Chapter 33

“Hashiriya”

‘You know what that means?’

J2 asked as Denzo thought for a moment, looking at the streetlamps whizzing by rapidly as they sped along the highway. It looked like his mother has found a match in J2’s verbal skills as he found a way to convince her that her son must go on a business trip with him. Needless to say Denzo was impressed that he thought J2 must’ve been a lawyer in a past life. Nonetheless they were already on the way to a place he has never heard of as he anxiously looks forward to the things he was about to see.

‘I dunno, I haven’t heard it in any of the anime I’ve been watching.’ Denzo said, looking back at J2, as if he had spoken elven all of a sudden.

‘It means street racer in japanese. Val used to be one when she was around your age.’ He replied.

‘No wonder…’ Denzo responds feeling cheated out of all the times they raced, now knowing he was up against someone with real racing experience. ‘So the place we’re going to. You said it’s popular among the locals?’ He asked.

‘Wayyyyyy back kid even before I was born, but the government prevented such things from happening. It’s only now that racing is on the rise. You can thank Val for that.’ J2 replies as the sign board appears from afar.

The ominous looking sign that contained the words: Old Zigzag road

‘We’re here. That didn’t take too long right?’ He said as he turned into the dark unlit stretch of road that plowed through a dense forest.

‘A four hour drive...yea… very short…’ Denzo replies with a yawn, as he can feel his eyes getting droopy. He checks the digi clock on the dash, it is already 2am as they drive through the pitch black darkness of the mountain pass. Denzo looked indifferent as he looked out in front of them, for him there was nothing special about this piece of road besides the fact that it is pitch black outside but his views suddenly changed once he felt the incline suddenly increased. He couldn;t make out the whole scene but the road had become narrow all of a sudden and J2 was cranking the wheel as they navigated through the tight hairpins on the sudden hill climb. Even the Tesla felt like it was struggling as he felt a slight increase in vibration being produced by the car, which was weird considering it is electrically powered. They soon arrived in a small stretch of asphalt where he was surprised to see had street lamps illuminating the street. They enter a detour off from the main route as J2 drives down a narrow passage into some sort of a rest stop area and soon as they enter, a small gathering of parked cars can already be spotted just down the road, with a small crowd already brewing around the machines that were parked there.

‘Twas a good thing she picked this place. They got the best most affordable budget meals here by the pitstop.’ J2 spoke as he parked his Tesla just behind the cars where the group gathered. Denzo sat back on his seat as he took a look around at his surroundings. There were a bunch of huts that line up the parking area were some of the people hung about and to the left and furthest from the main road was a two storey building that looked like an old resort house called “The Pitstop” and inside were people wine and dining at this late of an hour possibly passing time until the race starts. In front of him is a row of cars stretching end to end towards the far side of the lot and each one of them was unlike any car he has ever seen before. All of them were imports and being a fan of such cars, he felt excited to see them finally in person. The first two right in front of them were the first ones he’d identify. A beige 20’s Ford Mustang Boss and a yellow MK5 Toyota Supra. Old cars from the beginnings of the recession era, a time where people can still afford such monstrosities. A time right before the world tightened their grip on the miscellaneous and placed all their efforts in the necessities. A last hoorah before anything fun was wiped out in favor of practicality.

Nowadays people all consider cars as a workhorse. Practically anything with wheels is only seen as tools. Gone were the days where going out for a drive to the supermarket can be considered as a leisurely activity. Everything nowadays needs to be done with a purpose otherwise why bother wasting precious petrol when you can take the train. These were the times that Denzo had read on the various message boards that he went through while growing up. From the first time he saw cool looking race cars on the television when he was a child, he had romanticized the feeling of experiencing what it was like to drive like them, but his mother saw the impracticality of that dream and did her best to nudge him into a different path.

It was a good thing Uncle Thor loved spoiling him.

Nonetheless the feeling that one of his dreams was about to become a reality suddenly hit him hard as starts to see more cars whizzing by them and parking somewhere near. This was unlike the other times that he had witnessed this where they would just appear and disappear into nowhere. This time they appeared and stayed and waited, and the people behind the wheels of these machines, those that society frowns upon for their excessive life choices, were now stepping out and gathering in front of where he sat, putting real human faces to the cars he once admired from the sidelines.

This is real now.

He is a part of it.

…

…

‘Do we have enough?’ Val asked as J2 approached her from behind the pack of cars. She was parked in the lead of the pack and was overseeing the whole gathering from a higher point in that particular stretch of road, watching who was coming to attend, anticipating any “trespassers” who might want to join.

‘More than enough Val. I don’t think this road can handle this many cars attacking it at the same time.’ J2 spoke nervously, knowing the perils of the route ahead.

‘Irrelevant.’ She quickly replied.

‘Is Jun present here?’

‘Y-yeah… Saw him drinking inside the Pitstop why?’

‘Good. Let’s start… and hand me the megaphone.’

Denzo was still sitting starstrucked inside of J2’s car when he noticed that every driver in the area suddenly went on alert. That’s when he spots Val appear from ahead as she looks directly at him, gesturing to him to get up and get out of the vehicle as everybody else follows suit, gathering around her.

‘Alright drivers, listen up.’ She said as the megaphone crackles at the sound of her booming voice.

‘Tonight is the real deal. The first official race of this new administration.

To round this up, I’m gonna keep this nice and simple.

The format is the same, but with a slight change.

There will still be a betting pool and the winner takes all. Race by race.

But

All of you are gonna be racing for a championship.

And this is round one.’

After she spoke the whole crowd of participating drivers boasted their questions and complaints at her, because for them this is big news. Denzo starts to learn that these people are with families and are treating this as a hobby on the side. Having a championship format will force them to commit to the race schedule if they are going to stand a chance of winning. Which meant that the other parts of their lives, whether it is their businesses, day jobs or family, will have to be sacrificed.

‘What do we stand to gain by being champion?!’ One of the drivers asked.

‘Half a million dollars… and rights as the new race commander.’

Everybody hushed after hearing what was at stake. Which was timely, as the roar of a V10 engine came rushing behind them, dispersing the gathering from the middle of the road. Denzo immediately caught sight of the car and he seemed familiar with it.

It was the same car that he first saw a couple of months ago.

The very car that confirmed that their existence was real.

That racing is real.

‘What’s she doing here?’ J2 asked as Denzo looks at him, surprised he knows who the driver was.

‘I’m just as clueless as you are…’ Val replies as the other drivers in the crowd gasp in shock after seeing the fearless green lamborghini appear once again before their eyes as the door opens.

‘Keeno?’ Denzo unconsciously blurted out as her appearance from the passenger side caught him off guard.

‘Ohhh you’re here? How?’ Yukino gleefully replies after seeing a familiar face appear from a sea of strange people. She greets both Val and J2 with a bow as she pulls Denzo to the side and later into the pitstop for some drinks.

‘You’ve got some explaining to do you “monster” Val quips as Lorna gracefully steps out of her car as some of the other drivers were taken again by surprise that the one outpacing them in the last few races was a woman.

‘I’m not racing! Let’s just get that out of the way.’ Lorna said with her hands raised as half of the driver crowd audibly sighs in relief.

‘They why are you here?’ Val curiously asked.

‘I got us some help.’ She replied.

‘Help? You mean Yuki?’

‘Not exactly but you’re getting warmer.’

‘Wow, a secret. I don’t like it…’ Val replies as she takes out a box of cigarettes, her leg getting jittery again with Lorna’s news.

Lorna steps forward and grabs the cigarette from Val’s hands before she could light it and tosses it on the ground.

‘Not before a race Val.’ She said.

‘Goddamit you!’ She scowled. ‘You’re destroying my zen here you know?’

‘Relax just run the race as you should, I’ll get a coffee.’ Lorna answered, her laid back tone painfully shakes Val’s nerves. She knows all too well that Lorna only plans for the extreme. She’s afraid of what might happen that made her decide to show up, but nonetheless Val has a race to run.

She takes a deep breath and gathers the crowd around her once more, as she gestures to J2 to get himself ready at the front of the pack. ‘Oh and call Denzo, strap him in the 180.’ She adds as he looks back in confusion but decides not to ask.

‘Okay back to the topic. The championship.

There are only 5 points scoring positions starting at 50 points for first place with the following points halving in amount the lower you finish.

You are not mandated to join every race.

But your points do count and only the top five highest scorers are eligible for being crowned

Champion.

The race format however, will differ race to race.

Tonight we are doing run eliminations.

That! -she said as she pointed to the huge concrete structure on the other side of the road- The herbal pavilion is the start finish line.

We will run the west half first and then back here then the east half and back again

No stopping

Each time we pass by the pavilion…

Someone gets eliminated.

We will run until only two cars remain.

This will be the final round.

In the final round the remaining drivers will race the full course for the final time.

The lights in this area will be cut to signal the start of the final battle.

When the full course had been run, the lights come on to signal the finish.

First one back here, wins.

Any questions?’

…

…

‘I got a question!’

‘What?’

‘What am I doing here?’ Bert radios in complaints of his discomfort as he looks around at his assigned position just above the danger area of the steep hill climb around the west of the route. Lando meanwhile stood by his car which was parked near the westside junction, one of the entrances to the route.

‘Hey we picked straws right? Why the complaint?’

‘It’s not fair why do I always get the shitty assignments?’

‘Shitty? The last time we did something like this I almost broke my back jumping to a pier. It’s just hights Bert, get on with it.’

‘Shut it you two!’ Miles interrupts. ‘Just so you know I’m the one who’s doing the heavy lifting.’ She continued, sounding out of breath as she spoke.

‘Well you got your suit Miles. You’re the only one who can do the job.’ Bert replied.

Earlier that day Lando went on to contact Lorna based on what he thought was a hunch coming from Miles. It turned out to be actual intel as she informed the detectives that a race was happening that night around the “Old Zigzag road” in the city of Atimonan, Quezon province, around 105 kilometers (65mi) away from the Metro.

They quickly mobilized a plan coming up with a team of five which included a reluctant Lorna Loran who firmly insisted on playing a small part in their operation.

The plan was that Bert would be on the lookout for any strange movement during the race while Lando and Miles serve as lookouts on both sides of the bypass route to see if anyone would come visit after the race start.

The route geographically drapes over a mountain range dividing the cities of Atimonan and Pagbilao. Over the years many accidents, both minor and fatal, have happened due to the steep drops followed by tight corners that the route puts vehicles into, mostly heavy cargo trucks and SUV’s as it served as the only access road going to the city of Atimonan. Nowadays a bypass road that goes around the mountain range was built and through the years the traffic had slowly stopped flowing through the Zigzag route, which is now only used by the locals who want a shorter drive going to and from the two cities.

Right at those moments Yukino was keeping a slight eye on the happenings on the race start while Miles, with her body enhancing suit is patrolling a wider area in the Atimonan side of the route, checking every potential safe houses in the area which might be used to store the “surprise visitors” that might be planning to join in the party.

‘By the way Miles, how'd you know that they were about to plan another race?’ Lando asks.

‘Because it was the next logical step to do after what they got from the warehouses.’

‘And what would that be?’

‘That Carbine is playing a sick game while masquerading it as a noble cause.’

‘Huh?’

‘Haven’t you figured it out yet? The involvement of Yuni in this? Lorna, who happens to be the daughter of the owner of one of the largest oil companies in this country? Mister Asia, the notorious bootlegger and street racing mogul? C’mon guys the food’s already on the table!’ A frustrated Miles Kadena shouts through their earpieces as all team members wince at her whining.

‘I dunno Carbine’s full intentions. But what I’m getting is whatever that is, their going to pin this on the Loran’s and Mr. Asia’ Bert answers as he rustles through the bushes and settles in his spot. ‘But what I don’t get is Kawabata’s connection to this. Don’t tell me he’s planning to revive his Japan operation here in the Philippines?’

‘That would be my fault.’ Lorna intersects the conversation. ‘I called him here for help and to convince him I had to find him a market to sell to.’

‘So you created that market?’ Bert answered.

‘Yes… he gave the promotional tools and some tips on using word of mouth to spread awareness but the rest was up to me. I organized the races and created the hype around these events. I even went as far as signing my car up for uber so I can take a long detour on the passenger’s route while racing. Having the people place bets if I can still win the race and get the passenger’s destination at the same time. I got to say, those days were fun as it was exhausting.’

‘Damn Lorna you were really putting your neck on the chopping block for this.’ Lando responds as he takes out a can of beer from a six pack he stashed under his seat. Sadly it was already warm from the trip.

‘It’s the family business… Though my Dad is thinking of transitioning his company to supply electric power, it would still take time to draw the policies for it to thrive. In the meantime doing this racing thing would bring back the hype on petrol cars. Even if now I’m only able to attract enthusiasts, it’s still a start.’ She replies with a somber tone. Immediately after their chat the car’s parked along the Pitstop started their engines as she rushed out to see the commotion informing the rest of the group that the race was about to start.

‘Here goes nothing…’ Lando said to himself as he looked at a bright spot ahead behind the thick of the trees as he heard the engines echo from afar, raring to go.

…

…

‘I repeat! Starting order is based on order of arrival. No complaints!’ Val shouts as a final reminder before hoping inside the driver’s seat of her 180. Beside her is an already strapped in Denzo Kalma with a nervous look on his face. He was just minding his business talking with Yukino inside the canteen when J2 came over to tell him of the news. At first he was excited as he was getting a chance to experience what real speed really feels but after being strapped in tight, riding shotgun inside the car, he starts to feel in his bones that these people mean serious business. This is not the same as those vloggers he had watched in those old archived vlogs back when Japan was not strict with street racing. It had a sense of camaraderie and fun in those vlogs which he was feeling an absence in comparison to where he is now, being tightly strapped inside the car.

He was about to experience real competition, with real drivers who only compete for wins and in these quiet moments before the engines start, he realizes.

He is not ready for this.

‘J2, start at will.’ She said after she fires up the two liter straight four that powers her machine.

He nodded and raised his hands to signal the race was about to start.

One second…

Two seconds…

Three…

‘GO!’

He waves his arms down as all ten drivers take off in unison. Denzo held on for dear life as he was pressed back on his seat feeling his chest tighten making him think there was an elephant stepping on top of him and slowly crushing him. It was only after a couple of moments where he finally got a chance to breathe again when the car had stabilized from accelerating, but it was only for a split second as he got his neck thrown sideways while the car swiftly weaved through the corners.

The Old Zigzag road is not really as twisty as one might think. The “Zigzag” namesake is only named after the brief steep section in the middle of the route where the road drapes over the mountain side when the abrupt elevation change forced the road builders to twist the road onto itself to climb the steep incline. The rest of the course however has pretty tame corners compared to other famous routes in the country, but it only meant that the overall speed was higher in these sections before the incline as Val kept the car running in third gear for the next series of corners. Running no lower than 100km/h (62mph) through the whole section.

‘Here they come!’ Bert said through the radio as the lights appeared from the dense forest behind him.

…

…

Fuck!’ Denzo shouts after feeling a strong shunt from behind. Val had taken the corner quickly but the car behind had the grip to go faster and the sudden catch up propelled him to Val’s rear as she fought to correct the 180 from going over the rails and into the trees.

‘No biggie…’ She replies after straightening the car from a crash. The resulting correction made her lose momentum out of the corner as the headlamps behind shone brighter than what they used to. Denzo can feel the vibration from the opponents engine, feeling it trailing millimeters from hitting the 180’s rear bumper. He can see the next corner come up as his adrenaline skyrockets once more bracing himself for braking. The guardrails from afar quickly became close as the hairs behind his neck stood up in anticipation. He was sure that Val would’ve started braking at this distance but she kept her foot down longer as Denzo braces for impact.

At the last possible moment, Denzo feels a slight jolt in his seat as Val taps the brake.

Only taps the brake.

Suddenly he realized they were in the beginning of an accident.

Time suddenly slowed as Denzo watched the car behind in his mirrors, swiftly backing away from the rearview. Val pushed herself too hard.

In short, she’ll overshoot the turn.

He can feel the rear gradually losing grip as the guardrail approaches his passenger side door. He braces for impact, closing his eyes for the inevitable.

But it never came.

For some reason there was no impact.

And to make it stranger, the G-forces were also missing.

He opens his eyes to examine what had happened. He assumed it would all be white with fluffy clouds on his feet, but this was nowhere to be found. All he could see was the car sliding smoothly around the corner as everything passed by in a blur. Val’s face had no expression but her eyes looked intense as her hands and feet moved gracefully with meaning in each and every movement.

“See the way I dance my feet”

A phrase he suddenly remembered in the midst of that moment, his eyes glued to the beauty of her movements, the smoothness of the ride and the blurred out vegetation whizzing past the windscreen. Denzo might not have noticed but Val had gained over a second advantage to the car behind but to him it all felt like he was watching a movie scene inside a theater. There were no forces pushing or pulling on him during those moments and he simply had to sit back and watch the moment unfold. It was only when they reached the corner exit that the car had straightened itself up and the forces started to push down on him once more, snapping him out of his stupor. He looks at the mirrors to check on the car that slammed into them.

The headlights were already dim.

‘Hold you head straight for this one!’ Val shouts as they pass by the garden lay-by signaling the end of the flat section of the route.

They have now entered the steep incline section.

Val managed the first left easily, managing the speed of the car as it entered the slight downhill left hander, there a short straight that followed as she powers down the hill towards the next square right hander. Once again Denzo held his breath as Val kept her foot on till the last millisecond as he felt his soul leave his body under braking as the car came dangerously close to hitting the mountain side. Again he gets to witness the extent of her skill as she manages the next few hairpins that were the namesake of the route, sending the car dangerously close to the edge of the ravine as she slides around the tight corners like He would in the video games that he plays. Only this time the consequences were life threatening. The others behind her managed to follow suit but some of the cars in the tail end had suffered some damage as they used this slow section in the route to gain some positions as two cars found the limits of the railing that protected them from the steep drop. Although their bravery had impressed Bert who did his best to keep himself hidden behind the trees, their efforts did not bore any fruit as the running order at the bottom of the west incline remained the same.

[Running order]

1st - Valentina Fe (Nissan 180SX ‘kouki’ 1996)

2nd - Gregory Rubio (Toyota GR Yaris 2021)

3rd - Victor Masa (Toyota Supra MK5 ‘zenki’ 2019)

4th - Edward Lagos (Porsche 718 Boxster 2021)

5th - Martin Hamas (Toyota Supra MK5 ‘kouki’ 2025)

6th - Lester Zingko (Ford Mustang BOSS 425 2025)

7th - Abigail Rasta (Subaru BRZ 2017)

8th - Benedict Trope (Honda Civic Type R 2021)

9th - Alan Weichai (Honda Civic Type R 2017)

10th - Enzo Peloton (Subaru WRX STI 2014)

…

…

‘Targets spotted’

She declares through the radio as she spots an unidentified object flash through her built in optics. The whole team who had been busy blending in were now in full alert as Yukino nodded to her sister to acknowledge what was about to happen.

‘Wait…’ Miles said ‘Only one car approaching…’

‘One? Don’t they usually arrive in packs?’ Lando responds

‘Well the audience is small here so there’s no one to impress.’ Said Bert as he dusts off the leaves and dirt that got blown on to him by the passing cars.

‘You may be right but it still does not justify sending a single car to intercept, unless Carbine wants to rub it in our noses that electrics are far superior.’ Said Miles as she sees the car park right at the opposite side of the junction, shutting its lights off to draw away any attention.

‘Looks like they’re trying to join in stealthily.’ She said, reporting everything that was happening in front of her. ‘Convoy right on cue.’

‘Miles I think I might have the same convoy here approaching the junction…’ Lando reports in as both of the exits have multiple vehicles approaching it, most of them are of the SUV type of car.

‘It’s our favorite Mayor, guys I remember those plates from anywhere.’

‘Good looks like they’re here to watch with their potential investor friends. I’m seeing a couple of old rich men from the local government, stepping out from my side of the action.’

‘Looks like our favorite mayor is trying to unite the southern provinces to buy in on this investment!’ Bert haughtily responds.

‘As suspected Jun’s our insider. He’s telling the driver to wait for the pack to switchback up to the road and join the tail end of the field. I’m thinking he’s the one who called for a single car to come. Knowing that Val set up this race gives him guarantee that she’ll follow her own rules that she set. Which only means one thing.’ Lorna adds.

‘And what would that be?’ Asked Miles.

‘He’s gonna try to steal the crown from under her nose.’