I am experienced roleplayer returning to online roleplay after 10+ year break. I have missed roleplaying and the creative outlet it is for me. I am interested in casual roleplay. I consider myself a decent writer and I will put effort into my writing. I am not into writing a novel for one post though. Descriptive, character building, engaging, yes. I will always write at least 2 paragraphs unless it is a quick fire session revolving around dialogue over private messages. I am a fairly laid back person and don't want to be a grammar nazi. I believe in quality over quantity. Roleplaying is a hobby and a escape from real life pressures.
Genres I am interested in: Fantasy Middle Ages Science Fiction Vampires Shapeshifters Crime Drama
Fandoms I am interested in: Pokemon Harry Potter Anita Blake Dragonriders of Pern Star Wars
I don't mind roleplaying romance but I am not looking for smut. It has to make sense for the roleplay. I am okay with a fade to black moment instead of roleplaying it out. For me its about the story and the character. I am open to roleplaying it out.
I am in the Pacific Standard Timezone. I work full time and will be seen in the evenings and weekends online.
Alexander knew that he needed to make a statement to the press to hopefully at least stem the negative speculation that was hurting the team’s image from his decision to bring Arianna back to Germany with him. He had discussed it with Katherine and she had prepared a statement for him. He read it over and threw it away. He would meet this challenge like he did everything. He would not apologize for protecting his daughter. He had talked to Arianna about how she had felt about being on camera and her face plastered all over the news. Luckily for him she found it a novel and exciting experience. Alexander decided to tell the unvarnished truth because he felt that would resonate with the fans. They can tell when you are hiding something or blowing smoke up their ass. He believed they would respond best to honesty. Arianna had agreed to do the video statement with him. They would record the statement in Valkyrie’s media hub and release it to all the networks. Alexander went on camera without makeup just as he looked that morning haggard. His hair was in disarray from him running his hands through it in worry. He had dark circles under his eyes. The dark green shirt he was wearing was wrinkled and he looked frumpy. Arianna was a contrast next to him. Her golden hair shone under the studio lights. The bruises a dark contrast against her pale skin. She was wearing a soft blue button up shirt that hung loose over soft leggings and the pull on sneakers that Katherine had given her.
Arianna had picked up on the tension around headquarters and the fact that her father’s decision to help her was somehow causing trouble for him with his job. She didn’t understand it but she had offered to help if she could. He had asked her if she was up to making a short video with him explaining to fans and the media what was happening. She had agreed. It was the least she could do.
Alexander looked directly into the camera. He gave a tired smile and wrapped his arm around his daughter. The camera framed both of them. Arianna gave a tentative smile.
Alexander: “Good morning. I am making this statement to hopefully stop the wild speculations surrounding my daughter, Arianna. I believe honesty is the best policy. I have been very candid about why I came back to racing. I have never lied or hidden anything from the team or the fans. My daughter Arianna was supposed to spend her time recovering in the States. That was no longer an option for her. When she asked if she could come with me to Germany, I didn’t even hesitate to say yes.”
Arianna looked down incredibly sad as pain crossed her face as she remembered the hateful words from her mother. Her father’s arm tightened around her shoulders. She turned her head and looked at him. She found his eyes on her filled with worry and love and understanding. She might have lost the mother she thought she had, but she still had an amazing father. She gave him a smile full of that same love back. She turned her head to face the camera.
Arianna: “I hope you will all understand. The accident was a very traumatic incident for me. My body as you can see is still healing. I am still having nightmares about it. I am working with therapists but healing the mind will take longer than healing my body. I hope you will forgive me for wanting to spend that time with the person who comforts me most, my father. He has always been there for me. I feel safe and protected with him. He grounds me. I need to be here with him. Please don’t hold that against him.”
Arianna turned her face away from the camera looking sad and upset once more. A tear running down the side of her face. Alexander tugged her closer. She turned and buried her face into his shoulder. Alexander looked fierce and almost angry.
Alexander: “Arianna has moved to Germany with me. She is currently living with me at Valkyrie AGR Sport Headquarters because that is where I am currently living. Did I ask colleagues who work with Valkyrie AGR Sport for help? Yes I did. Those colleagues happen to be some damn amazing medical professionals with the right skills at the top of their fields. But I also made it perfectly clear that it was voluntary and that their work for the team came first. They are providing care on their personal time. I asked them for references to colleagues outside of the team if that made them uncomfortable.”
Alexander choked up for a moment as he remembered their responses. His voice got rougher as emotion threatened to close off his throat.
Alexander: “They just told me not to worry about it. That they were excited to meet and work with my daughter.”
Alexander looked right at the camera once more and this time he did look angry.
Alexander: “Have I used all the resources at my disposal to provide the best care possible for my daughter. Yes I have. I won’t apologize for that. Have I in any way comprised or misused my position here at Valkyrie AGR Sport to do it. No I have not! I would not put my daughter who is the person I care about most in this world in that awkward situation. So please stop with the wild speculation. If you have questions, send them to the team and I will be sure they get answered. I hope we can now focus on what matters. For me personally, it is my daughter’s recovery. For me professionally, it is helping Valkyrie AGR Sport win!”
Alexander gave a nod as the camera cut out.
Social Media
Paul Mulder @ValkyriePaul
Arianna is just another family member around HQ. Let her heal in peace.
OfficeDrone#12: Well it wasn't a rumor. She is living with him. SuperfanAGR54: I stand corrected. It is still team resources. But at least there seems to be some choice there. DantheMan: Still looks bad. Superfan2075: Ok but if you could use a team doctor would you? DadBod89: #DadApproved Hater101: I still want to know if Valkyrie is paying for her care. Papabear34: #DadApproved #FanAccepted Nana2050: Alexander has been transparent about what is going on. GeorgeFly: I am undecided. He was upfront and honest, but it still team connections. Although it sounds like they volunteered. ValkyrieFan56: Ok that was heartbreaking to watch #TeamArianna Weedhead81: @AriannaKnight Still waiting for you to call me! SexyM@m@5: Can we get back to the pilots now. How is Dorian preparing for Tokyo? Paulmulder4eva: I agree with SexyMama. How is Paul getting ready for Tokyo? Britball12: Damn he really is a white knight! BatDave: I am Batman! !YouSlow!: Ok I believe him. Most teams would just put out some generic statement to appease the masses. It would be a generic talking head. He did the piece himself and I am willing to bet his PR person is shitting bricks about now. xImFasterthanUx: I agree with others. Can we get back to the racing now? AGInthusiast: As I said, it is not a big deal. micheal650004: Did you see that poor girl’s reaction? Sheesh people let the girl heal in peace. llamalover4life: That hurt to watch #TeamArianna ieatAGR: Knight told us the truth. I agree with him. Can we get back to racing now? Weedhead81: @AriannaKnight I have some nice stuff. Just what you need to help you relax. Call me!
The Paddock: AGR Forum
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KingKofiFan: Wow Knight lets it all out! $erwa: Can’t blame Knight for his choice. Bertha: So we have to take Knight’s word for it? Unbelievable! ValkyriePaul: NO you can take my word for it. Arianna is just another family member around HQ. Let the girl heal in peace. NoraRules: I guess Paul told you @Bertha BadBrad: You gonna believe Valkyrie’s golden boy? ApexSuperFan: @BadBrad That is funny! Why would Paul be Golden? TeamCondorSF: I can’t believe one of the pilots popped in here to post! Susie: Yeah let the girl heal in peace! ApexSuperFan: Again who cares? Can we talk about how awesome Silver Apex is? Abdullah: I would rather talk about Al Saqr! I can’t wait to see how Kais does in Tokyo! Zygonista: Zygon will dominate in Tokyo. Bertha: Knight clearly has you all blinded. Merica1: Knight is clearly just a father doing the best he can. BatDave: I am Batman Bertha: [content removed by moderators] ValkyrieFan56: OMG Paul posted on this forum! Will we see other pilots posting here? Will he post again? Paul you are always welcome here! Bertha: [Content removed by moderators.]
Paul found himself sitting once more on the infamous interview sofa for Delta Hyper with Aurora’s holographic floating head facing him. On the coffee table in front of the interview sofa was a holographic tablet with the Delta Hyper logo floating above spinning in all its 3d glory. Paul was not in his race suit this time. He was wearing his team button up shirt with all the logos on it and charcoal gray slacks and dress boots. Paul's thick blonde hair looked great. He had that kind of hairstyle that just looked better the more you messed with it. His blue eyes stood out in startling color on the very monochrome and neutral colored set. Paul sat relaxed with one foot resting on his opposite knee and one arm along the back of the sofa.
Paul smiled winningly at Aurora’s hologram as she addressed him.
Aurora: “Welcome back to Delta Hyper Paul.”
Paul: “Thank you Aurora. It is a pleasure to be back.”
Aurora: “We have something a bit different for you today, now we're in Japan! Right in front of you, I've left a tablet."
Paul put his foot on the ground and leaned forward to pick up the tablet. He wondered what fun and games Aurora had planned for them today. He didn’t have to wait long to find out.
Aurora: "So, on that tablet, there's a few questions."
Paul raised an eyebrow and looked over at Aurora with a neutral expression.
Aurora: "Now you've gotten to know the grid, let's see what you think about them. We have heard you in the press conferences talking about their activities on the track. What do you think about them off it?"
Paul’s lip curled up into a half smile. It was going to be like that then. He gave Aurora a competitive smirk. Game On.
Aurora: "Any questions?"
Paul looked at Aurora and just clarified what she wanted.
Paul: “Just clarifying Aurora. We are to answer the questions on the tablet about our competitors? Got it.”
Paul looked eager and confident. This should be fun.
Aurora: "Alright, go!"
Paul read the questions as they popped up.
Paul smiled and read the questions as he answered. Paul: "Most likely to eat noodles with a fork? Hmm I am going to have to go with Henry Fitzroy. He just doesn’t look like a noodle with chopsticks kind of guy.”
Paul laughed at the next question.
Paul: “Worst at keeping secrets? I am going to have to say Astrid here. The girl doesn’t seem to take much seriously and she loves her booze. Alcohol and secrets don’t go together in my experience.”
Paul: “Best Christmas gift giver?”
Paul tsked tsked at the camera. “I want to point out that this is a very unfair question to my competitors who are not of the Christian faith. But to pick the best gift giver…. I am going to say Nora. I suspect it will be something fun and unexpected.”
Paul: “Who is the fussiest eater?” Paul chuckled a little as he answered the question. “I am going to say Han Hyeon-Ae. She carries herself with a very formal air. I can’t see her accidently using the shrimp fork for the salad or on her noodles. She has very pretty manners.”
Paul smirked before reading the next question. “Who is the most likely to climb Mount Fuji? That is an easy one. I am going to say Harrison. He loves that kind of stuff.”
Paul: “Who is the most likely to get speeding tickets? Again that is an easy one. I am sure Beatrix Ward can tell us all about that. Maybe she would tell us how many she has had?”
Paul grinned into the camera before moving on. “Who is the best drifter?” Paul put the tablet down and looked up at Aurora. “Really? Who put this question list together? The only one of my competitors that I would think knows what drifting is would be Bea. Now as to which one of us is better… I wouldn’t know. I would love to find out. Hey Bea! Let me know if you are interested in a drifting challenge! Sounds like fun!” Paul looked excited and eager and waved at the camera before picking the tablet back up.
Paul looked down at the tablet reading the next question. “Who is the biggest classic car fan? I am going to have to say me here. I inherited my father’s collection and I converted them to biofuels so I can drive them. I have not heard any of my competitors talk about classic cars.”
Paul moved on to the next question. “Who would be the first to die in a horror film? Well this question is tricky. Kais would absolutely jump into battle with the bad guy with no hesitation. That doesn’t mean that I think the bad guy could kill him though. Honestly I think Kais would come out on top. So I would have to say probably Amy Stirling. She is arrogant enough to believe that the protagonist couldn’t hurt her and therefore be the first to kick the bucket.”
Paul grinned hoping that answer got under Amy’s skin a little. He moved on though after wiping the smug grin off his face. “Which of the pilots is the most romantic on the grid?” Paul gave a genuine smile this time. “I would have to say Dorian. He is known as the gentleman of the grid for a reason. His exploits in this area are legendary around Valkyrie.”
Paul moved to the last question “Which pilot would you most want to be stuck on a deserted island with?” Paul tilted his head to one side as he gave this some thought. “This is another hard to answer question. Logistically, Layla would be a good choice because I don’t think I would have to fight her for the same level of resources to survive due to all the augmentations she has. Kais probably has survival training. Bea and Nora would probably be the most entertaining. Although Harrison could teach me to surf. It would be hard to choose. Do I go with a smart option or the fun option? My best choice is probably Kais.”
Paul waited patiently to see what else Aurora had up her digital sleeve this time.
Round 3 of Formula Anti-Gravity Racing Friday March 31st, 2094 Post-Practice Japanese AGP Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan 2100 JST
Paul had been informed by Alexander that he and Dorian were required to attend the BioCHO party at Hakone Izakaya Bar. BioCHO was one of those large sponsors that provided biofuel to the entire racing league. Their name was plastered all over stadiums around the world. This event would have representation from all the teams here. Paul was meeting after the race to do the promotional endorsement photoshoot and commercial videos for Enigma Lux a high fashion house that caters to high end formal wear. Paul was repping one of the suits that they had made for him tonight. The suit was tailored beautifully and highlighted Paul’s physique to perfection. The royal blue shirt had a mandarin style collar that he had left unbutton to fall open showing some chest. The color made his eyes look even bluer. It gave a little more casual feel to the suit. The suit itself was a silk blend in a navy blue. Paul had worn black patent leather loafers with it. He had a classic brushed steel watch of his father’s on his left wrist as his only jewelry. Paul was wearing his favorite cologne, a scent that combined leather and amber together. He was actually looking forward to this party. He wanted to get to know his fellow pilots better after his call with Bea.
Paul was conscious of the drone cameras flying above their heads to capture the event. He was grateful that the press of paparazzi from the past was avoided in this smaller space by their use. He found the robot waiters an interesting choice. His thought went back to one of his father’s favorite movies which was an old one but still a cult classic, Star Wars. He felt like the waiters were a combination of R2D2 and Piakchu. Pokemon was still an ongoing fan favorite in Japan.
Paul worked his way through the crowd. He stopped to sign autographs. He stopped to talk to the sponsors' representatives, at least the ones he recognized. He was asked to take a few photos with some fans that were in attendance. There was an older Japanese gentleman that had stopped him. He told him he had been a fan of his father’s and had watched him race here in Japan when he was driving for Formula One and then followed him as he made the move to Anti Gravity Racing. Paul was polite to the older gentleman who looked like he was almost 90. The man told Paul that he saw some of his father in him. He also told Paul he was looking forward to watching him race here in Tokyo and would be rooting for him. Paul thanked him politely before moving on. He appreciated the experience since he had watched tapes of the race the gentleman spoke about so knowledgeable. He wondered who he had been.
Paul made sure to stop and give one of the camera drones taking picture some good poses. He spoke to the video drones filming the pilots and following them around. "Good evening Paul Mulder with Team Valkyrie here. I wanted to thank BioCHO for the invitation to this party. It looks like we are all going to have a good time. I want to point out that if you like what I am wearing, check out one of my new sponsors, the Enigma Lux Fashion House." Paul turned from side to side modeling the suit for the cameras. "Let them know if you like it! I think they did an outstanding job." Paul winked at the camera and drones after giving them a sound bite. He smiled and waved and moved back into the crowd.
Paul made his way towards the cluster of his fellow rookies. He had spotted Bea near Ava and it looked like she was greeting Cassie and Nora. Paul slid into the back of the group. It sounded like Cassie was going on an alcohol run. Paul smiled and sipped his glass of water that was in a glass to mimic a Martini Royale. He had no plans to get drunk tonight and he did not want a blood transfusion so he could race tomorrow.
Paul just listened on the edge of the group for now. Paul was surprised when Dorian joined them. He smiled as Dorian revealed he had been the high bidder on the piece of art Bea had created with Amy. Paul wasn’t surprised. Dorian was a man with sophisticated tastes. It was nice to see Dorian relaxing a little. He had been so wound up just after Auckland. He seemed to be in a better mood since Cape Town. Cassie had rejoined them with drinks for everyone who had already been there when she left.
Paul was surprised by the hint of bitterness in Cassie’s tone. He wondered what had caused it. Dorian had been a great teammate so far with him.
Dorian: "Sometimes you need your whitewashed walls to be covered in something. It's pride of place."
Cassie: "I bet you're a real wine snob too. But that's okay. Family's originally from Douaro so I could tell you about reds, forever....not this cocktail stuff."
Paul decided to step in and defuse Cassie’s bitterness a little. “I know what you mean Dorian. The apartments for us on the Valkyrie Campus are all white with black accents. I had to hang some photos and art myself. I needed some color.”
Astrid: "Well, cheers to alcohol."
Paul chuckled and held his glass up to acknowledge Astrid’s toast. “Cheers Astrid”
Harrison: "And having it pumped out of your blood?"
Ava: "Something like that."
Paul waved to Han across the way and motioned for her to join their group. Paul then tried to break the ice a little.
Paul: “Does anyone else wonder where they come up with these questions to ask us?”
Alexander had never been happier to leave someplace. He was just grateful that the press conference was over. He had never been more grateful to get out of a place. He understood Arianna’s desire to leave the hospital after being cooped up inside for weeks focused on injury and how she was feeling. It would be good for her to get a change of scenery. He had wanted to spend time with Arianna but she was going to her mother’s house while she finished her recovery. Her current dorm room was not set up for her needs and she was not ready to return to classes just yet. Her professors had all agreed to let her finish the courses over the summer after she had recovered. She was still on a special diet so he couldn’t even really take her for a meal. The hospital had arranged for him to use a conference room so he could get a little time alone with her after the press conference.
Alexander sat in the chair next to his daughter. They had turned their chairs to face one another. Alexander drank in the sight of his daughter sitting up on her own and moving around even if it wasn’t perfect yet. She had so much more life than the last time he had seen her. It had been so hard to focus on what he needed to do wondering if she was recovering. He smiled at her and took both of her hands in his.
Alexander: “Arianna, I am sorry I have been so busy and this is the first time I have managed to see you since you had your surgery. I love you so much. Do you need anything? I understand that you are going back to your mother’s house while you finish recovering.”
Alexander sighed and tried not to show how much that bothered him. Candace had been a good mother to Arianna when she was younger. She had changed over the years. He was worried that she wouldn’t be there for Arianna now that she was an adult.
Arianna allowed her father to take her hands. She gave him an understanding look.
Arianna: “Daddy I know you wanted to be here. I also know that your new job is how you are paying for all this.”
Arianna’s voice caught as her lower lip trembled and tears crept down her face of their own accord. She was very close to her father. He was the one person she could always talk to. He understood her better than almost anyone else. He was always the first person she could count on to be there for her. He was also the first person she shared her thoughts and feelings with. Her father made her feel safe and cherished. She also knew he had gone through his own trauma over injuries and thought he would understand.
Arianna: “D..Dad. When I woke up the first time. It was horrible. I could barely move my head. I couldn’t talk because they had to wire my jaw shut because it was broken. I was in so much pain but yet I couldn’t feel my body, just my head. It was so confusing. My brain was foggy because of the medications and the concussion. They didn’t have me on heavy painkillers believing I couldn’t feel much. I couldn’t communicate with them. No one even realized I had woken up. I felt so alone. Mom was there but…”
More tears flowed down her face and she gave a heart wrenching sobbing hiccup. Her voice was laden with emotional pain.
Alexander felt as if his heart was going to beat out of his chest listening to the agony in his daughter’s voice. It killed him even more to hear her describe what she had gone through. He leaned forward and kissed her gently on the forehead where he knew she could feel it. He cupped her cheek gently.
Alexander: “It’s okay Arianna. You can talk to me. Mom was there but what?”
Arianna was breathing heavily like she had been running a race. She had the most hurt and betrayed look on her face. Arianna continued talking fast like she had to purge the emotions from her system. Her breathing ragged and the hiccups came faster and harder.
Arianna: “The doctors and mom didn’t know I was awake yet. My eyelids felt like they had weights attached to them. I heard mom talking to the doctors. They were telling her how badly I was injured and that I would never walk again without help. They explained that I was now paralyzed from the neck down and would be unable to do anything for myself without medical help. They explained that with prosthetics I would at least be able to take care of myself. Mom said great because she wasn’t a nursemaid. That playing nurse to an ungrateful brat was not her job anymore. She said..” Arianna’s voice broke before she managed to spit out. “That it would be better that I had died if I couldn’t take care of myself.”
Alexander had never wanted to strangle his ex-wife more than he did at that moment. The fear and anxiety on Arianna’s face and the pain made him want to hit something. Preferably Candace. Alexander couldn’t hide the rage in his eyes from his daughter. He shook his head. Candace had gone too far this time. Arianna was an adult and could make her own choices. He was done coddling his ex-wife. He did his best to control the raging fury that had him wanting to smash things. He looked up at the ceiling as he took deep breaths trying to calm his inner demons. He was imagining crushing the life out of his ex-wife with his bare hands. He would protect his daughter even from himself. There was a side of him that she had never seen. He didn’t want to scare her with the part of him that had taken lives and wielded a gun into a battle.
Arianna was taking deep hiccup gulps of air. Her voice sounded uncertain and scared.
Arianna: “D..Da..ad?”
Arianna’s scared voice helped push back the killing rage he was feeling. He closed his eyes and leaned forward pulling her into his arms. He lifted her onto his lap and cuddled her like she was a little girl once more. He held her firmly, petting her hair and rocking her a little.
Alexander: “It’s okay Arianna. I am just very angry with your mother. I never told you this story because I didn’t want you to think poorly of your mother. I don’t know what she has told you over the years about why we got divorced. I have avoided giving you any of the details because you lived most of the year with your mother. You deserved a good carefree childhood. I tried to give that to you…”
He paused, gathering his thoughts. Arianna had melted into his embrace. Alexander held her close. It felt so good that even as an adult she still trusted him so much and found comfort in his presence. She had always brought out the best in him. She was still the best thing he had ever done with his life.
Arianna’s voice was shaky but firm as she demanded answers from him.
Arianna: “Dad I have asked you before but you have always deflected. Tell me the truth.”
Alexander sighed as began the story that he had hoped never to share with his daughter. It was a painful story for him to share with anyone. Candace was the one person who made him feel ashamed and inadequate.
Alexander: “I met your mother when I was working with NATO’s military arm. My team had been sent to rescue hostages at a UCLA sorority house. Your mother was one of the women I helped rescue that night. Your mother was so beautiful and full of life. We started dating and then after a wild night in Vegas we got married. I thought I had everything I wanted in life. I had a beautiful wife, a job I was proud of, and a beautiful baby girl. Our lives were not glamorous but I thought we were happy. You were two when the terrorist action my team was sent in to stop turned out to be a trap for troops. That explosion took my arms. You know this part of the story. I was sent home to heal and I needed help. Your mother told me she didn’t want to be my nurse. She asked me for a divorce. She took you and left. I didn’t fight her because how could I take care of a 2 year old. I couldn’t even take care of myself at the time.”
He sucked in a deep breath and finding his courage continued pushing through the pain the memories brought. Alexander was pulled into those painful memories.
Alexander: “I was in pain. My arms were gone but I suffered from phantom pain. The medical care given to veterans wasn’t that great. They were trying to train me to use the old fashioned prosthetics with steel hooks. Cybernetics was a fairly young field then. I was depressed, sad, and felt like a burden. I felt helpless. I still needed so much help. I couldn’t even get dressed or feed myself. I moved home to live with your grandfather. He was the one who managed to get me into the cybernetic trial for new arms. I adapted to them really well. I was so excited. I pushed myself to recover and get back in shape. I worked hard to learn how to use them. I was determined that you wouldn’t be able to tell at a casual glance. I went to see you and approached your mother about our marriage. I tried to show her that I was a whole man again. I could hold her in my arms like a husband should again. Your mother told me that she felt like she was being touched by a robot. She demanded I sign the divorce papers. I had been putting it off hoping to change her mind. I didn’t understand why she couldn’t love me. I was still the same person. I just had been injured. I thought love was supposed to overcome stuff like that. I was so naive. Losing my arms was not as painful as losing your mother’s love. I now wonder if she had ever loved me at all. I signed the divorce papers with the stipulation that I got visitation rights and co-parenting rights over you. Your mother’s reaction to my arms… has never left me. It was one of the reasons I pushed to get you approved for this new experimental prosthetics.”
Arianna stared in shock at her father. She was only 2 years old when her father got prosthetic arms. The very same arms holding her now held her when she was younger. She had never thought anything about it. He had always been just dad. His arms had always been just how dad was. No big deal. Her mother had left her father because he was injured in the line of duty and had to use prosthetic arms? All the little verbal barbs her mother had slung her father’s way over the years. Her mother would say things about him when she thought she was not around. Others had told her things her mother had said and she had never believed them. Arianna felt as if her world was shattering slightly. Her whole word view tilted on its axis.
Arianna’s voice trembled but she had made up her mind. She spoke with certainty.
Arianna: “Dad, can I come home to Germany with you? I don’t trust mom. I don’t want to stay with her. Can I live with you while I am recovering?”
Alexander froze, shocked to his core. He thought Arianna had asked to go live with her mother for her recovery. The doctors and staff had told him that it had all been arranged already. He looked over Arianna’s face.
Arianna: “Mom told the doctors I would be coming home with her. She never asked what I wanted Dad. Neither did they. I overheard her on the phone with her friend Karen. She told Karen since my face was all over the news that she didn’t want me to make her look bad. That she had to bring me home while I got better. Please Dad.” Arianna had tears rolling down her face once more. “Mom doesn’t love me anymore either.”
Alexander’s eyes closed as he held her tight again. The pain in his daughter’s face. Alexander might not have been in a position to take care of her when he was going through his own stuff. But he was in a position to do it now. He kissed her on top of the head.
Alexander: “Of course you can Princess. We will need to get a hotel room while we arrange to get you a visa and passport. You can stay in my apartment at headquarters. We have a physical therapist and some cybernetic experts on the team. I will have to check in to see if they can help you continue the therapy you need. I will arrange it. You are my daughter. I will always be here for you. You are always welcome in my home. I will always love you Arianna.”
Alexander closed his eyes as he rocked his daughter as she cried her heart out. What kind of mother says something like that about their child? Alexander thanked his stars that Arianna was nothing like her mother.
Things moved quickly after that. Once Arianna calmed down he sent a message to Mabel and Katherine to join him in the conference room. The two of them helped him make all the arrangements he needed. Starting with a hotel for all of them. He had planned on flying back to Germany this evening. It would take at least 24 hours to get Arianna an emergency Visa. They left the hospital and visited Arianna’s dorm room where Alexander and Katherine packed all of Arianna’s belongings with the help of her roommate.
Alexander was surprised that Dr. Hawthorne took the change in Arianna’s care so well. He connected Dr. Hawthorne with the medical team at Valkyrie about Arianna’s needs. He had already contacted Dr. Montgomery who was pleased to make room in his schedule for Arianna. Dr. Ainsworth was excited to learn more about the prosthetics that Arianna had been given. Alexander was happy with this solution. His daughter would be protected and have the best possible help for her recovery. He would have to be careful not to abuse the privilege. He had asked for help, not demanded it. He asked for volunteers only or recommendations for other doctors that Arianna could see while she was staying with him. He had explained that they would have to do it on their own time. He couldn’t justify taking them away from their work at Valkyrie for her. Arianna had been slightly withdrawn at first but was now looking forward to seeing Germany with excitement. She had never been out of the country. They were back in Germany by Monday morning. Alexander had settled Arianna into his apartment. Mabel had already taken over her grandmotherly duties and shooed Alexander back to work while she gave Arianna the tour and got her security pass settled. Alexander knew better than to argue and there was no better cure for his daughter than Mabel’s warm loving care.
Valkyrie AGR Sport Headquarters: Knight's Office
Alexander knew that his decision to bring Arianna back to Germany was going to make him look bad. He didn’t care. He wouldn’t abandon her when she needed him. He could see how vulnerable she was feeling. Her mother had torn all the security and everything she knew about the world to shreds. He knew his daughter was reeling and feeling very alone by hearing her mother’s true nature. He had always hoped to spare her that particular pain. He sent Leopold a message that he needed to see him about something important. He then sent a message off to Wulfric letting him know his daughter would be staying with him while she recovered. Katherine was already drafting a media response for Valkyrie. Alexander recognized that this might set back his goals for getting the new ship designs off the ground. He needed the support of not just the board but he needed to raise the capital to fund them. He needed to hire additional engineers to support developing new craft while the team continued to race this season. It would take more engineering and mechanical staff than they currently had. He also had to begin filing motions and notifications with the racing league. New ships had to adhere to their rules. There was a long process to get new ship designs approved for racing. Alexander was not winning any popularity awards. There were still board members who didn’t trust him. There was still the mysterious backer for Maier hanging out there as well.
Leopold called Alexander back. Alexander connected the video call.
Alexander looked tired and worried as he took Leopold’s call.
Alexander: “Thank you for calling me back right away Leopold. I have a situation I need you to be aware of. I am handling it to the best of my ability. I could use your advice.”
Alexander looked ragged. His hair was disheveled as if his hands had run through in exasperation. He had dark circles under his eyes. He had been burning the candle at both ends trying to get all his work done and arrange for everything Arianna would need.
Leopold looked concerned: “What’s going on Alexander?”
Alexander: “You know I went to LA because I wanted to be there when my daughter got out of the hospital. I just got back this morning. Leopold, I needed to bring her home with me. She was supposed to move back home with her mother.”
Alexander’s voice cut off as rage suffused his face as he remembered Arianna’s scared voice asking for his help. He will never forget the pain that he saw in his daughter's eyes as she told him her mother didn’t love her. Alexander barely managed to get his shit together. He pushed the anger away and took a deep breath.
Alexander: “That is no longer an option. She still needs to recover and is not ready to be on her own. I brought her home with me. She needs doctors and prosthetics specialists. I have reached out to staff to see if they would be willing to take care of her needs. I emphasized their work at Valkyrie would come first and it would be on a volunteer basis on their personal time. I know the optics on this are bad. But Leopold…” Alexander’s voice broke a little. “She is my daughter. I won’t abandon her when she needs me. I have moved her into my apartment here on campus. I could use your advice.”
Leopold looked shocked and stunned. This was the last thing he thought he would be discussing with Alexander. When he had discussed this issue with him before hiring him, he had assured him that the plan was for Arianna to go home with her mother in the states.
Leopold: “Damn it Alexander! This makes us both look bad. This makes it look like I condoned this and signed off on it.”
Alexander: “I am a father first, Leopold.” Alexander’s jaw clenched hard enough that he thought he cracked a molar. “My daughter just came through a traumatic accident. She overheard her mother telling a friend that the only reason she was allowing her to come home was because everyone had heard her story on the news and it would make her look bad if she didn’t let her daughter come home to recover. My daughter begged me to let her come stay with me. I don’t care how bad it looks. I will work to clean it up as much as I can but my daughter stays with me.”
Leopold searched Alexander’s face and knew he was telling him the truth. That startled him more than he thought it would. He couldn’t help but sympathize with his situation. He sighed.
Leopold: “Damn it Alexander. The timing couldn’t be worse. The work that needs to be done is going to take time and the amount of money needed is going to be astronomical. It will also take a great deal of good will which you were just starting to build. This is going to set us back. You know this.”
Alexander sighed frustrated because he agreed with everything that Leopold was saying. Alexander’s fist came down on his desk. He was so frustrated and he still felt the need to choke the life out of his ex-wife.
Alexander: “What choice do I have? It is the hand I have been dealt.”
Leopold sighed. “I will do what I can to minimize the damage. I hope Katherine is already working on a press release. This is not something we can contain. The rumors are probably already flying around about this. Get ahead of it!”
Alexander could only nod as Leopold cut the call.
Social Media
Victory Racing Lap News has heard rumors coming out of Valkyrie AGR Sport headquarters that Alexander Knight has brought his daughter Arianna Knight back to Valkyrie AGR Headquarters to finish her recovery. Rumors from insider sources confirm that he is using team resources to help her recovery.
OfficeDrone#12: I have heard this rumor. SuperfanAGR54: That’s wrong! Those resources are for the team. DantheMan: Knight misappropriated team resources. Superfan2075: #confused DadBod89: As a father I understand why, but it's not right. Hater101: Is Valkyrie paying for her care? Papabear34: As a father, I get it. As a fan, I am disappointed. Nana2050: There has to be more to this than we know. GeorgeFly: #BadKnight ValkyrieFan56: Maybe this is part of his deal with Valkyrie. He did say in the interview he came back to racing for her. Weedhead81: Woah! Plot twist! Did someone slip shrooms into my stash? SexyM@m@5: #disappointed Paulmulder4eva: I don’t understand why everyone is so upset? Britball12: #WhiteKnightFails !YouSlow!: I think we need more details but the optics are bad. xImFasterthanUx: This news does not make Valkyrie look good. AGInthusiast: I am so confused. Why is this a big deal? It is not like racing teams don’t look for opportunities to study the impact of cybernetic advances. His daughter qualified for an experimental set. It could be planning for the future. micheal650004: We don’t know that he is misusing team resources. Just that he has brought her back to recover. llamalover4life: Do you believe everything the gossip sites say? ieatAGR: Waiting for more information
Chuck stood just inside the hole he had made into the wall. He held the exit he had made until Shimura had managed to join them and until he had heard back from Adam on whether he needed to hold it. Chuck continued to hold the breach like a moving wall. He decided they were leaving anyway. He emptied all the non lethals he had left into the oncoming waves of soldiers. He would save the heavier ammo for the next part. Sparks of electricity from the taser rounds lighting up the air in the smoke now filling the air. Screams from soldiers caught in his attacks filled the air. Then suddenly there was Shimura emerging from the smoke.
"Well, that'll stop them coming! Rig's cut off now, pumps are set to detonate. It'll make it unstable, so we haven't much time to bail!"
Chuck gave a sigh of relief to see Shimura emerge. He was a new team member but still a team member. Chuck gave him a nod as he watched for incoming enemy fire from behind him.
Chuck told Shimura as he arrived “Nice work. Now for the easy part, leaving.”
The whole rig shook in a warning of its impending demise. Chuck balanced and rode out the wave of shaking trying to throw him off balance.
"Team, we need to leave! We now have a window, but we can't stay long or we'll get swallowed in it! They'll not pump anything from here anymore!"
Vincent: "Merde, the thing is falling into the sea, and I have hostiles all over. Get to the water, I'll put the ramp down but you need to find a way to get to me, fast. I cannot stay long!"
Chuck had just thrown out his last grenade when he heard Adam finally give him the response he had been waiting on. He wouldn’t leave Freya behind if she needed help escaping.
"Boomer, get moving with the others, this place is going to shit, so carve a path back down to the SDV!"
Chuck replied immediately as he moved through the hole to rejoin his part of the team.
“Boomer acknowledges, Creating that path...”
Chuck grabbed his carbine in his left hand and used his right to guide the heavy caliber FunGun. Chuck began to jog back towards the front of the rig where they had come up from the SDV. Chuck laid waste to anyone who came close. His heavy caliber gun took out a drone that had been firing down on them. Explosions rocked the rig as metal began to groan. You could hear metal shearing and twisting. Chuck roared as he put the heavy machine gun to use as he sprayed soldiers on jet skis and in smaller patrol boats. The heavy machine gun put holes in their rides and punched through their soldiers as he made a path for the team to exit. Chuck could feel his armor being ravaged as he drew enemy fire. He did his best to keep moving.
"Boomer, Shimura, Boaro...don't wait on us, we have another way out, meet you at the bottom and get on that fucking boat!"
Chuck frowned and he didn’t like it but he acknowledged the order.
Chuck: “Boomer acknowledges Frigga and Wilk taking an alternative exit.”
A massive explosion rocked the rig, the shockwave throwing Chuck to the ground as the platform began to sink on one side. Chuck was grateful he had packed a spare rebreather since his armor’s integrity was shot to shit by this point. He looked back and saw secondary explosions rocking the platform even more. He was out of time. He hit the latches that would drop his outer armor chest and back plate. He had to ditch his helmet too. The visor opened but the rebreather wouldn’t fit into the opening. That would reduce his weight some. He had lost the flotation devices help for his armor. He stumbled as another explosion rocked the platform. He took a deep breath and jumped. Chuck fell like an ungainly stone. His velocity was broken up on impact with the water with the help of his remaining armor. He hit the ocean kicking up a 20 foot splash. Debris from the rig was falling into the sea around him. He barely managed to dodge a piece of metal railing. He was still sinking like a stone.
He swam hard to get some buoyancy and distance. He managed to get the rebreather attached to his mouth. He took a deep breath as he searched for the SDV. Chuck was an experienced diver and swimmer. He swam away from the danger area around the rig. Swimming was hard, the weight of his remaining armor dragged at his legs. Chuck was able to do it only because of his strength but he was tiring quickly. Chuck had begun to kick for the surface when out of the dark turbulent gloom under the waves came lights from the SDV. He was grateful for the pickup. His legs felt like lead. He grabbed onto the handle on the outside and tapped twice to let the pilot know he was on. He couldn’t talk with the spare rebreather on to give them comms acknowledgement.
The SDV picked up others as Chuck hung onto the outside of it. He tried to kick his legs to aid the SDV’s progress since he didn’t have flotation devices to help with buoyancy. The SDV finally surfaced next to the VTOL. Chuck swam to the ramp. Chuck took out the rebreather and took a deep breath of fresh air. He then got up and helped pull the SDV up the ramp. Chuck waited there to see if anyone needed help getting out of the SDV. He did his best to curb his anxiety.
Samantha had finished destroying all the data on Rose and her clones and the Sol Hestia. She had killed all of Rose’s remaining clones in the room before she could hop to any of them. Samantha had finished her work in Rose’s hidden room on the blimp and was moving to rejoin the team when she triggered Rose’s final countermeasure. Rose’s original body was awakened by the deaths of her clones. The clones' deaths armed a pressure plate trap that Samantha had missed. The pressure plate took up most of the middle of the floor on the way to the exit.
Samantha had been hit by 220 volts of electricity that arced up from the metal floor plate up through Samantha’s body. The voltage had been strong enough to jump past Samantha’s combat boots which had nonconductive slip resistant soles. The electricity had arced and jumped to the hidden circuitry in Samantha’s armor. Her armor was designed to collect and direct kinetic energy back into her suit’s systems. The strong voltage had surged into it and blew the circuitry all to hell overloading the built in circuit breakers. The electrical surge had hit her body and climbed it. Samantha’s body had jerked and danced frozen in a lance of electrical fire before the electrical blast cut out, its charge spent. Samantha’s body had cried out in agony before passing out as her body had hit the floor falling away from the pressure plate.
Samantha’s armor smoked where the circuits had been overloaded causing the surrounding material to heat up. Fortunately for Samantha, the ballistic gel lining her suit was nonflammable and dissipated some of the electrical surge but her suit wasn’t designed to compensate for sustained high voltage strikes. Samantha’s body was still twitching as her nerves and muscles responded to the remaining electrical impulses. Her heart beat would flatline and then stutter and give a blip before flatlining again.
Samantha was unconscious and unaware of Skye fighting to save her life. Samantha was flat on her back. The front of her armor had been torn open down her chest. She was unresponsive as Skye started CPR and rescue breathing.
Time was passing slowly for Samantha. Samantha was confused and she was in pain. She opened her eyes and everything was fuzzy and blurry. The light was so bright she could barely see. She closed her eyes again. When she opened them again, she could see the blurry outline of two people approaching. Samantha felt pressure in her chest and gave a deep gasping breath.
Samantha’s consciousness faded again. She heard Skye yelling at her.
"Fuck, stay with me, come on Sam!"
Samantha looked around for Skye. She suddenly felt so weak. She couldn’t talk and barely managed a whisper. “Skye?” She couldn’t find Skye. Everything was blurry again. Her chest felt like it was on fire. Pain was coursing through her body. She faded out again.
Samantha’s eyes opened again and the two blurry figures she saw stepped towards her. She blinked as she recognized them. She didn’t understand why she was laying on the ground. She didn’t seem to be able to stand. “Dad? Sofu?” Samantha had tears running down her face. “I have missed you both so much. How are you here? You both died…” She was sobbing, unable to catch her breath. That horrible pressure was building in her chest once more. Her body shuddered as another harsh gasp forced breath into her body.
Skye had forced another rescue breath into Samantha before continuing CPR.
Samantha winced as pain washed over her taking her father and grandfather’s images away from her. She was crying out “Don’t go!” The words never leaving her lips. Darkness took her away. Slowly a light in the distance grew once more. As the light lit up the area around her, she could see her father and grandfather again. She reached out trying to hold their hands. They leaned down and each took one of her hands.
Samantha couldn’t speak as tears choked her. She could her father’s voice clear as a bell.Then suddenly he was back standing in the light again with her grandfather at his side.
Jake Dalton: “Samantha, I will always love you. You know I will always be a part of you. You have to go back. It is not time to join me yet.”
A new voice reached her. One she barely remembered.
Maria Lopez: “Samantha, I am so sorry we didn’t have much time together. I know growing up without me was so hard for you. I am so proud of the woman you have become. It is not time for you to join me and your father.” Her mother stepped into the light, her arm through her father’s.
Ryuji Takahashi: “Magomusume, please tell Kameko that I am waiting for her. Please share my regret that we didn’t have more time together. She will join me soon enough. But Samantha, it is not time for you to join us yet. You must go back, granddaughter. You have not yet fulfilled your purpose.”
Samantha wanted to protest. She had suffered so much. It is warm and comforting here in their presence. In the presence of those she had lost who loved her. She didn’t want to go back. Only pain and misery waited for her there.
Ryuji Takahashi: “Samantha you know the truth. You know better than to think those thoughts. Even now your new friends are trying to save you. Skye will need you more than ever. My beloved granddaughter. I would spare you this pain if I could. You must go back.”
Samantha fought it but their images grew fuzzy again. That horrible pressure was building again in her chest. A heavy weight held her down. She couldn’t breathe. Darkness took her again.
Samantha’s heartbeat flatlined in the HUD once more. Skye had managed to get the electrodes onto Samantha’s chest. Skye: "Clear!" Samantha’s body bowed up off the ground as Skye hit the button, shocking her heart. Samantha took a deep breath in and let out a blood curdling scream before pain caused her to pass out again. This time though, her heartbeat remained steady.
Alexander had spent the time since getting back from Cape Town making sure things were on track for the next race in Tokyo. The training crew were working on setting up a second simulator so that the two pilots could race head to head in the simulator. The routines focusing on ELS deployment were going well. He had them working on the overtakes and blocking maneuvers as well. He wanted to be sure that if Hart tried another sloppy or aggressive maneuver like that on the track, they were prepared to counter it. Mabel had taken the lead on getting the new approved ship designs started. She had already started asking for bids on the materials needed. She had his authorization to begin recruiting any personnel they might need for the project. She was working with Felix to determine what skill sets might be missing from the current team.
His daughter was going to get to leave the hospital on Friday and he wanted to be there for her. Katherine, their head of marketing, brought him a new dilemma to deal with. Valkyrie AGR Sport had been getting interview requests for Arianna. Katherine had told Alexander that the press were curious about her since the press conference. There had been chatter on fan sites as well. Katherine advised him to set up a press conference at the hospital before she was released. That the press hounds would only be put off so long. This way they could control the press’ access to Arianna, the narrative, and the story. They could give the media enough to hopefully appease their interest in those closest to Alexander. It was not like he was the pilot any more. The public and media seemed fascinated by Alexander’s return to racing. This would hopefully give Arianna some space and anonymity back once the media interest in her story died down.
Alexander had not discussed the requests with Arianna yet. He wanted to talk to her about it in person. Alexander had requested hospital security provide additional surveillance for Arianna while she was there. He was worried that she would be targeted because of him. He had been right. He had received a few reports from his wife that hospital security had intercepted a few reporters who had tried to sneak into her room to interview her. The hospital itself had fielded a deluge of phone calls from people asking about her condition and wanting to send her flowers and gifts. The hospital finally put up a generic message asking those who wanted to send something to donate the money back to the hospital to continue research in cybernetics like she was receiving to help those who go through similar physical trauma. The hospital released another press notification that Arianna was expected to make a full recovery and was not receiving interview requests and that she was entitled to privacy. The hospital explained that they couldn’t release private patient information, not to call. It had helped reduce the amount of phone calls the staff was receiving. It still left the staff busy.
Alexander was left with the dilemma of what to do regarding the media and his daughter. Katherine recommended that they set up the press conference anyway. Alexander could answer questions for the press if Arianna decided she didn’t want her face to be splashed across news networks around the world. Alexander had sighed and agreed to do it. He knew that Katherine was right the news vultures wouldn’t go away until they were given something. He would rather be at Arianna’s side to deal with them. He didn’t want her to get sidelined alone. She had not received any press training. Katherine agreed to go with him so she could give Arianna a run down on how to deal with the media. Alexander couldn’t argue that Arianna needed to understand that her life is about to change. She will not be as anonymous in a crowd anymore. People may seek her out and recognize her on the street. Alexander was man enough to also realize that Arianna would take that lesson better from Katherine than him. Alexander gave Katherine permission to set up the press conference. Katherine had been working with the team at the hospital to get everything moving.
Alexander and his ex-wife Candace had met with the team of doctor’s after the initial emergency surgery to save Arianna’s life. Once they had her stabilized they had run treatment options past them. One of the benefits of cybernetic augmentations was the ability to help people who had injuries like Arianna’s. The spinal cord damage was extensive. Cybernetics had allowed doctors and engineers to provide a way for those with spinal cord injuries to move again using computer neural networks that integrated with prosthetics. When the spinal cord was severed or severely damaged those computer neural networks could bypass the body’s natural networks but had to cover all the same areas. For paraplegics having artificial limbs makes this integration easier. It is easier to sync the computer neural networks with limbs designed for them. Earlier work in this area gave people back gross motor skills but they lacked the ability to process the finer motor skills. Technology has improved but most standard cybernetics available for paraplegics require artificial limbs or they have to learn with a reduction in sensitivity and fine motor skills. The experimental cybernetics that had been offered to Arianna was a way to bridge that gap.
Part of why she had to be in the hospital so long even in this day of improved medicine was because her bones had to heal before the installation could happen. This new experimental system had to be monitored during the initial installation phase. This new biotech followed nervous system pathways while establishing computer neural pathways and links building a new computer neural network organically to replace the body’s organic nervous system. As Arianna’s brain sought existing neural pathways the cybernetic software worked with her enhanced neural chip linking biological and computer pathways into one system creating a bioengineered system that complemented her body’s. The idea behind the technology was that the more she used it and refined the more of her existing control over her body would build allowing her to retain sensation, fine motor skills, along with gross motor skills without needing cybernetic limbs or a full body brace to move. Arianna would have to relearn to walk and move all those muscles just like a child growing up. The network would strengthen and expand the more she worked with it. Her progress had to be monitored at first and therapists worked with her to help her retrain her body. She understood that this process would continue for some time while the bioengineered cybernetic neural network grew and established those links. The technology used an advanced neural chip and processor with a special software program to control the process. The neural filaments were built from organic components taken from her diet and blood. Arianna had been on a special diet as well to ensure her body had what it needed to maintain and grow the network that would allow her body to move once more.
The progress was slow at first but once those gross motor functions were established progress became faster. Arianna was walking again but still needed the aid of a walker. She continued to have some balance issues as her body relearned everything it had learned. The doctor’s assured her that she would eventually regain her grace and ability to walk unaided. The walker just assured that she wouldn’t fall while her body strengthened once more. She was able to use her arms and hands again. Her finer motor skills in her hands were taking more time to refine but she could type again and feed herself. She was not up to writing with a pen yet though or drawing. Her grip strength was not very strong yet. It was improving daily though the more she followed the exercise routines set out by the therapists working with her. The beautiful part of her recovery was that she would bear some scars but she could feel. Her skin reacted to heat and cold. She could feel the warmth of the sun on her face and feel the breeze over her skin. She could feel the pressure of someone holding her hand. She might have lost this level of sensitivity with the standard cybernetics.
Alexander found himself on a private shuttle with Katherine, Mabel, and 4 of the travel security guards. Alexander was going to leave Mabel behind at headquarters but she threatened to quit on him if he did. She wanted to see Arianna. Alexander had caved and agreed to bring her with him. Alexander had warned his ex-wife about what was happening. He didn’t want her to feel blindsided. Besides, it wouldn't hurt for her to have media training as well. Not that Alexander expected her to sing his praises. She had left him long ago. They had parted on mostly amicable terms. He resented that she couldn’t accept him after the explosion that had taken his arms. His interactions with his ex-wife Candace had revolved around co-parenting their daughter. The private shuttle was much faster than the larger and heavier team cargo plane. They landed in Los Angeles a few hours later. Alexander was surprised that they had managed to avoid the press at the smaller private airport where the shuttle had landed. They were now in a private transport on the way to the hospital. Alexander had texted Candace to let her know their shuttle had landed.
The driver went to a side entrance. The media were already at the hospital and camped out at the main entrance. The driver followed the parking lot into a parking garage connected to the hospital. He stopped outside the entrance to a pedestrian walkway on the fourth floor that connected to the hospital. There didn’t appear to be any media camped out at this entrance. Alexander waited to exit the vehicle as the security guards with him got out and looked around before letting him out. He climbed out before turning around to help Mabel out of the vehicle and then Katherine.
Alexander: “Well ladies shall we get this show on the road?”
They moved out as a group with two security guards in front of them and two behind them. The cement pedestrian bridge had designs and stamped into the interior and solar panels along the outside edges. Their group traversed the bridge quickly. The security guards had them pause as they opened the doors and peered inside. They closed the doors and turned back to Alexander.
Security: “Sir, there is a small group of media present just inside the door. I don’t think we will be able to get in without any of them seeing us.”
Katherine moved up to the security guards and spoke with confidence.
Katherine: “This is what we are going to do. I will speak to the press informing them that no statements or interviews will be given until the press conference. Alexander, you and Mabel ignore them and just keep moving into the hospital. Security will stay with you to help push them away if they get too aggressive. Does everyone understand the plan?”
Alexander sighed and nodded. “Let’s get this over with. Arianna’s room is on the sixth floor. Room 606. They had to move her to a private room for security reasons.”
Mabel: “Well let’s go. I want to see her.”
The security guards moved to the front and two each took a door while the other two moved in and began to force a pathway through the small group of reporters there.
Security: “Please move to the side.”
Katherine stepped through the door behind them and used her authoritative voice.
Katherine: “Alexander Knight and Valkyrie AGR Sport will not be making any statements or granting any interviews at this time. Please move aside so we can enter.”
Security guards were doing their jobs as they stepped into the reporters paths blocking their access to Alexander. Cameras were recording and flashes could be seen as pictures were being taken. Their group managed to make progress though. Reporters were throwing out questions hoping to catch a reaction or a byline before the press conference. “What does your daughter think about your return to racing? Will Arianna be granting interviews? Where does she go to college? Is Valkyrie AGR Sport footing her hospital bill? Did your daughter have any plastic surgery while she was here?”
Mabel frowned at some of the questions but followed along behind Alexander. They were soon through the small crowd in the lobby just off the entrance and in the elevator. He gave a sigh of relief as the door closed.
Alexander: “That honestly went better than I expected. Well Katherine they gave you an idea of the type of questions you can expect.”
Katherine had a disgusted look on her face. “Some of those questions are highly inappropriate. It is a good thing you listened to me Alexander. Arianna is going to need that press training. I think they will hound her for a bit. Hopefully the press conference will prevent them from chasing her around.”
Mabel looked mutinous. “Did she have plastic surgery? Katherine I am happy to kick any of them that step out of line for you. That poor child has been through enough without these vultures circling for something they can twist into something disgusting.”
Katherine chuckled at Mabel’s reaction to the press. “Mabel, that is why we brought security guards. These guys are here to see to our safety and Alexander’s family. They will be working with the hospital’s security guards and staff to run the press conference. We will also have the support of the UCLA press team. Between us, I hope we can keep it civil.”
Mabel just gave a snort and a nod. Alexander looked amused because he could see Mabel doing just what she threatened. It brought a smile to his face. About that time, the elevator stopped and they needed to exit. They made it to Arianna’s room without any further trouble. The security guards left them after they entered Arianna’s room. The security guards left to check in with hospital security and the arrangements for the press conference. Arianna’s room was full of balloons, flowers, and plants. Evidently there had been a lot of deliveries before the hospital had made their announcement.
Mabel beat Alexander to Arianna’s side. She was sitting up in a reclining chair. Mabel engulfed the beautiful blonde that was Alexander’s daughter. Arianna still looked pale and signs of healing and trauma were still evident.There was a long gash on her right temple that was shiny new skin of a healed flesh. The biggest change was the long curved hi-tech neural port that was unlike anything she had seen before. It curved around the base of her skull and was about an inch and a half wide. Her hair had been shaved in the area to accommodate the port. Arianna had such thick long wavy hair that you didn’t really see it until she turned her head. Some of the deeper bruising from the accident was still evident and fading a sign of how much trauma her body had endured. There were still dark circles under her eyes. Mabel leaned forward and pulled Arianna into a hug.
Mabel: “Arianna, it is so good to see you child. How are you doing? Did you get my plant?”
Arianna’s bright laughter filled the room with sunshine as she replied to Mabel’s questions even as she returned the warm hug. The smell of Miss Mabel’s perfume brought back fond memories of visits with her father in the last few years. Mabel had been a steadying influence on her father. She had also been instrumental in helping them strengthen their relationship as she grew into a young adult and he supported her and accepted his child was an adult now. Their relationship had gone through some growing pains in her teenage years. The distance had not helped.
Arianna: “Miss Mabel it is so good to see you too! Are you keeping my dad out of trouble? I am doing better. Yes I loved the gardenia. I didn’t have one of those yet. I will plant it after I get home.”
Alexander looked at his daughter with a smile. His whole body had relaxed seeing her alive and doing so much better than the last time he had seen her. Those who had just started working with Alexander would probably be shocked at how much warmth, love, and softness showed in his face. Typically his expressions were neutral or calculating, not necessarily hateful or robotic but cold and focused. He would live with the image of her on life support and have nightmares about it for the rest of his days. He approached her and bent over to hug her gently after Mabel stepped back.
Alexander: “Hello Princess. It is so good to see you. You look so much better. How are you feeling?”
Arianna hugged her father as tight as she could. Her mother had explained what her father had done to help her. She had not really been in a place to understand her choices. She had suffered a severe concussion and then they had her on painkillers and in an induced coma while she healed. She had been unconscious the last time he had seen her in person recovering from surgery. She couldn’t help the tears that flowed down her face that soaked into his shirt. Arianna: “Thank you daddy.” The time had been brief but the feeling of being trapped in her own body without being able to move had been frankly traumatizing and horrible. She knew that there had been other options but her father had gone out of his way to make sure she had the best option.
Alexander closed his eyes as he held his daughter close. She felt so frail and fragile in his arms. She was so precious to him. He knelt before her and just continued to hug her. He felt her tears on his shirt and her soft voice thanking him. His sobs and tears joined hers. Didn’t she know he would do anything for her? He was so grateful that she was still here with him. His voice came out gruff and ragged full of the powerful emotions flooding through him. “I love you Arianna. You will always be my Princess. There is nothing to thank me for. I would do anything for you. You are the one doing all the hard work with recovery.” The two seemed oblivious to the world for a few minutes. Reality finally faded back in. Alexander pulled back from the hug enough to wipe away her tears. He gave Arianna a warm smile.
Candace took that moment to interrupt their reunion. Candace had been standing next to Arianna’s chair on the right. Candace reached out like she was going to touch Alexander but then withdrew her hand. Candace gave him a nod of greeting instead
Candace: “It is good to see you Alexander.”
Candace of course recognized Mabel and knew who she was. Candace didn’t like Mabel and dismissed her and didn’t greet her at all. Candace hated the fact that Mabel and Arianna were friends. It galled her that Arianna liked the woman more than her real grandmother. Candace's voice was uncertain and held a hint of something sharper as she pointed to the other woman in the room.
Candace: “Who is she?”
Alexander sighed and did his best to hide his anger with Candace. She had been the one to leave him. He had not missed her reaching out like she had the right to touch him and claim him anymore. She had no right to be jealous after throwing him away all those years ago. It upset him to know she had been unable to accept his prosthetic arms but had been grateful he had managed to save Arianna from that fate. That was some sick irony for you. Candace was one of the people who had hurt him the most. She had torn out his heart and stomped on it. He had made peace with her decision long ago. His lip curled in a snarl before he managed to stop it. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He was here for his daughter. He might have to deal with Candace but he no longer gave her the power to hurt him.
Alexander turned to Katherine who had been quietly waiting in the background. She had been respectful of his time with his daughter and he appreciated her sensitivity about it. He motioned Katherine to come forward. Alexander rose to his feet and stepped back to give Katherine room to move up closer. He motioned to Katherine.
Alexander: “Arianna and Candace, this is Katherine Dubois.” He motioned to Arianna and Candace in turn. “Katherine, this is my daughter Arianna and my ex-wife Candace.” Alexander paused before continuing. He didn’t like the spiteful look in Candace’s eyes. He often wondered what he had originally seen in her. She had been his everything once. Now she acted jealous if there was another woman in his life yet she wanted nothing to do with him. He had long ago just stopped playing her games.
Alexander continued. “She is the Marketing Team Lead at Valkyrie AGR Sport. She is here to give you some media training. Unfortunately my return to racing and the reason for it, has created a lot of interest from the media. Valkyrie has been inundated with interview requests for Arianna. I wouldn’t be surprised if you haven’t had a few reporters approach you directly, Candace. The hospital has worked to give you privacy while you were here and healing. It seems to have leaked that you are leaving today. Valkyrie has worked with the hospital to set up a press conference here at the hospital. We need to talk about the media, Arianna.”
Candace snorted and crossed her arms, her eyes shooting fire at him. Candace’s voice was full of anger and loathing. Her tone was toxic and slightly whiny. It grated on Alexander’s nerves.
Candace: “How dare you Alexander! I will not let you use Arianna as a marketing plot to help your image. I will say whatever I damn well please to the media.”
Mabel’s eyes flashed with fire as she turned to Candace. Mabel: “Don’t you dare you harpy! You are such a hypocrite. You can say what you like but remember Candace, you reap what you sow.” Mabel gave Candace a knowing look that Alexander missed because he was focusing on his daughter.
Alexander ignored Candace and turned his attention to Arianna. He looked down into his daughter’s eyes as he tuned Candace’s hateful diatribe out. Alexander knelt down once more so he was at eye level with Arianna. Alexander took hold of one of Arianna’s hands as he spoke to her in a warm loving tone.
Alexander: “Princess you need to know that reporters and even fans want to know about you. It is up to you how much access you give them. If you don’t want to deal with the press today, you don’t have to. The best way to handle them though, is to give them what they want in a setting where we can control the narrative. I can assign you security if you feel unsafe. You might be recognized on the street. Investigative reporters are very good at what they do. I don’t want you to go out there and be surprised. I am sorry that this comes with my new job. I hate this aspect of my new job. I brought Katherine with me to help you through this. She is an expert in dealing with these situations.”
Katherine had been watching the interactions in the room and knew that Alexander’s ex-wife was going to be a problem. She would not be of as much interest to the media as his daughter though. She was the reason he had returned to racing by Alexander’s own admission on camera. Katherine would focus her efforts into mitigating the damage Candace could do. Katherine smiled warmly at Arianna. Katherine had to admit that Alexander’s daughter was a lovely young woman with long flowing golden blonde hair and hazel eyes. Arianna had her mother’s graceful build but her father’s aristocratic features. Katherine stepped forward and held out a hand for Arianna to shake. She kept her voice warm and tried to convey how much Arianna could trust her.
Katherine: “Your father is right. We have set up the press conference and he can field all the questions about you. You don’t have to attend if you don’t want to. We wanted to take this opportunity to prepare you for the public spotlight. Unfortunately even if you don’t do the press conference, that doesn’t mean that the journalists will not continue to approach you. They might approach you when you are not prepared and say something they take out of context and twist it. The gossip sites are horrible about that.”
Katherine gave Arianna warm sympathetic eyes because the poor girl had done nothing to deserve some of the shit that will soon be slung her way. The media could be quite cruel and some dirtbag journalists would do anything to sell a story. Katherine kept her voice confidential but firm as she tried to warn the girl.
Katherine: “Arianna when you return to school, you might be approached by complete strangers who think that because they saw your story on the news, they know you. You will be approached by those who will pretend to be your friend and then ask you for tickets to races or money. There will be people who will pretend to be your friend to learn things about you that you might not want to be public, who in turn sell that information to the media. Or they could turn out to be a gossip journalist who has made up stories about you or have sold candid pictures of you to the media. Fans might like or hate you and post on your social media. You need to decide how much of a public figure you want to be. Valkyrie can help monitor your social media feeds and help keep them private. We can help you with the security settings for example. I want you to understand that you will be a person of interest and focus, both good and bad. There will also be those people who just want to know you simply because you are Alexander’s daughter. What do you want, Arianna?”
Arianna was feeling a little overwhelmed. Arianna had been so happy to see her father. Her relationship with her father was so different than her relationship with her mother. She had lived with her mother for most of her life. She loved her mother but she could be overbearing. She had always tried to push her to do what she wanted and expected. She pushed Arianna to dress a certain way and to seek out certain kids to be friends with. Her mother had always been concerned with the appearance of things. She would listen to Arianna’s feelings about something and then dismiss them. Her mother rarely respected her boundaries or cared about what she wanted. Her mother had wanted her to be a doctor or financial broker. Arianna wanted to help heal the planet. She wanted to do something meaningful with her life. She was studying botany and was in a graduate program with a focus on repairing ecosystems. She wanted to be a part of the solution for the planet. Her mother had told her that there was no future or money in that career. Her mother had majored in business and had settled for a career in human resources. She had wanted to be an executive running a department with a lavish lifestyle. She talked about it all the time.
The men her mother had dated were all successful executives that she felt could give her the lifestyle she craved. The men were so different from her father. Most of them were respectful to her but simply didn’t interact with her much. The men were almost always good looking but shallow. Arianna never understood what her mother saw in them. Arianna had moved into the dorms for college. She only went to visit her mother for holidays and breaks. She still spent her summers with her father. She had needed that distance from her mother. Arianna’s mother had never really bad-mouthed her father much. She just harped on how she had been blinded by love and had settled for a more domestic and suburban lifestyle with his career in the military. She had blamed his career for the loss of their marriage. She had said he had changed after his accident. Arianna had been so little when her father and mother split up, she had never really understood the dynamics of what happened. Arianna had always just humored her mother. It was easier than arguing with her over what she saw from her relationship with them both. All her father would say about their break up was that her mother decided that she didn’t want to be with him anymore. He always told her that it didn’t matter because she was still her mother and she should respect her. He never spoke poorly about her mother even when she heard some of the awful things her mother would say when she thought Arianna couldn’t hear her. She saw the pain her mother’s words caused her father. He grew thicker skin eventually. She no longer saw pain in his eyes, just resignation when dealing with her.
Her father could be very focused and intense. He had to work during the summers she had visited him. He might have had to work but he never made her feel like she was an afterthought to his life. He explained priorities and made time to spend with her in ways that showed her he cared. During the week when he was working, he always came home on time and they made dinner together. They ate at the dining room table together. They would watch a show or play a board game after dinner. He would read to her at bedtime. During the summer on weekends, her father planned little adventures for them. They both loved being outside and hiking and camping was their thing. When he wasn’t with her, he would call her and text her at least once a week to check in with her. Her father always listened and really paid attention to what she had to say. He was genuinely interested in her life, thoughts, and feelings. He always encouraged her to explore whatever interested her and to try new things. He was always supportive.
Arianna looked at her father’s concerned face. She believed her father. She reached out and grabbed his hand and squeezed it supportively.
Arianna: “I don’t mind the whole world knowing you are my father. I have the best dad. I am not ashamed of you. Would it bother you if I did the press conference?”
Alexander looked almost like he was in pain as he met his daughter’s eyes. He smiled and squeezed her hand gently in return.
Alexander: “Princess if it was up to me, I would hide you away from the culture vultures and protect you from their viciousness.”
Alexander heard Katherine’s swift inhale and her almost panicked look as she shook her head no. Alexander chuckled ruefully to himself as he admitted to others that Katherine knew better.
Alexander continued with a sigh. Alexander: “But wiser heads than mine had argued with that path. If you don’t talk to them, they will think there is something to hide. They will follow you everywhere. If you do the press conference today, yes people will recognize you on the streets. You will probably still get approached by journalists, media people, and fans. But we can control the narrative and reduce the amount of interest in you. We can direct all future media requests to my office if you would prefer. Or we can arrange for you to have an independent Public Relations professional to advise you. Either way I wanted Katherine to give you some bare bones advice on how to deal with the media. That way when you are answering questions, you know how to answer them in a way they can not twist or misconstrue.” Alexander cupped his daughter’s cheek with his hand. “What do you want to do Princess?”
Candace was looking ready to murder Alexander. She turned to face Arianna with lightning in her eyes and thunder in her voice. “Arianna, your father wants to use your situation to gain sympathy for him and to make himself look better in the press. Valkyrie is going to tell you to spin things how is best for their team. They don’t care about what you want.”
Mabel’s authoritative sharp voice cut across Candace’s as she interjected.
Mabel: “Shut up Candace. Once again you have no idea what you are talking about.” Mabel turned to Arianna with a loving expression on her face. “Arianna, I am telling you can trust Katherine. She is very good at what she does or she wouldn’t head up marketing and public relations for Valkyrie. If you are worried about what your mother had to say, I have three independent public relations experts standing by if you would rather work with someone who was only looking out for your interests. Katherine is telling you the truth, child. You are old enough to know how the media works. You have seen what they are like. Or you can hide and choose not to show your face. You know your father would do anything to protect you. You know he would prefer that you did hide and not show your face. Which would defeat the nefarious motivations that your mother is trying to assign to your father’s actions. The choice dear child is yours.”
Arianna shook her head sadly. When had her mother become so hateful towards her father? She had praised his efforts in private to Arianna but now that he was here to help her cope with something that had spilled over onto her from his life, she was all bitterness and hate.
Katherine looked at Arianna and gave her a rueful smile.
Katherine: “Arianna, would you rather talk to the other PR people before making a decision?”
Arianna smiled at her father and leaned forward to place a kiss on his cheek. She leaned back and winked at Katherine.
Arianna: “Nope. If you can get my hard headed father to listen to your advice, it must be worth listening too.”
Her mother started to protest but Arianna gave her mother a sad but exasperated look.
Arianna: “Enough mom. I am going to do this. I am an adult. You don’t have to be here for this if you don’t want to be. That choice is yours but this is mine.”
Mabel nodded relieved to see Arianna showing some spine in regards to her manipulative mother. Mabel gave Arianna a sassy wink in front of her mother and two thumbs up.
Candace looked like she had swallowed a bug and simply gave a rough nod.
Katherine made Alexander move to the side. She pulled a chair up in front of Arianna and began to prepare her for the kinds of questions they might ask. How to skillfully avoid questions she didn’t want to answer. She assured she didn’t have to answer any questions she didn’t want to by saying no comment. Arianna nodded along and absorbed the thirty minute lesson on how to talk to the press. Candace paid attention but was still stewing in silence.
Katherine kicked Alexander outside as she helped Katherine prepare for the press conference. Candace reluctantly thawed towards Katherine and helped Arianna. Katherine had brought a new outfit for Arianna to change into to go home in. She had been unsure what her mother had brought her. It was a simple white pullover tunic top with floral leggings and slip on canvas sneakers. The outfit was simple, would look good on camera, and most importantly would be comfortable and easy for Arianna to get in and out of. She left Arianna’s hair down and put no make up on her. Their lights might wash her out but Arianna was a natural beauty and it didn’t hurt to remind them that the young woman was recovering from life threatening injuries.
UCLA Medical Center: Large Meeting Room
Arianna Knight
Hospital security was stationed around the perimeter of the room. There was a long table set up at the front of the room with several microphones on it. There was a host of video drones from various agencies in the air above the crowd. There were 6 chairs set up behind the table. Two of Valkyrie’s security guards were along the wall behind the table. The other two were stationed along the wall on each side of it. They were close enough to intercept anyone who might try to reach their principals. Arianna had been introduced to the Valkyrie security guards on the way down from her room. They had all been perfect gentlemen and polite. Not that Alexander expected any less from them. Mabel took a seat along the wall near the exit. Katherine accepted the wireless microphone that one of the hospital staff had handed her. Katherine had agreed to let the hospital’s media person handle opening the press conference. Katherine would only interfere if she had too. Arianna took the fourth seat in, Alexander took the seat on the other side of her, as Candace took the seat on the other side of Arianna, leaving Arianna between her parents. Arianna’s primary doctor with the hospital had taken the far seat and Katherine had taken the end seat.
The media were packed into the room that the hospital had set up for the press conference. Cameras had started taking pictures the moment they had appeared in the room. The low buzz sound of drones was a background noise. The noise level was tolerable but the noise went up briefly with excitement as they entered before falling quiet.
“The UCLA Medical Center has called the press conference to hopefully answer your questions as best we can. Please understand that this is a medical institution and that patient confidentiality is guaranteed by law. We will only be sharing the information that Miss Ariana Knight has cleared us to release. First Doctor Hawthorne will give a brief discussion of the treatment that Miss Knight has received and her condition. Then Miss Knight’s mother Candace Martin will give a brief statement followed by her father Alexander Knight. Miss Arianna Knight will then give a brief statement. Please hold your questions until after the prepared statements have been given.”
Dr. Hawthorne: “Arianna Knight was airlifted to the medical center from the scene of the accident where she had been hit by a vehicle. The impact with the car shattered her legs and threw her into the air. The impact with the curb at the scene caused a skull fracture and severe concussion. The angle of the impact and the force of it severed Miss Knight’s spinal cord. She also suffered from numerous minor cuts and lacerations and bruising from impact with debris from the vehicle. She was rushed into surgery to stabilize her. Once Miss Knight was out of the woods, decisions had to be made for her future quality of life. Miss Knight’s injury left her a paraplegic. The choices made were to implement cybernetics to give her a quality comparable to what she had before the accident. She is now leaving the hospital to continue her recovery at home.”
The media started throwing questions out at the doctor. The doctor actually got up and left. The hospital representative informed them the doctor would not be answering any questions.
Candace looked around nervously before beginning her statement. Candace: “My name is Candace Martin and I am Alexander’s ex-wife and the mother of Arianna Knight. Arianna is my only child. I want to thank the UCLA Medical Center Staff for taking such good care of my daughter. My daughter is an adult and I am grateful that she is expected to make a full recovery. I want to make one point clear. Alexander Knight is no longer a part of my life except that we share a child together. Please respect my privacy and leave me alone.” Candace gave a brief nod to indicate she was finished and leaned back in her chair.
Alexander: “Thank you all for honoring my request for a press conference. Your interest in my daughter’s well being has been heartwarming. It was easier to address you all at once than agreeing to individual interview requests.”
Alexander gave them all a playful expression as he told them. “As you all know, I am a pretty busy man.”
He reached over and took Arianna’s hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. He gave her a warm loving smile before turning back to the cameras. He threaded his fingers through hers and continued to hold her hand. Alexander had tears in his thinking about what could have been the outcome. His voice was gravely with emotion.
Alexander: “I want to echo the thanks of my ex-wife Candace. The UCLA Medical Center and its staff have taken great care of my daughter. I am so grateful to the team of doctors and medical professionals that helped in her recovery. There are too many to individually name but know you have my undying gratitude.” Alexander cleared his throat which was tight with emotions before he continued.
Alexander: “Arianna is my only child and the joy in my life. I am so very proud of the young woman she has become. I ask that you respect her wishes and privacy. It is her decision if she wishes to speak with you or not. Please respect her boundaries. Please also bear in mind that she is still recovering from what should have been a fatal accident.”
Alexander gulped. He hated the idea that he had to share his daughter with the world. He understood the press’ curiosity about her but it didn’t make his protective instincts any easier. All he wanted to do is grab her and run. He knew it was his prior experiences with the press that was talking and feeding his paranoia. He gave Arianna an encouraging smile. He could at least make this easier for her. Alexander’s face softened as Arianna gave him a brilliant smile. He turned to the media present with that smile still on his face.
Alexander: “Ladies and Gentlemen, my daughter Arianna Knight.”
Arianna gave the media a nervous smile. She clung to her father’s hand. Her golden hair caught the lights as she turned to look around at the audience. She couldn’t believe all these people were here to see her.
Arianna laughed as she began. “I didn’t think so many people would want to meet me.” She shrugged as she turned her head to look at her dad who was watching her closely. She gave him a warm smile as she met his eyes.
Arianna: “I am just a young woman going to college. I am working on my graduate degree in botany with an emphasis on ecosystem repair. I am a young woman like so many around the world with an amazing loving father. I don’t understand what you find so special about me. I am not anybody special.”
Arianna blushed as camera flashes almost blinded her. Alexander gave her hand a squeeze as he spoke to her.
Alexander: “You are the most special person in the world to me.”
Arianna smiled at her father and fell silent. She knew her father meant it.
Katherine picked up her microphone as the press were going crazy with the questions. She needed to bring some order to this chaos.
Katherine: “Please calm down. One at a time please.”
Every hand in the room shot up. Katherine pointed to a familiar face who was patiently waiting with their hand raised.
“Jessica Smith with Fox News: What was it like to grow up with an AG racer for a father?”
Arianna blinked a little surprised by the question.
Arianna: “My parents had already divorced before my father started racing. I spent summers with him and occasionally got to see him race. He was busy but he always made time for me. I lived with my mother during the school year. He was just dad to me.”
Arianna shrugged uncertain about why they had asked that.
Katherine helped facilitate the press conference from there.
“Beatriz Caetana with EU Observer: Is it true that due to your father that you were implanted with experimental cybernetics?”
Arianna did a double take on that question.
Arianna: “My father paid for the upgraded cybernetics that were installed. My student insurance didn’t cover them. I was only eligible for the upgrade because I met the criteria for them though.”
“Jamaica Williams with People: Are you considering any one on one tell all interviews in the future?”
Arianna laughed at the question. “No. There is nothing to tell. What you see is what you get. I don’t see that as necessary.”
“Hans Keller with Gossip: Arianna, if I may say, you are a beautiful young woman. Many racing fans will be curious. Are you dating anyone?”
Arianna blushed crimson as she replied.
Arianna: “I am not but that is not the kind of information I believe AG fans should be focusing on. Fans should be looking at the racing. Which pilots are showing the most skill? Who is placing at the races? Are the pilots activists? I am. I follow Kofi and Harrison for that reason.”
Alexander glared at Hans Keller and his growl was picked up by his microphone.
Alexander: “Keller, that was not an appropriate question for my daughter.”
“Lilly Stryker with TMZ: Good morning Arianna. Could you tell us about your relationship with your father? He seems to be very protective. What was he like when you started dating?”
Alexander’s focus switched to Stryker now and he pointed at her shaking his head no.
Arianna patted her father’s hand with a laugh.
Arianna: “My father supports all that I do. He is always there for me. I know without a doubt that he loves me. As you can see, he is very protective of me. He threatened my first date over the phone. The poor boy was terrified. He followed my father’s instructions to the letter. He danced only with me at the school dance. He had me home by 10pm and left me at the door with a peck on the cheek. He never asked me out again. We have come to an understanding now that I am an adult. He doesn’t ask and I don’t tell.”
Alexander turned his attention to Arianna with a raised brow. He leaned over and whispered in her ear. “Are you seeing anyone? Why haven’t I met him yet?”
Arianna just laughed, her eyes sparkling merrily. She patted him on the hand. She rolled her eyes at him.
Arianna: “Relax dad, you know I will tell you if I date anyone and it gets serious.”
Alexander didn’t like that answer but now was not the time. He gave her a look like this conversation is not over.
“Angela Ramirez with NBC Sports: Have you been following your father’s return to racing?”
Arianna sighed as she answered. “I have been trying to but you understand with the timing. My attention has been on recovery. I plan to follow it more closely as I have more time.”
Katherine decided that was enough. “Alright folks, we are wrapping up this press conference. Arianna needs to get home. Any further requests from the media to speak with Arianna Knight can be forwarded to the Public Relations Team at Valkyrie AGR Sport. Thank you.”
There was the usual last minute chaos as reporters tried to sneak in additional questions. The security guards held back a few of the more aggressive reporters as those behind the table exited the room.
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KingKofiFan: Wow Knight’s daughter is a Kofi fan! $erwa: What ? How did you find this out? First I have heard of it. KingKofiFan: She did a press conference when she got out of the hospital. She is pretty too! KingKofiFan: Check out NBC Sports for her interview. Bertha: She also said she was Harrison Fan. She is not that pretty. NoraRules: I like that she seemed so genuine. She didn’t just give lip service to her father’s team. BadBrad: She doesn’t matter. She is not a part of this sport. ApexSuperFan: I agree with BadBrad. Why are we talking about a team principal’s daughter who is not involved with AG at all? Bertha: Agreed. Why are we talking about Knight’s brat? TeamCondorSF: I don’t really care about her but she did look all beat to hell from that accident. Susie: Yeah she had bruises for days. ApexSuperFan: Again who cares? Abdullah: She honored her father. Good child. Zygonista: I don’t see the relevance. Bertha: Why are the media covering this? Was it a slow week? Merica1: It was nice to see some American representation on AG racing even if it was the principal's daughter. BatDave: I am Batman and I approve of Arianna. I like that her focus was on racing. Bertha: [content removed by moderators] ValkyrieFan56: It was nice to see a more human side of Knight. Bertha: His daughter got special cybernetics thanks to her daddy’s connections. Not everyone has those resources. Arianna Knight is a spoiled princess. #inequality Nobody404: Medical records are privileged information. Cybernetics are highly regulated. Knight’s daughter could only get those augmentations if she met the criteria for them medically. You can’t blame a father for wanting what is best for his daughter. I don’t blame him for that. If others had the resources they would move heaven and earth for their children too. Bertha: [Content removed by moderators.]
Social Media
OfficeDrone#12: Interesting interview. Knight looked almost human. SuperfanAGR54: I thought Knight was going to deck that reporter. DantheMan: I wouldn’t want to be her date. Superfan2075: Knight is a marshmallow. DadBod89: solidarity #fatherhood Hater101: Who the fuck cares? She is a looker though! Papabear34: As a father, I related to that interview. #fatherhood Nana2050: Knight is a good father. GeorgeFly: Don’t see what all the hype is about. Big deal he has a kid. So do others. ValkyrieFan56: Arianna Knight is gorgeous. Can she be the new mascot? Weedhead81: Maybe she likes weed? SexyM@m@5: Boring who cares. Paulmulder4eva: It didn’t have anything to do with the pilots. #badnews Britball12: Why the hype? !YouSlow!: Don’t care. I did like that she tried to put the focus back on racing. xImFasterthanUx: This news does not matter unless you like gossip sites. AGInthusiast: Agreed does not matter micheal650004: Blonde bombshell alert llamalover4life: Yes she is pretty but has nothing to do with her father’s career. ieatAGR: Well except he said he came back to racing for her. That is important to note. Weedhead81: @AriannaKnight Will you go out with me?
The gurgling crunch of Luisa’s head was brutal, as the other Artemis mercs almost stopped in a staggering kind of shock, watching on, blood splatting plenty over the immaculate white of the lab-like algal labs. There was very little between Raven and the tank, given their leader had just been felled like that, it was a statement more than anything. Like an army had seen their Queen on the field of combat get squished like a cockroach into gravel.
But there were more coming in. Lighter equipped, but Boomer, Shimura and Boraro had some mopping up to do. Through corridors, open hallways, and over gantries, this was a small army, but well, so was Raven. They were close enough to kill the tank’s contents however, and this was simply a case of pouring the counteragent. While not getting shot.
“Wilk, Poseidon, what is your status?” Called out the familiar voice of Vincent, the VTOL still out of range, considering the SAMs were still active. But, he wasn’t planning on staying away long.
“A bit occupied! We’ll create you a window soon, hang tight!” Adam yelled out on the comms, the Pole not knowing just how intense the fight was above, but given they had a crazy German pyro on rollerskates and a gigantic flame tank with more engineering knowledge than the Unabomber up here, they were not exactly of help.
“Downstairs team, how are we looking? Can you neutralize the tank?” Adam yelled, the sound of what was a gigantic belch of flame audible in comms, and from below audible too.
Chuck laughed as he released the chain on Lucille’s handle as he heard Ebrima’s reply. He laughed, his voice full of amusement as he replied. “Okay Yeah I can see that. But just saying if you need any pointers…” He laughed as he used the chain attachment to whip Lucille into a soldier, the hit crushing the man’s skull. He began to sweep the heavy weapon back and forth to clear an even larger area around him, still conscious of comprising the tanks. Chuck was doing his best to take as many soldiers out of action as fast as possible and draw the most attention. He was trying to open the way for his team members to do their jobs. About that time Adam came over comms asking for a sitrep.
Chuck: “Well sir, Boraro is making friends. Shimura is doing… well ninja stuff and I am playing baseball with the entire Artemis army down here. We are a bit busy sir. We will see what we can do to speed this up”
Ebrima plugged in his new headset just in time for the boss’ call. Far from the collected individual he’d known until now, but at the same time Ebrima had too big a headache to investigate what that flamethrower noise in the background was. In theory, their current task was an easy one, within a shorter distance than one walked to get a cup of tea in the morning, but Artemis knew. Where was that invisible knife nut when one needed him the most? ”Boomer, how’s your armor looking?” The barking of the shotgun at times overpowering the lower-quality mic he was now using, ”Can you neutralize the toxin under fire if I thin them out from up here?” A screaming Artemis operative fell past where Chuck was.
Chuck kept fighting. It seemed the more of these assholes he took out the more came in. They were literally beginning to pile up around him. He kept taking shots to his armor but most of it had been lower caliber than what the Russian Heavy had used on him. Thank goodness for small mercies or he would be in more trouble than he was now. Chuck had been fighting with the tank about 5 feet behind him. He had his back to it and had been fighting the soldiers in front of it. They had all been firing indiscriminately around the tank. Chuck had been trying to protect it from enemy fire. They didn’t want that tank to rupture before the toxin could be neutralized. Chuck heard Ebrima’s question come over comms. He checked on his armor integrity in the HUD display. His onboard AI showed him the damaged areas. “Boraro my outer armor integrity is down to 50% in the chest and backplate. My inner armor integrity is holding for now. I am in position to neutralize the tank. I can do it. Trying to give myself enough time to reach it. It feels like Artemis has bad guys on tap and are aiming the firehose at us.”
Chuck moved faster letting out a yell as he caught Lucille by the handle and broke into a sprint charging into the oncoming line of soldiers. He put all his muscles and as much speed into it as he could. He took out as many soldiers close to him as possible. He then spun firing flechettes from his wrist launchers as fast as possible, spraying the next wave. He only needed enough time to reach the tank.
Hearing the thudding footsteps from below, Ebrima didn’t even need to know where Chuck was and where he was going as an idea bloomed in his head, potentially spawned by a mild concussion but if his brief time with the outfit indicated anything, certainly in character for the group. Bounding between the algae racks, Boraro reached a group of four mercs that had just shown up, aiming to reinforce the control room below by the direction they had been going before he appeared in their midst, grabbing their rear guard and kicking the third man in the stack, sending all three down the flight of stairs like world-ending dominoes. They’d be back soon, but Ebrima only needed a little bit of time. A few seconds would do.
A crack, a snap and with some persuasion the poor bastard’s shooting arm had another joint on it to prevent him from being stupid as he threw the man over his shoulder, holding him up with one hand while swapping to the M25. Wearing the cursing merc like a ballistic backpack, he could rain fire and fury down onto the mercs Chuck couldn’t get at easily until he depleted the magazine, all the while safe from the three that had gone back up the stairs as they tried to get an angle that would let them do something about it, too slow to do so before the Cameroonian turned around to deal with them properly.
Chuck’s charge swept out in an arc, clearing the space around the tank. His flechettes took out most of the next wave. Chuck: “I’m going for the tank.” Chuck kept his momentum as he focused on reaching the tank. He began to look for ways to get the neutralization agent into the tank. He spotted a feeder chute that was used to add chemicals to the tank. It had a locked door on it. Chuck didn’t bother trying to decode the digital lock. That was not his area of expertise. He used his strength to break the door off. His back armor was taking a beating as guns bore down on him as he presented a large target for Artemis soldiers. The collective bullets ate away as his back armor chipping away at its integrity. Suddenly there was a lull in enemy fire. Chuck seized his opportunity. He popped open the compartment in his leg armor where the agent was held. He dumped it into the chute. He fell against the tank as something heavy hit him from behind. He held onto the tank as he hit the button that would flush the agent into the tank. “Neutralization agent in.” Chuck was having trouble moving his torso. His back plates were jammed, and it felt as if something heavy was hanging off his back.
‘Okay, now they’re just copying our style.’ Ebrima thought as he caught the sight of someone trying to stick a long knife between Chuck’s back plates. Well, if it worked for medieval men at arms trying to deal with an armored knight…
That glance back was enough for the three Artemis Mercs to approach, hesitant to shoot for fear of striking their friend still on Ebrima’s back. A quick glance at them, then back behind to check the direction. Once again, to gauge the distance. There wasn’t a third as Ebrima braced his boot against the man on his back and kicked off, dropping him on the guy bothering Chuck from two stories up before addressing his own three problems, Kukri drawn and about to start opening them up like Amazon packages.
Chuck was suddenly thrown against the tank again. He grunted at the impact but suddenly he could move again and the heavy weight had been removed. He looked down to see what had fallen and kicked the two soldiers at his feet out of the way. He spoke into the comms so the whole team would know. “Toxin Neutralized. Thanks for the assist Boraro.” He smiled as he pulled out his carbine and switched the rounds over to armor piercing. He let the carbine hang on his battle harness before he reached behind him and engaged his shoulder mounted MK48 FUN Gun. The large heavy caliber gun was mounted on a gimbal system and he braced it by his hip as his right hand found the trigger, his left hand supported and guided the barrel. He was surprised that the loading mechanism was still working after all the damage his armor had taken. Normally this heavy caliber machine gun would be tripod mounted. Only Chuck’s size, strength, and armor allowed him to carry this beast into battle. He laughed as he turned around. “Come and get it!” He yelled out to the soldiers who had now reached him. He guided the shoulder mounted gun spraying armor piercing rounds into the oncoming lines. Artemis soldiers went down like he was cutting through a wheat field. The heavy armor piercing rounds sometimes blowing through more than one soldier at a time. “Can we blow this popsicle stand yet?”
“Affirm! Shit is getting spicy up here, we got the SAMs down though! Vincent, we need close air, now!” Adam yelled back, knowing this was likely the only way they were taking out Laura, as well as other bits of the structure. There were an endless amount of them coming, but they were so far holding. Just.
“Yes sir, en route! I have your tracker locations, so I can direct fire into the structure to cut them off from reaching you. Every hit will weaken it, so make your markers count!” Vincent replied, the cool Senegalese engaging the weapons system on the VTOL, ready to provide some long-range CAS, as he let the VTOL take a route on a long orbit, and picked up the team. Rounds would take a while to go down, particularly the 40mm rounds, but they’d make a hell of a bang.
“Copy that Vincent, ground team need support as a priority, a fuckton of hostiles inbound! Boraro, Boomer, call it where you need it, they’ll rain some fire on who you need, cut off any routes towards you and start pulling back! We’re still occupied up here!”
Chuck spoke into comms again. “Wilk confirmed air support. Is the team ready to exfil? Please Confirm?” Chuck asked Adam to confirm they were on their way out now. He saved the remainder of his heaviest ammo for vehicles and switched to his carbine. He was careful with his ammo usage and was aiming and one shot or double tapping as he moved. “Boraro, Shimura, What is your status?”
”Ready to get out of here.” Ebrima growled as he finally twisted his hand far enough to shoot the merc pinning him down with his sidearm. ”Are we going back the way we came or making a new exit?”
Chuck threw back his head and laughed. “Finally! I get to blow shit up! Boraro I like that option. I can make a new exit. I have explosives and grenades with me.” He kept firing and moving towards Ebrima. He was working to clear a path to his teammates.
The 40mm rounds slammed through the walls, sending a couple of men flying and blatted into the hard concrete off walkways, revealing daylight through walls, and making no effort to conceal it. The heavier 90mm rounds picked a gigantic hole into the structure from the VTOL’s left strut, then the 40mm rounds followed and laced an entire group of enemies closing in on them, sending shrapnel and smoke everywhere.
"Mon amis, happy to help!”
Chuck almost casually caught the man that Ebrima had thrown in his direction. He punched him and threw him into a crowd of his friends. “Boraro, start making your way down. Structural integrity is going to start getting dicey.” Chuck focused on the wall opposite Ebrima to give the man time to leave his lofty perch. Chuck began to pull pins and lob grenades to close off the entrances to either side of the tank. He didn’t wait to watch the explosions as he turned and lobbed two more frag grenades towards the wall opposite Ebrima’s perch. “Time to move!” Explosions began to light up the chamber, the noise deafening as grenades went off one right after another. Screams mixed into the chaos as soldiers were caught in the blasts. The two he had lobbed at the wall punched a large jagged hole in the side of the metal building. Daylight was streaming in. The other side was slightly messy as he had caught some of Artemis on the other side of the wall. “Oops Clean up on aisle ten!” He laughed as he moved to the hole in the wall. You could hear the servos in his armor whine as he pulled and pushed with his hands and feet making the hole in the wall larger. The metal siding peeling back like tin. “Your exit, good sir.” Chuck’s tone was laced with amusement.
Ebrima descended from the catwalks with a few boosts from his jump pack, cushioning his fall with some Artemis guy who would not hear the end of it when he reunited with his buddies in the afterlife. He made a break for the wall Chuck had weakened, visibly stumbling and having to steady himself against a wall or railing several times. Luisa rang his bell good, but for a point blank double tap from a .44, he was doing amazing. Grabbing cover as he reached the now fully open hole in the wall, he laid down suppressing fire with the grenade launcher until Ban made it through, completely expanding his thermobarics. ”Wilk and Frigga still inside.” He reminded Chuck as he passed him by, tapping him on the back on reflex as if he could feel it in his armor.
Chuck frowned at the reminder. He didn’t believe in leaving team members behind. “Wilk do you need us to hold this position so you and Frigga can exfil? Or do you need assistance with finding an alternate route?” Chuck looked around to check on Shimura as he waited on an answer. He noted that Ebrima had secured the exit point. Chuck lobbed a few of the electrical taser grenades into the still oncoming waves of Artemis troops. The electrical surge took out groups of 5 to 8 men at a time. Chuck looked at the oncoming waves and realized this position would soon be overrun. “Wilk please advise? This position will soon be compromised. Artemis troops are still pouring into the area. This area will soon be overrun.” Raven Squad were the best of the best however even the best could be overwhelmed by numbers. Artemis had the numbers to do it.
Paul had been thinking about this since the race in Cape Town. Bea was robbed of points in that race by Hart. Paul had watched the video of the race several times. He paid attention to the mistakes he made and the crash. He wanted to know what Bea and Kais might have been able to do to prevent the crash. He also tried to understand what Hart’s motivations were with his move. He still felt that Hart’s actions were not “skilled” and more “thug on the track”. He knew she raced for a competitor but he wanted to reach out as a fellow racer. He wanted her to know he supported as a friendly competitor. Paul was also curious. He had friends and socialized but he had always been Audrick Mulder’s son. He had learned to always hold back and be cautious even as he could blend into any crowd. He never really felt as if he was just one of the guys hanging out. He was always wondering whether they were hanging out with him for their benefit. He finally had an opportunity to meet people who truly didn’t care who he was. They were just as famous if not more famous than he was. He wanted to get to know his fellow rookies better. He had to give Hyeon-Ae credit for planting that seed when she issued her invitation to host them all in Tokyo.He was looking forward to that party. He thought he could start with Bea though since her interest in art gave him a reason to contact her.
Paul had grown up in a world of privilege and wealth. His mother was arguably more famous than his father. His mother Alicia Mulder traveled the world as a photographer. Her work was popular with the fashion industry but she also did nature photography for a variety of conservation groups and charities. His mother used money from his father to start the Mulder Foundation, a charity to honor his father. The Foundation gives out scholarships to help poor children get into sports and support their training. She also had a branch that supported children and the arts. She believed that art was important to the education of children. Her foundation provided art supplies to youth arts programs all over Europe. Paul had seen the charity art auction that Bea had done with Amy Stirling. He wanted to do something nice for his mother now that they were on better terms. He knew her work with the arts community was important to her. He wanted to put his efforts into supporting something important to her. He could throw money at it sure but he felt this would be better. It would raise awareness for the mission of the Mulder Foundation and the work they do and bring in money for them.
Paul’s agent had managed to get Bea's contact information. He waited as the holographic arrow spun in a circle as the ring tone indicated that the connection was trying to be established. Paul was sitting at a desk in the small office area in his apartment at Valkyrie headquarters. The sleek black and chrome desk and chair were typical for Valkyrie AGR. He had hung a colorful photo on the wall behind the desk. It was one of his mother’s photos that she had taken early in her career. It was a landscape of a tropical rainforest bursting with colors. It had been part of a campaign to show the restorative efforts in Brazil. His mother had managed to capture the light as it refracted through raindrops on some of the leaves. It was spectacular and looked edited but it wasn’t. His mother had been patient and skilled and with a touch of luck captured a natural wonder of nature in the photo. The picture always gave him a sense of hope knowing all the damage that had been done to the area. Researchers and conservationists had worked hard to restore the area.
Paul’s hand tapped idly on the desk. Finally the call connected. Paul smiled into the camera. His voice eager and excited.
Paul: “Hello Bea. Thank you for taking my call.”
Bea could hardly call that a weekend to forget. Even if the track suited the Carrera Condor ship well, she still more than kept pace with her teammate and - in large part due to the hit being hard enough to stun her for a bit - she managed to not say anything that would start any fires poor Flávia would have to put out in the wake of the crash. Still, it made her look forward to spending Tuesday evening with her sister and parents even more after spending the Monday after the race debriefing first with Alistair, then with the team department heads, then being required to sit in on the meeting of the principal, the team’s financial department and sponsor representatives just in case they wanted to ask the pilots something. They didn’t. Time well spent. Arriving earlier than initially planned, the family were eight rounds deep in a game of Canasta when the tones of James Paget’s ‘Boundless Adventure’ coming from Bea’s phone heralded an incoming call. ”Skip my turns, I’ll be right back.” She excused herself, answering the call.
”Hi, Paul. How’s your day?” She smiled back as she left the living room and made her way through a modern, lavishly-furnished mansion, dressed in a plain navy blue turtleneck and jeans. ”Pete said you wanted to talk about something but - Hi, Wit,” She greeted someone in a chef’s coat she passed in the hallway, a baritone “Good afternoon, Ms. Ward.” Answering. Those familiar with Bea’s work might have recognized a few of the paintings hanging on the walls before she turned into a guest room and got comfortable in a large office chair, the call switching from her phone to her laptop. ”But he didn’t say what. So, what’s on your mind?” She almost added something about Valkyrie perhaps wanting to join the Carrera Condor equipment donation club, but despite suspicions nobody could prove that.
Paul: “My day started quite some time ago here in Germany. I am sure you know that Physio stops for none of us. I apologize for not giving him any details. I needed to see if you might be interested before I could work out the details. I saw the piece you did for the charity with Amy Stirling. I wanted to know if you might be interested in doing something for the charity my mother started after my father died, The Mulder Foundation.Are you familiar with it?”
”Yeah, it doesn’t. Getting prosthetics was a stroke of accidental genius. No more leg day, no more arm day.” Bea grinned. ”I think I read something last Christmas. Art supplies for children from poor families, was it?” She searched her memory.
”What do you have in mind? Similar deal as with Amy?” She leaned forward, more attentive now, and opened a notepad on her phone to take notes. Probably actually vastly different, but not in any way anyone who wasn’t from Silver Apex or Carrera Condor would know. ”Timetable might be a bit tighter, I’m leaving for Argentina on Saturday. Have a little bit of good will to make up.” She chuckled.
Paul: “Well the Mulder Foundation has two primary missions. The first one is to support children who want to pursue a career as an athlete but lack the resources to do so. The foundation provides equipment and scholarships to support them while they are training. That kind of thing. The other branch supports the arts. Yes they provide art supplies to children’s arts programs so that all children can explore their talents and imagination. It is my mother’s passion and brain child. I wanted to do something to support her foundation as a gift. I thought some kind of charity event to raise money and awareness of the Foundation would be better than me just throwing money at it. Are you familiar with who my mother is?”
”I can’t say I am, sorry.” She shook her head, photography being a completely foreign subject to her.
Paul smiled as he chuckled slightly at himself. It was always a pleasant experience when he ran into someone who was not familiar with his family. It always managed to humble him and remind him the world did not indeed focus on him and him alone.
Paul: “Well my mother is Alicia Mulder. I am sure you have at least probably heard her name around the paddock and circuit. My mother is a photographer. She is very well connected and active in European Art Circles. She is a world renowned photographer though. She does a lot of work in fashion and for various conservation groups.”
Paul waited a minute to give Bea a chance to think that over a little. He gave Bea an inquisitive look.
Paul: “Let me ask you this Bea. What do you want for your art? Where do you see it going?”
”...fashion, conservation groups…” she muttered to herself as she took notes, ”Don’t ask me, this is for your mum. What works best for her, that’s what we’ll do. Nature is easy enough, we could do what we did with Amy, pick one or more specific projects she’s working on and focus on those environments. Fashion…” She looked at the ceiling in thought, ”I don’t think I’ve ever done anything with that. Paintings of clothes doesn’t sound like the way to go, maybe we could get some plain clothes, something with a large enough area like shirts or coats and paint something on those. Or we could combine both and do nature images on outdoor clothing, something like that?” She started brainstorming.
Paul smiled as he listened to Bea’s thought process. He let her ramble a bit as she brainstormed her ideas before he shared his idea.
Paul: “I was thinking something a little different but utilizing your talents and star power by adding it to my own. I was thinking you could work on a special art piece that would be reproduced and printed onto a limited number of t-shirts and prints that would be signed. The t-shirt design you come up with would be sold online to the masses and the money made would go to The Mulder Foundation with a 10 percent commission fee coming back to you. The limited signed high quality prints will be auctioned off at a Charity Gala we attend. Half the money from the prints would go back to the Mulder Foundation and the other would go back to you. There would be the additional publicity from the event and media hype that goes with these kinds of things of course. Not to mention the Charity Gala would have you rubbing elbows with the whos who of art in Europe.”
More nodding, more notes. ”Okay, that means digital art. That makes it easier, actually, no other medium has an undo function. Leaves more time to make more, either to have some options or more variety. Good thing either you thought this out or at least one of us is capable of more organized thought.” Being asked about the process behind the things she made was a semi-regular occasion as new people joined the community, and they continually overestimated the method behind her madness.
”What’s our timetable for this? You said this was for a gift, I’m assuming your mum’s birthday?”
Paul:”Well this is obviously going to take some time to organize and publicize. I was thinking we scheduled it for summer break? If you want to do it sooner, it would have to be in between races. Which means tighter schedules for both of us.”
”I can get my parts done between races. I’ll admit I know little about organizing something like this, that is my sister’s wheelhouse, but as far as the gala itself goes I think after the break would work best.” She shared her screen in the call, displaying the week right after the summer break with the Belgian AGP, immediately followed by the German AGP the next week. ”We can do it after the race at Spa, since I intend to stay longer and go straight to Germany from there, and I have something planned for the summer break that will leave me unable to do much for three-ish weeks.” She explained her reasoning.
Paul just laughed a little. He had grown up watching his mother organize these things with her staff. Most people didn’t know it took months to plan, organize, and publicize this kind of event. Some fundraising events took a year to plan and a small army of helpers. Paul could turn that part of the work over to the Foundation’s staff.
Paul: “That timeframe works well for me. The event will take place in Brussels where the Foundation is headquartered.The Foundation’s staff will take care of the logistics and the lead on the Gala and publicity. Feel free to share any ideas, concerns, or thoughts with them though. They do this kind of work all the time. It is how the Foundation maintains its funding. It was started with an endowment but money goes out and money must come in too. That means fundraising. If you are interested, I will have my lawyers and agent begin drawing up the contracts for you. I didn’t want to put them through all that work if you were not interested. So Bea, are you interested?”
”Of course, wouldn’t have been brainstorming otherwise!” She quickly agreed, ”I’ll keep you updated on the designs as they come.”
Paul looked very pleased with himself. He focused on surprising his mother with this project for her birthday.
Paul: “Great I will get the ball rolling then. Thank you for agreeing to work with me on this Bea. Do you have any concerns?”
”Not right now, I’ll let you know if I think of anything.” She shook her head. She’d think about the offered reward later. She always saw racing and the associated merch as a source of income, and it was a good one - worth millions at 20 for crying out loud - so half of the auction proceeds seemed a bit too much for what was being asked of her. She didn’t even monetize any of her other content. Not that she didn’t like money, but it almost felt like stealing.
Paul wondered what was going through Bea’s head. He had grown up around contracts, endorsements, and charity work. His mother’s work included dealing with contracts as well. A lot of celebrities are paid to put their name behind a charity. Many do it to help their public image. Some do it as a passion project, like his mother. He understood that he was engaging Bea in this work and the offer had to give her something in return. He felt the offer was generous but not unheard of. You could speculate what a charity fundraiser like this would bring in but you could never be sure. It was a gamble, a risk but Paul was good at managing this kind of risk. He knew it would be successful. Was he cocky or arrogant, nah just confident.
Paul clapped his hands together with a smile. “Great! Tell Pete to be expecting the contract to come in next week. I will let you get back to what you were doing. It’s a pleasure working with you Bea. I am glad you are okay. I will see you at the next race! I plan to be in front of you this time!”
Paul laughed as he teased Bea. Of course he wanted to be competitive and win just like all of them. He was glad that he could be a friendly competitor. He was a good sportsman. Besides it was no fun for him, if everyone was not giving their best.
”I hope you like our livery, because you’ll be seeing it a lot ahead of you.” She shot back immediately with a smile of her own. ”Loser buys drinks at Han’s shindig?” She offered a friendly bet.
Paul’s smile turned slightly wicked as he enjoyed their verbal sparring. He winked at her before playfully lobbing back. “Well you do make that livery look fantastic! … But it is not my color.” He laughed as she threw the friendly side bet out there. “Well what if it is an open bar? I am happy to take your bet though.” He tilted his head to one side in thought.
”It’s every color.” She deadpanned back. It was an unpopular opinion, but the Carrera Condor livery seemed confused to her even if she understood why it was what it was.
Paul winked at her response with devilment in his eyes. “Exactly!” He paused in thought. “How about the loser has to do a social media post wearing the other team’s shirt announcing they lost the bet.”
She nodded agreement at Paul’s point regarding the livery. ”If it’s an open bar we might have bigger problems than who lost the bet.” She mumbled half to herself, ”You’re on.” Whoever was in charge of the Valkyrie AGR color scheme knew what they were doing, at least it wasn’t something one would have to be ashamed of being seen in.
Paul smiled and chuckled a little as he overheard her comment about the bar. It gave him a mental image of how all the drivers might be when drunk and he couldn’t help but throw his head back and laugh. “Can you imagine if Kais opened up and actually said more than two words and Han let her hair down and did something like dance on the table?” He was laughing so hard he was almost crying. He finally managed to contain his mirth. “Bet accepted. What is your t-shirt size so I can have one ready?”
”Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. I’m surprised enough Han was the first to come up with that. I guess now I know why the German AGP doesn’t take place around Oktoberfest though.” The mental images Paul was suggesting were well and truly cursed, but she’d be lying if she said she wasn’t at all curious about the other drivers’ hidden depths. ”And if Nora’s hosting in Australia, oh my. I thought I had enough reasons to look forward to that race before.”
Paul's smile was friendly as he snickered. “Well the Germans do like their beer. Our engineering team has their own motto now “Libation Lubrication!” They even got a drink named after them. I assume you are hoping for a beach BBQ in the land down under?” Paul was having the best time teasing Bea. It made him curious to know what some of the other drivers were like behind closed doors. He gave Bea a nod, “I am still waiting on your t-shirt size. Mine is large or 52. I don’t want you to think I would welch on a bet after all.”
”I heard something about that. Sounds like the season’s start wasn’t as tumultuous as some made it out to be if the backbone of the team is getting drunk enough to become part of the folklore.” She laughed, news reports and social media gossip not always kind to the beginnings of Alex Knight’s tenure as team principal, ”UK size ten, prefer short sleeves.” She grabbed a piece of paper from a drawer and made a point of writing ‘Large/52’ on it in big letters so he could see, ”I’ll be magnanimous and allow a choice between team and my merch if you want to avoid the rainbow.”
Paul looked amused. “More like part of local culture. His first day in the office was…” Paul thought about a diplomatic way to state everything Alexander had endured on his first day. Paul had been visiting his mother and had missed the drama. It was all anyone was talking about when he finally made his way into headquarters later that week though. “Alexander’s first day was, shall we say, dramatic.” Paul smiled at her. “If I have to wear your rainbow, you will have to earn it. If I lose the bet, only the rainbow will do. I have my own code of honor, you know.”
”Message received, shutting up now.” She said when she saw Paul’s reaction to the mention of the team drama, quickly turning back to the previous page. ”Your funeral, at least of your fashion sense.” She shrugged, inwardly wondering if there wasn’t some clause in her contract against talking smack about the team’s colors.
Paul was enjoying this but the reminder of his next training session beeped on his watch. He sighed, so much for having a great time. It was time for his afternoon simulator session. He needed to wrap this up.
Paul: “Sadly I have to go. Simulator training up next. I look forward to seeing you in Tokyo. Have a great break Bea. I will start working on the contract.” Paul waved as he disconnected the call.
”I’ll try to get some drafts to you before the weekend. Have a good one. She added a few notes to the shirt size note with a devilish grin, closed the laptop and returned to the family game.
Alexander attended the interview of the team principals after the race. He was wearing what he typically wore when he was in the paddock. He had a button down team shirt in black with the team and logo sponsors on it. He was wearing black slacks and work boots. Alexander’s work had a more hands on role than the other team principals. He was known to jump in and lend the engineers and mechanics a hand if they needed it. His calloused hands reflected his hard work ethic and methods. He hated suits and rarely wore them. Ties always made him feel like he was being choked. He paid attention to what the other team principals had to say. He reviewed their interviews and what media he could find about them. He found Peter Thatcher to be arrogant and abrasive but he had earned that attitude with the record his team had. Valkyrie was not in a place to challenge Apex, yet. If Alexander did his work well, the latter part of the season would be exciting and very different. Alexander was sipping on a bottle of water. It was too hot in Africa for the coffee he would have preferred.
Aurora: "We heard from the other Principals about the race in Cape Town. What's your analysis, as a former racer? Who's one to watch, and who caught your eye in that race, outside of your two pilots?"
Alexander smiled at Aurora and looked thoughtful. He paused and really gave his answer some thought.
Alexander: “Silver Apex is at the front of the pack and you have to respect his team’s record. This is my analysis of what caused the accident today on the track. Kais was doing his job. He was challenging Hart and was in position to overtake him. Bea was fighting for the same opportunity. Hart was feeling the pressure. Kais was in a better position to overtake. Hart’s sloppy maneuver to shut Kais down caused him to overcorrect steering dangerously close to Bea’s craft. Bea’s quick reaction saved her ship from plowing headlong into Hart’s at over 400kph. Unfortunately her reaction to prevent the collision had her veering into Kais’ lane, while Kais’ quick reaction managed to salvage his ship but took damage. It was a host of cause and effect and reactions that contributed to the crash. But it was the sloppy maneuver by Hart that put it all into action. Kais and Bea are excellent drivers and deserve their seats. My prediction is that we will be seeing them in the top 10 frequently along with Nora and Hyeon-Ae.”
Alexander continued with a smile. “Valkyrie's strategy for this race was simple. We utilized our advantages to gain as many points as possible. Paul and Dorian did an excellent job today of executing that strategy skillfully. Valkyrie’s ships are simply not as fast as Silver Apex and Southern Cross. Strategy and skill is how our pilots got the results they needed today. Valkyrie AGR Sport is not in a position to challenge Southern Cross and Silver Apex just yet. But we will.”
Valkyrie AGR Headquarters
The Valkyrie AGR Team flew home the day after the race. That gave everyone a little time to enjoy Cape Town and pack up all the gear. Alexander was pleased with the team performance in Cape Town. Dorian and Paul both performed well under very trying odds. Alexander had spoken with a few of the larger team sponsors and they seemed happy. Enigma Lux had put out a firm offer. The paperwork for the contract had been sent to Dorian and Paul since they were requesting all three of them. Alexander was waiting for word back from the two pilots on whether they would be pulling the trigger on that sponsorship. A luxury watch brand manufacturer Orion was now interested in an endorsement deal with Valkyrie’s pilots. Orion had reached out for a joint contract with Valkyrie and both pilots. Alexander had sent the contracts to legal for review before they would be sent to Paul’s and Dorian’s agents.
Alexander had met with the board about the new ship designs. The Board of Directors were happier with the results from Cape Town. There were a few on the board that were still pushing for podium finishes and Valkyrie would get there. He explained that the need for a faster ship was why they needed a new design. The current ship was simply not fast enough to stay competitive. The investment cost was going to be heavy. This kind of engineering change usually happened in the pre-season.
Alexander firmly believed in the changes and after seeing the ideas his collective engineers were sitting on. He thought it was worth the investment. Fortunately the Board of Directors decided to back the call. The European Union Space Agency was going to help fund the research and development of the improved cockpit and inertial dampening fields because they could be integrated into space craft. Now the hard part began as they began to haul in the materials and components for the build. They had to build a prototype as they tested each new piece of technology as they custom built it. That was part of why they had the machinery onsite to build just about anything they needed. Alexander was going to lean heavily on the Board of Directors contacts for some of the harder to source materials since they typically were slotted for government use.
Alexander had personally thanked the engineering team for their hard work in getting the ship modifications done before Cape Town. He challenged them to see what they could do to improve the Energy Systems and boost more speed without compromising handling before the race in Tokyo. He turned Dorian and Paul over to their trainers to prepare for Tokyo using the simulator. He let the trainers know to have them work on their skills with energy systems and defensive driving. Alexander had a feeling they would need to sharpen their skills when it came to passing, overtakes, and avoiding debris on the track. Alexander had rewatched the footage from the crash at Cape Town and he could only draw two conclusions. Either Jamie Hart was seeking to eliminate a ship on purpose or his racing style was unpredictable, sloppy, and highly dangerous. None of it left him with a good feeling about his pilots being on the same track as the man. Alexander admitted that he was probably paranoid about it and overthinking it. He would do all he could to help prepare Dorian and Paul to counter those types of moves in case they came their way again.
To round out Alexander’s good news, Katherine had reported that fans were showing more positive responses to both Paul and Dorian after Cape Town. Team Valkyrie Merchandise Gear sales were up after Cape Town. The absolute best good news he received was that his daughter would be leaving the hospital by the end of the week. She wanted to come visit him. He had Mabel make arrangements for her visit about a month from now. He wanted to give her some more time to recover. He knew that while she was medically sound. He wasn’t sure if she was ready to travel just yet. He would find the time to go visit her though. He would carve out the time necessary no matter how busy he was.
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KingKofiFan: SuperCat might not have done very well but Kofi has style at least. Did you see his new Brain Bucket? #KofiHasSwagger #KingKofi $erwa: I was disappointed by SuperCat. I expected more from the hometeam. Jan2084: The atmosphere of Cape Town was amazing to visit for a race. Bertha: Kofi is not getting the job done is he?
NoraRules: Nora is the racer to watch. She is already pushing Amy Stirling. BadBrad: I agree Nora is this season’s rookie of the year! ApexSuperFan: Beginners luck. She still hasn’t managed to podium ahead of Apex. NoraRules: But she has been on the podium. That is better than Jamie Hart. Bertha: @NoraRules makes an excellent point. TeamCondorSF: Ava’s comeback was amazing! Can’t believe @MadBea was knocked out of the race by Hart. Susie: Jamie Hart clearly Zonked Bea to take her out of the race. ApexSuperFan: Hart didn’t wreck Bea. She obviously has no skill. Hart was driving aggressively. He was doing his job which was to block them from passing him. It’s called racing. Abdullah: Kais was affected too and was robbed of points by Apex. #TheFalconWillHunt Zygonista: Ava only got past Hyeon-Ae because of Paul Mulder. Bertha: @Zygonista keep telling yourself that.
Roberto: Nordic Call and Fitzroy Orbital have proven to be Chihuahuas so far this season. KingKofiFan: Did they show up to the race? I think I missed them. *winking emoji* Merica1: Doesn’t look like Miller Motor Racing will see any podiums this season at this rate. I hope their performance improves. #letdown. Bertha: *Laughing Emoji* Miller Motor Racing has fans?
Zygonista: Han did well. Proud of her for representing Zygon. Too bad about Cassie though. BadBrad: Cassie is a Borgbot and Han is a robot! #SCRules ValkyrieFan56: It was exciting to watch Han and Paul battle it out. He placed better than expected. #GoValkyrie Zygonista: Paul is the one who let Ava Villarosa slide by them both. BadBrad: Paul still needs to find his *****! [wording censored by moderators- keep it clean people] Bertha: TBF They are not the only Borgbots on the racing circuit. Ava and Amy are as well. Can’t argue the point about Hyeon-Ae being a robot though.
Nobody404: Questionable call by the racing stewards. The Culture Vultures are divided on whether Hart’s actions were justified or not. Accident or deliberate sabotage to competitors that were getting too close to Apex’s princess? Is there collusion to help keep Silver Apex at the top? Or just coincidence? Why was Jamie Hart not part of the after race press conference? Why was Amy Stirling the only veteran at the press conference? Inquiring minds would like to know. SuperfanAGR54: It was suspicious that Jamie Hart was not part of that press conference. BeaLover: Bea was the one whose ship was destroyed and sent to the hospital to be checked out and she was part of the press conference. So why no Hart? Abdullah: Kais was part of the press conference too. So why was Hart not there? ApexSuperFan: Why is everyone so quick to believe that there was some conspiracy here? Amy Stirling is the current reigning champion. She also was the winner of that race. If they were going to pick a veteran driver to interview, why wouldn’t it be her? There are a lot of reasons why Jamie Hart might not have been at that press conference. Sheesh people get a life! Bertha: [Content removed by moderators.]
Social Media
OfficeDrone#12: Exciting race! SuperfanAGR54: Dorian’s performance surprised me. DantheMan: @nitronora podiums again! Superfan2075: Hart should be fined for that stunt he pulled. DadBod89: Hart caused that crash. Hater101: Dorian surprised me. Papabear34: Paul did better but even he admitted he screwed up by letting Villarosa get past him. Nana2050: Good team performance! Both racers in the top ten. GeorgeFly: That crash was scary to watch in person. If the repeller field had not been there, that debris would have hit spectators. ValkyrieFan56: Go team Valkyrie! #ValkyrieMovesUp Weedhead81: Trippy man! SexyM@m@5: Dorian did so good! Paulmulder4eva: Paul’s was such a sweetie. Being concerned about his fellow racers. He even congratulated Kais on his comeback. Britball12: Hmmm one mediocre race. I am still waiting to see. !YouSlow!: That was no accident! xImFasterthanUx: @!YouSlow! Agreed! Hart deliberately cut into Ward’s lane and almost clipped the front of her ship. That was not an overtake or a block. It was reckless and dangerous! AGInthusiast: I don’t know whether that was good racing by Hart or dangerous showboating. #conflicted micheal650004: That’s the Dorian I remember! llamalover4life: I concede Dorian did better this race. mustbetoast: Paul could have done better. ieatAGR: Valkyrie did well at Cape Town considering it is a track that favors speed. I can see Alexander Knight’s hand in their strategy and it worked.
Dorian was on a mission to redeem himself. He wanted to make progress. He wanted to go out with wins to his names. He had accepted Alexander’s words and advice. He had to acknowledge the truth in them. He might not be able to podium at this race but that didn’t mean he was done. Nothing was set in stone. Yes those glass rockets of Silver Apex and Southern Cross were faster than his ship but could they maintain their race lines at those speeds? Dorian was determined that they would have to battle it out to take the win today. He was hungry for points. He would at least show progress in this race and his skill. He would show those who were calling him a has been washed out that he still had what it takes.
Dorian had made sure to get a good night’s rest. He had a calm evening and a quiet dinner with friends in his hotel room. He had gone over the information about the track that morning in his hotel room, reviewing the turns, chicanes, and corners. He knew where he had messed up in qualifying. He had fallen back into bad habits. He had not pushed his ship’s advantages to their fullest. He had failed to get a lock on with the ELS systems.
Christoph, one of Valkyrie’s team members, was going over the new pre-race checklist as he helped Dorian get settled in and plugged into the ship. Dorian was suited up and in the cockpit. Dorian tugged on his safety harness ensuring a snug fit. It would help prevent him from being thrown around the cockpit of the ship. Dorian’s helmet was on and the foam padded chin strap locked down tight. Christoph tugged on his safety harness verifying the connections were locked before checking his helmet was strapped on as well. Dorian felt the neural chip connecting to the ship as Christoph plugged in the connection. Christoph went through the checklist to ensure everything was working properly and that Dorian had a good connection to all ship functions. He then had Dorian do the deep breathing exercises that were supposed to help him build up the amount of oxygen in his bloodstream. Christoph wished Dorian luck before closing the canopy to the cockpit and locking it down for the race.
Christoph then went through the entire procedure again with Paul.
Dorian heard Alexander’s voice come over the radio.
Alexander: “Radio check. Can you hear me?”
Dorian: “Knight this is Dorian. Radio checks green.”
Paul: “Knight this is Paul. Radio checks green.”
Alexander worked his way through the last minute checklist with both Pilots. He waited to hear the answer from both pilots before moving onto the next item on the list.
Alexander: “Fuel… Oxygen… Engine start…. Energy Systems…. Battery…. KERS (Kinetic Energy Return System) … Maneuvering Foils… Antigravity Generators… Air Brake flaps…“
Both pilots had green lighted all the ships systems.
Alexander: “Remember fast and smooth. You will need to make the most of the handling. Maintain as much speed in the corners and turns as you can. Don’t forget to deploy your ELS systems. They will help you slow down faster opponents. Use your skills and better maneuverability to get close enough to draft off their ship. Make them help you go faster. Good luck gentleman. You have the skill to hold your own and move up a few spots in this race. I will be right here with you the whole way.”
Dorian: “Oui Knight.”
Paul: “Ja Knight.”
All Alexander could do now was wait for the race to start. He had done everything he could to prepare them both for this race. Even with everything they had going on, there was little he could change in 2 weeks time. He had done his best to improve the ships. Until he got the new ship designs approved and began to work out the bugs that came from building an all new design. It was the best they could hope for now. This was really the only strategy left to their team for this race. Other pilots might have more augmentations but his pilots had experience, skill, and natural talent on their side. Unfortunately the ones in the lead had faster ships but their handling was nowhere close to Valkyrie’s. It would be a battle not in the straights here at Cape Town but a battle in the corners.
Dorian was starting the race behind Beatrix Ward and had Hyeon-Ae Han behind him. He was wedged between two rookies that were taking the circuit by storm.
Paul was starting only 2 places behind Dorian. Paul had Hyeon-Ae Han in front of him and Ava Villarosa behind him.
The lights counted down the typical 5 seconds as they flashed in sequence from red, to yellow, to green. The signal to go.
Dorian felt a surge of adrenaline as he hit the throttle. Dorian timed his start perfectly as his ship leaped forward. He had a good start. Dorian was keeping pace with Beatrix through the initial hard left right sector before charging up Signal Hill. Ward began to pull away from him on the straight way on Lion’s Head. Bea made her move as she passed Layla leaving Dorian battling Layla for 5th place. Dorian saw Bea pass Layla as both ships left him behind. He managed to catch back up to Layla as he used gravity coming down from the top of Lion’s Head to help him with speed as his ship climbed Kloof Ridge. He gained back some ground as he took the left right broken straights coming off Kloof Ridge as fast as he could handle them. He was in the zone, his craft moving smoothly and staying on the fastest line he could find on this track. He was managing to keep the momentum and build on it. He would manage to lock onto Layla and then she would surge away from him again in the straights. Dorian was slowly gaining again on Layla after coming through the inverse curve at speed before smoothly executing the broken curves in Camps Bay. Dorian was once again on Layla’s tail as he pulled closer in the sidewinder section. The rest of lap one was a blur as Dorian would get close and then Layla would pull away.
Dorian was almost through the stadium section and was coming up on the hard curve right out of the stadium. Dorian was beginning lap 2. Hart was in front of Kais and Bea. Kais and Bea were running next to each other battling to get ahead of one another. Bea and Kais both were in a position to challenge Hart. Hart suddenly cut across the track diving for the outside lane in a strange unpredictable dive maneuver. That section of banked track was only wide enough for two ships. Hart’s ship swooped in front of Bea's coming dangerously close to her ship. Bea then veered into the lane Kais’s ship was in. Kais tried to avoid Bea’s Ship but was unable to avoid hitting Bea’s ship. The hit knocked Bea’s ship free from the track and into the repeller fields at the edge of the track. From what Dorian could see, Hart was not yet close enough to overtake Nora, if he was trying a maneuver to block them both, it was poorly executed and dangerous. Hart’s move made no sense to Dorian even as he saw the resulting crash and debris shower across the track ahead of him.
Dorian and Layla were both right behind the trio. They had nanoseconds to respond to avoid hitting the ships in front of them. Layla took the lower lane to pass the wreck. Dorian knew there was wreckage ahead of him in the upper lane. He used his skill and poured speed into his ship and ran it up the curved wall. The momentum caused his ship to flip around so he was half inverted on the lower lip. This swung his ship wide as he hoped to avoid hitting any of the wreckage or Layla. Dorian was relieved as he neatly avoided running into wreckage. The maneuver also put him ahead of Kais on the track.
Alexander watched, unable to react fast enough to warn Dorian about the wreck. Fortunately Dorian’s skill saved him as officials called a red flag.
Alexander: “Paul take the lower lane! Debris ahead of you in the upper!”
Paul had moments to avoid running into the ships ahead of him. He took the lower lane trusting Knight. He had just passed the remains of Bea’s ship when the red flag came out and Paul shut his ship down.
Paul: “That was close. Thanks Knight. Any word on the pilot?”
Paul’s voice only betrayed some slight anxiety as he asked after the other pilot.
Knight: “Bea is okay. Red Flag is out, bring your ships in.”
The track was repaired and the debris removed. When the race restarted. Dorian had Layla in front of him and Kais behind. He was bookmarked by Al-Saqr’s team which left him feeling uneasy. Dorian took a deep breath and recentered himself. Dorian again had a good start. He easily fell back into the zone. He was focusing on smooth in and out and maintaining speed. He smiled every time he managed to deploy the ELS on Layla. He used his skill to stay with her. Draining her craft and using drafting techniques to help his ship go faster. Dorian managed to stay with her throughout the rest of the race. He might not have gotten a win but he could feel proud of his performance. He knew he had shown a level of skill he had not shown recently. It felt good when he crossed the finished line in 6th place.
Paul didn’t let the wreck rock him. His primary concern was for his fellow racers. He was relieved to hear that both Bea and Kais were okay. Paul had been further back than Dorian and he had not witnessed the crash. At the time his view was of the rear of Han’s ship as he focused on his ELS system and staying with her. Paul had restarted the race with Han in front of him and Villarosa behind him. Paul and Han had been battling it out trading places around the track. He would catch up to her on the curves and she would pull away from him on the straight aways. Paul was focused on Han in a curve when Villarosa came shooting past them both on the outside. Paul had forgotten to block the opponents behind him and Villarosa pounced on the opening. Paul shook his head for making such a Rookie mistake. He knew better. He managed to stay with Han for the rest of the race but knew he had given Villarosa the opening she needed to get ahead of him. He crossed the finish line in tenth. He never managed to get past Han.
Post Race, Cape Town Interviews
"Paul, Han just left us- you two had a fight throughout the race, trading places and certainly keep each other on their toes! How do you feel about your close racing throughout, and your first point in Formula AG?
Paul looked comfortable as he relaxed on the interview sofa. His arm was across the back. Paul smiled at Rory as he nodded listening to the question.
Paul: “Han is a talented racer. I have nothing but respect for her. I am ashamed to admit that I was so focused on Han that I forgot Villarosa behind me. Villarosa slingshot past both of us. It was a rookie mistake. I have to admit that my mistake cost both Han and I a position in this race. I am still pleased with my performance. I feel good about winning some points this round. I feel like I am making progress. Keep watching, my time is coming!”
Paul winked at the camera with a confident grin as he declared a bright future in racing. Paul expression became more somber as he commented on the crash.
Paul: “The crash from today’s race reminds us all how serious and dangerous this sport is. I was very happy to hear that both Kais and Bea are going to be alright. It also shows how necessary the safety measures are. The fact that Bea could walk away from that crash.”
Paul’s eyes looked haunted for a minute as he thought about the crash that took his father from him. Paul gave his head a little shake as if clearing away cobwebs and dark thoughts. He smiled once more at Rory.
Paul: “Kais has my admiration for battling back after such a disappointing setback. Congrats man!”
Social Media
Valkyrie AGR Sport: Dorian Hornfleur finishes 6th and Paul Mulder finishes in 10th at Cape Town. Valkyrie AGR Sport moved into fourth place in the constructor standings. Team Valkyrie made gains in Africa.Follow us on social media for Valkyrie AGR Official content. Don’t forget to check out the gear store! #FormulaAG #TeamValkyrie
OfficeDrone#12: Exciting race! SuperfanAGR54: Dorian’s performance surprised me. DantheMan: @nitronora podiums again! Superfan2075: Hart should be fined for that stunt he pulled. DadBod89: Hart caused that crash. Hater101: Dorian surprised me. Papabear34: Paul did better but even he admitted he screwed up by letting Villarosa get past him. Nana2050: Good team performance! Both racers in the top ten. GeorgeFly: That crash was scary to watch in person. If the repeller field had not been there, that debris would have hit spectators. ValkyrieFan56: Go team Valkyrie! #ValkyrieMovesUp Weedhead81: Trippy man! SexyM@m@5: Dorian did so good! Paulmulder4eva: Paul’s was such a sweetie. Being concerned about his fellow racers. He even congratulated Kais on his comeback. Britball12: Hmmm one mediocre race. I am still waiting to see. !YouSlow!: That was no accident! xImFasterthanUx: @!YouSlow! Agreed! Hart deliberately cut into Ward’s lane and almost clipped the front of her ship. That was not an overtake or a block. It was reckless and dangerous! AGInthusiast: I don’t know whether that was good racing by Hart or dangerous showboating. #conflicted micheal650004: That’s the Dorian I remember! llamalover4life: I concede Dorian did better this race. mustbetoast: Paul could have done better. ieatAGR: Valkyrie did well at Cape Town considering it is a track that favors speed. I can see Alexander Knight’s hand in their strategy and it worked. Nobody404: Why was the crash ruled an accident? Corruption in the Racing Commission?
I am experienced roleplayer returning to online roleplay after 10+ year break. I have missed roleplaying and the creative outlet it is for me. I am interested in casual roleplay. I consider myself a decent writer and I will put effort into my writing. I am not into writing a novel for one post though. Descriptive, character building, engaging, yes. I will always write at least 2 paragraphs unless it is a quick fire session revolving around dialogue over private messages. I am a fairly laid back person and don't want to be a grammar nazi. I believe in quality over quantity. Roleplaying is a hobby and a escape from real life pressures.
[color=00aeef]Genres I am interested in: [/color]
Fantasy
Middle Ages
Science Fiction
Vampires
Shapeshifters
Crime Drama
[color=00aeef]Fandoms I am interested in:[/color]
Pokemon
Harry Potter
Anita Blake
Dragonriders of Pern
Star Wars
I don't mind roleplaying romance but I am not looking for smut. It has to make sense for the roleplay. I am okay with a fade to black moment instead of roleplaying it out. For me its about the story and the character. I am open to roleplaying it out.
I am in the Pacific Standard Timezone. I work full time and will be seen in the evenings and weekends online.
<div style="white-space:pre-wrap;">I am experienced roleplayer returning to online roleplay after 10+ year break. I have missed roleplaying and the creative outlet it is for me. I am interested in casual roleplay. I consider myself a decent writer and I will put effort into my writing. I am not into writing a novel for one post though. Descriptive, character building, engaging, yes. I will always write at least 2 paragraphs unless it is a quick fire session revolving around dialogue over private messages. I am a fairly laid back person and don't want to be a grammar nazi. I believe in quality over quantity. Roleplaying is a hobby and a escape from real life pressures. <br><br><font color="#00aeef">Genres I am interested in: </font><br>Fantasy<br>Middle Ages <br>Science Fiction <br>Vampires <br>Shapeshifters <br>Crime Drama<br><br><font color="#00aeef">Fandoms I am interested in:</font><br>Pokemon<br>Harry Potter <br>Anita Blake <br>Dragonriders of Pern <br>Star Wars <br><br>I don't mind roleplaying romance but I am not looking for smut. It has to make sense for the roleplay. I am okay with a fade to black moment instead of roleplaying it out. For me its about the story and the character. I am open to roleplaying it out. <br><br>I am in the Pacific Standard Timezone. I work full time and will be seen in the evenings and weekends online.</div>
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FourtyTwo
wintersoldier
Pen Name
Lunamaria Hawke
Eventua
Snowdrops
Ivar
Sky Blue
Triantafyllo
