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Starborn: Origin of the Stars
Chapter 45 - Catching Up

Chapter 45 - Catching Up

One of the things Robin came to understand during his training with Happy was that his one real advantage over the other pilots was his great ability to withstand g-forces. He had drawn some conclusions from that. He could accelerate faster, brake harder and hit the curves with more force.

Overall that didn't make him much faster since his higher speeds would cost him in the curves - as everyone was able to witness during his first race - but for passing maneuvers, it was quite the boon.

Now he hoped to gain some ground on the straights and get closer to the field with the help of this increased resistance. How? Well, taking a bit more risks and, against all reason, flying even faster. If he got lucky and the next group in front of him was busy with themselves, he may be able to catch up quickly.

Ramping up the throttle, Robin pressed his left joystick forward and let the Melody shoot through The Canyon like a flash. Out of the corner of his eyes he could see how the mountains and hills flew by to his left and right closer than he was comfortable with.

He was fast, really fast, hitting nearly 400m/s already. He knew it was dangerous, one mistake and he would crash into the side of a mountain or, if he was lucky, would catapult himself into deep space.

After finishing the second lap, Robin felt the pressure more and more. Since he passed the first group and took the 20th spot, he never even once saw a glimpse of the next ship in front of him. Time was running through his fingers faster than he had expected.

Through his third lap, Robin was on his own. All alone on the track. He took more and more risks, hoping he would be able to gain some ground and catch up a bit. And finally, when he entered The Canyon for the third time, he saw the next ship a few kilometers ahead, already halfway through the danger zone.

One more reckless charge through The Canyon and Robin would finally be able to restart his work on climbing up the ranks. He could make out six ships in the group and knew he would have to pass them all in the first long straight of the next lap or he would have no chance at all to get a shot at the top 10.

Slowly, but definitely not carefully, he came closer to the group and ultimately caught up in the crater C1. The ships in the cluster flew in a wide curve along the slope, passing two gates on their way. There was only a short way until the curve that led into the high speed section came. Robin was practically glued to the last ship of the cluster, a green Apex Bunga. He didn’t know the pilot, but was struggling really hard to keep up with him.

Then, the curve came - one gate leading in and one out of it. No one could cut the turn this way. Robin rotated his ship even before he passed the first gate and slid into the curve sidewards, Melody’s nose affixed on the second gate and the ships in front of him. He yanked the throttle up and accelerated to the limit of what his body and his ship could sustain. He came closer and closer to the green Bunga and before it even passed the second gate and entered the straight, Robin zapped by after pulling back his joystick to gain some height. Only a few meters, just enough to not scrape the other ship or hit the gate abo…

*zonk*

A jolt went through the Melody, shaking Robin in his seat. He tightly gripped the controls to keep the ship stable, while he fought against the g-forces from the acceleration at the same time.

“Damn, that wasn’t good!” He cursed as soon as his brain calmed down from the strain. Doing multiple things at once, Robin made sure to begin with the braking sequence as the high speed section would come to an end soon. He also checked his Interface and the displays for any errors or warning messages. Additionally, he quickly activated his mutation and took a short look at the vents at Melody's upper side. Everything seemed to be fine, he got no warnings and felt a stable energy flow.

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‘That was close, too close! Puhhh’ Robin thought and let go of the breath he had held the whole time. His ship was still fine, but this was a wake-up call to him. If he took too many risks, this race would end before he even finished his last lap - it would be time to say goodbye to his advancement by then.

When he finally calmed down, Robin was already in the middle of the next turn and on his way to enter The Canyon. He had passed the group and climbed to 14th rank in this race. Just four more ships to pass.

This was the fourth lap, no time to lose. He saw a single ship in this section and used the straight to quickly catch up. Two turns later there would be a short 3km straight just before entering the crater C2.

As he zipped past the mountains and hills, he went through all the necessary steps to pass the pilot in front of him in a sleek maneuver. When they entered the straight, Robin managed to immediately pass the ship and put himself in 13th position.

‘Great, there is still some hope left.’ He thought when he could already see the next group ahead, just leaving C2 as he entered. He concentrated on planning his next move and how much risk he had to take to pass the group and secure his position among the top 10 while flying along the slope.

Suddenly he was thrown out of his thoughts as a ship, the one he had just left behind, cut him short on the inner side, passing him with admirable agility and still managed to clear the gate at the end of the crater.

“Fuck!” Robin cursed. He already knew that the other pilots were more skilled overall, which cost him especially in the many turns he had to take, but that they could play him so easily? Robin was fighting to even stay in the crater, passing other ships? Yeah, no way.

While he may be faster on the two long high speed sections, there were many more curves to master. This also was one of the reasons, Happy was so sure that he would not be able to reach the finals.

Gritting his teeth, he refocused his attention back on the track and the ship ahead of him. It was always a bit easier to keep up with someone in front of you than being the one in the leading position. He needed some time to evaluate his options and made another attempt to pass the ship when the next straight came.

Once again Robin took the lead and shot ahead while looking for the next group. Unfortunately C1 was coming closer and he already had a bad premonition.

Moments later, just as predicted, he lost his position again. It wasn’t that he was afraid of not finding a good spot to take it back, but all this bickering with the other pilot cost him too much attention and time. They slowed each other down, losing more and more ground to the next group.

In the first long high speed section Robin once again pushed the Melody unreasonably hard to his and her limit. He regained the 13th position and used the maneuver from before again at its end, sliding sidewards into the curve that led into The Canyon. Kicking the ship forwards once more, he finally gained some ground and lost the ship behind him, while at the same time, he closed in on the next group.

“Five ships!” He exclaimed happily when he caught up after the next two straights. The group was quite active and Robin saw multiple attempts to pass each other. This was his luck, as it slowed down the group as a whole. However, when they entered the second crater, it was as if they had a silent agreement and stuck to their positions. No one provoked and they flew through the danger zone so skillfully, that Robin actually lost connection to the group and fell behind.

When they passed the start/finish line shortly afterwards, Robin finally caught up again. But no smile could be seen on his face. By now he knew he would lose out to them in the turns and craters and only catch up on the straights. But this was the final lap. Even if he managed to pass the group in the two long high speed sections, he would not be able to hold his position all the way through the following curves and the second crater.

‘Burn in plasma… this will not work out as it is right now.’ Realization dawned and threw him in turmoil.

‘What kind of fucking plan could help me now? I don’t have any tricks left…’