Thanks for the reviews! I can't say enough how much I appreciate them.


Chapter six

Past

"He is like a tank, he is determined to score, nobody can stop him, nobody is gonna be fast enough, he is gonna score, but wait! Wait! Here's Vinnieeee!", the white furred mouse cheered and jumped at Throttle's back. They both fell on the floor and Vinnie quickly grabbed the ball from Throttle. He threw it and he scored.
"AAAOOWW! He scooooooores!"
Throttle was still lying on his belly, looking at his younger bro who was cheering because of his victory.
"And the crowd goes wild!" Vinnie looked down at Throttle, a big smile on his face. Throttle shook his head, but couldn't hide his smile. Vinnie offered him a hand and Throttle took it to stand up.
"So, another game?", Vinnie asked, his eyes twinkling. Throttle shook his head.
"No way man, you are killing me here."
Vinnie smiled and clapped his back.
"Ah, come on Throttle. You didn't actually thought you were gonna win this? I'm the baddest mammajammer from the universe," and he wiggled his eyebrows.
"Modest too…", Throttle said.
"Forget modest. I'm the best!"

It has been a month since his parents died, and the transformation from Vinnie had surprised everybody around him. He was determined to show them he really wanted to change. That he was fine. That he was happy with himself. That nobody could take him down anymore. Somewhere, deep down, the dark emotions were still present. But Vinnie pushed it all away. He locked it into a deep, dark place in his brain and threw away the key. Sometimes, the dark came back. When somebody was saying something bad about people he cared about, like Throttle and his parents. Then he could feel the old anger flame up again. And then he made sure they would pay for it. He also still liked girls. He didn't have that many like he used to have, but sometimes, he unleashed his charms and he had a meaningless, one night stand. He loved to play the game, to get into a girls head, to make her do what he wanted. But it was different. Vinnie was different. He felt different. He felt reborn. His charming, happy personality mixed with a few shades of black in it. He loved his looks, his studly bod… He was everything he always wanted to be.
And it was a perfect way to mask his pain. Since he still didn't knew how to handle all his emotions, he just pushed it away. And it felt like something was missing. Something to feed his need for adrenaline. Because he needed that rush to handle his emotions. Because he wasn't used to talk about his emotions, he needed another way to handle them. And one night, he found it.

Vinnie was standing before his house. Nothing changed since the night he had found out. The war was slowly getting worse, and the damaged parts weren't restored anymore. He stared at his house. The place where he grew up. The place without love, only filled with hate and sorrow. He shook his head and looked at the barn. It was still standing. He walked to it and opened the door. When the light flickered on, he froze. There was a beautiful, red racing bike standing in the middle of the barn. Vinnie slowly walked closer, looking at the bike. It was beautiful. Made for speed. How in the world did this bike get in their barn?
He looked around him and saw something on the desk in the corner. He grabbed it and felt his heart stop beating.
It was a blueprint of the bike. Every detail was drawn, everything was thought about… He studied it and felt a tingle in his belly. This bike was made for speed, for stunting, for fighting… It had a complete weapon system in it and most importantly… an AI chip. Vinnie flipped through the pages, but stopped when a drawing in the corner of the paper took his attention. He stopped breathing. His father had drawn the bike with a white furred mouse on it. He was looking at himself, Vinnie realised. His father had built this bike for him… But why…
Suddenly, a big grin appeared on his face. Who cares why? He quickly opened the doors from the barn and put on the helmet that was lying on the bike. It was specially designed to cover up his whole head, but with enough space for his ears. Parts were painted the same colour as the bike and it had a radio system in it. Vinnie's grin grew only bigger and he jumped on the bike. The bike beeped and started the engine.
"Aaaaallright!", Vinnie cheered and the bike beeped back.
"Say there sweetheart, wanna go for a ride? You know, to get to know each other?", Vinnie asked the bike with a bittersweet voice, wiggling his eyebrows.
He laughed and the bike revved her engine. Vinnie excitement only grew bigger when he heard the sound of the engine. This was no kids bike. No, this bike was serious business. He leaned forward, grabbing the handlebars. It was kinda weird, since they weren't horizontal like most of the bikes. No, they were pointed down. That was gonna take some time to get used to it. He looked at all the buttons, but decided he first needed to test the bike. He closed the visor on his helmet (after searching for the button for almost a minute, but hey, nobody saw it) and he opened the gas. The bike immediately respond and Vinnie almost flew off.
"Aaaooww, sweetheart, you got some power!", he laughed appreciatively. He quickly threw his weight forward and made sure to stay there. He suddenly understood why the handlebars were designed like this. It forced the driver to lean forward and stay there. To avoid the driver would fall off.

He drove into the desert, a little unhandy with the gas. He wasn't used to a bike with these kind of power. But no biggie. He knew he would learn. When he was in the open, he stopped and pushed a button. At both sides, two laser guns came out, on the top a canon. Vinnie was almost bouncing on his seat, searching for the button to fire. He found them on the top of the handlebars. He pushed the right button and both lasers fired. When he pushed the left button, a rocket flew out of the cannon and exploded when it landed, meters away. Vinnie threw his fists in the air.
"AAAAOOWWW! This is awesome!", he cheered. He eagerly pushed the other buttons and he found out this bike was something special. It had multiple weapon systems, a radio, communication gear, enough storage to bring extra ammo... When he examined the handlebars, he discovered they could be pulled back. But nothing happened. Ah, maybe when he was driving. He jumped back on the seat and drove away. When he was going fast enough, he pulled them back. The engine roared and the bike sped away. Vinnie wasn't prepared for this at all and flew off the bike. He landed hard on the ground. Ah… Turbo jets… Sure, why not? Thankfully, nobody had noticed. The bike returned to him, beeping loud. He stood up, laughing and took back his seat.
"Yeah yeah, sweetheart, I know. Let's try that again."
This time, he was prepared. He made sure that he leaned forward and pulled back the handlebars. The bike sped away, and Vinnie remained on her seat this time.
"Holy shit", he whispered, glad he had a visor on his helmet. Otherwise, his eyes would probably just fly out of his head. But then, a grin split his face almost in two and he vowed to himself, he was gonna practise everyday, so he would become the best rider on Mars. No, the whole galaxy. He finally had found something that gave him the same rush, no even a better rush, as sex of fighting and that was riding this bike, full speed. He stopped and pulled off his helmet, his heart pounding in his chest. He looked up to the sky.
"Thanks dad…", he whispered.

The next few weeks, Vinnie was riding his bike every day. And he improved fast. Throttle went with him as much as he could. Since he was done with school and Vinnie wasn't allowed to come back, they had all the time of the world. Vinnie had learned a lot from his dad about bikes, so he upgraded his and Throttle's bike now and then. Throttle also had a full weapon system on his bike now and with help from Tread, they made the same shaped helmet for the tan furred mouse. Including the radio. Just to be prepared. Just in case… And one day it turned out to be a good idea to be prepared. Because one day, it became very clear the Plutarkians were determined to take over Mars. To destroy it. And use the resources. Till that day, there were occasionally some attacks, spread over the whole planet. But that day changed everything.
Throttle and Vinnie were riding in the desert, racing each other.
"AAAOOWW, eat my dust, Throttle!", Vinnie cheered. He looked in his mouse shaped mirror and saw that Throttle was close to him, but not close enough to get passed him. Not that Throttle was a bad biker, no, not at all. He just didn't had the same desire to live on the edge like the white furred mouse loved to live. Throttle loved to win, but was also attached to his life. Suddenly, they heard a loud explosion and Vinnie hit the brakes. Throttle stopped next to him and they turned around to look where the sound came from.
"Holy sweet Mothers of Mars...", Throttle whispered, his eyes big. Vinnie breathed in sharply. A big ship was flying above their town, bombing everything. For a few moments, they could only stare at what was happening. But Vinnie came to senses.
"We need to go back, we need to see if there is anything we can do!", he yelled, revving his bike. Throttle tried to stop him.
"Vincent, no, it's too dangerous…", but Vinnie ignored him. Throttle had no other choice than to follow his younger bro. His younger bro who wasn't scared of anything. Who loved to live on the edge. Who needed his adrenaline to survive. To fight his darkness. Since he never learned how to talk about his emotions, he needed another way to express himself. And that was fighting, driving like a mad man… And Throttle had vowed to protect him. To stay by his side, to avoid that the white furred adrenaline junkie was gonna make the same mistakes he had made in the past. So, he followed him. When they were close, the ship was already gone.

Vinnie flew into the town and was shocked when he saw the damage. The only place he knew, where he grew up, no matter how hard that was, was destroyed. And that made him mad, actually. He heard Throttle's bike behind him and took the lead to Throttle's house. He stopped his bike with shrieking brakes when they were close.
"No…", he whispered, pulling of his helmet. They were too late. The house was a mess. Throttle stopped next to him, fighting to pull off his helmet. But because of the panic, it didn't went that well. Vinnie jumped off his bike and helped his bro.
"Come on, maybe they are still alive", he said to Throttle, who was obviously losing it by seeing his damaged house.
Vinnie grabbed him by the arm and dragged him with him.
"Tread! Star! You here?", he yelled and pricked his ears. Throttle did the same and they suddenly heard a soft moan. They followed the noise and found Star. She was lying under the rubble, her head heavily bleeding. A big piece of the ceiling was lying on her body. She could hardly breathe. Throttle fell on his knees.
"No… No, mom… Dammit… What do I need to do? What… Mom...", he cried, touching her. Vinnie quickly used all his strength to get the big piece off of her, but she screamed in pain and Vinnie stopped, his eyes wide. "Sorry…"
"My boys…", she breathed, tears in her eyes. Throttle held her in his arms, as far that was possible. He stroked away her hair with a shaking hand.
"I… I love you… Both of… you… my boys… fore...ever…" Star was struggling to speak. She looked into Throttle's eyes.
"Mom… Oh my god, mom…", he whispered, tears streaming over his face. Vinnie just stood there, he didn't knew what to do. He felt his heart pounding in his chest, he wanted to cry but he just couldn't. Star signed Throttle to come closer. She whispered something in his ear and Throttle nodded, but with confusion and despair on his face.
"I promise, mom, but why are you saying this… You are gonna make it through, just hold on… We are gonna get help, mom please…", his voice broke, overwhelmed by emotions. But it was too late. Star gurgled and her eyes rolled back in her head. After a few last cramps, she completely relaxed. She was dead.
Vinnie could only stare in horror. No… His second mom… His real mom actually… God, the pain in his heart was unbearable. But he just didn't knew what to do. The tears didn't come. He could only stare at the dead body of the woman who actually had cared about him. Who had loved him unconditionally. Loved him like her own son. And now, she was gone...
Throttle bend over and screamed.
"NOOOO!"
Vinnie's felt goosebumps by the pain that was clearly heard in Throttle's voice. No, how could this happen? Why, after all the pain, the sorrow... how in the world could this happen? He finally had felt some happiness again, and now… Everything was ruined. Nothing was ever gonna be the same again… He suddenly remembered Tread. Shit. Where was he? He looked one more time at Throttle, who was holding the body of his mom tightly. He wasn't going anywhere.
Vinnie quickly searched the rest of the house, and finally found Tread close by where the stairs used to be. But he was already dead. And his body was… well, Vinnie hardly recognized it. It looked like he got caught in the explosion. Vinnie gagged and stumbled backwards. his eyes wide. He took a deep breath and turned around. There was nothing he could do for Tread. His second father. His real father actually. His lifesaver. Thanks to Tread, he was able to get his life back on track. And he was only halfway there and now his mentor, his father was gone. Vinnie felt his chest tighten, but he still couldn't cry. He just couldn't. But it was a good thing. He needed to be strong for Throttle. His older bro was always there for him. Now, it was time to return the favor.

When he came back to Throttle, the tan furred mouse was still in the same position, staring at his mom. Vinnie kneeled down next to him and grabbed his arm. But how was he gonna tell him this? How was he gonna tell his bro that his father was dead? But he needed to tell him. He had every right to know.
"Throttle… I… I found Tread…", Vinnie said hesitantly.
Throttle's head jerked up, looking at Vinnie and he opened his mouth to ask it, but he already saw the answer in Vinnie's eyes. Vinnie swung an arm around Throttle.
"I'm sorry, bro… Jezus, I'm so, so sorry…"
Throttle leaned against him, still holding his mom. Vinnie knew they needed to leave. What if they came back, to check if there were any survivors? Sure, Vinnie knew how to fight. But with Throttle in this state...
"Throttle… we need to get out of here. We don't know if they are coming back, we…" but Throttle shook his head.
"I'm not leaving her. Neither am I leaving my dad", he said with a hoarse voice. Vinnie looked in his bro's eyes and suddenly felt his old anger flame up. The pain in his bro's eyes… Jezus, the Plutarkians did that. And they were gonna pay for it. Nobody was allowed to hurt his bro without consequences. Vinnie used the anger to find the strength to get his body in motion. He grabbed his bro by the shoulders.
"We have no choice, bro… We are gonna make them pay, you hear me? We are gonna make them pay for what they did. We are gonna fight. They are not gonna get away with this. No. We are gonna go look for them, hunt them down and kill them. Slowly. Painfully."
Throttle looked at Vinnie by hearing his determined voice. Vinnie looked back and he saw something chance in Throttle's eyes. The tan furred mouse slowly nodded.
"You're right. They need to pay for this."
He gave his mom one last kiss on her head and slowly stood up.
"Bye mom… I'm sorry I can't take you with me… But… I love you. And I will miss you…", he whispered, looking at the dead body at his feet.
He saw his clothes were stained with his mother's blood. That made him even more determined. Vinnie respected and admired Throttle's strength. When he found out his parents were dead, he went ballistic. And his parents weren't even a loving couple. The fact that Throttle even had the strength to get back on his feet, was something Vinnie always would remember. He suddenly realized how he looked up to Throttle. And he vowed to himself, he was gonna be there for Throttle. Fight by his side. He would let him guide him. Because he needed Throttle. And right now, Throttle needed him.
The two mice walked outside and stepped on their bikes. They nodded to each other.
"Let's rock and ride, little bro", Throttle whispered into the radio. Vinnie revved his bike as answer.
"Let's whip some Plutarkian tail." And they drove away.
They had no idea how to do this. Heck, they were only teenagers. No soldiers. But one thing was for sure. The Plutarkians were gonna pay, one way or another.

Present

Violet and Throttle were sitting next to Vinnie's bed. Violet held Vinnie's hand, playing with his fingers absently. Throttle was staring in the distance.
"I think he is dreaming about his past", the tan furred mouse suddenly said. He and Violet had talked about this every day, guessing what was making their white furred friend so upset. But Throttle suddenly remembered the conversation by the campfire, the night before Vinnie's accident. Violet looked at him questionably.
"The night before his accident, he told us he was having nightmares, but that he had no clue what he was dreaming about. I forgot he told us. But when I think of it, what is the one thing that could upset Vinnie? It must be his past…" Throttle felt his stomach turn. He also got upset when he thought of their shared past. Like the day they had found his parents, for example. Star, dying in his arms… He gave himself a mental shake. Violet gently took his hand.
"It's okay, Throttle. It's okay, to be sad. About what happened. I don't know everything, but I know the loss of your parents was hard for you…"
Throttle looked at her and gave her a sad smile.
"Yeah, I know it's okay. But if I think about it too long, well... ", he trailed off, staring at Vinnie. Violet squeezed his hand.
"I know…", she whispered. She looked at Vinnie again. When was he gonna wake up? Their baby was almost ready to be born. Two weeks to go. Swee had told them he could wake up any minute now, but it could also take another week. But his body was giving signs he was close to the surface. A tear escaped her eye. Throttle softly wiped it away.
"He will be fine, Violet. I just know he will. But if he really is reliving his whole past, well… He is gonna be emotional unstable when he wakes up. And it's important we are gonna be there for him. But he will be fine. He always is. He always bounces back on his feet."
Violet wasn't sure if he was only trying to convince her, but also himself. But she knew he was right. Vinnie was strong. He will pull through. He always does.

Past/Present

Vinnie noticed the images of his past were going faster and faster. He saw how Throttle and he met Stoker, how they joined the Freedom Fighters, how they met Modo. They became good friends and they were all very determined to wipe out the Plutarkians. He saw how he met Harley for the first time. Their fights, the explosion that ripped off half of his face, the loss of Harley… Then, the crash on Earth, Charley, their adventures, the explosion of the Last Chance Garage, how he killed Limburger and Karbunkle. Their trip back to Mars, the night he met Violet, their fight on Mars, the virus, his kidnapping, the explosion of Mars, Coelum, dragons, Spero, Lectorium, Dominus, back to Earth, Dani, Rimfire, his mental breakdown… The images speeded before his eyes, faster and faster. And suddenly, it stopped.
He saw the night that Violet told him she was pregnant, the happy look on her face, her twinkling eyes. He smiled and tried to touch her, but the only thing he grabbed was air. He felt his heart pounding in his chest, and suddenly he felt tingles in his whole body. And pain. Man, it felt like his whole body was on fire.
The images speeded again, right to the point he was flying off his bike. The tree coming closer and him trying to avoid it, to avoid the crash. But of course, that was impossible.
He braced himself for the hard hit and right at the moment he slammed his head against the three, his eyes flew open.


Yes, Vinnie is awake! But in what state? Please review! :)