[center] [h1][b] Hakone Izakaya Bar [/b] [/h1] [/center] [Quote][color=fff200]“Why Hyeon-Ae, is that a marriage proposal… already? Don’t we have to be married before I can enjoy the honeymoon? I can’t deny that I did enjoy chasing you around the track at Cape Town.”[/color][/quote] Hyeon-Ae had been mollified by his retort, her usual high-speed reaction and wit now finding itself tangled and unsuited for combat. Instead she hid behind her glass and a mysterious smile, content - no, desperate - to keep her position with some dignity and not risk a misstep with a comment too many. And that is how she remained, politely indulging with the other pilots in a more aloof and elegant manner, mainly backing up Cassie with confident remarks or trivia about Japan. She didn't forget however, and through the laughs and the buzz, she gave Paul the occasional glance. [hr] [center] [h1][b] Round 3 of Formula Anti-Gravity Racing Saturday April 1st, 2094 Qualifying Day Japanese AGP Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan [/b] [/h1] [/center] [i]”Seven-four-nine improvement on Cassie's time. Estimating sixth to ninth before final results. Well done.”[/I] the radio crackled in her ear as the machine began to power down. Hyeon-Ae took the moments after the qualifier ended to breathe out, letting adrenaline settled as a combination of autocorrection and mild steering brought the craft back into the pit. A few minutes of breathing and thinking later she was climbing out of the vehicle, detached from her metallic outer shell to rejoin the world of normal human beings. “Not the first time you push metrics to the brim,” Lead Engineer Zhou remarked as she unclasped her helmet and allowed herself to breathe fresh air again. “Starting to think you don't need us to juice that thing.” Hyeon-Ae smiled tersely and handed the helmet off before lifting her arms to get help with the suit from two engineering interns. [color=magenta]”Don't be crass, Yijin [I]ssi[/I]. You think I'd get that grease, oil and plastic foil all over me?[/color] she remarked with a tone that was all venom. Despite the worried glances of the interns warily handling her return to humanity and overhearing them, Zhou laughed a dry, throaty chuckle. “Too true. Can't have our pretty princess getting dusty.” [color=magenta]”If there's dust in there someone is getting fired.”[/color] she snapped back, and the two exchanged glances for a good while as she was freed from the last of the racing gear, and they shared a humoured, minimal smirk. [color=magenta]”Did Cassie [i]ssi[/i] already leave?”[/color] she asked after the interns began to scurry away in muted panic, and the man shook his head and gestured towards the connected lounge nestled by the Tokyo pit. Hyeon-Ae gave the older engineer a pat on the shoulder as she passed and headed straight for the lounge. So long as none of the remainers pulled a strange time and lodged themselves in between, they had a real opportunity tomorrow. [hr] Beyond the high-tech advanced glitz of the immediate paddock, where systems maintenance and repair work required equipment that looked a single step removed from magic to the uninitiated, lay the crew lounge. Prepared presumably to fill building code requirements and decorated with a highly utilitarian mindset, it could have passed for the stage of net office drama in comparison to the hypermodern garage next door. The mood was quiet and peaceful, something that changed to mild tension the moment Hyeon-Ae stepped inside. The blue sheen of Neves’ eyes shone up briefly from the couch, before they darted back down to the touchpad in her hands. Hyeon-Ae for her sake made an effort to take her time, stepping over to the drinks machine to order a cold coffee shot. She patiently waited, like a lazy cat pretending to ignore the mouse. In truth, she knew enough about her teammate now to know she would find the silence unnerving. A petty power play, her uncle would have called it. Eventually - a little earlier than expected - Cassie gave in and broke the silence first. “Beat me by a hair,” she offered with a wry grin, though Hyeon-Ae could read the anxious gaze that followed with it. As soon as they exchanged glances, Hyeon-Ae completed her idle patrol of the room and moved to sit down. “Fair enough, yeah? Things keep on like this, I'm overtaking you by Portugal.” Hyeon-Ae offered a placid smile to humor the Portuguese pilot. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she measured up her designated ally and rival. [color=magenta]”You think it's the machine?”[/color] The augmented pilot waved her hand dismissively, tapping a few times on the screen before turning it to show Hyeon-Ae; schematics and mathematics in Korean. Terse instructions and scheduling. “Let's call it home field advantage. Can't deny there's a difference in handholding between us.” [color=magenta]”I'm marketable. My ‘bride price’ was high. It makes sense they'll try and get some guarantees for return on their investment,”[/color] Hyeon-Ae offered back with practiced, arrogant calmness. [color=magenta]”And, the old roots at the top are probably xenophobes.”[/color] She offered a previously ordered metal can of iced coffee to Cassie, and the more fiery pilot hesitantly leaned forward to accept the gift. “Hoping I'll throw in the towel, then? I'm no coward. Even when the ref is paid off.” Cassie muttered as she cracked open the recycled metal canister. [color=magenta]”No. I like to win-”[/color] [i]“No kidding…”[/I] [color=magenta]”But…”[/color] Hyeon-Ae continued a little louder, otherwise not rising to the taunt. [color=magenta]”I also hate losing. That includes my team and my people. I prefer you winning over the others. So, my wish is for us both to come together and show them the power of Zygon's women.”[/color] A few moments of silence, before Cassie sipped at the iced coffee. “That's so fucking cheesy.” The two women chuckled together, and for a while there was a little less tension. [hr] [center] [h1][b] Post-Qualifying Interview [/b] [/h1] [/center] [Quote]"Han, you seem to be impressing the pundits and spectators, pushing that Zygon craft higher than perhaps some are saying it should have been from the data says. Yourself and Cassie are stacked together in 7th and 8th. Do you think you can keep the pace up in the race?”[/quote] [color=magenta]”Well, it is important to me. This race, I mean. Tokyo is such a beautiful city and means much both to me and my fans around the mainland.”[/color] Hyeon-Ae offered with an elegant smile. She took a few moments to straighten her posture and smooth out an imagined crease on her pants. [color=magenta]”Racing alongside Cassie will bring out the full potential of the team. Tomorrow we are a force to be reckoned with.”[/color] [hr] [I]Han Hyeon-Ae [b]@HHA:Zygon[/b]: Seems you'll be chasing me again. Enjoy, [b]@ValkyriePaul[/b].[/i] [I]Han Hyeon-Ae [b]@HHA:Zygon[/b]: City lights bloom bright, Garden of color and hope, City's vernal glow.[/i] [hider=Attached Image: Cam7920-01042094.avif][img]https://img.freepik.com/premium-photo/futuristic-scifi-cyberpunk-city-with-glowing-neon-lights-night-digital-illustration_910135-7583.jpg[/img][/hider] [hr] [center] [h1][b] Round 3 of Formula Anti-Gravity Racing Sunday April 2nd, 2094 Racing Day Japanese AGP Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan [/b] [/h1] [/center] Five. Four. Three. Two. One. The zoom of engines and the high-pitched whine of anti-gravity adjusters overwhelmed her senses as vehicles went from zero to ludicrous speed in seconds. She´d ran the track in her head countless times, even more in simulations, and had a strategy talk with Cassie. Going into the race, she was confident. Owing to her latest performances, it was fair to say that she was better than the machine allowed. She was compensating for hardware, rather than the other way around. The first and last sections were the hardest on the Zygon machine, and the straights were simply a fact of blocking to keep others tightly stuck behind her and Neves. A fair few of them would crush them in a straight duel of speed, so playing offensive on defense, as it were, was the prime strategy. The meld of machine and human felt almost natural for once; Han sped along the track with a flighty sensation like that of a bird soaring over the ground. She felt like she was entering a trance, where she was less picking up incoming turns, areas to push the machine, encroaching drivers, more merely being aware of it all and making adjustments as necessary. A spider playing puppet master from the center of its net, knowing all around her without much effort. That feeling was not to last more than the first handful of laps however - like a carefully stacked house of cards, it only took the singular push of a well-meaning observer to throw her out of her zone. [i]”Ulrich´s making a push on Cassie. She´s dwindling.”[/i] her radio crackled, pulling her attention back to reality for the first time proper. Her body tensed and the craft responded, pulling her out of her solo-game of energy compensation optimization to pay attention to what happened behind her. [i]”Ulrich and Paul behind you.”[/i] her radio engineer warned not long after. Hyeon-Ae´s knuckles whitened as they gripped the joystick. Not enough that Cassie had nipped at her position earlier in the race, now she let the dogs into their walled garden. Ulrich was an opponent that Hyeon-Ae did not relish fighting. Her chipping and feinting seemed to wither under his tireless ELS draining, and whatever mild counters she threw seemed only a third as effective as she´d hoped. The man was a king of wearing opponents down, and Han´s usual game of staying on the razor's edge of what the machine was capable of to eke out her own kind of advantage was critically weak to any excess losses of energy. He forced her to drive conservatively - putting the motor under less strain, putting less energy into trying to speed away. It wasn´t enough. Her flagging speed and the drawn-out energy battle made her craft feel outright sluggish compared to what she was used to. Ulrich sling-shot past her in a maneuver Hyeon-Ae might have appreciated if she wasn't busy being furious. She muted the incoming radio call preemptively, and tried to focus on regaining her position - but Ulrich was already putting enough distance between them to keep her solidly at bay, and Paul was biting at her heels only seconds after Ulrich passed. So she focused on defense yet again. Paul was a good opponent. The frustration blended with the pure focus of keeping him at bay. She felt the battle was in his favor - the hard turns were brutal on her machine and Paul was keeping speed far better out of every corner. Still, she put all her focus on keeping him back, intentionally slowing down harder to force him to decelerate in corners when he was right behind, and other tricks she could think of in the heat of the moment to eke out whatever advantage she could. The pressure mounted when Cassie failed to keep Ward back as well. In the end, it wasn´t enough. Paul put his superior momentum to good use and literally spun over her with the help of his surroundings. She didn't see it coming, and though she felt the bitter hopelessness of losing a position, inwardly she was impressed with the sheer audacity of the move. The superior handling of his craft meant she had to give up trying to win back her position every time they took a corner. It was brutal - something she´d failed to foresee during the simulations. A cheeky Brit snuck up right behind her soon after, Bea eager to have her go at the defeated Korean driver. [color=magenta]”No, you ******* don´t!”[/color] Hyeon-Ae burst out in sheer frustration, and put the last of her spare energy into recovering her craft´s poise after having been roundly outplayed by Paul. Bea an unpredictable driver - a formidable opponent on its own for someone who puts pressure on weak points like Hyeon-Ae. In her ear, her radio engineer cut in something unnecessary about Jamie and Cassie dueling; Han was entirely focused on not losing another position. Sheer teeth-gritting willpower and focus went into keeping the slower Zygon machine in the lead - body-blocking, whipping sideways, and shield-screeching bumps were overflowing from her arsenal as Hyeon-Ae did all she could to keep Bea from utilizing her Carrera-engine’s speed and acceleration to its full potential, trying to box her into having no good options no matter what she tried. The more unstable Carrera craft worked in Hyeon-Ae´s favor for a long time here; moves that barely bothered Paul and Ulrich threatened to destabilize Bea unless she corrected. It was a vicious back-and-forth battle, one that Hyeon-Ae - who had spent most of the race being frustrated and angry - would probably admit she enjoyed when she calmed down. Her dreams were crushed late into the race, when an overcorrection to the right after a corner gave Bea the opening she needed, and with an undefended straight ripe for the taking - the British pilot shot past Hyeon-Ae like she was late for dinner. When Han made it into the finish, the energy was thoroughly drained from both her and the machine. Tenth place was not [i]bad[/i], but it wasn't what anyone had wanted. Not the fans, not the investors, not the board, not her. It felt like defeat. And she had been so confident going in. [hr] [center] [h1][b] Like Words in Rain [/b] [/h1] [/center] Hyeon-Ae stood silent as she awaited the incoming question post-race, fighting internally to keep the displeasure and bad taste from the race overtake her expression. Fortunately, she was good at putting on an aloof front. When Bea came to shake her hand, she found herself able to smile rather easily despite it all. Perhaps the British gal´s friendliness was just infectious. [quote][color=fff200]”That was some lovely defense. Had me sweating until the last moment.”[/color][/quote] [color=magenta]”Lovely driving to you, Ward. Congratulations.”[/color] she responded as politely as she could, trying her best not to be salty near the cameras. The mild elation of being recognized for your efforts didn't last long after Bea left, as Hyeon-Ae awaited the unyielding approach of Aurora - the doom of controlled marketing. [quote]"Han, you bagged a point but it seems like it wasn't the best race for you or your team-mate, even in spite of your ELS knowledge, it looked like you couldn't defend from Beatrix, Ulrich and Paul today. Where do you think yourself and the team could have done better?”[/quote] [color=magenta]”Firstly it would be important to acknowledge what a race some others on the track had; truly remarkable. For the team, I would say there needs to be a bigger conversion of plans to results - everyone was not on the same page for today, and that came through in our on-track performance.”[/color] Hyeon-Ae rattled off with a soft smile, putting on the demure air of dignity that implied she was not truly the one at fault, but took the hit for those-who-shall-remain-unnamed. [hr] [center] [h1][b] On a Public Forum Near You… [/b] [/h1] [/center] [b]Exxalibur:[/b] [i]Betrayed by her teammate and disappointed by her lacking team[/i] [b]Exxalibur:[/b] [i]Don´t worry Hyeon-Ae my queen I still believe you are the best[/i] [b]Exxalibur:[/b] [i][IMAGE UPLOAD BLOCKED; INAPPROPRIATE CONTENT][/i] [User: Exxalibur has been timed out by auto-moderation.] [b]Zygonite:[/b] [i]bro chill[/i] [b]Zygonite:[/b] [i]bit of a shit race honestly[/i] [b]Zygonite:[/b] [i]idk wtf cassie was doing[i] [b]Classie0:[/b] [i]hyeonae should be ashamed of her name with that performance[/i] [b]WyteNyte:[/b] [i]What does her name mean?[/i] [b]Zygonite:[/b] [i]wisdom[/i] [b]WyteNyte:[/b] [i]She wisely gave up her position to better racers.[/i] [b]Classie0:[/b] [i]lol[/i] [b]Zygonite:[/b] [i]lol[/i] [hr] [center] [h1][b] Sunday April 2nd, 2094 Post-Race The Promised Party Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan [/b] [/h1] [/center] She could have used Zygon´s funds for this - but following the results of the latest race, doing it on her own (her uncle´s) dime turned out to be a maneuver of great prescience. No doubt the accountants back at headquarters would find a way to complain about throwing anything after the race otherwise. They did like to whine over every won. No. Paying for it herself was the correct choice. That meant no Zygon goons stood over her shoulder trying to correct her, no analysis cutting the evening short. She could spend it all destressing. She had sent a mysterious message in the collective group chat for drivers. Implying that she´d make good on her promise, and an address. The address led here: a local nightclub in the Shibuya district that Hyeon-Ae had leased the entire VIP section of, and paid for a healthy supply of drinks to be brought up to people´s specifications. To a limit, anyway. Further, she´d taken the time to use both her name and Zygon´s to invite a couple handful of celebrities who were all too keen to rub shoulders with drivers in a more informal capacity. A few others as well, friends of friends and people from the club below who looked hot. And Cassie of course, who dusted off her disappointment to live the high-life for an evening. In truth, Hyeon-Ae had never hosted an event that fell in the afterwork category. Knowing the background of other pilots, she hoped this was enough. For her own sake, she parked herself on a big couch and tried to inspire others to talk. She wasn't much in the mood to celebrate, but people-watching? That was always interesting.