Faster Than Angels

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Saramica12]

lies on the floor
try don't cry

cries a lot

- - - Updated - - -

Of these houses
nothing remains
but the rubble
of a ruined wall

Of the many
who were so close to me
nothing remains
not even that

But in my heart
not one cross is missing

This ravaged village
is my heart

---

Von diesen Häusern
ist nichts geblieben
als ein paar
Mauerreste

Von so vielen
die mir nahe standen
ist nicht einmal
das geblieben

Aber in meinem Herzen
fehlt kein einziges Kreuz

Mein Herz ist das Dorf
das am meisten schmerzt.



G.Ungaretti
San Martino del Carso

[Jonny]

I somehow liked the part with David, although it was only a line.
Also...MUSIC IS MISSING :P

[Saramica12]

He grabbed the shovel and made a grave for Madison, she laid in a coffin next to him, the cover was still open.
The coffin was in blue, with little white details.
While he was digging the hole Nico was silently singing.


Of these houses
nothing remains
but the rubble
of a ruined wall

Of the many
who were so close to me
nothing remains
not even that

But in my heart
not one cross is missing

This ravaged village
is my heart

He closed the coffin and lifted it down into the hole and continued singing while closing the grave.
As he set up the gravestone and layed a rose down infront of it.


Madison Larough
"In love, by those who knew you really"
*14th August 2185
+3rd June 2210


[ Fix You (Instrumental) (https://youtu.be/LUzp-2V0hu8) ]

"Ahh, Giuseppe Ungaretti, the creator of this Poetry, wrote during the First World War. What wonderful words, Milord."
Said Ramaela appearing next to Nico, holding a humble little crown of white lily made by her.
She went in front of the tombstone and places it above, then she removes the black recamed veil off her face. Nico turns toward her in surprise that she followed him, again.
"O-Oh really? I only remembered his poetry, not who actually made it...Thanks, Ms. De Rosa."
"Please, call me simply Ramaela."
She said with a warm smile, then back to look the lapid.
"Look look, I see a Lioness here! 14th of August. Is a very strong Sign as well as her name, you know? Madison, "Daughter of Maud", "Mathilda"..."The Strongest"."
Nico just nod, while adjusting the crown over the pale tombstone. He thought he would never cry again, he was wrong.
She pats his shouled in a profound commiseration toward him.

"In those 11 days in this captivity, I saw too this true Madison, that's why I am here. Her blue eyes, never seen such a beautiful color like hers.
Her existence was indeed ruined in her youth, but then you arrived and you tried to save her. It worked, but it wasn't sufficient, falling in her own darkness again. Ahh, I feel she didn't forget you, those blue eyes.
Maybe she died and sacrificed herself not all for us or for herself... but also for you, Nico von Bovier? To let all this end with this last desperate action of hers to stop hurt more members of your family to don't see you more sad again? But one thing maybe is certain, she felt happy, happy to had fought her monster inside her once for all, and leaving this world feeling finally in peace. I've heard what happened to you in that day."
She remains silent again as him still in tears.
"Now she's not anymore this...monster. At all look, we are all Humans quannu nantri siam ccÃ*."
Another moment of suspension.
"When we are here."

"Better." He said, finally understanding what she said.
She then knees down the tombstone and looks it again intensly.
"You are forgiven, Madison. Now and ever."
She takes out from her bag a gold pen and begin to write something on it. Nico looks surprised by this sudden action of hers and instinctively he tries to stop her.
"H-Hey! W-What are you doing? Ok that she wasn't all this good but...starting already to vandalize what remains of her is-!"
She pushes him gently apart and keeps going on.
"Zittuti!1 I am focusing..."

She finally stands up after few minutes and revealing the gold, rafinate Gothic style, manoscript under the dates:


Omnia Vincit Amor
"Love wins against everything. Remember it." She ends while pointing serious, but still with a certain calm, the gold pen at him.

The bells of the near Church start suddently to ring, 6 P.M. exactly.
She looks the watch to check if is real, it is.
"Oh! Hear hear! I risk to be in late for the airplane for Australia!"

"A-Australia? Why this far-"
She interrupted him with a certain hasty.
"Milord Nico, it was a pleasure to have met you. May your God bless you so much...so much that you'll spark like a Star, for yourself and for the others!"
He remains silent, quite impressed by her "bless". But before he could say anything she catches his hand and gives him an energetic handshake, with a big happy smile on her face.
"I hope destiny will let us meet again!"
He made a little gemit in her grip, is very curious to see an over 70 with still the energies of a 30.
"Ugh! M-Me too, R-Ramaela!"
Then she frees him to call a taxi for her, in the clumsy attempt to use her phone.

Another presence make its way near them, but keeping remaining apart: is Vera. Still wih her serious aspect she warns Nico.
"Sir, we are ready to go back to the HQ. We are in late for the Plans, leaving the fact we gladly accepted to partecipate at the funeral of your sister."
He massages his hand while looking her.
"Good, I will follow you as well soon. Go now if you feel you are in late."
He then back his gaze at Ramaela, who finally called one of them succefully.
*Really that woman is very...particular? Weird? Nevermind.*
Then that gold handwriting...

Vera firmly ends with the typical militar gesture of the hand on the forehead.
"Yes, Sir."
And goes away just like as she arrived.

Ramaela looks the new arrival with a weird stupor, as she felt something on her, but then she decides to let her go as she clearly sees her in hasty, too.
Lastly, her time arrives too; she enters in the taxi to go at the airport, having however the time to see the von Bovier go as well.



1: Be quiet!

[Saramica12]

6th June 2210(Night)
Jennter HQ, Düsseldorf, Germany

A fresh night at the HQ of Jennter. Vera and Sergej finally can feel the peace that they wanted since the beginning of the War.

"Now is the time for the Tyrann, right?"

"Right, the time for that bastard is counted.
My family will be again free, as well as those innocent people of Russia, caged in those damn Gulags."

A deep silence fell as they thinks about the plan organized around these days. But then...a spark.

"Hey, sup' Vera?"
Sergej asks, trying to feel again as an ordinary adolescent as much as her.

"...nothin' new, thinkin' how to Noscope as a PRO MLG Player and stuffs like that, yuo kno'."
She backs with a smile, almost laughing, while in fact he starts to laughs, a lot!
Then they begun to talk about their years, mostly those when they were apart for their adolescential issues, or in general their past.

Then a topic seemed inevitable.

"How's with your girl, Sergej? Passed a lot since I've lefted you two..."

Sergej stop to be cheerful and falls in a griveous silence. Vera remained silent as well, but in thinking why.
"Well? Why this silence? Don't tell me you broke up with her! If is a yes, I am sorry for that, you two seemed so ha-"

"She's dead, Vera, dead. The soldiers of Pawel killed her in one of those riots at Minsk, during May."
He interrupted her coldly.

The reaction of Vera is certain a shock after hearing that.
"O-Oh...I-I didn't knew that, I-I didn't meant at all..."

"No, no worries. I told her to don't go there, but she did it, and now? She's...she's..."
He bows his head down in his hands and sighs heavily while thinking about.
Vera gets more close to comfort him.
"So means you fight for her, right?"
"Yes, I do."
*But who knows if it was the destiny to have her again next to me? She looks like she passed worse times than me. How many years passes when I decided to follow her? I guess too much.
Maybe a second chance...*

"Oh, is still good fight for someone or something that is worth. I fight now for our freedom and for my father, who died around April.
Then, as you saw or not, the men of Pawel catched me and what remains of my family and put in that Gulag!
And now here we are, four guys and a war to end."
She said with an intense rage, clearly noticeable in her eyes, that almost gleams of a dark light.
Yes, Vera indeed was the most damaged by this war if there's a compairson with him. The death of a loved one is painful, yes, but when all your family will have a similar end?
Sergej up his look toward her and smiles.

"Vera?"
"Yes?"
He speaks out their favourite word.
"Молодца!1"

"...
Молодца!" Answered back Vera as she hugs him with an immense joy.
"Untill the end, we'll keep staying together."
He speaks faithfully.
"Untill the very end, Sergej."
The two looks each other, lit up by a new hope. Then both looks again up to the sky and stare it.
Sergej ends with a profound promise, as with it he'll be forgiven by all those years of absence in her life.
"I promise you that I will save your family, no matter what."

Vera simply smiles fully grateful toward him after this promise.

***

Central Siberia, Russia Empire

"You two, you have a visit."
The Keeper speaks out to a room, where the "prisoners" stay to sleep, pointing at two of them especially, Sonja and Nadejda.
"A-And now what we did wrong..?"
Whispered the child.
"I don't know, but better don't let that guy wait, dear. Let's go."
Nadejda nodded, and start to move the wheelchair of her mother, too tired to keep stay even on her two feet.

Arrived at the meeting hall, they were absolutely surprised, is Lubovj!

"брата1!" Cries happily Nadejda as she glomps him with all the energies she has left.
The young man, still dressing with the Russian Empire Air Force suit, is still recognizable as him in their eyes.
"Hey little pest! How I missed you!"
Then he went to her mother.
"мать2...what happened? How are you? "
She sighs heavily, leaving the fact she's not older than 60, she now looks even more old.
"Ohh Lubovj, are already two months soon, less food, less sleep and here what happened."
He looks mad, but he can't do anything to end this, he simply tight his teeth in anger and then looks away.
The mother tries to calms him down with changing the topic in a better one.
"Where's our dear Vera, son? What happened to her?"
"Yes! Where's Verusha?" Repeats the little one with almost the same tone as her.
Lubovj back serious again, frowning in the act to remember something, then he answers gloomy.
"I honestly don't know, I've seen her name in the list of "Недостающее"3 with others."

Sonja was between the happiness and the sadness, her plan to disert from the Empire worked or she's acutally now dead somewhere?
She tries to change topic again.
"T-Thanks for the news...Will you ever come back?"

"I don't know, it was a lucky event this, the men of the Squadron and here in the Gulag let me pass to visit you two. Naturally because I work in their Military affairs. But I promise I will keep watch an eye to you two when I can, up there."
He said smiling pointing above.

"One day I wanna go in one of these flying thingies!"
Bounces on place all excited Nady as she remembers what job he does for the safety of the Empire.
He chuckles amused
"They're called Jets, Nady"

"Jatz! Yes!"

"Xaxaxaxa! After that, you'll have a ticket for one fly!
But promise me you will keep an eye more to your mother while you are here, Обещал4?"

"Обещал!"

"Good Nady...come here!"
The family hugs all in tears before they will eventually back in their ways and routines.

But there's still hope...



1: Molodtsa, expression of approval and respect "You rock!".

2: Brata,Brother.

3: Mat', Mother

4: Nedostayushcheye, The Missing(?).

5: obeshchal, promise.

Luvovj Yushkevich Leonova is acutally another character that however still didn't make an acutal apparence, he's the older brother of Vera and Nadejda ^^

[Ace3000]

This is a really long part. I was going to splitit up into 2 parts, but Sara wanted it as one, so here it is!

Also, thanks one more time for doing Ramaela's lines, Sara! :D

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
>log13: 22100607-22100608

Thursday, June 7th, 2210

17:45:49

The moment Matt and Ramaela arrived in Australia, and were allowed to go, they got into Ramaela's van, which had been transported over.

"Hey, do you mind driving? I'm really sleepy, must be jet lag." Matt asked.

Ramaela smiled. "Oh, I am still fine to go! Be my navigator in the meanwhile..." She chuckled.

"Sure thing. You can also stay at my place, if you want." He offered

"Ok, but I am fine as I am, you can rest behind, Matt, if you wanna."

"Thanks." He said, lying on the bed in the van.

------------
Friday, June 8th, 2210

Matt's House.

Early in the morning, for Matt, at least, he got out of bed, finding Ramaela already awake. He shuffled sleepily to the kitchen and got some coffee from his coffee machine, walking over to the living room afterwards.

"What are the plans of today, Matt?" She asked kindly with her homemade tea in her hands.

"I was thinking we could go down to the city."

"Hmm! Seems a good idea! I bet is a very pretty town!" She said happily as she stood up to arrange the veil-cloak on her shoulders, she seemed ready to go.

"Ah, are you ready?" Matt asked. Assuming she was, he finished his coffee in one big gulp.

"Yes, I am! Just let me take my bag and we can go. By walk or by car?"

"Ah... erm..." He stuttered.

"Yes..?"

"[sigh]. I... *mumble mumble mumble*"

Ramaela looked pretty confused and was more than curious about his behaviour "You can tell me, you still feel sick for the travel? I have a remedy for that too in need!"

"No, it's not that, I... *mumble mumble*"

"...Oh please, I don't see well nor hear well, Matt! What you can't? You can't... hive? Five? Uhm..." She couldn't help but laugh "Is too weird to think about that! Hahaha! What so..?"

Finally, he let it out. "Ugh... I can't drive!" Matt prepared for the oncoming ridicule, as he had previously mocked Ramaela for being unable to operate a computer. however...

"Oh, really..? Well..." She shrugged,

"I know, I know, it's the 23rd Century."

"I can, so no worries, in need I can teach you!"

He gave a sigh of relief, "Thanks. I guess it's thanks for helping you to use a computer."

"See? We can complete ourselves, like Yin and Yang... and those stuffs."

"True. For now, either you can drive, or we can take public transport."

"We can go by a public transport, curious also to know your people." She said, giving a small happy smile.

Matt smiled too "Alrighty, then, let's go."

------------
Hay St. Mall, Perth, Australia

"Wonderful!" Ramaela exclaimed, amazed by how the city looked.

"It is a nice city." Matt said.

"I really like this place!"

"Glad you like it!" He smiled widely.

Ramaela looked around happily, then suddenly she felt heavy in her head, and stopped walking "Ugh...wait. Matt..." She muttered.

"Uhh... huh?! Are you alright?" He asked.

She held her left eye in ache, remaining static to look around "...There's something wrong here. Someone is looking us too much."

He glanced back, and smiled, seeing a few men in suits. "Heh, let's keep moving." Suddenly, he pulled her close, to whisper in her ear "I see what you're talking about."

"Let's go in a more crowdy place." She suggested.

"Okay. Just to be sure, are you okay to run?"

"I-I can't, sorry." She said sadly.

"A-Ah, okay. In an instant, Matt pulled out his computer, and started typing at breakneck speed, all while walking.

"Matt, for any problem, you go." She said, noticing his changed demeanour.

Matt had deduced what the men were there for. "Heh, not on your life, literally. I'm sure they want to speak to you, considering where you were just a few days ago."

"Those eleven days...I knew I was too exposed!" Ramaela started to feel even more nervous. She stopped again and looked behind, now with her light blue eye out, she gasped and looked again at Matt. "Matt..! They're here!"

Matt stopped typing, tapped the screen in a couple of places a few times, then smiled. "Great. I know everything now. Who they are, who they work for, and, most importantly, how we can get away from them and where to hide afterwards. Left. Now." He turned to the left, guiding Ramaela along. She followed him diligently. After moving for a while, Matt turned into an alleyway, then opened a door.

"Quick, in here now" He said, holding the door open.

"Wait, wha..!?"

It was all too quick for her, she couldn't understand in time, but Matt pushed her in and closed the door behind him just as the chasers walk past. Inside, Matt turned to Ramaela, pressed a finger to his lips and waited with his ear against the door. After about a minute he sighed. "Great, they're gone. Now, I know you have questions, and I will answer them to the best of my ability."

"A-Ahem...o-ok..? But still my eye ache..."

" For instance, you are probably wondering where we are, well..." He looked behind her "This man can explain."

The tall man in the lab coat walked over to them, a smile on his face. "Hello, I have been expecting you two, hence the unlocked door. My name is Brandon Smith, welcome to Angelus Research and Development"

"Huh? A-Angelus..? Hello..? Brandon Smith..." She said nervously.

"Angelus is our ally, don't worry." Matt reassured her.

She sighed out in relief. "Wonderful..."

"I'm sure you've heard of an AG team called Crinale, well, they are the direct archrival of Angelus. Crinale also work with the Russian Empire, under Tsar Pawel."

"Wha-?! I did not know that." Brandon blurted out.

"Arch-Rivals...Crinale and Angelus...The Tsar..." She mumbled, deep in thought as she looked around.

Matt noticed Ramaela's mumbling, and turned to her. "You alright?"

"Fifteen and Twenty..." she continued, before Matt's question brought her back to Earth. "Hmm? Oh, yes, yes, I am sir! I only had a bad omen attack, hahaha..! She tried to joke about, to put past the previous terror.

Brandon had a confused look on his face, which prompted Matt to explain. "Ah, I forgot to mention, this is Ramaela De Rosa, she is someone who does divination, and also a previous member of the Anti-Gravity Purity Coalition."

"Ah, that explains a lot, thanks."

"So what did you mean about 15 and 20?" Matt turned back to Ramaela.

"Oh, two numbers that represents two Tarots I had in a reading, the Angel and the Devil, Sir. It fits something with the Devil?"

Brandon just laughed. "Hahaha! Yeah, Crinale is definitely the AG representation of the Devil. I built my AG Racing Team with limited weapon use in mind, whereas Crinale are the complete opposite. Even our team colours are opposites, white and Azure blue for us, black and orange for Crinale"

'HA! Another sign that I catched!' She thought, before sapeaking. "Hm, very interesting, you seems in fact such a pacific man, we need more of you in this world. Especially now in Europe." She then sighed sadly.

"I heard. World War V. Sad times for everyone." Brandon had a sad look on his face. "Some of my allies are involved in that war."

"As I mentioned in the email I sent, I believe we were chased by some officials, due to an incident that occurred involving Ramaela." Matt said.

Ramaela remained mute for a few seconds, before saying, "I wish them all the luck, I lived the IV WW, I know and saw what they are... Oh, that is...a long story too, sir!"

"I know all about war... and corruption. I may not look it, but I lived through the Temtesh Bay incident, I was actually there when it happened!" Brandon exclaimed.

"I...I predicted it!" Ramaela replied.

"And I discovered the inside info about it, by hacking into Overtel's database and analyzing the info." Matt reciprocated.

Brandon smiled. "You all did a good job then. However, it is not over. The upcoming F12000 is definitely going to be the second coming of the F9000. I don't need to be a psychic to tell you that, given the events I saw leading up to it..."

"Signor Smith, for any problems, you have my powers under your service." Ramaela said, Bowing respectfully.

"Thank you, I appreciate it." He said with a smile.

Ironic, isn't it? The Part Number is Crinale's number (13), but Crinale has very little, if anything, to do with it. XD

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Jonny]

[wtf did I do here]

[Ace3000]

No, wait, WHAT?! She's still alive?!

- - - Updated - - -

After the past few parts, which were very long, here's a smaller part. Enjoy!

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
>log14: 22100609

Friday, June 9th, 2210

"We're very sorry, sir, but we failed to capture the individuals. We were chasing them, then they just disappeared." One of the men apologized

"Oh, so you weren't trying hard enough. Fine... you're dismissed. Get out of here." an angry Pawel said.

As they exited the building, they found someone standing by a car.

"Tsar Pawel gave me orders to drive you to your next mission, he'll brief you when you get there." He said.

The men just looked at each other, then got in the car. The driver stepped in, then set off. The long drive ended as they entered a derelict building.

"Now stay in the car, I'll be back in a bit." The driver said, getting out of the car.

"Huh, I wonder what this mission is." One of the agents asked

"I bet it's all because we ailed to catch that woman." Another one said.

"Yeah, well let's just do our job this time, prove to the Tsar that we can do our job."

CLICK.

"Huh?! The doors just locked! What the hell is going o-"

BOOM

After checking the explosion out, and seeing that there were no survivors, the driver got into another car, and called Tsar Pawel.

"It's me. I have succeeded, the failures have been once again taken care of."

"Great! Come back to base for debriefing."

[Saramica12]

I thanks @Ace3000 for the collaboration! Enjoy! :D




Friday, June 9th, 2210
Australia, Angelus HQ

A big gasp, almost like a choked scream, was heard from a room with followed a heavy breathing sound, like someone was woke up by something terrible.
*W-what a terrible nightmare...*
Ramaela holds her head and when she backs to feel more calm she looks around, is only evening, around 9-10 p.m., her stuff still messed up on the table.
"Oh curses, I fell asleep again. Luckily my candle didn't fell."
*Well, logic, there's nothing inflammable in all this metal.*
She takes a big breath.
*Maybe I ate too much for my body, maybe is only the stress...*
She takes a limb of her dress and dries her forehead. Someone heard her luckily, in few seconds some knocks at the door. Seems Brandon from the voice.

"Hey, are you alright?"

Surprised, she goes to open the door and finds out that is acutally him.
"Signor Smith! Oh, just...just a nightmare, sir."

He smiles in a relief to see her still ok at all.
"I'm glad it was just that. Is there anything you need?"

"Only a glass of water, t-thanks."

"Ok, just a minute."
And leaves, closing the door behind, so she backs on her seat and waits, while trying to leave out her body and mind this stressful nap.

A minute later, he comes back. He knocks gently again and enters.
"Just me, I have your water"

While having the glass in her hands she describing the nightmare:
"There were two men..."
Drinks quitely, then backs to speak.
"...I see their deaths, caused by a bomb in a car. Well, in Italy death in dreams means more health or for me or for the dreamed."
After the description, Brandon thinks about.
"Two men died in a car bomb... was that dream a form of Divination?"

"Maybe just a dream..."
And shrugs.

"Yeah, maybe it was."
He ended in hoping that.
"Did you see the men?"
"Was all kinda confused, like...blurred, so not so much. They were dressed a bit like the two I saw on the city."

On these words, he's like stone.
"No, nevermind, it's probably a nightmare caused by the trauma of what happened then...maybe."

"Better if I rest. Thanks for the kindness, Signor Smith!"

"Yeah, I'd say it would be best if you rested. I wish I had that luxury, however I have to get this work done. I'll see you in the morning, Ramaela."

"Oh, good work then!"

"Thank you. You have a good rest!"

"Bona notti!1"

"Night!"

And he leaves, closing door behind him.
"Good! I should work on my things as well!"
She so backs to organise her stuff...but failing, as she fell asleep on her seat again.

***

10 June 2210 (Afternoon)
Angelus HQ

On the afternoon she have a little privilege, to see the container of the various models of Angelus, with the company of the Founder as the best guide.
Ramaela seems really speechless by the place and its creations!
"They're indeed all very nice! They ispire...graceful things, seems like the Air build them, very well done!"
Feeling very flattered, he simply thanks her with a happy smile.
"Thanks, I'm glad you appreciate their designs, they are meant to look nice as well as being as aerodynamic as possible."
She remained in an awkward silence, then she laughs.
"I know almost anything about, so I will trust your words!"

Seeing they were walking around there for now more than half an'hour, he asks politely to her: "Is there anywhere else you'd like to go, maybe to meet some of our employees? You can go wherever you like, except for our R&D section. That's where our prototype ships and cars are at."

"Of course, I understand that, but no worries, I am fine staying here, sir."
Then they kept walking untill suddently she stopped in front of one AG Ship and stares it, then looks some guys around it, certainly Employees for their suit white-blue, and lastly again at the ship.
"All I see is that you truly had put a particular passion on your work, also your Employees seems enjoy stay here. This is all an atmosphere fulfilled of Concordy, Order and Respect. Harmony."

"Ah, that is the secret to Angelus. Every single one of our employees work here because they love to do the work they do, me included. I've loved AG Racing since I was a kid."
"Lucky the man who have a path already from the beginning of their life!"
He simply chuckles at her words.
"I guess so! Even though I lived through the first dark age of AG racing, I still wanted to do this sort of thing."
Remembering those ages, she sighs and looks a bit more sadder.
"I know that, Sir... And you only did right by creating a Team such your."
"Why, thank you!"
"Your welcome!"

After some seconds she smiles more while putting her hands on the side of the ship.
"Yep, a special energy..".

"A... what? Special energy?"

"Yes, it is. Keep to fight with the force of non-violence, you will see that it will give more success than what you could believe, not like Icaras nowadays."

He chuckles.
"I bet it would, it's just a shame that this particular craft wasn't able to run its full course. This is the Xygen4, which competed in the 2210 season. I just wished that the 2210 season went for the full year."
He ended with a touch of malincholy.
Ramaela, feeling that, tries to change the topic and describes why the "energies" and such: "Tsarong teached me well how to "sense" these stuff. C'mon, that Tibetan Pilot for Piranha! I still remember when I met her during the 2164..."

He remained a bit in a deep focusing, then he remembers.
"Ah, Myima. She was a really talented person." Then he makes a serious face as she mentioned that date, 2164.
"...2164?"
"Yea, she was one of the survivors, I met her in the hospital."
He sighed.
"I thought as much. That's the only thing I can, or ever will remember from that year, that cursed incident."
In mind, when she thinks about the F9000, is almost impossible to don't remind of Belmondo...
"I miss Natasha..."
Lows the gaze in a more shade of sadness.
"Ugh." A shudder falls down in his spine.
"Survivor as well, she was one who helped me to join the AGPC. I saw her death in my eyes in that day."
"I... I was there. I was there when it happened, I saw the moment she was killed."
Ramaela frowns in anger, is still for her unbelivable to know that she's gone for the fault of an evil man.
"May her soul rest in peace...because now she isn't."

"Indeed."

She leaves her hands off it and turns behind, a quite tall figure of a woman, stare them with a certain curiosity with a mix of interest with those green eyes of hers.
Rosa wants to be polite to this sudden visitor and smiles friendly: "Hello? I was commenting these wonderful ships! Are you one of them..?"

Brandon turns as well a bit surprised, but immediately that becomes annoyance by her presence.
"Ah, I feel I should introduce you. This is Alexandra Kotova, she was the Leader of Crinale, but now she works here because of Viktor Antonov."
Turns to Alex.
"Alex, this is Ramaela De Rosa, a former Member of the old Purity Coalition. She will be staying here for a while."
Alex looks Ramaela. Ramaela looks Alex.
But the first who speaks is Kotova, continuing her presentation.
"Hello. I know how you would feel about me, because of Crinale, but rest assured, I am fighting against the new Crinale."

She remebers her as well, even if barely, thanks to the News and such.
Also for the events caused by Viktor.
"Ahhh...an Empress ousted by a insignificant Knave? Hah!"

Alexandra glares at the old woman and backs coldly as a clear ammoniment to her little provocation.
"He is not insignificant. I made that same mistake, and as a result of that, I lost my job. He knows exactly how to use whatever is given to him to its ultimate potential. He even went so far as to blackmail several of my employees! Do not understimate him, you will pay the consequences if you do."
At that ammoniment, Ramaela seems now too annoyed and slightly enraged, but not so clear if for her tone or the story itself.
"Ah! Hear hear! I have to be afraid too? Pi piaciri!2(oh c'mon!) Humans, when there's Power in the middle they're all the same! Worse if they have to pull out the weapons if they wanna reach it! Killl to feel stronger and powerful is the most useless thing, signorinella!

Alex remains silent, then more calmly she speaks more politely, noticing she's not at all this temeeary old woman with her words.
"I... somewhat agree, even though I have killed in the past. And I didn't say "be afraid", I said "don't underestimate him". Being afraid is the last thing you'd want to do."

"Hear me, CÃ*lati juncu chi passa la china!3 Maybe this will be the best place to redeem, right Signor Smith?"

"I would hope so." And rolls his eyes.

"In need I will help this lost soul, look! I have a green eye as well!"
She said while put her index finger under her right eye, then laughs a bit.
She seems now more friendly to her, although who she is and what she'd done, maybe she understood many things already... Alex's answer in fact is a smile, even if it doesn't shine that much, means that there's still something warm in her.

"Signorina Alexandra, De Rosa is here for you as well in need! "
She tends in front of her a hand for a warm handshake while back a smile as well.

"Thank you." And she shakes Ramaela's hand.

The trio then walked back to a main hall, but suddently Ramaela stopped, she seems having a nervous aspect now.
"Uhm... did one of you two heard the news of a totalled car with maybe a bomb...no? Because I didn't watched anything in these hours and I was curious if you did instead..."

Little silence, broken only by Brandon who seems having heard of something during the day.
"Yeah, it was somewhere in Russia."
"Ohh, nothing more, right?
Right?" Repeats with a weird tone.
Then passed the turn of Kotova, who she seems more informed about.
"There were 3 men in the car, but they have not been identified due to the burns of the explosion."
Brandon then whispers in her ear: "What kind of car was it. Sedan, 4x4...?"
"I guess a Sedan, black."
Brandon then turns to Alex again.
"Since you know more about the news report than I do, what type of car was it?"
"Type? It was a sedan, that kind of type?"
"Y-yeah... thanks."

"Oh, I also remembered something: before the explosion, the car was seen on the road, with 4 people in there, all wearing suits-"
Ramaela interrupted her, looking even more pale and shocked for this news.
That dream was indeed another random, but truthful "Dream".
"I-I guess at all is all I had in that dream... I-I need some fresh air, excuse me..."
The dizzness too quickly arrives and eventually she collapses not even after she made a step. Brandon and Alex rush to her side, gently pushing her in the vain hope to rianimate her.

"Ramaela? Are you okay? Ramaela?!"

Brandon and Alex look at each other, cannot do anything more than pick Ramaela up and move her to the room she was staying in, calling afterward a medic of the Team.



1: Goodnight!

2: Oh please!

3: "Low down brunch, the flood is coming!"

"if you have a big problem, be patient and wait, the humility will be a strong ally."

[Ace3000]

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
>log15: 22100729

Sunday, July 29th, 2210

"Construction complete, apply power to Sektor 10" A technician spoke into the communicator.

"Applying power... 100%, go for it!"

"Initiating... GO!" He yelled, flipping down the switch in a rather epic way.

A low whirring noise came from the machine.

>>NOW SCANNING 'I4-XA2.erion', 'T9-CA5.erion'...
>>SCAN COMPLETE, COMMENCING CONSTRUCTION.

"Hahaha, FUUHAHAHAHAHA!" Came the crazed, 'mad scientist'-like laughter from Viktor, Crinale's war craft were finally being constructed, they were now officially directly involved the war.

"Mr. Antonov, CO-10 is waiting for you in your office." The secretary called. That broke Viktor's laughter, annoying him. He then set off to his office in Sektor 9. When he entered, he found CO-10 waiting, sitting on his desk.

"It's over, Viktor, Chris, whatever your real name is." He spoke. "Your empire is done for. I shall stand by idly no more. You will cease construction of the XA2 and the CA5, you will stand down as the Director of Crinale International, and you will reinstate Alexandra Kotova as leader."

Viktor was surprised, stunned. Finally, he spoke, "You... think you can order me around? Do you know who you are speaking to?! I! AM! INVULNERABLE!"

"Oh, shut up." He said, pulling out a gun. "We'll see how invulnerable you are when I shoot you in the head. As I said, your 'empire' is over, you are finished, and Gelorum shall reign supreme ONCE MORE!!"

BANG!

The bullet just fell to the floor, after bouncing off Viktor's helmet.

"Unfortunately, the fact that my suit is bulletproof never once crossed your mind. Oh well. I don't want to kill you, you COs are very valuable, you are all important to me. Don't make me spill unnecessary blood. Besides, I'm 20 times better than Kotova ever was. I am the man Crinale needs!"

"YOU'RE WRONG!" CO-10 spat, aiming for Viktor's heart and shooting him again.

"RRGH! I said my suit was bulletproof, not just my helmet. However, for going out of your way, allow me to reciprocate your generous offers..."

He adjusted something on his wrist, then extended his arm out. He paused for a second, snarling, then flicked his wrist. The energy beam that shot out of the hidden weapon was a direct hit, causing his matter to be forcibly ripped to shreds. The man known as CO-10 now no longer existed.

Viktor's face, like before, had twisted into a demented smile.

"And that... concludes first experimental test of Crinale's Quantum Destabilizer, our F12000 super-weapon... FUUHAHAHAHAHA!!!"

[Ace3000]

Thanks to Saramica for providing me with Ramaela's lines for this and the following part! ^_^

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
>log16: 22100730

Monday, July 30th, 2210

"Thank you, thank you very much for everything! It was indeed a very nice time spent here!" Ramaela said, happily shaking Brandon's hand. She was heading back to her home, after staying at Angelus HQ for more than a month.

"Hey, it was nothing, really! We just treated you as we would anyone else!" Brandon replied.

"Glad to hear that so, you do that great as well! I'll greet Italia by you all" She blinked as she took her bags, then turning to Alex. "Signorina Kotova, good luck in having back what you had lost." She smiled gently and shook Alex's hand as well in a more respectful manner

"Why, thank you, Ramaela. Alex replied, before pausing a moment, as if trying to think, or work up the courage to say something "I-I... hope you have luck in your travels." She then said, smiling sheepishly.

"Oh, it will, I feel it, after this pleased time..." She then turned seeing Matt. "Oh! Matt! Come here!" She gave him a warm hug.

"Huh? Oh..." Matt was surprised by the hug, it was so sudden.

"Pass a great time here, and thank you too as well! May destiny will let us meet again!"

"Yeah, I hope we meet again. Are you sure you don't want me to accompany you back home?"

"Nah, feel fine enough to go alone, no worries!"

"Alright, then, I'll see you around, hopefully!"

"Of course!" At the doors, she turned back to everyone there. "Salutamu!1" She said, smiling warmly.

"See ya!" Brandon said, as everyone waved.

'Will be a long travel indeed...but finally, there will be peace.' She thought. Before the long travel back home, though, she took a detour to the mall to buy some supplies and to refill the tank of her caravan. Soon enough, she finally made it to the airport, thinking. 'Good, the airplane will leave around in... 1 hour? Fine, I can wait calmly around here.'

She took a breath and sat on a chair of the big waiting mall, opening one of her dusty books and reading while all around keeps being crowdy, as ever. Occasionally, she checked if she have still her deck in her usual bag. Suddenly, the headache followed by the left eye ache struck back.

'Ughh! N-Not again!' she thought. She barely turned her head to see what was wrong, making a fatal move in the process. She took her hand off her aching eye, revealing her light eye. "Maybe...!"

"Why, hello there, Miss De Rosa. Would you be so kind as to accompany us?" One of the suited men behind her said.

For a second she felt almost like dying inside, remaining paralyzed in place

'It happens, in the end.' She thought. She barely caught a glimpse of a gun in their suits, meaning that any resistance would be futile. "...M-May you have mercy of me..." She said feebly, in a scared expression.

1Goodbye

[Ace3000]

And here is the 2nd part. Thanks again to Saramica for Ramaela's lines! :D

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
>log16.2: 22100801

Wednesday, August 1st, 2210

Over the skies of Russia.

"What a horrible panorama..." Ramaela woke up in the private jet, after 2 days of travel. She saw the desolate lands of Europe, but it was slightly better, however.

"Tsar Pawel Bowier, pfft... Here we go again..." She sighed as she saw St. Basilius in the distance.

The last part of a conversation between her captors was heard, as one of them enters her room. "...yeah, she's waking up. Well, then. You have caused many problems for Tsar Pawel. But you are finally in our custody. Welcome to Russia. Now, eat up." He told her, passing her a tray of food.

"...Grazzî assai..." She took it and ate in silence. "There's more to know? Or is over here?" She said, in bitterness, more than an actual provocation.

"Silence. You do not have the luxury of speaking out of hand. Speak only when spoken to. Understand?"

She remained in silence, glaring at him.

"I am speaking to you. Do you understand?"

Se1, I...I understand." she finally said, looking back outside.

------------
Pawel's Parliament, Russia.

One of the men entered Pawel's office, and spoke with him.

"Tsar Pawel, we have her! Ramaela De Rosa, that woman that eluded us for a month!"

"Good job!" Pawel grinned. "Very good indeed! Now, I shall question her." He turned to her. "You will answer my questions truthfully and honestly. Do you understand?"

Ramaela couldn't help herself, and started to laugh. "Ahh, sir, you're the second who consider me ignorant in this language so much that I am incapable to understand you all! Hahaha! If you see, I can, and very well, Sir! About your question... Yes, I will, why not at all?"

"An incident occurred on the 1st of June. I'm sure you know the one I speak of?"

She frowned. "So here who's the cause!"

"Madison Larough died, killing everyone in that building. All, except one." He extended his arm, pointing to Ramaela "You."

"Uh, so? I was with her 11 days, nothing so much important I guess!"

"Ah. In that case, what exactly caused you to survive such a destructive force?"

"Eh, you won't believe, being in late" She chuckled.

He raised an eyebrow. "You... were late?"

"I am 75 years old, I woke up with the warning of the meeting just around 2/3 minutes before she'd slay everyone, herself as well..."

"Very well, then. Next question: The 3rd of June. A man in a suit entered the palace in the late evening. he accompanied you to various places, before taking you to Australia. Who was this man?"

"...An old friend of mine. He wanted to save me. I give him a dinner as thanking him for his caring."

Pawel just had an odd look on his face 'We're never gonna learn anything from this woman...' He thought.

Ramaela continued, "And what about you, Pawel? How many died for me, innocently?" She dared to ask with a shade of coldness for what happened.

"You know?! Oh, wait... of course!" He put his hand over his face, laughing maniacally. "You're a psychic! You can predict the future! Maybe you'd be of use after all..."

"Honestly I am a Cartomant, but never mind." She sighed.

He waved his hand. "Cartomant, Psychic, what's the difference. You can tell the future! So, how about we make a deal? Work for me, and together, we will end this petty war!"

Ramaela bowed and with her arms crossed on her chest she said an oath. "I adjure again, with iron will and true desire, without fear or uncertainty, so that the oracle shall be so clear and simple that it will leaves no place for any doubt, although the predictions would be to me adverse... or fatal. You have my powers in your hands." She ended with a gaze up at him.

Pawel grinned again. "Well, then! To be honest, I was expecting you to decline my offer, but I guess you are an intelligent woman. Well done!" He looked at his guards "Show her to her new room." Directing back to Ramaela, he gave his valediction. "I will be in touch. Goodbye."

"Ni viremu!2" She said, walking out with the guards to her room.

1Yes
2See you!

[Ace3000]

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
>log17: 22100825-22100828

Saturday, August 25th, 2210

"Yeah? This is Hangar 1?" The man answered

"This is Viktor. You will receive shipment of exactly 5 T9-CA5 grav-tanks. They are to be deployed immediately after processing.

"Five?"

"Yes. I believe you have some unnecessary junk there, so you can move them if need be."

"I wouldn't call them unnecessary..." He said, before Viktor cut in.

"If I recall, the F0-RG7.1 is stored there. Regardless of the amount of space you have there, move that damn thing to Hangar 71. It'll just be in the way."

"OK. Move... F0-RG7.1 to Hangar... seventy-one." He slowly repeated, writing it down.

"The rest of the junk can go to Hangar..." He paused looking at which hangars were in use and which weren't. "33."

"Everything else... 33."

"Also, note that Tsar Pawel will be visiting Hangar 1 with a few of his subordinates on the 31st. The grav-tanks should be gone by then."

"I agree, it should be, if they're being shipped ASAP."

"That's all. Do you have all that?"

The man responded, reading from his list. "Grav-tanks arriving soon, to be deployed directly after processing. Move the F0-RG7.1 to Hangar 71 and, if need be, move any other stuff to Hangar 33. Tsar Pawel and company arriving on 31st."

"Good! До свидания1"

<<CONNECTION TERMINATED>>

------------
Wednesday, August 28th, 2210

16:54:03

That day was one for the history books: The grav-tanks were processed and, on Viktor's orders, deployed. They moved to their designated locations, awaiting further instructions.

"Вулкан2 Squadron... ATTAAAAAAACK!"

Those words meant that command over Vulkan Squadron was now handed over to a Major, however, Viktor still had final word, and could override their commands. The tanks had rightly earned their nickname of "super-craft", having demolished one particular ground force in a matter of minutes. Crinale's direct involvement in the war had now begun, and had shown that they meant business.

After seeing the grav-tanks' pure destructive power, Viktor took control of of the telecasters.

"I am Viktor Antonov, Director of Crinale International. We are the Russian Empire's elite fighters, working to bring an end to this war by any means necessary. Those who oppose us shall be swiftly killed. The moment we stepped into battle was the moment you lost. Prepare for 'Silver Spear', our highest tier plan yet. Using it, the war will end quickly. Hmhmhm.... FUUHAHAHAHAHA-!"

His message was cut off mid-laughter. Afterwards, he called the Sektor 1 Hangar. "Sektor 1? Yes, prepare my personal jet ASAP. I have a meeting with Tsar Pawel at Hangar 1. Ground Control HQ, yes. Good! До свидания."

1You should know what this means by now: "Goodbye."
2 Vulkan, translates to "volcano", but also to "Vulcan", the Roman god of fire

[Saramica12]

31 August 2210
Crinale's HQ, Russia

Passes 30 days since the "Russian captivity" of Ramaela, three months of the death of Madison, soon even one year that the War begun.
Ramaela remained all the travel blindfolded to arrive at Crinale's HQ for a little meet up of the Tsar and his allied Viktor.
The car stops and the little group come out to walk at the entrance.

"Priviet Viktor!"
"Priviet Pawel."
"So is this the prodigious granny who survived the fury of that schizophrenic? I am impressed, milady!"
And makes a fake bow, leaving the fact she's still "blinded". Ramaela wanted to speaks out her rage toward him for his provocations, but the threat of don't speak without being called was more stronger, and so she keeps all inside.

"Well, inside you can leave her bandage and let her show our mightness! I really wonder what she can tell about, xaxa!"

Inside in fact, leaved the bandage, she's surrounded by a more meaching atmosphere. Yes, there's order and discipline, but she didn't see that particular harmony she saw in the Angels.
She feels only fear. She already "met" a ship there.
"T-Tigron..." she mutters frightened.
"No...no...no no no, let me go out from here..!"
She said while back some steps.

Pawel stands behind her, unevitable that she bumped on him.
“Well, I sure hope you aren't thinking of escaping now, are you.�
She just makes a little empty gulp and freezes there. “N-No, but…� She then points Viktor and continue, ever with her afraid tone. “...what the hell you did here!? Why I feel those cursed pieces of that Tigron here!?�
Viktor answers her while looking the old model with a shade of profound dislike.
“Because one particular model of ours uses Tigron parts. We don't use that craft any more, our new one will be much better! Also, I did nothing, it was the previous Director who did that.�
“Much...better...? Haha...hahaha! You gotta kidding me!�
“I don't understand the laughing. the F0-RA8 is better! It's stronger, better shielded, has more powerful weapons systems... need I go on?�
She remains there in front of him, then silently she walks away, surpassing him and arrives toward the ship.
The dark Leader stares it again and makes a little frown in his mask.
“I don't even know why it's here, it should be at Hangar 71. Where we are now, this is Hangar 1, our main base of operations on Earth-�
Suddently the Cartomant turns to him and almost even shouts!
“Shh! Don't interrupt me! Ask that to your employees, Sir!� Then on the ship again, checking it as she did with the Angelus one.

Viktor is indeed very surprised, but more enraged to be like challenged like this by a woman that for him still means nothing. With a loud tone he let notice that to Pawel. “Did she just shut me up? Me?!�

She groans for his reaction and backs the "hit", with an irritated tone now. “Yes! I did! I need to focus to know better, Sir!� Then to herself “Is incredible that I can’t even work properly...for my luck I am a spinster!�
Pawel shakes his head. “I think she's on to something. Better be quiet.�
“Fine.� And groans.

About around a minute of studying the energy of the ship, Ramaela backs to them.
“I need to see the last one you've made.�
He laughs loudly at her request, feeling it as a joke than a serious request from her, then he answer with a grin. “No. That craft is still yet to be built, but even then, it will still be better than that slow pile of scrap parts! And even if it was built, it would stay at our R&D section, which is strictly off limits.�
“What you are creating is...terrifying!� said in a sudden De Rosa, after a little meditation.
Viktor chuckles with a little smile of satisfication.
“Terrifying? I know, right?�
But then he questions about that phrase of hers. “...wait, that's in a good way, right? Is that the "cool" thing to say?�
“No! I bet that Kotova wasn't so aware of what Tigron was REALLY, and YOU as well! I feel that your desire of power, reflected in your ships, will eventually devour your own soul!�
She then noticed the motto on the old ship, thinking it is still of them as well she comment it coldly. �You are not "Ultimate", you are only at the beginning of a self destruction! I don't wanna say redeem, but I am afraid of.�

“Oh, please. Alexandra knew of Tigron, that's why she got those parts for that craft! The beginning of a future disaster? MY soul endangered by myself? Hah! Don't make me show you just how powerful I can be…�
He seems not even more serious with the last sentence.

Ramaela calmly explained. “She's changed at least now, I can say that to you."
That last part of him for her was totally a threat, another one that she can't remains in silence.
"Ohh! You Sir? Powerful? I am not afraid of you.�
Viktor walks up to her, takes his gun out and aims it, pointing blank at her head and shouts at her face that he grabbed with the other hand. “ARE YOU SCARED NOW?! HUH?! ARE YOU?!�
The woman stares him. Not even a muscle moves on her. Rebellious on life, on death she wanna remain so.

Pawel almost jumped from the sudden reaction of his companion, understanding in a flash what is happening he comes next to him and grabs violently his arm to stop his homicide instincts.
“VIKTOR! Kill her and you die. Put the gun away!�
Viktor stares at Pawel with disgust, then frees her face from the grip and walks away, while the gun back at its place. A cold threat went out his lips.
“Next time... you won't be so lucky.�

She calmly says keeping staring him. “Being afraid is the last thing I'd want to feel. You already spilled enough blood. Killing to feel stronger.�
Shakes her head in a like disappointed feel.

“FUUHAHAHAHAHA!! That's what war is about, lady! But admit it! You did feel fear! It's only natural. We all have a rational fear of dying. We all want to survive!�

“I know what IS a War! I was there in the WWIV as well and now here in the WWV! Oh sure, but when you saw enough times the death in front of you? And what Natasha Belmondo would say about?"

“What about Belmondo?! How does she have anything to do with me?�

“You are in favour for the born of the F12000, and the “heavy� that needed to be trashed out was in fact her! Her death was only YOUR fault! If you didn't killed that innocent, at this time there wouldn't be any of this damn War!"
Viktor glares.
“Irrelevant. You have no idea how she died. I don't recall seeing you anywhere near Orcus too!�
“I can see still.� Says with pointing her light blue eye with a little triumphant smile.
“What's that supposed to mean?�
“I hope you may have the proof of MINE of powers one day, Sir!�
Pawel comes close to him and whispers. "She's a fortune-teller, she can tell the future. And see it."
Viktor back to see her with a new vision.
"So what, you predicted her death? Or even SAW it?�

“Sadly yes.�

A heavy silence falls as they keep looking each other, only the sound of the engenieers working nearly there keep to fulfil the air with something.

“I think I am done. May I talk to you in private if I can, Pawel?" Then she interrupts suddently. "Oh wait, can I see your pilots as well? I am curious to know them!�
Viktor makes a low groan and shakes his head.
“They, too, are at the R&D Section, training for the new craft and the new season.�
“Greet them by me, Sir."
She takes a pause, then continues toward the Tsar. "So, Pawel, I need to talk to you, privately.�
Pawel adjusts his jacket and turns toward the woman. “Is there any reason why we should stay here? If not, we could go back?�
Lowering her gaze she answers to his question. “What you wish, Sir.�
“Well, I've done all I came here to do, so let's go.�
“Goodbye, Mr Viktor. I hope was a decent meeting this.� Said bitterly lastly to him, she turns then to follows Pawel.
Blindfolded again, she back in the car and finally lefted the workshops of Crinale.

***

August 31 2210
Parliament of the Tsar

Pawel sits on the royal chair and stares her in front, the table is already all settled for the consult. The incense keeps burning, the little fire of the white candle trembles, but all back calm as she wished.

“So, what did you want to talk to me about?�
She put on the table two cards, after previously shuffled enough times the little deck of the 22 cards.
“Well well well… Looks like The Luck is all decided by Viktor by now, not you.�

The Tsar almost trow away the table with his fists for the answer. “WHAT?! But he is a mere pawn!�

She pointed the two lonely cards on the table and explains calmly.
“Look, the Wheel of Luck is next to The Devil, and is since my permanence at Angelus that I felt this Card on them. This means The Wheel is turned by Him at his own desires. If you don't be careful, you may fall in his plans, who knows!�
“What do you mean, plans?�
“I feel...rebellion, a civil war more than the war of nowadays, or will be him to begin it.�

“A rebellion? Can’t be! My men will surely knows how to stop this!� Said with almost an evil grin, naturally that would be possible since he’s at the head of one of the most powerful country ever.
“I feel this, could be or not, still be careful, Pawel.�
“Fine. I shall keep my guard up. Thank you.�
“Your welcome, Pawel.� She makes a little smile, fake, then organizes her things to leave them off her table.
“Pass a nice day, at all, sir!�
“You too.� He up a hand to sign her dismiss.
She makes a slow, little reverence and goes out, still with her face up.

“This surely is a curse...of The Devil.�

[Ace3000]

Great part! Also, I love that last part, referencing the title of the Crinale part of FTA!

[Jonny]

Here and then, the war will come, but WWIV is finally gone.
Erased like a line on paper, those of the letters, writing it's history.
Where is it? What? The war? Which war?
Noone ever will tell you,
WWIV actually happened, but not now.
The Forth, the Fifth, this Sixth will come,
But not now.

What I wanted to say is that the plans were changed, there was no WWIV and the current war is now the "European Continental War".

@Sara: Wait...the Blackmail Group? They were disbanded after the failed takeover of Jennter.

[Saramica12]

Seems like a free verse poetry x)

@Jonny, really? I thought they too planned as well the death of Natasha P:
Oh well, no worries! It will be corrected! ^^

[Ace3000]

No, it was Viktor and Viktor alone that planned and orchestrated the murder of Natasha Belmondo.

[Saramica12]

Correct the temporal imperfection, thanks guys! xP

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[BardicSMG]

Hey guyz, what happened? I have no idea!

A quick explanation, I've been having problems with my computer, work, friends, place of residence, and mental health, but I hope to get out of valve time in the next week.

I'll aim to get done with thc zero around the time snake gets back, but Project Pure will get started before I get the next chapter done. In the mean time, I've got some catching up with reading to do (again), but I'll be back soonish.

[Ace3000]

Nothing new, except we now have a wiki, thanks to Jonny: http://fta.wikia.com

[Saramica12]

Bardic! Welcome back here! :D

[Ace3000]

Suddenly, a new part! Thanks to Bardic for the scene and how it all plays out.

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
>log18: 22100830

Thursday, August 30th, 2210

With his lab coat swishing behind him, he walked into his office.

"The hell? Who are...?" He asked the woman sitting on his desk, before realizing who she was. "Nikole Carole. You were a pilot in the F9000, now you're leading that new team... er... Syncline?"

She looked up, then spoke. "Where's De Rosa?"

"What? Like I'd tell you, you were probably sent here by the Russians!" He exclaimed, taking a step back

"I'm not with the Russians, I don't intend to imprison her. In fact, I, like you, want to ensure her safety. Nothing more, nothing less."

"So, you came to me because... Angelus was the last place you knew she was located?"

She shook her head. "Of course not. I know she was supposed to leave for her home in Sicily, but she's not there. Are you absolutely sure she left at all?"

Brandon thought for a moment, before replying. "Are you really not with th-"

She cut him off "I know of things the Russians don't. If I mentioned one of them, would that gain your trust?"

"Only if I know about it... no, wait. I know nothing of their silly war. You know, not being in Europe an all."

"Falon Dare. Remember him? I know you killed him. But don't worry, I wont have you arrested or anything. It was self-defence, after all."

"Hmm... well, they do know nothing of that incident, I mean, why would they? Alright, I believe you. I trust you. Ramaela did leave for her home in Sicily."

"I told you, didn't I? She's not there. In fact, as far as I'm aware, she never left Australia."

"What?"

"Don't act surprised. You do know where she is. Where is she?"

Brandon got ready to yell at her, then relaxed, speaking calmly. "Look, all I know is that she left here. She never came back. I have proof on my side." He walked over to his computer and accessed the security camera data. "Look at it, all of it. She's not here, and I don't know where she is."

"You probably deleted the tapes."

"I never delete anything."

"So they're fabricated!"

"I don't know how to fabricate security tapes. Face it, I have way more evidence that tells the truth."

Nikole looked extremely angry. "You imbecile! I'll concede that she left, but God damn are you stupid!"

"E-excuse me?"

"De Rosa is a well known Diviner! She has seen the futures of many people, all of them coming true! And you just let her go?! You should have known better than to let the most valuable human being to have ever been made public leave without keeping an eye on her!"

"Is she really that valuable?"

"Idiot! You know nothing! She has been captured before. And, if you hadn't kept her here, she would have been captured again! In fact, I think now, that as soon as she left, as soon as she was out of your protection, she was."

"Captured? Crap, I should have gone with her." Came a voice from behind the door.

She saw the old suited man walk in, and immediately recognised him. "Matt O'Reilly... WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING, SPYING ON ME?!" She yelled, her anger getting more intense, a drop of blood trickling down her nose.

"Nikole, calm down... you're bleeding." Brandon said

"What? Oh." She muttered, wiping the blood off. "Now..." She continued, sharply turning to Matt, who interrupted her.

"Don't bother asking me about anything to do with her disappearance. I know as much as Brandon does. However, I can use my skills with computers to find the truth, to find where she disappeared to."

"I don't think so, you lost my trust by spying on us."

"Well, I don't care what you think. Ramaela's my friend, I will do whatever I can to save her, to ensure her safety. Like it or not, I'm in this investigation."

She sighed, giving up. "Fine. I will give you seven days to find the truth. I will be back here on the seventh of September. Tell me everything you found out then."

"We will do that."

She then walked to the exit, before stopping in the doorway, turning back and saying, "Brandon, Matt, thank you. I assure you, she will be safe... Farewell."

[BardicSMG]

Special thanks to Ace for doing all the dirty work while I count cigarettes at 3am.

[Jonny]

Interesting read.
Oh Bardics post was Nr 777. Lucky 7s! :P

[Ace3000]

Thanks to Bardic for providing the rough draft, I just finished it.

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
>log19: 22100906

Thursday, September 6th, 2210

The two men, one old and in a suit, the other young looking an in a lab coat, were conversing in the latter's office, but was distracted by the arrival of another person.

"How do you get in here, anyway?" Brandon asked.

"That's not your concern. tell me what you found." Nikole replied

Matt spoke up "I've found two places that Ramaela could be. The Russian government has an unusually long profile of her, suggesting she's more than just a third party. I've also found files from Crinale that cites "captive see-er" as a source of information."

"Good, now give me a reason to trust you." She said.

"Isn't that obvious? I'm helping to get her out."

"...That is insufficient, for one. I'm not going to be shepherded into a trap."

"Both Russia and Crinale's defences can track a hacker from farther than anyone would have the range for, except for me. I've been in this business long enough to know how to hack without setting off any triggers. You'll need someone on the field for this job, and I'm going to be that person."

After thinking for a moment, Nikole responded. "Fine. get ready, a helicopter will pick us up in twenty minutes."

"Wait, what?! You want to do this now? We don't even-"

Don't question me," She interrupted, "Or I'll walk out and we can start this whole thing over."

Matt hesitated for a moment, then walked out of the office. Nikole then turned to Brandon.

"This is what's going to happen. We're going to keep her here. A guard will be staying in a neighbouring room. She is not to leave the building without his supervision, and she'll have a tracker on her in case we lose sight."

"So you just want me to re-kidnap her." He said flatly.

"She decides when and where she goes and can keep the guard out of her room."

"What about Sicily, can she go there?"

"Even De Rosa should know better then to show her face there by now. Stop testing me."

Brandon's face twitched. "Is that a threat?"

'Why does everything have to be a threat...' She thought, before speaking again. "Listen, I'm trying to stay in line this time, but we won't get anywhere if you don't cooperate with us-"

"And why's that?" He snapped, gradually getting more angry "Why should I have to listen to you? What, are we just a set of pawns, servants for you to use however you please? You say 'jump', and we're supposed to say 'How high'?"

She made no response and her large shades hid her expression

Brandon continued. "Ramaela spoke with me. She said I was the angel, and you know I think I've earned that title. I should never have listened to you. I should've known better, than to let you get in the way."

"You know what your problem is? You. Are. A child." She finally replied.

"Excuse me?"

"You, Brandon Smith, the angel, will right the wrongs of evil. You, without rest, without sleep, without an ounce of consideration for how the world really works."

"So you think that justifies them? A ham fisted 'Light vs Dark' argument? Don't I get a justification, for saving lives, for ending this tyranny?" What's your justification? Safety? Is that why you can't hold her in whatever hell-hole you've been hiding in all these years? What the hell just happened to you, anyway? What went wrong in your brain to make you such a cold hag."

Nikole moved closer, getting personal. Her gaze was eclipsed by her glasses. Brandon simply started to chuckle to himself.

"I see what this is. You almost had me, but I figured out what you're getting at. You're hiding behind me. You're using this 'safety of the world' façade to use Ramaela for your own gain, so you throw me the smoking gun. You're not out for anyone's safety. You are just like them.

"You're exactly like Crinale."

That was a direct hit. Her jaw quivered. She reached her hand towards her face. As though she needed a clearer look, she removed her shades. Suddenly, her eyes changed. It changed colours faster then Brandon could register, in a permanent state of unrest.

"You don't know the half of it. You're not just an angel, you are a tiny, baby, cherub blinded by the light of the rapture... I... am the word... of God."

Brandon reacted to those words, a look of surprise grew on his face as he took a step back.

"Follow my instruction, keep your business to yourself, and never, ever, challenge me again."

He gritted his teeth.

"Tell me that you understand."

He blinked, still keeping the same position.

"TELL ME!" She yelled

He sighed, dropped his arms to his sides, and replied, "I understand".

Nikole, getting the response she wanted, then turned and left.

[Jonny]

[part removed and same goes for the context]

Aircraft were spawning at the horizon...

____________
*cought* Brandon, the last line is your signal *cought*

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Ace3000]

Hmmm, I was thinking after Season 2 of FTA, which will end at the end of 2212, Season 3 would take place a few years after. I was thinking maybe it could be 2215, but now the 2229 part made me think a bit...

I still don't know when Season 3 will take place, and I won't decide for a while; I still need to get Season 2 out of the way first! :P

[BardicSMG]

This is a long season :D

[Ace3000]

COTD is technnically not part of Season 2. It's halfway between Season 2.

[BardicSMG]

When are we gonna see the signing of Portugal into the EU?

[Ace3000]

Never, because it's not a European country... apparently :P

(oh god the shame.)

I know it is one now, thank you.

[BardicSMG]

Duh... It's right under the country of Texas.

[Ace3000]

In the continent of London.

[Saramica12]

20th May 2210

Central Sibiria, Russian Empire

Sonja went to one of the guards "Do you think that it is okay to have my little, 9-years-old daughter in this area. A beg you, please let her go."
The guard looked at her "I'm doing you, especially her a big favour not letting her escape into the cold, vast ice desert."
She knew that it would be hopeless, but she asked "Please" she said with dry lips "let us go, I know-"
"I know that you wouldn't survive out there, in fact, you have a better life on these premisses than outside, where is nothing." he interrupted.

***

13th June 2210
Central Siberia, Russian Empire

“Help! Someone help me!�
The shouts were acute and full of frighteness, the voice of a child.
Some people make a circle around the young girl to see what was happening. An old woman is lying down on the floor of the doss-house.
“S-She’s too weak…� The young whimpers while watching powerless the scene of her mother there.
Suddently, some guards arrives too to check the situation that went out the control.
“Free the way! Пребывание на части1!" Said one of the two guards and goes in front. Another one instead looks at the little girl. “Show your arm.â€�
The little girl shows up her arm and he checks the “code� on.
“Nadejda Yushkevich Leonova.� He said checking the list. “What happened to her?�
Nadejda remains silent, she remember that man, was the one who didn’t let her be free from the Gualg. “You!� And kicked his shinbone. The man makes a little gemit and then looks her in anger, but before he could react toward her action, she like explained why she did that. “You promised that we would be SAFE here! YOU PROMISED! Look now how my mum is!� She hardly speaks in her heavy sobs.
"You little brat..." Murmurs the first man.
The two men looks each other, after the kicked one looked her with a shocked and repented expression. The first one noticed that and harshly said to his man. “You really wanna help these rats who stained OUR Land with their presence?�
The other men keeps to remain silent and picks up gently what remains of the body of what once seemed a woman.
“Did you heard her? She said I promised her of their safety here. Can you see also this woman? Was her the one who wished to die than see her daughter here dying. Day. After. Day. " He takes a pause, then continues. "I can’t stay impassive in front of this, sir. Call a Medic and bring her in the "малолетки"2 Zone. We are not in the 20th century.â€�
The first Guard is red for the anger, in the hard try to hold back the gun, cold and bitter words comes out his mouth. “I won’t shoot at you and at these two шлюхи3 just because you are a good soldier and Guard...but don’t think I won’t report this to the other men of the Tsar, Mr.Miroslav!â€�

“Hmph.� And puts Sonja on the bed.

Nadejda just looked at the scene, leaving the fact now with a slightly better face, but she grabs the arm of him. "W-Where do you wanna bring her?"
The man smiles at her with a shade of condolences and pats her head. "Where she'll be safe, as I promised."
Then he thoughts..."You come too."

"R-Really?" Nadejda said with a big smile.

"Da, better."

When the doctor arrives, he diagnosticated everything he expected, severe malnutrition and dehydration. In the zone where they wanna put the two have eventually a part with Medic Assistance.

In the meantime, low jets passes above them.

"Russian insignas!" Shouts a watcher toward the men down.
The Guard looks up a bit in surprise. "Hmm? Now?"

"Maybe just reinforcements."

***

The only thing that mustn't die in these periods is the Humanity, first thing that too soon be gone.


1: "Prebyvaniye na chasti!" Stay apart!

2: "maloletki" Minorenns.

3: “shlyukhi� sluts.

[Ace3000]

Thanks to Bardic for making sure his characters act like they should.

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
>log20.1: 22100908-22100909

Saturday, September 8th, 2210

Angelus HQ, Perth, Australia.

"I've got word that Tsar Pawel is going to St. Petersburg for a few days." Nikole informed the two men.

"Well, then. This couldn't have worked out better!" Matt said "It's time to initiate... Operation Ananke!"

"Ananke? Greek mythology?" Brandon asked.

"We're not calling it that." Nikole butted in.

"Yes we are, all of the operations I'm involved in have codenames!" Matt responded

"Ananke," Brandon thought out loud, "The personification of destiny, necessity and fate. Somewhat relevant to Ramaela."

"Exactly. Th-"

"Oh, whatever, Let's go, now!" Nikole cut in again, walking out.

"Ugh, fine, fine." Matt said, following Brandon out.

On the way to the airbase, Nikole informed the two of more info of the operation.

"There will be one more person who will be helping us, we're going to meet them at the airbase."

True enough, when they got there, a young girl walked up to them.

"Yo! I'm Tsukiko Katsuo, but you can call me Kat!" She introduced herself, "Nic's given me a brief summary of the operation. You know, I thought we could give it a cool name, like-"

"Ananke! I named it after the Greek goddess of fate."

"Heh, that's awesome. It's fitting, considering who the main target is!"

Behind Matt and Brandon, where Kat and Matt couldn't see her, Nikole had her palm over her face.

"Anyway," she said loudly, "We're on a tight schedule, I would prefer it if we stopped talking about meaningless crap and getting on with the operation. Our plane is leaving very soon, so I would appreciate it if you hurried up!"

------------
Sunday, September 9th, 2210

Moscow, Russia.

The 4 of them were sitting in an old car a few blocks down from the parliament building.

"Ugh, couldn't have you gotten a Russian car?" Brandon asked Nikole, "The Russians are fighting the Germans, so why get a German car? I mean, I like Jennter cars like this one, but still."

"I got what I could, quit complaining." Nikole responded.

In the back seat, Kat was looking at the screen watching lines of code being typed out at a high speed.

"What exactly are you doing?" She asked Matt, who was doing the typing.

"Hacking." He said simply, focused on the computer.

"Hacking what?"

"You'll see." He replied.

Suddenly, multiple screens appeared on after the other in quick succession.

"YES! Camera access granted, thank you so very much. Now..." He was clearly anticipating something, because he started to mutter "come on" over and over, until...

>>ОБНАРУЖЕНО НЕСАНКЦИОНИРОВАННЫЙ ДОСТУП1

"Hello!" He said, as if talking to a child, or a small cute animal, "Let's play!"

He cracked his fingers, seemingly ready to code again, but then navigated to a file on his computer, opening it.

"I've always wanted to try this out." He told Kat.

Suddenly, the warning disappeared.

"BOOM! Gone." He yelled joyously. "I AM INVINCIBLE!"

"Uh, right." Kat said exasperatedly.

Matt continued to edit the camera feed to a short snippet of nothing in them. Finally, he spoke.

"Phase 1 is complete. Time for you to go into the field!" He told Kat.

"Phase 2! My turn!" She exclaimed, literally jumping out of the car and running toward the palace.

"Uhh, what exactly is she thinking?" Brandon asked, "She's going to get caught."

"No, she knows what she's doing." Nikole corrected him.

At the palace, Kat skidded to a halt, and ran down the side of it. She engaged her radio.

"Yo! This thing working?" Was the first thing that came from the radio in the car.

"We hear you, but we don't see you." Brandon turned to Matt. "Do you have the real camera feed? The one that the security doesn't have?"

"Yeah, here." He passed the monitor to the front of the car. They saw Kat running down the side of the building, then stopped by a window. She then pulled out something that looked like a gun and fired it. The grappling hook shot out and caught the roof. She pulled a button on the side and grabbed on the gun with both hands as she was pulled up an over.

"よし！2" She exclaimed, "I love doing that!"

She entered through the roof door, which was unlocked.

"Ok, I'm in" She whispered.

"Great, we see you there. Maintain radio silence, don't get caught." Nikole ordered, twiddling a pen in her hand, occasionally clicking it.

"Yeah, yeah, I know."

She stealthily navigated through the palace, until she found the room their target was in.

"Wh... What gives? She's not in there!"

"Eh? Who are you?" Came a voice to her left.

1UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS DETECTED
2 Yoshi!, translates to Alright!

Yes, those are Goldeneye references. :D

[BardicSMG]

I like to think that Matt says what he says in an extremely serious tone. Maybe he's senial or something

[Ace3000]

Well, I didn't intend him to be super serious, but if you want to believe that, I won't stop you.

- - - Updated - - -

Oh, screw it, I'll do it now. Why not? :D

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
>log20.2: 22100909

Sunday, September 9th, 2210

"Eh? Who are you?" Came a voice to her left.

Kat turned around quickly, then sighed.

<law card | final fantasy tactics advance (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xx5U2msg5eY)_>

"Yay, just the person I wanted! We're here to save you, Ramaela."

Ramaela seemed surprised but also happy for the sudden turn of the events

"O-Oh... Wait, have to take my things here! Five minutes!" She said happily, entering her room to pack her bags.

"O-okay." Kat said nervously, she didn't want to waste time. However, Ramaela was surprisingly fast, arriving to Kat sooner than she expected.

"I only had few things, luckily. Where we go, milady..?"

"Well, the plan is to-" Kat began.

"HEY, HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!" A guard had caught them.

"New plan: RUN!" Kat said, firing a tranquillizer at the guard, who passed out. "We can't run into every single guard here, I don't have enough tranquillizers"

"Agh! I-I can't run!" Ramaela said, covering her aching left eye, feeling there are more guards coming.

"Okay, let's wait here" Kat told her, firing more tranquillizers at two more guards. "You know, instead of running, we can just sneak out. Let's go."

Ramaela put her veil on her shoulder and nodded "Better... I may know a little escape door here."

"That's great!"

Ramaela looked around, then pointed to a hall "There! After that hall there's a little door to go away!" She exclaimed, beginning to walk fast to where she pointed.

"Alright, so down the hallw... oh crap." Kat stopped in her tracks. Guards were blocking the exit. Ramaela gasped.

"Uhhhh, maybe not. Let's go back." Kat suggested.

"Wait, I bet you come here not alone..." Ramaela deduced. "Where we go? I may try to run..."

"Is there any other exit on the ground apart from the front door?"

"I-I don't know more..!"

Kat sighed, "Ok, front door it is. I guess I got what I wished for, I was thinking this was a bit too easy. Screw it, I'm going to try brute force, are you sure you can run?"

Ramaela gathered up some courage and smiled positively. "Ah! I feel like back as I was 40 years ago!"

"Great. Let's do this!"

They run down the labyrinth of the palace, to the front entrance. Kat fired tranquillizers at the guards blocking the way.

"Crap! I only got two of them, I'm out of tranquillizers!" She said in shock.

Only one guard stayed standing at the entrance. Suddenly, he got knocked out.

"Kat, we heard everything on the radio." Matt said as he walked in. "I came to help. Ah, hello again, Ramaela!"

Ramaela was panting in exhaustion, but upon hearing Matt's voice it seemed to make her better.

"Matt! Picciotto!1"

"Quick, we don't have much time." Matt said, directing them out of the building and toward the car.

"Here's the car, get in" He opened the door for them.

<tourniquet | knife party (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipX6wgwuHho)_>

Ramaela got to the door of the car, but right after she opened it, a sniper began to shoot at the team. They mostly failed, but got one successful hit on Ramaela's leg.

"Aagh!" She screamed in pain. Matt grabbed her and closed the door. "W-What happen-!"

Matt quickly yelled at Brandon "Sh*t, snipers. GO GO GO! We need to go to the hospital, Ramaela's been hit. Thankfully it was her leg, but still, I think the bullet hit an artery, she needs medical attention."

Brandon asked the team "Russian hospital, or...?"

Nikole cut in. "No, that's suicide. We'll go straight to the escape helicopter, we can treat her there, then stop in Japan to take her to a hospital there."

"Alright, to the escape helicopter" He said, already on the way there at a high speed.

"Minchia!2" Ramaela clenched her teeth in pain. "T-This indeed was a sudden thing..."

Brandon's driving skill meant that they got to the helicopter in a time shorter than what Nikole thought.

"Kat, leave Plan B in the car." Nikole instructed her.

"'Kay." Kat replied, fumbling with something in the car, as the 3 of them helped Ramaela into the helicopter. Kat ran into the helicopter several seconds later.

"Phase 3: The escape." Kat said. "First, get rid of the evidence, it's set up."

"Great." Nikole replied, pulling a device out of her pockets, flipping a few switches and pressing a button.

BOOM!

The old, bullet ridden Jennter blew up as the helicopter flew to its next destination: Japan.

------------
The doctor spoke to Kat, who translated his Japanese into English.

"He says that 'She will live. They will have to operate on her to remove the bullet, but it will all be fine. If it wasn't for all of your quick thinking, she would not have made it. Thank you.'"

"No, thank you!" Matt replied. Kat translated that back to the doctor.

"So," He turned back to the other 3 people in the waiting bay, "Despite Ramaela's injury, shall we call this operation a success?"

"She's safe now, isn't she?" Nikole replied. "Of course it's a success."

1Kind of affection word for "friend"
2F**k!

[BardicSMG]

Plan b was on Kat's person

[BardicSMG]

Monahd eson/i dutght ir/eei aetrro //h//n eiewC. xs/io p/dtn

When the others had left the room, Nikole confronted Kat with a completely different expression.

“How many saw you?"

“I wore a mask, you know." Kat tried to defend herself.

“That's not good enough, how many saw you."

“...I can't remember."

“You what?"

“They're practically janitors, it doesn't matter."

“I told you to reduce risk; don't use the radio frivolously, don't wait for De Rosa, and make sure no one remembers you."

Kat grew more defensive, “I told you, we don't need to kill people for-"

“And I told you, you might have to do things that are uncomfortable."

Kat remained silent.

“What am I supposed to do when the Russians start finding out who you are?" Nikole said, “In two years, you're going to be all over news media, all of us are. It was a big enough risk to drag you into this."

“So you did..."

Kat was pushed to the wall behind her. “If you can't act right," Nikole said, “then you will only be a danger to yourself. I'm going to cut you off, and you will be on your own until I'm told what to do with you."

“Nic?" Kat pleaded, “Can you at least think about this."

Nikole was already leaving the room.

“How long have you been on Earth?" Kat asked.

Nikole thought about that question, and what Katsuo was really asking. She stood in front of the door for well over a minute before silently walking out.

[Ace3000]

Monahd eson/i dutght ir/eei aetrro //h//n eiewC. xs/io p/dtn

oh, NOOOOOO! I want to know what this says, but I can't decode it nooooo~

Ahem. In any case, that was a great part! :D

[Jonny]

Last phrase:
Aliens

[BardicSMG]

Anyone whose been to Mars came from the alien planet of Earth, so... yes, very much aliens.

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Saramica12]

Used a title like the ones of @Ace3000, like the last part of the trilogy xD


10 September 2210, Japan

Ramaela wakes up from the operation in her leg for the bullet. She looks around her, still dizzy for the morphine, but she was able to see all her friends around with a face in relief. She indeed survived.
Kat is the first to cheer. "Woohoo! Let's celebrate! She's back with us!"
Nick looks the scene a bit apart, with a little smile with her arms crossed in rest. Matt rushes at her bed, looking the happiest. "Finally you're awake! We were so worried! "
Ramaela smiles at him. "Ah, won't be a bullet to put me in three meters underground!"
And everyone chuckles, is very nice to see that her good mood is still present, means she's already fine.

In the evening, Nikole back in her room after a short call, and after she sitted next to her old friend, the two eventually begin in having a pleased chat about the life in the 70'and a bit further.

"Do you remember this...? And do you remember that...? Ohh! Is was so great!"

Then a new name comes in.

"Did I ever let you met my Helper, Selene?"

Nikole frowns. "...No, acutally I never thought that you would have a helper, but I may understand."

Ramaela makes a little smile. "She's just like a daughter to me. I am so glad to have her next to me. She's very special too, I hope you may meet her soon, she's almost like me when I was young..." And sighs, happily, remembering the time passes with her.
Carole makes a rightful question after a minute of silence. "And now where she is?"

"At first she backs in Greece, but she's allowed to remain at my home, in Panarea. She just loves to stay there, and I am more than happy, since she never messed it up."
And chuckles.

1 September 2210, Ramaela's Home, Panarea Island

A young woman walks around the streets of the little town white and blue, just like her. She did some shopping for filling the home with food and other goods, in the patient waiting to see her Master back.
Is already midday, the way of the comeback at the candid maison of Ramaela is peaceful, as ever.
But today may be a different one.
She notices some unknown cars around and the door is half open. Afraid, the lady looks at the scene unknown what do do, Ramaela did nothing at all, what they need?
She takes some courage, rushes at the door and slammed apart the door, being immediately spotted with a gun by a light blonde hairy guy, and slowly walks toward her. The white-haired woman tries to speak. "W-Who you all are!? What do you need here? R-Ramaela is not here!"
Hal lows the gun and stares at her a moment, then after a while he calls his boss. "Sterling!..."
Not caring who's calling, she makes a step backward from the entrance and squeaks.
"I-I swear I will call the Police!"

"No, no, that won't be necessary! Uhh, yes, this is... there's been a bit of an incident." Said Sterling, who rushed in front of her to stop her.
"What..? What that means? T-Talk, please!" Said with a worried expression now.
He first looks behind to Hal. "keep a look out outside..."

And Hal so leaves after a nod.
The man back then to speak to her. "...De Rosa has been, how do I put this... of inter interest to very, very powerful people-Not that we're those people, heh, we're sort of against them. So we, uhh... visited..."
At this news, she feels like mortified. "Ohh, not again!
She promised me that she would've been safe!"

"Do you mind me asking where you saw her last?"

She puts a hand on her forehead and leaves off a bit a white tuft off accompanied with a desperate sigh.
"I-Is since I lefted her in Germany that I don't see her, around two/three months, expect in some rare calls..."
She mutters. "First Madison, and now?"
"Did those call seem different in any way? Did she repeat any odd phrases, or anything of the like?"
She looks him in a questioning manner, then answer.
"No, still happy, I know when something went wrong on her...however once she said that she had to remain for an uncertain time in a place, Angelus, to be protected. Luckily I knew that she was even in Australia! But she promised me that she'd back here safe and sound. I thought those men stopped to chase her, looks like we were both so wrong!"
He makes a slightly nod "...Can you give me a minute?" Before she may answer, he already walks out of the room for a phone call.

"Oh what a Passion1!"
She whimpers a bit while walking in the kitchen to put her shopping bags in and sits on a chair there.
Wasn't a long call, and after two minutes he's walking in with a more serious expression. "Is confirmed. De Rosa left for the airport, but, she never got on the plane. That's about what we know now."

"Oh no..."

"Do you have another place where you can stay safe? I'm not sure how safe you are after speaking on the phone with her."

"Uhm...does this island looks enough safe?"

"That depends on what happened to De Rosa, more importantly, if she was captured, who did it, and why.
If it were a government that took, and there's a hearty chance that it was, than no, it doesn't. Unless you never left your house or used the phone, which I don't see working out to well."

"T-Thanks, sir...
Please, let me know more of the situation!"
She said with a hopefully look.
But he remains thoughtful a moment... "Well, I think it would benefit the both of us if you came with us."

This was enough for her.
"What? How...How much I can trust you?"

"Well, your not shot. That has to mean something, right?"

She frowns. "Ramaela doesn't even have a gun, she doesn't like them... What assure me that you're not the same men who kidnapped her?"

Sterling grins in amusement. "If we took her, I would not ask that come with us. Best case scenario; you wouldn't have a say in the matter.
Worst case scenario; you wouldn't do anything, ever."

At that answer, she makes a dry gulp, understanding his speech. "O-Ok...I think I can trust you guys..."

"Alright, you can take five minutes to take what you need, and then we'll take you to an aircraft, and we'll talk more from there."

"Got it!"
She disappears to then comes back in time.

In the aircraft, she looks at the departure in a shade of sadness, but then she smiles and looks at Sterling and Hal.
"Anyway my name is Selene, pleased to meet you."

11 September 2210, Japan

Sterling walks in with a special guest with.
"Nikole? Ramaela? Selene is here."

At her name, Ramaela almost jumps out the bed and looks her helper with eyes fullfilled of joy.
"Selenella! Mia cara!"2

Nick smiles more, also this mini mission was complete, The Reunion.





1: In meaning of a great painful moment.

2: "Selenella! My dear!"

[Jonny]

Nico laid on the table, not moving.
"Grip!" shouted the project leader and trusted the output of the screen.

Nico found himself back in the white room, not able to gain orientation.
He looked down on himself, he was wearing his usual Jennter uniform, in white. He wasn't able to spot smaller details.
"Madison!" he shouted, trying to find her in the Electrosphere.
Nico started running, to the place he expected the last fight.

After some running, longer than it would have actually taken, he spotted something on the horizon.
"M-Madison?" he asked, rather confused.
Nico continued running, what he spotted was indeed a woman, laying on the blank, white ground.

He was more curious than anything else and brought some words over his lips shyly "Hello?"
The woman stood up and turned around to face him.
"Oh, what a nice surprise." she smiled warmly, Nico knew that face.
"Hello!" the woman greeted him.

Nico glazed at her "Errr...Hello, I'm Nico von Bovier." he began.
"Oh, a Bovier, I was one before ending here." she explained.
"Really? How did you came here, I thought that-" Nico tried to find words.
The woman smiled "What do you expect this place to be?"
Nico thought about the term "The Electrosphere!" he said confidently.
"Why is this place like this?" she asked him, challenging.
Nico didn't knew an answear, for him everything had a reason, but he could only guess. He shruged.

"When you are a Bovier, you are certainly my...great-great-great-great-grandson?" the woman started.
"Depends on who you are." Nico said cheeky.
The woman smiled again "May I should introduce myself first."
"I am Rebecca Bovier." she said.

Nico knew his family tree a bit, but Rebecca Bovier was known to everyone.
"Rebecca" he slowly spelled her name "I am your great-great-great-great-great-great-grandson Nico" he cleared up.
"Interesting to see what we have today, what year is it?" she asked.
"2210, July 15th" he simply said.
"Oh wow, how time passes, I didn't even reached the 22nd century. Well, not the real I." she already noticed Nicos face.
"I guess you want to know a lot, should I tell?" she didn't really asked.

"Everything you see here, is just because Jonathan made it like this.
The whole rules you are currently following are made by Jonathan, my husband, your great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfather." she explained.
"You seem a lot like him, sadly you never met him." she noted, looking warmly at her decendant.
Nico almost started laughing "I indeed met him, he is really...a special one."
"He IS?" Rebecca asked surprised "How old is he now?"
"Went 212 years old two months ago." Nico proudly announced.
"212 years? So he really reached his target." she whristled out of respect "Noone expected that, not even I."
Nico let his eyes wander around, signalising that he was a bit unpatient.
"Oh right, this is just a program in the Electrosphere, to make it more...confortable, giving human enough to actually live like usual." Rebecca continued explaining.
"In the end, I am just a copy of my own conciuosness he added, as some kind of warden. Oh right, did you payed entrance?" she then laughed.

Nico thought about that and asked "Can you help me finding Madison Larough, I am sure she is inside the Electrosphere."
Rebecca looked at him, forming her lips, showing Nico that she was thinking.
"Maybe I can."

[Jonny]

"Where have you seen her last?" asked Rebecca "or, well, where do you expect that place?"
Nico thought a moment and then just started going.
"What were your emotions? Try to recreate them." ordered his ancestor.

Nico thought about him following the blue Madison, then meeting the bad one and the sword fight. How the background changed it's color, his fury.
The background began changing it's color, he was almost able to feel her.

"Here I think it was." Nico said relaxing, lowering the tension in his body as he thought about that final battle.
Rebecca looked around, the area was empty.
"Revitalise the surrounding." said Rebecca.

He once again concentrated, the background was changing once again.
As Nico opened his eyes, he spotted a sword lying on the floor. He took it up.
It felt like an usual sword.

"Hmm, can you tell me a bit about the person you seek?" asked Rebecca in a soft voice.
Nico sighted "She was Madison Larough, not so popular in this world, nor in our family.
I may start from the begin:"
Nico sat down.

"I met her at a very young age, like we both were 6 years old, we lived in Stuttgart, she was originally from France.
We were really good friends, but with 14 years onwards she started to change. Not like we all do, that was very different.
She suffered heavy shitzophrenia, splitting her mind into around 20 fragments. Mostly bad personalities, few good and the others were still herself.
That massive amount of characters, seeking the control over her body made her collapse a lot, so I thought it as my duty, as her best friend, to care about her in such vulnerable moments.
She really grew towards my heart and I knew that she thought like that aswell.

Then there was this incident with my sister Jana, both collided on a stairway and one of Madison's bad sides yelled at her. It was aweful.
Madison was always a bit unpopular, she tended to have few control over her personalities, so many people were victims of her random outbursts and many people weren#t able to understand her, I can feel with these people, they did nothing wrong.

Later on I met Madison again in Australia, during an AG race, I was with Jonathan and my sister. I was a pilot back then, one year ago, almost.
However, Jennter was taken over by some sub-group of Crinale, a rather evil AG racing team. So we were on our own to get back Jennter.

Before we made our try I met Madison again, we talked a lot about our past, what's up now and all this stuff. Turned out that...I spend a night with her." he proudly added that sentence.

"Anyway, we got Jennter back and Madison vanished, but earlier this year she took over the control of the European Federation, centralised it, Germany got it's independence earlier, but then war broke out.
I have seen her sometimes in TV, her eyes were glowing red.

She then managed to kidnap Jana. Then things got outta hand and Madison killed Jana." Nico told the story.
He took a breath and thought about Jana, his wonderful, beloved sister.

"I hated Madison that time afterwards, no more love.
But then she died, physically and her conciousness...visited me.

Oh, I should have mentioned her special abilities, that came from a failed attempt to get her back into life after a heavy breakdown.
She then was able to leave her body and was generally invulnerable.
As Jana was captured she shot Madison in an attempt to save her live, Madison simply killed her while having a hole in her head.

Then there was this final battle, ending the rule of her bad and her own suffer."

Nico then took a breath and looked at the Rebecca AI.
He tried to prevent a tear to escape his eye.

"Now I want to know, if she may lives without suffer." was the wish he had.

Rebecca glaced at Nico, who looked at his white shoes, she wished she knew a way to help him, his decendant.
"I'm sorry Nico, I can't help you with that. If she isn't here, she is propably dead, vanished." she hated to say that to him.

Nico smiled hurted "So she lives without suffer."
But he liked that conclusion.


"Nico, do you know why you appear in pure white?" asked Rebecca in a soft voice.
He shruged.
"Maybe, you should get your mind clear first, finding yourself." she recommended.
Nico nodded agreeing and Rebecca went away "If you need help, just call me."

[Saramica12]

How to make the Part 70 the best part! Claps intensifies

[Ace3000]

Words cannot explain how I feel about this part. But it is a good feeling, not a bad one. I think that 69 and 70 are the best parts you made so far.

[Jonny]

Nico laid down and relaxed, he counted through all his thoughts that were stressing his mind.
He started to miss Jana again, just fully realising what loss he has to live with.
Nico just tried to call her face back in mind, her voice. And then there was Madison, the one who took her from him. The one who took both.

Maybe hours passed as he laid on the purely white, clean floor of the program visualising the Electrosphere, maybe it were just some minutes.
He enjoyed the silence, not a single voice, not even from his own body, only his mind. He tried to calm it down.
Maybe hours, maybe days, maybe seconds passed.
Maybe nothing happened from one second to another.

It was a short, enjoyable thought that everything may be only a dream, or a single imagination, he hoped by any second to open his eyes and waking up from a long dream, from the night before the qualifying in Vertica, before Madison ruined many lives, including that of his beloved sister.
Waking up from a daydream, while traveling to somewhere with his family, next to him sitting Jana.
Waking up from his live - was no option.


Nico stood up and called Rebecca, her warm smile maybe cheered him up.
"Hello again Nico, may I ask if you found something in youself?" she asked, intending being friendly.
"No good things" he simply said.
His face was dry.
"Tell me everything about the Electrosphere and this program." he told her.

Rebecca was able to see how lost he felt and ignored his rude voice.
"The Electrosphere...is a network, existing between, or more fitting, over every human-being, program and everything else operating over electricity.
It is unknown wether it's origin is man-made or natural, it just exists.
However, this appearance was programmed by Jonathan, like I told you earlier.
To see the true Electrosphere and use everything it got, you would have to delete this program, that is only a part from it."

Nico thought about her words "Would that be of any use for me?" he simply asked.
"You could move freely and search every data on your own, when you ask me, although he intended to aid the world, this program is a burden." she simply explained "May you should contact Jonathan and ask him to help."
"Wouldn't that delete you?" Nico asked.
"I wouldn't mind." said Rebecca and smiled once again warmly "Existance is pretty boring here."

She hugged Nico, who was quiet taller than her, but he gladly accepted that.
"Good luck for the future Nico. And greet Jonathan for me." she said into his shoulder.
"Thank you a lot, Rebecca. I'll do."

[BardicSMG]

Pow! Right in the feels!

[Jonny]

Nico woke up and realised that several hours passed.
"Welcome back Mr Bovier." said the project leader smiling "I guess we could count that as a success?"
It took him some time to found words, Nico sat up, slowly removed all the cables and took on his clothes.
"Indeed a great success." he said focussed "Don't touch a thing."

17th July 2210
It was a rainy day, the dark, grey sky spat heavy drops on the green grass. It was warm.
Jonathan was sitting next to a large, opened window, he always loved the sound of rain, the fresh, warm air and the smell of a rainy summer day, were you can literally smell the dryness of past days in the air.

The doorbell rang, it was Nico.
"'noon Nico." he groaned, recently the old man felt more sleepy than in his youth.
"Hello Jonny." surprisingly Nico was happy to see a familar face.

Jonathan invited Nico inside, he went back to his place and closed the window, Nico followed him.
"So Nico, what's the matter?" he asked him polite.
Nico bowed towards him and asked "Do you remember the Electrosphere?"
Jonathan laid back and laughed "You finally got access to it?"
"Indeed I did, greets from Rebecca by the way." said Nico, almost rushing.
"She told me that I have to delete your program." he started.
"Oh, you really found out a lot on your first day." interupted Jonathan.
"And I need your help." said Nico.
"She told you to delete the program, right?" he asked seriously "You just wanted to see Madison again, eh?"
"Rebecca told me that real data is beyond your program." said Nico silently "Indeed, I wanted to see Madison again."
Jonathan looked at him "Show me what you have done."

20th July 2210
The two men arrived at the Jennter HQ, Nico ordered the construction of another Sublimator.
Both were thrown into the Electrosphere at the same time and arrived there not far away.
Jonathan was really exited thinking about the opportunity to see Rebecca again.
"Rebecca, we are here!" shouted Nico, hoping that she would notice.

Nico noticed a silhouette at the horizon, he started walking. Jonathan followed him.
"Rebecca!" he shout again.
The object at the horizon was fastly enclosing, it turned out being indeed Rebecca.

Jonathan rubbed his eyes and ran towards her, both were recognising each other withhin a split second.
It took them several minutes from stopping to kiss each other, as they released each other, Jonathan began to demonstracte the abilities of his program.
His hair was turning blone and longer, while the cybernetic parts at his arm and leg were vanishing, his eye turned normal and he suddently was wearing glasses. He was wearing the clothers of his youth.
Rebecca transformed the same, from the elegant black dress to more casual clothes of the early 21st century, her hair was long and slightly reddish.

The whole surrounding changed, it was their old school.
Rebecca looked at Jonathan, being a one to one copy of her real conciousness she understood every of his moves and appreciated the undescribable joy in his face. She remembered and he did aswell.
Both were more happy than any other day of their live, reuniting after 126 years and 8 days.

Nothing more was missing in Jonathan's live than seeing Rebecca with his own eyes, feeling his skin touching hers, kissing her lips with his own and carassing her ears, her hair and her cheek with his own hands.
He took her the ability to miss people and the feel for time, to help her conciousness having a not so bad time. But in that moment she remembered, feeling the same like the man who did this for so many years, and never had another one.

[Ace3000]

There are no brakes on the feels train.

[BardicSMG]

Teatl h/roa rysot ee//e



Near the coast, next to a lavished condominium. Next to a luxury car, three, formally dressed, stand and wait for another.

“20 gauge, revolver chamber, metal pistol grip." Kyung boasted. “It started life as a Russian shotgun; MTs255. You'll never come across another hand gun that can take out a room in one shot."

“So you think a stick in the back of a sawed-off makes it a handheld." questioned Sabina.

“I'm stronger then recoil, always am. Maybe if you didn't keep a stick in your back, you could grasp that concept."

“That's nice," smirked Sabina, “Just don't yell at me when you find out that 4 meters is too far for 300 year old pepper shaker to reach."

“Whatever, man," said Kyung. “Alright, what do you got?"

Sabina confidently reached into her blazer. “Check it out, micro jet propulsion, .25 charge up before firing, and a serrated tip on all the projectiles. You can't even pre-order this thing yet, dead silent, too"

“Yeah, heard about those quiet 'new age' guns, as though traditional firearm are too loud as to not still kill you."

“I guarantee you the sound of that scatter gun will make you deaf for five minutes after you fire it. You might as well tear you ears off."

“Whatever... Hey, Zakhar, what you got?"

Zakhar remained silent.

“Come on, we both took out ours, let's see it"

“We do not earn with petty compensation," said Zakhar, “I see no need to participate in your little childrens' debate."

Kyung and Sabina just looked at each other and chuckled. A middle aged man stepped out of the building for work, stopping at the car where the others waited.

“Excuse me, uhh..." the man was caught off guard by his company, “can I... help you?"

“Mr. Wendelin," Zakhar said. “We came for a talk."

“Well, I was just on my way to-"

“Inside." The three walked closer to Wendelin, towards the building. The man backed off and nervously complied.

When they reached the man's home, Kyung flew the door opened and immediately pistol whipped the first thing he saw. The mother and little girl sitting at the table screamed briefly before quieting themselves at the sight of the gun.

“Off the chairs, breakfast can wait," ordered Kyung, “Make way to the corner, put your hands on your head, and make like a fly on the wall. Come on, we all wanna go home."

Zakhar grabbed a chair from the table and carefully set it facing the rest of the room. “Sit down, let's talk." the man complied, while Zakhar stood.

“So, now we can get on with business. You were to make a delivery last week. It has come to my attention that you have not made that delivery. Can you tell me why that is."

“Well, I-I tried but, you know, there are complications with this sort of thing, and-"

“Complications... You were to deliver designs owned by EG-R, you are manager of design at EG-X. Are we in agreement?"

Wendelin gave a slight nod.

“And you've experienced complications."

“E-EG-R was a completely different company. They might not even exist, anymore."

“You did not come to this conclusion when you excepted the job."

“I assumed that since I didn't receive payment yet that-"

“Why must you assume? You really have so little time?"

Wendelin didn't have a response.

“My client is not very happy with this 'assumption'. He was expecting that, after this amount of time, the delivery would be made. His time is much more valuable, I can persuade you of that fact. Easily."

“W-Wait! P-please, don't hurt me. I-I'll pay you! I'll give you compensation... p-plus interest!"

“Compensation? Heh... Hehehahahaha, did you here what he said?" Zakhar looked at the other two, who joined his laughter. “He's going to give us compensation. Ha, I've got compensation."

Zakhar stomped on Wendelin's leg, which followed by a sickening crunch and a cry of pain. Wendelin doubled over in pain, clutching his broken leg.

Zakhar paced around the room, looking for something else to make his point clear. “This TV, is this new?" he noticed the receipt on the top shelf, with the date and heavy price listed on it. “72 inch holographic display... this will do. Sabina, take care of it."

Sabina gripped the top and bottom of the set, lifting it as if it weighed nothing at all. She turned and walked in the direction of the door, then stopped. She turned around, rising it over her head, and hurled it across the room. The TV shattered all over the floor, and a crater was left in the wall.

Zakhar leaned in close to Wendelin, who'd already been brought to tears. “Please... sir..." Wendelin pleaded through his erratic breathe, “I could lose my job. I could-"

“You job means nothing to me." Zakhar said, “You mean nothing. You were given a task, and you failed to do it. This wasn't a favor, this wasn't a trade of services, this was a command. There was a carrot in front of you and a stick in back, and you did not earn the carrot. This is what happens now."

Zakhar pulled the chair from under Wendelin, Kyung and Sabina dragged the rest of the family together and bagged their heads. Zakhar took a seat, he observed the two beat every member of the family ritualistic, waiting for the moment to say when.

All in a day's work.


Thanks to Ace3000 who wrote half of this after my phone decided it didn't want to have that half.

[Saramica12]

13th June 2210
Air space of Moscow, Russia Empire

"YOU FIGHT FOR THE TSAR!"

"We fight for RUSSIA."
And the Pilot closes the call to open it privately to his fleet.
"Here Knight 1 to Витязи2 Squadron. Do you copy, Knight 2, 3 and 4? Let's stop the enemy aircrafts from attacking our civils."

"Roger that!" Answered all.

For their luck the "enemy" fleets are not numerous, only two were engaged on the mission.
The General however sounds very furious for this sudden betray of one of his best fleet, saving what they consider more important than calming this rebellion, their families. "Take down the Knights Squadron, IMMEDIATELY!"

And the other two Squads have nothing more to do than following the instructions, engaging a crude dogfight just above the begun revolution on their homeland.

Some voices from the crowd warns the others from the imminent.

"Oh God what they're doing!?"

“We’re gonna die like this!�

“Watch out!�

Vera looks up too, between the horror and the stupor. *What...?*

Lubovj gives more orders at his men. "Knight 2-3-4. Engage! But spare the Pilots, I repeat, spare the Pilots."

The General ranted at them the last time. "LUBOVJI LEONOVA! THIS IS THE LAST WARN, BACK AT THE BASE-
LUBOVJI!"

Vera in the meanwhile takes the initiative and shouts at the crowd, hoping to save them from the soon falling pieces of the fighters of Pawel. "RUN AWAY! OUT FROM THE COMBAT ZONE! HIDE HIDE!"
Unluckily, the crowd begun to panic around, as feared by both “little Lenin� and her companion Sergej, but this didn’t makes her too in panic. In cold blood she tries to keep the control. “Sergei, Lara, Timor! Help them to go away FASTER ASAP!� She shouts desperate while the rumbles of the engines up there becomes more loudly…
She looks up again at the sky, noticing in few seconds the number of one of the blue Su-130, that number is of her brother.
“Heh, you little брат3…â€� She mutters in a smile, but it was soon deleted as she looks down at the civils. Lara goes next to her Leader in hurry, with a very worried face. “Vera! There’s not great places to go! We’re surrounded!â€�

“And so we must go in the Palaces here around. We’re still civils, the Police can’t harm us if we are in this danger! Back here in the Kreml after this!�

“Da!� And runs towards the crowd again.

Up there, the dogfight keep going on, but more on the defensive than the offensive, to don’t let any further piece of metal falling on the crowd.
“One quarter of the enemies are down, Knight 1!� Warned Knight 2 at the Squadron.

“Good job Knight 2 and 3. On the next now!�

The pieces keep falling on the city center, but at least there won’t be much fatalities, with their stupor the Police is helping also the civils, even if secretly.
Eventually, inside some churches and other palaces they will find some security.

“Knight 4 to 1! Captain, the civils are safe now.�

“Good news so Sergeant...engage the enemies at full force now!� Ordered Lubovj at his Squadron determined even more to stop this insanity.

Ah Pawel, if he didn’t put on the flight these younger teams to fight such an insignificant threat, maybe at this time the slaugher mission would have been a success…
Who knew that the “angels� of Moscow would appear this suddently to change the sorts of this event?
Also the last ones were shot down in the tought dogfight, all exploding like bloody reddish fireworks. At least, as promised, the Pilots who managed to escape from their totalled aircraft were rightly spared, as the victorious Knights watches their parachutes on the skies falling slowly down.

“Knight 1 to the Squad. Let’s head back to Kubinka4.�

“We only have to hope there won’t be any further problems, sir.� Commented Knight 4 at his Captain, a bit afraid of what kind of reaction the Generals would have for their sudden change of "flag".

Leonova smiles and admires the now peaceful moment. “In need I may know where to go to save ourselves...� Comforted the Leader at them.

***

16 June 2210
Moscow, Russian Empire

With the Tsar only present in the Royal Palaces of St. Petersburg, the four rebels had all the time to take the Kremlin.

A sudden visit makes their Leader Vera very happy: the Knights are here, so her brother too. Lubovji, after around three months, finally is in front of his sister, his little Verusha.
“Hey Verusha, the family will be really proud of you.�
She didn’t thought twice and glomped on him, beginning to cry in commotion in his arms. “Oh brother, I’m so happy to see you again alive…�
“You don’t know how I missed you too, Verusha.� He said while embracing her tightly, back the same feelings of her.
After the rightful pleasant meeting, the Fleet of her brother did a step foward. “Sir, what should we do now?�

“Hm? Oh right right...Vera, we are here to help the Rebellion against the Tsar, too.� He said with a big grin of sastification.

“Wonderful news! Now we have even our Air Force! Jennter must be happy to know they will have you four!�

“I hope they will, Vera.�

***

17 June 2210
Moscow, Russian Empire

“...I think is time for you all to go away then, the men who still worship the Tsar wanna all your heads on a stick to be well seen at the Red Square!�
Vera nods at the old woman. “I think we may take in advice your idea, Ramaela.�

“So we will heads at Düsseldorf, right?� Asked Knight 1 at both.

“I think is the best idea, brother. If they will kill us, I don’t know what will happen next to our civils who joined us…�

Lubovj shakes his head, trying to avoid that bitter immagination.

“Better don’t think about and take the action as soon as possible, signorinelli!� Ammonished slightly the Cartomant.
The soldiers and the Pilots sighs slightly, not even a day passed and now they have to be gone in these next hours.

“We will meet again, it’s a promise, Verusha.�

“Same for me, Lubovj.�

At the evening, the four of the Rouge Team admires the blue Su-130 takes the skies to heads at the German Empire.

“I will warn Lord Nico that the next Russians who will heads at His land are only our allies.� Said out loud Vera at her group, whose nodded in understanding. After all the dogfights that happened between the Russians and Germans…

***

20th June 2210
Moscow, Russian Empire

As expected, a group of the best Pawel’s Soldiers take back the situation at the Kremlin, so that the Rouge Team had to fleet somewhere to keep focusing on the Rebellion. One of the best place should be at Tsaritsyno5, a little lonely and forgotten place after the war begun.

But in those days, at the Base of Jennter in Düsseldorf, Nico von Bovier gladly accepted this sudden and positive new reinforcements from Vera, from the rebelling Russia. They may be very helpful for the next strikes at their enemy Empire too.






1: "Rodina-Mat' zovyot!" Homeland-Mother Is Calling!

2: "Vitjazi" Knights.

3: "brat" Brother.

4: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kubinka_(air_base)

5: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tsaritsyno_Park .

[Jonny]

Nico left the scene, actually he wandered around the location that Jonathan created, it looked a lot like Münster, only without any other people.
He spotted him leaving with Rebecca, seemed like they were reliving various moments from their time as teenagers.

Nico woke up and looked into the eyes of the scientists, Jonathan was still inside the Electrosphere.
He stripped off the cables and told his employees to leave Jonathan inside.


21st July 2210
Jonathan woke up a bit after midnight, slightly sad that Rebecca was bound to the Electrosphere, and his program. But he was also incredible greatful for remembering all the wonderful moments he had with her.

He just went to Nico's office, not really expecting to meet him there.
"Oh that office, I like it a lot." said Jonathan, actually just commenting the 2170s furniture.
Nico was found head-down with a slight smile on his face.
"Are you sleeping?" asked the old Bovier, as he got no reply, he decided to leave and go home.


Later that day Jonathan went back to the Jennter HQ, as he finally decided to delete his program.
He marched towards the room with the two Sublimators, the door was looked, but his ID card was still useful after all.

He took off his shirt and connected himself with the Electrosphere, controlling the Sublimation process himself, by taking one of the tablets that were laying on a table and cutted his mind half off, clearly keeping vision and conciousness, but having a small eyesight of 10 meters. He only noticed that when looking out of the window.
Jonathan started connecting partly, that's where he needed to be cautious. It was like finding the pressure point with the clutch pedal as he tried to find the point were his program soaked in Sublimated beings.
As he found it he went a bit back inside the real world and then again closer to the point the Electrosphere begins.
Finally he let himself soak inside it and cutted his mind off. He won't wake up without any outside help, but he wouldn't need that either.


Inside the Electrosphere was only darkness at first, no sound, only a void.
Then the first data was appearing, he found the main orientation grid that he added some decades ago.
'I need to go to X17436 Y1 Z0.' he found out the location of the program on a pice of paper that he left in his pocket before adding the program.
'It was unnecessary to create that program, this is outside of any right!' Jonathan told himself.
As he found the program it was a white cube, just some pixels of size.

Jonathan took a small, azure part out of it, being Rebeccas conciousness.
He crushed the program with his hand, falling into millions of small debries of all colour.
Then he tapped on the azure part and it was growing.
It was Rebecca.

"Do you remember that day?" she asked him smiling.
Jonathan looked into her eyes, his face was looking thoughtful. Then he answeared "I guess...noone got hurt. But I think this little program should have existed." He watched how one of it's debries were just not vanishing, unlike the others. They were red and blue. He just toom them into his pocket.

"That day..." he started to say slowly.

It wasn't a one to one copy of a human's mind, it was Rebeccas conciousness, since the day she left her body, as it started to be to weak for her mind.
Jonathan knew that she would die anyway, since she wasn't so ready to expand her life with simple cybernetics.
He accepted that day to Sublimate her and created the program to allow her a confortable life.
Just by now he reallised the beauty of the true Electrosphere.

[Saramica12]

Was speaking with @Jonny this afternoon about these famous "What if..." Universes, where events have a total different cut from the acutal plan x)
So the idea fell on: what if Selene and Nico have met already? What if Selene died instead of Jana?
Around this loooong Part will be this work on this idea, all "fanmade" with portions of Parts of @Jonny to explain better the organization of this story.
In this, Selene have a similar power to the one of Madison, but not the same strenght.

Warning: Gore xP

Legend:

Red: Jonny's Parts
Blue: My "Plot Twist" elaboration.



Part 47: Back to Business

[...]
"Well done, to all of us, we brought the number 1 enemy of our nation, directly into it's capital. Again applause." said Jonny, more sarcastic than usual, maybe because he realised that they are fault.

Nico ran after her.

"The thing is, if she leaves her body, she is almost immortal, only electricity could kill her. She would need to practise to stabilise that state, that's what Nico just
recommended her." said Brian.

"And the Emperor gave that guy a medal for archievments for the German fatherland." added Jonny laughing.


Madison went into Jana's office, she was like always doing paperwörk.
As she raised her head and looked into Madison's red eyes, she only said "What do you want?"

Madison laughed and went even closer to Jana. "I hate you since we were young, but I still need you for something else."

She turned around and closed the doors.

"You know how we french people do it. You may laugh about our weak fighting abilities, but in the end, we - win - always."

"You want a peace treaty, never, it's against basic physics to lose against you frenchies." said Jana arrogantly.

"Oh Jana, I thought you are usually so peaceful, why do you not stop the dying on the front by just setting your autograpth on this piece of paper." Madison said this very slowly and in a way everybody hates it. She took out her tab and gave it Jana.

She only threw it away "I rather die, fighting on the front, in the air, or even here!"

"Let's see if your beloved Emperor is showing the same attitude, so now, things get personally." Madison said formal.
Jana had hanging two swords at the wall of her office, Madison took both and threw one to Jana.

"I, President Madison Larough, challenge you, Reichschanzellor Jana von Bovier, to a duell, of live - and death."

***

Part 48: New Threat

Madison raised her arms to make a hit, but Jana parryed it.

"You will be the first of your whole breed!" Madison started numerous attacks on Jana and laughed evil.

"I thought you like my brother." said Jana exausted from Madison's attacks.

"Hahaha, stupid one you are, I don't stop with your stupid family, little princess, I mean your whole, how you call it? Volk!"

Madison's eyes were red like flames, her face was cutted in two by her wide, laughing mouth. The plan of a Versailles 2.0 was swapped with a big nuclear strike.

"This is ridiculous!" said Jana and started the offensive, it seemed like she was able to push Madison back into the corner. Madison spotted the power point in it and pierced it with her sword.
230V of electricity flowing through her body, pure energy.

In the whole building was a blackout, although that wasn't a big threat daytimes.

Madison stood up, lightnings were surrounding here like armor, she pushe Jana to the opposing wall.
"Well, Princess Jana, I won't kill you right here, I want you to see how you fail to protect your fellow countymen, 120 Million people in the whole Empire, right?" Madison whispered this into her ears in a sharp voice.

Madison took Jana under her hostage, she laid her right hand on her left shoulder, three red bolts were floating right behind her, pointing each to her head, neck and heart.
"If anybody of you fools even tries to speak to one of us, your beloved Cancelor is dead and you too, don't even think about assassinating me from behind." Madison said sharp to the security personal, she escorted Madison to a parking craft.
"The Sayutschi Sa5, I like that one." she just touched the craft with her finger and opened it.

Jana was cuffed to a handle on the left backdoor with something like electric handcuffs, even if they lose the contact to Madison's electrosphere they still were red.


"Madison kidnapped Jana?" said Nico disbelieving as he got the message of Jana's personal assistent, Dennis Ascher.
"Her office was completely messed up, we just noticed the blackout in the building." said Mr Ascher. "Also Madison Larough was surrounded by something red..." he searched for words "...it gave her power."

"Electricity" said Jonny, who joined both.

"Electricity, that sounds interesting." noted the assistant.

"Is there anything known about her intention?" asked Nico.
"May Jana has to sign an enormous peace treaty, I mean really a second Versailles." Jonny made a gesture like showing someone how big the fish was he pulled out of the water.
"Damn, I can't pretend that I thought Madison wouldn't do such a thing anymore." admitted Nico.
"You can do what you want, if you decide to save your sister, I'll help you." said Jonny.
"And what should we do?" he asked.

"JSF, search a bit in the project folder."

“Elettricity.� Ended at last a new member in the room, is the white-haired girl who Nico met not even few months ago, just like a greet, but intensifies with not few time spent together in pleasant speechees whenever he could.

The von Bovier looks her in a frown. “Selene please, these aren’t good times to interrupts us. Go back where you came.�
He never was this harsh toward her, that really upset her a bit, but she felt why and understand in a sigh. “Yes, I see, Milord.� And bows slightly. “May I help to find where Your sister is?�

“No, we don’t need a hand, we already know everything. Again please, leave, is only for your safetly.�

Selene heard enough and silently walks away from that hall.
She smiles looking up at the sky a moment, fulfilled with a new energy in her.
She feels that she will be there too in the recovery of the sister of her dear friend.

---

Part 50: Scramble the Jets

15th May 2210

Jennter Enterprises Air Base 1, Düsseldorf, Germany

The Air Base of Jennter Enterprises wasn't much used after the closure of Jennter Aeronautical Research.
It was a sunny spring day in Westphalia, the sun was shining, while the fresh wind was brushing through the pink bugeons of the trees.
A beautiful day, distorted by the war that was raging some hundrets of kilometers away, the mood was oppressive. The war against the Federation could be won, but now the cards turned. Madison had Jana, her intentions were a secret even for herself.

The building should serve as the headquater for operations in Western Europe, in corporation with the German Luftwaffe.
In the early morning the first people entered the revived building, Nico von Bovier was the first of them, together with his grant Jonny and also General Juist was having an eye on them.
The pilots were majorly mercenaries, but also Sascha Foß, who alsready signed a contract with Harimau for the F12000, decided to join Jennter's private air force.
Nico, Jonny and General Juist were in a room with ten other people, it was a mission briefing. Eight of them were pilots, one a coordinator and another one was Jennter's new General.
Nico started introducing everybody and everything "First of all, welcome to the Jennter Enterprises Special Forces, short JSF. You may know me, I'm Nico von Bovier, the current President of Jennter Enterprises, next to me stands my great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfather, Jonny von Bovier, Founder of Jennter Enterprises."
Instantly the four pilots started romoring about stories of Jonny during WWIII.

"I am General Juist, I directly come from the government, since the Reichskanzlerin was kidnapped this case directly involves the Empire."

"And I am General Hertig, I'll lead the Special Forces."

"My name is Frederik Burmann, I am your Coordinator."

Nico started explaining what the next mission was "This mission is very important, Reichskanzlerin Jana von Bovier, yes she is my sister, was kidnapped by the President of the European Federation, Madison Larough."

A president kidnapped by another president was a curios story.

"The Border Security spotted her in a craft, a Sayutschi Sa5, license plate B G - 1343, stolen." said General Juist.
"We are assuming that she is in the Parliament. Your job is to escort the helicopter under the callname 'The Madddest Dog' until Paris and protect him until the President is safe." explained Nico. "Free Jana von Bovier and bring her home, living! Good luck pilots, dismiss!"

<<Charlie Squadron, Start in 30 minutes.>>

[...]

Selene didn’t lefted the local area, as she studied every single movement of them. She's happy to see that her results matches perfectly with what she expected.

She simply takes a ticket and imprinted it in the machine of the train, so that her travel to Paris won’t have too much troubles.
She brought with her the old walking stick that accompanied her for mostly of her childhood, still intact, she checked everything in it hoping that won’t fail her, not this time.

She could already see in front of her the happy face of Nico while hugging her sister, and afterwards goes to her and thanking her thousands of time in commotion. She would give to him her life to just see it. Then other memories arrives in the middle: the first meeting, the first awkward words, the first time in Jennter to meet up with the rest of his family, the congratulations with his family for the Title...

She looks out through the clear window and enjoys the departure, having in the heart these warm memories.

---

Part 51: Madison Larough

Federal Parliament of France, Paris, Paris Isle of France, France

Jana was sitting together with Madison in a room, it could have been a meeting room.
Due to Madison's special living form, all electronic devices were running, the light was shining in a bright red.
Two chairs were turned across each other, on one of them sat Jana with her arms crossed behind her and fixed to it with a simple rope. Several bolts were floating around her, aiming for her head, neck and back. If Madison was loosing it, Jana would be toast, definitely.

Madison was several meters away from Jana and went up and down the room.
"If I do this, everything else would be useless...but all the pain...but...hahaha....HAHAHAHA!" she was saying to herself, her laugh was insane, and evil.
She headed towards Jana.
"Jana von Bovier" she said her name without any sign of disgust towards her "my only offer to you, sign this treaty."

"I thought you were going to let the Kaiser do this." Jana said coldly.

"Ahh, Jana can't you just once play this game with me? You know 'the bad Frenchie forces the good German to sign an impossible peace treaty'." Madison said sarcastically, but full of hate.

She turned around and went away, Jana feared any following measures Madison would have to do.
But instead Madison just broke down "GET OUT OF ME!"
As Madison arrived Jana the reactions of the people were mixed, her loyal subjects were happy about her return, her opponents not so much.
She ignored this, here new abilities set herself above normal humans, any attempt to sabotage her would be punished with a cooked brain.

Madison was laying on the floor, bending, the electricity was pulsing out of her. "I HATE YOU! LEAVE ME ALONE!"

"She must be inside." said a man.

"Let's enter the facility." said another one.

Jana throw herself and the chair to the ground while Madison was busy with herself, she could reach for a glass splinter laing near to her.
Several men entered the building, of course there was resistence by the employees.
They were already near to the room with the VIP.
Jana's gun laid on the table next to her, Madison wasn't realy caring as she took it away from her.

The door was kicked in.

"Hey, what's going on down there?" asked The Maddest Dog as he was seeing several black suited men entering the parliament.

"HAHAHAHA!" a tinny voice laughed, Jana instandly throw herself to the ground, it doesn't mattered that some fragments drilled into her arm.

"Madison Larough, seeing you suffering from your own insaneness." it said.

Madison noticed she wasn't longer alone with Jana, she turned her face to look with burning red eyes into the shining-blue ones of Henry Assange.

"General, there is something not right." reported Sascha.
"What do you mean, Charlie 1?" he asked confused.
"There are way to much EAS agents, it seems like they invade the parliament. Maybe, the Reichskanzlerin could free herself?" he reported.

Madison was heavily breathing, looking in Henry's smiling face made her angry. He was looking gloatly, seeking revenge for letting him dying on the ground of the remains, that were his childhood house.
Henry laughed and signalised his agent's to arrest her.

"I warn you, if you traitors touch me, you will literally be fired!" warned Madison.

Jana still laid under the table, hoping that noone would notice her. "Where is...?" wispered Madison, looking at Jana's empty chair.

'Scheiße!' her only rescue would be Henry distracting Madison.

As the agents noticed the aircraft in the sky they could do nothing in first place, but landing was impossible and every kind of fuel dries sooner or later.

"Ordering support to ensure air supriority and ground attack." said Charlie 1 to General Herting.
"How hopeless is the situation?" the General asked.
"We could try a ground attack, but landing would be impossible for The Maddest Dog." Sascha cleared up.

“Wait, there’s someone...an intruder who’s entering the building!� Suddently shouts one of the men of Sasha.

“Who?� Asked the General surprised by.

“U-Unknown, Sir, looks like a civil..! A girl in white.
She was soon to be stopped with the force but she simply pushed all away... like a strong Repulsor!�

The General remains a moment in silence, then back to speak. “May I see a record, if you did one?�

And the pictures shows clearly all the scene, this girl running, then held forcefully by some and lastly this beam of light that pushed all apart, then her enter.

“...We have to warn Nico.�


As Madison stood up she really realised Henry's condition.
Around his neck several cables and tubes were sticking out of it. His eyes were, in fact, pale blue.
Two EAS agent's went towards Madison, she barely touched them and they laid dead on the floor.
Henry's eyes were already wide open, but instead of pleasure, now it was fear.
Another pair of EAS agents arrived.

"Again, if you continue to betray me, you'll end like these two wanks." Madison to a second to change her voice. "Henry, do you really, REALLY think YOU are any kind of problem for me? For me you are like dust. I WIPE YOU OUT!"

Agent's were more intelligent than Henry, as the others found out how Madison removed two of their collegues even the most loyal of them disappeared.
"Here is The Maddest Dog, I'll land now."

Madison fired a bolt towars Henry, who just flew through the hall like a corn of dust.
As Madison finally could take a look at Henry she just said "Looks like I stamped another hole through you...just a bit bigge-"

BANG!

She looked at the blood that splashed against the wall.
Jana directly looked through the hole that perfectly straight went through Madison's head.

While Jana tried to reload Madison slowly lead bolds from her fingertips to enclose the gun and electrify it.
Jana was forced to knee infront of Madison, she looked to her through barely open eyes. The electricity hurted, she was screaming loudless.

Madison was looking at her, although she now had only one eye left, it was still possible for her to look like usual.

"Invulnerable" she slowly said.

"I-I thouggght, nnonot, wwwwile yoou arree in youur booody." Jana said under electricity.

"In moments like these, I like that I am no normal human."

The Maddest Dog was carrying several soldiers, thy infiltrated the building.
It was no relief for them to see the VIP tortured.

"Hand's up!" one of them shout, he was instantly killed by a precise aimed bolt.

Jana was almost crying under the pain, the fact that she was near to be safed didn't made it better.
'Bovier's don't cry!' she was thinking, her body felt stiff under the constant energy flow.
"I'll kill you for the stupid attempt to kill ME! Just look at what you have done!"
Madison pulled Jana to her, so she could see into her face, the spot where the bullet left her head, right through her right eye, that now, half destroyed hang out of the eyehole.
The security team was extreamly overwhelmed by the power of Madison.
"Why does it takes so long?" Jana finally asked, thinking that Madison actually planed to kill her.
Madison fell back from another personal conflict.
"You want death? Here you got it."
[...]

"NO!"

And a mechallic sound rings in the room, more quitely than this desperate shout that goes out in the impetus to stop her murderous instincts.

It was a quick and clean action, that sliced off half forearm of Madison before she could even gave the last hit at Jana. This "Jack Knife" that is her stick worked as she hoped.
Jana falls back in a little gemit, while Madison falls on her knees in a scream unknown if for the pain or the shock, or both. She simply shouts like that would be her last sound to be heard.

While the Dictator is still in her own bloodbath and staring at her arm, Selene takes the chance to grabs Jana and drags her away. “Jana, Jana! Don’t say a word, just RUN.� She said with such a seriety that even herself was surprised. She pushes her towards the remaining Agents and see her face a last time, that look confused, but grateful. Selene looks her back, with her sweetest smile that Jana will never forget.

Then there’s only Madison and Selene in. (https://youtu.be/y713FqASM_g)

One and twenty lonely souls.

Selene points the tip of the rod in front of her, glaring at her profile. “At the end of this day, one will stand... while the other will fall, MADISON!�
Madison is still on her knees, with the same shocked expression on her face.
Then suddently she crawls down the other hand on the sliced arm to grab it slowly and place it back where was. The energy on her will be enough to keep it on place like a strong glue. She slightly up her look and stares at the wall in front of her blankly, without any emotion now.

“Hehehe...hahah...Ha ha HA! HahahAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!�
She laughs maniacally just like before, but more loudly, as she stares her with the only bloody red eye she have, directly at the ones pale pink of Selene, who looks her back orrified, terrified soon.

But she promised him, and she will pay.

She takes some courage and looks her fierecely, determined to punish her for all the bad she did to everyone and soon even to Nico.

“C’mon, Snow White, why did you interrupted my little talk with an old friend?� Said Larough a bit in a weird pitched tone, to then change in a more darker. “You know that is umpolite... YOU KNOW!? PERISH, LASSIE!�
And throws at her a red dart right in the direction of her chest.

Surprisingly, it was reflected by a kind of “shield� over her.
“You won’t win, Madison.� And makes a long step while the weapon begun to shine too of a bright sky blue aura, the power of mind can do miracles if well used.

“I WILL! NOBODY CAN STOP ME!� She shouted back while grabbing the sword she steal from Jana’s office just not a day before, and charges it with elettricity.
They strikes at full force, while the two blades crushes in each other, leaving only sparks... and an impressive amount of energy unleashed out!



In the meanwhile, Jana entered in the helicopter to bring her back in Germany.
“W-Wait! We can’t let that girl to die like that!�

“I’m sorry, we cannot do a thing, that is just a civil, leaving the fact she saved you.�

Jana remains there with a deep glare at the soldier. That’s unacceptable for her. “Just because she’s not one of YOU she have to die!? Remain here immediately!�

“Negative, Frau Reichskanzlerin, impossible. Is too dangerous to remain here. Now please sit down and wait.�

“You all will be FIRED!� She scolded at his face with a last pitch in the last word, then sits, with a pose that will means that she won’t talk for all the travel.

“General, the VIP is with us. Mission Complete.�
“Here General Herting, good work guys. Head back to base.�



“Who brought you here? Maybe that bastard of Nico VON Bovier? Did he payed you too?� Murmured Madison in a high tone as her hits grows stronger and stronger to break the weaky defences of Selene.

“I-I did in my own feelings! How many times did you see someone you cared DIE?�

“AHHHHHH! SHUT UP!� She cries and gives her a kick to push her away. “NOT EVEN A LIFE CARED OF ME! And what you all consider a Noble, is JUST A DISGUSTING HUMAN, THAT TOO DIDN’T CARED OF ME!�

She said after placed a foot on the gracile neck of Selene, in order to give more easily a deadly hit.
Again the powers of Selene takes the advance and pushes her apart with another aura of her pure energy, quickly she stands up to take back her defences. “No. I saw in his eyes that he loved you, more than you could believe, Madison. You are just a poor soul who needed more love, maybe.� Selene replied, now more calm, like she finally “linked� her mind in hers to see the truth underneath this creature, thirsty of the others pain and blood.
“You can’t let to the others pay what only an immature group did in your childhood. I can help you! Please, stop all this and join me!�

Madison was panting, static in her position with a dead stare at her. She didn’t heard a word, too deaf this soul to understand a single good word.
She shouts another warcry, like for her a warn that her new strikes will be more heavy and hard to defend. She frowns sad and resumes the tought battle, grudgingly.
At this point, seems a battle without a winner or a loser.

But one have to fall.



“Repeat please? Tell me that all this is a FAKE!�

“No sir, all true. This girl entered in the building and have managed to save your sister, whose she went out with just an arm harmed by some glass.� Explained the General.

‘Selene, why?’ He thought while a little tear fell in his cheek.
“...Send another Squadron. NOW.�
The Superior frowns and shakes his head. “The only Squadron we sent is in the way to go back here with Jana. If you wish that, we have then to request the Kaiser for His permission to give a Squadron of the Empir-�

He’s interrupted suddently by the sudden reaction of rage of Nico, as he throws on the ground the various things that were on the table, to then leave the room with heavy steps.



But here is henceforth the fatal hour has come, that the life of one comes to its end.
She finally was able to push the iron peak in her chest, that plunges and greedy drinks the blood; she already feels dying, doomed by her energies that falied to protect her in this last moment.

“HAHAHAHAHA! LOOK YOURSELF, WORM! You’re really dying like a woman, AS YOU DESERVE FOR THIS YOUR PATHETIC TRY TO STOP ME!�
And pushes more deeply the blade in, while charging it more with her elettricity.
Then she leaves it off her by holding her torso with a foot, just an inch close to the wound, and press. “Suffer.� She ended in a whisper with a distorted grin, as she admires the death of Selene.
Then she grabs her from her dress to pulls her up to see more closely her devastated face from the pain.

But instead of seeing a battered face, it is smiling.

“Do you enjoy your pain? May I give you some more?�

Barely alive, she tries to speak with what remains in her. “I’m happy...happy that I’m dying for something I did and will never regret, Madison. A-And someone I ever cared of.�

Larough glares, almost like disgusted by, and toss her on the floor, then she knees next to her and points the whole blade on her neck. “What are your last words, Snow White?� She said sarcastically in a evil grin.

“My name is Selene... a-and you are forgiven.� She ended in a last breath, still smiling.

Madison remains there confused by those words, never had in front such a person like her, maybe only Nico.
But at remembering him, her bitterness back as her insanity.

“Hello Selene. Salute Nico from me...IN HELL!� And slices off her head in one, inhuman hit.

She grabs her head from the white wavy hair and looks her in a grin while the light is fading away from her pink eyes…

“I. Am. God.�

And let falls the head next to the corpse.

She takes a breath in a brief moment of calm and looks herself on a scattered glass there, her eye was still hanging out the hole Jana made her. She frowns as she rips it off and wanting to crush it or toss it away too, but then she have a better idea for the situation. She gets close again at the cadaver of Selene just to place the eye in a hand of her.
“For my love, hold it close, and don’t let it go. HmhmhahahaHAHA!�


---

Part 53: DEFCON

20th May 2210

Madison was sitting in her new office, somewhere in France, maybe.
She started a video transmission to the United German Military.
"Hello, General Juist" she coldly said.

He didn't replied to her, but waited that she continued.

"As you may know, we have many, many intercontinental balistic missiles, it would be a shame to use them. You know, they are quiet expensive." she said, smiling.

"What are your intentions?" he asked her.

"I could imagine myself not using these guys, under one condition:
Surrender now!"

"President Larough, I know that our Nation is owning ICBMs, MRMs and SRMs. If you fire one, we will fire all." answeared General Juist.

"I don't care about casualities, in the end, I will win. Because I will live." Madison said.

Both were soon to close the call, but again she smiles and keeps talking at them. "Oh, and again, I have here some junk that need to be trashed. I think your little prince there will be interested on the offer I give, ja?"
And raises the head of Selene in front of the camera now with a wide, twisted and triumphant grin, looking at the horrified and "soon-to-puke" faces of everyone in there.

Even if are only five days that she's decreased, is still in good conditions, sadly.

"Please, accept it, as sign of our alliance, my dear, fu*ing prince. HAHAHAHA-

General Juist ended the transmission and called General Herting.
"Larough threatens us with a nuclear strike, we'll start a giant offensive to the Federation. It would be pleasant if you would support us." he hasty said.
"Larough, Nukes, spanking some frenchies? Of course we'll help you!"

'But how about Nico then?' Thoughts nervously the General, since that head is for him.


"What are the news so, Juist? The Squad arrived there to save her?"
Nico said quite excited sitted on a chair of the meeting room in the HQ of Jennter.
The General leaves the hat and so the others around him. "Herr Nico von Bovier, that girl who entered the building, and saved your sister..."

"Yes..?" Said right Jana, who's just next to her brother.

There was a mute silence, then the General clears the throat and end the sentence.
"S-She didn't made it. Madison was able to kill her. That's why not an aircraft flew from this place. The President gave us the proof of. Follow me please."

Nico turns pale at that shocking video. In that instant he felt like the whole world crumbling on him. "Oh mein Gott..."
Jana remains as stone, then slowly she leans on the shoulder of Nico and cries, feeling guilty for her death. She could have saved her if she forced the Maddest Dog to remain there.

After an another moment of silence, Nico struggling tries to speak again. "A-And where she is now?"

"Still in France, but as stated by Larough, her corpse will be sended here soon."

Nico nods, trying to hold the sobs that are indeed suffocating him, then Jana speaks for him, more in forces to speak. "I'm sorry, we need to leave a moment."

"Sure." And diligently they remains stands up in the room to wait.


A day later...

The body was well treated, the head back on the body, the first mortal wound sewed.


"Has the white face[...], like wih the lilies are mixed the violets. In this form passed the beautiful woman, and she seems to be just asleep."
Commented poetic someone in the Church after passed nearby.

"I swear, in the good name of our family, that Madison will PAY."
Nico growled as he was leaning on the pale coffin while he sees her in, now even more destroyed by the pain, but also furious, after they discovered the eye of Madison in the left hand of her.
That was so a warn or a provocation from that person he even say to "I love you"?

Jana is still next to him, trying to comfort him with all she could, but thinking of that day makes her as much as him. "I-I'm sorry, brother, I-Is all my fault, I could had saved her, if only...if only-"
Nico places gently a hand on his lips, shutting her. "Don't feel so, is not your fault, only of HERS. If she wasn't there, you'd be dead too."
The Chancellor just nods slightly and back to hold tenderly the arm of his brother while looking down at that girl who saved her at the price of hers of life.

The funerals, big as requested by both Nico and Jana, were helding there. In the evening the corpse was headed away, back in Greece, where she was born.
However, her presence still seems there with them...

---

Part 68: Life

[...]

15th July 2210

Nico looked at himself and laid on the table.
"Mr Bovier, are you sure that you want to risk your life, for a sole fantasy?" asked the Project Leader.
He looked very angry at this man and slowly said "I just pay you, concerns are my thing."

The machine was turned on, directly electrising his whole body, espectally his nervous system felt stimulated.

"Initiating partition
Cuts
Connects
Engages
And?" commented the operating scientist.

Nico just laid there on the table.


Part 69: Electrosphere

[...]
Nico found himself back in the white room, not able to gain orientation.
He looked down on himself, he was wearing his usual Jennter uniform, in white. He wasn't able to spot smaller details.
"Madison!" he shouted, trying to find her in the Electrosphere.
Nico started running, to the place he expected the last fight.

After some running, longer than it would have actually taken, he spotted something on the horizon.

"M-Madison?" he asked, rather confused.
Nico continued running, what he spotted was indeed a woman, laying on the blank, white ground.

No...now he notices TWO (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yu4KObwynSc), since in all this candor, another woman is next to her, camouflaging perfectly in this world. She seems having a pleasant tattle with.

His heart sunk a moment. He recognized that shilouette.

In that moment, he completely removed from his mind the word "Madison", replacing with a muttered name he ever loved. "Selene..."

That silvery figure turns immediately and smiles widely. She's with her special dresses she weared when she helped Ramaela, covered around with this silvery aura, that pure energy she used to fight Larough, appearing like made of glass. Also the other person she was talking with turns to see him.

She let first the old woman to talk to him and wait patiently. She waited him enough, a bit more won't harm, she thought as she's enjoying this "Family reunion".

After the two ended the presentations, Nico walks in front of what remains of her, with a shade of melancholic.

"Herr Nico von Bovier..." Said Selene, bowing at him playfully.

"Signorina Selene...Selene Konstante..Konstantin..." He tries to remember, embarrassed to had forgot her full name.

She giggles and hugs him. "Selene Konstantinákos, but call me also Selenella, my dear Nico. What a pleasure to see you alive."

Nico takes her face and looks at her deeply serious. "Why Selene, WHY? And HOW did you come here?"
She shrugs, possible that now she's just energy, she was able to penetrate in his Electrosphere.
Then she politely answers the first question. "Seen? I've made it, I saved your sister!"
And back to remember what she thought exactly two months ago.

And it ended to be true, as she wished.

[Snakenator1]

User input>|locate transmission_

[12:30:06]>>LOCATING...
[12:30:36]>>ERROR: IP ADDRESS MASKED. LOCATION UNKNOWN.

User input>|record transmission_

[12:30:42]>>TRANSMISSION ACCEPTED.
[12:30:42]>>RECORDING...

We're here, we shall return........ Get ready as we mean business

Faster...Stronger.....Reborn
Prepare yourself

25/06/2015

[12:31:27]>>TRANSMISSON ENDED

[Ace3000]

With all the action and death and stuff going on, Jonny and I decided that we all need a little breather. You know, how sometimes anime has that one breather episode? However, unlike anime breather episodes, this one is non-canon. It does, however, introduce a new character of mine that will be in the FTA canon.

Enjoy!

Jonny thought up the scene, I wrote it and expanded upon it with his approval.

FTA/COTD - A Non-Canon Breather Part
<beautiful days | masafumi takada (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1DFnS29GbnM)_>

Date Unknown

Location Unknown

Time... Somewhat known: Midday.

The scene ahead of him made Nico stop in his tracks. There, he saw Sergej with his head against a door.

"Sergej? What... What are you doing?"

Sergej just put his fingers to his lips, then pointed at the door.

"Listening." he whispered.

"To what?"

Again, Sergej just pointed at the door. Curious, Nico walked over and put his ear to the door. There, he was amazed at what he heard.

"Really?" he whispered.

Sergej nodded, a big smile on his face.

The two of them listened for a while longer, then one of the voices called out a name: "Selene!".

Nico just stared, wide eyed, before speaking, "Th... That's my ex-girlfriends name!"

"Yeah, I'm sure my ex is there, too."

"Y-you mean she's-?"

"Yeah." Sergej cut Nico off.

"And they're-?"

"Oh, yeah."

"Eh-heh... eh-heheheh... wow." Nico giggled.

"Yeah, I know."

At that moment, a girl with a mixture of dark purple and black coloured hair shot out from around the corner on a pair of AG skates. As soon as she saw the two of them huddled at the door, she stopped, a weird expression forming on her face.

"Wh... What are you doing?" She asked them.

The two men just stood straight up and turned to face her.

"Ah... Uhhh... NOTHINGATALL!" They quickly answered, zipping to the other end of the room.

"Uh-huh. I'll decide that for myself." She said, walking to the door. Before she could put her ear to the door, Nico spoke up.

"Who exactly are you?" He asked.

She looked back at them. "Catherine Evans. I'm an employee at the Anti-Gravity Racing Commission. Nice to meet you!" She introduced herself with a smile on her face, which quickly faded, "But don't think you can stop me from finding out what's so interesting behind this door."

She put her ear to the door, and heard the noises that Nico and Sergej heard. Instantly, her eyes widened and her face gradually grew more red. Her mouth opened slightly as she then closed her eyes, her mind seemingly in a different place. Suddenly, she realised where she was, and came back to reality.

"Uh... uhh, sorry... I... I have to go." She said, before speeding away on her skates.

Nico was the one to break the silence, several seconds after Catherine left.

"So... just what was that about?"

"No idea, but... do you think... that she was enjoying that?" Sergej responded.

Nico just stared at him, before answering, "Glad I'm not the only one wondering that."

[Jonny]

Sure thing that I had the idea... *sigh*

[Saramica12]

And that idea is still in need to be drawn (next with this :v) XD

[Ace3000]

And now, the canon appearance of Catherine Evans.

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
>log21: 22100722

Sunday, July 22nd, 2210

AGRC Headquarters.

The navy blue Jennter stopped right outside the building. A girl got out and activated her AG skates. She skated into the building and stopped at the reception desk.

"Hi! I have an appointment here. A job interview. Name's Catherine Evans." She told the receptionist.

The receptionist turned to the computer in front of him, then turned back to her.

"Yep, I see the appointment. Go on through to your left, it's to be in Conference room 2. I'll let the interviewer know you're here."

"Thanks!" She said, moving swiftly and quickly to the room. She deactivated the skates just before the room and walked the rest of the way, knocking when she reached it.

"Come in." Came a voice from within the room.

As she entered, the man sitting behind the desk gestured at the chair in front.

"Please, take a seat." He offered.

"Thanks!" She replied, sitting down.

The man then began the interview, "First things first, let me introduce myself. I am Chris Scarbrough, the director of the AGRC. You are Catherine Evans, if I have it right?"

"Yes, sir!" She responded.

"Good. Now, why do you want to work here?"

"I believe I can do a lot to help with the evolution of this sport. I am a huge fan and I believe I am more than qualified to help out."

"Many people, many fans consider themselves to be qualified to work here. What makes you different?"

"While I do love the sport as a spectator, I also have an interest in the commission itself, in the management of the sport."

The interview went on for a few minutes longer, then Chris ended it.

"Well, alright then. I have taken a look at your CV, so I shall contact you sometime within the next few weeks."

"Thank you." Catherine said. She got up and made to leave, before handing Chris a baton-like object, a holographic bar.

"Here, take this. I assure you, if you hire me, this sport will be allowed to evolve. It shall be better than ever before! Hahahahahahaha!"

[Jonny]

Jonathan wished a strain of hair out of Rebeccas face, "I'll soon join you." he promissed her.
He remembered about the blue particles "But first I'll do something for Nico."

Jonathan took access to the Sublimation control and allowed himself to see the real world.
Several Jennter employees were in the room and watched him exited.
As Nico went in, he asked what is going on.

The old Bovier started to materialize his own appearance from the Electrosphere around himself.
It took him enormous energy to perform this stunt, also the required electricity caused almost a blackout in the whole building.

As Jonathan woke up, he quickly jumped from the table and reached for his pocket.
He grabbed Nico's hand and let the content of his own fall into it.
Two particles laid in his young hands.
One red, one blue.

Nico looked at them, closed his hands and turned around, his face looked hurted.

"Is this..." he started silently.
"...the very eternal rest of Madison Larough? Yes, her soul, hurt but may alive, the good and the bad." explained Jonathan in a single breath.

Nico laid them next to each other on his thumb and hold them with his indexfinger.

All in a sudden he threw both on the ground and crunched them under his feet.

"Good bye, Madison." he said angrily, went out of the room and shut the door.

Jonathan looked into the irritated eyes of his former employees, he straightened the collar of his new clothes and went home.

22nd July 2210
Nico woke up after another hard night he spend in his office.
He just spotted a notification on the screen on his desk.

As he went out of his office inside the entrance hall, he spotted a white-dressed woman sitting in the waiting area.
He straightened himself to not appear too worn out infront of his guest and greeted her.
"Welcome to Jennter Enterprises, I'm Nico von Bovier, may I help you?" he said with a strained face.
"Oh, hello Mr von Bovier" said the woman and stood up to shake his hand "Selene KonstantinÃ*kos" she introduced herself "I'm the personal assistant of Ramaela De Rosa." she added.

Nico felt worn out, but that woman got something that interested him.
"May we should into my office?" was Nico's offer.
"Nah..." started Selene, but thought about it, she clearly was able to see that he was not in a good mood. "Okay" she smiled.

Nico sat down in his usual chair "Sorry for the mess, I...didn't found the...time to tidy up here." he lied.
"Oh no problem." she simply said.

"Ok, so what is your concern?" asked Nico.
Selene stroked back her white hair as she started to speak "I search Ramaela and I only know that she used to be here some time ago."
Nico remembered one of the last memories he had, the funeral of Madison.
"I thought she went to Angelus?" said Nico.
"Really? May I phone them?" asked Selene exited.
Nico grabbed the phone and called the Angelus HQ in Perth, then he reached it to Selene.

As she ended the call she simply shaked her head.
"Not there." she just noted.

"Thank you." she quickly added, for being able to phone Angelus.
Nico looked into her pale eyes that were staring at the wall.
Selene noticed and blushed. Nico quickly turned his eyes to the wall, pretending to study it.

"And what are you going to do now?" he asked to start some smalltalk.
"I may simply fly back to Italy, where I live in Ramaela's house." explained Selene.
Nico was surprised that she was really that close to Ramaela.
"I could pay you the flight, Mrs KonstantinÃ*kos." he offered.
"Really? That would be very nice." smiled Selene "But why?".
Nico simply glaced on his table "This is the longest conversation I recently had."

Selene just felt that she sat infront of a hurted person, one with a very messy heart and head.
"Mr Bovier..." she started, but was to shy to penetrate that deep into his privacy.
"Yes?" Nico asked thoughful.
"M-May it helps to tell me everything? I am a good listener." told him Selene.

It cheered Nico up that there was a person who just cared about him, he didn't knew the reason, but was just grateful for that.
So he started to talk and the young day aged quickly.

He ordered food into his office as they realised how late it already was. But noone felt bothered by that.

As Nico stopped to talk, Selene tried to understand.
"Nico" she said his name "Would you mind if I lay my hands on your face, it would help me to understand your emotions."
He bowed towards her without a word and closed his eyes.
As Selenes hands touched his face, they felt very shy, but then she hold them calm on his cheeks.
It gave him a short moment when he forgot everything as someone with a good heart was close to him.

[Snakenator1]

---- Undisclosed location, time unknown ----
"Did you send the emails?"
"Yes I did, Angelus and Jennter now have messages telling them to watch the Icelandic AG convention."
"Excellent as the time is now"
"But sir! isn't this to soon?"
"To soon?! My farther strived and sacrificed every moment of his life to get us here, he gave his blood, sweat and tears to get our name back and save us. There is never a phase of to soon when it comes to this. Our friends also need our help, we abandoned them to protect our own ass's from getting kicked so its about time we repayed the debt we owe. The time is now! for us to return and give them the help they need".
"Very well sir, I will continue the preparation process"

---- Two days later ----
Time: 10:23am -- Weather: Summer day with no clouds

The Icelandic AG convention began, this event happens every year outside of Reykjavik to celebrate the history of AG technology, meet the people behind the scenes of the development and meet the AG teams competing in the AGRC. However the disbandment of Wyvern means they are notably absent this year, this has somewhat reduced the turnout this year but nevertheless a large amount of people had arrived and were exploring the stalls that had been setup from all sorts of AG divisions. At the centre of the event was a huge stage that was undergoing preparation for a speech to be given that will kick start the convention. Behind the curtains a team of employees and security prepare the stage, a young man proceeds to the microphone with a small speech on paper. He asks how long he has to which someone responded 5 minutes. As timed rolled by and people started to leave the stage the man took a deep breath as the announcement was made for all citizens to gather by the stage. Time was up and the curtain raised.

"HELLO EVERYONE AND WELCOME TO THE ANNUAL ICELAND ANTI-GRAVITY CONVENTION!!
I'm your host Johnathon Web and I will now proudly present to you our head of the Icelandic Anti-Grav Research Team, Heeeee's Scott Irvin!!!!!"

A large round of applause was given to the arrival of Scott, people cheered and shouted his name much look like people would during a Concert where the biggest celebrity singer just appeared and was about to sing. Scott is a man in his 70's yet still confident in his ability to lead AG development in Iceland, many describe him as headstrong and focused like an ideal leader. He took centre stage as he prepared the paper he had so carefully reproduced the speech he was about to give to all citizens.


---- 10 minutes earlier ----
"Are you ready Scott?" asks his supervisor
In a very nervous yet collected manner, Scott responds to him "Yes I am ready thank you"
"Scott? are you okay"
"No I just received a text with a very ominous message, and its not spam, its a skip code"

Scott grabs his phone in a very clumsy way as he searched his pockets, he presents his phone that displayed the message:
Can we take centre stage? We like to share a message with you.

The supervisor looks with paranoia but is quick to shake it off and dismiss the message, he replied "Its probably nothing, you need to deliver a speech now Scott and you can't let stupid little things stop you. Now come"

---- Back to present ----
"Hello my Icelandic friends and welcome to the Iceland Anti-Gravity Convention, I hope you are all just as excited as I am for this year will be special. Let us begin with once giving a big thank you to the Museum of Icelandic Anti-Gravity technology for hosting this event and may we all bask in the wonder of the tecnolo.........."
*BEEP BEEP* *BEEP BEEP* cries Scott's phone, somewhat embarrassed by the impolite event that just occurred Scott paused as people looked at him with dismay. Regardless he continues

"My apologies, as I was saying may we bask in the wonder of the Technology that is Anti-gravi......."
*BEEP BEEP* *BEEP BEEP*, annoyed by the what appears to be malfunctioning phone Scott grabs his phone in fury and throws it aside the stage in an attempt to stop himself from being distracted.

"the technology that is Anti-gravi......"
Suddenly all the phones of all staff began beeping with text alerts in a simultaneous event, the audience stares with confusion when soon after their phones all began beeping with text alerts. A general sense of unrest and panic soon begins to spread and Scott soon takes action:

"People! please remain calm, security please find the source of this outrage and what does it say"
A guard approaches Scott and shows him the message: Get ready, I'm here
"Alright I want everyone to be Inspected right now and.........."

"There will be no need Mr Scott", a hooded figure walks onto stage and slowly walks towards Scott, security rush to this figure with guns at the ready. "There is no need for guns, Level 5 security clearance" replies the figure to the actions and presenting his card. Scott tells the men to lower their guns and proceeds to ask the figure a question:
"Are you sending these texts?"
"Yes I am"
"THEN WHO ARE YOU?!"

The figure then suddenly runs to the microphone and begins his own speech
"Oh Mr Scott its not that hard to figure out who I am for everyone knows who my Farther is yet I am surprised you have lacked the intellectual capability to figure it out. Yet I am no threat or hear to insult you, I am here to merely send a message to the people of Iceland, one they have been teased with for months now.
Faster....
Stronger.....
Reborn!"
At this point the crowd cheers in excitement, the figure then tears away his disguise and shouts out-loud
"And everyone hear has been waiting for us to return and we shall keep the promise we have eluded to all this time, MY NAME IS ALEX MENDEL! THE SON OF DAVID MENDEL! AND I AM HERE TO REVEAL THAT I AM NOW DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS FOR THE ONE! THE ONLY! WYVERN AERONAUTICAL RESEARCH!!!!!!!!!!"
F-14 Tomcats suddenly fly over trailing blue, white and red smoke as the audience roars with excitement and happiness, Alex continues his speech
"Ladies and Gentlemen if you would like to see us then we have set-up a stall over at the AG Racing section of the festival where you can see the new era of Wyvern AR. and the brand new generation of our racing machines; the WYV-18. THANK YOU AND ENJOY THE FESTIVAL!
The crowd roars with cheers and happiness as they slowly disband and begin the convention.

Alex places down the microphone onto its stand and approaches Scott
"I hope I didn't scare you then, I had to make a dramatic entrance as its in my nature".
"Hahaha not all. So, the son of David Mendel eh, I didn't even know he had a son".
"Yeah he was always one for keeping secrets".
"So Alex what do you have planned for Wyvern AR. then? I'm very happy that the team is back".
"In due time I shall divulge all of my plans for the team but for now we will be preparing for the F12000 to help our friends over at Angelus and Jennter, since its about time we return some favours we owe them. Anyway I shall reveal more about myself and the team in the future but for now I need to get back to my stall. Have a nice day Scott!".
"You to Alex".

With that Alex darts away through the crowd to reach Wyvern's display stall, Scott smiles and chuckles in his excitement to see Wyvern return. Yet he looks worried, concerned about where David was. Nevertheless he shakes away such feelings and joins the crowd to enjoy the convention.

---- The next day, Wyvern AR. HQ ----
Time: 14:39pm -- Weather: Sunny with some cloud cover

Alex was sat in his Father's office watching the news, the top trending story of Wyvern AR.'s return to AG racing has been spread all over the world by now with people from different countries celebrating the teams return. Alex flicked through each individual news channel with a smile due to the success of the return, shutting off the TV soon after he turns to his Laptop but before he can open it he glances over a picture frame with a past memory displayed:
Alex and David Mendel are sat on a beach on a bright day.
A tear trickles down Alex's eye, with a expression of happiness yet sadness, he whispers to himself:
"See Dad, everyone is happy we're back like I said they would be, Angelus and Jennter will surely be happy to see us once again as well.......
If only you were still here with us"
In a brief moment Alex looks away, recollects himself and opens his laptop and begins to write a report to the AGRC Commission to confirm the return of Wyvern AR. and their participation in the next league.

[Ace3000]

Mainly copy-paste stuff here, just decided to show Angelus' reaction to the "recent" news.

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
>log22: ERROR

Date unknown.

Angelus R&D HQ

New Mail Received!


To: mail@angelus-rd.agr.au
From: am-fsr@wv14.agr.is
Subject: Icelandic AG Convention
Greetings Angelus,

It would be wise if you watched the Icelandic AG Convention. Not only is it because you are an AG racing team, but you may see a certain something that you thought was long gone.

A link to the livestream is provided: http://iagc.com.is/livestream

I shall see you very soon,

FSR

AM.

"What... the hell is this?" Brandon asked as the email was displayed on his screen. Cautiously, he clicked on the link, where he was brought to a webpage that displayed only a livestream video. He watched as a man began a speech.

"Hello, my Icelandic friends, and welcome to the Iceland Anti-Gravity Convention! I hope you are all just as excited as I am for this year will be special. Let us begin with once giving a big thank you to the Museum of Icelandic Anti-Gravity technology for hosting this event and may we all bask in the wonder of the tecnolo-"

His speech was suddenly cut off by a shrill beeping noise emanating from what seemed to be the stage. The man faltered for just a second, before continuing.

"My apologies, as I was saying, may we bask in the wonder of the technology that is Anti-Gravi-"

The shrill beeping returned once more. The man seemed to be visibly annoyed at it. He reached into his pockets, pulled out a small object and hurled it across the stage. He attempted to continue his speech, but the beeping came in full force, this time coming from the audience, who all had a look of confusion on their faces. The man on stage called out to the audience and the security attending.

"People! Please remain calm! Security, please find the source of this outrage and what does it say!"

A guard then approached him, showing him a message that was not shown on-screen.

"Alright, I want everyone to be inspected right now and-"

"There will be no need, Mr. Scott" A hooded figure appeared on stage, slowly walking towards Scott. Security rush to the figure with guns at the ready.

"There is no need for guns, Level 5 security clearance" The figure replied to the actions and presenting his card. The man on-stage told the men to lower their guns and proceeded to ask the figure a question.

"Are you sending these texts?"

"Yes I am"

"THEN WHO ARE YOU?!"

The figure suddenly breaks into a sprint, moving towards the microphone. He grabbed it and began his own speech.

"Oh, Mr. Scott, it's not that hard to figure out who I am, for everyone knows who my father is! Yet, I am surprised you lack the intellectual capability to figure it out. I am not a threat, nor am I here to insult you, I am here to merely send a message to the people of Iceland, one they have been teased with for months now.
Faster....
Stronger.....
Reborn!"

At that point the crowd cheered in excitement. Brandon opened his mouth wide, before breaking into a wide grin.

"Y-you're kidding... Heh... heheheh... oh, please let it be!" He chuckled.

The figure tore away his disguise and shouted out-loud.

"Everyone here has been waiting for us to return and we shall keep the promise we have eluded to all this time! MY NAME IS ALEX MENDEL, THE SON OF DAVID MENDEL! AND I AM HERE TO REVEAL THAT I AM NOW DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS FOR THE ONE! THE ONLY! WYVERN AERONAUTICAL RESEARCH!"

"YES! THEY'RE BACK!" Brandon yelled, causing a few people to turn their heads at him.

F-14 Tomcats flew over, trailing blue, white and red smoke as the audience roared with excitement and happiness. Alex continued his speech.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, if you would like to see us, then we have set-up a stall over at the AG Racing section of the festival, where you can see the new era of Wyvern AR. and the brand new generation of our racing machines; the WYV-18. THANK YOU AND ENJOY THE FESTIVAL!"
The crowd roars with cheers and happiness as they slowly disband and begin the convention.

"Aw, man." Brandon said to himself, "Now I wish I was in Iceland. Oh well, at least my allies are back."

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Ace3000]

Happy birthday, Sara! Also, due to a complete coincidence, Happy birthday, Brandon Smith. XD

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
>log23: 22100712

Thursday, July 12th, 2210

07:44:28

"Wh... What the?!"

A few people were standing by an ordinary sofa in the lounge.

"何？1 Ugh.... Why is it that everyone gets so surprised whenever they see me here?!" Kyoko asked, annoyed. She was casually sitting lengthways on the sofa, with one knee up and her arm on the same side resting on it.

"It's because you almost never come here. This is the second time in two months!" Gareth replied. Everyone had left to get on with the day's preparations, but Gareth had remained.

"So what if I'm not here every day?! If I don't have to be here, then I won't come. What's there to be surprised about?"

"Uh..."

"Exactly. Unnecessary thoughts and feelings are not good for anyone. Don't get me wrong, though, I'm not saying 'Be a robot', or 'Get rid of your emotions', I'm just saying 'Think rationally'."

"Okay, noted. So, what are you doing here?"

"Nothing at all."

"Huh? Wait, so why did you come here?"

"I'm sure you know why. You know the significance of today's date."

"Yeah, but how do you know about that? No-one told you as far as I'm aware."

Kyoko shrugged, "I just know."

Gareth suddenly became aware that no-one else was speaking. 'Wait, why is no-one spea-' He thought, spinning around and realizing why. Everyone else had left, the only two people in the lounge were him and Kyoko.

"The hell? Where did everyone go?"

"They left." Kyoko replied simply, "Most probably to help with the preparations."

"Yeah, I know that, I ju... ugh, why? D-do they know?" He mumbled to himself.

"Know what?" Kyoko asked, hearing him.

"Huh? Oh, nothing. Anyway, since everyone left us, shall we go for a drive together?"

"Let me think about that." She said, sitting for several seconds, before, "Uhhh.... no."

"What?! Why not?"

"I have no need for leisure. Besides, he will be here soon."

"I know, I meant after... ugh, never mind."

"I agree, let's go make our preparations." She said, getting up and walking off without waiting for Gareth.

"Okay... H-hey, wait!" He stuttered, running after her, trying to keep up.

------------

08:00:00

As usual, Brandon arrived at Angelus HQ at 8am. He parked in his usual space, the garage that only he had the authority to use. He entered the fairly large lounge, and turned on the lights.

BANG

"AAAGH! What the-?!"

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRANDON!" Came the voices of several people after popping several party poppers.

"Wh-? I-" Brandon stuttered. "Thanks, guys!"

"Ehh, it's nothing. Just showing our admiration for one of the saviours of AG racing! Also, it's your 50th, we had to do something!"

"Well, I appreciate it!" He said, looking around the room, then seeing a somewhat unusual, but familiar sight.

"K-Kyoko? You're here! Who told you when my birthday was?"

"I... I just knew." She muttered.

"Ah, it's not important, I'm glad you're here, though!"

"Thanks..." She fidgeted, as if she was hesitating about something. Then she stuck her arm out and flashed a peace sign, before loudly saying "Happy Birthday!". She dropped her hand immediately afterwards and muttered "I feel foolish."

"Anyway, Brandon," The lead technician said, "For your present, we thought we had to do something special, and we have planned something really special. Look out there." He pointed to the window showing the underground R&D sector. There Brandon spotted something.

"Wait, that's my Razer.X! How'd you get in it when I have the key?!"

"You underestimate your own technicians. We have a master key that can unlock and start any Razer.X, including your special model. But that's not important. What is important is your present. We made a 2nd generation of the AGS:X engine, which will be swapped into your car. This particular engine has been modified to suit a completely new drivetrain which eliminates the need for a transmission. It's going to be much lighter, so it'll be much faster."

"Wow, thanks!"

"That's not all. We have 4 Electric-Sport motors that will also be installed, so you can get up to 983hp. However, for now, you will only be able to access 750, due to complicated reasons. But hey, at least you get 30 more for now."

"This will take some time to complete everything, please tell me I have a temporary car I can use."

"Of course!"

------------

Location Unknown.

Time Unknown.

>>EREBUS OS V3.7.564

>>LOADING DATA FILES...

>COMPLETE

>>INITIATING "PROJECT SHINIGAMI"

>>PROJECT: SHINIGAMI ONLINE.

>>DOWNLOADING EXISTING AVAILABLE TEAM DATA...

>COMPLETE

>>INITIATING DEVELOPMENT ON "SG_R-000", "SG_X-043"...

>ERROR: DATA INSUFFICIENT TO COMPLETE "SG_X-043". ADDITIONAL DATA REQUIRED.
>DEVELOPMENT STARTED ON "SG_R-000".

>EXPECTED DEVELOPMENT COMPLETION DATE: 2212.

1 Nani, tr:"What?"

[Jonny]

This part got deleted, especially due to possible spoilers.

[Jonny]

I'll stop writing now and sort every stuff out what I wrote. My opening post will become a base for every chapter (link'n'stuff) and links to other pages with FTA relevance will be provided.

[Jonny]

Draws of Madison in her "final form": http://www.wipeoutzone.com/forum/album.php?albumid=412&attachmentid=9607

[NeroIcaras]

Awesome. If anyone wants to check my story out, Its the Hypernova-an alternate Wipeout thread

[NeroIcaras]

I bet you get this heaps, but you do know that angelus and crinale are two cars in Ridge Racer

[Ace3000]

Yes I do. That was completely intentional. I love the Ridge Racer series, especially those two rival cars! The idea was that the two teams were intended to be WipEout versions of the cars.

[NeroIcaras]

I love RR too! I've got RRVita and RR7. Soldat Raggio all the way!

[Ace3000]

Due to certain reasons, I will be discontinuing the entirety of my sonic-infobox.net site, including the old FTA Database. This means that the Season 1 soundtrack will soon be unavailable to download. Don't worry though, I will put it up soon, be it on a file hosting site or on a new website.

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Ace3000]

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
>log24: 22100802-22100803

Thursday, August 2nd, 2210

"Okay, I have called this meeting because we need to end this." CO-02 spoke up to the other remaining Crinale Originals. Ever since Alex was forced to leave, 02 had become the de-facto leader of the CO section of Crinale.

"We cannot defeat OE-0 individually. We need to think, create a strategy, that can finish him once and for all. For CO-01!"

Everyone agreed by nodding their heads.

"Okay, now if we may begin, here is my plan on how to eliminate OE-0..."

------------
Friday, August 3rd, 2210

"Viktor, sir. We're all done, you may initiate the call when you're ready." A technician told Viktor, who was sitting in a chair, visibly impatient.

"I've been ready since 10 minutes ago." He snapped back. "Let's do this now."

<<CONNECTING TO: NICO BOVIER...>>

<<CONNECTION ESTABLISHED>>

"-ot now..." Came a voice on the other end, as Nico came into view, sitting down on his chair.

"Добрый день1, Mr. Von Bovier." Viktor greeted.

"Hello, Mr. Antonov. All fresh?" he asked annoyed.

"Hehehehe, a lot like your ancestor, Jonathan." Viktor laughed, loud and cold.

"What's the matter? Listen Viktor. I got way bigger problems right now." Nico said annoyed.

Viktor's eye twitched at that, even though Nico wouldn't see it behind his helmet.

"Build up the connection, cams on the prisoner." Viktor ordered his men. There, on the screen was Vera, staring at the ground and a man, pointing a gun to her head.

"Look, Mr. Bovier, this is her, right?" he asked.

Nico could do nothing but stare into her face.

1Dobryy den' (tr:Good day)

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Ace3000]

Ignore this if you want, it's the same as Jonny's part. It's really just filler for me until I can think of something to write.

To be honest, I really want all of this 2210 stuff to be over so I can start writing/posting Season 2. I have so many good ideas for that and I'm sure it'll be much better than all of these COTD parts. However, I can't just get stuck into it since some pre-2212 stuff will affect some minor, but still relevant Season 2 details.

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
>log24.2: 22100803

Friday, August 3rd, 2210

There, on the screen, was Vera, staring at the ground, and a man, pointing a gun to her head.

"Look, Mr. Bovier, this is her, right?" he asked.

Nico could do nothing but stare into her face.

"Yes, I guess." Nico replied unimpressed.

"Mr Bovier!" Vera yelled, looking up suddenly.

Viktor started to laugh, feeling safe about his victory "Hahahahaha, young Bovier, already give up?"

After a while of what seemed like thought, Nico wispered "They were right..."

"Listen, Bovier. You killed some of my men..." Viktor began to talk, as Nico continued to think about his conclusion.

"Listen, Chris! This is not longer racing, you made war of it! Beside these that are devastingly destroying our continent!" he spat, to Viktor's surprise.

"If you little sh't believe you can blackmail me, you are wrong. What we do with our troops is none of your business! This is going too far!" Nico made the mistake to believe that Viktor's plans weren't politically motivated.

"Chris?!" Vera shouted.

"Chris Scarborough!" yelled Nico into his screen.

"Fine..." Viktor sighed "Kill her, Dave."

"Dave!?" was Nico's loud, surprised words as the man raised his arm and fired.

BANG!

[Ace3000]

I thought of something original to write about. apart from the August 2nd part, the entirety of log24 was crap. Just me copy-pasting things. Ugh.

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
>log25: 22100811

Saturday, August 11th, 2210

"SO THAT'S WHERE YOU'VE BEEN!?" An angry Carolina Scarlatti called, and scolded, her daughter. "You haven't spent a day at school. No, you've gone and become an AG pilot!"

"Hi to you too, Carolina." Lucia greeted her, placing particular emphasis on her mother's name. "Too bad you found out too late, or you'd have been able to prevent it! I'm glad it took you this long though, quite fitting for people such as yourself."

"Caro-?! Now you listen to me! You will return home at once! You are never to touch anything Anti-Gravity again! That stuff is the Devil's work. God created gravity on our fine Earth for a reason!"

"Carolina," She taunted again, placing even more emphasis on her name. "You should have realised I don't believe in that religious BS. I'm a woman of science, Anti-Gravity technology is the pinnacle of human innovation. Also, I was born to race, not one pathetic human can stop me, even if those pathetic humans are the ones who birthed me."

"Lucia! Y-"

"SILENCE!" She yelled back. "YOU CANNOT CHOOSE FOR ME! I AM MY OWN PERSON! YOU ARE NOTHING TO ME! [sigh], okay... maybe I should try saying this in your own language if you aren't going to listen. So please... listen very carefully. [ahem]... AFF*NCULO E MORIRE, PUTTANA1!"

After cussing her out in her native Italian, Lucia ended the call, then proceeded to delete her entire family's contact details off her phone, but not before placing a block on every number that corresponded to every member of her family. Filled with intense hate, she pitched her arm back to hurl her phone at the wall, but then she remembered the words of her co-pilot, Leon Turner, as if he were right there in her room:


"Hmph, if only you'd channel that anger into the simulator, into eliminating the other craft. This is Crinale, you can't just do what you want."

She stared back at the simulator sitting in one corner of her room.

"UUAAAGGGHHH, fine!" She growled, booting up the machine. "I'll show you what I can do."

As soon as the simulator loaded everything, she noticed Leon had joined the race.

'Hmph,' She thought, 'I guess you heard me. No matter, you will be the first to go, the first to feel my rage.'

She stayed true to her word. Not even past the first lap...

"Contender Eliminated."

"KYAHAHAHAHAHA!"

However, even though she eliminated Leon, she wasn't done unleashing her rage once she disposed of Leon. She continued to intentionally eliminate every other craft on the track, all while keeping a relatively fast and clean run.

"Contender Eliminated."

"First Place."

"You're damn right 'first place', there's no-one left to beat me!" She contemplated on her win. "You know, this seems to be very theraputic. I feel very calm and relaxed. Hahahaha! I've seen the benefit of this stupid racing style I have to do! But I'm sure they'd be happy even if I employ my own racing style, I just have to be violent and dominate everything!"

1...yeah, no. I'd rather not translate that. Sara would know what it means, though... that is, if I've translated it right. Not pretty, is it? I'd get murdered if I said that to my own mother XD

[Saramica12]

Well yea, for now I am back too for a little part, in the wait for something new x)
Enjoy, I guess XD



In a time between July and August, 2210

Düsseldorf, German Empire

It was a very good idea to went at Jennter Enterprise, she found there another place to be in peace, even if it is a capital with its unceasing vitality, and to consider a second home. As guest of honor, she was allowed to remain in the capital for around the necessary time she’ll be eventually able to find Ramaela, or back simply at Panarea in case.
Sure, for her was very hard to adapt in this land: she still forgets to get her own "Hausschuhe" and how to dress “normcore�, lefting her in really awkward situations between others and, hoping not, the few von Boviers she met. Just in one thing she’s kind of well-watched, she’s graduated in something, and her speeches, even if they're in a conk out English tone, are really capturing for the others, as first it was demonstrated towards the nobleman Nico.

But apart that, she got the brilliant idea to take a taxi to wander around the best public places around Düsseldorf. She got first a map of the town as she looked at the slim screen of the tablet the various places around the zone.

“Düsseldorfer Schauspielhaus, Deutsche Oper am Rhein, Tonhalle Düsseldorf, NRW Forum Wirtschaft und Kultur...Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen?�
She mutters in the public AG-craft.
“Oh! There’s even a Goethe-Museum! Very interesting!�

She remains to look between the screen of the map and the glass of the car, admiring the peaceful view before she get some courage to speak at the driver.
“Uhm, where I may go to visit a good museum here?�

The driver chuckled quitely.
“O’ lady, not a single day is sufficient to tell you the best places you’re looking for, but I can tip you to visit the last place you said.�

“Kunstsammlung?�

He muttered a yes, keeping the focus on the road.
“Exactly, the Kunstsammlung has more than 10,000 m² of exhibition surface at its disposal. The artists range are, so, very wide, m’lady.�

The woman smiles widely to hear that, and eager she said at him. “Well, what to say, bring me there, please!�

Cutted in two, this museum is between the modern art of illustrious artists of the XX, XXI and XXII, from painters and sculpturists, and the very modern arts of the XXIII century.
She visited both the K20 and 21, wandering in full stupor her gaze between the modern arts of various artists of their times and the 300 years old paintings of the Impressionists, artists she loves dearly. In those zones she remained mostly of her time, caring lesser of the rest. A full dive in a past she always wishes to live.

She was even able to see some works of Klee there. Some citations hovers around the white walls there.
She reads them out lowly, trying to get what is written in.

-Kunst gibt nicht das Sichtbare wieder, sondern macht sichtbar.

-Diesseitig bin ich gar nicht fassbar. Denn ich wohne grad so gut bei den Toten, wie bei den Ungeborenen. Etwas näher dem Herzen der Schöpfung als üblich. Und noch lange nicht nahe genug.

*I will ask later to Lord Nico, they sound interesting somehow…*

Just one was written in English, striking her in the deep since the time she’s living, sadly, in.

-The more horrifying this world becomes, the more art becomes abstract; while a world at peace produces realistic art.

She did a photo at all the hologram scripts, to meditate about later when she'll back in her temporary home nearby Jennter.

***

Between 2 and 3 of August, 2210

Selene woke up in a cold coat of sweat after she heard the sound of a loud bang in her ears.
Gasping, she was looking to find the switch of the beside table lantern, trembling for the shock of the minute before and now for the sudden darkness around her.
When the soft light back in her eyes and room, she leaves away the shock, realizing that the loud sound was made by her book and the tarot deck, both fell off from the little furniture, all the 78 handmade cards were scattered around the floor for her only annoyance almost.

"Uff, never sleep close with heavy stuffs." She muttered in a quite huff as she leaved gentle the blankets off to stands up and picked up the objects.
All the cards were flipped randomly, but just two took her fully attention as she picked both first.
The Death was nearby The Emperor, the first Reversed, in an act like it was going to decapitate him too.

"Could that means..."

She frowns, shutting the voices in her head and her intuitions about this, while clumsly picking up the rest. Ordered all on the beside table very lazily, she hopes nothing will fall again. Layed on the bed again, she turns to a side and switched off the light. She wanted to sleep again, but those two cards were still a big question mark in her head.
"Ah, who cares, too fuzzy now to focus on something more logic." She monologued sleeply to herself in the bedroom, she will care in the morning to organize her stuffs and the meanings of this little casuality.

***

3rd August 2210

She heard all from the half closed doors of his office, widening her soon tearful eyes in shock for the gunshot. She gets in the office, pushed by a strong inner force to check the situation. She arrived just in time to see the black screen and the reflection of both on it. She turns and humbly bowed at him, but keeping the gaze up to him.

*Was that the meaning of the Cards? A girl dead?
No, impossible, that was a female, they were referring to a male, I felt...*

"Lord Nico, what happened? What's going on, too?"

[Jonny]

-Kunst gibt nicht das Sichtbare wieder, sondern macht sichtbar.
"Art doesn't shows the visable, but makes visable."

-Diesseitig bin ich gar nicht fassbar. Denn ich wohne grad so gut bei den Toten, wie bei den Ungeborenen. Etwas näher dem Herzen der Schöpfung als üblich. Und noch lange nicht nahe genug.
Sounds a lot like Goethe xD
"Therefore I'm not grabable. Because I live right now so well with the dead, as with the unborn. A bit closer the heart of the creation than usual. And by far not close enough."

Great part, shows well what is going on beside the war and racing! ^^

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Ace3000]

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
Critical Error retrieving log number.
>loghttp://scp-wiki.wdfiles.com/local--files/scp-2718/numerals.gif: 22160924

Tuesday, September 24th, 2216

Yokohama, Japan

12:00:06

"Hey, you free?" Came Nico's voice from the phone, "It's finished, are you in Japan?"

"Yeah?"

"Come down to the new road course, PHM Kōdō kōsu, you can see it and try it out!"

"Wait, you're at PHMX? I'm here too, I'm just checking it out, where are you?"

"I'm at the pits."

"Great, I'll be there in a bit."

Not one minute later, a sleek black hypercar drifted into view, racing the opposite way up the course. It entered the pits at breakneck speed, before its driver applied the car's custom airbrakes, slowing down quite vigorously and violently. The engine cut out and the driver side door swung open as a tall man got out. He wore an all black suit with no tie, an unzipped hoodie which, apart from the hood part, was obscured by a long black overcoat and a pair of opaque black visor-sunglasses which were custom-made, moulded to fit his face.

"Brandon? What the hell?! It's over, why are you still wearing those black clothes?!"

Brandon took off his sunglasses in one smooth manoeuver, and grinned widely. "Heh, I did promise that I'd never wear all this again, didn't I? [sigh], I don't know, I just like the design of it too much! So, I continue to wear it, on occasion. Sometimes I just feel like it, sometimes I wear it to conceal my identity, it depends. It... also keeps as a constant reminder of that dark age, not that I'd forget something so horrible. In any case, how are you?"

"I'm very fine, thank you!"

Brandon looked past Nico at a truck trailer adorned with Jennter logos and imagery, and painted white and orange.

"Is it in there?" He said excitedly, his eyes gleaming.

"Straight to the point, I see! I can tell how excited you are to see it, to experience it. Very well."

<ready to roll! | hiroshi okubo (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qw1tbs9Slbs)_>

Nico opened the trailer's doors, revealing the compartment was split in two sections horizontally. The section at the top was covered by a ramp that was folded up. He activated an automatic mechanism that moved the bottom part of the section out, the ramp folding down as it did so. When the section was completely out, it moved down to the bottom of the trailer, ready to move the contents out.

The contents of the trailer were the one thing Brandon was most looking forward to from Jennter, and was the only part of the deal made with Jennter that had nothing to do with the F12000.

"I-it's... beautiful" He managed to blurt out.

What they were looking at was a highly modified race-spec version of Angelus' sports compact, the Neko. Painted in Jennter's standard white and orange livery, the only other parts of the livery were Jennter's logo and the number 15 on the sides.

"This is it, Brandon. This is the Jennter Tuning Works Neko."

Brandon suddenly got a massive chill down his spine, and shivered noticeably.

"What's wrong?" Nico asked.

"Nothing, just... I can sense that this is a dangerous, powerful monster of a machine... I must try it!"

"Of course you can try it, it's why I called you out here in the first place!"

Nico reached into his pocket and pulled out a key, which he tossed to Brandon.

"Woah!" He caught it barely.

When they entered the car, Nico pointed to a series of switches in the center console, explaining the procedure for starting the car, which involved flipping a series of switches in a particular order. Brandon did as he was instructed, and then slammed his finger down on a red button. The engine made a low whirring noise, then emitted a loud, powerful roar.

"Th-that sounds nothing like the C16A, but it does still sound like an inline-4." Brandon muttered.

"We did change a lot of the parts when tuning that engine up, but we still wanted it to be that particular engine." Nico explained.

"Alright, well let's do this!" Brandon announced, setting the car into reverse and backing out. He held the brake down, set the sequential gearbox to Drive, and built up the revs to 9000.

<motor species | tetsukanzu nakanishi (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ohG9OGFUcA)_>

As soon as he let go of the brake however, the car shot forward like nothing Brandon had ever experienced. he was right, the JTW Neko was a powerful monster.

"UGH! Th-this is powerful indeed. How far did you tune it?!"

"Heh... we were able to bring it up to 605hp"

"605?! From an engine that originally had 167... that's impressive!"

"That's Jennter engineering for you!"

Brandon had shifted into 6th gear in no time, but there seemed to be a problem.

"Eugh, this gearing, it's all wrong, it's too short." He said.

"Too short? Hmm, I should have mentioned, that sequential gearbox is a 9-speed."

"9 speed?! I thought it was a more traditional 6!" He exclaimed, flicking the upshift paddle engaging 7th gear.

Brandon entered the first corner with his usual gusto, but found the car's handling to be quite odd, which caused him to, for the first time since a year or two ago, grab the wheel with two hands.

"Aaahh! Rear stabilisers only, help! I'm too used to my hypercar, which has 4 active stabilisers. Hey, don't laugh! You made me hold the wheel with two hands, even though I'm completely used to my one handed style."

"One handed?"

"Yeah, it gives me full control of the manual shifter and other controls in my car, but I got used to it before I got it. Anyway, I think it will take me a while until I have her under control."

Brandon ran the course at a slower speed than he would usually run at, to leave room for error. He also continued to use both hands to steer for another few corners, before dropping back to his usual single handed approach, greatly reducing the angle of his drifts, which in turn increased his speed.

"Wow, this is great! You're really doing this car justice!"

"No... I'm not, I still don't have complete control. This car's handling is so twitchy, I can barely use its power properly!"

A few laps later at mostly the same speed, with occasional moments at full speed, Brandon was nearing the finish line.

"Right, I'm ready to do a full lap at full speed. This will be me doing the car justice!"

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Ace3000]

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
Critical Error retrieving log number.
>loghttp://scp-wiki.wdfiles.com/local--files/scp-2718/numerals.gif.2: 22160924

Tuesday, September 24th, 2216

Yokohama, Japan

12:09:38

The JTW Neko appeared at the start of the ending straight, its modified inline-4 screaming past the stock rev limit of 8000rpm, which had been increased to 10,500. When the engine hit 9,900rpm, the driver shifted up, causing the engine's scream to die down.

"9th gear, here we go." Brandon said, reaching into his jacket pocket. He pulled out his sunglasses and put them on, then reached behind him and flicked his hood over his head. "312 before the start line, great. Nico, get ready to start the timer."

"What do you mean, I don't have it on me." Nico replied

<futureland | ace (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGprThdvMNY&t=19)_>

"Fine, I'll have to resort to that one thing I never thought I'd have to use again... oh, who am I kidding, I still love this thing."

As soon as Brandon crossed the start line, he began the stopwatch. The first corner was a long, sloping corner that transitioned into a sharp bend. He used the momentum to cut through the sharp end and carry him to the other end of the track. An S-bend followed a short straight, which he slid through with some finesse and altering the power so the car slid the opposite way effortlessly.

The next corner was a very sharp one, so Brandon compensated by turning wide into the corner and pushing the car toward the apex as closely as possible as well as sacrificing a lot of speed. The corner did transition directly into a high speed corner, so he gained his speed through it.

Still gaining speed down the straight, he arrived at the final corner series, a left-right-left bend. He swerved into the first part, mashed the brakes briefly while shifting down to 8th, and slid mostly through whole distance of the right handed semi-circle, only straightening out before the entrance to the final left hand corner. He cut through it, onto the final straight and across the line where he stopped the clock.

"Huh, about 28 seconds, alright... but I know of a way where I can get a better time."

"How?" Nico asked.

"Heh, how about a tuned Angelus hypercar."

"What do you me-... no. Oh no, not that crazy thing?!"

"Yep. And it's even crazier with this fool behind the wheel." Brandon pointed at himself.

"Naturally. You've tuned it to your liking and have had about a year of experience with it."

"Yeah, exactly. Come on, I haven't really had a passenger sit with me when I push her to the limits."

Brandon parked the JTW Neko on the platform that was still sticking out from the truck. They got out and entered Brandon's tuned Iridium

"This feels very... odd." Nico mentioned as he got in.

"The car? Yeah, you can sense that this thing can do magical things. Let's go!"

<scapecoat (dub mix) | hsp (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TePU2RexiU&t=23)_>

As usual, when Brandon pulled out of the pits, he started with a flying lap, progressively getting faster.

"What?! This feels so much faster! And yet you aren't even trying!"

"Well, I do know this car back-to-front, I can handle it really well."

As they neared the final straight to begin the lap proper, Brandon prepared to use all of the car's power. He opened a hidden panel in the center console next to the shifter. He flicked a switch and pressed two of the 3 buttons, which pulsed azure for a moment before changing to a steady green light. The instant they were on the straight, Brandon pushed the last button, which turned the buttons red, as well as the dashboard. As soon as that happened...

<1:01 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TePU2RexiU&t=61)_>

BOOM.

"Ugh! Whaa--?" Was all Nico could manage.

The hypercar gained a very noticeable boost in speed and acceleration.

"This is similar to the tandem-electric system I used in my old Razer.X, before... [ahem], never mind. The only different thing is that this has a different, but new type of manual transmission. Also..."

Suddenly, the car shifted violently, but smoothly askew, initiating a drift.

"UGH!"

"Heh, sorry about that. This system allows me to initiate a drift and change directions much quicker than I could ever hope to."

When holding the drift, Brandon was much more composed, and didn't seem to fight with the controls. Already, they were travelling more than the JTW's top speed of 312km/h. When Brandon reached the S-turn, he used the unique system to snap his car to the right, using the momentum to slide into the first corner.

Instead of manually maneuvering the car to the left into the second corner, he used the system once more to push the car's rear out and the front into the bend. Altering the angle of his steering once, he navigated out of the corner series without lifting the throttle.

Up next was the sharp corner. Brandon had to drop some of his high speed in order to clear it. He shifted the car's angle and turned hard into the corner. He activated custom airbrakes fitted to the car, helping it navigate the turn. Once he was out of the sharp half, he accelerated hard and countersteered out the rest of the corner.

Up next was the final corner series. Keeping the accelerator pedal down, Brandon cleared the first corner, then activated the right airbrake and skewed the car's direction to the right. The car navigated around the corner at a rather high speed, with help from occasional taps of the airbrake. He stopped turning at a certain point, cutting through the final corner and onto the final straight, speeding across the line at an even more incredible speed than the Neko.

After spinning 180° and driving back to the pits, Nico stumbled out of the car.

"What the hell was that?!" He exclaimed.

"Interesting machine, that Iridium. Let's just say it used to be owned by someone in Japan, a legendary tōge racer who called himself 'Archangel'."

"Ah... I got it. I knew of the Archangel legend, and I can understand why you brought it up. If I recall correctly, he raced through most, if not, all of the Kanto region without a single loss, except for his final race, maybe. We know it against someone independent to any team, but we don't know who exactly, or the result of that race."

"Yeah, but that legend's over. I own their car now, and I'm getting quite used to it!"

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Ace3000]

Like Viktor, I cannot wait any longer. This is the final part of the Curse of the Devil. The following part will be the first part of the 2nd half of Season 2.

EDIT: Maybe I'll have one small final part explaining some things that happened between August 2210 and January 2212.

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
>log26: 22101113

Tuesday, November 13th, 2210

<midnight runner | pendulum (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSbop6jmBS4&t=2m21s)_>

"I cannot wait any longer." Viktor announced. "The 13th... The number of Crinale... IT IS TIME!"

He took control of the communication systems that the CEAF1 were using.

"Crinale, This is it, the big one. Silver Spear has been engaged, I repeat, Silver Spear has been engaged. Order 13 is to be carried out. Leave no-one alive. In addition, a fifth Squadron, Αιθέρας2, will be deployed to aid in Order 13, to carry out Order 13.2. That is all."

He then ran off to Sektor 1 hangar, which, at that moment, housed a single aircraft, which was unique in design, and a technician, inspecting it. As soon as Viktor entered, he spoke.

"The X10/P Kop'ye, our prototype multirole fighter. This is our trump card, the one thing that has some chance of defeating every single one of Pawel's forces. In order for it to be used up to its ultimate potential, you must use the best pilot we have. Do you know someone who fits?"

Viktor replied with just two words. "Yes. Me."

He jumped on top of the craft, opened the hatch, slipped inside and powered it up, the COFFIN system activating. As soon as he applied the thrust, the jet then accelerated at an incredible rate, flying out of the hanger and down to Earth. As soon as it had entered the atmosphere and was low enough, he engaged the afterburners and flew in the direction of Pawel's parliament.

When he reached the Parliament, he aimed at the building and activated one missile, which flew towards the palace, however...

VZZZ

"HAHAHAHAHA! Did you really think it would be that easy?! WRONG." Pawel taunted over the comms

"Pfft, I just wanted to test my intels credibility. I know that the whole complex is covered in what is basically a more powerful ECS cage, which is powered by 4 nuclear power stations located not far from here. In fact, I'm right by one of them now."

"You do know what happens if you destroy them? A massive nuclear explosion will happen, destroying you in the process."

"I know that, which is why I'm going to disable them, like this!" Upon saying that, Viktor fired a missile at a box beside the reactors. It blew up, but did not destroy the reactors. He then said, "There goes your generators, hahahaha!"

Pawel muttered under his breath, "I knew I should have placed cages over the power stations." He then opened the communications system, yelling at one particular squadron of the Russian Air Force, "Волк3 Squadron, get to Nuke 3 immediately! I want you to intercept, and destroy that предатель4! GO!"

Viktor suddenly made an irregular movement, before grinning and speaking in a very low pitch. "I can still hear you. Nothing you say or do is private to me anymore. I am not just going to take your position, I'M GOING TO TAKE YOUR LIFE. That lame squadron will NEVER BE ABLE TO HIT ME! HYAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!" Viktor's yell was unlike any other. In stark contrast to the pitch he was using prior, the yell was unnaturally high pitched.

"[gasp] Л-Лиса5 Squadron! Help them!"

BOOM

"2 down, 2 to go," Viktor noted, before adding "Oh, look. I see your failures. Time to use my special weapon... hh..hha...hahahahaHAHAHAHAAAAAAA!"

A loud, angry, unnatural noise filled the air as a glowing beam of energy shot out of the ship, directly hitting one of the oncoming aircraft, which immediately blew up. The beam moved from craft to craft, each one blowing up as soon as the beam hit it.

"The ZTR7440 Quantum Destabiliser. In all honesty, it's really just a prototype for our F12000 Super-Weapon, but it's working so WELL!"

With 3 destroyed, the final Волк Squadron fighter remaining, Волк 2, decided to take evasive manoeuvres. Pitching up, they flew over Viktor, who followed him up. No matter what he did, he could not shake the superior prototype, which, apart from the flash of bright light from the weapons beam, was the last thing they saw.

Finished with the 4 fighters, Viktor them made for the 3rd power station, but he was not the only one in the area. Ahead of him were another 4 craft. Лиса Squadron. They saw what had happened to their fellow squadron, and made an accurate deduction. They could not defeat him. Immediately, they flew out of the way of the craft.

"This is Лиса Squadron! We surrender! We know we are unable to defeat you, but please! Just spare us!" Лиса 1 pleaded to Viktor.

"Hmph, whatever." Viktor responded. "You aren't my main target. You would have been destroyed only if you had gotten in my way. Since you aren't, I see no reason to destroy you."

"FOOLS! I order you to attack him!" Pawel yelled back at the fleeing Squadron. "FIGHT! DECIMATE HI.... wait... no... hahaha.... BAHAHAHAHA!"

"What's so funny?" Viktor asked.

"The cage was designed to be powered by 4 power stations. Since you destroyed 2, the other 2 cannot compensate. They're losing power! Soon... heh.... HAHAHAHA! BOOM! NUCLEAR DISASTER!"

"Great."

"The best thing is, you can't stop them in time! Ahh... All hope is gone! Now, DIE! DIE IN YOUR OWN DE...spair? Huh?"

"Imbecile. I'm not one person. I have 16 more fighters out there, all I had to do was get two that were the closest to the nuke stations. Problem solved. Now, how about you die in your own despair?" Viktor echoed, aiming his craft at the building that was previously shielded.

"You... You... I... I DESPISE YOU!" Were the last words to come out of Pawel's mouth.

Viktor locked on to a particular part of the building, the area where Pawel was situated. Viktor then replied to Pawel, the last thing he heard was Chris Scarbroughs British accent.

"Oh, Mr. Bovier, I reciprocate your feelings."

BOOM

1 Crinale Elite Air Forces
2 Aithéras, translates to Aether.
3 Volk, translates to Wolf. Initially unintentional, but I then realised what I did. Be glad I kept it, Snake. :D
4 Predatel', translates to traitor
5 Lisa, translates to Fox. Purely intentional. Once again, you're welcome Snake. :D

[Ace3000]

Friday, February 5th, 2016: The F12000 begins.

The following is a list of events that were not in Curse of the Devil, occurring between August 12th, 2210 and January 1st, 2212.

FTA: Curse of the Devil - Crinale 2210-12
>log27: 22100812-22111231

August 28th, 2210: Viktor Antonov publically announces Crinale's involvement in the European Continental War, also deploys Вулкан Squadron, a team of 5 Grav-Tanks to fight in strategic locations around the continent. Viktor also makes a mention of a Silver Spear plan.

September 1st, 2210: Viktor sends Земля1, Вода2 and Воздух3 Squadrons of the Crinale Elite Air Forces on their maiden voyage and first battle in the newly developed I4-XA2 Fighter craft. 4 craft were on each team for a total of 12 craft.

September 17th, 2210: The fourth and final Squadron, Огонь4, were sent out into battle, as the 16th and final I4-XA2 craft was not completed until the 15th.

November 13th, 2210: After killing Pawel, Viktor took over him as the new Tsar of Russia.

November 19th, 2210: Viktor makes plans to re-develop the Tsar's Parliament into a large, inpenetrable fortress, referred to as "Преисподняя5".

March 29th, 2211: Russia's flag is changed. New colours reflect Crinale's effective takeover: Black, Orange, Black.

August 15th, 2211: The F0-RA8/00015 is unveiled, showing that the new Crinale is even more violence-oriented than when the team was lead by Alexandra Gelorum. Also unveiled is the F12000 Super-Weapon, the ZTR7620 Quantum Destabiliser.

November 30th, 2211: Crinale, under the guise of a military company, attempt to blackmail FEISAR into pulling out of the 2212 F12000 season. The plan, however, ultimately fails when a third party catches wind of the blackmail attempt and contacts the armed forces of a certain European country, who proceeded to decimate an integral part of one of Crinale's main ground bases.

December 4th, 2211: Преисподняя is completed. The fortress builds upon the ECS Cage tech used in Pawel's Parliament, however uses newer, nore secure and more stable technology to power it, as opposed to using the primitive nuclear power option.


Translations
1Zemlya, Earth
2Voda, Water
3Vozdukh, Air
4Ogon', Fire
5Preispodnyaya, Hell

[Ace3000]

Oops, I intended for this to go up on Friday, as it was in my usual schedule. Oh well, what is one day late?

The referenced album title of FTA: Season 2, Part 14 was 18 Months by Calvin Harris. That was a loooong time ago, Not gonna let it go that long without an FTA part again. I mean, yeah, there was the Curse of the Devil, but ehhh.

[s2_7.0: Part 15.0] Her Time Will Come
<22120126>

Sunday, January 26th, 2212

Angelus R&D HQ, Perth, Australia

06:25:43

Brandon arrived at Angelus HQ earlier than usual, but that was only the first thing that was wrong.

"Wait, where's security?" He spoke out loud, noticing the place was barren, no security guards to be seen. "They're supposed to always be here... ehh, whatever."

He walked into his office, where he saw a familiar person sitting on his desk.

"Ah, crap. What are you doing here? Whenever you come here, it's never good news. I assume you took out my security? Again?"

"Hello to you too." Nikole replied "We have been investigating and looking over a... certain individual for a while now, and we have evidence to believe they are in danger. Also, yes, I took care of your security. Again."

"[sigh], remind me to get better security. Anyway, what do you mean by 'a certain individual'? You're talking to me, so it must be someone affiliated with Angelus. In that case, I can assure you no-one will be in danger as far as I'm leading this team."

"No, you don't understand. She's not in danger from a third party, she's in danger from herself."

"Herse- oh, god damn it, no, not this again. Not her again! WHY IS IT ALWAYS TARAH?! As soon as we started dating all hell broke loose! Stop using her to get at me!"

Nikole took a deep breath, as to keep herself calm. "Look, I wouldn't do something like that. She's had this problem since 2209, before you were dating. I want to help you, Brandon. She's in danger."

"Haven't you noticed all the time you've been coming here? Tarah's not here, she hasn't been here since mid-2210. She quit, she's moved on and I will never find her again!"

"What?! You should have kept her in your care! So, if she's gone, then do you only have the one pilot?"

"No, I found a replacement."

"Right. Either way, once again, you don't understand. We will locate her, and we will take her. This is for the safety of everyone."

"Pfft, 'safety of everyone'. You just wanted to remove our best pilot, to give yourselves a chance. Yeah, I know about Syncline. Too bad you were one step behind, though."

"I told you, I wouldn't do something like that."

"Hahahaha, don't make me laugh!" Brandon thought for a second before asking, "If you want to retain my trust, then tell me this: What was wrong with her, why was she in danger, and what were you going to do to help her?"

"I'm afraid I can't willingly give that information for free. I'd need some sort of payment, not money."

"What about all that stuff I did for you? That doesn't count?"

"That was in the past, some minor odd jobs, they aren't enough."

"They aren't enough?! What, are you trying to get us to do something that will cripple Angelus' racing division, to make sure we aren't so much of a threat for your stupid victory?!" Brandon's frustration had peaked. He made one step toward her, grabbed her by her coat, and physically lifted her up. "You are exactly the kind of team I'd expect from the F12000! As a team leader that is completely against such ideals, I have no choice but to terminate our partnership here and now. I will no longer help you. You will vacate the premises immediately, or I will forcibly remove you myself. It doesn't matter that you took out my security, it will be done."

As soon as he said that, Brandon regained his composure, dropped her back onto her feet and stepped back. Nikole just stood where she was, dumbfounded, before changing her expression to one of suspicion. After several moments in silence, she started stuttering and mumbling something about paranoia. Finally, she regained her composure, and spoke, "Very well, then. Don't say we didn't warn you. We will take Tarah Andrews by force, it is for the safety of everyone." After making that declaration, she turned to leave.

"Fine, see if I care, I don't know where she is, I wasn't able to find her, and I doubt you'll be able to. As I said, you're too late, she's gone... and she's not coming back."

------------
<22120129>

Wednesday, January 29th, 2212

10:12:57

"Okay, team. I have a small, yet major update." Brandon told the team, "Don't worry, though, it shouldn't interfere with your work or your lives. In light of... recent personal events, I have decided to increase and strengthen our security, it seems my worries about the F12000 were spot on: There are new teams that will go out of their way to stop us, even outside of races, even before the damn thing has even begun! We need to keep up the purity of the race, this corruption and violence will help no-one, and we shall do our best to stop this cancer that is the F12000 Anti-Gravity Racing League. You are all doing very well. Now please, continue on with your day."

"Smith-san, if you do not like the new league, why participate in it?" Kyoko asked.

"Ah, a very good question!" He replied, "The answer is very simple. We will race for one very good reason: To prove a point, to send a message. I believe that the F12000 will be as violent, if not, more so than the F9000. We'll race to prove that violent combat-oriented racing is a very ugly thing indeed. We will show them purity! We will show them a beautiful race, one without ugly violence!"

"Very well, I see that I have come to the right team. Thank you." She replied, bowing as she thanked him.

"Fantastic! Now, we all need to get ready for the first race of the season, we need to fly out tomorrow night, but we will be ready. Let's go!"

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 15 was Our Time Will Come by KMFDM.

[s2_8.1: Part 16.1] A Weekend in Canada
<22120131>

Friday, January 31st, 2212

Toronto, Canada

06:32:48

The moment Brandon entered Canada, he took a deep breath, then said "Ah, it's been forever since I have been in this wonderful country, and even then, I was in the old, abandoned Nova Scotia. It's nice to be somewhere that's still... alive. Still, let's hurry up. The sooner we get to Altima, the sooner we can try out our new craft!"

------------
Altima VIII, Toronto, Canada

<08:00:00_>
<altima viii: short fwd_>
<practice_>

01. FUJ616.0.43.194 (#43 | Kyoko Fujisaki | AX2.0_r1)
02. ARD889.1.19.194 (#19 | Gareth Ardos | AX2.0_r1)

With a space of 15 seconds between the two, Kyoko and Gareth took off from the pits to their practice. Altima VIII was a slightly different course than its 2052 predecessor. Most of the historic 5.5k track was changed to comply with the F12000 regulations, and as such, was split up into 3 different courses, with each one using different parts of the full course and sharing main sections with the other courses.

Since it was the first race of the season, it was to take place on the shorter, easier course 1. Laps estimated to take 30 seconds to complete at the level of speed the craft were currently at. Angelus, on the other hand...

"New lap record!"
<lap_time: 0:27.211_>

Their fastest lap for the practice ensured that Angelus would get a high position in the qualifier.

------------
<22120201>

Saturday, February 1st, 2212

Altima VIII, Toronto, Canada

<09:12:37_>
<altima viii: short fwd_>
<qualifier_>

01. FUJ616.0.43.194 (#43 | Kyoko Fujisaki | AX2.0_r1)
02. ARD889.1.19.194 (#19 | Gareth Ardos | AX2.0_r1)

The time was close to the start of Angelus' qualifying laps: one for Gareth, and one for Kyoko. Since she got the faster lap of the pre-qualifier of the two racers, Kyoko went first. She started on a flying lap, then passed the start line for the real thing... which was over before it began. The Speed Lap gave Angelus a final position of 2nd for Kyoko, and 5th for Gareth.

01. SCA308.0.7.329 (#7 | Lucia Scarlatti | F0-RA8/00015)
02. TUR847.1.13.329 (#13 | Leon Turner | F0-RA8/00095)

Meanwhile, at Crinale, the prodigy, as was her primary racing style, ran a perfect qualifying round, somehow maneuvering the heavy F0-RA8 around the track ever so slower than Kyoko Fujisaki in the much lighter Xygen V, putting Lucia Scarlatti at 3rd place. Leon, on the other hand, even though he had upgraded his craft, ran a more predictable run, obtaining the 14th position on the start line.

------------
<22120202>

Sunday, February 2nd, 2212

Altima VIII, Toronto, Canada

09:12:37


The investigation into the failure of Triakis Industries' F12000 craft on the day of their qualification continues. The two craft, seemingly shutting down moments after crossing the line to start their qualifying lap, were discovered to have been tampered with, implying sabotage has occurred. Updates will be given as they come to light.

"Mr. Smith, I hope you will do your best to win this race, for Australia! Also, we believe you may know something about the identity of the saboteur." The head of the racing division of Triakis told Brandon.

"Yeah, I wi- wait... please tell me I am wrong in assuming this, but... you don't suspect Angelus, right?"

"HAHAHA! 'Course not. I'm just saying that 'cause of your affiliation with the AGRC since '09, you might know who could have done it. Maybe it could be Crinale, you know?"

"[sigh], at least I assumed wrong, thanks for that. Crinale may be a possibility, but I honestly have no idea who could have done it. Did you see anyone suspicious in your pits at any point from Friday to yesterday?"

"If we did, we'd know who would have done it. Unfortunately, we saw no-one that we would call suspicious. And believe me, we are a weapons manufacturer."

Well, the only thing I can say now is that we will try our very best to win. Good luck in finding the culprit."

Suddenly, their conversation was cut short by the announcer: "WARNING. 5 minutes remain until race begins. All pilots please move to the start line in your relative positions."

That prompted Brandon to make his depart. "Oop, better get going, I need to direct my team. I'll see you around."

All 26 craft were at their starting positions, as Brandon ran to his control room in the pits, just in time for the race to start...

3, 2, 1... GO!

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 16.1 was A Weekend in the City by Bloc Party.

[s2_8.2: Part 16.2] Tomorrow's Modern Competition
<22120202>

Sunday, February 2nd, 2212

Altima VIII, Toronto, Canada

3, 2, 1... GO!
<09:30:00_>
<altima viii: short fwd_>
<race: lap 01 of 79_>

02. FUJ616.0.43.194 (#43 | Kyoko Fujisaki | AX2.0_r1)
03. SCA308.0.7.329 (#7 | Lucia Scarlatti | F0-RA8/00015)
05. ARD889.1.19.194 (#19 | Gareth Ardos | AX2.0_r1)
14. TUR847.1.13.329 (#13 | Leon Turner | F0-RA8/00095)

All the craft took off at an incredible rate, some craft seemed just naturally fast, where most seemed just aggressive in their starts. As expected, the faster, more thrusty craft took the early lead. These included Angelus and Crinale, so the crowd seemed happy to see yet another dogfight between the two rival teams.

In Angelus' control room above their pits, Brandon attempted to search for a few things, but ultimately failed. He typed out a list on a holo-bar, then called Alex up.

"Alex," Brandon asked, "If you wouldn't mind, could you go and grab me some things?"

"Sure, what do you need?" She asked back.

"I have a list." He replied, handing her the holo-bar. She activated it and looked at the list.

"Yeah, I can get those for you." She said, closing it up and slipping it in her inner jacket pocket. As she walked out, she nearly collided with an overly enthusiastic girl on AG skates

"WOAH SH*T!" The girl exclaimed, nearly falling over trying to avoid smacking into Alex.

"Agh! WATCH WHERE YOU ARE... going." Alex yelled, but her fury died down as she caught a glimpse of the girl. She wasn't sure what it was about her that caused her to lose her brazenness, but maybe the fact that she was still smiling had something to do with it.

Suddenly, the girls bright expression changed to one of surprise. "W-wait, are you... it can't be... you're that Crinale girl, right? The original owner!"

"Uh, well... I'm not really with Crinale anymore, my job got..."

A flashback to the events of March 2nd, 2210 flashed through Alex's mind. The Apollyon prototype craft, Viktor's modifications and his annnouncements of taking over the AGRC and Crinale. She finished her sentence with "Uhhh, taken... from me."

"Ah... but you are her, right? You're Gelorum?"

"G... Ggghhh!?" Alex stuttered, before replying, "I... I only use that name when I'm with Crinale. Since I'm not, I'd prefer to go by my real name, Kotova. My name is Alexandra Kotova."

"Kotova... Well, I'm still able to call you Alexandra... oh, right! Where's my manners?" She stuck out her hand "My name is Catherine Evans, I work for the Racing Commission."

Alex's face twitched at the mention of the AGRC, but Catherine didn't notice, as Alex grabbed her hand and shook it. Suddenly, she spoke up once more with just as much enthusiasm as she did before. "Oh, wait, I must be keeping you from doing whatever you were gonna do! I know that I need to get back to work." She started to leave, starting up her AG skates. "See ya!" She waved behind her as she skated away.

"Yeah, later." Alex said, slightly confused, walking off in the opposite direction to get Brandon's items.

<toys in the hood | re-volt (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DeTfSCIknCQ&t=1m11s)_>

Altima VIII's short course was a pretty standard, simple course. It wasn't catered to one style, instead being somewhere between the straight-heavy high speed courses and the more twisty technical circuits. Thus for this race, it was really anyone's game. The agile, high-handling craft could navigate the simple corners with ease, where the heavier high-thrust, high-speed craft caught up in the straights.

The rules stated that any one pilot would have to complete a series of challenges in order to obtain a Super-Weapon license for that pilot only. Naturally, the only one to have done that before the start of the season was Crinale, both of their pilots completed the challenges and so their craft were fitted with Crinale's superweapon.

Whenever they would obtain it from the weapon pick-up, they did not hesitate to fire it at anyone ahead of them. This gave them a high placing for the middle third of the race, going back and forth between 1st and at least, 4th. Angelus knew this and strategised, holding off from overtaking and keeping behind them. It didn't really work as well as they anticipated, as another team would hit Crinale with a weapon, making them fall back and placing Angelus and other craft ahead of theirs at risk of being hit with the superweapon.

"Quantum Destabiliser!"
"Quantum Destabiliser!"

Suddenly, Angelus' plan fell apart. Both Lucia and Leon had activated their superweapon at the same time, aiming them at the two Angelus craft. It was impossible for them to avoid them, they were on a straight, and any attempts to move out of the way of one bright blue beam would land them in the firing line of the other. They decided to slow down and fall back behind them, but the heavy Crinales made short work of the Angelus' remaining shield energy.

<contender eliminated_>
<contender eliminated_>

Brandon could do nothing but sigh and place his palm on his face. He knew that it would only get even more difficult from here on out. He hoped that next time, they would be able to actually complete a race.

------------
<22120204>

Monday, February 3rd, 2212

Angelus HQ, Perth, Australia.

Brandon's post-race talk was as expected.

"I knew it. I knew that the F12000 was going to be way more difficult, way more ruthless... I... just didn't know by how much. You need to be prepared for the new races, the new rules, but I'm sure our pilots know this, having experienced Crinale's wrath first hand. It is because of this that we need to complete our Super-Weapon as soon as possible, apply for the Super-Weapon challenges and then get our pilots to, along with some extra training to correct my prior underestimations, complete said challenges to obtain the license for use in the races."

"Why was this not the primary concern?" Kyoko asked. "We could have done so much better had you done this earlier."

"As I said," Brandon replied, "I underestimated how ruthless the league, especially Crinale, would be. Also, I didn't put the Super-Weapon first because of our team's ideals: light, fast craft over powerful weapons and violence. That being said, even though we are stooping to use a Super-Weapon, it still follows our ideals. I will explain the weapon in detail once it is complete.

"Now, everyone not directly connected to the pilots, you can go back to work. For the rest of us, I need to discuss and revise our pilots' testing and practice programs..."

[Ace3000]

New part today! Thanks to BardicSMG for proofreading and telling me I'm writing his characters wrong! I'd much prefer he tell me that than for me to write his characters wrong and actually post it, so thanks, I appreciate it!

The referenced album title of Part 16.2 was Tomorrow's Modern Boxes by Thom Yorke.

[s2_9.0: Part 17.0] Peaceful Technology
<22120210>

Monday, February 10th, 2212

Angelus HQ, Perth, Australia

13:17:40

The pilots had completed the challenges, and the weapon had been finalised. Angelus were able to use it for all races, starting with the next one.

Brandon had set up the simulator for a final test for the pilots. Most of the Racing Developments team members were in the conference room, which was set up to display a live feed of both simulators.

Before the test begun, however, Brandon spoke to the team members, including the pilots, about the super-weapon itself.

"This is it, the ge22B... that's our internal code. Our weapon, which, if Angelus had to have a special personal weapon, then I couldn't think of anything more fitting, is an EMP Railgun. This fires a charged energy pulse at an extremely high speed. The energy pulse, upon impact with any craft, will short out any and all electronic systems for a short period of time. Why I believe it is a fitting weapon for Angelus is that it causes no direct damage, it's a disruptive weapon, not a destructive one. The only damage caused by the weapon would be indirect. For instance, the affected craft hitting a wall or another craft.

"Now, I will now allow our two fantastic pilots to begin the 8th and final test. This one is not required for your Super-Weapon license, you all have completed the prerequisites for that, however, this final challenge is to allow you to learn and master the new weapon."

On his command, the test started.

<13:30:00_>
<omega harbour: azure fwd*_>
<test: ge22b_>
<1997 | savant (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LaWmS2EaNYY&t=3m18s)_>

The craft took off at full power, accelerating to their top speeds in seemingly no time at all. 24 other craft were loaded in, a patch was made to the simulator to make the aggression of the AI more accurate to the Altima VIII race. What Kyoko and Gareth were to do was to come in the top two positions.

All the weapon pickups were either green or the EMP Railgun, as the team didn't place primary focus on the other weapons. With practice, they were able to master the weapon by accounting for the small delay of the weapon caused by it charging and the sheer speed of the pulse, so they were able to time the shot and hit the opponent craft easily, eventually bringing their miss rate down extremely low.

"Ardos-san, I believe we have sufficient training necessary to use the railgun effectively." Kyoko told her teammate.

"Mm, I agree. Still, though, more practice would benefit us." Gareth replied.

"Naturally. Let us begin again, and maybe bring our time down. We will be able to surpass all 24 craft in a much faster time than before."

"Sure thing. I'm always up for more practice, especially if it means sp-" He trailed off into mumbles at that point.

"E-eh?! What? 'spend more time with me'? Is that what you said?"

Gareth became quite flustered. "Wh-? How?! How are you able to hear me even when I mumble to myself?! What, d'you have some sort of super-hearing?"

"No. I-I am just able to hear you. You are not that quiet, you know."

"And yet no-one else can hear what I say when I mumble to myself."

"I'm sure they can. But something that perplexes me, why do you not just have an inner monologue?"

"I dunno, that's just how I am, take it or leave it."

"T-... Ardos-san, it is not that big of a deal, why are you making it so?"

Gareth was stunned for a few seconds, then muttered, "It is to me... K-Kyoko."

------------
<22120211>

Tuesday, February 11th, 2212.

Syncline HQ, unknown location.

Unknown time.

A head researcher knocked on the door to the office, a voice granting him entry shortly after.

"Nikole, we bring some good and bad news." He said upon entering.

The voice behind the door, Nikole Carole, replied. "Well? Spill it."

He continued, "Well, the good news first: We have obtained, through great difficulty, some information on the other new team that debuted this year, Berlin Design Racing. Because of its difficulty in obtaining, we believe that the info is of some importance, also because of their public secrecy."

"Very good, thank you. That will definitely prove useful. What about any other teams? And also the bad news."

"Well, the bad news has to do with another team. Angelus, specifically."

"Oh... them. What's the info?"

"The info we obtained regarding Angelus is that... there is a spy that has infiltrated them. They're gathering sensitive info on them and distributing it to a certain correspondant. As of yet, we are unsure as to the identity of said correspondant, however, we will definitely have it soon."

"Argh, that is a huge problem, for them and me."

"Wait, why you?"

"Well... let's just say that I am no longer on good terms with them, Smith especially. He seemed to be unnaturally paranoid about me and Syncline."

The researcher thought for a moment, then made a proposition. "...Could it be... that he is under the influence of 'The Condition'?"

Nikole pondered about the researcher's guess before replying, "I don't think so. He hasn't shown any other symptoms yet. Until he does, only then can I be sure that he has been affected. Just focus on Tarah Andrews regarding that, she's our main concern."

*Azure is an internal Angelus designation, which they gave to the different courses of Omega Harbour. The Azure course is never run in an official F12000 race, it is used by Angelus as their testing course. It is a full course that runs the first half of the long course combined with most of the medium course. In other words, it is pretty much like the full FX400 course, sans the Omega Complex.

The internal course designations for Omega Harbour are:

Yellow: Short/easy course
Red: Medium/hard course
Green: Long/intermediate course
Azure: Full/test course

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 17 was Emotional Technology by BT.

[s2_10.1: Part 18.1] Chiastic Slide! 4 Consecutive Hairpin Drift!
<22120214>

Friday, February 14th, 2212

Shibukawa, Gunma, Kantō, Japan.

09:10:26

The Angelus team landed in Japan at the early time of 7am, arriving at Shibukawa at 9. At 10am, they begun their practice at the second course in the roster, Sidewinder. Like the name suggested, the course was very technical, being based upon the various mountain passes the country was known for. It was a course that would favour light, high-handling craft, but would also put the airbrakes to it's limits.

By the time they had finished the practice runs. They travelled to at the hotel the team was staying at, by which time it was late at night. Brandon was relaxing in his room, albeit bored, so he got up and walked out to his car.

"I could do with a touge run." He thought, looking at his on-board map. "Let's see... the closest mountain pass is... Haruna. Great!"

He set off, driving towards the mountain, then stopped at the base, where the pass started. He accessed the computer that controlled his car's settings, then adjusted them to suit the touge run. He then floored the pedal, going for a light run up the mountain. Suddenly, halfway up...

SSSSCRRRREEEEEEE- BANG BANG BANG!

The sound of tyres sliding across the road, the whine of a turbo, the sound of the wastegate from the turbo and a series of loud banging noises filled the air. Then, he saw it, drifting around the corner...

"Huh?" He said out loud.

Even though it was fast as lightning, he saw something he never expected. An old, white Mazda RX-7.

"It... can't be? It can't be Jonathan, he's not around anymore. Ah, never mind."

He continued up to the peak of the pass, turning around and preparing for the downhill run.

"Okay, let's get serious. Music... okay"
<gave | vinter in vegas (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kbZ1rfMHxM&t=14)_>

"Stopwatch... okay. Right, let's... 2, 1, GO!"

He set off at max speed down the straight, towards the first corner. He turned sharply while tapping the brakes. That put him into a slide. He navigated the corner at an extremely high speed. As he exited the corner, he mashed the accelerator, straightening out.

As he passed corner after corner, his reaction time was always the same speed: brake, engage the airbrakes, disengage one side and hit the accelerator at the same time, putting the car into a slide. Continue through the corner, while feathering the throttle. As soon as he saw the corner straighten out, he went full throttle, straightening out of the corner. Soon, he was at the 4 consecutive hairpin turns*.

"I hope to see some people drift down here!" A local said, sitting by the guardrails of the second hairpin.

"Yeah, the hairpins are a great place to see their technique." His friend said.

"Oh, I hear someone coming down, let's hope it's a local, they're the best!"

The black Angelus Razer.X drifted into view, it's sleek, shiny body looking absolutely beautiful in the dark, and was only accentuated by its azure blue lighting around the body. It then attacked the corner the two locals were standing by at an incredible pace

"Wh-WHAAAA~?!" The first local yelled. "That was so fast!"

"Hold on," The second one said, being more observant, "I have never seen that car on the pass before. Also, it didn't have Japanese plates, meaning that it was not driven by a local."

"Touge fan?"

"Possibly, but that technique was incredible! I don't think I've ever seen someone race down here at that speed, apart from the top-tier locals!"

Brandon started out by slowing down just enough that he would be able to clear the corners at the highest speed possible, then he pulled the car into a slide through the corner, hitting the apex almost perfectly. However, once he was out of the corner, he kept the slide, going to the outside of the road. Once he sensed that he was moving to the other side, he twisted the wheel and engaged the opposite airbrake so that he engaged an inertia drift, moving the car so that it faced the entry of the second hairpin, still sliding. He reached the outside as he entered the corner, turning more inward so he could hit the apex of that corner. He did so, and used the same technique for the rest of the hairpins.

In near-record time, he reached the end of the pass, but as he drifted around the final corner, he saw it again. That exact same white RX-7. He kept the slide going, moving to the far end of the road, then turned sharply, sliding so that he was facing the opposite way, settling about 10-20 meters from the stopped car.

"N-no, it can't be. He's not alive..."

He put the handbrake off and set the car into a crawl, slowly moving up to the pure white car. Then he got close enough that he could read the license plate. It was the same as Jonathan's. German plates, same sequence of letters and numbers, everything. Suddenly he recalled the day he saw Jonathan's beloved machine...

------------
Wednesday, March 28th, 2210

"So, what do you think?" Jonathan asked proudly

It was incredible. The sleek white body looked like it was a work of art. Brandon just kneeled by it, moving his hand over the various curves the body sported.

"It's beautiful." Brandon muttered, before looking up and asking, "And this car was from 20...?"

"17. The FG4 was originally built in 2017."

"FG4... That's the model code?" Brandon butted in

"Precisely, like your Raxer.X is a HS20."

Ah, ok. So why show me a 2017 car now? You could have shown me anytime?"

"It was a rebuilt model, I only bought it this month. I love classic cars like this."

"I bet. I'd love to drive this, see how it handles. But you'd probably not let me drive, even though you know how good of a driver I am, hahaha! But it's okay, I feel the same about my Razer.X."

------------
Brandon closed his car's door and walked over to the other sleek car. For a moment, due to its colour, he thought it was the ghost of the dear friend that had left him. However, it was a real car, that became more apparent the closer he got to it.

"Well, maybe he just... hmmm" He thought.

Finally, he reached it, extending an arm out and knocking on the window. The person inside looked up, saw who it was and smiled, opening the door.

"Huh, I really did not know you were a fan of drifting down a mountain pass, Brandon." He said.

"Well, I never brought it up." Brandon replied, before thinking 'Hah! Called it! Jonathan gave Nico the car, of course it would be him driving!'

"So," Nico cut into his thoughts, "Since we're both here, and we both love touge runs, how about we have a friendly race? Your HS20, tuned by you, and Jonathan's tuned FG4?"

"Sure, let's do it. I still have time."

Brandon ran back to his car, as Nico started his up. They then both drove up the hill, to see who was the fastest.

Brandon Smith, the owner and leader of Angelus R&D, in his black Angelus Razer.X HS20, tuned and modified by himself?
Or Nico von Bovier, the president of Jennter Enterprises, in his white Mazda RX-7 FG4, tuned by Jonathan Bovier?

* The real Mt. Haruna only contains 4 consecutive hairpin turns, not 5 as is in Initial D

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 18.1 was Chiastic Slide by Autechre. (A chiastic phrase has 4 parts.)

[s2_10.2: Part 18.2] Down to the Earth! Hyper Downhill Battle!
<22120214>

Friday, February 14th, 2212

Mt. Haruna, Gunma, Kantō, Japan.

Brandon and Nico lined their cars up at the start, ready to go. Brandon then took the time to make minute changes to his car's settings, as he noticed the car wasn't at its optimal setting.

<night of fire | niko (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-cCbpvfLRs)_>

"Okay! I'm ready" Brandon signalled.

"Alright! Starting the countdown!" A local said, who somehow managed to get pulled into the race. "5, 4, 3, 2, 1, GO!"

<21:25:00>
<mt. haruna pass_>
<touge race_>

The two cars took off at an incredible pace, the black Angelus starting to pull in front. Brandon decided to hold off, keeping pace with the white RX-7.

"I want this battle to be fair, but when we hit the first corner, I won't hold back." Brandon said.

True enough, at the first corner, Brandon entered the corner in a slide at an amazing rate, his tuning allowing him to do so. However, Nico's RX-7 was not slow at all, he had also been holding off. When he reached the first corner, he entered the corner in an even more outrageous slide, and nearly overtook Brandon at the end of the corner. However, he was on the outside lane of the second corner, giving him a disadvantage.

Brandon, having helped build the car from the ground up, and having tuned the car himself with help from Angelus' engineers, had known every single detail of the Razer.X's performance, and could handle it in his sleep. Nico had the experience of racing down mountain passes, and knew about the techniques and skills needed for touge battles. These two different skills had cancelled each other out, so neither one had the major advantage over the other.

Then it happened. Brandon's method of taking the corners, even though he was drifting, consisted of the "Outside-Inside-Outside" approach when racing. Nico took this approach, and weaponized it. He kept to the inside during the latter part of the corner, somehow keeping his speed up and overtaking him. He then used his techniques to prevent Brandon from overtaking him.

This, however, gave Brandon to look for a weakness in Nico's driving style, or even the car itself. "Hmm, Nico seems to be in relatively good control of that car, considering how much of a monster it is." He thought. "That 16X rotary is light and powerful enough, but it's been tuned to extreme amounts. There is no turbo lag, the anti-lag system takes care of that nicely, even though it makes a racket. It shows that it has been tuned properly, by someone who knows the strengths and weaknesses of different engines and different tuning types. It just so happens that the one who tuned that is one of, if not, the greatest racers in the world! Geez, Jonathan! That thing's mental!"

He found no faults with the car being driven, so maybe there was some small weakness in the driving techniques being used by Nico? Well, none that would allow him to overtake him. his drift blocked the road perfectly, unless...

"That's it! The car actually has an unintentional fault that no amount of tuning can fix!" He yelled in surprise. He decided to take action.

They were coming up to a long, straight enough piece of road. After the corner, he made his move, getting faster and closer to the white rocket. Then...

"OH, YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!" Nico yelled as the black car slowly accelerated past him.

"Sorry, Nico. Your car actually can't use all its power effectively." Brandon thought "You see, the wheels are the problem. It creates friction with the road, resistance. The car needs extra power to overcome the force, but an AG car doesn't have contact with the ground, hence, it can use its power more efficiently."

However, the race wasn't over yet, they were about 2/3 through, coming closer and closer to the 4 consecutive hairpins, still relatively neck-and neck. However, on the last corner before the hairpins, the FG4 was nowhere in sight. Suddenly, Brandon heard something odd just as he entered the hairpins.

<mandragora | medicine drum (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVR1EWM4P4o&t=80)_>

"Huh? I... what the? Has that fool turned his lights off?! He has, that engine sounds familiar... no, wait a minute. That doesn't sound like a rotary..."

A car was drifting extremely close to Brandon, with it's lights off. Just as Brandon came round hairpin #2, it made its move, turning on its lights.

"WHAT?!"

The tiny purple car was now side to side with him, then cut in front of him at the entrance of hairpin #3. It took the corner at a fast pace and was drifting at a wide angle.

"Obake? Finally, we meet again... LET'S DO THIS!"

As he yelled, he grabbed the power adjuster and cranked it to full. Brandon now had 720hp at his disposal. He was able to keep up for a few reasons. He had gained experience racing on mountain passes since 2 years ago, he had driven on Haruna before, and his car was running at 100%. Just keeping up with the mysterious car made Brandon lose his sense of speed, and was travelling faster than he ever was, but was leaving less and less of a margin for error. Not that he needed the margin, the race was nearly over.

Brandon moved to the side of Obake on a longer straight near the end of the course. There were only a few corners left, and it seemed that Obake was going to win. However, they were still side to side at the final straight. It was there that it happened. Due to the higher power, Brandon slipped ahead at the final possible second, taking the inside of the finishing corner.

Brandon pulled over and waited for Nico. He saw Obake pull into the parking lot. After a few seconds, the car started to move again, this time towards Brandon. It stopped next to his car, the driver got out and walked over to him.

"Well, I never thought the fastest downhiller was female. Then again, one of the fastest F12000 racers is female." Brandon commented, finally seeing the driver of the purple car.

Obake spoke, introducing herself. "My name is Katsuo Tsukiko. We will meet again for one final race. Next Saturday, 10pm. We race at Hakone's Tsubaki Line."

"...wait..." Brandon squinted in the dark, trying to see, "Katsuo?! It was you?! It's me, Brandon Smith!"

"E-Eh?! Smith?! I... never knew you were into touge racing!"

"It's a recent thing I've picked up."

At that point, another car entered the parking lot. Jonathan's FG4.

"D-Did you see th- Wait, what?! You know the driver of that purple car?!" Was the first words to come from Niko's mouth after getting out.

Before Brandon could answer him, Katsuo introduced herself.

"Oh, hey! I remember passing that car! So you're a friend of Brandon's? I'm Katsuo Tsukiko, I know Brandon too! I'm sure you know me too, though, I race for Syncline."

"Ah... Syncline. Well, it's nice to meet you." Nico greeted himself, "I'm Nico von Bovier, leader of Jennter Enterprises."

"It's nice meeting you too."

He then turned to Brandon, "So, how do you know her, considering she's with Syncline?"

"Ah, yes." Brandon replied, "I knew Katsuo through some odd jobs I did for her boss, Nikole Carole."

"Nikole?"

"Yes. Unfortunately, through... recent events that had occurred, it seems that Syncline are actually the kind of team I would expect from this league."

"What do you mean... they're...?"

"Excuse me, I'm right here..." Katsuo interrupted.

Brandon turned around and faced her, a cold expression on his face. "Do I look like I care?"

Katsuo stepped back, alarmed. "Ngh... p-point taken." She said.

He turned back to Nico, "I saw... no, I was involved an attempt by Syncline to cripple our team and, to me, that's not on at all. Some stupid racing team should not stoop to that in order to get the victory they so damn care about."

"What are you talking about?" Katsuo asked, trying her best to play dumb.

Brandon was almost amused by her attempt to look innocent. "I guess I don't know what to expect from a thief who races on the side"

"I... Don't know where this is coming from, I'm pretty sure last we met was for that thing with Rameala."

"Whatever, I don't want to deal with this right now, I need to sleep. Nico, I'll see y-... oh."

Nico had left, not wanting to deal with their argument.

"Fine." Brandon said simply, getting back in his car.

"If you're leaving, then don't forget our-"

"Yeah, yeah, the race, I'll be there. Goodbye."

After leaving those cold words, he drove off, leaving Katsuo where she was.

[Ace3000]

Screw this, have an early part. The next one will be up this Friday.

The referenced album title of Part 18.2 was Down to Earth by Flight Facilities, quite an amazing album if I do say so myself. Works perfectly as driving music.

[s2_11.1: Part 19.1] Do You Know Sidewinder
<22120216>

Sunday, February 16th, 2212

Sidewinder, Kantō, Japan

"Alright, guys... Race time. I have faith that your new training will provide fruitful results. I am sure that this time, we won't be eliminated. You guys can do this.... alright, let's rock!"

The two pilots went to their respective rooms to prepare for the race. When Gareth stepped inside, he started psyching himself up.

"Yeah... you can do this... you can do this... HAHAHAHA! I can do this!"

He immediately strode out of his room to Kyoko's. Somehow she had forgotten to close her door, leaving it wide open. When Gareth stepped in, and saw the scene laid out in front of him, he gasped loudly. Kyoko was, naturally, in her room, but her helmet was open, which would give anyone a clear view of her face... had she been facing the doorway. She had her back to the door, drinking from a can. When she heard Gareth's gasp, she started choking on her drink in surprise. After coughing a few times, she reached up and pulled her helmet closed.

"何だ一体！？1 Ugh, why would you just walk in here?!"

"Th-the door was open... Wh... wait! Is... that... drink what I think it is?" He asked.

She held up her can. "This? It is beer. I will not lend you any."

"Oh, I thought it was a soft drink someone liked. Sorry. Anyway, good luck with the race." He started to walk out, but turned on the spot. "Wait, can I ask you something?"

"No. We have no time." She said, mere seconds before the 5 minute warning announcement sounded.

"Crap. Alright, let's go then."

They got to their craft and navigated to their positions on the grid...

3, 2, 1... GO!
<10:00:00_>
<sidewinder: short fwd_>
<race: lap 01 of 72_>

01. FUJ616.0.43.194 (#43 | Kyoko Fujisaki | AX2.0_r1)
04. ARD889.1.19.194 (#19 | Gareth Ardos | AX2.0_r1)
22. SCA308.0.7.329 (#7 | Lucia Scarlatti | F0-RA8/00015)[/B]

As expected, the course greatly favoured the high-handling craft, as the course featured many tight hairpins like the mountain passes it was inspired by. As such, Leon Turner, obtained a final qualifying position of 27th, due to the craft's extremely low handling stat, putting him out of the race.

Naturally, Angelus was competing for the lead against many of the teams that focused on handling than all else. However, two people were not focusing on the race...

"Ah! We meet again! Hi Alexandra!" Came the voice of the now green haired girl.

"Oh... it's you, Catherine. What do you want?" Alex replied.

"Ooh, as cold as always! I just wanted to say hi!"

"You said hi already... Pfftaahahaha! I'm kidding, please, let's talk!"

Catherine breathed a sigh of relief as they begun to converse.

<quoth | polygon window (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcmSfD_Kj4Q)_>

Angelus were having a great race, getting into non-violent battles with the likes of Jennter, FEISAR and Wyvern, under new leadership by David Mendel's son, Alex.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Crinale was having a miserable time, with second pilot Leon turner out of the running and lead pilot Lucia Scarlatti barely trying to so much as keep up with the other teams. Even Syncline, whose V.ult-2X1024 craft was heavier than the F0-RA8, was able to beat them in terms of handling due to their unique craft design, called a Semi-triple hull by their technicians.

Lucia was able to get a quake, immediately firing it just as she got to a small but significantly faster section of the track, which was laced with less hairpins, which allowed her to make use of the craft's high acceleration and speed to catch up.

"Quantum Destabiliser!"
<contender eliminated_>

Slowly, she had started to climb up in the ranks the only way she would be praised for: violence.

<11:29:39_>
<sidewinder: short fwd_>
<race: lap 43 of 72_>

Suddenly, Brandon got a call from the guards outside the pits.

"Hey, Smith. We have Carole outside wanting to speak with you."

"Ugh, Sh*t. Fine, I'll get down there now." He replied, placing a few trusted employees in charge.

"Brandon, this is urgent, we need to talk." Nicole spoke as soon as she saw him.

"Do you now? A tactic to impede our race maybe? I thought I told you I terminated our partnership?"

"I don't have time to deal with your distrust." She retorted "I'm just going to get right to it: There is a spy amidst your team. We have obtained sufficient evidence to support our claims, including intercepted documents from the spy themselves. It is the irrefutable truth."


1Nanda ittai?!, What the f*ck?!

[Ace3000]

I forgot to put up a new part yesterday, ugh! >.<

The referenced album title of Part 19.1 was Do You Know Squarepusher by... Squarepusher.

[s2_11.2: Part 19.2] The Path of Total Truth
<22120216>

Sunday, February 16th, 2212

Sidewinder, Kantō, Japan

11:34:42


"I'm just going to get right to it: There is a spy amidst your team. We have obtained sufficient evidence to support our claims, including intercepted documents from the spy themselves. It is the irrefutable truth."

"'The irrefutable truth'?" He thought for several moments before replying. "Fine, I'll play along. Who is the spy?"

"We don't know, they have assumed the identity of one of your team members."

Brandon chuckled softly at the absurdity of her words. "There it is. There's your tactic. You are attempting to place distrust on my team?! NOT. GOING. TO HAPPEN. They are my family."

"I'm not saying that. Just... think! Is there anything that has been odd about any of your members? Anything at all? It doesn't matter how insignificant."

"I assure you, there is literally noth..." Brandon stopped mid-sentence, his eyes suddenly growing wide. "It... can't... be." He muttured under his breath. Before she could speak however, he spoke up. "This... does not mean I trust you again... not completely at least."

"Better than nothing, I guess. I'll be off then, I did what I came for."

"Right... bye."

<indignation | desimal (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oglOyvCNmE0&t=2m25s)_>

Brandon ran back up to the control room. When he entered, he searched around frantically for something.

"What? What is it?" One of the employees asked.

"There's some kind of device here, I need it for a thing.... ha HA! Here it is!" He proclaimed, holding up a white device about the size of his hand. He turned it on and started typing away at a fast speed, then after tapping the screen a few more times, set it down on the desk beside him, letting the files download to the device.

"I need to send off an email too." He thought out loud, doing just that. When Brandon sent off the email, he checked up on the device, which was gathering the files he specified at a consistent pace. At that moment, Alex walked in the room.

"Hi, sorry I'm late, I got caught up talking to a friend." She apologised.

"It's fine, just check up on those readings there, see if they're normal." He pointed in a general direction to the opposite end of the room, as he examined other readouts from the ongoing race.

"What's that?" She asked, moving towards the odd device.

"It's nothing," He said, snatching it up and putting it in his pocket. "Just some stuff I'm working on."

"Stuff?"

"Plans, they have little to do with Angelus, though, so you don't have to know."

"Oh..."

"[sigh], I guess I could tell you a bit about it, though. It's a two phase plan. Phase 1... is getting Crinale in the hands of someone trustworthy. The top priority is you, though. I have been testing you to see if you can, or have, become trustworthy enought to take Crinale back."

"...R-Really?! You're helping me get Crinale back in my hands?! I... don't know what to say, I thought you hated the thought of me returning there out of fear of me doing the same things I did back then!" She seemed extremely happy to get Crinale back in her hands.

"It depends on if I think you're trustworthy enough, but yeah." He replied, though an odd look filled his face when he looked at her.

"Hey, Brandon, you there?" Gareth's voice came through the comms. Immediately, Brandon moved over to the front of the room and turned on his headset.

"Yeah, what's up?"

"Is... Is this it?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean... it seems too easy, we haven't had to deal with any team being excessively violent towards us."

"Well, the track is littered with sharp hairpins, that's why Crinale can't touch you, you are outmaneuvering them."

"Fantastic!"

Unfortunately, he spoke too soon, he was bombarded by all sorts of weapons, dropping his position by several places. He was surprised to find that it wasn't Crinale, but quite a few other teams that did the damage. Thankfully, he was able to restore the damage done.

However, his nightmare soon turned into a reality. Somehow, the racing prodigy had found her way up to 7th place, right behind Angelus' second pilot. The race was, however, nearly over, with only one lap remaining after the current one. Gareth slowed down, allowing Lucia to pass him.

"Hahahaha, not this time! Sayonara!" Gareth taunted, firing the EMP Railgun he had held on to. It was a direct hit, the craft had lost control, slamming into the wall of one of the tight hairpins. This gave Gareth the edge to prevent Crinale from catching up to him again.

<race: complete_>
<fifth place_>

While Kyoko had no problems placing first, Gareth had to make do with a reasonable 5th. Even though, it was considered a success for Angelus.

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 19.2 was The Path of Totality by KoЯn.

[s2_12.1: Part 20.1] Enter: The Devil
<22120222>

Saturday, February 22nd, 2212

Hakone, Kanagawa, Kantō, Japan.

21:50:28

>>TARGET ACQUIRED
>>ENGAGING SG_R-000

The young girl was waiting at the meeting point, a parking lot. Soon, she saw a familiar car pull into it, the driver getting out.

"Brandon, hi." Tsukiko Katsuo greeted him.

"Hello." He greeted back, "Interesting place you picked."

"Well, I've never raced here yet, that's the only reason. Now, have you had any practice?"

"Going down there?" He pointed towards the Tsubaki Line, "Yeah, I got a few runs in."

"Good, that's where we're the course is." She started to explain the course. "Further up the road there's a parking lot, that's where we start. The end of the road is the finish point."

"Okay, let's get on with it."

The two of them got into their cars. Brandon in his Angelus Razer.X, and Tsukiko in her Icaras-Lotus Elise, both were modified to some degree. They set off uphill to the starting point. When they reached it, they both spun their cars 180°, stopping by the starting point.

"How are we going to start? There's no-one to count us down." Brandon asked, the two speaking through comms systems.

"How much power does your car have?" Katsuo asked after thinking for a second.

"720 horsepower max, but I've set it to 300. Though I can give you my word that I won't, I do have the ability to adjust it on the fly."

"Okay, either way, yours is more powerful than my Elise. May I suggest a handicap start? Since I have less power, I can start the race whenever I want, as soon as you see my car move, you can go."

Brandon thought about it for a moment, before voicing his opinion, "Sounds fair. Well, whenever you're ready, you can go ahead and st-ugh!"

<crazy on emotion | ace (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFiMn5dqLXY&t=30)_>

He was cut off by Katsuo dropping the clutch and taking off as he was talking. The instant he realised that, he set off after her. He nearly caught up to her when the first corner came up. A right hander meant that she had a better line into the turn, but Brandon was close enough that she couldn't move on the inside of the next turn, a left hander. The sharpness of the turn gave Brandon the lead for the initial part of the course.

The next right hand corner was even sharper, but they hadn't hit the hairpins yet. Even then, that corner was sharp enough that Brandon lost sight of Katsuo. He expected to see her once he was out of the corner, but the headlights of the purple Icaras-Lotus were not right behind him, and had disappeared out of sight.

"Really? Isn't it a little early to be doing your little trick? The race has only just begun."

Suddenly, a set of headlights turned on, but they weren't from Katsuo's Elise. They were 3 purple dots arranged in a triangle on each side.

"Huh?" Brandon uttered in surprise.

While the mysterious car kept behind him for a couple of seconds after its lights came on, it suddenly lurched forward with incredible acceleration. It rushed past him as he entered one of the last corners before the rest of the course, which contained hairpins. As it got ahead of him, it broke hard, sliding so it was perpendicular to the road. Brandon had no choice but to slam on his brakes.

Illuminated by the Razer.X's lights, the new car could now be seen in full view. While it had flowing edges, the dark matte grey machine primarily looked like a jet fighter, having two large thrust ports at the rear of the car where a rear window would generally have been. The most interesting thing, however, was that the car had no windshield or other windows.

The car was positioned in a way where it blocked the road to the Tsubaki Line, but left the Hakone Turnpike free to enter. Brandon had noticed, and went to drive onto the unblocked road, but Katsuo called him.

"Brandon! Did you see it? That stupid car spun me out. Thankfully, I avoided any damage, you have no idea how much this car means to me. However, I am probably unable to continue the race, since I bet you're racing them now."

"Actually, it blocked off the pass we were going to race on, I've stopped by the fork. I... think it might want me to go onto the other fork."

"Be careful, that other fork is an extremely high-speed pass with a toll booth at the end. Please, be careful but... I want you to take. Them. Down!"

"Yeah," He replied, "I'll do that." He hung up, then looked up at the car, still stationary. "Fine, I'll take you on, if that's what you want."

He turned onto the Turnpike and floored the accelerator, racing up the split in the road, onto the high-speed piece of road. When he looked back, he saw the car following him. As soon as he entered the Turnpike itself, however...

THUD

[Ace3000]

Posting this a day early, hence there will be no new part tomorrow.

The referenced album title of Part 20.1 was The Devil by Blue Stahli.

[s2_12.2: Part 20.2] Shinigami One: The Demon of Racing
<22120222>

Saturday, February 22nd, 2212

Hakone, Kanagawa, Kantō, Japan.

22:02:38


"Brandon! Did you see it? That stupid car spun me out. Thankfully, I avoided any damage, you have no idea how much this car means to me. However, I am probably unable to continue the race, since I bet you're racing them now."

"Actually, it blocked off the pass we were going to race on, I've stopped by the fork. I... think it might want me to go onto the other fork."

"Be careful, that other fork is an extremely high-speed pass with a toll booth at the end. Please, be careful but... I want you to take. Them. Down!"

<on your wings | rich hard (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76RiaO7yego&t=12)_>

"Yeah," He replied, "I'll do that." He hung up, then looked up at the car, still stationary. "Fine, I'll take you on, if that's what you want."

He turned onto the Turnpike and floored the accelerator, racing up the split in the road, onto the high-speed piece of road. When he looked back, he saw the car following him. As soon as he entered the Turnpike itself, however...

THUD

The matte grey car made it's move, smashing into the rear quarter of Brandon's car, making it spin out of control. Brandon, however, had known how to control his car as if it were part of his body, and had kept the car spinning, until it had spun all the way around, where Brandon stopped spinning, and mashed the accelerator as far down as it would go.

"Heh, I see your dirty tactics... DON'T THINK YOU CAN GET AWAY NOW!"

The rate of acceleration the car produced made it seem like Brandon would have a very difficult time catching up to him, however, he saw the distinctive rear lights and glowing blue exhaust system of the car.

"Huh?... oh, I see how it is. You just wanted to show your speed, how you could defeat me in a fair race. But this was never supposed to be one, wasn't it?!"

The two cars battled at high speed down the Turnpike, and it didn't take long for Brandon's opponent to start its tricks again. It moved to the side of the Razer.X and rammed, hard, into the side of it. The car lightly tapped the guardrail, due to Brandon locking the wheel all the way to the right. That also allowed him to enter the corner sideways, in a large, but controllable drift.

The grey car continued it's attack on Brandon. Eventually, it had enough. It sandwiched Brandon between it and the guardrail. He had no escape. Sparks flew fron his left side as the car ground against the guardrail. The matte grey car then stopped pushing Brandon into the guardrail, moved to the far right, then slammed into the rear side of the car, spinning it once more as it took off at high speed.

As Brandon rounded two more corners, he saw that the machine had once again stopped for him, seemingly taunting him. Like last time, it took off with such a high acceleration, it had caught up to him in mere seconds and passed him, the exhaust spitting out blue flames.

This time, Brandon fought back, pushing his car into the back corner of the grey machine. he was able to push it's rear out, but it simply swung back, colliding with the Razer.X. Brandon had attempted to slow down to avoid the counter, but the other vehicle slowed down as well. The force of the heavy car colliding with the lighter one caused it to bump against the guardrail again.

"YOU... CANNOT WIN." A synthesized voice called out from Brandon's on-board comms system as the grey car once again accelerated ahead. Even through the distortion, Brandon heard the unmistakeable voice of Chris Scarbrough.

"...YOU! What are you up to now?!"

THUD

"Me? Eliminating you. Oh, you mean the car. A little experiment I call... Shinigami. This is just one part of my experiment, it's called the RXK. If you survive this, you will see a LOT more of my experiment. Oh, and don't bother, I'm not the one driving. It is an experiment, after all."

"Don't worry, I intend to survive our deathmatch." Brandon replied simply, "Your 'experiment' will fail when I emerge victorious." He floored the pedal unleashing his racing technique that he called the '01-X Technique'. It was designed to best work with Brandon's custom Razer.X. This time around, the RXK did not stop at the side of the road to catch up, it merely slowed down, waiting for the moment when the Razer.X's headlights filled the rear vision.

Finally Brandon exited a corner onto the same straight the RXK was on, so Chris had the engine turned off, the rear losing it's glow. As Brandon careened down the straight, closer to it, it's engine re-ignited, the same blue flames appearing. He drifted into the next, relatively sharp corner, which was where the RXK finally made its move. It turned in the corner at a speed far greater that was needed to clear it, and forcefully used Brandon's car as a battering ram, being able to clear the corner and pushing the Razer.X uncontrollably into the guardrail with a loud, sickening 'CRUNCH'.

Brandon's control hasd been severely compromised. 'Sh*t... did that break the stabiliser?' He thought. At that point, he had decided that it would end. He used 2/3 of his accelerating power on the straight, fighting the controls of his wounded car.

>CALCULATING TRAJECTORY...
>COLLISION AVOIDABLE

"HAH... had enough yet?" the RXK taunted.

Brandon flipped open a hidden panel, flipping a switch and pressing 2 of the 3 buttons in it as he spoke. "I have... one final trick up my sleeve." He pressed the final button, and mashed the accelerator down. He had activated 'Fury' mode, which powered 4 electric motors to give the Razer.X a boost of power from 720 to 984hp. A panel in the rear of the car between the taillights opened up, revealing two thrusters which promptly switched on, giving the car even more boost as it rocketed down the straight, right at the RXK.

>FATAL ERROR: TRAJECTORY INCALCULABLE
>COLLISION POSSI-

At that point, Brandon had turned hard into the corner, not drifting with help from the broken stabiliser. He made impact with the matte grey car, which collided with the guardrail and flipped over it. It crashed somehwere beyond the road, off the cliff. The Razer.X, due to the angle of the collision and the stabiliser, had flipped around, facing the opposite way at the end of the corner. He was moving to the outside, so instead of fighting it, he let it happen, but used the guardrail to absorb his momentum by tapping it a few times before pushing away on the final tap, engaging the brakes as he did so to bring the broken car to a halt.

Relieved that it was finally over, Brandon took his hands off the wheel and laid back in his seat. A few minutes later, when he had calmed down, he called Katsuo.

"It's done." He spoke.

"Wait, what is?" She asked.

"Shinigami – that grey car – is gone... I destroyed it."

"Shinigami?" Katsuo was confused, as she wasn't in the conversation where the name was brought up.

"A-Ah, I didn't name it that, that's what Ch-..."

The air was filled with a massive, cracking explosion, which somehow looked familiar.

"...P-plasma...?!" He thought out loud.

"What?! What happened?!"

"It... it exploded like a plasma."

"A plasma? Like, massive purple blast?"

"Yes."

"Huh, that's odd."

"You're telling me. Anyway, I'm not going to bother with it, it's over... if you don't mind, I'm heading back, I'm too tired and exhausted to race you. Also, they wrecked my car a bit, I have no idea how bad the damage is, but I can barely keep it in control."

"Do you need a lift? I can drive you back." She offered.

"Nah, it's fine, I'm near the hotel anyway. I can make it."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'll be fine."

"Okay then... well, you take care." Katsuo said, ending the call, leaving Brandon to make his way back to his hotel.

------------
Sunday, February 23rd, 2212

Kantō, Japan.

09:42:48

The next day, Brandon decided to see what last night's battle had done to his car, now that it was bright. An Angelus technician was there with him.

"Most of the damage is cosmetic, like the dented front bumper, and these scratches all over the car." He explained, "The main thing that's concerning is this." He pointed to the rear of the car. "The rear left stabiliser has shattered, which takes considerable force to do."

"That explains why it was hard to control. Only one rear stabiliser isn't good at all for control."

"Yeah. Once we take her and everything else back to HQ, I'll get the team to replace the stabiliser and fix up the rest of the damage for you."

"Thanks, I appreciate it."

[Ace3000]

It's April 14th, so a very happy birthday to Gareth Ardos! (Which means you should also listen to this (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CfYl6_f2Mdg)) Anyway, here's a new part!... which doesn't feature Gareth at all. Whoops.

The referenced album title of Part 20.2 was Shobaleader One: d'Demonstrator by Squarepusher.

[s2_13.0: Part 21.0] How I Learned to Stop Caring About Revenge and Love My Enemies
<22120303>

Tuesday, March 3rd, 2212

Angelus R&D HQ, Perth, Australia

09:15:53

The next F12000 race was set to be in a month's time from the last race, due to the Geneva Motor Show that took place every year in early March. Angelus had taken part in the show since 2205 with the introduction of their critically acclaimed R205 GT supercar. They were taking part in the 2212 show to show off their new Neko compact.

For the first time, Brandon was not at the show. Instead, he was helping to complete their project for the 2213 show, a full working concept with a unique design. The design was even smaller than the Neko, similar in design to an enclosed motorcycle, yet retaining design elements from cars. The front stabiliser pods were situated on either side of a large front wing. There was only one rear stabiliser, which was situated on board the main body.

That was just the Design Specification, though; the vehicle itself was incomplete.

"The main body, front AG stabilisers and the Gen 2 prototype engine are now completed." Brandon explained, giving one of the many weekly updates to the development team. "The electrics, external parts like the front wing, the wiring and... pretty much everything else are left. As always, the most important components take priority. For now, attaching the front wing and installing the electrics are what we shall do next."

Despite the main concept being Brandon's idea, several design elements were actually Alex's suggestions. In the original concept design by Brandon, given the design code KA-D219, most of the entire front end was completely different. The front wing was shorter and more angled, but Alex's first revision made it longer and less angled, which gave the vehicle more stability. She made more revisions to the design along with Brandon, finally culminating in the final design which was being constructed, design 273.

"Why don't we call it the Tsunami?" Alex asked Brandon.

"Huh? Why 'Tsunami'?" Brandon asked back

"I was speaking to Kyoko about the project, I just happened to mention the code number 273, and she just mentioned something about some Japanese thing, saying that 273 meant Tsunami."

"Ah, she might've been referring to a Goroawase num-"

"That's it! That's what Kyoko said. It was a Go...ro...w... ah, forget it." She looked over at the vehicle, or more, the large pieces of it laying about, ready to be put together. "I don't know how, but I feel like the name somehow fits."

Brandon stared at it for a few seconds, tilting his head. Finally, he said, "Tsunami... Sure, we can give it that model name."

The front wing was being attached to the vehicle's backbone and also on the main body via a hydraulic system that would allow the body to lean in when turning. The rear end of the vehicle also had hydraulics attached to a rear section, which housed the engine and rear stabiliser. The front stabilisers were installed on the edges of the wing and connected up to the body.

After connecting the stabilisers, they started installing the wiring, before the components went in. The engine side of the wiring was completed beforehand, so they simply worked on feeding the wires throughout the vehicle, only connecting up the components that were already on the vehicle itself, which at that point, only consisted of the stabilisers.

Despite the vehicle being far from finished, they had done a lot of work on it, the wiring had taken most of the day to be put together and installed on the car.

"Brandon, I'd like to ask you something." Alex said.

"What's up?" Brandon asked.

"Would you mind telling me more of your plan?"

Brandon just stared at her with a smile on his face that yielded no information. It was like a poker face, a mask.

"More... information?" He queried.

"Y-yeah, like, what are you going to do after you get Crinale out of Viktor's hands?"

Brandon kept his piercing, unyielding, smiling stare for several seconds, before answering. "Well, you see, t-"

<phone call:_rez/area 5: fear | adam freeland (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMMWwqwRggQ&t=4m3s)1_>

Brandon fished his phone out of his pocket and answered it. "Hello?.... yeah, speaking... yeah, I know him...."

At that moment, his smile disappeared from his face, but his mask still remained.

"...WHAT?!"

------------
Fiona Stanley Hospital, Perth, Australia

15:05:34

Brandon ran through the building, entering one of the hospital rooms, his long lab coat flapping behind him. Finally, he reached the bed of the one who called for him, Ramaela De Rosa sitting by his side.

"Matt, I came as soon as I heard! What the hell!?... O-oh... hi Ramaela."

"B-Buona giornata.2" She greeted.

"Brandon... please, relax" The older man spoke calmly, "My time has simply come, nothing can change it... well, actually, I got them to prolong it for a while longer, just until I tell you what I need to. However, I am just an old man, at least I get to go from natural causes."

"Matt... Anyway, I won't stall for time, what do you need to tell me."

"This whole time, I was testing you. Seeing if you were the man you said you were. See, I need someone who is like me, who sees the purity through all the corruption, and can bring it out. You have that talent, I can see it in you. Therefore, I shall impart to you my most valuable piece of information..."

The two men talked for a while longer, however, Matt's time had finally come.

"Please, you may leave now. I have faith that you will use that to good use. I will see you around... someday."

"Very well. Goodbye for now... Matthew O'Reilly."

The man gave a weak smile, as Brandon left, leaving the doctor to come in and grant Matt's final wish. His life support systems were shut down. The old man could finally rest in peace.

His final words were but a weak whisper, but was very powerful im emotion as he departed from the world.

"Ramaela... ti voglio molto bene.3"


1 This is actually my ringtone, I love it.
2 "Good day!"
3 "I love you very much"

[BardicSMG]

Looking at her gourmet dish in a five star restaurant wearing a gown worth more then a house, Nic Carlo only now came to see how far she'd gone. She never lacked appreciation of her current lifestyle, as a matter of fact, it fed into how she'd always acted for most of her life. For once Nikole was free from the times of her late childhood; shoplifting to survive, and her early piloting career betraying those she respected, to finally focusing on a nobler cause, only to stay on the run without a place to call home. At last the opportunity to take a breath seemed to present itself, but Nikole chose to stick to her nasty habit of paranoia. How much does she have, how much does she need, and how much could she lose at this moment, she could barely grasp the concept before it was whisked away by her company.

“Good evening, time to wakey,� greeted Natasha, though they had spent a few minutes together already.

“Sorry about that,� Nikole said as she scrambled back to reality, “I was just trying to work something out.�

“You mean, some sort of riddle.� The youngest Belmondo leaned forward to listen, seeing as her friend has sprung back to life.

“Well, no, its just that...� Nikole paused to find some other subject to ponder, and rushed to the first subject she could find “when do you think I should retire?�

“You're already thinking about leaving the league?�

“I, guess... I think I'm getting a bit worn out, and I don't really need that much.�

“Why not just take a season off and relax, or coach others to pilot? You can't retire yet, you'll make me fell old!� Natasha jested.

“I guess I could do something like that. I just kinda wanna live a simpler life, or something.� If only Nic could find the courage to spill her worries, she realized among her thoughts, as she did bothered to ask for some sort of advise.

“Are you ok,� Natasha saw Nic grow a bit more timid, “with everything?�

“Ehh, I think I'll just sleep on it.� Nikole responded, as she finally started on her dinner.

The two stumbled upon other subjects to ramble on about, leaving Nikole distracted from her worries for a time. Natasha got a call from work after a few minutes, taking her out of her evening long vacation, and Nikole promptly returned to questioning what her own reality is. Even the check that was suddenly her responsibility tonight was a relief to her, if only because it set her free from her five-star confinement and allowed her to have a panic attack in the privacy of her home.





Along her walk to the car, Nikole just wanted to pass out and sleep at the parking lot instead. Her rekindled anxiety resulted in her looking past every corner she could see, as though it were still the 2170's, as though she were still hated by the most powerful people of all the inhabited planets. Even entering her car, her eyeballs kept darting in every which way, until finally spotting a flashing, yellow light highlighting an alley in the distance.

Now her attention was fixated on the anomaly. She tried to focus on the road and drive away, but resisting her worry was futile. She made the decision to drive along the road perpendicular, get a quick peek at what it could be, and put it behind her. She kept half an eye on the light, nighttime traffic and peered inside. She confirmed that the source of the flashing was the rear end of a car, hazard lights switched on.

The car was the one Natasha arrived in.

There was no more uncertainty on whether Nikole was over thinking. She pulled over immediately and removed her heels. She didn't have any fear for her own self, as her worries were of the well-being of her mentor turned friend. She made haste to the alley, picking up faint banging from the trunk. She went right to the drivers side, the door still being unlocked, and released the hood in the back.

Nic went back to the trunk to make sure Natasha was alright, already assuming she was the in the back. Natasha jumped out at the sight of Nic Carlo, barely able to stand after being trapped for so long. Nikole opened her mouth to ask Natasha what happened, just as a migraine took over head, and Nikole fell to the pavement. She saw Natasha take the keys to Nikole's car out of her hand, but seemed too hesitant to run.

Nic caught herself on the the car next to her and tried to get herself together. Her sight readjusted to reality, allowing her to spot a tire iron inside. Natasha was being grasped by someone in a lightweight armor, originally a prototype for a more mobile firefighters suit, now being used as a weapon.

Nikole had lost her wit after getting knocked in the head. The only immediate action she could think was to swing away at the back of the capture. With one solid hit, sparks flew out the side of the panel, and Natasha ran to the outside in a panic. Nikole took one step forward before the damage in her head came back to bring her back to her knees.





Nikole was forced awake by a breath machine shoved to her face. She tried her best to keep her mouth forced closed, but her nostrils helpless to the fowl gas blowing down her throat. Her lungs did what it could to reject the expansion of toxic air. Nikole tried to at least make out the room around her, instead being blinded by a light with brightness only rivaled by the sun.

Her face was at last free from the mask. Nikole could finally take in oxygen and try to use her sore brain. She wasn't alone in the room, a fact only made apparent by the fist pulling her hair. She wouldn't dare open her eyes to the light again, hardly being blocked by her eyelids, but her head was kept still by the grip behind her head. She heard muttering in the background of a language she didn't understand.

“Tell me where she is.�

The voice directed at her didn't specify who 'she' was, it seemed self explanatory. As bleak as the situation was, there was a bit of hope in Natasha getting away in the end. If Nikole were close to the alley, it would just be a matter of waiting. But then, if that where the case, they should have been here before she came to. It didn't seem likely that her torturers wouldn't leave the scene of the crime. There was know way she could make a break for it, even if she managed to get her hair free, there were possibly a dozen people around to stop her.

The machine was pushed back to her face. She made an attempt to push the mask off, something she had no hope of doing while holding her breath. Even when she managed to break the seal, the pressure was too strong to let any breathable air in. Nikole was going weaker at the second, and she turned just desperate enough to try to stop her panicking. Her chest felt as though it was going to burst open. She did her best to blow the gas out of her throat, even though being deprived of oxygen confused her into nearly thinking there wasn't and air keeping her diaphragm stretched.

She had to have had the machine to her face for longer then last time by now. She tried to count in her head, if only to keep her from another panic. It was never made a point for her to hold her breath for longer then a few seconds. She twitched her fingers to each number she reached. Even spacing out every number with a “1000�, she reached the end of both her hands and started over. Taking into account the time before she started counting, she must have gone 40 seconds without breathing. She wondered if they even intended to let her breath again. It nearly impossible to keep from rushing her counting, at least that's what she hoped when she reached 10 seconds another 3 times. Her lips numbed and would no longer stay closed. Counting was brought to a halt, as though that would be enough to stop all of time.

The mask was finally lifted, and Nikole was forced to cough from the change in air. Her dry throat collected as much air as it could gasp. It occurred to her she couldn't tell where Natasha had gone if she wanted. What would happen if no one else comes? There's no way she could survive longer and longer intervals without air. They may just let that happen if it becomes clear she is without use. Nikole was almost disturbed to see that the sign of acceptance, that her entire experience among the living had shown itself for a single instant. Among all of the poverty, starvation, disease, conspiracy, and war she triumphed over, it wasn't until she became among the highest social classes she could imagine when they would finally get her.

It was rather amusing to, for once, let go of her instinct for survival. Whoever it was keeping her in one place, how cute of them to have found a way to break her for good. A mild chuckle started to manifest in Nikole. Her eyes popped open and embraced the fire they contacted. Every little facet of her predicament, from the hairs slowly snapping of her head, to her ruined evening dress, added to the comedy of her new found mortality.

She made one big breath in preparation of a storm of laughter, only to have the machine shoved back at her. Again, she grabbed it, only this time to force it shut on her head. Her eyes stayed fixated on the light as she maintained an inhumanly gaping smile. It was no longer a matter of being unable to give in, it was all to damn those who thought she would betray her past after all this time. Overtel could not touch Nic Carlo, so why believe for a second that anyone else could.

The grip on her head was released, Nic dropped on her back, her eyes still effected by the light. Releasing her hands from the mask was out of the question. In fact, her attempt to do so only farther locked them in front of her face. Her conscience began to fade again, despite her feeling wide awake. She succumb to her own autopilot and drifted off at about the same time she stood completely.





After feeling time go by without memory, her chronology caught up to her. The first thing she saw was a window with daylight seeping threw. She gathered that the bed wasn't hers by the beeping on her right side. She saw her heart rate next to an iv, and a desk calender to her left, displaying the date to be three days ahead of what she last remembered. Her instinct was to grab it, as though she hadn't seen the date right. After several attempts to reach it, she realized that her wrists were strapped to the frame of the bed.

The realization of being other than herself for days left an island of humiliation among a sea of depression. She waited desperately for a nurse to come, especially to be interviewed, to find out what happened while she was away. Acting calm and rational would hopefully lead to freedom from the bed, and then a day or two to prove that she regained her sanity would mean she would be able to walk outside again. Her placement in a traditional hospital implied that she never did anything unspeakable, nothing that would charge her of a crime. As much as she wanted to believe that no one else was hurt from whatever happened to, she felt suspicious that she was so fortunate. That she would have any bit of comfort outside of simply not getting caught.


Probably going to get back to writing present day things, but until then I might as well finish some back story. But for now, imma go get burgs.

:burger:burger:burger:burger:burger:burger:burger: burger:burger ok thats enough

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[BardicSMG]

For the third time this month, Halvred had sat quiet at the laundromat and listened to the yelling and banging of someone who thinks he's a big crime kingpin. That scrub with the big boy gun was a Korean immigrant named Kyung, who would pay common thugs cheap to keep watch while he went through the classic 'It'd be a shame for something to happen to this establishment' scheme in a few different towns, having just enough wit to distance himself from any prosecution. Hal's anger had been suppressed for long enough that it might as well be him that takes care of the matter.

Hal had found out that Kyung liked to street race along the E6 near the Oppland/Hedmark border, a two lane road along the river. It was almost completely free of tight corners, but was extremely narrow, even for a two-lane road. Hal had already been an established racer of the area, but had been focusing more on training in the simulator after finding out he'd be a pilot for Syncline.

His hobby of racing had started with a G-Tech zone-class craft, which Sterling had had him pilot it as part of his training. It might have seemed odd to give Hal a vehicle to improve his combat abilities, but it was one of the most important things he'd ever done. Fear, experienced in both a fight and a race, inhibits the ability of a fighter to rationalize when one should focus on the offense or defense. Pushing one of the most dangerous types of craft there is in a way where one slip up would be lethal in an uncontrolled environment trained Hal to think past horror.

Piloting the fastest class of physical craft gave Hal an appreciation of racing. It wasn't so much the adrenalin that the high speeds gave, but the need to know the vehicle you ride and the track you're on well enough to travel among the fastest possible route, while still reacting to immediate obstacles. The car he got to follow his new passion was a 2144 Koenigsegg CCGT, known for being a bit more 'pointy' in design then what would be typical of the make.





The black Koenigsegg arrived to a group of people partying around several high performance cars, a few recognizing it from before its hiatus. Halvred stepped out to greet himself to his old friends, keeping his eyes peeled for his target. Stopping not to far down the road was a Zonda (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QAsOu3iMx4I) released just a year earlier, with a driver drawing Hal's attention like a bull to red cloth. The engine was revved loud enough to challenge those from Sweden had they listened hard enough.

Hal walked towards the call to confront the owner. He did not recognizing Hal from when he was spotted doing his daytime rounds.

“Don't feel ashamed, you're far from the first.� Kyong boasted from the inside, thinking Hal was a newbie.

“Lemme see the engine, it sound's like you tuned it a bit.� Hal requested calmly.

Kyung pupped the back hood to reveal the engine, eager too show off his work. Hal pretended to care about the inner-workings for a bit, and walked back to the driver.

“This thing up for wager?� Hal asked.

Kyung almost busted out laughing before seriously considering the challenge. “What you got in return?�

Hal motioned Kyung out of the Zonda to show his CCGT. The interior was not made for weight reduction, having speakers surrounding the cabin and fire red cushioned seats. Hal always thought that his best car should have a bit of luxury to drive, a concept Kyung seemed to agree with. The Engine was custom built from the ground up by a friend of Hal's that normally works on war vehicles. The friend ended up charging, but it was worth the heavy payment.

It didn't take to long for Kyung to accept, as he called to attention the new race about to be held. The two cars sat next to each other as someone walked to the middle with a starting gun. The cars were considered equal performance, and so when the shot is fired, they would drive at will. The starting man check each driver to make sure they were ready. After making one last check to make sure the road was clear, he aimed up, and shot his gun, and the bang was followed by the squeal of tires leaving the starting line.





Hal let himself get edged out before being fully overtook, where in he kept close behind. Kyung didn't let himself get to cocky, as he was just now catching up to his wager. Hal was able to stay close enough to make Kyung just that little bit less confident, but didn't attempt a pass on the narrow streets. Kyung had drove the streets enough to drive the racing line by instinct. Hal, in full concentration to the race, read the leaders movements and followed flawlessly. They kept they're positions up to the bridge crossing from the left side of the river to the right.

Kyung made a perfect corner and landed his turn on the left side of the road. Hal turned a bit tighter onto the right lane, and accelerated faster then he'd been driving before. He meet side by side with Kyung and turned left into him. The speeds they were going meant Kyung had no hope to recover. His car broke throw the guard and slammed nose first into the river.

Halvred pulled to inspect his car, which didn't take a scratch. Kyung floundered out of his wreck slightly injured. Hal walked to the side of the river and bent down closer to Kyung's level. He had reach out to a hand that Hal didn't offer, getting instead a cold stare.

“Get out of my town...� Hal's command barely exceeded a whisper, but was loud and clear to Kyung, whose panic fueled new anger toward Hal. He had turned around and was walking back to his, Kyung lifted himself up. He reach behind his back to grab his revolver, but the water had damaged it to the point where the trigger wouldn't move. Hal's story was that Kyung lost control, which everyone else believed. Kyung didn't risk staying in town, but knew how to get more money while he waits for his chance to strike back.

rip in pizza zonda

[Ace3000]

Well, looks like my schedule has gone up in smoke, only because I don't follow it. Have a new part today.

The referenced album title of Part 21 was 'How I Learned to Stop Giving A Sh*t and Love Mindless Self Indulgence' [takes a breath] by Mindless Self Indulgence

[s2_14.1: Part 22.1] The Eliminator Brings Rivalry
<22120531>

Sunday, May 31st, 2212

Angelus HQ, Perth, Australia

20:50:17

The team were preparing for an otherwise ordinary eliminator event of the season, taking place on Sol 3. The simulators were warming up, as the one pilot that qualified got ready.

Gareth walked up to Kyoko, opening his mouth to speak to her. She instantly held her hand up.

"Stop. You always attempt to speak to me at the most inconvenient times. Why?"

"Isn't it obvious? You are never here unless there's a race! You disappear for days, then turn up when a race is on. These are the only times I can speak to you!"

"Hmph... thank you."

"A-... what? 'Thank you'?"

"Yes, thank you. You have gotten me angry enough to actually do well in this event. I am now in the right mood for an eliminator event. I thank you!" She bowed at him.

Gareth had a surprised expression on his face, which turned into a frown. He opened his mouth one more time, then walked off. Kyoko then turned around, entering her simulator, ready to race...

3, 2, 1... GO!
<21:00:00_>
<sol 3: short fwd_>
<eliminator: lap 01_>
<system error | andy hunter° (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bIRYIo4D3Dw)_>

All 26 craft set off, all aiming for destruction. Despite qualifying, Kyoko was at the rear of the pack, only just being able to qualify for the 26th position. This event was not going to be gentle on the team known for pure racing due to their somewhat weak shields. Somehow, though, Kyoko wasn't eliminated as much as Brandon had anticipated, as her racing skill allowed her to avoid a lot of her opponent's attacks.

The event went as planned, but every so often, Kyoko had to flip around and slow down so she didn't go too far ahead of the pack. Once she got a feel of the rhythm, though, her racing style changed, now focusing on attacking the competition, venting her anger at Gareth into her opponents.

"HAADADADADADA!" She yelled as she fired weapon after weapon into the various craft.

Brandon's constant smile wavered a bit, his eyes widened slightly.

"This... does not seem good." He muttered, looking closer and observing her actions more carefully.

<contender eliminated_>

It wasn't the first elimination in the match, but it was Kyoko's first kill.

<contender eliminated_>

Instantly, though, she was eliminated by Crinale.

"Hah... of course. Where were you this whole time?! I had to wreck someone else!"

Finally, the rivalry began, the race splitting into two: Angelus vs. Crinale, and the rest of the teams against each other. With that, the eliminations suddenly started to rise tremendously. Despite that, however, the two teams had more or less equal points with each other.

"Give up, Angelus! You can never defeat us in battle!" Lucia taunted.

"Our similar scores say otherwise." Kyoko retorted.

"Pure coincidence!..."

<contender eliminated_>

"...you are nothing but our plaything, a mere toy we can destroy over and over again! UGH!"

<contender eliminated_>

"Rethink your strategy, prodigy. Your current one is getting you nowhere."

"I need to rethink nothing! Everything is perfect!"

"Perfect? Allow me to show you why it really is not!"

The female racers continued their battle; the perfectionist prodigy, hell bent on destruction of the one team in particular; and the helmeted purist, shrouded in mystery, being forced to play to the tune of the race's rules. They continued their battle, getting even more forceful as they progressed, all culminating in the inevitable, a final attack by both teams that would bring the entire race – and much more – to a grinding halt.

Crinale were ahead of Angelus by a fair amount, speeding over a weapons pad and getting their super-weapon. Kyoko already had Angelus' super-weapon at the ready, knowing that she'd be able to attack them with the high speed of the railgun charge. What she wasn't counting on was Crinale using their weapon.

The instant they picked it up, they flipped their craft around, firing the Quantum Destabiliser the instant the white craft came into view. However, Kyoko saw the black craft and had fired her EMP Railgun at the exact same time. The instant the charged pulse hit the energy beam, the simulator stuttered, then all visuals began to warp as the physics engine broke from attempting to process the attacks' collision. Finally, it gave up, and the entire ser///__

<FATAL SYSTEM ERROR: STOP command at 0x00000080_>

*** WPNCOLLS.OPD - Address 16AD874F base at FC7F0000, DateStamp 0001C7F70564


The final line has some data that isn't just random hexadecimal, even though it looks like it. Running the DateStamp through a hex to decimal converter, it gives a value of 7649822052, which is Unix time for Sunday, 31 May 2212 14:34:12 GMT, or 22:34 in Perth. The other numbers? Random typings that make it look like hexadecimal, so only 0-9 and A-F are used.

The file that caused the error is in a short filename, or 8.3 format (8 characters for the name, and 3 for the extension, or file type). The name is just Weapon Collisions. The extension, however, gives a little insight into a certain thing to do with the F12000. The PD means Physics Data, but the O? I'll let you try and figure that out, shouldn't be too hard

[BardicSMG]

the pd means physics data, but the o? I'll let you try and figure that out, shouldn't be too hard

o my god, crinale are octopi confirmed!

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[BardicSMG]

Johann rushed into the bathroom to get a break from the crisis outside. The stress that had been caused had seemingly set his face ablaze. He washed his face with cold water and tried to breath slowly. He raised his head from his hunched figure at his reflection in the mirror. The doppelganger on the other side stared back in perfect poster, showing a clear superiority in his blank expression. The image behind the glass lifted his arm, with his fingers making a barrel of a firearm.





Palm Gardens, 2203

Drag racing, of all things, has grown immensely since the days of the measly quarter mile on pavement. Garcia inspected the sand she knelt on, which she always saw as the hand that feeds, or the one that could starve her in an instant. It was always everyday before the race when she would get second thoughts, then instantly find focus the morning she needed it. She couldn't find her focus on this day.

South-western American drag racing in this era was populated by the muscle cars of the centuries previous. A few Euro-cars that shared the spirit of barely driving in a straight line slipped by every now and again, TVR's and a few models of Jaguar weren't to hard to find in the area, but Garcia always more concerned with style. Of all the shapes that she could have gone with, she had already stumbled upon a 1962 Shelby Cobra. Most people would keep it under a tarp except for that one time every decade where they would drive it to a party, giving it an entire hour of sunlight, but Garcia doesn't have that kind of occasional passion.

Johann has made double and triple checks of every part of his little sisters car. He made one last test of the airshield; easily the most important asset, as it worked as its own aerodynamic shape to allow the car to reach the speeds its engine demanded, as well as letting Garcia drive the convertible with an open top. The abandoned hanger the car was stored at had the added benefit of a fully functional jet engine, which was repurposed as a wind machine for testing resistance.

The sound of the jet startled Garcia, something that hadn't happened to her sense the first time it was demonstrated to her. Johann saw the unusual behavior, and was made rather perplexed by her nervousness. He turned off the jet after confirming that the shield worked properly. Garcia rose has the sound of the artificial wind died down.

“Are you feeling alright?� Johann asked.

Garcia scanned through the stretch of sand in front of her. “This Jerold guy... I've never raced him before.�

“Yeah, that once applied to everyone you've raced.�

Garcia turned back for a look at the Cobra. “I've never even met the guy. I guess it's late for this kinda thing, but...�

“It wouldn't hurt to back out now...�

Garcia made eye contact with her brother, just about to open her mouth and call it off. She instead looked back at her vessel, and walked back to its left side. She stepped behind the wheel, feeling the familiarities of the inside.

“Did you check everything by now?� she asked.

Johann simply gave a nod, and waited for a response.

Garcia looked back to the field of desert, and her feelings started to drift into sheer determination. With a firm grip on the wheel with her right hand, she turned to give her answer.

“Let's do this...�

This is a multi-parter, so I'll be sure to follow up on the post after my next post. F*** the police comin straight outta Iowa... imean Mars. :D

[Ace3000]

It's Friday, have a thing.

The referenced album title of Part 22.1 was The Sea Brings Rivalry by MOOG... Tell me you guys have seen Mighty Car Mods.

[s2_14.2: Part 22.2] Never Trust the Racing Commission
<22120531>

Sunday, May 31st, 2212

22:34:10

The screens had shut off, then filled with text, scrolling through lines and lines of code, showing various processes that were running. Finally, in red text, the last two lines of code appeared.

<FATAL SYSTEM ERROR: STOP command at 0x00000080_>

*** WPNCOLLS.OPD - Address 16AD874F base at FC7F0000, DateStamp 0001C7F70564

Naturally, all over the world, every team other than Angelus and Crinale were confused, wondering what it was exactly that cause the whole system to crash and die.

Meanwhile, in the cockpit of one Angelus simulator, Kyoko was just sitting back, staring at the crash error, twiddling her fingers.

'Nnngh... was that my fault?' She thought, 'No, it was probably both our faults. Anyway, sitting around here won't help, might as well head to the lounge.'

She got out and went to the lounge, where she presumed everyone else was. She was right, as soon as she entered, she saw several employees, including Gareth, conversing with Brandon. When he saw Kyoko, he stood up, and slid his hands in his coat's pockets.

"Kyoko, we need to talk about something." He said, his constant smile unwavering.

When they entered his office, she opened her helmet for some fresh air. She did that only when she was alone, or with Brandon, the only one who knew her true identity. When he was sure they were alone, he dropped his act, his smile instantly snapping down into a look of discontent.

"What was that all about?" He asked. "Your racing has become more violent than usual."

"I-" She began.

Brandon raised a hand to stop her, "I know what you're going to say, and I am willing to overlook this incident, considering what type of race it was. However, if you display that kind of behaviour in an actual race, I will be forced to take necessary action. Your status, your identity... doesn't matter."

"...fine. If all you wanted was to berate me for my performance, then I shall just take me leave for the night." She said, closing down her helmet and walking out, before turning back. "You know, I think you're the one that's changed."

Brandon blinked. "Me?"

"Yes, even though you never looked it, you've grown very cold recently."

"So what if I have? My views still remain the same. I still want the F12000 dead, I still want a pure league."

"I don't like it... I-I mean, I do agree with your views, I just don't like the way you're going about it."

Brandon closed his eyes and took a deep breath, "Maybe I'm going about it wrong... maybe I'm not. I don't know what's right or wrong anymore. I've lived for 53 years and I'm not even halfway through my lifespan. You know... sometimes this extended life is a gift... and sometimes it's a curse."

Kyoko stepped back, realising that she had entered a sensitive part of Brandon's past. However, she continued. "Do... do you regret it? Extending your life."

"That decision was not my own, my parents did it when I was born."

"Did you berate them for it when you found out?"

"No, I just accepted it. It's not an easy thing to fix, if not impossible." He looked at the clock on his computer. "Anyway, don't worry about me though, we need to go see what the Commission has to say about the incident. Let's go."

They walked out of his office, into the main lounge, where several people were sitting there.

"Have they said anything yet?" He asked Gareth.

"Not yet, no. I think they may be still trying to clean up this mess."

"Great. I want to see what they have to say about it, do we send the pilots back out, or will it just end like that?"

Fortunately, he didn't have to wait long, the Racing Commission had made their decision.

"As you are no doubt aware, a systems error was the cause of our event suddenly being halted. We have discussed the action that is to be taken, and we have decided to end the event. The scores were as such before the event ended."

The screen showed the pilots' positions and scores, listed in order.

"As you can see, Crinale has obtained 1st place, with Angelus surprisingly taking second! Maybe they aren't as against weapons as they made out to be!"

"ASSHOLE!" Brandon called out, and walked out the room, back to his office. As he entered, he got on his computer, and continued his private research into the spy Nikole told him about. However, without a lead, Brandon could find nothing. The data he obtained at the Sidewinder race only got him so far.

The data... he obtained?


"I'm just going to get right to it: There is a spy amidst your team. We have obtained sufficient evidence to support our claims, including intercepted documents from the spy themselves. It is the irrefutable truth."...

...

..."We don't know, they have assumed the identity of one of your team members."

'My... team members?' He thought. 'No, it can't be!... can it?' Finally, he made his decision. '[sigh], fine... Sorry to do this, but it's because I trust in you all.'

He started to search though Angelus' own database and logs, searching through the emails of all of the team members. Nothing. He went deeper, searching through the logs of the data sent through the team's internet.


[22120227 15:50:38]angelus plan to overthrow current crinale leadership, part of greater plan to destroy f12000. -ΣΣ17

"Sigma Sigma 17? Finally, I have a lead... two, even. That information doesn't add up to when I first revealed it... [gasp]! The 'Loose Thread'!"

Brandon finally had the info he was looking for, he knew that with that, any and all further information would be easier to obtain. Like pulling a loose thread, the entire fabric would eventually fall apart, hence why he called it such. He went all in, searching high and low for the codename ΣΣ17, along with the one person he told the plan to recently...

Alexandra Kotova.

[Ace3000]

After proof-reading this, I realised it may be considered filler. Maybe. I dunno.

The referenced album title of Part 22.2 was Never Trust the Chinese by Mr. Meeble.

[s2_15.0: Part 23.0] Recognition
<22120601>

Monday, June 1st, 2212

Angelus R&D HQ, Perth, Australia.

23:03:27

"... how? How did I allow this to happen right under my nose?!"

Brandon was at his desk, scrolling thorugh the data he had obtained, staying up late to obtain the information he needed.

"Pfft, that's right, she's an international spy apparently, I doubt anyone would notice if they were infiltrated like that."

He reached into his pocket and took out a small USB drive.

"... Ugh, I don't want to use that... not for this."

Suddenly, his phone rang, making him drop the drive in surprise.

"Sh*t, no! That's still important to me though!"

He picked up the drive, slipped it back into his pocket, then took out his phone and answered it, without looking at the caller ID.

"Yeah?
...
"I'm at HQ, why?
...
"O...kay? I- huh? The hell, why did you just hang up? Whatever..." He slipped his phone back in his pocket, kept his hand in there for a few moments as he thought, then pulled out the thumb drive.

"Screw this, I'm desperate. I need this info." He said, plugging it in and running the control program inside it, to collect even more data.

About 20 minutes later, he heard someone enter.

"You are an idiot. Get some sleep, now."

------------

At the dead of night, the black car screamed up the gravel driveway, the red body lights activated as the driver entered. As it raced up to the top of the driveway to the house, it skidded to a halt, the helmeted driver leaping out before it had even stopped. Kyoko ran up to the door and knocked on it several times, before trying the doorbell.

"Come on, damnit, answer!"

It was then she realised the lights were off. Brandon was not home.

"What?! It's 10pm! Are you're sleeping?" She took out her phone and phoned him.

"Of course you are not answering the door when I need your assistance the most, argh!"

"Yeah?" The voice came from the other end of the line.

"Where the hell are you?!"

"I'm at HQ, why?"

"... Ugh, no reason. じゃあね1."

She hung up at that point. Not wasting any more time, she re-entered her car and raced to Angelus HQ, switching off the red lights the moment she got back on the roads... but nearly lost it in the process, her AG racing skills bringing the car back in control. However, she was getting more and more emotional.

"Ngh! Damnit, I hate this car... it handles like sh*t, it's always handled like sh*t and it will forever handle like sh*t, no matter what I do to it."

------------

After being waved through by security, the modified R210 GT flew up the levels of the multi-story carpark, only stopping when Kyoko had reached her reserved parking space. She got out and ran towards Brandon's office.

"Idiot, idiot, idiot! Why is that idiot still here?! He should be home, not pushing himself with whatever work he's doing! Argh!"

Finally, she reached Brandon's office. Opening the door, she said, "You are an idiot. Get some sleep, now."

"No, why should I? You don't know what I have to deal with."

"No, of course I don't, but you still need sleep to function properly!"

Brandon tool a large drink from the energy drink sitting on his desk, smiling unemotionally as he put up his mask. "No, I don't. And time is of the essence here, this is some rather... unorthodox work I'm doing here, and the sooner I find the solution to this massive problem on my hands, the better off everyone will be."

"Sure, I may be just a damn pilot, but that doesn't mean you have to deal with problems on your own. Now, tell me just what the f*ck is going on with you?!"

"You want to know? Really? Okay. I'll tell you then. Basically..." he stressed every word after, just to drive the point home, "I'm being forced to doubt my team members, to distrust them, all because of a single possibility that has become a reality. But I need to find some physical, definitive evidence, not circumstantial possibilities."

"Who and what?" She asked, not backing down. In response, Brandon dropped his head onto his desk with a resounding thud.

"You're assuming I have no leads to collect evidence, but I do, I'm collecting massive amounts of evidence at an equally massive rate. In fact, it's going so fast, I have no time to look it over, until the program I'm running finishes collecting it. Then, I'll investigate, examining every piece carefully, collating the most relevant and most incriminating of the files I have... and confronting the culprit with it."

SLAP

"IDIOT!" Kyoko screamed. "I'm trying to help you, and you just push me away! I can help you examine the evidence, but you're being too damn idiotic! LET ME HELP, YOU IDIOT!"

Brandon turned his head slowly back to face Kyoko after being slapped, "You really love slapping people when things don't go your way, do you? That's... rather unbecoming of you. Fine, I'll let you in on it, but this must be kept secret."

"Do you know who you're talking to right now, Brandon?"

"...of course... I understand. Well, here goes...

"I'm suspecting the one you know as Alexandra Kotova of being an international spy."

1Jā ne, See ya

[BardicSMG]

For more then three days now, Katsuo stayed on the overgrown yard of her home. She leaned her back on a stone slab with a name crudely etched on the other side. Natsuki was filled with guilt just from not being able to coax her daughter into shelter.

“Katsuo... it's time to eat.� She knelt to Katsuo's eye level to try to negotiate, but got no response. “You can't stay out hear forever. It's going to rain soon, you'll get sick.�

“Are you sure he's not coming back?� Katsuo asked.

Natsuki simply didn't have the will to explain what happened, and hoped she had just forced herself to lie. She sighed and walked back inside to bring the food back inside. From the kitchen, she saw the door to the garage cracked open. She had found an old Icaras craft the week before that was going to be turned into a playpen to surprise Kat. She remembered seeing something else among the pile of scrap it was dragged from.

She grabbed it from the old craft and brought it to the living room. It was a plush doll based off of Curly, the F7200 mascot. The head was actually a screen, the batteries just needed to be replaced, and it still worked.

Natsuki took the doll out to the yard and sat next to her daughter. Katsuo recognized the doll, as though it were a living pet. The eyes made by the screen let her young mind remember what she still had left in the world, giving back at least some of the comfort she had lost. She reached up to the plush, and her mother stood up, still holding it herself. Without having another exchange, Katsuo agreed to follow her mother back inside to shelter.



Outskirts of Nagasaki, 2210

Katsuo meet Ryouta right after she had broke Halvred out of the interrogation room. Hal was taken to a hospital, ready to call a lawyer in case Hideki was desperate enough to press charges after beating a bystander. He loaned Kat his hotel room as a token of gratitude, as she wasn't willing to risk going back to her childhood home after finding out it had been raided.

In an adjacent hotel, leaving his parents before he was ready to care for his younger sibling, Irisu, was about where Katsuo meet Ryouta for the first time. His sister was kicked out of the home when their highly religious parents found out she was dating another girl. She had rented a room from her girlfriend's family at first, but Irisu had later found out that her partner had been stealing money from her. Between the two, Irisu and Ryouta were able to work up enough money to pay for a room, but Irisu's deteriorating mental health caused her to get fired from her job as a store clerk.

Ryouta started out as Katsuo's mechanic, only because Kat took pitty on his situation, and thought that since Ryo was already a full-time mechanic, he could do a better job of maintaining her car then she could ever manage. When they got the money to purchase a beat up house out of town, which ended up being cheaper then the hotel room, their feelings had grown to where they ended up sharing. Just to at least try to make it a bit more official, the went on a date not long afterward, but they were too cheap to go on another one after already living together.


Irisu had been getting very ill over the last few days. Since the winter chill wasn't helping any, the heater that's usually used for the living room was put in her room while she was at rest. Kat and Ryo shared a blanket in front of the TV playing anime. Kat was never interested with any movies or shows, just the AG races which had already ended the week before, but she had no desire to step outside in the ice and snow. Just as she was about to dose of, there was a knock on the door.

“Just ignore it,� Kat said before Ryo had paused the TV. “It's probably just a solicitor, or something.�

The knocking continued. “I don't think their going to leave until someone opens the door.� Ryo said.

“You think they'll just stay outside for that long?�

“Do you really want to test them...� The knocking got louder and more persistent.

“Alright, I'm coming!� Kat proclaimed to the door. She got up with a sigh and throw her coat on among the banging. After a brisk pace, the door was opened, with the view of a metal barrel fixated to her face.

Katsuo backed away slowly with her hands up, clenching her jaw to insure she didn't say the wrong thing. The gunman grabbed her shoulder and pushed her into a kneeling position, while another one from behind grabbed Ryouta and dragged him to face Katsuo, then pulled a shotgun to the both of them.

The first man holstered his gun and strolled upstairs to Irisu's bedroom. He reached for the first doorknob he saw, but found that it wouldn't rotate past a couple millimeters. He then went back down to where he came from, grinding his teeth the whole way.

Katsuo kept her head down and hoped that the two gunmen hadn't arrived for the reason she suspected. Ryouta saw right into Katsuo's fears, only deciding against to ask her what she thought was happening because of the double-barrels next to them. Ryouta had know clue why they where being invaded, and seeing the helplessness and regret in Katsuo troubled him more then he cared to think.

The man with the shotgun looked up at the man arriving from upstairs. “Is she not here?� he asked without getting a response. “Zakhar, did you find her or not?�

With the gunman next to him distracted, Ryouta ran into him and struggled to disarm him. Zakhar pulled out his revolver to retaliate, but Katsuo ran into his line of fire. She had her eyes forced closed and expanded her stomach muscles, but Zakhar didn't fire a shot. Behind her, Ryouta was thrown back to the ground, with the gun pointed right to his face.

“What a brave, young, stupid soul,� Zakhar said. “Why don't come a bit closer, I've got something to show you.�

Katsuo stayed put, now hoping to get a bullet and get it over with.

“Little girl, as disappointing as it is, you're not going to die a hero. The best you can do is make this easy for all of us.�

She refused to listen, and continued to test Zakhar's patiance.

Ryouta looked up at Katsuo, afraid for her life. “For gods sake, just do what he says!� He pleaded in a hyper-ventilated state that forced more tears out of his eyes than he's ever had before.

Katsuo finally gave up her front, and made her way forward. When he got the chance, Zakhar pulled her shoulder and spun her around. “Now, be a darling. Take me to where you keep the keys to the doors.� he demanded with his gun to her temple.

Katsuo couldn't bring herself to move, and with a deep breath, did the only thing she had left to do.

“Find them yourself, or get out...�

Zakhar managed a straight face from what he found an amusing response. “Do you mind running that by me again?�

“FIND THE DAMN KEYS YOUSELF, YOU GIANT PEICE OF S**T!�

She got hit in the head immediately by the barrel of Zakhar's gun. With a cold new look in his face, he gazed a thousand yards before him, and gave a simple command to his follower.

“Show her reason...�

The gunman ahead of him pushed his boot to Ryouta's chest, and spun his gun to point upwards. When Ryouta looked up at the gun, the blunt end smash into his nose. His cry of pain coincided with Katsuo turning her head to look away, only to have forced to face forward again.

Ryouta rolled to his side, and found the blood spilling out of his nostrils. The dented backside of the gun was now raised to the ceiling, then swung into Ryouta's chest. Instead of a scream, there was only the shatter of his rib cage, with more blood being thrown out of his mouth. The gunman walked down Ryouta's curled body. He pointed the shotgun down, poking at different parts of him. He eventually settled on his knees. The gunman stood up tall, and readied his gun to fire both rounds.

“ENOUGH, PLEASE!� Katsuo cried out in defeat, “I'll do what you say, just leave him alone.�

The gunman held his gun away from Ryouta, and walk up to Katsuo, waiting for her to lead the way. She reached into her coat pocket, bringing out a bundle of keys, and hand them over with one sticking out. The gunman grabbed the keys and walked up to Irisu's room leaving Katsuo where she was.

After the door opened, there was a loud glass shatter, which Zakhar instantly turned his head to. Not long after was the sound of flesh tearing, with the man screaming in horror. Another sound of stabbing, this time with more glass breaking. One more puncture, and the screams grew weaker and weaker, inevitably turning to silence.

Zakhar didn't stay for much longer. He opted to cut his loses and leave the scene while he could still do it without trouble. Katsuo stood in a petrified state, instead focusing on Ryouta. He had fallen unconscious during the mess, and layed draped on the floor. Katsuo reached as carefully as she could to check if he was still able to breathe. She put her hand before his mouth, and felt a slight gust come out. Katsuo then held head, relieved to find he was still alive, and trying to find a way to allow air into him more easily.

“R-Ryouta...� Irisu muttered in concern for her brother.

Katsuo jumped away from the voice behind her, completely forgetting that Irisu was her friend.

“Kat... are they gone?�

Katsuo tried to push herself farther back from Irisu then the wall would allow. She found a new fear for Irisu that she couldn't bring herself to explain, and was at a lose when Irisu stepped closer to her.

“Katsuo, you're scaring me,� Irisu started to fear that she would never get a response. “Please just tell me, is Ryouta going to be okay?�

Katsuo started to familiarize herself with the Irisu she's always known, and finally let herself calm down. “Their all gone,� Katsuo finally answered, “everything is going to be okay.�

Irisu dropped down to hug Katsuo, hoping to get them both out of shock. “Doesn't he need to go to a hospital?� Irisu asked.

“A hospital can't do anything right now.�

“But Katsuo, he's bleeding out of the mouth.�

“Their won't be a hospital safe enough to call.�

Irisu tightened her body, starting to weep uncontrollably.

“He'll be okay,� Katsuo promised, “We're just going to need some help.�

“Help? From... from who?�

Katsuo finally reached her arms to Irisu's back. “Irisu...� she started to whisper as softly and calmly as she could manage, “We can't live in Japan anymore.�

For some reason I had a hard time writing this part out. :|

[Ace3000]

Thanks to Bardic for writing out half of both this and the next part!

The referenced album title of Part 23 was RE:COGNITION by [ cell 7 ].

[s2_16.1: Part 24.1] Australian Noir
<22120527>

Wednesday, May 27th, 2212

Perth, Australia.

11:32:40

Nikole had instructed Katsuo to meet with her, but ended up visiting the grave where Matt had been buried. Nikole had tried to contact her old friend yesterday, if only to apologize for how she had treated him two years before. She understood why she had to find out herself, and it filled her with guilt. Katsuo ended up finding Nikole on her own, only to find out about Matt's fate herself. Nikole acknowledged Kat's presence on arrival, but stayed silent.

"Did he go peacefully?" Kat asked, trying to be comforting.

"He saw Ramaela, then Brandon, then asked to be cut-off. That's all I found out."

"You can still redeem yourself." Katsuo said. "Even if Matt isn't here to see it, it's never too late."

Nikole had grabbed a handkerchief out of her coat pocket. "Meet me in my car," she said in an attempt to divert her emotions, "We need to make sure no one eavesdrops on us."

"I understand." Kat said, as though she were simply asked to give Nikole her own moment.

------------
20 minutes later...

Nikole stepped into the driver's seat of her car along side Katsuo. "One of our colleges had intercepted a signal headed to Angelus HQ sometime in early to mid 2211. It was a hack into their security systems, allowing the fob panels to accept another code that had previously been unsupported."

"So there's a spy in Angelus?"

"It could be that they haven't been infiltrated yet, but it would be to their benefit to strike as soon as there transmission is set. I was going stay out of this, since Brandon has no faith in me being honest, but I can't let this happen... I need to makes things right."

"You're not taking this personally, are you?"

"I've had time to think about it... and what I'm going to ask of you might be uncomfortable, but it's ultimately the right thing."

"Anything that needs to be done..."

"I need you to keep an eye on the four most important members of Angelus: Brandon Smith, Alexandra Kotova, Gareth Ardos, and Kyoko Fujisaki. If they seem at all suspicious, keep a note of it and tell me when we meet again. If you find out one of them is missing or an imposter, pull out and contact me as soon as you can."

"Yeah, I can do that." Kat said, about to open the door.

"One more thing," Nikole said to stop Katsuo. "Stay in public areas, and don't go anywhere you're not supposed to."

"What? Why, how am I supp-"

"Katsuo, there's been enough done-"

"This is serious. Why should we sit by and let these people-"

"Please... for the sake of my peace... don't intrude into their personal lives."

Katsuo thought about Nikole reasoning and took a deep breathe to keep from getting frustrated. "Okay," she said reluctantly, "I'll stay in public areas then." then stepped out of the car.

------------
<22120528>

Thursday, May 28th, 2212

Angelus R&D HQ, Perth, Australia.

15:07:39

Kat was able to sneak into Angelus HQ without being noticed by the tighter security, she thought that maybe the beanie she was wearing might have had something to do with it. She made her way to the lounge, where she saw Brandon, Gareth and Alex conversing. Hiding herself behind the door, she listened in.

"...don't have the info we need, so it will be some time before we are able to attack." She heard Brandon explain.

"How difficult is it to get the info we need?" Gareth asked

"Is that a rhetorical question? This is Crinale we're talking about, they'd be hiding pretty much any and all sensitive information really well. It'd be almost impossible to obtain the info we need through legal means."

"... Are you insinuating what I think you are?"

"Maybe. Not really. I will definitely try to get everything legally, don't worry. However, sometimes you need to fight fire with fire... wait. How did I not notice that before?"

"Huh?" Alex spoke up for the first time.

"Your hair, it's different."

"...sh*t, I'll be back." Alex ran out of the room, right past Kat. Thankfully, she didn't notice her. She decided to follow her to see where she was going. Alex entered a storeroom, took out her bag, and rushed to her next location: one of the bathrooms. As she walked in, she looked at her reflection in the mirror.

"Wh-? Damn it." She exclaimed, staring at her hair, which was a very dark, almost unnoticeable brown. She reached into her bag and took out an object. Kat noticed it immediately as a device used to change the hair colour of the user. Alex used it on her hair, changing it to her usual black. She then stuffed the device back into her bag and walked out, replacing her bag in the storeroom and returning to the lounge. Brandon, upon seeing her, had a slight suspicious look on his face, but made no comment on her hair changing again.

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 24.1 was California Noir by Julien-K.

[s2_16.2: Part 24.2] That Crooked Vulture
<22120601>

Monday, June 1st, 2212

Brandon's house, Perth, Australia.

23:09:31

"Come on, damnit, answer!"

Kat had had enough, she wasn't going to play by Nikole's rules, she was going to find out about the spy by any means necessary. She had followed Kyoko to Brandon's house, and was seeing her bang on his door.

"What?! It's 10pm! Are you're sleeping?" She took out her phone and phoned him. "Of course you are not answering the door when I need your assistance the most, argh!"

"Where the hell are you?!
"...
"... Ugh, no reason. じゃあね."

She hung up at that point. Not wasting any more time, she re-entered her car and set off, switching off the red lights the moment she got back on the roads... but nearly lost it in the process, her AG racing skills bringing the car back in control. Kat continued following her, all the way to Angelus HQ.

Donning her beanie again, she snuck into the building, following Kyoko right up to Brandon's office. Cracking the door open slightly, she listened in.

"-ow what I have to deal with."

"No, of course I don't, but you still need sleep to function properly!"

Kat listened in to their entire conversation, complete with Kyoko slapping Brandon in the face. The conversation suddenly changed when they finished discussing the spy.

"How are you holding up?"

"What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean. Your identity. How are you holding up keeping it covered?"

"Oh, that... well, once I got used to it, it's pretty easy."

"Good, good."

"Although, I won't say that it wasn't tiring, because it was."

Kyoko removed her helmet to cool off and sat down, continuing their conversation. Katsuo was about to leave, but there was one thing she couldn't let go of.

She had to see her face.

Katsuo cracked the door just enough to get an eye into the door. She used the window behind the desk to catch a reflection of her head. There was a slight chill from the sight she had beheld, but not enough to make her look away. She kept her eye on the face for a solid minute just to make sure she knew exactly what it was. After this realization, Katsuo couldn't help herself from staying to listen to the conversation they had, learning what should never leave the office, up until the last possible moment she could stay.

------------
<22120602>

Tuesday, June 2nd, 2212

Public underground carpark, Perth, Australia.

08:59:19

There was no way to know how much longer there was until any effort to find the spy became moot. Nikole was anxiously waiting in her car for Katsuo as a result of the issue. She showed up to the meeting point 15 minutes early just to fool herself into thinking she would get her information earlier, and now she has sat alone for another 15 minutes before Katsuo had arrived with the news.

“They're attacking Crinale.� Katsuo started.

“Attacking? What do you mean attacking?�

“Couldn't tell you much more then that, just that they might not be playing fair for a while.�

Nikole spaced out from realizing the complications of a company with those intentions being infiltrated, or even manipulated from the inside.

"Any other requests?"

Nikole snapped out of her trance. "Brandon Smith, anything about him?"

"I heard him say he was trying to find the spy, in a roundabout way. He's in the clear."

"Alright, at least we avoided a worst case scenario."

"If you thought he was the spy, then why did you tell him about it?"

"I had to tell someone, and Brandon was the least likely. He's the one that everyone would see everyday. Did you spot Kyoko at all?"

"If she ever leaves her home, she wasn't in her favourite anonymous racing suit of secretness. Still, though, she and Brandon are too close for a spy to not get caught as her. She apparently only shows her helmet on a raceday anyway, which would make for the world's laziest informant."

"Gareth Ardos?"

"It could be him, he was a bit sociable, though. It'd be hard for him to stay undetected with how he acts, but it could be done, I suppose."

"And Alexandra Kotova?"

"Something was off about her... I almost didn't even see it. Apparently her hair had looked different or something. I though maybe she just changed it's colour overnight, but that would mean that whenever someone notices, she changes it back."

"You saw her change her hair colour after someone saw it was different?"

"Yeah, she went to the bathroom just to do it. That's all the weird stuff I saw her do, though."

"Right... anything else I should know?"

Katsuo looked up, as though she was debating with herself on what to say.

"What is it... If it's that important, just tell me."

After taking a large breath, Katsuo opened her mouth. "I know where Tarah Andrews is."

"...How do you know this." Nikole said sternly, already knowing the answer.

"Did you think I was going to find her grocery shopping? I had to, I couldn't get to her any other way?"

Nikole laid her head on the steering wheel in frustration, then sat up in a slightly calmer state. "Maybe you were right. Just... don't tell me what you heard."

"But she-"

"If Tarah's been under the radar for this long, she hasn't been making any problems. We'll deal with the spy first, then we'll see what happens. You can go now."

"Nikole-"

"I don't want to hear it. Enjoy the rest of your day however you like, your job is done for now."

Katsuo still felt she had more to say, but knew she couldn't convince Nikole to hear her out. After a bit of hesitation, she eventually exited Nikole's car, which promptly left the carpark, and went back into her own. It wasn't until she had managed to fully distract herself from the subject with whatever she had on hand before she went back to the outside world herself.

[Ace3000]

And just because I feel like it, another part on day after the one I just posted.

The referenced album title of Part 24.2 was the self-titled album by Them Crooked Vultures.

[s2_17.1: Part 25.1] Before The Incident... [Pt.1]
<22120611>

Thursday, June 11th, 2212

Omega Harbour, Perth, Australia.

11:06:54

Nikole had decided to take action against the spy working against Angelus, not realising that a certain someone had the same idea.

"Katsuo, come here. This is improtant." She told her.

Katsuo followed Nikole into the latter's car, as they set off for their destination.

"So what's going on?" Katsuo asked.

"I have obtained data that points to the spy masquerading as Alexandra Kotova. I need you and Halvred to investigate her residence, then meet me in front of Angules HQ, I want to inform Brandon what we can as soon as possible. And make sure Halvred is armed."

"Armed?!" Katsuo asked, slightly caught off guard.

"It's a precaution, we still don't fully understand what forces are at work."

"Oh, ok, I feel much better." Katsuo muttered to herself as she grabbed her phone.

They arrived at the house in no time, getting out of the car and walking up to the door. Katsuo held Halvred back as she inspected the door and it's surroundings.

"How do you think we're going to get in?" Halvred asked.

"Well, maybe this will work" She said, knocking on the door.

...

Nothing. She tried again.

"Hello?!" She yelled.

... "MMMPH! MMMPH!"

"Worth a shot, I g-" Katsuo started

"SHHH!" Halvred shushed her "Hear that?"

... "MMMPH! MMMPH!"

"Is that..." Katsuo whispered, "ohh... oh no..."

"We should check the back." Halvred suggested, reaching for his pistol.

The two walked around to the gate leading to the rear, and jumped over it.

"MMMPH! MMMPH!"

The muffled screams grew louder, more noticeable.

"...HERE! It's coming from here!" Katsuo stopped by a window.

Halvred knelt under the window and knocked a few times.

"Is that Alexandra Kotova?! One for yes, two for no."

"MMMMMPH!"

"Right." Halvred reholstered his gun, assuming that any potential ambush would've taken place by now. "In that case, hold on, we're breaking in."

He signalled Katsuo to go back. They returned to the front of the house.

"Kat, you know what to do..."

"Of course!" Katsuo said enthusiastically, unlocking the doors in no time at all. The two rushed in, seeing a bound and gagged Alex. Katsuo knelt down by her, removing the gag from her mouth.

"Yo, what's the security code?" Katsuo asked immediately.

"Huh? U-uh, 6852."

Halvred knew what Katsuo would ask of him, and ran up to the front of the house. He opened the control panel of the security system and input the numbers on the keypad, deactivating the alarm before it had a chance to go off. While he did that, Katsuo made work of freeing Alex.

"Th-Thanks. Really, I mean it. How did you know I was here?"

"Brandon, he found out about the spy. Are you able to walk on your own? Cause we need to get going now."

"Y-Yeah, I can manage. I am quite hungry, though."

"Okay, good. Grab a snack if you have any here, you can eat in the car."

Alex went directly to the fridge, grabbed a snack, and reset the security alarm, leaving her prison with her two saviours.

"Wait, you mentioned Brandon, does that mean-?"

"Yes," Katsuo cut her off. "We're heading to Angelus HQ."

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 25.1 was... well, the same as this part. Find out next time!

[s2_17.2: Part 25.2] ...The Stoica Incident... [Pt.2]
<22120611>

Thursday, June 11th, 2212

Angelus R&D HQ, Perth, Australia

11:13:39

Text Message: we will be at angelus hq soon, we have something of interest to you.

Satisfied with all the evidence he had finally collated, Brandon headed out of his office, towards the spy.

"Alex, I need to talk with you."

"Of course! I need to talk to you too." She said with a smile.

"You do?"

"Yes, but I'll let you speak first."

"Okay... Snežana Stoica, you have been found out."

"Wh-What?! Who's that?"

Naturally, everyone was confused.

"The hell? What are you talking about, that's Alex!"

"It is nothing more than a very clever disguise. The person you thought was Alex is actually an international spy, working for a certain organisation to gather information on Angelus. I have proof on this, don't bother arguing with me."

"B-but... I am Alex!" She said, getting rather frustrated.

Brandon just laughed at that, "Wow, you really didn't do your research properly! Even I know of Alex's secret ability."

"Secret ability? Of course I know about it!" She said

"No, you don't. See, this ability is involuntary, it happens under certain circumstances. One such circumstance just happened, yet her ability did not present itself."

"Brandon, just chill!" An employee said, still not understanding.

"It seems that no-one understands me. Fortunately, I do have the evidence that proves who she really is."

"So do we." A familiar voice spoke out. 4 people walked into the R&D room they were in: Nikole Carole, Halvred Erikson, Katsuo Tsukiko and... another Alexandra Kotova.

"Huh?!" The Alex that Brandon was speaking to squealed in surprise and fear. Her eyes however, did not change.

"I'd stand still if I were you," Halvred said, pulling out his gun, "or else I might have to add one hell of a marking to keep track of you two."

"Yes." Alex said, keeping still. She then turned to the other Alex at the opposite end of the room. "Hello, my doppelgänger. Guess the tables have turned!"

"Do you see now?" Brandon explained "I realised that Alex had somehow lost the involuntary ability to change her eye colour based on her emotions. Then Nikole came to me talking about a spy. That was when it finally clicked for me. You were not Alex to begin with.

"As for you, Nikole..." He turned around, stepping beside the other Alex.

"Wait!" The Alex with the two Syncline personnel stopped him, "Nikole is a trustworthy person, she saved me from Stoica."

"I know, I can see that. I was going to thank her." He directed his attention to Nikole, "Really, you have my full gratitude... and my trust."

While he wasn't looking, though, Snežana had disappeared, leaving Halvred perplexed as to why he was down one gun.

"Ack!"

<second scout | autechre (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5R_XfoW2co&t=12)_>

"Anyone move, and the bitch dies." A female spoke in a disturbing voice, void of any emotion. Snežana had grabbed Alex from behind and pressed her automatic knife to her throat. "Except for you three, get back now." She gestured at Katsuo, Halvred and Nikole. They all stepped back, but Halvred then rushed up at her. Snežana swung her knife in his direction, causing him to grab her wrist. The opening Halvred created allowed Snežana to kick him square in the diaphragm, causing him to drop to the ground.

"Hal!" Alex called out.

Brandon just smiled wider. "Ahh, now your true colours show. Hello, Snežana. Now, that is a really neat weapon, as is this." He held up a gun of his own, which Snežana would never think to make accounted for. "This is rather interesting! It doesn't take any bullets, but has the potential to take a person's life, like a traditional firearm."

She then realised that he was holding her gun. "Oh. That's why you stood beside me. You are very deceptive. You would do well as a spy."

"Unfortunately, I'd rather not stoop that low. Drop the weapon," He pointed the gun at her. "Or I will be forced to use violence. You know me, I don't like violence. However, if I feel that me or my team are threatened, I will have no choice." His face was as stoic as the spy standing at the opposite end of the room, yet there seemed to be some anger behind it.

"You cannot negotiate with me. You will have to kill me. Let's see if you can do it, Angelus... KKGUUAAUH."

What happened next was so fast, it was over in a second. While Snežana was talking, Alex had slowly raised her leg, then swung backwards, kicking her leg. Wile she swung her leg backwards, she raised her arm and grabbed the spy's wrist, twisting and pulling it in such a way that when she kicked her leg, Alex was able to drop her to the ground, disabling her. Finally, she stomped hard on her wrist, breaking it and making her lose her grip on her knife. She picked it up and pointed it at her.

"Don't... you DARE DO THAT AGAIN." Her eyes changed, a fiery angry red glow lighting up in her unique eyes. "What was it you said, 'move and the bitch dies'? Yeah, how's that?!"

"Hmph."

Snežana acted just as quickly as Alex, however, the latter was prepared. Just as Snežana sweeped her leg at her, she attempted to leap out of the way. She unfortunately got caught, but she closed up and threw the knife away in one fluid motion. Brandon stopped the skidding weapon and picked it up.

At the same time, she leaped up, dashed over to Katsuo and grabbed her by the throat, strangling her. She was becoming more desperate, and more careless, as she didn't notice Hal was starting to stand up again. When he went for a sleeper hold, she dropped Katsuo, who collapsed to the ground, coughing. Immediately, Nikole rushed to her side. Snežana had swung around to strike Hal, but only swung at air while he ducked down. Hal made a point with his three longest fingers, and executed her abdomen with surgical precision, and grabbed his gun back on her way down.

Meanwhile, Brandon made his move. "Give up, now." He advised coldly, flicking the automatic knife open. Halvred backed away from the open blade, with its owner walking up to her and pointing it directly at her face.

Snežana looked up at the seething man... and shivered. For the first time in her life, she felt fear. Fear for what would happen, what lengths he would go through to get what he wanted. His unsmiling face was blank, showing not one emotion, but it was clear that there was extreme fury behind his mask.

In the same cold, calm, yet anger-filled voice, Brandon continued, unblinking. "You- no... no-one has ever seen me when I am down right furious, when I am pushed off the edge. Right now, however, I am dangling precariously on that very edge." His voice had reached it's coldest as he gave out his final warning: "I have killed people before, I will not hesitate to end you... Run."

[Jonny]

[lmfao wtf]

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 25.2 was... again, the same as this part. I'm sorry.

[s2_17.3: Part 25.3] ...The Incident's Conclusion [Pt.3]
<22120611>

Thursday, June 11th, 2212

Angelus R&D HQ, Perth, Australia

11:19:58


"I have killed people before, I will not hesitate to end you... Run."

Filled with an intense fear, Snežana became paralyzed for a few moments, finally leaping up, and just began running. She ran for her life through the complex. Brandon signalled to Alex, Katsuo and Halvred, beginning to give chase, but the escapee grabbed a key fob from a rack. She continued running, madly pressing the unlock button. Finally, at the end of the room, a vehicle responded, opening it's canopy.

She jumped over the door into the open cockpit of the Tsunami prototype and shut it once she had settled in. She jammed the key in the slot and turned it, starting the unique vehicle. She set off at top speed through the R&D department, straight at her pursuers.

"NO!" Brandon yelled.

Almost all of them jumped out of the way of the speeding vehicle, except for Brandon. He jumped at the low car in an attempt to leap over it. He landed on the car, still running, which tripped him up by it's higher velocity. He landed on his back on the floor.

"Ow." He said after a few seconds, "Maybe I should not have tried that." Slowly, he got up and spun around. "Not on my watch." he shook his head slowly, then ran off in the direction of the car.

The slim, sleek vehicle raced through the building, driving down the ramp leading to the multi-story parking garage. Brandon followed, taking the elevator to the ground floor of the garage, where his Razer.X hypercar was parked. He entered the car and started it up as quick as possible, flooring it out of the garage.

<massacre | savant (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jaYLq_UnvLI&t=54)_>

The small unpainted vehicle shot out of the garage, tilted as it turned out onto the road, maintaining a sort of elegance to it. The much more normal-designed Razer.X, while not as elegant, was smooth in its exit out of the garage.

Both cars seemed to be equally matched. The Razer.X had the sheer power, and the Tsunami had the light weight, so both had a rather high acceleration. However, as the hypercar increased in RPM, the more power it gained, until it started to catch up to the tiny vehicle. Suddenly, the cockpit shifted to the left and the tiny machine darted in that direction.

"Ngh!"

Brandon had a hard time pulling his car around the corner at that speed, but it wasn't an overly heavy machine, so he was able to manage it. Along that straight, he pulled out his smartphone, opening an app that allowed him to control certain Angelus cars, the Tsunami being one of them.

As his speed allowed him to be beside the tiny racer, he tapped a portion of the screen.

Click.

"Huh?!"

The door and canopy was locked, as Brandon tapped other areas of the controls, causing other things to happen to the car as he slowly disabled it. First came a high-pitched whine as the engine revved to max, the gear being set to neutral. As the car slowly lost speed due to the lack of a drive gear engaged, Snežana looked back as Brandon hit the brakes of his Razer.X, as he tapped the screen again.

The lightweight car jerked with the force of it's own braking power, Brandon's heavier car shooting past it. To compensate, Brandon turned sharply, spinning his car around, stopping in a parking bay to the side of the road. When he came to a complete halt, he pushed the final button and swiped the top, which powered down the car, and locked the settings, so Snežana could not turn it back on and drive off.

He exited the car slowly, locking it, then walked over to the runaway concept. He looked down at his phone, then casually tapped two buttons.

Click.

The canopy unlocked, then swung open.

"GH-!"

Immediately as it did, Brandon grabbed her by the top she was wearing.

"Now, if y-..." He was cut off by Snežana thrusting a fist at where his head was moments before he dodged out of the way, pushing her to one side as he did so. The first moment he got, he held her arms down, continuing to speak as coldly as he did a while ago.

"... as I was saying... If you are done with your little joyride, we can go back to HQ."

"Y-you told me to run!"

"I said 'Run', not 'Steal a valuable car and race off with it'. You wasted your last chance, both you and the Tsunami are going back.... what?"

Brandon was cut off once again, this time by Snežana laughng loudly.

"I...I just remembered something! If I get caught by them... whatever you do to me... will be nothing compared to what my organisation will do."

Brandon's cold, serious face slowly grew to a wide smile

"H...Hahaha... Is that so! Well, then! In that case... I will let you go. You can flee then, at the cost of fear of being caught by your organisation!"

"...w-wait. What?"

"You can go. You will no longer be able to use Angelus as a shelter any longer. You can flee, but don't ever think of returning. You will live a life of fear, fear of getting caught by the organisation, of being tortured within a centimeter, nay, a millimeter of your life. This is the path you chose, I hope you're happy."

Snežana just stuttered and spluttered, her voice unable to come out. Finally, she was able to get 4 words out.

"Let... me... keep... Tsunami!"

"...You want the Tsunami? ......fine. I feel merciful today."

Brandon then tapped his phone a few times, unlocking the Tsunami completely.

"There, now leave, and never return."

"Y-you have my word!" She said, speeding off, leaving Brandon to get back in his car and return to Angelus HQ.

------------
As Brandon walked back to the R&D room, where he saw Nikole taking off her coat and giving it to Kat, along with a bottle of water, while Hal looked deep in thought.

"Hey, are you okay?" Brandon asked Kat.

"Of course I am, I'm invincible." She replied.

Brandon laughed, then turned to Alex.

"How about you? Nothing broken?"

"Well, I did get cut when I disabled the spy, but it's minor, I'll be fine. What about Snežana?"

"I have faith that she'll never return."

"You... mean?"

"We came to an agreement, she might regret the decision she chose, but that is not my problem."

Halvred snapped out of his trance, not at all looking as relieved as the others, and signaled Brandon to meet him around the hall.

"Is there anything else I need to worry about, you look troubled." Brandon asked.

"Mind telling what you planned on doing just now?"

"Pardon?"

"What in the hell were you doing? Brandon Smith, pure as can be, waving a gun, laughing and-"

"Just when do you have any ground to judge me? You step in, a gun's the first thing that comes out. Good god, you look like the reincarnation of Gandhi, you really do."

"My gun wasn't loaded." Hal chimed in the first chance he got. "See, I've not been around many lovers, but I know the fighters like a professor knows arithmetic, and I have a bit more of an idea of who the most dangerous are."

"Oh, you think I'm dangerous?" Brandon felt just enough shock to hold back his laughter, "Okay, Sun Zsu, you've got my attention, just what is so important that you just have to tell me now."

"There's a saying that's been going around among private military workers, usually when one get's called a crazed gunman. 'To be an assassin is to have a job; to be a crazed gunman is to have a mental illness'. And as it would turn out, I've never met someone who was both hired as a mercenary on top of being a psychopath."

"So because I've just now picked up a gun, that makes me a psycho... that's some grade A scrutiny you got there."

"You've already admitted to killing people, and you sounded damn proud of it! When I see a trained and seasoned military spy shivering at the sight of someone who has a weapon and couldn't care less about how to use it, what so you expect me to think of that person."

"Are you threatening me? If so you picked a hell of a time and place-"

"This situation is beyond me. I could not do anything to you, even in defense, so I can only warn you. Pay close attention to yourself, and seriously think about what you do. The sooner you learn this, the more likely you are to be lucky to not have to pay attention to everyone else."

Halvred went back to the crowd before Brandon had a chance to retort, who brushed of Halvred's words and acted as though they never spoke.

"Let us recuperate, and find out how to fix this mess. However, we also need to continue preparing for the first F12000 Omega Harbour race."

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 25 was The Incident by Porcupine Tree.

[s2_18.1: Part 26.1] Stoica's Great Reward
<22120623>

Tuesday, June 23rd, 2212

Angelus R&D HQ, Perth, Australia

"Hi! Sorry to just drop in on you guys!" Catherine had entered Angelus' HQ to see the team, and speak with her new best friend.

"It's fine, how are you doing?" Brandon spoke.

"I'm alright. You guys know the next race is at-"

"Nilokeras Fossa, Syncline's home course. Doesn't seem like anything we can't handle."

"Great! I'll see you there then!... Ah! Is Alex here? I also wanted to catch up with her some more."

"Uhh, yes... but... well, you see..."

At that point, Alex walked past.

"Alex! Hi!" Catherine said in her usual energetic tone.

Alex just stared at her, blushing profusely and her mouth opening slightly. "Huh? Wh-who are you?"

"Haha, very funny. How're you doing?"

"I... No, really... who are you?"

Catherine's face turned to shock, she looked back at Brandon.

"There has been a little... incident, shall we say. The Alex you have been interacting with was not really Alex."

"What? Th... This.... This is just some horrible, cruel joke, isn't it? I know how you feel about the AGRC!"

"I would not joke with a kind hearted person such as yourself. Please, allow me to explain."

Brandon sat her down and explained everything to do with the spy. Naturally, Alex sat with her.

"...wow. That... really happened?" Catherine asked.

"Yes. I... truly am sorry for what happened." Alex said, looking away from her.

The shock that remained on Catherine's face soon turned into a large smile.

"It's fine! We can start again!"

"You can, I'm starting for the first time." Alex laughed.

Seeing that they were getting along well, Brandon left them to catch up, walking to his office. As he entered, he found a small package that one of the guards told him about, after scanning it for anomalous and hazardous materials. He opened it up, pulling out a holo-bar and a key fob. Holding the key in his right hand, he opened the holo-bar with his left.


"Brandon Smith.

"This past time I spent with you was a lie. I doubt anyone would know your true colours. So that day, I fled. I fled because for the first time as a professional spy, I was scared... and I usually have complete control of my emotions.

"In any case, I shall not be returning, not even to pick up my belongings... that's where the key comes into play."

At that point, Brandon stared at the key in his hand, then back at the letter.


"All the things I left at Angelus is now yours. My knife, my gun, and my old car are yours to keep. Do whatever you want with them; keep them, destroy them, whatever. They're yours now. The 4th floor of the parking garage should be where the car is.

"Speaking of cars... I'm treating the Tsunami well. I made changes to your design for a reason: I loved the initial design, and I wanted it. You just gave me the perfect time to steal it.

"In any case, I leave you with this final piece of information:

4F 45 45 4C 54
56 4C 20 4C 49
45 20 53 20 56
52 41 54 41 45
54 52 49 43 2E

"-Snežana Stoica"

Brandon scratched his head at the last part, then thought 'Screw it, I'll figure it out later. First order of business is the car.'

He made his way to the parking garage, going up to the 4th floor like the letter advised. There, he found the car 'Alex' drove, a 2210 Aston Martin. Brandon pressed a button on the key fob and the car responded to it. He opened the door and looked in it, then looked in the boot and engine bay. Satisfied there wasn't any anomalies attached to the car, he walked back to the main building, finding Alex.

"Alex, c-... wait, where's Catherine? I expected her to still be here talking with you."

"Ehh, we spoke for a while, but she had to return to work."

"Alright. Anyway, could you come with me for a moment."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"I have something to give to you."

"Uhhhh, okay."

She got up and walked with Brandon, who escorted her to the 4th level of the building's multistory carpark.

Brandon dangled the key fob by placing the keyring around his finger. "I have this key. Can you guess which car it belongs to?"

Alex looked around, then her eyes snapped wide open in shock.

"I... I recognise that car... I've seen it before. It's that... devil woman's car." She said, pointing at the Aston Martin.

Brandon pressed two buttons on the key fob. Once again, the car responded, unlocking and opening the doors.

"Get in, I've wanted to experience these cars."

"Uh... you sure?"

"Relax, I checked it out earlier. It's clean."

"Right, but why do you want me to ride with you?"

"I'll explain later, just get in."

With a sigh, Alex sat in the passenger's seat of the car, as Brandon got in the driver's seat. He plugged the key in the slot and started the car, driving off to Omega Harbour for a test run.

[Jonny]

[part deleted]

[Jonny]

[parts removed]

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 26.1 was Some Great Reward by Depeche Mode.

[s2_18.2: Part 26.2] Human After All
<22120623>

Tuesday, June 23rd, 2212

Angelus R&D HQ, Perth, Australia

The Aston Martin flew out of the garage, heading towards Omega Harbour.

"This feels... unique. Very solid. Then again, it's a proper GT, not a supercar like most of Angelus' cars."

"I agree, but it feels kinda... boring."

"Really? Huh, I agree it's not as fun as an Angelus or a Katana, but it's still quite fun."

When they entered Omega Harbour, Brandon was able to plant his foot down, the car responding well to it, accelerating to it's top speed of 325km/h before the first corner. It took the wide, banked corner at top speed, but Brandon had to slow down for the tighter U-turn. He turned into it, hard, shifting down and stomping on the brake a few times.

"What are you trying to do?" Alex asked.

"Trying to get it sideways." Brandon explained, looking down at the centre console and pushing a few buttons, before holding one down and saying, "Ah, found the traction control. You're off, great."

Brandon then broke into the following right hander, planting his foot down as he was in the corner. The car slipped, entering a beautiful slide, which Brandon kept under control. Racing the rest of the way around the course, Brandon exited through the fork halfway down that the short and medium courses used.

"Okay, that was fun. Let's get back now, I have things to discuss with you."

------------
When they returned, Brandon told her his intentions.

"This car, I'm giving to you. Keep it, sell it, crush it, it's up to you."

"I'd love to have a car... but not this one. Too many bad memories. I'd rather crush it."

"Not even sell it? You could get a decent amount for this."

"Maybe. Whatever. I just don't want to see this thing again. Besides, I have my own ideas for a car I want."

"Fair enough, then. I'll sell it and give you the cash I get for it, I won't accept no for an answer to the money thing."

"[sigh], sure... listen. I... just want to thank you for all you've done for me. Really, I didn't think I deserved all this, especially from you of all people... but I am grateful to you."

"Heh... um, thanks."

"Right, let's get out of here." She said, getting out of the car.

Brandon followed, getting out of the car, locking it up and throwing the key to Alex. She fumbled for a second before dropping it.

"Sh*t... I'm such a mess today... [sigh], I guess I'll just come out with it... I-I've been... thinking about... dating."

"Dating? Wait... you don't-?"

"Don't what?" She asked, before getting what Brandon meant, "Oh... no, I'm a lesbian."

"Ah, alright then. I was going to say, I still have feelings for Tarah."

"But she's gone now... you should let go."

"I have my reasons as to why I can't... you have feelings for Catherine, don't you?"

"The moment I saw her... I just... wow. A-And the more I knew about her, the more I fell for her." She smiled, as an image of her crush filled her mind.

"Okay... and you're telling me... why? Is it because I know her through... the other's interactions with her?"

"Pretty much, yeah."

"Well, there's nothing I can tell you that will help you any further, you guys just seem to naturally get together, so I'd say... just keep doing what you're doing."

"I know that!" She snapped back, "I... I just want to know... like... when should I ask her?"

Brandon just stared at her, "... whenever you feel the time is right. Have you not been in a relationship before?"

"I have, once before... but it was definitely not like this."

"No?"

"No. My first relationship was so meaningless, so horrid, I kinda got put off relationships, until now."

"Hmmm... well, I do think you should give it another shot. You two get along so well, you have good chemistry."

"Okay... I'll try."

[Ace3000]

Uploading a day early cause stuff busy tomorrow

The referenced album title of Part 26.2 was Human After All by Daft Punk.

[s2_19.0: Part 27.0] Dome 0095
<22120627>

Saturday, June 27th, 2212... Earth time.

Cydonia Hotel, Albatross, Dome 0095, Mars

"What the hell do you mean, you'd much rather race pure?!" A visibly irritated man retorted at the 18-year old girl in front of him.

Crinale's two pilots, Leon Turner and Lucia Scarlatti, were having yet another argument. While they were usually good friends, and they had many arguments over their time as pilots, this one was a rather bad fight. Once again, it pertained to Lucia's lack of violence in her racing style during her most recent trial in the simulator.

"God, are you f*cking retarded?! Let me say it again: F*ck this sh*tty violence bullsh*t. I'd much rather use my own racing style, one that lets me have fun, one that I know I can win by using."

"That's great and all, but remember who you're racing for."

"Oh my F*CKING GOD WHY. How many times do I have to say it before it enters your thick skull into your retarded brain?! I don't care about Crinale's sh*tty racing style! I race to win, not to kill."

"Who said anything about killing?"

"Killing, eliminating, who gives a flying f*ck?! It's all the same to me and I couldn't give any less of a f*ck!"

"Is that so?! Well, you could always quit? Oh, but then Viktor will probably make sure you won't race again. You'd have to go back to your loving parents."

"F*CK. OFF!" She yelled, "MY PARENTS NEVER LOVED ME! Can you say that people who couldn't accept who I am, a prodigy that was born to race, truly f*cking love me?! HAH! I DON'T F*CKING THINK SO. Those assholes tried to force their sh*tty religion down my throat, despite my countless protests! I am a woman of science, YOUR HORRID GOD DOES NOT EXIST."

"Uh-"

"NO! F*CK YOU! I'M OUT." She cut Leon off. "You're starting to become like my god damn parents. I'll race however I f*cking want. THIS IS MY F*CKING LIFE, D*CKHOLE."

With that, she stormed out of the hotel and started to roam around the small, shanty town ouside of the dome the hotel was in. She sighed, and started to curse everyone and everything under her breath, until she stopped outside a building, looking at it and the sign emblazoned upon it.

Spiegel's

"...wait, is that...?"

The reason she stopped to look at the building was a simple reason: She swore she could hear metal playing in the bar.

"...F*ck it, I could do with a drink." She admitted, stepping inside. Metal was playing rather loudly in the bar, but that was fine for her. Looking around, the only person in the bar was a rather well built blonde haired man, who was relaxing, reading a book.

"U-um... am I supposed to be here at this time? Why are you the only one in here?" She asked, not recognising the man.

He moved the book away from his view, placing a finger between the pages he was on. He recognised her almost at once. "Ah... Lucia Scarlatti, prodigious Lead Pilot of Crinale International. It's fine to be here. While the bar is closed at noon, I know the owner quite well, and I come here periodically to read."

"Okay... so, um... mind if I get a drink? Or would I have to go elsewhere?"

"Nah, it's fine, I can get you something." He stuck a bookmark in the book and started walking to the bar.

"If you don't mind me asking, you look familiar..." She started.

The man turned around and held out his hand. "Halvred Erikson, 2nd pilot for Syncline R/I. Call me Hal."

"Ah, I thought so." She replied, shaking his hand.

Hal then walked around the bar, placing both hands on it and leaning on it. "Alright, pick your poison."

"If you think I want those sh*tty girly alcopops, you can f*ck right off. Rum and coke."

"Ooh, nice choice."

"What do you recommend for the rum?"

"Recommend?!" He scoffed, "I mean, I know this place looks posh, but really, we all prefer to go with the good Captain."

Lucia stood there, mouth agape in disbelief. "...D-did you just... God, someone who knows a good drink. Please, hit me up with the Captain!"

"Heh, sure thing." He said, getting up.

A short time later, Hal had whipped up her drink, and passed it to her, getting a second glass for himself.

"So, what brings you here?"

"[sigh], you don't want to know. It'd ruin this stupid f*cking image everyone seems to have of me just because I'm a pilot for Crinale."

"Tell me, I know that people can have personalities that are different to their racing styles."

"You sure?"

"Hey, you're at a bar, don't people let out their life stories here?" He joked.

"Hah! Oh, fine. Basically, Leon, the second pilot, is getting on my case just because I don't like to use this overly-violent racing style that's being forced on me."

"Leon... Turner?"

"Yeah."

"Ah, I was raised by his brother... although, telling him about Leon won't change him much, from what I heard about Leon from his brother."

"Ehh, fair enough. I mean, why does Crinale need to do this sh*tty weapon focused battles anyway? It'd just be easier to use the high power of the craft to get quick times and win through that! I can win through perfect runs, by taking Crinale's other technologies to it's limits, not just their stupid weapon tech."

"That's a bit of an oversimplification of battles in racing. If it was so easy to win without weapons, no one would use them. Yet many pilots get so caught up in trying to get their kill that they end up holding themselves back to take out an insignificant target in last place. It's more of a game of chess then it is a mindless shoo-"

"Yeah, yeah, that's great, is that why you haven't got first place in a race yet?"

"Haven't meant a lip like that in a while," Hal chuckled, mostly to himself, "We've had top five placement in every race for both pilots. Maybe we haven't had that magical lucky day, that still makes us the most consistent team of the season."

"I mean, you could get last place in every race and earn that title. Still doesn't mean you'll win."

"In our backyard? I know every curve of that track, you know."

"...Are you challenging me?"

"I'd like to think we crossed that line quite a bit ago. Besides, there's something I've been wanting for a time, it'd be nice to have it for free."

"Ahahaha! A bet? Against me, a f*cking prodigy?! ...The stakes?"

Hal grabbed a bottle from the top shelf, "This red wine, can't get it on Earth, interplanetary shipping comes with too many complications. I bought a glass of this a few months ago, just to see if it was worth it. It caused me to go sober for a week, any other drink was urine in comparison."

"...you mean that if I lose...?"

"You need to buy the wine. Full cost."

"God damn... that's crazy! I'm in."

Hal blinked at how quickly she agreed. "Uh, I wasn't expecting you to accept so easily."

"Yes, well, we both have an advantage. You have the advantage of the home course and I have the racing skills!"

"That's a good point, I'm sure you'll get at least, ohh... tenth?"

"Sure, sure, just pay for the damn wine now, loser." She joked back, having the most fun time of her life in a long time.

I'd like you to take note of the position he mentioned, while not that important, it's just something for a later part, that I changed because it was quite close to what he said.

[Jonny]

[parts deleted]

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 27 was Gas 0095 by Mat Jarvis, under the moniker of Gas.

[s2_20.1: Part 28.1] 30 Seconds on Mars
<22120628>

Sunday, June 28th, 2212.

Nilokeras Fossa, Dome 3030, Mars

The entirety of the short course was available for everyone to see first hand, as that portion of the track was encased in a glass stadium. The blue glow of the glass track accentuated beautifully against the rusty red of the planet. Despite the glass stadium, however, it was perfectly safe to be outside, as oxygenators and heaters were placed around the planet in 2140, which were marked by tall beacons that glowed a certain colour depending on the status of the machinery: white if active and red if damaged, meaning one would have to stay away from the area.

The heaters ensured the planet's surface stayed at ideal temperatures, ranging from about 35 to 0°C at day. At night, the temperatures dipped to anywhere between 0 and -35°C. In addition, Biodomes were put in place if the tourists couldn't get used to the unique atmosphere of the planet.

For Brandon and the rest of the team, it was their first time on the planet, which he found very interesting. However, there was no more time to stare at the beauty of it, as the race was about to start.

Suddenly, Alex danced into the room, a light bound in her steps.

"Is it time? Is it going to start?" She was practically bouncing on the spot.

Brandon looked her up and down, a confused look on his face "You... seem to be in high spirits."

"Of course I do, I feel like a giddy teenager!"

"Uh huh. You asked her out, didn't you?"

"Was it that obvious?"

"Not as obvious as Catherine's answer, I take it?"

"Yeah, she said yes!"

"Well, I'm glad for you. I hope you guys do well."

"I hope so too."

With that said, Brandon turned his attention back to the race, which was mere seconds from starting. "Alright Syncline, what do you have planned? This is your home course, I'm sure there's something up your sleeve."

In a matter of seconds, he would find out.

3, 2, 1... GO!
<10:00:00_>
<nilokeras fossa: short fwd_>
<race: lap 01 of 102_>

01. ERI220.1.99.175 (#99 | Halvred Erikson | V.ult-2X1024)
02. TSU524.0.45.175 (#45 | Katsuo Tsukiko | V.ult-2X1024)
06. FUJ616.0.43.194 (#43 | Kyoko Fujisaki | AX2.0_r1)
10. SCA308.0.7.329 (#7 | Lucia Scarlatti | F0-RA8/00095)
11. ARD889.1.19.194 (#19 | Gareth Ardos | AX2.0_r1)
15. TUR847.1.13.329 (#13 | Leon Turner | F0-RA8/000127)

<evangelon | desimal (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvj0NgbWetg&t=103)_>

As usual, the craft took off at a blistering pace, but this time, something was very different regarding Syncline. As soon as they were off the line, they altered their racing lines so that Hal was directly behind Kat, decreasing the wind resistance and raising their overall speed.

When they reached the first corner, Kat moved slightly more outside than Hal did, to give him even more turning ability than the unique craft design allowed. As soon as they were out of the turn, they returned to their prior formation of Hal racing directly behind Kat.

Further down the pack, Kyoko was amazed by the sudden and massive lead the team took. Usually, they were mid-pack runners.

"What... even? They aren't this good, were they?! I doubt it's just because it's their home course... They must have some strategy, I've never seen them follow one another so closely before."

"Quake"

Immediately, though, a quake was fired, taking out Kyoko and, when it eventually reached them, both Syncline pilots. It was enough for them to lose their lead, and fall into the main pack.

"Formation Beta."

Suddenly, in the busy pack, the two craft sideshifted in opposite directions. Kat allowed Hal to pass her and they both sideshifted back to being in line with one another. Along with the change in leader, the racing style of the team changed drastically too, becoming more violent. Kat, when she got them, dropped mines and occasionally bombs on the track behind her, while Hal focused on using the forward firing weapons at the opponents ahead of them.

Like Kat did when she was ahead, Hal took the corners further outside than Kat did, to give her the extra turning ability. With their combination in forces, they reached the current race leaders in no time at all. They began to switch back to their previous formation again.

"Missiles. Rockets."

Hal was hit, and fell back, only to be hit by a stray rocket, keeping him stationary for a while longer. It was enough to separate him from Kat. Fortunately, their strategy covered that as well. While he usually absorbed it, he used turbos to catch up with Kat, also adopting a less violent style in the process.

Kat on the other hand, raced as she used to; she always healed using weapons and took the corners aggressively. This brought her closer to the front. However, the pilot in front of them wouldn't relinquish their position to her. It was then her mind tricks came into play.

"So you won't let me through? Fine."

She maneuvered her craft in such a way that they made a mistake in the corner, moving to the outside, whick left Kat to slip on the inside and pass them... for about a second, until they activated a turbo and got ahead.

"Nice try, but who said I'd give up that easily?"

"Me." Came a voice that was not the pilot's.

[Ace3000]

Thanks to Bardic for providing the concept for these past 3 or so parts, as well as the next one!

The referenced album title of Part 28.1 was the self-titled album by 30 Seconds to Mars.

[s2_20.2: Part 28.2] The Rise of Syncline R/I and the Pilots on Mars
<22120628>

Sunday, June 28th, 2212

Nilokeras Fossa, Dome 3030, Mars

<so long sentiment | celldweller (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZzWJh4GuDA&t=63)_>

"Nice try, but who said I'd give up that easily?"

"Me. Kat, out of the way."

She sideshifted out of the way, just in time for...

"Missiles"

They hit their mark, the white and red craft fell back, and Hal was back in 2nd place, moving back right behind Kat in their original formation. Although, like their original formation...

"Quake"

They were both hit by a quake, and overtaken by the very same craft that was ganged up on.

"I told you already, who said I would give up so easily?"

"Cannon"

That was pretty much the start of a battle between Hal and his new race rival. Initially just an attempt to slow them down, the other pilot defended their position by any means necessary, pumping any offensive weapon obtained into the red and purple craft.

"Fine, if it's a battle you want, then it's a complete curbstomp you'll get."

"Rockets"

All 3 rockets hit the rear of the craft, dealing a great deal of damage and slowing it down immensely, allowing Hal to pass it. He kept an eye on the craft, ready to dodge any attack it would do.

"Tch, really? You're using the weapons to heal? Oh, w-"

"Plasma"

Instantly, Hal sideshifted out of the way, harmlessly avoiding the attack. He sideshifted back, slowed down, and...

"Mines"

Fired them at point blank range, giving the pilot no time to react.

<contender_eliminated_>

"That's enough. Now..."

In the commotion of the battle, Kat had taken the chance to escape and go for the gold. Hal was in 2nd place, but he was a fair way behind Kat.

"I've dealt with them, catching up." Hal notified her.

Again, he healed himself using every pickup he obtained, apart from turbos, which he used. He also took advantage of the track's banking to execute barrel rolls where he could. Over the span of 6 laps, Hal slowly narrowed the gap between him and Kat, eventually reaching her on the 7th.

"Formation Alpha, let's finish this."

"Agreed."

Hal kept to the rear of Kat's craft, having no real problems until the final lap. Somehow, one pilot was able to get close enough to them to attack.

"Missile"

Lucia fired the weapon blind, allowing it to fly across the track. When it missed the target, it bounced off the wall, and directly into Kat.

"Ngh!"

She instantly sideshifted out of the way of Hal, who was still travelling at the same speed. Hal kept his composure and speed up. Running over a weapon pickup, he seemed to be in luck. He dropped the bomb he received and decided to go for the win.

BOOM

"ARGH, NO!"

Lucia had run into the bomb, leaving Hal home free.

<race complete_>

<first place_>

[Jonny]

[parts removed]

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 28.2 was The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars by David Bowie.

@Bardic, if this part isn't good enough, tell me what I'm doing wrong and I'll fix it.

[s2_21.0: Part 29.0] MARTIAN_SUNSET_MEMORIES
<22120628>

Sunday, June 28th, 2212

Firestar, Near Dome 2052, Mars.

23:02:00?

The girl stood by the tower that overlooked the old F3600 course.

'Sure is taking his sweet ass time,' She thought, looking at the time displayed on her phone. 'I don't have a car, I had to buy the stupid wine, and yet I got here before him. The hell?!'

As she finished that thought, a black Koenigsegg raced about the parking lot, sliding to a halt at one of the many empty lots. The tall, well-built man got out and walked up to her.

"Hey." He greeted, a wide, cocky grin on his face.

"Hey yourself. You're late." She shot back, showing him her phone.

After examining it for a second, Hal explained himself. "Your phone's fast." He showed her his phone, which displayed 22:59, then changed to 23:00. He then slipped it back into his pocket. "Anyway, what matters is that we're both here. Did you get the wine?"

"At. Great. Expense." She spoke through gritted teeth, holding up a bag.

"Heh, that's why we bet on that particular one, remember?"

"Quit grinning like that."

Hal did stop grinning like that. Instead, he doubled up and burst out laughing.

Lucia went to say something else, but just gave up and walked inside the observation tower. A short while later, finished laughing and realising the girl walked inside, Hal entered the tower.

"Finished?"

"Heheh... eheheh... Uh, heh, yeah. Let's go. Heheh."

They took the elevator up to the top floor of the tower, then walked to a seat near the window and sat down. Hal took a corkscrew out of his pocket and popped open the bottle, pouring both of them a glass.

"...Holy sh*t... This really is some good stuff... woah."

"I know right? As I said yesterday, every drink becomes piss in comparison."

Lucia chuckled, then stared out of the glass outlook, taking in the beautiful scenery of the sun setting over the old racetrack.

"...Wait, why wasn't this rebuilt for the F12000?" She asked, pointing down at the track. "Don't you guys own it or something?"

"Firestar? We decided that it didn't really fit our style, Nilokeras Fossa was tailored for the V-ult. As to why it looks new and not so dilapidated, well, after our rejection, some other group picked it up and repurposed it for a different racing league, one we own. It's about the same speed as the F3600 was, apparently, so it retains the original 6.3km layout... or so I've heard."

"Interesting." She commented, before asking another question, "Wait, you own your own league? So why you don't have a third reserve pilot?"

"Ah, that one is simple." He explained, "It's all because of the team's pilot chemistry, it is one of the most important aspects of any team. See, while you and Leon are better pilots in terms of your individual skill, I work well with Kat."

"Which is why you were able to win?"

"Well, that and our friend Nilokeras!" He laughed.

Lucia took the bottle of wine and helped herself to a second glass. Hal immediately poured more wine into his still half full glass, since it was his prize.

"You know," Hal spoke suddenly, "Kat's doctor made her race with a neck brace, because she refused to be replaced. I mean, I can understand not wanting to be replaced, because of the whole chemistry thing."

"Wait, a neck brace? What happpened?"

Hal had prepared for this question, and had fabricated a story to prevent knowledge of the Stoica Incident from leaking out: "Snowboarding accident. She was at the ice-caps to the north, when another boarder, who had never snowboarded on Mars, just trips up right in front of her. The board smacked her in the neck, hard and in a vulnerable region, which basically left her suffocating on her own throat. Thankfully, a medic came by quickly enough, with a machine to force air into her lungs. It was... pretty brutal, to say the least."

"...Ouch, that sounds awful. Although, that does remind me of an injury I saw someone have."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, I was in a mosh pit at this one concert and, well, that's pretty much all I need to say, right?"

"'Can probably see where this is going, but keep talkin'."

"A'ight. Basically, this dude gets f*cking wrecked. Like, he gets hit once, then twice, then all these people just gang up on him. Then one guy throws a punch straight into his neck. He then collapses and is pretty much choking to death. Then these other two guys carry him off to the paramedic so they can do their paramedic sh*t and save him. But yeah, long story short is, I learned that mosh pits can be dangerous."

"Do you go in them?"

"Ahh, f*ck off, I'm more into enjoying the music than wrecking someone's sh*t." Her voice started to slur a bit, the alcohol had started to take effect.

"Heh, true."

"Ooh, hey! Do you have any battle scars?! I bet you do, cause of the whole Viking thing or some sh*t."

Hal made a noise that made it obvious that he was trying to stifle a laugh, but due to his drunkenness, he failed horribly. "The only big scar I have, although it's a surgical scar. It's on my abdomen, from a liver transplant and reconstructive rib surgery after I got in a street fight in Japan. That was a few years ago, 2209."

"Cool, cool... can I see it?" She asked excitedly, her speech getting even more slurred.

"Don't see why not." He shrugged his shoulders, then lifted his shirt up.

The moment she saw his body, she tensed up, her eyes widened and her mouth opened slightly. After several seconds, she only begun to speak after Hal dropped his shirt back down. "Hey!... just so you know... I may be drunk, but I'm not a sl*t, so you better not be thinking about ffff*cking me."

At that point, she was completely drunk.

"...wait, what?"

"You heard me, don' try and f*ck me! I'm not a sl*t."

"Mmmhm, last woman who told me that was the biggest liar of both planets, but I'll take your word for it." He then decided to change the subject quickly, "So, have you been in any fights?"

"Ehh, like, a couple. Most of my fights have been verbal than physical, but I've thrown some punches about to those select assholes that really deserved it... although, with that said, most of my fights were with my parents, my mother especially. She was so high and mighty about God and sh*t, and I just had enough of it. They even went so far as to inhibit my skills by putting me on some pills that I can't remember the name of, but they basically made me feel really, violently ill whenever I went anywhere an Anti-Gravity field. Few months later I just told 'em to f*ck off and I went on my own."

"Huh, that's interesting."

"My parents never had my best interests in mind, they just tried to make me conform to their sh*tty bullsh*t religious f*ckery. Pissed me off to no end hearing them talk about some non-existant entity they read about in a book once. F*cking... bullsh*t."

Those were her last words, before she passed out from the alcohol.

"Hah, weakling." Hal said slightly drunkenly, before taking the bottle of wine and finishing it off, passing out not long after.

------------
The next day.

The soft click of the door opening softly sounded through the area, but the two sleeping people didn't hear it. Suddenly, knowingly, the girl who opened it threw it closed, making a loud BANG.

"HaAAH!" Hal screamed awake. Lucia shot up as well, but made no sound... maybe she did, but it was drowned out by Hal's scream.

"Heeey, Hal! how's it goin'?" Kat greeted him with a smile.

"Kat?! What the hell are you doing here?!"

"I just wanted to see how well you were doing with Lucia." She said innocently. "So, what did you get for your date?"

At the mention of her name, Lucia turned around and saw the other pilot standing there.

"H-H-H-H-Hey, hey, heyheyheyheyhey! D-D-Don't do that! Why are you snooping around here for?"

"...I just wanted to see how well you guys were doing. I was concerned for my co-pilot. But it seems he did very well." Kat grinned.

"Wh-wh-wh-what does that mean?!"

"Anyway," She turned her attention back to Hal after winking at the younger girl, "answer my question. What did you get?"

"Well, for starters... it wasn't a date... and I didn't buy anything, she did."

"Sure it wasn't..." She nodded sarcastically, "Alright, then, what did Lucia get?"

"Well, I can say it was a bet. To see who would be buying it..."

"Wait..." A smile appeared on her face, "You don't mean... that wine?!"

"Yeah, that really expensive one."

"Wow, you guys must really like each other!"

Lucia started stuttering again, but this time, no discernible words could be understood.

"...we're just friends."

"Of course you are, and I'm a Level 5 esper*, hahahaha! I mean, just look at how your 'friend' is acting! Seriously though," Her tone changed to a slightly more serious one and directed what she was about to say at the two, "Don't worry about it, I'll keep your relationship a secret."

*I'll give you a cookie if you know or can figure out that reference.

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 29 was SUNSET_MEMORIES by ODDEEO.

[s2_22.0: Part 30.0] Tests for EXPOSURE
<22120708>

Wednesday, July 8th, 2212

Unknown location

Unknown time

"Quantum Destabiliser version C-0.2 tuning Test 4, beginning in 3, 2, 1..."

The suited man aimed something that looked like a pistol at a mannequin in what looked like a full racing suit and fired several bright blue blasts into it.

CRACK!

A loud cracking noise was heard as the mannequin split in half from the weapon's destabilisation beam, causing the molecular structure to fall apart explosively.

"...Fine tuning is required. Excepting that, it seems to be working just fine." The man spoke simply.

Completely fine tuning the weapon would take several days, however, they were able to make small adjustments in a matter of an hour or two. The next test involved two subjects, a pig carcass, and another mannequin in a racing suit.

"Quantum Destabiliser version C-0.2 tuning Test 5, beginning in 3, 2, 1..."

The man was to fire 10 rounds, 5 at each of his targets. He fired 5 rounds into the mannequin, which caused the helmet to explode and the suit to liquefy. He aimed at the chunk of meat and began to fire the remaining 5 shots. The instant he fired once, the carcass exploded.

"Ugh! Disgusting." He muttered.

The scientists in charge leaned into the speaker, "Yeah, you can just leave for now, cleaning that up and fine-tuning the device to not affect flesh will take a long time."

"Fine. Just tell me when you've tuned the destabilisation wave." The man spoke, turning and walking out of the lab, leaving the weapon in a container in the scientists' possession.

------------
<22120710>

Friday, July 10th, 2212

The man walked into the lab, after getting a notification that the fine tuning was complete. Walking into the test area, he picked up the gun-shaped device and, seeing two targets similar to the prior test, turned around.

"This better not be a repeat of last time." He cockily said at them

"We fine tuned the wavelengths, they should not affect flesh."

"And you didn't properly test it because...?"

"We thought you wanted to do the tests." They finished.

The man smirked, "You're absolutely correct." He said slowly, before spinning around and firing 5 shots into the mannequin. This time, the helmet didn't explode, but it did fall apart. The suit, while slower this time, still liquefied.

"What kind of pervert wants that to happen? Fix it." He noted upon seeing the suit melt off the mannequin. He then turned to the pig carcass. The scientists had done their job, as nothing happened when the man fired into it.

"Quantum Destabiliser version C-0.3 tuning Test 6, complete."

The break between the test this time was, in addition to fine tuning the device, to perform tests on the carcass to see if there were any unseen effects caused by being shot at with it. A short while later...

"There are no effects to the carcass that we could find. It's safe."

"Good, and the liquefying suit problem?"

"Taken care of, we'll begin the test."

"Fantastic."

As he got into position, the only target was the mannequin, wearing yet another racing suit. The man took aim, activated the weapon, and...

"Quantum Destabiliser version C-0.3 tuning Test 7, beginning in 3, 2, 1..."

5 shots were fired rapidly into the suit. However, the man tilted his head. Nothing happened. The suit didn't fall apart, which was good, but the helmet didn't fall apart. He walked over to the mannequin, drew his fist back, and drove it right into the head.

BAM!

The mannequin fell over from the force of the punch, the head landing on the floor with a loud thud. Those two things were not strong enough to break the helmet apart, which meant that the weapon was useless against it.

"...hey, plebians! You messed up." He said, deactivating the device and hurling it at them. "Fix it, I'm out of here. I need to practice for the race. I can't miss this opportunity to finally give those high and mighty fools the ultimate humiliation!"

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 29 was EXPOSED by Boom Boom Satellites.

[s2_23.1: Part 31.1] Tailing the Angel
<22120712>

Sunday, July 12th, 2212

Omega Harbour, Perth, Australia.

09:30:06

"Well, that was completely coincidental" Brandon commented, as the first race on Angelus' home course coincided with his birthday.

"Smith-san... it is your birthday?" Kyoko exclaimed excitedly. "I did not know." She then muttered something to the effect of "I should get a gift...", before jerking straight up, realising she said that out loud, and saying "A-A-Anyway... Happy Birthday!"

Brandon just stared at the bowing girl and smiled. "Um, thanks."

The team had a small party, while at the same time preparing for the race. In that half-hour though, they were completely ready to race, and had moved the two craft onto the grid in, naturally, pole position before the countdown started...

3, 2, 1... GO!
<10:00:00_>
<omega harbour: short fwd_>
<race: lap 01 of 92_>

01. FUJ616.0.43.194 (#43 | Kyoko Fujisaki | AX2.0_r1)
02. ARD889.1.19.194 (#19 | Gareth Ardos | AX2.0_r1)
03. SCA308.0.7.329 (#7 | Lucia Scarlatti | F0-RA8/00095)
07. TUR847.1.13.329 (#13 | Leon Turner | F0-RA8/000127)

<star guitar (brookes brothers remix) | shinichi osawa (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05XBKfcZnkk&t=66)_>
<alt track: death's hand | slayer (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HWy6z4yj_30)_>

The craft flew off at their usual high speed, with Angelus taking the lead, Lucia quite close behind the two pure white craft. This time, however, Lucia debuted a new experimental strategy: after planning the race out with Leon, but not Viktor, knowing what was expected of her, and knowing what exactly was to be done at the end, she requested that the entire race be run with radio silence. The reason for that was simple; she was going to race while listening to music.

As the dark, heavy music blared in her ears, she found her rhythm, beginning her attack, which consisted of...

Well, nothing.

She just kept behind them, doing absolutely nothing, not even attacking or racing past, even though she was presented with many opportunities to. Naturally, Viktor was yelling at her to start attacking, but since she turned the radio off in favour of her music, she could not hear a word.

Leon's role of Crinale's new strategy was to act as Lucia's shield, fending off any craft that went near the 3 racers.

"LEON! WHAT IS GOING ON?! EXPLAIN TO ME IMMEDIATELY, OR YOUR ENTIRE FAMILY WILL BE DESTROYED!"

Hearing Viktor's loud yell, Leon calmly explained the plan.

"Basically: relax, it will all be worth it. The very end will be the beginning of our ultimate victory." He concluded.

A few seconds of silence filled the radio, as Viktor processed Lucia's plan.

"...If this was any other circuit, I would reject that plan and force you by any means necessary to use the standard strategy, even if you're using Prototype EXO10; which, by the way, was implemented in the RA8 without my permission! However, this is the home course of Angelus, ergo... I shall become slightly more flexible. IF, however, you fail to win, and hand the victory to Angelus, you and Lucia shall face the full consequences."

"We went over every single aspect of the plan... we won't fail."

"We shall see about that. For now, I shall stand by and observe." He ended the conversation.

Meanwhile, back at the front, Lucia was getting agitated, but she didn't let it get to her.

"Ugh, no no no! You're doing it wrong! This is your home course, you can do so much better!"

She was annoyed at the fact that the two Angelus craft were missing the racing line the prodigy mapped out in her head by mere centimeters. She tried to not let it get to her though, as she needed to stay calm and keep behind them, putting more and more pressure on the team.

Although, it wasn't just the racing line that was off, they also had large inconsistencies in their braking lines. Sometimes they'd brake later than what Lucia thought was the perfect time to brake, and other times they would brake earlier than expected.

'What the hell is going on? Were they always like this? I would have thought they would be better on their home course.'

This continued for most of the rest of the race. The 4 pilots retained their respective positions, playing the other team into their own traps. Despite it being halfway through the season, the rivalry between Angelus and Crinale had reached it's peak.

Lucia had been caught in Angelus' trap, they had been in control of the race since the beginning. The erratic behaviour was just a cover for something far greater, however, the final lap was where both teams would enter the final phases of their strategies.

By controlling their racing line, braking patterns and even their speed, the two Angelus pilots were able to simultaneously get consistent, accurate lap times that barely deviated from each other, while also tricking Lucia into following their wildly deviated racing patterns, with the exact opposite effect: lap times that were all over the place, and causing her to race slower than usual.

Although, that was just one part, a set-up taking advantage of a critical racing tactic that the 18-year old prodigy lacked, for Angelus' final trick, that, in any other circimstance, should have ascertained their victory.

As the two white craft blasted through the mag-lock section and onto the final straight, the pilots communicated to each other in single word sentences, fully aware of the strategy, and the final phase tied to it.

"Ready?"

"Yes."

"Okay, then... aaaaand....

"100! NOW!"

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 31.1 was Playing the Angel by Depeche Mode.

[s2_23.2: Part 31.2] Strategies of Darkness and Light: Angelus
<22120710>

Friday, July 10th, 2212

Omega Harbour, Perth, Australia.

10:50:39

The strategy of Angelus was only conceived after overhearing part of Crinale's. Alex, having been on an errand, just happened to walk past

"From what I heard, their plan involved keeping behind us, until the final lap, where a second part will happen. What that second part is... I don't know. They must have discussed that part of their plan beforehand, cause they didn't explain."

"Fair enough, I can devise a strategy from that, thanks."

"Y-yeah, no problem."

After a few minutes, deep in thought, Brandon called the two ace pilots in for a discussion.

"'Sup?"

"You wished to speak with us?" Gareth and Kyoko greeted him.

"Yes, I have a strategy that can secure our victory."

"Explain?"

"Basically, it is to do with lap times. Since you've raced this circuit countless times, you know it better than anyone, and can defeat their times easily. The first part of my strategy involves limiting the craft's power to a certain amount, calculated such that you would still be front runners."

"How much would the limit be?"

"I'm not sure, I have to observe the others' times and speeds, and calculate a percentage based on that. If I had to give a rough guess, however, I'd say between 70 and 80%."

"That sounds reasonable."

"Yeah. For now, though, just do your runs at 70% power."

Brandon dismissed them to continue their practice. As they did, he observed the performance of the other teams and gathered them all, having 4 final figures from the data: a fastest time, an average time, a fastest speed and an average speed. He then compared that to Angelus' best times and speeds at full power and at their 70% power limit, performing multiple complex calculations against them. Finally, the end result was multiplied by 100, giving him one final figure.

82 was the percentage by which the power would be limited by. To test this, he spoke to both pilots over their comms.

"I have a semi-final percentage figure. To finalise my calculations, I need you to do some more runs, at 80%."

"Got it."

"Increasing power limit from 70% to 80."

After several more laps, Brandon had enough data, averaging out the data between the laps and re-doing the calculations. Once again, he came up with the final figure of 82.

"Perfect." He commented.

------------
<22120711>

Saturday, July 11th, 2212

"Alright, for our qualifier, you guys will be doing the speed lap at 82% power."

"82?"

"82. Yeah, it is a bit specific, but it is enough that you should still get pole position."

<11:25:00_>
<omega harbour: short fwd_>
<qualifier_>

01. FUJ616.0.43.194 (#43 | Kyoko Fujisaki | AX2.0_r1)
02. ARD889.1.19.194 (#19 | Gareth Ardos | AX2.0_r1)

The qualifier then started, Gareth setting off first, then Kyoko 15 seconds later. Once they had gotten around their flying lap, they started their speed lap proper, speeding past the line at the maximum speed 82% power would yield. After they had run through the standard 7 laps, getting 6 serious times in, the results came in, and it was predictable. Angelus had made a clean sweep, and gotten their 1-2 position for the race.

After the qualifying, Brandon held another meeting with Kyoko and Gareth.

"Now that's done, I can explain the race strategy. First off, you'll be racing at 85% power for most of the race, on the final lap you'll use the full range, all 100% of the Xff's power. But now, let me explain the second part. That lead pilot, Lucia Scarlatti, may be a prodigy, but she is only skilled in racing techniques, that's all. She's too young, she doesn't have the experience of being in dogfights... so, we use that to our advantage.

"Basically, you trick her, lure her into a trap where her racing line and style becomes bad and inconsistent. The psychology behind it is simple enough, her strategy involves paying attention to you at all times, so by using unorthodox lines, yet keeping your times consistent, you should make her race more inconsistently too, but since she doesn't know of the many lines one can take that, while not providing the best time, but a consistent one, her times will drop due to her falling into the trap.

That's when, after 91 laps of consistent inconsistence, you drop the power limiter and run the final lap with max power and on the fastest line. That sudden change should throw her off balance, giving you the win. Is that simple enough for you to accomplish?"

"Of course mate!" Gareth replied, "We ran that course thousands of times, we know tons of racing lines that would give us the same time, it's just a matter of altering the line and braking points in key areas to make the time differences cancel out."

"Exactly, that's exactly what I meant. I have faith in you guys... now I can't wait for tomorrow!"

[Ace3000]

[s2_23.3: Part 31.3] Strategies of Darkness and Light: Crinale
<22120710>

Friday, July 10th, 2212

Omega Harbour, Perth, Australia.

10:34:04

Leon rushed into Lucia's room, after being called.

"Sorry I'm late, I had some things to attend to." He explained.

"Next time, get your ass in gear." She said, annoyed. "How can we aim for a perfect win if you're late by 4 and a half minutes?!"

"Alright, alright, just hurry up and explain your strategy."

"Well, first off, I'd like to examine every part of the course."

"Fine."

She brought up a map of the track, and pinpointed the racing line of the track, including the optimal braking and acceleration points of all the corners in a surprising amount of detail. It was a job that only the racing prodigy herself could do. While it took a while for Leon to take in all the information, he eventually had it memorised. While he wasn't a prodigy like Lucia, he was still a serious racer.

"Now that you have that memorised, here's what I have planned. Although, this involves going against Viktor's whole BS about violence."

"Uh... okay."

"It will, however, be a fitting and humiliating domination over Angelus though, which is something else what he wants."

A heavy sigh later, Leon gave in. "Alright, let's hear this strategy."

"I knew you'd agree. Basically, this all depends on if they'll be in the lead through most, if not, all of the race. Naturally, since this is their home course, they will be. I've been paying attention to their times, and it seems they're doing extremely well."

"Even more so... did you notice?"

She blinked "Notice what?"

The glasses-wearing man smirked, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "They aren't running at full power, and you saw their times. You can see how quick they are here. Unfortunately, they're in for a surprise. Speed isn't everything, after all."

"They're aren't at full power?!... A-anyway, they'll be ahead, so I will follow them, just keeping behind them. Your role in this is to loosely follow me, and attack anyone that tries to take the lead."

"So... I'm your defense."

"Yes. So... when the last lap comes... well, you know what'll happen."

"Uh?"

She got close to him, and whispered, "I'll explain tomorrow, people might be listening in." SHe backed away from himm and spoke in her usual volume "Oh, also, I need to be in my own groove, my own zone. So, I'll also get Viktor to cut the radio on my end so I can have my music going."

"...right.

Oh, and since you know they're not running at full power, and I'm not good at that sh*t, I'll leave you to gather more info on their strategy"

"I'm fine with that. Anything to destroy those pests."

------------
<22120711>

Saturday, July 11th, 2212

17:42:21

"Yes! It's a complete success!" Lucia jumped for joy.

"Huh? What's going on?" He asked.

The two of them were in the hangar, where no outsiders could hear them. They were looking up at Lucia's F0-RA8.

"I got my craft fitted with the Prototype EXO10 system, which, combined with the Quantum Destabiliser, would instantly and violently eliminate them."

"EXO10? They perfected it?"

"In a way. So... here's what'll happen on the last lap. Ready?"

"Just tell me." He said simply

"Alright. On the final stretch of the last lap, I'll activate this modified weapon, eliminate the both of them, and snipe the lead right from under their noses."

"Brilliant."

"Isn't it? It's such a Crinale thing to do, and it's not just violence, violence, violence throughout the entire goddamn race! It's perfect!"

"And if it backfires? What if you lose them?"

"I'm a f*cking racing prodigy, I won't lose to anyone."

"Riiight, like how you lost to Syncline last race?"

It was then she blushed, recalling the memories of the last moment of that race, and after, with Hal. "Sh... shut up." She said sheepishly, blushing.

"Heh, I know you're socialising with that Syncline pilot. I just haven't told Viktor because of your piloting skills."

"W-well... thanks... for that."

"It's nothing. We just need the best pilots, and if Viktor fires you, or worse... well, we'd be screwed. That's all there is to it. Anyway, let's go prepare for the race proper."

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Parts 31.2 and 31.3 was Darkness and Light by coralmines.

[s2_23.4: Part 31.4] A Vivid Wave of Hope
<22120712>

Sunday, July 12th, 2212

Omega Harbour, Perth, Australia.

<11:48:56_>
<omega harbour: short fwd_>
<race: lap 91 of 92_>

<i can't wait | celldweller (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bYuZNjFOSg&t=76)_>

As the two white craft blasted through the mag-lock section and onto the final straight, the pilots communicated to each other in single word sentences, fully aware of the strategy, and the final phase tied to it.

"Ready?"

"Yes."

"Okay, then... aaaaand....

"100! NOW!"

As the two craft crossed the line for the final lap, they turned off their power limiter, which enabled them to use all of the craft's power. A low boom noise emanated from the thrusters, as the craft accelerated up to it's top speed. Naturally, this caused a certain F12000 pilot to show her weakness.

"Wait, what?!" Lucia exclaimed. The sudden sight of the craft moving away from her disoriented her for several seconds. Throughout that time she kept her speed the same, not realising that she could increase her speed. She looked around her instrument cluster, her controls, then jammed the thruster forward, using the F0-RA8's higher thrust output to accelerate faster than the leaders, which cancelled out the lower top speed than that of the Xygen Vs.

"Remember... Line 0." Kyoko reminded Gareth, before the first corner.

"Right."

Line 0 was the one line that was not like the lines taken through the race. This line was a deviation of the one Lucia saw, the perfect line that produced the best times for the course that suited the high-agility craft. Angelus were about to show Lucia just how fast they could go. Having known every single millimetre of the course, they could race at both the craft's and their limits. Despite Lucia having been thrown off her following racing style into her perfectionist racing style and set about catching up to them, they were still pulling away from her at a decent rate.

Or so they thought.

Lucia's 'optimal' racing line was, in fact, suited only to Crinale's craft. It took advantage of the higher thrust of the Micro-Turbine system. As such, while they pulled away in the corners, Lucia had been using her acceleration to keep up with them, albeit still losing ground slightly.

"...Leon, this is it!" She spoke for the first time that race.

"Huh... what? Oh, yes, it is. You're doing well, keeping up with them. The same could not be said for myself, however."

"It's because you're focusing on those behind you. It's fine, though, if all goes well, you'll have a very comfortable 2nd place."

"I can only hope it will. For our reputation, and your safety."

"M-my safety?"

"Viktor is a very intimidating man, I fear to think what he might do to you if you lose."

"Well, we'll soon find out. Hope this works." She engaged the prototype overdrive system just as she entered the mag-strip section.

"In mere seconds, the tables will be turned."

"Do it. Show them how superior we are."

Exiting the mag-strip section, Lucia aimed at the two craft that were seconds from winning. Getting a lock on them, she yelled and fired.

"CRINALE STILL RULES OMEGA HARBOUR!"

------------

Angelus had run the perfect race, they had used no weapons at all, and now, they were pulling away from Crinale, home free. Because they had run the course so many times, they could relax and still get the best time from all the teams. In fact, it took more effort to complete the other, slower, more consistent time laps than their superior speed lap.

"We're so close, Kyoko! We can do this!"

"Yes. It looks like Crinale are falling behind. Our strategy was a success!"

"It's all over for them, they should've thought twice than to mess with Angelus!"

The final corner after the mag-strip section was executed easily by the two light craft. They seemed to have the race in the bag, however.

"WARNING: Undefined weapon detected."
"ERROR: Unknown Weapon ID"
"Quantum Destabiliser"

Those three contradictory warnings came at exactly the same time, an incoherent mash of noise.

"Uh, Plan B."

"Yes!"

Right as she gave consent, they both activated their Turbos, accelerating towards the line with great speed.

...

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Parts 31.4 was ViViD Wave by Hachioji-P.

[s2_23.5: Part 31.5] F12000 Girls Will Seem Somewhat [CENSORED]
<22120712>

Omega Harbour, Perth, Australia.

Sunday, July 12th, 2212

<11:49:22_>
<omega harbour: short fwd_>
<race: lap 92 of 92_>

"WARNING: Undefined weapon detected."
"ERROR: Unknown Weapon ID"
"Quantum Destabiliser"

Those three contradictory warnings came at exactly the same time, resulting in an incoherent mash of noise.

"Uh, Plan B."

"Yes!"

Right as she gave consent, they both activated their Turbos, accelerating towards the line with great speed.

"CRINALE STILL RULES OMEGA HARBOUR!"

...

<contender eliminated_>
<contender eliminated_>

The modification to the weapon system allowed it to lock on and fire a more powerful blast. The Quantum Destabiliser arched around and eliminated Gareth almost instantly, then flipped directions and attacked Kyoko, eliminating her mere meters from the finish line. The two Crinale pilots had, indeed, flipped the tables on the whole race and...

<race complete_>

...finished in a perfect 1-2 victory, leaving Angelus in last place from being eliminated.

------------
Angelus Pits, Omega Harbour.

Kyoko stormed back to Angelus' control room, annoyed by Crinale's dirty play.

"That was bullsh*t! How the hell could they have allowed that?!"

"You realise Crinale are effectively in control of the Racing Commission? That's how they're able to get away with so much."

"Either way, those assholes will pay!"

"Relax, we'll deal with them in our own way. There isn't much we can do to them at the moment, but rest assured they will face judgement."

"When the hell will that be?! The longer you don't do anything to them, the more they can do to us."

"Kyoko! Please, calm down. I'm doing all we can as fast as we can. It's rather difficult to get information about them and devise a strategy based on that info. With that said, we don't have enough to form a strategy, but I'm not just sitting around twiddling my thumbs, okay?"

"I... ugh, fine. I guess I'm just uptight from the trainwreck that was that race."

"Yeah, you are definitely not the only one that feels like that."

------------
Crinale Pits

Lucia was ecstatic following her elimination of Angelus and eventual win. "Hahahaha! Sucks for Angelus! They should know by now that the only way to win is though violence and dirty play!"

Leon joined in her joy, "YES! They faced the ultimate loss, on their own home course... and now they shall face the ultimate humiliation!" From his pocket, he pulled out what looked to be a pistol.

"And just what exactly is that?" Lucia asked, "Is it really a gun?"

"Yes, but not the kind you'd expect. I've been using my wealth and a research team to develop this thing. It is, however, still a prototype, but it's a working one nonetheless. It fires a wave of energy that can destroy racing helmets. However, I haven't properly finetuned the energy wavelengths yet, so there may be some unintended side effects."

"You mean...?"

"Yes. With this, we can reveal Kyoko Fujisaki's true identity, and leak it out to the world. Angelus shall be in ruins! Hahahahaha!" He then turned away. "Here, catch." He said, before throwing the gun over his shoulder. Lucia was able to catch it, just barely. Upon hearing her successfully catching the weapon, Leon continued, "I'm entrusting the job to you. Destroy her identity. Do not make me lose hope on humanity. Oh, and don't worry, I ensured that it won't harm people."

"Got it!" She acknowledged, and ran off, entering Angelus' pits.

The guards saw the girl, still in her Crinale race suit, and attempted to stop her.

"GET BACK!" She yelled, pointing the gun at them as she ran towards her target.

Immediately, they gave chase, but Lucia was already halfway up the stairs to the control room.

"Back the f*ck up, and no-one gets hurt." She threatened, pointing the gun at them again, before spinning around and running the rest of the way up the stairs.

Lucia kicked open the door to the control room, and fired in Kyoko's direction, locking the door after. When Kyoko saw her aim the gun, she instinctively leaped up and turned away. The first two shots hit her arm and her back, which knocked her to the ground. As she was getting up, Brandon spun around, facing Lucia.

"Wh-?! You!" He exclaimed, lunging for her.

THUD.

As Lucia was knocked to the ground by Brandon, she instinctively fired again, hitting Kyoko's hip. Keeping her on the ground, Brandon turned to Kyoko. As Kyoko got up, Brandon saw the damage the weapon made. Bits of her racing suit had started melting off.

He looked around for a second, before taking off his lab coat and throwing it to Kyoko. "Here, put that on."

'What?! Fabric melts off? So that was the unintended side effects. Damnit, I should have aimed better. Well, I have one final chance.' Lucia thought.

As Kyoko put the coat on, Lucia fired the one final shot, which hit it's mark, impacting the back of her helmet.

"Ugh!" She groaned.

"Sh*t!" Brandon noticed she was still able to fire, so he kicked the gun out of Lucia's hand. He then turned to Kyoko.

"Are you okay?!"

"I am fine," Kyoko responded, "But my helmet, it feels like... it will fall apart. Also, because of her sh*t aim, my suit is ruined!"

"Okay, I have a plan. But first..." He then lifted Lucia up and escorted her out of the pits. When he got to the exit, he pushed her out.

"Never have I thought that Crinale would go to an all time low. Good job, you keep succeeding in pissing me off, without fail. Then again, I know these words mean literally nothing to you."

"Hey." Leon called out, as he appeared behind Lucia. "Why don't you give up?"

Brandon responded with a few choice swear words and insults, then stormed back inside, getting back to Kyoko, who was holding her helmet lightly, ready to keep it closed when it would eventually break.

"Ok, let's go." he told her, as he signalled to get his car ready.

"Okay... [gasp], sh*t!" She moved quickly, which caused the remains of her suit to fall to the ground.

"You've got my coat on, that's good enough for now. We need to hurry, before your helmet falls off."

"You don't need to say that twice." She said, finally running out of the exit with Brandon.

When they entered Brandon's car, he put a high ranking employee in charge of overseeing the cleanup, before speeding off.

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Ace3000]

Faster Than Angels, again, is going on hiatus.

Simply put, with this work I'm doing, I can't put enough time into writing than I'd like to. Also, I've been stuck in a writer's block, of sorts. However, the parts I've been posting recently was a suggestion for plot development by Bardic, I have written out a part that takes place near the end of 2212. I could finish and upload that if you all wish, but it not, then prepare for no parts for a while.

I really am sorry about this, but I did take a good long think about it. This is for the best.

FTA will return soon...

[stin]

in near future, that will gives you a clear head. Really enjoyed the stories :)

stevie:)

[Ace3000]

A new year Brings a lot of new things on the table. For instance, I completed the work I was doing, so I'll do something new by bringing an oldie back.

FTA RETURNS!... again.

This part may not be as good though, it stemmed from a half-baked idea I wrote out before going into the writer's block. So I decided to salvage it by... tacking something completely different to it. Oops. Still, I think I made it work out...

The referenced album title of Part 31.5 was Frankenstein Girls Will Seem Strangely Sexy by Mindless Self Indulgence.

[s2_24.1: Part 32.1] A Moment of Stasis (Part 1)
<22120725>

Saturday, July 25th, 2212

Münsterranerring, Germany.

08:03:18

"Oi, Hal. I need to speak with you." Kat called out to her teammate.

"What?" Hal replied.

"I saw you two yesterday."

"Who?"

"Oh, come on!" She said with a sly look on her face. "You know exactly who I mean!"

"...right."

"I admit, I did listen in on you two for a bit."

"Tch, why?"

"Because she's flying for Crinale. [sigh], honestly, though, you two are cute."

"R-really? You think so?"

"Yeah, she doesn't seem like the usual Crinale bunch."

"Mm, I think so too."

"That's why you need to tell her about what we know. Bring up her team's darker side."

Hal shook his head. "No, I can't do that. If she knew about Crinale's motives, it'd put her in danger."

"Hah! Nice try, you're just avoiding the confrontation! You can't just avoid it, Hal! Sooner or later, you will have to tell her. Especially if you plan to stay with her after everything we've planned to do."

She had a point, part of their plan involved Crinale. Hal knew this.

"...okay... fine, I'll get around to speaking with her about it."

------------
<22120726>

Sunday, July 26th, 2212

Münsterranerring, Germany.

09:01:47

The current race weekend brought the teams to Münsterranerring, in Germany. While it was anyone's race, the expected winners of the race proper was the team who developed it as their home course, Jennter. However, a certain team, while technically preparing for the race, did not hold it in their top priority. Well, one person more than others.

Brandon was working away at a computer, examining several pieces of data that were unrelated to the race. It seemed, understandably, that he was disinterested in the race itself and more interested in accomplishing his goal of shutting down the new Crinale, but more so the new tangent he had to deal with. The first draft of a new technology was being completed by him, with help from several close technicians, and a few certain individuals that did not work for Angelus. Those individuals were very important to the project, but did not actually know of the technology's existence. Today, however, Brandon was to change that.

As soon as he had finished the base document and the blueprints for the technology, he called an emergency meeting, including one of those non-Angelus affiliates.

"For what reason did you drag me over here? There is a race going on. You do know that, right?" Nikole questioned him.

Brandon just smiled, his usual smile that seemed to be separate from the rest of his face. "Heh. The race is insignificant. Jennter's win is a certainty. Besides, this is much more important."

"Explain. I'm listening."

"Well, since, naturally, the... permanent solution to our problem would take a really long time to develop, I've taken the liberty of developing a more temporary solution, only to be used for the more extreme cases."

He then brought up the blueprint of the device, letting Nikole examine it.

"So, this 'AG Pod'" She spoke, after a while of silence, "It seems like a straightforward solution, I can see how it would help, but you do realise as soon as they get out-"

"I know, I know. That's why I said it was a temporary solution, and only for the more extreme cases. I know what would happen if they were to exit the pod, I do. But it's better than having them roam around without it."

"Hmm, that is true. How long would it take to construct one?"

"Just building it, or when we'll be able to get the first one done?"

"Let's go with both."

"Okay, it should take about a week or 3 to actually construct, but to get the first one done would take a couple months, there would be some finalising of the design, and getting the required things that we don't have to actually build it."

"So this," She pointed to the blueprints, "is not the final design?"

"It's close, but definitely not. The base design is there, but there would be some changes to the final product design and some details of the functionality."

"Alright, be sure to keep me updated, and definitely show me the final design so I may look it over."

"Sure thing."

"Good." She stood up, turning to leave. "Now, if that's all, I have a race to win."

"You won't win." Brandon replied, looking away "I told you, Jennter's victory here is a certainty."

"You don't know that. Wasn't your victory in Omega Harbour assured? What happened to that?"

He instantly looked back at her, fury in his eyes, albeit seemingly not directed at her specifically.

"Crinale's corruption happened. I did the tests, the investigation, they blatantly cheated. Of course, I can't do sh*t about it because they effectively own the league."

"Oh, come on. Be a hero, give them a repeat of 2170."

He shook his head.

"I would love to, but I do not have the necessary information yet. I'm working on it, though."

"Uh huh. In any case, you can't say Jennter will win just because this is their home course."

"We'll see. You may leave now."

"Fine. Keep me updated on the pod, it is a rather useful idea."

"Will do, thanks."

As Nikole left, Brandon turned his attention to the race for a brief moment. As he said, Jennter were a fair way ahead. Apart from strategically dropping mines and bombs outside of the proper racing lines, which Angelus took, the German team were running a clean race, adhering to Angelus' purity...

[Jonny]

Faster Than Angels
Part 100F: Leaping into the Future

Friday, 24th July 2212
Münsterranerring, Germany

"Fortunately we don't have to travel long." commented Patrick Rouser, decendant of the legendary F12000 champion Pacale Rouser, and the same prodigy who just raced through all imaginable youth series. "That wouldn't be a problem for me anyway, as I'm simply a robot." jokes Aurora Australis, the next-gen racing android developed by Jennter Enterprises.
"Good morning!" greeted Patrick as both entered the garage of their team.
"I love that they reintroduced the traditional garages in this new league!" was a voice that just entered right after the two pilots "Ah, these good old feelings!"

"Good morning, Mr Bovier!" everyone greeted Nico, the current leader of Jennter Enterprises.
"Ah, morning everyone! Just look at these beauties!" he joyfully greeted back and looked at the two examples of the Jennter F4.2000-1 Flowbreaker.
"We should win this." said Aurora bluntly.
"We HAVE to!" responded Nico "It is the most home-ish home race that a home race could be. We have to show the others, that this is OUR turft!"
"I just mean, our chances are really high, this track should suit our craft and the fact that Patrick and I are the only experienced pilots on it." continued Aurora coldly.

The first one-hour practise session started, as expected, the Jennter team made a clear one-two in it.
At afternoon the first qualifying session began, where Angelus lead infront of Crinale, while Jennter placed on a modest five-six positioning.
"Don't use the material too much until now and give them some hope." was Nico's order for this session.

Saturday, 25th July 2212
The second and final qualifikation session on Saturday went towards the end, it wasn't before only five minutes were left until first Rouser's, then Aurora's craft will leave the pits and begin their warmup lap.
To the shock of all teams, the warmup itself was already faster than Jennter's best practise lap, then Patrick put all his mental abilities into the perfect lap.

The craft flew down the bent starting straight, as Patrick pulled his craft close to the barrier onto the Mag Loc section and thrusted alond the vertical straight and through the curved looping, then at the end of the following straight, left the track early to let his craft drift through the sky onto the track again. He then went again full throttle through another sidewards looping, then took the jump right in the centre of the ramp, making him perfectly pass this cropped section.until heading towards the loop jump.
However, just before the ramp, Patrick pulled his craft up and towards the right, then performed haft a barrel roll (https://youtu.be/dv13gl0a-FA?t=1m3s) to effectively cut out this section of the track.
After the S-curve there was a 90° corner followed by two jumps. He went full throttle for the first jump, then tipped the airbrakes to slow down, land early and collect speed for the second jump, that leads to the equally long, yet faster section of the track.

After smoothly passing the final section of the track, he nailed down a 0:47.675 that, even considering the shortcut, was far ahead of other teams.
Aurora quickly crossed the line shortly after Patrick and delivered a 0:47.772, of course also taking the shortcut.

"WOAH!?" went through the crowd, causing excitement, but also anger from some sides, who felt that Jennter was cheating with their raceline.
The stewards thought long to take action or not, but in sight of thousands of Jennter fans and that there are no shortcut-rules in the first place, accusations weren't placed in the first place.
Jennter was further supported by Angelus, who have spotted the disadvantage for Crinale and claimed "That every team could simply take Jennter's race line, thus it would not be an advantage."

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 32.1 was A Matter of Time (Part 1) by Voicians.

[s2_24.2: Part 32.2] The Major Cut
<22120726>

Sunday, July 26th, 2212

Münsterranerring, Germany.

10:29:10

...Meanwhile, halfway down the pack, Crinale were having difficulties keeping up, only being able to do so through sheer violence, keeping most of the pack around them. The race would not end well for them in the slightest. For a start, they were not even able to reach Angelus to even attempt to hold them back, let alone eliminate them. Not even the perfect flying of Lucia was able to get the results the so desperately wanted.

The reason, of course, was simple. The course was a protest against the F12000 Commission. Since they knew that the effective controllers were Crinale, they developed their course to greatly favour high handling craft, a similar fashion to the Japanese Sidewinder course. Therefore, high handling craft such as Jennter and Angelus would excel in the course, where heavy craft such as Crinale would end up in the mid-pack at best. This did, unfortunately, hinder teams who did adhere to pure ideals, but still retained heavy-handling craft.

At one point, Angelus were right behind the German frontrunners, having enough speed to overtake them, where suddenly, they pulled up and right. As the craft soared through the air, turning around, it performed a barrel roll, landing facing the part of the track that wasn't supposed to be accessed until after the loop ahead of them. The boost gained from the roll was enough to bring them back up to speed, as Angelus, were unable to react, already flying onto the loop.

"WHAT?! How the hell were we to know they'd employ that same trick in the actual race?!"

"We were not. Relax. I believe our craft are agile enough to copy them. We are able to use their line with ease."

Gareth thought about it, then nodded.

"Alright. Let's do it! We can beat them!"

<apollo (electro mix) | astronaut (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tzb0_qQWioQ&t=62)_>

It seemed that at least some members of the team were taking the race seriously, even if Brandon wasn't. The two craft flew off the ramp and, with a flourish, performed a sequential barrel roll, Kyoko rolling to the left, Gareth to the right, soaring right over the craft entering the loop. Landing successfully, the two flew down the straight at an incredible speed, navigating the light chicane with ease, rounding the final corner and speeding across the line for the next lap.

The next time they went round, nearing the shortcut, they decided to take it. However, it was clear that they were at a disadvantage, and that Jennter had gained a mass of experience in navigating the shortcut, despite Brandon saying that it was doable after the qualifier. Kyoko attempted to mimic the actions Jennter did, by flying up and to the right, performing a barrel roll and...

Boosting straight into the wall. The craft bounced off, the shields taking the brunt of the collision, but she had otherwise made it. Gareth tried to perform a Scandanavian flick, moving to the left, then turning all the way right, opening the airbrake as he flew upwards. He didn't barrel roll for fear of slamming into the wall. He landed at a 150° angle, the momentum still causing him to move towards the loop, but the craft did eventually slow down, then move forwards, barely missing the craft behind him speeding past. Despite the slower approach, the cut sill shaved some time from the lap.

The white and azure craft kept on like that, following the orange and white craft's lines, all in an attempt to overtake them and take the win. It was a friendly rivalry, not being overly violent. It was clear, however, that the German team was more suited to the course, and would know every quirk about it, thus being able to navigate through the perfect line, whereas Angelus had to rely only on their practice runs, and the high handling and top end speed of their craft.

Once again, the teams started objecting to the use of the shortcut, and those with higher handling also made attempts to navigate it, to varying degrees of success, though, naturally, none as successful as Jennter themselves. That did cause the heavier craft to fall behind more than usual. The race had ended that way too, with 2 distinct groupings of the teams' results: Those who took the shortcut, and those who didn't, separated by a large gap in race time. As Brandon had predicted, the winners of the race were, by a long shot, Jennter.

------------

12:15:43

A tired Lucia was walking through the Crinale partition of the pits, not paying attention where she was going. Suddenly, she found herself outside a room, occupied by a certain person. The yells inside had brought her back to reality, but the curiosity got the better of her, and so she listened in, pressing her ear against the door...

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN?! You forget who I am. I can and will get rid of those routes."

It appeared he was speaking with someone, but she couldn't hear what was being said on the other end, as if it was a phone call.

"Fine, fine. Next order of business, the data.

...

"Yes, that data."

...

"What? What do you mean we don't have it all yet?! What about the Shinigami Project?!"

...

"Fine. I know how I can gather and analyse their data, quicker than usual.

...

"'Isn't it against the r--'?! Of course it is! Since when have we ever cared about the rules?! Or the law for that matter? These stupid teams will learn what is to be expected out of the F12000 sooner or later!"

'...wha-?' Lucia thought. 'I only assumed the team were obsessed with violence, not completely f*cking corrupt?! Unless I'm misunderstanding...'

Slowly, the girl stood up and backed away slowly, before turning and walking away, trying to look normal. However, that was slightly difficult with the information she inadvertently been presented with. Unfortunately for her, someone had seen her walking back.

"Lucia? Are you alright?"

The young girl let out a scream and jumped, the sudden voice scaring her. She looked around, and saw Leon.

"Leon?! What the f*ck?! Do you want to scare me to death?!"

The man looked confused.

"I assure you, that was not my intention. Although, you did seem to be out of it. I'll ask again: Are you alright?"

"I-I... I guess? Sorry, I'm just a bit tired, after whatever the hell that trainwreck was."

He blinked at her, as if he had his suspicions, but ultimately dropped the issue. "Fine. I admit that race was heavily stacked up against us. I can only hope we can do better next time. Get some rest, Lucia. You definitely seem like you need it. I'll wake you when we need to depart."

She didn't need to be told twice. With a nod, she headed off to one of the side rooms, and took a nap inside it. Or at least she would have, if it wasn't for what she heard, the words echoing through her mind. She needed to tell someone, but who would believe her? Leon? Hal? ...actually, Hal seemed like the better choice. Next time she met, she would tell him. With that mental note made, her fatigue had gotten the better of her, and she fell into a slumber.

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 32.2 was The Final Cut by Pink Floyd.

[s2_25.0: Part 33.0] A Matter of Time
<22120801>

Saturday, August 1st, 2212

Angelus R&D HQ, Perth, Australia.

13:42:51

The weekend after the race brought a guest over to Angelus' headquarters, to discuss a certain piece of tech that was solely in their secretive R&D section.

"Now that we aren't in the middle of a race, we can discuss the AG Pod further. Has there been any more improvements to the blueprints since we last spoke?" Nikole asked.

"Only minor updates, but you'd want to know anyway."

There were two reasons why they were not inside the R&D department itself. The first was that Brandon did not want anyone outside the department seeing the top secret technologies in development there, and also because the device was not constructed yet, so there was no reason to go there in the first place.

"Anyway, the pod. How are you to get the chemical filtered out?"

"I admit that's a tiny problem, because of what Alex mentioned. Unless the data was compromised somehow and we find what we need in that data..."

Unconsciously, Brandon fiddled with a small storage drive in his pocket.

"Well, wouldn't Viktor find out about his data being leaked?"

"Well, it won't be leaked, per se. It will just be used by us to rectify the problem on our hands."

"But would he not just find out his database was hacked? That's what Alex was talking about."

Brandon had mumbled something sounding like "If only it wasn't so incomplete yet." in response.

"Hmm? What was that?" Nikole asked, not hearing his mumbles.

"Ah, nothing. Don't worry. Just thinking out loud."

"..." Nikole just looked at him, but decided to not pursue the issue. "Anyway, as you said, the updates to the design aren't as important. I may need to get a therapist, or a neurologist, or someone to look at this, and see if it's alright."

"I had one look at it."

"And?"

"Would I be still presenting this if I got a no?"

"...good point."

"Would you like to see the report? I have it here."

"Sure, I'll give it a look-over."

"Here, then."

Brandon pulled out a holo-bar, containing pages upon pages of a document regarding the technology and the professional opinion of the neurologist that had examined the technical document before giving their okay on the project. Nikole opened it up and scrolled through the pages, skimming through the results they had come up with. Satisfied, she closed it up and passed it back to him.

"Very well, then. We can build a prototype of the base system, using a different chemical in place of our unknown variable."

"Sure, that works for me. If we obtain the data before it's completed, I shall use the proper chemical."

With a nod, Nikole decided to go further into the basics of the system and the construction itself, discussing it with Brandon...

------------
Unknown Location

18:40:35

A certain group of individuals met up with a recent Angelus employee as part of their regular meetings.

"I have been doing the research," Alexandra Kotova opened with, "And I believe our best time to strike would be right after the final race of the season, Vohl Square II"

"Interesting, because of its location?" CO-02 asked, to which Alex replied with a nod. "We do have our own plans for that race, but we aren't sure if we should go through with it."

"Hmm? What do you mean?"

"Sabotage. We were planning to make Crinale lose. However... that may possibly come at the cost of some technicians."

"Which includes CO-05."

"Exactly. We do not want any more COs losing their lives, if we can help it... unless we make the sabotage subtle, not enough to warrant more senseless killing by our new leader."

"If you can make it so you can guarantee no deaths from this, then do it. If you are even 1% unsure, then do not go for it. It will not worth it in that case, specifically because we are targeting OE-0."

"Understood. We have time before that race, though, so we may be able to devise a plan."

"Fair enough. Remember, not at the cost of others. Anyway, OE-0. Have you come up with any better plans than after Vohl Square?"

"They rarely let up their guard, I believe that after that particular race would be an optimal time to do it. Due to its short distance between a certain building, OE-0 would more than likely visit there. That is when we strike."

"Okay, then. After Vohl Square. Thank you for the meeting."

"Thank you, Miss Kotova."

[hmetal2001]

Hey Ace,

Could you kindly link your posts into a spoiler section in the OP?

[Ace3000]

That would take a lot of time to find the parts and compile the links, but yeah, I can get that done eventually.

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 34 was A Matter of Time by Voicians. The full length release this time, not the Part 1 EP.

[s2_26.1: Part 34.1] A Ghost's Attack
<22120807>

Friday, August 7th, 2212

Nokav Vertigo, Rocky Mountains, USA.

12:36:48

On one of the breaks of the practice round at Nokav Vertigo, one female pilot went on a small search for another. Amazingly, she found her leaning on a wall at the peak of the short course, outlooking the view of the mountain range the track was situated upon. Approaching her from the left of the helmeted girl, who was looking out to the right, Katsuo gave a friendly wave when she saw her head move quickly to her direction, to see who was walking up to her.

"Heya, how you doing?" Kat spoke in Japanese to the other pilot, Kyoko Fujisaki.

"Alright." Kyoko replied, in Japanese as well.

"How's the course?"

"Twisty, kinda challenging."

"Yeah, it is a bit."

"...I love it."

"You do?"

"Yeah, I also took a look at the other courses here, and I am rather interested in the 2nd course. Alas, I must wait, but the course we're racing on should be fun."

Kat nodded, smiling happily

"Yeah, this should be fun." Suddenly, she had a thought. "Ah, how's Australia holding up for you?"

"H-Huh? What do you mean?"

"Oh! What I mean is moving to another country, it kinda changes who you are, you know?"

She looked at Kyoko knowingly. While she did have a happy look on her face, there was an air of seriousness in her gaze. Kyoko also stared back at Kat, but, with her helmet on, no-one could determine what her emotion was.

"I think... I understand what you mean. Why you would say that suddenly... is something I'm not yet sure of, but..."

Kyoko suddenly stopped. Her helmet faced Kat, the Syncline pilot feeling the other girl's eyes piercing glare, even if she couldn't see it.

"...I get it. I completely understand now."

Those were her last words before she pushed off the wall, and walked back to Angelus' pits, leaving Kat there. Immediately, without stopping, she walked over to the small lounge room, opening the door and entering.

"Brandon, w-"

She stopped dead in her tracks. She had spoken before actually realising who was in the room... and what they were doing.

"...I-I... I apologise... I, ah... I'll leave you to it then."

Closing the door behind her as she stepped backwards out of the room, she took the time to think about where Brandon was this time, and so headed to where she thought the lab coat-clad man was, the main control room provided to the teams part of their pits. Like last time, she opened the door and walked inside, this time taking in the scene of the room, letting the door close behind her once she found him.

"Brandon... we need to talk."

He spun around quickly, sensing the urgency in her voice.

"What is it?"

"...Th... they know." Were the words to come out of her mouth.

"...huh? Who knows about what?"

"K-Katsuo, Syncline. They know about... me."

His face darkened.

"What... exactly do you mean?"

"Kat spoke with me..."

Kyoko proceeded to explain what she had said to Brandon, who listened carefully. When she had finished, he just kept staring at her.

"...Finally. They just couldn't resist, could they?"

Brandon suddenly started to move, walking out of the room. Kyoko practically jumped out of the way of the man's path, as he left the control room. Maintaining his pace, he made his way out of the partitioned building, heading to another partition of that very same building. He wasn't invited, but that mattered very little, as he walked right in, as if it was part of Angelus' partition. Since the layouts were the exact same, he knew where to go. He kept walking, unstopping, over to a certain door. He swung it open, and stared at the occupants, his face cold and unsmiling. Walking over to Nikole, he saw that the woman's face had become somewhat grim as well, as she stepped away from him and Katsuo.

"Did you need something from me?" She asked.

"I won't be needing anything if you can't keep to yourself for just a few minutes."

She blinked. "I'm afraid I'm out of the loop on this one."

The man shook his head. "Don't play dumb with me, you know exactly what I mean."

[Ace3000]

Thanks Bardic for writing this part out.

The referenced album title of Part 34.1 was Ghosts I-IV by Nine Inch Nails.

[s2_26.2: Part 34.2] Etymological Kid
<22120807>

Friday, August 7th, 2212

Nokav Vertigo, Rocky Mountains, USA.

12:54:10

Nikole kept a heavy pace to her office to be caught off guard opening the door. Katsuo sat against the wall inside with a bit of guilt in her tone.

"Why don't you stand up?" Nikole asked with an attempt at sympathy. She knelt to Katsuo's level. "I can help you, okay? What did you need to tell me?"

"I think I f*cked up," she replied.

"That doesn't tell me much."

"Well, its kind of a long story."

"Is it immediately urgent? I'm expecting someone here."

"How much time do you have?"

Nikole grabbed Katsuo's hand and implied a request to stand up. "How about you clear your head. I'll meet you in your room and we can talk then."

Katsuo started a smile at the growing likely hood of her over-reaction. "Will it be a few minutes?" she asked.

Nikole backed away for space, just before Brandon swung the door open. Katsuo was about to say goodbye when he signalled for her to stay. He walked to Nikole with a stark face, ready to hold his ground.

Nikole mirrored his expression while stepping further away from him and Katsuo. "Did you need something from me?" Nikole asked.

"I won't be needing anything if you can't keep to yourself for just a few minutes."

"I'm afraid I'm out of the loop on this one."

"Don't play dumb with me, you know exactly what I mean."

"No she doesn't, Brandon." Katsuo chimed in, without any expectation for a reaction from either of them. Brandon's attention was immediately shifted to the shorter girl.

"Are you telling me you interfered with our lives for fun?" Brandon asked.

"You're over simplifying a lot." Katsuo's voice started to raise. "I knew this from something else."

Nikole went between them with a realization of what Katsuo might be recalling. "Calm down, the both of you. We can all solve this."

"Just how much can I except you to be a part of this?" Brandon responded.

"You can stop accusing everyone." Katsuo said.

"And just why am I accusing anyone? Where's you trust for Kyoko to handle herself?"

"She can't handle herself! Nikole is just like Kyoko, except she can see she needs help to function."

"Is that right? You don't know if Kyoko is even like that!"

"So what? Is that good enough for her to ignore it, because I've already seen what happens when that happens and I was orphaned because of it!"

"This is different, we have it handled-"

"It's always handled. Everyone knows exactly what they're doing UNTIL THEY HAVE TO FORCE A KNIFE TO THE SKULL OF SOMEONE THEY LOVE TO SURVIVE!" Katsuo stopped herself with her own words. She found out how close she'd manage to get to Brandon, but wouldn't back away. She was paralysed by memories she'd managed to not think about for years. Nikole pulled her chair behind Katsuo and gently motioned for her to sit. She opened the door for Brandon and followed him outside.

"Is that something she did?" Brandon asked, "I had no idea she was an orphan, I-"

"Her mother did that when Kat was very young." Nikole answered. "I suppose it's only a small aspect of the whole story. I don't think it'd be tasteful to carry on with her past."

Brandon's sympathy returned after better understanding Katsuo's motives. "Is she going to be okay? She's not going to do anything rash is she?"

"She's definitely not okay. She has a habit of dealing with pain in an unhealthy manner. I'll question her about how much she knows in the morning and I'll give you a call afterwards."

"You can't see me in person?"

"We'll be heading back home. Katsuo is in no condition to race. I don't know how Kyoko would act towards her in the race anyway. If anyone asks, my neck is acting up."

"Yeah, okay... listen, I know you said you wouldn't go into Katsuo's past anymore, but... I just need to know that Kyoko will... that she's still alright for now."

Nikole took a breathe before she started. "Kyoko isn't nearly as dire of a situation. Katsuo's father had the Condition when we didn't know as much about it. He was falsely told that her mother would take him in and he wasn't able to think rationally. Her mother wasn't able to calm him down and started to panic." Nikole moved her head a bit to make sure the hallway was clear. "You understand how important it is to never repeat this?"

"Of course." Brandon said. "I'm just going to let Kyoko know that you're leaving the race. I don't know if she'll still feel okay with Katsuo, but-"

"She shouldn't feel okay about her." Nikole interjected. "Once I find out how she figured out what she knows, I'll have to stress to her that she needs to control herself. I just hope she'll be stable enough to her the criticism."

"And then we'll be able to trust her?"

"Likely, yes."

"What do you mean 'likely'?"

"We'll talk about it tomorrow," Nikole said. "Just try to keep things sane on your end for now."

Brandon gave an only slightly understanding nod and started his way back to Angelus, much more calmly than his trip to Syncline.

[Ace3000]

Okay, as was requested, I've written out a list containing links to all of my parts. However, because there are so many of them, I decided to write this list out on an article on our wiki. The article can be seen here (http://fta.wikia.com/wiki/Faster_Than_Angels_(Ace3000_Series)), and a link will also be provided in the first post. I haven't listed all the parts though, as I still need to list all of the Curse of the Devil parts (and, maybe, Jonny and everyone else's parts). However, it is a start nonetheless.

[Ace3000]

Posting this part early for reasons. Please note there may not be a part posted on the usual day until next week. It depends.

The referenced album title of Part 34.2 was The Impossible Kid by Aesop Rock.

[s2_26.3: Part 34.3] A Series of Issues
<22120807>

Friday, August 7th, 2212

Nokav Vertigo, Rocky Mountains, USA.

13:12:51

Back at Angelus' pits, Brandon made his way back up to the control room, finding Kyoko still standing there in the room.

"Huh? What are you still doing here, Kyoko?" He asked.

"Waiting for you to get back."

"Oh, well I'm here now."

"So? You went and spoke with Syncline, didn't you? What'd they say?"

"Oh, right. If you're thinking of getting revenge on Katsuo, it's not happening, even if I allowed it. They're pulling out."

"They're what?" She asked, surprised.

"After I confronted them, they said they're going home. Nikole determined that Katsuo was not in the best condition to race, so they're leaving."

"And Hal? Is he going to race?"

"Seems like it, they do have an 'official' reason, but it's not important to us. Anyway, are you alright to get back out?"

"Ah, yes, I can get back to practising. Excuse me."

Kyoko bowed, turned around and exited the room. As she left, Brandon slid his hands into his coat's pockets, and looked out towards the track, looking at Gareth's progress. As the craft soared past the stretch visible from the room above, Brandon's eyes narrowed, then flicked down to the screen displaying the craft's telemetry.

"...Wait... how the hell...?!"

Turning on his headset without hesitation, he quickly informed Gareth of the situation.

"Gareth, return immediately. Kyoko, don't go yet. This is urgent."

As he got acknowledgements from both pilots, Brandon called the technicians working on the craft to the pits along with the pilots, then fished out his phone and attempted to call Alex.

"...Huh?" He looked at his phone. She wasn't picking up. No matter how long or many times Brandon rung her phone, Alex just wasn't answering. "What's going on here?!"

Brandon rushed out of the control room just as one of the people working the control room was about to ask what was wrong. Running down to the pits, where both craft now were situated, he asked the staff entering the large room where the girl was. Almost all of them had no clue, but one person spoke up: Kyoko.

"She is in Lounge A, but sh... she... wait."

Brandon, like last time, took off before Kyoko had finished her explanation. Not wanting to leave him on his own, she set off after him. Arriving at the lounge, he threw open the door, and was faced with...

"...what... the hell?" Was his outburst to the situation.

"...Wait, what? That's not... w-what I saw earlier..." Kyoko spluttered.

"What are you-? Ugh, whatever, just... help me."

Alex was not speaking, but realising they were going to do what they were going to, she opened her mouth. "...W-wait, no, it's not what it looks like!"

Alex was tied up. Literally, her hands and legs were tied to the chair she was sitting on. Brandon untied her hands, while Kyoko freed her legs. Unfortunately, she looked up at the wrong moment as she was doing so, and had seen how compromised she was, making a small squeak before Alex quickly placed her freed hands in front of her.

"Damn it, I was hoping you wouldn't see..." She spoke in a soft voice, moving one of her legs once it was free.

"Hmm? See what?" Brandon asked.

"...n-nothing you should be concerned with."

"Uh... right."

Soon, Alex was completely untied, standing up after Kyoko straightened up, stretching.

"Why were you tied up? Who tied you up?!" Brandon started questioning her once she rose to her feet. She looked back towards him when he did.

"Brandon... y-you don't understand... I..." She faltered, and looked away, blushing. Her eyes briefly glowed purple for the briefest of moments. Then, she spoke up. "...I wasn't tied up against my will."

"You... w-wait... I understand none of this."

"I-I think I do..." Kyoko murmured.

"You would... cause you saw... me." Alex mumbled back, before turning back to Brandon. "Maybe you'd understand if I told you who tied me up."

"How do you figure that?"

"Well... it was... u-uh..."

"...it was...?"

"...Catherine."

Upon hearing that name, Brandon realised what happened, and his eyes grew wide. He made an attempt to quickly change the subject.

"...U-uh... a-a-anyway... we need you to accompany us to the pits... w-we have a problem."

[BardicSMG]

The lights were dimmed in the personal carrier with Katsuo passed out in the back seat. Nikole had been communicating with several e-mails just across the walkway. Despite her tendency to sleep comfortably in just about any situation, this instance led to her back ached and seemingly permanently bent sideways, along with her head not feeling that far off from waking up after getting knocked out cold.

“Are we there?� Katsuo asked, despite noticing the presence of gravity.

“We've been here a while,� Nikole said, “you wouldn't stay awake.�

“How long has it been?� Katsuo asked.

“We landed about an hour ago.�

“You've been here the whole time?�

“I've had a lot of explaining do.� Nikole answered, still focused on typing on her laptop.

It started to sink in to Katsuo just a bit more what she had done. She unbuckled her seat to straighten herself out, still standing where she'd been. Nikole closed her laptop and set it aside. Katsuo took a breath and sat next to Nikole.

“I take it you found out when finding Angelus's spy...� Nikole said.

Katsuo nodded her head.

“And I assume from the conversation we had after then that you disobeyed orders to find out.� she continued.

“I didn't know what I was going to find out.� Katsuo said.

“That means very little, you still confronted Kyoko about it.�

“Well... I didn't tell her directly, I just-�

“That is also insignificant. You took a very sensitive situation and ran in without caution.�

“You don't think I was being careful?�

“Leaving the issue aside would have been careful.�

“It would have been careless.� Katsuo protested. “I'm not going to close my eyes and wait for the world to stop burning.�

“You're not thinking objectively enough. Angelus knows enough about the condition to handle any anomalies Kyoko experiences.� Her statement was punctuated by a notification sound from her laptop. Nikole grabbed it and read though the new content. Katsuo started to get suspicious at the way Nikole stopped her lecture to read a message on a device.

“You're recording this.� Katsuo said with certainty, with a growing anxiety at the idea that her actions may be more severe then she had thought.

“It's just a live feed, for my superior.�

Katsuo chuckled slightly, thinking that had to be a joke. To her, even with Nikole's serious attitude, that seemed more likely.

“There's no need for alarm,� Nikole said, noticing Katsuo's fast changing expression, “there's just going to be some testing.�

“They think I might've gotten it.� Katsuo said, simultaneously trying to slow her thoughts down.

“Not at all, it's just hard to be sure what someone is doing when they go against protocol.�

“So they think I'm a spy.�

“It's a precaution. I hope you understand why this needs to happen.�

“Yeah, I guess...� Katsuo started to lean into her seat, taking in deep, long breaths. “So, what now?�

Nikole took a minute to articulate her words, and started at a low voice. “There's going to be a DNA test, an MRI for lie detection, and then a test for outside interference, to see if anyone else tries to peek in while you're down there.�

“That last one can't be done while the other tests are happening.�

“The other tests won't take but an hour,� Nikole explained, “but if someone else tries to break in, they could wait for quite a bit longer.�

“Okay... I know you want to make sure I know the reason for everything, and to stay calm, and that I just need to prove my honesty, but I just...�

“Do you need me to put put it bluntly?�

“Please do...�

Nikole took a moment to examine Katsuo's mood once more, even going so far as to check her pulse before continuing. With Katsuo appearing calm and ready to face her dues, Nikole spoke out quickly to get it done.

“They're putting you in an isolation chamber.� Nikole blurted. “It will last ten days so that a third party would likely give up on you had they been monitoring you.

Katsuo went to pat Nikole on the shoulder, to let her know she could handle the news. It ended up being a hug, with each thinking it was for the others benefit.

“Can I make a call?� Katsuo asked, “I just don't want Ryouta to get worried after too long.�

“We'll let him know you'll be gone for the next week and a half. We can't give specifics, but I'm sure he'll be fine regardless.�

“Well, I kinda want to just talk to him one more time.�

“A cellphone call isn't secure enough.� Nikole said. “I'm sorry, but this is the-�

“It's okay,� Katsuo said, “I understand. If anyone else did this I'd expect them to go through the same thing.�

Nikole let her arms go and stood up to the walkway. “I am to escort you out, with you going first.�

Katsuo complied and stood in front of Nikole, and the both of the stepped out through the door into the daylight.

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 34.3 was Issues by Korn.

[s2_26.4: Part 34.4] Fear of a Dead Craft
<22120807>

Friday, August 7th, 2212

Nokav Vertigo, Rocky Mountains, USA.

13:32:43

Now with Alex, Brandon got the technicians to perform a complete diagnostic on both of Angelus' craft, after disconnecting them from their network as part of their safety precautions. It took a long time to go over every detail of the craft's systems, until...

"There! We got it! Alex, over here. Do you recognise this?"

The black-haired woman stared at the console, looking over the code. As she did, her eyes glowed slightly.

"This... I recognise this. So he's finally using my arsenal."

"Sorry?"

"I had stored several ideas for some... legally ambiguous warfare against you lot. Of course, that was before I mellowed out, so I kept them on a locked partition on Crinale's servers. It appears that he has gotten into it and is putting those ideas to work. This was intended to take advantage of the fact that we knew how the security on your first craft worked, so we could have been able to implant a virus that would ultimately disable the craft's systems."

"So, you know how to combat it?"

"I'm not finished explaining," She continued, "As I said, that was intended for that first craft you built, what was it? The AGR1 or something like that? Anyway, I would suspect that you are all smart enough to upgrade or otherwise rewrite the security's code, so my code would not even touch this craft. Viktor obviously knew that, as the code here is very different to my original, but I can spot traces of that original code in there, which is how I knew what it was. But that begs the question, how was he able to easily slip this into your highly secure systems?"

This time it was Brandon that spoke up.

"Do you remember, Alex? He is in control of the F12000. Just as you can spot traces of your original code in there, I can spot traces of official AGRC system code. This virus seems to be spoofing as official F12000 data. Naturally, all craft have to be compatible with the code, and with someone dangerous as him in charge, he could easily fix races like this. Chances are this was a test, an experiment, and we were the guinea pigs."

"...tch, goddammit. Can you delete the code?"

"Deleting the code is the easy part. Worst case scenario, we restore a systems backup. The tricky part is preventing it from entering our systems again. Because it spoofs F12000 code, we can't simply mark the code as a virus, as the F12000 code will create system conflicts. The worst case scenario would overwrite the code, though, so we won't have it to examine. However, it's not impossible, I have faith in my technicians that they can get the job done. We can't get back out there, though. Gareth's craft is not in the best way, I'm not risking Kyoko's going the same way, and both craft need to stay here for the virus extraction and to further examine it in order to create the antivirus hotpatch. Anyway, I need to go make the announcement that we've stopped practice for today."

Alex nodded, as Brandon headed for the control room, letting everyone who wasn't tasked with the virus' removal that they were now free to do as they wished.

------------
13:01:22

<vargas | vinter in vegas (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8Qmq41zcKE&t=2m30s)_>

"It's ready, we've loaded it onto your craft. Now destroy Angelus!"

As Gareth was going through his practice run, a certain black and orange craft set off from the pits, aiming to catch up to the light craft flying around the track. However, because of the initial tight corner-heavy first half, the heavier, less agile RA8 could not get near the Xygen V, despite the fact that the Micro-Turbine thrusted craft could accelerate out of the corners faster than the traditional Xygen could. Even on the high-speed second half, the Angelus had it beat, having a higher top-end.

It was there that the pilot of the dark craft decided that it wasn't an actual race, and so had decided to slow down and let the faster craft come around. As the white racer returned into view of the black craft, they put the next part of their plan into action, remembering what Viktor had told them beforehand.

"Activate the weapon and fly close enough for the data to transfer itself."

Waiting for the perfect time that the craft would fly close enough to them, the Crinale craft had sped up, flying at it's normal speed, which was still slow enough to let the Angelus craft catch up to it. Eventually, it had gained on the team, and so they engaged a set of maneuvers to prevent them from overtaking, keeping them within range for their attack. Angelus' computer didn't acknowledge that a weapon had been fired because, technically, one had not been fired. It was released, able to be transferred, absorbed, into the systems, under the guise of official F12000 data.

Once the data had completely transferred, the craft stopped its offensive maneuver, and resumed flying around the track in a normal manner, allowing the now infected craft to fly past. The virus soon started to take effect, with the airbrakes acting odd. Unfortunately for them, that was all they could see of the virus' effects, as the pilot soon spun the craft around and limped back to the pits soon after rushing past the main straight.

"Brandon must have noticed and called him back in."

"It is fine, they still have the disadvantage of using up their precious practice time on working on the virus. We can only hope that the nature of the code proves impossible for them to remove it, or at least gain an immunity to it."

------------
<22120808>

Saturday, August 8th, 2212

13:54:37

Throughout the night and the following day, Angelus' technicians worked on the update code for the craft's security, when they had a completed version, they applied it to a virtual copy of the craft systems, then ran the extracted virus to the patched system, noting the effects and, if the patch didn't work, restore the system, work on the update and repeat the testing.

It was well into the Qualifier, and the team was still working on the code. If they were unable to get it working within the day, they would automatically be disqualified. Although, it seemed like someone had a backup plan.

"Brandon, I'm not letting my craft let the whole team down, if they can't do it in time, put Kyoko out. She's a good racer, she can win!" Gareth pleaded to his team leader.

"Gareth, we still have an hour and 5 minutes to get this thing completed, it still can be done. Besides, even if it doesn't get completed, and we send her out, Kyoko's craft may suffer the same fate as yours, hell, maybe even worse."

"I wouldn't be so sure..." A technician working on the code spoke up. "Come take a look at this."

Brandon walked up to the screen and looked at what he instantly recognised to be the diagnostic log of the the Xygen's systems. He instantly read the line that was highlighted.

"Wait... it was deployed as a weapon?"

"Yeah, and regarding the type of transmission, I believe that they cannot use it in the race proper. At least, that's my hypothesis."

"Well, I can only hope you're right with that."

By that point, they were extremely close to being successful with the code blocking out the virus but keeping in the F12000 data. It would only take them 38 more minutes to finish the security patch. Excited, they patched the update to the virtual system and ran the virus on it. It gave two quick, low beeps and spat out an error.

WARNING: Blacklisted data detected. Transfer denied.
Virus detected. Data deleted.

"YES! It works! Now for the dummy file."

He sent through an official F12000 data file, running it into the system, which graciously accepted it.

"Brandon, are the craft connected up to our systems?" Was the head technician's question.

"Yeah, why?"

"Has Gareth's been restored?"

"Again, yes. Why?"

"The patch is complete. We can send them out to the ships, and send them out for the qualifier."

"Do it. Quick!"

With Brandon's permission, the head technician brought up the system back-end, and sent the hotpatch through to the two craft, updating their security immediately.

"Alright, contact the AGRC and our pilots, tell them we're ready."

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 34.4 was Fear of a Blank Planet by Porcupine Tree.

[s2_26.5: Part 34.5] A Fragile Mind
<22120809>

Sunday, August 9th, 2212

Nokav Vertigo, Rocky Mountains, USA.

08:53:43

The previous day's qualifier had put Angelus in 2nd and 8th position for the race, which went without a hitch, thanks to the software engineers' security update, which gave the team an immunity to Crinale's viral warfare. Gareth's craft did need some alignments and fine-tuning done to fix the damage the virus did to it, but the craft was back to its optimal performance in time to post a competitive time. However, said competitive time was not the best time the craft could do.

"Tch, if only we had more time, I could have put in a better time." Gareth commented, "I didn't do the Xygen justice, I'm sorry."

"It's alright, just relax." Brandon replied. "You did what you could, we all did. The starting position is not the be-all-end-all, the race is what matters."

"Yeah, you're right. I'll be able to catch up to Kyoko... I think."

"That's the spirit! Now go on, the 5 minute warning should sound an-"

"Warning. 5 minutes remain until race begins. All pilots please move to the start line in your relative positions." The announcement sounded, cutting Brandon off just as he was mentioning said announcement.

"...ahem, as I was saying."

"Yeah, I'll get going now. See you on the other side of the race."

Gareth then ran off, heading for his craft, which was in position, ready for him to enter and get ready. Kyoko, on the other hand, was already in her craft, waiting for the race to start. But, for the first time since she flew for Angelus, she was scared. Syncline knew... of course they did, they seemed to know about a lot of things pertaining to this horrid league, that would explain her visits to Angelus itself.

However... what she could not forgive... was that they could not keep their mouths shut...

"And for that... they need to pay!"

3, 2, 1... GO!
<09:00:00_>
<nokav vertigo: short fwd_>
<race: lap 01 of 109_>

02. FUJ616.0.43.194 (#43 | Kyoko Fujisaki | AX2.0_r2)
04. ERI220.1.99.175 (#99 | Halvred Erikson | V.ult-2X1024)
08. ARD889.1.19.194 (#19 | Gareth Ardos | AX2.0_r2)
11. SCA308.0.7.329 (#7 | Lucia Scarlatti | F0-RA8/00095)
12. TUR847.1.13.329 (#13 | Leon Turner | F0-RA8/00127)

<strobo migraine | callasoiled (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8YMLQshpvk&t=126)_>

The craft shot off the line, and as usual, Crinale set about attacking the competition, gaining offensive weapons to make their gradual climb towards the lead. Fortunately, Gareth was able to avoid most of their barrages, catching up to Hal and Kyoko, who were in 2nd and 3rd respectively. However, when he caught up to them, what he saw shocked and confused him.

When the race started, Kyoko's higher thrust Xygen rocketed away from Hal's 'Vulture', but she let him catch up to her once he had gotten his speed up. Once he passed her, she began her revenge. She ditched her speed-based racing technique and became more violent towards the red and purple craft. She was actively trying to eliminate Hal. Since it was just her, Hal decided to ignore and evade her, aiming for the top position. Unfortunately, Kyoko was having none of it, as her faster, more agile craft could easily keep up with him without breaking a sweat, where she continued to fire her weapons at him. It was getting to the point where if Hal didn't stop ignoring her, he would be eliminated fairly quickly.

"...Kyoko? Are... you okay?" Gareth spoke, after catching up to the two craft battling.

"Perfectly fine. Why do you ask?" Came the reply of the 'faceless' pilot.

"You... seem to be... how should I put this... in the mindset of Crinale."

"Please, they're worse. I'm just delivering some well-deserved revenge."

"'Well deserved'? What did they do? ...Oh, whatever, it's not important, just let them go."

"You let go. Keep that lead spot warm for me, I'll be there once Syncline learns to keep their damn mouth shut about sh*t they don't understand!"

"Rockets"

That point blank attack pushed Hal back, but he wasn't going to let that defeat him.

"Missiles"

He attacked back, impeding Kyoko's progress. Due to that battle commencing, Gareth decided to heed Kyoko's advice, and blast out in front, slowly reeling in the lead spot, but not before taking the full brunt of the heavier Vulture, as Hal's more violent solo racing style took over. The attack required some quick thinking on the Angelus pilot to regain control from the ram. However, he was back on track, and resumed aiming for 1st place.

Many laps later, though, the inevitable happened.

<contender eliminated_>

Someone had been eliminated. Gareth, who was in a battle of racing skill and strategies with the craft in first place, naturally assumed Kyoko had finally eliminated Hal.

'Tch, what's with her? What did they do to her to cause her to go haywire?' He thought, before speaking to his teammate. "Hey, Kyoko, you finally get him?"

The response was... not what he expected.

"Ah... about that..."

------------
09:06:47

As Gareth shot off with an amazing acceleration, Kyoko and Hal continued their battle, trading blow after blow. Despite the overall violent nature of their battle, their attacks were quite different, Kyoko taking advantage of the Xygen's light weight and agility to dodge and dart about, making it difficult for Hal to hit her, while also refraining from letting him escape her grasp, bringing him back down to where she was to resume the battle. Hal's technique was more direct, making use of his Vulture's heavy frame to, as well as firing weapons at the white, agile craft, ram into said craft whenever he got the chance to.

'Khh, what's with her?' Hal thought, 'Usually she'd be shying away from violence, not taking part in it.'

Naturally, since he was not aware of what Kat had done, he had no idea for Kyoko's reasons for attacking him. Nevertheless, he continued defending himself, but the constant hold ups of being attacked in the first place brought the two pilots down in the ranks, albeit not by much. He kept his defences up, while continuing to go all out on Kyoko.

Kyoko kept forcing weapon after weapon into the purple and red craft, becoming increasingly annoyed in the process.

"Tch, come on! How much sh*t do I have to pump into you?! I should have done enough damage to eliminate you already, even if you've been absorbing weapons!"

Her increasing annoyance was stemming from two sources. The first was the more obvious fact that Hal was not as defensively weak as she had initially anticipated. He could cover his bases quite nicely, something she naturally didn't see due to all of their other races that she had observed showed the two working together to aid the other. With this race, though, she could see Hal's natural racing talent, and close-up from her insistence on eliminating him.

The second source of her annoyance was her craft. Or more specifically, the shielding system. Another reason why she thought Hal should have been defeated by that point was the fact that her own shields were nearing the end of their usage. She was about to be eliminated. Or so she thought. As she ran over a weapon pad, the image that displayed in her HUD gave her a rather difficult choice.

She could potentially go for the kill and fire the Plasma at Hal, but also run the risk of missing. Alternatively, she could absorb it for a rather sizeable and much needed increase to her shield energy.

"...Agh, screw it! Haaaiiii-YA!"

She charged and fired the plasma right at Hal... who took the hit, but was still not yet out. Although, he was dangling on an extremely thin wire, having his shield energy percentage go down to just single digits. As the white craft passed him, he unleashed something that was only seen twice before.

"Im-flash"

The super-weapon of Syncline was a homing projectile weapon similar in design to a missile. However, it, like Angelus' Railgun, dealt no direct damage. The weapon temporarily messed with the hud and other visual and aural inputs, effectively blinding the pilot to the outside, as well as not allowing warnings from incoming weapons to be announced to them. Kyoko was, reasonably, hitting the walls, removing more of her shielding. And, just as the weapon wore off...

"Bomb"

Instinctively, the girl flicked her right wrist, making the light craft sideshift, avoiding the explosive device by a minuscule amount. As she soared past the failed attempt to eliminate her, she let out a sigh, passing Hal and taking a particularly sharp corner. Hal had learned how she acted through corners by watching her as they battled, however, and was ready to strike at the opportune moment.

"Plasma"
<contender eliminated_>

A short yelp from Kyoko was the final and only thing that she was able to do, ending her race at the hands of Hal.

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 34.5 was The Fragile by Nine Inch Nails. Remember this, it will be important... maybe.

[s2_26.6: Part 34.6] THREELAYERPOSTRACESTRUCTURE
<22120809>

Sunday, August 9th, 2212

Nokav Vertigo, Rocky Mountains, USA.

10:06:57

It was a close race, but the overall winners of the race by mere milliseconds were Wyvern, just snatching the victory from Angelus. However, Brandon had some words for Kyoko.

"Hey, what was that just now? I understand what you're going through, but that performance was... how should I put it... ah. I've let you keep somewhat of an open mind when making your racing strategies, except when it's absolutely necessary, because you know what is to be expected of Angelus. However, that performance was really pushing the envelope. We must race pure, Kyoko, do not fall into the F12000's trap. Do not give in to the violence."

Kyoko just sat there, looking down at the floor. When he finished speaking to her, she bowed deeply.

"I am sorry. I am so sorry... I do not know what came over me, I just... I just felt like I had to eliminate him. It will not happen again, I promise."

Brandon smiled. "That's what I like to hear. Anyway, let's go back now that it's all over."

------------
On the other end, Hal had something to do as soon as the race was over for him. He picked up his phone and called a certain someone.

"Yeah?" The voice on the other end answered.

"Hey Nikole, it's Hal. Um... I, uh, just thought you needed to know something."

"Go on."

"It's Kyoko. She was acting rather odd in that race. She was going for me, only me."

"What do you mean?"

"She was trying to eliminate me. She was being quite forceful about it too."

A brief silence came from Nikole's end, before she responded. "...Interesting. Well, I'll keep that in mind. Thank you."

"Not a problem. Later."

He put the phone down, and stayed there. He could have left at any time, however, there was something he had planned. for that day.

------------
17:30:13

Throughout the past two weeks, a certain couple had been catching up with each other over the phone since they had met up in Germany. For the first time since then, they were able to meet up again, after the race. When they finally met up, and they were sure that no-one could see them, they embraced each other with a large, warm hug.

"Aaaahhhh, it's felt like forever since we could actually see each other!" Lucia greeted Hal.

"It does feel nice to finally meet up again. How've you been holding up?"

I've been okay, not too bad. Missed you though. How about you?"

Hal let out a small chuckle, then replied.

"Yeah... much of the same. So what about Nokav? How did that treat you."

"With Crinale's heavy-ass craft? It was quite a challenge, I have to admit... but I liked it, it was the good kind of challenge."

"Ah, yeah, you have traditional airbrakes. Syncline's are quite unique, so on that course, we had an alright time."

"Ever the competitor, aren't you?"

"Oh, come on, it's fun, isn't it?" Hal laughed.

"Well... I would be completely lying if I didn't enjoy racing."

Lucia had a smile on her face, but she was holding her arm, looking away. It seemed like that smile was an attempt at hiding her true emotions, which Hal picked up on.

"Lucia... are you alright?"

"I..."

She had thought about lying to him, but had somehow gained the inability to do so, due to her mental self-promise.

"...no. I'm not. Hal, I... I heard something I wasn't supposed to... a-about... Crinale."

"...when was this?" He looked at her more intensely

"Right after the German race."

Hal's shoulders drooped.

"Of course... why didn't you tell me this earlier?"

"It... it wasn't something I could tell you over the phone. I had to tell you in front of you." She looked up at him, looking somewhat distraught. Whatever she heard, Hal thought, it must have been pretty bad. But that was Crinale, if only she knew what that team was up to...

"It's okay, I'm here now, just tell me."

With a nod, Lucia told him of every word she had heard her team director say. Hal looked at her directly, taking in every word. When she had finished, there was a small silence, as he processed everything she said.

"...Yeah, that fits exactly with what I know of them, and a certain other group of interest Syncline have been investigating."

"H-huh?"

"Oh, trust me, Crinale are definitely corrupt, it's not your imagination." He thought for a moment more, before speaking again. "...[sigh], you're a smart, good girl, you need to know."

"I-what? Know what?" She looked up at him, her anger rising ever so slightly. "Also, I don't think I care for you treating me like a kid. I got that sh*t from my parents, I don't need you giving me that too."

"Wh... I... I'm sorry, that wasn't my intention. But what I'm about to tell you is the truth. I know how you feel about Crinale, so I know you can take what I'm about to tell you."

Lucia just kept looking at him, curious and afraid. Hal took this as a sign to continue, so he did.

"Crinale are very much corrupt. They've had a past of using stolen and illegal technologies to get their wins. But they were much tamer in the past. They made an attempt to make a league similar to the F9000, and, according to some of our sources, that is exactly what they've done, with this, the F12000. Ah, let me explain the F9000 to you, and why it's so bad. It was controlled by a corporation called Overtel, who were corrupt beyond belief. Quite a lot of races were fixed, financial irregularities ran amongst some teams and blackmailing had definitely occurred. A lot of people died there. It... it was practically war, with weapons taking more precedence than it should. This Crinale are making it happen all over again, just for everyone's entertainment. It's only a matter of time before the blackmailing and race fixings happen again..."

"I-I... wh-wha-?"

Lucia was in disbelief. Her racing team, her career... was run through corruption? She... just wanted to race... that's all she wanted to do... and yet... and yet... he was still acting like her parents. She wanted to believe him, but...

"God damn it... not you too... why is everyone trying to f*cking stop me from racing?!"

"I'm not... I want you to race. I can see the passion in your eyes. But... that's the truth about your team. We're working on stopping it, we are. You can have your perfect race, you won't be forced to use weapons even when you don't need to use them, I promise you, Lucia. I... I'm telling you this because I love you, not because I want you to quit doing what you love."

The girl looked down. She had been quick to judge, and she started to realise her mistake in doing so. He did want her to race, he could see how much she enjoyed it. But still, whenever she got angry like this, she stayed like that for a long while, so she was also still pissed off at him. On top of that, it was a lot of harsh information to take in, so she also felt lost, unsure of what she should do, if anything at all. Shaking her head, she looked back up at him, her face clearly showing that she was flooded with emotions.

"L-look... I'll forgive you. Not now, but eventually. I... I must go, I have a lot to take in."

Not waiting for a response, she promptly spun on her heel, and walked out of the building they were talking in, clearly wanting to return to a place where she could have some time to herself to process all of that information, getting too far deep into something she didn't understand, apart from knowing it was clearly very bad. But she needed to plan what she was going to do with the new info, as she could not just go back to her normal life after this.

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 34.6 was THREELAYERSTRUCTURETHEORY by Calla Soiled.

[s2_27.1: Part 35.1] An Umbra Called Crinale
<22120821>

Friday, August 21st, 2212

Monte Carlo Nouveau, Monte Carlo, Monaco

11:05:30

The next course in the roster was Monte Carlo Nouveau, a course that contained copied sections of the antique circuit, scaled up for the larger size and higher speed of the F-class craft. The course itself was situated several meters above the original road that constituted the course. The actual road was still being used for other road races, for cars that could fit within the road's dimensions.

After a several very fast runs, a certain F12000 pilot set about making her own strategy for the race. She made note of all the points in which she could use her craft's high thrust output to gain the advantage over the competition. However, that was naturally stopped when a higher ranking individual, employed by Viktor, walked past her room, seeing the plans laid out.

"What the hell is this? You don't need a strategy like this, you are paid to race our way." The head mechanic said.

"Not this crap again." Lucia sighed, before lying to them. "Look, it's only half the plan, you need to go fast to win. The other half comes from being violent."

The eyes staring into her narrowed. They knew of her difficulties in the past, as such not buying her story for one second. "Are you testing me? Do you believe you can lie to me?"

"Of course not. However, I was signed on for my racing talent. Do you believe you can hold my talent back like you're doing now?"

"SILENCE!" They yelled at her. "You will not speak to a superior like that! Y-"

Lucia clicked her tongue and rolled her eyes, interrupting them "Listen, the pilots are the most important people. You cannot tell me what to do or how to do it. I'll race my own way, without interference, or you can just simply say goodbye to your amazing talent as she walks out the f*cking door."

As the young girl stood smugly with her hands on her hips, she did not see the the head mechanic pull the object from the pocket their hand was in the whole time and, gripping it tightly, slash her face with it with a speed so fast the object became almost invisible with how much it blurred across the air.

"Agh!"

The resulting attack caused Lucia to fall to the floor, her injury not even having time to cause her any pain. However, when it did...

"A-AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

She held her hand up to the wound, yelling out in pain. The mechanic looked down their nose at the crumpled heap of the girl, scoffing disgustedly while they slipped the screwdriver back into their pocket.

"I sure hope that serves as a lesson, young lady. You will race for Crinale. You will race and you will race our way. Let that be a lesson to never go against us. Understood?"

Lucia responded by continuing to breathe heavily, remaining in the position she had found herself in on the floor. The head mechanic took that opportunity to walk over to the plans she had laid out, and take them, which included her half-completed strategy. Their final fate were going to be destruction, as the head mechanic left, not even paying the shocked, injured Lucia any mind.

Slowly, silently, she looked at her hand. Instead of the usual pale colour, a glistening red hue took its place. She was bleeding, the screwdriver must have cut deeper into her than she had thought. Although, with that said, she did not recall the actual attack, only that she had found herself on the floor afterwards, the sharp, searing pain taking precedence shortly thereafter. But she realised that she could not lie there on the ground all day. Finding enough energy to stand up, she slowly left, her hair covering half her face. She let another, different higher-up that she was returning to her hotel room.

Of course, this was a lie. Upon leaving the circuit grounds, she began her search, moving throughout Monte Carlo, looking through every single bar and hotel in search of the one person that could help her, the one she was the least pissed off at. Finally, after looking in the final building, she gave in, slowly and reluctantly pulling her phone out and sending a text out.

"Where are you?"

A few minutes later, she got a reply. He was in a hotel she had checked earlier. She had just missed him. She set off, running towards and into the hotel.

"Lucia, he- what the hell?" Were the first words to come out of Hal's mouth upon seeing her, as she entered his room.

She began to explain what had happened prior. His face changed from curious, to intrigued, to somewhat shocked. Finally, he calmed down.

"They... what?" He finally spoke. "Show me."

"No."

"Lucia, please. If you don't show me, I can't help you."

"I don't want you to see me like this."

"I need to see it, Lucia. I need to know. Please, show me."

"You 'need to see it'? Please, no-one needs to see it."

"Lucia, look. You aren't invincible. Wounds, especially facial wounds, can become more hazardous to your health if left alone. Please, I care about you... just... show me."

She looked down sadly, not because she lost the argument, but because she was still afraid. Afraid to show the one person she cared this much about something that horrific. She raised her arm to brush her hair aside, but then dropped it. Hal moved closer to her, raised an arm slowly and, when she didn't flinch to his movements, brushed her hair aside.

"...Sh*t. They did this to you?!"

"Goddamn it. This was why I didn't want to show you. It's not that big a-"

"Not that big a deal? Bullsh*t. I... I care about you... to me, it is a big deal, nothing will change that. Now come, let's treat that."

He sat her down and treated her wounds, using a first aid kit he had, which sat in his room. When he was finished, and her wounds treated, she stood up. He did as well, checking out his work, seeing if he missed any areas.

"Th-thanks for that. I... I appreciate it."

"It was nothing! Nothing at all! I care about you, my friend, that's all that matters."

In a soft voice, she replied. "No it's not, it's more than just simply caring about a friend."

With that, she turned to face the man whose face was close enough to hers. She didn't have to move far forward for her lips to meet his.

"Mmm?!"

She held that position for several long moments, neither of them pulling away. In fact, Hal reciprocated, kissing back. The passion, the pure emotion that went into the kiss was more than either of them had ever expressed before, let alone to each other. Their arms soon found their way around the other, holding each other in an embrace as their lips remained pressed together.

She wanted to be here, living this one moment forever. The feel of human contact made her feel like everything was okay, the feel of Hal's arms around her, his lips pressed against hers... it was euphoric. She never wanted to let go, and she was so sure that Hal felt the same way. In fact, it was like, in that embrace, each other's feelings, their emotions, were displayed in full view of the other. She had never felt this way about any other person in her life, such that she never thought she had the capacity to feel these emotions in the first place. But here she was, completely enthralled by Hal. This... this was love, pure and simple.

Eventually, Lucia was the one to break the kiss, but not because she wanted to.

"I... I want to stay, I really do, but I need to go. Those assholes need to still think I'm loyal to them. Don't worry, they'll eventually pay their dues, but I can't do sh*t right now."

Hal just smiled. "It's okay, I understand. Just... Stay safe." He let go of her.

She pulled herself towards him for another hug, "I'll try." She spoke into his chest, before breaking contact and running back to the hotel Crinale rented out.

[Ace3000]

This part was an experiment to me, being written in a unique way that I have never attempted before. Nothing and no-one are referred to by name, and there is zero dialogue in this part. Still, I hope you enjoy it.

The referenced album title of Part 35.1 was Umbra by Boom Boom Satellites.

[s2_27.2: Part 35.2] Rage Against Everything
<22120823>

Sunday, August 23rd, 2212

Monte Carlo Nouveau, Monte Carlo, Monaco

13:55:14

<swamp | callasoiled (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bQ-m4tZcbo)_>

One pilot, due to previous events, had made her presence less known, but her higher ups were still aware of her being there, and as such had prepared her craft. Like the past two days, she had her hair draped over her face where a wound lay. Because of them being the cause of her wound, she had also been actively avoiding her team's head mechanic, however it was only technicians that were dealing with her craft.

Wordlessly, she climbed onto and entered the craft. After getting herself properly seated, she performed the final checks on the craft, the diagnostics being sent to the technicians. When they had received the data, and perceived it as being normal, they gave the okay to have the craft moved up to the track proper, where it sat on the grid, ready for the race to begin.

When the craft's brace had brought it up, its pilot flipped all but one of the final group of switches. The last one, the ignition switch, was flipped for the briefest of moments. A low rumbling noise soon turned into a high-pitched whine, as the craft's unique thrust system gained power. As she looked upon the different racing craft developed by different racing teams ahead of her, she wondered briefly what it would be like to race for them. Would they let her race however she wanted? Or would she have to follow a strict racing style like the team she raced for?

Her brief daydream was, however, cut short. The race's countdown had started, which pulled her out of it. She quickly built up the craft's thrust, waiting for the moment the green light appeared to release that thrust to launch off the line. The high thrust output of the unique system ensured that her craft would get to the higher places quickly, which was a good thing, because two days were not enough time for her to recover mentally from the attack she received.

She was eventually passed by several craft, even, briefly, by her own teammate. She was racing far from 100%, as her mind was clouded by a mishmash of emotions, which blended together into one massive lump of uncertainty. She was not feeling right, about herself, about her team, or about what she should do or how to go about it doing it. Despite that, being passed by the other similarly coloured craft forcibly brought her far enough out of the depths of her mind to pass it and stay ahead of it, but she still wasn't at her usual limit.

That was because, while racing less passively than before, she was still piloting her craft subconsciously. She navigated through the course through sheer memorisation of the twisty, elevated course, and was using her weapons moderately, just to slow the competition down. It was a racing style she was able to use when she wasn't trying to cater to one of the two extremes: Pure, weapon-less runs or violent, weapon heavy racing. The racing style usually came up when she wasn't actively thinking about racing, but wasn't her true default style, which was her pure style.

After racing like that for a long time, her mind still preoccupied, she saw it.

One lone craft, clad in a white and azure paintjob...

Cutting through the sky so cleanly, so majestically...

They look so happy...

...

The girl's uncertainty began to change, one solitary emotion growing, changing.

It was changing to a deep rage, but it was more than that...

...Hatred, for the team that would do anything to get their way, even resorting to violence to have their pilots fly their way, even if her way would garner more results...

...Fear, for what they might do to her if she were to defect to a team that would let her do her own thing...

...and Jealousy, for her forced-upon arch-rivals, who looked so happy, and flew in a racing style that she preferred...

She was a racing prodigy, she knew how to win... but her talent was being impeded by them... forcefully...

<my violent heart (instrumental) | nine inch nails (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2qY1hoIKtM&t=122)_>

The rage within her grew to such an extent that she could no longer hold it inside her. At that point, she silently exploded. They had got what they wanted, the girl had begun to race more violently than she ever had. Her rage was poured into the controls of the craft as she gripped her craft's controls. Her mind was slowly clearing up, her racing becoming more of a conscious task.

She gritted her teeth as she actively pressed forward, catching up to them by firing every single offensive weapon she received into the craft representing the team she was the most jealous at. To the other team ahead of her, though, it was seemingly just like any other race. They thought it was just violence as usual, without knowing that it was more than that, that it was a very effective outlet for her built-up pressure.

Her rage was so great, that she had actually started doing something she had never tried before. Pulling alongside the white craft, she shifted her craft to the side, ramming into the craft. Pulling away from the craft, she did it again, and again, and again, until she received something that, when unleashed, could very well represent the pilot's own vast rage.

Pulling back so her black craft was behind the opposite coloured one, she charged the massively powerful weapon, and fired. A bright blue beam shot out from the craft's front, hitting the one ahead of it. A few seconds passed between the beam making contact, and the craft's shields becoming destabilised, failing and eliminating that particular pilot. Shifting sideways again, out of the way of the rapidly decelerating craft, the angry, upset young pilot continued to race forth.

Reaching the second light craft after bombarding the other racers with weapons and rams from her craft, some avoidable, some not, the pilot started actively attacking them. All of a sudden, her vision began to blur. She was able to blink and shake it away, but it would just return after a few seconds. It was then she realised the blurriness was stemming from her tears, streaming down her face, from attacking the team she was the most jealous at, the team that, after this, would most likely not accept her, even if her current team would let her leave to pursue her own team, her own career.

Nevertheless, her tears did not slow her down, she kept on, firing weapon after weapon into it, and then ramming the craft, first from behind as it slowed down from the weapons' damage, then from the side as it regained its speed. She had started to become very emotional, yet despite those emotions coming to the surface, her rage persisted, still being as strong as ever.

The only time she would lose ground over the craft was by one of the two rather hard, tight corners. Otherwise, she would be right on top of them, whittling down their shield energy just that bit more. The pilot of the remaining white craft proved to be more skilled than the other that fell, but it was still not a challenge for a prodigal racer. Even when the odd weapon or two hit her and she fell back, the amount of effort to return back to following the craft at a very short distance was not overly much.

The white craft gracefully rounded the tightest hairpin of the course, pulling away from the looming black craft. The pilot of said craft following them launched their final attack on that particular team. A large, unavoidable weapon was fired, guaranteed their elimination from the race. The already critical shields took the final hit, which reduced their energy to zero. The black craft shot past, the pilot looking back at the remains of the craft.

As she looked back forward, having given that particular team what she thought was an accurate representation of how enraged she was, she set about finishing the race, not hesitating to fire weapons into any craft that stood between her and the finish line. It was not a victory by any means of the word, and even if it was, she would still not feel satisfied, as she was still part of a team that she actively disliked.

Her fear of what they would do if she did leave kept her from doing so. She had become a prisoner to her own feelings, her own fear, and like how was proven in that race, something would eventually have to give way, it would not stay like this forever. Pressure was constantly being built up within her, and only time would tell when she could not take any more, and would release it all.

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 35.2 was the self-titled album by Rage Against the Machine.

[s2_28.0: Part 36.0] The Takeover is Happening
<22120829>

Friday, August 29th, 2212

Somewhere in South Korea.

12:05:58

"Lucia, meet your friend's brother, Sterling."

Hal had taken Lucia to accompany him to meet up with Sterling Turner, the older brother of Leon. While Leon acted more intellectually, Sterling acted more physically, being the leader of a certain private military company, whom Syncline often sought their services. The man looked down at the girl and raised an eyebrow.

"Ah, so you are her. Pleasure to meet your acquaintance, Lucia. Hal has told me a lot about you."

She blinked. "Hal? I thought you'd have also heard about me from Leon."

Sterling smiled back. "Ah, him. Let's just say we both think the other's a humongous bell-end."

"A what now?"

"They don't like each other." Hal chimed in. "Well, either way, we're here for a reason, I'm sorry for going off-topic."

He shook his head. "It's fine, I guess. Anyway, I only know of the Crinale name because of my tosspot brother being a pilot for them. I've spoken with the boss numerous times, and he seems convinced now is the right time to destroy them from the inside."

"They're a corrupt team that'd do anything to win." Lucia said passionately, "We're going to destroy them so that corruption dies too."

Hal turned to the her. "Lucia, I believe you can help us, but this job isn't without consequences. A small mistake could mean your life if you're lucky, are you sure you wan-"

"-I know they're corrupt, and they also slashed my beautiful face open. I. Want. Them. Dead."

"Great, I knew you'd do it." Stirling said cheerfully.

Lucia looked to Sterling. "Alright, how are we gonna plan this? Wouldn't be as simple as going up to Viktor and killing him, I'd think."

"Very true, although I doubt he can defeat me in combat. With a solid strategy, we will be able to end him. So, let's begin planning it out..."

------------
<22120831>

Monday, August 31st, 2212

Angelus R&D HQ, Perth, Australia.

12:05:58

Two people were standing over a half-built machine, while Angelus technicians were working on it. That half-built machine was an AG Pod, in the process of being constructed.

"There has been a recent development that will change everything to do with this." Brandon spoke to Nikole. "It appears that we don't need a sample to maximise the effectiveness."

"Does that mean-" Nikole started, before being cut off by Brandon.

"Yes. We will be able to build them and put them to use as soon as we can now."

"That's fantastic, but what exactly was the development that didn't require the chemical?"

"In all honesty, I should have grabbed this data while my team and I were planning it. I obtained a chemical make-up of our subject before everything went to hell. That gave me all I needed to create a filter that kept everything except that chemical make-up out."

"Fascinating. How old was that sample?"

"2205, taken from Sydney."

"Alright, that's good enough. When would they be completed?"

"The first should be completed in October, there's still some fine-tuning to be done to get it absolutely right. After that, though, they should take about a fortnight or two to be constructed."

"Excellent. Keep the first here, we'll take a few, and if we need more, we'll let you know."

"Sure thing."

"Oh, another thing. The basic strategies of the plan to take Crinale has been laid out."

"Oh, right?"

"It would take a while to complete the plans. We've got the best person we know working with us."

"It seems like there are lots of people now rising up against this new Crinale. Even my old employees."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I believe they call themselves CO; Crinale Originals. They were the original 13 Angelus employees that split off to form Crinale. Alex has recently been in contact with them."

As Nikole opened her mouth, Brandon continued, not giving her a chance to speak. "I have overseen a couple conference calls, and I can definitely say they're on our side, they want Crinale back in Alex's hands."

"Really? I have seen some of them, they only mention an OE-0."

"It's a codename for a certain mutual enemy we all have." He smiled. "It is a need to know basis kinda thing, but I figure that we all need each other's help. Yours, mine, Alex's and the COs. We've all agreed to do the same thing, so I might as well make an attempt to bring everyone together and up to speed."

"Well, thank you for that. We'll do some more investigating into things."

"Fair enough. I will also let them know that Syncline are helping them. Oh, with your consent, that is."

Nikole closed her eyes, shrugged and looked the other way. "Do what you must. As you said, we are all fighting against a mutual enemy. I don't mind if they know of our intentions."

"Alright, thank you."

[Ace3000]

A Letter Found in the Room of A Certain F12000 Pilot.
<22121108>

Sunday, November 8th, 2212

http://i.imgur.com/Q9PVTzE.png (http://i.imgur.com/Jjtc2Ch.png)

Click the baton thingy to open the letter. If you're having difficulties reading it because of the transparency, here's a version without. (http://www.wipeoutzone.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=10641&d=1489821790)

[Ace3000]

You thought that one image constituted as a part? You thought wrong, here's the actual part!

The referenced album title of Part 36 was This is Happening by LCD Soundsystem.

[s2_29.1: Part 37.1] 2212: A Pilot's Odyssey
<22121108>

Sunday, November 8th, 2212

Omega Harbour, Perth, Australia.

19:51:02

Angelus were more relaxed than usual, which was natural considering the course they were on, this time on the more difficult medium course.

"Alright, Omega Harbour round 2. The best thing we can do is make an attempt to not have a repeat of last time. The true challenge is not the yellow run, but the red. In any case, like the last race here, I expect less weapon use than usual, but I won't be angry if you do end up using them as usual... just don't overdo it. Anyway, that should be all, You guys know what to do and how to do it. Good luck!"

As the personnel exited the room to do their assigned tasks for the race, Catherine entered, having been let through by the guards.

"Hey, Brandon, I wanted to cheer you guys on... even though I'm not supposed to have favourites when working at the AGRC... but whatever, it appears that I didn't have to work today, so here I am."

Brandon shrugged and smiled warmly. "I don't mind, make yourself at home."

"Thanks! ...Ah, that's right! I'm also here to see Alex."

"Of course! She's right here, so you can come in and catch up."

"Cool!"

As Catherine walked in, she saw her girlfriend sitting at the desk.

"Hey you!" She smiled.

"Catherine, hi!" Alex greeted.

"I'm needing to observe the race, so I'll take my leave. Have fun, you two!" Brandon said, getting up and returning to the control room, the race almost ready to start.

"Sorry I'm late." He said as he entered. "I'm just glad I got here before the race started."

"Well, it's not like we have to talk our pilots through, right?" A team member said.

"'Course not! This'll be easy."

"That's what you said last time."

"Ugh... don't remind me of that."

"Seriously, what happened in that race, we definitely had it... and then we didn't."

"I'm putting it down to bad luck. Besides, we can't win 'em all."

"Yeah, guess not. But really, our home course?"

"Quite a few teams have lost on their home course this season, it's not really a big deal at this point... oh, wait, here we go."

3, 2, 1......

------------
Several minutes earlier...

Just as Kyoko had finished preparing for the race, she found a note lying conspicuously in the room.

'How did that get here?' She thought, 'Moreover, what exactly is it?'

She picked it up and began to read it in the few minutes she had remaining until the 5 minute warning.

"What... the hell? Is he for real? FINE. If it's a race you want, it's a race you'll get. There's a reason you're 2nd, Gareth! Screw Brandon's stupid purity, I'll be as violent as I want to be. I'll eliminate you so hard your stupid craft will be a smouldering wreck on the side of the track! ARGH!"

She stormed out of the room to her craft, getting in and performing the final checks before entering the grid.

Finally, the race was about to begin...

3, 2, 1... GO!

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 37.1 was A Funk Odyssey by Jamiroquai, which is a reference of 2001: A Space Odyssey.

[s2_29.2: Part 37.2] Plans Falling Apart
<22121108>

Sunday, November 8th, 2212

Omega Harbour, Perth, Australia.

<4001 | squarepusher (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=815FIY452O8&t=109)_>

3, 2, 1... GO!
<20:00:00_>
<omega harbour: med fwd_>
<race: lap 01 of 67_>

01. FUJ616.0.43.194 (#43 | Kyoko Fujisaki | AX2.0_r2)
02. ARD889.1.19.194 (#19 | Gareth Ardos | AX2.0_r2)
12. SCA308.0.7.329 (#7 | Lucia Scarlatti | F0-RA8/00095)
19. TUR847.1.13.329 (#13 | Leon Turner | F0-RA8/00127)

The craft exploded off the line, Angelus more so than the rest, as the two pilots were hell bent on defeating each other. The medium course ran through the second half of the course, and the only official route that contained the 900° spiral.

"And so it begins." Gareth said, psyched up for the race that meant the most to him.

The two Xygen Vs gained no ground over one another until the first corner, where Kyoko slipped ahead. Gareth had slowly shifted from his usual racing style, into his unparalleled zone run style, even though it had been proven to him on more than one occasion that the racing style was ill suited for an actual race, due to the use of weapons. However, on this occasion, he somehow ended up avoiding most of the weapons fired at him.

With his newly adapted racing style, he treated Kyoko's ship as a time to beat, an unattainable target that he was sure he could get. He entered the renamed 'Omega 900' turn, the 900° spiral, on the inside, getting gradually closer to the inner wall until he was almost scraping it. This caused a significant gain on Kyoko, who couldn't get on the inside due to Gareth.

With a snarl, Kyoko made a move no-one had seen before, a unique maneuver that caught even Gareth and Brandon by surprise. The craft drifted almost perpendicular to the wall and tilted sideways towards the front of the track. That had resulted in an unexpected speed increase which was just enough to pull away from Gareth.

That was, however, not a smart move, as it only urged Gareth on, pushing him to speeds he could only achieve through the higher zone speed classes.

"Kyoko, you don't understand. You don't know how determined I am to win... I can defeat you!"

"I would like to see you try."

Out of the Omega 900 spiral, Kyoko straightened out. Gareth had caught up with a turbo, and was using her slipstream to catch up. He was close enough that he could pass her at any second...

"Get off me!" Kyoko growled.

"Mines"

Instantly, that ground he made up was lost, as Gareth was hit by all 5 mines before he knew it. As the first one hit, he instinctively turned, then sideshifted when that proved ineffective, but hit the last one as the craft shifted, which planted him into the wall, sending him into critical shield energy levels. He was able to restore enough energy in a short time, but at the cost of catching up to Kyoko all that much quicker.

Shaken out of it, Gareth slowly reverted back into his zone mindset. Slowly, he managed to gain the ground he lost due to a bout of good luck, obtaining far more turbos than his teammate, whose racing style had gotten slightly more violent. Finally, after several laps, he could see the white and azure craft ahead of him. He held onto his EMP Railgun shot for a while, then he got a clear shot.

"...no. I don't have to resort to that." He said as he absorbed the weapon.

"Wrong choice."

"Bomb"

This time, Gareth had time to prepare himself, since he wasn't close to Kyoko. He sideshifted out of the way with minimal effort, shifting back into the slipstream once more. As he was in view of her, Kyoko began turning using her new-founded style, pulling away from the pursuing Xygen, forcing him to chase her down all over again.

Gareth, on the other hand, was grateful she did that. He began to enjoy the speeds he could achieve through the chase. In fact, he enjoyed the chase more than anything, being able to hunt Kyoko down.

"This is the greatest race EVER! You just keep making it better!"

"How? You just keep failing to pass me!"

"Bhhah! While I do care about passing you, this little chase is so much fun! Also, because of my determination to win, I've been racing faster than I've ever done."

"Argh, you were so much better when you were more passive, now you're just getting annoying."

"You just don't understand my passion."

"YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND!" She shot back. "You act as if I feel the same way you do! BUT GUESS WHAT?! I. DO. NOT."

Suddenly, her racing style changed, becoming instantly more violent in nature. She was all over the place, turning late in some places, sometimes delaying or limiting her acceleration out of a turn in others, all in an attempt to put Gareth off his perfectionist run. However, that was not enough to put him off, as her overall speed was enough to keep herself ahead of him, and because they had both used that tactic before.

"Either way... I will defeat you... for myself."

"DO IT! I DARE YOU TO TRY. You will only destroy yourself in the process."

"Heh. Hehahahaha... Do you realise how much you sounded like Alexandra Gelorum in her Crinale days?"

"I don't care. I care about nothing anymore... do you know the despair I feel? Of course not, because you only think of yourself, you weak, ignorant, arrogant, selfish BASTARD! You will never know what it feels like to hide under a mask, to pretend you are someone else, to act as if you know not... as if you have no feelings towards those you love! Your friends, your hobbies, your likes, your dislikes, ALL GONE! YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW MUCH I HATE THIS! BUT I'VE DONE IT ALL FOR HIM!..."

Kyoko suddenly slammed on the airbrakes, slowing down to allow him and several other pilots to pass.

"What the hell?" Gareth blurted out

"Kehhahahaha... That's it... I have had ENOUGH!"

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 37.2 was Things Falling Apart by Nine Inch Nails... a companion album to The Fragile. Did you remember like I told you to?

[s2_29.3: Part 37.3] The Destructive Condition
<22121108>

Sunday, November 8th, 2212

Omega Harbour, Perth, Australia.

<20:48:20_>
<omega harbour: med fwd_>
<race: lap 36 of 67_>

01. FUJ616.0.43.194 (#43 | Kyoko Fujisaki | AX2.0_r2)
02. ARD889.1.19.194 (#19 | Gareth Ardos | AX2.0_r2) +0.120
06. SCA308.0.7.329 (#7 | Lucia Scarlatti | F0-RA8/00095) +16.306
14. TUR847.1.13.329 (#13 | Leon Turner | F0-RA8/00127) +28.294

Looking at the race's progression, Brandon could see clearly that there was something horribly, horribly wrong. Gareth's racing style was more perfectionist than ever, a display of pure, determined racing that he had never seen before. Kyoko, on the other hand, was all over the place. The racing style she had adopted was wild and rough. While there were no opponents to attack, she was overall violent.

'Violent?' He thought. "....OH CRAP... sh-she... she was right... it's happening."

Brandon was worried for a reason, he recalled a meeting he had with Nikole after the Stoica incident...

------------

Monday, June 15th, 2212

"Because my trust in you has been regained, I'll hear you out. What's the info you have? What's wrong with Tarah?"

"Didn't I tell you at the start of the year? We need some kind of payment."

"As long as it doesn't negatively affect our financial status or our participation in the league."

She thought for a moment, before making her proposition. "Okay, how about this. That car you've shown off, the Neko, I believe it was?"

"What about it?"

"It was really an announcement for Angelus' participation in the World Rally Championship, yeah?"

"Yes."

"Drop out."

"Drop out? From the WRC?"

"Yes, retract your intention to participate. It will do nothing but help you focus more on the F12000."

After some deliberation, Brandon responded. "Fine. As soon as I get the chance, I'll make the announcement, but officially, Angelus will not intend to participate in the WRC as of today."

"Fantastic. Now, the information... We have reason to believe Tarah is under the influence of something called 'The Condition'. The symptoms depend on the host, but basically, it can either cause someone to have extremely violent thoughts without reason, or the more subtle effect, making them more sociopathic."

Brandon had his eyes closed in thought. Suddenly he snapped them open.

"...Sol 3 eliminator..." He muttered.

"What?"

"Nothing... So, is there a cure for this... 'Condition'?"

"That also has to do with it's origins." Her eyes flicked briefly to Alex, then back at Brandon. "It's origins can be traced back to an event that occurred in 2209... Crinale's infiltration of the abandoned Tigron building."

"Sh*t." Alex exclaimed loudly. "I know exactly what you're talking about. When we salvaged that Tigron data, there was one piece that we never used. It detailed an experimental drug that would make their pilots more aggressive."

"Exactly. What you didn't know was that the active compound increased in potency in the 39 years that it lay there unused. When you broke in, that chemical was able to be released into the atmosphere."

"...what? Is... that true?"

"Unfortunately, yes."

Alex placed her hands behind her head... then slammed it on the desk.

"It... was all my fault." She mumbled, her head still planted on the desk. "God... F*CKING DAMN IT!"

Both Brandon and Nikole flinched at Alex's outburst. Slowly, she raised her head, placing her hands on the desk, then suddenly bowed her head down.

"Please... Let me help... I'll do whatever it takes, just let me fix this!" She begged.

After a moment's consideration, Nikole accepted Alex's proposition. "Sure, let's do this. I will need to test you to see if you aren't affected, if you aren't, then I will be more than willing to help you."

"First off, however, I need Crinale back in my hands, the data is securely archived."

"Can't you just access it now?"

"I can, but I have no idea what Viktor will do if he finds out I'm accessing what is effectively his database. Also, I'd be needing access to my researchers, won't I?"

"I'll be willing to help if you need me to." Brandon spoke up.

"No, you've helped more than enough. Please, this is something I must do."

"I disagree. This affects the entire world. We need as much help as we can get. I will do everything I can until you get Crinale back in your hands."

"...okay, fine. Let's do this."

------------
"...if she keeps this up... then... ugh."

His fears became more than just a reality. Kyoko didn't just keep up her violent racing style, it got worse.

"What the hell?"

"Kehhahahaha... That's it... I have had ENOUGH!"

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 37.3 was The Ideal Condition by Paul Hartnoll.

[s2_29.4: Part 37.4] The Holy Angel of Anger
<22121108>

Sunday, November 8th, 2212

Omega Harbour, Perth, Australia.

"Kehhahahaha... That's it... I have had ENOUGH!"

"What are you doing?!" Brandon yelled, slamming his hands on the desk

<salt in the wounds | pendulum (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0nJqRj_b6TM&t=60)_>

"Plasma"

BOOM.

<contender eliminated_>

"HH....AAAHAHAHAHAHA! This is it! THIS IS THE END OF IT ALL! Screw purity! F*ck hiding! Today... I WILL UNLEASH ALL OF MY HATRED UPON YOU ALL! NOW.... DIE."

Despite the low power output of Angelus' weapons system, Kyoko continued on her rampage, firing her weapons both wildly and strategically, depending on the weapon.

<contender eliminated_>

She looked behind her for a second and saw Lucia behind her, slowly catching up.

"YOU!"

"Hahaha, it looks like Angelus has finally lost it. Did all that 'purity' get to you?"

For the second time that race, Kyoko jammed open the airbrakes, the craft jumping under the sudden increase in drag. She didn't question why she could suddenly hear Lucia, there was only one thing on her mind: Destroy.

"Huh?"

As soon as Lucia was ahead, Kyoko closed the brakes and jammed the thrust open with a low "BOOM". Finally, as the black craft was completely in front of the pure white one, she sideshifted directly behind Lucia.

"Rockets"

BOOM.

"Ngh! What gives? I thought your fearless leader taught you to not use so many weapons so aggressively?"

"Pah! You're just a child, you couldn't possibly understand the sh*t I'm going through."

"I'm not a child, I know enough to know that Smith would be unimpressed by your racing right now. Give it up, become a good little pure pilot and accept your fate as Crinale's b*tch."

"How about you learn to respect your elders?"

"F*ck no, just let us eliminate you like you are supposed to. Know your role, sl*t."

"Cannon"

<contender eliminated_>

"You sh*tty CHILD! I told you to respect your f*cking elders!"

Brandon jumped backwards in his seat.

"Kyoko... just eliminated Crinale... how does that even work? ...This situation is worse than I thought."

Kyoko was far from finished, though.

"As for the rest of you..."

"Quake"

"KYAHAHAHAHA! Beware Gareth, I'm coming for you now!"

In less than no time at all, with help from the quake and her new racing style, Kyoko was directly behind her new target.

"Now... allow me to give you a taste of your own medicine!"

"Mines"

"HWHH-?!"

Contrary to her warning, Kyoko was instead the one to taste 5 mines from following closely to the opposing Angelus craft. This time though, her craft twisted itself, facing the wall. She was able to turn it back to face the track again, but she wasn't able to avoid any mines.

"Hah, looks like it was me that gave you a taste of your own medicine. You need to relax, Kyoko, you're being too violent."

"No! I will never relax! You have not once considered my feelings, and now I've had enough of everything! Do you hear me, Gareth Ardos? I. WILL. DESTROY. YOU."

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 37.4 was St. Anger by Metallica... you know, Saint, Holiness, Angel... oh, whatever. Sorry.

[s2_29.5: Part 37.5] An Identity Revealed
<22121108>

Sunday, November 8th, 2212

Omega Harbour, Perth, Australia.

"Hah, looks like it was me that gave you a taste of your own medicine. You need to relax, you're being too violent."

"No! I will never relax! You have not once considered my feelings, and now I've had enough of everything! Do you hear me, Gareth Ardos? I. WILL. DESTROY. YOU."

<blknanct | calla soiled (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fUrCQqccq0E&t=105)_>

"Missiles"

"How is that giving me a taste of my own medicine?! Never have I ever used weapons on you, so why?"

"...[sigh], I'm hurting psychologically, so I'm going to physically hurt you back."

"Kyoko... Why? Why don't we just talk about it, instead of having this stupid, ugly display of violence, this fight to the death... it won't solve any problems."

"It's the only way I can be calm, I just need to do this... I have so much... rage... built up inside me. I just... have to do this... to be free."

"Free? You already are, right?"

"Of course I'm not!"

"Yes you are! You can just take off the mask, the helmet... just be yourself!"

"I can't!"

"Then why... why do you need to be freed?"

"Because... because... I... I just can't free myself."

"How come? Tell me, please! I'm trying to help you."

"You can't help me."

"Again, why not?"

"I-I..."

"Just tell me why you can't free yourself."

"Because... I... I... I PROMISED BRANDON! I PROMISED HIM I'D HIDE MYSELF TO PROTECT US!... F*CK!"

"Brandon?"

"Plasma"

BOOM.

A large purple sphere of energy shot from the tailing craft, which missed Gareth's by mere centimetres.

"WHAT?! How did you avoid that?!"

"I'm in an Angelus Xygen V, it's only natural I can avoid that. If you can maneuver that craft like some kind of angel, then so can I."

"You... YOU! D-Die... DIE! JUST F*CKING DIE!" Kyoko screamed.

"Brandon, I know you're listening. A question: What the hell?!" Gareth asked, he had to know, for his sake, and the broken Kyoko. Brandon hesitated for a moment, before answering him.

"I'll explain when the race is over."

"It nearly is over, this is the last lap!"

<final lap_>

The final lap was as violent as ever, Kyoko trying everything in her power to eliminate Gareth. However, it had proved futile.

"Not even an Angelus can hit an Angelus... fine then."

At that point, she ran over a weapon pickup.

"HAH! I didn't want the race to boil down to pure luck, but I'll take what I can. Goodbye, Gareth! This is it, the final win by Kyoko Fujisaki! Ugh, I feel like sh*t just saying that name, I just want this to end."

"Turbo."

<race complete_>

<first place_>

Kyoko and Gareth passed the finish line. The difference was so close, however that the two pilots had no idea who came first, just that it was a 1-2 win for Angelus. As the other pilots passed the line, Gareth got out, and rushed over to Kyoko, who was out of her craft. She turned to leave without a word, but Brandon appeared in her line of escape.

"Goddamnit! Why can't you LEAVE ME ALONE?!" She yelled, turning around and facing Gareth.

"I'm concerned about you, we all are. That performance was... well, it wasn't like you."

"No sh*t, I just had to end it all, by any means necessary. Your feelings, my despair, EVERYTHING!"

"Kyoko-"

At the mere mention of that name, she screamed, a scream that was louder and more despair filled than any sound she had made in her life.

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH! SHUT UP! SHUT! THE F*CK! UP! I've had to live with that f*cking name for almost 3 whole years! I told you... I told you I have had enough! Just... just call me by my REAL F*CKING NAME!"

Ky... The girl standing before them opened up her helmet and tore it off her head in one fell swoop, hurling it to the ground so hard that it bounced. Her face was just as emotional as one would expect. Anger, sadness, frustration and many more were mixed into one ugly shade of despair.

"My name... is Tarah Andrews. Got that? TARAH HAYLEY ANDREWS!"

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 37.5 was 004 Identity by Monstercat.

[s2_29.6: Part 37.6] End of a Pilot's Reign
<22121108>

Sunday, November 8th, 2212

Omega Harbour, Perth, Australia.

The girl standing before them opened up her helmet, the lights surrounding it flickering off, and tore it off her head in one fell swoop, hurling it to the ground so hard that it bounced. Her face was just as emotional as one would expect. Anger, sadness, frustration and many more were mixed into one ugly shade of despair.

"My name... is Tarah Andrews. Got that? TARAH HAYLEY ANDREWS!"

"T-Tarah?!"

"Finally! You finally speak my real name!"

"Tarah, what the hell? I know you, you wouldn't take the violence that far!"

"Oh, would I? Well, I quite obviously did! Look at you, trying to follow in my footsteps. How... pitiful."

"T-Tarah... what... what the hell? Are you feeling alright?"

"I feel fine! So... completely...... f-fine......"

Gareth shook his head. "Dammit, Tarah, SNAP OUT OF IT! This is not like you!"

His yelling caused her to blink, seemingly snapping out of whatever trance she was in.

"...I-I... I..."

She looked down, and sighed, looking back up.

"I know it's not, but... I don't know, I think I'm broken. Heh... no. I'm definitely broken. I just have these... these extremely violent tendencies... I just... All I can think about is violence, destruction, hurt, kill! AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH.... WHY?! H... HELP ME!"

Filled with rage and hatred for herself, wanting it to all end, she stepped backwards, before breaking out into a sprint... right into Brandon, who wrapped his arms around her, in a soft, warm embrace. It helped though, instead of yelling and raging, she started to break down and cry, her knees giving out and buckling.

"Help me... please. Just make it stop." She pleaded softly.

"It's fine, I anticipated this. Remember the AG pod? I had it built in case of an emergency. Anyway, even though the damage is done already, we need to get back now, to prevent further damage. Come, let's go."

"M'kay." She mumbled, tears in her eyes, as Brandon headed to the car park, still holding Tarah in his arms.

When they got in the car, Brandon set off, priming the Razer.X's Fury mode while they were moving. Once he had it warming up, he planted his foot down, the car accelerating at a decent rate. When he was out of the car park itself and on the piece of road leading out of the course, he finally activated Fury mode, adding 263hp to the car's power output. An addition to the mode was that the azure body light strips would light up no matter what.

As Brandon raced between the traffic, Tarah curled herself up in a ball, muttering "I'm sorry" and "Save me" over and over again. Then, in an even softer, sadder voice...

"K-Kill me."

Brandon had noticed, and placed a hand on her head, speaking softly. "Hey. It'll be alright. Why do you think I'm going so fast? I'm helping you."

A soft whimper came from the direction of Tarah as a response.

The climb up the many levels of the multi-story car park of Angelus' HQ seemed to take forever, but eventually, Brandon reached the highest level. He slid to a halt at one of the spaces and got out, rushing to the other end and helping her out of the car. They ran all the way to the R&D area of the building, after a quick stop over to the kitchen. One section of the R&D area was blocked off by a security door. Brandon entered the passcode as quickly as possible, his fingers a blur as he quickly punched out the keys. When they entered, there was only one object in the smaller room. At the far end was a large device with a thick glass door at the front. Brandon entered another passcode at the glass door, which opened the instant he pushed the enter button.

"The AG Stasis Pod. Like the name suggests, this keeps you suspended in an AG stasis field, while it pumps purified air into the chamber."

"Purified air?"

"Ah, that's right... you don't know of it. Here, take this."

Tarah took the object in Brandon's hand, a cold drink can "Wait, this is..."

"Your favourite. Please, drink up, it'll take a while to explain." Brandon started, explaining The Condition to her, while she cracked open the can and drank from it.

"I... have that?!"

"Yeah, that's where the purified air comes in. With it, you won't be inhaling the toxin."

"So how long do I have to be in there until I'm cured?"

"The Condition is airborne, if you exit the pod, you'll just get the symptoms all over again. We are working on an actual cure, but it requires reverse engineering the chemical. We could have used purifiers, but the cost to effectiveness would have not been financially viable."

"Okay, I understand now..." She replied as she gave the now empty can to Brandon and stepped inside the machine. She looked at him, and said softly, "I'm sorry, I don't think I deserve to see your face until I'm cured. Really, I'm so sorry." Tears began to well up in her eyes.

"It's fine..." Brandon reassured her, "I'm... sorry too."

He closed the door and started the machine. The last thing Tarah saw before the stasis field took effect was Brandon's face, which seemed sad, and was quite teary as well. He turned around and silently walked away, locking the main door behind him.

"Are you okay?" A guard asked him.

"Huh? Oh." Brandon was confused for a moment, but then realised why he was asked that and wiped his eyes. "Yeah, I'm fine. Oh, right. I need to use the conference room for a bit, then I'm done here for the night."

"Sure thing."

In the conference room, he called the rest of the team, still at Omega Harbour.

"Hey team. Those who are with clean-up, you know what to do, pack up and send everything back to HQ. For the rest of you, you're free to leave for the night. Go home, you all deserve a good rest."

"What about Tarah? How is she?"

"Tarah..." His voice caught in his throat, "No, I'll explain tomorrow, I just want this day to be over."

"Wait, wh-"

Brandon cut the connection before anyone could ask any more questions. Not that that stopped anyone. As he was walking to his car in the carpark, he got a call. He looked at the ID and saw it was...

"Damnit, Gareth, I said I'd explain tomorrow!"

"I know, just... Kyo-Tarah left some stuff here."

"What stuff?"

"Like, her bag and some other belongings. What should I do with them?"

Brandon thought for a moment, before answering, "I'm on my way home now, meet me there. Bring her stuff."

"Alright."

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 37.6 was End of an Empire by Celldweller.

[s2_29.7: Part 37.7] The Aftermath
<22121108>

Sunday, November 8th, 2212

Brandon's house, Perth, Australia.

22:05:48

As Brandon crawled up the driveway, he saw the deep blue M-Type sitting outside his house. Standing between Brandon's car and the garage was Gareth, who moved to the side when he saw him.

"Brandon," He started.

"Let me get inside first." Brandon cut him off, pressing forth, the black car crawling into the garage.

Brandon's garage, while looking like it could only hold one car on the outside, housed an elevator that went underground to his true garage, which held many cars he had owned over the years. He parked his current car, and got out, taking a second, smaller elevator up to his house. From there, he went to the front door and opened it.

"Okay, now for Tarah's stuff." He said.

"Sure." Gareth said reluctantly, going to his car and taking out her belongings, giving them to Brandon.

"Thanks."

"Please... just answer me one question!"

"Is it about Tarah?"

"Yes."

"Then no. I'll explain tomorrow. Thanks for her things." He replied, closing the door.

"Ow!" Gareth exclaimed, as the door slammed into his foot he had placed between the door so it wouldn't close.

"Wh-..." He started, before looking down and seeing his foot in the way. "That was your own fault."

"Just answer me! Is... Is she dead?!"

"Why would she be dead? She's very much alive. That's all I'm saying. Everything will be explained tomorrow. She is safe, trust me."

"[sigh], fine. I'll see you tomorrow then."

A look of sadness briefly appeared on Brandon's face as he closed the door, completely done with the day.

------------
<22121109>

Monday, November 9th, 2212

Angelus R&D HQ, Perth, Australia.

08:30:00

Brandon started the day by keeping his promise, and began revealing the truth of the cause of the prior day's events.

"I told you that I would explain what happened during the events of the recent Omega Harbour race... so here it is. Kyoko Fujisaki was, in actuality, our beloved pilot Tarah Andrews. I had made her adopt the pseudonym to protect her, since by announcing our new relationship, I had inadvertently made her a target to get at me. The Christmas '10 incident was proof of that.

"However, little did I know that there was something in the air. Literally. In the air right now, there is a chemical that was released 3 years ago. The chemical was originally an active ingredient to a drug used by Tigron to make their pilots more violent. Don't worry, not all of you are susceptible... however, there are some people who are, Tarah included.

"This explains her performance in the last race, she was under the effects of the chemical, which we call The Condition. After the race ended, I immediately took her to... a certain location. I had the AG pod moved there and placed her inside it. I feel I can reveal the details of the pod's workings.

"The Anti-Gravity Stasis Pod places the user in an AG stasis field, while it continually pumps filtered air through the chamber. It is by no means a cure for The Condition, there's something massive in the works for that, but it does help remove the chemical from the affected person's system naturally, which in turn removes the symptoms.

"This means that until the cure is developed and deployed, Tarah will not be participating in any AG league, be it the F12000 or any league after. I've been thinking and discussing our options, and we can do one of two things. We can either drop the second pilot and have Gareth be our one and only pilot, or we ask around. In any case, we will have a final roster for the final 2212 race and onward."

After the meeting Brandon asked around for a pilot. The responses ranged from "Getting me ready in 2 weeks time is just impossible" to a flat out "No.", to...

"H-huh? No... that's not happening. I'm not racing. I told you already, I'm only wanting to help behind the scenes, I'd rather not fly for you, even under a pseudonym." Alex replied in response to Brandon's request. "Besides, everyone knows of the whole Tarah being in a disguise thing, they wouldn't buy it if I did it."

It seemed that there was just no-one willing to race, and naturally so. Knowing that, Brandon moved on, finding who was now the only pilot of Angelus, sitting at the lounge.

"Gareth, a word, if you don't mind?" He asked, getting the other man's attention, who looked up and nodded.

"Sure, what's up?"

Brandon sat near him, and began what he wanted to speak with him about. "Now, I've always known you were a good pilot, but not as good as Tarah with actual races, or so I thought. I just reviewed your race at Omega Harbour, and... I don't know how to say this... ah... it was nothing short of perfect!"

"It... really? Well, thanks."

"Could you do it again? For every race?"

Gareth blinked, looking quite shocked. Nervously, he looked around, then sighed and looked at his feet. "I... don't know. I've always raced in styles I found fun. In that race, I had a target, a purpose... and chasing Ky-Tarah down was the most fun I ever had. I was determined to win, to beat her, and with her gone, I'm not sure I can do it again."

"See, you're wrong." Brandon shook his head. "You just proved it yourself. You need the determination to win, the feeling, the confidence that you can win. It's why you are the best here at Zone runs. You are confident that you can win at them, thus, you do. If you put that confidence in racing, you can win. You have the potential to be as good as Tarah."

That pep-talk raised his spirits, he looked much happier now. "Okay... I'll do it!"

Brandon smiled too, nodding slightly. "Good. Now, Tarah left one last high score on the simulator... I want you, as a test, as training, to beat that record. You can do it... you will do it."

And his spirits left him once more. He knew of the high score, a previously unattainable target for him. But Brandon having faith in him did bring his confidence up. "I... err... I'll try."

"No. You will. Confidence is key, Gareth. If you say you can do it, and you legitimately feel it, in your heart, in your whole being... then, it will happen."

Clenching his fist, Gareth started psyching himself up, taking Brandon's confidence in him and making it his own. He had the talent, Brandon could see the talent in him, it was up to him to bring it out of himself. Suddenly, he shot up out of his seat.

"Right... I will beat her record!"

"That's the spirit." Brandon said, standing up too.

Seeing him stand up, Gareth started walking out of the room. Brandon ran after him, following him to the simulator room. He set it up for the remaining pilot, who was raring to go.

"Alright, let's do this!"

------------
"...I lost, damn it!"

That was the case, Gareth did, indeed lose to Tarah's final record. However...

"Now, you see?" Brandon commented, "I didn't say you'd get it first try... but look! You've beaten your own record by a gargantuan amount! You should not let this loss get you down. Keep practising, keep your confidence and you will definitely get there."

That was an undeniable fact, he had done far better than he did before, and because of that, he smiled happily. "Thanks, mate. Thank you so much. I still believe I can do this."

"Excellent! Shall we go again?"

>>logs[22100311|22120131](2) are now available for public viewing
>>logs downloading...
>>estimated download time: 6 hours
>>download: complete_

[Ace3000]

>>log_02: 22100321_

Thursday, March 21st, 2210

Angelus R&D HQ, Perth, Australia

10:44:12

As soon as she walked in, Brandon disabled the CCTV in his office.

"Tarah, I need to discuss something with you."

"What?" She asked coldly.

"Look, I'm sorry about the other day, I had to make a scene."

"Why?"

"To save you."

"...??" A confused look was on her face

"See, because we've grown close, there are some people who want to use you to get at me."

"Huh?"

"It's fine, I've had time to think about it, and the only safe option for you is to hide under a disguise."

"A disguise?"

"Next Monday, Tarah Andrews will resign from Angelus R&D, and so I will have to search for a new pilot. One or two weeks later, I will find someone. A 'Kyoko Fujisaki'."

"Kyoko Fujisaki?" She repeated.

"Basically, your disguise." He went on to describe her personality and appearance. "She is never seen in public without her helmet on. In fact, she is almost always seen wearing her full racing suit. She rarely comes to Angelus, only doing so to train, and even then, she makes sure she is never seen."

"Alright, I think I got it."

"Oh, and she also speaks Japanese. Don't worry though, I've got a translator in development. When you'll be speaking English with the translator off, people will think it's on and vice-versa."

"You... really thought this through, didn't you?"

"For every situation, I always think several steps ahead. I've always joked that I'd be quite good at chess, if I had any interest in the game in the first place!"

She moved to a quite shy-looking position, then spoke, blushing. "Well... d-did you think of... this step?"

She suddenly leapt up on the desk, grabbing Brandon by the shirt and pulling him in for a passionate kiss.

"Wh-?!"

After pulling away, she took a large breath, "I just had to do that. I-I'm just so glad that you still love me, cause I still love you! Tonight... th-that will be our first..." Her usual happy demeanour had returned once more.

"First...?"

[ERROR: FURTHER DATA CORRUPT]

<!--end log-->

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 37.7 was 012 Aftermath by Monstercat.

[s2_30.0: Part 38.0] Brace for the End
<22121118>

Wednesday, November 18th, 2212

Location Unknown.

"This is it, our final meeting before the plan is undertaken." CO-02 opened with, beginning the final meeting between the Crinale Originals and Alex. Lucia would have attended, but was busy pretending to practice for the final race of 2212.

"So, we've had a recent development. According to one source of ours, Syncline are attempting to take the team from the inside."

"We have done some negotiations with them," CO-04 spoke up. "And they have agreed upon our plan."

"That explains it," Alex replied, in realisation. "I, too, have been in contact with that group. They contacted me recently, questioning me about the credibility and trustworthiness of you all. Naturally, I told them the truth. We've all matured, become wiser. 2210 was a major tipping point in Crinale, not just because of the change in leadership, but because we've realised our true goals. I told Syncline that the CO's and my new goals are to still provide entertainment, but through a rivalry with Angelus, nothing further. I still stand by the fact that I don't particularly prefer their ideals of a high handling, low shield craft, but I can now agree that a new F9000 is not what this sport needs. The F12000 will definitely fall soon, but first things first, my team needs to be back in my hands."

"Exactly." CO-02 agreed with her, "We could not agree more. Now, back on topic. Syncline have also decided to aid us in taking Crinale back."

"As does Angelus. Brandon will be accompanying us."

"That is fine. We need to fight against the greater evil."

"True. Now, about OE-0."

"We know where our target is being held up." CO-09 replied, hearing the codename for their target. "Or more, where they will be. I am sure you are aware of a construct called Преисподняя?"

"Tch, right, that Russian fortress that's been said to be impenetrable." Alex said

"Viktor is still the Tsar of Russia, that is the one place he would think he would be safe. However, thanks to some data we've obtained, we now know that to not be the case."

"Ah, that data I got from Brandon?"

"Yes. The one showing weaknesses in the fortress' security systems."

"I'm curious," CO-13 asked. "How did he obtain that data?"

Alex shrugged. "I asked him, but he wouldn't tell me. Something only he knows about, apparently."

"We can pursue that later on, after this is over." CO-02 cut in, trying to bring them back on topic. "Now, we've spoken to Lucia, and she knows what to do. Oh, there is one small thing though, Alex."

"Go on."

"She was almost ready to give up on Crinale and quit the team."

"That's quite problematic, I was hoping she'd stay. She has an amazing talent that I've never seen anywhere else."

"I was thinking you'd say that. We have convinced her to stay long enough to hear you out, once this whole thing's over."

"I can only hope she'll stay. It will be a very different team to the one she knows. What about the other one, Leon?"

"Leon races because he enjoys it, there is no doubt that he would stay because of that, no matter what happens."

"Perfect. I cannot deny that he has talent too, guess he takes after Naomi."

"So, the people going to the rendezvous are all 10 of us, Alex, Lucia and Brandon?" CO-06 asked.

"Yes." CO-02 replied. "We do not need irrelevant people getting caught up in this, on the off-chance this all goes horribly wrong. Brandon can hold his own, and Lucia's too far into this to back out now, not that we can stop her now, anyway."

"Heh, that's true." CO-11 joked.

"In addition, Syncline have helped us in preparing Lucia for combat."

"I thought she was against it?" CO-03 queried.

"Only on the track, when it is unnecessary." CO-06 answered them.

"Alright," CO-02 concluded, realising they had come to a natural ending point for their conference. "Late tomorrow, we all meet up at Point 12-D3. From then on, we go about our day. On race day, we meet up at Point A-12 and move on from there, Brandon will meet up at Point 0 after the race starts. That is all."

"Everyone should now begin preparations for the plan." CO-13 added. "I shouldn't have to say that this is something that should not be taken lightly."

"Indeed. Ending transmission."

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 38 was Brace by Birds of Tokyo. In addition, it's also a reference to a lyric in the chorus of the title track.

[s2_31.1: Part 39.1] Arrival of the Hunting Party
<22121119>

Thursday, November 19th, 2212

Unknown Location [Point 12-D3], Russia.

19:25:04

The sound of a helicopter filled the dark, windy night sky of Moscow. Atop a certain skyscraper was a heliport, the destination of the helicopter's passenger. The location was referred to the current occupants as Point 12-D3, a minor meeting point for those related to a certain plan to be carried out. Eleven individuals stood on that roof, their hair and clothes moving in the wind. All eleven of them looked up upon hearing the sound of the aircraft arriving, which was difficult to see in the overcast weather.

"She's here." One of the ten suited individuals spoke, to the remaining person, who was wearing a leather jacket to keep warm in the cold weather.

As the girl nodded, the helicopter came into view, coming in to land on the heliport. The door opened, one person getting out. She was a woman, of taller than average height, with dark, shoulder-length hair. She was wearing, all in black, a turtleneck crop-top, pants and a rather long coat. The coat was unzipped, had the collar flipped up to shield her neck from the wind, and was flapping in both the natural wind, and the flow of air created by the helicopter's rotors.

Sliding her hands in her coat's pockets, the woman started walking towards the group of people, as the helicopter took off, making its journey back, making the coat and even her hair move about in the wind. Her green eyes scanned the populated area, seeing the ten suited people she knew well and the one girl in the leather jacket, that she did not. Once she had gotten close enough, she held out her hand, and spoke to the girl.

"My name is Alexandra Kotova, founder and former Director of Crinale. I've heard a lot about you."

The girl looked down at the woman's hand, then back up at her face. "Lucia Scarlatti, I just want this over. I agreed to stay to hear you out, so let's hear it, why should I stay?"

Alex smiled, dropping her hand gracefully. "You said it yourself, you'd rather get this over with. Let's just focus on the plan, We can talk about that afterwards."

A few seconds of silent consideration later, Lucia sighed. "Fine, let's get out of here, then. It's cold as sh*t."

The woman couldn't help but chuckle. "Welcome to my homeland, Lucia. It's always cold here." She then turned to the rest of the people that were there to greet her. "It's good to see you all again."

CO-02 was the one to reply, but it was no surprise that they did speak for them all. "It's good to finally see you again, too, Alex. Frankly, we've missed you."

"Thank you, I've missed you all too. Anyway, let's go, we can talk on the way out."

Spinning around, the woman started walking to the entrance of the building, her coat swishing and flapping in the wind. The group of 11 started following her, making their way down and out of the tall building, starting to make their way to where they would be for most of that weekend.

As she looked ahead, Alex spoke to her former group members. "So what's the situation on OE-0?"

CO-02, again, was the one to respond. "Everything is normal. The plan is going smoothly."

"Perfect. This is the one time we have to do this. The sooner the better."

"However, it would not do well to have the one plan. We've devised a backup plan, should this one fail. However, it's a last resort, all of our attention will be focused upon this plan."

"Hopefully, we will not have any use for that backup plan, but you're right, it wouldn't be smart to have nothing to fall back on." Alex then looked to Lucia. "While I have heard much about you, one thing I have not heard is your reasoning for accepting to take part in this plan. If you don't mind, could you tell me?"

"This team is sh*t. They don't care about proper racing strategy, they just want pilots who would mindlessly destroy the competition, not winning through actual racing talent and strategy."

"Hmm..." Alex contemplated.

"That's not all though, they'd even go so far as to attack me for just planning out the perfect route around a circuit."

Lucia flipped her hair away from her face, pulling it behind her ear.

"You probably can't see it in the dark, but I've got a scar from when they did it. Cut my face open with... well, I don't even know what it was, they swiped at me so quickly. One minute I was threatening to walk out, the next I was on the floor, and in f*cking agony."

"And... exactly how far are you willing to go with this plan?"

The leather jacket-clad young woman stepped in front of the older woman, and stared up, directly into her eyes. "I will kill the bastard with my bare f*cking hands if I so damn well need to."

A few seconds had passed. The two women looked at each other wordlessly. Just as silently, the taller woman removed her hand from her coat pockets and placed it onto the shorter girl's shoulder.

"Well, then. You definitely seem to have the resolve. I just had to test that, sorry."

Lucia sighed. "Fine, do what you must. Just... don't kick me off this... 'plan', okay? I still want this done, I still want them dead."

"That would be counter-productive. I'm not going to kick you off. You've come this far, and the COs trust you enough."

They had travelled about half of the way back. At that point, Alex split off from the group.

"I'll meet up with Angelus, this is where we depart. Remember, no contact until the day of the race. You should all know what to do."

With that she turned and headed for another location, one planned beforehand by the team that was helping her.

------------
Vnukovo International Airport, Moscow, Russia

19:45:32

At that moment, that certain team had arrived at Vnukovo International Airport. The team leader had a plan set out, and upon landing, had put that plan into effect. He informed the team to send the craft, relevant personnel and other mechanical and technical things to the track's location, and the pilot, the rest of the personnel and their belongings to the hotel they had been provided with.

After taking his belongings and getting through customs, he set off, walking out of the airport and starting to look for a rented, but still relatively new Neko, the compact car from the team's motor car branch. He had got the car delivered to the airport in advance, and obtained the key after providing them with his credentials. At last, he had found it, a small, familiar car, in a red paintjob. Putting the two suitcases in the back, he got into the car and drove off.

The man drove, not to the track or the hotel his team had been provided with, but another location entirely. It was a square near a skyscraper with a heliport on top of it. That location was where he was to meet up with a woman, and take her back to the track with him.

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 39.1 was The Hunting Party by Linkin Park.

[s2_31.2: Part 39.2] Assembling The Resistance
<22121119>

Thursday, November 19th, 2212

Unknown Location, Russia.

20:13:01

Alex was waiting at the square she had planned to meet up at, which lay between a few buildings. The wait wasn't that long, when the sound of an inline-4 grabbed her attention. Looking around, she saw a red compact driving up to the square, parking by it. Having seen the car's design before, she walked up to the car and knocked on the window. The driver lowered it and looked out at her.

"Alex." Brandon greeted her. "Did everything go well?"

Knowing it was the person she was waiting for, Alex walked over to the passenger's side of the car, and got in. "I had no doubt that it would. The plan's still on."

Brandon's usual smile filled his face. "Fantastic."

"Oh, on a side note, did you bring my stuff?"

"Yeah, it's in the back. Ready to go?"

"Let's move."

A simple nod came as Brandon's response, as he started to drive to the final course in the F12000's 2212 roster: Vohl Square II, a course that was originally in the F9000, but was updated to match the F12000's rules and regulations. As such, the long course no longer had the open area, an enclosed track section filled the gap and closed it off. However, apart from that, the overall layout was largely the same as the old version, even using the old track portions, albeit upgraded from the old 2150's surfaces to use modern materials.

The two of them had arrived at the track, and met up with the rest of the Angelus employees, who were setting up for the final practice day.

"As a track, I cannot deny that it is solid at the very least. As an idea for the roster... no. This guy really wants a new F9000, more so than you did." Brandon commented.

"It's more so than you think, Brandon." Alex replied.

"?"

"It's not so much that he wants an F9000, more so that he has his new F9000. This is just the first season, so there's not that much in way of illegalities. For a comparison, the best example would be the debut season, the 2154 season."

"Hmm, you're right. That is why we must destroy this league before it gets to the truly horrible stuff."

"Definitely. But we must not bite off more than we can chew."

"If I didn't know that, I would be going straight for the league in the first place, not taking the time to meticulously go over the plan to get your team back."

"You have a point. Still, I appreciate your help."

"No problem."

He walked over to the technicians and mechanics working on setting up for the race, looking over their set-up and ensuring that everything was alright. Soon, though, it became late, so Brandon decided to leave for the night.

"There's nothing I need to stay here for. We're done for the night, you can continue any work that still needs to be done in the morning. See ya."

------------
<22121120>

Friday, November 20th, 2212

Vohl Square II, Moscow, Russia.

10:13:58

The next day, the final settings were made to the only craft Angelus brought, the one used by Gareth Ardos. Once it was complete, they decided to send him out, to get a feel for the course, and to make any fine adjustments to the craft's tuning. Due to the changes in the pilot line-up, when Gareth was called back for the first of his craft's fine-tuning, they decided to deviate from the norm.

"Alright, so before, we used to just tune the craft based on the data it sends back to us, but for this round, I'd like you to give us the feedback. What should we change and by how much?"

Gareth looked surprised. "Huh? Uh... I didn't know we were going to do it like that. But... perhaps, maybe..."

He made a note of how the craft handled, and gave suggestions on what they could do to prevent the negative parts, and how to improve the craft's overall speed through not only the corners, but the various complexes the course had. Such adjustments included how much the craft bounced on the track when moving over bumpy or hilly sections, the tilt angle when going through a corner and how fast it tilted, and the force the airbrake provided along with how long it took to completely deploy and retract.

The process to set the craft up to Gareth's liking took the whole day, going back and forth between going on the track and bringing it back for further fine-tuning, but it was ready for the qualifying round, and the race itself.

------------
<22121121>

Saturday, November 21th, 2212

Vohl Square II, Moscow, Russia.

14:09:35

For the qualifier, two different settings were used. One of those were the settings the team would have used had they used the data sent back, the other being Gareth's set-up. Both seemed to be fairly similar, but with the latter set-up, Gareth was able to post much faster lap times.

"...amazing. I never knew I had that in me!"

It was a very fast time indeed, but it wasn't fast enough to get pole position. However, Brandon spoke to him, giving him a sort of pep-talk.

"It is very fast... but I know this craft is capable of so much more. Keep going, I know you can do it. Push for pole."

"U-uh... okay. I'll t-... I'll do it."

"That's it." Brandon replied with a smile.

Gareth did push harder, and made full use of his own set-up. Unfortunately, he had slipped into his Zone mindset, and... zoned out. He had not realised until he heard people yelling into his communications system that he had actually set a league record 6 consecutive times.

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 39.2 was The Resistance by Muse.

[s2_31.3: Part 39.3] Fighting the Juggernaut: Alpha
<22121122>

Sunday, November 22th, 2212

Vohl Square II, Moscow, Russia.

09:49:23

More spectators were present at the racetrack than usual, as it was the final race of the year. All of the teams were busy preparing, making final fine-adjustments to almost everything they could. Angelus, while also working hard, didn't particularly need to change anything regarding the craft, as it had already been tuned to near-perfection with Gareth's help.

"Well, this is the final race of the season." Brandon spoke to his team, "Let's hope that everything becomes better after this. But let's just focus on this race. Once again, we're given reminders of the old F9000, this whole course is one of them, Vohl Square II. It will be tricky, but I have faith in my craft and my pilot. Now, unfortunately, I won't be able to oversee the race, I have some important business to attend to. However, like I said, I have no doubt that Gareth will be able to do a very good job. Alright, let's get ready to race."

Upon hearing the 5 minute warning, everyone split up. Gareth and some technicians headed to the craft, where the sole remaining pilot got in, and was assisted up to the start grid. Brandon and other engineers went up to the control room and the rest stayed where they were, working on making the race as smooth as it could go.

At long last, their 5 minutes were up, and the race began.

------------
09:50:00

At Crinale's pits, while the various team members were trying to get ready for the race, they could not find Lucia anywhere. She, as far as they were aware, had disappeared off the face of the earth. Not even her phone was working, as if it were turned off. Because of that, upon the 5 minute warning sounding, the F12000 officials had to bring the positions after her up, the 27th ranked racer being allowed to race.

What they didn't know was that she had met up with the COs, at what they had called Point A-12. They were on board a small rented bus, and were on their way to Point 0, where they would wait for Brandon to meet up with them, which would only happen a certain time after the race began.

3, 2, 1... GO!
<10:00:00_>
<vohl square ii: short fwd_>
<race: lap 01 of 88_>

01. ARD889.0.19.194 (#19 | Gareth Ardos | AX2.0_r3)
02. TUR847.1.13.329 (#13 | Leon Turner | F0-RA8/00191)

<zero searcher | desimal (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUEV-ZrIaOs&t=150)_>

"Alright, that's my leave, see you soon." Brandon said, walking out.

As the control room's occupants waved Brandon out, they saw the craft shoot off at an incredible speed. Like the last race, Gareth's start was different to any other race he participated in. This time, his racing style was more aggressive, but not violent, as his new evolution made him want to win more than anything else. While he did have the choice, he decided to stick with his usual craft, instead of using Tarah's, with it's unique livery.

While tuned to his liking, Gareth also had his craft upgraded again. He had a prototype thrust system installed into his craft, all to give him the edge over the competition. However, he wasn't the only one to upgrade his craft. Leon had also paid for yet more upgrades to his craft, making his craft's weapon systems more powerful. Those upgrades cancelled each other out, as no one pilot had the upper hand.

Another reason why was that due to extensive practice on their home circuit, Crinale were able to keep up with Gareth. While the latter had received adequate practice, he could not get as much practice as Crinale did. Had Lucia been racing, she would have been so far ahead, Gareth would've had a very slim chance of catching up to her, despite the fact that he was racing much faster than he used to.

Because he knew the course extremely well, Leon was able to sideshift out of the way of some mines placed in a rather difficult corner, and realign himself for the rest of the corner, so when he exited it, he was in just the right position for the next corner, where he let out some missiles when he locked onto the azure craft...

------------
Point 0, Outside Preispodnyaya, Russia

10:22:38

A small red car slid to a stop from quite a high speed. It stopped next to what looked to be a small bus, a group of 12 people standing by it, some looking at various "equipment" inside the bus' storage area. One woman, clad in a rather long coat in particular saw the tiny compact speed up to and stop near the larger transport. Seeing the driver step out, she greeted him.

"Brandon, you finally made it."

"I got here as fast as I could." Brandon replied. "We all ready?"

"Yes. All that is needed is for you to pull that thread and destroy the security, then we can proceed."

"Right, on it."

Brandon reached into the car and pulled out a laptop from the passenger's seat. Opening it and turning it on, he executed a program on it, bringing up a rather large list of files. He selected one of them after scrolling down for a while and passed it over to Alex.

"Here, I am sure one of you can get how to bring it down. I just uncovered the data on this place's weaknesses."

Immediately, she passed it over to CO-11, telling him. "I'm sure you can do it, with 02 and maybe 05's help."

Looking over the data with the other two COs she mentioned, they were all able to find out how to bring the entire security system down, including the confinement cage, and all would have been possible with the very laptop that was in their hands. Of course, it was a very small, obscure opening, one that was easily overlooked. So, that begged the question.

"I really have to know, how did you get by this information?" Alex asked him.

"Is that really important?" Was Brandon's reply, complete with emotionless smile.

"It is."

"Okay, let's just say I obtained the data on the security and looked it over until I found the security hole. Would that suffice?"

"And how did you get such sensitive information?"

"[sigh], let's just sa-"

"Let's just say you actually tell me the truth, hmm?"

Brandon's smile faltered, leaving just a cold glare in her direction. "Hey. I work hard, just as you do. We may not agree on everything, but we have a common goal. How about we just work together towards that goal and not scrutinise anyone until we get this job done, okay?"

Alex remained in her stance, ready to fire off another counterargument, but decided against it.

"Tch, fine. 02, 05, 11, are you ready to kill this place?"

"Yep, we know exactly what we can do with the info we have."

"Then get on it."

As she gave them the order, they instantly set to work, configuring everything needed to connect to the security systems, after asking Brandon if they could tamper with his laptop, and getting the response of "Sure, I got it solely for this operation. Destroy it if you want, I don't care what happens to it. Although..."

Brandon took control temporarily, killing a certain process and unplugging something.

"That's rather important, wouldn't want anyone taking control of that. Please, continue."

After that, they continued their work, completing it after a very short while. Looking at each other, then Alex and Brandon, they activated the metaphorical kill-switch after both gave them an approving nod. A low hum emanated from the building, before slowly dying out. The first hurdle was done, as the entire security system of the fortress fell apart.

"Alright. Get ready, grab the stuff, we're going in!" Alex commanded.

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 39.3 was Juggernaut: Alpha, the first half of a double album by Periphery.

[s2_31.4: Part 39.4] Between Two Worlds
<22121122>

Sunday, November 22th, 2212

Point 0, Outside Preispodnyaya, Russia.

10:38:31

"Alright. Get ready, grab the stuff, we're going in!" Alex commanded.

Knowing that time was of the essence, no-one had the time to complain about the fact that they were expected to just simply walk into the front doors of the place. The quicker they moved, the less time they would give their target to compose themselves from the initial confusion and escape. The 10 COs and Lucia grabbed a weapon each, and followed Alex and Brandon to the fortress itself, pulling the door open, and entered, ready to put the next phase of the plan into action...

------------
<10:39:00_>
<vohl square ii: short fwd_>
<race: lap 48 of 88_>

01. TUR847.1.13.329 (#13 | Leon Turner | F0-RA8/00191)
03. ARD889.0.19.194 (#19 | Gareth Ardos | AX2.0_r3)

<rinsa | photek (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p12IrYl3X6E&t=104)_>

For around 40 laps, Leon was playing a long game with Gareth. He planted enough weapons behind him to keep Viktor happy, but was also playing a strategy given to him by Lucia before her disappearance. He actively attempted to stay in the lead. Although, due to his advanced knowledge of the course, that task was easier than he had originally thought.

Further down the pack, Gareth was having difficulty getting back ahead again. The main cause of his difficulties were due to him having to avoid the various mines and bombs planted by Leon. Although, there did seem to be a rather large amount of them, and Gareth had picked up on it. He opened his communication system and broke the quite lengthy silence.

"Hey, what the hell is going on? Th--"

"Bomb."

"Ghh!"

Gareth was caught off mid-sentence, as he came within centimetres of tripping the bomb and pushing himself further behind.

"This is not a racetrack, it's a freaking minefield! There's mines and bombs everywhere!"

The person in charge of the communications system, in the absence of Brandon, spoke. "It's Leon, it's the only things he's getting. Something is definitely amiss, although we suspect this is more tampering of a circuit that's theirs."

"Right..."

Since he was preoccupied with avoiding all the weaponry on the track, it took him a while to realise where they were getting at. "Wait, you mean like 2209?"

"Exactly. Although, instead of banned weapons, it's giving them whatever weapons they like."

"Tch, damn it! Can they even remotely make one single attempt to race fair?!"

Gareth resumed his radio silence, passing the Jennter that ran into a bomb, strategically placed after some mines so that it was extremely difficult to avoid. As he passed the slowing craft, he was reminded of something, as he kept swerving and sideshifting to avoid the various mines on the track.

'This feels like the final mission in that driving game I played a while back' He thought.

His zone mindset also accounted for Zone Battles, so he was able to avoid most of the mines and bombs, apart from the odd unavoidable set. However, since he forced that mindset to be moulded to races as well, he had held his own, retaining a mild gap between him and Leon, which was neither widening nor shortening. Leon had closed the gap between their talents, they were now on equal footing.

Had the mines not been there, he would have been able to catch up to the darker craft laying out the explosive obstacles. Or so he thought. On the 61st lap, Gareth's luck had turned on its head, as he was finally able to simultaneously destroy those obstacles and harm the pilot behind them...

------------
Preispodnyaya, Russia.

10:49:40

10 similarly-dressed individuals, along with 3 others had successfully entered the fortress and were sneaking through the near defenceless building. The only defences remaining were the ones that weren't controlled through electronics: actual human guards. However, they had observed a route they could take, and were halfway through taking it. The route was one where there would be the least amount of guards along it.

They made no noises, not even to speak. All of their communication was done through hand gestures, and even then, it was only related to the task at hand, navigating the building without being caught. Every so often, they would all move silently, swiftly, to the side, into one hallway, while they waited for the guard approaching their general location to move out of view. Once they were, they continued on, slipping out of their hiding place and sneaking as fast and as silently as they could...

<timberwolf | muzzy (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4JVOwODt_I&t=21)_>

...The Crinale Originals, Lucia, Alex and Brandon kept moving, closing the distance between them and their target, bit by bit...

------------
Vohl Square II, Moscow, Russia.

10:51:28

...a clean track, free from any mines or bombs put a smile on his face, as he loosened his tightened grip on the controls...

...Gareth kept racing, closing the distance between him and his target, bit by bit...

------------

The two groups, fighting for their own reasons...

...the climax of both battles were simultaneously approaching...

...the final race of 2212 would bring an end to a lot more than just the racing season...

...and in the midst of it all...

...one... will...

...fall.

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 39.4 was Between II Worlds by Nero.

[s2_31.5: Part 39.5] Overkill
<22121122>

Sunday, November 22th, 2212

<10:49:38_>
<vohl square ii: short fwd_>
<race: lap 61 of 88_>

01. TUR847.1.13.329 (#13 | Leon Turner | F0-RA8/00191)
02. ARD889.0.19.194 (#19 | Gareth Ardos | AX2.0_r3)

<timberwolf | muzzy (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4JVOwODt_I&t=158)_>

"Quake."

The wall of asphalt shot forward, following the track. What it left behind was a clean track, free from any mines or bombs. A smile appeared on Gareth's face as he loosened his tightened grip on the controls. He twitched his hands to the left, then turned the controls all the way to the right. The maneuver caused the craft to turn in a rather aggressive way. His mindset changed back to the one he had when the race began, as he attempted to make full use of the advantage given to him.

His lap time had immediately improved, as he was able to use the whole track without having to worry about mines or bombs... until the quake had passed through Leon and he was free to begin laying them down again. But the damage was already done. The combination of having his mines and bombs destroyed, and being slowed down from the quake damaging him was all it took to bring Gareth so much closer to the black and orange craft.

"Tch, damn it." Came the response of the Crinale pilot.

As he got back up to speed, he decided to refrain from placing so many of the explosives on the track, only putting as much to let Gareth catch up to a certain extent, effectively laying dormant until the final lap, where he would launch his counter-attack to ensure his victory.

For the first time since the massive amount of mines and bombs appearing, Gareth could see the craft putting them out. His hands were twisting the controls so quickly it seemed like they were snapping between only 3 directions: left, right and straight. The blindingly fast movements synced up with his craft's equally fast handling, propelling him along that much faster. Unfortunately, though, he wasn't close enough to Leon that missiles or rockets would be effective, only another quake.

The laps were flying by, there were not that many left remaining. The higher that number grew, the more tension filled the air, not just in the two warring pilots' craft, but the audience spectating. Everyone was aware that, because of a lack of actual combat between them, there would be some massive tactical strategy that was waiting to be unleashed. Of course, they were right, but they did not know that.

The final lap had come, it was almost time for the final phase of the two Crinale pilots' strategy to be carried out. As that final lap was raced, Leon allowed Gareth to close the gap between them ever so slightly, as he recalled the details of the plan once more in his mind...


"You cannot afford to lose on our home course," Lucia began, "So here's what you do: Keep ahead of him, let him think up some strategy of passing you. Then, before he puts it into action, pull your airbrakes open, let him pass, then fire a weapon into him. Pass him and keep the lead. Don't leave it too early or late, you must only do it at the final lap, near the end, at just the right moment."

"Hold up, I remember something similar..." Leon interjected.

"Exactly. Kyoko, or Tarah, I guess I should call her now," She rolled her eyes. "She did a similar tactic, I just took it and made it into an actual strategy. No-one would think to intentionally slow down, so the tactic creates a lot of confusion that takes a long time to recover from. But still, if you leave it until too late, he will definitely fire a weapon at you first. That will cause you to lose."

"Wait, what about you, then? Aren't you going to win?"

She looked down, and then away. "I can't say anymore on that matter. It's not something you need to know."

They were nearing the end, the final chicane series followed by the final longer corner was nearing, closer and closer. The time had come for that counter-attack to begin. As if mirroring the Omega Harbour race prior, Leon had slammed his airbrakes open. The heavy craft's speed dropped quite dramatically, allowing Gareth to pass him to fire the final weapon up his sleeve...

------------
Preispodnyaya, Russia.

10:51:28

A stroke of luck, skill, and teamwork had brought all 13 individuals to their destination, behind a rather heavy set of doors. Under normal circumstances, that door would be barricaded with approximately 30 high security electronic locks. Every single one of those locks were rendered useless with the effective blackout imposed by the group of people now standing close to the door. However, there was one last hurdle. Or more, two.

Two guards were standing outside the door, who looked like their sole purpose was to keep watch at all times. Looking at one another, two of the COs each brought up what looked like a pistol, close to their chest, their fingers on the trigger while they held it securely with both of their hands. After a brief nod, they moved as quickly as they could, as if they were professional combatants.

CO-09 spun out from behind the wall, aiming the pistol at the guard to the right and firing two shots in quick succession.

Just as blindingly fast, CO-12 rolled from the same wall, and in even quicker succession, fired two shots at the guard to the left.

The guards had attempted to retaliate by aiming their own assault rifles at them, but all they could manage was moving it to face them, before getting hit, which caused them to fumble with the rifle as they were rotating it. Had it not been for the strap around their bodies, the next thing they would have done would be to send the guns flying as they lost their grip along with their consciousness, but because of said straps, all the action managed to do was to make the guns soar in the air for about half a metre, then swing down back to their bodies as they hit the end of the strap's length. While that was happening, they had started to collapse themselves, and were soon unconscious on the floor.

The two gave the rest of the team the okay with a single hand gesture, allowing them to navigate the short hallway with ease, right up to the door. Brandon had looked down at the guards and the bloodless floor, and noticed they were still breathing. They had, of course, been shot with fast-acting tranquillisers, not real bullets. But the more important thing, the door. The final obstacle between the group and OE-0, (Crinale) Original Enemy-0, was pushed open as easily as a heavy door could be opened.

The 13 people entered the room and found Viktor Antonov sitting there, looking quite surprised, despite the fact he still had a helmet on.

"Y-what?! How were you able to get this far?! G-!"

Before he was able to call the guards, the rage inside Lucia immediately and rapidly built up, upon seeing his form. She could wait no longer. She didn't care for what the others were going to do, or what they would think of her for doing what she was going to. She lunged at him with a large amount of speed and nimbleness, her light form almost tackling the large man to the ground. While her attack alone was not enough, a sigh came from CO-02's mouth, who gave the order to 09 to fire a live bullet at him. Usually, he'd shrug it off, but his loss of balance meant that the bullet was just enough to bring him crashing to the ground.

The panting, teeth-gritting Lucia pulled a rather large dagger from her pocket. Pulling the hard plastic sheath from it, she spoke the last words the man was going to hear.

"An eye for an eye. You ruin my life, I'll ruin YOURS!"

"Lucia, w-" Someone spoke, but they were cut off.

BAM! Holding the knife with one hand, she thrust it into him with the other, pushing it from the base. The blade sliced cleanly through the bulletproof helmet, deep into the man's head.

BAM! Pulling it out, she slammed it into his head again.

BAM! And again.

BAM! And again.

BAM! Her stabs became faster and faster, until she had stabbed Viktor's head exactly 23 times. He most likely would have died within the first three, but yet, she had used that specific number. She was also mumbling while she was stabbing him, almost as if she was counting the number of stabs. No-one had time to stop her once she had started to speed up her stabs, but nevertheless, Viktor Antonov was clearly dead. And yet, something about the whole scene, the way it was, just seemed... off.

"...Uh, doesn't something look wrong to you?" Brandon asked.

"What do you mean?" Alex asked. "You mean with Lucia?"

"No, Viktor. Something about this, right now, seems very... wait a minute..." His eyes had widened upon realising the horrible truth.

Lucia, who had looked back at them when they started speaking once again, looked back at the body, and then... pulled out the knife embedded into the recently deceased's skull. It was then that she had seen it. She had realised what was so very, horribly wrong with the situation, and the evidence was right on the weapon.

Although, a more accurate description would be that it wasn't.

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 39.5 was Overkill by Savant.

[s2_31.6: Part 39.6] Fighting the Juggernaut: Omega
<22121122>

Sunday, November 22th, 2212

10:58:21

Lucia looked back at the body and pulled out the knife embedded into the recently deceased's skull. It was then that she had seen it. She had realised what was so very, horribly wrong with the situation, and the evidence was right on the weapon.

Although, a more accurate description would be that it wasn't. There was a very noticeable lack of blood. It wasn't that there were only a few specks, the blade was actually just as clean as it was before Lucia's attack.

"...wh... what the f*ck?!"

Her gaze moved quickly from the weapon in her hands to the 'corpse' she was still sitting on. The helmet was cracked from her stabbing, but there was an eerie darkness through the splits the knife caused. The curiosity must have gotten the better of him, because Brandon walked over to them, and held the helmet in his hands, looking into the cracks.

"...I'll need to open this, thankfully your knife weakened it, so I can just..."

He tried to pry it open, then pull it off, both to no avail.

"Give me the knife?"

The knife was handed to him, by a rather scared Lucia. Now in his possession, he used the knife to make more cracks in the helmet, effectively breaking it enough that he could pry it open into two halves, using the knife as a lever. Once he did that, it snapped in half, leaving the truth open for them all to see.

"...Well, then. I believe that's a rather... interesting explanation." He looked up at them, wanting to find some kind of answer. "Where is the real Viktor Antonov?"

CO-04, 05, 08 and 11 all looked at each other, then started comparing data and other relevant information, before ringing up the pits at Vohl Square II. CO-11 was the one to tell Brandon their findings.

"The real Viktor Antonov is lying right under Lucia. There is no other 'real' one. It appears that he is, and always has been... an android."

Brandon looked from the man talking to him, down at the very non-human, mechanical innards of the destroyed android, then stood back up, looking back at him.

"...Argh... how the hell did we fail to notice this?! I swear he had a face, the face of Chris Scarborough!"

"It doesn't matter anymore, Russia and Crinale are now without a leader. The only thing left is to-"

"But Scarborough is Viktor! He's the head of the Racing Commission. What th--..."

Suddenly, Brandon stopped. He could see a grand total of thirteen people... not including himself. The man facing away from him... he looked familiar, that was why he didn't notice at first... Suddenly, his demeanour changed, his eyes widened, and it looked like he was about to explode.

"...WAIT... YOU. STOP!"

Upon hearing the man's bellow, the other, unknown individual began running, making his escape. Brandon set off after him, running just as fast, ignoring all of the guards that saw him and tried to stop him. Naturally, that gave the 12 remaining people to make their own escape... or an attempt to catch up to Brandon.

Through the now meaningless fortress, Brandon ran after the other man with all of his energy. He had to catch him under any circumstances. Down stairs, through hallways, down more stairs, and both had soon found themselves in the underground carpark. Weaving through cars, Brandon had lost sight of the man for a split second, before finding him entering a black and white, old-looking limousine, which looked like it had been modified to some extent. Running towards it, he found himself in a spot of deja vu.

The car had taken off, made a turn out of the parking bay onto the stretch of the road Brandon found himself on... and heading right at the man himself.

"WHAAAAAA-?!" Was the only thing he could physically say. Internally, he was thinking something more akin to 'Ah, crap. Not this again.'

Knowing his failure at clearing a jump over a vastly smaller car earlier that year, Brandon made the smart choice to not attempt the same thing again, and instead leaped to the side, out of the way of the speeding car. When he looked back, he saw the car making odd fishtailing movements as if it had made an attempt to dodge him, before its brake lights lit up briefly and it rounded the corner, never to be seen again.

------------
<11:12:42_>
<vohl square ii: short fwd_>
<race: lap 88 of 88_>

01. TUR847.1.13.329 (#13 | Leon Turner | F0-RA8/00191)
02. ARD889.0.19.194 (#19 | Gareth Ardos | AX2.0_r3)

Gareth was caught by surprise from seeing the black and orange Crinale pull back, slowing down to let him pass. Unbeknownst to Leon, however, he was wary of the tricks one would pull from such a tactic, having experienced it first hand. Thus, he was not as confused as Leon thought.

"EMP Railgun."

"Missile."

They had both fired their weapons, one after the other. Leon had fired his missiles mere milliseconds before Gareth's Railgun temporarily shut off his weapon systems. The aftermath left both craft slowing down, with no clear way of knowing who would win out of the two.

"Quake."

That answer was, "none of them". The Jennter, racing a good distance behind Gareth, had fired their quake, having only seen the Crinale craft initially. The further damage and slowing effect the weapon caused to both craft gave them the edge needed to pull the victory right from under the rivals' noses. Both pilots had failed, losing from their attempts to make the other lose.

Angelus, however, was the one to take second, and Crinale very closely followed in third. With the race over, Gareth returned to the pits to see Brandon had returned.

"Hey! You've returned. Sorry about the loss."

Brandon replied "Ehh, it's fine. 2nd is good enough."

"So, what were you doing?"

"...I think it's a good idea to not mention what I was doing right this moment. Soon, though, soon."

The man, however, was still deep in thought, to what had happened that day...

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 39.6 was Juggernaut: Omega, the second half of the double album by Periphery.

[s2_31.7: Part 39.7] The Fall
<22121122>

Sunday, November 22th, 2212

11:07:39

As Brandon watched the large limousine speed around the corner and out of sight, the majority of the group arrived, seeing the man rise to his feet and brush himself off.

"What happened?" Alex asked.

"Bastard tried to run me over, I think." Came the reply. "Where's the rest?"

"They're speaking with the rest of the Russian government. We should be able to assign a new Ts.. No, let's not have another Tsar. I think it's time we got a Prime Minister. We need a new type of government."

"Fair enough. The guy that almost ran me over though, he's gone, there's nothing we can do about that. Let's just head back."

<my spirit | lacuna coil (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xMQVdZU4Qh0)_>

"I would love to head back. I need to get out of this hell-hole." Lucia agreed. "You know, doing that felt really cathartic, I feel like my spirit is finally free."

"We have no further use for this place." Alex replied. "Let's go."

At the entrance, all 13 people related to the mission exited the building. No-one would ever know that they were the cause of the soon to emerge chaos that would ensue at the top floor of the fortress. 12 of those individuals placed hidden weapons in a storage area of a small bus before boarding the bus themselves, the 13th one entered a red compact. Starting the engines, they both made the long, worthwhile journey back.

The bus followed the rather nimble red car from the main road, all the way back to Vohl Square II. The rather long drive back took enough time so that they would be back in time to see the final few minutes of the race, or at the very least, the results. Everyone was still rather confused by the identity of Viktor, however they were all in high spirits due to the success of the mission, especially Lucia, who was actually smiling happily the entire way there.

Once they arrived at the racing venue, Brandon took his leave, returning to his team's pit room, while the rest made their way back to Crinale's. A sudden hushed silence filled the air, not just because of the COs making their unusual appearance at the race venue, but also from the appearance of a woman that was not seen being affiliated with the team since early 2210.

Despite that, she acted as if she was always the Director, not paying attention to the whispers and turning to Lucia, speaking to her.

"It is time. You have waited long enough, now it is time for you to hear me out before leaving this team. Are you still willing to uphold your end of the promise?"

The smaller girl nodded. She noticed the older, taller woman had gained an aura, a sense of leadership upon entering the specific partition. "Yes, I'll hear you out."

A warm smile filled Alex's face, letting her know it was going to seem like a friendly chat. "Great, if you would follow me to the control room, we may speak in there."

The entire group followed Alex up the stairs, not just Lucia. In fact, CO-02 spoke 7 words that made Alex feel much more than welcome back at her old team.

"It's great to have you back, CO-01."

That remark made her grin, and look extremely happy indeed... until they reached the top of the stairs. A single guard looked over at them, taking note of their new compatriot.

"Stop right there." He said simply.

Alex's expression changed from a happy grin to a deep scowl almost instantly, replying to the guard with, "My name is Alexandra Gelorum, CO-01. You will let me in."

"No. You are not permitted to enter."

"Let us handle this," CO-02 told her, stepping in front of her, then facing the guard, preparing to speak an imperative order.

"It is the unanimous opinion of the Crinale Originals that Alexandra Gelorum is reappointed the designation CO-01, the true Director of Crinale. Because of the defeat and death of Viktor Antonov, we are effectively the Overseers of this team. What we agree on must not be denied, lest you wish to be fired from the team."

"Forgive me if I do not believe you." The guard replied.

"Believe this," Lucia spoke up, "I stabbed that f*cker 23 times in the head. He. Is. Dead."

"Unfortunately for you, I can get into direct contact with Viktor."

The guard fished a phone from his pocket and pressed a single button. He waited... and waited... and...

"...What is the meaning of this?"

"I told you, he's dead. Not that he was a-"

"Lucia. That's enough." CO-02 cut her off, "The less people know, the better."

"O-okay."

"Now, as for you..."

CO-02 walked up to the highly confused guard, and shoved him out of the way, opening the control room's door and allowing all 12 people to enter and the others who were already in there to leave, before closing it back up.

Alex faced Lucia, looking down upon her smaller statue.

"Now, if I may begin. I know you have had intentions of leaving the team due to your... lack of freedom. However, I intend to open that freedom up. As the Director of this team once more, I really do wish for you to stay with us. In return... I will let you race however you see fit. I know of your talent, your prodigal status, and I wish to only nurture it. No more unnecessary violence, you may use whatever strategy you come up with for any race you enter. This is my promise, as CO-01, and as the new Director."

Lucia was shocked. She never thought that a person intending to regain their Director status for such a team would be so kind... so thoughtful. She looked down, as she blinked back tears.

"Are... are you serious? You... you'll really let me race however I want?"

"Of course, just so long as you stay with Crinale. There will definitely be more changes than just that, believe me."

"...what about Leon?"

"The COs have also told me about him, I don't think he will have a problem with the changes, he is also free to stay with us if he so wishes."

"...I-I... I..."

Lucia looked back up at Alex, the happiest look on her face in years.

"Thank you! Thank you so much! I... yes, I will give this a second chance... I-I just cannot thank you enough, Alex!"

"It is nothing. Nothing at all, I am just trying to help someone be the best they can be."

For the first time in 2 years, Lucia finally felt like she was home. She was accepted, not just for her talent, but for how she wanted to put that talent to use. To them, she was an actual person, not a machine set to win races in one single particular way. She could not wait for the next season to start up, so she could finally be free, and fly in her own way.

[Jonny]

Jennterista Racing Chronicles
A Faster Than Angels Story

FTA-MLiS101: Purity

Ever since its fromation in 2026, the Jennter team had its very own conception of purity, especially different of that from other teams in the later AG leagues.
By the purity of Jennter, where you have to follow this very concept in your whole life in order to work, the FX leagues have been more corruption than the F9000. This put the team in a strong disbalance with their allies at Angelus, as it did not strictly oppose the F12000, nor its formation. It were merely the words of Brandon Smith, reporting the gruesom means by which the league was formed, that also corrupted these years for them.
For Jennter, the purity they seek seems once more in far distance...

1st August 2211
"Now, the past year have really been something..." sighed Jonathan, standing in the main hall of the Jennter HQ.
Nico made a bitter expression "Too many memories..." he uttered.
"Yes...I think if I was as young as you, I'd be dead from all this already." came from Jonathan, who tried to smile.
Nico said nothing in return, almost glared at the old man.
"Oh, I just try to be nice...you are strong..." Jonathan tied to break the silence.
"Pff, I am not going to dwell on everything bad, only to ruin myself the better days this way!" Nice responded with a strong voice.
The old Bovier smiled at these words "You truely are a Bovier...just don't smoke anymore."

Nico shook his head "So you won't tell me where you will be heading?" he then asked Jonathan.
"Not yet...for the better. But once everything is clear, I will surely show you what we got." he explained.
"We?" Nico then asked.
"...you wouldn't be too happy to hear that a certain Saki Kojikyofu is among them..." Jonathan uttered, expecting Nico's reaction.
"...surely not. But I think you are many years ahead of me in many things." Nico calmly noted.
"Wise answer, indeed. Now, in my twohundred years of existance I never felt something as similar as what she made me feel." Jonathan whispered, bewitched by his memories. While Nico giggled by what he said, Jonathan instantly continued to regain the seriousness "I have faced the divine and the divine merged with me!"

"Just make sure she won't kill you." was Nico's only response to this.
"This...is not to be excluded." laughed Jonathan in irony.

And so he departed...


1st August 2212
"Craft development is going pretty well, we can surely also soon deploy our superweapon." reported a Jennter engineer as Nico entered the research lab.
"We will focus on next year with the craft." said Nico, making a cutting movement with his hands.
"Next year, but this one is going well." came from another engineer.
"Surely, but we are no itle contenders so far. Our craft is very good, but not special. Angelus and Crinale are rushing off with their perfections.
See, it's the mistake everyone makes so far, they all just develop your ordinary matchbox craft with changing stats. We need something special, the aerodynamics are our field."
Nico gave the order and rushed off to meet his pilots.

"The Commission gave us the set of challenges you two have to take for the super weapon." Nico said to Patrick and Aurora and tossed an eSheet onto the table.
Patrick picked it up and drove with his eyes over the list.
"What the f'ck!?" he only said and gave it to Aurora.
"Uhm, this hardly seems possible to me." the android agreed.
"What?" was Nico's simple response.
"These lap times, elimination targets, special conditions for races...they want to f'ck us over." Patrick said and shook his head.

[Ace3000]

[...] as it did not strictly oppose the F12000, nor its formation.

...that's just what they think, having not seen them do anything by means of opposing them... but there's a reason for that.

- - - Updated - - -

Screw it, I'm posting the final part now. Enjoy!

The referenced album title of Part 39.7 was The Fall by Gorillaz.

[s2_32.0: Part 40.0] F:/2212FINALE/
<22121123-22121231>

Monday, November 23rd, 2212

That day started with even more confusion between Alex, Brandon and the COs. Chris Scarborough had made an appearance to close off the 2212 season of the F12000 and announce the 2213 season, despite having been 'killed' by Lucia. And yet hours, even days after, there was no attempt to return to Crinale, or for that matter, the Russian government. The latter was up in arms over the mass confusion, and the fact that their former Tsar had been an android. It would be some time before a new Tsar, or any form of leader, would be appointed to office.

Alex, however, was tasked with dealing with the mess Viktor had made. The space station that served as the team's primary base of operations was brought back down to Earth and disassembled, many of its parts being sold off to pay off the 'debts' collected by the team, using some of their surplus to buy up a new headquarters, keeping it's location unknown, in traditional Crinale fashion. Almost every other piece of Viktor-era machinery was also decommissioned, some even destroyed. Although, that was not their main issue.

Their main issue was in regards to the remaining tech in their hands, the F12000 craft they were left with. Alex made a promise to not have any remnants of Viktor's rule of the company upon her reacquisition of it. However, they had just not enough money, and very little time to develop a new one. Thus, she was forced to break her promise for that one piece of technology. The F0-RA8 would have to stay as part of Alex's new Crinale.

The technologies weren't the only thing she changed. A vast amount of people hired by Viktor that still adhered to his views were promptly fired from the team. Leon, naturally, decided to stay with the team when asked, purely for his love of racing.

Alex had also reached out to Brandon, after a lot of the prior events had died down.

"I've been making a lot of promises recently, so here's mine to you."

"Uh, okay..." Brandon replied, having been caught off-guard.

"Working with your team again opened up a lot of things for me, and I finally realised that I was initially wrong. So, I promise that as of now, we're friendly rivals."

"Friendly rivals? ...Interesting."

"Right, the only time I'll ever be violent towards you will be on the track, to keep that form of entertainment going. But I won't resort to anything illegal or unfair."

"Well, that's very good to know. I shall reciprocate that and act on the track as if you're still a threat to us... because you are, in the sense that you're still a rival." He smiled warmly upon making that remark.

Alex laughed. "Thank you. Thanks for giving me a second chance."

"Not a problem. Take care."

Because of her continued alliance with Brandon, she had accessed her own servers and pulled a certain piece of data. Once she found that it contained the relative information in it, she sent copies of the document detailing the chemical make-up of Tigron's experimental drug to both Angelus and Syncline, so the three teams were able to progress with their research to rid the world of The Condition.

------------

Angelus, after continued searches throughout the end of the year, and the beginning of the next, still had not found a new pilot to replace Tarah in time for the 2213 season. Many Angelus employees had considered Gareth's performance in the last two races to be quite optimal. Some of those people put two and two together and came up with the theory that he raced better on his own, without any other pilots racing alongside him. Either way, Angelus was still stuck with one pilot for the following season.

The instant they were back in Australia after the Vohl Square II race, Brandon decided to use the secret information network he had to lift more Viktor-related data from Preispodnyaya. Among other, seemingly unrelated data, he had also received data on something he had been quite interested in since he saw it back in February of that year.

Although no data on its actual performance and setup was written out, there were very detailed descriptions on the mechanics, systems and related specifications on the first of the mysterious Shinigami project's products: The RXK. Among the various other systems detailed that made up most of the car's systems, there were two in particular that caught his attention. The first was unheard of for production cars, having been fitted with a COFFIN-type system. However, the second system was so much more unbelievable, that it gained Brandon's attention more than the flight control system.

"...Elec... what?!"

Brandon recalled the final moments of his battle with that car, and how the explosion looked like it was hit with a Plasma. The reason why was simple; the engine was not anything that could be considered 'traditional' or 'normal'. It was referred to as an Electro-Plasma Kinetic Generator, a system that seemed to directly produce over 1500hp of thrust. That explained to him why the car seemed to be so fast, even though he didn't know the true output the car made.

Along with that, he had also found some data pertaining to the F12000, although it was far from enough to bring the league down. Nevertheless, he decided to keep every piece of data he obtained from that place, as it all contributed to his plan to undermine the corrupt league.

Between the start of December and the end of January, the teams were allowed to continue upgrading their craft for the following season. Angelus, naturally, focused their efforts on further upgrading their engine's power output and also the overall handling of the craft. They submitted their upgraded craft as the KA-AX2.0_r4, the AGR:Xff engine being registered as Type 3167.

------------

On one day in particular, Brandon received a phone call on his personal phone.

"Yeah? Brandon speaking... what?!"

The call was from an employee from Syncline. A few days after receiving the documents for The Condition's source, Nikole had, unfortunately, passed away. After making sure Alex knew, he set off to Mars, travelling to Syncline's headquarters. Once there, he found Johann Webber, the founder and lead technician of the team.

"Hey, mind if we talk?"

The man looked at him. "Brandon Smith, right?"

"Yeah. I think you might know why I'm here."

He closed his eyes and put his hand to his chin. "Mhh, Nikole? I'd rather not answer any questions pertaining to her. Call it a sign of respect."

Brandon nodded. "Alright, I can respect that. How about the Condition? Can you talk about that?"

"To you, yes. We've received the data on the chemical thanks to Miss Kotova, so we, along with Crinale, may proceed with developing the cure. I guess I can say one thing about Nikole, that she would want us to continue with this, no matter what."

Brandon nodded, "I can understand, it is a rather serious situation that needs immediate and consistent attention. Rest assured that I will continue to help you in any I can."

"That is appreciated, thank you."

"How is Kat taking the news?"

For some reason, Johann did not answer immediately. Instead, it looked as if he was thinking, as if he wasn't sure how exactly he should tell Brandon, if at all. But, he could not deny Nikole and Kat's trust in him.

"She... she's in a coma."

Brandon needed a moment to let that information sink in.

"I... what? She's... in a coma? How did that happen?"

The man shook his head, "I'm sorry, I hope you'll forgive me for not willing to disclose that information."

Brandon held up his hand. "No, no. It's completely fine. I definitely understand."

------------


Several groups of people had been brought together, all through one mutual enemy. Soon, they would be forcibly torn apart from one another attempting to bring them down.

Season 2: End. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_f6MRkTLT9o)

FASTER THAN ANGELS WILL R3TURN SOON... (http://i.imgur.com/4CF9Tcx.gif)

[Ace3000]

[s2_E: Part 40.E] F:/2212FINALE/EPILOGUE
<00000000>

Unknown Date.

Unknown Location.

Unknown Time.

Two men had met up, to converse about an aspect of the Preispodnyaya Mission.

"We need to talk. The truth must come out."

"What? What truth?"

"That information, how did you get it?"

The other man sighed, placing a couple fingers to his temple.

"Why is that so damn important? What matters is that I provided that information, nothing more."

"But that's the thing, you obtained information that just wasn't possible to obtain."

"Through legal means." He finished the other man's sentence.

"...what?"

As the man in the black suit looked shocked, the one in the black coat smiled. It was a very cold-looking smile, one that looked like it was detached from the rest of his face's expression.

"Fine, I admit it. I used an information network."

"An information network?"

"Yes. I paid an information broker to give me that useful piece of data. And I don't regret it. I will do whatever is necessary to prevent corruption from existing in the league. I mean, sure, I had only intended to use them once, but now... I will not hold back, not after the chains bounding me have been broken by the very thing I wished to destroy. None of my strategies could have predicted that happening!"

"Strategies? As in, more than one?"

"Yes! My strategy skills are in fact quite strong, even stronger than my racing capabilities, though I hardly call myself the best racer. Honestly, though, with my ability to think multiple steps ahead and plan a course of action, I could play a strong game of chess... that is, if I had any interest in the game in the first place."

"So, this strategy... did it start with the F12000?"

"Hahahaha!" He laughed, before adopting a very serious expression on his face. "Whatever gave you that idea?"

The other man shivered. "Woah, you're giving off some legitimately scary vibes now."

The man explained, "See, the F12000 strategy is just a small part of a grander plan, it's a smaller strategy inside a larger one, a... 'matryoshka' strategy, if you will. The larger, grander strategy, however? That started more than a decade ago, back when we just made cars. My strategy... started with Katana, with the conception of the Angelus Project."

>>INITIATE: Beta_Angels_
>>MAY_22

[Ace3000]

In preparation for the upcoming Season 3, I'll be posting parts that go into the past of Angelus! I decided to actually do planning for the new season, and it requires quite a lot of it. Also, I did have this side story planned before I decided to start the planning of Season 3, so I guess it all works out. In any case, please, enjoy!

Beta Angels(0x00) >Phase_01<
>>Geneva International Motor Show
<21860302>

Thursday, March 2nd, 2186

Geneva, Switzerland

The sudden appearance of Katana Advancements with their Vixen sports car in 2185 in Australia had brought a lot of questions to people's minds, but it was a fresh, well deserved reboot to the Australian AG sports scene. The massive success the group had over that single year had brought them to move to another stage in their 'Phase 1', a mysterious multi-tier plan that they had only made brief, cryptic comments about.

That next stage had brought several members of that group to Geneva, for the International Motor Show. Along with them, they had brought all they needed for the unveiling of their global debut the day prior, and had set everything up. Once the place had opened up for the general public, there were two vehicle-like shapes hidden under sheets, waiting for the moment when they would be unveiled.

The leader of the group, a then 25 year-old Brandon Smith, was the one assigned to introduce the world to their group, and the car that had been massively successful in their home country. The man himself was clad in a rather sharp white suit shirt, black pants and a black tie. Passers-by were slowly gathering at the stall with the two blanketed designs, until, on the dot of 11am, the young-looking, neatly dressed man walked out to address the crowd.

"I'm glad you all could come today. As you are no doubt aware, the damage caused by the recession from the F9000's collapse is slowly being repaired. Early this decade, I brought together several brilliant minds that shared my philosophy, to create a new age of anti-gravity transport.

"The fruits of our efforts was completed and released to the Australian public in 2185. Because of the success of that, The Katana group are proud to release that very car to the global market. I present to you... the Vixen."

The sheet of the first car was pulled off, revealing the tiny, yet sleek design. The flowing lines, while not aggressive, still gave the car an overall sporty appearance. As everyone admired the vehicle, the screen that served as the stall's backdrop began showing some graphics and photos of the car, along with some of the car's technical aspects. When that started, Brandon continued speaking.

"The car is based on the premise of a light, nippy roadster that doesn't need a lot of power to be fun and sporty. The car weighs less than a ton, so with a 250hp powerplant, this thing is actually quite quick. Now, hopefully these will go on sale very soon, so you all should be able to experience this fantastic machine for yourselves.

"However, we are aware of people who do want a bit more power in their lives. Well, I say a bit, really... we're aiming for over 500."

The instant he said that, the second covered car was unveiled, a unique Katana design that no one person from the public had ever seen, Australian or otherwise.

"This... is our Type-X Concept Supercar."

The screen backdrop then split its display in two, the left half continuing to show the graphics and specs for the Vixen, the right showing just graphics for the new design, the Type-X. Like the Vixen, the Type-X wasn't overly aggressive in its design. While containing some sharp, aggressive lines, they were all to accentuate the main shape of the car, which was smooth and flowing.

"We are currently working on this car, and we... well, I'm not one for deadlines, but it is a possibility we'll complete it by or in 2187. I..." He let out a chuckle. "I hate to put the pressure on everyone doing such a good job back home by saying that, but judging by our progress so far, '87 seems to be a good estimation. It could be in January, it could be December, but... yeah, '87.

"Anyway, I've rambled on long enough, feel free to come up and look at our two cars, I'll also be more than happy to answer any questions about or discuss the aspects of them."

Throughout the day and the rest of the show, Brandon seemed to be very happy that the two cars were gaining as much interest as they did. There were a lot more than he was expecting, which gave him the impression that sporty, enthusiast AG designs were making a comeback, with AG racing also developing alongside with the FX150 Amateur League.

The final night of the show, he received a phone call, from the first person he had join his project, his close friend from school.

"Hey Brandon, the show should have ended by now, right?"

"Uh, yeah, close enough. What's up?"

"How was it?"

"Better than expected, I can say with 100% certainty that Phase 1 will be a complete success."

"Amazing!"

"It is. Now is the time to bring AG Racing back on the roster, and ensure that what happened before will not happen again."

[Jonny]

How carefree he appears!

[Ace3000]

Well, this was before he knew better XD

[Ace3000]

Beta Angels(0x01) >Phase_02<
>>Tibetan AG Racing League
<21960326>

Saturday, March 26th, 2196

Sagarmatha, Tibet

The announcement of the FX300 Anti-Gravity Racing League had pushed one individual's plan forward. Thus, he had to gain research a little quicker than he had anticipated. That research had brought him to Tibet, for the Tibetan Anti-Gravity Racing League, taking place on the old, but still maintained F5000 circuit, Sagarmatha.

Previously a largely unknown event, the Tibetan variant of AG racing grew in popularity slightly after former pilot Myima Tsarong entered the F9000. When the league collapsed in 2170, the calm, graceful pilot returned to her roots, once again competing in the non-violent league once everything had died down and the recession was on its way out.

<your love (remix) | the prodigy (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EqlCPOWXbYc&t=32)_>

When the man arrived at the upgraded circuit, he could see, finally, the utter beauty of the calm, non-violent racing the pilots focused on. Every craft on the track had followed the philosophies of Piranha in 2097, being perfectly fast at the cost of no weapons. The pilots seemed to be very skilled, while the speeds they reached were just about on par with the Piranha prototype, if not slightly faster. The craft almost reached 500km/h on the straights, and were extremely fast around the corners, especially around the hairpin.

Apart from the lack of weapons and focus on weapon use, the race was very similar on the F-class regulations. The craft had similar body shapes to those types of craft and had airbrakes to aid their already breathtaking cornering abilities. Even when they overtook each other, there was not an ounce of aggression in their manoeuvres. Through the whole race, he had a wide smile on his face.

After the race, the man had started to do the reason he came to Tibet: Meet up with Myima herself.

"Ah! Mr Smith!" The Tibetan woman called out to him. "It's good to meet you at last."

"It's a pleasure to meet you as well, Myima." Brandon greeted back. "How are you?"

"I am just splendid, how are you?"

"I've been great, just admiring this place, and that beautiful racing."

"Ah, I am really glad that you enjoy our anti-gravity league." She said, bowing slightly.

"It's completely fine. Speaking of racing though, I am in the process of developing a racing team for the upcoming FX300."

"Oh, I have heard of that. It does seem a lot less... violent... than the F9000."

"I sure hope it is, but I'll definitely be doing my bit. My team has similar philosophies to this league. Speed and handling, over heavy craft and weapon usage."

"Interesting! I'd love to see what your team comes up with."

"I hope you'd get to see it too! That race has given me quite a bit of inspiration, thank you."

"Ah, you are too kind."

"Hahaha, thank you. I just want to protect the leagues against any corruption that may return."

"That is a good ambition. I hope you succeed."

"I hope so too... Uh, hey. With your permission, would you be okay if I stay here for a few days? I would love to learn more about your wonderful culture, especially that calm racing style."

"Oh! Well, I'd hardly call myself a master at that technique, but we definitely welcome anyone who is interested in our culture! Please, feel welcome to stay. Although, there are a couple things I ask that you do not make a part of your team, but I will mention what those things are."

"Thank you, thank you so much!" Brandon said, bowing. "It is definitely an honour to be here."

[Ace3000]

Beta Angels(0x02) >Phase_02<
>>FX150: Amateur AG Racing League
<21961113>

Sunday, November 13th, 2196

Sydney, Australia

Australia was home to the final race of the final FX150 season before the start of the professional FX300 League. Because of that, and the fact that one of the competing teams were sponsored by Katana, Brandon had flown over to Sydney to spectate the race and, on the chance the team he was sponsoring won, congratulate them on their win.

That team was a combination of 4 sub-groups working together as one singular team. The major group in the team, the University of Queensland's engineering portfolio, were the namesake of the team, QUAD, which was also a reference to the number of sub-groups working together.

As part of the university's engineering/racing class, the students were to work with the groups to build a craft using parts supplied to them from supporters, sponsors and the groups within the team. The one chosen to pilot the craft was one that was interested in the actual piloting of the craft itself, Gareth Ardos, a then 25-year old student of the university.

Brandon had taken his seat in the VIP section of the racetrack, just as the race was minutes from starting. All the craft had taken their place on the grid, with QUAD taking a mid-pack starting position. While not the fastest, Katana had provided the team with what they had called a "Semi-Prototype" AG stability system, which at the time, no-one could be able to fathom why the company had referred to the fully operational system as such.

On the dot of 1pm, the race had started.

Ready.... GO!

Almost all the craft shot off the line, save for a couple that had some sort of mechanical failure, and was unable to be restarted to begin racing. Thus, they were promptly disqualified. They were a team that had all sorts of problems like that throughout the season, albeit not as severe as the failed start. However, that was the final nail in the team's coffin, and their chances of obtaining an underdog victory were diminished.

On the track, the single QUAD craft was slowly making its way up the ranks, the video game-trained pilot navigating the dual-hull ship fairly easily. Although, that may also have had something to do with the fact that the FX150 ran at a slower speed than Gareth was used to. This did mean that, a couple times in his earlier races, he opened his airbrakes too early due to his muscle memory, but by the time this final race came about, he had eliminated that shortcoming.

Entering the tunnel, Gareth fired off a turbo, passing one more craft, before said craft shot some rockets at him, defending their position from him. Retaining the inside line of the following corner, Gareth picked up some missiles. With the target locked on the craft ahead of him, he lay in wait, just in case he was able to pass them without firing the weapon. Unfortunately, the craft had started to pull away from him.

"Mmh, fine."

Upon making his decision, Gareth immediately fired the missiles at the craft, hitting it and slowing it down. As he passed it, he emerged from the tunnel, aiming for the next craft ahead of him. The distance between them, however, meant that it would take several laps to catch up and pass them.

A multitude of laps later, Gareth, now in fourth place, had crossed the line for the final lap. He was right behind the three craft ahead of him, each were fighting for first place. As he passed the craft in third place, he obtained another turbo, which he instantly used, obtaining the top position upon entering the tunnel. Keeping his lead due to the high handling of the craft, Gareth was home free.

Warning. Incoming weapon.

Rockets were fired in their telltale 3-shot spread pattern. Each one had hit a craft, the third eliminating a team. Gareth was pushed back down two places, and with his direct competition using a turbo, he had to make do with the final position he had no choice but to accept.

<race complete>
<third place>

While it wasn't a win, Gareth did get a place on the podium. After standing on the podium and accepting his finish, Gareth had made his way back to the pits, where one person was unexpectedly there, leaning against a wall.

"That was a pretty good race. You were pretty good, I could tell you had your focus on proper racing techniques rather than overusing weapons to attain the victory." Brandon spoke to him.

"U-uh, thanks, I... guess I could say I had a bit of practice with that racing style." Gareth replied, "Uh... who are you again?"

Brandon stepped off the wall. "Do you not know who I am? Ah. Well, I guess it's as good a time as any to introduce myself. My name is Brandon Smith, I run a... moderately sized company called Katana. Maybe you've heard of it?" He joked, getting a chuckle out of Gareth.

"Yep, sounds familiar." Gareth joked back. "So what are you doing here?"

"I decided to watch the final FX150 race, to see the team I'm sponsoring live in action. See, I've got a project in the works, and... let's just say I had a reason why I needed to see this race. That's about all I can tell you right about now."

[Ace3000]

Beta Angels(0x03) >Phase_02<
>>Angelus Project: Application Process
<21970920>

Wednesday, September 20th, 2197

Katana HQ, Perth, Australia.

In the days leading up to September 20th, Brandon had been keeping an eye on several groups of interest, all pertaining to the actual piloting of AG racing craft. A week before the day itself, Brandon had sent notices stating that applications were open for AG pilots, under a cover company. On the day, though, there weren't that many applying, but one person that did was one that caught Brandon's eye.

She looked quite young, and was in fact still in her school uniform. What really got Brandon's attention, though, wasn't her general appearance, but more so her expression. She seemed to be really happy, as if she was eager to be presented with the chance to become a pilot, but there was also a rather fierce determination in her gaze that no-one was even close to having.

"Welcome everyone," Brandon addressed them all. "My name is Brandon Smith, and I am the founder and leader of Katana Advancements. It's a pleasure to meet you all!"

A few of the people there nodded. The schoolgirl just kept staring at him with interest.

"Now, before we begin, I will need you all to sign a couple documents we have prepared. It's just some legal stuff, for both our safety as well as yours. The interviews will also contain a practical aspect, but in order to explain what it is, you'll need to sign the second document, which is a Non-Disclosure Agreement. I'll give you several minutes to read through and sign them all."

The group of potential pilots had wondered why it was necessary, but they were given a chance to do something they loved for work, so they naturally read through and signed all the documents they had been presented with. With that done, Brandon took the documents back and, after passing them off to another employee, spoke up.

"Alright, now that that's in order, let's continue. I will be speaking to each of you, one by one, about you and why I should hire you for the job. Then, once that's done, I'll take you to another room, where you will complete the practical section of the interview: a round of our state-of-the-art racing simulator. Now, first... I'll go with you, Mr. Wilson."

After going through mostly all of the applicants, there were only three left, one of whom was the determined schoolgirl.

"Tarah Andrews." Brandon called.

"Ah! Yes!" She replied, leaping off her seat excitedly.

Brandon smiled and turned, walking ahead over to the interview room, letting the girl follow him. When he got over to the desk situated in the room, he pointed to a chair on one side of it.

"Please, take a seat." He gestured, before sitting at the other end of the desk and beginning the interview. "So, tell me a bit about yourself. You... seem kind of young? I mean, it's not necessarily a bad thing, I'm just... curious."

"I-I don't mind!" Tarah shook her head, still smiling. "Well, um... I'm 17, so I am in my final year of high school. But I really don't want that to be a problem! I've been interested in racing for as long as I can remember."

"So you have a lot of passion. That's good, I like that. I don't see the point in doing something you'd rather not do."

"Yeah!"

"And age isn't an issue regarding this job, all that matters is how well you can race. And, of course, your enjoyment in doing so."

"Ah, thanks! So, hmm, what else about me... I... guess I'm pretty good at racing itself, or at least, I like to think I am."

"Interesting... would you be willing to put that to the test?"

"You mean the simulator? Sure!"

"Great, if you'd like to follow me."

Brandon stood up and walked with Tarah to another room, which housed a single simulator, hooked up to a computer and some other monitoring equipment.

"Your task is to obtain a high score," He instructed her, "Although please bear in mind we are going for a certain racing style. Now, if you'd like to get seated, we may begin this test."

"Okay!" Tarah said happily, sitting in the simulator.

Brandon manned the computer and tapped away at the mouse, setting several variables for the test. Once he was ready, he looked back at Tarah.

"Okay, is everything alright on your end? Are you ready?"

Tarah gave him a thumbs up. "Yep! Whenever you're ready!"

"Alright then, Starting now."

With a final click of the mouse, the simulator booted up, loading the variables Brandon had set prior. Then, the countdown started, with Tarah being placed on the final position on the grid. Upon the signal to go, Tarah set off, piloting the virtual craft with an astounding amount of finesse. She seemed to be nailing almost every corner after several laps of getting to know the course, and she was passing a lot of the craft ahead of her without any real problems, often just using a weapon to slow them down to be passed.

At the end of the race, Brandon reviewed the results, along with her total score. When he saw what she ha done, his eyes widened.

"...how could a 17-year old pass the test this easily?! That... you just posted a high score! You know what Tarah?"

"Hmm?" She looked up at him.

Brandon smiled at her. "I think I've just found one of the pilots I've been looking for. Welcome to Katana's 'Angelus project'."

[Ace3000]

Beta Angels(0x04) >Phase_02<
>>Angelus Project: Application Process
<21980427>

Friday, April 27th, 2198

Sydney, Australia

15:48:27

Gareth was walking towards his car, ready to head back home. However, it seemed like his day wasn't over yet. Before he could get in, his phone rang.

"Yeah? Gareth speaking. Who's this?"

The man on the other end responded. "Brandon Smith. Of Katana. Are you free?"

"Who?"

"Brandon Smith. We met two years ago. My group were one of your sponsors for the FX150."

"Oh, right. I... guess I remember?"

"Good, good. So are you free?"

"Uh... yeah, just got off. Why?"

"Ah, it's just that I'm in the area, figured we could have a talk."

"Al...right, where should we meet up?"

Brandon gave the location of a local cafe in the area, which Gareth agreed to. Driving over there, he saw that Brandon was already there, as if he was on his way there, or was there when he phoned him. Entering the cafe, he took a seat at the table he was sitting at, sitting opposite him.

"Gareth, How have you been?" Brandon greeted him.

"I've... been okay. Why did you want to see me all of a sudden after two years?"

"I'll get to that, we have time. What have you been you to recently?"

"If I'm honest? Not a whole lot."

"Huh, interesting. Are you still interested in racing?"

Gareth chuckled. "I don't think I'll ever be uninterested."

Brandon smiled. "In that case then, how do you feel about being a part of my team?"

"You have a team?"

"It's under wraps, I can't really talk about it, but it's going to be a professional team, yeah."

Gareth looked away. "Wow, I... I don't know. I really don't know if I'm ready to go pro."

"You're not sure? I thought you were interested in racing?"

"I am... but the professional league? I really don't know if I'll be good at it. I'm sorry, I just can't go through with it in good conscience."

After thinking for several seconds, Brandon stood up.

"Alright, I can understand that. The project will go ahead. If you ever change your mind, come over to Perth, the position will remain open."

"Okay."

As he watched Brandon walk away, something jumped to his mind, causing him to stand up from his seat.

"Brandon, wait!"

The man stopped, and turned back around.

"Yes?"

"...thank you, for the consideration of letting me be a part of it."

[Ace3000]

Apologies for the wait. I've got some irl stuff happening, so these are going back to one part a week.

Beta Angels(0x05) >Phase_02<
>>WRC: Group A
<21981118>

Sunday, November 18th, 2198

Melbourne, Australia.

Katana had been participating in the World Rally Championship since 2192, entering a modified version of their Hydros car to Group A specifications. With the rise of Anti-Gravity technology, specifically in racing, the FIA split the WRC into two groups. Group N was the standard Group as it was before the split, where Group A was for Anti-Gravity cars. The two differences in drives had made the groups relatively popular even when AG cars took precedence over cars with traditional wheels.

In 2194, another manufacturer had entered Group A. A Japanese car manufacturer known as Mistral developed a formidable competitor, based on their 222 compact sedan. Katana were no match for them, and the '93 champions had been defeated. Back to the drawing board, the Katana Rally Team messed about with the tuning and everything else they could to best the sudden newcomers the following year.

2195 saw the return of Katana as champions of Group A, and had signalled the beginning of a rivalry between Mistral and Katana. The public began to compare and pit together the two manufacturer's homologated road cars, the Hydros RT-S from Katana, and the 222 RS from Mistral. However, the 2198 season would be Katana's last, as the group's focus on the F-class grew to the extent that they were required to drop production of their cars.

Like the previous year, the competition between Katana and Mistral in 2197 were quite close, with Mistral's 222 WRC97 just beating out Katana's Hydros WRC v4.0. That victory had put the teams at yet another tie in terms of overall victories since the start of the rivalry, the previous WRCs being won by Mistral in 2194, Katana in both 2195 and '96, and Mistral once again in '97. Thus, the 2198 season meant a lot to both teams, to both gain a victory over the other. That was only made more apparent when Katana announced that it would be the final year they were competing.

The utter limits of the technologies were pushed by both teams as well, previous rallies that year had shown that both the 222 WRC98 and the Hydros WRC v4.5 were much, much faster than just the previous year, showing they were hell-bent on beating the other. They had seemed to be just as fast as each other, by the time of the final rally of the season in Australia, both teams were at a point where either could win.

The final stage was a Super Special Stage, a one on one shoot out over a special course. The course contains two lanes, one shorter than the other. Halfway through, the lanes cross over each other, the longer lane leading into the shorter and vice-versa. The one to complete a full lap, by returning to the lane they started in, would win the event and have the time added to their total time.

Starting on the shorter lane was Katana's Hydros, sporting a black livery with a red stripe tear design along the sides. On the longer side was Mistral's 222, which had a blue base colour and, along with light and dark grey stripes, a white "claw tear" pattern on the bonnet and sides.

On the signal to go, both cars set off at a rapid rate, both tuned to accelerate as fast as they could, but were slightly impeded by the gravel surface. Naturally, Katana seemed to come out in front, due to the car racing along the shorter side of the course. Therefore, it was hard to tell who would truly be in front until the race ended.

The cars were gliding around the corners at breakneck speed, the drivers angling their cars to drift around them to keep their speed up. The anti-gravity drives finding traction over the gravel surfaces, kicking it up behind them as they raced ahead. The shorter route had a very small tarmac section, a bridge that crossed over the other lane of the track. Since it went along the shorter route to begin with, the Hydros made the jump the bridge made to the longer route well before the 222 sped under it to the shorter route. Now on the other lanes, the cars crossed the line for the second lap.

With Katana ahead, it was now up to Mistral to catch up to them by using the shorter route to their advantage, while Katana were relegated to the longer route. However, the longer route had far more gentle corners, while the shorter one contained more sharp corners. As Mistral gained on them, the tension had also risen. Fans of both teams had filled the stadium, and were very eager to watch the race and its outcome. By the end of it, the cars seemed to cross over and under the bridge at the same time, the final portion of the race initiating.

It practically gave the victory to them. The final part was, on the longer track, a sharp corner, along with a longer run to the finish. The short route was just a short, gentle curve to the finish line. Naturally, with both cars at the same point, the one that was on the shorter route would be the ones to win.

With a grand total difference in time by only a few seconds, along with the victory in the Super Special Stage, the overall champions of the 2198 Group A championship was the Katana Rally Team, winning their rivalry with Mistral on their final rally before the plug was pulled on their road car development.

[Ace3000]

Ah, an obligatory Omega Collection part. Still, enjoy!

Beta Angels(0x06) >Phase_03<
>>FX350 Anti-Gravity League: Pre-Season Testing
<22061024>

Saturday, October 24th, 2206

Talon's Junction, Wales

<nova | fourward (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zy8-LNHjpIw&t=22)_>

They had only used the season for testing twice prior, but a white craft covered in azure camouflage patterns rose up to the start grid once it was safe, and set off at an alarming rate. However, it wasn't as quick to get up to speed as a Goteki, or as blindingly fast as an Icaras or Piranha.

The craft was far from complete in the eyes of the Brandon. He wasn't looking for complete perfection, but he did idealise a craft that could accelerate, top out and turn faster than what the current product was capable of doing. In addition, the shields were extremely sub-par and it seemed like there were no weapon technologies on-board. Despite the camouflaging, the craft's body was also far from complete, being what was to be the last design before the final, more aerodynamic body style that would be a part of the AGR1 chassis.

However, in its current spec, the craft could hold off its own, seeming to be quite fast. It was able to overtake a few of the craft on the track, and yet, Brandon wanted it to be even faster. He knew the limitations of the then proposed FX400, he wanted to make the best of them and push the craft's specs to that limit.

As the craft soared around the track with a bit of gracefulness, various spectators and team members watched the new chassis make its rounds. Even though the stats made it seem like an inferior combination of an Assegai and an AG Systems, its lack of weapon use gave it an aura of purity.

Brandon was looking on, observing the test. The craft's telemetry was output to several screens, which were monitored by a few high-ranking technicians, along with Brandon himself.

"Hmmm," Brandon noted, "The 3K8 engine is definitely an improvement over the 6, but it definitely needs more power. The shields are also far from a competitive state, I'll try to figure something out regarding that. Xavier, could you read me the thrust outputs?"

"They're running at full capacity." Xavier Reid replied.

"Full?" Brandon asked confusedly, "How often?"

"See for yourself." He pointed at the screen.

The line graph showing the thrust use was rather odd. For most of the time, it was a solid line somewhere above the halfway point of the graph, not even reaching the top.

"Sh*t. It's bottlenecked. The system can't cope."

"Yeah. I'm sure you know what that means?"

"Naturally. A more powerful system is required to deal with the upgrade to the 3K8. Although, the engine will get an upgrade in and of itself anyway, so we should probably not develop the thrust system separate to the engine."

"Agreed. How about the pilot, should we bring them in, or keep them going?"

Brandon hummed in thought, coming to a decision soon after.

"Keep going. Wouldn't hurt to get as much data as we can get."

------------

After getting the okay to continue flying, a now 26-year old Tarah Andrews let out a small grin, and began pushing the craft further, which admittedly wasn't much at all due to the limited systems. But her task was to push the craft to it's limit, so she did just that. There didn't seem to be any problems with the craft or the test itself. As she rounded the final corner before the end of the lap, though...

CRUNCH

"NGH!"

The craft was shunted to the right unexpectedly and quite violently. It seemed that something heavy had hit her craft at speed.

"What the hell?!" Tarah exclaimed, looking back to see what exactly had hit her. All she could see was something dark in colour, but that was more than enough. A craft had rammed into her own.

Brandon, meanwhile, was livid. He was hunched over the console, fists clenched and breathing heavily. He was able to see the dark grey craft clearly, the team's name adorned in large yellow letters.

"It... can't be... they were gone!" He muttered through gritted teeth.

A craft bearing the name of one of the main teams that fuelled the flames of corruption in the F9000 was making its rounds on the track. The way it had simply rammed into the incomplete Angelus craft, which was a staple of the team's nature, had made it seem like they were, indeed, back.

Tigron Enterprises were back.

[Ace3000]

Beta Angels(0x07) >Phase_03<
>>FX350 Anti-Gravity League: Pre-Season Testing
<22061024>

Saturday, October 24th, 2206

Talon's Junction, Wales

<immunize (ft. liam howlett) | pendulum (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqfE1eos-7A&t=44)_>

As Brandon and Xavier were conversing, giving all their attention on the telemetry and not the track itself, one other craft had risen from the start grid and taken off, that of a tri-hull variety, bearing Tigron's name in large yellow letters on the side. It flew across the track at a speed that Brandon had only seen the likes of Piranha and Icaras achieve.

Despite the prototype Angelus craft being able to accelerate and turn every so slightly quicker, the longer straight sections of Talon's Junction meant that it had more than enough time to catch up to it, and...

CRUNCH

...ram right into it as it took the turn onto the end straight.

When the Tigron craft rammed into her, a couple of systems let out some shrill warning beeps, a side-effect of the less-than-complete shielding system. Regaining her composure and control, she made an attempt to get away from or otherwise avoid the craft's further attacks on her.

After regaining his composure, Brandon had a dilemma on his hands.

'This would be a perfect time to conduct a test against that... but the craft is far from complete. Mmh, if only it were in a more stable state... argh, what do I do?!'

At that moment, Tarah contacted the control room through her communications system.

"Brandon! What do I do?! This guy is all over me!"

"I know!" Brandon replied, "I'm thinking. You know what the team's philosophies are, but that craft is far from complete."

The Tigron craft had caught up to her on the straight before the final corner. It moved alongside her, then turned away from her, to prepare for another attack. Tarah had seen this and, just as it turned towards her to launch the ramming attack, she engaged the airbrakes, slowing down enough for the craft to miss her. However, the pilot had seen her move, and had turned out of the attack to avoid hitting the wall. It wasn't over like that, though. It too had applied its airbrakes, but in addition, it had manoeuvred itself so that when Tarah entered the corner to the final straight, she had no other choice but to hit the craft as she navigated the turn.

"Agh, sh*t... Brandon, please, can you hurry up and make a decision?! What should I do?"

As the two craft flew across the start line for another lap, past the point where she could safely return, Brandon made his decision.

"I'm not risking it, get back now."

"I wish you could have said that earlier, but fine. I need to make another lap, though."

"Would you be able to hold them off?"

"I hope so."

------------

Meanwhile, as that great battle was taking place, a certain Angelus employee was watching on, viewing the datacast on a massive screen for spectators. She was looking on intently, absolutely beaming at the clashing of racing styles, violent and non-violent, placid and aggressive.

"...wow... so this is what that was like..." She spoke quietly, her eyes glowing slightly. "this is... beautiful."

------------

Back on the track, Tarah made every attempt to avoid the Tigron's attacks, some were successful, others had her getting shunted sideways. Soon, though she was nearing the end. She allowed herself to come side to side with the craft. This time, instead of preparing a hard hit from side-on, it just moved directly at her. Once again, she attempted to brake out of the way, but the dark craft was able to get an attack in, hitting the front corner of the craft. That skewed the craft's position.

Tarah was able to use it to her advantage, however. Keeping the skewed position held, she was able to drift into and around the final corner, keeping the aggressive craft ahead of her. As she entered the final straight, she applied the brakes again, this time to come to a complete halt over her pits. As soon as she was over them, she was pulled down into it, bringing both her and the prototype craft back to safety, the latter getting a complete post-test check-up.

"What the hell was that?!" Tarah exclaimed. "They were seriously aiming for me! And another thing, aren't those ramming techniques illegal?!"

"They are." The Personnel Manager explained. "The Race Commission is up in arms about this. No-one knows anything about them, or even how they keep getting allowed in."

"What? Not even the Race Commission knows?"

"Par for the course, really. Hope they get it sorted soon, though. Definitely not keen on Tigron returning."

"Are they really that bad?" She asked sincerely.

The Personnel Manager blinked for a second, "Ah, that's right, you're too young to know. Tigron were one of the main teams that made the F9000 as corrupt as it was. Trust me, they are really that bad."

At the same time, Brandon, Xavier and several others were inspecting the damage done to their prototype craft. The shielding systems were critically damaged, causing some of the bodywork to become physically dented in some places, outright broken in others.

"Tch, this is going to take a while to fix. Do you think it's worth it, or should we move on to upgrading it again?"

"Upgrade it, of course. This isn't the final body design anyway." Brandon spoke, deciding to go through all the aspects of the aftermath. "Like I said before, I'll figure something out regarding the shields, but this system is just shot. The rest of the fixes would just come naturally with the upgrades the craft will get."

He looked back to Tarah, conversing with the Personnel Manager about Tigron and the F9000.

"She did a good job though, this outcome could have been a whole lot worse. Although, this would not have lasted another lap against that thing."

[Ace3000]

Posting this early cause I can.

Beta Angels(0x08)
>>FX350 Anti-Gravity League: Pre-Season Testing
<22061024>

Saturday, October 24th, 2206

Talon's Junction, Wales

"Fascinating, that was better than we had anticipated." A representative of a certain underground group commented. "You definitely know your way around that craft."

"Thank you," The pilot of 'that craft' replied. "It's a rather good craft."

"If you'd like, we could tell you more about it. At a price, of course."

The man that piloted the craft scoffed, and pushed up a pair of white-rimmed glasses that had slid down the bridge of his nose.

"Feh, you should know by now that money is no object for me."

"Evidently so. Even so, you must not tell anyone. This remains with us, got it? If word of this leaks out, let's just say... there will be some consequences."

"Only those too stupid to keep their mouths shut would blab." He retorted, folding his arms.

"Do you have the money now?"

"Cash or digi-transfer?"

"Cash, like the transaction for the craft."

"Right. It depends on how much it will cost, then. Although, seeing how much it cost to pilot the craft, I wouldn't have it on me."

"It's not as much as the costs to pilot it, but it would still cost an extra 500,000."

"Somehow, I was thinking it wouldn't be just a few hundred. Come by Monday, I'll have it by then."

The representative nodded. "Very well. Good luck with the race tomorrow."

"Thank you."

------------
<22061026>

Monday, October 26th, 2206

Parking lot of Talon's Junction, Wales.

True to his word, the pilot had met up with the representative, with a briefcase full of money.

"Here's the money, as promised. Now, what's this extra info you have?"

"You do remember what I said, right?" The representative asked.

"Of course. I have no need or desire to disclose whatever it is you're about to say. It's purely for my own curiosity."

"Excellent."

He took the briefcase and opened it, looking at the contents for several seconds.

"That seems to be in order. Now, the information. There is a good reason as to the high costs of piloting the craft. The maintenance and insurance only covers a tiny portion of the costs."

"You're using it as a business. Rather fascinating."

The representative laughed, "Not quite. Wile we do need the extra money, it's not just to make a business out of renting the craft."

"Then...?"

"We require the funds for a related, but different cause. You see, while the original company was forcibly shut down, this craft was literally the last thing to escape the factory. Even the craft that was used in the FX300 was constructed before this thing."

The pilot nodded. "That explains the discrepancy in the design."

"Yes. In any case, as it was smuggled out, my group... acquired it, along with several important assets. Using them, along with the funds we receive through renting the craft out, we plan to develop a new craft for the new upcoming league... and resurrect Tigron Enterprises from the grave."

There will be another break, as I finalise the Season 3 stuff. Not sure how long it will take, but there will be another small side thing before Season 3 kicks off.

See you guys on the other side of the break!

[Jonny]

"The secret behind the craft is - (https://youtu.be/-Tdu4uKSZ3M?t=40s)"

[Ace3000]

pls

y u do dis

[Jonny]

[part removed]

[Ace3000]

FTA s2.9_1: A Prelude to Season 3
<22130226>

Friday, February 26th, 2213

Angelus R&D HQ, Perth, Australia.

10:47:19

As the meeting for a certain project had finished, Brandon got a call from one of the security staff.

"Brandon... it's her." They told him.

"Uh? Who?" Brandon asked. "I swear, there's too many females that are out to get me, for some reason."

"Alex." Was their response.

"Oh. Sure, she's fine. Let her in."

Brandon headed for the front lobby, as the black-clad woman walked in, greeting him.

"Alright," She said, getting straight to the point. "I need some help from your team."

"Hi, I'm doing fine, thank you for asking. What do you need help regarding?"

"Vehicle design." She continued, not acknowledging Brandon's sarcasm. "I am laying out the foundations to create a new car, just for myself."

"So... a one-off?"

"Yes, precisely. I only need the design of the car done, and while I could get my own company to do it, I... I want it to have an Angelus design. Or more... Katana."

"Katana?"

"The car's basis is my old Havok."

Brandon looked puzzled, because of something that had happened earlier in the year. "...but... didn't you say-?"

"I know what I said." Alex cut him off. "But I'm moving on from the Havok. I'm planning the next evolution."

"I... see. Well, you said you needed help with the design, so I'll see what I can do about it. Come, follow me."

Brandon turned and started walking away, his lab coat swishing behind him, leaving Alex to start following him. Entering a room, Brandon called out to someone.

"Hey, Jacob? Could you come here a moment?"

The man was sitting at a computer, using a touchpad and pen to draw what seemed like a concept taillight design. Upon hearing Brandon call his name, he stopped and turned around, before standing up and walking over to him.

"Yeah? 'Sup?"

"You've heard of Alexandra Gelorum, right?"

"'Course I have. She's the chick standin' behind you, yeah?"

"Yeah, that's her." He turned back to the aforementioned 'chick'. "Alex, this is Jacob White, our Chief Vehicle Designer."

"I'm paid to sit behind a computer and doodle." He joked in a deadpan manner.

"Uh, hello." Alex greeted him, somewhat oddly due to his joke.

"What's not to love about that?" Brandon replied to the joke. "Anyway, do you mind if she commissions you to make a design for her new car?"

"No." He said simply.

"No?"

"No. ...not unless Yvonne works on it too."

"Yvonne?" She asked, "Look, I don't care, the more designers here that work on it, the better."

"Great, I'll go get her."

As he headed off away from them, Brandon looked at Alex.

"You know, that was a good choice, those two work well with one another. They can accurately portray each other's ideas into the medium they're working with. Yvonne Giorgio, her name is. She's one of our 3D modellers and, honestly, she produces her best work when she works with Jacob. Ah, here they come."

Jacob was approaching the two of them, with a woman walking behind him.

"Hey, I heard you needed my husband's help with designing a car... or something?" She said to Alex.

Alex blinked at the mention of Jacob's relation to Yvonne, but kept her composure. "Well, not Jacob, specifically, just an Angelus designer. Brandon was the one who picked him out."

"Well," Brandon chimed in, "You mentioned the Katana Havok, he was the primary designer of that car. Well, the UI53 and 54, not so much the KX250."

"Ahh, the Gen 2 Havok." Jacob replied. "I did have fun with the design for that. And, of course, every supercar after that. And I'm sure I'll have fun designin'..."

Brandon had shot him a death stare that basically told him to shut up, or to skilfully change what he was about to say.

"...this new car of yours." He finished, choosing the latter. "When do we start?"

"Well, I was thinking the sooner, the better." Alex noted, not noticing Jacob's near mess-up.

"Great! Now, I will need to speak to Jacob and Yvonne for a just a bit, but we shouldn't be too long. Once that's done, the three of you can get on with that project."

"Sure." Alex said, waving them on.

Taking them to another room away from Alex, Brandon just spoke a few words to the two of them.

"Not a word about the RXR Project to her, okay? The rest of the design process will start without you, but ultimately you'll provide the final visual design as per the design report."

"Sure thing!"

"Of course."

Once Jacob and Yvonne had both agreed to Brandon's terms, he let them walk out, heading back to where Alex was. Hearing them walk up to her, she turned her head to their direction. Brandon giving her the okay to leave with the two designers.

"Alright, everything's in order. They're in your hands, Alex."

"Fantastic, I'm looking forward to seeing what they come up with when I give out my plans."

[Ace3000]

FTA s2.9_2: A Prelude to Season 3
<22130227>

Saturday, February 27th, 2213

Location Unknown.

Time Unknown.

"Once again, I am really sorry I had to do this to you. I just... really do want to keep the location of our new headquarters a secret."

Alexandra Kotova, now using her old pseudonymous surname of Gelorum, had apologised for the second time to Jacob White and Yvonne Giorgio, this time over the skies of an unknown country. The reason why she was apologising was very simple. She had covered the two guests' eyes, to prevent them from figuring out the exact location of the new headquarters of the old Gelorum-led Crinale.

The method of doing so was with a rather intricate piece of eyewear. It wrapped around the wearer's head, and latched at the back in a way that the wearer couldn't unlock it easily, if at all. The front part was designed so that it covered their entire view, not just a major portion of it like traditional blindfolds.

"At least it's somewhat comfortable," Jacob commented.

"We had time to develop it. It is better than just some other blindfold, or even a bag over your head."

After another 20 minutes in the hypersonic grav-plane Alex had rented out, the three of them had finally landed. Stepping off, they were led into a building. At that point, the woman in the black longcoat reached up behind the two guests' heads and unclasped the glasses before pulling it off them.

"Welcome to Crinale Technologies' new headquarters."

It wasn't the laboratory-like appearance of Angelus', yet Crinale's new headquarters was not like the basement of their old AG racing tenure. It showed that, despite the major changes, they were still serious about their competitive attempts in the F-Class championships.

Alex walked past them, nodding her head in a certain direction.

"Come on. It would be inefficient to waste time."

The two followed her, unable to truly take in the sights of the fairly large building, most of it taken up by the hangar and maintenance area for the two F0-RA8 craft used in the F12000. Alex led the two into a smaller partition, where several office rooms had been set up. One of which was the conference room, the room that Alex had stopped in.

"Alright, take a seat, I will start informing you of the project." She began, pointing to the large desk in the centre of the room.

As they took their seats, she started the briefing, loading up some screens on the projector at the head of the room. The moment they saw the data on it, they both said the exact same thing.

"WHAT?!"

Alex started her explanation. "This car I'm wanting, it has one purpose. To defeat Brandon's Razer.X."

The details of the car's concept was, while not impossible, rather unique. It would have its basis design-wise in her custom Gen 2 Katana Havok, but obviously more modernised. The uniqueness was what the car had to be designed to fit. The planned powerplant was 2 small jet turbines, to be mounted in the mid-rear where Katana and Angelus' supercars usually had their engines.

"In addition," She continued, after explaining the details of the car's proposed powerplant, "I would like the car to contain a sort of canopy opening, a centred driving position, and some fins that extend behind the rear body, which would act as a both a stability and an airbrake system, along with other flaps placed around the car, like Brandon's Razer.X."

"Alright," Jacob commented, "I'll see what I can come up with."

Over the following couple of days, Jacob had mocked-up several primary designs for the new project, showing them to Alex. She flipped through all the designs, and let out a single comment.

"...sh*t. Did I mention how much I love your designs? I honestly cannot pick between these."

"Well, thanks." Jacob replied. "Jus' happy I did my job well enough."

"Yes, well you did it too well. I will need some time to deliberate over these designs. I will get back to you two when I have made my decision."

"No problem." Yvonne said. "Take as much time as you need."

A few hours later, Alex had returned. Still unable to select one design, she had opted to select the best parts out of all the designs to compile into one final cohesive design. Jacob had then set to work on drawing that final design, completing it within half an hour. Alex had taken one good look at it, and...

"...p-perfect..." She muttered. "That's absolutely how I envisioned the evolution of my Havok would look like."

"Really?" Jacob replied. "That's mad!"

"Looks like I'm up now," Yvonne added. "I'll start on making the 3D model."

"Please, go for it!"

Pulling out a portable device that was the evolution of the 21st century tablet, Yvonne set to work, beginning work on the 3D version of Jacob's 2D drawings. It had taken only a mere few hours, since she knew what she was doing, but she had completed the first concept of the car.

Upon seeing the design in full 3D, Alex took a step back, placing a hand to her mouth.

"This... I thought it looked beautiful just through Jacob's drawings, but... wow! It looks exactly like it, and I can see just how great it does look. Thank you, so much!"

"It was nothing, really." Yvonne replied. "Thank you for letting us design this for you."

"No problem. Now, while your job may be done here, I should clarify that the design would probably be modified a bit, just to ensure everything works as it should. But there would not really be any major changes."

"'S fine," Jacob said. "Make as much changes as you'd like. I'm just happy to do my job, and I'm happy 'nuff that you like it."

Just as Alex had said, their jobs were done, thus the two Angelus employees were set to return to Australia, back to Angelus' headquarters, to resume their work on the project Brandon had called, 'RXR'. After saying their goodbyes, and Alex paying them for their work, the black haired leader of the rival team flew off back to her hidden headquarters after dropping the couple back off in their home city.

[Ace3000]

I should have posted this part on the 5th. I apologize.

FTA s2.9_3: A Prelude to Season 3
<22130321>

Sunday, March 21st, 2213

Wolstenholme Point, Devon, England.

"A surprise turnout has happened today with long-time racing team Auricom publicly announcing they have decided to pull out of the F12000 AG racing league. They have explained that the reason for their absence here at Wolstenholme Point was because of their planned withdrawal. In a live datacast, the current Director of Operations has stated the following:"

"I don't know what kinda sick joke this is, but it's clear to us that this Chris Scarborough guy is clearly obsessed with making a second coming of the F9000 a reality. It is because of this that we feel it is necessary for Auricom to, once again, pull out of the Anti-Gravity Racing League. Perhaps, once this fool is fired, and we have a somewhat decent and fair league, we may return. But until that happens, you will not see Auricom in a racing environment any longer. We give our heartfelt apologies to our fans, but this is for the best. Thank you."

"Of course, the only other time Auricom has not participated in an Anti-Gravity league out of protest since its inception back in 2048 was the 2169 and the prematurely suspended 2170 seasons, protesting against the F9000 League's policies. To repeat today's breaking news, before we begin the datacast of today's F12000 race in Wolstenholme Point, long-time racing te--"

"So... it's happening again." Brandon muttered, after switching off the datacast. "Let's hope it's not another two years before this stupid league dies off."

------------
<22130418>

Sunday, April 18th, 2213

Sidewinder, Shibukawa, Japan.

"Following in the shadows of veteran team Auricom's departure from the F12000, another team has announced their withdrawal, AG Systems, the founders and pioneers of Anti-Gravity technology. This will definitely throw off a few bids, as they were slated to win on their home course here at Sidewinder. Here is what they had to say:"

The PR Manager began speaking in his native Japanese, which was overdubbed by an English translator.

"It is with great sorrow that I must announce the withdrawal of Anti-Gravity Systems' racing division from the F12000. We did not take this decision lightly, but after careful deliberation and analysis of the rules and regulations, we have determined that they are not particularly agreeable, when compared with our experiences between the start in 2212 and now. We realise that some of our fans may be upset about this, but we will definitely return, once more agreeable League regulations are in effect. Thank you."

"To reiterate, AG Systems will not be participating in their home race, as they have wi--"

Again, Brandon had shut off the datacast before it had finished.

"The uprising... it's happening. Surely it won't be soon before plans are set forth to undermine the league..."

------------
<22130423>

Friday, April 23rd, 2213

From a recorded phone call between Auricom and AG Systems.

"はい、細田です" ("Yes, this is Hosoda.")

"Hosoda, hi. This is Robert. From Auricom."

"Robert-san. To what do I owe this call?"

"I'm sure you know. The F12000."

"Ahh, of course. You left too. So, what about it?"

"If you wouldn't mind, may I propose an alliance?"

"Alliance?"

"Yes. In a similar vein to how the F9000 was thwarted by the Anti-Gravity Purity Coalition, my proposition is to create an Anti-Gravity Purity Alliance. AGPA."

"...very interesting. So will it be like the old Coalition? Uh... as in..."

"Protesting against the league, while gathering evidence against that madman in charge, Chris Scarborough. I don't know what the hell that guy's deal is, or where he came from, but he needs to be taken down a peg or two."

"That, I can agree with. Okay, let's do it. I accept your proposition. Consider the Anti-Gravity Purity Alliance officially established."

------------
<22130502>

Sunday, May 2nd, 2213

Nokav Vertigo, Rocky Mountains, USA.

13:00:00

"3, 2, 1... G-"
"Warning."
"Critical Weapon Pad failure."
"System force stop initiated..."
"Systems successfully stopped."
"Attempting to restart system processes..."
"Attempt failed."
"Running hardware diagnostics..."
"Diagnosis complete: power overload. Recovery impossible."
"Recommended action: Immediately replace damaged parts."

Technicians from AG Systems and Auricom had grouped together to overload the weapon pads, effectively disabling them right at the exact same time the race began. Also around that point, digital screens displaying advertisements from the two non-participating teams shut off, being replaced by a simple message.

A MESSAGE FROM THE ANTI-GRAVITY PURITY ALLIANCE.

CORRUPTION AND EXCESSIVE VIOLENCE IS NOT THE WAY. THE EASIER OPTION HAS BEEN DISABLED. RACE FAIR. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.
AGPA34057.11-0

[Ace3000]

FTA s2.9_4: A Prelude to Season 3
<22131018>

Monday, October 18th, 2213

Angelus R&D HQ, Perth, Australia.

11:33:20


In an attempt to ensure fairness, the Anti-Gravity Racing Coalition have devised the following rules for immediate implementation into the official Sporting Regulations for the 2214 F12000 season. As always, teams wishing to participate in the season must adhere to the rule changes, and prepare their craft to the current specification.

The complete 2214 F12000 Specification Sporting Regulations are available for viewing, however, the main change is listed below.

Article 5, Section 2, Subsection 2: Projectile Super-Weapons now must meet a minimum Destructive Power Rating (MDPR) target in order to be eligible. MDPR targets are dependant on the weapon and will be determined on a case-by-case basis.

A few days after the publication of that document, Brandon called several people into a conference room.

"Xygen lead technician and designers, and Xygen head Weapons R&D, please come to Conference Room 1."

Several minutes later, those individuals walked into the first of five conference rooms. In the middle of the oval-shaped table was a scale model of the current version of the Xygen V. As they took a seat, Brandon brought up a familiar document on the screen behind him, at the back of the room.

"Okay, We... really don't have time to waste with this, at all. I'm just going to cut right to the chase."

He brought up the major rule change into focus on the screen.

"This rule, I'm sure, is to mess with us directly, to jeopardise our non-violent ways. The thing is, I don't want all of that electromagnetic technology to go to waste. But, since we can't use the Railgun, we need to pull it off the craft, and redevelop it into something else. I don't know what, though, the weapon isn't my top priority. So, for the 2214 season, until we develop a replacement, I am willing to not have any Super-Weapons registered to our team."

He nodded. "Okay. Would you still like us to start R&D on EM-based tech for our Railgun replacement?"

"Yes, if you could? We would still like to take advantage of the availability of Super-Weapons, but to make it our own thing, to fit with our ideals."

With nothing else left to discuss, Brandon called the meeting a close, and dismissed the members of the group, leaving the leader to focus on the tasks and important data he was to sift through that day.

------------
Crinale Technologies HQ.

"Development has started on Project Keres. I want nothing to do with Thanatos any longer."

After another disappointing race in attempting to maintain and tune the F0-RA8 craft for the previous race weekend, Alexandra Gelorum had had enough, almost ditching the most important part of their racing team into the bin: the craft itself. That, combined with the harsh memories indirectly tied to the craft meant that she was willing to forgo the 2214 season to focus their attempts in starting over. The problem was, with work starting so late in the year, the project would run well into 2215 as well.

"Tch, if I could, I would just bring Valkyrie back, but that wouldn't stand a chance."

"If I might ask," CO-05, Xavier Reid, the team's appointed Overseer Head Technician, spoke up. "What exactly is wrong with Thanatos?"

"Chris Scarborough is what's wrong with it."

He smirked.

"I'm glad you didn't mention our performance for the second half of this season. Whether we upgrade it, or start on this new project, money would have to be poured into it... admittedly more money needing to go into a new project than upgrading our existing models."

"Yes, howev-"

"However nothing." He cut her off, before taking a deep breath. "Starting a project from scratch like that is just not efficient at all. We-"

"Why the f*ck not?" Her eyes glowed. "We have the funds to do it! No-one complained about Valkyrie when we had the Devil!"

"Valkyrie was a necessary upgrade to Devil. What you've started is an entirely new project altogether. Furthermore, you went behind our backs. The other COs feel the same way as I do. [sigh], look. I know you hate everything Viktor did. But forcing a new F12000 project is just a little too extreme."

Alex's eyes grew a little paler.

"What... do I do, then? I hate the RA8, we are losing races left, right and centre, and it has nothing to do with Lucia or Leon. I just want to give up on it."

"Call a meeting with the other COs. We might be able to come to a more suitable course of action with all 11 of us here."

Her face contorted to something resembling a grimace upon hearing that number.

"Tyler was a f*cking idiot, but I hate the fact that Scarborough murdered 10. He was a good guy."

"It still hurts you after we told you?"

"It doesn't hurt you?!"

He shook his head. "Of course it does. It hurts everyone. But we need to move on. Should I call the COs?"

A few seconds silence, Alex recomposed herself.

"No need. I will do it."

Five minutes later, the eleven remaining COs had gathered in the main meeting room.

"...So maybe I was too quick in initiating Project Keres. I still want to go through with the project though, I want to continue with Thanatos no longer. How should we go about it?"

That was the opening query that started the unintentionally long proceedings, that seemed to turn into a debate of what Keres should be, if it should even exist any further in the first place. For the first hour, the debate was going back and forth between stopping development of Keres, and ceasing the maintenance of the F0-RA8 and focusing solely on Keres itself.

It seemed to be going nowhere, until CO-02 spoke up.

"Solution. Redefine Keres as an evolutionary step of Thanatos."

That caused everyone to fall silent. They all stared at her incredulously, as if she had spoke in Latin.

"Did... you just say what I think you said?"

"It's a strategic solution to your problems: combine the two. Since some main assets of Thanatos would stay, it won't cost as much. But I do admit that it will cost more than upgrading. Still, Gelorum doesn't want to have Thanatos anymore. Thus, like Valkyrie was to Devil, we develop Keres as an upgrade to the entire Thanatos project."

"That is a compromise." Alex replied. "A massive one... but I would be willing to take it if as little of Thanatos is included in Keres."

"We won't make it noticeable. You won't know which components are from Thanatos and which are new." Xavier said. "We're good at that."

"Tch, I know you are, that's the concerning part."

She shook her head, succumbing to her peers.

"Alright, fine. Keres is now an evolution of Thanatos."

[Ace3000]

FTA s2.9_5: A Prelude to Season 3
<22131114>

Monday, November 14th, 2213

Brandon's house, Perth, Australia.

18:00:33


"In the news tonight... Jennter celebrate their win in the final F12000 race of the season. For more, we have our resident sports nerd, Natalie Winters, with the sports report."

"That's right! Jennter have come out of nowhere to claim the final race victory! They did get a podium finish, but were sadly trailing in points, right behind Assegai. But they've been mid-pack runners this entire season, so the question remains, how were they able to pull off such a victory?

"Now, from the footage, it seems like a massive upgrade to their JAG-F12 craft's aerodynamics have taken place. It wasn't like they weren't nimble before, but in this final race, they seemed able to take corners at a far greater speed than normal. What exactly this technological or aerodynamic upgrade was, is something that is still yet unknown, but we do know that it did pass the post-race inspection, meaning it's most likely not some illegal technology like the outlawed Reverse-Inertia Deceleration system, used by Triakis up until the end of the 2206 FX300 season.

"We'll keep you all up to date, but I highly doubt our beloved classics would stoop to use banned tech!"

"I know what was going on with their tech... and if they can do that, then we can."


"Next in the sports report, a mysterious black craft was captured at Sidewinder in Japan, apparently being put through its paces in what might be pre-season testing. The craft had no markings or livery to speak of, so it wasn't possible to know which team it was, if it was an existing F12000 team at all.

"Now, we've seen some speculation from F12000 fans suspecting that it might be former F9000 team Tigron Enterprises, who also had confirmed appearances in the FX300, as a transitional tool for Qirex's heavier craft; and in the latter half of the FX350 pre-testing season, this time not affiliated with Qirex in the slightest.

"However, only time will tell if their suspicions are right or not. We'll be back after a short break."

"First the return of Scarborough, and now this? I swear, this better not f*cking be Tigron."

------------
<22131114>

Tuesday, November 15th, 2213

Angelus R&D HQ, Perth, Australia.

09:32:47

Brandon started the day by collecting the lead designers and technicians for the Xygen F-Class project once again, to outline the plans he had thought up the preceding night.

"Okay, so here's the thing. Jennter did not cheat. Active aerodynamics is not against the rules, thus I intend to develop some of our own. I expect the first working prototype to be completed late next year, but don't count that as a deadline. I don't see the technology being race ready until the 2215 season."

"That's fine. We know your predictions aren't deadlines. Doesn't mean we won't make them, it just means you know us well enough that you know how we manage and utilise our time." The designer replied.

"You know..." A technician piped up. "We have been throwing around an idea since the start of Project X5's development back in 2210, but we weren't too sure about going through with it, because of what happened with Triakis in 2206, but it was just something to keep us further entertained while we kept working to the Project's specs. I think... this theoretical might be the answer to what you've set forth for us."

"Just as long as it's not completely broken. I don't want another Xff Type 3165 incident."

"Speaking of, what did happen to that? Far as I was aware, it was running perfectly!"

After finding out about a certain aspect of a developmental version of the Xygen V's engine, called the AGR:Xff Type 3165, it mysteriously disappeared, work immediately starting on the 3164-based Type 3166 that resided in the F12000 craft in 2212.

Brandon simply smiled. "The less said, the better. Need to know basis. Curiosity doesn't count."

"...okay."

------------
Unknown Date.

Unknown Location.

Unknown Time.

>>EREBUS OS V3.7.564

>>LOADING DATA FILES...

>COMPLETE

>>LOGGING IN...
>>WELCOME, EREBUS.

>>DOWNLOADING UPDATED AVAILABLE TEAM DATA...

>COMPLETE

>>PROJECT: SHINIGAMI PROGRESS:

>"SG_R-000": INACTIVE

>"SG_X-043": SUFFICIENT DATA ACQUIRED [70%].

>>INITIATING PRE-PRODUCTION PROCESS.

>EXPECTED DEVELOPMENT COMPLETION DATE: 2215.

[Ace3000]

FTA s2.9_6: A Prelude to Season 3
<22140531>

Tuesday, May 31st, 2214

Angelus R&D HQ, Perth, Australia.

10:39:47

"Brandon Smith, to the R&D Weapons Testing Section, Brandon Smith, Weapons Testing Section."

Brandon had found himself just outside the R&D sector after hearing the announcement, correctly believing it to be of high priority. Stepping inside, he headed to the relevant section of the R&D sector. Upon his entry, he saw a full-scale model of the Xygen V. Below it, he saw several technicians working on something inside it. Upon seeing the tall lab coat-clad man enter, the head of weapons development welcomed him."

"Alright, Brandon. We hope this is to your liking... we ready?" He added, turning to ask one of the technicians.

"Yeah, it's ready."

"Go on, then... activate the ce31B!"

A low, almost silent hum began to emanate as a bright blue-purple light appeared around the craft model. As they both faded into existence, the model itself started to fade into transparency, but it hadn't completely disappeared. Merely, the technology had begun to warp some light around the craft, making it somewhat transparent.

"Making it's return since 2155, I present, Angelus' new Super-Weapon: the EM Cloak."

It took several seconds of stunned silence to elicit a response from the leader.

"...fascinating. That... is actually really well done!"

"We're glad you think so."

"Mhm, now it's just a matter of reapplying the Super-Weapon to the league. Thankfully we retain the License, so that isn't an issue. Let's hope they accept our blatant exploitation of their loophole. They forced that rule to hinder us, but we'll just come back stronger."

"Yes!"

"Even then, I'm sure they would have no choice but to accept it. It doesn't break any of the rules at all. Speaking of, I might as well check up on the other 2214 update."

As he said that, he began to move to another section of the R&D building, where two pieces of technology were being developed for two very different vehicles. This time, however, Brandon was greeted not by a model, but by the two very real vehicles themselves. One of which was the Xygen V itself, the other was one he had only seen in digital renditions.

The very first working prototype of the RXR Project was finally complete. Of course, though, it was unpainted, being a rather basic test prototype unintended to be seen by the public at all. The very first shell prototype, given the designation KA-D977 after the final digital design designation, was completed in the third quarter of 2213. It was there that the last parts of the fine tuning of the design were completed, along with the physical aerodynamic tests.

The working prototype, however, was to test various new systems along with the main change, a shiny new powerplant. The tests included fuel efficiency, driveability, also when used in conjunction with other systems such as stabilisers, and of course, power output. The project was naturally kept out of sight of those that were not directly involved with it, but exact nature of the engine itself was still unique and completely radical enough that Brandon didn't want it placed in any random test mule.

"That... is looking pretty nice." Brandon commented after seeing the smaller prototype.

"Yeah? We think so too." A technician replied.

"I can't wait to see it all painted up and in it's final form. That would be a thing of perfect beauty."

It was then that the head technician turned to face the leader, previously working on the larger craft.

"Brandon, to what do we owe this visit?" He asked.

"What? Can't I check up on how far our secret projects are coming along?" Brandon joked.

"Nuh, get out!" Came the response, in the same joking manner as the question.

A shared laugh later, the technician began explaining the situation report.

"So yeah, the project. We've got the thing in a working state, but it's not quite yet complete. It's very close, though. All that's needed is to recode the management systems to make it work, among some light fine-tuning with the angles and power and related stuff."

"Good, good." Brandon replied.

"That, however," The technician continued, "Is only with the Xygen. This thing, however," He pointed to the prototype. "This has been a complete nightmare."

"That bad, huh? Alright, tell me this, at least. Would this affect the deadline for the rest of the project units?"

"No, not at all. This is, in a way, separate from the rest of the RXR Project's development. And even then, it will be finished by the time it's ready for release."

Brandon nodded. "Okay, that's good. If need be, I'll pump some of my personal funds into this thing."

"That's good to hear, but we're not exactly running out of funding just yet. Anything else, though?" The head technician asked.

A few seconds later, Brandon did ask a question.

"Does the system play well with the engine and every other relevant system?"

"That is what's making this thing a b-... difficult thing to accomplish. In its current state, it barely works, and only with just the powerplant. Add other systems to it, and the instability just grows exponentially, until the point comes where it just dies every. Single. Time it gets switched on."

"Damn. Well, I have faith that you'll get it working properly. You're the best of the best, that's why you're working here!"

[Ace3000]

FTA s2.9_7: A Prelude to Season 3
<22140718>

Monday, July 18th, 2214

Crinale Technologies HQ.

Three months from the one year anniversary of the start of Keres' development, the main chassis was finally nearing its final stages of development. All but one of the new components to be developed for the new craft were complete, just being mere upgrades to the existing technology in the Antonov-designed craft. Because it was a mandated upgrade of the old craft, the advantage Leon Turner had was gone. Both craft were to receive the same level of technology within it, which did slightly uneven the playing field in Lucia's favour.

The design of the craft looked rather different to the F0-RA8. It was clear that the design direction was taken by a different person than the predecessor. It looked more similar to the older F0-RG7.2, than the RA8. Instead of the heavily strengthened chassis, the tank-like appearance, all of it had diminished with the new design. It instead now looked like a strengthened combat racing craft, rather than an all-out armoured fighting vehicle.

The aerodynamics and handling, however, weren't that much better, but Alex had an idea of how to fix it, her source of inspiration lying within the final 2213 race.

Jennter's seemingly untouchable, ever-evolving airbrake technology was being attempted by Crinale.

Of course, none of the teams involved, the team whose technology they were trying to match, nor the rivals they were trying to outright beat, knew of their mutual rival's attempt at such technology.

"...so, in conclusion, we just try and defeat them in all aspects. Speed, turning capabilities, combat power... all of it. That is what we hope to achieve with the XF-XX System."

The chassis of the craft itself was an integral part of the system. The craft itself was designed so that it channelled as much air as it could into the rear ducts. This air was allowed to just freely pass through normally, but when the airbrake was applied, that air was forced out through an alternate side exit. The opening of the extended airbrake, along with the mechanical device itself had also served to funnel even more air into the system.

The system and chassis worked together to provide as yet unseen amounts of handling capabilities in the normally violence-oriented team. However, it was well within what they were also known for, flaunting and bending the rules to their will.

Apart from updating the RA8's systems, the aero system, including the new chassis, wasn't the only thing they worked on. Offensive energy technology was their speciality, yet, purely due to Gelorum's personal feelings about it, entirely threw away the ZTR7620 Quantum Destabiliser, replacing it with a highly revised and redeveloped piece of controversial technology from their past.

For 2215, Crinale were to once again arm their craft with their well-known Energy Blaster, this time designated CZf_13.

Development tests for the system proved it to still be dangerously powerful, yet not as powerful as its more rebellious predecessor. For all intents and purposes it operated quite similarly to the Quantum Destabiliser, as the old Super-Weapon operated similarly to the Energy Blaster itself. Despite its decreased power, the blaster still had the capabilities of eliminating a craft in one shot, but it wasn't a guaranteed elimination to those with tough enough shields.

------------
<22140801>

Monday, August 1st, 2214

Wolstenholme Point, England

11:35:52

Two weeks later, while still technically incomplete, the craft was ready for its first pre-season test. The only thing left to do was the lengthy, arduous, and potentially revealing task of fine-tuning, the only effective way of doing so being to actually race the craft around a track, to gain an understanding of how the new chassis and airbrake systems reacted and harmonised with one another. Knowing that photographers and journalists secretly recording footage would be present at the course they had chosen, Wolstenholme Point, because they always seemed to be, the team were very sneakily camouflaged in plain sight.

An entirely black, full body, identity-obscuring racing suit similar to the ones seen by the mysterious pre-season test late last year was worn by all three test pilots: current F12000 pilots Lucia Scarlatti and Leon Turner, along with Alexandra Gelorum herself. Along with that, the F0-RG08/β1024 itself was painted entirely in black, with no team logo or other identifying details to be seen anywhere on the craft. Again, similar to the pre-season test seen last year.

The camouflage was essentially to the identity of the craft's owners, not to the craft itself.

Interestingly, their original choice for the test was to be at Magus, in the UAE. The course was originally the Mirage Anti-Gravity Excellence Centre's test track, a course hidden underground, to prevent prying eyes from seeing their Mantis concept being tested before it was complete. With the announcement of the F12000 specifications in mid-2210, they decided to open the course up as a part of the official roster, closing it only when their Mist F12000 craft underwent testing at the course.

Of course, at the last minute, they cancelled, out of fear that Mirage would try and spy on the craft itself, and attempt to gather information for use in the Mist craft, especially regarding Crinale's answer to Jennter's airbrakes, instead picking the more neutral Wolstenholme Point. The long course had far more tight sections than the other two, but the course was still a generally high-speed course, so it was a good second choice to test all of the craft's functions.

<black church | dimension (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TluBUhItKAE&t=81)_>[/FONT]

At 36 minutes past 11am, the first of many tests began, the pure black craft rising from the pits, shooting off with the same high acceleration as the RA8 usually had. The system was so effective, it needed minimal tweaks to maintain its high thrust output. So far, the thrust was proving to be pretty much perfect. But that was not what was being tested.

To hide it's true top speed, the craft's power unit was only run at a certain percentage lower for the entire test, but even with that limitation, precise calculations could be performed to determine the craft's limit at 100%. The same was done for the prototype aero airbrake hybrid system, which was also concealed somewhat by the pure black paintjob.

Despite the limits imposed, the craft still flew down the track at an incredible rate, well faster than their current model. The tight corners were not a problem for them any longer, gliding around them as easily as Angelus. Even with the rather notorious tight chicane series two-thirds of the way in, the craft was far from destabilised. Soaring past the line at an incredible, near maximum speed, the first time was displayed...

...which was faster than any time they had ever made.

Several more laps were made, each with a different technique and style designed to push the system to its limits. With the data gathered after the first 12 laps, the craft coasted to a halt over the pits, and was brought down to start the first of the craft's tweaks.

Stumbling out of the craft, landing quite gracefully on her feet was one rather shocked Lucia Scarlatti. Not that anyone else would know, she, like everyone else, was still wearing their identity-obscuring suits.

"..h-holy crap that was amazing! It's still heavy as sh*t, but it's just so much faster and easier to control!"

"That is the aero system for you." Gelorum replied, seeing if she was alright after her fall. "Well, we have the data, but is there any kind of settings you would suggest?"

"Not really," The young girl said, "This thing is just better in every way I can think of."

"...I see. That is fine, then."

She turned around, and walked to the engineer underneath the craft, pulling a box out.

"Just the data, Lucia has nothing more to add."

"Sure."

That box was the craft's telemetry data recorder. F12000 crafts sent data needed to observe and make related tweaks to the various systems on-board the craft wirelessly, albeit heavily encoded to prevent others from stealing the data and analysing it for themselves. This wasn't a problem in races, since it was more effective to focus on ones own data instead of using up precious resources decoding data that, by the time it would be decoded, would be far out of date.

This wasn't the case for pre-season tests. With the data gathered so early on, before the season even began, spies could gather the data sent back, and use all the time they have to decode and analyse it, as well as make changes to their own craft based upon that data.

For that reason, the data recorder present in the test craft did not have a wireless transceiver. Naturally, it meant that the data had to be transferred physically, but that was a small price to pay to maintain the secrecy of their new project.

An entire hour later, the data was obtained, analysed, and used to make the very fine adjustments the data suggested be made. The physical and ECU adjustments complete, the craft was to have another shakedown test performed, following the re-installation of the data recorder. When he saw Gelorum striding towards the craft, Leon tried to get her attention.

"So, it's my turn now, right?"

The leader maintained her gait, staring straight ahead of her at the craft.

"No. Mine."

Her hands merely hovered above the railing of the stairs as she leapt up the steps towards the craft's cockpit. As fast as the craft was now, the leader of the team was now seated in the craft, preparing to set off.

"Now, observe how it is done... heh, if you can."

She grinned widely, not that anyone could see it behind her black race helmet. Everything that wasn't the prototype craft was pulled away from the pit grid, before it was raised up to the track above. Using the data, an expected 3 second decrease in lap time was calculated. Despite the limiters still in place, Gelorum aimed to beat that projected time.

Now, one would expect her to be unable to get anywhere near that time, considering her lack of actual craft piloting since March 2210. That, however, was not the case. As soon as Crinale was back in her hands in November of 2212, Alex herself began using the simulator to get back into the practice, despite her not replacing the two pilots. One quote from her given in 2213 revealed her reasons:


"First, I do enjoy racing, I get a joy out of piloting these craft. But I do not want to replace Lucia or Leon, they have proven themselves with Crinale, and I am not one to betray that. Second reason is... if I know how to race, if I know how the craft performs first-hand, then I can direct Leon and Lucia even better than if I do not."

Additionally, she was always seen, like the current test, flying in the post-race shakedown and test sessions, seeing what could be improved with the craft. Thus, she was treating this more secretive session like it was any other, putting her all into pushing the craft to its limits...

Unfortunately, she had failed to beat the projected time. She was within acceptable range of it, though, which got her reluctant approval. The F0-RG08 had officially entered its final stages of development, and would be more than ready for the 2215 season.

[Ace3000]

FTA s2.9_8: A Prelude to Season 3
<22140823>

Tuesday, August 23rd, 2214

Angelus R&D HQ, Perth, Australia.

17:30:01

After what seemed to be the last person leaving the building, there were, in actuality, two people remaining inside. The man inside locked the building up, then began to make his way up to a secluded and forbidden area of the complex, even more so than the section it was contained in.

>ACCESS TO THE RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT SECTOR IS RESTRICTED TO LEVEL 3 AC--/

>FOUNDER SECURITY OVERRIDE. LEVEL 7 ACCESS GRANTED. WELCOME, BRANDON.

Stepping inside once the doors unlocked, Brandon walked through the surprisingly large complex. Various technologies in different states of completion and production lay within the building, both intended for the F-Class racing craft, and for their production car line. However, in the depths of the complex lay one other piece of technology, hidden behind the most secure door in the entirety of Angelus's headquarters.

>[CLASSIFIED] PROJECT ROOM IS HEAVILY RESTRICTED TO LEVEL 7 ACCESS ONLY. PLEASE SCAN FOUNDER'S CARD.

>FOUNDER'S CARD ACCEPTED. PLEASE INPUT LEVEL 7/42A SECURITY CREDENTIALS:

>>████ █████ ███████ ██ ███ █████████_

>LEVEL 7/42A SECURITY CREDENTIALS ACCEPTED.
>FINGERPRINT ANALYSIS: MATCH 100%.

>PLEASE SUBMIT TO A RETINAL SCAN.

...

>RETINAL SCAN COMPLETE. MATCH 100%.
>REMOVING SECURITY LOCKS.
>ANGEL 42 PROJECT ROOM ACCESS GRANTED. WELCOME, BRANDON.

That wasn't the end of the security protocols, either. There was one remaining, located within the tiny room itself, which housed but one solitary device, which took up approximately half of the room's dimensions.

This was the Anti-Gravity Stasis Pod.

Brandon slowly walked up to it, placing a hand on the glass face plate. Letting out a sigh, he directed his attention to a keypad to the side of the glass door.

>--------

There was space for only eight numbers. Having devised the security protocols in the first place, Brandon naturally knew the code and the significance of those digits, and entered it.

>22100321_

>ACCEPTED

Entering the code had brought up several touch options on the screen and keypad. At the same time, an internal panel between the door's outer and inner reinforced glass panels slid around and away from the glass panels, revealing the contents of the device; the second remaining person in the currently otherwise unoccupied complex...

"Tarah..."

His hand pressed up against the glass door once more, his gaze directed solely at the bright orange-haired woman, suspended in anti-gravity. It looked like she was completely peaceful, oblivious to all that was happening in the outside world...

Maybe it would be better that way, he thought...

"...no, that's stupid. I promised to make the world a better place for her return. I will still do that, I promise."

As he looked over the girl, he had suddenly become aware of one surprising fact. His hand had begun to move, and was currently hovering over the keypad. More specifically, his finger was aiming at one option in particular.

2. Awaken.

He looked over to his hand, the finger twitching over the option. He was seriously considering pressing the button to awaken her... to speak to her. He missed her, of course he did, he was without her for just over one and a half years. But... he was still hesitating despite that, and he knew why. He still remembered what she said, what she had told him with teary eyes before being locked up in there...

"I'm sorry, I don't think I deserve to see your face until I'm cured. Really, I'm so sorry."

While they had completed the chemical makeup of the Condition's anti-chemical, the Cure, they had not manufactured enough of it to begin the Nullification.

"...damn it. I'm sorry... I really am."

Both his hands dropped down to his sides, before hitting the final option on the keypad.

'C. Resume Operation.'

When he hit it, the opaque panel returned to its prior state, blocking the view from its contents.

>--------

"I thought I could do this... I really did. I've remained strong for so long... and yet... and yet! ... [sigh]... I vow to end this accursed league. As soon as possible... I just need time..."

His mind made up, Brandon turned away, and walked out of the room, closing the door behind him.

>REAPPLYING SECURITY LOCKS.
>[CLASSIFIED] PROJECT ROOM IS NOW LOCKED.
>[CLASSIFIED] PROJECT ROOM IS HEAVILY RESTRICTED TO LEVEL 7 ACCESS ONLY...

Hearing the various clicks of the door locking itself, and making sure it was locked, he continued, out of the R&D section.

>REAPPLYING ACCESS LOCKS.
>RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT ROOM IS NOW LOCKED.
>ACCESS TO THE RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT SECTOR IS RESTRICTED TO LEVEL 3 ACCESS AND ABOVE.

This time, he heard a bleep, followed by a single click of the lock.

"Alright... I'm out."

Heading for the carpark, he entered the car he was using ever since a certain incident happened. That car in particular being a unique one, even though it just looked like an ordinary R210 GT. However, when it started, the engine and exhaust note didn't really sound like an AGS:X V10. Really, the car was a test mule, for what was to be a new generation engine. Even reversing out, it sounded very smooth and quite powerful when Brandon drove out of the multi-story parking garage.

[Ace3000]

FTA s2.9_9: A Prelude to Season 3
<22141010>

Monday, October 10th, 2214

Angelus R&D HQ, Perth, Australia.

13:49:57


In an attempt to ensure fairness, the Anti-Gravity Racing Coalition have devised the following rules for immediate implementation into the official Sporting Regulations for the 2215 F12000 season. As always, teams wishing to participate in the season must adhere to the rule changes, and prepare their craft to the current specification.

The complete 2215 F12000 Specification Sporting Regulations are available for viewing, however, the main changes are listed below.

Article 3, Section 9, Subsection 1: The use of any and all movable aerodynamic aids are no longer permitted for use in an F12000 Specification Craft, excluding Aero-Mechanical airbrakes developed to F12000 standards.

"What?!"

In one fell swoop, Angelus' prototype technology was now all for naught. In addition, Jennter's wings had been clipped. They had been subtly tweaking their active aero system with every session, every race they had participated in, going from a standard rating of 85 to a monumental 110 by the end of the final race.

"Damn it, this was progress! It's not like we were cheaping out on safety, either! ...tch, violence over aerodynamics? Of course..."

An angry, upset gait in his stride to the R&D section, he got the attention of the head technicians with eight simple words.

"...abandon the AeroForce project, Scarborough just killed it."

"What?!" Was their response.

"That's what I said when I found out. But yeah, it's over. Article 3, Section 9, Subsection 1. Only airbrakes are allowed now."

"But we were so close!"

"I know. But this wasn't my call to make. It was either cull the development of the tech, or cease participation."

The lead technician just sighed.

"It's fine," Brandon said, in an attempt to reassure the head technician. "We can make it on just our airbrake tech alone, the regulations haven't changed, we're still okay with them."

"We're far from FEISAR, though."

"I'm convinced they use black magic." He joked.

That elicited a chuckle from the technician. "Hey, we got close. The Xygen4 was really close to FEISAR's handling."

"Only in terms of FX400 stats. Where it stopped at 100. Their true handling was well above stat '100'. I... don't know how high, though."

"Well, what about now? With what's happened now, what's going on now?"

"With Jennter down, we can theoretically maintain victory. But, I dunno, it kinda seems bittersweet."

"Understandable."

"We'll just have to try our best to win like we usually do. I'm not backing down, I still fully intend to show Scarborough our non-violent ways."

"It's not as if we're at the bottom of the pack. We're consistently high, despite our... still consistent shaky starts."

"I've still yet to see a season start with even so much as a finish."

The technician thought for the briefest of moments. "Wait, what about 2210?"

"...Ah, right. Our test for the Xygen-R25. Honestly, that 'season' was so short, I just forgot that it happened."

"Yeah, I get it."

Brandon just shook his head.

"And I was really looking forward to the Prototype class too. Going above and beyond the standard regulations, to truly show off the very best technology."

"Not to mention the astronomical waste of money the Xygen-R25 was."

"It wouldn't have been, had the season continued as usual."

"Well, yeah. But it didn't."

"I... guess."

------------
<22141010>

Monday, October 10th, 2214

Crinale Technologies HQ.

13:50:00

Meanwhile, Crinale had only a one-word response to the changes.

"...Sh*t!"

[Ace3000]

FTA s2.9_A: A Prelude to Season 3
<22141127>

Sunday, November 27th, 2214

Magus, Dubai, UAE.

10:44:44

The final 2214 race of the season was, without a doubt, completely pointless. Jennter's technology was taken above and beyond the limits of anything anyone had ever seen in the league before, and as such, the German team were sitting very comfortably in an untouchable 1st in the standings. It was, however, the final season that the superior airbrake technology was allowed, to the dismay of the teams who had to ditch similar technologies that were in various stages of development.

Contrast to that, the weekend started with a mass protest from the lesser off teams who seemed to be... less than pleased about Jennter's allowed continual use of the system, and continued to make calls for the technology to be banned right there and then. Even in the last race, where it just did not matter any longer, the protests were still being made. However, it had gotten to the point where teams were actively considering, and threatening to the officials to pull out of the race. In the end, since it was the final race, the F12000 management stuck to their guns, and Jennter were allowed to race.

On the grid, a presenter travelling along the grid stopped by one of the teams, and held his mic up to interview the Icaras pilot.

"Hi, Louis, could I ask if you do intend to race? We know you had been in talks with the race officials with the rest of the your team about dropping out of the race out of protests of Jennter's airbrake technology."

The pilot, visibly annoyed, shot a reply anyway.

"I cannot say anything about the matter. I'm here, I'm on the grid, and I know what is expected out of me from the team. That's all I have to say."

Finally, Louis Sorento looked away from the presenter, and continued towards the Icaras pits.

"Well," The presenter spoke into the mic, looking into the camera behind him. "We're still not sure what's about to happen, but there is an almost palpable aura around the track. I, I feel that something massive is about to go down here at Magus."

Another pilot was interviewed, David MacKenzie of Triakis, who, when asked about the potential breaking of the Sporting Code, spat out an even angrier reply. "Aagghhh, f*ck the Sporting Code, okay?! F*cking Jennter broke the code in the first place with their technology, and the F12000 Racing Commission is to blame too, they broke it by allowing them to race! These bastards are lucky we're even on the grid in the first place! Total c***s, the lot of 'em. And yes, I understand the irony, but this isn't 2197, we're beyond that."

A third interviewed pilot gave, by that point, the shortest interview at the pre-race. Marie d'Ambrosio, lead pilot of Goteki 45 was quoted as saying a cryptic message as a response to the entire situation regarding Jennter: "Gulfstream. 338a. That's all."

The fourth and final pilot interviewed, Sascha Foss of Harimau, beat Marie by providing the interviewer with a single word: "...No."

Angelus were not one to back away from a race, even if they had no hope of winning in their current spec. Still, the battle for second was still relevant. Wyvern and Piranha were both within range of taking the silver from Angelus.

"Ridiculous," Brandon said after having a microphone shoved in his face. "It's the end of the season, No-one can possibly hope to defeat Jennter, and just wanting to drop out is taking the baby way out. What could you all possibly hope to achieve by dropping out?! The tech is banned for next year, just aim for second like we're doing and be done with this year."

"So you don't think their tech is unfair as it is?"

He shook his head. "That's not what I said. Sure, it might be unfair as it is now, but it was progress. We were developing an answer to that tech ourselves, might as well say it now, considering it's banned. I-I just don't get it, why they would even consider doing something like that, dropping out when it doesn't even matter anymore. It just makes no sense. Earlier on in the season, sure. But not now, not when it's just too late."

"Alright, so moving on, could you tell us what you think about your three-way battle against Wyvern and Piranha for second place?"

"Well, there's not much to say about that. They're both proving themselves extremely well this season, and... I just wish them the best of luck. Anyone could win!"

With the five minute warning having gone off, every single craft was accounted for on the grid. It seemed, evidently, that all the teams were still intending to race. The final minute went by rather slowly, despite the knowledge that Jennter would shoot off at the first corner, and not be seen for the rest of the race. But, at long last, the race was mere seconds from starting, as the start line lit up...

3, 2, 1... GO!

<11:00:00_>
<magus: med fwd_>
<race: lap 01 of 71_>



01.
AUR164.0.16.156
#16
Aurora
Jennter
JAG-F12.212/4



02.
ROU931.1.26.156
#26
Patrick Rouser
Jennter
JAG-F12.212/4



03.
ARD889.0.19.194
#19
Gareth Ardos
Angelus
AX2.2_r7



...









<contender eliminated_>

The instant the race began, that one message was displayed nine times over, all simultaneously. Falling back down to Earth, the nine craft the messages related to became known. The two craft each from Harimau, Triakis, Goteki 45 and Assegai, plus Icaras' singular craft had all been shut down by their own pilots.

Those five teams had gone through with their initial protest, and had effectively self-eliminated themselves in order to pull out of the race.

On the other end of the race, Jennter pulled away gradually from the slightly slower accelerating Angelus, until the power unit of the Xygen V ran out of puff, which then the white and orange craft continued on, pulling farther away from the singular white and azure craft.

The first corner was, interestingly, where the surprise lay. Gareth was expecting the craft to turn quickly, but not as quickly as both of them actually did.

"What?!"

In the blink of an eye, both craft soared around the corner at maximum speed, as if they were glued to the track. Instinctively, Brandon commented about this to Gareth, to get him to calm down and focus on the race.

"Final race, Gareth, only natural they would crank it up to max. No real point in hiding the airbrake's limits anymore."

Taking a deep breath, the pilot did relax. "Yeah... yeah, you're right."

"Just let them go, stick to the plan."

"I know, I know."

The only time Jennter were ever seen again was very briefly, when the fast agile craft sped past the rest of the pack to lap them. Not even weapons could stop them, as soon as they were slowed down by a missile, or in one extreme case, all three rockets, the race leaders simply absorbed whatever weapon they were holding. It was a strategy they had learned to adopt for the new season, to best suit their new ever-evolving technology.

It came to no surprise that Jennter won the final race, taking a clean sweep of the 2214 championship. The weekend came as a loss-loss to those who decided to self-eliminate, being fined colossal amounts of money for their conspiring against the race, and their complete failure to allow the craft to race.

------------
<22141209>

Friday, December 9th, 2214

Crinale Technologies HQ.

19:32:20

Not wanting to keep their potentially outdated technology following the advanced airbrake ban for 2215, Crinale took it upon themselves to develop new, 2215-compliant airbrake technology. Their craft's chassis, however, was just one portion of the now banned XF-XX System, and was utilised as much as it could, without it being classified as being technically part of the new system according to the rules.

The main bulk of the system was an easily sourced piece of technology, from which the new airbrakes were based upon. The XF0 system from the rather short-lived FX400 Prototype Class provided the answers Gelorum was looking for in regards to elevated aerodynamic ability. Despite it being 6 year old technology, it was just powerful enough that it was, with modern tweaks, able to provide the extra agility the founder was looking for.

December 9th was the date the system was being finalised. The old proven technology, intermixed with new proven technology was given minor testing. Crinale's technicians, alongside Gelorum herself, knew what they were looking for if it were to go wrong, and also if it were to be all in working order.

It was far from the agility the XF-XX System provided, but it was leagues better than the old XF9 airbrakes. Only time would tell if it was good enough to bring the new chassis to match the other craft entered in the 2215 season.

[Ace3000]

FTA s2.9_B: A Prelude to Season 3


REVELATION DATA SECURITY SYSTEMS ver. 4.7.22

Date of obtainment: Saturday, July 15th, 2215

Time of obtainment: 20:38:05

FEISAR LS Team <lstech@feisar.gov.eu>
Mon 10/10/2214 2:18 PM
You <f12000@piranha.gov.br>
Attachment: "feisar_64ls_mk2.pdf"

To the Pygocentrus tech at Piranha Advancements,

We have decided to accept your request for a trade agreement. Thus, we will waste no more time in providing you with the details of our 64LS MK.2 racing craft.

If you wish, please make note of our stability technology, so you may be able to gain the edge in future races.

We await your response.

FEISAR F12000 Racing Program team.


Piranha F12000 Development <f12000@piranha.gov.br>
Tue 11/10/2214 12:33 PM
You <lstech@feisar.gov.eu>
Attachment: "pygocentrus2-7.pdf"

FEISAR,

We cannot thank you enough for accepting our deal. The best we can offer is to provide you with the details of our craft.

Please look this over as closely as you can, so you may, in return, upgrade your top-end speed.

If you need any more details, please, by all means reply to our email.

We hope to see you racing next year.

Piranha F12000 racing development team.


██████ <██████@f9000rc.com>
Mon 17/10/2214 5:50 PM
You <ps@icaras.co.uk>
Attachments: "feisar_64ls_mk2.pdf", "pygocentrus2-7.pdf"

Icaras Project Staff,

This email is being sent under the premise that it is FOR YOUR EYES ONLY. Under no circumstances should the contents of this document, or the related attachments, be revealed to any unauthorised person. Only persons directly working with the SunGod 2XV Project may inspect and discuss the details of this document and related attachments.

You have to uphold your title of the fastest on the track, by any means necessary.

F9000 Reformation Committee


██████ <██████@f9000rc.com>
Mon 17/10/2214 5:50 PM
You <ff201projectstaff@eg-x.tech>
Attachment: "triakis_x3f4.pdf", "assegai_r5-292.pdf"

EG-X Project Staff,

This email is being sent under the premise that it is FOR YOUR EYES ONLY. Under no circumstances should the contents of this document, or the related attachments, be revealed to any unauthorised person. Only persons directly working with the EG.FF-201 Project may inspect and discuss the details of this document and related attachments.

Reinstate the Electro-Gravitics engine you were renowned for, the F9000 is upon us once more.

F9000 Reformation Committee


██████████ ██████ Project <██████@██████████.██.██>
Sun 29/01/2215 9:09 AM
You <staff@agrc.org>
Attachment: "████████████████████.exe"

VGhlIHRpbWUgb2Ygd2hpY2ggeW91IHNl
ZWsgaXMgZmluYWxseSB1cG9uIHVzLiBU
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bmluZywgdGhpcyBpcyBidXQgYSBub3Rh
dGlvbiBvZiBwdXJlbHkgY2VydGFpbiBm
dXR1cmUgZXZlbnRzLg==


Teams:

[AG Systems NB01 "Spirit"] (Withdrawn)
Angelus KA-AX2.2 (https://fta.fandom.com/wiki/Angelus_Xygen_V)
Assegai R5-292
[Auricom LN20/4] (Withdrawn)
Crinale F0-RG08/01536 (https://fta.fandom.com/wiki/Crinale_F12000#F0-RG08.2F01536_.28Gelorum.29)
EG-X EG.FF-201 II
FEISAR 64LS MK.2
Goteki 45 Hellfire Type X
Gravitesse DXG T73.11
Harimau Apex PTT-E100 V1
Icaras SunGod 2XV
Jennter JAG-F12.212/5
Mirage Mist δ
Piranha Pygocentrus 2.7
Qirex LS12 v2.8
Syncline V.ult 3X512
Triakis X3-F/4.214
Wyvern WYV-18

...

Tigron K-Bystrota v1.4

[Ace3000]

Might have broken things, please standby...

[Ace3000]

[FTA|s2.9_F] s3_0.0
<22130131>

Sunday, January 31st, 2213

Parking lot of a convenience store, Perth, Australia.

13:48:07

The low roar of a certain vehicle filled the air, and stopped just before its target: A black Angelus Razer.X.

"ANGEL01... that's it... DESTROY THAT CAR!" Chris Scarborough yelled.

POW!

BOOM!

The turret hit its mark. Crinale's T9-CA5 grav-tank annihilated Brandon Smith's beloved car... right in front of Brandon himself.

"[gasp]! YOU...!" He could only manage, ducking behind an aisle. "You will pay for this, I thought you said you 'wouldn't mess with me outside of the races'!?" He added, calling someone he thought was related to the attack.

"Crap. What the hell do you want?" Alexandra responded.

"WHAT. THE. HELL do you think you're doing!?" Brandon yelled back.

"What do you mean?"

"Don't give me that 'What do you mean?' crap! You destroyed my car! I spent years building and modifying it, shaping it into the road racer I loved!"

"Hmph, you should stop your emotional attachment to that. It was a machine. I didn't feel bad when my car got destroyed. You know, the one that's now sitting at the bottom of the sea underneath Omega Harbour? [sigh], in any case, I actually do have no idea what you mean. I destroyed your car?"

"One of your grav-tanks blew it up!"

"One of my... oh. What, the T9-CA5?"

"Yes! That! The only grav-tank that was made under the Crinale name!"

"The T9-CA5 was made under Antonov's Crinale, not my Crinale. As soon as I was back as Director, I stopped construction of and destroyed all Antonov-era craft, apart from the F12000 craft."

"Then, are you saying that it might have something to do with Antonov?"

"Yes. I'm assuming you're hiding from it?"

"Yeah."

"Where?"

"A convenience store."

"Oh. Well, that won't stop a tank, as I'm sure you are aware. In any case, I can't help you any further. Goodbye." Alex said, ending the call.

When that happened, Brandon just stood up and walked over to the exit, where he saw the gunner open his hatch and stand up.

However, before Chris could speak...

BOOM!

BOOM! BOOM!

The tank blew up spectacularly. The first explosion caused no external damage, but did cause a failure of the mechanics of the vehicle, and as such, it fell to the ground. Immediately after that, there were 3 more explosions before a massive blast that ripped the craft apart and threw Brandon backwards.

When he got up, he found the wreckage of the grav-tank, still in flames. He could do nothing but stand there.

'YES!' He thought 'Viktor... Chris... he's finally dead! The second dark age of the AGRC is OVER!'

Suddenly, though, he stopped, processing the scene burned into his retinas. There, faintly, almost completely disappeared, was a trail of smoke. He followed the trail back with his eyes, ending up looking at the roof of a 2 or 3 story building. On the roof was a figure, holding what looked like an RPG Launcher. They looked at Brandon and, seeing him looking at them, turned and walked away.

Brandon, seeing them gone, just happened to turn his head, and immediately discovered the identity of his saviour. Sitting outside the building's entrance, sporting a new red and black paint job...

Was the only ARD Tsunami in existence.

Instantly, he walked up to it, checking out the new shiny paintjob.

'Huh, looks like she's taking care of it quite well' He thought, taking out his phone and opening the machine up, conducting a quick check-up.

He couldn't look for long, as he heard the ex-international spy nearing the exit, so he quickly locked the car up and left, quickly hiding in an alley between the building the Tsunami was sitting outside and another. The woman, now looking completely different, opened the door, which lifted the canopy. Getting in and closing the door and canopy, she started it up, floored it through a 180° drift and accelerated away.

Watching her leave, Brandon was now stuck with the predicament of getting back to HQ. Eventually, Brandon decided to just call up an employee to come pick him up.

------------
Unknown location

Unknown time

"I trust that the Darkwater Plan is progressing smoothly?" One of the two men inquired.

"Naturally," The other replied, the more calculating, less emotional sounding of them. "The second phase is close to complete implementation. The only drawback was, as you know, the destruction of the SG_R-000. However, more can be manufactured, so it is not a complete loss."

"Good. I am monitoring our progress, and it seems that it will be very successful."

"Indeed."

"The only thing I see that may impede the Darkwater Plan is one Angelus R&D, however, I doubt they will be able to stand against the SG_X-043."

"If they do defeat it, I have a multitude of backup plans and other phases to the Plan that may do the job. Victory will be assured."


https://i.imgur.com/3aTQlug.png

<load: "S3_F12000_THEME_01" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQ84hKQPTAA&t=88)_>

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 40 was W:/2016ALBUM/ by deadmau5.

[FTA|s3_1.0: Part 41.0] The Beginning of the End
Ikebukuro, Toshima, Tokyo, Japan


"'The universe has a wonderful sense of humour. The trick is learning how to take a joke.'

"I believed that right until it blew up in my face.

"My story started a long time ago, but this is where it becomes relevant.

"The world thrives on one of two things. The first is an unhealthy obsession with Anti-Gravity racing. I do understand why it would be popular, but not to this degree! It's quite off putting, to be honest. The second? Information. That's where I come in. See, everyone has pieces of information they would pay to obtain. I gather this information and sell it to those who both require it and, of course, have the necessary funds to purchase it. This is an Information Broker.

"2215 was the single most eventful year in my life, both due to the information I had obtained, and the recent... hobby I had taken up. With information as my primary weapon, I shall be the sole individual to bring the Anti-Gravity racing world to it's knees."

------------
Day 6.

01:14:03

In the dark alley, the man lay in wait, for when his contact would eventually arrive. Soon, the sound of a car filled the alley, however, he kept his head down, leaning against the wall. The driver exited and walked over to the man, who in turn pushed off the wall and walked toward him, the headlights of the car bathing him in light, giving a full view of his appearance. The driver faltered for a moment, before closing the distance between them.

"Codeword." Was the first word to come out of his mouth.

The man who waited replied with "Anarchy-46, Harmony-96."

"Very well, then. Now, the info."

"Do you have the necessary funds?"

The driver pulled out a wad of cash, and held it up. The man held out his hand, which prompted a quizzical expression to appear on the driver's face.

"Oh, please. You have a car. I don't. You can catch up to me if I run, but I won't. I'm a very honest man."

The driver then slowly placed the money in his outstretched hand. He then flicked through the notes, counting them.

"Fantastic, that's enough. Now..."

He dropped the folder full of sheets of paper from under his arm into his other hand, before holding it out to the driver, who took it and started flicking through the data.

"Alright, thanks."

"Any time."

With that, the man got in his car and departed, the other man leaving several minutes afterwards, a smooth, successful transaction completed.

------------
Day 7.

12:39:28

In a certain apartment complex, a man sat typing rapidly at one computer, with many others sitting around, running programs and downloading data. He checked the clock, then stopped the programs, allowing them to download the last bit of data, before shutting them down, unplugging the small flash drive from the computer he sat at, and departed the building, heading outside to the city.

Outside, the man made a beeline for his destination, a vending machine that dispensed food. Throughout the entirety of that day, his facial expression was the same: unsmiling. When he reached the vending machine, he fished out some change, pushed the coins in the slot, and jabbed a button below a can of oden. The machine sent the can to the bottom, where he was able to take it out and eat the contents.

That man was known as Rei Kurokawa, an information broker that had started working in Ikebukuro several days earlier. He was a fairly tall man, his attire consisting of an all black suit, black tech sunglasses and, occasionally, a long black coat. Because of the sunglasses, not one person could see his whole face, which was intentional on his part. The glasses provided a secondary function, though. It acted as a miniature computer, able to display data that he had downloaded, so he could read it, study it, while he was on the move. This proved useful, as he was investigating a certain subject, his major project.

Before he came to work in Japan, though, Rei went by a different name, had a different job and lived a different life. However, that didn't matter to him anymore, as he had, for the most part, put that past behind him. The cause of him dropping his previous life was all attributed to something he briefly mentioned in passing, an event he called "The Cataclysm". Nothing about that event was explained, and the only people who did know about it were those he had left behind.

While he ate, he studied a report pertaining to that certain subject, one published several decades ago. It was in a surprising amount of detail, explaining all the back-alley deals, corruption and terrorism a certain group his subject covered had created. Naturally, the existence of the document meant that the group was forcibly disbanded. However, he sensed that they hadn't completely been rid of this world and still continued to exist, even deeper and more hidden than before.

That was the true intentions of his investigation, to pull them out of hiding and give every last one of them the justice he thought they deserved. In addition to that one report, he had lifted terabytes of data from top secret servers around the world and yet, it was still not enough, as he was still pulling data.

7 surviving members had been brought to his attention through the data he pulled, however, he had reason to believe there were a couple more than just that. That was the reason for his unsmiling expression: His knowledge of the group surviving on, spreading corruption throughout the globe.

He poked around the can as he read, then looked down into it. It was empty. With a click of his tongue, he shoved the can into one of the recycling bins beside the vending machine and headed back for his apartment. As he was walking back, one of many phones he had started ringing. Pulling it out from his pocket, he answered it.

"Kurokawa Delivery?"

"Can I get the usual?" His caller spoke.

"'The usual'? Fine, you know the price. What will it be this time?"

"Ah, it's not for me, it's for my company."

"Well, I don't care who it's for, just as long as I get paid for it."

"Of course you will."

"Right, what are you after, then, specifically?"

"Specifications, technical data on a certain product of a competitor company of ours."

"A little more specific?"

"I'll send you the details later."

"Fine. Later."

Hanging up, Rei entered the small apartment in the complex. As soon as he was in, he booted up his computers all at once, through a single control panel, a low hum filling the room. As they loaded their booting procedures, he pulled a small storage device from his pocket and plugged it in the desktop computer sitting in the centre of the back wall. A couple new lines were added to the boot screen, before it instantly changed to a desktop.

Rei sat at that computer, started a few processes, and started reading his mail. True to the word of the caller, there was an encrypted mail sent to him, containing the details of his company and the information what they required. However, what he saw in the decrypted message made him pull his phone out and rapidly mash at the keypad, calling the man back.

"What exactly are you pulling here?" He asked calmly, yet with a subtle hint of fury.

"I... don't understand?" Came the reply.

"You understand perfectly. Let me make this clear to you. I'm never getting involved in this. You can take your corruption and shove it in someone else's face. You hear me? I will not accept anything involving that. Now, do not call me again."

Hanging up and tossing the phone aside, Rei just stared angrily at the decrypted message, at the information he was provided...

"My company is F12000 team Gravitesse Anti-Gravité. We require data on Goteki 45's racing craft so we can develop updates to our craft in order to gain the advantage over our competitors."


https://i.imgur.com/67iWS8Z.png

<load: "S3_ARCHANGEL_THEME_01" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08KO3GbvVGY)_>

[Ace3000]

The referenced song title of Part 41 was The Beginning of the End by Nine Inch Nails.

[FTA|s3_2.1: Part 42.1] Rumours
<22150205>

Sunday, February 5th, 2215

Wolstenholme Point, Devon, England.

11:21:32

A new year, a new F12000 season. Several things had changed between the end of the 2212 season and the start of 2215. Most notably, the establishment of the Anti-Gravity Purity Alliance. It had started off as an alliance between two former teams, Auricom and AG Systems, both of whom had left the league within one month of one another in 2213. Over the following months, the Alliance had grown to include Jennter and Angelus, yet those two teams were still competing.

New rules were added for the 2214 season. Due to Angelus, Syncline and a couple other teams' Super Weapons dealing no direct damage, a new rule was added effectively banning them. To combat the rule, Angelus kept with its electromagnetic-based weaponry and developed a defensive cloak. Syncline and the other teams also developed new Super Weapons for the new league.

Similarities between the two seasons were also prevalent. For the two years after Kyoko revealed herself as Tarah Andrews, and was pulled off the team due to her being infected by The Condition, Angelus continued to race with only Gareth Ardos, the former second pilot. Another similarity was one that had shocked Brandon 2 years ago. The one in charge of and had announced the official start of the F12000 there in Wolstenholme Point, along with both the 2213 and '14 seasons, was...

"Welcome, everyone, to the 2215 season of the F12000 Professional Anti-Gravity Racing League!" Chris Scarborough began.

The Executive Chairman of the F12000 Anti-Gravity Racing Commission had somehow survived being caught up in the tank explosion that happened in Perth. Unsurprisingly, that had left Brandon speechless upon seeing that man introduce the 2213 F12000 League.

"Before we begin the race, there is something I would like to set straight. There have been some rumours and theories regarding this season. For now, I can confirm at least one of them."

At that point, two craft rose up from the pit to the starting grid, about half an hour before the race was scheduled to start.

<go | andy hunter° (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uh8GY4k76XQ&t=1m54s)_>

From the first craft's grid, position 7, two similarly dressed individuals stood beneath the monstrous craft. While both of them wore a Standardised F12000 Specification Racing Suit, the girl with short, slightly sticking out black hair wore a pair of classic light blue-tinted sunglasses, and stood with her hands on her hips with a rather smug look on her face. In contrast, the short haired man, wearing an ushanka, bore a slight scowling expression, and seemed like he'd rather be somewhere else.

Upon the craft and two apparent pilots coming into view, Chris continued.

"That rumour being... Tigron Enterprises' return to AG racing!"

Brandon's usual smile had broken. His face had instantly transformed into a scowl, and his hands clenched into fists.

"...no... Not. Again. The FX350 was enough. Now I have to deal with them directly for this entire season!?"

The thought of having to deal with two heavy-shielded craft at once brought a rather strong fear to the man, and he let out an instinctive shudder.

------------

Meanwhile, in another certain team's control room, upon seeing the team return once more, the race manager spat out their drink, narrowly avoiding any critical systems.

"Call Felix. Now! Code Nightmare Fire Black... GO!"

------------

"Now, we have half an hour until the race starts, so our datacasters may proceed with their pre-race shows! But first, a word from our sponsors."

As Chris concluded his introduction to the 2215 season, Brandon had remained in his pose, looking angrily at the two craft on the track. As the team spent the rest of the half hour performing final checks and ensuring everyone was ready, one of the analysts sitting in the control room walked over to Brandon.

"Uh, hey... you alright?"

"I'm thinking... leave me alone." Brandon's reply was in a rather controlled, emotionless tone, as if he was making a conscious attempt to suppress his anger, as he continued to watch the scene unfolding on the track.

On the grid, various datacast reporters had rushed over to get their interviews with the two new pilots. After a hoard of intermixed questions, the girl raised a hand to stop them, speaking in a heavy Russian accent.

"My name is Natalia Kireyeva, I am... lead pilot for Tigron. No team shall be shown mercy, we are here for ultimate victory. Although, looking at some certain competition, it would be easier than we thought. 'Pure Racing', hah! What a load of crap. The only way to effectively win is to annihilate the weakling competition! 'Pure' racing is not taking it seriously, not to mention that 'Pure' racing by their definition does not even exist, weapons have always been part of AG racing!"

Finally, after that, the race was about to start. All the other craft rose up on the grid, including Angelus' sole craft, piloted by Gareth Ardos. Upon seeing the craft ready to set off, he simply picked up the comms system, and spoke just five words.

"...avoid Tigron, by any means."

3, 2, 1... GO!

<12:00:00_>
<wolstenholme point: med rev_>
<race: lap 01 of 64_>



02.
SCA308.0. 7.329
# 7
Lucia Scarlatti
Crinale
F0-RG08/01536



...








05.
ARD889.0.19.194
#19
Gareth Ardos
Angelus
AX2.2_r9



...








07.
KIR311.0.67.297
#67
Natalia Kireyeva
Tigron
K-Bystrota v1.4



08.
TUR847.1.13.329
#13
Leon Turner
Crinale
F0-RG08/01536



...








13.
VAL027.1.66.297
#66
"Valkyria"
Tigron
K-Bystrota v1.4




The instant the craft shot off the line, Brandon's eyes widened.

"...that's impossible! How could that even...?"

That initial confusion had changed into realisation, which caused Brandon to have yet another moment of anger at the Russian team, slamming the desk with his fists.

"...of... course. Straight back into the illegal sh*t, eh? Not even one fair f*cking race!?"

Several of the technicians in the room looked back as Brandon yelled out.

"Brandon, chill out. What's up?"

"Bring up the regulations, now! ...P-Please, sorry."

A few taps of a screen later, the official rules and regulations were brought up. Brandon began to scroll through the document at rapid speed, until he reached Article 3, detailing the regulations for the craft's power unit.

"Blah blah blah, type limits, size regulations, power control, minimum power out- wait."

Turning to the rest of the people in the room, he asked a rather simple question.

"...where's the rest?"

"The rest?"

"Yeah, there was a subsection in Article 3, Section 2. From memory, it said 'Power systems must be a single unit. Systems such as Hive-type or cluster units are prohibited.'"

"Huh... that sounds familiar."

"Yeah... tell you what, bring up the regulations, this time revision 2214."

"Okay."

Bringing up the previous year's regulations, Brandon scrolled back down to Article 3, finding the phase he had, indeed seen.

"Article 3, Section 2, Subsection 4. 'Power systems are required to be comprised of a singular primary unit. Systems such as Hive-type or Cluster Thrust Units are prohibited.' It's right here! Those bastards secretly eliminated that phrase from the regulations... for what reason!? Just to let Tigron back in!? To legalise their technology just for that!? Bullsh*t!"

[Jonny]

Like Pirelli is making tyres for Mercedes?

(jk)

[Ace3000]

Hahaha!


The referenced album title of Part 42.1 was Rumours by Fleetwood Mac.

[FTA|s3_3.1: Part 43.1] First Contact
Ikebukuro, Toshima, Tokyo, Japan


"Why do people race? That is a simple answer: There are many reasons. Mostly, it is due to the racers' love of racing. Other times, it's for the fame, the money. If it's due to that, the pure art of racing is lost. With those that love to race, however, there are a couple of subsidiary reasons. They may do so to relieve some stress or anger, or to prove that they are a good racer. Other times, it may be to sort their own thoughts, as a way to unwind..."

------------
Day 10.

21:39:23

A man stood outside a parking garage, wearing a black suit and a full length coat, which flapped in the wind. Unlocking one of them, he opened the passenger's side door of a sporty looking car, taking a full face helmet from the seat. He put it on, pulling the face part down instantly, ensuring no-one saw his face as he pulled his shades off. He threw the glasses into the glove box and closed the door, walking over to the driver's side, getting in the car proper.

He turned on the electrics and checked his route. Once he had input the destination on the GPS, he brought up the car's internal computer, inputting the values he had received from the computer program. Once that was done, he engaged the ignition, starting the car up, before putting it in gear and driving off for his current destination.

After the global depression in the 2170s and early 80s, and AG technology for sporting purposes had started to make a comeback, street racing had also made a comeback in Japan. This was only made more prominent by the release of an amass of sports cars produced all around the world. Japanese car manufacturers brought back new, up-to-date models of their much older sports models, which was referred to as the "retro sports boom". Nissan brought back their Silvia, Z and Skyline GT-R models, Toyota began production once more of their Supra and MR2 models, while bringing new cars to the roster, Honda, their Type-R range, Subaru with STi and most recently, Mazda, with help from Angelus, brought back their RX sports car, this time bringing the 'RX' name back to its roots since the RX-9, the car being powered by one of two co-developed rotary engines.

The car the man was driving was not known to anyone, meaning it was either an extremely rare or a very new model. However, it looked to be a quite fast model indeed. His location was near to his home of Ikebukuro, Shomaru Pass in Hanno, Saitama. Driving to the pass, the man's style seemed to be very civilised, as if he had never raced in a day in his life. However, that man was confident enough to take on the fastest downhill racer of that pass.

------------
21:43:54

Shomaru Pass, Hanno, Saitama, Japan

It was a late night on a Saturday, so most members of the street racing team Redlines were out on Shomaru, meeting up to hang out, race, or just otherwise play about on the course. At the top of the pass, talking to one member of the team and personal friend, was Kazuya Iwasaki, the leader of the team, regarded by many people as the fastest down Shomaru Pass.

"...well, surely it was a crapbox, but it just caught my eye... oh, hold on. Yeah?"

His conversation was cut off by someone calling him, it was someone standing by the bottom of the pass.

"Someone's coming up the pass, quite quickly I might add."

"Not one of ours?"

"Nope."

"Interesting... we'll have to see if they're travelling or racing. Thanks."

Putting his phone away, the man continued his conversation, right up until the sound of a car's engine ended it.

"That sounds... interesting." Kazuya noted, looking out towards the pass.

As he did, he saw the car come up into view. It was unlike anything he had seen before. Like everyone else, he did not recognise the car being driven, as it drove up to the parking lot they were standing in and stopped. The door opened up and along the car's roof, the helmeted driver getting out.

"Iwasaki Kazuya?" He asked.

Kazuya stepped aside, making himself seen so as to not be blocked by his friend. "That's me. Who are you?"

"Call me... 'Archangel'. I've heard of your status, and I wish to put it to the test."

Kazuya chuckled. "Are you challenging me?"

"If you are the fastest down here, yes."

The man, despite the seemingly rookie mistake of challenging the fastest right out of the blue, did have an aura of seriousness about him, as if he were completely confident he could win. It seemed Kazuya had either picked up on that or wanted to teach the new guy a lesson, because...

"Fine. Challenge accepted."

"Fantastic."

Kazuya turned to his friend. "Can you do the countdown? I'll get everyone to move out the way for us."

"I... really!? Are you really going to race him!?"

"Sceptical of my racing talent?"

"No, it's just..."

Moving him away from the man in the helmet, Kazuya's friend voiced his opinion, whispering.

"Are you really going to waste your time on owning him?"

"Yeah, might as well. I'll show him how to not mess with the fastest!"

"...you know... you're right." He smiled. "Go get him."

With that, Kazuya contacted all the members, telling them to get back and move out of the way, due to a race beginning. As they did so, the two racers lined up to start. Getting okays from members situated from all over the course, the countdown began, as they revved their engines.

"Counting down! 5! 4! 3! 2! 1! GO!"

------------






Driver
'Archangel'


Team
N/A


Car
Unknown


Year
Unknown, possibly 2200s


Type
Sports, 2-door


Layout
M4


Plate
·4 07, classification 390


Colour
Black


Engine
Unknown modified engine, 332PS


Weight
Unknown


Custom Parts
"Archangel" Body Kit, Unknown engine modification, Azure Blue Laser headlights, Unknown other systems.




vs.



岩崎和哉 (Iwasaki Kazuya)


Redlines


Mazda RX-14 (FJ3S)


2212


Sports Coupé, 2-door


FR


93-25, classification 356


Vintage Red


Modified 1.6L 2-Rotor Twin-turbo 16X-REW/A, 340PS


1137kg


Mazdaspeed Front Bumper, Mazdaspeed Spoiler, 2.0 Mazdaspeed turbo gauge, Mazdaspeed muffler, bucket racing seats.

[Jonny]

Arc: NJRS - #001
Title: History Repeats Itself

Wolstenholme Point, Devon, United Kingdom
Sunday, 5th February 2215
10:21.11

The two new Jennter JAG-F12.212/5 craft were disassembled in the Jennter pits, ready for routine checks prior to the first race of the season.
Nico Bovier was found scratching his head while looking at the ships - Their appearance being much more sleek and less intimidating as the years prior. The team dropped from the top to the low midfield.
"It is embarassing" he sighed "They cut our wings - quite literally."

"At least many bits of the existing control systems were recycled, the focus was laid on aerodynamics the past years, but the unique feature of the previous F12.212 series craft was the complete handling package." noted Aurora, the newest spec AG racing android and second pilot of the team this year.
"Yep, yep." sighed Nico while nodding "This company can do so much, but building AG craft that actually turn is not in our hands at the moment."

"Checkup complete!" announced the lead engineer, a new face at the front of the team in form of a slender and surprisingly young woman "I'd request everyone to not stand too close to the craft, we'll test the engines now."

>
>Jennter JAG-ESS v8.7b
>booting -\|/-\|/-
>0% ... 21% ... 34% ... 46% ... 86% ... 98% ... 99% ... 100%
>Bootup complete
>Type: Jennter JAG-F12.212/5
>

"Conducting a system check. Jordan, please proceed." said engineer commanded.
The systems mechanic Jordan took a seat at the control tower located in the pits, it didn't take long for the basic tests.
"Systems respond." was his lethargic response, laying back in his seat "Yes, the thrust vectoring too."
"That's no thrust vectoring, this is a poor excuse." the woman spouted "But I am sincerely looking forward to our newest development in pipe!"

"Fine, time to start the engines." she continued with her protocol and opened a holographic output of the computer screen to check the values while looking at the engines themselves.
"Engines starting up." commented Jordan. The noise of thrust laser engines was rather inaudible in an open space like the Jennter pits. However, there was a lot of heat radiating from the wolfram heat shields installed right behind the exhaust outlets.
"We register 3,650 Kilonewtons peak force, as it should be." reported Jordan "Shutting down engines and initiating aftercooling process."
The woman clapped her hands in exitement "These are beautiful machines, even if they can't take any sharper corner."

"So cynical..." uttered Nico, who was spectating the whole process "May I ask who you are?"
She looked at him bewildered "I have been around for some months now, I think we even met some times?"
Nico couldn't be helped but look irritated at her for his obliviousness "Excuse me, I have been extremely busy with...a lot of things since several years."
"Aaaanyway" the engineer continued "I am Linda Greyson! I have been appointed to be the lead engineer of your team after the end of the last season. I know, it was all a bit sudden with these rule changes..."
"Indeed, but are you able to deal with everything?" Nico asked "I don't really care about anything else."
Linda smiled in a way that was both warm and cocky "I hope so, the standard you set wasn't particularly high."

She immediatly turned around and left, appearing to be busy according to schedule.
Nico was left baffled by that performance "What an attitude..." he sighed and decided to let it drop for now "Well, I think she should be able to do her job then. I have faith in our personnel office...."


11:58.37
"As you may realized, Tigron is on the grid. Avoid them at all cost, you know that our shields are the weekest of the entire field." instructed Nico his pilots prior to race start.
"I fear this will be a very expending race, in doubt we need to activate EFF more than once." has been the feedback by Patrick through the radio transmission.
The craft were idling on the grid after being lifted to their respective starting positions.
Pilots fixated on the start lights without counting the seconds they experienced as eternities.

12:00.00
3, 2, 1 ... GO!!!
Lap 1 of 64

The Jennter crafts of Patrick Rouser and Aurora took a quick start from P6 and 9. Way in its first iterations, the thrust lasers of Jennter have been sluggish enough to loose races right at every start, but all systems invented to counter this effect have not been banned yet. But nulling all instructions, the Tigron craft shot right past the white and orange ships anyway, prior to the first corner being passed.
"Yo what the hell was that!?" yelled Patrick into the team radio.
"This will be an expending race indeed." sighed Aurora.

The JF12.212 was not suited to race in the midfield. Taking a lot of damage from combat, both pilots had to go through the pits after eight, respectively nine laps.
"We loose a lot of pace this way, plus I can't deny that I touched the walls more than once by now." was Patricks sweatful report.
"In doubt use EFF, the frame should handle at least one use. However, it may even be better to use it more than once, elimination could become ugly." was the reply of Davide Ferriucci, his race engineer.
Patrick was busy to wrestle the Jennter craft through a tighter corner section only to gasp in return "What do you mean!?"
Davide did not respond, while his pilot collected two unlucky missile hits and got covered in 'shield energy low' warnings.

"While connecting to the ships systems I was able to register some wear to the main frame by now." chatted Aurora into the team radio.
Hearing this through the various channels, Nico took over the communication "What did you just say?"
"The frame itself is wearing down. I may remind you that this is breach of Article 6 Secti-" Aurora began to explain calmly while flying, but was quickly interrupted by an incited Nico "Impossible!"

Linda was watching over this scene and cited the section to herself "Article 6 Section 1a: 'A metallurgic-based main frame of the homologated craft may not experience a deformation degree exceeding the absolute of 0,01 for any dimension.'
Section 1b: 'The EI of all materials under all six degrees of freedom must conform to carry three times the load of a peak force equalling the ships mass at 500 g.'
Section 2: 'Composite materials fall under individual regulations, defined during the homologation process.'
Are they not observing these rules...?"


It was just around the same time that Auroras craft got approached by a rival, ready to fire it's super weapon.
"Oh no...I am using EFF!" she announced. The opponent fired and just briefly before the pulse of pure energy could save Aurora - the weapon hit.
There is a marginal time frame in that EFF surges all of the ships energy, before it recharges to a minimum prior to unleashing a wall of energy surrounding the ship. It was just unfortunate this time, but the damage done should not have been possible.

The craft disintegrated and spread over the track, the safety cell cockpit couldn't be made out by the blank eye.
"Aurora!" screamed Nico, witnessing these pictures from the live feed. The rescue process has not been initiated, as there was no signal sent from the safety cell to the drones.
Nico took over the communication with Patrick "This is Nico, retire the ship, return to the pits immediatly and carefully."
"I just flew past the wreckage, what happened!?" Patrick was in disbelieve, but followed order, ending an anyway frustrating race for him.

He tossed his helmet out of the cockpit before climbing out of it and marched directly towards Nico.
The pilot was furious "Are you telling me that you are cheating on safety standards!?"
Nico was just dumbfounded, but unlike Patrick, he had nobody to be angry at, all he could utter was "We don't know right now."
"Oh sure and when will you? The craft pretty much perished!" Patrick kept going on.
"I understand your concern. I swear I didn't know of this! Why are they not red-flagging the race goddammmit?!" Nico sweared, he was worried about Aurora and the core she carried.
Linda entered the confrontation "Likely because she is only a robot, a machine like the craft she was piloting."

Nico couldn't be bothered with that and turned away. Glarring into the distance to think.

'This is critical, we look like a bunch of wankers.'

[Jonny]

Arc: NJRS - #002
Title: Lying in Deceit

>
>emergency process initiated
>counterbooting
>Jennter JKI-AGPP v2.0 Aurora
>System Check Commencing ------____
>63/100%
>System Check Completed
>Status Organic Hull: Damaged
>Status Skeleton: Critical - Stable
>Status AI: Okay
>

Aurora woke up surrounded by thick, black smoke, if she had lungs, she would be dead by now.
Occasionally a craft brushing past was audible, but her first worry was to release herself from the safety harness of what used to be the cockpit of the Jennter JAG-F12.212/15. The whole front section of the cockpit got ripped off, Aurora was able to make out the surface of the track, right in front of her. The shell came to a rest on it's shoulder, making escape even more difficult.
She ripped out the cords extending from the craft into her body, her arms and neck. However, as the android tried to push over the harness, her right arm locked.

It is a bit like a feeling of pain, when mechanical components pierce through cables and lock up in an unnatural way. Her right shoulder was damaged, likely through some debries from the initial impact.
Her memory was lacking, due to the emergency reboot, the high forces of the actual craft bursting up triggered it. But it didn't feel hard to Aurora to imagine what happened.
"It always hits the right Jennter pilots, it seems." she whispered, analysing her situation.
Rocking on the harness, she finally managed to find the right spot to trigger the mechanical release, letting her plummet onto the road.
Swiftly trying to get up, she impuls of a nearby tossed bumb knocked her over again. Still being mostly covered by the smoke of the crafts remains, the other pilots likely didn't see her.
Aurora tried her best to get up yet again, but finally the point came where she realized that most of her right leg was gone. That, she reasoned, probably happened shortly after the front section of the cockpit got teared off.

The android kept crawling, into any direction, as long as it may means safety. She soon left the dark clouds of smoke from buring carbon composites, oil and lithium cells and to her delight, Nico was already at the right side of the track, watching out for her pilot.
"Here she is!" he cheered, spotting the injuried android crawling in his direction, waving over his team members.
Nico tied a rope he brought with him to the trackside around himself "You'll pull me up when I say ready, alright?"
His team commonly agree, excepting one member. "Wait, Mr Bovier, it's too dangerous!" voiced Linda her concern.

He just threw back a glare at Linda "You don't know what dangerous is."
With these words he swung around the barrier and glided down along the track wall, for an eight metre drop.

At the bottom he ran over to Aurora and tied her to the rope as well. Fortunatly damaged robots are a bit more robust than injuried people.
Giving the signal, they both were dragged up along the barrier again.


15:43.56
"We didn't think ahead far enough expecting that you'd end up like this during the weekend." said Nico, looking over the damaged bodywork of Aurora.
"No worries, I am in no critical situation. It is just uncomfortable when some frequently used components don't work along." she stoichally responded.
Nico smiled "We'll patch you up and put you on the earliest flight back to Düsseldorf. I'll make sure that enough replacement parts are stocked up."
He was about to leave her cabin. "Master" she asked "Why did you put yourself in danger, to safe me?"
Nico looked at her over his shoulder "What are your dreams?"

[Ace3000]

The referenced song title of Part 43.1 was First Contact by Omni Trio.

[FTA|s3_2.2: Part 42.2] Never Trust Tigron
<22150205>

Sunday, February 5th, 2215

Wolstenholme Point, Devon, England.

<12:00:00_>
<wolstenholme point: med rev_>
<race: lap 01 of 64_>



02.
SCA308.0. 7.329
# 7
Lucia Scarlatti
Crinale
F0-RG08/01536



...








05.
ARD889.0.19.194
#19
Gareth Ardos
Angelus
AX2.2_r9



...








07.
KIR311.0.67.297
#67
Natalia Kireyeva
Tigron
K-Bystrota v1.4



08.
TUR847.1.13.329
#13
Leon Turner
Crinale
F0-RG08/01536



...








13.
VAL027.1.66.297
#66
"Valkyria"
Tigron
K-Bystrota v1.4




<silicon | noisia (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BzdACzt8svE&t=88)_>

The craft had set off, but Gareth's initial strategy to Brandon's slightly vague instructions seemed to have failed. Initially, he had intended to outrun the craft with the Xygen's top speed and handling. Yet, after a few seconds, the dark grey craft had not seemed to, it had quite obviously closed the gap Gareth started off with. Continuing on, the craft, piloted by Natalia Kireyeva shifted from directly behind the white craft to the side of it, then creeping alongside it, it began to shift into the side of it. However, Gareth anticipated that happening, and had shifted at the same time as it, nullifying the offensive move.

Tigron weren't the only ones Gareth had to look out for. Several specific teams had unnaturally superior performance than their previous iterations at the end of the 2214 season. However, he pushed that to the back of his mind. His main focus was to pilot the best he could, and attain as high a finish position as he could.

The dark grey craft had caught up to the other matte dark grey craft, and subsequently fired a barrage of weaponry at it, causing damage to the craft along with slowing it down. Naturally, the young Italian girl fired off, in return, a barrage of expletives in her native language, just as a white and azure blur screamed past her. That caused even more expletives directed at the Russian.

"Quake."
"Shield Active."

The instant the quake was fired from somewhere in the upper middle of the pack, Natalia had activated her shield, letting the wave pass over her like it was nothing. In similar vein to a certain other team, the two pilots of Tigron were working together closely to ensure they had achieved a 1-2 victory. It didn't matter to them who got 1st and 2nd, just that the end result was a complete victory for Tigron. With the quake crippling everyone ahead of Valkyria, the red and grey craft was able to rise up the ranks very quickly, soon sitting in 5th, behind Lucia in 4th and Gareth in 2nd.

"10 through 15."

"Stratagem Twelve confirmed. Initiate."

They had also devised several strategic team-based maneuvers to slow down the opposition. Stratagem 12 was one of many that involved one craft behind the other with multiple opponents in-between them. The leader would maneuver directly behind the first of the opponents and plant a line of mines, or maintain a safe distance ahead and plant a bomb. The latter was more efficient, since the next part involved the trailing craft firing an offensive weapon, for greater effectiveness, a set of rockets.

After avoiding the craft that had been slowed down, the trailing craft had caught up to its duplicate, the team entering their 1-2 "Perfect" position by the end of the first lap. The eyes of a certain team leader overlooking the race narrowed, as they followed the two similar craft race past.

"...tch. If this keeps up, we may need to activate Emergency Plan 3198."

"3198? Never heard of it. Although... th-"

"It doesn't matter." Brandon cut him off. "It exists, that's all you need to know. And if push comes to shove, I will be forced to use it."

------------
<12:32:39_>
<wolstenholme point: med rev_>
<race: lap 28 of 64_>



01.
KIR311.0.67.297
#67
Natalia Kireyeva
Tigron
K-Bystrota v1.4



02.
VAL027.1.66.297
#66
"Valkyria"
Tigron
K-Bystrota v1.4
+0.013


03.
ARD889.0.19.194
#19
Gareth Ardos
Angelus
AX2.2_r9
+0.437


...








06.
SCA308.0. 7.329
# 7
Lucia Scarlatti
Crinale
F0-RG08/01536
+6.934


...








19.
TUR847.1.13.329
#13
Leon Turner
Crinale
F0-RG08/01536
+38.882



Due to the extreme output of the K-Bystrota, the lone Angelus craft was falling gradually further behind the two monsters. The corners only granted Gareth a small gain, not nearly enough to keep up with them. Fortunately, one of the weapon pads granted Gareth a sure-fire way of catching and possibly even passing them.

Firing the Turbo gave Gareth enough of a boost to line up side-by-side to the second placed Tigron craft. Unfortunately, they were still not willing to play fairly.

"Your purity has been denied."

CRUNCH.

Suddenly, the craft shifted violently to the side, smashing against the pure white craft. Although, the maneuver was quite very illegal, as the craft continued shifting, not stopping until it had pushed the craft against the wall, causing it to scrape against it for several hundred meters. What resulted was a huge chunk of shield energy being lost from Gareth's craft, along with it falling behind.

Looking back briefly, Valkyria spoke several words to his teammate.

"Battering ram success. Zero damage to my craft. The purity can suck..."

His words were cut off, by the light Angelus barely getting his craft into firing range of it, the pilot unleashing his attack. Although, while initially intended to slow it down, something far more advantageous and seemingly impossible happened...

"Cannon."
<contender eliminated_>

Both Brandon and Gareth had spoken the same thing, at exactly the same time.

"...WHAT!?"

It was a very weird sight, seeing what were proven to be almost unstoppable tank-like forces... well, stopped, just like that. It wasn't a fluke either, as the other craft was soon eliminated just as easily after that. Usually, it would have been cause for celebration. However, this time, the event just caused confusion in the team's leader.

"I don't understand... what was their intention!? The shields can only possibly be weaker than ours, but those ramming techniques... I don't understand!"

Of course, Angelus' shields were still weak, and a certain team had taken advantage of it, in a fair, yet violent manner.

"Quake."
<contender eliminated_>

At the very least, one good thing to come out of that was Brandon's confusion being eliminated... along with the single craft.

"...damn. Can we even get through one season without being eliminated in the first. F*cking. Race!?"

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 42.2 was Never Trust the Chinese by Mr. Meeble.

[FTA|s3_3.2: Part 43.2] He Must Use Force
Shomaru Pass, Hanno, Saitama, Japan

Day 10.

22:00:01






Driver
'Archangel'


Team
N/A


Car
Unknown


Year
Unknown, possibly 2200s


Type
Sports, 2-door


Layout
M4


Plate
·4 07, classification 390


Colour
Black


Engine
Unknown modified engine


Power
332PS


Weight
Unknown


Custom Parts
"Archangel" Body Kit, Unknown engine modification, Azure Blue Laser headlights, Unknown other systems.




vs.



岩崎和哉 (Iwasaki Kazuya)


Redlines


Mazda RX-14 (FJ3S)


2212


Sports Coupé, 2-door


FR


93-25, classification 356


Vintage Red


Modified 1.6L 2-Rotor Twin-turbo 16X-REW/A


340PS


1137kg


Mazdaspeed Front Bumper, Mazdaspeed Spoiler, 2.0 Mazdaspeed turbo gauge, Mazdaspeed muffler, bucket racing seats. Engine detuned from 410PS for faster runs.






"GO!"

<radiation | calla soiled (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpyKfBv55Hw&t=3)_>

The two cars shot off the start point, both drivers seemingly serious to attain victory. The truth of the matter was that only one was truly serious. Kazuya was going all out, showing no mercy to the supposed new challenger, who had no idea what that challenge meant to him. Honestly, casually issuing that challenge to him... it was an insult! Too bad for that 'Archangel' guy that unlike others, he was also not afraid of dishing out... more aggressive tactics. Instantly, he swung the wheel very early into the first corner, a medium right-hand bend. As he did, the helmeted man turned his head to see...

'Fascinating... I did not expect him to start so early.'

The black car had started to decelerate well before the corner, but when Archangel saw the red RX-14, he slammed on the brakes, narrowly avoiding him. Kazuya himself held the angle of attack, expertly disengaging the stabilisers* briefly, allowing the car to enter a slide, maintaining it through the corner. Archangel followed behind, letting his car slip just the tiniest amount, hugging the inside as tightly as he could.

The corner was cleared perfectly, Kazuya keeping the slide in check before stabilising the car at the end of the corner. The sound of the RX-14's rotary engine unleashing a rather pleasant noise as it revved up to near its redline. Archangel, on the other hand, allowed his car to slide out from the apex, accelerating as he exited the corner from the other side of the road. The engine of his own car was a little different, sounding higher pitched.

After the initial corner was a small straight, followed by a tighter hairpin. Both the RX-14 and Archangel's car cleared the corner at an incredible speed, the gap between the two cars still very close. Although, it wasn't that Archangel had any troubles keeping up, or for that matter passing him. The man had elected to follow Kazuya, to see how exactly he raced . How well his racing skill was, what techniques he employed, and how his racing style was. Archangel was merely being pulled along for the ride, his mindless, instinctive control of his car actually working his mind, yet not getting lost in thought. His analysing of Kazuya's car and racing style was also assisting with that.

"The RX-14 is a great choice. Light, proving for amazing handling around this twisty course. The 16X rotary engine is also perfect, a peaky motor providing ample amounts of power... however yours seems to be expertly tuned, or should I say, detuned... seeing as it's down on power from the stock output. 400 would be way too much for the job. But your driving skills... that's a different matter. You seem to be skilled enough, but you could do so much better. And those ramming techniques aren't doing you any favours. With that, I know exactly where to strike."

Along one of the course's straighter sections, Archangel made the first of many moves, slowly moving from behind the RX-14, in a way taunting him. That move, however, did not end nicely.

"Not happening!"

Kazuya hit the brakes, slowing down immensely to bring himself closer to the anonymous challenger. A violent and sharp turn towards the black car once it had come up side-by-side with Kazuya's car had forced Archangel to pull back. The straight had soon ended with a mild S-curve, followed by a sharp right hand bend leading into a longer, faster left bend. Kazuya could, at any point on that twisty section, just straighten out, dealing a lot of damage if the black sports car had attempted to pull a move like that again. Thus, Archangel kept behind him, following the red car until the set overtaking opportunity had presented itself.

The RX-14 took a line that Archangel assumed he would. At the end of the long corner, he cut through the sharper bends apex, naturally moving back to the left side of the road after the corner's end. Archangel took advantage of the physics that would be exerted on the car at that point, and took a wider approach to the corner, putting him towards the right side of the road. It was all done so that Kazuya could see the move being executed, a major strategical point that Archangel had made sure to execute, before falling back once more.

The following straight also ended in a slight S-curve, before a sharper corner led to a triple hairpin complex. Archangel decided that enough "attempts" had been made, and it was better to just continue following. While the RX-14 drifted cleanly enough and at a wide angle, Archangel's corner attacks were more refined, barely at an angle. While it seemed faster than the traditional wide-angle drift, it also served to help with straightening out, and in the case of the triple-hairpin, make turning into the next corner that much quicker.

"And now, I strike here... this chase is over."

Suddenly, right at the end of the triple hairpin, the black car disappeared from Kazuya's view. He was preoccupied with steering into the corner. Noting it had vanished, he looked around for it, before looking to the side for a moment, still hearing the very familiar engine note.

"Wait, where's... what!?"

------------

An audience had gathered all throughout the course to see the Redlines' drift session, however, they were instead treated to a full-on touge battle. Three people in particular, all spectating from the one corner where Archangel decided to launch his attack, were watching on, unaware that there was a race currently going on.

"[sigh]... why did I have to come all this way just to see some drifting show...? I can drift perfectly well on my own..." One of the girls said.

"Huh? I thought you came here just to take me out to see it?" The shorter girl asked.

"I never said anything of the sort. I was asked to watch this complete farce by Teriyaki-kun." Her mention of that name was very sarcastic in tone.

It was then that a third person, a man in a suit, minus the jacket and wearing some smart-looking glasses, spoke up, still looking out towards the hairpin.

"That's where you're wrong."

The girls looked over to him.

"What? What do you mean?"

"The session's been cancelled. You saw that black car that raced up here, right? Well..."

He glanced over at the two for the first time.

"There's a race on."

Right at that moment, Kazuya's recognisable RX-14 came into view, followed very closely by a completely unrecognisable black car. In that brief instant between the cars coming into view and the start of the corner, the black car began its attack. It had shot to the other lane of the road much faster than the previous attempts, and since it was right before a corner, it was well before Kazuya noticed, the man focusing on the corner itself. entering the corner at a slightly greater speed than the RX-14.

"No!"

Kazuya briefly straightened out prematurely, aiming to incapacitate the opponent car effectively. However, when the car's centre of gravity finally shifted, and the car decided to move over to the other lane, the black car had already cleared the RX-14's path, and Kazuya was forced to correct his mistake.

"Ghh... No, no, come on!"

It was close, but Kazuya barely managed to avoid wrapping his car around the guardrail. So close, in fact, that he had very audibly scraped against it. That was it, though. It was all over. Archangel had won, his black car not allowing the previously undefeated red car to even so much as catch up to it.

The first win out of many, This first race had brought Archangel out into the public, an unknown racer with no known experience just suddenly appearing and annihilating the fastest racer down the pass... of course people would be talking about him. And soon enough, they had found it...

The website had listed the results and even the record time for the pass. Naturally, Archangel won, and had listed a record time a few seconds ahead of Kazuya's own record. That wasn't all, though. It even listed the name and location of the following pass, along with the name and basic info of the individual Archangel was publicly challenging...


* Disengaging an AG car's stabilisers causes it to slide. Basically, it's the equivalent of applying the handbrake, but without any real deceleration force caused from the maneuver. In addition, the stabilisers also act like tyres in that if their max power is too weak, then it may cause the car to slide when given enough force.

[Ace3000]

The referenced song title of Part 43.2 was It Must Use Force by Benjamin Briggs.

[FTA|s3_4.0: Part 44.0] Top Speed Dreams
<22150202-22150226>

Thursday, February 2nd, to Sunday, February 26th, 2215

Angelus R&D HQ, Perth, Australia.

After two whole years in development, two certain groups' projects were in its last stages of completion. Coincidentally, both projects were very similar in terms of their scope and overall functionality.

The former group's project was a limited production hypercar, meant to be a successor to the group's 2205 efforts. Unlike the previous one, there weren't a confirmed set amount of units, instead being produced in small amounts over the year. The decision to conceive the car came from an incident in 2213 where the 2205 hypercar belonging to the leader of the group had been destroyed by a grav-tank. Not wanting to be left without a high-powered machine, he took to developing the new project.

Two years later, it was almost complete. Five prototype test units had been developed, all to the specifications of the final production model, and were in relative amounts of working order. The five prototype test units were all given designations, named after the main isotopes of the chemical element the car was named after. These designations were P188Ir, P189Ir, P190Ir P191Ir.0 and P192Ir. Two of the units were not included with certain major mechanics, having been deemed unnecessary due to the structure of the car being more important for the tests than their functionality. One of these units, P188Ir, was purposed for crash-testing, the other, P190Ir for structural integrity testing.

P188Ir and P190Ir went through their own tests at roughly the same time. It was with these tests that the more intricate details of the naming scheme came into light. Each individual test unit was named to reflect their lifespan. For instance, P188Ir, the crash-test unit, was named after the main isotope with the shortest half-life. All the other units had also reflected this naming scheme, with P192Ir expecting to last the longest.

P189Ir was one of three test units that were wholly complete and functional, and was developed before the two remaining functional units. This unit served to perform the final mechanical stress and reliability testing, which involved pushing the car and all its technologies, including the shiny new quad-rotor engine, to its limit. In the end, it had only served to confirm the results gathered from the monumental amount of calculations and formulae produced well before the manufacturing process, proving the whole system to be extremely stable and reliable.

The success of P189Ir's test led to the immediate manufacture of the final two test units, P191Ir.0 and P192Ir. P192Ir was a lower priority model than P191Ir.0, however. Half of it had to do with the reason why the latter model had a deviation in its designation. The other half had to do with the fact that P192Ir was to be developed as the publicity model, to be finally shown off at the upcoming motor show.

P191Ir.0, however, was a more secret test model than the previous four. It was to test even more systems, however, said systems were for a one-off model, never to be directly seen by the public. The first of which was an addition to the quad-rotor powerplant, 4 electric motors providing additional power on top of the car's already plentiful output. Of course, they were developed in tandem with the engine, and had proven their worth.

The main technology to go through final testing, however, was one that was developed in secret. Initially applied to a pre-prototype shell, the new system was developed as part of a separate stream of the same project. Once it was in some form of success, it merged back into the main stream of the project's development, and into P191Ir.0. As according to schedule, it was finally tested once more for stability, reliability and specification matching. Naturally, after the strenuous research and development that went into the technology, it had reached the mark on all three of its testing parameters.

P191Ir.0, despite its function to test the secret systems, had also adhered to the naming scheme devised. Its namesake was the lesser of two naturally occurring and stable isotopes. And, once it had completed its task of testing those systems, had been promoted to the very first "production" model, #0. Said model, however, would not be accessed by the public, instead it was to be used as the personal transport of the founder of the company, who had those secret systems commissioned into a special version of the car for his use.

P192Ir's manufacture was completed right at the end of the development cycle, two whole years after the project had begun. Effectively a complete unit save for a few unnecessary systems, the unit was ready to be publicly revealed at the upcoming motor show the company had attended every year since its inception, without fail, even when they were apparently focusing solely and intently on their major project in 2200.

Despite not being a test unit, one last designation was given to the project. Multiple full production units had shared the designation 193Ir, so named after the most abundant naturally occurring stable isotope.

------------
Crinale International HQ, Russia.

The latter group's project was, while still a hypercar, both similar and different to the first's limited production aspect of the design brief. It could technically still be described as a "limited" production model, but it was not intended to be a model released to the public. In other words, it was a model limited to just one, being a commission from the group's owner.

That of course didn't mean that only one was built. Several components each had 1-2 duplicates, including the shell of the vehicle, which underwent similarly stringent durability and crash testing as the test prototypes did. The various other components also underwent specifications testing and stress testing. Of course, there were more tests that had to be performed, owing to the sheer experimental nature of the planned, and eventually, completely manufactured and functioning powerplant.

The engine for the commissioned project was one that fit what was soon becoming the theme of the team. Utilising the technologies from a much more advanced product, and at that point in time the only other one they actively maintained, they fitted the vehicle with two jet turbines. The technology involved made it that the engine itself used up very little fuel, but the main focus on the technology was the turbines' immense power output. The fuel efficiency was just an unintended, yet beneficial, side effect.

The next systems to be tested were the bladed fins attached to the far rear of the car, which acted as airbrakes as well as functioning as what was called a directional stability system. Or, in other words, they acted exactly like an F-Class craft's airbrakes. It seemed, however, that both groups had similar ideas in terms of handling performance in that both of their hypercar projects contained a mechanical airbrake system, combined with torque vectoring in their stabilisers.

However, one thing that the latter singular unit project had over the prior multi-unit one was that they had incorporated one more piece of technology into increasing the handling of their vehicle. All four stabilisers functioned to steer the car directly, not just the front two as was in the other project. Overall, the project was highly experimental in nature, more so than the other project, due to the details of its design brief, and that only a single complete unit was to be developed.

There was one thing to note about their project, though. Despite knowing of the events that kickstarted the production of their rival's new project, they did not know of the product's existence itself, and had thus decided to base its target power output to that of the project's predecessor, explaining the coincidental similarities in both projects' performance. It was unintentional, but the two groups had actually made a product that was a true rival to the other's.

[Jonny]

Arc: NJRS - #003
Title: Engineering Prodigy Linda Greyson

Jennter Enterprises HQ, Düsseldorf, Germany
Wednesday, 8th February 2215
11:23.43

After the devastating performance of the anti-gravity division in the opening race of the 2215 season, the headquarters of Jennter Enterprises have been busier than ever.
A lot happened the past years, but with some normalcy returing after 2212 and the success in recent years, the fall was hard again.
The #1 craft, as well as the remains of the #2, have been returned for thorough inspection. Linda was leading the taskforce created to find a much more urgent problem than the actual speed.
"The frame of the crafts showed exessive wear through the race. It poses an issue since shielding technology can't protect us from internal damage, furthermore it is a breach of the rules. However-" the young woman opened the meeting.
An employee rushed into the room, interrupting Linda and giving the vocal order: "TV-Sys: AGtoday, sound on."
TV screens along the wall switched from Lindas prepared presentation to said channel: 'F12000 contender Jennter Enterprises has been disqualified from the Wolstenholme round, due to breach of-"
"Article 6 Section 1a and b" Linda completed the announcement "TV-Sys: back to my presentation".
Said employee nodded and left in a hurry.

She shock her head "We didn't even finish to begin with. But rules are rules, I suppose."
"It is weird" came from someone taking part in the meeting "We didn't change much on the hull design compared to last year, neither did the rules..."
"Exactly" agreed Linda "Even more, our cornering speeds are much slower compared to last year. It makes no sense that the physical strain would be heavier now."
The young woman opened a CAD program and loaded the JAG-F12.212/5, together with data collected from the #1 craft of Patrick.
"This is a record of changes to the grid structure of the Number One craft during the last race. You can see an accumulation of Burgers-Vectors with passed time." she explained.
Linda continued to open the file for Auroras craft "And here the same for Number Two."

"Looks like we went too far with ionising the chassis" admitted Herman Graf, long-time head of the Chassis Ressort of Jennter Enterprises.
"Indeed." spoke Linda through her teeth "Perhaps you should reconsider your career choices."
Graf, a middle-aged and seasoned engineer usually never lost his cool, but this time he had to fight "Excuse me?"
For half a second a vicious smile ran over Lindas face "It is obvious that you've reached your limit half a year ago, but were too stubborn to accept it."
"Hold on, we made tons of calculations and simulations before testing this iteration!" defended Kevin Lerod, Herman Grafs right hand for several years.
"I recall that I approached you during that time, presenting you my corrected calculations." was Lindas snarky response.
Graf hissed back "Of course, you used the wrong method. Which is something a fresh graduate may can allow to happen."
"Here is the basic formulae" she displayed her basic method on the screens "It is a new method, considering the knowledge we nowadays have in structural development of metals. You however, relied on simplified methods used hundreds of years ago."
"Oh stop with your science fiction." Graf laughed her development off, but Linda just started a FEM simulation based on her new model.
The simulations calculated the 2214 chassis, while it took twice the iterations, the values were much closer to the real recordings than the original calculations.

"I am sorry Mister Graf, but you willingly put our pilot at risk, due to your arrogance. But that is something an assy old engineer may allow to happen." Linda concluded.
"That is..." he winced at this words.
She continued "We need a zero-error job. We need to rely on the best will of every employee. And just now you showed your incompetence in that regard. Farewell, Mister Graf."

Everyone in the room either starred at him, or tried to avoid Lindas glare.
At a loss of words, he slowly stood up, glarred at Linda and left.


14:43.39
A successfull meeting concluded that in short time two new frames based on the 2214 craft will be manufactured. Linda was happy with the day, until Nico Bovier caught her on the way back to her office.
"Linda Greyson, what are you doing?!" he yelled, while steadily approaching her.
"Just now we decided to use the old frame, something wrong with that?" she played oblivious.
"What are you thinking, firing important employees for what exactly?" Nico was noteably angery at her.
"He messed up due to his own ego. The spot falls to Mister Lerod for now, but I think he isn't suited either." she calmly explained.
"You set high standards, Greyson. Don't let them bite you back." the Bovier said.
Linda smiled "I don't intend to make mistakes. But scold me all you want if I am wrong."

She turned around and continued to calmly return to her office. Linda, the engineering prodigy whispered "In all my life, I never made a mistake."
"She may be talented" uttered Nico, a man experienced with the psychology of people "But the fall will be hard."

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 44 was Quarter Mile Dreams by Moog.

[FTA|s3_5.0: Part 45.0] Death Angel
Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan.


"The most vile of creatures... they are born, and will die as nothing but the source of all that is wrong with this world. Physically indistinguishable from humans, they are, however, an imitation, based upon an anthropoid template. These vile creatures know not what it means to be human, and thus do not live — they merely function, fuelled by greed, spite, idiocy... in fact, it can be accurately determined that their functions, their products, their purpose, all follow one, multiple, or all of the seven vices..."

------------

(Footage captured by a nearby security camera, datestamp 2215-0█-██)

[21:21:21] Unidentified Male enters carpark, walking. Upon noticing a red vehicle which had been situated there prior, he increases his pace, reaching the vehicle and kneeling beside it.

[21:22:17] Unidentified Female, confirmed to be owner of the red vehicle, enters shot of camera, walking up to the unidentified male. Male presumably hears female's footsteps, and stands up, turning around and brandishes what seems to be a bladed weapon. Female retreats slightly.

[21:22:44] The mouth of the unidentified male moves, before he pockets his weapon. A short period of time later, he continues to move his mouth occasionally, indicating that a conversation takes place. Either due to the correlation of the distance from the camera to the volume of their speech, or the camera's model not allowing for any audio has not yet been determined, however no part of the conversation is audible in the footage.

[21:23:34] Some time into the conversation, the male pulls out another weapon, looking like a white pistol. After several seconds, the discrepancy in time suspected to be from the female talking, the male looks down at it, then extends his arm, passing it over to her.

[21:23:58] Another suspected piece of dialogue from the female takes place, before she turns on the spot.

[21:24:06] Signal loss. The final few frames captured seem to make out the female aiming and firing the pistol at the camera, which corroborates with the camera losing its signal, and the fact that security found the destroyed remains of the camera soon after, the male and female assumed to have escaped the scene.

------------
Day 12.

21:29:44

About five minutes after the camera's destruction, a different, more traditional AG car pulled up into the carpark, its driver exiting once it had parked. Neither the red vehicle nor its driver was anywhere to be found, yet the man the camera captured was still there. The only other person in the otherwise abandoned square of tarmac, the new arrival walked up to him.

"Rei... Kurokawa?" He asked, trying to confirm the man's identity.

Rei Kurokawa simply nodded, and did the same for the other.

"Yes." Was the response, albeit spoken awkwardly. The man was not natively Japanese.

He was one of the seven survivors of the group Rei was investigating. Judging by the appearance of the man in relation to the seven's physical descriptions, he had accurately identified the one standing before him as 'Scott'. Of course, he had a proper name, but he did not want to reveal his hand, and so chose to identify him as the five-letter codename all seven known survivors had assigned themselves.

'Scott', like all of the survivors, was between the ages of 70 and 85, having been between 25 and 40 by the time of the group's official and large-scale collapse. Despite that, he was still a rather fit man, well shaven, and wearing smart casual clothes. However, he did not look his age at all, an interesting fact Rei noted.

The move was made, Rei had began to launch his attack against them, and it had started with a question, accentuated by the drawing of the pistol last seen in the unknown woman's hands.

"Scott, you will tell me. Who. Is. Erebus?"

He spoke fluent English. Of course he could, his former self, the one he abandoned, was born and raised in an English-speaking country, so why couldn't he?

"W-What!? I... I thought..." Scott was caught out by the sudden and fluent language change.

"You thought exactly what I wanted you to think. Now look, I don't think you really have a choice here. Answer my question. Who is Erebus!?"

The gun being held threateningly against him was all that was needed for the man to begin speaking.

"O-Okay! Okay! But I don't know much, I swear! All I know is that it's some greater-than-top-secret project that was being undertaken in the last years before the fall."

Rei simply shook his head.

"I know that's not all. I know what your occupation was there. I require all the information you carry."

"...fine. I was a technical advisor to the project, but I wasn't privy to the specifics! Just general stuff that could be applied to just about anything."

"Anything? Really?

"Yes! I... I swear that's all I know, that's the truth..."

"Fine." Rei spoke, lowering his gun. "That will be enough, then."

Just as he said that, though, with a speed unbecoming of the man, Rei lifted his arm once more, and pulled the trigger.

------------

The body on the hard tarmac of the carpark, Rei Kurokawa, with an entirely unemotional look on his face, pocketed his weapon. Walking up to the body, he felt through the man's pockets, pulling out what he was looking for: his car's key fob. Lifting the body over his shoulder, he pressed a button on the fob, unlocking and opening the trunk.

"...perfect."

The trunk was almost empty, and was large enough to contain the man's body without any issues. With that information noted, he dropped the body into the trunk, and closed it.

"...one down. Six remain."

After sending a text, Rei departed, leaving the first to be claimed in the carpark.

[Jonny]

Arc: NJRS - #004
Title: Magnum Opus

Jennter Enterprises HQ, Düsseldorf, Germany
Friday, 10th February 2215
17:53.08

Linda was hammering a report into her keyboard, in the whole company only Aurora could match her typing speed. The responsive noise of the keys were not audible over the loud playback of Lully filling her office.

'The on-track tests of project J-LSVS-212/5-2* have been completed today and fully successful. Pilots reported a massive improvement in turning ability and responsiveness. Furthermore cruise stability has been improved by readjusting the craft control system to the new thrust vectoring.
However, the overal sluggishness of the current J-AGS12000 Levistrat* system makes me considering to redevelop the experimental J-AG-PSMSS* project. It is quite...bulky and did not practically work so far. But I '

She stopped writing her report and grabbed the VR headset and control gloves located in the shelf behind her. "VR-SYS: Launch ComKonWerk* loading 'JAG-F12-212-5b_verbund' and 'J-AG-PSMSS_v0-2'" Linda spoke and dived into the world of the CAD program.

Several hours later and only after having filled any free square inch of her office walls with caluculations, she stepped out of her office and marched straight towards the office of Nico Bovier.
The FACE* simulation was running on her laptop, taking up seventy percent of Jennters computing network capacity.

As both returned, Lindas noisiness attracted several interested coworkers who followed both. As Nico and Linda entered her office, they stood at the doorframe, following carefully her explaination and trying to take a gasp on the formulae filling her walls.

"And as this simulation shows, applying the anti-gravity field externally and using the adapted control mechanism alone results already in an increase of turnability by, to say it generally, 45%. And fully building the next craft around this approach, should at least double such a value." she summarised. It was unusual for Linda to speak about her own constructions in such a simple manner.
She struggled to keep standing and pretended to only lay against her chair, but it wasn't noticed, as the results of the FACE calculation were displayed, along the physical elements she changed on the craft.

Nico could not hide that he was impressed. But at the same time he had his doubts "Are you sure this is legal?"
"I am not sure." Linda answered unusually polite "But there is no exact rule against this. And it is no aerodynamic component."
Nico nodded with a slight smile "This is really impressive regardless. I am looking forward to your first field test."
Linda nodded back in response. Saying anything wasn't longer possible at this point.
Even less usual for herself after finishing a creation, she shut the door while others were looking in awe. She laid back into her chair, as everything went black.

______
J-LSVS-212/5-2: Jennter Laser Schub Vektor Steuerung 2212/2215 Version 2 (Laser Thrust Vectoring Control)
J-AG-SMSS: Jennter Antigravitations Planetar Sensomodromisches Steuersystem (Anti-Gravity Planetar Senso Modromic Control System)
ComKonWerk: Computer Konstruktion Werk (Computer - Construction/Design - Works) - Jennters inhouse CAD program
FACE: Field Antigravity Computational Encryption - Tool to simulate and adjust the behaviour of gravity field affectors and the objects around them

[Ace3000]

The referenced song title of Part 45 was Death Angel by Endur.

[FTA|s3_6.0: Part 46.0] Mass Target Manipulation
<22150219>

Sunday, February 19th, 2215

Nokav Vertigo, Rocky Mountains, USA.

10:49:09

The second race of the 2215 season brought the teams to the Rocky Mountains once more, this time tackling the deceptively difficult long course of Nokav Vertigo. A single glance at the layout would probably fool the viewer into thinking that it was a mostly straightforward circuit, but in reality, the course was a subtle devil, containing its fair share of subtle irregularities that threw a pilot's pace and initial strategy off, unless the strategy was masterfully worked around the course's irregular, subtly dangerous state.

The course twisted its way around Pikes Peak, a mountain that was also home to another race, a point to point race run solely by wheeled vehicles. Like the shorter two courses, the start grid for the long course was situated on the most northern straight of the course, situated very near the peak of the mountain. Unlike the other two, the grid was not in the same place, the layout forgoing the "main" straight. Thus, the teams and the race officials, including the press, were all at the secondary grid, further north and higher up than where they had been when the race there went through the medium and short courses.

Upon initial construction beginning of the various courses for the F-class tournaments, severe amounts of backlash was garnered over one significant portion of the long circuit, a minor section being shared by the medium course. The section was to tunnel into the mountain itself, however nature activists, among a few scientific organisations, spoke out against the tunnel section, citing that since the mountain was a historical landmark, it was not theirs to tunnel into for a racecourse. Soon, government officials stepped in, and the Nokav Vertigo project was forced to terminate, should the section not be redesigned to remain on the outside.

Having come that far, the project officials decided to take the latter option, and redesign the course. Interestingly, the redesigned section was rather maliciously designed, seeming to be simple enough at a glance and on paper, yet when actually raced on, the sadistic nature of the course designers venting their frustrations on those who shut down the original tunnel plan showed.

For certain teams, however, the course was the least of their problems. For others, it was stopping a larger threat that presented itself very recently. Little did two of the teams know, they were unknowingly teaming up, despite not so much as acknowledging each other. The prior race had caused the second of these two teams to devise a strategy that the first would otherwise not do.

"First and foremost, eliminate Tigron. Do not allow them to win." The strategic advisor spoke to their lead pilot.

"Hmm," The pilot replied, albeit quietly. "The way I see it, that might just be playing into their hands. You know how they admire violence above anything else. However... I still don't care. from all I've heard of this team, they must be stopped."

That pilot did have a name, but for most of the public, she was merely known as 'Lady White', her pseudonym given for her attire, which was almost entirely white, save for black boots and, occasionally, a violet scarf. Due to the rather cold temperatures of the mountain, causing most of the area outdoors to be coated in white snow, the scarf was one of the items she was wearing at that moment. Her race suit matched that, being a unique variant of the existing primarily purple Qirex racesuit, hers primarily being white with very minor pink and purple details.

"Precisely. The weapons exist for a reason. Another level of strategy. Tigron is a disease that must be cured as soon as possible."

The white-clad pilot simply nodded in response.

Of course, the other team took a different approach.

"Gareth, you've got pole." Brandon noted. "Take advantage of that, get away from Tigron and not let up. They do have the power from that hive unit, but this time, the course is on our side. It twists and turns, and then there's the infamous Section 3. If done right, we can shake them off."

"I understand." Gareth responded to Brandon's strategy.

Brandon smiled happily.

"Good! Now, you'd better hurry up, the race will start soon."

A simple nod later, Gareth started to head over to the waiting craft, and soon, was on the start grid, ready to begin the race.

3, 2, 1... GO!

<11:00:00_>
<nokav vertigo: long fwd_>
<race: lap 01 of 59_>



01.
ARD889.0.19.194
#19
Gareth Ardos
Angelus
AX2.2_r9



02.
AUR164.0.16.156
#16
Aurora
Jennter
JAG-F12.212/5



...








04.
ROU931.1.26.156
#26
Patrick Rouser
Jennter
JAG-F12.212/5



05.
WHI353.0.12.894
#12
"Lady White"
Qirex
LS12 v2.8



...








12.
SCA308.0. 7.329
# 7
Lucia Scarlatti
Crinale
F0-RG08/01536



13.
KIR311.0.67.297
#67
Natalia Kireyeva
Tigron
K-Bystrota v1.4



14.
VAL027.1.66.297
#66
"Valkyria"
Tigron
K-Bystrota v1.4



15.
TUR847.1.13.329
#13
Leon Turner
Crinale
F0-RG08/01536



...









<generator | dimension (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FpWubYTW7BA&t=88)_>

As usual, the craft exploded off the line, Gareth's Xygen V having been tweaked to his specifications. These modified settings allowed Gareth to almost completely blow the main competition away. Of course, those with higher thrust power quickly caught up to him. However, the first corner was right after the start grid. That corner was rather sharp, and led into a series of descending hairpins. While they didn't unleash it during the Wolstenholme Point race, here Angelus were able to fully utilise the power of their new airbrake system.

In an instant, the craft disappeared from the views of the pursuing teams without any of them knowing what had even happened or how it was even possible. Gareth had shown them the power of Angelus' research and development by unleashing their new system that was vastly more powerful than the preceding system.

However, they were rather intricately being played. One certain team had noticed that Tigron were rather hell-bent on eliminating Angelus, and was taking that to their advantage, having the aggressive team pursue the calmer one, and not pay any attention to the real threat.

The hairpin section ran downwards, from the peak where the straight started from. In fact, it could be said that the entire long course was either moving down or coming up, with the exception of the main straight. The sharpest hairpin of the beginning section, which was executed almost perfectly by the modified craft, led into another straight, which was, while still at a decline, not as steep as the hairpin section. It was long enough that it was a possibility that Tigron and Crinale would catch up to them. Or, give them a clean shot.

"Rockets."

Despite entering the slight curve onto the small portion of the long course that was shared by the other two courses, the agile craft just barely got hit, even after sideshifting, albeit a little late. The northernmost section of both the short and medium courses was, by this point, very well known by all the pilots. A chicane series of high-speed, very easy corners that transitioned into two increasingly sharper corners, the first a right-angled bend, the other a slight hairpin.

Regarding the long course, the third section was not the only one re-designed. One small addition to the second section was made, not shared by any other course. The entry into it, however, was quite awkward, owing due to the rushed nature of the addition itself. The design was to continue past the original split point of the right angled corner, towards the hairpin, then split off from the hairpin onto the new section. However, the split to the new section seemed like it was to be entered from the complete opposite end, thus creating an even sharper right angle corner when approached from the correct side.

None of this was an issue for Angelus, but it was testing their airbrakes to its limit. However, due to the sadistic nature of the designers, the section did not let up for a second, throwing another sharp left-hand bend after a small right curve. After a short uphill straight, the crux of the section bared its fangs. A hairpin was situated in the section, but was aiming towards the incline of the mountain. Taking the incline to their advantage, they made the hairpin follow the incline of the mountain, and, with a slight twist of the track itself, accurately captured the extreme awkwardness of the hairpin in the FX300 course Sebenco Peak.

Of course, without sufficient practice, those who attempted the corner would, in most cases, not cleanly maneuver through it. As usual, the escaping team had practiced enough such that nailing the corner was a simple task. While most of the others did also make it through, there were several that did not, either scraping the wall at best or, at worst, slamming into it.

The section immediately following it was a much easier section curving along with the natural lines of the mountain. A slightly sharper right hander followed, before the track met up with the medium course's section once more. However, it was only a minor portion of it, since immediately following a series of corners of varying sharpness, the much dreaded Section 3 began, deviating from the medium course once more.

"Quake."

Tigron knew that the section was subtly difficult, and so fired the quake at just the right time in order to, at the very least, disrupt the leading team just as they had entered the section, its change in difficulty occurring rather suddenly. The momentum of the attack sent the white craft careening into right wall of what seemed to be a high-speed right hand corner. However, with the angle it had subtly skewed at, along with the way it had, also subtly, narrowed out, meant that the corner it had lead into, was a far slower affair than how it seemed. But despite their mistake causing them to hit the wall, it would take much more for the lone pilot to catch up.

It was only the first lap, and yet the major parties were in an intense battle as if it was the middle of the race, or even the final laps. The twisting section, naturally, demanded much more out of Gareth than any other course section had, however his extensive practice had been put to good use, getting through the twistier first part of the section, while not clean, still a faster approach than Tigron, who chose a cleaner, yet slower line.

A faster corner lead into two increasingly tighter, more difficult corners, before the final portion of the section. It was a good a point as any for one pilot to activate a saved turbo, over a waiting weapons pad, and...

"Oh, damn it."

Fail to obtain a weapon necessary of at least slowing down the juggernaut of a team.

With the three craft around the corner that lead in to the final corner of Section 3, Gareth strategically let off on the offense, while his craft was more than up to the task, he didn't want to overexert himself. It was, after all, only the first lap out of 59.

------------

That section, to someone in a far heavier craft, was a nightmare, especially the final "curves" out of there, just what the hell was that about!? Still, it did provide an opportunity for a barrel roll, although it was one that every team ahead of the white-clad pilot took. The rather well-balanced craft was slowly being left behind by the much faster opponents. Fortunately, there was a way to slow one of them, possibly both of the greater threats, and scare the pants off the other opponent. Almost an instant after receiving the weapon, the fire button was tapped.

"Missile."

Keeping to one side of the track, Lady White fired the missile blind, before it could lock on to the white and azure craft directly ahead of her. As it passed him at incredible speed, she couldn't help by feel somewhat bad for him. But her main target was the ones unsuspecting of the maneuver that was just pulled. Due to the gentle curve of the section, the missile would eventually hit the opposite wall or one of the craft that had to take the curve.

"...wait!"

Natalia only had time to exclaim that one word, before the missile struck true, causing direct damage and shunting her craft into the wall. This also had an unintended positive effect in the slowing down of their second pilot as well. Due to how the Tigron team had devised their strategies, after Gareth had been hit with the quake, the two craft ran with one craft tailing the other. However, Valkyria, the second pilot, had started to get a little too close to Natalia, and as such, had no time to avoid the leading craft as it rapidly slowed down into him.

Of course, the race was far from over, there was still 58 laps remaining, and the two Tigron craft were still very much active.

"Bomb."
BOOM.
"Contender Elimin-- Rockets. Contender Eliminated."

Seemingly from nowhere, a white and orange craft appeared into view, fired the rockets at the remaining Tigron craft disrupted by the bomb's radius of effect, and continued as if they had known what was even going on, at top speed.

Hearing the two elimination messages one after the other, the lead Angelus pilot couldn't help but shake his head as he crossed the line for the second lap.

"You know, Brandon," He begun to speak his mind, "This could just be what they want. Eliminated at the first lap, antagonising most of us, their weak shielding... they seem to be the perfect target. Too perfect, if you ask me."

"It's something to consider." Brandon noted. "But only after the race. It's only the second lap, focus on winning."

"Yeah, you're ri-"

"Cannon."

Wordlessly, the pseudonymic pilot fired at the craft. There were no harsh feelings as was the case with Tigron, but it was still a race, and Lady White was still as competitive as anyone else. Passing the slowed down craft, she looked behind her briefly using her HUD to see the Jennter craft gradually gaining on her. Rather simply, she let it pass her, not really having a choice in the matter with the lack of some form of defence that wasn't her craft itself.

Of course, that didn't mean she was throwing in the towel. It did take a while for the purple Qirex to run over a charged weapon pad, but what she received was more than enough to re-take the lead.

"Turbo."
"Rockets."

However, they were immediately stopped, along with Jennter, by the lone Angelus craft, who had finally caught up to them. That marked the beginning of a three, and eventually four-way battle between Lady White, Gareth, and the two Jennter pilots. Despite their differences in skill at navigating through Section 3 as fast and cleanly as possible, they did seem to be evenly matched in the overall standings. Eventually, the race had ended quite fairly, with Lady White taking first, Aurora and Patrick Rouser finishing second and third respectively, and Gareth, due to a last-minute weapon hit, closed off the four-way race just behind the top 3.

[Jonny]

Ha, got 'em

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 46 was Mass Manipulation by REZZ.

[FTA|s3_7.0: Part 47.0] Chimera Sleeps
Nasushiobara, Tochigi, Japan.


"The chimera. A fire-breathing creature from mythology, consisting of multiple body parts of different animals in the one creature. Some dangerous, some not. However, the creature is said to be quite dangerous, indeed. The same could be said for racing teams. Different people, driving different cars, all with different levels of talent and skill.

The real danger with a racing team, the fire breath of the chimera, comes not with the average level of the team's opponents, it is, in essence, two things, but it all points to one major factor: The fastest racer of that team is, naturally, the strongest part of the team. Of course, how fast they are is directly correlated to how dangerous they are to battle. However, the second factor is less direct..."

------------
Day 15.

14:39:07

A particularly sunny day was the rather clichéd backdrop for a meeting by five former high-school friends; two females, and three males. They had all graduated from the same school, in the same year, and they were all bound together by one single common interest, before any else: drifting cars. They were all very much interested in the touge racing scene, and by the time of their graduation, all had cars of their own.

"So, are you ready for tonight?" One of the males asked.

He was Iori Yoshizawa. Tall and lanky, with short black hair, he usually wore a modified variant of his own school uniform. Despite wearing glasses, he was considered not the strategist, but the mechanic of the group, fixing and helping to modify the group of friends' cars. The car he drove was the most powerful, yet oldest out of their cars, a white 2190 Nissan Fairlady Z, which put out 263hp.

"Well, we'd usually just be doing a drift run like any other, but you realise this is something different, yeah?"

The woman who spoke was Naomi Matsushima, who also went by the nickname 'Solar'. Her blonde hair was long and flowing, tending to flow out from behind her. She wore a simple yellow jacket over a black, white and orange singlet. Below her waist, she wore a red and black plaid skirt, black tights and the same black Mary-Janes she wore as part of her school outfit. Her choice in cars was fairly simple. Fast, yet as tiny as possible. To that, the car she owned was a 2199 Toyota MR2 GS, in a dark grey, putting out 192hp. Being mid-engined, it was a somewhat dangerous car to drift, if she wasn't completely used to it and in total control.

"Ah, of course! Solar's right, we saw the announcement just last night!"

That man was Rei Haneda. An outlier in a certain aspect of the five's friendship, Rei was an approachable, care-free man. His hair was short like Iori's, but was dark brown rather than black. A man of simple tastes, he wore a white t-shirt with a design printed on it, along with black pants. He owned and drove a black 2198 Nissan 180SX, tuned to 249hp with the help of a turbo upgrade to his SR20 inline-four, and containing a Yokomaru Fortune bodykit. He was always pushing the boundaries of his car, sometimes even paying for it.

"W-wait! What announcement?"

The other girl was Tsumugi Kotonami. A rather sleepy looking girl when outside of her car, she had long orange hair. Her usual attire was of a grey shirt with a grey-black gradient skirt, a white tie around the shirt, and a pair of popular sneakers, in red. Her car was rather unique, her 2207 Honda Civic Si being the only front-drive car of the group. Despite that, she still somehow was able to make her car drift, albeit not to the angles the other group members could get to. However, the car was a beast, having it's engine swapped out with an F20C7 from an S2000. Thus, it put out a rather high 254hp.

"Surely you know? You, of all people?" Rei queried.

"No, I really don't! What announcement?"

Before Rei spoke, another person cut in. He was the quiet one of the group, but didn't stay quiet completely, or all day. He did give comments, but only where he felt it was truly necessary.

"...I have an idea. Let's not tell her yet. Wait until tonight."

That man was Haruto Kawakami. Bearing longer, black hair, he came from a more well-off family, so he could wear more stylish, upmarket clothing and was able to purchase the newest, yet not quite fastest car of the quintet: a 2212 Angelus Neko ST. Painted in a bright azure colour, the car was kept clean, completely stock. Of course, that did not mean that its 150hp inline-4 could not make the car's tiny 1058kg frame slide around a corner.

Rei just burst out laughing.

"You don't speak in what seemed like hours, and that's what comes out!? That's amazing!"

And then, Haruto responded with a silent nod, not seeing the point to speak any more.

Their plans were made, and so they had all met up that night, on Happogahara, at what was effectively the start line of their course. All five friends had arrived, all in their own cars.

"Hey, first off, let's all go for a run!" Solar suggested.

Getting back in her MR2, she began to drive at breakneck speed down the pass, without even waiting for the others. Inside her car, before the first corner, she laughed loudly, leaving everyone else in her dust. Scrambling to their cars, all 4 remaining friends began to race down the pass, intending to catch up to the dark grey MR2.

The first to start moving after Solar was Haruto, he started moving toward his car first while everyone stood dumbfounded. The sound of his 1.6L inline-4 snapping everyone else out of their trance, to quickly enter their cars and follow suit. Despite his seemingly hard start, he was mechanically sympathetic, and had only launched the car at a large fraction of his Neko's upper limits, only going up to 100% when he knew he could.

As he rounded the corner as well, everyone else finally started. Immediately following him, in order, was Iori, Tsugumi and Rei. All of them were following closely behind, but not too close so that it was unsafe.

All 5 friends were drifting along the course, none of them being serious about getting the best drift, or the fastest times. They were all drifting for fun, not for competition. While it was fast, they weren't pushing themselves. In fact, after a certain point, Solar was going slower than she usually went, allowing her friends to catch up to her. Once she saw the pop-up headlights of Haruto's Neko, she stepped on the accelerator, letting the car gain a burst of speed and power, allowing the car to powerslide around the corner.

"Heh, finally caught up?"

However, the Neko was not the only one that was visible from the girl's MR2. The most powerful, but equally revered to everyone else's cars, Iori's maroon Fairlady loomed just behind the much newer Neko.

"Hmm, you too. Heh, took you lot long enough!"

Pressing the accelerator further down, Solar pushed her car back up to her usual speed, having slowed down to allow her friends to catch up to her. She did it instinctively, right in the middle of the turn, which caused her car to slip more, further widening her drift angle. The result was a visible wobble, as she tried to correct herself, fully planting her foot down as she exited the corner.

The rest of the run was like any other, with one small difference. The friends that knew of one small fact had begun to notice one rather subtle, almost unnoticeable quirk with one of their friend's car, or more, how they drove. They tried to hide the fact, but they weren't very good at hiding it, so their cornering was very smooth, even if they were just as fast as everyone else.

For the final section of the course, Haruto decided to have some more fun, and attempt to pass Naomi.

'Solar. No offense, but you're ahead of me. I'm coming for you.' He thought.

<ghost voices | virtual self (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUzs2oMEs8w&t=18)_>

Before she knew it, Haruto shifted down and mashed the accelerator. The roar of his small 1.6L engine could be heard by the girl, who looked behind her in surprise.

"...h-huh!?"

Hastily shifting down herself, Solar tried to speed up herself. She didn't have any reason to though, she could have let him pass, but something compelled her to maintain her position. The gear activated, she stomped on the accelerator, her own car responding with a similar loud scream, lurching forward from its sudden peak power output.

There was not much of the course left, only about 10 corners remaining. The three that were trailing the two seemed understandably surprised at the turnout of the situation and, one after the other, tried their best to keep up to them, and each other.

"Wh-? Hey! Hold on!"

Iori's powerful Fairlady propelled him faster, while narrowing his margin for error. Yet, he was still able to, very barely, keep up. The white coupe that was quite coveted by the group gradually pulled away from the line of sight of Tsugumi. Her response was to start speeding up, stopping the distance between them to stop growing.

"I'm not gonna be left behind..."

Her S2000 powered Civic responded instantly, the small car thrusting ahead at a rather quick speed that could only possibly be matched by it's vastly more powerful Type R sibling. Such a beast, however, was far from the recently graduated student's reaches monetary-wise. Not that she needed the 310hp monster anyway, her own 254hp rocket did everything she had asked of it.

"No! No, no, no, no, no!"

Rei, meanwhile, had reached his limit. He could not accelerate any faster, despite his 180SX being more than up to the task. He could only watch in dismay as the two white cars directly ahead of him pulled away, leaving him behind. The small battle had continued in his absence, Iori and Tsugumi only observing the race unfold.

Of course, on paper, there was no way a 152hp, 1053kg Angelus Neko ST could ever keep up with a more powerful and lighter Toyota MR2 GS. However, human skill was something to be taken into consideration, and on that front, Haruto had Naomi beat. In that sense, they were almost on equal footing.

The final corner was approaching quickly, separated by one penultimate straight. Both drivers used the entire rev range to go as fast as they possibly could, but the cornering was something different. Naomi took a wide, flashy drift approach to the corner. Seeing the opportunity, Haruto decided to opt for a more faster 'racing line' type drift. He slowed down a small amount, before turning in, the stabilisers slipping and pitting him into a controlled drift.

"Ghh! Come on... GO!!"

The car slid beautifully, while also moving closer to the inside guard rail. The corner wasn't perfect, and Haruto ended up grazing against it, sending sparks flying upon contact. But enough speed was preserved for him to slowly catch up to the leading MR2...

It wasn't enough. Naomi's lighter, more powerful car had gained more speed in the time it took him to catch her, and she had, albeit barely, maintained her lead. The sounds of the decelerating cars could be heard by the two observing drivers, who rounded the final corner and barrelled down the final straight shortly after Naomi and Haruto did, so they saw the final moments of the race. Stopping their cars next to Haruto's and Naomi's, they both exited, rushing up to them just as Naomi stepped out of her car.

"Hey! Solar! What was that all about?" Iori exclaimed. "I had to try so hard just to keep up with you!"

Calmly, Naomi explained herself.

"It was Haruto, suddenly he started speeding up to overtake me. I... don't really know what came over me, but I felt I just had to keep him from doing that."

Iori turned to the almost ever-silent man, walking over to them.

"Haruto? Ahh. Man, this better not be one of those times where you stay silent no matter what. You weren't... ah, never mind, just... explain yourself?"

Several silent seconds passed, as the man retained the trait he was known for, before, finally...

"...I tried to accomplish something. I had failed. Passing Solar, is not what I am talking about."

"Then what was it?"

"It is not important, we can get to it later. There is a different, yet vaguely related topic we had all decided on discussing after reaching the end. So here we are."

"You mean, we discuss while you stay silent?" Tsugumi giggled.

Haruto responded, quite unsurprisingly, in a silent manner.

"We can't discuss it yet," Iori noted. "Rei isn't here yet."

As if on cue, the sound of an SR20 inline-4 filled the air, and the headlights of the black, highly visually modified 180SX came into view, the car drifting around the final corner, to race up to where they had congregated, and slide to a halt alongside the four other cars.

"Oh, yeah." He sarcastically commented as he stepped out. "Don't wait for Rei, he can catch up to us."

"Well, you did, didn't you?" Naomi said with a giggle.

"I... [sigh], whatever. Anyway, the announcement I was talking about earlier, I think it's time we talked about it."

Of course, everyone perked up to pay more attention to their friend, who had decided to just start to bring it up out of the blue.

"The gist of it is, the group, Chimera, that team we just made up when we were teens that found each other through this one common interest, is being targeted."

"...targeted!?" Tsugumi piped up.

"Not in a threatening way... well, sort of. Basically, did you hear about what happened in Shomaru? The fastest racer there got completely beaten by some unknown racer who called himself 'Archangel'. He's coming for Happougahara now. For us. For the fastest racer down this pass."

"But... none of us are the fastest, right? We usually just mess about down the pass, we aren't serious racers!"

"Oh, no. There is one. One of us is very much... the fastest."

Haruto understood. The time had finally come. The truth had finally been revealed. Thus, he spoke.

"...We know of your talent, Tsugumi."

The girl was, understandably, quite surprised.

"...

"...eh!?"

[Ace3000]

The referenced song title of Part 47 was Cthulhu Sleeps by deadmau5.

[FTA|s3_8.0: Part 48.0] The New Model
<22150311>

Saturday, March 11th, 2215

International Geneva Motor Show, Geneva, Switzerland.

11:10:00

As the lights dimmed, the projector on the back of the display lit up. At that point, it begun playing something that was very much seen before: it was the teaser for the very first project Angelus had announced in 2213, in the very same location two years ago. It was a very simple teaser, since the project had only begun one month before the show did. Only containing the words "NS4 Project, coming soon." fading into existence, staying there enough to fill up one minute of total footage, before shutting off.

It wasn't over yet. Immediately after the teaser ended, the next one began. This one was debuted at the International Motor Show in Germany, later on in 2213. Flashing, swooshing, speeding blue lines entered and exited the screen before the words "Prototype G9.6" filled the screen.

The third one started shortly after, signifying that all of their "secret projects" were, in actuality, just one. This one was different in three aspects. The first was that it had, after the same blue lines as the previous teaser sped past, an image showing the design of the project... albeit mosaic censored. The second aspect was that it was translated from the teaser's original Japanese, having been displayed only at the Tokyo Motor Show in late 2213:

¹⁹¹計画
「申し訳ありませんが、検閲が必要です。 これはあまりにも猥褻です。」

The translated text showed it to say:

¹⁹¹Project
"We're sorry, we needed to censor this thing. It's too obscene."

The third and final aspect that the teaser was altered from the TMS original. The last portion of text erased itself, and the entire image decensored itself, showing a very dark, almost uniform black silhouette of the project. It looked to be a very sleek supercar.

Again, the teaser abruptly ended, where the fourth began to play. That one was shown in the North American International Motor Show in Detroit in early 2214. It was similar to the Tokyo Motor Show teaser, except for a couple things. First, it was in English, since it was being displayed in the USA. Second, the entire censorship joke was removed, and instead of showing the design of the project, it provided some small details of the Project. Finally, it was given a similar, but still new designation: Type ¹⁹³Z.

And then, the final teaser. This one, like the Tokyo Motor Show teaser, was altered. It showed just one piece of text: "Project Ir77". It was then the alterations happened. The word "Project" faded out of view, and "Ir77" moved to the centre. A recognisable grid filled with symbols faded into view, and began zooming in. As that happened, the "Ir" and "77" separated, changing their position. The zooming in grid focused to one cell in particular, as the letters and numbers stopped moving. Then, finally, everything disappeared, flickering out, except for the name of the chemical element the code had signified.

Iridium.

When that happened, the cloth covering the car was flung off it.

"I finally present to you: The new Grade 4 Angelus hypercar... Iridium!"

It was then that the mass amounts of flashing happened, from the equally large amount of cameras going off, taking photos of the new, even more sleek-looking product when compared to its predecessor. To avoid them stealing the limelight from them, the reveal was scheduled to not happen at the same time as Jennter's own announcements. It was there the car's details were finally made public.

"This is a rather new type of beast." Brandon started. "Of course, it had to be, with what it had to stand up against. This had to truly be a successor than the Razer.X.

"Well, let's start off with the transmission. Now, most car manufacturers offer one, maybe two ways to drive a car. Maybe, for instance, a full automatic mode combines with a flappy-paddle sequential gearbox. Our Delta-Gear electronic gearbox system has been fully utilised here, to offer 4 switchable styles to drive the Iridium. The first is completely automatic. So, this would be ideal for, say daily driving, for city driving, if one doesn't feel the need to shift.

"Both the second and third styles are different flavours of a sequential approach. The first flavour is a flappy-paddle shift setup. Pulling one paddle increments a gear, the other decrements one. The second flavour, along with the fourth shift style, utilises the stick shifter. The sequential method is simple enough, flick upwards to shift up, and flick down to downshift. But, flipping this dial here, switches the mode into the fourth and final style.

"You can actually use the shifter as a full H-pattern, select-whatever-you-want, manual gearbox. Say you're on the highway, cruising in 7th, and you want to overtake someone. In a safe, controlled manner, without speeding, of course. You can move the shifter directly down to 2nd, and perform the overtake.

"Now, space. The Iridium is ever so slightly smaller than the Razer.X, but we were able to better utilise its footprint. So, behind the doors, there are these panels here."

He pointed to one of them, then opened the door to pull a latch in the doorwell. The panel flung open, revealing a storage compartment.

"This is like the storage compartment in an almost 2 and a quarter century old car: The McLaren F1. There is another one on the other side, but unlike the F1, that's not all of them."

Deciding it was better to use his phone, he pulled it out, and opened all of the cars covers. As the front lifted up, he walked over to it.

"There is another compartment here, in the front..."

Then he walked over to the back of the car, where another cover just below the rear one stayed unclosed.

"And another, thinner compartment here. But, that begs the question: where's the engine? What is it, and how powerful is it? After all, the Razer.X had a 700hp V10, what could possibly match that, and not take up as much space? You may recall that Mazda had some help developing their new rotary engine for the RX-14 way back in 2208. Well... that was us. Under a... well, I don't want to say it was a front company, Mazda's engineers knew who they were dealing with precisely. Just that no-one from the public did. Anyway, that brings us here.

He lifted the secondary cover, finally revealing the shiny new powerplant.

"Both the Iridium and the R215 GT we showed off last year will contain a rotary engine; a four- and three-rotor respectively. The four-rotor in this will not be turbocharged, and for one very good reason: we were able to, disgustingly easily, extract 825hp from it! And this is coming from a powerplant that takes up less space, and weighs much less than the V10 it's replacing. So, we're able to add more creature comforts, as well as all of those storage spaces, we wanted to make full use of the footprint of the car's total space.

This is, in essence, a far better hypercar than the Razer.X. No, that part isn't even necessary; it's a much better car, than the Razer.X."

------------
Unknown date, 2215

Unknown location, Luxembourg

Unknown Time

In the depths of Luxembourg, one certain group were making the final preparations for what they referred to as the "Cobalt Project". The preparations consisted of a system, recently made ready to be installed into an anti-gravity craft.

The chassis was the first to be developed, followed by the gradual acquirement and installation of all the various components that made up the craft. The design was a major upgrade to the one that was currently attempting and failing to achieve it's predetermined role, which was where the upgrade was to fix.

For some reason, the internal components of the craft were all installed not as cleanly as any of the other competing teams'. Upon the partial disassembly of the craft to allow for the installation of the recently developed system, what was revealed was a gigantic mess of a countless number of, and countless meters of wires and cables, all connected up to oddly placed components and controllers of the critical components that were required to be less randomly placed. Of course, this meant that the final component was installed in a similarly messy fashion.

One thing to note about the craft's components was that, interestingly, the Anti-Gravity Racing Commission didn't even know the details of the technology used in the craft. This was a concern, but not a major one, since they had a history of not even being able to qualify in any of the F12000 races to date.

"Finally! We finally did it! The project is complete! 'The Future Is Now', indeed!"

The technical director, one Felix Konrad Porsche, grinned, glancing at the founder beside him.

Wearing a rather garish business suit, Jean-Eric Fallouis was the Luxembourgish founder of the team, a businessman that sold ultra-ionised lightweight materials before entering the anti-gravity racing scene.

"At long last... we might just be able to qualify for Monte Carlo. This will prove that the only way to win is through cold, hard cash. Nothing more, nothing less."

"The very best tech costs the most." Porsche affirmed. "The very best pilots are always the most expensive. I don't know where our funding is coming from, but I do know that it's not my place to know. Not like I care, of course, I have more than enough to play with, to perfect everything to do with the project."

"I provided you the seeds, but we shall soon see the fruits of your labour, Felix. I expect nothing short of complete victory."

"As if I'd be expecting any less."

"Good. No more warnings. Gravitesse shall be known to the entire world!"

------------
Gravitesse Cobalt Project <cobalt@gravitesse.ag.lu>
Sun 29/01/2215 9:09 AM
You <staff@agrc.org>
Attachment: "Cyriopagopus_lividus.exe"

---Decoded Message---

The time of which you seek is finally upon us. The F12000 Anti-Gravity Racing League will bow down to us as the true rulers of speed, of strength, and of technical prowess. Our identity shall be unveiled from the deepest, darkest shadows from whence we currently reside. There will be not a single chance for the Anti-Gravity Purity Alliance to act, as our ultimate victory shall be attained before long. The finality of our actions will ensure that absolutely no team shall ever question our integrity any longer.

This shall not be considered a warning, this is but a notation of purely certain future events.

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 48 was New Model by Perturbator.

[FTA|s3_9.0: Part 49.0] Drift Away
Nasushiobara, Tochigi, Japan.


"Defeating an opponent is, in theory, a simple affair. In practice, not so much. To achieve total victory over an opponent, you need to outwit, out-strategise, out-maneuver, and out-skill them. Being stronger, more powerful, helps rather marginally, to a certain extent. It takes skill to outperform your opponent, but much greater skill to mask that ability to your opponent themselves."

------------
Day 16.

21:32:14

"...We know of your talent, Tsugumi."

The girl was, understandably, quite surprised.

"...

"...eh!?"

Haruto opened his mouth, before looking a little uncomfortable. Closing it, he looked to the three others.

"You are the fastest one out of all of us." Iori picked up from the now silent Haruto. "We've seen you practice, late at night."

"B-But..."

"It's your white GC4, we know it was you."

That left her out of excuses. She had no choice but to come clean. And with a sigh, she did just that.

"...I-I... I didn't want you to find out... I can't tell you why."

Looking around to confirm with the others, Iori continued. "We... all think it's awesome though! So what if you're better than us? You're still our friend, we still love you!"

"I... you sure?"

Her response was met by nods from her 4 friends.

"O-Okay, then... So, you know the race is tomorrow, right?"

"Oh! Yeah, that's right. How about we start the preparations by giving you a statistically faster car?"

"What? How are you gonna get one now?"

"I meant... letting you drive my Z."

"Th-... what!?"

It was was well known amongst them that Iori's well managed Z39 was, statistically, the fastest car in the team. In the hands of the fastest person in the group, should mean that it would become a monster in her hands.

"Get a practice run in... using the Fairlady."

To emphasise his point, he held up his keys, which dangled from his finger. Tsugumi just stared at the keys in bewilderment.

"...wait... seriously?"

"Of course I am."

"I... don't know. I'm really used to my car, y'know? And it's such a massive difference, going from FF to FR."

"Hmm... I... see your point. Okay, we'll be watching!"

"I know you will be!"

------------
Day 17.

22:00:00

At 10pm exactly, a black car similar to the one seen at Shomaru Pass could be seen making its way up to the start point of Happougahara. At the last possible second, the handbrake was applied, and it very quickly slid to a stop.

Right in front of a Honda Civic Si GC4, painted in a non-factory colour, the Type R exclusive Championship White colour.

"So. Here it is."

The driver's door to the black car opposing it swung open, and the tall, helmeted form of Archangel stepped out, walking slowly towards the girl standing beside the car after shutting his car door.

"...you must be Kotonami Tsugumi." He finally spoke.

"Archangel, I guess?" The girl sleepily replied.

"That's right. Well, you know why we're, let's not waste any time."

She nodded, before looking back to her friends behind her.

"Good luck!" Naomi called out, giving her a thumbs up.

Tsugumi smiled amicably, and nodded in her direction.

"Thanks."

The two opponents turned and entered their respective cars. Archangel fired his up first, in order to move and reposition it at the start line. Once that was done, the race would start proper, with Iori standing between the two cars...

<smoke and fire | moog (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Oi3DkPXdls#t=133.5)_>

"Counting down! 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, GO!"






Driver
'Archangel'


Team
N/A


Car
Unknown


Year
Unknown, possibly 2200s


Type
Sports, 2-door


Layout
M4


Plate
·4 07, classification 390


Colour
Black


Engine
Unknown modified engine


Power
250PS


Weight
Unknown


Custom Parts
"Archangel" Body Kit, Unknown engine modification, Azure Blue Laser headlights, Unknown other systems.




vs.



琴南鶫 (Kotonami Tsugumi)


Chimera


Honda Civic Si (GC4)


2207


Sports Compact, 2-door


FF


62-75, classification 592


Championship White


Modified 2.0L I4 NA F20C7


254PS


1029kg


Custom Exhaust, Custom Mirrors, Custom Carbon Fibre Hood, Custom Front Bumper, Bucket Racing Seats, Engine swap from 1.5L L15F8 to 2.0L S2000 F20C7.






"Hyah!"

Tsugumi's pure white Civic shot from standstill, taking the initial lead. That came off as a surprise to her, for a quite obvious reason.

'Eh? His car looked way more powerful than that...' She thought.

It was a rather short straight, with the corners coming thick and fast shortly after. The first one was taken in Tsugumi's usual manner when she was practicing her top speed runs on her own. Turning into the corner, she deactivated the customised rear stabilisers very shortly after, sliding the front-wheel-drive car's rear out, a trick she found out a few months after buying the car. It was not as wide a drift as she would usually take when with her friends, but it was still far wider than the looming black sports car behind her...

Except it was no longer behind her.

Archangel was now right alongside her, his car still in the shallow drift Tsugumi saw him enter.

"Ngh!? I thought so! Was he holding back? ...he must have."

When she straightened out of the corner, and angled the car for the subsequent corner, she saw her pursuer back away from her, slowing down to keep behind her. Of course, being scared like that, she had gained the knowledge that he could pass her at any moment, lest she speed up. And that, logically, was what she had begun to do. Maintaining the same angle of drift as the first corner, she tried her best to increase her speed, pushing harder than she had ever done.

After reorienting himself behind her from the first corner, Archangel took a note of her entry speed, and his almost accidental overtaking. Observing closer, he started looking for a certain tell. Throughout the subsequent corners, one thing was revealed to him, but he decided to wait it out, in the possibility that it may become more observable further on in the race.

Tsugumi's wide drift angles would have been fine on its own, but there was no strategy, and only slightly more speed to back it up. The drift was just for show, not to block Archangel.

"Hmm..."

Directly following the consecutive chicane-esque corners, a gentle right hand bend presented itself. The scream of the F20 S2000 engine could be heard even by Archangel, as Tsugumi planted her right foot into the floor, shooting away from Archangel. Naturally, Archangel's response was to mirror her, and accelerate into the high speed bend as well.

While he took a standard line in, not the best by any means, he still found himself gaining ground on Tsugumi. That meant that he was very close to overtaking her, despite him taking it easy. To aid in that, he pulled a wide drift around the following right-angle left hand corner.

One more chicane-type corner preceded the first of the course's many hairpins. It was extremely early into the race, but...

"...No."

Archangel called it quits, in what he thought was the easiest way.

<smoke and fire (whitecitylight remix) | moog (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KxkNlDAJzKc#t=48.5)_>

With the corner's entrance looming, Archangel shifted down, ready to accelerate hard and fast. As they entered the corner, he took the outside, before Tsugumi could drift wide.

"Wh- Wait, what!?"

She could only watch in awe as the sleek black car soared majestically past her. That vast speed, he made it look so easy, like the car wasn't even breaking a sweat.

Was that it?

Was that the difference between where she was, and where she wanted to be?

It looked so beautiful.

She wanted to catch up to him, but she knew that she was unable to. Despite that, she tried her best, not giving up right there and then. However, it was all for naught. The black car just kept gaining distance from her.

Unfortunately for the crowd that had peppered the sidelines of the course, they were not expecting a complete domination. One such optimal viewing point was along a series of consecutive hairpin corners, where two particular people were situated: A father, and his child.

"At least it's close enough to home, Hayate." The father spoke. "You would have had to gone yourself if it was somewhere farther away."

His child laughed "Dad... I know you wanted to come too."

That seemed to silence him, being unable to find a response. And at the right moment too, the high-pitched scream of... well, it wasn't a Honda inline-4, that was for sure.

"So, do you know who's battling?"

Hayate's response was "A girl that was my senior at school, and... someone else. Archangel, they're called. They're starting to get really famous."

"Mm, I know of Archangel. I didn't know that he was battling someone from your school, though."

"She graduated years ago, th-"

Hayate was cut off by the volume increasing dramatically, as Archangel's car slid into view, rounding the first of the four hairpins. It seemed like only a second, before it had reached the second, rounding the corner at near-impossible speeds.

"...That was quick... where's Kotonami, though?"

It was three long seconds, before the scream of the S2000 engine could be heard, and six until the pure white Civic drifted wide around the first hairpin.

"Hmm... that's quite problematic. I think she may have just lost. And so soon, too."

Hayate just nodded. "Yeah."

Archangel did not let up after that, until the very end, by which time the black sports car had completely disappeared from her view.

[Jonny]

Arc: NJRS - #005
Title: External Drive

Nokav Vertigo, Rocky Mountains, USA
Friday, 17th February 2215
14:50.12

The first practice sessions were already completed, but yet another Jennter trailer arrived in the paddock.
Such a move was speculated the whole week, as Jennter registered two craft for this event, but arrived with only one. Patrick and Aurora thus had to take turns with the practice sessions.
Something the size of a race craft was extracted from this trailer, but it was hidden behind a big, white holographic wall. Several other components with Jennter logos were transported into the pits as well.

"A bit late, but I am glad that it arrived now." commented Nico Bovier, overseeing the construction efforts taking place "Patrick should be able to practise tomorrow."
"I am sorry, but I think the robot should fly this craft first." disagreed Linda Greyson, right next to him.
"Patrick is our lead pilot, that's clear. Hmm..." he was rethinking his idea "You are right, it is an untested prototype."
Linda nodded in response "I'll help out the mechanics now!"
"She's nervous, but also visably excited." whispered Nico, seeing the young woman walking into the garage.


Saturday, 18th February 2215
07:56.34

It was soon time for the final practice session of the weekend. Patrick Rouser would pilot the standard JAG-F12.212/5 while Aurora was to test a factory fresh JAG-F12.212/5B. Only a single letter was added, but several vast modifications were to be shown once the lights go green.
"Rouser, ready." noted Linda at the control stands. The number one craft of the team was levitating calmly in the Jennter pit.
"Australis, systems ready. Keep in mind to activate PSS once on track." she continued. Her craft was levitating in a similar fashion, but it appeared to be less stable and lower. It's shape seemed much different from the standard craft piloted by her team mate.

08:00.00

"Patrick, exit." ordered Nico and the white-orange craft shot out of it's garage onto the track.
Half a minute later it was time for the other craft "Aurora, exit. Activate PSS as soon as possible."
A seemingly bulky version of a JAG-F12.212 entered the track, for a brief moment it seemed almost incapable of turning and travelled at low speed.
"Activating PSS." spoke Aurora for the record and suddenly several components of the craft dropped down.

A ring formed around the craft, connected through thick wiring and four rods. Aurora didn't go full speed yet, but after just passing through a handful of the tricky corners this track offers, it became clear to anyone watching.

"An external anti-gravtiy generator?" observed Hiroyuki Arimoto, the technical director of AG-Systems "Not bad."
"That thing looks fragile." commented a Tigron engineer "We'll let 'em have it."

After two warm-up laps, Aurora was given the signal to do two timed laps.
The craft floated way lower over the track, given the extensions surrounding it, it resembled a classic hovercraft a little.
Patrick clocked some lap times already and retired to pits again. His time was currently topping an otherwise empty leaderboard. However, just her first hotlap displaced him to second by over one and a half second.

"Now there are many factors playing into the lap time. Jennter wasn't able to provide a lot of testing time to their pilots this weekend." commented the trackside announcer "It will be interesting to see the further development this session."

An hour later Aurora dropped to P2, but close to the leading Angelus AX2.2_r9 of Gareth Ardos and followed by a Qirex LS12 v2.8. Patrick was only able to maintain P6, but limited the distance to nine tenths.
Linda was jumping up and down in the garage of Jennter cheering "It works!" multiple times and to everyone's surprise ended up hugging Aurora as she climbed out of her new craft.

[Ace3000]

The referenced song title of Part 49 was Drift Away by Junkie XL.

[FTA|s3_10.0: Part 50.0] Crash Test del Ragno 01
<22150317-19>

Friday, March 17th, 2215

Monte Carlo Nouveau, Monte Carlo, Monaco.

13:45:27

"Sometimes the best solution is to not fight fire with water, but fire itself. While I would not stoop that far, I will defend myself the best I can."

That was Brandon's response to what was the as yet unexplained elephant in the room.

The practice round for the third 2215 race was under way, the race taking place at Monte Carlo Nouveau. In Angelus' control room, one extra computer was present, which was being used by Brandon. Technically, it could have been classified as a non-standard computing terminal, had the non-standard software been discovered. Every so often, he would plug in bits of data he received from the practice run. However, said data was not from his own craft...

Brandon was analysing the vast amounts of data gathered from the other teams' crafts, and using it to calculate as accurate a prediction he could on the craft's peak performance, as well as their average race performance.

"Can you explain to me exactly why you're doing that for?" A technician asked him.

"I want to see if there's more blatant cheating going on here." He replied. "If there's some massive, or otherwise unexplained gain in some team's performance, I want to know... tch, where is that failure of a team!?"

More people looked up at him, intrigued by his outburst.

"Uh... which team is this now?"

Brandon just looked at them. "Pfft, yeah, they're so remarkable at being unable to qualify for a single race that you've gone and forgotten about them. I'm referring to Gravitesse."

A raucous laughter followed. Gravitesse was a name that was vaguely familiar to them, as it had popped up in the various participants list, starting from the 2212 inaugural F12000 season. However, no-one had ever seen them actually participate, until one particular qualifying round where the dull grey and cobalt blue craft was seen making its rounds... painfully slowly. It actually seemed like it was going at the equivalent of Rapier in a Phantom race.

For three whole years, three entire seasons, not once did the team qualify in a single race in any of those seasons. It was a wonder how the team was even staying afloat despite their competitive incompetence. And yet, they were seen in the first two races' qualifying rounds this year, to the exact same levels of success.

The craft they had used the entire time, the DXG T73, was modified mechanically over the years, but still retained the awful in-house chassis it started out with, seeming to be an ancient chassis despite being developed in-house in 2211. Its design was uninspiring and uninteresting, and, even by 2212 standards, heavily outdated in both design and aerodynamic function.

There were two good reasons why Brandon couldn't find the craft. The first was fairly simple: It just wasn't participating in the practice round.

In Gravitesse's pits, a simulator lay. The sim was running the current course in the race's layout, where their two pilots were getting their practice in. It was a loophole in the regulations, which didn't state specifically that the practice run had to be done physically on the circuit.

With Angelus' allotted time over, and Gareth back in the pits, Brandon announced something they did every year on that day.

"Alright, St. Patty's Day, let's go."

"Ah, you're right! But tomorrow's the qualifier."

"So don't drink as much! We all can't afford to spend tomorrow hungover, but it's still tradition, and it helps boost morale. Come on." He motioned to get Gareth, and everyone else within that room, to follow him out.

"I... [sigh], fine."

Unable to find a rebuttal, Gareth walked out after Brandon. The small subgroup of Angelus team members headed out after the long day of testing and pre-preparations for the race to celebrate St. Patrick's Day by moderately consuming alcohol. Yeah, doesn't sound that great, but they did have to be alert enough for the following day's qualifier.

------------
Saturday, March 18th, 2215

13:10:09

Thankfully, none of those that celebrated the night before were hungover, having known their duties for the day's qualifying round, and did not drink excessively. All team members were present and accounted for...

...except... Brandon. He walked in a bit later than usual.

"Brandon, you're late. Did you drink too much?" A control tech joked.

He shook his head. "No... I was responsible about my intake, I always am... unfortunately I did not pay enough attention to the time, nor my tiredness. I simply slept in."

"Alright, well, qualifying's almost over, we used the data you gathered to help Gareth get a few times in, along with setting up the craft for the track and the obviously horrendous weather."

As per that day's forecast, the weather was rather not optimal, as their qualifying round had to be taken in a torrential downpour.

"Good, hopefully the data's good enough. Frankly, this course is a b*tch, and this rain is helping precious little."

The times were pretty slow in relation, but it was not the fault of the craft. The rain was so bad, visibility was extremely poor. Gareth was piloting on his mental image of the track alone, which was good enough to allow him to make several clean laps. However, they were far slower than his usual dry runs. And just like that, Gareth's usual high-place grid position was taken away from him, having to settle with a mid-pack start.

------------
13:01:39

Preparing for their qualifying session, a certain girl was stopped in her tracks when the craft she usually piloted had had its appearance changed, now seeing two very non-identical craft.

"I... I... I-cosa!? My ship... why is my ship different?" (What?)

Hearing her outburst and general confusion, the man she had befriended, her co-pilot, spoke out.

"That was my doing. We need all the edge we can get. While Kotova ensured our craft were on a level playing field, I think your prodigal talent can benefit from an upgrade much more than I can."

"So... now I am unfairly more competitive than you are? Hmmm..."

She looked to her newly upgraded craft, then back to Leon.

"...I don't know how to feel about this, but it won't impede my will to race. I'll try it, thanks."

Several soaking laps later, it was clear that Lucia's talent could only get her so far, the heavy craft only allowing her a 12th place grid position. It was far better off than Leon, who could only manage 18th.

Tigron, meanwhile, seemed to be having a very good run, their hive-type unit being pushed to its utter limits to essentially brute force their way through the rain. However, they didn't get pole position. That feat went, interestingly, to FEISAR, whose unrivalled handling nabbed them the top grid position, but only just. The gap between the top times was so close, that the second FEISAR pilot was only able to make do with fourth, despite being three-hundredths of a second slower than the lead pilot.

------------
Sunday, March 19th, 2215

14:51:18

The final preparations were being made by all teams competing, especially Angelus. The final checks were to tune the craft in just the right way, to maximise their chances of victory.

Brandon, meanwhile, was looking over the final qualification list. Several notable events had occurred during the qualification. The first was to do with Assegai. Their second craft had suffered a catastrophic failure of its ECU. An investigation was carried out, but the incident was ruled a freak accident, since their lead craft qualified without any issues. The second incident affected Harimau entirely. Both of their craft's thrust systems started to cut in and out intermittently. The second craft failed altogether before the end of the session, but their lead craft was able to get one time in. It was hardly their best, but they had qualified.

The most notable event, however, was something the team wasn't aware of. Brandon noticed something odd.

"Wait..."

Looking outside, he saw an official display, showing, amongst other things, a full list of all 26 qualified pilots, and their respective grid positions...

26. Tomi Makkinen. Gravitesse.

"...well, that's new. But where was the proof of their qualification?"

"Working on it now."

As the technicians looked into finding any shred of evidence that the Luxembourgish team had actually qualified, the 5 minute warning sounded out.

"Oh, whatever," Brandon said dismissively, "Just focus on the race now."

And then, it happened. One by one, the 26 grid positions opened up, and the craft were raised up to the track's surface. Exactly 18 seconds later, the 26th and final craft rose up to the surface. When Brandon saw it, his eyes widened in pure horror, and he made a rather odd noise, before simply yelling out.

"What the fff... hell is that thing!?"

Finally, two days later, the second reason why Brandon couldn't find their old, standard DXG T73 was revealed to him. The craft they had brought was not that, but a secret project, perfected by the time the current race weekend came about.

It looked, terrifyingly to the leader of the Australian team, a Cobalt Blue Tarantula, the titular colour accurately matching the secondary colour's patterns over the grey colour of the real arachnid.

"What the... th-the f*ck kinda sick joke is this!?"

The design of the craft was a proper quad-hull craft, with the rear wings of the craft somewhat doubling as two extra rear hulls to complete the look of the tarantula. The front of the craft sported two large headlights, with six smaller ones surrounding it.

"Now how am I supposed to be observing this race, with that thing popping up at every turn!?"

"And if they qualify for another race? Just... try and get over it maybe? Or you give the calls to Gareth and we get someone else to observe the race and make the strategies for you?"

"...I tried the former. Multiple times. I'm 55, and I'm still sh*t-scared of spiders. So I'll trust you lot to make strategies to tell Gareth."

The crew member just stared at Brandon, then shook his head. "Fine, let's do this."

It took them another couple of minutes to prepare, by which point the race was just about to start...

...after another 17 minutes following a minor farcical disruption.

3, 2, 1... GO!

<15:17:28_>
<monte carlo nouveau: long fwd_>
<race: lap 01 of 59_>



...








02.
KIR311.0.67.297
#67
Natalia Kireyeva
Tigron
K-Bystrota v1.4



03.
VAL027.1.66.297
#66
"Valkyria"
Tigron
K-Bystrota v1.4



...








06.
WHI353.0.12.894
#12
"Lady White"
Qirex
LS12 v2.8



...








10.
ARD889.0.19.194
#19
Gareth Ardos
Angelus
AX2.2_r9



...








12.
SCA308.0. 7.329
# 7
Lucia Scarlatti
Crinale
F0-RG08/01792



...








16.
SIN959.0.10.576
#10
Sino
EG.X
EG.FF-201 II



...








18.
TUR847.1.13.329
#13
Leon Turner
Crinale
F0-RG08/01536



...








26.
MAK569.0.55.791
#55
Tomi Makkinen
Gravitesse
DXG/P T74.02




<tarantula | pendulum (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZAIH_mPb0I&t=45)_>

With the rain pouring, the race began. Those with higher thrust outputs shot ahead, some of them even overtaking a couple of the lower placed craft. In the case of Angelus, Gareth swiftly overtook the Icaras it was sitting beside, before the faster craft crept past. Now up to speed, it rounded the first, high-speed corner, and attempted to take the Jennter ahead of it. It was quite a slow effort, but the pink craft had successfully overtaken the slower handling German team.

"Rockets."

...until it was pushed back behind the still tightly-spaced pack.

In the case of Gravitesse, way back at the end of the grid, the sole qualified craft sailed past the similarly qualified Triakis craft, and seemed to stay there, despite the Australian team having a higher top-end speed. Rounding the first corner, the result was very similar to the mid-pack where Angelus and Icaras were.

"Plasma."

BOOM.

That, along with being shoved violently against the wall from the blast, did not help them in the slightest. Triakis knew they had the combative advantage, and could have used practically anything to re-take their position.

"Missile."

Firing straight back, both teams were back to a more level playing field. It was inadvertent, but the two teams started to help each other out. Triakis usually were rather horrible on the curvier circuits, such as Monte Carlo. So was Piranha, yet they were somehow coping surprisingly well, sticking around the mid-pack, behind Angelus.

By the end of the first lap, Gareth had been able to use his craft to his advantage, and work his way past Icaras.

"Turbo."

Gareth just shook his head. "...Yep, could have done with that earlier, but whatever. I can work with this."

"Turbo."

The white and azure craft shot ahead past the line, up to the first of the two Jennter craft. The second was two craft ahead, in 6th. Rounding the corner, Gareth took the outside, and slipped past Patrick Rouser.

"Something something I can't speak German bye." He commented, just as he took 8th from him.

Naturally, the friendly rivals fought back. Or at least, they tried to.

"EM Cloak."
"Missile."

The missiles shot from the craft towards the Angelus craft in a straight line, the cloak preventing a lock-on. Due to the Cloak's effects, the projectile was skewed off in a different direction around the craft, sending it flying past it, bouncing off the walls before exploding away from them.

At the very front, Tigron were far ahead, having gotten away from the two FEISAR craft and gaining distance from them, racing in their usual formation. They were 15 seconds ahead, then 16, then 17, all before they knew it. They had the immense speed, and they both knew how to use all of it extremely effectively.

Angelus were also gaining positions, when Gareth got a rather interesting radio message from Brandon. However, he was stopped in his tracks from a rather odd happening. Was it no real surprise that it was Gravitesse's doing?

------------

The spider-designed craft, by which point Brandon had gotten used to the sight of, was ahead of more craft than was expected, in 18th place, right behind Triakis. The two teams had been going back and forth the whole race, stealing positions from one another. However, despite the surprise of the once infamously uncompetitive team gaining places all of a sudden, they were far back enough that Gareth could see theirs and Triakis' battle ahead of him.

Just as suddenly, the grey and blue ship made its move. The Gravitesse ship gained and maintained a rather large burst of speed. A turbo, this was not. Gravitesse had gained an inexplicable power increase that was far from befitting their official performance statistics. Easily overtaking the slowly turning tank that was the Triakis craft, they continued forth, pulling away from them at a rather incredible rate, considering the aforementioned tank boasted a very high top-end speed.

Despite this though, Brandon had felt the need to deliver that somewhat contradictory radio message.

"Gravtesse aren't a problem, Gareth, Gravitesse are not a problem. You do not need to worry about them, just push on as nor--..."

Stopped in his tracks at the event that had unfolded before his eyes, he had just completely stopped talking...

But that event wasn't the craft's permanent burst of speed.

Several seconds after the burst of speed began, the craft itself began to vibrate. The engines started to make an erratic noise, along with the higher-pitched whine of the overpowered thrusters pushed beyond its limits. That noise only grew louder the further away from Triakis it went. Until...

<contender eliminated_>

The craft started slowing down rapidly, while dipping forwards. The engines started making a noise, not too dissimilar to them powering down. However, they made one final noise, the craft burst forth one final time, and the nose raised up almost vertically, the craft entering a very abnormal pirouette, the engines having completely cut out, the craft emitting total silence.

<air for life | above and beyond with andy moor (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c33DbNoVtAU&t=58)_>

Seeing the craft fail so spectacularly, the Triakis craft sideshifted at just the right moment to avoid the spinning craft, passing it before the craft finally crashed to the ground. The sideshift was also in order to place the craft in just the right spot, at the right angle into the corner that immediately followed the scene of Gravitesse's odd elimination. It was a sharp corner, so full airbrakes were applied to the craft, but that was still not enough. The sound of the thrusters dimming could be heard, as if they had lost some power. Simply, the thrusters were dialled back a little, slowing the tri-hulled craft down somewhat in order to make the turn. That last move was successful, the craft successfully rounding the corner as cleanly as the heavy tank could.

Gareth, meanwhile, was lightly laughing. If he wasn't in control of a near 1000km/h racing craft, he would be absolutely doubling over in loud, raucous laughter.

"Yep... just as I'd expected from Gravitesse!"

Unfortunately, the Australian was unable to catch up to the leading Russians, the hive unit propelling them forward at, again, a much faster speed than the official performance statistics suggested. Unlike Gravitesse, though, the K-Bystrota was a far more stable craft than the DXG/P T74 that was the Luxembourgish machine. Gareth was barely able to catch up to the two FEISARs through his greater top speed, but a series of stray mines dropped him further back, the iconic blue and yellow team navigating the subsequent corners at a much faster rate than the white and azure craft could manage.

"Surprise!"

"Cannon."

"Ghh... No."

"Bomb."

The Crinale of Lucia Scarlatti got exactly 6 rounds of cannon fire into Gareth's Angelus, before the bomb he fired flew straight into the black and orange pursuer, sending it sideways into the wall. Gareth was aiming to re-catch that FEISAR craft, he wanted no interruptions, no impediments. He also required extreme levels of mental fortitude.

"Brandon. I need you to shut up for a while. I need to focus."

"...Zone?" He asked, knowing what Gareth was aiming for.

"Yeah, Zone."

"Alright, then. Maintaining radio silence. Go get 'em."

The final push of the team that race had started. Gareth gradually slipped into his record-winning mindset, focusing on using his strategy to guide him through the corners at as high a speed as the craft could maintain, not just taking the handling for granted. His ultimate aim was to maintain as high a speed as he could, in order to catch up to the marginally slower, yet faster turning FEISAR ahead of him.

The tactic seemed to be working, the first of the two European craft entering the view of the Australian. But... it was just too late.

<race complete_>
<fifth place_>

"...Yeah, P5, Gareth. It's fine, you tried your best. Better than an elimination, that's for sure. At least we're in the points."

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 50 was Crash Test 01 by Bloom 06.

[FTA|s3_11.0: Part 51.0] Shadows of the Past
Ikebukuro, Toshima, Tokyo, Japan.


"Sometimes, it is not exactly clear who one should trust. If one is in a more common, everyday life, then this problem may not arise as much, but it still is prevalent. In my line of work, however, not even my own clients receive anything that could be called trust. I only provide them the service they require, nothing more."

------------
Day 18.

08:10:22

Gelorumfan2182 <gelorumfan2182@gmail.com>
███ ██/██/2215 7:04 AM
You <kr-aan@dkg85.x29.jp>
Attachment: "3c41e329203d8c653403781961d01ca5.pdf"

---Decoded Data: Type A7 Encoding.---
ngs continue like this, anti-grav racing will become a pre-scripted piece of theatre dedicated to m.

Some more data for your perusal. You may hate the whole scene, but I have a good idea of what you are plotting. Why else would you come to me of all people in the first place?

------------

The message was brief, but the vast majority of the content was within the single attachment. Immediately, Rei had downloaded the document, and had begun an automated scan for the vital data within it. The heavily fragmented string of text up where the salutation would have usually gone was, in fact, a codephrase, devised by Rei and the Race Overseer in another prior message. The source material was a fragment of a comment made by Natasha Belmondo, the material published on July 5th, 2160.

The data itself within the attachment, once decoded like the email, and analysed, provided some very promising information, both pre- and post-Cataclysm. The data outlined some rather shady dealings and behind the scenes decisions made by even some very surprising subjects. And one simple section, headlined with a name that seemed to rear it's nasty, disgusting head again.

Sefaialon.

"...Fascinating."

Quite a fair portion of the pre-Cataclysm information he was already aware of, but small details, along with all of the post-Cataclysm data, was well coveted data that was now within his hands. Unfortunately, there was not much, if at all, by way of data pertaining to Erebus. Instantly, he fired a reply to the woman.

You <kr-aan@dkg85.x29.jp>
███ ██/██/2215 8:22 AM
Gelorumfan2182 <gelorumfan2182@gmail.com>

---Encoded Data: Type A7.---
37564=1

This information is much appreciated. I believe you may be a great asset in accomplishing both of our goals. Let me know if you require payment for this information, it shall be delivered to you the instant you accept.

Kurokawa Rei.

The response came almost immediately.

"No, it's all good. I'm fine to keep giving you whatever data you need at no extra cost to you."

Simple, and to the point.

Now, information brokers, while vastly knowledgeable, were still human, they were limited to only the knowledge they had obtained. That was what Rei was accomplishing. To meet his ends, to look further into the primary organisation he was pursuing, he had to reverse the roles, and seek information himself, rather than be the one to provide it.

"Hmmm..."

Loading up an older, but entirely relevant document onto his tech shades, Rei stepped outside to walk around the city, beginning to read it in detail, to connect the dots between it and the most recent piece of evidence.

"...well, yeah, of course! He's so cool!"

...The answer was starting right at his face, he knew there was a connection in this specific document...

"The way he just screamed past that kid so early on, it was the best!"

It... what? No, no, the document. The document was very important, analysing it, uninterrupted, in its entirety could finally signal the end of--

"Gaaaah! I can't wait for Archangel's next battle!"

...Damn it. He just couldn't resist, could he? He found himself walking towards the small group of university students.

"...I don't think he was trying this round."

"Eh!?" One of the girls spun around to look at the sudden new voice.

"Ah, great, another one. At least you can fangirl with someone else now, Ichinose."

The girl called Ichinose bore green dyed hair, which was long at the sides and short at the back, and was sitting underneath a pair of goggles. She was wearing an orange minidress, a long white coat that reaches below her knees, and a set of high heel boots.

Rei's eyebrow raised.

"I take it you're not interested in Archangel, then?"

One of the boys in the small group shook his head. "No, I am interested in Archangel and his battles, but I'm not completely obsessed with him like she is."

"Hey!"

"I mean, it is true." Another one spoke up, "It's either the F12000 or Archangel with you."

"I can't help it if I like them both!" She retorted, before looking back up at the man. "Anyway, what did you mean by Archangel wasn't trying in that race?"

"Were you there?" He asked. "His car was physically moving slower than in the battle against Kazuya Iwasaki."

"But he screamed past Kotonami so early on in the race!"

"Yes. So? Perhaps Tsugumi Kotonami wasn't as quick as Kazuya Iwasaki. In fact, I do know that to be the case."

The girl looked confused. "You do? How?"

Rei's face remained unchanging. "It is simple. My occupation. I am an Information Broker. Information, data, such as a racer's performance, it is what I deal in."

Her eyes went wide with intrigue. "Woah... so do you know him? Does he get this data from you?"

"While I do know Archangel... he is not one of my clients."

"I... see. So, uh, could I get your name? If you don't mind?"

"Rei Kurokawa."

"Ah, nice to meet you, Rei! I am Riku Ichinose. I'm currently a physics major."

"Uh... huh."

Riku then stood up, and began to walk along with her friends, who had started to leave after checking the time.

"I have some plans with my friends, but hopefully we'll meet again!"

As she left, the black-clad man was left wondering just what he had gotten himself into, remembering to resume reading the currently loaded document on his shades at the last possible moment.

[Ace3000]

The referenced song title of Part 51 was Shadows of Our Past by Daiki Kasho.

[FTA|s3_12.0: Part 52.0] In the News, Part 1
<22150320>

Monday, March 20th, 2215

"Good evening, and welcome to the sporting news. I'm your host, Natalie Winters.

"In our bulletin tonight, a surprise appearance in the F12000 race at Monaco, the Anti-Gravity Purity Alliance launch another attack against the F12000 Race Commission, and shock as a runaway gravity-ball severely injures a bystander.

"But first, our top story. For the first time in their tenure, Gravitesse Anti-Gravité were allowed to participate in an F12000 race, following a qualification round that placed them just on the grid. Unfortunately, their three-year long dream was not to last, as reliability issues soon took effect, and they were forced to be eliminated. Later investigation proved that their elimination was caused by the apparent failure of an engine limiter module. The shell and several critical components were not rated to the power and speed the craft begun to put out, which resulted in the failure and subsequent crash of the craft.

"After a catastrophic qualification in pouring rain, Angelus was only able to start 10th on the grid, which translated to a 5th place finish for the Australian team. The other Oceanic team, Triakis, was unable to achieve a position better than last place, the worst finish for them thus far."

------------

"In related news, the Anti-Gravity Purity Alliance has once again attacked the Race Commission. The group, created by former teams Auricom and AG Systems, additionally are comprised of Angelus and a few other unknown groups and members. The group hacked more displays at Monaco, as well as launching a new campaign against the commission. They warned that they were, quote, 'acquiring enough evidence to make their claims irrefutable, yet they obtained a lot evidence against them at the current moment.'

"A large group of independent members staged what was described by the group as an 'unofficial, unauthorised' activist protest. The protest delayed the race start for 17 minutes, before security and race officials apprehended the members of the AGPA. Yet another disruption occurred after the race, where more members, joined by a few who escaped the prior apprehension, interrupted the podium ceremony. They were all unceremoniously rendered unconscious by both Tigron racers, Natalia Kireyeva and the one known only as 'Valkyria', who had finished first and second respectively."

------------

"In local sport, because I love my country, the Supercars Melbourne 400 ended with a clean victory for Andrew Hayes when rival Ashley Douglas retired from the race due to a very unusual and similarly catastrophic systems failure, and the resulting crash that stemmed from it.

"The race was a very close one, with Ashley keeping up very closely with Andrew, a battle between the two breaking out. After several laps of close, intense racing, the electrics in Ashley's 522kW V8 Sandman Supercar shorted, jamming the throttle wide open and causing a vital component to explode, dislodging one of the hydraulic steering modules. When Ashley tried to turn as the car coasted to a stop from the lack of primary braking power, the module twisted and deformed, while providing very minimal steering. The car ended up slamming into the wall at 152km/h, after the late deployment of the emergency brakes by Douglas.

"Thankfully, despite the high speed crash, the 3-time Supercars champion walked away from the accident completely unscathed. After the race was over, Ashley was quoted in the post-race interview as being 'completely okay', and will definitely be living to see another race."

------------

"And finally, a shocking event occurred at last week's gravity ball game today, in the match against England and Italy. In the final minutes of the match, Gilberto Sportiello missed the goal, and sent the grav-ball flying into the spectators, hitting one of them in the face. They had to be taken to hospital, where they're currently recovering from their injuries. The match ended in favour of Italy despite that, winning 36 to 32.

"That was today's sport bulletin, thank you so much for your company! Coming up next is the lottery results... I hope I'll see you tomorrow night~!"

[Ace3000]

[FTA|s3_13.1: Part 53.1] Some Kind of Blue-Green
Nikko, Tochigi, Japan.


"A good Information Broker always keeps up to date with their data. Unfortunately, when the only data that exists is out of date or incomplete, then problems may arise from the deductions derived from it, since they would most likely be inaccurate to the reality of the situation."

------------
Day 23.

10:13:44

A tiny kei car casually glided down one of Nikko's local mountain passes. Silently, gracefully rounding the corners, as if the brake was never used, only the accelerator being released before every turn. Its driver, noting every square millimetre of the length of road. The manipulator of the wheel, of the pedals before him, imagining he was in a larger, more powerful, and faster car, in the dead of night, with one other car ahead of him. Multiple calculations a second ran through his mind. Braking zones, peak power output, suspension settings...

...that was the power of the master strategist, Rei Kurokawa.

------------
10:21:09

That very same kei car pulled into a parking lot of a small shop, and walked inside to buy some refreshments. As he walked out, there was one certain thing outside, waiting to surprise him.

"...what!?"

It was the one car he was imagining mere minutes before.

The car was Archangel's next battle, his next opponent.

There was no mistaking it. It was, after all, a much sought-after vehicle, especially due to its rarity.

It was a 2193 Yamutsu Tempest GTA, painted in a two-tone cyan and black colour.

It was not enough for the man to walk around the car, taking in every last part of it.

"...it even has the original optional spoiler... This is amazing."

"Hey, uh... can I help you?"

An older looking man was standing a short distance away, looking at Rei take in the finer details of the rare car.

"Yeah." He replied, not turning around. "This is a very beautiful thing. You wouldn't happen to know owns this rare piece of automotive excellence, do you?"

"Well... I've been driving it."

That revelation caused the man to glance up at him.

"You!? Really?"

With a push of a button, the car bleeped, its doors unlocking.

"Since you seem know of the Tempest GTA, let me impart something else to you. This very car is the fastest down the Momiji Line."

"...I knew of that. What I wasn't aware of was the driver of this machine..."

He chuckled.

"...and now I know."

"Well," The middle-age man forced out. "I must be off, I'm a very busy man, you see."

Rei nodded.

"As am I."

"In that case, let us go our separate ways. Goodbye."

With a small smile, the man entered the car, and reversed out of the parking space, speeding away.

"...Goodbye, Nakajima."

------------
12:50:39

Lunchtime had been going for about 10 minutes. A small group of friends were chatting happily on the rooftop of their school.

"...I'm a little scared, to be honest." One of them said. A female, judging by their school uniform. "I don't think I've ever been this scared before..."

"Eeeh?" Another girl spoke out. "I've only seen you be scared about one other thing? What are you scared about this time?"

The one who was scared look up at the other girl with a slightly bowed head. "You've... seen the next announcement, haven't you? ...Archangel, I mean."

"No? Why?"

A quick search of the pseudonymous touge racer's website revealed all

Next race: Nakajima ???, Yamutsu Tempest GTA【ES53】, Momiji Line, tomorrow @ 2200

"N-Nakajima!? But that's... you, isn't it?"

"Yeah, exactly."

Nakajima turned, and leaned against the chain link fence, looking outwards.

"That's why I'm scared... the race is tomorrow, and while my name isn't technically on the notice, it is m-... h-h-hold... on... no, wait! Where is it!?"

Suddenly, terror filled the junior high school-like face of the senior high school student.

"Where's what?" Yet another friend yelled out, an equal amount of terror in her voice, empathetic of her friend.

"It... It's gone! My..."

"...?"

"...My car... my ES53... it's gone!"

[Jonny]

Arc: NJRS - #006
Title:Aurora Reborn

The race in Nokav Vertigo was a mix of feelings for the Jennter team. Initially the improved JAG-F12.212/5b craft seemed to outperform its previous iteration. However, a system malfunction caused by a power surge stalled the craft of Aurora again, fortunatly this time without disabling all safety systems.

Jennter Enterprises HQ, Düsseldorf, Germany
Tuesday, 20th February 2215
10:12.44

Linda and Nico were discussing the next race together with Patrick and Aurora.
"The craft felt great...until it gave up." reported Aurora her own experience with the new ship.
Linda looked through a window, avoiding the other faces "This concept works better, no doubt."
"Our shields are bad enough, but being unreliable is a death sentence in AG racing. Literally." Patrick commented "But I've talked about it with Aurora."
"It felt great. If you can fix the reliability problem-" Aurora added to that.

"Shut up, tin can." Linda threw at her without batting an eye "It is only natural that a rushed prototype won't last a race. That's why something spareable had to pilot it."
Aurora stood in the room in silence. Her facial expression didn't change.
"Hey! She didn't attack you!" Patrick broke the silence "So why are you having a go at her?"
Linda turned away from the window to glare at him "I didn't graduate in Gravity Vehicular Engineering to hear a machine complaining at me."
"I may leave the room, I sense your blood pressure increasing." the android noted, ready to leave.
"Huh?" came from Nico, almost unnoticed by the others.

Linda sighed "Whatever, I'll optimise the manufacturing process for the craft. And I'll refine the performance of the test craft."
The engineer went past Aurora, who ended up staying in the room.

"Don't think too much about it, Aurora" Nico tried to cheer her up.
"Unlike...mother, I understand my existence as an object." she merely commented "Linda thinks very high of herself - I think so too about her."
Nico nodded understandingly "Also, you started to discover the functions of your sensores, it seems."
"Indeed. Though their purpose seems odd to me." Aurora agreed "Whatever you have in mind, master."

Saturday, 24th February 2215
19:44.21

Aurora had her own room in the Jennter headquaters, as she was seen as the 'child' of the company.
Someone knocked on her door, it appeared to be physically weak.
"It's Linda." a voice came through the wood of the slideable door.

Aurora was surprised, Linda never visited her and mostly ignored her existence. However, she let her in "Door, open."
"Do you have feelings?" she asked bluntly, sitting down in a chair frontal to the couch Aurora was occupying all the while.
"I have thoughts. However, my internals are not cramping up when they are complicated for me." she answered.
"What is your physical composition?" Linda asked next. Her voice was growing in curiousity.
"For packaging reasons I possess the same phyical performance of a trained male adult." the android explained "I don't have any organs, therefore I don't have to eat food."
Linda was mustering her "That's some nice packaging then..."
"Of course I perform better than a woman of my dimensions. But that's more than enough for AG racing."
Linda frowned "That was...a joke..."
"Oh, I see!" Aurora was surprised "I did not expect you to joke around with me. So I suppressed my sense for humour."
"You have that?" Linda was wondering "Anyway, what about your senses?"
As per order Aurora continued "My eyes are high definition cameras. I can move them individually, but usually don't do that, to not make people feel uncomfortable."
"You are quite sensible" the engineer commented.
Aurora smiled "I considered the benefits of staying on good terms with the people I have to work with."
"Right, so your ears are microphones?" Linda asked next.
"Indeed. Just plain microphones, they don't mimic the functionality of a human eardrum. Same for my eyes. However, my voice is generated through actual vocal cords."
"What, how and why?"
Aurora smiled about it "Simply to make my expressions appear natural. This also allows me to whistle and so on. And I have to drink water regularly, to generate saliva for the proper functionality of my lips. I can even spit!"
Linda was looking confused at the proud expression Aurora made for this statement, but she stayed curious "So are you also able to taste and smell?"
"Both yes. My tongue works similar to a human tongue, same for my nose. Master Bovier thought it would be useful if I had these abilities."
"Yeah, I can see that." Linda nodded "Wait, Bovier developed you then?"
Aurora shock her head "No, but he worked out my functionality. The actual programming and assembly was carried out by other people working for Jennter."

[Ace3000]

The referenced song title of Part 53.1 was Some Kind of Blue by deadmau5.

[FTA|s3_14.1: Part 54.1] The Return of the Devil
<22150331>

Friday, March 31st, 2215

Altima VIII, Toronto, Canada.

14:00:00

As the practice session got underway at the next location in the 2215 F12000 roster, several simulations were being run throughout the session by all the participants. It was just business as usual, but no-one was able to predict, or simulate, the conditions that befell one particular team.

As was the norm for 2215, Gareth worked with Angelus' technicians to finalise the craft's settings for the qualifying and race, going out once more after the settings were dialled in to perform some more tests and simulations.

Back in the control room for the Australian team, Brandon was staring at the screen before him, data being displayed on it. This time, it was only data that was sent back from Gareth's Xygen V.

Except he was not taking any of the data in, he was looking in the direction of the screen, but he was spacing out, his thoughts running with him...

A sight of the past... a vague, indeterminate location... the cutest, happiest smile he had ever seen... hair, as bright and vivid as an ocean sunset...

"Brandon!? What the hell? What's wrong with you today!?"

Suddenly, he was snapped out of his daydream. He simply turned slowly at the source of the voice, and scowled at the person his eyes laid upon.

"What?" He flatly asked.

"Do we have enough data? You've been sorta half staring at it, half spacing out for, like 20 minutes now. Are we good?"

Brandon simply glanced over the data once more, before standing up.

"Yeah, it's fine. As usual, I guess. I gotta get some air. Don't get concerned if I don't come back, I might just go back to the hotel."

And with that, he walked out.

------------

In a certain team's control room, a very special guest had entered, this time sporting vivid purple hair.

"Technically, I'm supposed to be checking in on all of the teams, but... well, do I really need to say it? You know already, Alli."

"Just... don't get caught, okay?" The other woman replied, holding her own arm. "I don't want to think about what would happen if Chris finds out about your bias to this team, let alone our relationship."

"I know, but I'll be fine." Purple haired Catherine reassured Alex. "So! Everything fine?"

Alex just smirked at her. "Please, you're the Race Overseer, you know how well we're doing today. Should turn out to be a pretty good race."

"'Should be'? I was sure you'd be saying something more closer to it definitely being a good race... or that you're going to win!"

She looked a little surprised by that. "I... I guess so... but you never know what will happen during a race."

"Hmph," She feigned discontent. "Seems like you need a little motivation. Fine, how about this? If you win this race... I'll give you something cool..."

The grin was met by a stunned silence from the team leader, her mouth slightly agape.

"..."

------------

"Change of plans, I am racing." Alex commanded Leon, having walked into the pits as he was just stepping out of the craft to continue fine-tuning it.

"What?"

Naturally, the second pilot was very shocked.

"I am sorry, I... I have to do this. She said if I win... Just this one race, I promise."

"Sure, but why me, though!?"

"You're number 13."

"I-- fine."

A short delay of notifying the stewards, Alex suited up, and slid into the craft. Turning it on, she had her own ECU map loaded on.

...loading...
modifying settings...
finalising control map...

GELORUM ACTIVATED.

As the whine of the craft powering up sounded throughout the pit, the grid started to rise up, sending Alex up onto the track to begin her practice session...

------------

...by which point Brandon had returned to Angelus' control room.

"Okay, whatever, I'm back. I cleared my head somewhat. What did I m..."

He saw the updated pilot list

"Wait... GEL...? Wh-Ohhh... no... What is she doing racing!? Sh-should... I get out there too?"

"You can't. We weren't expecting this, we only brought the one craft."

"Yeah, I know we did."

The technician looked up at him.

"Wait, you don't mean...?"

"I don't know what I mean. I'm not thinking logically. Just... give me a moment."

Opening his secret application that he used in the previous race, he started taking in data from the Crinale craft and compared it to how it ran prior to the pilot switch, the other craft being piloted by Lucia, and Gareth's own runs.

"...As I expected, I can't tell if this is all due to the craft being fine-tuned more than Lucia's craft, or if she's still got it. Gareth's good, but he's far from competitive to how Gelorum was back in 2209. I know how good she was back then, she was... scary. All I can do is think about how her ability was back then and in 2198. This data just isn't enough. Is she better than before? Not as good? Just as good? Has she mellowed out in regards to her racing style? Or is she just as scary? I just... don't... know."

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 54.1 was Return of the Space Cowboy by Jamiroquai.

[FTA|s3_13.2: Part 53.2] Challenge: Response
Nikko, Tochigi, Japan.

Day 23.

12:59:44

"It... It's gone! My..."

"...?"

"...My car... my ES53... it's gone!"

Immediately, all of Nakajima's friends clambered to the fence, looking out at the blank car space where a cyan and grey compact car should have been.

However, the high-schooler's outburst wasn't due to the shock of the missing car.

"...damn it... did he take it again!?"

"Huh?" One of the other girls asked. "Who took it?"

"Oh... my dad."

"Huuuh!? How do you know he took it?"

Nakajima simply pointed to another car, next to the blank spot. It was a silver two-door, four seat, mid-engined sports car.

"That's my dad's car."

Yamutsu was a Japanese car manufacturer that specialised in many different models. A larger, high-riding 5-door SUV in the XU-1, a sports utility in the Iseo, a hardened, mid-engined sports car in the Swan-3, and the compact that was Nakajima's car, the Tempest.

However, that was not all. There was one more car that was produced by the company. It was two-door, mid-engined, and very sporty, like the Swan-3, yet it was more luxurious. It contained the 366hp, 3.2L V6 Turbo that resided in the Iseo, and retained four full seats. As described by the company, it was a "family supercar".

Called the 3200R, it was Yamutsu's top of the line model... and the older Nakajima owned one.

Which was the exact car sitting beside the space where the other Yamutsu should have been.

A phone emerged from the bag of the Tempest's owner, who begun to call the one who borrowed it.

"Dad, hi, how are you?"

"I'm fine, and yourself?"

"...you took my car."

"I... it's not like you need it right now."

"Yeah, but... I need it for Saturday. Like, really, really need!"

"I know you do. But Saturday is Saturday, this is today, and right now, you're in school. I'll bring it back before you're done today."

"I... fine."

------------
Day 24.

10:09:48

"Dad, I've called my friends over... c-can I... um... can I get you to help me too?"

The father looked down at his offspring in surprise.

"No matter what, I will always love you, I will always be proud of you. And you can get my help with anything, so... why the timidness?"

"Ah, sorry. I thought that... maybe... you wouldn't want to help. I... I want to tune the Tempest."

The older man just smiled.

"Who said I wanted nothing to do with that? Come on, you know me more than anyone, I love cars."

"...you're right, dad. So anyway, my friends know what I want, so I can tell you now--"

"No turbo?"

"I-- Yeah, no turbo."

The small teenager had been very adamant in the past about the intense will to not have a turbo installed into the Tempest GTA, wanting to keep the responsiveness that was more important with a very lightweight car, such as the limited edition compact.

"Really, anything else. Intake upgrades, ECU timing, stabiliser tweaking, anything we can to make her faster. Just, no turbos."

At that point, the high schooler Nakajima's friends entered.

"Hey, you! And, hi, Mr. Nakajima."

"Hi," He greeted back. "I see you all got coerced into modifying the Tempest as well?"

The father chuckled.

"No, nothing like that! We've been racing fans since around the time we all became friends! We used to watch Kotonami race. She was our senior."

"Alright, so that explains why I was dragged along to see the last Archangel race. Well, if that black car of his really is that powerful to defeat a car like Kotonami's, then the power that GTA makes now might not be enough. Well, let's go...

"...I want Hayate to win!"

[Ace3000]

The referenced song title of Part 53.2 was Music:Response by The Chemical Brothers.

[FTA|s3_14.2: Part 54.2] The Russian's Dream
<22150401>

Saturday, April 1st, 2215

Altima VIII, Toronto, Canada.

14:00:00

<the seconds | porter robinson (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T16crBGDFAA&t=106)_>

At 2pm exactly, the qualifying began. Many of the other teams had set off to begin their outlaps. Angelus, in the meantime, were applying the final tweaks to their craft. It was a last-minute preventative measure, spurred on by Brandon due to the threat that was Alexandra taking the helm of Leon's craft. The pressure must have gotten to him, as at the very last moment, he had a final function added to the craft: One of many as yet unused buttons would be used to completely switch off the Xff engine's limiter.

A single minute later, the craft rose from the pits, ready to begin the outlap. Gareth shot off, taking the course at a slower, less taxing speed than usual. As he navigated the course, he begun to psyche himself up to begin pushing himself hard to attain pole position.

"...alright, let's go..."

On the final, fast corner, Gareth pushed as hard as he could without resorting to the delimiter button. He wanted to get in a run on his own merit, to attain as fast a time as he could. And, as he flew across the line at top speed to start his qualifying lap, he did just that.

978km/h was the speed Gareth was clocked at. Not the absolute fastest speed recorded that weekend, but it was the supposed upper limits of the Australian craft. Gareth carried that speed all the way up to the first corner. Turning into it, he applied the airbrakes about half a second later, his instincts pushing him to turn immediately into the second corner, the second half of the S-corner that matched the circuit's famous short layout.

The longer course snaked around the short course, with the tunnel section up through the main straight being the only sections of the normal circuit that was shared with it. The medium course followed the longer course for a partial section, before deviating towards the steep drop, rejoining the old course from there onward.

After navigating the shared medium/long section, the section specific to the long course followed. It ramped the difficulty up rather dramatically, starting to suddenly twist and shoot downwards to make up for the discrepancy in elevation. While the curves were flat, and sometimes were on a gentle incline, the drops varied in severity. Some were less steep than the short course's back straight, but a few were steeper, almost at a vertical drop. Of course, in those ultra-steep sections, mag-lock sections aided in the pilots' descent.

The final corner was an extremely steep, corkscrew-like hairpin that crossed above, and met up with, the final chicane series leading up to the tunnel section. The rest of the circuit was very well known, and Gareth set a rather blistering lap.

Up next was Alexandra, the equally sleek ship rising up from the pits to the track. After her outlap, her run began. The speed trap clocked her at a slower top speed, 966km/h, however the black and yellow-orange craft was still very competitive, the timing for the first section capturing a marginally faster time than Gareth. The times only got worse for the sole Angelus pilot from there on. Alexandra took advantage of the higher thrust, the RG08's system being pushed to it's limit. For some reason, in her hands, it also seemed to be much faster than Lucia's craft.

All of that culminated in a 1-2-3 grid position for the Russians: Alexandra on pole, and the two Tigron pilots just squeezing in past Gareth. Lucia could only manage 5th, just 0.002 seconds separating her from Gareth.

And, amusingly, Gravitesse were back beyond the bottom of the pack, having ever so slightly failed to qualify.

------------
<22150402>

Sunday, April 2nd, 2215

13:45:09

"...Y'know, when I said if you win, I meant the team, not you specifically."

Alex just grinned.

"Last I checked, Котёнок, I was a part of this team." [Kotonok, Kitten]

"You know what I mean!" Catherine giggled.

"I do, but you forgot to close that loophole. Better keep that 'something cool' you promised ready!"

"Only if you win!"

Catherine checked her watch.

"Oop, gotta go. Good luck, in any case!"

With her girlfriend gone, the leader of Crinale turned to Lucia.

"So you know what you're doing?"

The young Italian looked up at the older Russian. "I have no hope in hell of matching your pace. But I have a very good plan in place of getting around the problem of Tigron."

"And Angelus?"

"Ardos has never really been that much of a problem. His craft is his only strong suit. Well, that and possibly his luck."

------------

"Just letting you know, Gareth, I've gone and disabled the delimiter. I still don't understand why you didn't use it when you had the opportunity to. Raising the power was quite common in the distant past."

"I dunno... it still seemed a bit cheaty to me..." The pilot responded.

Brandon raised a hand to his chin. "That seems fair, I guess. Well, it wasn't as if I was forcing you to use it."

"I'm happy with 4th, I can make my way past those Tigrons."

"We all hope so, but just have yourself a good race, okay?"

"That won't be an issue." Gareth smiled.

The pre-race stuff over with, and all 26 craft having been raised to the grid following the 5 minute warning, the race finally begun.

3, 2, 1... GO!

<14:00:00_>
<altima viii: long course_>
<race: lap 01 of 60_>



01.
GEL255.2.13.329
#13
Alexandra Gelorum
Crinale
F0-RG08/01536



02.
KIR311.0.67.297
#67
Natalia Kireyeva
Tigron
K-Bystrota v1.4



03.
VAL027.1.66.297
#66
"Valkyria"
Tigron
K-Bystrota v1.4



04.
ARD889.0.19.194
#19
Gareth Ardos
Angelus
AX2.2_r9



05.
SCA308.0. 7.329
# 7
Lucia Scarlatti
Crinale
F0-RG08/01792



06.
WHI353.0.12.894
#12
"Lady White"
Qirex
LS12 v2.8



...








12.
SIN959.0.10.576
#10
Sino
EG.X
EG.FF-201 III



...









<control your body | pnau (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYqCAtVJm3o&t=107)_>

The #13 craft of Alexandra Gelorum shot off the line, as did the other 25 craft. In an instant, it was evident that the formidable opponent of the past had lost none of her racing prowess, and was soon pulling away from the trailing Tigron craft.

"...Stratagem... uh..."

Natalia was at a loss for words. She had seen the FX400 races when she was still training, but this was the first time she saw the talent of the woman she looked up to during those times first hand. There were only so many strategies she could think of in this state, all of them unsatisfactory in their purpose of defeating the competition.

"...1. Stratagem 1. It's, uh, only way."

Stratagem 1 was very simple. They would use the vastly powerful hive unit to their advantage. Essentially, overpower and outspeed the black craft ahead of them. Fortunately for them, the first section was a mid- to high-speed section, perfect for their strategy to work. Of course, that was not taking weapons into consideration. And, despite the past of illegal weapons usage, Alexandra was a master weapons specialist. Her burst of speed was simply due to a raised limiter that was a part of her personal tuning map.

That, naturally, got in the way of their strategy. Catching up to the devil craft, Natalia and Valkyria made their move. From a straight line formation, the two, in a synchronized manner, sideshifted to either side of Gelorum. Natalia to the left, Valkyria to the right, they both slipped past her, before sideshifting back into their prior formation. Naturally, that would be where one would attack.

"Rockets."

Not even at the first corner, and the battle had already begun in such a bombastic fashion. The leading Crinale craft sideshifted to the left, out of the formation created by the two Tigron craft. At the same time, the right airbrake was deployed, skewing the craft at just the right angle to fire the rockets into both craft simultaneously.

"Error. Plasma."

There was a minor delay before the familiar purple energy sphere charged up in front of the leading Tigron craft. However, it was a direct hit. Alexandra was impeded, yet the extremely tough exterior, along with the powerful shielding system, took the hit very well.

"Ghh... no! I have to win!"

As the other Crinale ship of Lucia and the Angelus of Gareth flew past, all three craft were able to resume their battle. The new race leaders, however, were just starting their own battle, speeding around the first high-speed corner. When the three Russians rounded that very corner, the Tigrons of Kireyeva and Valkyria launched another, very similar attack, sideshifting to either side of her, slipping alongside, and...

"Maneuver 7."

CRUNCH

Instead of overtaking her, they both sideshifted into her. With Kireyeva still ahead of Valkyria, they ended up skewing the Crinale craft at an angle. That only got worse when she applied her airbrakes, forcing the craft to spin around. As she cleared the incapacitated Crinale, she shifted back into formation with Valkyria, speeding past once again.

The thrust system of Alexandra's ship caused it to spin right around to face the right way very quickly. As she rushed to retake the positions she lost, she picked up weapon after weapon, absorbing all of them except for the odd turbo or two.

"Come on, damn f*ck you! Give me that!"

The double upward chevrons that displayed next was not what she was specifically after, but it was something that would assist her with great efficiency.

"Quake."

However, the Tigron were nowhere in sight after that. They were still as far ahead as they had been, if not slightly further. Despite the similarities in handling officially, the team leader was certain that she could catch up to them, even with the end of the first section nearing rapidly, the technical second section to follow.

"Lucia, pass Angelus, now!"

The younger Italian was bewildered. She wanted to win even more desperately than before. What exactly did that purple-haired woman have on her?

"You think I haven't been trying to get past this whole time!? He's been stealing every weapon from me!"

"...A-"

"No, listen, it's only the first goddamn lap! There's 60 in total, so could you just back off for one second? Please, let's think about this strategically."

"But--"

"Oh! Yes! Never mind, forget what I said, I got it."

"Energy Blaster."

"Ha haaa! Got it indeed."

"...If I could speak now, I was going to let you do your thing, I just wanted to make sure you were on it."

"Oh yeah, because I want to finish behind Angelus. Now get back up here, this race obviously has a great meaning to you, so you have 59 laps to get right back up here and fulfil that meaning!"

------------

<14:40:29_>
<altima viii: long course_>
<race: lap 26 of 60_>



01.
SCA308.0. 7.329
# 7
Lucia Scarlatti
Crinale
F0-RG08/01792



02.
KIR311.0.67.297
#67
Natalia Kireyeva
Tigron
K-Bystrota v1.4
+0.612


03.
VAL027.1.66.297
#66
"Valkyria"
Tigron
K-Bystrota v1.4
+0.691


04.
ARD889.0.19.194
#19
Gareth Ardos
Angelus
AX2.2_r9
+1.993


05.
GEL255.2.13.329
#13
Alexandra Gelorum
Crinale
F0-RG08/01536
+5.460


...








08.
WHI353.0.12.894
#12
"Lady White"
Qirex
LS12 v2.8
+16.839


09.
SIN959.0.10.576
#10
Sino
EG.X
EG.FF-201 III
+18.204


...









<pull me under | dimension (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6apVJE_opy8&t=44)_>

The top 5 didn't realise that there was one certain threat that was gradually climbing up the ranks. Of course, the one who could stop the yellow, crimson and blue craft didn't notice the long game had been played until it was too late.

"Swarm Drain."

The Super-Weapon, as expected of a merger of the two former teams, functioned like a combination of EG.r's Power Swarm, with the leeching capabilities of Xios' Shield Drain. The multiple miniature drones shot out from the trailing craft, and immediately surrounded the other, leeching portions of the uniquely white Qirex at a time. With 6 drones, each leeching a total of 12 gravity shield units apiece, meant that 72gsu was leeched from the craft. Her craft was not at full health, which meant that she was in the critical range.

"Agh! No!"

Firmly applying the airbrakes, she let the craft soar past her, narrowly missing her. It was then that she unleashed her own Super-Weapon, based on Qirex's older F5000 one.

"Power Wall."

Unlike the old one, the craft merely slowed down upon hitting it, passing through it. It still shaved vast amounts of energy from the shields of the craft that passed through it, however. Which was exactly what Sino did, perfectly taking the racing line into the wall.

Coming up alongside the Finnish-designed craft, Lady White started regaining her lost shield energy, absorbing every weapon she received as she entered the final section, flying into the tunnel to start her 27th lap. Directly ahead of the two was another craft. They were the nearing 7th place craft of Piranha.

"Cannon."

The high-speed bullets relentlessly pummelled the red and yellow craft, causing it to decelerate just enough for both warring craft to scream past.

"Bomb."

And the large explosion and disruption ensured that very same craft wouldn't be stealing the positions back right in a hurry.

Further up the pack, Gelorum was absolutely relentless. She had closed the some 3 second gap in the space of one and a half laps, thanks to no help from Tigron, who were even more adamant to push her back down the ranks. It had gotten to the point where the woman's eyes had begun to glow.

"Gareth... out of my way..."

"Plasma."

Quick nerves from Angelus' Zone master had instinctively made the craft sideshift over to outside of the racing line... only to get hit by the very thing he was intending to avoid.

"Ngh!"

Gelorum had pulled her tricks again. Shifting over to the opposite side, she begun to charge the powerful energy sphere. At the very last, but opportune moment, she opened the left airbrake, again skewing the craft to face where Gareth would most likely shift to, as the plasma shot from her craft along it's trajectory, which Gareth, as Gelorum predicted, shifted right into.

"Hmhm..." She chuckled lightly, pulling the other airbrake to straighten herself out. As she did, the black craft naturally passed the white and azure Angelus.

"Right, now Tigron."

Several hundred meters ahead, the two craft came into view, still in their perfect formation. They were nearing the other Crinale of Lucia at a gradual pace.

"Bomb."
"Missile."

They weren't about to be fooled twice, they had both sideshifted out of the way before the bomb was deployed. The missile, however, was fired blind, something the two Russians were not aware of, until the projectile bounced off the opposite wall and into the leading craft.

Back at the control room, a bewildered Brandon just stared in confusion.

"This... how'd she get better than 2209?"

As the craft was shoved into the wall from the direct hit, both Valkyria and Gelorum soared past her.

"Hyah!"

Of course, Natalia was not going down without a fight, and shifted to the left, in an attempt to force the other Russian woman into the wall. She had succeeded in getting a hit, but it was a more awkward one to the rear of the Crinale craft. Instead of the massive wall shunt she was hoping for, all that came from the maneuver was skewing the craft towards the centre of the corner, which the leader simply counter-acted with a drift through the corner.

The idea of counter-steering to drift around the corner was one thing. The execution was by far and away another. It took all of her strength to twist the steering handles all the way to the left to fight the rightward rotation the craft was following. When that failed, she twisted one upwards, opening the opposite airbrake to the corner, which was barely enough to force the heavy, yet aerodynamic craft to cease the rotational slide, and fall back into line. All that was left to do was to straighten out, which she did with a big sigh, followed by a very pleased laugh that she pulled off such a feat.

"Hahahaha! Valkyria! You are next!"

<loop | voicians (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sr1DeFpWKgc&t=68)_>

Alex wasn't the only one that was well-versed in advanced weapon strategies. At the leader's insistence, Lucia had been taught how to properly manage her weapon usage, which expanded the girl's strategic prowess. Admittedly, that was the only reason the prodigy accepted the training in the first place.

"Mines."

Immediately following a sharp, blind corner, Lucia immediately put that into practice. From one end of the narrow course, she started to deploy the mines. At the same time as the first mine leaving her craft, she shifted to the other side, the other 4 mines perfectly covering the track, and ensuring that Valkyria would run into at least one of them.

Leon's engineer spoke to Alex through the radio. "Keep to the left. M-"

"Mines."

Alex was already starting to take the corner after the engineer and her computer's warning, and had seen the first of them right before straightening out. When she didn't see a second, she aimed for an exit that went right beside it. She soared right past the first, seeing the other three in a diagonal line across the track, with her trajectory correctly going through the gap created by the Tigron slamming into the second mine deployed by the true lead pilot of Crinale.

In addition, flying over the crest that crossed above the prior piece of track below, she saw the Tigron of Valkyria attempting to regain speed. Just as she started to pass it, the pilot achieved what Natalia failed to do just before.

CRUNCH.

The black craft slammed into the other, pressing it against the wall. Just as they arrived at the corner, the K-Bystrota shifted the other way, spinning around the corner, yet leaving Alex to force her heavy craft to do the same, from a more awkward position and angle.

"02!" She yelled out after regaining her composure and rhythm.

The one she was referring to, CO-02, replied.

"I know what you're about to ask me, and my answer is the same as it always has been. We don't know how their shielding works. We're starting to get some ideas and possibilities, but it's only conjecture at this point."

"Damn. Okay, never mind. Unlike others, I'm not afraid to eliminate them."

"Make it a 1-2 finish, you owe at least that much to us after taking Leon's spot." She commented.

"Bhah!" Alex chortled. "Like I would ever let you down!"

The matter was, of course, trying to close the distance between them once more. While the Tigron did have a higher top-end speed, they were on the exclusive, technical part of the long course, and both Tigron and Crinale had very similar performance in thrust and handling, which meant that they took corners at similar speeds, and accelerated out of them much the same as well.

But what about a weapon that travels faster than both? And one that would almost guarantee to slow the leading craft down? Wouldn't that play perfectly into Alexandra's hands?

"Quake."

Sure, it might have placed Valkyria into dangerously low shield energy and was not a complete elimination, but it was more than enough for Alex to steal the position from the craft with the wonky shields.

"Gh! H-Hey! What happened to warning me about those quakes!?"

...and, unfortunately, also hit Lucia.

"Sh*t, sorry, I forgot. I was in my own groove there."

"Well, whatever, it's not like I was going to b--"

"Lucia. Enough. Let's get this done."

"'Kay!"

Passing the gradually accelerating Crinale was fairly simple for Alex, Lucia graciously accepting 2nd place on lap 31.

<contender eliminated_>

That elimination so happened to be the 6th place craft of FEISAR. The secondary battle was about to come to a head.

------------

<15:16:48_>
<altima viii: long course_>
<race: lap 55 of 60_>



01.
GEL255.2.13.329
#13
Alexandra Gelorum
Crinale
F0-RG08/01536



02.
SCA308.0. 7.329
# 7
Lucia Scarlatti
Crinale
F0-RG08/01792
+0.118


03.
SIN959.0.10.576
#10
Sino
EG.X
EG.FF-201 III
+0.345


04.
KIR311.0.67.297
#67
Natalia Kireyeva
Tigron
K-Bystrota v1.4
+1.492


05.
VAL027.1.66.297
#66
"Valkyria"
Tigron
K-Bystrota v1.4
+1.576


06.
ARD889.0.19.194
#19
Gareth Ardos
Angelus
AX2.2_r9
+3.111


07.
WHI353.0.12.894
#12
"Lady White"
Qirex
LS12 v2.8
+5.507


...









Somehow, the lone EG-X craft forced its way past the pack, taking advantage of the relatively high thrust and cornering ability, masterfully dodging all weapons thrown at the craft.

Naturally, the instant the 6th placed FEISAR was eliminated, CO-02 immediately noticed the approaching EG-X and Qirex, and overrode the existing strategy to implement an altered variation in place. Even though the EG-X was the only one that even got past the 5th placed Angelus, their new strategy still held on.

It was expected that they would have seen the Finnish/Chinese craft by lap 56, but after a quake by Natalia, and a turbo by Sino himself, that prediction was out by a full lap, the maroon, yellow and blue craft entering their field of view very shortly after the 55th lap.

Sino kept up quite well to the two Crinales, yet didn't gain on them. The bulk gain of the EG-X was its tighter, faster cornering speed, so only when the three of them entered the second section, was the point that Sino started lowering the gap between them. The final corner and straight made it seem like it was the final lap, when there was still 4 full laps to go.

"Rockets."

A direct hit on both of them, the EG-X flew past Lucia and Alex.

"Energy Blaster."
<contender eliminated_>

And just like that, Lucia's second obtainment of the superweapon once again threw the standings in favour of Crinale. Four laps later, the two identical black craft crossed the finish line, a 1-2 finish for Crinale, and the first race win for Alex Kotova herself since 2209.

[Ace3000]

The referenced album title of Part 54.2 was American Dream by LCD Soundsystem.

[FTA|s3_15.0: Part 55.0] The Tempest
Momiji Line, Nikko, Tochigi, Japan.


"Everyone has the ability to race beyond what anyone expects. Even those who, at first glance, do not look like the type to be active participants in the racing scene. Perhaps, one may be interested in the scene, maybe even spectate a few events, but no-one would be the wiser that they actively race..."

------------
Day 24.

21:57:45

At the start of Momiji Pass, a small high-school student waited eagerly beside an equally small car. Hayate Nakajima was sitting by a Yamutsu Tempest GTA that was owned by Archangel's next opponent. Around the medium-haired racer were the very same friends from high school who helped tune the Tempest with help from Hayate's father.

"So when's he gonna be here?" One of the few females of the group asked.

"I dunno..." Hayate replied. "Could be as late as 10 itself. He seemed to be there about that time when he was battling Kotonami. At least he's giving me time to make my last preparations."

Crawling into the back seat of the 2-door compact, Hayate picked up a small object, still in it's packaging. Tearing it open, the small plush toy was attached onto the rear window of the car through its suction cup, letting it dangle from the new position.

"Hakurou Tengu, please protect me." Was what was murmured from the lips of the small teenager.

Tengu are forms of Youkai, Japanese mythological beasts. Specifically, the Hakurou Tengu, or White Wolf Tengu, acts as the mountain's defence force. The plush toy secured to Hayate's car was a cutesy, stylised version, looking more like a girl with very few minor wolf-like attributes, than some version of a supernatural spirit.

After staring at the toy dangling for several seconds, one of Hayate's friends piped up.

"He's here! Hayate, Archangel's here!"

In the distance, the sleek black car of the gradually more famous (or infamous, depending on who you ask) racer that was Archangel. There was just enough time for the teenager to crawl back out of the car, before the sound of the tuned engine that was the powerplant of Archangel's car resounded throughout the pass, from just a couple meters away from the helmeted racer's opponent. Upon seeing Hayate, however, Archangel was struck with a bout of confusion, all stemming from the androgynous appearance of his opponent.

'...wait... Are they... male? Female? I'd... better tread lightly here.'

"U-Um... You're Archangel, right?"

Before the man could start introducing himself, Hayate spoke up, somewhat breaking the ice.

"That's correct. Hayate Nakajima... I presume?"

"Y-Yeah, that's right."

He smiled under his helmet.

"Interesting. You know, I initially thought it was your father that was the fastest down here. And had I been any ordinary person, I would have assumed that until right this moment."

"Huh? What do you mean?" Hayate looked confused.

"It's fine, you don't have to understand. All you should know is that I am more than just a simple touge racer, yet it is a somewhat favourite pastime. Now, what do you say, shall we start?"

"I..."

Hayate wasn't sure what to think, but at the very least, this Archangel guy did seem to be someone who would be fun to race against.

"Sure! Let's go!"

In an instant, Rei had his car turned around, and Hayate was properly lined up ready for the off.

'Okay... the car is better than before... I can do this. I can win, I know I can!...'

"...what!?"

------------

"Slight change in the strategy for this one, hopefully I can pull it off. Don't you dare let me down, Hayate."

Checking the car's diagnostics, everything seemed to be fine. Looking up for the signal, however, he saw something quite unexpected.

"...Ryouta... Nakajima? That kid's father?"

Standing in front of the two cars was Hayate's father, Ryouta. Raising his hand up, he began to yell out the countdown to start.

"5! 4, 3, 2, 1! ...GO!"






Driver
'Archangel'


Team
N/A


Car
Unknown


Year
Unknown, possibly 2200s


Type
Sports, 2-door


Layout
M4


Plate
·4 07, classification 390


Colour
Black


Engine
Unknown modified engine


Power
275PS


Weight
Unknown


Custom Parts
"Archangel" Body Kit, Unknown engine modification, Azure Blue Laser headlights, Unknown other systems.




vs.



中島疾風 (Nakajima Hayate)


N/A


Yamutsu Tempest GTA (ES53)


2193


Sports Compact, 2-door


FR


12-18, classification 576


High Future Two Tone


Modified 1.6L I4 NA YN6PB


181PS


848kg


OEM Optional Spoiler, Aftermarket Steering Wheel, 8-point roll bar.






<kaede -ver.2.0 | clean tears (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Tkv3zRSz-g)_>

The instant the two cars leapt off the line, Rei immediately noticed a massive problem. The tiny car seemed to be accelerating far quicker than anticipated.

"What? That... that just throws my strategy out of whack! How much higher is that car's power now!? It can't be by much, but it might be enough. This is critical to my strategy succeeding. I'm just gonna have to push harder and hope for the best."

And push he did, just edging out Hayate before the first corner. The instant his entire car was in front of the GTA, he quickly swerved in front of it, then immediately turned sharply to the left, using the momentum in the initial right swerve to put the back out. It was a smooth, skilful Scandinavian Flick.

The first left hand corner led directly into a not-so-sharp right hand corner, into another straight. Not even into that second corner, and Rei had already begun to pull away slowly from the smaller compact. Along the straight, Rei kept pulling, until the third corner they took showed a very noticeable desync in their movements: While Rei was turning through the corner and accelerating out, Hayate was just slowing down to turn in.

'Excellent', He thought. 'The strategy still works perfectly, I guess I put too much power into this initially.'

The first section was still, however, a mid to high-speed section. Despite two hairpins and a sharp corner, the rest of the corners were sparse and fast, blurring the line between corner and straight.

Interestingly, after the first of the hairpins, the gap between Rei and Hayate stopped widening. It wasn't that Rei had taken pity on the small racer, the cyan and grey Tempest GTA was just starting to match the speeds of the sleek, black car being driven by Archangel. The true talent of Hayate Nakajima was about to be revealed.

The gentle curves up to the second hairpin noted the second interesting point of that night: The smaller, older of the two cars started to, in a very odd sense, gain on the car that had soundly defeated two others before it. It wasn't by a very large amount, only the very slightest and briefest of gains.

The black car that started to symbolise Archangel started to pull away from Hayate, just before the sweeping left-hand corner, leading into the brief straight before the second hairpin. There, Archangel's notable cornering style came back into focus. As the car slowed down, he turned sharply into the hairpin to push the back out, then immediately adjusted his throttle and steering so the minimal amount of steering into the corner was needed to have the car gracefully glide through and out of the corner, at a minimal angle and as fast as was technically possible.

The lighter Tempest, however, seemed to just glide around the hairpin at pretty much the same speed as Archangel. The engine note only slowly decreased in pitch as the corner before the hairpin was taken, but Hayate did have to brake for the much tighter hairpin. The racing style was rather unique, not seen by anyone before. The car turned in at a far greater speed than what a normal, or even lightly tuned ES53 like Hayate's could manage.

The resulting initial understeer was mitigated by the right foot of Hayate, the accelerator being planted to send maximum power through into the rear stabilisers, pushing them beyond their grip capacity and sending the rear sliding outward. From there, all Hayate did was keep the slide held, and the speed up. When the car straightened out exiting the corner, it was still moving at a great amount of speed, the YN6PB inline-4 working overtime to push the car faster as it accelerated out into the next immediate complex.

It was a section taken at a much higher speed than the preceding hairpin, and consisted of 5 small, very minor corners that actually blended into one another, far more so than the map would suggest. Those two points of information, along with the knowledge and experience of racing on that pass that Hayate had meant that the car was pushed to the limits, the accelerator being held even through that final series. The first sector ended in a moderately sharp chicane, which, through minimal braking, was navigated with ease by the high-schooler.

"And now... hell."

To both Hayate and Archangel, that wouldn't be too much of a stretch, calling the second section 'hell'. It was full of consecutive, slow, sharp corners that could make or break one's run. To make the most out of it, careful, precise control of the car was required, along with ultra-fast reflexes. This was where the immense lack of weight would place the favour into Hayate's hands, adding onto the experience.

The second section started with a simple left curve, then a double-apex right hand corner, disguised as two separate right corners. That, however, was all the warning they would get. Immediately after the 'second' right, the true "hell" of the second section began. Needing to slow right down in such a short space was almost bordering on impossible, and Hayate had to drift widely into the hairpin in order to keep bringing the speeds down to clear the tight corner. From there, it was a matter of keeping the speed up as the hairpins came thick and fast, without any time to recover.

The instant the black car was exiting one corner, it was already turning the other way to lead into the next, the speed holding somewhat steady near, but not particularly reaching, 100km/h. It was only through the 3rd consecutive corner that the speed barely increased to 104. A fourth hairpin loomed beyond a small straight, providing a small reprieve before throwing them into two more consecutive hairpins. That allowed the speeds to creep up significantly, 119km/h being clocked by the black car.

Within the lightweight Tempest, the hairpins were taken at slightly faster speeds. The shorter length also meant that the car could change direction much quicker than Archangel. 103km/h was the speed Hayate had slowed to through the first hairpin, turning quickly into the second and third at a constant 106. Despite the apparent ease, Hayate was physically wrestling with the car in order to keep the speed up. In a usual time attack run, Hayate's speed through the second section was closer to that of Archangel's. The consistency was kept up through the final two corners, as once again, Hayate physically forced the wheel to snap to the other direction a slight moment before the Tempest was even out of the corner.

"Ngh... Hah! ...y-yes! 128!"

While the sector wasn't over, most of the difficulty that comprised it was complete. There were still a few tricks up its sleeve, but it was not as hard as the initial hairpin complex. A slight chicane bridged the gap between the fifth hairpin of that section to a right-angle bend, leading into a standalone, less sharp sixth hairpin.

A small right followed, before a gradually tightening chicane series pitted them to their reflexes and vehicular agility once more.

"...hmm..."

Archangel noticed that the headlights behind him were gaining on him.

"Time to push."

And push he did, somehow finding enough angular speed to match the speed of the nearing Tempest, the newer technology of the 2200s car keeping the speeds up and holding off the 2193 ES53 behind him.

The third sector began right after a right-angle corner. Through a gentle curve, three more hairpins awaited them. However, they were not as sharp as the sector 2 complex, and gave, albeit very minimal, almost non-existent, some kind of breathing room between them.

That was it, after that was a simple left high-speed corner, the track just straightening out even more after that. The road still curved along the mountain, but the road ahead of them was more like a straight than anything, the lines between a straight and a corner blurred to the absolute extreme. Both Archangel and Hayate could plant their feet to the floor, allowing their cars to accelerate and gain speed down the section. This was where the black sports car of Archangel could shine, its higher power output able to provide greater speed and acceleration than the still tuned Tempest GTA.

What looked like another hairpin was just a minor kink that led to a long corner that could be taken at max speed. Through the second half of the corner, both racers flew past a small carpark, where some fans had taken as a great opportunity to watch the race. It was all over for them, however. They were able to hear the sounds of the warring cars several seconds back, but as soon as they screamed into view, they were already around the corner, and into the next. Sure, it was one of only few vantage points one could watch the race, but it was all for a mere second of action.

Yet another chicane series followed, but it was more of a gentle right curve than the former.

"...this... this is it... we're almost at the end. It's now or never, I think I know how to win!"

Using as much of the road as possible, and pressing down as hard as was physically possible on the right pedal, Hayate's style switched, the focus was now on getting past no matter what. The younger opponent to Archangel knew that this race was the fastest ever, a new, probably unbeatable record was being set by the Tempest GTA already, but that wasn't what Hayate had come all this way for. Not for some new record, but a full race win.

Two tight hairpins closed off the course, separated by a long straight between them. The straight was one of the longer ones in the course, but like the others, they weren't that straight, blurring the line between proper straights and corners.

135km/h was the speed the first hairpin was taken by Archangel.

146km/h was the velocity Hayate navigated it, the start of the final chance to take Archangel signified by it.

From behind a certain black sports car, another one was somehow accelerating faster than it.

And then, the move was made.

<let it shine | yuko koshiro (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nv-87Ge_Flg&t=162)_>

The first noticeable thing was the odd shift in the lights that illuminated through the leading car's interior. The cyan car's driver had started to make their final move. The third final corner of the course. Hayate Nakajima's Yamutsu Tempest GTA had started to overtake Archangel's own, unknown car.

The crowd situated just after the corner would be waiting the longest second in their entire lives, waiting to see who would emerge from that corner in front of whom.

Out of nowhere, at blistering speed, their questions were answered.

Archangel had maintained his lead.

------------
Halfway through the corner, Archangel smiled.

"Strategy success. Time's up."

A simple movement was all that was needed. A simple push of his foot, harder onto the pedal of the car, finally removing the mental limiter. Archangel unleashed all 275hp of his car, slingshotting away from the threatening Tempest.

"No! No, no! What!?"

Hayate was, of course, distraught that such a strategic move would be played out like that, especially with how well he was racing. But the small high-schooler kept the pedal pressed to the floor, not giving in for one moment. At the final hairpin, however, that black car disappeared completely from view. Racing around it at top speed, Hayate saw it once again, way too far to be caught up to.

Crossing the line and slowing down up to where everyone else was, Hayate saw one thing that was not there at the end of every Archangel battle.

The black car of Rei Kurokawa, with the man standing right beside it.

When Hayate stopped, Rei walked over to the driver's side of the Tempest. When the window came down, and the racer looked up at him, Rei spoke.

"Do you have a moment?"

------------

In a parking lot closer to the Nakajima home, two people met to converse.

The first was a small Hayate Nakajima.

The other, practically towering the first, was Rei Kurokawa.

"I just wanted to make sure that the final part of that race didn't get you down." The latter spoke.

"What do you mean? You just wiped the floor with me, how am I supposed to feel other than upset?"

He shook his head.

"That's looking at the race as nothing more as the sum of the end result. Others may see it like that because they have no other choice. What matters to you is what you take from it. You were the one that raced against me, after all."

"That... um... h-huh?"

"Heh, it's simple, really."

He pulled out a stopwatch.

"I was timing you. I went into this race like no other race I've been in." Suddenly, he became serious. "Tell no-one what I am about to tell you."

Hayate nervously nodded.

"I gather data on everyone before a race. Now, I could tell that there was something special with you. You have some innate talent, whether you're aware of it or not."

Hayate just looked up at the man silently, taking in every word he spoke.

"With this race, I tried to bring that talent out of you, and push it as far as I could. And push I did, you raced your fastest out there, that time is your own personal best."

"But... what about that end, then? Did you slow down?"

"I never slow down. You were just that fast. See, I limited myself so I could gradually pull you along, to make you faster, and it worked... a little too well. When I pulled away from you at the end, that was me removing that 'limiter', and pushing as hard as I could to the end. Again, though, that's not what you should take from it. You're a very talented kid."

Hayate could not help but smile from that. The high-schooler loved to race, and to hear that from someone like Archangel, was almost as good a praise as getting one from, say, Katsuo Tsukiko or 'Banzai' Sato!

"Thank you, thanks so much!"

Rei nodded in acknowledgement.

"It's not common that I like to speak to someone about this. Just... I like to appreciate talent when I see it."

As he turned to leave, he waved at his former opponent.

"See you. We may meet again sometime, Hayate."

"I hope we do, Archangel! I'll still follow your racing!"

[Ace3000]

The referenced song title of Part 55 was The Tempest by Pendulum.

[FTA|s3_16.0: Part 56.0] Approaching the Darkness
<22150410>

Monday, April 10th, 2215

São Paulo, Brazil.

The city of São Paulo was abuzz, the seventeen teams that comprised the competitors of the F12000 were about to arrive in the populous city for the next leg of the championship. The planning and strategy for that race, like all others, was still being worked on, even possible contingency plans in case something caused that initial strategy to no longer become viable.

"...medium reverse. The fastest of the circuit's courses. Some say unfairly biased, towards the more powerful craft. That middle bit there, with the double hairpin, that's where I'd disagree. There are faster courses than this one. Omega Harbour comes to mind."

------------

"This course does favour the more powerful craft. Take this to your advantage. The corners can be taken at a higher speed than the layout suggests. We have a three-way tie for the fastest team on the grid. Yet, no-one else can match our handling. Your move, Icaras."

"And Jennter?"

"Their handling is comparable to when our craft was much heavier. Just with 50% less shield. I'd be surprised if they get through one lap, let alone 66."

------------

"Total domination is what we have strived for. A few races have resulted in eliminations, but victory will be attained here. Speed is everything. So, the true limits of the hive-type unit will be made known here!"

"So we crank systems to max?"

"Not necessarily. There is still risk of complete system failure if maximum power is applied. We still have vast top-end speed, we can apply slight more power, but not 100%."

------------

"We expect to qualify around the midfield. Our engines are not as powerful as several other teams, so we need to make the time up elsewhere. I do, however, believe you know where exactly in the course the time is to be made up: In the corners. I think, except for the double hairpin, we should be able to navigate every corner without losing even a single kilometre per hour."

------------

With the initial briefs over, the actual analyses and strategies began to form...

"Keep your speed up, take the hairpins as wide as you can go to maintain your speed. Watch out especially for corners 4 and 6, they're a lot more subtle about their relative sharpness than you'd think. Apart from that, this is a super easy circuit, the hard part is just maintaining maximum speed."

"So what about the race?"

"Simple enough. Focus your attacks on the more vulnerable places. So, before or within corners 4 and 6, and the 12-13-14 double hairpin. You should try to defend as much as you can elsewhere, and always remember to keep your speed up. There's a reason why the Brazilian Piranha love this course, aside from it being their home course."

"Yet they still have the double hairpin as their weakness."

"Used to. I've noticed a... well, I guess a right word would be anomalous, increase in their cornering speed over the course of the season so far."

"...Like Jennter?"

"Sort of, I don't think they're using a similar system, though. They've not even been investigated, let alone banned. Either way, it's evidently not illegal, so how they achieved it is not important. What's important is just how they perform right here, right now. Everyone else, too. All we have to go off for now is their performance from Altima VIII. With that said though, these are two completely different tracks. This one is more about all out speed, yet Altima is very twisty and technical, so extracting their performance data and applying it here is a little difficult."

"So, have you done it?"

"Of course. I've had two weeks to get it done. Immediately after the race, I gathered all I could by way of all the teams' performance data, and started to apply it to this very course. It's naturally not 100%, but it's close enough that I have a very good idea of how it'll play out."

"Okay."

"Piranha and Tigron are right up the top. Piranha is at the very top if we're going strictly by Altima's data, but I'm still wary of Tigron's hive-type system. We're next ahead of Jennter, because their new airbrakes are crap, the extra speed they have just doesn't cut it. Crinale are right in the middle of the bottom half, so I don't think they'll be that big a threat."

"But, weapons."

"Precisely. But that's for the race, Qualifying's first..."

------------

"The end is now. Win or lose, Erebus shall provide the most exciting race the entire world has ever seen. So, shall we begin?"

------------
Unknown Date.

Unknown Location.

Unknown Time.

>>EREBUS OS V3.7.564

>>LOADING DATA FILES...

>COMPLETE

>>LOGGING IN...
>>WELCOME, EREBUS.

>>DOWNLOADING UPDATED AVAILABLE TEAM DATA...

>COMPLETE

>>PROJECT: SHINIGAMI PROGRESS:

>"SG_R-000": INACTIVE

>"SG_X-043": COMPLETE

>>INITIATING ACTIVATION PROCESS ["SG_X-043"].

>SHINIGAMI AXC ACTIVATED.
>DEPLOYMENT: SEFAIALON

[Ace3000]

[FTA|s0_00.0: Part 00.0] CopingTM
<20191026>

Saturday, October 26th, 2019

A Certain Home in Perth, Australia.

As he booted up his computer, he heard an odd noise, but ultimately thought nothing of it. After all, the computer seemed to have booted up just fine.

He should have.

As soon as he logged in, he could see one sign that maybe he had not plugged everything in correctly... but it was. He tried unplugging, and plugging it back in... nothing. Opening the file explorer to look for it... again, nothing.

It had died on him, and took away something he had been working on for 4 years...

<do you | freeland (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDLD5EEfL4o)_>

...I hate to do this to you all... but I have no choice. It's been a while, so I thought I should let you all know what has happened while I get my ass into gear and fix this problem I have on my hands. Unfortunately, I'm forced to put FTA on yet another hiatus, hopefully one that won't last too long. It's not that I've run out of parts to post, or that I've gotten another writer's block, no. Something far worse has happened.

...the hard drive containing everything related to FTA has failed.

I have more reasons than this fanfic that has been a part of my life these past 5 years. Half my music library, all of my videos, my pictures, some games, and even some other documents that have nothing to do with FTA was stored on there. Some few hundred gigs short of it's 2TB capacity. Now, this could be some blessing that, oh, I was slowly running out of space, maybe I should upgrade. And yeah, maybe. But this is not a good thing. Having a new 4TB drive is meaningless to me, if I don't have everything that was on that old drive.

So, how to fix it? Well, through process of elimination, I've found the answer: It's a mechanical failure. I have but one option left: I physically transport my physically broken drive to some people who will perform a data recovery service. Now, guaranteed, this isn't completely 100% guaranteed I'll be able to get everything back. But with how much stuff I've accumulated over the years on that drive, especially my music, and FTA, I will go down that path and try and get my stuff back. All that needs to happen is for me to get my ass in gear and contact them to get things rolling.

Now, I could just keep writing and posting from where I left off, except I'd rather not. See, it wasn't just the fic itself that was on that drive. Supplementary material and even two large planning sheets for each arc of Season 3 was there too. Without that, I couldn't possibly hope to continue and make it as amazing as I could with that sheet. Sure, I can memorise key plot elements, but not everything I had planned out.

Hopefully, after this, I will be posting FTA stuff again soon. If not, then the next thing I post here will be an apology, and a summation of the plot points of the rest of Season 3. But damn it, that's the last thing I want to do, it will only be out of necessity of an irrecoverable hard drive that I will be forced to succumb to that.

Once again, apologies, and thank you. Each and every one of you that has read, or even skimmed through the thread, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Here's hoping I can continue to write and post full Season 3 parts, until the very end.

Oh, and the title of that? Another album title. CopeTM, by Adam Freeland.

[Jonny]

Arc: NJRS - #007
Title: Mondays

Jennter Enterprises HQ, Düsseldorf, Germany
Monday, 26th February 2215
9:31.23

Nico entered the main production hall in a hasty manner, searching for the Lead Production Engineer of the Anti-Gravity Racing Division.
"Hey! Why is everything quiet here?" Nico called over to the man he searched while approaching him.
Gustav Darrendorf, a senior employee of the company who gave an almost stereotypical impression of an engineer, wearing a lab coat and safety helmet, took this rather dry "Chain of orders was to begin production of the revised parts for the new craft. But we got no data."
"No data?" as Nico asked that several worries piled up in him "How do you mean?"
Gustav shrugged "The Technical Director, who has been in charge of sending over the final revision, seems to have missed this deadline."
Nico nodded nervously "I'll check this."

Bovier ran through the floors. The production halls were mostly at ground level in the north section of the headquarters, close to the hangar. His destination however, Linda's officie, has been in the thrid floor of the main section. 10 minutes to walk, three to run.
Maybe four, if he didn't have various close calls on his way.

9:38.18

Nico rushed into Linda's office without any further warning. All he got to see was her wearing a VR headset, sitting on her chair in the middle of the room.
She whispered various notes to herself to be recorded "Reduce diametre to 27 millimetres, H7, no H6. Reduce extrusion by 5 milimetres, part used to collide with alternating load."
Her faint voice and noteably greasy hair indicated that she has been working on this project through the whole weekend.
"Linda?" Nico tried to make contact with her to no response.

He tapped on her shoulder, to which she twitched and spoke slightly more audible "Intruder, get out. Calibration is compromised."
Following that she tiredly moaned for over ten seconds and briefly after that seemed to tipped over, off her chair. However, she managed to catch her momentum.
For Nico it has been enough, he stripped the headset off her "What do you think are you doing?"

Linda glared at him, but zoned out. A focus uninterrupted for three days and the same amount of fatigue made her collapse. Nico caught her before she would fall head-first out of the chair "Hey! Linda, are you okay?"
She passed out.


Linda was transferred to the medical office of the company. Nico stayed for a while to make sure she was secure. After that he left and made a call to his personnel office "I checked her project documentation, Linda is trying to do everything on her own. What were you thinking by giving her this position?"
He spent the next five minutes fending off arguments, but noticed that it was pointless at the moment anyway. Nico simply hung up and marched to the main development office next.

10:15.46

"Lerod! Where are you?" Nico yelled through the office, impatient from a way too busy Monday morning.
He noticed a noise from a separate office "Moment!"
Nico walked towards the origin of the noise, as Kevin Lerod appeared in front of him "Oh, Mister Bovier!"
"How's it going?" Nico casually asked and looked around the rather silent office "Nothing, I see?"
"We hardly had any work, as that girl took everything on her shoulders." Lerod explained.

Nico turned away to surpress an expression of his frustration, then faced his employee again "And you thought this was fine to keep up?"
Before he could hear an answer, Nico turned away to look into an opposing office. A single person was sitting on their workstation and hammered into a keyboard.
"May I help you?" they asked, soft and quiet, while not averting their gaze from the monitor.
"What are you working on?" Nico simply asked. His voice shifted to curiousity, but his distress was still existent in it.
"Editting the data of Miss Greyson." they explained "I talked with her last Friday and am not surprised to sit here now."
Nico approached this person closer "A bet? With Linda?"

They simply nodded.

"Would you be ready to talk about a new position?"

[Jonny]

Faster Than Angels
Jennterista Racing Chronicles
Operation: Final Overture

The FTA project really grew in the amount of narration and ideas it amassed over time. Frankly I wasn't able to maintain my older works to keep a level of writing that was appropriate by now, furthermore a lot of holes showed up.
I decided to cancel all my other writing projects, to solely focus on my first one, to honour the past and present. To move into the future with a feeling of accomplishment (not saying I would stop writing FTA soon).
All older parts will be revised in order to connect all ideas I developed over this time in one refined, flowing continuity.
Here (https://docs.google.com/document/d/1IF3Ue7eJJ8yQ2hFOG6DMwSpH1sIjPtZKeZKZF4HUbA0/edit?usp=sharing) is a list of parts that passed revision. I will mention the state of things after every new entry to NJRS.

[stin]

Thank you for your hard work and enjoyed it.

Stevie 😊

[Jonny]

Arc: NJRS - #008
Title: Phase Shift

11:05.21

"A new position?" she asked, finally averting her gaze from the monitor.
"Vice Technical Director." Nico explained "You would mainly assists Miss Greyson in leading the R&D ressort of Jennter."
She sighed and looked back at her work "I don't know if I would be qualified for such a position."
Nico turned away, looking to the floor "Right, it would be too much a risk perhaps..."
"I'll do it!" the woman stood up while raising her voice. Nico was surprised at how short she was.

Nico looked back at her and smiled "Then, congratulations, Miss uhh..."
"Arkana Terrenzia." she introduced herself "I just recently transferred from the Mars division of Jennter Enterprises.
"Good, Miss Terrenzia." Nico continued "Let's find you an office."
She nodded and silently followed him as Nico lead the way.
"As for Linda, she is currently in the medical office and should take some days off." he said to Arkana while moving through the floors.
"Oh." Arkana merely sighed, thinking about the situation given her previous interaction with Linda.
"She really overworked herself. It is a bit tough to imagine that she really sat on it alone for three days." his voice filled with a sense of worry and anger.
"It is not so surprising." she threw in "Linda, uhh... Miss Greyson is a prodigy on the field of engineering. But she isn't accustomed to real engineering work."
Nico shock his head "I really don't know who thought it was a great idea to put her into this position already."
"Yet here you are, dragging me along..." the woman uttered.
"What?" Nico was about to pick that remark up, but couldn't believe his eyes this moment.

Linda stood there, about to enter her office.
"Go home, Linda!" Nico yelled over at her.
She appeared worn, like someone who attended a festival for three days. She mustered Nico and the woman next to him.
"You..." she uttered "Are you going to replace me already...?"
Arkana stayed quiet.
"No." Nico sighed "Miss Terrenzia will be your assistant."
Linda glared at them "An assistant? Do you have nothing better to worry about, than how to humiliate me, Bovier!?"

Nico wanted to dismiss her already, but Arkana moved forward.
"Miss Greyson, you are a valuable ressorce in this team." she spoke, her voice being determined, but soft.
Linda laughed "Of course, I am. That's why I am here."
"Miss Greyson." she made another step forward "This is a team, Miss Greyson. The team needs you."
Linda's laugh became irregular "Naturally they do, someone got to carry it."
"But, Miss Greyson. You need a team." Arkana said, moving further towards Linda.
"I need no one." she yelled in return.

"Even the most brilliant people worked with others."
"I am-Huh-"
"It is okay, we only strife through learning."
"No, I am-"
"Linda."

Arkana stood there, embracing Linda, who fell to her knees.



Final Overture Update 1
As promised, I began to rework the old FTA parts of my continuity. The first 5 can be easily accessed here (https://docs.google.com/document/d/1IF3Ue7eJJ8yQ2hFOG6DMwSpH1sIjPtZKeZKZF4HUbA0/edit?usp=sharing).
Mind that the plot of "Final Overture" is the only canonic one for my works, even if it affects NJRS!
Anyway, I am having a lot of fun with these stories nowadays, so I hope to increase my speed a bit more :D

[Jonny]

Arc: NJRS - #009
Title: Change of Tones

Monte Carlo Nouveau, Monte Carlo, Monaco
Friday, 17th March 2215
10:34.22


"We are ready to join the track!" a technician signalled the team leadership.
"Patrick will leave first, for overall track acclimatisation. With the standard craft, this will be a tough one." Nico gave order with a wave to which the number one Jennter craft was moved out of the pit box.
"The facilities are worse than anywhere else, unbelieveable that they hold an AG race on this track in this day and age." Linda lamented, scratching her head over a piece of simulation results and setup proposals.

Said track has been a modern twist on an old Grand Prix circuit flowing through the streets of the small country at the Cote d'Azure. Once packed with pomp and glamour, it now felt like time stopped. But this began to attact an entirely different group of clientele into the city. Unlike the old track, the modern Monte Carlo Circuit floated at low altitude over the city, mimicking the grid of old European roads, just as a size practicable enough for anti-gravity racers.


"Alright, Aurora." Nico directed his attention to the second pilot of the team "Against all odds a certain pair in our team managed to complete the next evolution step of your craft."
Arkana was found with a brimming smile, which turned out to be a bit more awkward for Linda.
"Are we going to complete a race distance today?" the android asked.
"In the second session today, yes. We'll conduct the usual tests at first."

Aurora nodded and walked off towards her new JAG-F12.212/5C. Barely different from the B-type model it's internals sported several new components.
"Send craft two onto the track as soon as the pilot is ready." the team leader spoke into his headset.

Briefly later it joined the floating circuit as the same scene from the previous race repeated. A simple auxiliary AG unit carried the craft at low speeds, until it dropped the gear of the external 'AG generator ring'.
The first corner of the track has been a narrow uphill right-hand corner, which demonstrated one of the perks of this system, as the craft sharply tilted to the side and in return angled perfectly for the corner.
"It feels very drifty now, but let me get used to it, please." Aurora reported through the radio.


Jennter Enterprises HQ, Düssedorf, Germany
Saturday, 11th March 2215
20:05.52

Linda wildly drove her right hand through her hair as she navigated through ComKonWerk.
"Dammit, where is it?" she cussed at the screen while glarring at the time of day.
"Search function...plane system extrusion. No results." she uttered, followed by her first crashing onto the desk she sat on.
Arkana entered her office with no warning, knowing what situation to expect.
"This damned, outdated, unintuitive, ******, f****** piece of ****** garbage program developed by some high on sh** c***." the lead engineer kept uttering.
For a moment Arkana stood behind Linda, observing her screen. She bowed over her from behind and calmly began to take control of the program.
"Don't." Linda yelled at her "Stop."
It didn't distract her assistant "The ply strenght there is 1.394 millimetres, right?"
"No...yes." was the snappy response.
"I hope you could follow what I did." Arkana said after letting go off the control.
"Of course." Linda tossed at her "Was about to find it out myself."
"Oh really?" she questioned her superior "So I guess the ruckus was because you spilled your coffee or something, right?"
"I don't drink that garbage." Linda tried to avert.
Arkana chuckled "Hard to believe, hearing this from someone who graduated one semester earlier from the regular schedule."
"Different times." she tried to shrug it off and faced her computer again.

"Swallow your pride and just ask someone if you don't know further." as Arkana said that, she left the office.
Linda sat there for a moment until she whispered "Thank you."

[Ace3000]

Wel, I feel as if I'm not going to get my hard drive back, and with the new story I'm writing, I honestly doubt I'll return to FTA. Maybe later, after this story is done, but it's going to be a big one, like FTA. So... here it is, the final plot points of FTA that I had planned out. It's been a good run, but I can't keep you guys holding out forever.

[FTA|s3_End: Part 109.0] We Are Pilots

F12000 Arc, pt. 1
The Sefaialon event. 26 craft line up at the start line. One of them is odd though. The 26th craft is exactly like an Angelus, even in it's livery, except for the colour scheme and a few details. The pure white is replaced with a deep, blood red, and where there was blue, is now bone white. The angel graphic on their craft is corrupted, now sporting a tail and trident.

This is the Shinigami Project.

Almost immediately, it fires a Repulsor-like weapon, but it's so powerful, it immediately destroys all but the pole-sitting Angelus of Gareth. From there, it's a high-risk cat and mouse chase, that ends in Gareth blowing up the unit. Enraged, Brandon rushes out to denounce the victory, as it was a matter of "survival". Angelus are then henceforth suspended from the F12000. Brandon rushes out, never to be seen physically again, after a few brief visits to the HQ.

Archangel Arc

Rei would basically continue to do his thing, research into what was obviously the Overtel Corporation, while also winning street race after street race. He would gather more and more information on the Erebus Project, even meeting up with Catherine Evans to gather information. At one point, he's forced by Riku Ichinose to attend an F12000 race, and he is so abhorred by what he sees that he runs out before the race is over. Well, I say race. This was the first of many "Survival" events, the first of which happened in Sefaialon. Through being forced to drive her car, Rei promises to give her a crash course in tuning.

The racing and the information gathering continues, until one of the last four races. Rei has spoken with and left 6 of the 7 Overtel survivors to be "claimed", the final one revealed to be a man called Michael Douglas (no relation, this is 2215). The final four are the toughest opponents Rei has to face, before his final goal, the queen of touge racing. One of these four is Riku herself, driving a car that is far newer and more balanced than the one she was usually seen in. She is actually a tough opponent, but she gets dispensed eventually.

The same with the other three, the final of which happening on the Turnpike, a stretch of fast roads seen in the series before. But, the final opponent is none other than Katsuo Tsukiko of the Syncline team. But the race never happens, as the F12000 Arc merges back here.

F12000 Arc, pt. 2

After the suspension of Angelus, the team kick off their plan to find Brandon, and work with him to destroy the F12000 and Chris Scarborough. Soon, however, they find themselves up against EG.X, looking to purchase the whole damn lot of Angelus. Finally, they get through to Brandon, via phone, who gives them a plan to go through with the sale, but only a select bit of F12000-related assets. The HQ is split in two, the EG.X owned F12000 team, and the road car division. Even then, they're heavily restricted from the R&D sector. They can only use what's been committed from there before the sale.

So finally, Sino has a teammate in Gareth Ardos. He can't seem to get to grips with the neural interface that their formerly singular pilot can control, so they modify an Angelus control unit for use in the EG.X.

So the remaining loyal Angelus team now need to look into EG.X, too. Turns out, this wasn't the first time they did this, not including the original EG.r and Xios merger. For all intents and purposes, it's just the EG.r half controlling everything. The craft's primary design is stolen off a prototype FEISAR design, before they chose the current one for the FX400.

How exactly they deal with EG.X is something I've forgotten and was lost with the HDD failure, but I know that they eventually do. And, near the end, they finally find Brandon, with the help of Ramaela De Rosa. He's in Japan... right about where this Rei Kurokawa would be.

Rei Kurokawa, doesn't exist. Rei means zero, a number closely associated with Angelus. Kurokawa means Black River, a name that... would make sense later. But needless to say, the man is actually Brandon Smith. After a small war of words, Brandon drives off in a hurry, beating the track record of Irohazaka by just a very small amount, one that Katsuo could easily take back. Brandon is done. He goes back to Angelus, and they discuss the final plan, named...

Terminatum Arc

Terminatum, the final plan for Brandon with regards to the F12000. His data collection is almost complete, but they can figure out the location of the Erebus project with the help of Snezana Stoica. It's in the old ruins of the Overtel Corporation, but there's a certain way to get in. Using the two Angelus and Crinale hypercars, Alexandra obtains two Russian hyper-SUVs to carry more people, which end up being controlled by Erebus. They all leave the vehicles after shutting down the hyper-SUVs which I forgot their name, and continue to make their way into Overtel HQ.

Ascending their way to the top, they finally find Erebus. Or Chris Scarborough. Or Viktor Antonov. The vestige of the F9000, the 216cm tall android awakens. It would be here that Brandon's real surname would be revealed, through the surname of his Information Broker alias. Brandon Douglas. Michael was his father, and as it turns out, Erebus's. He created the project to completion, just before the Fall happened. It should be noted that Douglas is a historic name meaning dark water. Black river? Yeah.

As they spoke, half the team go to turn off Erebus's duplication machine, to cripple the android. With that done, Brandon tells him to turn around. Obviously Erebus is privy to such tactics, and decides to not, fearing being shot in the back. Brandon simply reveals a water gun. That, in itself, was the trick, as a modified Angelus F12000 chassis fires a 2212 EMP Railgun right into him. Now electrified, Brandon shoots the water gun at him, which exacerbates the electrification, and immolates him.

That wasn't the end of it. With Erebus burning, Brandon and the team reminisces on the events that occurred, before someone interrupts that. Michael. A battle commences! Between Michael and some kinda electric staff, and Brandon's pneumatic air gun. Brandon prevails, the staff frying itself. Now without a weapon, Michael flees, before being taken down by one of that half who split from Brandon.

Back at Angelus, Brandon shows his true colours, interrogating and near enough torturing Michael, claiming once again that he would do anything to maintain the peace. And then... he frees him. Lets him walk... right into the grasp of his former mercenary, Snezana. Either that or Brandon kills him during their walk, I forget.


Look, in writing this, I think it's quite a bad plot I had planned. From the Overtel HQ bit onwards, it just sounds so cliche and disgusting, like more towards bad fanfiction territory. Maybe it would be better off this way. Either way, I'm in the process of writing and planning out my new story: ANIMA NERA

This will be a horror series, to be set in two time periods: 2025 and 2225. The latter will contain certain elements from FTA, but they won't be the focus, instead just being background details. Such details include anti-gravity technology in general, and the existence of the Angelus-Katana group, one of the characters owns an Angelus car.

Apart from that, everything will be original, not much at all to do with wipEout, so I will not be posting it here. But still, thank you all for following me and this story, even if it didn't finish, and my intentions on how I was to finish it being absolutely horrendous. I promise Anima Nera will be better, when I get to posting it.

And this is just the end of my side of the story, I know Jonny is rewriting his side of it, and I wish him all the best, even though he is also primarily focusing on his own things. But that's not in my place to be talking about that, if Jonny is ready to talk about it, then he would be doing so.

...The referenced album title of the final part was We Are Pilots, by Shiny Toy Guns.

[Jonny]

I can see how you think that your ideas are a bit cliche, but some bits really have some interesting spins to them. But the first story is always a bit of a mess, but we talked about this ;)
Ultimately I decided to not continue rewriting FTA, as there is simply so much to do, but I also feel no more motivation to continue this project, I'd rather spend the time I commit to writing to an original project.
So yeah, thank you to everyone who stuck with us writing, discussing and dumping random side info into this thing. It was fun and a solid base to make my first steps in writing, I'll always keep that in mind.