Return to Ōban

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Return to Ōban

By Daryll Pung

Two:  Rev It Up

Rated: R

            “-and in Star Racing news, we have an exciting update for both serious and casual fans.  We have recently learned that the legendary Molly- the hero of Earth who won the Great Race of Ōban seven years ago, when she was only fifteen- is once again climbing into a Star Racer, as pilot of the new Seraphim Racing Team destined for the Tournament of Ōban.  Molly, now twenty-two, whose actual name is none other than Eva Wei, daughter of renowned-”

            The screen blinked off, and Don shook his head.  Even now, reporters were outside of the complex, practically fighting with each other just to catch a glimpse of- and shout lots of annoying, redundant questions to- anyone associated with Seraphim.

            He swiveled in his chair, thoughtfully eying through the window the excellent test track Stan and Koji had put in when they’d rebuilt the property; an elongated egg shape with one end a much tighter turn than the other, and targets in various positions for the gunner to shoot at.  They couldn't block the whole track off, unfortunately; some of the press would be recording the whole time from locations just off the property.  He sighed.  It was only for a week, at most; then the Avatar's transports would arrive to carry the teams involved in the Tournament to Alwas; at the end of the mix, only five human teams had been finalized, and all were destined there.

            His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a roar, which slowly decreased to a low, constant, throbbing whine.  He smiled as he picked up the wireless headset sitting on his desk, and slipped it on.

            Time for the test runs to commence.

            As he exited his office, the hangar doors were already opening; Rick, Stan, and Koji all had their headsets on and were talking to each other.

            Don activated his.

            “-just so great to be sitting in the very racer that you won the Great Race with,” gushed Hoshiko.

            Eva giggled.  “Hoshiko, we're just using the Whizzing Arrow Three as a baseline; once we're both in the groove, we'll switch to the Star Angel One and see just how much we can improve our performance.”

            “I'm looking forward to that,” Hoshi replied eagerly.  “But this... it's historical, it is!”

            “Well… not really,” Eva admitted.  “This is actually an exact duplicate of the original Whizzing Arrow Three.  The original’s wreckage is probably still in the Temple of the Heart on Ōban… unless the Avatar did something with it.  Best keep that to yourself, though; it’s not common knowledge; nor is it supposed to be.”

            “Gotcha,” Hoshi answered.

            “I should warn you ladies,” Don broke in on the circuit, “that there will be reporters recording what happens out there; we cannot stop them, since they're not on the property.  Do your best, and try to ignore them.”

            “It's nothing,” Rick commented.  “It is also not something you'll have to worry about- much- on Alwas; we'll have only the one press agent with us.  He's a good guy, unobtrusive, which is why I picked him, and he'll stay out of the way for the most part.  The rest of the boneheads don't matter.”

            “Still kind of rankles, having a reporter along,” said an annoyed Stan.  “This can be very serious business.”

            “I think we're all agreed on that point,” Don replied.  “It behooves us, however, to maintain a good public image.  Now, let's cut the chatter and get testing!”

            “I quite agree!” Eva laughed.  “Ready for this, Hoshiko?”

            “Yes!” the brunette exclaimed.

            With a twist of Eva’s throttles, the Whizzing Arrow III virtually leapt into action, a blaze of blue ions blasting from its thrust ports; almost instantly, Eva slammed into a tight right bank to pull cleanly onto the test track; she centered up, and opened the throttles wider.

            “Oh, hell,” gasped Hoshi.  “This is intense!”

            “This is nothing,” quipped Eva.  “Wait until I really open her up!  First target approaching, left side!”

            “O-Okay,” Hoshi replied, nervously, as she punched the button on her panel that shifted the turret.  The guns retracted on either side of her, and she held on as the turret shifted.  Slightly disoriented, it took her a second to recover; then she saw the target, and centered the sights, squeezing the triggers as she did so.

            Disappointingly, much of the fire seemed to miss.

            The Arrow III abruptly slammed into a tight bank, and she caught a glimpse of the next target.  She could hit from this position, but…  She punched the panel again, and the turret shifted to the right.  Once again, she barely had time to attempt to center the sights and pull the trigger, allowing the thudding of the dual laser cannons to calm her.

            More of the shots appeared to connect.  She punched the left shift again for the next target.

            Three laps later, she opened a screen to Eva.  “I think I’ve got the hang of it, now.”

            “Good… time to see if you can do anything at high speeds; Jordan… well, even he couldn’t hit targets as we were going as fast as we’re about to go,” Eva replied.  “Stan, Koji, you recording good so far?”

            “You bet,” Koji replied.  “Your lap times have stabilized, and you’re literally within a tenth of a second of your fastest previously recorded time with the Arrow.  Hoshiko, your accuracy has steadily improved; targets are registering as destroyed, now, every time you fire.  Good work so far.”

            Hoshi giggled.  “I literally don’t have time to be nervous.  It all happens so fast.”

            Eva laughed.  “Do we want Hyperdrive and Boost Drive baselines?”

            There was definite malice in Rick’s voice as he spoke.  “I think it would be a good idea.”

            “Agreed,” Don said, a smirk on his face.  “Stan?”

            “Arrow’ll handle it, no problem,” Stan answered.  “Ready when you are, Eva.”

            “Give me distance calcs,” Eva responded.

            “Should be enough juice for one lap of each,” Koji answered.

            “Here we go, then,” Eva called out.  “Activating hyperdrive.”  She punched the sequence of controls on her panel, and a rumble shook through the Whizzing Arrow III as near the top of each engine, on the outside surface, additional thrusters extended; after a brief moment, they ignited, simultaneously with the output of the main engines doubling; the whole of the backside and ventral surface of the Whizzing Arrow III disappeared in a blinding blue blaze of light and ions.

            Eva whooped with delight as the G-forces increased; Hoshi’s reaction was far more audible:  a delighted scream, akin to what one would hear from a roller-coaster enthusiast.

            “Target!” Eva had time to call out.  Let’s see what you’re made of…

            Despite the alacrity with which Hoshi responded, she wasn’t able to get there in time; realizing that with the speed they were moving a target had to be anticipated, she immediately shifted back to the other side, pointed her guns at were the target would be momentarily, and squeezed the trigger, grinning like a mad thing the whole time, the thudding of the laser cannons adding to the roar of the engines.

            The rides through the turret tunnel at this speed were harrowing, but she shifted several times during the course of the lap, firing where her memory told her targets would be.

            “Engaging boost drive!” Eva shouted as they swung around towards the lap line, pressing the proper sequence on her panel.

            As it was completed, the bottom dropped out of both engines, literally.  Airflow vanes spread as two more banks of tightly clustered, extremely powerful thrusters were lowered; a second later, they ignited.  The whole Whizzing Arrow III was now just a bluish energy surge, as the G-force practically doubled.

            Eva was already giggling wildly as she fought to control the Whizzing Arrow III; and despite her enthusiastic cries of delight and the force that virtually pinned her to her seat, Hoshi still managed to open fire, shifting her timing rapidly to accommodate the speed increase.  She knew she’d miss over half her targets, though; she wasn’t about to throw the trim out of balance by alternating sides at this velocity.

            As the Whizzing Arrow III shot across the lap line, Eva deactivated both drives, and promptly threw the Star Racer into an inverted loop, leveling out with a spin and flourish, and throttling back as she approached the garage.

            “Well?” Eva asked as she spun the racer neatly into its parking slot.  “What’s the verdict?”

            “Best lap times we’ve ever seen,” Rick finally answered.  “Incredible flying, Little Mouse.”

            “Thanks, Rick.  And Hoshiko’s gunnery?” Eva wanted to know.

            “Well… to put it bluntly, we’re trying to figure out just how she managed to score fifty percent accuracy with hyperdrive, and thirty percent with boost drive,” Koji replied, sounding impressed.

            Hoshi laughed.  “I have an eidetic memory.  I knew exactly where the targets were.  I might have done better with the boost drive if I wasn’t enjoying the ride so much… and if I actually had changed sides.”

            “You couldn’t have,” Stan said.  “There are no interlocks for the hyperdrive; with a skilled pilot it’s safe enough to transfer, structurally speaking; however- and I mean no offense- Jordan just never did anything but hang on.  That isn’t the case with the Arrow’s boost drive; you were locked where you were.”

            “All in all, good test runs,” Don spoke up.

            “Quick question,” Hoshi began.  “Is there anything significantly different, from a gunner’s standpoint, about the Star Angels?  Is my turret locked there as well in boost drive?”

            “No, it isn’t,” Koji answered.  “The Star Angel Racers are a whole new animal; far more stable at high speeds, and with an improved structure.  It’s actually lighter than the Whizzing Arrow Racers, because of new, super-durable composite construction.  You’ll be able to transit no matter how fast Eva’s going, and we’ve built in a stabilizer mode for the turret to help compensate for any airframe vibration at high speeds, to make your job easier.  As far as the flying and shooting themselves…” he broke off.

            “You’ll see,” Stan finished, a note of humor in his voice.

            “Well, then, let’s prep the Star Angel I for flight,” Eva said enthusiastically.  “I can’t wait to see what she can do!”

            Eva took a few moments just to inhale deeply, allowing the sight and smell of a brand-new, scarcely flown Star Racer to delight her senses.  She knew it had never been pushed the way she was about to, and while a hint of tension was present because of that, she was too excited to let it get to her.

            One of the first differences she noted was a more streamlined layout on her control panel… including a push-panel start sequence; no more kick-starts; a hint of disappointment filled her at that.  The second was the safety restraints.

            She smiled slightly as she attached the restraining belt to her waist, and locked it in place, so that she wouldn’t fall off of her scooter-style control mount no matter how she maneuvered.  From her recent tech courses, she also knew full well that her whole cockpit was one big safety module in case of a crash.  She knew Hoshi’s gun pod was designed the same way.

            She adjusted her pedals, her seat, and virtually everything else.  Satisfied, she tapped the panel to open a comm window to Hoshi.

            “How’s it looking down there?” Eva asked.

            “Great,” breathed Hoshi.  “Amazing, even.”  She wriggled a bit; she was strapped in nice and tight, surprisingly comfortable, actually seated at an angled offset from the mean-looking cannon she commanded, in essence lying down beneath the cannon, on a parallel plane, allowing clearance for the gun to retract and the pod to shift.  To compensate, there were no less than three holographic heads-up displays showing her gun sight, weapons charge, and angles of intercept, target velocities, plus other targeting information.  She also had a control panel by her left and right hands; the left was for shifting her turret, the right for selecting fire modes on her cannon.            

“Excellent,” Don spoke up.  “For these tests, Hoshiko, leave that… what was it called again, Stan?”

            “Gatling cannon,” Stan chimed in.

            “Yes, that.  Leave that in default setting; as I understand it, its full potential is far too dangerous to use here,” Don ordered.

            “Right,” Hoshi responded.  “Eva… err… what should I call you, what with the nickname and all?”

            Eva laughed.  “Everyone… we’re in race mode, even if it’s just time trials, getting used to the Racers.  So, when its race related… call me Molly.”

            “You got it, Little Mouse,” Rick chuckled.

            Hoshi broke in.  “Is it too presumptuous of me to ask for a nickname?  I think it would make life easier on everyone if you were to just call me ‘Guns’.”

            “Not at all,” giggled Eva.

            “Ready, then… Molly?” Don inquired, smiling.  “And you, Guns?”

            “Born ready,” Hoshi giggled, some of her returning nervousness making her giddy.  “Just late!”

            “Standing by to start this baby up,” Eva added.

            “Commence start-up,” Don said briskly.

            As Eva pressed her panel, there was a low buzz, steadily increasing in volume; the engines abruptly burst to full, eager life with a roar.  After a few seconds, the reactors stabilized, and the roar faded to a rhythmic, higher-pitched hum with a hint of a whine.

            “Everything in the green on my end,” Eva reported.  “The engines sound great.”

            “All good here,” Hoshi chimed in, gazing at her readouts.  All her systems showed normal parameters, with all seven of the charge meters each a lethal, hungry green.

            “All right… hey, our press agent just came in here.  He says you guys looked great in the Arrow; and he can’t wait to get some good shots of the Angel,” Rick commented.  “He also says he managed to persuade the rest of the press to leave us alone.  Something about exclusive rights and possible legal action, I believe.”

            Eva laughed.  “If he did that, then he can consider himself part of the team, as far as I’m concerned!  My hero!”

            “What she said,” grinned Hoshi.

            “Let him take his pictures, if he wants,” Eva shrugged.  “But we’re not sitting still for him; hope he has a good motion-capture on his camera!”

            “Molly, take her out, nice and slow; let’s run the Angel easy for a few laps.  Get used to how it handles, how it responds, that sort of thing.  Guns, same goes for you; get a feel for your cannon, pop a few shots off at the targets.  We’ll see how everything looks after a few laps, and then put the pressure on,” Don said.

            “Gotcha,” Eva replied, gently opening the throttles with her handlebar controls.

            The Star Angel I surged upwards, gear automatically retracting, amidst a cloud of violet-colored ions; as the brakes were released, it burst forward, as if glad to be finally racing at last, an orchard energy trail blazing out behind it.

            One week later, it was dark when Eva opened her eyes; she blinked a few times, before slowly sitting upright from her position on the hard floor of the Avatar’s interstellar transport pod.

            As her eyes adjusted, she could make out the shapes of the others; she gradually identified them, before realizing that, as was typical, Don had awoken first.  From the sounds of it, and the beam of a flashlight moving around near the cargo truck, he was already inspecting everything to make sure it was in order, including all the Racers.

            All three Racers; they’d made the decision to bring the Whizzing Arrow III as an emergency back-up, should the other two Racers be wrecked; the Star Angels were carefully secured to each other for transit.  They’d also brought supplies to build a rack to contain the unused Racers until they were needed:  beams of mostly composite, cabling, and the hardware to put the prefab structure together.

            She grinned as she finished stretching, and stood up.  If they were starting to wake up, that meant they were almost to Alwas.  She was filled with such joy, such excitement; an almost boundless good mood and energy.  Of course, she’d felt this way for the majority of the past week.  Excitement and anticipation, she supposed.

            “Everybody up!” she shouted, cheerfully.  “C’mon, sleepy heads!  We’re arriving!”

            Don chuckled as he stepped down from the truck.  “I love the enthusiasm, Eva.”  He paused.  “Sorry; Molly.”

            “It’s okay, Dad.  Call me whatever makes you comfortable.  Hey, no stowaways this time,” Eva quipped as she shook a grumbling Hoshi.  “Up and at ‘em, Guns!”

            “I’m up, I’m up,” Hoshi muttered.  “Geez.”

            “Well, let’s get a move on,” Don ordered briskly.  “We are almost there, so time to make preparations to disembark!”  He shook his head in amusement at Eva’s antics.

            With everyone moving about and getting ready, he simply surveyed them all… and felt his heart fill with pride.  The champions of the Great Race were back in business.

            Considering how we departed from Earth, Don reflected several hours later, our arrival here is almost an anticlimax; no fuss and no real recognition.  This time, since there were five Earth teams, they had experienced even less excitement than their last arrival.  They were also being thoroughly ignored by the other Earth teams; for what reason Don couldn’t fathom, being as they were all aliens in a strange land; although Alwas was at least somewhat familiar to the Seraphim team.

            He shrugged, and looked over the pit from the upper balcony.  By coincidence- or not, Don thought- they had the same exact pit as seven years ago.  The symbol on it was different, now; they’d been assigned a solid oval shape with a halo about it.  At any rate, Stan, Koji, Eva, and Hoshi were hard at work prepping the Star Angel I for its first real race, roughly three hours away yet.  They’d worked feverishly to this point, with the unloading, assembling the rack, and securing the other two Racers, but it was almost time for the opening ceremony… and everything was just about ready now.  Their press agent, Dale Terrance Phillip the Seventh, as he gave his name, was standing by, occasionally making notes and taking stills.  He'd promised to only record live action on the track.  A tall, dark-haired and eyed, clean-shaven man, he was, unusually for a reporter, quiet and polite; at least, until he needed to be otherwise.  He was clad in a gray suit, coat hanging open, sans tie, with all the usual press accoutrements.

            “Final precheck is complete!” Koji called out.  “Only problem is a slight loss of thrust ratio on thruster bank two; but it’s only a two percent deviation and we can fix that after the first race.  Shouldn’t affect things much; if at all.”

            “Works for me,” Eva said in agreement.  “Shutting down.”

            “Just enough time to get cleaned up and out there,” Rick said as he emerged from the control room.

            “Let’s do it, then,” Don said.  “Close the pit doors; quickly make yourselves presentable and let’s go.”

            “Ambassadors of Earth,” grinned Eva.  “Round two.  Wonder if we’ll be recognized?”

            “Not until your name is announced, by you or someone else,” Don shrugged.  “Most of these people know far too little about humans, yet.  That is, of course, changing since you won the Great Race.  Besides, with five Earth teams running around…”

            “Yeah,” nodded Rick.

            “We’d better hurry,” Hoshi said, glancing at her chrono, set when they’d landed.  “It’s time.”

            A few minutes later, seated high and at the back, Eva scanned the crowd restlessly, barely hearing the words of the three Skrub judges addressing the crowd from the judging stand; not finding who she was looking for; but the place was packed, so that wasn’t too unexpected.  She did spot the other four Earth teams, and way off to the left, sitting by itself, a solitary Crog.    She frowned slightly; then started as the judges bowed.

            Her pulse quickened, her heart pounded; her eyes widened in anticipation. 

            The sky was growing dark; lightning flashes illuminated the ominous-looking clouds.  Abruptly, a ball of lightning burst above the judging platform, and flashed, revealing a towering, glowing, majestic individual, clad in deep red robes, with energy wings and trails serving as an impressive backdrop to his smooth face, featureless except for thick eyebrows over golden, piercing eyes.

            Hot tears of delight trickled down Eva’s cheeks.  “Hello again, Jordan,” she whispered.

            Seated on either side of her, both Hoshi and Rick started, and turned to stare at Eva.

            “No way,” Rick muttered.

            “Omigosh,” gasped Hoshi.

            “What the…” began Dale.

            “BRAVE PILOTS!” boomed the Avatar’s voice.  “WELCOME TO THE TOURNAMENT OF ŌBAN!  YOU ARE HERE FOR ONE REASON- VICTORY.  THE WINNER OF THIS TOURNAMENT SHALL RECEIVE NOT ONLY A GIFT FROM THE AVATAR; BUT ALSO GLORY AND HONOR AMONGST THE REST OF THE GALAXY.  THERE IS ONE RULE:  ANY RACER OR TEAM WHO’S ACTIONS RESULT IN THE DEATH OF ANOTHER RACER OR THEIR TEAM MEMBERS IS INSTANTLY DISQUALIFIED.  THAT ASIDE… LET THE RACES BEGIN!”

            As his glowing form faded with a sudden clap of thunder and gust of wind, the skies began to clear.  Eva sighed, and wiped her cheeks and eyes.  “I still miss him,” she admitted, seeing the others all gazing at her.  She focused her gaze on Dale.  “And no, you can’t publish anything about him being the Avatar.”

            “Shame,” Dale muttered.  “Hell of a story.”

            “And now for our first race… we call forth Para-dice!” the judges boomed out.

            From the entrance tunnel burst a sleek, silvery ball with a computer screen in front- displaying a cat-like face- and possessing cat ears; the engine elements glowed pinkly on the back.  Electronically-amplified laughter came from the smiling face, as the Racer spun and settled into position.

            “We’re gonna have some fun!  Me-ooow!” Para-dice called out.

            “Challenging her, we call forth Lady Velleia, from Nourasia!” said the head judge.

            Eva blinked, and glanced down.  A white and blue giant beetle was emerging from the tunnel; a young, female Nourasain was mounted atop it; the first female Nourasian Eva’d ever seen.  She was beautiful, with an air of mystery about her; a bow was clutched in her hand, and a large, metallic disc strapped to her back.  Her clothing was white in color; and though she wore pants, everything was loose-fitting, accenting her dark tan skin and vivid blue eyes nicely.  Her long reddish hair was braided into multiple ponytails, all bound together halfway down her back.  Several earrings adorned her pointed ears.  And her mount…

            Eva leaned forward.  “I know that beetle!” she exclaimed.

            “Molly,” Don began.  “Are you…”

            “It’s G’dar!  I’ve ridden him- and raced against him- multiple times, remember?  I’d know him anywhere,” Eva said, cutting Don off.  “Even from here you can see the scar on his leg from the race against Spirit.”

            “She's right,” Rick confirmed.

            As they watched, the Nourasian girl gave a reserved wave to the crowd, looking specifically at one spot... and Eva followed her gaze.  “Bingo,” Eva whispered to herself.  “Prince Aikka.”

            The Nourasian prince now wore a sword instead of a knife; he still had his bow.  He was once again seated with Canaan, his swordmaster; they were next to Rush, of planet Byrus.  Eva smiled, and murmured to herself.  “I'm gonna make him wait for it.  After all... I never did get that tour of his kingdom.”

            “A promising young lady, Prince?” Rush asked in his deep, hearty voice.  The massive man’s orange hair and beard were rather all over the place; his goggles highlighted the mischief in his eyes.  His dark brown clothing was a marked contrast to the white of the Nourasians’.  “Why are you not racing any more?”

            Aikka smiled.  “I am the crown prince, Rush.  It is no longer crucial for me to race for our people; nor am I facing a threat from the Crogs if I do not.  I will not deny that I do miss it, from time to time.”  He paused.  “I imagine the Avatar’s curtailing the activities of the Crogs has helped Byrus as well.”

            Rush nodded.  “It has.  But we have a long way to go.”

            “That is unfortunate,” Aikka responded.  He leaned forward as the gate fell, and G’dar and Velleia were suddenly in the lead over Para-dice, the beetle’s wings moving too fast to see more than a blur.

            Para-dice quickly closed the gap, however; and a massive storm of missiles suddenly blazed from the cat-ear launchers.

            Somehow, Velleia managed to dodge them all, amidst gasps and cheers from the audience.  She readied her bow, and shouted a phrase inaudible to the watchers; but the arrow in her bow was suddenly blazing with white-hot, brilliant energy.  A half-second later, as Para-dice launched another missile salvo, the arrow struck.

            As the massive flash faded, Para-dice’s smoking Star Racer could be seen smashing into the ground, and as it came to rest, Velleia bowed, and with G’dar was off for an uncontested jaunt to the finish line.

            “And the winner… Lady Velleia of Nourasia!” the judges said in unison.

            Aikka relaxed, eyes thoughtful.

            “Lady Velleia is a charming young lady, My Prince,” Canaan spoke up.  “So far, she is quite worthy of being your Princess.”

            “Perhaps,” Aikka allowed.  “There are many races remaining and tougher opponents by far.”

            Canaan frowned.  “You still hope to see the Earth girl, Molly?  Prince Aikka-“

            Aikka didn’t let him finish.  “I am aware of my station and responsibilities.  I am also aware Molly may very well not be here.  However, there are five teams from Earth, so I shall hope to see her again.  If you recall, I did make a promise to her, one I intend to keep.  You also cannot say the Humans aren’t worthy; after all, you were there on Ōban, you saw what happened; and the formerly Human Avatar has done for us very well indeed.  What it boils down to is… can Lady Velleia compete against someone with Molly’s heart and talent?  I shall reserve judgment until that occurs.”

            “I understand, My Prince.  I will keep my silence… for now,” Canaan replied, bowing slightly.

            “Well, your young lady does have some skill,” grunted Rush.  “I, too, however, hope to see young Molly again.  A very unique and special person.”

            “You’re not the only ones,” chimed in one of a pair of Skrubs nearby.  “Right, Flint?”

            “We were beaten by the best; and we were able to help them when they needed it most.  They made us proud, and made our fans love us again.  You’re quite right, Marcel,” Flint agreed.

            “Now, we call forth the Stormrider Racing Team, from Earth!” the head judge announced.

            All five leaned forward, eyes narrowed.  The Racer that emerged from the tunnel was a midnight blue color, with gold lightning bolts; and while its lines were a bit smoother than the Earth Team Racer from the Great Race… the canopy opened, and the cocky young man within waved to the crowd.

            Aikka was the first to sit back, a slight frown marking his disappointment.

            He was disappointed three more times as the afternoon wore on; Lady Velleia had joined them during the first Earth team race.  There was a brief period without Flint and Marcel, and again when Rush went off to his race; both sets of Racers won their races.  Of the four Earth teams, all with male pilots, two had already lost… one of them to Colonel Markos, the lone Crog.  None had displayed Molly’s flair or panache.

            “And now, for our final race today… we call forth Groor!”  Somehow, the judges had yet to go hoarse from all the announcements and excitement.

            A massive, black Racer emerged from the tunnel; two pod-like shapes, containing weapons and engines, hung in front of and below the slightly smaller pilot’s pod, weapons on its nose, connected by shafts.  Made of polarized titanium, the three modules were very durable.  This time, the watchers could see that he’d fixed the demonstrated weakness from the Great Race, when the Earth Team had blown his Racer into three sections by destroying the shafts that connected everything; those shafts were now coated with armor.

            His solid metal canopy closed with an echoing clang as he idled near the center of the platform.

            The six of them shared a look.

            “I do not envy the Humans that must face him,” rumbled Rush.  “He has had it out for Humans ever since he was beaten in the qualifying rounds of the Great Race by Molly and Jordan.”

            Aikka simply nodded, and leaned forward.  This was the last chance to see if she would be here.  He could feel Velleia’s gaze upon him, wondering.

            “Challenging him… we call forth the Seraphim Racing Team from Earth!” shouted the judge.

            For a long moment, nothing emerged from the tunnel. 

            Suddenly, a silvery, sleek racer shot out, charging right at Groor’s idling Racer at full speed.  Abruptly, ignorant of the gasps from the crowd- or perhaps because of them- the Racer slammed sideways, rocking first to the right, before gracefully flipping over Groor and smoothly landing near his left side.

            The canopy remained closed.

            “Impressive handling, if a bit reckless,” commented Velleia, arms crossed across her chest.

            Aikka narrowed his eyes as the platform rotated, lining to two Racers up at the entrance to the track.

            “I have seen that move before,” he said, finally.  “Molly used it.”

            Rush nodded agreement.  “Could it be her?”

            Aikka frowned.  “I do not know.”

            Velleia scowled.  “Whoever it is, they certainly are too cowardly to show their face.”

            The first stone slider in the track entry door fell, then the second.

            The door opened.

            The sleek silver racer was off like a shot, purplish ionic energy billowing from its engines, though Groor started to close the gap past the first turn.

            Groor wasted no time opening fire, sending torrents of red laser fire towards his opponent.

            “Guns, it’ll be difficult, new and improved weapons or not, for you to penetrate his hull,” Eva called out.  “But can you do something about his weapons?”

            Hoshi slewed her turret about; her multi-barreled cannon was already rotating.  “I can damn sure try!”  Oddly enough, she was no longer nervous; and she knew that her team needed her at her best; and needed that right now.  I can do this!

            As she tracked him, she realized their opponent was weaving, seemingly randomly; but she quickly discerned a pattern even as Eva made a sharp twist to dodge the latest salvo of blazing red laser fire.

            “Three weapons banks?  You want all of them taken out?” Hoshi asked quickly.

            “If possible,” confirmed Eva, before grunting as she hurled the Star Angel into a sharp right turn, dodging nimbly and weaving around various obstacles in their path.

            Two massive red orbs abruptly burst from their launchers on the front of each engine pod; the laser fire from just below the canopy continued unabated.

            Eva threw them into a tight left spiral, whipping around another corner, idly wondering if Hoshi was ever going squeeze the trigger, even as the orbs detonated on a low bridge she’d just passed under.

            She got her answer a second later; as Groor cleared the turn- and the flames and debris- behind them; the deafening hum and electronic hammering of the gatling cannon started up and stopped, three times for three potent bursts.

            Behind them, Groor was temporarily obscured in a massive trio of explosions.

            When his Racer emerged, smoke was still billowing from the weapons ports.

            “Direct hits!” reported Hoshi.  “Molly, can I try a few of the more powerful modes on my gun, here?”

            “Not yet,” Eva smiled, concentrating on the track, glancing briefly at the rear view displayed on a window in her cockpit, before refocusing her gaze ahead; two tunnels were coming up.  “We don’t want everyone to know our capabilities right off the bat.  For example, I’m only at seventy percent thrust, and if I can avoid using Hyper or Boost Drive, I will.  Save some surprises for the later races.”

            “Gotcha.  I’ll just amuse myself, then,” Hoshi giggled, as she squeezed the trigger, and sprayed a pattern over the track behind them, just filling the air with blazing white plasma bolts.  Several sparked off the black Racer behind them, but none dealt any further significant damage to Groor.

            Groor, for his part, was beside himself with fury.  He narrowed his eyes to slits, and glanced down at his reactor output; it was already to maximum, though he could barely see the gauge through the clouds of steam coming from him and his Racer.

            “GROOOOOR!” he raged, and shoved the controls forward, pushing the reactors past their safety limits.  Instead of diving into the tunnel, he climbed, just after the Human Racer vanished into the inky blackness.

            As the Star Angel burst from the tunnel, into a narrow valley, both Hoshi and Eva scanned the area, but with no sign of their opponent.

            “What’ve you got, guys?” Eva asked quickly into the comlink.

            “Nothing,” reported Don after a moment.  “He’s disappeared.”

            Aikka narrowed his eyes.  “They showed such promise, too,” he commented.

            “This is going to hurt,” agreed Rush.

            “Never mind,” Eva said.  “I know where he is.”

            “Where?” asked Hoshi.  “I’m not tracking… wait a minute...”  An indicator had suddenly appeared on her scope.

            “He’s above us.  About ten seconds, I think, and he’ll try to crush us into the valley floor.  He’s tried this before.”  Eva mentally began a countdown.

            “And you’re gonna let him?” Hoshi asked incredulously.  When she got no answer, she frowned.  “Molly?”

            “Hang on, Guns!” Eva cried out, and suddenly hit the brakes; airbrakes and spoilers deployed, as she slowed and slanted the Star Angel into an edge maneuver.

            Just in time.  A massive, dark shape blasted downward right past them; literally inches from the Star Angel’s canopy.

            Slammed into her seat from G-forces, Hoshi nevertheless managed to squeeze her triggers; reveling in the rhythmic pounding of her cannon and the fountain of white plasma bolts she sent flying towards the black Racer.

            Groor had not anticipated his target rapidly slowing and turning vertically sideways; he plummeted right past, slamming into the valley floor in a cloud of dust, splintered rock, flames, and metallic shards.

            Eva reacted by invert-spiraling over Groor, settling back in front of him in a smooth, easy, curving maneuver, even as Groor managed to pull himself off the ground, sparks and smoke issuing from the bottom of his engine pods; the sheer force of the impact, meant to be spent on the Star Angel, had ripped open the polarized titanium hull.

            To add insult to injury, several of the myriad of plasma bolts Hoshi fired shredded into the already damaged sections, slowing Groor even further as a couple of small explosions billowed out.

            Aikka’s mouth was open in surprise.  He quickly closed it, leaning forward and watching intently now.

            He was hardly alone.  The whole, murmuring crowd was on the edge of their seats.

            “It has to be her,” Aikka all but whispered.

            “Nice moves, Molly!” an ecstatic Don called out.

            “He can no longer keep up; too heavily damaged,” Rick added.  “Bring it home, Little Mouse.”

            “Roger that!” grinned Eva.  “Still with me, Guns?”

            “Hell, yes!” giggled Hoshi.  “Let’s do that again sometime!”

            “I’m sure we will,” Eva chuckled in reply, as she banked the Star Angel easily around the last corner, Groor fading from sight.  The straightaway along the beach to the finish line was zoomed down almost as an afterthought, and as they crossed the finish line, Eva banked slightly, curving the Star Angel around to set down in front of the cheering crowd; the gong rang out once, indicating their victory.

            “And the winner is the Seraphim Racing Team from Earth!”

            A few minutes later, Groor finally limped across the finish line, and landed hard in the center of the platform; his canopy clattered open.

            “No!  It is not possible to for Groor to be beaten by Humans again!” he roared.  “Show yourselves!”

            For a long moment, nothing happened.  The crowd had fallen silent, watching, waiting for something to happen.

            Finally, a click, and the canopy hissed open on the Star Angel.

            Everyone saw two slender, curvaceous and extremely attractive Human women standing up from inside.  Both were clad in form-fitting white racing suits with gold highlights. 

One was a pretty brunette, with long brown hair bound back in a neat ponytail, standing near the cockpit access hatch from the tunnel below.  Her dark eyes glinted with amusement; and she had a plasma pistol in a holster around her waist.  She wore a single set of diamond-stud earrings.

            Her partner, who wore three sets of earrings, all silvery spikes, and was now rising from the control seat of the scooter mount, possessed red eyes and long red hair, unbound, edged in black.  Around her neck she wore a white choker, at her waist she sported a pink music player, and on top of her head rested a pair of rose-lensed goggles.  Add to that her rather unique tattoo design, and a thrill of recognition ran through the gathered throng.

            “Yeah, Groor, it actually is possible,” the redhead chimed.  “But what’s really gonna rattle your metal head later is… how can you be beaten by the same person who knocked you out of contention seven years ago?”

            “Hi, everyone!” called out the brunette over Groor's agonized cry.  “I’m new here, and my nickname is Guns.  I think, though, you all probably know who my partner is.  In case you don’t… here’s MOLLY!”

            A deafening roar rose from the crowd, cheers and shouts of delight.  Aikka and Rush were first on their feet, followed quickly by Flint and Marcel, and somewhat reluctantly by Canaan and Velleia.

TO BE CONTINUED...

 

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