head jerked up and she looked at her right.
A small fish came into view, with glasses on his nose, making his scary eyes even bigger. He was wearing a lab coat filled with blood stains and when he smiled at her, she felt goosebumps. She scrambled backwards, but forgot she was inside the van. Her foot suddenly stepped into nothing and she lost her balance.
But luckily, two strong arms caught her.
"Easy, Kiwi ma'am", Modo whispered in her ear, but his eye was focused on the small fish.
Throttle suddenly grabbed his gun and aimed it at the thin Plutarkian.
"Jester…", he growled dangerously low.
Kiwi's eyes grew big and she stared at the small fish. Jester? But what…
"You know my name?", Jester asked, smiling at Throttle, while laying a hand on Vinnie's shoulder.
Throttle felt his blood boil, he'd never been so angry before in his life. That lowlife scum had fucked up his younger bro and now, he was here, and had the nerve to touch him again. To fuck him up.
Again…
A red haze formed before his eyes, his tail lashed through the air.
"Oh, I know you, alright. I know what you did to my bro…"
His hand, that was holding the gun, shook a little.
Jester face lit up.
"Ah, so you must be the friends he asked for back then. I'm his friend too, you know? I helped him."
"You helped him?", Kiwi repeated, her voice high in disbelief. She struggled to get loose, but Modo held her tightly.
Vinnie was never gonna forgive him if she was would end up in the hands of Jester.
"Yeah, I made sure his face was…", but Throttle wasn't in the mood for chit chats.
"Now you listen to me, you fucking shrimp. I know what you did to him. I've seen it in his memories. You're one sick little bastard, aren't you?"
Jester opened his mouth, his hand still on Vinnie's shoulder, but Throttle loaded his gun with a loud click.
"I promised him something. That we would find you, one day. And when we did, we'd kill you…I would kill you..."
Kiwi breathed in sharply, looking at Throttle. She had never seen him this upset. He was furious. But unlike Vinnie, he didn't explode. No, he just stood there. But he somehow breathed danger. His voice, his posture, his… everything.
Cold.
Dangerous.
Terrifying.
A predator…
A shiver went through her spine.
Jester didn't know what to say, he obviously wasn't brave enough to stand up against Throttle. He was a doctor, no soldier…
"Can you fix him?", Throttle asked between clenched teeth.
Jester shook his head.
"No, he's beyond fixing. You're too late, you…"

*BAM*

Jester head exploded and his body fell forward. First, it hit the floor of the van, after that, it slowly slid down and landed on the asphalt.
Kiwi and Modo stared in shock at Throttle, who put his gun back in his holster and turned around to look at them.
"I don't believe him. We need Ruby. And we need her now."
Kiwi was still staring at him and he walked over to her and grabbed her shoulders in a firm grip.
"Kiwi, call Ruby. NOW!"
Kiwi came to senses.
"Jesus, Throttle, you're scaring me…", she breathed while grabbing her phone.
Throttle let her go, ignoring her comment. He turned around to look at Vinnie, but he could hardly watch it. Jesus, this was his fault. He'd let his younger and impulsive bro walk right into this mess. He should've known this plan was a stupid plan. He would never forgive himself if Vinnie would die.
"Ruby, it's me… Yeah, I know I wouldn't call, but… No please listen to me… Ruby, please, don't hang up…"
Throttle could hear the panic in Kiwi's voice, knowing Ruby was the only one who could save his bro.
If he could be saved, that is.
Throttle whirled around with clenched teeth and snatched the phone outta Kiwi's hand.
"Ruby, Throttle here…"
"Throttle, I told you guys in that letter I needed time for myself, I…"
"Now you listen to me. I don't give a damn about your problems, I don't give a damn about that fucking letter, because right now, we need you."
He could hear her breath in sharply, probably shocked about his tone and attitude. But he couldn't care less. The only thing that was counting now, was saving Vinnie.
"Jesus, Throttle, who do you think you are, talking to me like that?"
"Vinnie is in great danger and we need you. Without you, he'll die."
"And why should I care? Call Milo, ya know, I gave you his number..."
"Fuck Milo. I only trust you. And you do care. Maybe you left, but I know you still love Kiwi. And you know what will happen to her if she's gonna lose Vinnie."
A silence.
Kiwi was sitting on the ground, holding herself. Modo was standing next to her, his tail loosely wrapped around her wrist, to let her know she wasn't alone.
"So, are you in Chicago?", Throttle asked.
Another silence.
"God dammit, Ruby, this isn't a game, I…"
"Fucking hell, YES, I'm in Chicago! And just to let ya know, it's just low to use Kiwi to get what you want, but okay, tell me what's going on...", he heard her sigh and his heart lit up, completely ignoring her comment. He let out his breath and quickly told her what he was seeing.
"Jesus, that's just… Okay, I'm on my way as we speak. Wait there, I need to see this with my own eyes to know what to do."
Throttle broke the connection and gave Kiwi back her phone.
"She's on her way."

"We need to bring him to a hospital", Ruby said, while looking at Vinnie.
She'd quickly examined him, without saying a word to everyone.
But now, she opened her mouth and the words that came out, made Throttle even more furious.
"Jesus, Ruby and here I was, thinking of all people you'd understand. We can't bring him to a hospital!"
Ruby glared at him, not liking his attitude at all. But giving the state his friend was in, she could understand why he was so upset.
"I know that, Throttle. I didn't mean the regular hospital. We need to bring him to my work, there I'll have the right equipment I need to find out how to safe that white furred bouncing ball, if he can be saved at all, that is…"
Kiwi looked up at hearing these words, her face twisted in agony.
"Don't say that…"
"I'm sorry, Kiwi, but I wanna be honest. They put fucking electrodes in his head, only god knows how much damage they made while doing that."
Kiwi burst out into tears again, hanging listless in Modo's arms. He was holding her tightly, rubbing her back. But there was nothing he could say to ease her pain. Because he knew Ruby was right. And it made him feel sick to the stomach.
"Your work? I think history taught us your work can't be trusted…", Throttle snarled.
"Throttle, please… I need you to trust me, okay? I know that's hard for you, because I left. But trust me when I say I'm at your side right now. You exactly hit the right spot to make sure I am, but I think you already know that."
Throttle took a few deep breaths and looked at Modo. The gray furred giant sighed.
"I don't think we have that much of a choice, bro…"
"Okay. Let's go then."
And the tan furred mouse climbed behind the wheel of the van.
Modo quickly dragged Jesters body inside, to avoid a human would find him. That would be something. Being discovered was the last thing they could use right now. He quickly fired his new arm cannon and the Verminator, or at least what was left of it, exploded.
Him and Kiwi climbed next to Vinnie, and Ruby took place on the passenger seat. Ruby had told them not to touch the white furred mouse, in case the electrodes that were still in his head would move and cause even more damage. But Kiwi lay her hand on his arm, knowing that couldn't harm him.
"Please, Vinnie… Keep fighting. I'm nothing without you… Please, come back to me…", she whispered, over and over again, tears streaming over her face.
God, what if she'd lose him?

Ruby carefully removed the bandage. Vinnie was lying on the operation table in the OR at her work. They had managed to sneak him inside through the backdoor, while Kiwi was distracting the security. It was risky, but it worked. Throttle and Modo had helped her getting Vinnie outta that horrible chair and now he was lying on that table, under a few thick blankets, since his temperature was way too low.
Throttle, Modo and Kiwi were standing close by, giving Ruby enough room to do her job.
Kiwi was staring at Vinnie's face. His mask was gone. She'd never seen that part of his face, that part that was always hidden under that mask. The scars started on his forehead, making its way down to his cheek, where it stopped, right under his eye. On the side of his nose, there were also a few marks. A few lines of white fur were visible between the scars, but most of it was bare skin.
It wasn't that bad. But Kiwi could understand he hide it. It wasn't pretty either.
But she couldn't care less right now. All she wanted, was him to wake up and say her name.
Throttle was standing perfectly still, looking at his younger bro. His heart was beating in his chest. When he looked at the scars on his face, he was even more convinced that his decision to kill Jester was the right one. Of course it was.
And Modo? Modo could hardly look at his white furred bro. His heart was sore, seeing the scars only made his heart ache more. Poor guy. Poor Vinnie. He touched his metal arm absently.
Ruby removed the last bandage and studied the wounds.
"Hmmm… maybe we're lucky…", she mumbled, cleaning away some blood.
She lowered a small device that was hanging on the ceiling and stepped back for a moment. Then, she logged into the computer that was hanging at the wall and a X-ray of Vinnie's head filled the screen. Ruby studied it for a long time.
Then, she pushed the device backup and opened a hatch in the wall. Another device came out and she pointed it at Vinnie's head. After a few minutes, the device beeped and she pushed it back inside. She focussed on the computer again, now looking at some kinda scan from Vinnie's brains.
Kiwi hardly could take the tension anymore, but then Ruby turned around.
"I'm not gonna lie, it's bad. But I think I can remove the electrodes without causing any more damage. He's lying in a coma right now, and we can only find out what the brain damage will be when he wakes up. But there's a fifty fifty percent chance he will come outta this relatively unharmed."
Kiwi let out her breath. It was good enough for her.
50/50. Yeah.
Throttle nodded at Ruby.
"Do it."
Ruby nodded back and slowly removed the electrodes, one by one.
Suddenly, Vinnie's tail lashed through the air and Kiwi let out a yell in surprise.
"Is he waking up?", she asked hopeful, but Ruby took a quick look on the monitors.
Nothing was changed.
"No, that was just a reflex coming from his brain."
"Oh…"
Ruby continued her work and when all the electrodes were out, she let out her breath.
"Okay, luckily they only made very small holes in his skull, so I'm just gonna fill them with a special material we use for these kinda injuries and after that, I will stitch the wounds. But it isn't our main concern right now. I'll leave a few holes open, in case his brain is gonna swell. The next 24 hours are gonna be determinative. So, fingers crossed, guys..."

Vinnie was lying in the living room in the same bed they used for Throttle after his bear attack. Ruby had brought some monitors with her, so she could keep an close eye on his vitals. It was the middle of the night, but nobody was sleeping. Everybody was just sitting on the couch, staring at the floor. All completely numb because of the stressful events. Kiwi was leaning against Throttle, who had wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
After they got home, the tan furred mouse finally calmed down a little. He'd apologized to Ruby for his behaviour, but she had lay a hand on his shoulder and told him she understood.
When Kiwi had seen he was calm again, she'd thrown herself into his arms and cried for almost an hour.
But now, she was empty. She felt numb. So did the rest.
Time ticked slowly, every minute was one minute closer to a maybe even a good ending.
Ruby was sitting next to Modo, but the gray furred mouse ignored her. He had no room for her now. All he wanted was to hear Vinnie's whining.
God, all these time that white furred loud mouth had annoyed him. How many times had ne needed to tell him to stop? He'd lost count. And now, all he wanted to hear was that high pitched voice, whining like a small kid. Guess it's true when they say you only know what you have when it's gone.
And so they spent the night.
Sitting on the couch.
Staring at the floor.
All deep in their own thoughts.
In their own world.
Listening to the calming sound of Vinnie's heartbeat, beeping on the monitor.

When the sun slowly came up, Kiwi suddenly heard a lot of noise coming outta the garage. She looked up, a little surprised, somehow feeling as if she woke up after being in a trance for hours. Well, she maybe was. She looked around her and saw Throttle and Modo were asleep. Ruby was nowhere to be found.
She stretched her sore muscles after sitting in the same position for hours and quickly glanced at Vinnie. He was still lying motionless in bed, his head wrapped into a thick bandage. She wanted to cry, but she was too tired.
She felt empty.
The noise became louder and she quickly walked towards the garage and opened the door.
Vinnie's bike was acting all crazy, driving in small circles and beeping loud.
"Hey girl, easy now…", Kiwi said softly, walking towards the bike.
The red racer turned around and beeped again, flashing her headlight.
"I know… You're worried too, aren't you?"
The bike beeped again and Kiwi patted her side. The race machine calmed down and Kiwi took place on her seat, rubbing the leather absently.
"He'll be alright, he has to… I mean, it's not that he has a choice, right? We can't lose him…"
The bike beeped again and Kiwi leaned forward, grabbing the handlebars lovingly.
She loved everything about this bike.
Because it was made for speed.
Because it matched her rider perfectly.
And mainly because she loved the rider so much.
She planted her elbows on the seat and rested her head in her hands. The bike beeped softly now, as if she also was trying to comfort Kiwi.
"He'll be alright…", Kiwi repeated.
She had no idea how long she was sitting there, sitting on the one thing that made her feel closest to Vinnie, when suddenly the door opened and Ruby came into view.
"I was looking for you…", the red headed woman said and walked closer to Kiwi.
But Vinnie's bike immediately revved her engine and the cannons popped out, making Ruby stop death in her tracks.
Kiwi smiled humorless.
"She knows I'm angry at you."
Ruby stared at her, her eyes wide open, her hands raised in front of her.
"Okay… You're talking to bikes now, too?"
Vinnie's bike fired a laser close to Ruby's feet and the woman jumped in the air, letting out a scream.
"Jesus, Kiwi, tell that thing that I'm not the enemy here!"
"Aren't you?", Kiwi retorted, but patted the bike on her side. "It's okay, sweetheart. She's on our side."
The bike beeped angrily, but the cannons went back inside and she shut down her engine again.
Ruby let out her breath, but stayed where she was.
No need to play the hero now.
"Kiwi, I know you're upset and I know you're angry at me, but I just want you to know that I'm sorry. For everything. Leaving you was the hardest thing I ever did. But I had no choice."
"There's always a choice. But I get it. Really, I am. You've been through a rough time, you needed time for yourself. That's okay, really. But don't tell me you didn't had a choice. Because you had. And you choose to leave me behind. And the worst part of it all was that you didn't came to tell me face to face, no, you wrote a letter. A letter, Ruby. Honestly…"
Ruby lowered her eyes.
"I know. I was a coward. I couldn't look you in the eye and tell you I was going away. I'm sorry. And I just wanted to let you know that this isn't gonna change anything. When your white furred bouncing ball is back on his feet, I'm gone."
Kiwi snorted, but nodded.
"Fine."
"I met someone, ya know?", Ruby blurted out after a long silence.
Kiwi's head jerked up.
"Yeah, I met him when I came back from Aruba. He's a really nice guy… Sweet, caring… and most important, no soldier…"
Kiwi's face softened.
"I'm happy for ya, Ruby…"
"Thanks…"
Kiwi suddenly felt guilty about her behaviour. Ruby had every right to choose for herself. And it wasn't that she'd left her all alone, no, she'd left her because she had the mice now. A new family.
"Ruby, I'm sorry for… ya know… But… But... I'm just so scared I'm gonna lose him…", she whispered and burst out into tears again.
So far for feeling empty.
Ruby immediately rushed over to her, forgetting that the devastated girl was still sitting on a killer machine and wrapped her arms around her trembling body.
"I know, I know, it's okay… I just wish I could tell you that he's gonna be okay, but I just can't… Because I don't know and I don't wanna lie to ya..."
Kiwi held her tightly, her whole body was shocking from crying.
She felt so alone. So helpless.
Life suddenly felt so pointless again without Vinnie by her side.
"I can't live without him, I just can't… God, Ruby, what if I lose him?", she sobbed.
"Sssshhh… Try to keep up hope. I know it's hard, but he still has a chance, okay? This fight isn't over yet..."

Suddenly, Modo rushed inside.
"Ruby ma'am, I think he's waking up."
Kiwi jumped off Vinnie's bike and almost flew back into the living room.
Throttle was standing next to Vinnie's bed and Kiwi almost crashed into him. Throttle quickly caught her.
"Wow, wow, wow, easy Kiwi", he said softly, wrapping an arm around her. She grabbed him tightly and looked at Vinnie. The white furred mouse was frowning now, and his tail was moving from left to right.
Like a clock that was ticking.
Ruby quickly checked the monitors, nodding her head.
"By the looks of things, you're right, Modo. He's waking up."
Kiwi's heart made a jump and she gently took Vinnie's hand.
"Hey love, it's me. If you can hear me, can you please squeeze my hand?", she whispered.
For a moment nothing happened, but then she saw he was softly moving his other hand.
Kiwi looked up at Ruby, worry in her eyes.
"Is that normal?"
Ruby rubbed her chin.
"Hmmm.. It could be a result from the brain trauma. But no need to panic already, this kinda injuries take time. Sometimes, a patient wakes up…", but before she could continue, Vinnie's eyes flew open and he jerked upright.
Throttle pushed Kiwi away and Modo did the same with Ruby. They both grabbed Vinnie by his arms to stop him from his attempt to jump outta the bed.
Vinnie's eyes were wide open and Kiwi, who was standing at the end of the bed now, looked straight into them, but it was as if he didn't see her.
"Easy, Vincent, calm down… You're safe…", Throttle said softly, pushing him gently back on his pillow.
The white furred mouse opened his mouth, but only to grind his teeth. His eyes were still wide open, he was breathing heavily.
Kiw felt a pang of panic, she hardly could look at him.
"Ruby…", she said urgent, still staring at Vinnie.
"Give him some time, Kiwi…", the red headed woman answered shortly, her eyes glued onto the monitor. But his vitals were good. Sure, his heart was racing, but it wasn't alarming yet.
Vinnie was still struggling, but it wasn't that hard for Modo and Throttle to keep him down on the bed. It was as if the white furred mouse had absolutely no control over his own body. His movements were jerky, he kept grinding his teeth, his tail was stretched to his right… It was horrible to watch.
A tear escaped Kiwi's eye, still standing at his feet, while Throttle and Modo were still holding him down.
"C-c-can he… can he hear us?", Kiwi stuttered.
"I'm not sure, but there's absolutely no harm in trying to comfort him", Ruby said, still looking at the monitors.
Throttle used his left hand to held Vinnie and stretched his right arm, inviting Kiwi to come closer.
She shuffled towards him and he wrapped his arm around her again.
"Talk to him, Kiwi. Let him know he's safe."
"V-Vinnie, I… I'm not sure if you can hear me, I hope you do… You're safe, love. You're home, and nobody's gonna hurt you…"
Kiwi's voice broke, while looking at her sexy macho mouse.
His eyes looked as if he was someone else. His teeth kept grinding, biting his lip in the process, his body didn't stop shaking… Drool dripped outta his mouth, mixed with blood, but it were his eyes that hit Kiwi the most.
Empty. As if his soul was gone. Jesus…
She suddenly felt her stomach turn and she yanked herself free outta Throttle's embracement.
"I can't look at this, I just can't… I...No...", Kiwi stuttered, scrambling backwards.
Before anyone could stop her, she ran away. She burst outside and fell on her knees in the grass. The whole world was spinning and she was sick to the stomach. She gagged, but nothing came out. She squeezed her eyes and let out a blood-curdling scream.
If this was what was left from her once cheerful, arrogant macho mouse, than he would be better off dead. Death would be kind. Because she knew this was the last thing he would've wanted. Ending up as a lifeless plant, only alive because his heart was still beating... Forced to lie in bed all day, all night…
Not going to be able to ride his bike ever again.
Not going to be able to do stunts and brag about them.
Not going to be able to pull her in his strong arms…
No more love making, no more teasing…
She was never gonna hear his low voice again. The voice that always made her feel calm, no matter how panicked she was.
That voice she needed now more than ever.
She would never feel the soft fur under her fingers again while he was holding her in his strong arms.
That safe feeling he gave her while wrapping his strong arms around her she now needed more than ever.
She would never see his ruby red eyes twinkling, with that mischievous glance in it.
That look she now needed more than ever.
She would never hear him say her name again.
Hearing him say her name she now needed more than ever.
And the worst thing ever… she would never see that smile again.
That smile that meant the world to her. That smile, that arrogant smile, that made her fall in love with him.
That smile she needed now more than ever.
Her heart shattered into a million pieces. Had she just lost him forever?

"I've waited a hundred years
But I'd wait a million more for you...
Nothing prepared me for
What the privilege of being yours would do…
Please… come back to me…"

Man, writing that last part almost made me cry, can you believe that? But I just could feel Kiwi's pain…

So, let's just hope Vinnie's gonna wake up.
Let's just hope his brain damage isn't gonna be that bad.
Let's just hope he's gonna be able to get himself back on his feet again.
But the burning question here is;
Is he ever gonna be the same again?

Please, feel free to review and again, thank you so much for reading my story and supporting me.
Means the world.

Later guys! Till next time…