Faction Frego Circuit: No Rush Track [Darkwire Swoop Race]

[Ruby Jaxx]

WELCOME RACERS TO THE FREGO CIRCUIT!
GET ON YOUR SWOOP BIKES,
GATHER YOUR LANCES,
LOAD YOUR DICE!

​

“Aw, chit,” Ruby said, her darkly-lined eyes wide.

She stepped out into the pit, where crews of mechanics and racers were nearing the end of their preparations. The bikes were lined up, each one of them a reflection of its rider. Moving over to her own, she gave the seat an affectionate pat. Just how did Ruby’s bike reflect her?

Well, let’s see…

It was scrappy, it hadn’t been well cared for at all, and it looked like it was about to fall apart. Perfect match. But, just like Ruby -- looks were deceiving. Her swoop bike was also fairly tough and rugged. Even though it looked like chit, it’d hold up during a fight alright… but it might not be very fast. And at that realization, Ruby frowned. The whole point of this race was to… win. And to win you needed to go fast, right?

A devilish smile curled her lips.

Or… you needed to take out the competition. It was funny, melee weapons were permitted -- even encouraged. But ranged weaponry was not allowed. Ruby understood it, there was little sportsmanship involved when shooting a fellow biker in the back. However, if you could get close enough to jab them with a stick or any other similarly sharp object, well, that took skillz.

Wearing a tracksuit with light padding (extra on the arse), Ruby put on her helmet and prepared to head out to the starting line. All around them, the stands were full of rowdy race-goers. No doubt these people wanted to see a good fight and lots of explosions, probably.

She eyed her competitors, most of them loading up a variety of frightening weapons.

Maces. Clubs. Lances. You name it.

As for Ruby, she had a weird ball and chain flail-thing, a stun baton, and a smoke grenade.

The Track:

Spoiler

https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/740002569518055484/756002939050393700/unknown.png

RULES:
Only Darkwire Members (writers) are allowed to race. However, anyone may come to spectate, bet, or whatever else (hey, it’s none of my business, right?) in our SEPARATE thread (link incoming).

The No Rush track will be a series of sixteen turns with unique features, and will be finished once the racers cross the final turn. Racers will be permitted to arm themselves, so long as their weapon is a slashing, piercing, or bludgeoning instrument that cannot melt through a Swoop Bike or cause it to explode when coming into contact with any portion of a Swoop Bike. Ranged weaponry is prohibited, but tools which can physically affect another racer are permitted on a case by case basis; anything which can remotely cause the destruction or detonation of a Swoop Bike or its racer are strictly prohibited. Violators will be disintegrated* remotely.
*All racers signed waivers forfeiting their rights to life, liberty, and happiness should they be found in violation of the contract regulating this Corporate Sponsored race, including the right not to be summarily disintegrated without proper legal due process, as implied by the right to "life". Corporate sponsors cannot be held liable for any damages or incidental molecular misconduct, by any entity representing the signatory, and hereby waives all responsibility for the atomic bonds here indicated and implied.​

OOC Rules:

Spoiler

1. STARTING POSITION: At the beginning of the race, each racer will roll a die (number of sides determined by number of participants) at the beginning of their post to determine their initial starting position
   • (EXAMPLE: If a racer rolls a 1, they are in first position before the race begins; in the case that two racers roll the same number, whoever rolled first keeps their position, and the second racer must roll again until an open position is available to them).
2. ROUNDS: A Round will be defined as the period between when all Racers have posted once, after which a member of Darkwire Staff (Myself, most likely, as the Darkwire Cultist) will make an NPC post to describe the outcomes of all actions taken, with the exception of any combat interactions between racers. Any combat will be handled by writers, and NPC post will only step in if there is a unresolved disagreement, or a racer has been absent without communication for longer than 48 hours.
3. ADVANCING RANK: In the first post a Racer makes each round, they will advance two turns on the track automatically. Additional turns on the track can be earned by rolling to ADVANCE, which will serve as a contested roll between the rank immediately ahead of a racer, and immediately behind a racer. If a racer rolls higher than the racer ahead of them, they will gain two additional turns completed on the track, possibly putting them ahead. If a racer rolls lower than the racer behind them, the racer behind them will gain additional turns which may allow them to surpass them. If a racer rolls higher than a racer behind them, they may advance one additional turn. If a racer rolls the same as a racer behind or in front of them, this is a Tie and results in both racers advancing one additional turn. Victory will be achieved once the racer(s) with 16 accumulated turns crosses the final turn by the end of a Round. If there are multiple racers with 16 turns complete by the end of a round, they may make one Final Contested Roll between them to determine who crosses first; if this ends in a Tie, there will be multiple winners crowned.
   • (EXAMPLE: If a Racer is in Rank 3, and their roll to ADVANCE is a 15, while the Racer in Rank 2 rolls a 14 or lower, the Racer in Rank 3 will advance two additional turns. This may, or may not put them ahead of Rank 2, in which case they would advance to Rank 2 should they have more turns completed. If the racer is Rank 4 rolls a 16 or higher, however, it will grant the racer in Rank 4 additional turns that may allow them to pass whoever ends up in Rank 3 should they have more turns completed.)
4. DETERMINATION POINTS:Each round an NPC post will be made that will grant a DETERMINATION point which a racer may expend to re-roll any roll for the rest of the race (though they may not have more than one DETERMINATION point, and may only earn one per round) to racers that have written particularly well in a given round. A re-roll will not replace the old roll if the old roll is higher.
   • Where racing is determined by dice roll, combat and battlefield effects will be handled by writers communicating with one another what hits they will take and how they respond. Depending on response and cooperation, an NPC post may award DETERMINATION points to appropriate writers for handling challenges well or writing an interesting story together.
   • It is encouraged that all writers in the thread (Racers and Non-Racers alike) suggest other writers (Racers) to be awarded these points for unique or interesting responses to challenges.
   • By the end of the race, the writer who earned the most DETERMINATION points but did not come in 1st will be given special recognition with an UNDERDOG PRIZE.
5. EQUIPMENT: All equipment used by a racer should be clearly listed and linked wherever applicable, to include their Swoop Bike if it is a specific model. All equipment is subject to review by Darkwire Staff, and can be retroactively vetoed at any time should it prove problematic. In all cases where this may occur, you will be notified and communicated appropriately, so that an appeal can be made in case a misunderstanding is had.
6. THE CASSUS AKOVIN STINKS RULE: Since I am a member of Darkwire Staff, to avoid conflicting interests and preferential treatment, Cassus Akovin will be exempt from earning DETERMINATION POINTS and his equipment will be vetted by other Darkwire Staff members while I am participating in the race.

EXTRA SPECIAL THANKS TO CASSUS FOR HELPING WITH THE ABOVE!!! <3​

Racers: Cassus Akovin | Xan Deesa | Tarok Vassket | Helena | Yula Perl​

 

[Xan Deesa]

Xan had to admit that she was a little nervous. She had never competed in races before. Either she used races as distractions for targets or she used swoops to get from point A to B. This was going to be a whole new experience for her... but she was ready for it. She was a competent pilot, a good fighter and she was desperate for some excitement in her life. It wasn't even about the win for her in this case, but that didn't mean she wasn't going to fight like hell for that prize.

Walking through her pit, she finished checking her racing gear. It was pretty outrageous but it fit her style and that's what mattered. Plus the padding and segments of armour would -hopefully- break her fall if she were to be knocked off her swoop. Her swoop was another new addition for her. She had practice with it, but it was still going to be a challenge to keep it in control, that much was certain. Even with her heightened reflexes and enhanced strength, it was a handful. But it was fast... really fast. And that was the important part. Going around corners with it evoked feelings that she hadn't felt since before her breakup with her boyfriend. Plus with her smaller stature, she could afford to be a bit more comfortable. Sometimes being a lil ol' girl helped out a ton, especially when it came to the groin area in situations like this.

With her gear set, she slid her weapons for the race into positions on her body. Two vibroblades and a collapsable electrostaff. The staff was severely underpowered, only able to give a person a nasty shock on contact, but that was fine for the race. The idea wasn't to kill them, nor was the idea to knock their swoops out. The waver she signed made sure she understood those rules clearly. As she got seated on her swoop, she glanced at another racer ( Ruby Jaxx ) with a case of awkward eye contact. She smirked behind her helmet's visor as a face appeared on the hardened screen. In a second it flicked back to the original face as she started up the swoop, revving up the engines. The ion engines howled with their unnerving trademark sound as she warmed it up. With her gear and mind prepped, she slowly crept out of the pits and took her position at the number 5 slot.

"Good luck, cutie." she quipped as she neared the girl, the autotune in her helmet giving her voice a rather interesting musical twist. With her in the correct position, she sat upright and glanced around, waiting for her fellow racers to take assume their positions.

 

[Yula Perl]

Loadout | Double-bladed stiletto | 10x Pro-Pheromone Patches
Tags | Ruby Jaxx | Xan Deesa

Racing was a hobby Yula hadn’t had much time to pursue lately. As such, the bike she had reliably used in the past was quite literally falling apart when she dug it out of storage. A few runs through Terminus had almost ended in some form of disastrous crash or explosion, and she was still making repairs to the old junker.

It’s too bad. The Zeltron mused to herself while laying on a hoverpanel beneath her swoop bike. A few last minute touch-ups and repairs weren’t uncommon on a circuit like this. I would’ve liked to build a new one.

Tightening up the last loose connection, Yula pushed herself out from underneath the bike and kicked the panel away. Slipping into the seat, she turned the ignition and let out a noise of delight when the engine revved to life. The rules of the race had allowed certain close-range weapons, so they all ran the risk of coming out with burn marks and puncture wounds. Along with the retractable blade at her wrist, Yula had elected to layer nearly a dozen Zeltron pheromone patches along her neck before securing her helmet. Anyone close to the Zeltron would feel the effects of the synthetic pheromones (with the exception of those with certain racial resistances).

Was chemical warfare strictly banned?

“Drinks after this, yeah?” She called out over the din of roaring engines.

 

[Helena]

Race Position 2 | The Soundtrack
The Racer | The Swoop
The Weapons: One-handed Bludger | 1 Bowie Knife
-
​

Bright lights, the smell of gasoline and hot metal. The sounds of the city, the ambient energy in the air - it was all intoxicating. The opaque helmet visor she wore reflected the lights of the street around her as she swung her leg over the swoop bike she'd come to call her own. Financed by several unwitting investors from other worlds, Helena had landed on her feet upon her arrival to Frego. The swoop itself was a thing of beauty, brushed steel and a wide front intake suggested it could scoot on the straights. Cornering might be a bit rough but what it lost there it would make up for in acceleration - surely. Smooth curves and rounded edges gave the swoop an almost antique feel but its systems were anything but old. In line with modern production, the swoop was as good as the next. Besides, as far as Helena was concerned it was more about the racer than the bike itself - at least in a fair fight.

From her position in the pit, Helena checked her pockets one final time. Her outfit, just like the swoop, was a bit of a throwback. Black leather jacket, dark slightly torn jeans, snug calf high black boots. It was quite the contrast with her helmet, a more modern approach. Pink, blue, green, purple - the colors were numerous and the visor opaque. At least, from the outside. Inside, a standard holo-HUD display and comm system. A plethora of stickers had been slapped on its exterior giving it that personal touch. Whether or not the others would be wearing helmets she had no idea, all she knew is that she'd rather have her brains kept together inside a brain bucket instead of on the pavement. Swoop races had a reputation of being dangerous for a reason.

Tucking her hair as she donned her helmet, Helena walked slowly over to where her swoop sat in the pit. Doing a final once over of it she swung a leg over it and activated the start sequence. A deep and hearty roar echoed in the small garage as the engine burst to life, the vibrations through the hardened metal sending adrenaline rushing through her body. Now this is podra.. swoop racing. Slipping the visor down and obscuring her features she lifted her foot off the ground and gave the throttle a gentle roll, idling out of the pit and towards the starting line. A few of the other racers were already there at their designated positions. She had won position 2, not the pole position but it was a good start - now just to see if she could keep it. Not only that, but could she improve upon her position by the end of the race? She'd done her do diligence, studying the track and its history, learning about the turns in advance. She wasn't naive though. The very nature of swoop racing was unpredictable, you could have all the information and all the statistics but that didn't matter - it was all about the grit. All about the sheer determination and skill and even that wasn't enough to guarantee a victory.

As she passed her fellow racers she flashed a two fingered salute, silently taking her position as she reveled in the rumble of the engine beneath her. This was going to be good. This is truly what life meant - taking no prisoners, pushing yourself to the limits, really living. Adrenaline Junkie wasn't her middle name but it might as well have been. Having grown up on the streets for much of her life Helena knew things could get ugly out on the track, the rules certainly allowed for some rough and tumble. She'd come prepared. Almost as if designed for it, a heavy club rest neatly in a small metal retainer mounted on the side of her swoop. That coupled with the large knife tucked into her boot were all the weapons she'd need. She'd survived worse with less.

Yula Perl | Xan Deesa | Ruby Jaxx

​

 

[Cassus Akovin]

Cassus was actually a competitive swoop racer in what little free time he allotted to himself, despite living his life as a Bounty Hunter. His first experience on a swoop bike was actually in a jousting scenario in a combat tournament on Zonju V. Despite the odds, somehow the boy had managed to outmatch the supposedly powerful competition to the point that no one even showed up to face him in the final round.

Which reasonable upset him, as while he enjoyed the credits for winning, he was disappointed that he didn't get an opportunity to enjoy the thrill of racing again. Recently however, he got caught up with Ruby Jaxx and a few others in a new sport involving skating around and knocking opponents away with beefy cybernetics. So when she mentioned to him of an up and coming Swoop Race, he couldn't jump on a bike fast enough before he was already riding off into the sunset to find his gear.

This brings us to Frego, where the heir of Akovin sat in a DH-17 (weapons disabled) just behind the figure of Helena, and just in front of some one he didn't recognize. Up ahead he could see Ruby Jaxx , who received a bit of banter from the the back ranks of racers. They were all reasonably close, and all of them armed with an assortment of melee weapons ranging from simple clubs, to electrified staffs, and ball-n-chain assortments. No doubt they had other equipment attached to their bodies as well, and Cassus was most certainly no different.

He carried two melee weapons, one of them the legality of it was a bit iffy, but the other one was a perfectly legal, simple, durasteel shield. While his opponents seemed fixated on ruining each others day with primitive ways of removing flesh from body, Cassus was solely interested in keeping the flesh on his body... on his body. He could care less about their dispositions by the end of the race so long as he was in one piece.

The others may also become surprised with the versatility of a shield, regardless...

Tags:
1st Ruby Jaxx , 2nd Helena, 3rd Cassus Akovin , 4th Tarok Vassket , 5th Xan Deesa , 6th Yula Perl

 

[Tarok Vassket]

​

Azula smiled. At the Silver Academy she rarely smiled. All part of the façade she projected to stay there. Azula Tin'dara was not, in fact, a Jedi master. She had been trained to alter her signature with the Force or to mask it. The saber that sat at her hip was not her own. She had taken it from the cold, lifeless hands of its owner.

Azula had never been a racer. Not in the professional sense. Technically, on those times her swoop gang had escaped the law enforcement on their bikes they had been paid for racing. The thought of pushing herself to the limited in the skies once more sent a thrill up and down her spine.

The togruta walked lazily from the back of the line towards her bike, soaking it all in. She didn't wear a helmet, just as set of bronze leathers. Rules specified she couldn't use her saber and yet she carried no other weapons.

“Drinks after this, yeah?” Called out the Zeltron, who seemed to be going a bit heavy on the pheromones from the distinct twist Azula felt low in her belly.

"If you survive on this thing," Azula replied, brushing her hand against the x-foil at the prow of the zeltron's swoop. The bike looked as if it had seen better days. Azula continued on to her bike. She was middle of the pack, but better to be here than at the back of the order.

She slowly straddled the old friend, feeling it thrum with power as the engines came to life. The bright red feathers fanned out behind her. They provided a little aerial control, but mostly they were there for show. Azula pulled a length of chord from the bike and clipped herself to it.

Azula smiled to herself, the weight of expectation met by her desire to throw herself into the skies once more.

 

[Ruby Jaxx]

Weapons: Ball and Chain Flail x 1, Stun baton x 1, Smoke Grenade x 0 (used).
Current place: 1 (refer to Cassus' post for your current place)

Ruby angled a narrow-eyed glance at lady racer that'd just called her 'cutie.' She continued to give the woman a stink eye until she passed. Her... a cutie? The hecks is wrong with you, Ruby thought. But, she figured that she was probably just being messed with – you know, trying to throw her off her game.

Then, there was a pink-hued Zeltron. And as Ruby neared, she gave the pink lady a second glance and then a third. Hey, maybe she was kinda cool.

There were some others behind her, too. But Ruby was in the zone now, AKA trying to hold her squirrel-like focus steady for a freaking second. She jumped on her bike and started it up. There was a rather heavy puff of black smoke that followed. But as far as the others knew, it might be intentional. It wasn't, but she hoped they thought it was.

It was time to line up.

So, Ruby wheeled herself over to the starting line and crammed her helmet on. Turning slightly, she squinted through her visor. Ah, so Cassus was here after all. He'd managed to somewhat win her respect during their repulsor derby experience. He was tough, she'd give him that.

3.
2.
1.

GO​

And they were off! Ruby, much to her surprise, glanced over her shoulder to see that she was leading the pack. Fething what!? Oh boy. It was only a matter of time before the others either caught up or tried to take her out.

Reaching for her belt, she grabbed the smoke grenade and tossed it behind her.

Hopefully obscuring some of the track for those in her wake.

Xan Deesa | Yula Perl | Helena | Cassus Akovin | Tarok Vassket​

 

[Xan Deesa]

More racers pulled into their positions and Xan took in as much as she could. Their swoops, their gear, their attitude, all of it. A few pulled past her to get to their positions, however it was the Zeltron behind her that really caught her attention. Glancing at the girl, her helmet made a friendly face as she chuckled at the girl's comment. She knew the dangers about Zeltrons. They liked being sneaky and they liked using their pheromones. Luckily her advanced genetics and superior cybernetics protected her from petty distractions like that. There was no way in hell that the Zeltron would compromise her... she was looking hella cute, though. "Only if you're paying, sweetheart." she quipped as she looked ahead again, focusing on the race that was about to start.

The red light flashed and she revved up her swoop, the howling ion engines filling her ears. It was a rather nice reminder of her own starfighter. Then the next lights started.

Yellow

Yellow

Yellow

Green​

Her wrist twisted the throttle and the swoop blasted forward. The further she got from the Zeltron, the more her focus returned... apparently. A ridiculous thought to think that the Zeltron could compromise her! After a few seconds she activated the afterburners and slid back a little as the swoop howled down the straight. She zig-zagged past a few racers and made room to go around the smoke grenade that was tossed from the lead swoop. However after a few seconds came the one thing she dreaded most on this swoop.

A turn.

The afterburners were cut and she quickly eased on the throttle to avoid joining the audience on the corner. But her early mistake cost her dearly as several racers flew past her around the corner. Luckily she wasn't completely kriffed as she got up to speed again. Two of the racers fell behind her when she came up to speed again and soon she was making good progress through the turns. She played a lot nicer with the throttle around the corners but still the swoop made her work for her positions. It was bizarre to feel herself falling back to her enhanced strength and endurance to keep this thing in control and take corners with a bit more force. At least this wasn't a 24-hour endurance race...

Cassus Akovin Yula Perl Helena Tarok Vassket Ruby Jaxx

 

[Helena]

Three.

Two.

One.

Go!

-
Race Position (?!) | The Soundtrack
The Racer | The Swoop
The Weapons: One-handed Bludger | 1 Bowie Knife


​

Let out the clutch, roll on the throttle. With what would have been an otherwise deafening roar of engines the swoop bikes all shot forward as the green light flicked on. Starting in position two had been lucky for Helena, her focus lasered in on the racer in front of her - at least for a moment. As the swoops began to fall in line a sudden burst of smoke erupted ahead, obscuring the track and the racer! They had just begun but already their speed was immense, a wreck even now would no doubt create severe injury. Not today. Helena grimaced.

Gun it. a voice whispered in her ear. Slow down. voiced another. She waited until the very last moment to make her decision, a decision that cost her. Engaging her air brakes and deflecting the power from her primary engine forward she slowed as swoop and racer shot forward into the smoke. Veering off to one side so the others wouldn't crash into her from behind she struggled to get the bike back under control. "Karking hell." she swore, eyes struggling to see where the track continued. Wracking her mind she went over the track mentally, a struggle under the pressure. Reasonably certain which way the track went, she rolled back on the throttle again and leaned forward, hugging the metallic hull of her swoop. She had ground to make up.

Feeling the power of the machine beneath her she focused her attention on the task at hand, tightly gripping the handlebars and creating the smallest silhouette she could to reduce her air resistance. At these speeds even the slightest technical improvement could be the difference between first and last. Well, that and a little bit of grit and a little bit of luck. As she caught up to the racer in front of her she began strategizing, thinking ahead for the next turn in the track. If she could coax just a little bit more speed out of her swoop she might be within striking distance. In preparation she reached down and gripped the haft of the bludgeon she'd brought. A solid wooden shaft made up the majority of the one handed club, the end capped with metal and a large metal knob embedded in it's haft. It might have been somewhat primitive but it would no doubt back a hefty punch if it were to land. I'm coming for you. she mouthed behind the opaque visor of her helmet. She leaned forward just a touch further - soon she'd get her chance.

Ruby Jaxx | Tarok Vassket | Cassus Akovin | Yula Perl | Xan Deesa​

 

[Cassus Akovin]

Cassus put all of his focus into the track ahead, pushing out the noise and thrum of his bike. Then, the announcement came, the race was starting. At the moment of count down he put all the power he could into his swoop and started to press past some of the others. Then, his world was filled with smoke.

It caught him off guard to be sure, Ruby’s play was a brilliant one. A lesser rider would undoubtedly allow panic to override their good sense, sending them careening who knows where. Fortunately for Cassus, he knew that visibility was going to be a key factor in a deadly race like this, and his mask provided him a few simple features that had aided him many times as a bounty hunter. It took only a moment to alter his visual input into thermal, and that’s when the second shock hit him.

He wasn’t quite as skillful as Helena seemed to be at commanding his vehicle to turn so sharply, but his own Swoop was less mechanical than hers and required less skill than hers to command. Pressing past her he saw Ruby in sight, and leaned deeply into his bike on the verge of overtaking her position, when suddenly not one but two riders came up from behind him.

A rider he didn’t recognize with a striking “feathered” swoop cut past him just as he was passing Ruby, and that’s when he noticed the zeltron riding beside him on the fourth turn. With an aggressive grunt, the boy edged his bike closer to hers and attempted to bash her with his shielded arm...

Spoiler: Placement Results Round 1

Ruby 1st - 2/16; Rolled 12 (Higher than behind, plus 1 turn) Total Turns: 3/16
Helena 2nd - 2/16; Rolled 5 (No turns earned)
Cassus 3rd - 2/16; Rolled 8 (Higher than ahead, plus 2 turns) Total Turns: 4/16
Xandyr 4th - 2/16; Rolled 11 (Higher than ahead, pluss 2 turns, higher than behind, plus 1 turns) Total Turns: 5/16
Xan Deesa 5th - 2/16; Rolled 9 (No turns earned)
Yula 6th - 2/16; Rolled 16 (Higher than ahead, plus 2 turns) Total Turns: 4/16

Rank placement going into Round 2 (starting with next Ruby Post):
1st = Tarok Vassket (5/16)
2nd = Cassus Akovin (4/16)
3rd = Yula Perl (4/16)
4th = Ruby Jaxx (3/16)
5th = Helena (2/16)
6th = Xan Deesa (2/16)

 

[Yula Perl]

Yula couldn’t help but give the Togruta a sheepish, toothy grin. Yeah, so her hog wasn’t in the best condition—she would count herself lucky if it even managed to cross the finish line. The few last minute writing adjustments she’d made would either propel her to victory or directly into an obstacle. Another racer—one with a neat helmet who’s visor was clearly digital—called out to her and she laughed back. “Drinks are on the winner!”

Whether it would be her or not, Yula’s mind was on two things. First, work up the adrenaline to party. Two, indulge in said party, possibly from the medbay.

The scoreboard lights dinged a familiar tune, and Yula counted down to them in her head. Three. Two. One. Let’s go!

Gripping both handles, she revved the engine aggressively and took off among the others. One of the racers—wait, were they all chicks?—lobbed a grenade behind her, which caused Yula to flinch and throttle the controls. The Zeltron’s bike fishtailed, threatening to crash into an obstacle or another racer with each threatening swerve. Is that legal?? Weapons were okay to a point but surely not explosives. Right? Smoke flooded the track and she exhaled with a laugh, feeling silly. Of course. With an iron grip, she managed to stabilize the controls and punch up the speed, hastening out of the smoke cloud and zipping around the next turn.

The old bike may have groaned with each directional shift, but Yula had blind faith that they’d see this through to the end of the race. And if not, that simply gave her an excuse to build a new bike. Hastening up on another rider, Yula kicked the acceleration up in an attempt to pass him, but she hadn’t escaped his notice.

Wait, him? A guy?

WHAM!

She saw the arm coming, but what didn’t register was the shield attached to it. Cassus’ blow landed on the side of her helmet, sending the Zeltron veering off to the side and a crack spiraling in her visor. Fortunately, she didn’t go off the track this time, and she pushed the engine to catch back up with her assailant.

“Hey!” Snarling, Yula’s easygoing disposition had evaporated in an instant. “Chill out!” As if to make her point, the Zeltron ripped one of the potent pheromone patches from her neck and attempted to slam it on Cassus’ shield.

Ruby Jaxx | Cassus Akovin | Helena | Xan Deesa | Tarok Vassket

 

[Tarok Vassket]

It was like riding...a bike. You never forgot. She might have carefully crafted the facade of a serene jedi master around herself, but it was a shell. A husk that was easily discarded and replaced with a new one. At the core she was adrenaline and bike fuel and glorious vertigo.

Foot clicked to the floor. Pedals were tuned to be sensitive for small, precise motions. The fans behind her realigned for raw speed and gaining height.

The togruta didn't need her eyes. She had the Force and the additional sense of spatial awareness provided by her montrals. Azula closed her eyes, closed her mouth and left a billowing tunnel in the smoke. Easing back on the controls she gained height and grinned as the air turned clear, rushing over her.

"If you survive on this thing," Azula replied, brushing her hand against the x-foil at the prow of the zeltron's swoop.

The zeltron was keeping close behind her towards the first turn. Azula tapped a small device on her belt.

A small, thin disk of metal on the prow of Yula's bike started to flash red and beep loudly.

It wasn't even an explosive device. That would have been against the rules. It was simply a small disk with a receiver that beeped and flashed when Azula wanted it too.

The zeltron was not, however, party to that information.

 

[Darkwire Cultist]

The audience was wild with excitement as racers entered the thick cloud of smoke just before a perilous turn, each of the racers adapting to the circumstances in their own ways. It was clear from even so far away that Ruby Jaxx was in this race to win it! She wasn’t alone, however, and as racers cut turns with expert skill or through capable technology they all got bunched up close together around the 3rd turn.

“Amazing, despite being blinded for a good portion of turn two it seems that Cassus, Azula, and Yula (from the back of the pack no less!) have cut through the smoke and surpassed Ruby’s position! Oh, would you look at that hit! Looks like Cassus doesn’t like sharing the raceway with the ladies! It might cost him however, as Azula takes the lead going into turn five!”

The gambling den was a madhouse as the Gotal Announcer dictated what was happening, with bets changing every second the Swoop Racers were speeding up. Some went down with the positions changes and others went up as the action got hot.

“I could be wrong folks, but I think Ruby is feeling scorned here, I think she’ll be packing some heat here in a moment!”

Spoiler: Positions and Effects

End of Round 1:

1. Tarok Vassket 5/16 turns (Higher than ahead and behind 3 turns earned)
2. Cassus Akovin 4/16 turns (Higher than ahead, 2 turns earned)
3. Yula Perl 4/16 turns (Higher than ahead, 2 turns earned)
4. Ruby Jaxx 3/16 turns (Higher than behind, 1 turn earned, and gains 1 Determination Point)
5. Helena 2/16 turns (No turns earned)
6. Xan Deesa 2/16 (No turns earned)

Turn Six and Seven will be horizontal crossing a deep chasm! (Perpendicular to the ground in the pit far below)

 

[Ruby Jaxx]

“Heh.” Ruby smirked, turning a quick glance behind her at the smoke that filled the track. And she started to laugh even harder when she realized that she'd actually slowed some of the other racers down. But just when she was starting to feel really cocky, someone sped past her.

It was Cassus.

And then, zooooom. ZOOOOM.

Two more! That Zeltron and a blue and white-hued Togruta. Well, kark. Their swoop bikes were definitely fast. Faster than her own, unfortunately. But even though her own speed had seem to level out, Ruby put her head down and concentrated on making the upcoming turns.

She didn't really bother with the two racers at her back, which might have been a huge mistake.

But Ruby's tunnel vision was now honing in on Yula's back. “C'mon,” she urged her bike, and it groaned in protest of the speed and blew some more smoke out its exhaust. Grabbing her flail, Ruby began to swing it above her head in a circular motion like a crazy woman. And she let out a growl, “Arrrrrrggggh!” as if to say, 'I'm coming to get yoooou,' if she had been a bit more articulate.

If anything, maybe the others would be scared enough to leave her be.

Because she'd need her focus in order to make the next couple of turns over that chasm. Yikes.

Xan Deesa , Yula Perl , Cassus Akovin , Helena , Tarok Vassket

 

[Helena]

Race Position (6) | The Soundtrack
The Racer | The Swoop
The Weapons: One-handed Bludger | 1 Bowie Knife
Target: Ruby Jaxx​

Having dropped back towards the rear of the pack, Helena let loose a dissatisfied snarl behind the visor of her helmet. There was still plenty of time ahead. A quick glance over her shoulder revealed only one other racer behind - that meant she could focus on what was ahead, at least for now. Gunning on the throttle again her swoop lurched forward, the powerful acceleration threatening to unseat her as she shot towards the racer ahead. They aren't making this easy, she thought to herself. She weaved left, then right, using her nimble control to provide a more difficult target as she closed the distance between herself and the competitor ahead - it looked like that racer was doing her own closing the distance. Pretty soon they'd be a trio. Readying her club, she brought herself closer and closer until she was at the edge of striking distance. Rolling her throttle to wide open she swung hard at the racer nearly beside her, aiming at their arm.

She had to be careful to maintain her own balance, eyes never leaving the track ahead. She'd been goofed up once by an unexpected smoke bomb - not this time. Not only that, but she could see the edges of the track washout into nothing. A chasm. This was one of the more dangerous parts of the track, a fall off the side of that would be... unfortunate. That gave her an idea. A mischievous grin stretched across her obscured features as they rumbled closer to the chasm.

Xan Deesa | Yula Perl | Cassus Akovin | Tarok Vassket​

 

[Xan Deesa]

As Xan fought to get her swoop under control, the other racers blasted past her. One glance behind her confirmed what she suspected. She was in last place...

She liked to think of herself as above feelings such as pettiness. However seeing the other five racers in front of her, outrunning her through the turns, made her feel rather ticked off. A deep frown contorted along her brow behind her visor as the face on the screen switched to match her mood. The throttle twisted and the afterburners activated, causing the ion engines to howl as the swoop blasted forward. Her reflexes and reaction time was tested as she weaved through the twists and turns. She finally gained and quickly closed the distance between her and another racer (Helena). Her left hand let go of the handle and took hold of her electrostaff. As she came up beside her, she extended it towards the girl, hoping to give her a nasty shock before blasting past her.

With a smirk she continued on, swerving through the turns as she got more and more used to the handling of the overeager swoop. However she faltered when she saw the chasm ahead of her. Her momentum managed to keep her from falling in, though the swoop started to swerve violently with the her unable to get it under control.

It launched towards the wall with Xan fighting to get it under control. At the last moment she turned to avoid the wall, but the thrusters freaked out and in a few seconds she was flying through the air with her vehicle. She braced for impact and hid behind the swoop as it crashed through the fence and ploughed through the chairs. She was flung off it and rolled through a walkway, feeling a few thuds against her helmet as some debris collided with her body. When she finally stopped rolling, she sat up with a groan and glanced around. Her visor was completely cracked all over and she could smell electrical smoke in the helmet. With a struggle she pulled the helmet off and dropped it next to her, blinking a few times as she looked around with a daze. Her vision fell on two spectators ( Daiya , Mliss Roo ) sitting uncomfortably close to the fence and with a half-hearted sign she gave a nod. "Sup." she muttered as she sat for a few moments, checking if she broke anything.

Thankfully everything still seemed to be in one piece as she moved around a bit. However the pain was quite evident as she slowly stood up and sat down on a seat that somehow wasn't destroyed. She glanced at the totalled swoop and sighed with defeat. "Was hoping I could take it home after this." she mumbled as she rubbed at her neck. She reached out to her helmet but stopped when she noticed the dents and utterly broken visor throwing sparks. She was rather thankful for the thing, given its state. She likely wouldn't be sitting up at all if she didn't wear it...

Slowly she stood up with a wince and limped up a nearby stairway and sat down next to the spectators. "Don't mind me, just counting my blessings." she muttered with a weak chuckle.

 

[Cassus Akovin]

Cassus bashed against the Zeltron, which seemed to elicit a response from the woman, obviously not pleased by the spiraling cracks in her visor. The boy grinned under the carapace of his own mask, and basically didn't notice when his opponent tossed something onto his shield. He wasn't sure what exactly, and it was kind of hard to focus on driving a Swoop while trying to see what the hell she put on his shield.

He elected to ignore it, refocusing his aggression on the fancy swoop with the feathers. Throttling as much power as he could began to build speed towards turn six. Then, Cassus heard an explosion far behind him and made the mistake of taking a glance. Apparently, one rider's bike wasn't cut out for this kind of intensity and took the fall. Amazingly in the brief moment of observation it looked like whoever was riding it survived.

Impressive. Cassus remembered thinking as his head turned back to see the next two turns... the small patch on his shield however was releasing its chemicals into the air, leaving behind an invisible trail his head had unwittingly put itself in as he took that brief moment to look at the explosion. There was a moment where his handle on the throttle was not as tight as it was, and he could see Yula pulling a bit farther away from him. A sense of... calm washed over him, which seemed at odds with what he was seeing.

Ahead of him, was a massive chasm in the ground, and the track they were following curved until there would be nothing directly beneath the rider as cut through the next two turns with a spiral in the middle. By all accounts he should be sweating in anxious anticipation, but he was feeling focused... he had clarity in his actions. Somehow getting into a flow the boy began to interact with his Swoop Bike like it was second nature. Perhaps slowing down for a moment wasn't such a bad move here, getting across the chasm without messing up the tight turns was going to be more about skill than sheer acceleration.

After his moment of clarity, he found himself already having crossed the terrible chasm without once looking down into the canyon depths, and now saw before him a straight away. Brushing off this momentary chemical distance, he started amping up the adrenaline that had only momentarily lapsed to catch up with the front runner...

Yula Perl (1st), Cassus Akovin (2nd), Tarok Vassket (3rd), Ruby Jaxx (4th), Helena (5th), Xan Deesa (DQ)

 

[Yula Perl]

Despite being slammed into, Yula managed to regain her composure and edge around the next turn without wiping out. As she pulled to the head of the pack by an inch and approached the chasm, the rumble of an explosion shook the track and Yula cringed. It was a stark reminder that she could very well be next, especially so given that she’d overridden most of the security measures of her bike, sacrificing safety for speed.

As she crossed through the stretch of track over the bottomless pit, a faint beeping reached her through her helmet. Once she heard it, it grew louder, the tone reminding her of the exact same noise used on…

“B-bomb!” Gasping, Yula pulled back and instinctively jumped off of her bike, dangling over the abyss by the bike’s right handle. “Chit, chit, chit.” A nervous glance over her shoulder informed her that she wouldn’t survive the drop into the chasm, not with how nauseatingly the canyon stretched down into nothing. She’d take her chances with the bike for now, hoping she’d be able to make it onto more solid ground before it exploded.

In all the chaos, she didn’t stop to think about whether or not this was even a legal move.

With a grunt of exertion, Yula pulled herself back into the seat and took things slower. Using the pronged end of the stiletto on her wrist, she managed to lean forward and unlatch the small, allegedly explosive device from the prow of her bike and toss it over the cliff’s edge. She hadn’t seen who or how it got there, but as she picked up speed, she was mildly surprised to hear nothing but the rumble of bikes and no explosion.

Cassus Akovin | Tarok Vassket | Xan Deesa | Ruby Jaxx | Helena

 

[Darkwire Cultist]

"Oooooh someone just lost a lot of money on Xan!" The Gotal winced as the bike exploded and its rider clambered away without a scratch. "Hopefully she can blend into the crowd before angry gamblers find her neon uniform - hmm." The goat man thought about that statement for a moment before moving on.

"Looks like the chasm has got the racers nervous, Azula has backed way down and it appears our front runner Yula is freaking out over something while dangling over the canyon! This race is already nearly half over, but no one is out of this race yet! Err, well, except Xan of course..."

A race organizer came up into the announcers booth and tapped the alien on the shoulder, who instinctively covered their mike.

"Hey we're live here, what do you want?" The goat man snapped, before the business suit leaned down and whispered into his ear, causing a worried look before a wide grin.

"Still plenty of danger on the track left folks, and it seems like there might not be enough to some people! Look over to No Rush Butte and tell us what you see!" The announcer almost laughed.

Spoiler: Positions and Effects

End of Round 2

1. Yula Perl (higher than ahead and behind, gains 3 turns, and gains 1 Determination Point) 9/16
2. Cassus Akovin (higher than ahead gains 2 turns) 8/16
3. Tarok Vassket (no turns gained) 7/16
4. Ruby Jaxx (higher than behind, gains 1 turn) 6/16
5. Xan Deesa (higher than ahead, gains 2 turns) 6/16 (Disqualified, Bike Explosion)
6. Helena (no turns gained) 4/16

Determination Points:

• Ruby Jaxx (1)
• Yula Perl (1)

Turns 9, 10, and 11 surround a massive Sarlacc Pit. Don't get caught by tentacles!
Turns 11, 12, and 13 surround a Butte. (Gangsters seem to have gotten up there and are aiming to shoot down the front runners! Who hired them?!) Racers starting here next round subtract 3 from their rolls.

 

[Ruby Jaxx]

Ruby turned a glance over her shoulder at the racer creeping up on her. Great. She supposed this was the price she paid for being towards the end of the pack. As she went toward the chasm, she saw Helena raising a club in her direction. “Chit!” She held her arm up to defend herself, and the club hit its mark. She dropped her flail in the process, the metal chain weapon fell down onto the track.

She was soon forced to use both hands, even though her arm was throbbing, to guide her bike across the chasm and the dizzying height. Reaching the other side, she aimed another quick glance behind. She spotted the woman that'd hit her, but it seemed the other racer, Xan had dropped out or something.

Oh well, one less to contend with, right?

Now that they were approaching what appeared to be a huge pit, she only had one weapon left: a stun baton. She'd have to be careful, using it when the best chances were on her side. Ruby couldn't afford to lose it like she did her flail, otherwise she'd have nothing but her wits... and she knew that'd be unfortunate.

Way up a head, it looked like that Zeltron was in first place.

From her own position towards the back, she had quite a gap to cover. She'd press on towards the beginning of the pit, she had her eyes on the prize... and a few paranoid glances behind at Helena.

Cassus Akovin , Yula Perl , Tarok Vassket