[color=gold][center][h1][i][b]DELTΔ HYPER[/b][/i][/h1][/center][/color] [color=gold][center][h2][i][b]Episode Two: Hunting Apex[/b][/i][/h2][/center][/color] Nora walked through the Cape Town arrivals terminal with her head on a swivel, trying to take in the sights all at once. As she saw all the ways Cape Town had managed to combine mineral wealth [i]and[/i] aggressively green policies and design schemes a sad, almost jealous expression flickered across her face before she managed to control it, bringing her expression back to her confident, almost cocky smile. “Strewth, they did a good job here. Too bad we’re just shooting through cause I’d be stoked to learn how they did that.” [hr] [color=gold][center][h2][i][b]Post Qualifying[/b][/i][/h2][/center][/color] The feeling in the Southern Cross paddock was celebratory, with both racers finishing in the top three on the Qualifiers and Harrison taking pole position. That didn’t mean that the team was taking a win for granted however, as the two racers worked with the rest of the team to finalize their strategy and identify any weak points along the track. Still getting used to having a fellow driver on the same team, Nora was unused to this kind of teamwork but was trying to rise to the occasion. ”Too much air on that descent, need to tighten that up.” “Damn this tracks a beaut, bet we can make space on these straights…” “Watch your charge on those corners Nora, Apex and Al-Saqr’ll be nipping at your heels and their ships are strong there.” “Worst case I’ll keep the rest of the pack off you Harrison, long as we both podium we’ve got a golden opportunity. These new mods are a treat.” [hr] [color=gold][center][h2][i][b]Pilots Return: Interview[/b][/i][/h2][/center][/color] [quote][b]"So, both of you must be on top of the world! People are saying Southern Cross are a title contender and you two are proving it early on. What do you think made this qualifying session so good?" "Thanks! Yeah, P1 is incredible! The craft is twitchy but the new upgrades make it easy to tame, and this craft....wow, the engineers cooked up something special!" "Well, it quite looks like it! Nora, what would you say you're picking up from Harrison this weekend, and what do you expect in your racing with Amy, Harrison, and Al-Saqr who have been looking dangerous this weekend?"[/b][/quote] “Silver Apex might have the better all-round ship but ours are faster, and with the new chrome the big brains back home cooked up I think we’ll be able to pull ahead. And besides, Amys sandwiched between us. She’ll be forced to fight ahead and behind, and that ought to put pressure even on her.” [hr] [center][b]Nora Kelly @NitroNora:[/b] [i]”Lion’s Head Circuit's lookin good for us, here’s to another podium finish! [b]@ASZenix[/b] Grats on qualifying P4, lets see if you can keep up the pace [/i]😈 [i]#SouthernCrossAG #DeltaHyper #FormulaAG #PodiumBound”[/i][/center] [hr] [color=gold][center][h2][i][b]Lion’s Charge[/b][/i][/h2][/center][/color] Nora sank deep into her craft once again, quicker and deeper than before thanks to her improved augmentations. Radios were checked, final tests were completed, and, after what felt like an eternity of waiting, the world narrowed down to the final countdown. [center][h3]🟢🟢🟢[/h3][/center] As the green light flared in her mind's eye Nora slammed forward, pushing her craft into a hard acceleration right off the bat and taking the fight to Amy, those behind forgotten unless they were in danger of catching up. As the race began, Amy grabbed pole position back with a strong start but unlike Auckland Nora and Harrison kept pace, the three keeping pace with each other as the race sped through the stadium and- [i]”The race has been Red Flagged, bad crash behind you. Looks like Wards outta the race and the track needs to be fixed.”[/i] The voice of Manaia, one of Southern Cross’s mechanics and Nora’s assigned radio operator, pulled her out of the trance-like flow state she fell into while racing. [i]”Status of Bea? Be a shame to lose a pilot, ‘specially this early in the season.”[/i] A hint of worry colored Nora's tone. She hadn’t interacted much with the spunky Brit, but she didn’t want to see the woman’s career end like this. [i]”Too early to know for sure, but from the drone footage it looks like the cockpit survived. Nasty crash though, the simmers’ll have fun piecing that one back together. Looks like Hart, Zenix, and Ward were all jockeying for position and it got too tight. Hart got through clean, but Zenix took some scrapes and Ward's sled got torn in half.”[/i] [center][h3][i][b]Red Flag Restart[/b][/i][/h3][/center] Nora had spent the time before the race could restart going over the course again for good measure. The improved augmentations felt good on the track, just as good as they’d felt the previous day in her qualifying run. But once again, it was time. Nora sank deep, almost merging with the soul of her ship as she worked to regain the flow state she’d slipped into before the red flag flew. Once more she took off as the green flag flew, and once more she was in a knife fight for first place with Harrison and Stirling, the three racers keeping neck and neck for the entire race. As the final stretch reared, Harrison was locked in a losing ELS battle with Amy as Nora, recovering from a failed overtake earlier in the lap, came roaring forwards, gaining on Amy even as she won the ELS fight as Harrison slipped to the third position. As the final seconds of the race slipped by Nora continued to gain, until- Until the checkered flag waved, with Nora moments from overtaking Amy and Harrison bare seconds behind himself. Another podium finish, and one Nora hoped Amy wouldn’t soon forget. Southern Cross may not have won the race, but with second and third in hand they were neck and neck in the Constructors. [hr] [color=gold][center][h2][i][b]Post Race, Cape Town: Cooldown[/b][/i][/h2][/center][/color] Nora watched the replay of Harts botched overtake with a look bordering on disgust. “What an amateur move, Hart should’ve known better than that.” Nora said to nobody in particular as Harrison and Amy were sniping at each other. When Harrison turned to her she nodded with a confident smile and followed him out. Nora took her spot on the podium, the same spot she held in Auckland. She was no flash in the pan sensation, and had proven that. She was here to stay, and she was here to win. [hr] [color=gold][center][h2][i][b]Post Race, Cape Town Interviews[/b][/i][/h2][/center][/color] [quote]The 2nd place finisher was certainly getting a lot more limelight, a lot more cameras now parked by the booth, and the interview with Delta Hyper, via Rory. [b]"What a race that was Nora! Looks like you kept Amy honest, especially right at the end with a near overtake and have proven your talent in AG- what does it feel like to go toe-to-toe with who some say is an all-time AG racing legend to be in Amy Stirling?[/b][/quote] “It feels good to know there’re racers like Amy and Harrison to sharpen myself on, Rory. It’s- she's a little intimidating, but that's starting to wear off as Harrison and I keep pushing her. There's a lot of season left though, and we’re neck and neck in the Constructors.” Nora paused for a moment, considering her next words. “That said, gotta say I’m glad I’m staying well ahead of Jamie. Rather not risk a repeat of what happened on the track last race. Bloody mess, that was. Hoping Bea comes out the other side swinging though, with the upgrades her craft was showing before the crash I can’t wait to see how far she can go.”