It's time for the second round!
Chapter 6: Egg Factory.
" Done!" Wave exclaimed as she showed the chao their boards. Team Chao's board was a dark blue while the girls' board was a hot pink.
" What do you call them?" Flash asked while Ghost whistled.
" It's your board. You come up with a name!" Wave smiled.
" How about 'Chaoscaliber?'" Flash suggested.
' Nah, how about 'The Widowmaker'?' Scribbles wrote. Everyone nodded his or her approval. Spic circled her team's board.
" The best I can come up with is 'Heart of Fire'!" Flame said.
" Sounds good." Spic seconded. Suddenly, a beeping was heard.
" It's time for my next race." Storm grinned.
" We're going with you. Maybe we could find some info on what Eggman's real plans are." Ghost offered. The albatross nodded and walked out with his board.
Meanwhile, Flora ran through the streets calling for Trez.
" Trez! Where are you, Trez?" She yelled. Little did she know that Trez was perched on the rooftop tinkering with his board and thinking about Flora.
" It's strange… everything about her reminds me of Erin. She was worried about my safety? I've been in situations worse than this…" Trez said to himself as he picked up his board and vanished. Flora stopped near the giant monitor announcing the races.
" The next race is in Egg Factory! The competitors are: Storm, Knuckles, Team Chao, Team Flame, and Trez!" The announcer blared. Flora' eyes widened as she took off to the track.
At the Neutral Garden, Techno stayed up all night working on Nebula's board. The captain slept on a bed in the shelter while Techno sat out under the stars working. Morning came and the violet inventor was seen sleeping near the completed gear. Nebula took it, kissed Techno, and ran off to join her friends. Techno sat up, grinning from ear to ear from his "slumber".
" At last, the second round of the EX World Grand Prix has arrived. This race will take place in the scorching Egg Factory. First up is the powerhouse among the Babylon Rouges, Storm!" The announcer cried as Storm waved to cheering fans and gave a wink to Ghost and the gang, who were already on their boards.
" And the guardian of Angel Island and The Master Emerald: Knuckles 'Da Knux Man'!" The announcer continued. The contestants watched the countdown in eager anticipation. Flora arrived just in time to see Trez rocket out of the gate. Storm and Knuckles were neck and neck trying to either pull ahead of each other or to kill their opponent. Team Chao sighted Trez racing at breakneck speed. Trez summoned his fire blade while Ghost unsheathed his katana.
" Where's the girl at?" Ghost asked while blocking a swing.
" She was too afraid to go… I'm winning this race, Ghost!" Trez replied unaware of the sharp corner ahead of him. His board skidded and slammed into the wall causing Trez to hit. Flora watched this in horror but breathed a sigh of relief when Trez recovered and continued. Team Chao and Team Flame took a side of Knuckles and commenced the beating of the echidna. Spic broke her hammer over the guardian's head, Storm head butted Knuckles, and Ghost shot the board out from under him causing him to tumble along the road. Trez raced past when Knuckles looked up from the floor. The red echidna jumped back on his board and caught up with the gray chao.
" There's no way that a puny little chao is going to beat me in a race!" Knuckles growled and punched Trez with every ounce of power. Trez flew off his board and hit the ground at two hundred miles per hour. He rolled across the track, hit the wall, and lay still. Flora dashed onto the track to where her friend lay. She hoisted Trez onto his board when an Eggrobo sped close to them. An arrow tore through the metallic body and saved Flora. This distraction gave Flora enough time to get Trez out of there. Storm crossed the finish line and immediately checked on what happened.
Trez awoke to the sight of Flora, Ghost, and Death.
" Oh, my head… Who won the race?" Trez asked. Flora slapped him.
" You ungrateful little chao! You do not have a single clue who saved you from becoming the latest addition to the cemetery?" Flora fumed.
" Flora, you were right… I could've died during that race… I'm not strong enough to face Team Metal Chao…" Trez said solemnly. A yellow hand touched his gray hand. When Trez looked up, Flora stared at him calmly.
" I do not know about "you", but " we" can help Ghost to save everyone. If you are going to do something dangerous, I shall stand by you until the end and longer." Flora smiled. Trez grinned his cocky grin and took Flora's hand.
I'm going to skip to the desert course to hurry along to the final showdown! Review!