Falner and the rest of the AutoNavy team waited for their newly appointed team leader to lead them.
“I’ll decide who races next. Tell me all your strengths and weaknesses. Let’s see what choices I’m working with,” Reiji said.
At the Nexon pitstop, Mikey was explaining the track layout to the rest of the Nexon team. Karena stood listening with her arms crossed.
“You were pathetic,” Karena scoffed at Mikey.
“Hey!” Mariton called her out.
Nexi frowned at her and opened her mouth– then Queens interrupted.
“Come on, Karena, it was your decision~”
“Shut up!”
Mikey's face drooped like a sad puppy.
“Stop looking at me like that… Just do better.”
Mariton changed the subject.
“Let’s all vote for the next racer.”
“Nexi, you’re next, we need a comeback,” Karena said.
“Second time I’m agreeing with this girl~ Nexi you should go~”
Mariton shook his head.
“I don’t think we should use our ace card early. Let me go first instead.”
Nexi nodded.
“I agree with Mariton, he should go before me. It's the safer choice.”
Karena turned to Mikey.
“What do you think, kid?”
Mikey's eyes darted around the room to see the tense faces of GRS racers awaiting his decision. He looked at Nexi, who had a slightly stern face, and then at Karena with an annoyed and dismissive face.
Our team can fracture because of this…
“Nexi should go next…”
No one responded.
Karena acknowledged Mikey, then turned away.
“Alright. Get into position then, Nexi,” Karena said.
Nexi whispered to Mikey.
“You did the right thing.”
Mikey looked up, confused.
“Your race with Jett. You did what I asked–That was on me.”
Mikey tugged on his race suit sleeves, and Nexi walked to her race car.
Rinova sat on a stool with his legs crossed on a table. A glass of water rested beside him, condensation dripping down its sides– but the ice had long surrendered. Between Rinova and the heat, Manju and the ice never stood a chance.
“Hi-en, go,” Rinova ordered.
“Wait– shouldn’t we discuss this fir–” Proxy said.
Hi-en sprang up from his stool.
“Roger that.”
The race ended very quickly. Zeeker was easily defeated.
“DAMN IT!”
Manju was laughing at the screen hysterically. Everyone else on the Underdogs team was looking at each other with concern.
“Another win for Forefront!” the announcer said.
Scoreboard:
Zeeker vs Hi-en winner: Hi-en
Stint time lead gain: +3.482
Forefront time lead: +14.703
Nexi and Garner were side by side. The Gridtech race car’s turbine engines spooled as loud as a jet, but it didn’t deter him from talking to Nexi.
“Letting the rookie go first! That was hilarious!”
Nexi was silent.
“Didn’t know YOU are into sacrifices, Nexi!”
“Strategic decision.”
“Right, right, captain!”
Garner got super close to Nexi’s car’s side. If she turned into the next corner, she would’ve hit Garner’s car.
“Whatchu you gonna do?”
Nexi didn’t respond. They both powered through the straight.
“After I beat you, I’ll beat Rinova!”
They quickly approached the corner.
“Your friend, Jett, is on my side, Nexi. No one is helping you win!”
“No one is helping me lose either. You won’t get a chance to beat Rinova this relay, Garner.”
“Tch–”
Only a couple meters away from the braking zone.
Garner looked at Nexi through the window. She kept her face looking straight.
Garner looked at the barrier in front of him.
I will crash if I don’t brake now.
Garner stepped on the brakes.
Nexi’s car pulled in front, then braked late, cutting in front of Garner.
“A clean overtake from Joanna Nexi!” the announcer said.
“Yes! Perfect info! Great track analysis, Mikey!” Nexi said on team comms.
“You’re welcome.”
Karena glanced to see Mikey with a headset on, smiling at Nexi’s overtake.
“A comeback victory for Nexon!” the announcer said.
Scoreboard:
Nexi vs Garner: Nexi wins
Stint time gain: +3.129
Nexon time lead: +0.809
Many months ago at Tokyo's hideout, the exhausted Reiji collapsed onto the couch.
“Winner deserves a good rest.”
Kaito gave Reiji a can of soda.
“That was the furthest thing from winning, Kaito.”
“Your sponsor money from GRS races is letting me and Nina live like kings.”
“I wanted the money for you, Kaito, but now you have to split it with your newly adopted daughter,” Reiji sighed.
“I appreciate it, Reiji.”
Kaito smiled and walked away. Reiji turned on the TV screen and GRS started playing. He was going to open the can of soda.
“This year wildcard rookies are not doing too hot. Both of them are near the bottom of the scoreboard and one of them tragically spun out this recent race, causing a massive pileup! Luckily no one was injured in the incident!” Cruize said on the TV.
Reiji placed the soda can down. Nina walked up to him.
“Hi, Nina…”
“Thank you, Reiji.”
“For what, Nina?”
“Thanks for buying the chef hat for me… I will treasure it.”
“Kaito bought it for you, didn’t he?”
“He told me it was your money, Reiji.”
Reiji smiled.
GRS was still playing on the TV–
“Inexperienced racer or could AutoNavy race cars be defective?” Cruize said.
But it didn’t matter.
“I’m glad you like it,” Reiji said.
“I’ll be the best cook for both of you!”
Back to the AutoNavy team in the present day, everyone was waiting for Reiji to talk.
“Okay. We are leading on time. What we need now is consistency to keep the lead, not a better lap time. Litmus, you can go next,” Reiji said.
“What do you mean? You are not letting me push?” Litmus asked.
“You can push. But lap time is not the goal here. Try to keep Boomboom’s racer behind you the whole time. If they can’t pass you, they will never get a time lead,” Reiji said.
“You want us to play defensive the whole time…?” Falner said.
“Well… they drive expressively, so predicting and defending should be the best option…” Reiji said.
Falner noticed Reiji’s hesitation but didn’t comment on it.
“I trust you, Reiji. We owe you for that comeback win. I’ll race your way,” Litmus said.
Litmus and Hawaiian were racing.
“Off we go! Third stint of AutoNavy vs Boomboom’s team!” the announcer said.
Spark was wearing a headset while chomping on a banana when Jammy walked by.
“Ywr wanhsum? (You want some?)”
Spark handed Jammy a banana.
“Sure…” Jammy said, a bit down.
Spark handed her another banana and smiled.
Jammy brightened up.
“Thanks!”
Spark gulped the bite of banana he was chewing on, then held the button on his headset.
The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.
“How’s it going, Pizza?”
Hawaiian responded. The sound of her car’s engine could be heard through Spark’s headset.
“Dang it, Spark! I’m behind Litmus. He passed me, but I’m back at his rear bumper!”
“Nice, that means you are faster than him!”
“Uhhh… Spark– he’s not letting me pass at all. There’s no gap.”
“They will always put up a fight. Just do what I asked you, Pizza.”
“Understood!”
Team comms cut off.
Comet tapped Spark on the shoulder.
“How is Hawaiian doing, Spark?”
“No problem. It seems the other team is driving defensively again. We might lose this stint too.”
“Two stints in a row? Isn’t this bad?”
“No, this can still work. Comet, I want you to be our last stint driver.”
“Me? You are letting me?”
“I know you like a good challenge.”
“You know I do!”
“You’re the ace card of this race. Banana please—”
Spark pointed at the basket of bananas. Comet nodded and threw a banana toward Spark. He caught it and peeled it so he could continue munching while thinking.
Hawaiian slammed on the brakes and the tires left a trail of smoke.
“Hawaiian seems to be locking up her wheels in pursuit of Litmus… Oooo—will she be able to overtake him, overdriving like this?” the announcer said.
Cheers erupted through the AutoNavy pitstop.
Kells put his arm around Reiji.
“Hell yeah!”
“Your plan seems to be working, Reiji,” Falner said.
Reiji breathed a sigh of relief.
“Okay, Kells, I think you should go next. Go all out defensive,” Reiji suggested.
“Doubling down, huh?” Holloway said.
Kells slapped his chest a few times then raised his fist up.
“If it ain’t broken don’t fix it! Reiji’s plan is working just fine! I’ll drive Reiji’s way if it means we are going to win!”
Litmus crossed the finish line right before Hawaiian.
Scoreboard:
Litmus vs Hawaiian: Litmus wins
Stint time gain: +0.900
AutoNavy time lead: +1.699
The race was going well for AutoNavy.
Checker flags.
Race cars were sent out right after a stint finished.
Forefront was decimating the Underdogs.
Gridtech and Nexon were struggling to get a clean lead.
Cynika exited her race car with her hands on her face.
“I’m sorry, Nexi.”
“Don’t worry about it, Cyn. It was that bitch that made us lose momentum in the first place,” Karena said.
“Ah~ you know so little vocabulary, you can only keep calling me ‘bitch’~”
“Urgghh… you little bitc–”
“Point proven~”
Nexi gently grabbed Cynika’s hand.
“The relay’s still winnable, Cynika. We still have Mariton and Karena.”
“We didn’t lose by much either, Cynika! It’s because you fought hard to keep the gap close!” Mikey said.
Cynika looked at Mikey with appreciation.
“Mariton, you said you got it, right?” Nexi asked.
“Yes. I’ll go next. I think I now understand how Gridtech drives.”
Butter was racing Kells.
Kells looked at his rear view mirror to see that Butter was far behind him.
“Easy peasy.”
Reiji spoke on Kells’ car team comms.
“What’s going on, Kells?”
“Butter seems to be super SLOW! I’m losing her easily!”
“Don’t let your guard down, Kells.”
“Right right. I’m still driving defensively, Reiji. There’s just no one to defend from!”
Butter sat in her race car with a bored face.
Spark spoke on Butter’s car team comms.
“Go on ahead, Butter.”
Butter brightened up.
“Got it.”
Butter pressed on her gas pedal. The engine roared to life.
“Time differences?” Butter asked SMRI.
“Liam Kells is 5.238 seconds ahead of you.”
“Perfect.”
Butter stomped on the brakes just deep enough to not lock up the wheels. She dived into corners deeper than any other racer in this relay had dared to.
Approaching chicanes, Butter kept her foot on the throttle, entering corners at almost impossible speeds. Her tires screeched loudly.
Kells hummed in his race car before Reiji interrupted.
“Keep your eyes on the mirror, Kells.”
“Yeah yeah, Reiji it’s all goo–”
Kells glanced at his mirror to see that Butter was right behind him.
“Oh shit!”
Kells gripped his steering wheel tighter immediately.
“Why? What’s going on?” Reiji asked.
“Butter’s right behind me!”
Reiji's eyes widened.
“Don’t panic. Don't overdrive. Defensive line. You should be nearing the finish line.”
“Alright. Okay—”
Kells moved to block Butter.
Butter shook her head and smiled inside the cockpit.
“I can go wide. I can still carry enough speed, Spark.”
“No need.”
“Alrighty…”
Butter lifted. She crossed the finish line right behind Kells.
Kells was drenched in sweat.
“That was scary!”
Scoreboard:
Kells vs Butter: Kells wins
Stint time gain: +0.800
AutoNavy time lead: +2.499
Proxy walked toward the Nexon team, yawning.
“The hell you doing here, Proxy?” Karena asked.
Proxy leaned on the door frame.
“Are you even allowed to be here?” Queens asked.
“Chill out guyss… I’m not here to spy on your team… not that it would help anyways,” Proxy said.
“Then why are you here, Proxy?” Nexi asked.
“I’m just boredd… My team keeps winning. And I wanna see you, Nexi!”
“We should focus on the relay, Nexi,” Karena said.
Proxy approached Nexi with puppy eyes.
“This is also important to the relay, right, Nexi?”
“Sure, Proxy.”
“I need a recharge, you are my charger, Nex!”
Proxy was going for a hug, but Mikey stopped her.
“You should go back to your team.”
Proxy frowned.
“Who are you?”
“Mikey Hale.”
“Hahhh…”
Proxy said with unamusement, then turned back to Nexi.
“I wanna tell you what Rinova is like, Nex.”
Nexi became hyperfocused immediately.
“I’m listening.”
“He is soooo annoying.”
Nexi regretted keeping her hopes up.
“And all my teammates too. They are so irritat–”
“I don’t think she wants small talk right now,” Mikey said.
Proxy glanced at Mikey in annoyance.
“Listen here, kiddo. The adults are talking.”
Proxy turned back to Nexi.
“As I was saying. My teammates– urgh– like this one guy, Knox, he sleeps while standing up!”
“You seem to be the only one talking,” Mikey said.
Proxy looked at Mikey, upset, but then she looked around the room to see neutral faces.
“Wow. Tough crowd. I’ll go then.”
Proxy whistled and walked away.
“Good job. Don’t wanna keep hearing her damn voice,” Karena told Mikey.
“She’s not a bad person. She’s just expressive and extroverted. It’s nice to have someone to talk to sometimes without having to worry about what I say,” Nexi explained.
“Enjoy your Chatterbox then, Nexi,” Karena said.
Silence filled the room.
“We should check on Mariton,” Mikey said.
Nexi cleared her throat.
“He is in the lead right now. We should be fine.”
Nexi spoke to Mariton, who was in the Nexon race car cockpit.
“Do you still have the lead, Mariton?”
“Yes, I do. Yudo is still behind me.”
Mariton and Yudo followed each other into a hairpin.
“Gridtech—they are all bark, no bite, Nexi—”
Yudo tailgated Mariton. Mariton tapped the brakes and Yudo backed off.
“I saw it when Garner and Xavier drove. It seems that the dysfunctional team actually decided on something.”
“What is it?”
“The car. They all drive it aggressively, but they decided it's not worth getting it damaged, so it’s all feints.”
Nexi looked at her teammates while on comms with Mariton.
“What are you trying to do, little guy?” Yudo asked.
Mariton swerved side to side.
“Mariton, my man. You were cooler when you let other people pass you. Come on, do it again! It will be a more heroic sacrifice!”
Mariton kept his eyes on the road.
“You tried to be a hero, but in the end… You are just a background character…”
Mariton was silent.
Yudo tried to find a gap to pass, but Mariton swerved unpredictably.
“Tch!”
Mariton crossed the finish line cleanly. Yudo couldn’t pass him at all.
Scoreboard
Yudo vs Mariton: Mariton wins
Nexon stint time gain: +2.324
Gridtech time lead reduced: +2.982
“We are moving on to the final stints of the relay race’s first round! The Underdogs and Forefront Industries Racing have finished their race. Forefront has won by a… respectable margin,” the announcer said.
Everyone on the Underdogs team was emotionally charged and devastated except for Manju and Zeeker.
Sefix sobbed.
“I did my best though!”
Manju patted Sefix on the back.
“You did, man.”
“If only we didn’t get matched with Forefront!” Broome said.
Traft was full-on crying.
“How could we lose every single stint!”
Zeeker patted Broome and Traft on the back.
“Maybe the win was the friends we made along the way.”
“Shut up, Zeeker.”
“Kys, Zeeker.”
“Let’s get all of you guys two drinks, on us, after this!” Manju said.
Sefix sucked up his tears.
“You guys better do that, damn it!”
Everyone in the Underdogs cheered in their defeat.
Holloway turned back to the AutoNavy team before entering the race car.
“I’m up next. Should be against Comet, right?”
“That’s right. Let’s get one more win,” Falner said.
“Just keep her at bay, Holloway. No need to stress. We are leading on time,” Reiji said.
“Defensive driving, huh? Reiji, love you, man.”
Reiji fist-pumped. Holloway fist-pumped in response.
“Spark!”
Spark was fidgeting with his banana peel and didn’t hear Butter calling out to him.
“Spark! Last stint!”
“Alrighty mighty! Go help Comet get dressed up.”
“She’s already in gear. She’s waiting for this.”
“Perfect.”
Holloway and Comet were both preparing their race cars for the final stint.
Fuel pressure check.
Oil temp check.
Race AI: online.
Team comms on.
Prox chat on.
Both racers slapped their visors down and rolled toward the start line.
The lights began the countdown.
“Best racing!” Comet said to Holloway.
“Likewise.”
The light turned green and both cars launched from the start line. Tire smoke covered the broadcast cameras.
Reiji stood at the AutoNavy pit stop with his headset on, waiting patiently to help Holloway. Across the Race-zone, Spark waited at the Boomboom pit with his own headset, relaxed and confident. Their teams huddled around them, but both team leaders’ eyes were fixed on the track, waiting to see how this duel would turn out.
Holloway got in front of Comet after racing side by side.
“Reporting. We got the lead.”
Reiji smiled and turned to everyone.
“Holloway is winning.”
Everyone celebrated, but Falner calmed them down.
“Not over yet.”
Spark pressed the button on his headset.
“You can do the thing after passing the chicanes, Comet.”
“Yep– but I got a better idea!”
Spark’s eyes widened, then he smiled.
“Go for it.”
Comet didn’t lift entering the chicane. Holloway went to the outside and braked. She aimed for the curb. Her inner front tires hit the curb, lifting both inner wheels up. She pivoted the car on two wheels, allowing her to take the chicane without braking.
Both tires came back down onto the asphalt. Holloway was overtaken.
“SHITTTT!”
The crowd erupted.
“Comet overtook Holloway at a chicane!” the announcer said.
Comet smiled in her cockpit.
“The original plan is safer, don’t you think?”
“Yeah. But this one’s why I race!”
“Didn’t say the original plan was better, did I!”
Comet giggled.
“Damn right!”
Comet pulled away from Holloway.
Reiji tried calming himself down before pressing the headset button.
“Okay, it’s fine– just stay close to her. We still have a time lead overall.”
“She corners so fast. And she brakes so confidently! I can’t catch up!”
Reiji rested his finger off the headset button but didn’t press it. He couldn’t mutter another word.
Comet dove into a corner next to a plaza.
“Butter! The green plaza’s corner! You can brake wayyy later than you said!” Comet said on team comms.
“Comet said you can brake way later on the green plaza’s corner,” Spark relayed from his headset to Butter.
“That daring girl… testing limits on the final stint…” Butter said.
Comet passed the finish line. Checkered flags waved.
Scoreboard:
Holloway and Comet: Comet wins
Stint time gain: +6.237
Boomboom time lead: +3.738
“BOOMBOOM TEAM COMEBACK VICTORY! TITANICAL SYSTEM RACING WILL MOVE ON TO THE NEXT ROUND!” the announcer shouted.
Spark rubbed his nose.
“Win big…”
Butter crossed her arms.
“Or lose spectacularly…”
Comet jumped out of the race car.
“Or win big and spectacularly!”
Hawaiian cheered.
“Celebrate!”
“We are the Boomboom team!” Jammy sang.
Everyone soon followed Jammy’s lead.
“Yay!”
The Boomboom team sang while tossing Comet up into the air.
