Duel of the Execs (Part 1)
Posted on Wed Sep 20th, 2023 @ 4:58am by Commodore Tohru Honda & Captain Maho Takahashi & Captain Shimakaze Zh'gero & Commander Minna-Dietlinde Wilcke & Commander Elisabeth Churchill & Lieutenant Commander Ryosuke Takahashi 'Ry' & Takeshi Nakazato 'Zack' & Commander Ichika Misono & Commander Rize Tedeza & Lieutenant Karen Kujo 'Union Jane'
1,152 words; about a 6 minute read
Mission: The Fast & The Fleet
The program's weather conditions had been set to clear as Amatsukaze's Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV was lined up on the starting line alongside the white FD3S Mazda RX-7 from the NightKids. When the cars were in position, Shimakaze approached the Evo's driver window.
"Amatsukaze, I want you to follow Simulation 2 for this race." She informed her executive officer.
Amatsukaze was taken aback by this comment.
"Simulation 2 against a stock FD? You're kidding!" Amatsukaze protested.
"Do it:" Shimakaze said sternly, looking past Amatsukaze to Ichika sitting in the FD.
Little Miss Inuto's been practicing. Shimakaze thought. I could tell by the way she's carried herself all evening. She's definitely been training harder than the rest of them. We need to find out her weakness and exploit it.
"Okay, fine." Amatsukaze sighed in defeat. "I'll do whatever you think is best, just trust in me to do the driving."
Nodding, Shimakaze turned to Commodore Honda.
Ichika, for her part, was in the process of conducting one last pre-race inspection of her vehicle; given Commodore Honda's ruling that they would not be allowed to reset their vehicles so as to mitigate the possibility of cheating, such aspects as oil and tire pressure would have to be inspected- and adjusted- manually. Not that Ichika wasn't up for the challenge, of course; given this wasn't necessarily her field of expertise, she had taken everything Maho and Keisuke had taught her to heart, to improve her chances of victory.
As she leaned over the gauges to get a better idea of her fuel pressure, she was suddenly interupted by the sharp rasp of knuckles on her windowsill; turning, she spotted Maho waiting outside, looking as if she had something to warn her about before this race got underway.
"Can I help you with something, Captain?" she inquired as she rolled her window down.
"I just wanted to tell you a little more about your opponent:" Maho responded. "Amatsukaze isn't likely to go easy on you. So, you'll have to drive this old bird like your life depends on it if you want any hope of beating her."
Maho leaned in closer.
"That being said, she does have one weakness you could potentially exploit:" She told Ichika in a hushed tone. "If you can beat her in the corners, you'll be more closely matched in the straightaways."
"Understood, Captain," Ichika nodded, beginning to formulate a strategy in her head that would give her the optimal chances of eking through with a victory. She was going to have to play defensive on this one, preventing Amatsukaze from making a pass on the corners all the while maintaining velocity. It certainly wasn't going to be a cakewalk, but if she played her cards just right... perhaps she'd have a decent shot at first place.
"Alright, spectators! Clear the starting line! We're starting the countdown!" Tohru called out, raising her splayed hand into the air. "Starting in 5! 4! 3! 2! 1! GO!"
Off the line, the EVO seemed a little bit slow as the FD gained the early lead heading towards the first corner.
"What's the EVO doing? She's giving the FD the early lead!" A spectator yelled.
All part of the plan. Shimakaze thought. The sooner we can expose Commander Misono's weakness, the better.
An interesting decision, Zh'gero. Maho thought. Perhaps your XO has finally overcome her impatience if you're making her run Simulation 2 against Ichika...
Ichika, naturally, seized upon Amatsukaze's slow start- intentional or not- to gain the early lead. Powerslding into the first curve, she positioned her car in just a way that Amatsukaze wouldn't have room to safely pass her. Of course, she could try, but the chances were high that she'd wreck out doing so, which would grant Ichika an early win.
Behind her, Amatsukaze was distracted, trying to make sense of what Shimakaze had told her:
"Amatsukaze, I want you to follow Simulation 2 for this race."
Simulation 2 is usually reserved for highly skilled opponents. Amatsukaze thought. So, why is Shimakaze making me run it against this bone stock FD driven by a pee wee Inuto who couldn't have had more than two weeks of practice? It just doesn't make sense!
Amatsukaze attempted to guide the EVO into a four wheel drift behind the FD, but was forced to hit the brakes to avoid colliding with the FD, as there was little room to pass.
"This is the first corner!" The lookout radioed. "The race is tight, and that EVO IV is chewing on the FD's bumper!"
Remember, Amatsukaze; Shimakaze thought. Your mission is to stay behind the FD long enough to find Commander Misono's weakness and exploit it: Don't let your impatience get the better of you...
As the second corner became the third, and for the straightaways in between, Amatsukaze's speed was limited by that of the FD in front of her. The FD that, in Amatsukaze's mind, was moving incredibly slowly.
Gah, I've never had the patience to run Simulation 2. Amatsukaze thought. Shimakaze should have kept her damn nose out of it and let me run this my way!
Amatsukaze attempted another four wheel drift, but was blocked by the FD. Amatsukaze was forced to shift down to 3rd gear.
I've barely gotten past third gear this whole run. Amatsukaze thought. A grandmother going to get groceries drives faster than this!
So far, so good, Ichika thought to herself as the two of them exited out into a long straightaway. Let's hope we can keep it that way.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the EVO move to the left to try and make an inside pass; she moved to block it, forcing the EVO to swing back to the right.
"Uh-uh, not so fast."
As they approached the next turn, Ichika deliberately went wide, forcing Amatsukaze to slow down to a crawl.
Damnit, this girl's really starting to piss me off... Amatsukaze thought.
As Amatsukaze was kept at a crawl, finding and exploiting ichika's weakness was becoming less and less of a concern to the increasingly-impatient Andorian.
That does it! Amatsukaze declared mentally. Screw Simulation 2; I'm going to race and win this my way!
Amatsukaze analyzed her mental course map, and knew that there was a hairpin coming up that was long and wide enough to conduct a counterattack.
There's a hairpin turn coming up that should be too wide for her to block. Amatsukaze thought. That'll be when I'll make my move; and you'll be completely defenseless against my counterattack!
To be continued...
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