Around and around. Nonstop, around and around. The strong, salty breeze moved in only one direction, taking the waves into the concrete walls of the bridge they were standing on. A group of birds flying away from the city, not all over the place, but just away from the countless buildings on the skyline. Even planet Earth rolled across the sky, slowly towards the west. That one is a technicality, but even so—

It was only him treading his same steps on the asphalt, reaching for invisible items until it appeared in his hand. Placing it into a different spot, where it met oblivion before he moved again. The constant movement was now drawing a pair of blue irises towards his every movement, stealing the focus from his mind with every clanking, tedious, drawn—

"Can you stop moving around so much? You are stressing me out." The orange haired man shut his eyelids to keep his pupils stationary. His imagination still moved them along the guessed path, until he tossed his head back and opened them to the blue sky. His elbow chilled by the cold metal step holding his body. His prop was leading to the cockpit of the large, resting, white and tattered blue race ship.

"You know that it calms me down! I can't sit still until you power up. I can keep chec—" The voice gave away the changing location again.

"Yea, but it's STRESSING ME OU—"

"Just take off the visual then."

The voice drew him to the to look down at down at his wrist. A screen appeared in open space above a device. Semi translucent, but the video icon clearly glowing white. "Fine." His finger discoloured it and the moving man vanished.

"Better?" The voice was now in his ear.

"Yea." The orange haired man dug into his deep side pockets and took out a pack of cigarettes. He quickly sparked one and quickly pulled the sleeves of his race suit from around his waist, into their intended destination, but the zipper still parted until his abdomen. "Not really, I rather see you here, you know that."

"Vel, you know—"

"Forget it! I was thinking about steak today. A nice one from that place on Parting Street. Ah, my mouth is watering."

"It is probably that stupid cigarette. We still don't know if it is killing you."

"You worry too much..." A long drag entered his lungs, and a new grey cloud left, "Too much worrying."

"And you are stalling."

"No way...just two more cigs and I am definitely done."

"Asta...We are back! We handled it really well today!" a voice rang in Vel's ear. He quickly snuffed the dropped cigarette under his heel, but his hand just held onto the zipper. "Velo, you are still around! I am glad we caught you today, you know you normally—"

"Tenny!" Asta called.

"What?" he called back.

"Don't mind him Vel," a woman's voice barely made it to his earpiece, "You okay?"

The zipper finally climbed to his neck, and he spun around. He stepped onto the metal, until he reached the second highest step. The polycarbonate dome lifted to a near perfect vertical. "Of course, why wouldn't I be."

"Yea! Why wouldn't he be!" Tenny's voice vibrated Vel's ear enough to make him wince. "Ace, darling, my love, my life, my...you say some silly things. Velocity Arancione is the best damn C1 driver to grace the track. The star of stars among the stars! The carrot top circuit king! The one that can do this in his sleep. The one—Why are you all laughing at me?"

"We are smiling you idiot." Ace's soft correction made Vel notice a smile had stretched onto him. "You really are an idiot."

"Okay. Let's do this. What trail run are we on?" Vel waited for the dome to close. He alternated pressure on the two pedals at his feet. His hands rested onto the two control sticks at the sides, giving them a toggle to check tension.

A simple button hold in front of him, tumbled the machine to life, coming to a smooth vibration and subtle hum. Lights erupted from blackened glass, and proudly displayed too much knowledge, besides for those that were looking for it.

"I am not sure anymore. We are on way too many, truthfully," Asta said.

"I agree with Asta. We will get them this time, Velo," Tenny chimed in.

"Yea, I feel good today." Vel gave a slight tug towards him on both control sticks. Feeling the weight of the machine in the tensioned vibrations. The nose of the racer lifted off the ground and a couple of seconds before the tail. Vel's feet alternated on the pedals with every tilting shift of the machine marked with a large number 11. "We can always wait for back up. I haven't heard any attempts today."

"They haven't tried in a couple of days," Ace said.

"It's all me then," Vel said.

"You know you—" Ace started.

"I got this I got this. It is my race anyway. All my race."

"We wish he was here too," Tenny said. "I can go look for—"

"No." The racer's words left a stain of silence for a bit longer than anyone liked. He looked to his left at the water gently crashing. The sun glistening rays, bouncing from the blue into his blues. A faint imagining of a similar race ship adorned with the number 24 was in the open gap of asphalt, just in the way of the sun's spell. Vel squinted and a couple more seconds and then shut his eyes. His neck adjusted his face forward, and his mouth slightly opened to intake steady pulls of oxygen.

"Count you down?" Asta asked.

"Not today. Give me a second."

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His eyes still clenched, but he could clearly see the gauges in front of him. Just past the curved nose peaking before the grey blacktop. It was well maintained in his imagination, only a few flaws, but he knew one quick peek would reveal the forgotten. The countdown snapped and his mind raced.

He knew this track disgustingly well. He rounded the corner and balanced his feet to keep the tipping machine in a smooth acceleration out of the apex, just under the sign advertising "Flop and Flips Resort: Bellatrix Finest". Vel knew this track better than the other three in Bellatrix sphere.

He knew this track better than any on the circuit, in all the spheres, even better than the sketchy underground races with his teammate away from celebrated events. This track was all he raced in recent times, but he still couldn't get through it as fast as he needed. He can't...

His grip tightened on the control sticks, causing a slight drift forward. A sudden muffled sound rang in his ear, alerting him to the slight movement. It was Asta's voice, but he must have stifled it when he realized that Vel was still zoned out. They could wait for one more deep breath.

"I'm off."

Vel pushed forward onto both sticks. The machine flashed forward. The floating number just ahead of his left hand was climbing tens by the milliseconds. A quick glance told him that he was nearing 300 miles per hour. The number told him that his glance had to be quick to return as he pressed both feet into the pedals before putting more pressure onto his right. Both wrists tilted to the right and his left hand went forward in addition.

The corner was a high right, bending almost over itself before levelling off to the sea height. White spray from the colliding walls, disappearing with the hole in the road. Vel zoomed past it, staying to the left. It had a few trial runs where he opted for that section of the track. The longer route, safe from obstacles, but it always proved too long for what he needed. He would once again face his luck with the obstacles.

The road widened and curved into a semi-circle on the straight away with the shape twisting to the right to keep the race ships from flying into the ocean. Metallic pillars pitched from the floor with rhythms, they punched at the sky in hopes of sending a blue and white ship with it. The driver skating past each with precision and as much as speed as he can keep. Sliding across the offered road in anticipation of the next trap.

"Yes!" Tenny shouted. The whisper of a correction from the crew was emerging, but they all settled for muttered celebrations as well. Vel knew they weren't trying to break his concentration. He knew how he gets when a race starts, but he couldn't help it. It was what he loved, and he couldn't focus on anything while the C1 ship wanted to go faster. He knew how happy they were as he inched through every gap while accelerating. He knew it was a feat that not many racers can achieve.

This section of the track was for those so far ahead, or those so desperate to catch up. Positions he never found himself in too often, but he had no choice here. No choice but the dance among the traps with a grace he was thrilled to show off. If only there was the crowd watching. He hoped he gets the chance to show them.

The track levelled off once again as he zoomed past a green tower of lights striping the roadway. The ship alerted the air with a tiny beep. Vel accelerated and held the turn as the road merged with the path that climbed out of the sea.

"Output?" Vel's tone was flat and quick. It was as if he waited for a response before he finished asking. Most would have to process, or ask again, but—

"Back to 97%. Before passing the charge, it had only dived to 89%." Asta was loud and clear. "It is the same as the first time. The core is deteriorating at all...you are also behind on your efficiencies. You know what that means."

The coms were silent. Vel gripped the controls tighter, pushing harder onto the tension as the race ship accelerated into the corner. Alternating walls in his way as a long looping corner spread ahead of him.

"What does it mean?" Tenny tried to whisper to Asta, but it made its way across the earpieces. Vel stayed quiet, and pushed down on the pedals and adjusted the throttle with every hurdle in his way. His teeth gritted as they looked at the ship dancing on the track at ridiculous speeds. "I love it when he gets this way. All focused and things. It really is badass, and I never get to see it because, well you—"

"Babe!" Ace grabbed his attention again. "They are talking about the core. There was still a hope that the core would give itself out eventually, but there is no sign of that. It means that Vel has to get faster."

"Oh, so what he is already doing. We know Velo can do it. He is the best damn—" Tenny started.

"C1 racer. We know." Asta stole the wave.

"It is just that his time is already below what it needs to be," Ace continued, "Vel. You don't have to push yourself more. If the run is already..."

"I'll get the last section."

"But..." Ace's voice trailed off, like there was body language that defeated her objection on the other side of the call.

"See. He is so badass like this," Ace chippered.

Vel stared at the last stretch till his eyes blurred. He felt blood rush to the sides of his forehead in attempts to spray from his skin. The cold air that passed through the cockpit from the core cooling system was not able to keep his blood from boiling.

The ending of the course was not as treacherous as the short stretch he just opted for, but it was still plagued with adjusting walls and projectiles flying from visible cannons. It was nothing he wasn't used to, even if having a defender was the ideally how he would approach it. He just had to be better. Much better this time.

Still on the last bit of straight, clear asphalt, Vel flipped a switched just off to the left, and then pressed triggers on both control sticks. Bullets blasted from both sides of the nose from mounted guns, ideally set to hit just between the rear driver jets. Instead, the rounds fly past each obstacle and tear into the safety framework, just past the glowing green tower. A gap formed from the now crumpled metal that hung over water 100 feet down.

That feels better. Vel released the triggers but didn't return the switch. His fingers twitched a hair breadth away. He bit down on his jaw again and pushed forward. Obstacles edging the steam from the metal panels accelerating through humid air. He squeezed the triggers as the machine drifted into angles that allowed the bullets to rip into the obstacles own firing sequence. The latter's shattering before getting close to where the ship might have been if he wasn't already onto the next hinderance.

"Time," Vel barked.

"Point Eight Seven behind," Asta replied.

Vel pushed on the sticks again. His feet completely off the pedal, not giving himself any space for the rear to kick. He had to hold the line as fine as he could.

"Time," Vel barked.

"Point Six Three behind," Asta replied.

The sticks were vibrating rapidly as he struggled to twist them in the desired direction. He felt the back of the ship trying to keep its inertia but taps on the left pedal and muscling the throttle forward kept it straight through the thin gap. The ship twisting and flipping in relation to the track line. Vel felt like the muscles in his throat stiffened to force a scream as he accelerated past a piercing pillar.

"Time!" Vel yelled.

Boom! An unnerving vibration bellowed from above. It sounded like it wanted to be an explosion but was quickly sucked into an air tunnel of artificial sounds. It was something that he never heard before.

"What the hell was that?" Tenny yelled.

"Vel, are you okay?" Asta asked.

"Asta, look at the sky," Ace called.

Vel's feet left the pedals as the machine started coasting back down the slope from the complete halt. His focus on trying to look above to find the sound. A streak of purple light...green, it was now orange as it tore through the sky. White clouds soon overtaking the rainbowed trail.

"Something came through the bubble," Asta said.

Vel looked to his left as if he could see Asta's deceiving remarks leave his mouth. "How can something enter the bubble? You are lying."

"They are saying that on the tv. The news bots don't miss. Something must have broken the bubble. What are you seeing?"

"Hold on, I will chase it..." Vel just noticed how far he had slid back. Just far enough for the bullet from the obstacle cannon to be tearing into his—

Asta looked to the screen showing his friend's vehicle being torn apart by a bullet. A ball of flame burst in all directions and pillar of smoke stood flimsily after. The sea breeze taking the evidence of tragedy into a dance.

"Damnit," Asta said.