Beta Planet: Rise (20 page)

“I guess it’s one place where we know we aren’t being watched,” Sabien exclaimed as he resumed looking back up into the sky. The three of them looked up as well and saw that the sky had darkened and the faint rumble of thunder could be heard miles away.

“Mr. Dauphine was right again,” Allea said. “G, hope you are ready for a very wet, very windy race today.”

Geon nodded and the four of them grabbed some fishcakes for lunch to go and headed to the waterways. By the time they had reached their stop on the Glidewing, the rain had become to come down. It began with small slivers of cold water pelting them in the face, and within minutes became large, heavy drops, pounding down on their bodies as they ran toward the course.

“Does anyone have a ONEbrella?” Kumuki yelled as he tried to undo his hood from his jacket.

“A ONEbrella?” Geon asked.

“It’s like an umbrella,” Allea answered, also unfolding her hood from her own jacket. “Except that it’s slimmer and comes down more, shielding you from the sides also. It’s also coated in acryli-flex to protect you from falling debris, hailstones, etc. And no, Kuki, we don’t have one.”

Geon and Sabien pulled hoods over their own heads and dashed around the giant puddles that were now forming in the streets. Within minutes, it had gone from a rainstorm to a massive downpour, causing streams of fast-flowing water to rush through the city. The dark sky thundered so loudly that each time it startled Geon and made the hairs on his arms stand up. The wind around them howled and changed direction often, causing the rain to come from above, the sides, and even below.

This is going to be some race,
Geon thought.
I can’t even see five feet in front of me right now, let alone try to surf around a track and fly off of terrifying jumps.

“Come on, guys, we’re almost there!”

Sabien was running in front of them and leading the way, and all Geon could see was Sabien’s back and not much more than that. After a few more minutes of running they found themselves in the shelter of the changing room, where ONEbrellas were given out to all the spectators. Geon and Sabien hurriedly changed into their suits. Geon expressed anxiety about the race but Sabien assured him that there was no pressure on him and to just go out there and ride and enjoy it.

“
Don’t worry, G. It’s me they’re all looking at and expecting to win,” he said with a grin. “And yes, Geon, in case you were wondering, Vaya and her friends are here.”

Geon smiled and looked off into the distance dreamily.

“Uhm, snap out of it G. You look… weird and… sleepy. Get it together.”

“
Sorry, Sabe, momentary lapse. All right, let’s do this!”

The two put on their
Aurelens
goggles and headed out the door as Geon took his first look at the course. It was similar to the one at their school, with winding waterways and ramps and other tricks spread throughout the course. But some of it was much different. The waterways snaked around the small pieces of land and connected to the black, infinite, open water in the distance. The water was dark, and the storm was causing it to crash and turn in every direction. Waves rose up out of nowhere and crashed down on riders that were practicing, sending them flying into the water.

“Sabe, do they ever cancel races on account of weather issues?” Geon said as he tried to wipe away the rain from the front of his goggles.

“Almost never, G. When you’re a warrior of the waterways, it’s a risk you take on,” he said as he strapped into his board and lowered into the water. Geon followed behind him as the frigid tumultuous waves enveloped him from each side. He tried to balance himself and practice his turns and acceleration, but it was a challenge just to keep himself righted on the rocky water and to see in front of him.

Can’t they invent some self-cleaning goggles?

Sabien came flying by. In his earpiece, Sabien called out to him, “Geon, just go fast. It’s the only way to combat the waves and turbulence. The slower you go the harder it is to stay upright!”

All right, why not?

Geon gritted his teeth and took off at nearly full speed. At first the ride was bumpy and formidable, but he began to get into a rhythm and soon took advantage of it.
Sabien was right. Just keep your foot on the power and keep going.
Riders around him were also speeding around the track and launching themselves off the ramps and into the air.

A beep in his earpiece signaled the start of the race and Coach Aquila’s shrill voice said “All right Team! Let’s stay focused, don’t do anything foolish, and let’s bring home a win!”

Geon saw that the coach and Shiv were both staring at him as he rode over to the edge of the water near the start line, where all the riders waited for their turn in the race. They sat down on a low floating bench that was half-submerged in the water and the opposing team sat just across from them on the other side of the water. Geon saw that his team’s LifeCuffs were glowing blue and the opposing team were glowing red, to distinguish the different riders on the course.

A series of beeps sounded and the entire course lit up with multicolored hologram lights. The edges of the track had lighted railways, there were BPS floating and pulsing around every obstacle on the course and in the air, and even the names and points of all the riders on each team were displayed, hovering just above the start line. There were seven riders on each team for today’s competition.

Geon was overcome with a feeling of excitement, despite the horrific weather conditions. Seeing his name in lights in front of everyone made him feel proud of how far he had come in such a short time. He looked over to the stands and saw the other students cheering for them, all of them shrouded by hoods and ONEbrellas. The stress and pressure of the race slowly started to fade away.

It’s just a race. Go out there and do the best you can and show everyone you can do it. The rest is in God’s hands.

“First riders, up.”

As the seven-position riders lined up side by side behind the floating start line, Geon clapped and yelled out for his team. “Let’s go, Liani! You got this! Go for it! Let’s do this!”

Sabien smiled at his enthusiasm. “Save some of that energy for your run. You’ll need it!”

“Three… two… one!”

With a beep, the line disappeared and the racers were off. They flew around the track, cornering the edges sharply and maintaining their balance and speed the best that they could. Each time a large wave approached the riders, Geon noticed that they crouched lower to brace for the hit. They also made small jumps in the air to avoid colliding into low, rolling waves. The two riders grabbed a couple BPS as they made their way around the small bars, jumps, and other obstacles around the course. Neither rider attempted any of the large jumps, particularly the largest ramp that was right near the finish line.

“You don’t usually see a lot of tricks until the more advanced riders start their run later in the race,” Sabien said as he leaned over to Geon. “It’s more important to get your team out in front early in the race.”

As the riders approached the finish line, which was just about ten feet behind the start line, the next two riders assumed their positions at the line. Liani was first to finish. The moment she crossed her line, a hologram of the word “GO” appeared before Gray, and he took off racing through the course. Huil was only second behind and soon Menya zoomed off, chasing Gray as best she could.

Geon became more and more anxious as the race continued. Things were looking good for MVS until Gray had a slight mishap toward the end of his race where he momentarily lost his balance on a small sliding-bar obstacle and went face first into the water.

“GET UP!”

The entire bench began yelling and Coach Aquila’s voice could be heard in their speakers crying out “Oh my word! What in the galaxy are you trying to do, Gray? Get up already! Pathetic.”

Gray hurried back on his feet and finished the race quickly, but HRS was now well in the lead. When Gray came back to the bench he unlatched is board and threw it down in the water. Sabien leaned back and patted him on the back and said “Gray, don’t beat yourself up. It’s rough out there. We’ll make up ground soon.”

They watched as the fifth-position riders came in, Lorita a full twelve seconds ahead of Qit.

“Now the real fun begins,” Sabien said. “Watch and be amazed.”

As Kline took off down the water and Mercor behind him, Geon stared with anticipation. He could tell that each following rider seemed more comfortable on their boards and their course. Kline was far ahead but Mercor was floating through the track, dodging waves with ease and taking rolling waves without issue. Suddenly, he skimmed up the face of a ramp, grabbed the front of his board and turned a full 360, keeping his board perfectly level in the air. He landed smoothly and grabbed twenty BPS as the students all around cheered with delight. Geon’s eyes were wide as he laughed from excitement.

“Keep watching, G. Mercor is one of the smoothest riders we have.”

Kline finished the race and Savon exploded off the start, trying to stay as far in the lead as he could. Seconds later, as Mercor approached the last large ramp, he crouched down, slid up the smooth black surface and flew into the air toward the BPS, leaning backward as far as he could. His body and board rotating as one, the BPS changed from ten to twenty to thirty, just as he completed a full backward flip and flew through it, landing perfectly once again and finishing his lap.

The riders for MVS cheered loudly and back-fived Mercor as he found his place on the bench.

“We still have a ways to go, G, but we’re making progress. With the bips we’re only about five seconds behind now.”

As they watched Shiv chase after Savon, Geon could see that Sabien had an angry look on his face.

“He better do something good out there,” he muttered, so only Geon could hear him.

Geon had watched Shiv in practice and knew that he was very good, despite his hostile demeanor and questionable conduct. Even still, the thought of cheering for Shiv made him feel sick to his stomach. As Shiv passed the halfway point of the lap, and was at the farthest point away from the spectators and the other riders, Geon noticed something strange with him. He seemed to be slowing down, avoiding all tricks, ramps, and obstacles, and appeared to be struggling to make simple turns and keep his balance. It wasn’t a completely obvious change in behavior, but enough that Geon noticed it, knowing that he was a much better rider than he was showing.

“Sabe, do you see this? What’s—”

Sabe quietly leaned in toward Geon, still keeping his eyes on Shiv. “I see it, G,” he said quietly. “Something’s not right. I think that snake is trying to blow this race for us!”

Geon didn’t know how to react.
Why would Shiv do this? What did he have to gain? It doesn’t make any sense.

Savon crossed the line with a hard turning stop and Banyan took off. When Shiv finally crossed the line, they were thirteen seconds behind and the look on Sabien’s face was of pure fury. The moment he got the green light he hurtled down the course like nothing Geon had ever seen. Sabien’s style in general was smooth, but aggressive, but today he blasted down the waterway like a wounded bull, crashing through every wave and obstacle in his path. His head was down and Geon could see that he was focused on only one thing: getting them back in the race.

As Sabien approached the first small ramp, he flew up it and tilted his board upward, grabbing it and rotating ninety degrees, earning the BPS and landing just slightly off keel. Now riding offset with his leading foot in back, he veered toward a partially submerged bar in the water, jumped up and rotated another ninety degrees, landed on the bar and slid to the end, capturing another BPS for his team. Again and again he hit jump after jump and bar after bar. The student in the stands and all of the riders were screaming and cheering wildly for them.

This is an epic performance. You’re up soon, G. Don’t be afraid.

Banyan was avoiding most of the obstacles altogether, focusing only on finishing quickly. As he approached the end, Geon and Eiso were signaled to take their starting positions. Geon could feel his stomach turn and his skin tingle.
Deep breaths, Geon. Deep breaths.

As he stood at the front line, he looked over at Eiso, who had his eyes fixed on the track ahead. Banyan was just about to cross the end and Sabien was still about seven seconds back.

“Geon, Sabe here. I’m sorry… I did my best but it’s up to you now. Eiso is no joke. They don’t call him the Vortex for nothing. But I believe in you, bro.”

“Sabien, I got it.”

Eiso launched off the start and began carving his way around the water. Just behind them, Sabien finished with an incredible flying final jump off the large ramp, spinning a full 720 degrees around and grabbing the BPS in the air. As he crossed the line, Geon could see in his goggles that with the BPS they were now five seconds behind.

Five seconds. Just five seconds.

As Sabien crossed the line Geon could feel the world slowing down around him. The muffled shouts of “GO!” could be heard from the other riders and he pressed his feet down and burst out of the water.