Chapter 34

“Final Lap”

‘Is it already?’

A raspy voice spoke from the dark rearward seat of the Luxury Liner. A clandestine model from the American Lincoln brand of cars. An off-the-menu item in their SUV lineup. It is only offered from a need to know basis to certain “can afford” people, making sure of the model's exclusivity which is justified by its numerous luxurious features.

One of these said features is their smartlink network which enables a user to connect with other Luxury Liner owners and have their own “live experience” conference session from within their cars via its 360 degree haptic projectors, which links the interiors of all the members included in a smartlink call making it seem that the users are conversing within the same room.

‘Yes Mayor Illagan we have finally reached the final lap, we’re just awaiting the results from our mole inside their ranks.’ A bearded man in his sixties answered as he takes a sip from his champagne.

‘Mayor If this technology takes off we will be looking at ten if not hundreds of millions in dollars, but even so I still feel some fear lingering with the project since it would be happening in our backyard. Do we have guarantee from Mr. Carbine that they have safety measures installed in their procedures?’ Said another old entrepreneur while nervously clutching his cane.

‘Mister Lucas. The Carbines have already guaranteed the safety and compensation for any failures from their part. The only thing that needs to be done now is to get all of your approval to invest your lands to their cause. Hopefully the results here would inspire you to do so.’

‘Mayor?’

‘Yes Jun?’

‘Proto 99 wins

I repeat.

Proto 99 has won the race.’

‘Good. Thank you for your report Jun. Now, pack up and report back to central comms. Let your man deal with the final proceedings in the Asia Takeover.’

‘Understood, disconnecting…’

A quick beep sounds off the speakers as Jun disconnects from the conference followed by a round of applause from the investors who were listening in the conversation.

Carbine has won and their plans are now set in stone.

The men in the conference call celebrate and raise their glasses to their success as they have now made their decision to invest their futures in the endeavors of Carbine Automotive as the losing team of cars exit the mountain passes. Which for the people inside the watching SUV’s is a funny sight to behold as they laugh at the losers driving off from the Old Zigzag route.

‘Wait if I may have one inquiry about this. What about that “monster” Lamborghini? Your mole said he spotted the car parked near the starting grounds when the race started. Do you think he would be a threat?’

‘Yes Mayor, Did he find out who this person is?’

The dark figure went silent for a brief moment before he leaned forwards as his face revealed itself in the light. A hardened old man with optical implants for eyes appeared on everyone's screen as the whole conference went silent, patiently awaiting his response.

‘You need not worry. Identity is not an important factor. What is important here is the vehicle. We admit that the car is fast enough to cause headaches and if indeed the driver decides to join in, we have “immediate” measures to prevent another headache.’

‘So this means your mole failed to find out his identity.’ Said the bearded man.

‘It is not failure when it is not part of the objective. Isn’t it?’ The Mayor said with an intimidating tone.

‘C-correct…’ The man responds.

‘Anywho, let us enjoy this occasion. Drink up my colleagues! For tomorrow when we wake up our work begins!’

…

…

-20 minutes earlier-

‘Bogey is joining in.’ Miles said through the Radio as Lorna sees Val pull over to the Pitstop parking area. ‘She lost?’ She thought as she almost made the decision to spring up to her side but hesitated as she saw Jun hanging about the start finish line. Luckily Yukino was there to act on her behalf, greeting a dizzy looking Denzo kalma stepping out of the car.

‘I didn’t know you bring minors to the races now Val.’ Jun said with a condescending tone as he stepped down to the parking area wearing a smug smile on his face.

‘Happy I didn’t win?’ She responds.

‘Yes, I was getting tired of you being in front all the time. But then again that’s why Mr. Asia likes keeping you around I suppose.’ He replies as his eyes caught on to the girl talking to Denzo. ‘Yukino is here huh? Where’s Lorna?’

‘Lor!’

‘Fuck..’ She thought to herself as she reluctantly approached the group from her spot in the shadows. ‘You caught me…’ She said with a dejected tone.

‘Hi Lor.’ He responds with a grin. ‘Oh by the way I have something for you.’ He said as he gestures over to some people in the back, rushing over with four baskets full of various sweets.

‘From Mr. Asia of course.’ Jun said as his men placed the baskets in a neat line in front of her. Although Lorna didn’t look too happy upon seeing the gifts being laid in front of her.

‘From Mr. Asia? Really?’ She responds with a suspicious look in her eyes. ‘Shall I call him for thanks?’

‘N-no need…’

‘Godammit…’

With those words, a huge bell had rang inside of Val’s mind as her eyes went wide from her sudden realization. Lorna notices and immediately starts shaking her head, mortified as Jun looks confused at the two women in front of him.

‘C’mon Denzo let’s leave the adults alone in their drama.’ Yukino said as she escorted Denzo into the Pitstop to sit down and get some drinks to ease his dizziness.

‘Val!’ J2 cuts in after sprinting over from the trackside concessions. ‘What happened?’ He asked, finding it hard to believe she was out with four more cars to go.

‘The kid got dizzy… I’d rather park it and fight another night than to spend the next week cleaning his vomit from the floor.’ She replies, annoyed.

‘Oh… well it’s good that this is just the first race, you can still risk things but…’ He paused, trying to think carefully of his words before speaking. ‘What were you planning when you strapped him in the seat?... I mean… I know you knew this “might” happen Val…’

-Meanwhile in background Lorna walks away from the baskets that Jun gifted for her as Jun follows her, trying to convince her to accept the sweets.-

‘I wasn’t counting on it happening… Thought the kid would be fine with motion sickness since he played those games… I blame G-force for this.’ She replied as she took off her gloves and shoved it onto J2’s chest. ‘He needs more seat time on the karts… make it possible J2…’ Val said as she walked away towards the Pitstop, leaving J2 standing alone once again with more work assigned to him.

‘Ugh… not again…’

…

…

‘Lando where’d you park your car?’ Miles asked. Her voice sounds strained as she radios into the group.

‘Uhh… just after the junction. Why?’

‘Can you move it without the convoy seeing you?’

‘Y-yeah… I think so-’

‘Yes or no Lando.’

Lando paused and analyzed the surroundings for a moment, assessing whether it was dark enough to run his car with the lights off and still be unnoticed.

‘Yeah I can get it without getting spotted.’

‘Good park it just after where they placed the turnaround.’

‘Turna-what?!’

‘Turnaround! The cone where they turn the cars back up the route you moron!’

‘Ohh… okay, jeez Miles what’s the rush?’

‘Cuz you and I both got four minutes to get there!’

‘Four? What do you mean by“both”?’

‘I’m running towards your position! Get to the cone now!’

‘You’re gonna sprint the whole mountain in fo-’

‘NOW LANDO!’

…

…

‘Jun your report?’ The distinct raspy voice of the Mayor echoes through his earpiece as his eyes see the cars pass by the start line for the eighth time that night and as suspected another car has been eliminated. So far none of the people in the gallery noticed that the pack has an extra car running amidst them, even the drivers who were recently eliminated stood around the parking area thinking everything was proceeding as per Val’s plan. He smiles as he thought to himself that things were running smoothly for once, as he chuckled thinking that part of his plan’s success was making the decision to run the infiltration parallel with Val’s plan to minimize any risk of being countered. Coupled with the fact that the route was dark and narrow enough to keep the drivers occupied to not notice the laps or the specifics of their competitors, it was a perfect storm to take over the scene. ‘Our guy is sticking to the rear end of the pack. Only overtaking to avoid elimination, just as planned.’ He replies as he hears the Mayor grumble from his earpiece. ‘Any doubts about this boss?’ He responds.

There was a short static pause before the Mayor replied back ‘Are you sure he can always make the pass at the last minute? Either way, whether we win or not I’m already impressed. Taking down the Asia group would just be an icing to the cake for our business partners.’

Jun sighs. ‘I assure you he might not be as good as “monster” was but the car more than enough to compensate. Afterall isn’t this the biggest testament of Carbine’s performance? The very thing you’re wanting to see, Boss?’ He said with an audible chuckle. A cheeky reply as he hears the Mayor’s blood vessels pop from the other side of the line. But he does not fear an outrage, afterall he knows he is irreplaceable.

‘Just make sure!’ The palpatine voice stung his ears, making him wince for a moment of pain as he bumps into some of the people walking past him, startling him as he thought he was the only one standing on that part of the gallery as he looks around to see that the people were starting to gather en masse around the start/ finish line.

The race was about to reach its climax.

…

…

‘Cut the lights.’ Val radioed in as one of the canteen’s staff flips the switch right at the moment the cars cross the line. One of the cars slowed and turned around to honor the elimination as two cars remained.

[Running Order]

1st- Gregory Rubio (Toyota GR Yaris 2021)

2nd- Unknown (Carbine Automotive Prototype #99)

The crown hushed the moment the light went off and the whole parking area went dark. The faint glow of the crowd’s smartphones became the only source of light around the area as a recovering Denzo Kalma emerged from the balcony of the Pitstop cafeteria, looking over the crowd below as he confused the night sky with the twinkling shine of the phones below. Yukino and Lorna join him on the balcony as they all anticipate the final stretch of the race. The two highschoolers looked hyped up from the atmosphere as it had a sense of electricity surging through it, the kind of electricity one can feel in the wee hours of the night when the countdown begins to welcome the coming of the new year.

The crowd pipes up as they start to hear the sound of the cars from afar. The buzzing whispers running in parallel to the steadily increasing volume of the engine that was approaching the finish line. Everybody had their own little spot to celebrate as the checkout counter became busy serving out drinks to the last minute patrons who wanted to have a drink in hand when the cars crossed the line.

‘HERE THEY COME!!!’

Lorna shouts bubbly from the balcony after getting a brief glimpse of someone’s headlamps shining through the trees. Her voice was loud enough that the whole gallery and parking area began cheering the moment they heard her voice as the lights from the cars emerged from behind the mountain and screamed their power across the gallery as dozens of flashes from the spectators' phones made the scene sparkle in the midst of the darkness.

It all happened in a flash but Denzo felt the goosebumps rising up from his skin as the cars flew by in the midst of all the flashing lights and the rowdy crowd. He was too busy reeling in and processing the feelings that he was experiencing that he was taken by surprise as Lorna shimmies herself in between him and Yukino holding their neck in a chokehold as she shouts at the crowd once more.

‘LAST LAP EVERYBODY!’

The crowd goes wild as J2 shines a flashlight over to the trio on the balcony, prompting Lorna to jump up and down, her arms still wrapped around the two kids as she excitedly hypes up the crowd from where she stood. Val on the other hand looked peevish, shaking her head as she looked at Lorna making a fool out of herself, she sighs and smiles in defeat as she sees her long lost friend amping up the mood. As she always does.

‘J2 get everyone out of the gallery…’ She whispers to J2 in the midst of the celebrations and in response, much to Val’s disbelief, J2 hands him the flashlight he uses to illuminate Lorna on the balcony, tapping her shoulder as he passes the burden to her while he accomplishes his task.

Thankfully it was dark enough that no one saw, but it was the second time Val caught herself with her jaws wide open. ‘The audacity.’ She thought as she quickly composed herself before anyone noticed, vengefully shining the little flashlight onto Lorna’s face.

J2 and a couple of staff from the pitstop marched in a line to guide people to back away from the armco fence that divided the gallery from the road as they set up a little surprise for the crowd at the start - finish line. Once again the crowd hears the engine from the pack getting louder and louder as Lorna continues to keep the energy up in the crowd as the entirety of the crowd looks on from afar, waiting to spot the headlamps from the racers climbing up the mountain. The volume briefly dies down as they anticipate the approach, anxiously waiting for any sign appearing from the bottom as they see a pair of lights drift around the hairpin below followed by the loud scream from Lorna that they were a few corners away as everyone began cheering and celebrating all around the parking area.

The lights began shining through the trees as the tuned 3 cylinder engine was starting to outclass the volume of the crowd. The crowd fights back with a louder cheer but fails to outdo the rally spec engine as the two cars appear side by side out of the final corner arriving with a literal bang as they cross the finish line to trigger the fireworks that lights up the night sky.

It was everything that Denzo dreamed of. The speed, the spectacle, the energy, all in one place. If one would tell him six months ago that he would be a part of something that he could only experience in his daydreams, then would never believe that person, even if that person was himself. But here he is, standing atop of a balcony in the middle of a dense forest looking at fast cars, fireworks and the beginnings of a huge party. For him life could only get better now, the only thing left in his list is his very own car.

Amidst the daydreaming, he was woken up by Yukino’s hand pulling him from the balcony to join the celebrations below. Lorna had already rushed downstairs and Denzo was too spaced out to notice.

‘Denzo let’s go!’ She said, excited and giddy. It was the first time he’d seen this side of Yukino which, whilst trying his best to ignore it, made him see her differently than he used to.

They ran down the steps and out to the crowd as they were greeted by a huge party and flashing lights as the fireworks above them were still going on. They spotted Val and Lorna near the gallery, standing by the fireworks that J2 had setup as they made the decision to approach them when they were guided away by some of the people in the crowd as the final two competitors drove into the parking area. The first car he spots is the Yaris. Considered as the 20’s equivalent to the old Toyota Sprinter Trueno “Hachiroku” it was an affordable race car specified for the road. A homologation model of the old rally cars of the 20’s. It’s a formidable track and dirt ring racer but sadly only a limited number of these were produced. Luckily that didn’t stop auto garages from making their own “upgrade” packages to the “normal” version of the Yaris, which was much more common than its GR counterpart and soon these “garage specials” flooded the car scene like a plague. The other car, however, was something that Denzo had never seen before. Scantily clad in unpainted carbon fiber, the car had a stance that looked like it was going at the speed of sound whilst standing still. A predatory stance that looked like it was about to pounce on its prey and it certainly did not just caught Denzo’s eye but also his, and the crowd’s, ears as it whistles past them.

Suddenly the atmosphere around them became heavy as he began hearing some of the people around them questioning the car, asking if they had seen it during the pre race as some of the eliminated drivers were becoming loudly vocal about the mystery car’s presence. He looks at Yukino to see how she’ll react but was surprised by the look of certainty on her face, for some strange reason she looked unbothered by the car that had just passed them by, not even a trace of curiosity can be seen from her expression whilst everyone shouted hushed whispers at each other.

Everybody’s buzz was suddenly wiped out as the doors to the mystery car opened.

From inside, a blonde haired woman steps out of the vehicle, wearing a similarly all black suit that made her look like the predator from an old alien movie from years past. It was like time stopped when the woman appeared out of the car, even the drivers, who despite having raced with these cars before had never had the chance to meet the people driving it, looked like they had seen an extraterrestrial revealing herself in front of the human race.

‘Goddammit! I lost to a woman again!’ Someone from the crowd shouts, breaking the silence.

The whole crowd turned their heads to the perpetrator, it was second place man Gregory Rubio looking amused at the luck that he’s had within the past few races.

‘First Val now you? My goodness, Hopefully “monster” was the only dude who got me beat…’ He chuckled as he leans back on the hood of his car, looking straight at the woman in black.

Lorna was about to answer, but sensing her mischief, Val pulled her back to silence her advance as she stepped forward to confront the Carbine driver.

‘What’s your business here?’ Val asked.

The woman looked smugly at her as she answered: ‘We’re on the same side. Don’t you remember?’’ She said as she tapped the suit that she was wearing, triggering Val’s memory.

‘The docks you were…’

‘Anyways guys!’ Lorna interjected. ‘Clearly this person was not part of the initial roster so as per the gentleman’s agreement we will have to declare her disqualified and award the win to Greg!’ Lorna announced enthusiastically to the crowd as everyone kept silent with how sudden and messy things have become.

‘Fuck yeah I won!’ Greg shouts.

And almost immediately the crowd roars in celebration.

Lorna winks at Miles as she steps away from the car and joins the main group in the gallery. Denzo and Yukino also did the same as they fought their way through the crowd.

‘We need to clear the people out of here immediately, we need to sell a loss.’ Miles spoke as soon as she arrived in the group.

‘I’m sorry you guys sound urgent but can anyone tell me what the fuck is goin on here?’ Val irately asked.

‘They’re the help I was talking to you about…’ Lorna answered as she pulled out her phone to talk to someone.

‘What are you doing now?’

‘Finding them a spot for the afterparty.’

‘Good thinking.’ Miles responds. ‘Anywho it’s Miles. Nice to finally meet you.’ She said as she extended her hand towards Val, who cautiously accepted the handshake.

‘Your suit… does it-?’

‘Yes pretty much everything, but just like a car, you need practice to get it working.’ She replies as there was a sudden awkwardness between the two as Yukino and Denzo join them in the gallery.

‘Hi Miles, Detective Sulit and his partner are on the way with the Carbine driver you guys caught.’ Yukino said as Denzo stared at Miles’s suit in astonishment. On the way up to the gallery, Yukino had briefed Denzo with everything that was happening within the past months, what she was doing and her interactions with the police during the investigation on the raids. All of the information had overwhelmed him but nonetheless got the gist of it. He just can’t believe that he was surrounded with amazing people like her in school which made him think what kind of hidden gems his current friends might have under their sleeves that he doesn;t know about. So far during this night Denzo had learned a lot about Yukino’s capabilities and can’t help himself but be impressed as a small infatuation brews in his mind.

‘No tell’em to go ahead and get the guy back to base. They’d suspect it more if they come with us after this.’ She responds as Yukino reports back to Lando and Bert, who were just hanging out at the west turnaround with the original driver, gagged and handcuffed in the backseat of his car.

A few moments passed as Lorna declares to everyone the location of the afterparty, which everyone was ecstatic enough to oblige, getting more chances to drink and eat after a wild night of speed. Jun had slipped past the crowd to report his findings, albeit with minor tweaks as Lorna finally takes his sweets basket which made him alter a few of his statements to his boss.

After ten minutes of cars revving up and doing burnouts as they exit the premises, the whole pitstop area fell back to it’s usual silence.

It was here that Miles escorted everyone to the car they had captured.

‘You two have raced against these Carbines before right?’ Miles asked. As the two ladies across from her inspected the car in front of them.

‘No… this one’s… different.’ Val answered looking curiously at the details around the car.

‘Did you find any matches of this car from the data you got from the warehouse?’

‘None…’ Lorna said while standing in front of the hood as delves deep in her thoughts. ‘Most of the models there looked tame compared to these, but then again it had been a week since we snuck in there, they could’ve changed their strategy since then.’ Lorna continued.

‘True, but since any official data we have doesn’t support this, we might have to wait. Until then I feel like I need to warn you guys of what this actually is.’

‘Why do we need to wait? For what?’ Val asked.

‘Exactly why I need to show you this.’ Miles said as she pops open the trunk. Denzo was surprised that the engine was at the back. He was expecting a front engined car just by looks alone and at the same time, it was the first he had seen a mid engined one, as he rushed over to take a peek at the goods.

‘What you’re looking at is a Xenon engine, Top secret from CNSA.’

‘So? What about it?’ Val asked.

‘It’s electric…

Nuclear electric.’

Upon hearing the word nuclear, everyone except Denzo stepped back from the car, garnering Miles’ attention.

‘Hmm… seems someone has some knowledge in this group.’ She said ‘Do you know anything about nuclear power, kid?’ She asked Denzo as she looked back at her excitedly that he might know something the other did not.

‘Yeah! Most companies were looking into it for space travel but reeled back their efforts since the tech was still unstable for actual use.’ He answered and in his response he remembers the things he researched and slowly steps back from the vehicle as well.

‘Wait what’s a nuclear powered vehicle doing in the middle of this country? Let alone be in a “car form” AND racing?!’ J2 asked, terrified at the fact that something as dangerous was actually sliding around at perilous speed a few moments ago.

‘Well it’s a good thing we planned to steal it from the start then.’ Val interjects. ‘Who knows what they plan to do with this.’

‘I know.’ Said Miles. ‘No one cares if this country blows up to smithereens and becomes a wasteland for the next millenia. For all I know Carbine could make the whole of Luzon into their space facility. I mean… they got the nuke suits to do the job, why not make another chernobyl. Free acres of land if you ask me.’

The statement terrified the whole group as they felt a huge sense of unease just by being near the car, knowing what can happen if even a minor failure happens to its engine or fuel tank.

‘This is what the authorities are signing us off on?’ Lorna spoke. ‘Goddamit, and I thought our family was the one blinded by personal gain. Geez…’

‘Well nonetheless, I’ll take this back to a safe space. Meanwhile I want you to find any info on this car. Anything Carbine related, find it and report it. You know where to call.’

After making her final declaration, Miles steps into the car and drives away, leaving the group to ponder on everything that they had just heard.

‘So… what are we gonna do now?’ Yukino asked.

‘Let’s go home first Yuki. I’m sure you guys are in need of reflection after a long night of throwing ourselves down the ravines.’ Lorna responds as Denzo looks to Val and J2 for a decision.

‘Alright Denzo let’s get you back. Lorna?’

‘Yeah, later then…’ Lorna said as they all dispersed themselves from the parking area with Her and Yukino driving back in the Lamborghini, Denzo and J2 in his Tesla and Val, driving lone inside her 180 as she overtakes everyone halfway down the mountain pass. Her car’s movements looked aggressive and wild, as if she was driving the wheels off in raging anger.

No one knows why Val had acted the way she was acting but from the way she drove, she seems to look like she had a death wish. And to add to their worries, Val and her white 180 had disappeared after they had left the area.

She never attended the afterparty in the planned second location.

Nonetheless the drinks and the smiles flew around every table that night and had continued till first sunlight when everyone settled down for a coffee before separating back to their own lives.

It was a night that Denzo would never forget. An experience that he could only dream about from across his computer screen had now materialized for him to be part of it. All he could think about to summarize his feelings were a single “wow” before his tired eyes had succumbed to his well earned fatigue, falling asleep in the passenger seat of J2’s car.

‘What else is up?’ His last thoughts before he slept.

…

…

Meanwhile on the other side of the war, drinks also were flowing inside their individual cabins as the group of men led by the Mayor celebrated their new high earning investments, thinking to themselves as the ushers of a new future for the country. Though one might think that their ambitions are for the good, deep inside they were not looking at the potential of the project nor the dangers. They just thought it was shiny and new and people would buy it like the new trend, and they just wanted to be ahead of the curve to get majority shares before it hikes up due to popularity.

It is all for money.

And nothing else more.

As the gentlemen engrossed themselves in the celebrations, a curious call came from the Mayor's side of the party with the ominous initials of MCRBN.

As if seeing a ghost, the mayor quickly excused himself from the conference session and logged out.

‘Madam Carbine. A welcome surprise! To what do I owe this call?’

A woman who deceivingly looks like she was in her mid 40’s appears and is sat across from him, using the haptic projectors his SUV has installed.

‘Mister Mayor, I believe it is good morning from where you are now if I am correct?’

‘Yes Ma’am, it is 2:30 in the morning here in the islands.’ He replies, trying his best to hide the raspiness of his voice as he thinks it might displease her.

‘I see, anywho, about your investment in our company, are you now willing to agree with our terms?’

‘Yes Madam! My partners and I are ready to sign the new contract. Just sent it over and we will affix our signature to solidify this deal.

‘I see, how about the new offices by Aseana? I believe the government has allowed the takeover to happen?’ She responds, inquiring about the building’s in block six-one-six.

‘Yes… the raids have driven out occupying companies and are ready to be furnished by Carbine affiliates.’

‘Whistleblowers and naysayers?’

‘Detained…’

‘Wonderful. I’ll send the contracts at first light… PH time. I suggest, Mayor, that you get an early sleep. I want those contracts back before sundown. Again, Good day to you…’

Her parting words as she disappears just as abruptly as she appeared before him. The Mayor didn’t even get a chance to say formalites in farewells, but nonetheless it was not important. What was important now was that the deal was now sealed.

He and his party never got the sleep that Madam Carbine suggested. Instead they kept drinking till first light and signed the contracts whilst in transit to their breakfast nook. As they all shared a wonderful and fulfilling meal that morning, signing in their futures to the success of Carbine in the country. Whom, in their eyes, will be a dominating presence in the midst of the other companies residing in the country.

A dominating presence.

In some way.