Chapter 48

We ended up winning the race and the first Grand Prix qualifier easily, mostly because we got rid of Mizo's team members on the Beachfront Drive very early on and because the Artifact Race was made even easier from them adding certain artifacts worth 2 points instead of 1. Our team had 40 points over the next in line, that being Osmo's with 10 and Mizo in last with just 7. And soon after, we got two different races in the form of a Freeze Rally at the Waterfront Loop and a Turbo Dash event in Kras City. We decided that Sasha, Keira, and Daxter would do the Turbo Dash while Sig got to do the Freeze Rally, which got us a total of 12 points for having 4 gold medals total.

"Okay, now for the next events, those being the Circuit Races in the Forbidden Jungle and Frozen Speedway and the Death Race at the Dethdrome. Anyone want to offer to go kick some butt?" Sasha asked with a wide grin, Tess signing herself up for the Frozen Speedway race alongside Rayne and Torn. Then Sammie and Minnie signed themselves up for the race in the Forbidden Jungle with me and Torn, and Daxter decided he'd do the Death Race at the Dethdrome, since the cars didn't attack you at all.

"Okay, time to go get some rubber burning," I smiled as I then went to the garages and out to the track of the Forbidden Jungle, me arriving and seeing that the place had gotten pretty expansive since I'd visited it in the past. Much more greenery all over and the ruins looked to have been more unearthed than what I'd encountered previously as well as being much more spacious inside. And my opposition from the other teams were Osmo, Speetunc, and two Mizo goons. The lights then went green and I rushed off the starting line with a boost, me then rushing into the tunnels of the ruins and picking up some Red Eco. And just in time too, since one of Mizo's men was firing missiles at me!

"Taste liquid fire," I smiled as I laid down a flame trap... and what happened afterwards was the stuff of legends. I laid the flaming tar on the track so precisely that every single one of the cars behind me ended up either blowing up from the flames or spinning out and exploding into the walls!

"We have a winner by default, ladies and gents! How impressive! This hasn't happened since the Red Eco Grand Prix five years ago!" Blitz said excitedly, me smirking at that as I automatically won the gold medal and made it back to the garage to see the others on my team were smirking at me coyly.

"You got lucky that time, Jak. Next time, we'll be the ones making your car go boom," Sammie smiled at me.

"I dunno, he's pretty sick with his driving skills," Torn smirked as he then left and the twins and I stayed behind until the other racers returned, me frowning as I then tried to think about what the whole deal was for Krew trying to poison us.

"Something about this whole setup doesn't seem right. Mizo hires a murderous robot to pester us, GT Blitz favors the Mizo drivers, and Krew was willing to kill us if we didn't win. There has to be more to this story," I frowned as Rayne then took off her helmet and she now had helmet hair.

"Well, at least we're winning races. And that's good, right?" Rayne asked, Daxter immediately getting pissy.

"GOOD?! Listen, Rayne, we've been chased, shot at, attacked, threatened with death, and blown up! HOW could it get ANY WORSE?!" Daxter exclaimed as someone then came in at the best and worst time possible.

"Hallo, ankle-biters!" said the voice of the overweight wastelander himself, Kliever. And perched on his shoulder and giving us the death stare was none other than Vegar, who I honestly expected to become Kliever's breakfast after he hired Vegar as a sidekick, but Vegar was mad at us and he showed it on his fuzzy brown face.

"It's worse," I frowned as Kliever and Vegar then approached us with angry glares.

"That bigwig Blitz man told me I'd find you lot 'ere. Listen, yabbers, you embarrassed me on the track before and you even took some of me rides without asking permission! So this time, I aim to even the score!" Kliever said angrily.

"And if you know what's good for you, you'll stay out of our way on those race tracks. I demand payback and I need it right now, you Dark Eco freak!" Vegar exclaimed, me frowning at him.

"I see you got over being three feet tall and are back to square one, Vulgar," I frowned.

"It's VEGAR, you idiot!" Vegar exclaimed angrily and with hostility.

"I'll see ya on the track, nippers. And if you see that Mizo guy at all, tell 'im I want me paycheck in full before I start to race in those Grand Prix events," Kliever said, me and Daxter looking at each other as Kliever and Vegar then left through the door towards Team Mizo.

"Well, this is bad. Now Mizo's hired Kliever and Vegar to race against us. Oh ca-loo ca-lay," I frowned.

"Who are they again?" Rayne asked.

"Kliever's one of the nastiest Wastelanders from Spargus City and he's a big bully towards others. And Vegar? Sasha and I hate him with a burning passion for what he did to us on our last adventure," I frowned angrily.

"What did he do?" Rayne asked.

"Vegar attacked the Palace in Haven City and caused it to fall, killing hundreds, if not thousands of civilians in the process. He then unfairly voted me, Sasha, and Errol to the Wastelands, saying that the city threw us out and we were banished. Then, he tried to kill us when we tried to get back to the city, and finally, he revealed that he stole me from my father when I was a toddler to try and use me for experiments, right as my dad died right in front of me. Being turned into an Ottsel is not at all a deserving punishment for his crimes," I growled angrily as I could feel my darkness emerging, me needing to breathe in and out to keep it under control.

"Then I say we show those assholes up on the track! From what I've seen, the next couple of races are going to be happening after lunch and they consist of a Rush Hour event in the Canyon Run, a Deathmatch in the Desert Arena, and a Sport Hunt taking out Metal Head lizards in the Clifftop Battlefield," Rayne explained, me smirking at that last bit.

"Don't tell Kiki about that last one, got it?" I smiled.

"No need, because I already know about it," said Kiki with a frown as she emerged from the garage door. "From what I heard, the Metal Heads are all provided by Metal Speetunc just for the racing event. She apparently receives payment for letting her children get killed, since she's the most productive of the Metal Head Leaders... I don't really agree with it, but I see the appeal," Kiki frowned.

"So long as your kids don't have to go through with that, right?" I smiled at her, Kiki nodding afterwards.

"Right. My kids would really hate being hunted, especially since they're just as smart as you and me," Kiki smirked widely as I then signed myself up for the Rush Hour event with the Anvil RTX, as that car was well-suited for smashing cars left and right. "Good luck in smash some drones, dad," Kiki smiled at me.

"Of course," I smiled at her widely as I then drove through the teleporter with a smirk.