Biker Mice From Mars - Somewhere I Belong

The Deeper You Dig The Messier It Gets

Rubbing her chin, Charley took a good look at the unfamiliar bolt before she turned around to her workbench, hoping that one of her terrestrial wrenches would fit on the extraterrestrial bolt that was attached to the most beautiful bike she had ever seen.
To say that working on such an impressive machine powered by alien technology was extraordinary was what one liked to call an understatement.
Truthfully, there were simply no words invented to describe how exciting this was for her.
At the same time, it was the biggest challenge she had ever faced in her garage, but that didn't scare her off.
On the contrary, actually.
She had always loved a good challenge.

It had been Throttle who came up with the idea, while O'Neill was searching the scoreboard for his much-needed drink.
"Why don't you and Vinnie go to your garage to fix his ride, huh? The sooner she's back in business, the better", he had suggested to her while squeezing her shoulder in a friendly way.
The warm smile on his face had told her that it wasn't just about the bike, but to give them some time alone as well and she was grateful for him being so considerate with her and his beloved young bro.

They might have had a rough start, but she could now see why Vinnie was so loyal to the tan-furred Martian.
There was just something special about him, something she couldn't name.
His calmness, his kindness, his wisdom, his dedication to the cause...
He was a born leader, that's for sure.
And maybe, just maybe, he reminded her of her father, but that would be her little secret.

Soon after Throttle came up with the idea, they had left the scoreboard and here they were, tinkering with the cherry-red racing bike for hours already.
The sun was long gone, and so were the clouds.
Finally, after nights of rain and wind, the moon had a free path to shine down its mellowing light and for a moment, Charley peered through the window at the glowing satellite object with her hands resting on the counter.
It appeared that the bike wasn't the only challenge she had to face tonight after this very exhausting and surreal day.
No.

The second challenge turned out to be none other than its white-furred owner, who was working with her on his beloved ride with this strange absent look on his face.
Even more so, he had barely said a word since they had left the scoreboard.
Now, perhaps she didn't know him that long, but she had seen enough to know that it wasn't like him to be so quiet.
To be so deep in thought.
Frankly, it worried her.
More importantly — she wasn't entirely sure how to handle it.

Of course, she could just ask him what was on his mind, but something told her that he wasn't really the 'let's hold hands and share our deepest feelings' type of guy.
Next to that, even though she knew deep down that he wasn't going anywhere, she was still somehow scared that she would chase him away if she would start asking questions again.
But the problem was that it became increasingly difficult to keep her mouth shut.

At first, she had been sort of grateful for him being so quiet.
It had given her some time to process all the things that had happened today without being overwhelmed by fear and shock.
This peaceful reflection eventually made her come to the conclusion that Vinnie's strong reaction when she offered her help this afternoon had made her curious as to why he had been so hellbent on stopping her from joining the team.

He was obviously scared to death of losing her, and she seriously wondered why that was.
Somehow, she just knew there was more to it than just simple overprotection.
Something had happened to him.
Something bad.
And not just to him.
To his friends, too.

Modo's robotic arm and glowing eye, Throttle's peculiar pinkish eyes hidden behind sunglasses which he even wore inside, Vinnie's mask...
Yeah.
There was obviously a story to it, more than Throttle had told her and O'Neill this afternoon.
A story she was dying to hear.
And so, as it seemed to become a common thread through this bizarre adventure, questions started to come to mind.
Questions she couldn't just ask.