At this rate I'll be here all night, I get one thing done then something else comes up. Why can't I ever have a slow day? Throttle was reading proposal after proposal from the mayors of various Martian cities. Why can't someone else make these decisions, it's not like I'm the only one on this planet with common sense. He put down the paper he was reading and rubbed his eyes. Should another school be built in Mons? No because there aren't very many kids on the whole planet and there isn't any need for a new school. We could use that money for medical research. Geeze Rider or Reve could do this!
Just then Carbine walked into the office. She was wearing her Generals uniform and Chance was strolling along behind her, scanning the office with curious eyes. Throttle had a hunch about what was coming.
"Hey, Hun. Busy?" She asked as she walked behind the desk and kissed him.
Throttle kissed her back "Yeah, I got a ton of paper work to do and the phone is due to ring any minute." He sighed, he knew from experience that when he had a lot of paper work someone would call him. And the way today was going it would probably be long distance and collect. "What's up?"
"There's an emergency meeting at the base, it seems quite a few of the cadets didn't know how to hold a bazooka properly and now we are down one mess hall."She said.
"Was anyone hurt?" Throttle asked astonished.
"Nah, no one was in the mess hall at the time, but we don't have a kitchen so we have to figure out how we're going to feed our Army till we get a new one."Carbine replied.
"Well, if you need any help...."
"I, unlike the rest of the planet, can make decisions such as this without your expert advice.However, I can't find a babysitter for our son."
"Where's Reve and Rider?"
"At the show at school."
"That's right, I forgot."
"Understandable, is he ok here?"
"Yeah,no problem." Throttle said and smiled "We'll have fun, right Chance?"
"Yeah!" Chance said as he started to haul out toys from his backpack.
"That's what I'm afraid of." Carbine said. She walked over and ruffled Chance's hair.
"Make sure Daddy gets his work done, kay?" She said.
"Kay!" he ran over to Throttle's desk and started to stare at him.
Carbine closed the door behind her. Throttle started to read, Chance stared. All the staring made Throttle nervous.
"Chance?"
"Yes."
"What're you doing?"
"What Mummy said to do, making sure you get all your work done so you'll get home at a decent time for once." Chance regurgitated his Mother's words, she'd undoubtedly said them sometime during the day.
"Don't worry, I'm almost do...." The phone rang.Throttle sighed. He picked it up and started to talk in an alien tongue. Chance's mouth dropped in surprise, he'd never heard his Dad talk like that before. The conversation was unusually short. Must be my lucky day. He hung up and noticed his son's expression.
"What is it?" Throttle asked.
"Why were you talking so funny?I'm going to have to tell Mom that you're messing around!" Chance said, his face angry.
Throttle laughed. "No, I was talking in another language, not all aliens speak English." His son had never heard him speak in one of the twelve different alien tongues he was fluent in. It had taken him ten years to learn them all.
"Wow!" Chance said and smiled "Can you teach me to talk like that?"
"Sure."
"Now?"
"Not now, tomorrow, if I'm not too busy."
Ok!" Chance said happily. He went over to his bag and pulled out a comic book, convinced now that his dad was working hard. Throttle watched him for a minute. Chance was reading since he was three, he'd never seen a child who was so eager to learn and could do it so fast. He'll probably learn all the languages I know in half the time it took me to learn them, maybe less. Chance looked over his shoulder and caught him watching him.
"Daddy, You're not working." Chance said.
"Ok ok." Throttle started reading again. Chance just smiled and went back to his comic.

"This band is pretty cool!"
"What?"
"I said this band is pretty cool!"
"What?"
Reve got fed up and gestured for Spark to come out into the hallway. The music was so loud she couldn't hear herself think.
"That band is cool." Reve said out in the hallway.
"Yeah, when's Rider playing?"
"Next, I hope Tyra comes."
"Hmm, why?" Spark asked curiously, pretty sure she knew the answer anyway.
"I think Rider likes her."
"You think Rider likes her?" Spark asked
"Ok, I know rider likes her."Reve said impatiently.She looked around,Tyra and Louricia were just walking through the door.Reve waved to them, the two of them smiled then trotted over.
"Are we too late to see Rider play?" Tyra asked.Reve smiled mischievously at Spark, she liked playing matchmaker.
"Nope, they're on next."
"Oh, good." Tyra smiled.
"I'm glad you guys made it." Spark said.
"Dad let us take our bikes and everything!" Louricia said excitedly. Tyra glanced at her, There she goes forgetting our mission again! Wait..what am I saying, I'm just as bad. There's no way I'm doing any spying until Rider is finished playing. I have no idea why, but I like him. Tyra glanced around. It'll never workout though, and not just for the obvious reasons.
"I think they're ready to start." Reve said, all four girls rushed in.


Throttle had four more phone calls, all long ones. Chance was content reading his comic book. Throttle was glad he wasn't like Reve when she was little. She was a terror, she'd drive him nuts. He suddenly realized he had to get a file from out in the main office.
"I'll be right back Chance."
"Ok, Daddy." Chance returned to his comic. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a shadow moving across the light the moon cast on the office floor. He looked at it for a sec, then got scared. He ran and hid under his dad's desk.
Bloodlust entered the office through the window. It creaked softly as it opened. He scanned the room quickly, his fist clenched around the handle of his Saturian saber ready to strike. The Martian Ambassador wasn't there. The room was entirely empty.Except for the brat hiding under the desk.An evil smile passed over Bloodlust's face.


"You won the battle of the Bands, that's so cool!" Lazer said to Rider in Hot Dog Shack, they were all hanging out there after the show, even Tyra and Louricia.
"Yeah,our band is really good." Rider said, he started to eat his hotdog.
"How come you don't act like you do on stage around us?" Spark asked curiously.
"What do you mean?" Rider asked.
"You're a whole different person, you're jumpin around and I've never heard you raise your voice that much before." She replied.
Rider blushed a bit, it was true, he couldn't help but act like that when he was performing though, it was so much fun. "I guess I just get lost in the moment."
"So where's the rest of your band?"
"They went out with their girlfriends." Rider said.
"You don't have a girlfriend?" Tyra asked.
"No." Rider said and took another bite.
"Oh." tyra said. Reve smiled a bit. So far so good.
"Did you ever have a boyfriend?" Spark asked Tyra.
"No, we move a lot, no time to really get to know anyone."
"You've never had a boyfriend? Well, look no further, I am the ultimate boyfriend."Vinnie said and smiled.
"Do you have any references to confirm that?" Reve asked.
"Um.... well...."
"No, you don't , because you've never had a girlfriend."
"Ok!" Vinnie said annoyed, he was really embarrassed.
Everyone chuckled, Vinnie couldn't help but join in too.


"Was your mission successful? Is Throttle dead?" Ravage asked Bloodlust.He and Limburger were standing across from him in the damp cave, located deep in the mountains of the south desert.
"Oh it was successful all right, but Throttle isn't dead."
"You fool!How could your mission be successful if he's still alive? You were supposed to kill him!" Limburger said in rage. Bloodlust started to laugh uncontrollably.
"I scratched that plan! I got something much better than that mouse's head!" Bloodlust ran to a crate in the far side of the cavern and kicked it over. Chance was bound and gagged beneath it.
"A child?" Ravage asked in horror.I should have listened to that rumor about him being a lunatic!It' s true! "What are we going to do with a child?"
"Not just any child." Bloodlust squeezed Chance's cheeks. "Throttle's son."
"So? He'll find him, I've underestimated those mice enough times to know exactly what'll happen!" Limburger shouted. "and the Sand Raiders are already on our side and waiting for the battle to take Mars. If the mission isn't completed on schedule they'll get suspicious and might turn on us. My followers are not enough to handle them, and Ravage hasn't convinced his people......"
Bloodlust growled in rage. He put the crate back over Chance and said. "You talk too much you fat flounder! The best hit man is needed to do this job, and you got him!So stop telling me how to do my job! There's lots of other potential clients for me and my two little apprentices, If I ditched you two you'd be in one heck of a spot wouldn't you?"
Limburger said nothing, he knew the crazed rat was right.
"You just get the job done! I'm not paying you if you don't!" Ravage said, he was losing his patience.
"Don't worry, I have everything under control." Bloodlust said and smiled.


"Are you sure he isn't hiding somewhere?"Modo asked Throttle,he knew it was a stupid question but he didn't know what else to do. Chance had disappeared, and the dozen peace keepers that were looking for clues weren't doing too good.
Throttle stared out the window, more worried than he'd ever been in his life. "You know he wouldn't have taken a game this far." Throttle said blankly. He stared at the ground, some 12 stories below. He had been so terrified with the thought that Chance had fallen. He was so relieved that he didn't, but he was still missing and that meant he was in danger.
"Don't worry Throttle, we'll find him." Vinnie said, he and Modo walked over to the window and stood with their friend.
"I know bro's." He said, but he didn't sound convinced. His Son's life was at stake.



Louricia and Tyra finally caught up with the others. They had all decided to have a race in a field near the edge of the city they lived in.
"What took you guys so long?" Vinnie asked. Tyra pulled to a stop alongside Rider, much to Reve's delight,and pulled off her helmet, messing up her hair.
"We're not used to the streets around here, we decided to take it slow." she replied. Spark made a skeptical face. We've traveled to other planets and the different atmosphere never slowed us down as much as that.Those two are acting kind of strange. Maybe they're just nervous around us, being new and all.
"That's smart." Lazer said. They all got into a line.
"First one to that fence over there wins!" Vinnie hollered. "On your mark..... get set...... get ready....... get...."
"Just say go all ready!" Reve said impatiently.
"Fine, fine," Vinnie said annoyed, "GO!" They all took off, except Tyra and Louricia. They looked at each other uncertainly, then took off. They got there last.
"I won! La -hoo- sa-hers!" Vinnie shouted.
"Ya, ya, whatever!" Spark said. They were all used to Vinnie's gloating, they all knew teasing him about his ego would only make him talk more. She looked at Tyra and Louricia, again skeptical. They didn't go fast at all. Not at all like the regular Martian mouse.
"Want to have another race?" Lazer asked.
"Do you all like getting your buts kicked that much?" Vinnie asked. Reve was about to answer, loudly, when motorcycles could be heard in the distance.
"Hey, those are peace keepers." Rider said.
"Are we in trouble?" Louricia asked. "For racing here?"
"Nah, this is the one place in the city that we are allowed to race." Spark said. Because of their previous misadventure with the transporter in the tower., a spot was designated for the youth of the city to race safely.
Vinnie and Modo stopped their bikes in front of them.
"Thank goodness you're all here!" Modo said.
"Why? What's up?" Rider asked.
"Chance is missing?" Vinnie said.
"Missing?" Reve asked in surprise.
"Yeah, we were scared whoever took him came after you too." Vinnie replied.
"Who took him?" Rider asked angrily, Reve was getting angry too. Whoever took the little space cadet is going to pay! she thought to herself.
"We have no idea. Whoever did it never even left a ransom note." Modo said
"Or fingerprints!" Vinnie added angrily, he couldn't understand how that could be.
"Anyway, you kids better come home, there's a kidnapper on the loose that's good enough to break into Red Tower without being detected." Modo said, even the best stealth soldier in the army couldn't get past the tower's defenses when they tested them out. This person was dangerous. "besides, we'll need your help to find him."
Louricia and Tyra looked at each other, Tyra nodded. "Well, we'll go home now then." she said.
"We'll escort you." Vinnie said.
"That's okay, it's really close to here, only like two minutes." she replied hastily. They can't follow us! It'll seriously endanger the mission!
"Well, all right then, but be extremely careful." Modo stressed.
"We will, thanks." Tyra smiled, "See you all at school Monday!" Louricia waved goodbye.
"Bye." Rider said after them as they drove away. He was too worried to be enthusiastic, and so was Reve.



Louricia and Tyra entered the dimly lit cavern of their secret hideout. Bloodlust was talking to a little kid, obviously Chance. Tyra dropped her helmet on the floor of the cave. And walked over to him.
"What about the plan?" Tyra asked.
"Can't you see I'm talking to our guest here? I thought I taught you that interrupting was rude?" Bloodlust said.
"But the plan..." Tyra said. She wouldn't normally care that Bloodlust hadn't killed someone. She was usually quite relieved that he didn't. But this time was different for some reason, and she knew exactly why.
Bloodlust pressed a button on a remote at his side. Tyra fell to the ground, screaming and riving in agony. Louricia ran over to her.
"W..why did y..you d.d.d.do that? Chance said, tears streaming down his face. He was tied to a chair now, Bloodlust took the gag off in order to have a conversation with him. But Chance was silent until now.
"To teach her a lesson, little buddy." Bloodlust said to him then turned to Tyra "You forgot your place, dear."Louricia looked at him with angry,tear streaked eyes. Bloodlust ignored her. "Now, what do you have to say for yourself?"
Tyra tried desperately to catch her breath, she knew she'd get another jolt if she took to long to answer."I..I...I'm Sorry ...M.mast..errr." she said.
Bloodlust smiled."That's a good girl, now get up, we have to talk about the new plan." He walked over to a table across the room and sat down.
Tyra slowly managed to pull herself off the floor and , with Louricia's help, walked over to where Bloodlust was sitting. Bloodlust pulled out a dagger and played with it.Turning it over and over in his hand.
"You're going to lead them here." He said.
"How, master?" Louricia asked.
"You will tell them at school ,Monday that you are involved with the brat's kidnapping. You'll pretend to help them rescue him, but we'll have armed resistance ready." Bloodlust said.
"What if they don't ....." Louricia started. Bloodlust stood up and looked down at her.
"You'll make them follow you, understand? ALL OF THEM! And if you fail......." Louricia looked away, she knew what would happen. The same thing that happened to Tyra just now, but only much worse. She looked right at Chance tied up by the wall.
"What about him?" Louricia asked. Bloodlust threw the dagger at him with lightning speed.Louricia jumped in surprise and fright as it wedged itself in the backrest of the chair. It stuck there only an inch or two above Chance's head. He started wailing in fright. Tears streamed down Louricia's eyes too. Bloodlust bent down to her ear and whispered something in it. She tried desperately to hold back the wave of emotions welling up inside her. Her apprenticeship was about to end.