Death In the Race

As I hinted last week, someone is about to die. To the story!
***********
“Maxx is fine!” Amy insisted. Hacker refused to listen and continued to explore Maxx’s inner workings. It was the day of the Race, they were at the track, and Hacker still thought it was important to give Maxx one last look over.

“Aren’t you also the mechanic for Jay’s other Racer?” she asked. “Bluebird? Shouldn’t you be just as concern for him as well?”

“I’m not his mechanic,” Hacker said, rolling farther under Maxx. Her program was in his normal sports car form, since it was easier for Hacker to look at him that way. “A good Sponsor never has a mechanic working on two Racers. Don’t you know that?”

“No,” she snorted. “The other mechanics wouldn’t let me stand over their shoulders as they worked on him. Seemed to think that it was distracting.”

“They’re probably right,” Hacker grumbled. “Now, leave me alone to work!”

Amy sighed, sitting down on the edge of a desk. She had no inclination to join the other Racers in the warming hut that had been provided for them. The hanger that they were in was filled with other programs and mechanics, each busy doing their own thing. Amy ignored the strange looks she got from the other mechanics. It was unusual for a Racer to be among them as they got ready for the Race.

They just have to get used to the fact that I like to know what’s going on with my program, she thought, trying hard not to think of that line of code that could have killed her.

“Ah, there you are!”

Amy half turned to see that Jay was approaching. He was bundled up and had a red face. He also carried something that was purple and red. She had a sinking feeling that she knew what it was.

“Cold outside?” she guessed.

“Freezing,” he confirmed. He tossed the something at her. She caught it and held it out at arm’s length. It was a winter jumpsuit, complete with too much padding and bulky extra weight.

She didn’t say anything about it though. She had been practicing for the last two days in such gear in the cold, on the snowy track. Without a word, she unzipped it and put it on.

“Amy,” Jay sighed as she struggled to get her arms in. “Most Racers put on their suits in private.”

“I’m already in a jumpsuit,” she said, finally getting her hands through. “This is just going over.”

“Still,” he argued. “It’s about decency… Maybe some respect?”

She snorted, zipping her suit up. “Respect? If I got some respect, they’d leave me alone and I can go to school without having to be a Racer too.”

Jay shook his head, though he was smiling. He seemed to do that a lot when he was around her. “You’re defiantly different.”

“Different?” Maxx asked, turning his front wheels towards them. “She’s more that different. She’s special.”

“Thank you, Maxx,” she said. “I appreciate that you think of me in that way.”

“Special as in one of a kind,” Maxx went on. “As in needs help. I mean, what Racer in their right mind goes to college while Racing? My Racer has a thing for pain, I fear.”

Amy scowled as Jay, Maxx, and Hacker laughed at her. “Funny,” she muttered. “Real funny. So funny that I forgot to laugh.”

“Don’t take him so seriously,” Jay chuckled, putting his hand on her shoulder. She immediately brushed it off. “He’s only trying to break up the tension. You always get so uptight before a Race.”

“How would you know?” she asked, glaring at him. “This it the first time that I’ve Raced with you as my Sponsor.”

“Maxx told me.”

“Maxx!”

“What?” her program asked. “Is it wrong for me to warn our Sponsors of your little problems?”

“Being uptight before a Race isn’t a problem,” she started to argue.

“AMY!”

Amy had enough time to turn around to see who had yelled her name when someone threw herself at her, locking her arms around her neck. “I can’t believe it!” the woman said. “It’s really you!”

“Sally?” Amy managed to gasp out.

Her high school friend laughed, letting go and taking a step back. She didn’t look any different. She still had that cheerful personality and a smile on her lips. She was dressed for the weather, in a thick coat, scarf, and boots. Her cheeks and nose were red from the cold but that didn’t stop her from smiling.

“Sally!” Amy laughed, hugging her friend. “What are you doing here?”

“To watch you Race!” Sally squealed. “I was shocked -absolutely shocked!- when I learned that you were a Speeder. Why didn’t you tell us?”

“Well,” Amy said, flinching a bit. “I didn’t want to be a Speeder…”

Sally laughed, hugging her again. “Silly you! Not wanting to be Talented… But you were discovered! Now you’re in the Circuit! Making the best of life! If only all of us were so lucky!”

Amy forced herself to grin for her friend. So lucky? What was so lucky about having the Circuit control her life? With the power to end it? In truth, Amy was more terrified about being in the Circuit than ever before.

“How are classes?” she asked, quickly changing the subject.

“They’re going great!” Sally giggled. “I love doing research. And I’m part of a work study, so I’m getting some cash on the side…” She laughed again. “Though probably not as much as you.”

“Probably not,” Jay agreed. Sally blinked in surprise, staring at him as if she just noticed him. Knowing Sally, she probably did just notice him.

“Oh,” Amy said, gesturing at Jay. “My Sponsor, Jason Torgenson.”

“Call me Jay,” he said, holding out his hand. Sally shook it, smiling.

“Jay,” she said. “I’m Sally.”

“So I gathered,” Jay pointed out. “You’re a good friend of Aims?”

“Since we were little,” Sally giggled. “We’re like sisters from other mothers.”

Amy felt a pang of regret when Sally said it. If they were really close friends, she would have tried to get a hold of her earlier. They shouldn’t be meeting again like this, in a hanger right before a Race.

“Maxx checks out,” Hacker said, rolling out from under him. “You shouldn’t have any problems with him out on the track.” He stood up, wiping his oily hands on a dirty rag. His face and clothes were smudged with grease and his hair was messed. “I’d still…”

Whatever she was still supposed to do was lost as Hacker and Sally met eyes and froze. Sally also froze, her chatter suddenly cut off as she gazed at the messy mechanic. Amy switched her gaze between the two of them, a little too familiar with the look in both their expressions.

“Love at first sight?” Jay quietly asked her, also glancing between the two.

“Sally falls in love easily,” she muttered back, knowing that neither of them could hear them. “This is the first I’ve seen someone fall in love with her this fast as well.”

Slowly, the two approached each other, their eyes locked on each other. They stopped within inches of each other. Hacker’s jaw was dropped and Sally started to smile.

“Hi,” Sally said breathlessly. “I’m Sally.”

“Christopher,” he said softly.

“Christopher?” Amy repeated, glaring at the mechanic. “You never told me your name.”

Hacker didn’t even seem to notice her accusation.

“Here for the Race?” he asked her friend.

“My friend is Racing,” Sally answered. “I’m here to support her.”

Hacker smiled. “Would you like to watch it with me? Mechanics have a special places to watch.”

She smiled back. “I’d love to.”

“Aims,” Hacker said, not even looking at her as he walked away with Sally at his side. “Maxx is fine. You’ll do great.”

The two left, gazing deeply into the other’s eyes, talking in soft tones.

“Wonderful,” Amy muttered, glaring at the two. “My mechanic is love sick with my best friend. Now he won’t concentrate on the Race!”

“You’ll be fine,” Jay assured her, patting her back. “Hacker might be distracted right now, but he’ll pay attention. He’s put too much effort into Maxx to see something he’s worked on to fail.”

At that moment, other Racers started to enter into the hanger, getting onto their programs.

“It’s time for the Race,” Jay observed. “Good luck.”

Amy rolled her eyes. Luck had nothing to do with it. It was skill. “Maxx,” she commanded, “snowmobile.”

Crack!

Putting her helmet on, she got onto Maxx, rolling him out with the other Racers. Another Race. She just needed to win this one and the next, and she’ll be in the Finals.

One step closer to retiring.
************
Jay sat up with the rest of the Sponsors, easily concealing his nervousness. This would be Amy’s first Race without that line of code that could kill her. While Hacker never mentioned it to the Racer, he had told him that the reason he was so worried about Maxx was because a line of his code had been broken. Hacker had no idea what that could have done to the rest of his program. Jay agreed that Amy shouldn’t know about that. She had enough on her plate already.

Maybe Maxx is right, he thought as he watched the Racers line up at the starting line. Amy has a thing for pain.

He easily spotted her in the middle of the pack, her posture betraying her tension.

“Well, well, well,” someone laughed behind him, clapping him on the shoulder. “Nervous for the Race?”

Jay forced a smile, turning to the other Sponsor. It was Jim Edmunds, one of his father’s many contracts. One of the many businessmen that had been part of that meeting that Amy spied on. One of the many who planned her death.

“Why should I be nervous?” Jay asked, easily hiding his disgust for the man. “I have Bluebird and Aims. They’re both favorites for the Final.”

“Ah,” Jim chuckled, glancing out the window at the track. The Sponsors had their own special warming hut to watch the Race, including hot drinks and snacks to warm up on. “But I just bought Silver Fox’s contract. She’s won three years in a row. Some say that she’s up for retirement soon.”

That is if you don’t kill her first, Jay thought bitterly. Amy might have had a point when she expressed her concern for her fellow Racer. It always seemed that the favorite Racers never got to retire. They all either had a program defect that prevented them from Racing the Final or they died in a horrible accident.

I’ve got to do something, Jay thought. I’ve got to stop this slaughter. How, though, was the question.

“I don’t know,” Jay said to Jim. “Aims and Bluebird are really good. They’ll probably give Silver Fox a run for her money.”

“Keep dreaming, boy!” Jim laughed, slugging his arm. “You’re new to this. Once you’ve been through a few Finals as a Sponsor, maybe you’ll learn the whole of it.”

You actually mean that you’ll let me into your little meetings, Jay translated. He wondered if his father would actually allow that. After all, he was Talented. An Oath Maker in that group could destroy them.

That sparked an idea.

“RACERS!” the commentator announced. “START YOUR ENGINES!”

The Race was about to begin.

Red. Yellow. Orange. Green.

The streaks of color started. Jay pretended to be indifferent about which of his Racers that he wanted to win, but his eyes were constantly on Amy. He wondered how it was like for her, Racing with others who had her same Talent. She had grown up not knowing other Speeders so she never got used to others who could go at the same speed as her. He could kind of relate. With the exception of his mother, he had never met another Oath Maker.

And he suspected that his mother never knew that she was Talented until after she had married his father.

He wondered if she would have agreed to the marriage if she knew.

As soon as the Racers were out of their sights, he switched his gaze to the screen in the hut. Of course, the commentator was loud as he gave a blow by blow account of what was actually happening. Jay knew that the man had practiced for many years of following the Races to have such a position.

“And Bluebird takes the lead!”

Jay frowned. It wasn’t usual for Bluebird to take the lead. The young man had studied Racing all his life, preparing himself to enter the Circuit. He wasn’t the type to take the lead early on. He usually would have waited until the latter half of the Race to do that.

“What are you doing?” he asked softly, noticing Bluebird’s blue and black streak flash across the screen.

“And now Roadster is coming up from behind! Roadster was a surprise this year by finally managing to get to this series of Races. After winning a few secondary rounds, he was able to move up. A first in his long career at the Circuit.”

Jay glanced towards Roadster’s Sponsor, Jim. The man seemed very pleased that one of his Racers was finally getting into the winning circle. The businessman didn’t have much luck when it came to Racers. He always seemed to pick the worst. However, he now owed Silver Fox. Why Williams sold her contract to him was a mystery to Jay.

“And they’re neck in neck,” the commentator went on, heedless of anyone’s private thoughts. “It’s too early to tell, but we might have a close call for the winner…”

Jay snorted at that thought. There were only four real hopefuls for the Final that year. And he owed the contract for two of them.

BANG!

The hut went dead silent, the shock hitting them just as fast as the Racers. The speeding streaks came to a halt, slowing down to avoid the run in. Jay felt frozen to the spot as he watched rescue officials rush to the scene of burning vehicles. It was a sight that was seen too often in the Races. This wasn’t the first that season, but it was the first that was being broadcast.

“Well, folks,” the commentator said, “we’ll cut to commercial and get back to what is developing.”

The screen switched to an obnoxious commercial about cat food. Jay quickly glanced out the window, satisfied to see that both mechanics were out rushing out to the scene, Bluebird’s mechanic easily outstripping Hacker. Not that Jay blamed the man. Hacker wasn’t the one who just watched his Racer blow up.

Jay wanted to so badly to go out and see what was going on, but he remained put. The other Sponsors also lingered in the hut. It would be unseemly if a Sponsor went out to see if their Racers were alright. Especially in this weather. However, staying still grated on him. He wanted to know if Bluebird was all right. He might not be as close to Bluebird as he was with Amy, but he still considered the young man something of a friend. They shared many interests. It would be terrible if something happened to him.

It always happens this way, he thought, standing out the window as he waited for the news to come to them. I get to know a new Talented and they get hurt. Sometimes they got more than hurt. Jay had known for a while that something was wrong, the way that the Talented always seemed to get into accidents, but now he suspected that there was something worse afoot.

“Welcome back to the Race Circuit coverage of today’s race,” the commentator said, the commercials ended to show the man standing at the scene of the crash. Officials still crowded the scene, Bluebird’s and Roadster’s mechanics working in the background. He caught no sight of either of the Racers.

“A tragic accident today,” the commentator said sadly. “We’ve lost a Racer today. Roadster was thirty two years old. His career was mostly considered a failure but that didn’t stop him from loving his job as a Racer…”

Jay stopped listening, glancing over to Jim. The man had a small smirk on his lips, nodding in satisfaction.

Jay felt a chill in his blood. That was no accident. Roadster was planned to die today.

I hope Amy is alright, he thought, glancing back up at the screen. Bluebird was on a stretcher, his leg bloodied by the explosion. All things considering, he looked well. He wasn’t even white with pain.

“Race Circuit Officials have decided that a new Race will happen in a months time,” the commentator said. “No winner will be crowned today. For today, we will mourn the loss of one great Racer.”

Finally, other Sponsors started to leave. He didn’t bolt out of there, but he quickened his step. Although he desperately wanted to check on Amy, he knew that he had to check on Bluebird first. An emergency tent had been set up near the warming huts, and he could hear the screams from inside. Picking up his pace, he got there, just in time to see the doctors snap Bluebird’s leg back into place.

Bluebird screamed, his face finally white with pain. Jay swallowed his own bile, promising himself that he would not throw up at the sight of blood. His promise triggered his Talent and he was able to come to his Racer’s side.

“How is he?” he asked the doctor who was working on him.

“He’s lucky,” the doctor huffed, snapping at a nurse to give him a tool. “I’ll be able to save the leg, but I’m afraid that he’s going to be out for the rest of the season.”

“Great,” Bluebird grumbled, gritting his teeth. “There goes this year’s Final.”

“There are other Finals,” Jay assured him, putting his hand on the young man’s shoulder. “Let’s concentrate on getting you well. You’re going to survive this.”

Bluebird managed a weak smile. “Thanks, Jay,” he said, tears in his eyes. “It’s nice to know that you’re there for me.”

Jay smiled back and patting the man’s shoulder again before leaving. He had no place in an emergency tent. He went then for the hanger where the Racers were coming back in. He took note that Amy hadn’t returned yet. He looked down the track, noticing that Hacker was walking back alone.

“Hacker?” he asked, coming up to the mechanic. “Where’s Amy?”

“Back there,” Hacker sighed, rubbing the side of his face. “She’s fine but she’s really shaken up by this. I left to give her some time alone.”

“I’ll go see her,” Jay said. “She probably needs a friend right now.”

“She needs another promise,” Hacker told him sternly. “She doesn’t want to die in the Circuit, Jay. This accident only proves that someone else controls her life. She needs assurance that she isn’t going to die.”

“I’ll do that,” Jay told him. “Now, I suggest that you get ready to leave. I don’t think any of us want to stay here any longer than we have to.”

Hacker nodded and walked off. Taking a deep breath, Jay walked down the snowy track, trying to ignore the rising smoke in the distance. After walking for fifteen minutes, he came across Amy. She sat in a snow bank, her knees curled up to her chest. Maxx was parked beside her. He was no longer a snowmobile, but in her favorite form of a silver sports car. As he approached, she looked up, tears streaming down her face.

“Roadster’s gone,” she said softly, her chin quivering. “They killed him, didn’t they? They probably tired to take out Bluebird too.”

“Probably,” he answered truthfully and calmly. Although he too wanted to lash out, he wasn’t. Someone needed to be strong.

“They want to kill me,” she sobbed, shivering, though not from the cold.

“I won’t let them,” Jay said firmly. “I promised you. I won’t let them hurt you.”

Amy glanced up and met his eyes. It hurt him so much to see the terror in her expression, the fear of dying. Without warning, she shot up and threw her arms around his neck. She sobbed on his shoulder, a rasping sound in his ears. Jay gently put his arms around her, patting her back.

“I promise,” he whispered, trying to give her some comfort. “I won’t let them hurt you.”
***********
I hope everyone has been enjoying the story so far. Enjoy the journey!

Finals and Training

Not interested in doing intro right now. To the story!
**********
Amy really hated how miserable finals were. There was so much to remember, so many projects to get done, and so little time to do it.

And, of course, there was a major Race right after finals too.

“Why do they do this to me?” she muttered as she studied with her friends in the library. “School piles on the work load and Jay insists that I train more for the Race coming up…”

“Sounds like you put this on yourself,” Aaron said. He lounged as she and Natalie poured over their books. As a Talented in Chemistry, he didn’t need to study. The only reason he was in their classes was to prove that his Talent was strong enough in the basics. Once they hit their third year of class, he would be moved into higher classes, ones designed especially for Talented. However, until that time, he spent his spare time helping them study.

“I did not!” she insisted, jotting down an answer to the test study.

He raised an eyebrow. “Really?” he asked, stretching and putting his hands behind his head. “If I had been in your position, I’d retire from the Circuit first and then attend classes.”

Amy snorted, rolling her eyes. “Yeah, and then I’d be in my late twenties when I finally had my degree. I want to get out of school as fast as possible.”

“If you wanted to do that,” Natalie said, looking up from her text book, “why don’t you use your Talent to study?” She sighed, looking back down at the book. “I’d give anything learn this faster.”

“Because I can’t be fast all the time,” Amy answered, flipping through her notes to find another answer. “That would wear me out.”

“You can’t be fast all the time?” Aaron asked with a frown. “What does that mean?”

Amy glanced up from her work, frowning at him. “You’re Talented,” she remarked. “You should know that you can’t trigger your Talent all the time. You’ll burn out. Everyone knows that.”

“But what does that have to do with studying?” he asked. “In a few minutes, you’ll have done the work it would take you hours.”

“Yeah,” she said, rolling her eyes. “And forget it even faster.”

Natalie glanced up again, looking just as confused as Aaron. “Forget it faster?” she asked. “What do you mean by that?”

“Think about it,” she told them, “you’re going to spend hours memorizing it, but if you don’t use it, you’re going to forget it. And that’s with normal people. They’ve done studies on Speeders and what they can and can’t be fast at. Yes, I could use my Talent to study faster, but the rate at which I will forget it will also be sped up. There are some things that are better left done slowly and normally.”

“Got that,” Aaron noted. He then paused to think. “Have you ever used your Talent to study?”

“Once,” Amy admitted. “I was in the fourth or fifth grade when I did it. I was studying for a spelling test but I really wanted go out and play, but Mom wouldn’t let me go out until I knew the words. So, I used my Talent. Mom tested me, I passed, and I went out to play. The next day when I took the actual test, I failed miserably. I’ve never made that mistake again.”

Aaron laughed, tilting his chair back onto two legs. “Wow. I’m glad that my Talent doesn’t do that to me.” Amy spared him a glare before she returned to her study guide. For the next hour, she and Natalie scowered their notes, occasionally asking Aaron some questions, and trying to get as many answers as they possible could.

Bzzt! Bzzt! Bzzt!

Amy groaned. Reaching into her backpack, she pulled out her cellphone. Jay had insisted that she carry one shortly after he bought her contract. Checking to see who was calling, she wasn’t surprised to see who it was. Pushing the talk button, she put the phone to her ear.

“What do you want?” she asked abruptly, holding the phone to her ear by her shoulder as she struggled to write down another answer.

“Pleasant as always,” Jay said, his tone not the least offended by her rude answering. “You anywhere close to being done?”

“Why?” she asked, not willing to tell him the truth. She only had a few questions left to answer. “This test is important to me.”

“And it’s important to me that you survive the Circuit,” Jay answered without missing a beat. “Once you’re done, come down to Hacker’s shop. He wants to do a full diagnostic of Maxx before your Race next Saturday.”

“Give me a half hour,” she insisted. “Then we’ll be there.”

“Half hour then,” Jay agreed. “I’ll order pizza. Bye!”

Click.

She sighed, putting her phone away. Lately, Jay had been more affectionate than normal. It wasn’t outright hitting on her, but she could feel that he was trying to worm something out from under his promise to her.

“Your Sponsor again?” Aaron asked, his face darkening a bit.

“Yep,” she grumbled, thumping her head on the table. “He wants Maxx to be checked out before the Race.”

“He’s a bit possessive, isn’t he?” Natalie noted.

She sighed again, lifting her head. “I wouldn’t call it that,” she admitted. “More like trying to keep up with his part of a deal.” And she wouldn’t complain about it. Jay had promised to help keep her alive. To help her retire. To live her dreams. She wondered why he didn’t ask for anything in return for his deal. Sometimes Hacker hinted that Jay had a crush on her, but she brushed that off. No male ever found her crush worthy.

“Sponsors are weird,” Natalie concluded. “They live in their own little worlds.”

Amy couldn’t argue there.

As soon as she was done with her last question, Amy bid her friends goodbye and left. Maxx was right where she had parked him. Since people discovered that she drove Maxx to school, he had a tendency to move around the parking lot, keeping people guessing where he might be and to break up the day.

“Jay called?” he guessed as she got into him. Today’s form was a simple car, one of many in the parking lot. The only difference was that Maxx didn’t have a lock.

“Yep,” she told him, his engine revving. “He wants Hacker to check you out before the Race.”

“Good plan,” Maxx agreed. “I don’t want to accidently kill you.”

It had been a joke between them since the “kill” code had been broken. They’d tease each other about how Maxx could destroy them both at any moment. Amy knew she should have been bothered by that code, but Maxx’s joking helped ease that fear. It was a way to mock the Circuit’s attempt on her life. A way to show each other that the Circuit no longer had a hold on them.

Driving to Hacker’s shop was a familiar route now. Every other week she and Maxx were in the shop, often with her wearing that funny device on her scar. She would have complained about it if she didn’t notice a difference in Maxx. He had always been an awesome car, but once Hacker was done with his checkups, Maxx ran smoother, turned better, and overall preformed better. She put up with it to make Maxx even better.

Arriving to the shop, she drove right in. Hacker, of course, was at his computer. Surprisingly, Jay wasn’t there.

“Where’s the Sponsor?” she asked as she got out of Maxx.

“Getting pizza,” Hacker answered, staring intently at his screen. “It was easier for him to go get it than have it delivered. He should be back soon.”

Amy shrugged it off. It wasn’t unusual for Jay to pick up dinner for them. She would hate to admit it to anyone, but she enjoyed suppers at the shop, joking around with Jay and Hacker about unthreatening things. It helped her forget that she was in danger.

“Are you ready for the Race coming up?” Hacker asked, spinning his chair away from the computer and over to Maxx.

“As ready as we’ll ever be,” Maxx answered, opening his hood up for the mechanic. “Amy’s a great driver and your tune-ups have made me the best program in the Circuit. We have a really good chance of getting into the next series.”

And if we win the next series, Amy thought, then we’ll be in the finals. That was how it worked. Win any of the top three spots in all four series and you were qualified for the Finals in spring. The five other Circuits around the world held their own series, some with more series, others less, but the goal was all the same. Reach the Finals.

I’m always focused on the next Race, the next test… Her life was way too hectic.

“And I’ve returned!”

Hacker glanced up from his work in Maxx’s engine. Jay walked into the shop, carrying a few boxes of pizza, one for each of them plus one more. Amy was amazed at just how much these two boys could put down their gullet.

“As usual,” he said, putting the pizzas down on an empty counter. “There’s pepperoni for Hacker.” The mechanic quickly grabbed his box from Jay, rolling his chair back to his computer. “BBQ chicken for Amy,” he said, handing her a smaller box for her. She took it and then sat down on the couch. “And meat lovers for me,” Jay finished, brining his box over so he could sit next to her on the couch. “Sorry, Maxx. I didn’t bring you anything.”

“No need,” Maxx declared. “Just so long as you keep providing me some of that high grade oil, I’ll be fine.”

They all laughed at that.

The next few minutes were silent as they ate their pizzas. Amy had to admit that it was nice that Jay always got dinner for them. The more she got to know him, the more Amy realized that Jay was actually a nice guy. Still annoying, but nice.

“How are your finals coming?” Jay asked after the first few slices of pizza were gone. “Stressing out yet?”

“A bit,” she admitted. “It’s a good thing that I have Aaron and Natalie to study with. I doubt that I could get through classes without them.”

“Study buddies are nice to have,” Jay said, picking up another slice of his pizza, “but I always preferred to study alone.” He took a bite, his face thoughtful. “Though,” he said after swallowing, “I suppose that has something to do with the promise I made not to cheat.”

“Studying with others was considered cheating?” she asked. Jay didn’t talk about his Talent very often. She also noticed that he worded things carefully. The way he promised things always left a loophole for both him and the person he was making the promise with. It must have been a difficult childhood for him, learning how to use his Talent and not letting the Talent use him. It made her Talent seem good natured.

“Yes and no,” he answered. “Studying with others wasn’t cheating, but if they gave me an answer that I couldn’t study myself, then my Talent would kick in and I’d forget it. It was awful.”

“I can imagine,” she sighed. She glanced briefly at Hacker. He was still devouring his pizza, though his eyes were locked onto the computer screen. “I’ve met more people in the last six months who’ve wanted to hide their Talents than I would have figured. I had always thought that I was the only weird one who didn’t want my Talent known.”

“I’m not surprised,” Jay said blandly. “I’ve met several Talented who don’t want others to know about their Talents. A few Speeder, who like you, didn’t want to join the Circuit. There’s Hacker there and others who use their Talents for not so legal things. There are even a few Talented whose Talents are so strange, most people honestly don’t think that it is a Talent.”

“Like yours,” Amy said.

He shrugged. “You have to admit, an Oath Maker is a pretty unusual Talent.”

Unusual was right. She had never heard of such a Talent until she met Jay. Maybe her friend Sally was right. There were a lot of Talents out there that no one knew about and that they were so unusual that people didn’t consider them Talents.

Suddenly she sighed. When was the last time she talked with Sally? It had been over eight months since she last saw her friend. Sally was attending the Tech Institute here in Acro City and Amy hadn’t bothered to look her friend up. She had been great sending mail back and forth with Mom, but Sally she let slip through.

I wonder how she’s doing, she thought.

“What’s the sighing for?” Jay asked.

“I just realized something,” she muttered. “I’m not a very good friend.”

He frowned. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Yeah,” Maxx chimed in. “You’re my best friend! And you take good proper care of me!”

Amy chuckled. “I have a friend from high school that I haven’t seen,” she told them. “She lives here in the city going to a different school and I haven’t bothered to look her up.”

“Ah,” Jay said, understanding. “I see. Why haven’t you?”

It was Amy’s turn to shrug. “Probably because I didn’t want her to know that I’m a Racer now.” She paused, remembering all the news about her since her stunt nearly a month and a half ago. “Though she’s probably figured it out by now.”

“Then she hasn’t come to see you,” Jay noted.

“I guess I’m not good at keeping friends,” Amy sighed.

“I wouldn’t say that,” Jay said, smiling slightly. “You’re my friend.”

Amy started a bit at his statement. Staring at him for a moment, she started to share that slight smile. Yes. He was a friend, wasn’t he?
**********
“UGH!”

Amy and Aaron once again waited outside the classroom for Natalie to finish her final. As usual, Aaron was the first one out and Amy was in the middle of the pack. They waited for their friend to finish her final, since she was usually one of the last students out.

“That test was terrible!” Natalie wailed as she came out. “I think I failed it!”

“Don’t worry,” Amy said, putting an arm around her friend’s shoulder. “You probably didn’t. All your other scores would make up for whatever you missed.” She shot a mocking glare at Aaron. “That one, however, I think might have failed miserably. I mean, he shot out of the classroom fast enough that you’d would thought that he was glad to be out from his horror as fast as possible.”

“What about you?” Aaron accused teasingly. “I thought there for a few times that you used your Talent to get through a question faster.”

“Only on the essay ones.”

This managed to cheer Natalie up a bit and they headed out for lunch. They had one last final, for their lab, that afternoon. Amy was looking forward for that test to be done. It meant a month long break. Her next big Race was that Saturday and then the next one wouldn’t happen for a while yet. She had gotten permission from the Circuit to spend the break with her Mom. It was a welcoming break that she desperately needed.

“Are you nervous for the upcoming Race?” Aaron asked as they went into the cafeteria.

“A bit,” she admitted. “I’ve had finals to worry about and the big Race on top of that… Maxx wants me to train more but I just haven’t had the time to do it.”

“Will you be ready?” Natalie asked.

“Should be,” she answered. “People tell me that I’m a natural at Racing. My only competition should be Bluebird and Silver Fox.”

Aaron whistled softly. “Bluebird I can see you beating, but Silver Fox? She’s won the last three Finals. There’s a lot of people who compare her with your dad.”

For some reason, that sent a chill through Amy. Her Dad had been killed by the Circuit. She wasn’t sure why they decided to kill him, nor how they managed to make it look like an accident, but it still bothered her. It was always in the back of her head, pricking at her thoughts at odd times.

They killed him for a reason, she thought. They didn’t want him to retire. Did they want the same for all Racers? Preventing them all from retiring. She knew her own life was in danger from the Circuit. She had grown too popular too fast. They wanted her gone.

Would they want the same from Silver Fox?

“Oh look!” Natalie said, snapping her out of her disturbing thoughts. “They brought the ice cream machine back! I’m starving!”

“Always thinking of sweets,” Aaron teased her. Amy could only half smile. Ice cream was always nice, but she had troubles on her mind.
************
Her last final was done and Amy was dreading the next couple of days preparing for the upcoming Race. Aaron and Natalie both understood as she bolted for Maxx, knowing that she had to catch up on her training. They promised to be at the Race to cheer her on and then to have a party after her victory.

Amy had to get across the finish line first.

Bundled up in her coat, she hurried for Maxx. It had turned cold as finals approached, making everything seem that much more miserable. Oh, what she wouldn’t give to have a normal life, be like her friends to enjoy their winter break. But no! She was also a Racer. Races had to trained for. There wasn’t going to be much of a moment to rest until after the Race.

Coming to Maxx, she was a bit surprised to find someone waiting there for her.

“Jay?” she asked, frowning. “What are you doing here?” She glanced around for the car that he usually drove. It was nowhere in sight.

“Oh,” Jay said, sitting on Maxx’s hood. “I’m just waiting for you. Done with your finals?”

“Finally,” she muttered, unconvinced that he was just waiting for her. “What’s going on? Where’s your car?”

“Hacker took it out for a test run,” Jay said dismissively. “I told him that we’d meet back up with him at the track. You need to practice driving in the snow.”

“Snow?” she asked, glancing up at the sky. Though the weather had turned cold, she had yet to see snow in the city. “Where?”

“The Circuit has some artificial snow,” Jay explained. “How are you driving a snowmobile?”

“Never driven one.”

“Best then to practice!” he exclaimed, opening Maxx’s door for her. “Shall we go?”

Amy raised an eyebrow. His actions were almost hitting on her…. “Did you find a way out from our agreement?” she asked as she got into Maxx. “You’re hitting on me.”

Jay laughed, leaning down a bit so he could look her in the eye. “I’m not hitting on you,” he said, winking. “I’m being friendly. We are friends, after all.”

Amy rolled her eyes as he shut the door and walked around to get in on the other side. So he had found a loophole finally. She shrugged it off. She would just need to get him to promise something else to make his flirting stop for good.

However, that was something that was going to wait. Maxx already had the directions to the track and they drove for it.

“Hey, Jay,” she said as they drove out of the city limits. “Do you think that the business men have planned the deaths of all the Racers?”

Jay jumped a bit in surprise by her question. “I think so,” he admitted. “But I don’t think that they’ll do it unless necessary. Why do you ask?”

“I don’t know,” she started to say when she decided that she was being untruthful. “I guess I’m just worried about the other Racers.”

“Worried how?” he asked. “They’re doing what the Circuit wants. I don’t think that they’re in any danger.”

“Maybe,” she half heartily agreed. “But… Silver Fox said something to me once. That I shouldn’t get noticed. Or something to that effect. I think she was trying to warn me about the danger.”

Jay frowned. “Really?” he asked. “How would she know about it?”

“She has been in the Circuit for a long time,” Amy pointed out. “And she’s seen a lot of Racers die. On top of that, she’s going on to try to win her fourth Final, something that hasn’t been done since my Dad was alive.”

“You’re worried that the Circuit might target Silver Fox next?” Jay concluded.

Mutely, she nodded. It was strange to hear her thoughts put into words.

“I wouldn’t worry yet,” Jay tried to assure her. “Silver Fox has a cool head and, despite her fame, keeps a low profile. I doubt that the Circuit would blow her off quickly. She’s bringing in revenue. They’re not going to cut that off.”

Amy nodded, though she still felt uneasy. While she hadn’t said much to Silver Fox, especially recently with both their contracts sold to different Sponsors, she still felt as if Silver Fox was in danger.

We’re all in danger, Amy, she told herself. Besides, what can you do? You can barely save your own life. How can you save the other Racers?

But she found herself wanting to help out her fellow Racers, to free them from the Circuit and the grasp it hand on their very lives.

The track Maxx led them to was nearby the park that she and Jay had went to after they learned what the businessmen had planned for her. As Jay had told her, there was a racetrack covered in artificial snow. It wasn’t hard to pick out Jay’s flashy car and Hacker sitting on its hood. She parked next to him, feeling a bit nervous about the training.

“Hey!” Jay said as he got out of Maxx. “What are you doing? Get off my car!”

Hacker laughed but did as he was told. “Well, Aims,” he said, approaching. “Are you ready for today’s training?”

“No,” she admitted, getting out of Maxx. “But I’ll do it anyway. Snowmobile, right?”

“That’s what the Race is about,” Hacker confirmed. “Don’t worry. Just because you’ve never driven a snowmobile doesn’t mean that you won’t be great at it.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” she snorted. “Maxx. Snowmobile.”

Crack!

The new form was lager than Amy would have expected. He looked like a large ATV with tank-sized tires.

“Hum,” Maxx said, revving his engine a bit. “Don’t think I’ve ever tried this form before… When was the last time the Circuit had a snowmobile race?”

“About five years,” Jay answered. “They like to keep things fresh and pick different kinds of racing during the winter time. I remember that one year that they had a race on pedal bikes.”

“Oh!” Maxx shuttered, actually shaking his new form. “Not a pedal bike!”

They all laughed at that.
************
I always imagine that cars are afraid that bikes will replace them. Though my own Maxx has no need to worry about that. I love to travel whenever possible.

Anyway, there you have it, a nice calm post before I kill another character. Enjoy the journey!

The Oath Maker and the Double Talented

Last week, Amy found out the truth of the Circuit. Now what is she supposed to do about it? Time to introduce another character.
********
Aims drove as far as they could away from the meeting. Jay didn’t dare say anything to her. How could he? She had just learned that her father had been killed by the men in that room. Perhaps not directly, but his death had been designed by them.

And now they plotted her death as well.

Aims finally stopped outside of the city, at a well-known park. The sun was starting to set, a romantic evening if he had the thoughts for it. But how could he have romance on his mind when he learned that his father planned the death of Racers.

Why just stop with just Racers? He thought bitterly. I bet anything that they’re killing off all the Talented.

It unsettled him just as much as it did Aims. Perhaps more.

Once she parked Maxx in a dirt space on the top of a hill, she got out and began to pace. She held her stomach and mouth, as if she were about to throw up at any moment. He also got out, feeling the same sickness in his own stomach.

“Oh, crap, oh crap, oh crap,” she muttered beneath her hand. “They’re going to kill me!”

“Aims!” he said, stopping her with a hand on her shoulder. “Relax. Breath! I’m not going to let them kill you. You have my word.”

“Your word,” she snapped, glaring at him. “How much is that worth? Your dad helped kill mine.”

He sighed. There was no arguing that, but if he told her the truth… “Because…” he struggled. He had never told anyone about this. “Because I think he might have been behind my mother’s death as well.”

Her blue eyes went wide. He sighed. “Come on,” he said, gently leading her to the grassy lawn. With the sun setting, the city sparkling in the distance, it completely clashed with the enormity of the situation they were in.

“I haven’t told many people this,” he started to say, sitting down on the ground. She sat beside him, her knees pulled up to her chest. “But I think you deserve the truth. I’m a Talented as well.”

She blinked in surprise. “What’s your Talent?” she asked.

He half grinned, though feeling sick. His Talent always seemed to do that to him. “I’m an Oath Maker.”

Aims frowned. “Oath Maker? I’ve never heard of that Talent.”

He softly laughed. “Not many people have. My Talent is actually very rare. My mother was one and I inherited it from her. Basically, I can make a promise with anyone and they will keep it. As will I.”

“So you promote good manners?” she said, a bit of her snap coming back. The shock was starting to wear off.

“Not quite,” he sighed, staring up at the orange clouds of the setting sun. “Everyone makes small little lies, everyone tries to cheat at something or other. But if you make a promise with me… You’ll keep it. Try as you might to break it, it won’t happen. The same happens to me. I’ve never been able to break a promise in my life.” He closed his eyes tight. It hurt, sometimes, to remember all the promises that he had made in his life that he could never take back.

“I’ve always wondered why my mother suddenly died when I was ten,” he whispered. “I never suspected… An Oath Maker isn’t exactly the best person to make a deal with, especially in the business world. All the businessmen try to cheat each other. An Oath Maker puts a crimp in those plans…”

“You’ve had to hide your Talent,” Aims said softly. He opened his eyes, glancing at her. There was no annoyance in her expression, no hate. But understanding… sympathy.

“Like you,” he said. “I’ve hidden it. My mother made me promise to hide it from anyone who would try to use it against me.” He sighed. “Unfortunately, my father knows about it. There’s been more than one occasion that he’s used it against me.”

For a long moment, neither of them spoke. He didn’t mind the silence. After what they had learned in that meeting, it was probably best if they try to sort it out themselves.

“Why do you want me to survive?” she suddenly asked.

He raised an eyebrow at her. She looked confused at him.

“I’m not a monster, Aims,” he said. “It’s wrong how they treat the Talented. No one deserves to be forced into something they don’t want.” He laughed bitterly. “I speak from experience.” He sighed, glancing at her sadly. “I don’t want to see people die, Aims. You have my word that I will help you survive the Circuit.”

As always, he felt a burning in his chest as he made the promise. It was binding, a rope around his neck. However, this promise he didn’t mind making, and he was sure that even if his Talent didn’t compel him to keep his promise, he would do it anyway.

Because as his father said. He did have a crush on her.

For a moment she didn’t say anything, nor did she look at him. Her eyes were distant as she stared off at Acro City.

“My name is Amy,” she finally said softly, glancing at him. “Thank you for helping me.”

Jay smiled. “You’re welcome, Amy.”
**********
“Can’t you stay?”

It was the end of another day of classes and Amy was in a hurry to get out. Not that she really wanted to leave her classes, but the threat of impending death had her willing to do a lot of things.

“I can’t,” she said as she finished packing her backpack. Natalie stood beside her, looking forlorn. “My contract was bought by another Sponsor. I’m supposed to meet his team today.”

“Geez,” Natalie pouted, folding her arms in disgust. “They really do control your life, don’t they?”

“It’s one of the many reasons why I don’t like the Circuit,” Amy pointed out. “I’ll talk to you later. Bye!”

“Bye!” Natalie yelled after her as she rushed off. Amy knew that she was going to be late for her meeting with Jay, but it couldn’t be helped. He knew that she had classes and had scheduled the meeting to happen right after her class. She should have realized that the teacher would go over on his time.

Triggering her Talent, she flew out of the building, across the lawn, to the parking lot. There were a few low shouts of surprise that followed after her, but Amy didn’t pay any attention to them. She was late!

“We’re late!” Maxx said as she jumped on him. Since people knew that he was her Racing program, he never showed up to school as the same vehicle. Today was another speed bike, chosen so that she could quickly leave once she got out of class.

“I know,” she said, putting on the helmet that she had brought with her. “Let’s not waste any time. You remember where we’re supposed to meet?”

“Yes,” Maxx huffed, letting her drive him out. “Follow my directions and we should get there not too terribly late.”

Amy followed Maxx’s directions, now unable to use her Talent. The police had devices that could catch Racers breaking the speed limit. She had no intention of getting a speeding ticket for Jay’s sake.

It was thanks to Maxx’s directions through the back roads that she managed to get there with only being a few minutes late. There was a mechanic’s shop deep in the warehouse district of the city. While it was nowhere near as impressive as some of the shops around it, Amy felt like she could come to like this garage. There was something homey about it, the way it seemed cramped between two other buildings, the custom painted sign, and the sound of someone pounding away at something. It was obviously owned by someone who enjoyed what they did and took pride in it.

There was much to respect about that.

The large garage door was open and she drove right on in. As she suspected, Jay was already there, talking with a young man who seemed to be about her age. The young man sat at a desk, goggles on his face as he worked on something small. Jay turned as she parked Maxx.

“You’re late,” he noted.

“Really?” she asked, taking off her helmet. “I thought I was early.” Inside the shop reflected the outside. Everything was, although not necessarily clean, orderly and well used. She took note of the comfortable things in the one room garage, including a couple of threadbare couches. The young man didn’t even bother to look up from his work to see just who drove into his shop.

“Sarcastic as ever,” Jay sighed. He turned to the young man, tapping him on the shoulder. “Hey, Hacker. She’s here.”

The young man turned around, sliding the goggles to the top of his head. As she had suspected, he was about her age. His black hair was unfashionably long, as well as his baggy dirty blue hoodie and black pants.

“Hello, Aims,” he said, standing up and wiping his hands on his pants. “I’m Hacker.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Hacker?” she repeated. “No real name?”

Hacker smirked. “Why would I want a real name? People would be able to track down my past then.”

“You have some interesting friends,” Amy noted to Jay.

Jay laughed, patting Hacker’s back. “I suppose so. But I trust Hacker with all of my things.”

“Because he made me promise to do it,” Hacker laughed, punching Jay in the shoulder. “Silly me, making a promise to an Oath Maker like him! I would have left as soon as possible.”

“So you’re also trapped by this creature,” Amy noted.

Hacker shrugged. “Perhaps. But the pay is good and I can keep at my hobbies.” Suddenly, he noticed Maxx. Gasping in awe, he stalked towards the bike, admiring it. “So this is Maxx,” he breathed, lightly touching Maxx’s handles. “You’re a nice piece of work.”

“Thank you,” Maxx said blandly. “I know.”

“Not very humble though, are you?” Hacker asked.

“Why should I be humble?” Maxx snorted. “I’m an amazing program used to enhance Talents! There should be nothing humbling about it.”

Hacker burst out in a laugh. “Oh,” he said, still chuckling, “I like you.”

“Good,” Jay said, grinning. “Aims, Hacker is your new mechanic.”

“Figured that,” Amy muttered. Why did she feel jealous that Maxx liked the young man? It wasn’t like that Maxx would be able to go to anyone else. “You any good, Hacker?”

Hacker knelt by Maxx, checking the bike’s front wheel. “I’d say so,” he said distractedly. “I break things and I can fix them.”

That wasn’t the answer she was expecting

“What?” Amy demanded to know, her frame ridged. “You break things?”

“Don’t get huffy yet,” Jay told her, putting his hand on her shoulder. She immediately brushed his hand off. “He’s very good at what he does. Some might say that he’s Talented at it.”

Hacker snorted, glancing up briefly to throw a glare at Jay. “I am Talented,” he corrected. “A rare Double Talented.”

Amy frowned. “Double Talented?” she asked. “What’s that?”

“Just as it sounds,” Jay explained. “Hacker has two Talents.”

“Not that many people know about it,” Hacker admitted, standing up. He was wiping his hands on his pants again, rubbing oil on his pants. She was surprised. When did he get oil on his hands? Yes, Maxx had to be lubricated like other vehicles, but this was the first she had seen it. Past mechanics wouldn’t let her stay as they worked on Maxx.

“You’re not the only Talented that hides their gift,” Hacker went on. “Or gifts, in my case. At a young age, I realized that I could break things with amazing abilities. I’ve gotten into a lot of trouble for the things I broke.”

“What sort of things did you break?” she asked, almost not wanting an answer.

He shrugged. “Toys, paintings, marble countertops. All before I was five.” He suddenly smiled. “But then when I was six, I discovered that I had a second Talent. Not only was I a Breaker, but I was also a Fixer. I broke one of my mom’s china dolls by accident. Now, I’ve been in trouble before for Breaking things, but I knew as was going to get into big trouble with that, so I really wished that I could fix it. Then… Poof! It was Fixed when I touched it.”

“Since then,” Jay added, “he’s set his sights on other things to break and fix. Anything that deals with technology and he’s interested. I came across him a few years ago when he was hacking into my personal computer.”

Hacker sighed, though he was smiling. “Yes, by that point, I realized that crime might be big for me and I started getting into trouble. However, Jay caught me before the authorities did and offered me a job. I didn’t know he was an Oath Maker then, so I blindly said yes and never thought about why I didn’t run away.”

“Nice story,” Amy admitted. “Double Talented. At least your Talents cancel each other out.”

“All Double Talented have Talents that cancel the other out,” Jay said. “I think it has something to do with how opposites attract.”

Amy wasn’t sure how to respond to that. What could cancel out her Talent? The ability to be Slow? She didn’t even think that there was such a Talent.

“Enough small talk,” Hacker said, rubbing his hands together in anticipation. “Let’s get to work. Aims, if you don’t mind, sit down on one of the couches while I examine Maxx’s program.” He then snapped and dug his hand in his pocket for something. He pulled out a strange device that seemed like an earpiece and handed it to her. “Put that on the scar of where they put the chip. This will let me see the program better.”

“See the program?” she asked, putting the device where he told her and sat down. “How?”

Hacker walked back to Maxx. “He’s the program in physical form,” he reminded her. “All I have to do is check him out. But if you wear that thing, it’ll make things clearer for my computer to register.” He pointed at one of his desks and the computer that sat there. It was an older one, with a flickering screen and green code scrolling.

“Impressive,” she admitted.

“Shush!” he insisted, putting his goggles back over his eyes. “I’m trying to concentrate.”

Amy rolled her eyes and relaxed. A few times she felt a small prick of pain at her scar as Hacker poked at something on Maxx, but the pain quickly faded and everything was grand again. Pretty soon, Jay sat beside her, lounging in a way that she thought was inappropriate. Thankfully, he was looking through a magazine and left her alone. His deal with her to stop hitting on her seemed to hold true.

“Well, well, well,” Hacker said, reaching something interesting inside Maxx’s engine. “Wasn’t expecting that…”

“What?” Amy asked.

“There’s a line of code here,” he explained, standing up and walking up to his computer. He clicked his mouse a few times, frowning as he read what was on the screen. “Yep. There’s the code. Rarely used, hard to get to… But there. It’s a line of code to kill you and make it look like an accident.”

Amy shot to her feet. “What!”

“Are you sure?” Jay asked, rushing over to the computer to read the code himself.

“There’s no mistake,” Hacker said, frowning at his screen. “But as I said, it’s hard to get to…. Oh. That’s interesting?”

“What?” Amy said again, feeling as if the world was collapsing around her. A code to kill her?

“It seems that they can activate this line of code,” Hacker muttered to himself.

“They who?” Jay asked.

Hacker shook himself out of his concentration. “The Circuit.”

The room spun. Amy held her head and collapsed on the couch, breathing hard. “So they could kill me now?” she said, close to hysterics. “And there’s nothing I can do?” She glanced up briefly at Maxx. It was hard to believe that he held one key that might kill her.

“Did you know about this, Maxx?” she asked, fearing the truth and feeling betrayed. Maxx was her program. The Circuit was supposed to be out of her head.

“I didn’t,” Maxx said, sounding afraid himself. It seemed to her that the bike tried to shrink down. “Honestly! I didn’t know!”

“Nor should you,” Hacker told them both, focusing again on the screen. “Its an inactive part of your code. The only time you’d know it was there is if the Circuit activated it…” He then grinned. “Or, in this case, I found it.”

“Is there anything that can be done?” Jay asked, worried.

Hacker snorted. “Uh, yeah. That’s why you have me as the mechanic. I’ll just Break this line of code. Fix myself out of it, and they’ll never know what happened. And if they ever try to activate it, they’ll just get an error signal and they’ll crop it up to Maxx being defective.”

“I’m not defective,” Maxx immediately argued.

“Badly worded then,” Hacker corrected, quickly typing something into the code. “A mistake in this line of code.” He grinned as he worked, typing at a speed that Amy could have sworn was only possible by the Speeders.

“OUCH!”

Amy ripped the device behind her ear off and rubbed her scar. It felt as if the device sent a burning needle into her brain.

“Sorry about that,” Hacker said, spinning around on his chair to look at her. “The Breaking was a serious change to Maxx’s program. You’ll be fine now.”

“Really?” Jay asked. “That line of code won’t be activated?”

“Nope,” Hacker said proudly. “And they’ll never guess that an outside source did something to it. I Fixed myself out of the code so that they couldn’t track me down.”

“I take it back,” Amy said, still rubbing the scar. “You’re useful.”

Hacker laughed. “It’s nice to be appreciated.”
***********
It’s very nice to be appreciated. Thanks everyone for reading so far! Enjoy the journey!

The Dark Truth of the Circuit

Welcome back! Last week, Amy changed the Circuit by changing programs mid-race, Jay bought her contract, and Maxx is as cool as ever. However, rules have to be changed and a dark truth is to be revealed. To the story!
*******
The new rule was announced when she got back to the RCC. The officials seemed to think that it would be much more challenging and entertaining if Racers could change during the Races. While no one was required to change vehicles during the Race, there was a maximum of three changes total. Four different types of vehicles per Race. Everyone seemed excited by the news and went off to train using their new found abilities.

Amy, however, had different plans arranged for her.

“What do you mean?” she asked when Camellia broke the news to her. “My contract has been sold?”

“Just that,” Camellia huffed, smiling in a discouraging sort of way. “Your contract has been sold. Williams will no longer be Sponsoring you.”

“Then,” Amy scoffed, “who is?”

“Jay Torgenson.”

Oh, Amy was about ready to kill something.

“And he has asked that you join him for dinner tonight,” Camellia kept saying. “I suggest that you do it. I know that you don’t like the man, but he is your Sponsor now. Try to be nice.” The woman paused, looking her up and down. Amy hadn’t changed out of her normal clothes and her backpack was still swung over her back. “And perhaps change into something more suitable as well.”

“Wonderful,” Amy muttered, narrowing her eyes. “I don’t have anything better than this… Unless I’m expected to show up in my Racing jumpsuit.” It wouldn’t be a surprise to her if she had to.

“Oh, no,” Camellia assured her. “You can go into town and buy something nice before you have to go. After all, you did win some extra cash this last win.”

Amy scowled again. Buy new clothes? She hated clothes shopping with her Mom. How was she supposed to do it on her own?

However much she wanted to blow the whole thing off, she knew that Camellia had a point. Jay was her Sponsor now. She should be nice about it. Asking after advice about where to get new clothes, she took off in Maxx again, dreading this meeting with the wealthy young Sponsor who always seemed to get on the bad side of her.
*************
“Why did you buy Racer Aims’ contract?” Ford demanded to know.

“Because it’s a good deal,” Jay said simply, not wanting to reveal the real reason. He had promised not to reveal that anyway. There was no way he was going to tell his father the truth. “Think about it. Aims is the first, and so far only, Racer to ever change vehicles during a Race. She’s going to be one of the most sought after Racers in the Circuit. I can’t let such a deal go by without grabbing it.”

“Why did Williams want to sell her contract though?” Ford asked. “It’s completely unlike him to do something like this…”

“Not really,” Jay argued. “He’s an old man trying to put all his affairs into order. I’m not the first one he’s approached to sell off contracts. He’s already sold Silver Fox to one of our competitors. And since he doesn’t want to seem bias towards anyone, he wanted to sell Aims’ contract to me.”

“I guess…” Ford muttered, still looking unconvinced. “It would be a move the old man would try to pull off…”

“It’s a good deal,” Jay continued to press. His father had to accept this deal, he couldn’t suspect that it was more. “I now own the contracts of two very good Racers. This is what you wanted.”

Ford sighed. “Fine,” he finally submitted. “I can’t do anything otherwise.” He turned to go. He and his father were in their family’s mansion. His father had cornered him in his private office, just down the hall from his own.

“I’ve also invited her to join me for dinner tonight,” Jay said absently. “You know, so we can get to know each other…”

“Flirt with the girl all you’d like,” Ford almost snorted, putting on a coat that a servant had out for him. “I won’t be here this evening so it won’t affect me any.”

That’s right, Jay thought, feeling a stab of annoyance. Tonight’s your meeting. Every other week, his father would meet with other successful businessmen and discuss things. What things, Jay had never figured out. Although he was a grown man with a degree and already a well-respected businessman, his father wouldn’t allow him in on those secret meetings. While Ford had claimed that the meetings were merely small diversions and harmless get together, Jay suspected that it was more.

That was one of the reasons why he invited Aims to dinner.

“Enjoy your evening,” Jay said, earning him a small wave goodbye from his father.

Sighing, Jay walked to his rooms to change. The mansion was large, much lager than most would feel comfortable in. However, he grew up in these walls, spending a lot of time under the watch of either maids or under his father’s legs. He had many adventures here, finding secret passages and hiding places. He wouldn’t change that childhood for anything.

Changing into a nice casual suit, he waited penitently for Aims to arrive. He checked his email, did some research, checked up on the deals he had made on his father’s behalf…

The clocked chimed six and the doorbell rang.

She’s punctual. Taking a deep breath, he walked unhurried for the entry way, nodding to a servant to open the door.

Aims stood just outside. He stared at her for a moment, shocked by her appearance. She actually bothered to look nice. She wore comfortable black slacks and a nice purple blouse. It was actually close to her jumpsuit. Her blonde hair was held back in a high ponytail and it seemed as if she actually put a little bit of makeup on, just enough to enhance her features.

“Wow,” he said, approaching her with a grin. “You look great!”

She scowled. Ah, now that was the Aims he knew.

“You look nice,” she said blandly, though her expression betrayed her annoyance. “Are we done with the customary lying?”

He raised an eyebrow. “I wasn’t lying. You do look nice.”

She rolled her eyes. “Whatever,” she muttered, folding her arms and standing so one leg was bent. “Now? Dinner?”

He smiled. She was a blunt one. He gestured toward the dinning hall. He would have offered his arm, but he suspected that she would refuse. The servants stood around and looked confused at Aims’ action. Most girls who he invited into the house often were excited and giddy to be with him. In truth, that was one of the reasons why he was so intrigued by Aims. She was honest to him about her dislike for him.

The dinning hall was set up already and the roast dinner was prepared. Perhaps it was a bit too fancy to dine with the Racer here, because she looked terribly confused at everything, from the massive centerpiece in the middle of the table to the chandlers hanging from the ceiling. Aims waited to be directed to her chair and sat. He sat across the table from her, leaning back as the plate was placed in front of him.

“Thank you,” he told the server. “You may leave.”

The man nodded and left, leaving the two of them alone. Aims scowled again, her posture becoming ridged. She probably didn’t want to be alone with him.

“Well, Aims,” he said, cutting his roast. “How have you liked Acro City so far?”

She rolled her eyes. “It’s a bit big for my tastes,” she answered, forking her own food. “A lot of people and not all of them are friendly.”

“True,” he agreed, grinning, “but it’s a nice place to be. Don’t worry, it’ll grow on you in a few years or so.”

She snorted, holding her head high. “I don’t plan to be here for a few years.”

“Ah, yes,” he said, leaning forward ever slightly. “You want to retire.” He glanced around, making sure that the servant had left. It wouldn’t do well if his father heard about this. “And I want to help you.”

She sat up a bit, surprise flickering across her fine features. “Why?” she asked softly. He shook his head.

“Not here, not now.” He glanced again for the door. He only had a few moments before a servant would come checking on them. “After dinner, I would like to talk to you privately.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Isn’t this private?”

He shook his head. At that moment, the server came back, sticking his head in and making sure that they were still fine. Aims eyes flickered towards the man and then back to him. She nodded slightly. Jay understood the meaning clearly. She understood that they were being watched.

Now she’s interested, he thought as they continued the meal, exchanging polite conversation, though it was forced on her end. He had hinted that he wanted to help her and it seemed that she wasn’t going to push away an ally, even if that ally may bug the crap out of her. Jay smirked to himself. Yes, Aims was defiantly a very interesting girl.
**********
Jay suggested a drive, since he had never actually been in one of the computer chips that his company built. Amy couldn’t understand why he hadn’t. After all, don’t all rich people get what they want?

However, there was another reason for wanting to get into Maxx. It put them relatively alone.

Relatively.

“Alright,” Amy said after they had driven for a few minutes, the mansion already a few blocks away. “What did you mean that you want to help me retire?”

“What?” Maxx asked, his surprise heard in his tone. “A Sponsor wants to help you retire?”

Jay raised an eyebrow at the dashboard of Maxx. He sat in the passenger seat. She had chosen a sports car again for Maxx to arrive to the Sponsor’s mansion. It was, by far, both her and Maxx’s favorite forms.

“Personality,” Jay muttered, smiling a bit. “It often reflects the Racer’s own… I must say, Maxx, that you fulfill your program perfectly.”

“Answer the question,” Amy insisted. “You wanted to talk privately about this. Why? What is so important that you don’t want others to hear about it?”

Jay shrugged. Amy would hate to admit it to anyone, but Jay was quite good looking, especially in his casual suit. “Because I suspect that there’s something wrong with the Circuit,” he said softly. “And I intend to find out.”

“Oh?” she asked, unimpressed. “I could have told you that something was wrong with the Circuit.”

He snorted. “Most Speeders like being in the Circuit.”

“Most Speeders didn’t watch their parents die on live TV,” she pointed out.

“Point,” he conceded. “However, it was Williams who hinted that something was wrong. That’s why he sold me your contract. He wanted me to help you survive the Circuit.”

Amy didn’t say anything. Williams wanted her to survive? That implied…

“You’re saying that her life is in danger?” Maxx asked.

“I’m saying that it’s possible,” Jay said seriously. “I’ve done some research and found something very disturbing. Did you know that there are less Talented in the last ten years than there have been a hundred years ago?”

“So?” Amy asked.

He frowned. “The birth rate of Talented is the same as it was a hundred years ago.”

Amy felt a chill.

“If the birth rate is the same,” Jay continued, “then there should be the same number of Talented. But something is happening to kill off the Talented before they get too old.”

“Have you gone to the authorities with this?” she asked, unable to get the cold out of her veins.

“I doubt that they would believe me,” Jay grumbled, slumping in his seat. “That’s why I wanted to talk with you. I need help getting proof.”

“And how is she supposed to help you get proof?” Maxx asked for her.

“Tonight my father’s at a meeting with other important businessmen,” Jay answered. “And while my father has always told me that it was none of my business, he did hint, however, that someday I might know.”

“When you’re ready,” Amy guessed.

He nodded. “But I’m past ready. There have been many things that I’ve done that has already indicated that I’m an important businessman. And every time I try to bring it up, my father distracts me with something else.” He snorted softly, his brown eyes narrowing at a particularly painful thought. “The reason why I’m now a Sponsor is one of the distractions that he put on me.”

Amy said nothing. She didn’t know how that was like. Her Mom and her had always had an open relationship. There was no secret between them. But it sounded like Jay had a very complicated relationship with his father, one she couldn’t understand. Why would a parent want to hide something from their child?

“This meeting is at one of the corporate buildings,” Jay went on, hiding his distaste. “I’ve tried many ways to get into those meetings, but there’s only one thing I haven’t tried.”

“You need a Speeder,” she figured out.

“Not just a Speeder,” Jay corrected. “A Racer. I won’t be able to get into the building, but you will. And since I want to know what is going on, I’ll be able to communicate with you through Maxx, and you to me through him.”

Amy scowled. “You’re putting me in a lot of danger,” she pointed out. “Why should I agree to this?”

“You’re already in a lot of danger,” he argued.

She snorted. “I don’t believe that.”

He let out a slow breath, looking intensely at her. “Fine,” he said, business like. “A deal, then? You agree to do this for me, sneak into the meeting and listen in and let me communicate to you through Maxx, in return, I promise not to hit on you anymore.”

Amy raised an eyebrow. He must be desperate. As far as she could see, he enjoyed hitting on women, and the more feisty, the better.

“Deal,” she agreed without another second thought. “Don’t hit on me and I’ll do it.”

Jay smiled. “Let’s get started then.”
***********
The corporate building was much like any other. A large tower of a building with hundreds of windows, a dozen guards, and who knew how many cameras. After following Jay’s careful instructions, she parked Maxx two blocks away from the building. They were in the downtown of Acro City, with all the skyscrapers towering over them. She hadn’t been downtown often; why did she need to when school was on one side of the city and the Race Circuit near the other end? Besides, something about having a lot of people around made her nervous.

However, this early in the evening, most of the business were closed and most people were enjoying their nightlife elsewhere. The corporate buildings were, for the most part, empty.

“There will be guards posted at all the doors,” Jay’s voice came to her from inside her head. It was very disconcerting that he was using the same method as Maxx to speak to her. She put that thought out of her head, glad that neither Maxx or Jay could read her thoughts. “Your best chance will be to go through a window.”

“Which window should I pick?” she asked, eyeing the building. It shouldn’t be too hard to get in. According to Jay, the hard part will come once inside.

“Try something on the east side,” Jay suggested. “I know that the guards don’t patrol that side as often.”

“And how would you know that?” she asked, crossing the street.

“I told you,” Jay reminded her. “I’ve tried to get into this meeting several times. Yes, they use different buildings for each meeting, but they tend to rotate between those buildings. I’ve memorized about a dozen buildings in Acro City because of it.”

Amy rolled her eyes. Ask a simple question…

Coming at the building from its east side, she quickly scanned the ground floor windows. There weren’t as many as she thought as there should be. She thought that she was going to have to argue for a different side when she finally spotted a small one about the height of her head.

And it was already propped open.

“Do they generally leave windows open?” she asked as she examined the window.

“Some employ must have forgotten to close it,” Jay suggested. “I’d use it.”

“Duh,” both she and Maxx said at once.

Grabbing the seal, she pushed herself up into the window, glad that she was small. Jay wouldn’t have been able to fit in the small space. Careful of the hinges holding the window open, she dropped inside.

“Alright,” she said softly, glancing around the room. It was a typical janitor closet, full of brooms, mops, and cleaning supplies. “I’m inside. Where to next?”

“Tenth floor,” Jay directed. “That’s where the meeting is. Use the stairs. They’ll notice if the elevator is being used.”

“Anything else?” she asked, peeking outside the closet. There weren’t any guards and she could see the door to the stairs.

“Oh,” Jay said, “they patrol the stair well. You’ll want to use your Talent to get up before they see you.”

“Great,” she muttered, closing the closet door and going for the stairs. “You’re a wonderful team leader, Master Jay.”

“Remember what you get out of this,” he had to remind her again.

Amy bit her tongue. No more flirting from Jay. This had to be worth it.

Coming to the stairs, she used her Talent. It was almost unnoticeable as the world slowed down, but she knew the signs. The sounds were slow and low, the flickering lights were suddenly steady, the air was cool with no bodies occupying the space. She ran up the stairs, keeping track of the floors as she went up. One floor for each second. The air buzzed in her ear, her hair whipping behind as she flew on up. Despite herself, she felt herself grin. Now, this was the joy of her Talent, a speed that no one else knew or appreciated. An exhilarating thrill of being the fastest.

She came to a stop on the tenth floor, glancing down to where she had been just moments before.

“Alright,’ she whispered, knowing now that she had to be quiet. “I’m here. Where to next?”

“The other side of the building,” Jay said. “Be careful though. There are cameras. You’ll need to be quick to get there.”

She nodded and started to go into the hall when she stopped.

“Jay,” she said, realizing something. “I can’t exactly burst into this meeting. If they didn’t want you in, they defiantly don’t want me. How am I supposed to listen in on this meeting?”

“She has a point,” Maxx said.

“There are air vents all through the building,” Jay said. “Find the room closest to theirs and listen in.”

“You make it sound so easy,” she grumbled. However, she didn’t want to waste any more time waiting in the stairwell. Again using her Talent, she rushed out into the hall. The cameras in the halls were of the common variety, the type that couldn’t catch a Speeder if she really didn’t want to be seen.

Just as Amy now didn’t want to be seen.

It wasn’t hard to know which room that the businessmen were holding their meetings. There was a pair of guards standing outside an impressive door. As soon as she saw that, she quickly turned and went down another hall, searching for a room that Jay promised would be there.

Sure enough, through an ordinary door into an ordinary office filled with desks, she found the air vent that allowed the voices of the businessmen to float through.

“Then we are in agreement?” one voice said.

“I’m in,” Amy whispered. “Can you hear them?”

“Shh!” Jay hissed. “Let’s listen!”

She rolled her eyes. Geez. He must really want to listen in on the meeting.

“Now,” the same voice said. “Onto other matters. I believe that we have a problem with the Race Circuit now.”

“Problem?” another man asked.

“That’s Dad’s voice,” Jay told her.

“I don’t think it’s a problem,” Mr. Torgenson said. “If anything, it’ll make the Racers’ accidents seem more plausible.” He laughed. “And we could probably get away with more of them.”

Amy froze. “What…” she breathed, her eyes wide. Did she hear wrong? Was Jay right? Was her life in danger?

“We don’t want the Racers to die off too quickly,” another man pointed out. “The people love the Races. They love cheering them on and betting on them.”

“I’m not suggesting that we knock them all off,” Mr. Torgenson corrected. “We just whittle out their numbers some more. There’s almost too much of them now.”

“Ford is right,” the first man agreed. “We can cause more fatal accidents with this new change.” The man paused. “However, we do still have a problem.”

For a moment, no one said anything. Finally…

“Racer Aims,” Mr. Torgenson said.

“Didn’t your son just buy her contract?” another man asked.

“Unfortunately,” Mr. Torgenson grumbled. “I suspect that the boy has a crush on her.”

Not even that could faze her out of her frozen state. These people were plotting the end of the Racers!

“The Racer is still a problem,” the first man continued. “She’s gaining too much attention. First with her little trick on the track and then afterwards, when people realized that she’s going to college. She’s too different.”

“So we plot her end,” someone suggested simply. “Just like we did with her father.”

Amy couldn’t breath. Her father had been killed? It wasn’t an accident? She wanted to run out of there, away from the brutal truth as she listened through an air vent. But she couldn’t move. Her limbs wouldn’t listen to the screaming of her heart.

“We have to be careful about it,” the first man pointed out. “She’s very popular right now. And we can’t use the vehicle change for an accident either. Everyone will expect her to be perfect at that.”

“Don’t worry,” someone laughed. “A situation will present itself. It always does.”

“And if it doesn’t,” the man chuckled, “we’ll make one.”

Amy couldn’t listen anymore. She ran away, faster than even she thought possible. Everything was a blur as she ran down the stairs, out the window, and back to Maxx, where Jay still sat, now pale as a ghost.
************
And there’s the dark truth. The Sponsors are killing off the Racers. What are Amy, Maxx, and Jay to do about it? Next week, the start of a plan. Enjoy the journey!