Damon wanted to meet with Jax later that night before the race, but by the time Jax got back to the team room with Lilith, he was already half-asleep with an arm draped around the back of Lilith's neck.
"Lilith! Why are you guys back so late! I wanted to discuss the race tomorrow with Jax!" asked Damon in an angry hush. Soraya was already asleep on her bottom bunk.
"Ah, sorry Cap'n," said Lilith, tossing Jax on his cot. "Would it help if I told you I have a gaming addiction?"
"What?! No! Why did you have to take him too?!"
"Well, Bloody Butterfly is running from Enforcers and bounty hunters for a while so I'm only left with Jax…"
"Agh!" Damon pulled at his hair. "There's so many things wrong with that sentence! Why did you keep him up so late?!"
"Do you… wanna wake him up?" asked Lilith, preparing to make a break for it.
"NO," he said quickly, shaking his head. "Unlike some people, I learn my lessons."
"Ouch," Lilith smiled before retreating to her bunk. "Good luck tomorrow, Cap'n!"
Damon groaned. "He'll be okay tomorrow, right?"
"Yeah…" she mumbled, turning in bed. "Just don't wake him up before his alarm."
Even though Jax was still asleep when Damon and Soraya left, he still made it to Studies on time. But the air in the classroom was anything but calm, and the Captain of Team 20—who usually ignored them, now had an excited smile as he watched Damon and the others take their seats.
This is getting interesting. Damon smiled to himself. At least I'm not getting a hated-vibe.
Studies resumed slower than usual as most everyone was just waiting for the session to end. When it did finally end, the entire class made their way to the RS Training Field where the Mini-Prix Sprint track was waiting.
Team Fail and Team 20 broke away from the pack as they each went to their respective team garages.
"Whoa, we have two racers?" asked Damon as they opened the garage door and revealed a brand-new, black, sleek racer next to the broken-down, rusted one.
The narrow racers themselves could fit up to three people and had an engine the size of a bunk-bed encased in the rear, along with the third passenger seat.
"I've never seen this one before…" said Soraya in awe.
Damon put a hand to his chin in thought. "Hmm… maybe this one's Diesel's…"
Jax mumbled and pointed to both racers.
"Which one are we taking?" Soraya translated.
"Well, we probably shouldn't touch Diesel's… so you think you can drive this one?" Damon asked, pointing to the rust heap.
Jax went over and tried turning it on. It whined a couple times before sputtering to life, and then he gave Damon thumbs up before jumping in the driver's seat.
"He said, 'As long as it moves, I can drive it,'" said Soraya.
Damon had a wide smile on his face as he jumped into the seat behind Jax. "Let's go win us a race then!" he shouted over the engine.
"Be careful!" Soraya shouted back.
The Captain just smiled back at her, "See you at the finish-line!"
It took some begging and coaxing, but eventually Damon convinced Soraya to be their team's representative at the finish-line since she was the only one available for Team Fail.
Jax revved the engine and they took off out of the garage to the RS Training Field. Team 20 was already waiting in their starting position by the time Jax took theirs.
"Are you kidding me?" The Captain of Team 20 laughed.
Damon grinned, "Feel free to yield the race if you want."
Corom scoffed, "Let's get this over with."
The entire class, along with a few onlookers from other classes had stationed themselves with a good viewing spot atop the small hill that banked the long length of the straight track. It was a simple track made specifically for these racers, but its length is what tested the skill of each driver. If you looked down the track, it would appear as if it drifted off into eternity at a single point. It was one of the only tracks that spanned the entire length of the MMA campus.
Team 20's Medic and skittish Soraya made their way in front of the two racers to make their announcements.
"The rules are simple," Team 20's Medic shouted to the two racers. "The course is one lap. There and back. Whoever crosses this finish line first is the winner."
The two Captains nodded.
The Medic walked away leaving Soraya in front. She quickly lifted the holopad in front of her face to show the countdown timer that was in sync with the starting lights hanging directly above each driver.
3…
2…
1…
Both tires squealed on the black flattop of the track and a dark-gray cloud completely enveloped Soraya as soon as the racers took off.
It was a good thing Damon had already braced himself against his seat. He could've easily accidently knocked himself out just from the insane acceleration. It wasn't as smooth of a ride as he expected either. The shaking only grew more violent the faster they went.
"Ow! Geez!" There was a clash in the third passenger seat as the door opened and revealed a greasy boy.
"What're you idiots doing with this racer?!" the boy flailed angrily.
"Oh, you must be Diesel!" Damon waved as his hair thrashed about in the wind. "Sorry, we only meant to borrow this for a race!"
"Ugh, you idiots were supposed to take the other racer! I scavenged this one for parts to complete the other one last night!"
"What? Really? How'd you know about our race?"
Diesel turned around and started fumbling with the engine as he grumbled, "I was in the cafeteria yesterday… I saw what happened... Whatever, it doesn't matter, just let me off already!"
"Ha! No way! The fastest way off is to help us win the race now!"
Diesel smashed the tool in his hand against the frame of the racer. "You're kidding, right? This racer is barely running as it is! There's no way you can win in this thing!"
Damon laughed. "Jax can drive anything! Just keep it running!"
Diesel scoffed and grumbled under his breath, "Like I have a choice…" and then went back to making a commotion inside the engine casing.
Next to them, Team 20's racer was already almost a full body's length ahead.
"Can't you make it go any faster?!" Damon shouted behind him.
A mix of banging and curses clashed with the rumble of the engine.
"The engine's about to burst any second!" Diesel yelled back. "Even if we make the turn, the it'll die before we even cross the finish-line!"
"Make the turn… how do we make the turn?!"
"How do we-" Diesel stopped mid-sentence. "You've never been in a racer?"
"Ha! I've never even seen a race before."
Diesel let out a full-blown laugh. "This should be interesting! Just keep your head and arms inside! It's coming up!"
Up ahead, Damon spotted the end of the track but instead of curving for a turn, the track simply vanished.
Team 20 was already far enough ahead that Damon got to watch how they turn. They slowed down some before ejecting large hooks from the front of their racer. It was all about timing and utilizing the racer's momentum. The large hooks snagged on to metal loops cemented in the ground, stopping their front wheels. As soon as the front wheels stopped, a powerful jet sprang their larger back wheels, flipping the racers in the air with its back wheels landing at the edge of the dead-end track. Two seconds later, with the flip complete and the hooks retracted, their racer sped off briskly passing Team Fail in the opposite direction.
"WHAT WAS THAT?! PLEASE DON'T TELL ME WE'RE DOING THAT!" said Damon, in complete shock.
"Get your arms in!" Diesel shouted before quickly closing the engine casing with him inside.
Damon could feel the racer slow down but they weren't going nearly as slow as the other team at this point in the flip.
"No! no! no! no! NOOOAHHHHHH!!" Damon screamed as Jax hooked on to the metal loops and the back-end of their racer went flying through the air.
The feeling of launching straight toward the ground was one of the most terrifying experiences he's ever had. Plus they were going much faster than he thought the racer could handle and the heavy engine hammered the ground when they flipped. The only thing was, he was now seated underneath the racer and he had to duck to keep his head from being shaved off as Jax took off again. This didn't seem right. He had watched the other racer flip their cockpits in mid-air to face up-right again. Why didn't his flip?
"AHHHH!" Damon struggled to keep himself from falling to a skidding death.
Suddenly his seat finally flipped and he was now sitting backwards facing Diesel.
"Sorry 'bout that. I took out the fuse that enabled the seats to automatically flip for the other racer, but it looks like our driver already caught on to that. He's pretty good actually." Damon was still in shock and let out a small laugh. "Anyways, we have a bigger problem…" The racer suddenly jerked and began slowing down. "Aside from losing a few panels, deflating one of the tires and popping one of the fuel injectors in the flip, our engine is dying."
Damon turned around and saw Team 20 getting further and further away. "Is there any way to make this thing move?" he asked.
"Uhh… not unless you want to go really fast..."
Damon gave him a look. "Well… YEAH!"
"…and then blow up…"
Damon frowned. Yeah, that can be a problem...
"Hmm… do the seats eject?"
"Well, yeah but you're not seriously considering that, are you? Steering would be nearly impossible."
"About how fast would we be going?"
"I'd say about 150 gyres..."
Damon turned to Jax and shouted, "Jax! Can you handle 150 gyres in this thing? And if it blows up, you can direct the blast away from the audience, right?"
Jax gave him a thumbs up.
"There you go! Let's do it!"
Diesel bellowed with laughter.
"One rocket coming up!" Then a few moments later he shouted, "Hold on tight!"
Damon braced himself against the back of the seat just as the engine of the racer detonated like a thruster. He couldn't even keep his eyes open enough to see, let alone be able to potentially drive the rocket racer, but somehow they kept going straight, catching up to Team 20 at an exponential rate.
He could barely see the hanging lights that marked the finish line and the scurrying audience that fled further atop the hill.
Just as Team 20 was about to cross the finish-line, Team Fail's rocket whizzed by so quickly that the only thing captured at the photo-finish was a cloud of smoke.
As soon as they crossed, Jax ejected the others. He stayed a moment longer to guide the rocket to a safer detonation area in the empty training lot before ejecting as well.
The mini-chute didn't work as well as they'd hoped, especially since they greatly exceeded the safety speed, but it slowed them down enough not to break any bones.
By the time the three of them got up and the loud boom of the explosion subsided, they heard a quiet cheer coming from atop the viewing hill.
Soraya was already running their way when they each held up a hand to block the bright sun and stare at the cheering crowd. Damon cringed at the sight of her angry flushed face and knew what was coming.
"WHAT WERE YOU GUYS THINKING?!" she shrieked, already examining Jax who was nursing his shoulder. "YOU COULD'VE DIED OUT THERE!"
"Ah- Uh- well... it worked out..." Damon stammered, having never encountered Soraya like this before. Both Jax and Diesel had turned away leaving Damon to speak for all of them.
After a quick glance over all three of them, Soraya was convinced none of their injuries were life-threatening.
"Captain," she said sternly, trying to contain her anger. "I'd like to talk to you later when we're both free."
Before Damon could say anything, she stormed off toward the crowd that was already headed back to class.
Jax turned back to watch the blooming inferno left by the destroyed combustible racer and Diesel watched Soraya storm away until she blended in with the crowd.
The low whine of the emergency services vehicles were already cutting through the crackling blaze.
"Ahh...ha-ha..." Damon chuckled, turning back at the wreak they created. "We should get out of here before we're late for class..."
"Not so fast, Team Fail..." said Class 1B's instructor, Operator Rohir. "You think being on time to class is gonna save you from BRSs after leaving a giant bonfire in the middle of the RS Training field?"
Everyone spun on their heels to find the instructor talking from a team buggy that had crept up on them.
"Aw, crap," said Damon.
Rohir popped the doors open and said firmly, "Get in."
Lilith was all smiles when Damon, Jax and Diesel strolled into the BRS classroom.
"Captain!" she shouted from her back corner desk with a waving hand.
"Shut it, Reid," Rohir said sharply.
Lilith complied but kept her eager smile locked on her team mates. Rohir pointed to various desks around the classroom and made sure everyone was spread out.
"You'll find your BRS assignments when you sign in at the desk and I highly recommend you complete them on time." Rohir added while walking out, "I'm sure Reid can fill you in on what happens if you miss a BRS..."
"Ohhh, trust me-"
Rohir snapped again, "Not NOW, Reid."
"Right, sorry Sir..."
Operator Rohir took one last survey of the classroom before saying, "Get to it," and walked out the door.
When the door slid closed, it was quiet.
"Captaiiaann..." Lilith called in a hushed whisper, cupping her hands around her mouth. "I can't believe you guys won!" Damon was in the center of the classroom staring at his desk when she called. The other members of Team Fail turned to face her as she added with a small frown, "Are you mad you have BRSs the rest of the week?"
Damon finally turned around with a big crazed grin across his face. "Ha-ha! We beat the crap out of Team 20! Why would I be mad?" he laughed. "They better be ready for us in the first round of the tournament!"
Lilith jumped up from her seat and proclaimed, "THAT'S RIGHT! GO TEAM FAIL!"
"YEAH!" Damon cheered with her.
She suddenly realized they weren't alone and asked pointing at Diesel, "By the way, who's that?"
"That's Diesel, our mechanic. He saved our skins in the race."
"Wow, you even found our mechanic, Captain! We're like a real team now!"
Everyone turned to Diesel who was watching quietly from the front corner of the classroom.
"Hmph, I guess I'll help you guys out..." he said, after some internal deliberation. "You're all a lot more interesting than the others around here anyway."
Lilith giggled, "I saw you ogling Soraya at the end..."
"I don't know what you're talking about..." Diesel fidgeted in his seat.
Now that he thought about it, Damon remembered that Soraya often frequented the team garage and mentioned it always looked like someone was just there.
"Have you been hiding out in the team garage the whole time?" Damon asked, interrupting Lilith's laughter.
"Hiding out?" said Diesel, shooting an evil eye at Lilith. "I've lived there the past three years. It's you guys that came intruding."
"You do know you have an actual bed in our team room... don't you?" asked Lilith.
"Yeah," Damon added, "You're part of Team Fail after all. We plan on winning the Performance Tournament this year."
Diesel stared at Damon a moment, determining how serious he was, and then he laughed. "You're kidding, right?"
"Uh, no. Winning the race today was only the first step," said Damon.
"Okay, first of all, we barely won that race. Plus beating the lowest ranking team aside from ourselves can hardly be called a victory."
Damon smiled, "You really think it was just luck that allowed Jax to drive a racer that barely had enough pieces just to move and would never pass safety compliance? Or luck that allowed you to turn a broken engine into a rocket?"
Diesel couldn't retort, he couldn't deny his own skills after all, and Damon added, "I believe in this team... I believe in us... and I believe we can win the tournament."
Lilith and Jax smiled at Damon and Lilith gave Diesel an encouraging nod.
Diesel thought about it. It'd been a while since he provided anything useful to the academy and he knew his luxurious life was in danger of being revoked, but he hadn't been convinced of participating in any team, until today. He knew this Captain was different from the others, and he wanted to see what potential the Captain saw in his team.
"Alright..." Diesel finally decided. "I'll join your team, Damon."
"I'm-uh... Captain... Damon..."
Diesel crossed his large, buff arms and narrowed his brown eyes on the Captain of Team Fail.
"But Damon is my name..." he said meekly.
"By the way," said Lilith. "When are we gonna get Soraya to join us in a BRS?"
Damon laughed nervously, "I don't we should strive to have our entire team in BRSs the first week of school, Lilith. As it is, I have a feeling I'm gonna get an earful from her later..."
Meanwhile, back in class...
"Medic Ralston, where's the rest of your team?" asked Instructor Deckard during the second segment of the day, Team Building.
Soraya flinched at the sound of her name and cowered in the back of the classroom. "Th-they're all indisposed... Sir..." she mumbled behind her open holoscreen.
Deckard opened the day's lesson and said with his back turned, "Congratulations on inheriting all of Team Fail's assignments."
"Y-yes, Sir..."
Later that evening, Damon got the earful he was expecting about his recklessness inside the team room. When Soraya stormed out to the team garage to cool down, Jax, Lilith and Diesel quickly fled back to the team room.
"Yeesh, Soraya's pretty scary when she comes out of her shell..." said Lilith sitting at the table in the center of their small room.
Diesel nodded, "I've never seen her like that before."
Lilith smiled and asked in a playful tone, "How long have you been stalking her?"
"She's been visiting the garage a lot lately!" Diesel retorted from his cot next to Jax.
"She just needs some time alone," said Damon. He was still reflecting on their conversation at the table in front of Lilith.
"Sure, no prob, I'm in no hurry," said Lilith.
"The thing is," said Damon. "We only have two weeks after this week before the first round starts."
"What! Already?"
"Yeah, I'm not sure how they're doing it this year either, considering there's an extra team this year."
"Is there a way they always do it?"
This time Diesel answered, "Apparently it's always been elimination by squad and then class in the past."
"We won't know more until the day of," said Damon. "We need to start training now though."
"I'm not so big on the whole training thing..." said Diesel, nonchalantly flexing his massive bicep muscles. "It's always been an abstract concept for me."
"Me too! Me too!" Lilith agreed waving a hand in the air.
"Training isn't optional for you," said Damon sternly to Lilith. "Diesel... I guess I'll tell Soraya to skip your weekly medical check-up. I'll just tell her to practice on Jax twice a week instead..."
Diesel suddenly became very serious. "What is she practicing twice on Jax? I-I was just saying it's been a while since I've 'trained', so I might be a little rusty. Can this guy even talk?" He changed the subject and pointed to Jax with a jab of his thumb.
"Yeah, he's an Inflex so apparently you have to learn how to listen to him... or somethin' like that," Damon trailed off.
"So you can't hear him either, huh?" asked Diesel.
Damon scoffed with a fake smile. "Not yet..." he confessed.
Jax shrugged and Lilith laughed, "You still can't hear him yet, Cap?"
For some reason it aggravated him. "I'm sure I'm not the only one who's taken so long!"
She thought about it, "Hmm... I wonder if you're one who will never be able to understand him…"
"There are people who can never understand him?" asked Damon.
"Yeah, there's actually only a few who can… but usually the people he wants to hear him, can."
Does that mean Jax doesn't want to communicate with me?
He turns back to Jax who just shrugs again. There was no point on dwelling on it now and he shook his head.
"Just forget it," he said. "Look, we're starting team practice again next week so everyone has to take care of their BRS tasks before then!" he announced to the room, making eye contact with each of them.
Jax and Diesel both nodded so Damon stared at Lilith, waiting for a response. She finally caught on to his glare and flapped a lazy hand in the air, "Yeah-yeah, got it, Cap."