Realms: Orbit
"This arm is truly incredible. Along with the usual mechanical components it also contains biomechanical parts to naturally mold and respond to the attached host, using their natural energy to power the limb so it doesn't have to be charged!" Will explained.
"Sounds convenient, though I'd probably have to chop off an arm to use it." Aidan replied.
"Yes, but I am very good with mechanics. I could probably attach it to you fairly easily if you wanted." Will suggested.
"I'll pass for now, but I'll keep it in mind." Aidan said. "Is it possible to replicate it?"
"Probably not. The biotechnology here is very complex and I doubt I could recreate them. That won't stop me from trying though. Maybe I'll find a way." Will speculated.
"Well if anybody could find a way it would be the resident nut job. Keep me posted about it." Aidan waved, grabbing the arm while walking out. 'I really gotta eat more.' He thought.
"Will do." Will yelled back.
–
Marie and Ronnie both stared intensely at the screen. They were playing 'Distanced' , a platforming racing game. As they sped along, hopping from track to track, Ronnie spoke up.
"Still can't believe you used my own advice against me." He said.
"Maybe you need to make good on your own advice. Winners write the books, after all." Marie replied. Ronnie sped directly into a wall, blowing up while Marie took the lead. As Marie finished the level, Ronnie thought to himself. If Marie found his advice useful, why wasn't he taking it himself? A smirk crossed his face. Winners made history, so he'd just have to be that winner.
–
"Didn't know you played guitar." Connor said, working on editing down the Ruins realm footage.
"You didn't ask." Luke said, softly strumming a nameless melody.
"Shouldn't you be making another backup car after the last one got flattened?" Connor asked.
"I was, just needed a break." Luke said, leaning back in his chair.
–
Ethan shut the old book. He had finally read the entire thing. The Acceleron language was still confusing, but he was mildly fluent. Symbols on their own had entirely different meanings than symbols next to each other. He tried reading the symbols on the Wheel of Power, but they meant nothing when read in either direction.
Fortunately, he could read all the symbols on the Wheel now. Several sounded concerning, but some of them sounded very interesting. His favorites were Canyon, Forest, Desert, and Mountain. Those realms had to be completely stunning.
Lost in thought of what the future realms must look like, he was broken from his thoughts by the realm alarm. Looking out the window he could see the Wheel beginning to spin. As the center ring locked into place, he read the glowing symbol. Cosmic.
Bolting out of the room, he dashed down to his garage. Putting on his forest green helmet he started Beast, the red truck roaring to life. As the second ring slammed into place, he pulled into his slingshot. As he clicked into place, he opened his radio.
"Guys, the realm symbol means cosmic." Ethan said. Receiving a round of affirmation, he turned his radio back to proximity. He watched as the final ring circled round the Wheel one more time before slamming into place. In a flash of light, the portal opened, and the slingshots fired the seven drivers into the realm.
–
Above a flat surface of orange and yellow surrounded by emptiness, stars, and a large light brown planet, a light blue rift tore open. As the vehicles flew into the realm, they suddenly lost most of their momentum. The vehicles slowly floated toward the track, as if gravity was only just strong enough to attract them to the wide flat track.
"Didn't you say this was a Comic realm? What the hell is this!?" Ronnie shouted.
"I said 'Cosmic', like space." Ethan clarified.
"Ah. Ignore my complaints." Ronnie said.
"We already do, Ronnie." Connor said.
"I HEARD THAT!" Ronnie yelled.
Ronnie's tungsten laced car fell faster due to its weight, touching the track and sticking to it as Ronnie accelerated, getting an early lead. Will's giant thruster also increased his weight substantially, landing just after Ronnie. While the others floated toward the track, Luke and Connor activated their grappling hooks briefly, dragging themselves toward the track and gaining some momentum before retracting them. As they landed, Luke sped off, quickly gaining on Ronnie, while Connor was struggling.
"This damn low gravity. It's so hard to move." Connor said to nobody.
"Maybe your car is just too light." Aidan said as he landed and sped ahead.
"Maybe shut up." Connor replied.
Once the cars were on the track, downforce from their speed kept them there. In reality, the cars shouldn't descend at all, but the track seemed to have its own slight gravity to it, causing the cars to slightly attract to it instead of floating straight through space until the end of time. Marie still activated her Magnets though. Just in case.
'This is a speed track.' Marie thought to herself, looking up at the track as it coiled around a planet in the distance. 'If we let Aidan or Luke pull away I've got no chance. I can't let that happen!' Ronnie was in front of Luke, so Marie used her Nitrox and in a burst of flames pulled up behind Aidan. Seeing this, Aidan turned on his Cloak, hoping to lose his aggressor.
"No way!" Marie said, switching on her Polarized lights, instantly breaking Aidan's Cloak. Given no other choice, he'd have to out-maneuver her. Just ahead of the quarreling drivers, asteroids flew around the track. The track turned very gently right through all the asteroids, forcing the drivers to avoid them or be knocked off. Not wanting to chance a loss so early, Aidan quickly inserted his Metro Accelecharger. Immediately, his car erupted in yellow light, and a thin barrier was created around his car.
Marie was forced to back off slightly, pulling to the right side of her brother. As asteroids flew in her maneuverability helped her keep pace, while the rocks were flung away by the Accelechargers power. The rocks were taking their toll, however, forcing the Accelecharger to use more power faster than usual.
'I won't make it through the field before the Accelecharger automatically ejects. I have to force it to stay." Aidan quickly thinks. "Kana, override Accelecharger auto ejection." He says to his on-board AI.
"Are you sur-." His AI begins to question.
"Do it." He says firmly.
"Accelecharger safety ejection overrode." The AI replied solemnly.
Aidan's car groans under the pressure. While he's focused on the track ahead, his EDR and radio short out, before the Accelecharger finally overloads the console with its power. Immediately, the glow around the car fades and the protective bubble falls. Marie spots her chance. Slamming into her brother's car, he fights to regain control as an asteroid flies straight toward his right side. Their combined impact shoves him off the track and into the pull of a purple and blue wormhole close to the track. He presses his manual EDR. Nothing happens.
"Kana, activate EDR!" He shouts, panic seeping into his voice. No reply. The overload shorted out everything. As his chrome vehicle is pulled faster into the wormhole, he gets a look at the track. Nobody has noticed, not that they could do much if they did. 'It truly is every person for themselves, isn't it?' He thinks to himself, as he's pulled beyond the point of no return and sucked into the wormhole.
–
The track tilted right slightly as the asteroids thinned, but they were still a present threat. The racers quickly glanced around them, spotting that one of them was gone. It was a safe assumption that Aidan got hit by an asteroid and was ejected from the realm. Seeing that the obstacles mostly cleared, Luke tried to break away from Ronnie, but the con artist was tricky, preventing Luke from being able to utilize all his speed. Luke glanced at the road ahead. A moderate turn to the left was coming up, so he couldn't speed here.
The track switched from banking right to slowly banking left. The planet that seemed so distant before was now ninety degrees to their right. Coming into the turn, Luke dipped as far down as he could, now parallel to Ronnie, and activated his plow. With a sharp noise, muffled by the space around them, the sharp metal plow sprung out and up from Luke's vehicle. Double checking his spacing, he pressed his Nitrox button while turning to the left slightly to match the turn. The resulting burst of speed and the threat of the plow let Luke pass Ronnie, finally gaining the lead.
Seeing this, Ronnie used an injection of Nitrox to catch up as the two exited the large banked turn around a stationary asteroid. As the bank evened out, Ronnie lined up behind Luke, gaining a bit of speed from drafting. Behind them, Ethan was forced to dodge an asteroid, flying straight off the track and activating his EDR just as he flew into another asteroid.
The track straightened again, banking back to the right. Will, in the back, Saw his chance. He pulled a lever on the floor, activating his thruster and pressed his Nitrox. The giant jet engine in the bed of his truck let out a stream of flame while his engine roared, rocketing him forward. He angled himself so he wouldn't hit another driver, and so he wouldn't fly off the track. Connor, having seen him prepare to do this, grappled his rear bumper, and was not so lucky. The sudden speed and the cable forced his car to swing sideways like a pendulum before snapping and sending him off.
With quick reflexes, he inserted the Swamp Accelecharger. His car glowed a sickly dark green, instantly stopping both his spinning and his momentum, before creating thick vines under his car to safely return to the track. He was still ahead of Marie, but if he wasn't first in a realm, he was last. Removing the Accelecharger, the glow faded from his car.
The track entered a nearly vertical banked right turn. Will had caught up to Ronnie and Luke, pulling up next to the rat rod.
"Truce Will?" Ronnie asked over the radio.
"I'm not sure if truces are on the table anymore my friend." Will replied.
"'Winner takes all' is the way it goes." Luke chimed in. The bank of the track lessened, but continued to turn right around the orange planet. Ronnie looked at the planet.
'Is that the end?' He thought. Looking closer, a portion of the track turned in directly toward the planet. At the end of that track was the portal with the angled ring symbol on the Wheel in deep blue on it. 'I'll remember the track goes like that. That end turn looks sharp.' He mentally takes note.
As the bank evened out more another wave of asteroids hit the track. An asteroid hit the track next to Marie, popping her off the track. Quickly flicking on her magnets, she pulled herself back on. Marie decided she had had enough of those rocks. Activating her Ruins Accelecharger, her car began to glow turquoise and the incoming asteroid phased through her, as if she were a ghost. Connor continued dodging as Marie passed him. 'Not like I'm going to win this realm anyway…' He thought.
With the trio leading the pack, Will activated his Ice Accelecharger, negating the effects of his chain tires and letting him smoothly dodge while keeping pace with Luke and Ronnie. The track tilts up, leaving the asteroid field and letting the drivers who used them eject their Accelechargers without fear. Passing by the planet, the track switched from a right bank turn to a left bank turn. The track dived down and curved directly through the center of a stationary asteroid.
The track ascended toward the right side of the planet. As it does it quickly dips down, and the front trio flew off the track. Ronnie quickly activated his Magnets, sucking him back to the track. Luke activated the Neon Pipeline Accelecharger, which sucked him to the track as well. Unfortunately, Will did not have a recovery option.
"Aw, dang it!" Will said dejectedly, and he reluctantly pressed the EDR.
The track now tightly orbited the planet, banking only slightly in for a left coil down, then up around the planet. Ronnie looked up, seeing the track piece leading to the portal. 'There. That's when I'll make my play.' He planned. He just had to be in first when he reached the portal. The track rose more, now at the rough equator of the planet. The track lost all of its bank, now just a flat left turn, as the track joined with the main ring around the planet. Continuing to tail Luke Ronnie needed to keep his speed for this, but he also had to be careful. If he went too fast, he'd also lose. There was a fine balance that had to be struck between sabotage and success.
The track strayed from the planet's direct orbit in preparation for the upcoming turn. Ronnie saw the portal, exactly where he knew it would be. Luke saw it too, preparing to finish first. As they came up on the turn, Luke was forced to slow down as he began to turn, but Ronnie wasn't going to let him. He pressed his Nitrox, activated his Magnets, and ramped the rat rod with his speed before slamming his brakes. As expected all that momentum transferred into the rat rod, sending it off the track, while his own brakes stopped his speed and his Magnets stopped him from flipping.
"Sorry sheriff, guess I win this one!" Ronnie said with a cheeky grin on his face. As he accelerated toward the portal, he knew he may have made a lifelong enemy, but he was prepared for it. Luke angrily activated his EDR as Ronnie his the portal. As the symbol vanished with the car, a pulse of energy covered the realm. The asteroids thinned, and eventually vanished, and gravity emanating from the track increased, and a wormhole on the edge of the realm shut.
–
Ronnie smoothly landed in his bay, coming to a stop. As he did, a blue glow emanated from beside him as the realm Accelecharger appeared before him. Just like the others, inscribed on the bottom was the name of the realm, Cosmic. Grabbing his prize, the glow died down. As he got out of his car, he heard Marie and Connor escaping the realm. A moment later, Ethan burst into his bay.
"Have you seen Aidan?" He asked frantically.
"Not since earlier today. Why?" Ronnie replied, confused.
"I can't find him. He was out of the race first right? He should have been here when I got back but neither Will or I can find him and-" Ethan rambled
"Woah woah woah, Aidan's missing? I mean, where else could he be?" Ronnie cut him off.
"I don't know, he's not in any of the bays or the other rooms, his car from the realm isn't in his bay and I don't think he could have scrapped it already." Ethan explained.
""You said his car isn't here?" Ronnie clarified.
"Mmm" Ethan confirmed.
"He couldn't… still be in the realm… right?" Ronnie tentatively asked.
They both look at the Wheel of Power just as an alarm rings out. With a flash of light, the portal closed, and the Wheel spun back to its closed state.
–
Will's Accelecharger Study:
"Figured out what it does?"
"I did. It's simple too. Super speed. Faster than Nitrox."
"I see. Did you name it too?"
"Lightspeed."
"Cool. Sorry to bother you."
"No it's fine. Better to give my mind something to work on"
"Want some Vodka?"
"...Maybe."
–
Been a while. Was contemplating starting over with a bunch of new ideas I had but decided I would find a way to integrate them into what already happened instead. I actually have something I super want to do with next chapter so that will actually be fun to work on. hopefully. See you next time.
Next Chapter: Realms: Abandoned