Ask Death Race? Yeah it's a Death Race

[Maxims Tionson]

It was raining and the seas looked like they were about ready to swallow them all whole alone, never mind any sea monsters. If they were thrown off their speeders or if they slowed down too much and their speeders hit the waters then they were going to be in for a terrible time. Even with the Force, the natural elements of the sea were no joke. No Force User alive today would have the raw power needed to overcome the storm that was rocking the islands they would be racing around, this Max knew with absolute certainty.

He stood beside the basic speeder bike that had been provided for him, which was the same as Weiss' and the same as Lianna's. One of the leaders of the local people was going to be running the same race as them at the same time? If this were any other group of people it would have been reassuring but the Pamarthens were on the verge of being insane with their level of enjoyment from danger so he didn't know if that applied here.

For the first time in a long time, Max was puffing on a cigarra as officials checked over their speeder bikes to make sure that none of them had added anything extra to them to make the challenge easier. The whole point was that they would have the exact same advantages and disadvantages so that only the superior racer would actually manage to win. Weiss and Max had the Force as an advantage that couldn't really be accounted for but Lianna had the advantage of having raced the course before.

Experience tended to trump talent in his experience.

Speaking of...

"Ready to eat my sea-spray?" he taunted Weiss and Lianna both good naturedly, "Only need one eye to know I'm gonna be the first one over the line."

Good-natured trash talking was a requirement in racing.

@Six

 

[Weiss Zano]

As the rain poured and the strong winds blew swaying his almost silver hair back Weiss raised and arm over his forehead as if to guard from the incoming array of them. Gazing upon the sea in front of them it was safe to say his expectations were indeed subverted. When the notion of the race and it's nature was first proposed he imagined an image of a peaceful ocean and a beautiful horizon to race over even with the danger of the killer fish beneath them. What was actually awaiting them was a stark contrast to say the least. The sky darkened as if foreboading of a storm, rain pouring and the ocean waves striking violently along the rocks. He quickly realized the true dangers of the race and quite frankly thought that if such things were a cultural heritage to them the Pamarthens were complete adrenaline junkies, if not a tad bit crazy. But he wasn't the one to judge the differing traditions of people, he was of Hapan heritage and yet he never fully understood nor related to the many customs adopted from his mother's side nor their fascination with physical beauty.

Master Max seemed to be fully prepared for the dangers ahead or at least that's what his laid back words relayed. Taking a second to compose his thoughts after his initial shock Weiss replied, trying to entertain the notion of competitive trash talk ''Sorry to inform you rather late Master Max but I barely ever lose at anything.'' Weiss said trying to usher a smile and squinting his eyes at the stream of pouring rain and winds striking his face. The white haired youth got up on the speeder, going over it's controls and quickly assessing the type of the vehicle he was administered. He drove many speeders in his life and this model didn't seem to vastly differ from some he had already garnered some experience with. However the racing course itself did vastly differ from what Weiss was used to.. safe to say this specific ocean wasn't really the streets of Coruscant nor Hapes.

@Nefieslab

 

[Maxims Tionson]

Even from a few feet away Max could sense the direction of some of Weiss' thoughts and he kind of agreed with the kid - the Pamarthens were kind of crazy but they were the kind of crazy that Max really liked. The kind of crazy that meant they'd probably go to the grave doing their duty, at their post, because they enjoyed it.

He didn't doubt that quite a lot of Pamarthens experienced short, violent, deaths at the hands of the sea and the creatures that dwelled within it during races held for almost no reason. Almost no reason because the races themselves, for the Pamarthens, were the reason to have the races.

Lyanna came wandering over to them before either of them could continue.

"Come on boys, race about to start."

Max mounted up on the speeder, no bothering with a helmet but accepting a visor to cover his eyes. They were going to be going at such speeds that a helmet wasn't actually going to make a difference if they hit something solid. And if he went into the drink then he wasn't going to appreciate having his head weighed down.

The count down began with Lyanna, Max and Weiss all mounted up alongside one another.

Focusing purely on the race, he paused for a second in the middle of the count as the visor dropped down into his eyes... right as the starting signal was issued. Cursing, he shot off from the starting line across the short strip of land they were using to build up speed before they were on the water, using only one hand. The other pulled his visor off and threw it aside, meaning he was already behind and he was needing to gun the engine to avoid being too slow to actually cross the water.

Spoiler: Dice

Max starts off pretty badly

@Six

 

[Weiss Zano]

Weiss adjusted his visor as Lyanna signaled the nearing start of the race. He spread himself over as much as he could in his seat, making his long limbs comfortable as much as possible and getting the feel for the vehicle's shape as well. He revved the engine up and down as the countdown started, his eyes narrowing in concentration looking out to the vast violent sea before them. Weiss knew how important it would be to 'eject' the vehicle from the starting line so to say in the fraction of a second as soon as the final count dropped. Getting an early advantage was usually a standard basic tactic for a race any simpleton could grasp but this particular course was a tad bit.. different. In here letting someone else go first while you stick to some middle spot might even be in your favor. The violent waves, fishes and rocks that would obstruct the person in front of you would warn you to their whereabouts at the same time as they were eliminating your competition. However this race had another factor that completely negated this strategy - Lyanna was already experienced with the course. Letting the woman go first would amount to almost nothing and so Weiss quickly decided on using the same ole plain go-frist-end-first tactic if it could even be called that.

He spread out his consciousness through the Force and outwards opting to be aware of any unforseen obstacles that may come his way and as the count hit zero the young Knight ushered his speeder forward, the vehicle catapulting from it's spot almost flawlessly and gaining the immediate advantage over the two. Crossing the short strip of land before them Weiss gained speed more and more before finally reaching the water, his speeder blazing above the violent streams bellow. He couldn't see what had happened to Max though he did feel through the Force the unexpected set back and slow start with the man behind him. Still concentrated on gaining some 'ground' on this entire cursed course Weiss couldn't really risk looking back at the Master instead feeling through the Force that the man, though farther behind, wasn't in any life danger.

@Nefieslab

Spoiler: DICE

Weiss shoots of

 

[Maxims Tionson]

Thankfully there was always one thing that could be said about being behind in a race that made it actually pretty useful - it meant that you could see the rest of the pack ahead of you and see things that they couldn't.

Like how there was some waves breaking over to the left that didn't look like they were hitting an island. Gunning the power to his speeder as best he could, he reached where the waves were breaking and laughed as his speeder immediately regained some height and started speeding up a lot more.

He wasn't flying over just water but a reef that was high enough that the repulsor lifts of his speeder bike could gain traction enough to elevate him and let him pick up the speed. He gunned past Weiss on the outside, giving the young Knight a wave, before pulling in just behind Lyanna on the open water again.

Lucky break!

Spoiler: Dice

Max makes with the speedy zooms

@Six

 

[The Storyteller]

Some of the course's choppier waters proved difficult to maneuver, even with the best of racers. Lianna cursed once as one wave bucked perilously close, cutting some of the speed down. She'd have to gain a bit more altitude to catch up to one of the Jedi, but the race wasn't over yet. She could be patient. She had time to sweep him down in the waters on the next curve.

The waves frothed and water slicked everything to a glinting glimmer. The other Jedi was gone, and there was a full race ahead. For her, life was especially good. And when she won, it would be a whole world better. She wasn't out of the race just yet.

@Nefieslab

Spoiler: Dice Roll

Not so great luck

 

[Maxims Tionson]

Max wasn't going to let the race go without a fight, even if he was quickly coming to the conclusion that he really disliked speeder bikes over water and reefs. He didn't think that was unreasonable either considering just how bloody unreliable it all was! His bike felt like it was skidding even when it wasn't and that was just the tip of the iceberg.

... though he was grateful it seemed too tropical for an iceberg to become an actual concern.

Thankfully for him? Lianna had an issue with a wave that he didn't share and he was, suddenly, in the lead for the first time in the race! There was a surge of adrenaline and he couldn't help let out a shaky laugh that was swallowed by the sound of crashing waves.

Naturally the Galaxy decided he was being a bit too cocky and a rogue wave from the side came at him before he could account for it. Wrestling with the controls, he was able to avoid losing any altitude but he had lost some speed, losing the lead because of it even though he was still fairly close on her heels.

That'd teach him.

Spoiler: Dice

Max Loses the Lead!

@Killa Ree

 

[The Storyteller]

Any Pamarthan racer worth her salt knew danger and death lurked around every corner. With the heavy rainfall, vision was going fast, and with the waves rising the risk of hitting something major also increased. There were reefs, yes, but also wreckages from other races, debris of things that could snag on a swoop and drag it under faster than you could say 'help'.

The Jedi had taken the lead briefly once again, and she gritted her teeth, but would bide her time, easing up on the brake and gunning hard, using a brief updraft to gain speed and catch. She was just on his tail when a wave bucked up, and clipped one of the balances, making her snarl once in a low-voiced growl. "Kriff!"

One more leg. This was more than just a deal at stake, this was personal honor. People were watching; if she didn't try something daring she wasn't a true Pamarthan pilot. The next turn was coming up soon; she had something daring up her sleeve, but it all depended on how well the Jedi did as well. All in good time.

@Nefieslab

Spoiler: Dice Rolls

First Turn and Second Turn

 

[Maxims Tionson]

Well Max wasn't going to say he was getting used to the speeder flying over water but he wasn't hating the whole experience anymore - if anything he would say that he was getting used to it. Used to it enough that when the next wave came, he knew just how to angle the speeder bike that he raced down it's edge rather than it slamming into him. He could tell, through the ocean spray, that they were on the last leg.

He gunned the engine.

It was a do or die move, honestly, because the ocean spray being kicked up was enough that it was honestly hard to see anything at all. If he did anything wrong he would smash into either rocks or water at high enough speeds for the surface to hit him like durasteel in a fighter craft.

The spray kicked up even more and he couldn't even see the other rider even as he pulled the speeder up along the beach, shaking his head and wiping water away as he tried to not drown from the sheer amount of spray.

"So ah... who won guys?"

Spoiler: dice

Max really wants to win but is it enough?!

@Killa Ree

 

[The Storyteller]

She'd heard of Jedi reflexes before, but this was straining it. With a final hard gun to the engines, she saw the wave swell just as the last curve was breached. And though it gave her a good boost and some speed, the Jedi had already pulled ahead. She turned hard at the finishing line, planting her boot down to drift to a stop over the hard rocks just as waves hissed angrily at her side. Pulling off her helmet, she merely stared at the Jedi for a moment. The officials there were silent, watching between the two.

When she extended her hand, there was a slight hint of a smile on her features.

"You did. Good race."

@Nefieslab

Spoiler: Dice Roll

And he won, but not by much!

 

[Maxims Tionson]

He actually won? Oh thank the Force, he wasn't sure what he would have had to do next if he hadn't managed to actually win the damned race and he was worried it would have been something even more death-defying. There was only so much death that could be defied before it got lucky in his experience.

Max didn't have a helmet to remove because, at some point, he had kind of lost it during the race and he couldn't remember when. He did recall his ally being picked up by the locals when his bike had crashed though so it wasn't all bad. He stepped away from the bike and shook Lianna's hand.

"Good race." he agreed, smiling, "So can I count on your support in flying our ships?"

That was the whole point after all - to prove that he was worthy of leading some of their daring men and women into space combat.

@Killa Ree

 

[The Storyteller]

There was a heavy pause, as the pilot stared into Max's gaze. Expression unreadable, breath was held as eyes darted between the two of them. And then her lips cracked into a grin, eyes glimmering with amusement. Giving his hand a final hearty shake, she tilted her head away from the beach. "Sure. But to seal the deal, how well can you hold your drink?"

With her, anything was a challenge, particularly holding your stomach against Port in a Storm. But the Jedi proved a good sport and good at thinking on his feet, so he had her respect at least. And if anything, Lianna counted herself as fair-minded in the grand scheme of things. Perhaps her people and his could get along.

Only time could tell.

@Nefieslab

 

[Maxims Tionson]

How well could he hold his drink? Well he recognized that it wasn't a serious challenge but, well, Port in a Storm was only not-serious for Pamarthens. He stared at the drink for a long moment before deciding that if he was going to get involved with the people he had to be a part of their culture on some level.

He took the drink and raised it high in a toast.

"To us!"

Downing the drink, he set the cup down with a grin and a bark of laughter as the locals started celebrating in earnest. Despite not immediately being knocked out or needing his stomach pumping, Max was... very drunk.

From a single cup.

By the Force was everything supposed to be spinning? Probably was.

"Another!"

It would be a long night and he wouldn't remember any of it.

Spoiler: Dice

Not knocked out but instantly drunk

/End Thread

@Killa Ree