ACT 7 – 7000RPM 'Games'

It was a quiet and peaceful afternoon, Ling Luan had drove by an old friend's house, just near the peak of route D1 and along the suburban area. It was a small house, and lived a young man who spent a lot of his time in the garage, playing around with his car.
Ling Luan parked his LanEvo VII in the driveway, as loud hip hop music pumped from within the garage. Inside, was a dark coloured Pulsar GtiR.

"It's been a while, Hokuto," called out Ling briefly.
The loud music had ceased, and the young man named Hokuto slowly walked out from the garage.

"Hey man," greeted Hokuto, along with a complicated brotherly handshake. "Damn, haven't seen the likes of you in a while. And… your car… where did you get something like that?"

Hokuto did not expect Ling to have such a car like an Evolution VII. He was just too young to have such an expensive ride.
"It's complicated," said Ling Luan, "It's only partially mine,"
"I see," replied Hokuto, "Well, I've paid every dollar and cent I've saved up just for this baby here," continued Hokuto, pointing over to his GtiR.
"I guess I'm lucky," admitted Ling. "Anyway man, how have things been fo' you these past years?"
"Too kind man, almost too kind," explained Hokuto, "By the way, you been racing wit' dat thing?"
"A little…" admitted Ling.
"I see, I see," continued Hokuto, "So the Evo VII I saw in the BXD tournament was yours,"
"Yeah man, I lost against a teammate," explained Ling.
"That Fu Huo guy?" asked Hokuto, "The young Sky Dragon from Route D1, as our leader would call him,"
"Gallard Raide? How's his 2000 going?"
"Oh, he's still figuring out how to drive it. But its no doubt an awesome machine for sure. I heard he wanted it to closely resemble one of Master Hyuga from C4's cars."
"Are you serious? I think I heard Fu Huo tell me that he saw an S2000 somewhere in our branch with a C4 sticker on it," claimed Ling Luan.
"That car, along with the other C4 racing vehicles are all relics now. You don't see them either on the track or the street anymore. Your Emperor probably bought some of them as a collector," hunched Hokuto.
"So there are more of them than the ones Fu Huo have seen?" wondered Ling.
"Yes, definitely," explained Hokuto, "If you're able to find an extremely old archived record of course times, you'll probably find some information about C4, as well as DOLLS and the cars that they've used and other stuff. But they're all of course, very rare and virtually impossible to find nowadays,"

"You think Raide would know more about it?" wondered Ling.
"Possibly," said Hokuto, "So might Fukada Kumiko,"
"Master Ku?"
"Yeah, but that's a big maybe. Raide once said that she was in close ties directly with C4 members themselves, and which most of her car knowledge and skills were derived from," added Hokuto.
"I guess I'd better catch up with Master Ku some time and ask her some things. It's always Fu Huo that keeps hogging her attention,"

"Haha, I don't blame him," said Hokuto, "But she's a bit too old for us, man. I don't think she'd ever look at us."
"Doesn't matter," said Ling Luan.
"What's that? It's not like you, Ling," said Hokuto, "Or have you already found another girl?"
"…Maybe," admitted Ling quietly.
"Haha… horny kid, what's her name?"
"Uh… Jeni."
"Well anyways, she must be pretty good, considering your standards. You know what, there was a chick at the BXD tournament that was pretty cute too. And she's also a road racer, haha, what a combo,"
"Man, Jeni is a road racer too, hehe," said Ling.
"Oh wha? She's a road racer? You're not talking about Jeni from Bu Xia De?"
"That's her,"
"Oh you pimpsta," praised Hokuto, "Anyways, have you see that Kanae chick at the tourney?"
"Hmm… yeah, I think I remember her. She was in the semi-finals. Though I often saw her with Fu Huo, haha," teased Ling.
"Ha, damn,"
"Speaking of Fu Huo…" began Ling, "He's racing tonight at Route F5. Wanna check it out?"
"Sure, it'd be awesome," agreed Hokuto, "I've got much respect for the Sky Dragon. He's much of what we have left to define that men are still as dominant a driver as women are. I think he's more of a showstopper than Kumiko is… only Kumiko is just one hot babe, haha,"
"Oh quit talking about girls you'll never get, Hokuto," teased Ling Luan.
"Haha, shut up. Anyway, who's Fu racing?"
"Some guy from Bu Xia De called Alex," confirmed Ling Luan.
"…Alex? You don't mean…"
"Mean what?"
"Fu Huo is racing the Burning Ruby?" asked Hokuto.
"It's just an SW20, so what man?"
"What do you mean just an SW20? That's beside the point!"
"What are you trying to say?" asked Ling.
"I know Fu Huo is great and all. He's a rising star this and that, but… he's racing the Burning Ruby, man."

Hokuto slightly turned his back and held his head in astonishment. He briefly shook his head, staring at the driveway. Ling turned to look the same way, in confusion.
"What gives?" he asked.
"Fu Huo is pretty much screwed," claimed Hokuto.

"I'll raise you fifty!" claimed Mark arrogantly, smacking a small pile of gambling chips on the table.
"Oh get real man, I fold!" said Stephen, as he quickly discarded a set of cards from his hand and threw them down on the table.

It was meanwhile around the late afternoon, Kouda's did not seem as busy as it usually was. However, all the pool tables were occupied, and the Shireishou Divine Unit Generals, West and North spent their time with a game of poker, along with the boss herself, Maya. It was times like this that Koda's was not just a restaurant. Various people often used Maya's venue as a little mini-casino, in which people bring and use their own money and their own chips and dealers.

"I'll see your fifty," said Maya softly, as she gently took a small pile of chips and placed them to match Mark's bet, then took another pile of chips of the same amount and placed it down, "…And raise you another fifty,"

"Hoooh, damn, looks like you're going down, Mark!" teased Stephen.
Mark was close to shivers. There was clearly more than a hundred dollars in the pot. Fair enough that his hand was decent, yet there was always the fear of his opponent having better.
This is the fourth turn she's bluffed. She's succeded three times already. But what if she's got something good this time?

Maya stared Mark down. She tried to not to be nervous, yet the pot she raised seemed rather intimidating. She appeared to have the edge at this point. Will it work a forth time…?

"Ah, what the hell, all in!" claimed Mark, holding his breath.
Oh man… Maya soon appeared to feel extremely nervous and seemed to lose control of the game. At least that was what she wanted her opponent to think before Mark went all in. …I guess he fell for it.

"Call!" said Maya, looking deeply into Mark's eyes.
Mark's face exposed the shock from Maya's decision. Damn! What if…

"Let's see what y'all got," said Stephen, eager to see the outcome of the round, "You first, Mark!"

Mark exhaled, and then slowly revealed his hand, "Full house! Kings full of aces!" he announced arrogantly accompanied by a hideous and childish laugh.
"Whoosh," Stephen was blown away by Mark's hand. "I knew I should have folded!"

"You know, Mark…" began Maya, "Something I noticed… you tend to breath differently sometimes,"
"What do you mean?" wondered Mark.
"You know. You seem to sometimes hold your breath, yet sometimes breath normally, and sometimes exhale, in accordance to what kind of cards you have,"
"What the hell are you talking about?" asked Mark. "What does my breathing have to do with it,"
"You exhaled at the last moment, you usually do that when you give off a sigh of relief. Which means you usually have a good hand and you knew you were going to win."

"Your point?" asked Mark cockily.
"I took a chance anyway," said Maya.
"…And?"
"I predicted that you did have a good hand. Kings full of aces, that's hardcore man," continued Maya, as she unfolded one card from her hand, "Now that beats one," she unfolded another, and it was the same card as the last one. It was a pair of queens. "Two," Maya turned over another card from her hand, revealing a third queen, "Three queens…"

Finally, Maya unfolded her fourth card. She turned it over quickly, and revealed a seven of hearts. "…but not four!" Maya finally revealed her entire hand, and showed Mark her fifth and final card, a fourth queen.

"Oh…you…can't…be serious!" said Mark slowly in shock, as he stared at Maya's four of a kind.
Stephen sarcastically applauded Mark for his valiant efforts to win Maya's spare dosh. "Sorry man, four of a kind beats full house," stated Stephen obviously.

"Damn, Maya, man don't you got enough money on ya?" complained Mark childishly and sarcasticly.
"Okay, okay, I'll give you a chance to win it back," said Maya, flicking a few chips to Mark's side of the table.

"Hey, I'm still in this game," announced Stephen.

The game continued longer than expected. The two had continued playing, winning and losing for until the early evening almost non-stop.

"Fold!" said Maya, throwing her cards down.
"Straight to the six!" called out Stephen, showing his hand.
"Flush!" yelled Mark in his usually arrogant laughter as he showed his cards and sweeped the pot of chips to his side of the table.

The game progressed for longer, and neither player seemed close to being short of chips, yet Maya still had the slight chip lead.
Another set of rounds were played.

"Two pair!" said Mark.
"Haha, I got three of a kind, bro," laughed Stephen.
"Y'all lose, I got a straight flush!" claimed Maya.
"Damn, lucky!" complained Mark.

Stephen began to start dealing again, and another round of games were played.
It was already 7:45PM, and the game had not died. A few moments after, a pair of familiar faces entered the venue. Minako and Fu Huo had stopped by, after their little day out for a drive.
There were still a few seats left on Maya's table, and the two had made their way towards her.

"What's happening, you two?" greeted Maya.
"I'm okay," replied Minako.
"Yeah, same here," followed up Fu, as he and Minako took a seat at the table, "Deal us in," he then added.
"Aren't you racing tonight, Fu?" wondered Mark.
"That's right," replied Fu Huo.
"Really?" asked Maya out of curiosity. Again? "Where abouts are you battling, son?"
"Uh… Route F5," said Fu Huo. "Against some MR2 from Bu Xia De's Street Elite,"
"Alex?" said Maya in shock.

Maya handed them a spare set of playing chips from the other table. And divided them between Fu Huo and Minako, "We're playing five card draw." This should be interesting. I wonder how Fu Huo will hold up against Alex.

The cards were dealt, and the players had taken a look at their respective hands.
It was Stephen's turn to open, and immediately, he folds his hand.
It was Fu Huo's turn to call, "I'll open for fifty," he claimed, holding three Jacks and a 2 and 3 of diamonds.
"Whoa, big man," said Mark, as he immediately folded and threw away his cards.
"I'll see your fifty," replied Minako in a soft, innocent voice, "And I'll raise you another twenty-five," she added, holding a 6, 7, and 8 of spades, and two aces.
"You can't be serious, you lot," complained Maya with a secret little pinch of sarcasm, as she held in her hand four kings and a 3 of clubs. "I'll call."

It was a three way battle at this point, Fu Huo holding three of a kind, Minako with a pair of aces, and Maya with a whooping four of a kind first hand.

"You first, Fu," said Stephen, asking how many cards Fu Huo wanted to exchange.
"Two," replied Fu Huo, discarding the 2 and 3 of diamonds from his hand, as Stephen dealt him two new cards.
"Minako?" continued Stephen.

Minako stared at her hand and thought for a long while. Should I…?
The table waited patiently for about a minute, and finally, Minako threw away her pair of aces and asked for two more cards. I dunno why I just did that…
Stephen dealt her two new cards.

"I'll take…one card!" boasted Maya, discarding her 3 of clubs.
Stephen dealt her a card, and the players were ready for the next round of betting.

"Alright, I'm raisin' it by another twenty-five!" announced Fu Huo. The pot was now $125.
"Call," said Minako, as the pot became $150.
"Hey Fu," interrupted Maya, "Who made the challenge for tonight's race?"
"Well, it was initially meant to be a race between Alex and Kumi at C4. But knowing her current situation, I've counter-challenged Bu Xia De myself. We had agreed to switch the location to F5," replied Fu Huo.
"You're one crazy bastard man," said Maya, "Good luck," Sometimes I wonder if Kumiko puts too much faith in her apprentice. Fu Huo is a mere kid against somebody like Alex. Am I missing something?

"Maya, you gonna call?" asked Stephen. Maya glanced at her cards one more time.
In a quick and straight voice, Maya claimed, "All in."

"Wow, now it's getting scary!" said Mark.
"Maya's gone all in," announced Stephen. "Fu's turn to call."
Without hesitations, Fu Huo immediately called, "All in. Let's see what you got,"
"Same here," confirmed Minako.

"Damn man, somebody's going to be very lucky tonight!" said Stephen.
Fu Huo's main concern was Maya. He stared at her, as the look on her face seemed that she was sure to win. Though it could be another one of her bluffing poker faces. But the moment of truth has arrived.

"Alright, eat this," called out Fu Huo, revealing his hand. The two cards that he drew from Stephen was a queen and another jack. "Four jacks!"
Maya laughed. However, it was a real laugh. She quickly layed down her hand excitedly, "Four kings! Ace high! Haha!"
"Damnit! You got me!" Fu Huo said surprisingly. Four of a kind was definitely a good hand. Yet Maya was still unbeatable.

"Hey wait a sec," said Minako softly, "I haven't shown my cards yet,"
"Haha, y'all've lost anyway," said Maya.
"Hey, I can beat that," continued Minako, pointing at Maya's four kings.
"What?"

Minako slowly revealed her cards one by one. She first put down a 6 of spades, followed by the 7 and 8 of spades. Holding her breath, Minako layed down her last two cards, a 9 of spades, and finally, the 10 of spades, completing her hand in a straight flush to the ten.

"You…cannot…be … serious!" said both Fu Huo and Maya at the same time.

The deciding race of the unofficial Bu Xia De versus Zui Hou R team battle was finally due to commence. Route F5 was dead silent; spectators were kept to a significant minimum, as the weather was also a little turbulent.
It was almost ten o'clock, Alex and his crew had already lounged themselves near the peak, at the beginning of the downhill route.

I wonder if the so called Sky Dragon is as worthy of such as status as Fukada Kumiko.
Alex leaned on his car and lit himself a cigarette, as he waited patiently with his teammates for the arrival of his opponent. He was dressed in a black suit and a white working shirt without tie; Alex is usually clad in business attire when it comes to road races.
He was much quieter and very sombre whenever he was scheduled a serious race.

He must be. Or else Kumiko wouldn't send him. She wouldn't have everything rest on a failure.
Alex's SW20's red paint reflected the moon's glow, like the burning ruby that it is, while Alex stood by it, in control and in position. He tried to look as humble as possible, yet he knew inside him that he had a great chance of winning.

"Have all the sections checked," ordered Alex to the rest of the Bu Xia De staff around the area.
"I was just about to get to that part," said Sly, "There is a vehicle on the way up her from the bottom up right now as we speak."
"Is it Chuan Fu Huo?" Alex had to ask.
"No. It's a different car," corrected Sly, "It's a pale silver coloured Impreza S202."
"What did you say?"

Shijian? What is he doing here?

A brief moment had passed, and the S202 had finally reached near the peak of Route F5. Shijian parked his car on the opposite side, away from all the other Bu Xia De vehicles.
Alex slowly made his way to it, and attempted to figure out what was going on. Shijian slowly stepped out of his car and shut the door.

"It's you," said Alex. "What business do you have here, Shi?"
"That's no way to greet me, Yun," replied Shijian, "My business?" he pointed to the Zui Hou R sticker on the back window of his vehicle, "I'm just here to cheer for my teammate, if you don't mind."

"I see. I only just found out that you were also the rumoured East General of the Divine Unit." Alex said.
"Well, now you know," said Shijian, "By the way, do you even know what you're up against tonight?"
"Partially," admitted Alex. "Yet what's the excitement with knowing what to expect."
Shijian shrugged his shoulders briefly, and having his arms crossed, he spoke, "Oh you'll be excited alright. Because you really do have no idea about Chuan Fu Huo other than what he did at your little tournament."

"Then we shall find out tonight, won't we?" replied Alex.

Meanwhile, Sly had just received a message from one of the staff positioned at the entry point for Route F5.
"Alex!" called out Sly. "He's here!"