The stories you are about to see are true and based on actual events.
WARNING: The deaths portrayed in this show are real and extremely graphic. Do not attempt anything you see here…
You will die!
Death is everywhere. Some of us avoid it… others can't seem to get out of its way. Every day, we face the danger of disease, toxins, physical injury and catastrophe. That we survive at all is a miracle! It's a dangerous galaxy we live in, and each day we live… we face 10,000 Ways to Die!
Time: December 12th, 2185
Location: Zakera Ward, Citadel
Most people don't want to die, not intentionally anyways. But many will take great chances to come as close as they can just for the thrill. Enter the extreme sports enthusiast, a special breed who lives on the razor's edge. Daredevils and thrill seekers all across the galaxy indulge in stunts such as BASE jumping, cliff diving, bungee jumping, tightrope walking and hang-gliding. Sex? Drugs? Sensory rock and roll? None of these can compare to the adrenaline rush of cheating death time and time again. But you can only avoid the Grim Reaper for so long. Sooner or later, he always collects.
The newest craze to hit the extreme sports scene: curve gliding. Based at the Citadel, it's been described as hang gliding at FTL speeds. The Citadel space station is comprised of five massive arms known as Wards connected to a central ring, the Presidium. Rotation about this ring provides gravity for the entire station. Wearing a custom-designed, pressurized glide suit supplemented with a power cell, the curve glider takes advantage of this gravity to leap from a high point and glide down along the curve of a Ward arm as far as possible. The journey will often have him or her cut straight across walkways and through traffic, endangering both themselves and the public. A curve glider's ultimate dream is to sail down the entire length of a Ward, landing just before flying off into space.
Frederick Lorne, daredevil extraordinaire. He would be the first to achieve this impossible dream. And there was only one takeoff point on the Citadel that could make it possible: the Presidium Tower. One would-be curve glider had already been arrested for trying to scale the massive building, but his mistake was climbing up from the outside. Frederick had it all worked out and packed accordingly for his grand expedition. Researching pirate extranet sites and bribing maintenance staff, he found a secluded way inside the building, armed with maps of a route to the near top of the tower via its intricate network of air ducts. Slipping past security, Fred opened up a panel at the ground floor, chucked in his gear and then slipped into the ducts without raising an alarm. Over the course of eight days he slowly made his way up, stopping at key points to rest, refuel and relieve himself. His mind ever on the prize: an inextricable place in history. He was climbing Mount Everest and would then celebrate his victory by hang gliding off the peak to fly nonstop to New York City.
At long last Frederick reached the jump point, already clad in his glider suit he had put on near the end of his climb. Still wary of any security measures, he gave his perch a quick once over and then stood out at the edge. It was an unparalleled view. Five Manhattan-sized Ward arms stretched out before him, glittering, twinkling, beckoning him to take the plunge. He bent down, took one last breath on steady ground… and leapt off.
Frederick was in flight! Two minutes out, C-Sec authorities spotted him on their scanners and gave chase. It didn't matter now; he was on his way to glory. As he jumped, he had pushed off the building's side such that he would move downwards on his glide path. Halfway down, gravity would take hold and prevent him from soaring into forever. He was master of the air, weaving through traffic lanes and passing over stunned onlookers. C-sec pursuit craft broke off as he began to pass through denser lanes, setting up checkpoints along his route instead to be ready to arrest him when he finally touched down.
Fred blew past all obstacles with ease. Local media got wind and fixed their cameras on the flyboy. Down further and faster he flew. As planned, he came under gravity at the halfway mark of his journey. The end of the Ward arm was coming into view; just a few more lanes and buildings to pass. It looked like he was actually going to make it! Then suddenly, a communications antenna came into view on top of a building he thought was clear. At the last second he swerved past it, narrowly avoiding becoming a high speed shish-ka-bob. But he didn't escape unscathed. The sharp point of the antenna tore a huge gash in the membrane of his left wing. Frederick began spiraling out of control, scraping and smashing the sides of buildings as he went down. Down, down, down Daedalus went until he finally landed on street level just on the end of the Ward arm.
Frederick slammed into the guard wall head on with such force that his skull was pushed halfway down between his shoulders as it was pulverized, reducing his brains to tapioca. His neck and spinal column snapped in eight places as he rag dolled into the wall in addition to his leg bones twisting and shattering upon impact.
Nope, no way Freddy was gonna walk this one off.
He set out with a clear goal in mind and in the end he accomplished it. You can't help but admire his can-do attitude! Unfortunately, he didn't live to negotiate the movie rights. Alas, poor Frederick! He could have played it safe and lived a life less extraordinary. Instead, he took the advice of another boy who wouldn't grow up and followed that second star to the right straight on into mourning. As the Lorne Dart plummeted to the ground, one could only imagine what his last thoughts might have been…
"Wendy, I can dieeee!"
Way # 5015: Peter Pan-caked
Author's Notes and Thoughts:
The inspiration for the story was two entries on the Cerberus Daily News Feed website about the sport of curve diving. This will be the first of hopefully many more - I'll try to post a new one every couple of weeks. Thanks again for your continued encouragement and support!