The Hoverboard Group: Ace, Ran, Toby, Riley, and JaphetJaphet arrived moments after Ace, his cheeks were flushed, and he huffed and puffed like the big bad wolf.
Are you all a bunch of eleven-year-olds! He kept the thought to himself and focused on staying on his feet.
"A'ight, I'm good...now," he could hear Riley yelling at the guys, something about them going the wrong way and he laughed. Well, they were certainly an amusing bunch. Japhet made his way towards Ace and noticed how she was staring at everything around them. The mechanic place his hands on his hips then tipped his head back so he was looking at the sky. "You think this is impressive, feh, wait till you look up." Above them was a floating mass of land. It looked like an entire city covered by a huge glass dome. "That's where the races take place, don't worry about a hoverboard, each contestant gets one."
"Aaah, and we're here." Riley spun around to grin triumphantly. "Ran, you're the rotten egg, which means you owe us all ice cream later! Even Japhet." She nodded smugly then took a moment to catch her breath. The girl's eyes flitted to the floating dome in the sky and she blinked slowly, a smile creeping up her face. "Don't tell me the tournament is going to happen there?"
"Where else is it going to happen?" The mechanic arched an eyebrow.
"No way!" She stood on her toes, grinning as a flying bus stopped overhead.
Japhet laughed at their reactions, "As you humans say...hell yes." He gave the bus driver a salute and watched as the vehicle lowered itself to the ground. "Thanks Petey, the contest hasn't started yet, has it?" When Pete shook his head, Japhet laughed. "Good, I've got a few people rearing to join in."
He walked into the bus and motioned for the humans to follow after him.
* * * *As soon as the humans got off the bus, a young Nobody in goggles grinned at them. She was standing by the dome's entrance and dressed up in a mechanic's suit. "Japhet, long time no see! I see you brought friends."
He nodded his head.
"Are you going to watch the contest? It only happens once in a real long time, it's a sight to behold, you won't regret it!"
She hadn't changed a bit, his apprentice was just as bubbly. "Actually, Viv, they're here to compete and guess what?" She tilted her head to the side quizzically. "They're humans." Viv laughed but Japhet remained serious and eventually she gaped and rushed forward.
The young nobody held onto both of Toby's hands and beamed. "Welcome to the city of cogs and gears, humans!" Pointing to a rack of safety equipment and a bin of helmets she laughed. "Suit up then! We're just about to begin, so you better hurry."
Inside the down, Nobodies of all shapes and sizes were gathering around the starting line.
The Paintball Group: Jasper, Leila, Lesley, Inadi, Harper, Breeze, and Est"I almost forgot," Harper gave the guides a smile, "I'm Harper, and thank you for taking the time to show us around."
They followed Est and Breeze to the clinic, making sure Inadi's leg was alright would be the best thing to do. Est talked excitedly about all the mechanical things and Harper smiled, it sounded very interesting and so much different than everything else back home. They entered the clinic and he listened to Leila and Est talk. During their time at the castle the girl had learned to open up, and while she was still far from outgoing, he found her conversations interesting.
"Golly, now this is a surprise," a tall and lanky man was walking down the hall, his arms filled to the brim with coats and rubber gloves. "Breeze? Why if it isn't our favorite merchant!" He almost threw up his arms in greeting, but remembered he had his hands full. The man looked ecstatic but his expression shifted into one of worry. "Wait, wait, wait,
why are you here?" He looked around, missing Est. "Did the private get himself injured." The nobody paled, "did those hooded troublemakers try anything?" Recently the criminals had been spotted outside the gate. He didn't know them, but he did know they were bad news.
He shook his head then paused, finally noticing the humans. The man blinked, his glasses falling off the bridge of his nose. "Oh...hello there, I didn't notice you. Friends of Breeze? What brings you all here...oh, well this is relief." Noticing Inadi's limp, he beamed. "We can fix that up in a jiffy! We've got new nano tech that works like a charm! In fact, we need to have it tested." Before they could say more he was running down the hallway excitedly, and telling them to stay put.
Harper stared at the guides then at Inadi. "That...didn't sound very, erm, reassuring."