WGPC :: World Grand Prix Championship 19 [COMPLETE]

[Vilita and Turori]

Nationstates Grand Prix IV - Reserve Driver
NSSCRA Season 4 - Driver - Vilita & Turori Motorsports
NSSCRA Season 5 - Driver - Vilita & Turori Motorsports
WGPC 11 - 18th Place (5 Points) - WGPC Motorsport Works Driver
WGPC 12 - 19th Place (4 Points) - WGPC Motorsport Works Driver
Super Formula Championship 1 - 1st Place (52 Points) Vilita & Turori Motorsports
Super Formula Championship 2 - 1st Place (77 Points) Vilita & Turori Motorsports
WGPC 14 - 2nd Place (128 Points) - Vilita & Turori Motorsports
WGPC 15 - 12th Place (35 Points) - WGPC Eelandii Motorworks
NSSCRA Season 6 - 1 Start (24th place - Vilaye 314)
WGPC 16 - 1 Start; WGPC Eelandii Team Principle
NSSCRA Season 7 - 3 Starts (9th Place - Vilaye 314)
WGPC 17 - 2nd Place (147 Points) - Tropicorp Racing Ælund
iROS-I - 1st Place (58 Points) - Tropicorp Racing Ælund
WGPC 18 - 2nd Place (101 Points) - Tropicorp Racing Ælund
AOMC - 5th Place - Team Turori

All Time WGPC Stats: Wins: 10 :: Podium: 16 :: Top 10: 33

TORALMINTII RETURNS TO TROPICORP RACING ÆLUND

iBen Toralmintii: Personal Biography ::
The transition from full-bodied Stock Cars to Open Wheel was not immediate for iBen Toralmintii who left the struggling NSSCRA circuit to take on open wheel racing as a WGPC Motorsport Works driver during WGPC Season 11. After having to fight tooth and nail for every position and accruing just 9 points over two seasons as a WGPC Motorworks driver, Toralmintii decided to hit the reset button, departing the WGPC circuit to join the Nationstates Super Formula Championship series.

In Hodori, Toralmintii quickly caught on to the driving style - putting together strong consistent finishes throughout the season before claiming their first Super Formula victory in the final event of the season along with the season Championship. Due to the great success, Toralmintii returned for a second season of Super Formula action and started things off the same way winning the opening round before a runner up finish at his home track in Turori. Posting another consistent and smooth season, Toralmintii had all but defended the title heading into the final round but left nothing to chance, claiming their third career Super Formula race victory and second consecutive series championship.

Building on the momentum gained as back-to-back Nationstates Super Formula Champion, Toralmintii and the Vilita and Turori Motorsports team made a triumphant return to the World Grand Prix Championship during WGPC Season 14 putting up the single most dominating performance by any constructor in a single World Grand Prix Championship season with Toralmintii finishing narrowly behind debutant teammate Terho Talvela for the drivers championship. It was just the second time in WGPC history that two drivers from the same team finished 1-2 in the drivers standing after Team Rolatia did so during WGPC season 2 with drivers Thomas Ragji and William Sralt.

But things turned sour for Vilita & Turori Motorsports and Toralmintii during the off-season as Talvela and the funding from Abovian sponsors Nortec and Arctic Air sought glitz and glamour at the MRT race team sacrificing technical performance and results in the process. The VTM team closed its doors after just one season and its assets were repurposed as a Works team, WGPC Eelandii. After driving one season for the WGPC Eelandii Motorworks team Toralmintii announced that they would retire from driving full time in order to take on the role of Team Principle overseeing the development of new drivers.

With the time off from driving, Toralmintii rekindled the flame running some local events within the Vilitan Cove included the popular NSSCRA Stock Car event, the Challenge at the Rocks. After posting a Top 10 finish at the Challenge and putting on a display of the WGPC Eelandii Motorworks ride for fans, it was clear the desire for success was still there. Toralmintii stunned the World Grand Prix ranks by signing a deal to return to top-level World Grand Prix Championship racing with the newly formed Tropicorp Racing Aelund team based out of Aboveland.

The move re-united Toralmintii with his former Vilita and Turori Motorsports teammate Terho Talvela and while the season got off to a slow start, the duo slowly started to re-gain some of the magic that had seen them combine for the highest points haul in World Grand Prix history during the World Grand Prix's 14th season. Toralmintii's dream of winning the World Grand Prix title was dented by a slow start to the campaign but they secured their place in the conversation of greatest auto racing drivers of all time by finding a new gear as the World Grand Prix circuit hit its Atlantian Oceania swing. Toralmintii piloted the #77 machine to back-to-back-to-back-to-back race victories to become the first driver in World Grand Prix Championship history to win four consecutive races. By seasons end Toralmintii had missed out on the drivers Championship by just five points and the conversation had wholly shifted from whether the Turorian driver would return for one more season behind the wheel to whether or not they could finally best their Abovian teammate to become a World Grand Prix Champion.

The Answer, however, was once again no. Toralmintii finished behind Talvela once more in WGPC Season 18 in the most inexplicable fashion. Toralmintii was in Top form throughout WGPC Season 18 leading the field with three race victories and entered the final race in Mattijana needing just a handful of points to convery their comfortable points lead into a championship. In the final round, however, the #77 Tropicorp Racing Aelund machine lasted only two circuits and teammate Terho Talvela rallied to a runner-up performance turning a winless season into an unlikely championship, besting Toralmintii by just 4 points. Marking the end of an era, Talvela retired on the spot becoming the first ever three-time World Grand Prix Champion. After some speculation, the veteran Toralmintii confirmed they would Return to Tropicorp Racing Ælund for WGPC Season 19 while attempting to compete for the Championship with a new teammate for the first time.

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WGPC 11 - 4th Place (82 Points, 1 Win) - Vilita & Turori Motorsports
WGPC 12 - 9th Place (54 Points) - Vilita & Turori Motorsports
WGPC 13 - 11th Place (56 Points, 1 Win) - Frontiere Racing
WGPC 14 - 7th Place (59 Points, 1 Win) - Carvenlo-Franklin Racing
WGPC 15 - 14th Place (29 Points) - Arada Motorsport
WGPC 16 - 9th Place (58 Points, 1 Win) - MSA-Sinval
WGPC 17 - 17th Place (23 Points) - Mirrors
WGPC 18 - 7th Place (48 Points, 1 Win) - Race Eelandii VTGP
AOMC - 3rd Place - Team Vilita

All Time WGPC Stats: Wins: 5 :: Podium: 15 :: Top 10: 42

CRUISIN SETS SIGHTS ON START #100

R.L. Cruisin: Personal Biography ::

R.L. Cruisin's World Grand Prix Championship Career got off to a fast start, earning their first career podium in just their fourth career start then standing atop the podium for the first time in the penultimate race of their rookie campaign which ended with 8 points finishes in 11 events good enough for 4th overall in the Grand Prix standings.

Six seasons later, and that debut campaign remains the best statistical campaign of Cruisin's career. Cruisin would drive one more season for home country team Vilita & Turori Motorsports but despite two podium finishes, would fail to find Victory Lane in WGPC 12 sparking a departure from the team that had given the Vilitan driver their break in the sport. Cruisin would join up with promising upstart Frontiere Racing for WGPC Season 13 picking up their second career Grand Prix victory despite piloting the under-powered Frontiere machine. Cruisin was offered a return to Vilita & Turori Motorsports for WGPC Season 14 but opted instead to join Carvenlo-Franklin Motorsports. Cruisin knew the Carvenlo team could field a competitive car - having twice before been the World Grand Prix Constructors Champions. When Vilita & Turori Motorsports would go on to win the opening two events of the season, Cruisin was undeterred, responding with their own Victory at Carvenlo's home track to climb into the early season title contention. For the third consecutive season Cruisin would outperform their teammates on the track but struggle to keep pace with the Championship leaders.

Watching Toralmintii - the Works driver who only got the Vilita & Turori Motorsports job because the team wanted a local driver and Cruisin had turned down a return to the team - compete so well in the car - was difficult for Cruisin. When Carvenlo announced they would not be feeding a team for season 15 the Vilitan driver moved to the Arada Grand Prix team earning 1 podium finish and 4 Top 10's.

For WGPC Season 16, Cruisin would join their Fifth different team in as many seasons teaming up with regular mid-table team MSA-SinVal. Cruisin stunned the oddsmakers when, for the second time in their career, they would win the seasons penultimate race. Cruisin had a massive late season surge with three consecutive points finishes and two podiums to close out the campaign including earning the Eastfield Lodge outfit MSA-SinVal its first ever Grand Prix Victory. Cruisin outperformed teammate Cesaro Whittaker by 53 points in the standings.

Changes in Eastfield Lodge necessitated change for WGPC Season 17 however, as the teams backers split and put their support behind local driver Dalia Dahl. Cruisin appeared to have landed on their feet, however, as the famed Mirrors team was being re-founded for the season and they had tapped Cruisin as their #1 driver. The excitement was short lived however as the Starblaydi team's return ultimately proved to be a little bit of Smoke and Mirrors. The engineering department was under-funded and the speed never appeared on track. Cruisin used their experience and skill to will points out of the "Purple Plow" as the entry would be come to be known, while teammate Esteban Guilhermez would finish the season as one of just two drivers who competed in all races to fail to earn a single point. While Cruisin finished a respectable five races in the point, it was the first season in the Vilitan drivers career that they failed to score a podium finish. Cruisin nearly kept the streak alive at the Turorian Grand Prix chasing down Drake Stevenson on the final circuit in Eelandii but falling just under 2 seconds short at the finish.

With Mirrors closing its doors again at the end of WGPC 17, Cruisin struck a deal with the Race Eelandii VTGP team to bring Vilaye Energy Drink Sponsorship back to the home nation team for the first time since World Grand Prix season 11. It was a fantastic start for the new partnership as Cruisin and Race Eelandii VTGP took the checkered flag and top spot on the podium winning the WGPC 18 season opening Grand Prix of Turori for the fifth victory of their WGPC Career. Cruising would later pick up a second podium finish at the Hapilopper City Grand Prix Circuit but would ultimately fall short of Championship contention finishing the season in 7th place in the Driver Standings. Additionally, with a shortened schedule, Cruisin was unable to hit the 100 career starts milestone and currently sits on 98 career grand prix starts, just two shy of being the first to reach the triple-digit milestone. While their our rumors they could be open to returning to Race Eelandii VTGP if no other ride could be found, historically Cruisin has shied away from driving for local market teams. R.L. Cruisin has accepted the offer of a test drive for the re-established Carvenlo Liventia Airways team from Liventia which he previously drove for during WGPC Season 14 and would be willing to accept test offers from other WGPC teams if offered.

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WGP2 S4 - 4th Place (110 Points) - Vilaye EnergySport Montagne GP

All Time WGP2 Stats: Wins: 0 :: Podium: 5 :: Top 10: 10

VIALIV LOOKS TO BUILD ON DEBUT WGP2 CAMPAIGN

Skiia Vialiv: Personal Biography ::
After a last minute deal to race in the NSSCRA's Everlong Contender Series fell through, Vialiv was picked up by the Vilisorma Beverage Company as a driver for their show team Vilaye EnergySport which entered Vialiv in the Rumble in the Rice Fields events. Vialiv's backing from the Vilisorma Beverage Company was critical in helping the Vilitan driver land a seat for the 4th WGP2 Season after she failed to earn a drive after trials with Nykipiflugpuun Noortekoondis, PB-Viska and UrGa Motorsports. Vialiv only secured a seat for the season when Vilaye Energy Drink bought out the sponsorship of the Montagne Grand Prix Team under the contractual requirement that it get to choose the teams drivers.

Despite the circumstances of her participation on the World Grand Prix 2 circuit, Vialiv was impressive from the start earning pole position in her debut at the brand new Streets of Alikki-Corra course. While she could never manage to claim a maiden World Grand Prix 2 victory, Vialiv recorded six runner-up podium finishes in her debut season and was "best of the rest" behind the top 3 of Heinz-Otto Junker, Janne Laukkanen and Ted Pressley who decided the title between them in the final race. With all three rumored to be making the leap to the WGPC Circuit for its 19th season, Vialiv could be one of the most coveted drivers on the WGP2 circuit... if she isn't first snapped up by a WGPC team.

While Vialiv is still hoping to impress with her skills on the track, off the track she is sure to be an asset to whichever team is able to secure her services with a strong social following on twii.tur and even an established record interacting with the fans through fantasy sports and other interactive services.

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RACE EELANDII VTGP TO RETURN IN WGPC SEASON 19

With iBen Toralmintii fully dedicated to driving duties with Tropicorp Racing Aelund, day-to-day operations of the Race Eelandii Vilita & Turori Grand Prix team will become the responsibility of Juracai Klianiota who currently serves as director of Race Eelandii! and competes in the AOCAR Stock Car Series.

Former team principle Gary Cook has been promoted to the position of WGPC Race Director for the 19th World Grand Prix Championship Season and it had been rumored that Cook was angling to convert the Race Eelandii VTGP team into an official WGPC Works team for Season 19. However, Klianiota's competitive spirit has thus far warded off the collaboration with Cook as the Turorian looks to keep the Race Eelandii name prominently displayed on the WGPC teams livery. As Director of Driver Talent for Race Eelandii VTGP during Season 18, Klianiota was impressed with the development of the teams TJUN-ian driver Lane Carter and is hoping to secure their services in the #11 for a second consecutive season by offering Carter a seat with Race Eelandii VTGP. Klianiota believes that if they can sign a talented driver to a guaranteed contract early in the offseason then WGPC Race Director Cook may be compelled to look elsewhere for a WGPC Motorworks partnership.

Race Eelandii VTGP is not currently planning any in-person trials and will instead be relying on Klianiota's personal knowledge of the available drivers, submission of CV by interested drivers and performance during the most recent WGPC and WGP2 seasons as a litmus test when filling the teams driver lineup. Drivers interested in one of the teams seats for the upcoming WGPC Season can direct their resume and any supporting financial proposals to Juracai Klianiota at jklianiota@raceeelandii.tur and include the teams new technical director Intoreil Palmsti'i at ipalmstii@raceeelandii.tur

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[Valentine Z]

The Valentians – Chapter 1 - For those at home.

Adriana prepared herself a little by little. She started off with some basic programs - moving. She got a wealth of instructional videos on her storage systems, to which she booted up and started studying them. "Please move forward. Good. Now please walk backwards. Side strafe. Grip an object. Start the car, turn on the engine switches, check tire coefficients, process information from the vehicle." She was handling them pretty well for the most parts, thought she took some time to get used to the aggression and more randomized parts of her code taking over, along with the instinct that was generated from her artificial brain. Just like Clarissa, Adriana relied on both her rigid computer codes along with her emulated brain to make decisions, and with this new change comes adjustments and calibration. A few seconds passed, and Adriana was ready. Now it is up to her to prove it on the fields and with the actual road courses, perhaps along with whatever cars that were provided by the teams. She went back to her personal computer to type an email for every single team she could find, along with the white paper about herself in terms of technical specifications. "I think that is going to be quite a good fit," she thought to herself, "Maybeeeee they might be a little impressed by my specifications, hehe. Although I will admit, the specs can only take me so far because of how good the other drivers are." Just as she was about to start typing, she got a notification on her email application. "I got mail this early?" she thought to herself. Maybe people are recognising her talent, for the most parts. Sure, she might not be getting the spot wholesale, but anything to help her out. "Carvenlo Racing trials" the subject of the email stated, from one Troy Wilkins who presented himself as team principal of CLAR.

"However, we'd like to invite you or your driver clients for closed trials with a view to driving for Carvenlo Liventia Airways Racing in season 19. The trials will take place (OOC on 5 October) at the Talbott Autodrome, and consist of four one-lap time trials each and two 90-minute free driving sessions to set fast laps. I hope you will consider our offer for a chance to join the most successful team in WGPC history," the email stated, with the time stipulated on the email. "All right!" Adriana exclaimed happily. This wasn't an offer, but she was still very elated that she was starting to get offers for tryouts without emailing first. "I really do hope my potential for performance will pay off!"

From: Zastępca Strażnika Adriana Krystal Desiree “Cudowny Manipulacja Światłem” Venus Kowalski Faith Stanisława Engelse I. Cherise Krystyna Zaborowska Sztormowska Pamela Alina Re. T. Lillian
To: Troy Wilkins - Carvenlo Racing (twilkins.racing@carvenlo.len)
Subject: RE: Carvenlo Racing trials

Witam i dobrego dnia! (Hello and good day!),

I am very delighted to hear about your invitation for the trials at the Talbott Autodrome! I would like to confirm my participation in the tryout, and that I am very thankful of the opportunity! In the meantime, I will be sending a separate email to you and the rest of the team regarding myself, which I believe that it will be worth and good for you to know about me in terms of the technical specifications.

Thank you, and Best Regards,
- Adriana Kowalski Ela Lillian, Assistant Superintendent of Valentine Z

With that mail sent, it was now up for Adriana to start choosing her team. The only problem is, she could not find the one that she was obviously looking for. There were many other teams for her to choose, that is for certain. However, one seemed to be missing at first glance - a certain team with red and purple as their motif and colors. "Where in the world is Fireline?" she asked and wondered to herself, trying to search for the team across many sites, as well as keeping track of the news outlets that talks particularly more about Grand Prix. Alas, the team was simply not there - at least not at the moment - but it could perhaps change again some other time. Should she email the staff directly? After all, she know them relatively well enough after being on their team for 2 seasons. They did change to Fireline Academy Motorsports, perhaps in an attempt to be inclusive for all of the Grand Prix races and not just either for WGPC, WGP2, or WGP3. That would be for Angela to decide. As for Adriana in WGPC, she would have to think of something else in the meantime, and something else she did. She put up a new email, and wrote..

From: Zastępca Strażnika Adriana Krystal Desiree “Cudowny Manipulacja Światłem” Venus Kowalski Faith Stanisława Engelse I. Cherise Krystyna Zaborowska Sztormowska Pamela Alina Re. T. Lillian
To: [Empty]
CC: Tropicorp Racing Aelund; Badai Angin Tim Motorsport; Preston Autos GP Racing; Nexus Racing; Race Eelandii VTGP; Viska Racing; Kaylan Racing Team; Teusbank TMW Rennsport; GP Auto Pryfors Bilar-Viska; Carvenlo Liventia Airways
Subject: Introduction to myself.
Attachment: Adriana_White_Paper.pdf

Witam i dobrego dnia! (Hello and good day!),

Please do pardon me in advance for the mass email, so please do allow me to re-introduce myself: I am Adriana Kowalski Ela Lillian from the world of Valentine Z, and I have been a participant of both WGPC and WGP2 alike! Specifically, I have participated in WGP2 III, IV, and then WGPC 18, and I am hoping that despite my somewhat inconsistent track record, you will be able to give me a consideration in your wonderful team, if not perhaps to give me an offer of the spot [OOC: Adriana is aware that she got the trial offer from Liventia, but since this is a mass email..] I am not here to be bold and confident as to think that I will definitely get the spot, but still, I would appreciate any opportunity that I will get in my way with the forms of trial runs if any.

Also attached to this email is the White Paper about myself in terms of the more technical specifications.

Thank you, and Best Regards,
- Adriana Kowalski Ela Lillian, Assistant Superintendent of Valentine Z

As she scanned around more and more, refreshing the page a few hours later, something caught her eye. The signup page has been updated, with a familiar color staring back at her. "GASP, it's them! It really is them! A collaboration, but it definitely is them!" Adriana wasted no time in composing another email.

From: Zastępca Strażnika Adriana Krystal Desiree “Cudowny Manipulacja Światłem” Venus Kowalski Faith Stanisława Engelse I. Cherise Krystyna Zaborowska Sztormowska Pamela Alina Re. T. Lillian
To: F+H Eminent GP
Subject: Introduction to myself.
Attachment: Adriana_White_Paper.pdf

Witam i dobrego dnia! (Hello and good day!),

I am so very happy to see you all here once again! I have been looking through the signup pages for the past few hours, wondering where Fireline has been! Please do pardon me for the lack of a professional tone there, I have been rather excited upon seeing this! With that said, I would like to once again consider very heavily in being a part of your wonderful team, and I am sure that Fireline and Heroes working together will only strengthen the potential in performance that we might have. Even if the spot is not considered, I definitely understand completely, and will still settle for trial runs that you as the teams will do.

Also attached to this email is the White Paper about myself in terms of the more technical specifications. I think it is well-deserved for you all to know a bit more about me as well!

Thank you, and Best Regards,
- Adriana Kowalski Ela Lillian, Assistant Superintendent of Valentine Z

Hello, and welcome! I am very delighted to have you all around here with me today! I am Adriana the Polish Robot, and I am the little sister of Exuberant Superintendent T-2000/2904-3 Surveillant Clarissa Alanis Star Breya « La Amoureux Chéri » Millie Taissa Butterfly Mélody Coraline Jolijn Trini Clementine Hollie Samantha Zeta Harumi! We are sisters in terms of the makes and models, with me having the more tanky and robust build, whilst more or less sharing the same specifications as Clarissa. I was built to serve as a backup unit for Clarissa at first, but over the years, I too have taken in my own form, along with my own cloud dimension that I used as a nexus for all my data. I am sure this will be clearer once I have laid it out below. I hope you will have some enjoyment reading through it!

General
Typical Dimensions: 22 feet / 670.56 cm
Typical Mass: 5070 lb / 2300 kg
I can be shrunk inside of the car in order to accommodate myself!

Driver Dimensions: 6' / 182.88 cm
Driver Mass: 440 lb / 200 kg

Cloud Computational Power – Physical Specs
Size: At least 102,000,000,000 square meters.
Entropy Stable: Yes, at least 1010e+6,000,000,000 years.

Cloud Computational Power – GP-GPU
CPU-Build: Combination of Traditional Silicon Chips and Quantum Chips. Artificial brain with neurons in the dimension.
Number of Neurons: 1.00 x 10200,000,000.
Number of Cores (Traditional Silicon Chips): 1.00 x 1050,000,000
Number of Qubits (Quantum Chips): 1.00 x 10300,000,000
CPU-Architecture: 220-bits. Addressable up to 6.7411401 x 10315652 bytes of memory.
CPU-Performance: Recorded at computational power exceeding 100 x 10800,000,000 FLOPS.
All the computational power are on the dimension that Adriana connects to.

Cloud Computational Power – Data Storage
Build: Solid State Drive (SSD), coupled with Neurons.
Capacity: 4.00 x 1010,000,000,000,000 bytes
Read Speed: 2.14 x 10480,000,000 bytes / sec
Write Speed: 8.16 x 10500,000,000 bytes) / sec

Local Computational Power – Data Storage
Build: Solid State Drive (SSD), coupled with Neurons.
Capacity: 1.60 x 10200 bytes
Read Speed: 8.50 x 10100 bytes / sec
Write Speed: 2.00 x 10106 bytes) / sec

Connectivity
Build: SKV-9G connection with up to 900 simultaneous connectivity options.
Upload Speed: 1.20 x 1030 bytes / sec
Download Speed: 1.00 x 1016 bytes) / sec

Visual Sensors – General
EM Spectrum Range: 30 Hz (10Mm) to 300 EHz (1 pm)
Sensitivity / Accuracy: +/- 0.10 lux

Visual Sensors – Still Images
Effective Megapixels: 5 TP (terapixels) – 2,500,000 x 2,000,000 pixels
Aperture: f/1.0 – f/400
ISO (Sensitivity): 1.6 – 300,000,000
Focal Length: 2.3 mm – 10000 mm
Shutter Speed: 1/32,000,000 sec – 57,600 sec (16 hours)
Burst Shot Speed: 400 shots / sec at Maximum Image Size.

Visual Sensors – Video Feed
Effective Megapixels: 3.75 TP (terapixels) – 2,000,000 x 1,500,000 pixels
Aperture: f/2.0 – f/200
ISO (Sensitivity): 50 – 100,000,000
Focal Length: 2.3 mm – 100000 mm
Shutter Speed: 1° to 360°. 1/20,000,000 sec to ½ sec.
Max. Frame Rate: 50,000,000 at Maximum Image Size.

Auditory Sensors
Number of channels: 16 (Head). Connectible to up to 1000 channels.
Maximum Sample Rate: 1.536 GHz
Frequency Range: 0.0001 Hz to 768,000,000 (768 MHz)
Audio Cancellation: Effective up to 80 meters, 88% success rate.
Maximum Audio Volume: 500 dB

Taste and Smell
Architecture: Digital Tongue and Nose – made out of 4 mass spectrograms, along with a database of smells.
Sensor Range: Ability to distinguish up to 1,000,000 distinct tastes and smell.

Other Sensors
Skin: 10 trillion pressure points all over the body. Ability to detect down to 1 Pa of accuracy.
Accelerometer: 3-axis, though can be configured for higher/lower dimensions. 80000 Hz refresh rate. Sensitive up to 0.0007 m/s2 of change.
Gyroscope: 3-axis, configurable for other dimensions. 160000 Hz refresh rate. Sensitive up to 0.05° of change.
Radio: FM, AM, SW, etc…
Magnetometer: 3-axis, configurable for other dimensions. 100000 Hz refresh rate. Sensitive up to 5 nT (nano-Tesla) of change.
Proximity Sensor: Detects movement and disruption from up to 90 cm away.

Defensives
Water and Dust rating: IP69K (completely dust and waterproof).
Force: Impervious to forces up to 2000 G’s.
Electricity: Shock-proof up to 1016 A
Operation Temperature: -270 C° to 20,000 C°.
Acidity and Base: No protection against acids below pH < 2 and bases above pH > 12.
Hard Light Shields: Can form force fields in order to further protect herself.

Mobility
Normal Velocity: 20 – 60 km/h
Maximum Velocity: 140 km/h 
Overdrive Velocity: 200 km/h.

[Nekoni]

Erica's house
Mission District, Varea
10:00

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It was a beautiful sunny morning...and Erica had missed most of it. Again. Since the end of the WGPC season, she had been in full recharge mode since the plane touched down on home soil, and lying in bed was how she spent 90% of her time, insulated from the outside world, only retreating to go on her morning run (which as of late was looking more like an early-afternoon run) or to grab a pizza from the shop at the end of the road. It was a simple life, but she liked it. It was her reward for spending the other half of the year risking life and limb to race.

Today, though, something was different. She was woken by her phone ringing. It had been for some time, and yet, it still would not stop. Clearly, this wasn't a spam caller. Groaning a little about how her beauty sleep was ruined, Erica scooted to the side of her bed, and picked up her phone. 11 missed calls, and the number was one she hadn't seen for a while. The Polaris HQ number. Oh, shit. Erica picked up the phone and awaited to potential telling off she was about to receive.

"...Hello? I was in the shower, sorry."
"You were asleep, weren't you?"
"...yeah, guilty."

It was Alex Mayari on the phone, the pit boss at Polaris. She didn't sound as cheery as her usual self.

"Never mind, we have serious stuff to discuss. Could you get down to the HQ on the double?" Erica silently nodded, and got changed in a hurry. In normal times, getting her contract signed for the season would have been a much simpler issue: the nice secretary would give her a call, tell her when the meeting would be, she'd get in at half 10, and the contract would be signed just in time for a bland, textureless lunch at the canteen. This felt...different. And different wasn't usually good.

As she arrived in the Neocastrella HQ, her heart sank as she saw the police vans in the car park. Through the doors and into the compound, Erica saw the teams of inspectors, collecting reams of paper and computer hardware from the offices, packing them all into hard plastic boxes, all marked and numbered. The first person that she saw who was familiar to her, sat at her usual seat in the boardroom, sipping on a machine-made coffee, was who she had talked to on the phone, Alexandra.

"I'd like to say I'm happy to see you, but there's not been a whole lot to be happy about." Erica looked confused. "What's happened? Why are there police here?"

Alex finished her cup, clearly not enjoying the last gulp of partially-dissolved coffee granules. She grimaced a little, and tossed the cup into the wastepaper bin at the corner of the room.

"Well, the first big story is that our lovely team owner, as of this morning, has stepped down as team owner. The other, bigger, story is that ten billion Gen has mysteriously left the company finances on the same day. And we don't have the bloody foggiest idea where either of them have gone." Alex leant forward on the desk, Erica sat on the other side, looking like someone had stabbed her in the heart. "Now, they're gonna have to interview you, don't worry, though. I don't think you've done anything and if I did, you'd have had the police wake you up with a battering ram, not me on the phone."

Erica replied, still looking like a ghost. "So...what does that mean for Polaris?" Alex, in response, sighed, and drew a cigarette from her jacket pocket. Placing it into her mouth, she confirmed the worst. "Well, unless we get a shitload of money and a new boss within the month, there IS no Polaris any more." Erica could feel the biting sadness in her voice. Both Erica and Alex were on the potential of losing something big. For Alexandra, this was her ticket back into the sport she loved after constantly trying and failing to achieve the success of her first championship win all those seasons ago. Her skill was waning when she made the decision to jump ship to the garage boss role, and Alex saw so much in Erica that reminded her of herself all those seasons ago. And, in the space of a month, they could lose it all.

[Schutzenphalia and West Ruhntuhnkuhnland]

The incredible speed! The smell of burning rubber! The oohs and aahs of the people flocked together watching, turning to screams of horror as scenes of carnage and mayhem unfold!

But enough about Lukas’s sex life. Right now, Herr Fichter had bigger things to think about, things such as his racing career. He sat in a cafe in Uberwienerschnitzelstadt am Ruhntuhnkuhn, sipping a coffee and browsing through the messages on his phone. He was yet to sign with a team for the coming World Grand Prix Championship season, and he wasn’t exactly waiting around to hear from Nykipiflugpuun Noortekoondis. Things with the team had gone less than swimmingly last year, with an awful start to the season, and then later being completely outperformed by his teammate Batu, whose dreadful luck eventually came to a juddering end.

Yet nor could Lukas count on his domestic team, EHF, getting in touch. He knew that Annika Hunnertwasser and the rest of the team there had been irritated that he’d chosen to stick with NN even once the Schutzenphalian team he’d driven for at Formeldrei level had been granted their licence. That was probably another bridge he’d burned. It left him longingly gazing at the list of World Grand Prix licensed teams, resigned to another year in WGP2, supplementing his income with a range of commercial endorsements, ranging in levels of dignity, from modelling for the premium gentlemen’s outfitters of Uberwienerschnitzelstadt, to his appearances in the Gestufftnichtmehr adverts, advising people to give constipation the chequered flag.

His agent, Patrick Senefelder, arrived in the cafe, spotted Lukas and waved, and headed over having head-tipped a waitress to bring over coffee. Patrick was smartly dressed as always, pulling out a chair and setting down a copy of the paper.

“What do you think of the offer from Carvenlo?” Lukas asked him.

“It’s not an offer, Lukas, it’s just a test drive.” The waitress brought water with the coffee, but Patrick had already dowsed his client with a hefty sploosh of cold water.

“I know, I know, but it’s exciting? An actual WGPC team?”

“Lukas, on the grapevine, I’ve heard they’re inviting plenty of other drivers. Including some names who’ve competed in WGPC before, and from last hear in WGP2, guys who beat you up on the racing circuit week after week.”

“Hmm, so I shouldn’t get my hopes up?”

Patrick shrugged. “From what I hear there are no Liventian drivers competing for the spots. And obviously no one from last season, they didn’t have a licence. If there’s going to be a team who’ll reach down to WGP2, then this could be the one. I’m just saying, if you get any offers from WGP2 teams, then, it’d be my suggestion you jump on them.”

Lukas nodded. His placid demeanour and the relative sporting backwater he represented meant he was not the most attractive option for any WGPC team looking to make a splash to take a punt on, or to otherwise mix their metaphors.

“OK. Still, I’d like you to sort out travel to Liventia for me. I’ll attend the test. And in the meantime, keep putting out feelers to WGP2 team. Just because I start the season in Formelzwei doesn’t mean I have to end it there!”

[TJUN-ia]

The Shores of The Bay of Peace
Portside, JB-TJUN-ia
9:15 pm TDST

The infinite waters of the Bay of Peace are well known across TJUN-ia. To many, they are an example of what the nation is supposed to be: a nation of peace, one where anything is possible to those who live within it. This is TJUN-ia in its most basic form and to the one from Galar, the driver of apples and unexpected success, it is a fact he can be most thankful for.

Not much has happened with Lane Carter since the end of WGPC18, where he managed to claim two important distinctions in his debut top-flight campaign: a Top 10 finish in his Race Eelandi VTGP Machine, despite his rocky start, and actually making a friend in this sport in the form of the Inkhallen from Squidroidia called Daryl Mizushima. Since the final race in Liventia, he's mainly been in the shadows as he came to terms with his unexpected success and his potential future within the sport. Going from being mediocre in WGP2 to a Top 10 driver in WGPC was certainly a surprise and it...actually felt quite good to do that, to prove the doubters wrong. It was nice for things to go his way for once.

It wasn't all rosy, however, as he may have suggested to overs. His short appearance in the Burnam Bros Classic in Hapilopper was a reintroduction into how fun racing could be, but it also brought back the thoughts he felt back during the latter stages of the second half of Season 18...thoughts he felt he could never share with anyone, let alone the one they were directed at. Eventually, the thoughts manifested into one of the most confusing dreams he had ever had, one with so much info he had to write it down somewhere so that he could try to understand its meaning. Many say that dreams are omens for the future...but what type of omen was it trying to tell him? Was it going to be painful...or maybe...fruitful. He didn't know for sure...he didn't even know why he was hoping for it to be fruitful!

But the situation within his head can rest for another day, he had other matters to worry about now. He was still a representative of twii.tur, he was still a Tropicorp Development Driver and, finally and with much anticipation, he was still a racing driver for Race Eelandi VTGP. R.L. Cruisin may not turn out to be his teammate in the near future, but Lane was still loyal to Team Toralmintii and no matter who his teammate would be (please be him, please be him, please be him), Lane was going to treat them with as much respect as he treated Cruisin last season. The Apple Man was back and, for the first time in his career, he felt truly ready to take on everything before him - for Galar, TJUN-ia and...the one in his dream.

[Auruna]

Viska's Off-Season
The off-season felt like eternity for the ones back at the factory but Viska is never quiet during that time. Work on the development of their second WGPC car was nonstop, aiming to improve upon their results after a great struggle during the first half of the previous WGPC season. Aside from car development, they struck a partnership with WGPO newcomer from Diarcesia, Pryfors Bilar in WGP2. The partnership proved to be successful after a consistent challenge for the top spots in the standings and it helped Viska and PB, and their drivers, especially Laura Haukanna who finished P6 in the standings. Overall, things were looking up for everyone involved. Later in the off-season, there was a surprising development in the MNA: Schkeska has returned from the depths of Talenpuohoina (or Talenpuoho / Väälehättäinä, the underworld in Aurun mythology) and made a sudden entry in the inaugural WSRC season. While they were very unlucky, it meant that Schkeska is seriously back in motorsport and due to that international entry, it prompted Viska to take over Schkeska's WGPC engine development with their own in-house engine department while retaining the Schkeska name. This is soon followed by the official renaming of the WGPC team, removing Schkeska and VSK in the name although this change doesn't affect the logo of the team. Anyway, the events happening between the big three are getting interesting.

Viska Factory
Sterlennau, Auruna
Certain parts of the factory are quieter than the rest, especially Jöna's office where in both day and night it is quite peaceful. It was another usual day at the office until the sudden visit of Viska Racing CEO, Kiiro Sÿrenna. Everybody knows that whenever Kiiro is at the factory, something important happened. As Kiiro enters Jöna's office, he caught Jöna off-guard, dozing off with a cup of coffee on one hand and a phone on the other. Kiiro takes a seat before waking Jöna... which just startles the Viska team principal and Kiiro greets him with cheeky "Hevän paivu."

"Oh shit-- Kiiro, man.. don't startle me like that." Says Jöna before properly greeting Kiiro. He sets his phone down and drinks his coffee as Kiiro waits for him to finish."

"You done?" Kiiro asks.

Jöna nods and leans back, still exhausted after helping out with the preparation for the pre-season. "Alright Kiiro." He says after a sudden burst of energy. "Why are you here?"

Kiiro smiles and leans forward. "I just want to congratulate you guys on securing a spot in this season's WGPC grid and on Viska getting a sister team!"

The latter confused Jöna to which he asks Kiiro. "Viska's sister team? What have you been doing?"

"Allow me to explain. I'm sure you remember Pryfors Bilar or PB for short and their partnership with us in WGP2. Well, as it was successful and they did get their deserved results, they got promoted to WGPC so we continued our partnership with them but now, as sister teams. It means that they would get funded by the MNA, they will have access to our tech and facilities, we will handle most of the R&D and we have a control over one of their seats. Is that clear?"

The exhausted Jöna took a while to process all of the information. "Yeah." He finally responds.

Kiiro stands. "Alright, that's all! I'll leave you guys alone now. Also, go get some rest mate, you won't function efficiently like that, aight? Now, good luck!" Then he leaves the office.

Shortly after Kiiro left, Jöna rests his head on the desk until a notification on his laptop caught his attention followed by the sound of someone rushing towards his office -- it was Artur who rushed to Jöna for some reason. Concerned, he asks Artur. "What's wrong?" Then directs him to a seat and sets him down and get him a cup of water.

After catching his breath, Artur tries to tell something to Jöna. "Mate, it's about Goita."

Oh boy, another thing to worry about. Jöna then asks. "What happened?"

"Unfortunately, he is unable to compete this season, I'm unsure why as he didn't elaborate further. Although he said not to worry about it too much."

"Maybe that's what the notification is for... alright, let's not worry about it as he said so but it leaves us with an open seat. Olivia is getting the first seat, no doubt. So that's just one seat to worry about. Looks like we need to start our quest on finding a replacement due to this sudden development."

The room went silent afterwards as the two tries to come up with an idea. "Should we host a trial for that?" Artur suggests. It's not a bad idea as it is a tried and tested method to find the suitable driver for the team but Viska isn't a fan of said method as it limits their choices which they don't like especially when certain drivers couldn't sign up for it. But this time, they had no other choice and Jöna agrees with the idea for now.

Jöna turns to his laptop and starts to compose an announcement for the rare Viska WGPC Driver Trials. After sending out the announcement, he starts to look into most of the drivers who are in the WGPC driver market, looking for the drivers that interest him and he thinks are suitable for Viska.

Viska Racing WGPC Driver Trials
Viska Racing invites all WGPC drivers for the rare opportunity with the team in Viska's Driver Trials. First come first serve as only 8-10 drivers will be able to participate as there are only a few cars available due to the merging of the Viska Junior Formula and the eventual Aurun WGP3. The trials will be held at Veratuna Circuit and will start as soon as at least 8 drivers are confirmed for the tests otherwise, the trials will be held on Wednesday, 6 October.

---

At an apartment in Sterlennau, Auruna
Late in the morning, Laura wakes up after a trip from Karalinne to Sterlennau for the preparations for WGPC 19. It was a long and exhausting trip especially since she rode her motorcycle for the entire journey and it was also due to a late-minute call from Jöna about her seat at Viska's sister team, PB-Viska. Overall, her waking up really late was understandable. She gets up while still drowsy, feeling like she needed more sleep though she tries to combat it. She reaches for her cellphone that has been buzzing since before she woke up. Confused, she checks the screen. "Alarm - 0700" Followed by countless missed calls and messages from Haru, Jöna and her siblings. Her eyes then turn to the phone's clock, it completely wakes her up and she instantly stands and quickly gets dressed. "Ya küj.. I'm late!" She exclaims while rushing out. She gets on her motorcycle, puts her helmet on drives off to Viska's factory.

Minutes later, she arrives and a soon after she parks, she rushes inside the factory only to bump into Artur who is on his way out for his break. Laura apologised before realising who she bumped into. Then she kept apologising. Artur just smiles and greets her. "Good morning Laura."

"Good morning, Artur. Again, so sorry!"

"Don't mind it. Anyway, why are you in a hurry?"

"Oh I was... er..." Laura pauses, looking stupid after being asked by Artur. As she couldn't answer, she just shows Artur the missed calls from Jöna. "That's why."

"Oh, so you woke up late, correct?"

Laura nods, embarrassingly but Artur's calm nature outside of the track felt comforting.

"Anyway, the reason he tried to call you is probably because he's really busy and wanted to inform you about it. If you wanted to ask about your seat this season, don't worry too much about it, the first PB-Viska seat is yours. A flight is not yet scheduled so you still have some time to rest."

Laura releases a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness." But then she realises that she doesn't have any other reason to be at the factory. Thinking that she probably wasted their time, she thanks Artur before turning around. Artur stops her and invites her for lunch then at a distance, he spots another rusher. This time it's Erik Halenna, Laura's race engineer and it seems like he's in the same situation as her. Artur yells to call over Erik and explain basically the same thing as earlier with Laura.

"So there's no need to rush, you two. You know Jöna. Anyway, come with me for lunch, both of you probably didn't eat because of that. So let's go."

---

Veratuna, Auruna
The off-season has been kind to Kinu after the previous WGPC, he has been honing his skill though simulators and appearances in AtMA although his popularity because of that slightly concerns him but no matter, his focus is on racing. It was a long wait for him and since then his buddy, Lukas Ziuvin has been busy with other important matters especially his return to the AEC leaving Kinu alone with the WGPC stuff. Staying up late one night, he studies the teams that are competing and following the news to learn more about their driver situations while composing an email for send to all of the teams.

"Hm, the strong performers last season would be difficult to get into. Preston and Nexus would probably retain their drivers. Viska is in an interesting situation. The ones from WGP2 would be great choices and the rest... damn never I have been so indecisive."

He clicks on another tab to look at the driver list for WGPC.

"Most of them are returning, no surprises." As he scrolls down, he sees more familiar names. "Dario's returning, he's a strong choice, I'm second best in the end so it'll be tough to go against him for a seat. Oh? Daryl's also back. I still have that gift card, I think, from last season. Didn't get a chance to thank him. Damn.. only one of us previous Motorworks drivers aren't on the list."

He stops and ponders for a bit about what he needs to do next. He made his goal to race again and he wants to stay. He has proven what he's capable of before so there's a slim chance for a seat. Only time will tell. He eventually sends his email to all of the teams and he leaves his computer to rest for a bit on the sofa.

"A very slim chance is still a chance that I get a seat this time. Heh, I wonder how will everything play out."

To: WGPC Constructors
From: Kinu Luminna (knlumi@mna.au)
Subject: WGPC Seat

---

Greetings,

I am Kinu Luminna, an Aurun racing driver with a year of experience in WGPC. Although it was only a few starts, I have performed well with the Motorworks team, earning a few points finishes and getting a memorable P3 in the Abovian Grand Prix's sprint race in a Motorworks car, a slightly inferior machine compared to the rest of the grid. In the end, I finished second best among my teammates. During the previous season, I have earned the reputation for fierce defending, being one of the drivers that are difficult to pass. I still have more to offer and this time, in a more capable machine so that I am able to prove myself on relatively equal equipment. I am even willing to participate in your trials or tests that you may have so I could get a chance for a seat in your team.

My racing career goes all the way back and to summarise: I won the Viska Junior Formula Championship in my first season then I was promoted to AEC-J and eventually I ended up in AEC where in my debut season, I won the championship alongside my colleagues. I suddenly stopped in 2018 due to an injury and spent two years recovering.

If necessary, I can bring a sponsor that has been with me since my time in AEC to help your team go through the season. It is completely optional as we don't rely much on sponsors in the MNA. I am completely fine with the role of second driver if that is what you are looking for.

Sincerely,
Kinu Luminna

[Hodori Motorsports]

“Carvenlo’s invited me to test.” Sayono read through the message again. She excitedly looked at Hakusa and An’ue. “Carvenlo.”
“We’re well aware; you haven’t stopped talking about it since the message hit our inboxes.” An’ue focused on the slices of meat sizzling on the table’s hotplate.
“I haven’t been keeping up with the preseason this year. I know it’s a long shot, but what about Polaris?” Hakusa asked.
Sayono fell silent for a moment. “I’m not sure I can work effectively with them.”
“And that’s assuming they even make the grid.” An’ue retrieved the cooked beef. “So they’re probably out. Only other team that’s shown interest is TRÆ.”
“One of the teams that cheat with active aero? Unless they’re running without this year, no thanks.” Sayono almost snapped the chopsticks in her left hand. Taking a deep breath to calm down, she then turned to An’ue. “Sign me up for the Carvenlo test.”

[Squidroidia]

The driver spots were starting to fill in left and right for the new WGPC season. Most, if not all, of them were expected, as the season was only so young - Toralmintii back to TRÆ, Rudy Edwards staying with Preston (With Archer on the way), and Daryl's friend Lane Carter returning with Race Eelandii. Fireline and Bitten Heroes were set to form a joint-entry onto the grid too, as the Togonistani entry KRT has had their driver lineup sorted according to rumors. As the pieces fell onto the grid, it came down to the nitty gritty.

As far as Daryl knew, there were 2 options on the table - Viska were offering tryouts to the first 8 drivers who signed up, with a seat at the Aurun-based outfit on the line. The other, and considerably more risky option, was throwing a shot in the dark and submitting his resume to Klianiota and Palmsti'i over at Race Eelandii in hopes of landing a seat with Lane Carter. The dream. The Galarian and the Inkhallen side by side, on the same team, fighting for the title as one. Unity in a sense of darkness. A fairy tale told out in a series of drives to survival.

As Daryl loaded up his computer, he contemplated both options. The first one was as simple as landing an email at Jöna's desk - Daryl Mizushima was going to the Viska Racing trials. The second, well, required a bit of digging on Daryl's part. Finding the WGPC 18 results was easy... The rest was hard.

To: jklianiota@raceeelandii.tur, ipalmstii@raceeelandii.tur
From: Daryl Mizushima
Subject: My Resume

---

Hello there,

I am here to submit my resume of previous motorsports results for a chance at a drive for Race Eelandii! VTGP in the upcoming World Grand Prix Championship season. Please understand that I was a rookie driver last season, with only 2 Grand Prix race stars last term due to my situation at Motorworks. I have competed in races here and there in IRACT and NSSCRA, and was slated to drive in the IBA World Cup of Motorsport. Hopefully those results would be enough to be considered for a seat at this fantastic race team.

Thanks,
Daryl Mizushima, #63

---

WGPC 18

Grand Prix of Turori - Qualified 28th, DNQ
Grand Prix of Hodori - Qualified 24th, finished 20th
Nimban Grand Prix - Qualified 26th, DNQ
Aurun Grand Prix - Qualified 28th, DNQ
Abovian Grand Prix - Qualified 14th, DNQ for Feature and Sprint races
Gran Premio di Nekoni - Qualified 24th, DNQ
Grand Prix Filindostan - Qualified 28th, DNQ
Hapiloppian Grand Prix - Qualified 6th, finished 9th
Grand Prix of Liventia - Qualified 24th, DNQ

Non-Championship races
NOTE: These races were both reverse grid based on standings after the Abovian Grand Prix, in both races I started on pole
Grand Prix of Twicetagria - Finished 5th
Grand Prix d'Île Saint-Joseph - Finished 2nd

IRACT

NOTE: Both races were ran during NSSCRA 10
Lao Long 380 - Qualified 8th, finished 3rd
3rd Rumble in the Rice Fields (Plum Lake) - Qualified 21st, finished 2nd

NSSCRA 10

FunStar Squidroidia 400 (Spartansburg) - Qualified 30th, finished 36th

[Siovanija and Teusland]

Stelburg, Teusland

”And Heinz-Otto Junker WINS the WGP2 championship! Junker is the champion! What a performance, what a season! An incredible debut season! The pride of Teusland…”

“What a moment that was, we all remember where we were that day. And now, ladies and gentlemen, our honoured guest tonight at the Stelburg Auto Show Gala Dinner, WGP2 champion and TMW driver Heinz-Otto Junker!”

Heinz-Otto stood up and waved to the gathered crowd. He didn’t really know anybody here - it was mostly the big-wigs of various companies and of Stelburg’s elite, wanting to see the latest sportscars on offer.

But he did take a minute, as he walked up on stage, to reflect on what a difference a year could make. A year ago, how many of the people in this room would’ve recognized him? Let alone call him an honoured guest. Sure, he had won the Formula ST championship, and that would’ve got him name recognition - but these people were crowding him, wanting to get pictures with him. The CEO of the TeusBank had asked for an autograph, ‘for my son,’ but Heinz could tell by his wink that it was likely for the man himself.

The months since he’d taken the championship had been a whirlwind. It had been an incredible season in WGP2 - full of some of the top young driving talent in the world. He still wasn’t quite sure how he’d come away with the trophy. He’d made friends, learned more about himself and the people around him, and achieved a life-long dream, racing against some of the best drivers in the world.

He had been working all offseason, trying to make sure he could do it again. There were plenty of rumours that TMW would get offered a spot in the upcoming WGPC season, after the incredible WGP2 debut. But nobody knew quite for sure. “As soon as I know, you’ll know,” he’d been told by Magnus Schonau, the TMW CEO. He’d stepped up his training regime, working with his familiar trainers back home in Stelburg. Runs everyday, weight training, and more - all part of the job description.

There was also a bit of driving - it was winter in Teusland, which meant it was difficult to run the cars. He’d had a chance to run a few laps in the Formula ST spec W23, fromhis debut season at TMW, when the team headed to the Circuit Mariahilf in Prinz-Eugens-Land, a much warmer climate. Sim racing, too - much of the cash he’d won from the WGP2 season had gone into getting a proper setup into his apartment in Stelburg, and he loved to compete on various online platforms.

But most of all, he couldn’t wait to get back into the factory, helping develop the car for the next season. It was always his favourite day of the year - getting into the cockpit of the new ride for the first time. He’d done some sim days at Litzengau, but he just wanted to get out on the track.

Stepping up on the podium at the Auto Show, there was a full-scale replica of his WGP2-winning car on the floor. It was tough to look at during his speech - the distraction of wanting to be back out on the track, racing again.

“It’s an honour to be here tonight,” he started. “I can’t quite believe it’s all real sometimes, haha. But I’m happy to be here with a lot of the people who made it possible - plenty of our sponsors and biggest supporters back home. Myself, Joy, the team, we all couldn’t have done it without you.”

Heinz may have been a championship-winning driver. But he was certainly not an incredible public speaker - he could handle interviews, but such a crowd was atypical for any Teus. He thought about his teammate at TMW last season, Joy Wingelaar - a great driver, friend and teammate. He hoped she’d be back with the team this coming year, no matter where the team was competing.

“I hope everyone has been enjoying the show so far! I know that TMW has some special new productions coming up that we’re really excited about, and I personally am just happy to see this beautiful thing in front of me here,” gesturing to his race car. That got a laugh from the crowd. “So again, thank you for your support, and let’s have a great season coming up!”

He got back to his seat, the TMW head table. His mom and dad were there - Gotthard had kept a bit of a lower profile since the championship win, and had almost managed to develop a neutral relationship with the TMW leadership. Magnus Schonau was there too - and he had a big smile on his face when Heinz came back. “Nice speech,” he started. “Can I talk to you for a moment?”

The two got up and walked out into the main hall.

“I got the call,” said Schonau.

“The call?” said Junker, before realizing. “Wait, th-”

“We’re in. WGPC next season. You feeling ready?”

“Of course,” said Heinz.

There was a fire in his heart now - the offseason preparation was about to go into overdrive.

Heinz-Otto Junker signs for TeusBank TMW Rennsport

Litzengau, Teusland

Jorn Feistel paced the halls of the TMW factory in Litzengau. He occasionally took the time to glance up at the screens in his office, showing the Stelburg Auto Show gala that evening that much of the TMW brass was attending.

Thank God I got out of that one, he thought. Jorn was far too tired to attend an event - he’d been working double time for weeks now as the team prepared for what was ahead of them. And now that their WGPC entry was confirmed, there was even more to do.

He’d already called in the leads of the chassis department and the engine department to have an urgent meeting - they needed to step up production, and get the car out on track in Mariahilf. It would still be a little while yet before the Stelburgring was ready for testing - luckily, TMW had invested plenty of money in simulators for their drivers.

As Jorn tapped away on his computer desk, sending emails to various departments to organize meetings, he saw a message pop up on his screen: A New Year, from Joy Wingelaar.

Jorn smiled - he’d had a good relationship with the Licentian driver, and was quite happy with how the Heinz-Joy duo had gotten on last season. It made his job much, much easier to have two drivers who respected each other on and off the track, and both had sky-high potential, too.

He read the email, with Joy expressing her interest in returning to the team and wondering if they could have a conversation to discuss it. The team wanted her back, too - so he figured the conversation would be quick. He typed out a reply.

To: Joy Wingelaar
From: Jorn Feistel
Subject: RE: A New Year

Hi Joy,

The offseason has been fun - very busy, of course. I hope you’ve been enjoying the time off.

I’m really glad you reached out. We actually just received the confirmation today that we’ll be participating in WGPC this season. It’s a really exciting time for the whole team. And we would be overjoyed if you would want to continue on with us this year.

I’d love to have you to the factory in Litzengau to finalize the contract details, and get both you and Heinz in the simulator giving feedback as we keep working on next year’s car. Last season you showed your great talent and incredible potential across the season - and we want to see you realize it in black and gold.

Please let me know when you can be in Stelburg, and I’ll have the details ready for you.

Thanks,
Jorn

With both of the team’s young talents from last season ready to sign on the dotted line, Jorn could turn his full attention to the car development - he was quite happy to avoid all the drama of silly season. His email sent just as the head of engines, Paulus Noffke, knocked on his office. 10:30pm already, he thought - this night was probably never going to end.

TeusBank TMW Rennsport offer a contract to Joy Wingelaar

[Diarcesia]

OOC: The below happened before this post.

One Month Before WGPC 19

Sara Luna

The Diarcesian WGPC driver has been in a very good mood so far. Sara Luna is understandably very busy in the waning days of the offseason, between taking care of her kids, practicing her racecraft in her home simulator, and plotting her course once the next season is underway, like where would she get to drive for. She already has a pending offer from PB to drive for them, after she went to Pryfurium to see for herself what Aldauren is up to, so her door to returning isn't completely shut. It is still too early to accept though: her experience told her there will be other teams who may take a shot at signing her.

She goes back to checking her emails during her break between errands to find one from a certain Tauro Volante. Attached is a contract for her to join Badai Angin, one of the established teams in the series. She drafts a reply in her mind to polish later. She wants to attend the Badai Angin private test.

Aldauren Ginintella

"What do you mean that our WGP2 license is in limbo? Is that so... That complicates things. Thanks for letting me know... Yeah... yeah... keep me posted. Bye!"

Aldauren facepalms on receiving the latest development. He has little day-to-day duties in PB's WGP2 operations, but he is now the manager of PB's budding junior driver, Sam Blaatschapen. Where should she go if PB has no WGP2 team? She has a lot of untapped potential and it would be a waste if she gets no drive this season. The team principal files it away to deliberate later. Next on his list are emails from aspiring WGPC drivers. Where to begin? He recently sent an offer to Sara Luna to be a PB driver. As expected, his assessments of her private test is nothing short of spectacular, even if he notices that the way she drove the car through PB Raceway has differences from how she handled the Volkov Mark II.

As for the others, there is an email from Aaron Deering. By many respects, his bio makes Aldauren think Deering as the Adaikesian equivalent of Blaatschapen, only backed by deep pockets. He doesn't exactly need a pay driver, but looking at his previous seasons, Deering can't be ruled out, either.

Next, there's one from Adriana Kowalski. She is right on her point that she has an inconsistent record, Aldauren thinks candidly, If I want a street circuit specialist, however, she is my first choice. Adriana is definitely a talented driver, if not exactly fitting Aldauren's strategy of picking a car and driver combo that can perform consistently across all tracks. What he is trying to formulate into words is that Adriana may find herself happier if she finds a car that takes full advantage of her strengths. He doesn't feel that PB is that car.

The final WGPC driver email for now is from Kinu Luminna. He is able to drag that motorworks car to a podium in the Aboveland sprint race. Should he get a PB seat, he could be able to unleash his full potential, maybe even put up a challenge to the championship leaders.

Aldauren sighs, his next step is to decide who to invite for the first batch of private testing. Sara was the very first by virtue of being merely a train ride away...

The scouting reports are fresh in the team principal's memory, having read them earlier in the day. I really wish Sara accepts the offer. She's my very first choice for the open seat. But if she doesn't, then... then he begins to write on a clean page of his notebook.

Aaron Deering - Tons of potential, up-and-coming driver. But I already manage Sam Blaatschapen's career, and Deering and Blaatschapen both have similar profiles. She has priority by default over Deering.

Cocoabo #23 - Crazy driver, extremely quick, very agile, a potentially perfect match for our car. Ain't called Fast Cocoabo for nothing. Despite that, can be cautious and measured if the situation calls for it.

Adriana Kowalski - She is strong where Cocoabo #23 is weak. Has room to improve when it comes to overtaking or late braking. Not sure if she'll like our car. But Fireline last time was wise to pair the two since they complement each other.

Kinu Luminna/Dario Nülkeschläger - Motorworks (i.e. spec car) drivers with podiums while driving them. Do NOT rule out. In Dario's case, he won a WSRC race, and Sara personally recommended him as a potential option.

Anneliese Devereux - Drives like Laura, however she sometimes gets her emotions ahead of her. Our team's car is built around Laura's style to help her drive consistently in fast or slow circuits. Curious on how Anneliese would do with it.

Janne Laukannen - Personally a wildcard choice. But he is really popular in Diarcesia nowadays. WGP2 fans here are divided between rooting for Laura or rooting for Janne. Couldn't blame them. Once he gets his experience, he might as well become the fastest driver in the multiverse. Goes back to the Blaatschapen situation, sadly. Maybe if Nexus offers a deal, I might be persuaded?

Sam Blaatschapen - Penned for WGP2 for White Unicorns (i.e. PB junior team), but the license is in limbo. Kind of a last resort to put her directly to a WGPC car.

Tyche Burke - My teammate from WGP3 at some point, sharing a few constructors' champs, so I know how she drives. Also competed in the XIII Olympics in the demonstration auto racing event. But she is the VERY LAST option. Feels like nepotism of sorts to pick her. Will only consider her if Sam is an untenable option for WGPC.

Aldauren now has a shortlist of people to invite for the next batch of testing. He begins writing a test invitation email to Anneliese Devereux, Cocoabo #23, Kinu Luminna, and Dario Nülkeschläger. He'll also give Sam Blaatschapen a test drive to see if his prior assessments on her are accurate or maybe even better than expected.

September 21

Sara makes a surprised noise, as if she saw blood or something— "A message... from TRÆ. They ask me if I am interested in an opportunity to race for them. No seat yet," she tells Tom.

"That's looking good and a pleasant development. You have a reputation now, eh?"

"Don't tease me like that. It's something, to be contacted by the defending constructors champions."

Tom snorts. "You underestimate yourself, Sara. So what now? Are you gonna respond?"

"They didn't say anything about a private test. I'll reply in a sec. I'd be pleased to meet with Edvin Pekkanen and Terho, if they want to proceed with some discussions, virtual or personal."

"It's definitely an opportunity you can't pass."

"Well, yes, dear. The lack of mention of tests is less than ideal to be honest. TRÆ's track record is beyond reproach, but what if they slipped in form... end up like MRT in WGPC 18?"

"Hmm, nothing is guaranteed Sara."

"We're doing simulator runs of all the teams' cars in WGPC 18. Once we get to TRÆ, at least I have a rough idea. That may work. Yeah, I'll send word to Edvin that I like to proceed with the negotiations."

"That's good. What about the other teams? Which ones do you like to approach?"

Sara nods. "Aside from those who reached out to me first?"

"Yes. Take your time."

She thinks about it for 30 seconds. Her stint with Schkeska Rally during the WSRC allowed her to take a closer look at Viska's WGPC operation and only has favorable words for them. Carvenlo, in WGPC Motorworks guise, is able to secure a podium spot for Dario Nülkeschläger and Kinu Luminna. And she likes driving Race Eelandii's cars during their tryouts last season.

"Uh... Viska, Carvenlo, and Eelandii. I can talk with them," she says. "In the back of my head, I can also think of TMW and Kaylan, but their lineup is more-or-less locked. Say no more about Preston, either."

"Six teams in total. Plenty of options to consider."

---

Actions
1. Aldauren offers the remaining PB seat to Sara Luna
2. PB Test Invites are sent to:
-Anneliese Devereux
-Cocoabo #23
-Kinu Luminna
-Dario Nülkeschläger
-Sam Blaatschapen
3. Sara will attend Badai Angin's private test
4. Sara expresses her interest in a potential TRÆ seat
5. Sara starts negotiations with these teams. If test invites are extended, she will attend those:
-Viska
-Carvenlo
-Race Eelandii VTGP

[Aboveland]

October 4th
Iskajärvi International Airport
Iskajärvi, Aboveland

"I love you," Janne whispers sorrowfully with a pout. Sami sighs, trying and failing to be the stronger person as a frown tugs at the ends of his mouth.

"Me too," he mutters, pouting back. They embrace one more time, Sami patting Janne's back lightly, the other clutching onto the muscles on the sides of the athlete's chest through his light jacket. As they pull away, they stare at each other, neither willing to take the step away.

"Bye, then," shrugs Sami, Janne leaning in one more time to kiss his cheek. He gives a single nod and blows a kiss as he takes a step back. "Bye Sami," he blurts, turning on his heels and rushing towards the airport.

As he marches towards the glistening building, he sniffles, but from the oddly chilly October breeze instead of the sadness of leaving Sami behind. He's going to a test for Carvenlo Racing—which frankly, covers to a point the emotional cost of separation. The advertisement-clad doors part and allow him past the rumbly entrance carpet into the main check-in area of Iskajärvi International. The muted, muffled, rapid clack of his carry-on wheels against the carpeting planks are his personal opening theme song for his upcoming season: the signal that the journey has just begun. It takes him a moment to find the Nordenflyg desks after having flown Arcticair so many years—oblivious to the fact the Arcticair desks have been replaced by the old-new airline's own. He's rather early—well in character for seventeen-year-old Janne, not so much for his current self—which means the queue isn't yet insufferable. He trots towards the end of the ten-strong line: in front of him, a family of a billion, stacked to their ears with neck pillows and diaper bags. Beyond them, nobody looks to match the profile of a three-time world champion.

Right. He brings his hand to his forehead and pinches his skin between his eyebrows. He'd forgotten about that.

It isn't that Terho precisely is an unpleasant person, to Janne at least, or that they got along anything close to badly; in fact, he'd felt most supported by him during the WGP2 off-season, in the... brief, odd period of time where he was-but-wasn't a TRÆ driver, and where he’d felt almost snubbed by Edvin. They had supposedly been partners, too—not in that way—at the very start of his career, in a mentor-mentee situation—though he was sure Terho would agree that the extent of their collaboration had been greatly overblown by the media. He’d been extremely absent throughout most of his career bar his debut season, and even then he had had to admit that he wasn’t of much use in conditioning him to get to grips with a Nimban Chase Cutter. And they hadn’t ever mentioned Terho’s MRT, post-Mercer-Daly accident tantrum, God forbid, but perhaps that had pre-conditioned Janne to believe, and Terho to recognize, that maybe he wasn’t fit to be the best mental coach, either.

Yet as the line advances a spot, and the little boy in front throws his plushy cat violently onto the ground, kicking it far off to the check-in desks for the next airline, a familiar face with an uncannily caveman-like beard—kinda hot, Janne gasps inwardly but a little too loudly—strolls through the airport entrance. He forces himself to fast-track his thoughts to their conclusion: maybe Terho sans Edvin, as his flashy, decorated, pretty-faced agent, would make for smoother sailing.

Terho’s slapstick clumsiness, evident when alone at home and exposed to Edvin the times he thought he was alone, is nowhere to be seen by the time he arrives at the end of the line next to Janne. He hadn’t even had to look for long to spot the Kylmajärvan, as if he’d had him mentally located already.

“Hi!” the central Abovian greets, strongly, but quietly enough not to draw attention to himself—though so quietly that the whining of the kid in front almost drowns him out.

Wearing a disguise? Janne thinks to say, but they’re not friends yet. “Hi,” he replies with a complimentary, lipless grin. “Just in time,” he adds, but projecting his voice further than before. The tantrum in front sounds to have gotten out of control.

Terho nods. “I made an effort this time.” He shuffles sideways into the line to slot in between Janne and the lady who has lined up behind, watching as the little kid in front of them tugs at his dad’s coat sleeve, of the hand angrily clutching his tiny wrist. “Stay still, Roni,” the burly man hisses through his teeth. So called Roni growls like his pet plushie feline would, but as he kicks at the floor to break free of his dad’s grasp he looks up at Terho, and his attitude suddenly becomes trance-like. Terho turns his back, his eyes bulging.

“I’m not wearing a disguise,” he clarifies unprompted. “I’m just off duty.” Janne nods.

Terho continues. “Here’s your boarding pass;” he hands Janne a slip of paper. “Makes things easier.” Janne inhales to reply, but he’s not quick enough. “Oh, and”—with an upheld ‘wait’ finger, he fishes his phone out of his pocket. “Look!”

Janne squints. He’s holding up a screenshot of an e-mail—difficult to read with the strange shakiness of Terho’s hands. ‘Janne Laukkanen confirms his intent to participate in Viska’s driver trials’, it reads. Oh, I did?

“Oh!” Janne exclaims, his voice cracking at the surprise, but followed by a skeptical frown. “But… might that not hurt our Carvenlo chances?”

Terho grins, perhaps surprised unduly at Janne’s awareness of negotiation etiquette. “I know, I know—but don’t worry,” he assures, trailing off. Janne’s face inquires, forcing Terho to… come up with something.

“I don’t suspect they’ll be shooting offers on the spot; and hey… should things go awry, we need a plan B.” He looks Janne up and down, then turns his head towards his carry-on. “Maybe I should’ve told you earlier.”

The Kylmajärvan looks down softly. What next, cooking me a meal? “Thanks,” he smiles. “Really, thanks.”

Terho shakes his head. “It’s just my job… now.” He stretches out his free hand as his shoulders drop and his eyes turn kind. “Blank slate?”

Janne nods eagerly, but with movements short enough to make himself look mature. “Sure. Blank slate.”

As he takes his hand, a shrill voice chirps from below, beginning strong but devolving into a dissatisfied moan. “Daaaaad, it’s Terho Talvelaaaaaa!”

“Quiet Roni,” Dad hisses, seemingly undecided between appearing unfazed and businesslike or booming like an ogre. “Stop being ridiculous!”

[United Adaikes]

Logan Gibb was happy about hearing some talk in the grapevine. 'Alas, my sources do not fail me', he thought.

To: Juracai Klianota <jklianota@raceeelandii.tur>, Intoreil Palmsti'i <ipalmstii@raceeelandii.tur>

Subject: Offering Aaron Deering, the best Adaikesian racer!

---

Hi!

We apologize if you have already received a previous email related to this one. We heard from chatter around WGP that you are looking for drivers. We at the United Adaikes Performance Fuels are eager to present Aaron Deering, the 19-year old racing prodigy from the United Adaikes. You might not have heard about him, but we assure you everything is true on what you will learn about his skills. Some local fans have also uploaded videos on social media and video sharing platforms, but we would be delighted if he could show you firsthand what he can do. He has won all legal and known open-wheel racing competitions here in United Adaikes for the past three years. We feel that he is ready to be in the international open-wheel racing scene.

We are looking forward to hearing from you! If you are interested or have any queries, do not hesitate to reply to this email!


Logan Gibb
Deputy Director
Office of Public Relations
United Adaikes Performance Fuels
A subsidiary of the United Adaikes Oil Company

Without knocking, Aaron entered Logan's office.

"Still no response?" Aaron asked, sitting on one of the lazy leisure chairs in Logan's office.

"Though not directly sent to us, I heard that Viska will be organizing trials for potential team drivers," Logan replied. "I'm doing this another email just to say you will be at Veratuna tomorrow."

"Wait, tomorrow? I have not prepared anything yet," Aaron bellowed.

"Well, you should be, now. You want to be an international race driver, right? You know how to get out of my office." Logan said, shooing Aaron.

Aaron finished writing the email for Viska.

To: Viska Racing

Subject: Aaron Deering on scheduled trials

---

Hi!

We have heard that you will be holding a Driver Trials. We are pleased to inform you that Aaron Deering will be there to showcase his skills on October 6th.

We are looking forward to hearing from you! If you are interested or have any queries, do not hesitate to reply to this email!


Logan Gibb
Deputy Director
Office of Public Relations
United Adaikes Performance Fuels
A subsidiary of the United Adaikes Oil Company

[Liventia]

Carvenlo Liventia Airways Racing trial day
Each of the seven drivers at the Carvenlo trial day – R.L. Cruisin, Dario Nülkeschläger, surprise entrant Sara Luna, Sayono Souzare, Janne Laukkanen, Lukas Fichter, and Adriana Kowalski – was given a stock Carvenlo Racing WGPC car and given four single-lap runs of the Talbott Autodrome circuit. Erica Okamura hadn't responded, while Ted Pressley had already signed elsewhere.

At the start of the day, the drivers gathered in the pitlane around team principal Troy Wilkins, who explained the format of the day-long trial.

"We've got three standard cars here, so they're not necessarily fitted for you. Yet. We want to see how each of you does in these cars, so you'll each get an outlap, a hot lap, and an inlap, and we'll repeat that three more times," he said.

"Each round of those laps is going to be ranked, with the fastest scoring one point and the slowest scoring seven. So, at the end of the four rounds of qualifying sims, we'll have an idea of how fast you are in our car. Both your lap times and your ranking will be taken into consideration," Wilkins explained.

"Afterwards, we have some souped-up GP4-level cars for each of you to take on two 90-minute free sessions around this circuit to set the fastest lap you can in each of those cars. And you will rotate through those cars, so each of you will get a chance to drive in all of them for fairness. Why GP4 cars? Well, we don't really want to risk breaking any of the parts on our WGPC cars, and we also really want to get an idea of each of your pure racing talents. We already know of R.L.'s, having worked with him before, but this will really set you apart.

"Again, the quickest lap from each of those sessions will be ranked into an overall ranking – your qualifying sim total scores multiplied by three, and your GP4 sessions multiplied by two. That final ranking will also form part of our considerations."

Qualifying Sim 1

1 SZR	Sayono Souzare		1:41.443
2 NÜL	Dario Nülkeschläger	1:41.560
3 LNA	Sara Luna		1:42.147
4 CRU	R.L. Cruisin		1:42.163
5 LAU	Janne Laukkanen		1:42.314
6 KOW	Adriana Kowalski	1:42.620
7 FIC	Lukas Fichter		1:42.731

Wilkins looked over at head of motorsport Matt Portland and whispered. "Souzare. No surprise, she's already a WGPC-standard driver. A solid run," he nodded.

Qualifying Sim 2

1 LAU	Janne Laukkanen		1:41.348
2 CRU	R.L. Cruisin		1:41.542
3 LNA	Sara Luna		1:42.356
4 KOW	Adriana Kowalski	1:42.643
5 NÜL	Dario Nülkeschläger	1:42.906
6 SZR	Sayono Souzare		1:43.412
7 FIC	Lukas Fichter		1:43.415

"That Nexus and TRÆ background really coming through there," Wilkins noted. "And Cruisin? He's been around the block. Disappointing from Souzare though, a full two seconds back."

Qualifying Sim 3

1 LAU	Janne Laukkanen		1:41.802
2 LNA	Sara Luna		1:42.094
3 NÜL	Dario Nülkeschläger	1:43.014
4 SZR	Sayono Souzare		1:43.015
5 CRU	R.L. Cruisin		1:43.717
6 FIC	Lukas Fichter		1:44.362
7 KOW	Adriana Kowalski	1:45.437

"That's good consistency from Laukkanen," Portland said over the comms set to Wilkins. "He seems to suit the car."

Wilkins concurred. "Talbott is a new track to him, too," then added: "Do you think Nexus would let him come here for the year?"

"Don't worry about that for now, Troy. There's still a long day ahead. And I'm sure we could make something work."

Qualifying Sim 4

1 CRU	R.L. Cruisin		1:41.520
2 KOW	Adriana Kowalski	1:41.731
3 LAU	Janne Laukkanen		1:41.873
4 FIC	Lukas Fichter		1:41.947
5 LNA	Sara Luna		1:41.976
6 SZR	Sayono Souzare		1:42.322
7 NÜL	Dario Nülkeschläger	1:43.759

"That's the first we've seen from Kowalski," Wilkins remarked. "I know she's highly rated at Fireline. Good to see."

Qualifying Sim combined results

LAU	Janne Laukkanen		10	1:41.348
CRU	R.L. Cruisin		12	1:41.520
LNA	Sara Luna		13	1:41.976
SZR	Sayono Souzare		17	1:41.443
NÜL	Dario Nülkeschläger	17	1:41.560
KOW	Adriana Kowalski	19	1:41.731
FIC	Lukas Fichter		24	1:41.947

After the first stage in the WGPC cars, the drivers re-gathered in the pits to go over their data and mingle among themselves, while Wilkins and Portland retreated to the offices. "I think we can comfortably eliminate Fichter at this point," Portland offered to a nod from Wilkins.

"There's a definite top three there, but Luna's fastest lap was actually the slowest of all seven," Wilkins pointed out. "So do we want consistency, or raw pace?"

"Both, obviously," Portland interjected. "And we seem to have that in Laukkanen. Souzare is quick, too, and she has the WGPC know-how. I think the GP4 round will really give us a better idea."

Afternoon practice 1, GP4 cars

1 LAU	Janne Laukkanen		2:37.622
2 SZR	Sayono Souzare		2:37.699
3 FIC	Lukas Fichter		2:37.846
4 KOW	Adriana Kowalski	2:38.168
5 NÜL	Dario Nülkeschläger	2:38.555
6 LNA	Sara Luna		2:40.103
7 CRU	R.L. Cruisin		2:41.068

After 90 minutes, the seven cars came in for a well-deserved break before another rotation in each of the vehicles. Surprisingly, Fichter of Schutzenphalia and West Ruhntuhnkuhnland had managed to find some speed to clock the third-fastest lap, with veteran R.L. Cruisin not at all feeling at home in the slower cars.

Afternoon practice 2, GP4 cars

1 FIC	Lukas Fichter		2:37.547
2 NÜL	Dario Nülkeschläger	2:37.551
3 SZR	Sayono Souzare		2:37.634
4 LNA	Sara Luna		2:37.686
5 LAU	Janne Laukkanen		2:37.823
6 KOW	Adriana Kowalski	2:38.958
7 CRU	R.L. Cruisin		2:41.074

Wilkins now had a dilemma. Somehow, Fichter had shown supreme racecraft in the GP4 cars to top the timesheets in the second 90-minute session. However, he was quickly rescued from his thoughts by Portland, who noted: "Perhaps this just means Fichter ought to go to a team with a slower car. He can't quite get used to the power of our car, but had the raw talent to do what he did in the GP4s."

"Well, Matt, I was hoping R.L. would put together something a bit more solid in the afternoon…" Wilkins' voice trailed off.

"R.L.'s probably just not used to the cars, and I don't blame him. His racecraft is not in doubt. I think we saw that from the qualy sims."

Carvenlo trial day final ranking

LAU	Janne Laukkanen		42
LNA	Sara Luna		59
SZR	Sayono Souzare		61
CRU	R.L. Cruisin		64
NÜL	Dario Nülkeschläger	65
KOW	Adriana Kowalski	77
FIC	Lukas Fichter		80

The final results were published and made known to the drivers, who were then told that the team would be in touch if offers were made.

Back in the office, Wilkins and Portland had reached a very difficult conclusion. "I don't think either Souzare or Luna would be happy being a test driver, and we already hear that Luna has offers elsewhere," Wilkins pointedly said.

"It's tough but I think we have to go with the morning sessions in our car, and what we know they can do," Portland nodded.

12 hours after the drivers had left the circuit, the emails had gone out.

Carvenlo Liventia Airways Racing offers its main driver seats to Janne Laukkanen and R.L. Cruisin, with Sayono Souzare on standby. Dario Nülkeschläger is being offered the team's test driver role.

[Ethane]

Catherine was at the local racing track just outside Swanmouth, the city where she had spent her childhood years. Fond memories of this place followed her throughout her racing career. This was the place she first raced, nervously dragging her underpowered kart around the undulating bends of the track. This was the place she first won, qualifying in third before putting on a fine performance to win the race, two overtakes on those sweeping long bends round the outside, finding the traction off the exit of the corner. This was the home of the racing association that supported her as she tried to take a step into the WGPC. A step, tragically, that she had not managed yet.

And this was the place where she would try again. To start the journey back to WGPC again. It had been a while coming - seasons since Catherine had been given a shot at WGPC. But the circumstances were here again. The club she was a part of had some money - money they were willing to give to promising drivers who had a shot at racing right at the top. They believed she could. And she just needed to prove that. She needed a shot. Hope was her shot. Catherine had to prove to the teams in WGPC that she was worthy of a seat, good enough to perform at the top level and score points. Good enough to make a name for herself.

And here she was, in front of the new Fireline-Heroes team. This was her shot to take a seat on the part-Ethanian team. Born out of Fireline Motorsports and Bitten Heroes, Fireline-Heroes is a collaborative effort to share resources and push towards the front of the WGPC field. The welcome included catchphrases and slogans like that and more - all your traditional marketing spiel. Appearances were crucial - Catherine had to make sure she appeared engaged and interested in the team's ethos and aspirations. Secretly, it bored her. But she could not let that show. They would need any driver they signed to be fully behind this, and ready to back and share the team's values in everything they did, such as in press conferences. Fake it until you make it, right?

Daniel Barton finished his talk on the ethos and values of the team. Priorities, right? He cleared his throat. "Catherine, are you ready?"

Catherine nervously looking up at Daniel, the CEO of Fireline Motorsports. She met his eyes and smiled, trying to hide the butterflies that were building up in her. I have to nail this. The situation was made worse by the rain. She never was as good in the rain as in the dry. It had been raining all morning, so the track was rather damp and slippery. To link this all together into an impressive lap was going to be a challenge. Everyone was silent as Catherine made her way out to the car.

Breathe. Prepare yourself. You've got this. Catherine was slightly shaky as she climbed into the car, a modified WGP3 car more suitable for this track than the higher-powered vehicles used in WGPC. It was the skills that counted, not the mastery of the vehicle at this stage. She clumsily belted herself in, betraying the lack of confidence she was feeling. This is not the time to back down. Aggression. Channel it. Use it. This is the moment to show them what you are made of.

Ignition on. The sound of the engine purring could be heard over her inner monologue. The pressure was on. Check the settings. It was all good. Trundle up to the starting position. Catherine paused and looked to her left, into the sheltered area where the Fireline-Heroes leadership team was standing, watching. They had all the screens to watch the telemetry. They would know every action she took. She had to be on point.

Silence. Focus. Alone. Red lights flashing. Green lights. And she was off. Foot on the throttle. Make sure not to spin the wheels. Brake with plenty of time to spare, accounting for the wet surface. Cradle the car into the corner. Gently does it. Maximum rotation. Make sure to get on the throttle early - it's easy to push on the exit of this corner. Set up for the next one. Watch out for the standing water on the entrance. Swing the car to the left. Brush the kerb. Gentle on the throttle on the exit - easy to lose it here.

Fast speed corner coming up, bending to the right. Stay calm. This was the bit Catherine struggled with the most. It was full throttle, typically. Get the line right. Keep the throttle on the floor. Make sure to not catch the kerb on the inside. It could spin the car.

It was too late to back out when Catherine realised her mistake. The overspeed caught her out, the wet surface making it very difficult to take the corner at full throttle. The pressure had gotten to her. She hadn't accounted for the standing water. Running wide, the understeer catching her out. She tried to catch it, overcorrected. Hit the kerb on the outside at an awkward angle. Spinning. Waiting. Crunch. Into the barrier. Her hopes of driving with Eminent over.

Catherine just hoped that someone else would give her a chance to prove herself. She knew she had the talents. She just needed to show someone that.

---

Daniel was at the Eminent headquarters, meeting with the driver scouting team to see where they were at with finding a racing driver. It was obvious that Catherine was not a suitable fit for the team - she still had much to learn and would not be able to deal with the pressures that came with this team on and off the track. And it was always clear that she never really engaged with the ethos of the team in the introduction speech he gave at the Swanmouth Motoring Association before the trial run. No, she would not fit. Her being Ethanian could not give her a free pass into the team.

"Who have we got?", Daniel asked the team, attracting their attention to try to proceed with the meeting. "Have we got any drivers we can approach?"

Silence. But then one person spoke up. Percy Hierro. "I've got a candidate. You know her, though she raced with the WGPC team before you joined the team."

"Who is it?"

"It's Adriana Kowalski, Daniel. She's driven with Fireline at the WGPC and WGP2 level before. She had some really good performances last WGP2 season, winning the first two feature races. I really think Adriana has what it takes..."

Daniel pondered for a moment. He had seen Kowalski's talents before, from the sidelines. She certainly was a fine driver. She held the team's ethos and values dearly in every aspect of her life. She fitted the vision of the team, and had the ability to perform at the level which Eminent were targeting.

He looked at Percy, paused, then nodded. "Yes. Percy, if you wouldn't mind arranging a meeting with Adriana for me. I'd like to discuss with her about this team and her vision for her career. I think she is potentially the one."

[Auruna]

Viska Factory
Sterlennau, Auruna
It hasn't been a day after the announcement and there are already five drivers who confirmed for the trials, this surprised Jöna so much that he's still in disbelief. He never thought that they'd get a handful within a day of the announcement but there it is and it actually happened. Now he has to wait for a few more then the trials will start. With that out of the way, he focuses on the cars, he heads down to the main factory floor to check on the mechanics and engineers. He's mainly there to observe but then he spots Viska's WGPC Technical Director, Hori Nÿkkänö, who has been under the radar, avoiding all attention but it was for the best. Jöna calls her over and asks her a few questions.

"How's the car?" Jöna asks.

"Since we had a lot of time to work on it, I'm pretty confident about it. The car is just wonderful now and the evolution of the engine is the icing on the cake. Just a few tests here and there to iron out all the small kinks and we're good to go."

"Great, since I had scheduled the reveal after the driver trials."

"We have trials?!"

"Yeah, not the usual Viska way, I know but we have a reason for it."

"Looks like I need some catching up to do."

"Well then, I'll leave you to continue your work. Apologies if I have been a bit of a distraction."

"Oh no, not at all."

"Heh, keep up the good work."

Jöna then returns to his office, feeling optimistic for the rest of the day though he's a bit stressed but that's all a part of the team principal's work, especially at Viska. It was a lot to handle but he proved to be a great leader throughout the previous seasons. "It's time to call it a day for me, I guess." He thought to himself as he gazes at his desk then at his office computer and personal laptop. Then suddenly, he hears a buzzing sound and he looks around the room and finds the source of the buzzing. While his office isn't that large, he had some difficulty in searching then a notification from an MNA Chat App is heard from his laptop. Before tending to that, he traced source of the buzzing back to his office chair, his phone seemingly fell off from his pocked and was left on his chair.

He immediately grabs it and checks who was calling and to his surprise, it was Kinu Luminna. Isn't he a free agent? It looked like he made his first move and it was on Viska. Jöna answers, he greets and apologises to Kinu, who was patiently waiting the whole time.

"Anyway, why are you calling?" Asks Jöna.

Kinu answers. "I just want to ask for some help." He pauses for a bit before he starts to explain. "You see, I'll be participating in PB's Test. I was surprised after they sent me an invitation. I know Viska and PB are close and are sister teams so I'll just need help with a trip to... er.. Diarcesia. Lukas is not with me this time so I'm having a hard time doing everything by myself."

"Oh so that's what is is." Jöna says as he sits down on his chair. "A tiny bit of help like that would be alright. I'll get you a flight"

Kinu thanks Jöna but before hanging up, he tells Jöna something else. "Also, I'll be in Viska's trials as well if you're not yet informed about it."

The surprised look on Jöna's face confirms that he didn't check his emails once for the whole day. "W-well, that's a surprise for sure. Anyway, I'll do anything to help you out for now. Good thing that you still have my number." He jokes around a bit to ease a bit of tension.

Kinu thanks him again and hangs up immediately after.

Jöna leans back on his chair, thinking about what happened. "It's an interesting development, never thought that Kinu would enter the tests but he did well last year so... yeah, and I won't be biased when it comes to our trials." After that, he turns off both computers and leave the office for the day. Everything was moving too fast that he felt he couldn't keep up. With a lot of things coming up, resting for the remainder of the day wouldn't hurt.

[Nico Hulkenberg]

Trials and Error

With the Carvenlo trial now over, Dario received his overall ranking compared to the other trialists. He felt like his pace had been quite good throughout the Carvenlo trial, but his overall ranking didn’t seem to reflect his high hopes. Although, he did have an idea of how to make it sound like the trial had gone a lot better than it had…

”Well, fifth-best driver in the trial isn’t much to write home about, although I’d argue that I’ve basically matched Crusin, with Souzare and Luna not far off, so I’ll just call it joint-second fastest. That sounds better.”

Making it sound better doesn’t nullify the fact that his qualifying pace was the bane of him - his first quali sim had gone brilliantly, with him being just over a tenth off of Souzare in P1, but the other three quali runs had gone terribly (1.6 seconds off in Sim 2, 1.2 off in Sim 3, and 2.2 off in Sim 4), showing that his one-lap pace was still quite far off his actual race pace. He’d have to find a way to sort this crucial problem out in time for the other trials, which were coming thick and fast. Speaking of trials, Dario still had to respond to a few things…

From: dnülke@hülkenbergmail.hü
To: ‪jklianiota@raceeelandii.tur‬
CC:‪ ipalmstii@raceeelandii.tur‬
Subject: Race Eelandii Seat Enquiry

Gruß Gott to you both!
You may have already known of me before, but I’m Dario Nülkeschläger - former WGPC Motorworks driver, former HMG-Rallye driver, hottest guy on the grid, et cetera, et cetera. Anyhow, I’ve seen that you wanted all resumes and financial stuff to be sent to this email address, so that’s what I’ll be doing.

---

Financial Stuff
I am sponsored by both HMG (Hülkenberger Motorengesellschaft) and the Hülkenberger Rennverband, as well as numerous Hülkenberger products ranging from hair care products to sandwich shops. My sponsors are willing to dump as much money as possible in order to obtain a seat for the upcoming season, due to my überfamous status back home in Hülkenberg (when you’re the only driver who have made it out of the country, you’re always going to become insanely popular), as well as due to the fact that I’m just that good ;) supposedly one of the best advertising assets in the country. Who knew, eh?

---

Resume/Results
If I could describe my results in just one word, I would have to say “mixed”. My race pace has been shown to be very good, and my podium at the Abovian GP really showed this.

WGPC:-
Team: WGPC Motorworks
Best Qualifying Position: 4th
Average Qualifying Position: 16.7th
Best Race Finish: 3rd
Average Race Finish: 18.9th
Position: 19th (15 points)
Compared to Teammates: 
8 points above Kinu Luminna
13 points above Daryl Mizushima
15 points above Charyseine Valkyria
—————————————————————————————————————————————
WSRC:-
Team: HMG-Rallye
Best Race Finish: 1st
Position: 6th (34 points)
Compared to Teammate:
7 points above Sakke Pajari

---

Well, that’s the end of my email. I hope you’ll be able to get back to me, and if so - I hope we can work something out. :)

Many regards,
Dario Nülkeschläger
(Former) WGPC and WSRC Driver

One email down. Next up: Pryfors Bilar.

From: dnülke@hülkenbergmail.hü
To: aldauren.ginintella@pryforsbilar.dc
Subject: Re: Pryfors Bilar Test Invitation

‪Servus! ‬
‪I’m just responding to say that I’d love to attend the test for PB, and that I’ll be there as soon as I can - there’s a lot of tests on at the moment, so I’ll mark your test in my schedule and make my way over there in time for it.‬

Mit freundlichem Gruß,
Dario Nülkeschläger
(Former) WGPC and WSRC Driver

That wouldn’t be all, though - there was still another test to declare interest in.

From: dnülke@hülkenbergmail.hü
To: [Viska Racing]
Subject: Viska Racing Test

Hallo!

I’m aware the test is very soon, but I’m emailing to let you know that I’m willing to participate in your driver trials.

If this opportunity is unavailable - don’t hesitate from getting in contact, just ping me a message back to say so.


Mit freundlichen Grüßen,
Dario Nülkeschläger
(Former) WGPC and WSRC Driver

With all his emailing for the day over, Dario decided that Carvenlo could wait. There was plenty time to decide, after all.

[Togonistan]

Dom Falepeau's apartment
Tushlark, Togonistan

The sun was shining through the windows and into Dom Falepeau's penthouse apartment. Clock on the cupboard was showing way past midday, but the man himself still hadn't gotten himself out of the bed. The celebrations of his good friend Ryan's birthday the previous day had been wild and Dom had gotten back home and into his bed by 7 in the morning. The smirk on sleeping Dom's face was an indication of him having a lovely dream, however, that dream was cut short by his doorbell suddenly ringing. Slowly, Dom opened his eyes and got out of the bed, walked over to his wardrobe and found a pair of jeans and a t-shirt to put on. Having done that, he took a quick look into the mirror, before moving on to open the door. Standing on the other side was Mareta Loferi, Dom's personal assistant who was also acting as her agent.

''Good morning!'' Dom said while yawning.

''Morning? Dom, have you even checked the time? The sun is high and shining.'' Mareta said while stepping in and opening her purse to bring out her tablet. That little piece of technology was something Mareta was always carrying with herself and had proven to be a massive help in her line of work. It acted as her notepad, time planner and thousands of other things at the same time. ''You haven't forgotten about our meeting again, have you?''

''No, of course not,'' Dom said and moved into his kitchen area while Mareta was taking a seat on a sofa in the living room. ''Want some coffee?'' Dom asked while turning on the machine. He himself sure needed one right now.

''Actually... yes, I wouldn't mind. One of the few places I can be sure to get a good one,'' Mareta replied as she placed the tablet on a glass table in front of her.

''Haha, yeah. If my time with MRT taught me anything, it was the value of a good coffee,'' Dom prepared two cups and brought them to the living room. He placed one of them in front of Mareta and took a seat next to her.

''Thanks. Now that you mentioned it, the new season of WGPC is starting. Do you have any ideas regarding that?''

''If I can get a seat, I sure would like to remain part of it,'' Dom replied and took a sip from the cup, ''however, I have no clue which way to look at. I haven't heard much from MRT after last season. Only contact I've had with them is one of the team mechanics, who said he had lost his job and told me about some rumours of them having financial struggles.''

''I've gotten some information. Indeed, it doesn't seem like MRT is going to be part of it. Right now, there are eleven teams confirmed to participate... some new ones, some old-timers. Carvenlo is making a return, BH and Fireline seem to have merged into some sort of a joint effort, Kaylan and TMW are in it after the last WGP2... along with PB-Viska, which according to my information acts as some sort of a sister team to the regular Viska. Now that I mentioned it, Viska sent out a message that they are hosting trials... and seem to be the only team doing so. Or the only team publicly announcing them, at least.''

''Viska trials? I want to check them out. Is there anything else?''

''Well, there is something from Eelandii VTGP. Looking for a driver too, no direct mention of any trials though. But Juracai Klianiota seems to be the contact person to start negotiations with. Look, I have the page open here.''

Dom leant forward and took some time to read through the announcement. ''Yeah, those guys always seem to do things their own way. Probably a difficult door to open, but we should get in touch with Juracai. I've been looking at Badai Angin too. Something may come from there, but nothing is certain. So, it looks like I need to keep my eyes open and hope something will come.''

''Something like TRÆ, perhaps?''

Dom laughed. ''Sure, I wish. Three time constructors champions surely want me on their seat.''

Mareta looked at Dom with a serious face. ''Dom... haven't you heard? Terho Talvela announced his retirement, TRÆ is currently having a serious dilemma. Some speculate Sara Luna is taking that seat, however... TRÆ might look for a younger driver instead to take that empty seat. Considering that Junker, Pressley, Melani and Laukkanen are likely to stay with their teams, that would leave you as the youngest possible option with the best track record.''

Dom fell into thoughts. ''If you put it like that... sure. But, come on now, isn't that a bit of a stretch?''

''I wouldn't say so. Sure, it would take a couple of stars to align right, but considering the current situation, I wouldn't say it is too far-fetched.''

''Hmm... so, hypothetically, it would leave Viska, Eelandii and TRÆ as options? And maybe Badai Angin? Yeah... there might be some hope.''

''Well, if you want a seat, we should get on with it, don't you think?'' Mareta said and started sending out e-mails from her tablet.

From: Mareta Loferi <mareta@df-racing.tn>
To: Viska Racing
Topic:Viska Racing WGPC Driver Trials

Greetings.

My name is Ms. Mareta Loferi and I am writing to you on behalf of Mr. Dom Falepeau. I would like to let you know that Dom Falepeau is interested about participating in Viska Racing WGPC Driver Trials. Mr. Falepeau has also established a long-lasting partnership with Élégamment, a widely popular Britonish fashion brand. Should your team decide to sign Mr. Falepeau for the upcoming season, Élégamment is ready to provide a sizeable sponsorship package for your team. I believe a potential partnership between Mr. Falepeau and Viska Racing would be beneficial for both sides. I shall look forward to hearing from you.

Yours Faithfully,
Mareta Loferi

From: Mareta Loferi <mareta@df-racing.tn>
To: Juracai Klianiota <jklianiota@raceeelandii.tur>, Intoreil Palmsti'i <ipalmstii@raceeelandii.tur>
Topic:Driver offer to Race Eelandii VTGP

Greetings.

My name is Ms. Mareta Loferi and I am writing to you on behalf of Mr. Dom Falepeau. I would like to let you know that Dom Falepeau is open for negotiations about taking a seat in Race Eelandii VTGP for the upcoming season. Mr. Falepeau has 3 years of experience in WGP2 category and was driving for MRT in WGPC last season. Mr. Falepeau has also established a long-lasting partnership with Élégamment, a widely popular Britonish fashion brand. Should your team decide to sign Mr. Falepeau for the upcoming season, Élégamment is ready to provide a sizeable sponsorship package for your team. I believe a potential partnership between Mr. Falepeau and Race Eelandii VTGP would be beneficial for both sides. Attached to this message is Dom Falepeau's full history about his motorsports career (attachment 1) as well as additional information about Élégamment (attachment 2). I shall look forward to hearing from you.

Yours Faithfully,
Mareta Loferi

Attachment 1
Attachment 2

[Abanhfleft]

How does it feel like to be called "the man who saved an entire racing team?"

William Archer wouldn't know the answer even if it waltzed up to him in a clown costume.

It was mostly because he didn't really see himself as some sort of savior. He was just a guy in a car going fast and in circles. Well, not really literally in circles (no, that was what his father did), but the point still stood. William saw himself as just doing his job. He didn't come into WGPC looking to save a team from the brink of shutting down. And yet that was exactly how the people of Hapilopper and, more specifically, Preston Autos saw him.

William Archer's path to the pinnacle of open-wheeler motorsports was a rocky one. He probably wouldn't have even made it into the series because of a rookie mistake, but perhaps this was how it was always supposed to happen in order for William to become the driver that he was today. Nothing handed to him on a silver platter; he had to work to get himself where he was now.

Failing to check if the emails he had sent had actually made it to their intended recipients was, as improbable as it may sound, the first step to WGPC for William. As a result, he didn't get into any of the teams he would have liked to have driven for in WGP2, and he had to scramble to find himself a seat before the official start of the season. He eventually found a seat with Lisander's Bitten Heroes, but his time with that team was turbulent, to say the least. William had missed out on preseason testing so he literally had to learn how to drive the car on the fly, with actual championship points at stake. There was definitely some favoritism towards his teammate, given that she was also a Lisanderan and all, and at first this grated William to no end. But while he didn't know it at the moment, that whole season actually taught him how to become a better and more supportive teammate. It also taught William to calm down a bit more both on and off the track, and to be both more patient and persistent. All three of those things finally came together in the final race of the season at the Crossbay Circuit where he won his first and only WGP2 race, the Nimban Deuxieme Prix.

When WGPC 18 rolled around, William wasted no time in shopping himself out to the teams, and he made the decision to sign for the very first team that made an offer to him. That team turned out to be Preston Autos Grand Prix Racing. William had been offered the second seat at Preston due to him being the fastest driver overall at the team's private test, and when the offer arrived, there was no hesitation on William's part at all. He had said that Preston was his priority, and that he was interested in participating in their project

Preseason was amazing. William finally had the time he needed to get acquainted with his new ride, and to him it really was a match made in heaven. And then the season began, and William retired from the first two races in a row. It was a very rude awakening for the young man. Just because everything had finally gone his way at the start didn't mean that that was how things were going to remain right up to the end. That, coupled with the equally poor performances of William's teammate Rudy Edwards, had almost caused Preston Autos to pull the plug on their WGPC project. The team was this close to shutting down after just one season.

And then, to everyone's surprise including his own, William Archer won the two non-points races in the middle of the season.

It was easy for a lot of people to dismiss William's two victories. He won only because there was nothing on the line. He only managed to keep himself in front because of the reverse championship order grid. But to the higher-ups in the Preston team, and especially Marty Lewis, those two wins were what changed the course of history, at least for Preston Autos GP. Where others saw only sheer dumb luck, Marty saw the proof of the team's progress, proof that they had both an actual race-winning package and a driver capable of putting said package to the top step of the podium. The sight of William standing on top of the rest of WGPC for those two races also lit a fire underneath Rudy Edwards, and come the next points-paying event in Nekoni, Rudy followed in his Fleftic teammate's footsteps and took the checkered flag, putting him in with a surprise shot at the drivers' championship and proving once and for all that the PGP-01 was a car capable of winning races even with everything on the line.

It would have been a massive mistake for Preston to let go of this partnership with massive potential, and indeed the team made the decision to secure the services of both Rudy Edwards and William Archer for next season even while Terho Talvela was celebrating his third (and as it turned out, final) world championship. Edwards, Hapilopper's champion-designate, and Archer, the young man soon anointed as "the savior of Preston in WGPC" who hadn't even celebrated his 20th birthday yet. Such a formidable duo indeed.

Of course, back then those agreements were just verbal and between gentlemen. Now though, with a new season looming on the horizon, Preston finalized their contracts with their two drivers for the coming season. William was more than happy to put pen to paper and commit himself to Preston for a second season.

William Archer and Preston Autos, together once again. He was more than excited to see how this season would pan out, especially compared to the last one. Preston had already proven that they deserved to be in this competition last season. Now the job was to build on all that success and, as their main sponsor's slogan goes, Get Good.

[Auruna]

MNA News
- Viska Racing to retain Olivia Stone, offers her a seat for WGPC 19. There's no surprise as Olivia Stone has been Viska's star driver since their debut in WGP2 III. While she struggled the previous season, Viska team principal Jöna Ekeränna supports the Nimban driver and is optimistic of their continued partnership for this WGPC season.

- Viska Racing hosts their rare drivers' trials due to sudden, complicated matters with Abdoulaye Goita. Seven drivers confirmed to participate. This rare Viska trials will be held on Veratuna Circuit this week.

- Laura Haukanna confirms drive for PB-Viska in WGPC. The young Aurun driver recently confirmed her signing with the Pryfors Bilar WGPC team for this season after a successful season with them in the previous WGP2.

- Latest MNA policy now allows drivers and teams from the neighbouring Kingdom of Lassei and Allican to register in the MNA and be able to race in Aurun domestic series. In return, the MNA will get access to the Kingdom's top racing facilities and will provide an opportunity for several of MNA's domestic series to expand into Lassei and Allican. The AtMA is rumoured to be the first to hold an MNA race in the country.

- Livonsk Circuit currently undergoing monthly maintenance and Novi Berenta undergoing major layout changes, local scheduled races cancelled.

---

WGPC 19 VISKA TRIALS
Welcome to the Viska Trials where the WGPC Viska works team is on the hunt for a second driver. Due to the sudden nature of this event, it will only be held on one of the MNA Trinity Circuits - Veratuna. Participating drivers will be flown to Veratuna, Auruna with all expenses paid for by the team. Viska doesn't only look for the driver's skill and synergy with the team and car but also for their passion for motorsport. The event will also serve as a small look into Viska's Driver Development Programme which is a part of the Viska Driver Academy.

The Circuit

Veratuna Circuit
Length: 7.718km (GP Layout) | 5.45km (Short)
WGPC Lap Record: 1:52.965 (GP Layout) | 1:30.485 (Short)
MNA Lap Record: 1:47.881 (GP Layout - Artur Iljakov, AEC 2007) | 1:24.637 (Short - Lirei Nakinno, AtMA 2005)
Located just outside of the Aurun capital, it is the home of AtMA, Veratuna Circuit. It is made for high speeds and the original layout of the circuit is around 10km long and used the surrounding roads before shortening the track and incorporating the central part which was a former airbase. While it is the most aggressive circuit among the Trinity Circuits, Veratuna still features a variety of elevation changes that surround the flat central region.

Format
The event will be held on one day and may continue to the following day once certain situations arises.

-Trial 1-
Veratuna Circuit - Short
0830-0930 - 1 Hour Practice
0945-1015 - Traditional Qualifying
1030-1130 - Race

-Trial 2-
Veratuna Circuit
1330-1430 - 1 Hour Practice
1445-1515 - Traditional Qualifying
1530-1630 - Race

-Trial 3-
Veratuna Circuit
1800-1900 - Race (Reverse Finishing Order)

The Car
The cars that will be driven are tuned Viska Junior Formula cars with power units equivalent to the Schkeska VT-160F/H from Viska's WGPC 18 machine. Although there are no hybrid systems present on the VJF cars, it is nearly similar in performance as the WGPC 18 Schkeska-VSK Viska Racing VK-01H in most aspects and the speed is expected to be around 5% off the WGPC car. Only eight cars are available for the event due to certain circumstances with the VJF and the Aurun WGP3 programme.

-Specs-
Chassis: VJF-21
Engine: 2.0L Viska VT-200T V6 turbo
Power: ~650hp @ 8400rpm
Tyres: Kaikau-Mälö F3

The Drivers
Current list of drivers who confirmed participation for the trials.

#	DRV	Name			NAT
1	MIZ	Daryl Mizushima		SQR
2	LMN	Kinu Luminna		AUR
3	LUN	Sara Luna		DCS
4	LAU	Janne Laukkanen		ABL
5	DEE	Aaron Deering		UAD
6	NÜL	Dario Nülkeschläger	HÜL
7	FAL	Dom Falepeau		TGN
8	AKS	Adriana Kowalski Ela Lillian	VEZ

The trials won't start immediately after this post, so if any driver wants to participate, please inform me early so that I can include your driver.

[Valentine Z]

The Valentians – Chapter 2 – The Trial that Adriana Could.

"That was quite bad, not going to lie," I thought to myself. I mean, look at the scoreboard. I was second last, and even the guy who was behind me was only off by a few points. Or ranks, I don't know. I definitely think it was because of the car that I was driving - which is NOT to say that the car was absolutely crap, oh dear no. The car was definitely good, coming from one of the best teams, and I was honored. The thing is, I was new to driving it, I was not used to it. Couple this with the new code that I am using, and I could see why I was getting myself handed to me at the first few Qualifying trials. I was scraping the bottom of the ranks, or at best hitting the middle mark. Though of course, the 4th Sim got a bit better, I got second! Does that help with the afternoon practice? Well, not exactly - 4th for the first practice, then 6th for the second practice. I was getting used to the car, and then the others surpassed me so hard. I am not surprised. I have seen these people drive, and they are actually legitimately scary. I have to keep my eye on Janne and Sara not because I think they are up to no good; just formidable!

Racing is in their blood, which I don't have because I have to partition some of my storage space to some other subroutines. That is, racing is not fully in my codes, at least not now. I do wonder if I can make further adjustments, but the RATing is going to stay. Make due with it, I suppose. One thing that I was worried as of now is that I have not heard from any other teams as of now. Sure, Carvenlo was the first one I got, but that was not exactly sent personally to me. I'm kinda glad that they looked for me as well, I don't have to chase for trials anymore. One step at a time, hehe, I am not being too vain over it. I went back to my lounge to pack my stuff, then I went to my plane. It felt a little empty without Angela, since she went out on her own for WGP2. She figured that she was going to start from there because the people in WGPC terrified her, what with all of the best of the best here. That's fair.

I checked my laptop, to which I found another trial being posted. MNA News: "Viska Racing hosts their rare drivers' trials due to sudden, complicated matters with Abdoulaye Goita. Seven drivers confirmed to participate. This rare Viska trials will be held on Veratuna Circuit this week." My name wasn't in the list. O cholera. They were going to go for a trial, and I missed out. Well, nearly! I frantically checked my email, looking at what went wrong. I sent it to their team, right? Yeah, I sent it to Viska as well. "I will gladly accept any trials that you are offering." But ehhhh, I am not angry here; seeing how this is the literal start of the season, a lot of email are going to go through, and there are going to be a few which would end up in junk mail, or were lost somehow in the bandwidth. I remembered that time where Angela tried to send an email to her main base of operations, something about one of their data centers needing maintenance. That email never went through, because a squirrel got onto the power line and zapped itself dead, along with the Ethernet line. On the upside, that DID actually pushed the much-needed update. Anyway, I am getting ahead of myself, so I went ahead and composed that email, making sure to mail Viska, and maybeeeee even will call them later if that is possible. "I, Zastępca Strażnika Adriana Krystal Desiree “Cudowny Manipulacja Światłem” Venus Kowalski Faith Stanisława Engelse I. Cherise Krystyna Zaborowska Sztormowska Pamela Alina Re. T. Lillian, would like to sign up and confirm my participation in the WGPC 19 Viska Trials."

If all else fails, I can call them like I said, or I might even spam them mails- ahhhh, of course not. That is the surefire way to get yourself rejected. That, or getting yourself delegated into National Armament Corporation Racing.

[Chromatika]

Anola Melani's Apartment
Myana, Myana Island, Chromatika

After the WGP2, Anola and her parents had decided that it would be best if she moved out; they didn't like their livelihoods to be utterly dominated by Anola's racing obligations. They helped her find a nice spot in Myana, only a few hours away from her parents; by being closer to her agent as well as some of the better local racetracks available, Myana fit the bill for the right spot for an up-and-coming racer to call their home.

Tonight, though, Anola found herself reading a pair of emails and wondering once again what the right choice was. First, there was the offer from Kaylan to return to Togonistan and work with Xander, Vladimir, Ted, and Simon again - to carry on the magic of the last WGP2 season to the senior level and to continue to build upon something that they had started. Then, there was the offer from TRÆ - an honor in itself. To be recognized as a prospect and to get an offer to try out was something else altogether.

However, Anola couldn't help but remember moments from the WGP2 season. When Ted had won his first race. When she had won her first Sprint race. When she had gotten injured. The moments with Xander, planning. The moments with Vladimir, going over turns. The moments spent with the engineers, trying to figure out the best configuration while staying within the rules. She knew how to work with those people - she knew how to be on the same page and to help them help her - wasn't that what they were to do?

She decided to make two calls.

First, she asked her agent, Rhianni Gea, to send a well-worded letter to TRÆ thanking them for the opportunity and the interest.

Then, she picked up her phone and called a number that she had called once a month for the entire offseason.

She and Vladimir had promised to stay in touch, and though it was so awkward, Anola Melani was someone who kept her promises.

On the other end of the video call was Vladimir, along with his wife Ilyana and their three-year old daughter, Svetlana.

"Hello, Anola," said Vladimir cordially, "To what do I owe the pleasure?" Ilyana and Svetlana waved from the screen.

Anola bowed, and then exclaimed, "Ready to get back to the track?"

Vladimir was caught off guard for a moment, and then laughed.

"I see that you've gotten the notice then," he teased, "I told Xander you would accept."

"Let's do it," she stated adamantly, "Let's get back out there and continue to build upon the teamwork that we showed. I know that I can do better."

"Elbow all well now?" asked Vladimir concernedly.

"Yep," Anola responded, and then took a few steps away from the camera and demonstrated that she had full range of motion. Vladimir nodded approvingly.

"All right," he stated, "See you soon."

"You're going to have to leave your family behind, aren't you?" asked Anola apologetically.

Ilyana smiled sadly, and answered, "Yes, he will. At least until Lana gets a little older. Don't worry though, we'll come to as many races as we can."

"See you soon," Anola said, and waved good-bye to Ilyana and Svetlana.

In the same chatroom that Ted, Simon, Vladimir, and Anola had used in the last WGP2 season to communicate strategies and plans to each other, Anola typed:

Code: Select all

#KRT

Then, she sent a message to Rhainni. It was time to book a flight to Togonistan.

Anola Melani accepts the offer from Kaylan Racing Team

[Auruna]

VISKA TRIALS RESULTS

Practice

Conditions:      	Dry
Predicted Optimal Time:	00:01:35.247
Session Length:	60 minutes
Circuit:        	Veratuna Circuit - Short

POS # DRIVER                                  	FASTEST LAP	GAP TO LEADER
 1  2 Kinu Luminna                            	00:01:43.056	00:00:00.000
 2  7 Dom Falepeau                            	00:01:43.219	00:00:00.162
 3  5 Aaron Deering                           	00:01:43.230	00:00:00.174
 4  6 Dario Nülkeschläger                     	00:01:43.316	00:00:00.260
 5  4 Janne Laukkanen                         	00:01:43.356	00:00:00.300
 6  3 Sara Luna                               	00:01:43.382	00:00:00.326
 7  8 Adriana Kowalski Ela Lillian            	00:01:43.644	00:00:00.588
 8  1 Daryl Mizushima                         	00:01:43.814	00:00:00.758

---

Qualifying

Conditions:      	Dry
Predicted Optimal Time:	00:01:35.247
Qualifying Type:	Traditional
Circuit:        	Veratuna Circuit - Short

POS # DRIVER                                  	FASTEST LAP	GAP TO LEADER
 1  8 Adriana Kowalski Ela Lillian            	00:01:37.206	00:00:00.000
 2  2 Kinu Luminna                            	00:01:37.222	00:00:00.016
 3  3 Sara Luna                               	00:01:37.227	00:00:00.021
 4  7 Dom Falepeau                            	00:01:37.257	00:00:00.051
 5  6 Dario Nülkeschläger                     	00:01:37.260	00:00:00.054
 6  4 Janne Laukkanen                         	00:01:37.328	00:00:00.122
 7  1 Daryl Mizushima                         	00:01:37.359	00:00:00.153
 8  5 Aaron Deering                           	00:01:37.398	00:00:00.192

---

Race

Conditions:      	Dry
Laps:              	28
Circuit:        	Veratuna Circuit - Short
Event:	Viska Trials 1
Safety Car Deployed on Laps:	
Cars on Grid:	8

Start       	POS  # DRV Name                                    Time      	Pts	Fastest Lap	
 1 AKS       	  1  2 LMN Kinu Luminna                            00:51:14.750	25		
 2 LMN       	  2  3 LUN Sara Luna                               00:00:20.554	18		
 3 LUN       	  3  6 NÜL Dario Nülkeschläger                     00:00:34.619	15		
 4 FAL       	  4  8 AKS Adriana Kowalski Ela Lillian            00:00:38.435	12 + 1	1:40.026	
 5 NÜL       	  5  4 LAU Janne Laukkanen                         00:01:06.489	10		
 6 LAU       	  6  5 DEE Aaron Deering                           00:01:23.006	8		
 7 MIZ       	  7  7 FAL Dom Falepeau                            00:01:48.824	6		
 8 DEE       	DNF  1 MIZ Daryl Mizushima                         Ret. lap 7	0

---

Standings

Pos # DRV Name                                     Pts
 1  2 LMN Kinu Luminna                             25
 2  3 LUN Sara Luna                                18
 3  6 NÜL Dario Nülkeschläger                      15
 4  8 AKS Adriana Kowalski Ela Lillian             13
 5  4 LAU Janne Laukkanen                          10
 6  5 DEE Aaron Deering                            8
 7  7 FAL Dom Falepeau                             6
 8  1 MIZ Daryl Mizushima                          0

Drivers who are underlined are likely to get offered a seat.

---

Practice

Conditions:      	Dry
Predicted Optimal Time:	00:01:58.911
Session Length:	60 minutes
Circuit:        	Veratuna Circuit

POS # DRIVER                                  	FASTEST LAP	GAP TO LEADER
 1  6 Dario Nülkeschläger                     	00:02:08.661	00:00:00.000
 2  5 Aaron Deering                           	00:02:08.670	00:00:00.009
 3  1 Daryl Mizushima                         	00:02:08.711	00:00:00.050
 4  3 Sara Luna                               	00:02:08.786	00:00:00.125
 5  7 Dom Falepeau                            	00:02:08.851	00:00:00.190
 6  4 Janne Laukkanen                         	00:02:08.882	00:00:00.222
 7  2 Kinu Luminna                            	00:02:08.952	00:00:00.291
 8  8 Adriana Kowalski Ela Lillian            	00:02:10.040	00:00:01.379

---

Qualifying

Conditions:      	Dry
Predicted Optimal Time:	00:01:58.911
Qualifying Type:	Elimination
Circuit:        	Veratuna Circuit

POS # DRIVER                                  	FASTEST Q1	GAP TO LEADER	FASTEST Q2	GAP TO LEADER	FASTEST Q3	GAP TO LEADER	FASTEST Q4	GAP TO LEADER	
 1  4 Janne Laukkanen                         	00:01:59.690	FASTEST : Q1	00:02:00.851	FASTEST : Q2	00:02:00.261	FASTEST : Q3	00:02:00.261	FASTEST : Q4	
 2  8 Adriana Kowalski Ela Lillian            	00:02:01.712	00:00:02.022	00:02:01.476	00:00:00.624	00:02:00.612	00:00:00.351	00:02:00.612	00:00:00.351	
 3  2 Kinu Luminna                            	00:02:01.920	00:00:02.230	00:02:02.073	00:00:01.221	00:02:00.928	00:00:00.667			
 4  6 Dario Nülkeschläger                     	00:02:00.666	00:00:00.976	00:02:01.853	00:00:01.001	00:02:00.954	00:00:00.693			
 5  1 Daryl Mizushima                         	00:02:00.872	00:00:01.182	00:02:02.135	00:00:01.284					
 6  3 Sara Luna                               	00:02:02.764	00:00:03.074	00:02:02.935	00:00:02.084					
 7  5 Aaron Deering                           	00:02:03.021	00:00:03.331							
 8  7 Dom Falepeau                            	00:02:03.408	00:00:03.718							

---

Race

Conditions:      	Dry
Laps:              	20
Circuit:        	Veratuna Circuit
Event:	Viska Trials 2
Safety Car Deployed on Laps:	3, 4, 5, 6
Cars on Grid:	8

Start       	POS  # DRV Name                                    Time      	Pts	Fastest Lap	
 1 LAU       	  1  4 LAU Janne Laukkanen                         00:54:30.346	25		
 2 AKS       	  2  3 LUN Sara Luna                               00:00:04.781	18		
 3 LMN       	  3  2 LMN Kinu Luminna                            00:00:37.053	15		
 4 NÜL       	  4  8 AKS Adriana Kowalski Ela Lillian            00:00:44.038	12		
 5 MIZ       	  5  7 FAL Dom Falepeau                            00:01:03.005	10 + 1	2:04.880	
 6 LUN       	  6  5 DEE Aaron Deering                           00:01:04.504	8		
 7 DEE       	  7  1 MIZ Daryl Mizushima                         00:01:11.895	6		
 8 FAL       	  8  6 NÜL Dario Nülkeschläger                     00:01:16.874	4

---

Standings

Pos # DRV Name                                     Pts
 1  2 LMN Kinu Luminna                             40
 2  3 LUN Sara Luna                                36
 3  4 LAU Janne Laukkanen                          35
 4  8 AKS Adriana Kowalski Ela Lillian             25
 5  6 NÜL Dario Nülkeschläger                      19
 6  7 FAL Dom Falepeau                             17
 7  5 DEE Aaron Deering                            16
 8  1 MIZ Daryl Mizushima                          6

Drivers who are underlined are likely to get offered a seat.

---

Race

Conditions:      	Dry
Laps:              	20
Circuit:        	Veratuna Circuit
Event:	Viska Trials 3
Safety Car Deployed on Laps:	
Cars on Grid:	8

Start       	POS  # DRV Name                                    Time      	Pts	Fastest Lap	
 1 NÜL       	  1  1 MIZ Daryl Mizushima                          00:45:16.711	25		
 2 MIZ       	  2  4 LAU Janne Laukkanen                          00:00:36.621	18 + 1	2:04.872	
 3 DEE       	  3  5 DEE Aaron Deering                            00:00:45.672	15		
 4 FAL       	  4  7 FAL Dom Falepeau                             00:00:52.292	12		
 5 AKS       	  5  3 LUN Sara Luna                                00:01:01.470	10		
 6 LMN       	  6  6 NÜL Dario Nülkeschläger                      00:01:23.976	8		
 7 LUN       	  7  2 LMN Kinu Luminna                             00:01:29.505	6		
 8 LAU       	DNF  8 AKS Adriana Kowalski Ela Lillian             Ret. lap 13	0

---

Standings

Pos # DRV Name                                     Pts
 1  4 LAU Janne Laukkanen                           53
 2  2 LMN Kinu Luminna                              46
 2  3 LUN Sara Luna                                 46
 4  1 MIZ Daryl Mizushima                           31
 4  5 DEE Aaron Deering                             31
 6  7 FAL Dom Falepeau                              29
 7  6 NÜL Dario Nülkeschläger                       27
 8  8 AKS Adriana Kowalski Ela Lillian              25

Drivers who are underlined are likely to get offered a seat.

---

Jöna's Notes
Daryl Mizushima
- Known to be great in the wet but unfortunately, it's not raining anywhere here.
- Can't consider him for a Viska seat yet but if certain circumstances arise, I'll keep him in mind as back up.

Kinu Luminna
- A strong driver, great defender on-track and he has done well in the Motorworks car last year although I'm unsure if he's perfect for our car. Probably other teams may consider him.
- Contender for the second Viska seat.
- Has prevented Sara Luna on getting higher results in some occasions last season.

Sara Luna
- A very experienced driver, many teams want her. She is indeed a great driver and that experience is what we need.
- Contender for the second Viska seat.

Janne Laukkanen
- I have no other words for him besides that he's a great driver. It's a pretty generic answer, I know, but you can't deny it. Might put the market into disarray if we offer him a seat.
- Contender for the second Viska seat.

Aaron Deering
- A rookie in WGPC and has been pretty consistent in the trials but I am reluctant to sign him for the main seat.
- Can't consider him for a Viska seat yet.
- A season or two in WGP2 may help his chances in the future.

Dario Nülkeschläger
- Another driver who has done well with the Motorworks car last season and he was the best among his teammates. Many are attracted to his looks but forget his driving. He's done well in the trials although he fell off in the third.
- May consider him for the second seat.

Dom Falepeau
- Not gonna lie, he's a good driver but I'm not sure if the Viska car suits his style but he has been pretty consistent.
- May consider him for the second seat.

Adriana Kowalski Ela Lillian
- A rival to Jukko Märkküin-Arkkumi Jükkinenkaurivellaankienilumisiisÿrkäänkronettenna... nah ,that name is made up... probably.
- Known to be a good driver but probably not suited to our car. Binned it in the 13th lap in the third trial after trying to overtake Falepau.
- Can't consider her for a seat, yet.

Note: Never thought I'd get a headache while trying to decide who gets the seat.

An official announcement from Viska soon after trials reveal that Viska is offering Janne Laukkanen the second Viska seat. If Laukkanen declines, the seat will be offered to Sara Luna then to Kinu Luminna as part of Viska's first wave. Aaron Deering will be offered a test driver role for Viska.

Update: Dario Nülkeschläger and Daryl Mizushima in consideration for second VIska seat if the first wave declines, Team Principal Jöna Ekeränna says.

[Liventia]

wgdrc.len
World Grand Driver Rumour Championship latest: WGPC19
Well what a week it's been as the 11 team licenses for the 19th season of the World Grand Prix Championship have now been awarded and, perhaps surprisingly, Liventia's very own six-time constructors champions Carvenlo are back on the grid.

With that comes a big question: Who will drive for the team? They last raced in Season 14 and only one of their former drivers, a certain R.L. Cruisin, remains among the drivers still on the circuit. Indeed, World Grand Driver Rumour Championship's sources tell us that Carvenlo—now headed up by Matthew Portland and Troy Wilkins—have made the Vilitan an offer to return to the team and lead it.

Look at the other teams on the grid and some driver choices simply fall into place through prior relationships, whether in WGPC or WGP2. iben Toralmintii at TRÆ, Rudy Edwards and William Archer at Preston, Anola Melani and Ted Pressley—who we hear Carvenlo were really interested in—at Kaylan, and Heinz-Otto Junker at TMW. No real surprises to any of those.

So, word has reached WGDRC that Aurun side Viska, who are doing double-duty this season in running their own team as well as having a stake in a new junior Diarcesia-based outfit Pryfors Bilar, has made offers to re-sign Olivia Stone as well as take on board the WGP2 hotshot graduate Janne Laukkanen.

Except… WGDRC's sources also tell us that Carvenlo were impressed by the Abovian in internal trials earlier this week and they, too, have sent the young man a contract offer. There's some weighing up to do for Laukkanen, then, who is widely expected to move to Nexus Racing next year. He's been involved with Nexus' academy program and drove for the Nimban side in WGP2, although he also has three-time WGPC champion Terho Talvela, formerly of TRÆ, advising him.

Carvenlo are known to be keen on pairing the young Laukkanen with Cruisin's veteran calmness, whereas at Viska the Abovian might be seen as a bit more of an equal to Stone. We're told that Carvenlo have offered to use Nexus' own In Motion tyres as part of a deal to bring Laukkanen on board for the season before—as they are more than aware and willing to let happen—he graduates to their WGPC team. Who knows, giving him some experience at the top level in a car running their own tyres might be enough to sway Nexus into "encouraging" him one way or the other?

Our sources in the team also tell us that the offers made to both Cruisin and Laukkanen include all-expenses-paid travel for family and partners to every race this season, an offer that would be extended to any other driver the team approaches.

Oh, we also need to talk about the fact that it seems Polaris Racing won't be back. Reports from Nekoni suggest that the team's owner has disappeared with huge sums of money, leading to a police investigation and leaving Erica Okamura and Sayono Souzare out of drives. We believe Carvenlo have interest in Souzare, who also attended the team's internal testing.

And the return of test drivers this season, as some WGP2 drivers look to take the step up, adds a whole new dimension to things. While it's unlikely Souzare would take a test driver role at Carvenlo, perhaps she could be persuaded if she fails to find a drive somewhere else?

[Former Citizens of the Nimbus System]

---

Personnel and Lineup

---

Project Manager
Name Gertrude Thompson

Head Designer
Name Lucia Vanderbilt

WGPC Driver
Name TBC
No. TBC

WGPC Driver
Ryker Lane Name
94 No.

Test Driver
Name Janne Laukkanen
No. 17

WGP2 Driver
Name Haru Jukkenna
No. 18

WGP2 Driver
TBC Name
TBC No.

---

Car

---

Chassis
Name ‘Chase Cutter’ Ultra High Speed Ground Vehicle Five
Chassis Imagination-forged carbon fibre composite monocoque

Tyres
Name TBC
Manufacturer(s) TBC
Materials TBC
Features TBC

Powertrain
Paragon Warp Array v.2.9.4.15 Name
Nexus Racing Manufacturer
Quad multi-type Imagination convertor array Type
Pressurised orb Imagination Energy Source

TBC

---

Background

---

Nexus Racing

---

Chapters

---

WGPC
1 Progress

WGP2
On 2

[Aboveland]

Talbott Autodrome
Talbott, Liventia

Unsure of whether the racing kit would be given out, or whether each driver had to bring their own overalls, Janne had packed his gunmetal-gray Nexus Racing suit to pack for Liventia: matte, fitted, and laced with minimal, tasteful cyan accents along his shoulders and torso. If it were up to him, he'd make the cyan glow a little, too. He stares at himself in the dressing room mirror, from the loose tufts of bad-hair-day to the tips of his similarly gray boots, and takes a deep breath. The futurist-astronaut-slash-robot-surfer look definitely suits him.

He steps back into the paddock to meet the rest of the drivers ― themselves donning their more conventional racewear ― before being directed to his WGPC-spec Carvenlo machine: it seems it's his turn already. For a moment, his heart sinks, the buzzing confidence with which he'd shared a soul for the entire, interminable trip to Liventia immediately evaporated; from the rush of dragging his zipper up to his neck for the first time in month came the rocks-around-his-ankles dread of jumping unprepared into the deep end. His positive outlook for the test had surfaced on the basis of absolutely zero critical thought: he somehow hadn't realized that the last time he'd driven a conventional — as in, non-Chase Cutter — WGPO spec car had been three years ago, and that since then it had actually taken him until now to fully wrap his head around — and accustom his muscle memory — to the quirks of Imagination-assisted car control.

Yet he knows full well he can't manage to flunk his chance; a vote of confidence from a team with such pedigree as Carvenlo is priceless. Onwards, then — as his Nimban overlords employers would be thrilled to hear him say... How much different would his mindset be today without a three-year WGP2 trudge-along with Nexus? And... damn, three years already? Three years, to accomplish less than what Ted Pressley and Heinz-Otto Junker had managed in just one?

"Fuck, shit, shut up!" he hisses quietly under his breath, slapping himself with his fingertips at each comma. Not now!

He's offered a helmet from the bunch gathered in the paddock from the outstretched hand of one of the mechanics; unlike his rivals, he'd not thought to bring his high-tech, high-value, and essentially useless-outside-of-a-Chase-Cutter helmet, instead crossing his fingers Carvenlo would have a plain white crash helmet small enough to fit his surprisingly small head. It wasn't to be white, after all; red, and scuffed, instead, and sort of smelling of mildew.

"Thanks," he breathes towards the mechanic, pulling the ickily damp balaclava — included — over his head, then fitting the helmet straps snugly against his chin and fixing it onto his HANS device — a comforting breath of familiarity. With his visor still stowed, he's waved towards the glistening Carvenlo machine, the mechanic's fingers pointing outstretched at the monocoque. As he glances to the side, an expectant Terho Talvela, bearded amongst the preened lineup of spritely WGPC hopefuls — and R.L. Cruisin — wiggles two thumbs up in his direction.

Right. Deep breath, trying to hold in a chuckle.

Janne rolls his shoulders to the best of his ability, HANS notwithstanding, and climbs over the sides of the chassis: the process of getting both feet in is deceptively simple compared to his usual machine. With his feet posed shoulder-width upon the seat, he gives himself an encouraging pep-shake, takes one last breath-sigh, and burrows into the cocoon of the safety cell. The sides of the seat snuggle his shoulders, and its base feels cozy. For a moment, he pauses in awe — first time in a WGPC spec car, not counting his souped-up WGPC mid-season race Chase Cutter, and it's refreshingly... analog! The wheel, black and dotted with colorful twisty knobs and buttons, a strip of LEDs lining the top edge over the monochrome LCD; the interior walls of the chassis gritty, bare carbon. Almost... a soapbox next to the Chase Cutter... maybe all the other teams' cars feel like this?

But he's given little time for thoughtful ponderance: the kind mechanic who'd offered the red helmet, now out of his field of view and nearly out of earshot, begins barking unintelligible commands. For an instant, Janne is dazed, hoping the order isn't directed at him; another loud command from the opposite side of his helmet confirms he's not the target of the conversation.

In fact, he's the epicenter.

The Carvenlo machine springs to life with an immediate, cacophonous, wickedly thrilling wail — the absolute, octane-infused polar opposite to his Chase Cutter's buttery, ethereal whirrs and swooshes and lovely melodic whistles. He bites his tongue, as a charging flush of excitement kicks him in the back of the neck and down his spine — he's utterly capitvated.

Yet again, his introspection is interrupted, as the barking men close in on his seat and tower from above. His head, already rigid from the HANS device, is affixed to the headrest; his harness, flaccid and unbuckled, is tightened as if his life depends on it. And with a tap-tap on the helmet, a fleeting demo of how to power the finger clutch, and a hamfisted thumbs-up, he lurches with a squeal onto the pit straight. No intercom, no parting words, and no last goodbyes.

The gentlest tap of the throttle to propel him down the pitlane is enough to condition his attitude on his first run: he's dead set on taking it easy. Talbott Autodrome, for all its prestigious glory, has historically been the bane of Abovian drivers' existences. He can't speak for himself, but of Terho Talvela's three appearances, only one resulted in a podium: his other two outings had ended in pieces, and neither of those had been preceded by particularly remarkable qualifying sessions, either — the length of the pitlane has given him time to think, but before he can swat the oppressive weight of comparison to Terho away, the pit limiter comes off, and his entire body — the g-force controlling functions of his overalls inoperational — is ravaged with the weight of a battering ram. His senses flutter to life: his eyes are glued entirely to the road ahead, his head focused on not making any stupid mistakes.

A few corners into his outlap, he juggles the competing urges of learning the track or the car, but he ultimately settles for the former. Talbott begins as a tight, wavy, unwelcoming track, but from turn seven to the end, bar three acute turns, it becomes a deceptively quick circuit. He takes extra caution on the approach to the fast kink of turn eight, and carefully navigates turns eleven through fourteen: commitment through those sections, he realizes, could conceal large gains. Past turn 15, as the circuit becomes more approachable, he decides to dip his foot properly into the performance of an internal combustion engine WGPC car. A squeeze of the throttle pins his chest against the back of his seat, the force of his uncontrollable giggles doing almost enough to counter the acceleration: the same, but backwards, happens as he stands on the brake pedal for the violent turn eighteen braking zone.

However, his euphoria lasts little in its juvenile, underdeveloped state: it quickly matures into an asset. Powering out of turn twenty-one, he curls his fingers around the edges of the carbon fiber steering wheel, drifting towards the outside of the track for the tricky braking point into turn one to begin his fast lap. He's quick, if a little raggedy, into the braking point, but his exit is clean and steady. As the lap goes by and his driving cleans up, his initial, dumbfounded joy at the sensations behind the wheel have disappeared: in its place, a rapidly developed, almost eerily cemented confidence.

Fifth on his first try is as good as he can manage, racking up five "penalty points" to timesheet hero Sayono Souzare's singular point, but he's only one slot behind seasoned veteran, and Carvenlo staple, R.L. Cruisin. He voices his thoughts to Terho as soon as he climbs out of the monocoque, almost running towards the Abovian while he stretches out his legs on the move; the world champion almost squeals with delight in his face. Perhaps, after trying for so long to advise Janne on how to drive an alien car, he could finally be of some use. Terho brings him in closer as Janne approaches, nodding with a concentrated frown on his face; Janne holds up a hand, his downward-facing palm and outstretched fingers indicating a racecar, and gesticulates a few jerking motions. Terho nods, and keeping his voice low — not out of necessity, so much as for the novelty — mimicks the same gestures. Okay? he asks. Okay, Janne replies. Now go, he orders, pushing him away with a backhanded ass-slap.

The second time Janne slots into the Carvenlo machine, sidestepping the lack of DIADEM has become second nature, and it shows on the timesheets. He's fastest on the session by two tenths — pipping Cruisin — then, fastest again on the third session, and fast enough on the fourth to lay claim to being the fastest — and most consistent — driver of the test thus far. Terho, while in the paddock himself keeping his eyes peeled for impressive performances as a side quest for Edvin, grips his chin as the results tick by. He can hardly read the minds of Troy Wilkins and Matthew Portland, reclused in some occult office in the Autodrome, but he holds not a single doubt in his mind that the Carvenlo seat is about to be Janne's.

Still with a GP4 timesheet topper to come.

Janne's performance, and inability to sign for TRÆ, become another weak excuse for Terho to keep his stress beard.

---

Hotel room
Talbott, Liventia

Despite having rented adjacent rooms, Terho and Janne met in the latter's dwelling the same night, as news of the postponement of the Viska test comes through to Terho's e-mail, much to their delight. Terho had offered, uncharacteristically, to unwind at a nearby bar after a tiring, stressful day of testing, but introverted Janne — supposedly in tune with introverted Terho — rejected the offer. The world champion's second suggestion was to find a sauna; 'it's always helped me,' he said, but again Janne refused. 'Why don't we just stay at the hotel,' he suggested, to which Terho agreed, as if having been hoping to hear such a refreshingly boring idea for a while.

Terho sat strewn across the plush, leather-upholstered seats against the wall opposite the backboard of the bed where Janne lay, having slapped on his glasses and sweatpants and wrapping his legs around one of the unnecessary pillows carefully arranged on the hotel bed. A single amber floor lamp illuminated the room with a soft, diffused glow, as the city of Talbott waned in the closing hours of the evening below. Were it not for the occasional sirens and horns, or the overly modern furniture and carpeting, the room could have been described as quaint. The two Abovians had been speaking for a while, initially enthralled in their animated recap of the day's events, but they could only recount so much of a shared experience before the conversation became stale. Thus, Janne — lately making an effort to stop dragging along stagnant conversations, a bad habit of his — had decided to remain silent when he ran out of things to say, faithful to his western Abovian heritage but evidently not friendily enough to allow Terho the same luxury. As the world champion — the triple world champion sitting in his hotel room — was not only a world champion but also almost ten years older than him, he didn't feel grand enough to reassure him that 'silence is okay.'

Fortunately, a blip on Terho's phone gave him something — big — to talk about.

"Hey, shit," Terho stammered, groaning to sit up straight. "An email." His eyes scan the screen frantically as Janne sits up. “There’s an offer!”

Janne’s heart raced, and between the news and the continuation of the message, the air sat still. Perhaps, he’d expected the offer to arrive after the test results… but he hadn’t thought far enough ahead to know how to react when it did show up. As he sat in silence, Terho, his secondary goal for TRÆ to scout a potential second driver, took advantage of a staggered Janne’s lowered guard.

“Let’s wait,” he interjected quickly, to pip the younger Abovian before he could start to think of a decision, holding up an outstretched hand. “Auruna is in two days. Then, we can make the decision.”

Janne inhaled to speak, but stopped himself short. He agreed with a quiet, steady nod.

---

Starting from the bottom had only hampered Janne’s start, yet not his drive. The first trial session, taking place on the shorter configuration circuit, had been to him entirely a warmup run. After the Carvenlo test and a few good days of sound rest — his shoulders and legs had remained sore for a while after driving the Liventian machine — he’d still not quite gathered the superior strength needed to wrangle a down-to-earth WGPC machine, but his head had fully accustomed. After all, until WGP2 IV, where it all had finally clicked, it was what he’d always craved: a pure, unassisted racecar.

Despite his newfound confidence though, it was still a surprise to him to have ravaged the field on the second trial session, posting the fastest time in all four stages of the elimination qualifying, then going on to win the second race — ahead of a fast-approaching Sara Luna — before starting from the back in the final round. And even then, his speed remained: he put on a gargantuan charge from the get go, clinching the fastest lap and, with an ambitious overtake on rookie Aaron Deering, second place behind Daryl Mizushima. The track being right up his alley obviously influenced his results — he adored the flowing nature of Veratuna circuit, which appealed to him instantly with its wavy, snaking straights and flowing, high-speed corners — but the car itself was absolutely spectacular. Viska had certainly proved their worth in the previous season of WGPC, netting two podiums and a win as a debutant team, but the car felt like it could achieve far more than that. During his final outlap, on his way to the pits, he chalked up the feeling to familiarity: the Carvenlo car hadn’t felt as comfortable, but at the same time, that had been his first ever WGPC drive outside of the Nexus umbrella.

Back in the paddock after the final run, the Viska debrief is expeditious — unsurprisingly, if his impressions of the Aurunan people are anything to go by — and the drivers are swiftly sent on their way out of Veratuna circuit.

In a scene not dissimilar to that in Liventia, the Viska offer pops up on Terho’s screen while he skims the results of the day to relay back to Lintulahti. Terho — in his role of “sporting director” — mutters the names of the drivers in the Viska test to himself as he jots them down in a notepad document onto his laptop. When he passes the name of Kinu Luminna, he shakes his head and quietly clicks his tongue. “Oh, Dom…” he mumbles to himself, trailing off into a hum to occult his comment — before it’s interrupted with the blip of a notification. He jumps in his chair, as Janne, about to clamber out of bed to ready his bags for the trip out of Auruna, stops halfway off of the mattress.

“It’s come through,” Terho announces, without the surprise in his voice as he’d done in Liventia. He makes sure to perch his laptop against his knees securely before raising his hands to give one stupendous clap. “Looks like you’ve got choices to make!”

Janne gulps. The moment of truth, conveniently delayed until now, had finally come.

“Choose wisely,” cackles Terho, to Janne’s chagrin. While he remains silent, Terho continues. “Carvenlo, or Viska?” A sly side-eye. “Cruisin, or Stone?” He shifts in his seat, setting the laptop aside, bringing his foot up to the cushion, and perching his head on his knee. He pauses. “An invitational, or an elective test?” he teases, bringing his fingers in an L-shape to his face. “What’ll it be, then?”

“Shut up,” blurts Janne, still in a yoga-like position between the floor and the bed. He lingers for a moment, before adding, instead of detracting, to Terho’s insinuations. “A six time constructors’ champion… versus a promising, fledgling… and frankly familiar team…”

Terho grins, nodding slowly. “Exactly.” He gives Janne some breathing space before stoking the fire again. “I think you have your answer — at least, for a debut season, I’d have mine.”

They look at each other, Janne placing his other foot off of the bed and sitting down at its edge. He nods, first at Terho, then blankly at the open closet. “Yeah,” he sighs, and blankly, he confirms his decision:

“I think I’m accepting Carvenlo’s offer.”

---

Terho, his face locked down at his phone screen, nods at Janne's request to hold his bag while he runs to the bathroom, before boarding the flight back home. He's tapping frantically at his phone screen.

'You'd be a fool to turn down Sara Luna,' he types at Edvin, 'and I think she's not just *a* pick, she's *the* pick for us. And honestly, it's either that, or hosting a test in Lintulahti and hoping Okumura, Nulkeschlager, Luminna and Falpeau show up. Otherwise, I think you'll have dropped the ball — again.'

Janne's back almost immediately, but he exclaims in disdain at a bag-less Terho. "Weren't you watching it?!" he shrieks. Terho opens his mouth, but can only muster up a stammer.