Wednesday, April 10th, 2013

After months of anticipation the day had finally arrived. Race day. In one of the many hotel rooms, Aurora and her crew were all dressed in their uniforms. The Puma commander took a last glance at the mirror and nodded in satisfaction.

"You guys ready?" she asked.

"I'm ready to drive like a god-damn bastard." Riley said, smiling

"As long as you two don't roll the damn thing, I'm happy" Avery said.

With it being a race and not a shooting match, there was no need for Avery to be in the vehicle, where she is both the gunner and the loader of the Puma. The trio of girls left their room and took an elevator down to the lobby, where the rest of the team had congregated.

"Good, everyone is here." Buchanan said upon seeing the Puma crew.

"Today's the day. We've prepared as much as we can. You all have your roles and the only thing expected from you is your best. The raceway is just outside of the city and all the equipment that we need is already there. Waiting for us."

With a gesture of her hand, Buchanan led the team out from the lobby to a bus parked outside. Once they all boarded, they were off. The city streets were soon exchanged for more open roads of the freeway. Within the hour, they all saw the place. The raceway. Usually serves NASCAR when they come down here, but for today, instead of super fast cars speeding around the track, it was not as fast armored cars going around the track. The lowered speeds didn't make the spectacle any less thrilling however. The stands were populated with eager spectators, their eagerness telling the team just how loud the crowd was.

"This is something else." Valarie noted.

"Oh man this is gonna be so intense! Wish it was us racing though." Ashley commented.

"Well, if the T-44 could somehow drive thirty miles per hour faster, we might then have a shot."

The team went to area that was underneath the track. An area that was for the team's participating in the race. It was there they could now scoop out the competition. There were four other vehicles in this underground garage. All competing against Mojave Rose in a bid to win a Panther II.

- M8 Greyhound

- T17E1 Staghound

- Daimler Armored Car

- AMD Panhard 178

Valarie looked at them all, studying. Aurora walked up to her and tapped her shoulder.

"Alright you tank nerd, how's the competition? Are they fast?"

"I know roughly how fast they go but that's with a full crew, ammo, and other equipment. If they are like us, they too have gutted their cars for the sake of speed. It's an evening playing field at the very least."

Aurora inhaled deeply.

"Aw man. I was hoping we'd run away with this thing."

"Ah, we dream of that but it almost never happens."

Redwood led the team to the pit crew area where they would remain for the rest of the race. Aurora and Riley stayed behind with Buchanan. They were with the Puma, giving a quick visual inspection.

"Tires good. Engine good. We're all set." Riley informed.

"The officials should've done all that was needed so that you don't have to do anything before the race." Buchanan said.

"That's the hope, anyway."

The two girls climbed into their positions.

"Just sit tight you two. Wait for the announcement to drive onto the starting line. Oh, and one more thing."

Buchanan gave them portable radios with accompanying headsets.

"Clip those radios on your belt and wear the headsets. We need a line of communication."

"Thanks" both the girls.

"Good luck." Buchanan remarked, then walking to the pit area.

Aurora and Riley got comfortable in their seats as they waited for the go-ahead.

"Check. You read me Riley?"

"Loud and clear."

"Great. Way better than yelling."

Aurora from her pocket got out the race rules and reviewed them.

"The only thing we can't do is shoot at each other. But if people are smart, they shouldn't have any ammo in the first place. Other than that though we're free to do what we want. Perhaps even…ram…or pit someone.

"Sounds like a great way for us to get taken out of the race. Too much risk." Riley countered.

"Maybe. Maybe. Let's just see how things play out. Never know what could happen in the heat of the moment."

Aurora looked around the area. The other vehicles were idling their engines waiting for the call. A PA system clicked on.

"Racers. Proceed to the starting line. Race begins in ten minutes."

All the armored cars in the area drove on. They formed a line as they emerged from the underground garage and onto the track. Once the crowd caught sight of them, their excitement grew. At a steady speed, they all formed up at the starting line. Overhead, an official held the checkered flag. Waiting for the moment to wave it. At the pit area, the Mojave rose team was ready. Spare tires and extra fuel were prepared and some members were playing with the impact wrenches to get a feel for them. On an elevated chair was Valarie, binoculars trained at the starting line.

"Guess you can add crew chief to your resume, eh Val?" Buchanan remarked.

"Yeah, I'm just racking them up." Valarie responded with a laugh.

The racers were ready. The pit crews were ready. All that everyone could do now was wait. Among the crowd, a number of schools were watching. Up high in the stands, two girls dressed in identical uniforms were in the middle of a conversation. One of the pointed down toward the starting line.

"There they are. There's Mojave Rose's Puma." Penelope announced.

"A Puma? They are speedy scout cars." Caroline said.

"Yes, but so are the other vehicles. It will be close. Still. I wish them luck."

"Why?"

"As I've told you, they are nice people. Also…I think the two girls I met are more than friends and that's really cute honesty."

They looked down at the track for a few moments.

"But of course…" Penelope continued.

"Should we ever go against them. The pleasantries will stop."

At another area of the stands, a group of girls were sitting in relaxed states, waiting for the race to begin. One of them had a pair of binoculars and was leisurely peering through them. When she turned her gaze down at the pit area, she no longer felt relaxed.

"Hey! That guy is down at the pits!" she yelled

"What?" said another.

"He's down there. Along with that girl from yesterday."

"Give me that."

She took the binoculars from her hands and saw what she saw.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me. Mojave Rose is in the race."

"What can we do about that, Cassandra?"

"Nothing." she said dejectedly.

"Other than pray that they lose."

Just a few rows above them, two adult women were nestled in their seats. Unlike the people below them, they were happy.

"It's them! Those kids!" Zoey exclaimed.

"Oh yeah, that's them! Good call on coming to the race. Since they have a Puma, well, the odds were good."

"Once it's over. We'll speak with them. Hopefully, they got the answers we are looking for."

At the starting line, engines were hot and being revved. Exhaust fumes were gushing out, thick and black. There was a slight drizzle that moistened the track but it was not totally drenched. Just prior to the race, a small army of pick-up trucks with jet engines strapped to their rear blasted the asphalt with intense heat. It was as dry as it could be considering the circumstances.

"Sixty seconds!" yelled the announcer.

Aurora cracked her knuckles and laid her hands firmly against the inner walls of the Puma. She took a deep breath and enjoyed the last remaining seconds of relative calm. She tended to her hair, long and brown. It was tucked into her helmet so that it wouldn't bounce in front of her face when things got underway. The metal of the vehicle was cold. It especially didn't help that the Puma was stored in an underground garage for the past few days. But they didn't care. The cold would soon be the least of their concerns. Aurora trained her eyes at the official ahead and above them. She was looking at her watch. Her head was bouncing slightly, as if she was mentally counting down. Then, her head stopped and reached down and grabbed the checkered flag. Another quick glance at her watch and with great energy waved the flag. At the same time, the announcement system sounded off.

"Aaand they're off!"At the starting line was the simultaneous noise of screeching tires as all of the drivers slammed down on the accelerators. To Aurora and the rest of the Mojave Rose team, it was now clear that the other racers did indeed lighten their vehicles however they could. Valarie noticed this first as the other armored cars moved much faster than what she read about them. No one was going to run away with this thing. The racers reached the first turn. They broke hard to make the turn tight, tires screaming hellishly as they did and produced skid marks. Coming out of the turn, the Greyhound took the lead, followed by the Panhard, Puma, Staghound, and Daimler. Though the Greyhound was in first place, it wasn't a comfortable lead. The rest of the racers were right behind, battling each other to overtake. Clashing against each other was unavoidable. It was accidental, of course. Well, they said it was an accident but that really couldn't be proven. Aurora's eyes were darting around their sockets, looking intensely at each of their competitors. She was searching for an opportunity. The Panhard, that French car, was only just able to keep ahead of the Puma. They were annoying too far yet too close at the same time. In addition to that, they were mimicking their movements. But there was this delay. When the Puma turned toward the left to attempt an overtake, the Panhard would block that maneuver a few quick seconds later. If only she could overtake she could block them all so much better thanks to the rear driving seat. For now, she could only be patient and hope that when the opportunity arises, she can act on it immediately.

Back at the pits, the team were all fixated at the racers. The Puma, of course, was their main focus. Those with binoculars enjoyed the show. Others were using the tools at their disposal to do work. One with binoculars trained them on the Puma's wheels to judge their condition.

"They look pretty alright." one reported.

"How about fuel?"

"It should be good."

At her elevated chair, Valarie watched. All things were good so there wasn't anything for anyone to do. Her focus on the track was interrupted by the sensation of someone climbing on her chair.

"Emma? What's up?" Valarie asked.

"This race. How long is it?"

"Twenty-five laps. Way shorter than a NASCAR race or else we'd be here forever."

Back at the track, the situation was more or less the same. The Greyhound was in the lead with everyone else bouncing against each other trying to take first place for themselves. Riley was hyper-focused at the task at hand. She had a death grip on the steering wheel, only briefly letting go to shift gears. Over the past few months, she had become very familiar with her machine. Just be listening closely to how the engine sounded, she shifted gears accordingly. From the driver's viewport, her vision was restricted. It was mostly filled with the rears of other racers with the occasional glimpse of the wall and cheering spectators. She took a peek at the gauges and what she saw made her eyes squint.

"You've got to be kidding me…man…Aurora! We're almost out of gas! The needle is about to hit the red!"

"No way! We should have a full tank!"

"Yeah, we should but we don't."

Aurora shook her head. She activated her radio.

"Oasis! Or Valarie? Do we do call signs for this? Ah, whatever! We're pulling to the pits for refueling."

"Already?" Valarie asked, surprised.

"Yeah. I feel the same way. Get ready for us."

Valarie hopped off her chair.

"They're pulling up to refuel. Whose on that?"

"Me!" yelled Avery with great enthusiasm, hand raised high in the air.

At the pit area was a large fuel canister. Attached to it was a nozzle to deliver the fuel. At once, Avery went on over and detached the nozzle from its hold. Not too long after, the Puma pulled from the track and quickly stopped in front of the area. One the side facing Avery, at the far right, was a small hatch. Moving quickly, she went up to the little hatch, opened it up, and inserted the gas nozzle. The moment she pressed on the trigger, gallons of fuel were pumped into the machine. The delivery system hummed as it did its job. All the while, the other racers continued to burn rubber. Aurora from her position watched and grew more frustrated by the second.

"Goddammit, this shouldn't be happening in the first place. Are you almost done?"

"Almost there. I'm giving you a full tank here. Something that should've been done already." Avery responded.

Aurora grumbled as she ducked into the car. At Avery, the nozzle produced a clicking sound followed by the flow of fuel stopping. They were now all gassed up. The nozzle was removed and the hatch was closed. She slammed on the Puma with her hand and a moment later the armored car peeled out. It sped back to the track and began the arduous task of catching up. They were in last place. Three laps have been done. There was time to move up the ranks, if they had to be forced back to the pits, their chances will be much lower to recover. Riley slammed down the throttle as far down as it could go. The engine producing revs seldom heard before. Ground was steadily being regained. From Riley's view, the Daimler encompassed more and more of her vision. A slight grin appeared on her face as she shifted a gear. It was as satisfying as when she did it the first time. From where Aurora sat, her eyes were searching for an opportunity. The racers ahead were swerving at random. At times there was a nice separation between them all. At other times, they were all densely packed together, metal touching metal, like sardines in a can. There was no stability. The situation was incredibly fluid. The Puma made attempts at overtaking but the Daimler was on top of things. They moved to the left when they did, turned to the right as they did so. As the Puma was right behind the Daimler, its exhaust fumes were inadvertently blown in their direction. The hatches were closed nice and tight, but still, the fumes found a way to seep within. Riley and Aurora put their bandannas over their faces and did their best to ignore the strong odor in the air. Their breathing reduced to an absolute minimum. Another lap and the situation was mostly the same, irking both of the girls. The Daimler was deadset on ensuring that the Puma remained in last place. But what people wanted and what they got are two different things. And for the Daimler, their participation in the race was soon to come to an end. As it swerved to the left and right to counter the Puma, it began to wobble. The Daimler's driver tried to correct but the wobbling worsened and got more violent. The other armored cars saw what was coming and steered clear of the Daimler. Its wheels were shaking around, the lug nuts coming loose from their sockets. They were out of control and only through a miracle did they happen to be pointed in the right direction. Though only briefly. Their rear wheels could only sustain so much abuse and strain. Within the minute that the wobbling started, the lug nuts of the rear wheels flew off, followed by the wheels themselves coming off from their mounts and rolled away in separate directions. The rear of the Daimler, now without its rear wheels, fell onto the track scrapping against it, producing a shower of sparks. They veered to the right and crashed into the wall, coming to a stop.

"Wow! Total mechanical failure for the Daimler car! They are out of this race!" exclaimed the announcer.

The Daimler's crash was the chance the Puma was waiting for. Taking advantage of the chaos, they sped up. Past the Panhard and the Staghound, sliding into second place. Aurora grinned and wiped the sweat off her forehead. The fighting compartment has become quite the warm environment. They were now in a much more favorable position but not in the ideal spot. The Greyhound was ahead of them. It has been in first place since the race began. Dislodging them from there will be a real challenge. The Puma was closing the distance through the Greyhound was just a hair faster. Behind was the Panhard and the Staghound. Aurora contemplated transferring to the rear driving seat and work on preventing them from overtaking, but doing so would severely hamper Riley's ability to do, well, anything. Both steering wheels couldn't be used at the same time. For Aurora, to go to the rear, they had to be in first. Only then could they go all out.

The occupants of the crashed Daimler were still in the armored car. The race hasn't been stopped for them. Before the race started, officials briefed the participants that in the event that any of them crashed, that they remain in the vehicles. Being more armored than a race car, should any other racer collide into them, the occupants would be fine. There wouldn't be any recovery of the wreck either. The idea was that crashed vehicles would serve as obstacles on the track and therefore be 'entertaining' for the spectators. Buchanan didn't like that at all. Once again was the Association flaunting safety in the name of entertainment. It was all about the ratings. The higher they were, the more money they made from advertisers. No doubt that Daimler crash will be replayed ad nauseam to advertise to the nation just how exciting tankery is. As if a sport that involves tanks shooting each other wasn't thrilling enough. Buchanan exhaled sharply through her nose and turned her attention away from the race and toward her students. They were all captivated by the race, eyes fixated on the speeding armored car. She then looked at Valarie, sat on her elevated chair. She was focused, face serious. Her hand was firmly placed on the radio to talk with the Puma at a moment's notice. The sight made her smile. Buchanan was immensely proud of how far Valarie had come and what she had overcome. It made her reflect on her own life and how she come along in the past few months. Mentally, she was in a way better place compared to the year before. The same could be said about her physical health. It has been ages since she had an alcoholic drink. Any that were once in her apartment were poured down the drain to remove all temptation. Now more sober than ever before, she noted that her skin was more vibrant, glowing. Waking up in the morning was no longer a sludge. It was just simple. She was also now in a relationship with someone she had loved since her time in high school. At her lowest, she wouldn't have imagined any of this happening to her. A part of her used to say that she didn't deserve any happiness. Used to say. Now, she knows better. Of course she deserves to be happy. Everyone does. And to think that none of this would happen at all had she didn't change her mind when Valarie and her friends first offered her the opportunity to be their tankery instructor. Had her 'no' remained a 'no'.

She recalled sitting at her apartment in the dark after an exhaustive day of hiking. How she was thinking about their proposal. They had saved her life without even knowing it. All of the positivity and joy happened to her simply by saying 'yes'. The best 'yes' she had ever said in her life. Well…there is another proposal that saying yes too would send her to cloud nine. Though, that was up to Redwood to initiate. Buchanan smiled as she was thinking when a hand was laid on her shoulder, radiating warmth and comfort.

"This is all pretty cool, huh?" Redwood asked.

"Yeah. Though, if I were running the show, I'd make some different decisions."

"All about safety I bet." Redwood guessed.

"Obviously."

"I knew it. I gotta admit it, Gabby, but, uh, your persistence and passion regarding student safety is something that I find, ahem, attractive."

Buchanan's eyes lit up.

"Oh really? That's what gets you going?"

Redwood rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

"Um…yeah. It's odd but true."

Buchanan looked toward the team to ensure that none of them were looking at their direction, where she then leaned in and gave him a kiss.

"Ha! I'll take it!" she exclaimed.

Back at the track and now ten laps have been completed. Fifteen remained. The Puma has maintained its second-place position but not without defending it vigorously. Riley's hands were beginning to ache over the constant steering. She ignored the pain. She had to, even as it worsened. The crew of the Greyhound ahead of them must've done everything possible to shed weight for speed. Evidently, more than anything Mojave Rose did. This frustrated both of them, more for Riley. As this race went on, her desire to claim victory increased. Now, she was beyond the point of being cautious. Got to get your hands dirty to get anything done.

"Aurora." she said over the radio.

"Yeah?"

"A suggestion."

"Sure, I'm open to anything."

"Let's ram the Greyhound."

"Pardon?" Aurora asked, bewildered

"Ram. The. Greyhound."

Aurora didn't spend too long thinking about her suggestion.

"Yeah…yeah! Go for it!"

The Puma accelerated greatly, closing the distance. The Greyhound anticipated that they would attempt to overtake, but instead, were given the shock of their lives when the Puma clashed against its rear. The impact caused them to swerve a little. Aurora was laughing maniacally.

"Ahahaha! We're like a battering ram! Keep it up!"

With glee, Riley rammed the Greyhound repeatedly. Each it causing them to swerve more and more. Its tires were beginning to leave marks on the track. Riley then eased on the throttle and let the Greyhound get some separation. Once enough distance was reached, she floored it. The engine gauges hitting their maximum. The distance between them made for great energy potential. The Puma then unleashed a heavy ram on the Greyhound. It was powerful enough that the armored car swerved uncontrollably. They lost control and spun out, miraculously not hitting anyone else. The Puma sped by and were now, finally, in first place. The team back at the pits let out a cheer. Now they had to maintain. And Aurora knew exactly what needed to be done.

"Heading to the rear!" she informed.

"Copy."

Aurora maneuvered her way through the fighting compartment to the rear driving position. She got comfortable in her seat and placed her hands on the steering wheel.

"Alright, just like we practiced. Manage the throttle and I'll make sure no one dares to overtake us!"

Riley relinquished steering control and was now only responsible for maintaining speed. Only during turns would she temporarily resume control to ensure that turning went as smoothly as possible. When the track was straight, it was all Aurora.

The Panhard was now behind. Futile attempt after attempt was made by them to overtake but Aurora parried each move with perfection. The rear driving position was an advantage that they now can use to its full effectiveness. Lap after lap, Aurora toyed with them. Laughing non-stop. She was having the time of her life. Though she wasn't so carried away to notice something that caused some concern. Every time they turned, everyone slowed down to make it a tight one. During this period of time, when Riley was at the helm, the other racers got closer. At each turn, the other racers would get better at their turns and get closer and closer. As the race gone on, it became increasingly difficult for them to maintain their lead.
"We're now on lap twenty folks! Just five are left! The pressure is most definitely on!" exclaimed the announcer.

Indeed it was. The Panhard was now no longer behind the Puma. The Greyhound had come back with a vengeance.

"Damn. Damn." Aurora muttered.

"How are we on fuel? We're pushing this thing harder than it has ever been pushed."

Riley checked the gauges.

"We got a quarter of gas left." she informed.

"Good. We can't afford going back to the pits now. If we stop, we lose."

The Greyhound had Aurora's full attention. She couldn't see the driver but could feel it in her soul that they were looking right at her. Eyes filled with the singular obsession of retaking their place leading the pack. Like Hell she would let them do that.

"Three laps to go!"

A turn, then the next, the Greyhound has improved in their attempts to overtake. More and more did it become difficult to counter them. If only were they just a bit faster than things wouldn't be so close and tense. But what else could've the team done to lose weight? They would've taken out the engine if only if it wasn't so important. Aurora was sure that they have everything they can to lighten the load. Right? The more she thought about it, the less confident she became. She had to ask an uncomfortable question.

"Riley, we did take out all the ammo for the cannon and machine gun?"

Riley didn't immediately respond.

"…yes?"

It sounded like she wasn't entirely sure either. Aurora now fell compelled to check. Once the track straightened out, she crawled back to her usual commander's seat and searched all the places the ammo would've been stored. The racks on the wall were all empty. She then leaned down and opened a storage container on the floor. There she was greeted with her reflection. On the brass of a 50mm shell.

"God…dammit!" she yelled.

"Oh no, you don't mean—"

"Yeah. We didn't take out all the ammo."

Aurora examined the shell further.

"Stupid blank. Why are you still here?"

"Can one shell mean the difference between winning or losing?"

"Hmm. I dunno but let's assume so. We gotta get rid of this thing."

"Open the hatch and throw the shell out."

Aurora place her hand to open the commander's hatch but stopped herself. An idea had just manifested in her mind. A risky one. But one that would give them the boost of speed they need. They then completed another lap.

"Final lap!"

Aurora looked at the blank. She was sure of what she needed to do.

"Riley…I got an idea. Potentially a stupid, stupid idea."

"What do you mean a stu—"

The blank was loaded into the breech.

"Okay. That is stupid!" she scolded.

"Aha…that wasn't the stupid part." Aurora responded.

She got on the gun and rotated the turret one-hundred and eighty degrees. This action made the racers behind them unnerved, though only briefly. Valarie saw what was happening and reached for the radio.

"What are you doing? You know you can't shoot them." she reminded.

"I know. I'm just doing something maybe stupid. Just trust me, okay."

"Alright." Valarie said reluctantly.

Back at the Puma, Aurora readied he sights. She took her time doing it as it was normally Avery's job to aim.

"Okay, Aurora, what's the plan here?"

"At the final turn before the finish line, I will fire the blank. The energy being released will give us a boost to the finish! Enough that hopefully that Greyhound can't catch up!"

"That sure is a plan. But what's the stupid part."

"That's later." Aurora said with nervous laughter.

Not fully comfortable with whatever Aurora was planning to do, she had to return her attention to the race. The Greyhound was getting closer as the final turn drew near. Aurora placed her finger, breathing slowed, as she focused. A do or die moment was fast approaching. Sweat was flowing down her face, stinging her eye as they came into contact. Wiping her face, she felt the Puma making the turn. The armored car slowed as Riley made the turn as tight as she could. The Greyhound started an attempt to overtake.

"Nope, not today! Firing!"

The trigger was pulled and the cannon fired. A cloud of smoke flew out of the barrel and the breech ejected the now-empty brass shell, falling to the floor with a clang. The Puma was jolted forward, surprising them both.

"Woah! That's some boost!" Riley exclaimed

"Haha! Amazing! Now, stay as close as you can to the inside of the track. This plan of my isn't done yet."

The Puma shifted left, inches away from the interior of the track, filled with soft piles of sand.

"What's next now?" Riley inquired.

"You keep driving."

"And you?"

"I'm going to do something stupid."

Aurora opened the commander's hatch and hopped out. Carefully, she crawled on the outside of the Puma as the high wind battered against her body. She slowly made her way on top of the engine deck.

"You're insane! Absolutely insane!"

"Ha! I'm just shedding the last bit of weight! Keep it steady!"

Aurora eyed the sand ahead of her as she slowly stood up, extending her arms to maintain balance. At what she can only say as a 'good feeling', she jumped off the Puma and landed on a pile of sand. Upon impact, all the breath in her body was jettisoned. She got on her knees and took in several lung-fulls of air. Her head turned to the Puma, now with a comfortable lead.

"Worth it." she said as she gripped her aching stomach.

Valarie, the team, everyone who was watching were absolutely stunned over what had just transpired.

"Holy fuck did she really just do that?" she yelled.

"Yes. Yes she did. She's either a genius or insane." Emma added.

The finish line was dead ahead. The Puma was head of the pack but the ever-determined Greyhound was catching.

800 meters.

"Are we…going to win this thing?" Valarie thought aloud.

"Oh man!" Ashley exclaimed.

600 meters.

Avery, the lone Puma member at the pits, smiled, which grew by the moment.

"C'mon Riley! You can do it!"

400 meters.

The team stopped breathing. The tense atmosphere was overwhelming, near suffocating. They were all dead silent.

200 meters.

For Riley, the accelerator was pressed all the way down to the floor. The Puma was giving everything it had. Her heart was pounding, her grip on the wheel supremely tight. She couldn't see what was behind her but could feel the Greyhound on her. Gaining ground. But they couldn't get quite close enough. Not at the end.

10 meters.

The official situated just above the finish line stood up and waved the checked flag to the collection of racing vehicles below. The announcement system came online.

"Mojave Rose with the Puma armored car has won the race of the 2013 Tankery Convention!" yelled the announcer.

The team was now no longer silent. They exploded into cheers in tandem with the loud cheers coming from the stands. All of their work have paid off wonderfully. When the Puma returned to the pits, after doing some victory doughnuts, they were instantly surrounded by the team. Avery opened the driver's hatch, revealing a happy and weary Riley.

"You did it!" Avery yelled.

"We did it! Holy Hell…we won!" Riley said.

She hopped out of the armored car. She flexed her fingers to get the circulation back to normal.

"I've never felt so exhausted and happy at the same time."

"How do you think I feel?" Aurora said once she arrived to the pits.

Her crew ran up to her. Riley placed both her hands on her shoulders.

"God, that was so stupid of you, Aurora!" Riley said.

"Heh, we won didn't we?" Aurora said in a nonchalant way.

"You hurt all over huh?" Avery asked.

"Everywhere." Aurora answered.

They entered into a group hug. The team celebrated at the pits as the spectators began to take their leave. In the stands, some girls reacted to the events that happened.

"So. A Panther II." Caroline said.

"Indeed. An excellent vehicle now in their hands. Well, hats off to them. They played a good race." Penelope said.

Caroline stood up.

"An excellent vehicle means nothing if they have no idea how to use it. I've seen enough. Let's go back to the hotel."

"Lets."

The duo left. At another section of the area, a group of girls was in a dismal mood.

"That's so bullshit. I just…did they really win?" one complained.

"This is a bitter pill to swallow." said another.

"Disgusting."

They turned toward Cassandra.

"What now?"

"It is now hugely important that Mojave Rose loses in our match. By any means necessary."

Beside Cassandra was Ellie. She was shaken over what was being said.

"Is this the e-escalation?"

"Escalation." Cassandra confirmed.

On the stairs next to them, a pair of adult women were making their way down.

"Well, that was fun. Now, let's go and meet those kids from California." Sarah said.

Outside the raceway was a large crowd of moving people. Most were heading toward the parking lot to leave in their cars. Others were waiting in a special area where buses would shuttle them back to their homes. This is where Mojave Rose was, waiting for the bus that dropped them off when the day started. They were in a jovial mood.

"Yesterday was magical. Today was thrilling. This week is going amazing so far." Valarie remarked.

Emma rested her head on her shoulder

"That it is…that it is…"

Emma leaned in close to her ear.

"Babe." she said in a whisper.

Valarie looked at her with cheeks a rosy red.

"God. You'll be making me blush for the rest of my life."

The girls laughed as they hugged. Everyone was relaxed as they waited. Not really paying attention to their surroundings. Coming out from one of the pedestrian exits was Sarah and Zoey. They looked in all directions for the people they were looking for.

"They can't have gone far." Zoey said.

"Yeah…wait…is that them? Over there in the bus area?" Sarah said, pointing.

Zoey looked to where she was pointing. Eyes squinted, she looked at the kids ahead. They looked like the ones she had seen on the television all that time before.

"I'll be damned if that wasn't them. Let's go!"

They navigated through the crowd and approached the group of students. They paid no attention to them.

"Um, excuse me, but, are you guys from Mojave Rose high school?" Zoey asked.

Those that heard her looked at her.

"That's us." answered one.

"Finally! Okay, who's your captain?"

The girl who answered her turned toward the team.

"Valarie! Some women want to see you."

Valarie walked over.

"Hello." she greeted.

"Valarie…lovely name…anyway, my name is Sarah and this is my friend Zoey. We've been looking for you for the past week."

"Wow really?"

"Really. You see, we used to be in a tankery team a long time ago. We once crewed a Sherman Jumbo. As it turns out, the Jumbo you have is the exact same one we had! Your team also has the same SU-14 we did!"

Valarie was astounded.

"No way! What are the odds?"

"Good apparently. Now, we have to ask. How did you find them."

"My instructor can answer that question better than I can. Miss Buchanan!"

Upon being called, she headed on over.

"Okay, what's up here Val?" she asked.

"These women say the Jumbo and SU-14 we have is the same ones they had when they did tankery long ago."

"You're messing with me, right?"

"We're not." Zoey assured.

"We saw our Jumbo on the TV and it has all the dings and scratches that we made when we had the tank."

"So it was you who put those vehicles in the mine?" Buchanan asked.

"Yes! Yes it was!" Zoey exclaimed.

"Why?"

"It was after that event in 1990 when Tankery in the Mojave went south. Teams were going defunct left and right. I didn't want our Jumbo to be scrapped or to wither away in some junkyard. So, we along with the SU-14 crew drove them away and stashed them in a mine. The original plan was that tankery would soon regain popularity so we could just recover them. But things didn't work out that way. Tankery was dormant for longer than we thought."

"Your schools didn't notice two vehicles suddenly disappearing?" Buchanan asked.

"You've got to understand. Tankery after that day in 1990 dropped off a cliff. No school in the area cared about the sport so they didn't care if vehicles they had were suddenly not there anymore. Good riddance, in their mind."

"Oh believe me, I understand."

"We're so happy to find out that our vehicles survived after twenty years. And even more so to find that they are in good hands." Zoey said.

"Thanks to you, we've got two great tanks in our roster. You both have an incredible determination to the sport."

"You're all very welcome." Sarah said.

The bus for the team had now arrived.

"Well, we'll won't keep much more of your time. Congratulations on your win and good luck on the tournament!" Zoey said.

The two women left.

"This week is just getting better, huh?" Valarie said.

"Yeah. But don't get too ahead of yourself. You do remember what is going on Friday?" Buchanan reminded

Valarie groaned.

"Oh…yeah…that."

"Spend all of tomorrow preparing with Ray."

"We will. We won't let you down."

Buchanan smiled softly.

"I appreciate that Val, I truly do, but let me share some advice. Don't make promises that you can't really keep."