Space Odyssey: Spectre-Chapter 456: Ready! Set! Go!

Chapter 456: Ready! Set! Go!
"LADIES AND OTHER PEOPLE! WELCOME TO THE WATERWAYS RACING CIRCUIT!" The automated voice roared over the sound of cheering people. The entire waterways district was shaking because of the roar of people.
"There are a lot more people than I think even you expected." Jace pointed out to Mistress White who was beaming with pride and excitement in her chair overlooking the starting line of the race. There were several monitors nearby that showed other parts of the racetrack.
"Actually, this is great. Now go on and get down to the entrance. They are about to announce the contestants and their vehicles." Mistress White told him in excitement as she tapped a black puck and a bunch of holographic information appeared. Most of it appeared to be numbers so Jace just kept walking.
As he walked down to the entrance to the racetrack he double checked to make sure the girls were watching from a safe distance. Nila was watching them at the moment. But it looked like they were watching from the roof of his garage.
As he arrived down at the entrance he shook his head at the sight of over a dozen other race teams who were in the same tunnel as him. His hoverbike was covered in a large beige cloth in the back. As he walked toward it his armor began forming around his body. Materializing once again with sparks of electricity. But that was all he called.
The actual rules for the race had no weapons of any kind that were allowed. Boosters were allowed but radioactive fuel was strictly forbidden. Hacking other racers’ machines and tech was also prohibited. But those were the only major rules he noticed.
It was set up to be a three lap race across the Waterways circuit which had a number of tunnels and ran almost completely under the upper layer. With twenty racers in total it would start off crowded before eventually thinning out.
He pulled the cloth off his hoverbike and stood back. Nodding in appreciation of the white chemi-metal that covered the bike. At the rear were five thrusters. That would be his emergency booster he would use once he got up to speed. The sides and bottom were covered in hoverplates that lit up and began causing the hoverbike to float. Located toward the front were the actual handles and gauges as well as several other essential systems.
Then the seat and foot holds were located near the midsection. But under the seat was a storage compartment he could use as well. This compartment only had tools at the moment.
Jace moved around his hoverbike, double checking nothing had been altered or changed in the last twenty minutes. Which was how long he was up in the box with Mistress White watching as the viewing stands filled up with people.
"So you are the famous Spectre that everyone has been talking about." Jace looked over to see a bulky man in a racing suit. One of his eyes had been replaced with one of those older cybernetics that took a chunk of the head with it. As well as a pair of robotic-cybernetic legs. "Names Batrone, I am on that beast!" He pointed behind him at a four wheeled boxier looking car that had a massive engine on the back as well as what looked like a rocket booster.
"A pleasure meeting you as well. I can already see how you lost your legs and one of your eyes." Jace said jokingly but the man froze for a moment before grinning.
He shyly rubbed the back of his head and chuckled. "You are right! I did lose my legs in an accident while testing out the beast. But I actually lost my eye in a bar fight and decided abruptly to just get the surgery." He then nodded at Jace’s hoverbike. "Did you make this thing yourself? I tried to get my hands on hover tech but it is so difficult."
"I did, but I created the only hover tech on the market so I have no problems using it." Jace informed the man. He raised his single eyebrow and looked like he was about to say something when light flooded in as the gate to the entrance of the race track opened up.
"RACERS! MOVE TO YOUR DESIGNATED STARTING LOCATION!" The announcer’s voice rang through the tunnel they were inside of.
"Good luck!" Rico told Batrone as he climbed onto his hoverbike while Batrone ran back to his own vehicle where his mechanical crew began berating him.
Rico powered up his hoverbike and it silently started before making a quiet whisper as he maneuvered it around the other vehicles. He exited right as the front two vehicles started leaving.
"OUR FIRST TWO RACERS ON THE FIELD- WAIT A MINUTE! LOOKS LIKE OUR NEW RACER AS WELL AS A STATION LEGEND, JACE THE SPECTRE, HAS DECIDED TO COME OUT ONTO THE FIELD FIRST!" Jace raced over toward the end of the line. He was at the very back of the line. Not seeded very high on the chart. Just like he hoped he would be. It would not be very fun if he started at the front and just crushed them.
"JACE IS MAKING SEVERAL FIRSTS AND BREAKING SEVERAL RECORDS HERE AT THE WATERWAYS RACING CIRCUIT TODAY FOLKS! HE WILL BE THE FIRST TO USE HOVERTECH IN A RACE. THE FIRST TO STILL BE EMPLOYED THE MILITARY WHILE ALSO RACING. THE FIRST TO NOT HAVE ANY FORM OF PIT CREW. THE SMALLEST VEHICLE ON RECORD TO RACE ON THIS TRACK. AS WELL AS SETTING THE RECORD FOR THE MOST ARMORED AND INDESTRUCTABLE VEHICLE TO EVER GRACE THIS CIRCUIT. THAT IS RIGHT FOLKS! THAT THING IS NOT JUST FAST! IT IS ALSO ARMORED SO NOT EVEN A TANK SHELL WILL DENT IT UPON IMPACT!"
Jace stopped at his starting position and set his vehicle to hover. He had plenty of spare power in reserve. He could do around twelve loops of this circuit at full speed which he probably would never manage to reach. His booster rockets were all ready to be fired. He doubted he would use them. But they were ready.
He loosely listened as the announcer kept going through several other vehicles. Until he got to the second to last racer. "NEXT UP IS BATRONE ON THE BEAST! THESE TWO HAVE BEEN BITING AT THE FIRST PLACE’S HEALS FOR ALMOST A YEAR! WILL HE FINALLY MANAGED TO TAKE HOME THE FIRST PLACE MEDAL?"
Jace watched as he moved his vehicle into the second closest to the front spot. Jace smirked as he had a feeling that Batrone and the first place might actually give him a decent challenge. The only faults in Batrone’s vehicle were friction and the not so aerodynamic shape.
"FINALLY! IT IS TIME TO UNVEAIL OUR REIGNING CHAMPION! LET ME FINALLY REINTRODUCE THE TITAN OF WATERWAYS CIRCUIT AS WELL AS THE CHAMPION OF THE KAMOT-5 LANDRACE WHO ALSO EARNED ANOTHER CHAMPIONSHIP IN THE KITINOL TERRITORY RACING CIRCUIT AS WELL!"
Jace raised an eyebrow in surprise as he watched a vehicle come out of a separate entrance. He could see some hovertech on the bottom of the vehicle from here. A quick check and he confirmed that they paid the necessary funds to use it on their vehicle already. But those were clearly only used to keep the vehicle floating. It was actually using spaceship thrusters to move around. That would scorch any nearby vehicle.
"LADIES AND OTHER PEOPLE! WOULD YOU LOOK AT THAT! IT LOOKS LIKE AZEL THE THUNDER IS THE SECOND PERSON TO GRACE THE CIRCUIT WITH HOVERTECH! BUT INSTEAD OF OVERUSING THEM ON HIS VEHICLE HE INSTEAD IS USING THRUSTERS FOR PROPULSION! A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT TYPE OF TECHNOLOGY COMBINATION THAN WHAT JACE THE SPECTRE IS USING! IS HOVERTECH THE NEW THING! SURELY THIS RACE WILL SHOW US!"
Now the announcer had not just pumped up the crowd but the other racers and even Jace who was smirking under his helmet. He was curious to see if his concept was better than this Azel. But either way it did not look like Azel nor any of her crew managed to use the hovertech pads to push the vehicle against air only against solid surfaces.
But as Jace was thinking of this he felt something and looked at the other racers. Noticing they were all glaring at him. Did he miss something? No, the announcer was just running through the rules at the moment.
It was more likely that they were thinking about the hovertech versus wheel argument that the announcer brought up. He was curious as well but it would seem that the announcer had either unknowingly or knowingly created enemies for him.
"NOW THEN! LET’S START THE COUNTDOWN FROM FIVE AND THEY WILL GO ON ’GO!’." The announcer informed the crowd and there was a roar in response that shook the starting area. "GOOD! NOW SAY IT WITH ME!"
"FIVE!"
The screams rocked the racing circuit as the vehicles began roaring to life. Jace stretched a bit as he looked around and watched as the mechanics and pit crews were racing on the field.
"FOUR!"
The first burst of black smoke came out of some vehicles as they fired up their systems. Getting ready to fire their boosters right off the start.
"THREE!"
The vehicles all began revving up and roaring to life, nearly drowning out the roaring crowd. But Jace’s vehicle only whistles quietly.
"TWO!"
Jace watched as a light over the entrance line lit up with a green light.
"ONE!"
Now it was yellow. While the vehicles in front of him were all roaring and spitting up fire out of their thrusters and exhausts.
"GO!"