The Firebug Leap

The Firebug Leap
Date 2080-09-09 GM Purkinje Location Puyallup Barrens Result Tanuki won the race.
Factions Involved
ShadowHaven Danny Boy Eagle Eye Kay-O Tanuki	The Firebug Run
Casualties and losses
None	None

Summary

Four runners decided to hold a street race through dangerous parts of Puyallup.

Background

One night on the ShadowHaven throwback IRC, several runners started talking smack about their rigs. This evolved into placing bets on a race, which four of the runners were able to attend. The race was a predetermined path through south Puyallup, beginning in Carbonado and going through Hell's Kitchen, Tarislar and back to the starting line.

The Meet

N/A

The Legwork

N/A

The Run

The starting line was in Carbonado, along a stretch of long, straight road that was relatively unoccupied since it was after midnight. The waypoints for the race were visible over the matrix, and the starting line was a shimmering wall. When the racers were cleared to go, the wall vanished. Everyone immediately peeled out the gate, but Eagle Eye gained a small lead zooming down the asphalt corridor. Fearing his rig wouldn't be able to keep up in an environment where top speed was a determining factor, Tanuki decided to take a shortcut, ramping up onto some buildings and skipping over rooftops like it were nothing. This gave him a healthy lead going into the second leg.

The second leg of the race went through Hell's Kitchen, where the volcanic terrain made driving tough. There were still roads, but between the debris and volcanic ash, the drivers' handling would be tested above their rigs' speed here. Right after turning a corner, the drivers were all surprised by a strange ritual circle. Eagle Eye drifted up the side of a building to avoid hitting it and managed not to lose any time doing so. Kay-O, Tanuki and Danny Boy threaded the needle between street mages in the circle. Danny Boy ejected an oil slick for fun, which exacerbated the fireball explosion that went off only moments after the racers cleared the circle. They decided to go for the race's namesake after that, though. The Firebug Leap is named for a massive fire and lava pit in the middle of Hell's Kitchen where if you can manage the jump, you'll cut a lot of track out. Somehow, each of the four racers managed to clear the gap, though Danny Boy unfortunately lost control of his bike on the landing and was forced to slow down to avoid injury. Thanks to their reflexes, Eagle Eye managed to pull ahead, and Kay-O managed not to fall too far behind the two riggers.

The third and final leg took the racers through Tarislar, which was a bit of a maze before opening back out into the straight road that led into Carbonado. This leg of the race featured target-shooting, where anyone able to hit a target would get a bonus to their time based on how hard a target they were able to hit. No one seemed to know the specific area well enough to go at top speed, but that didn't stop them from dodging and weaving by all the corners and pedestrians on their way back to Carbonado. To make up for the time, most racers opted to hit small targets and get the bonuses. Unfortunately, Kay-O fell behind in this pursuit. After Tanuki pulled a frankly absurd stunt that was too fast for the recordings and frankly should have defied the laws of physics, it looked like he was going to win. Somehow, Eagle Eye's car, with the benefit of not needing to worry about its driver's g-force, managed to just barely peel by him and pull a stoppy in front of the finish line to make a statement.

Aftermath

Tanuki was given the 400¥ for winning first place. Kay-O came in second, and Danny Boy in third. Eagle Eye came in fourth, but only by choice. All the participants performed impressive enough displays that word and trid recordings of their exploits enjoyed a bit of popularity among certain elements in Puyallup for a while. A bunch of runners and locals gathered for an afterparty, where they drank to their hearts' content.

Rewards

• +2 Karma

• +1 Street Cred

• 400¥ for Tanuki