WGP2 Season One - RP Thread (IC)

[Vilita and Turori]

Tropicorp Engineering Design & Administration Center, Tropicoast, Tropicorp :: Gary Cook sat down with other Tropicorp Engineering officials at their offices in Tropicoast. WGP2 Silly Season was well underway and, in the public eye, the Tropicorp Team were behind the eight ball when it came to announcing their lineup for the WGP2 Season. Open tests were occurring throughout the multiverse and multiple teams had their full lineup already locked in with promotional material already at the printers.

With just 25 drivers having applied for a WGP2 license and 24 places available on the grid, competition for he best drivers would be fierce.

Cook and his team knew their primary goal was identifying a #1 driver. In all likelihood Cocoabo #23 would be the parachute driver on the roster so it made the search a little bit easier. The team decided to just take a look at every single team, every single driver, and see who was still on the table.

For completions sake, Cook and company started with the teams that were already set for the new season.

First, Academy Racing. The team out of the Iron Syndicate had already announced that home-town driver Armo Lehto would be their number one and West-East Timor's Jannick Markner had recently agreed to the teams #2 Driver seat. 23 Drivers left to choose from.

Academy Racing :: Armo Lehto, Jannik Markner

Of course, it was no surprise that Vannish Motor Racing had inked the two Vannish drivers, Jian Xiaopeng and Jenna Vanderson. Neither were ever really on the Tropicorp Radar, particularly with the high likelyhood that they would be signing for their national entry. 21 Drivers left on the board.

Vannish Motors Racing :: Jian Xiaopeng, Jenna Vanderson

While those were the only two teams that had officially filed all their paperwork for the upcoming season, there were a few teams that were in the final stages of negotiations. For instance, Nexus Racing had already secured the high profile signing of Esmerel driver Rebecca Darlington and had tendered an offer to the Iron Syndicates Luna Estrella. Should Estrella accept the Nexus Racing offer it would not only take a driver off the big board, but would be a blow to Cook's plans as Estrella was one of the drivers on Tropicorp's Target Board. 19 Drivers Left on the board, 1 Off the Target Deck.

Nexus Racing :: Rebecca Darlington, Luna Estrella

Katara Racing of West-East Timor had already completed their open testing and selected Tenburg driver Jack Kelly as their driver of choice to compete alongside their home driver Timo Jänkirinää. While the offer has been tendered for some time, Kelly seems hesitant to sign potentially holding out for a bigger offer from a more established team. In the end, however, it is likely that Kelly signs on the dotted line bringing the big board down to 17 drivers.

Katara Racing :: Timo Jänkirinää, Jack Kelly

So that was four teams with 6 drivers already locked down, possibly 8 should Estrella and Kelly confirm their pending offers. The loss of Estrella from the target deck was discomforting for Cook but the Tropicorp Engineering team director knew there were other drivers out there. Of the 17 remaining drivers, there were 4 left out of their original 5 driver target deck: Renho Virzi of Audioslavia, Dalia Dahl of Eastfield Lodge, Lukar Urdaneta of Astograth and, of course, Juracai Klianiota.

Cook and his team then decided to look at the results of some of the recent open test sessions to see if there were any other drivers they could add to their target board. The only name that came up was Manny "Lil E" Epula of Togonistan. "Lil E" posted the fastest time in the Obey Sport GP open test at the Raleigh Hill Circuit but, for some reason, was passed over for an offer from the Esmerel team. Instead, the Obey Sport offers went to Renzo Virzi and Juracai Klianiota.

Cook knew that Klianiota had absolutely no interest in being a number two driver on any team, no less a team like Obey Sport GP, so that seat was likely still open. Cook also figured Virzi would continue looking at his options and could still be a potential target for Novikov Racing, MSA-Sinval and Yogutz Lantzia. It was very possible that while Obey Sport GP had tendered offers for both of its driving seats, that both of those seats - and drivers - were still in play. This would be important for Cook and his team as if both Obey Sport offers were accepted, his target deck was down to just 2 drivers - 3 if you include Manny Epula.

Cook at the Tropicorp Team decided they would attempt to project the rest of the WGP2 lineup to see where it would fall, and what driver would be most likely to sign for them so they could focus their negotiations in the right place.

...to be continued...

[Aboveland]

Lintulahti International Circuit
Lintulahti, Aboveland
Saturday, 2:00 PM

A large van pulled up to the sidewalk near the entrance. Karl stepped out of the driver's seat, heading to the door on the right to let Juracai Klianiota, Luna Estrella, Lukar Urdaneta and Shinno Soukuba out and onto the cement. Sven, who'd been waiting at the door to the circuit for half an hour, greeted all four drivers and turned to the main entrance. He swung open the doors going into the lobby, making a satisfying swooshing sound and revealing the immense entrance to the track. Axel stood in the middle of the room, his hair fluttered away by the doors.

"Welcome to Novikov Racing Headquarters!" he proclaimed, arms stretched wide and palms facing the ceiling.

Axel, Sven and Karl walked with the drivers following suit. Occasionally, gasps and hums of content rang about the echo heavy lobby. Once at the paddock, where the two Novikov Racing WGP2 cars lay on a tarp, still, quiet, and prepared, the four drivers were invited to sit down before Sven, who laid out a whiteboard onto an easel in case he needed visual aids for his briefing session before the test.

"Gentlemen, and lady, welcome to Lintulahti International Circuit," he began. "We are delighted to see all four of you here, and are thankful you accepted our offers or, in a couple of cases, showed interest and faith in our program. I'll introduce myself: I am Sven Ruuhmaki, twin brother of Karl. At Novikov Racing I'm in charge of most of the organizational work. I arrange interviews, set deadlines and plan tests, among other things. As I had detailed in the e-mail I sent, all four of you will set out on ten flying laps in an attempt to set the fastest times you can around the track. We will give you ten laps before your official ones to get acquainted with the car and make any minor setup changes you might desire. Out- and in-laps are not counted in the set of ten laps we have planned. The layout we have arranged for the test is Layout C, which comes in at a total of 4.471 kilometers in length. We haven't got an official lap record as of yet, but the times we expect around the track are around the 1:25/1:26 marks. All four of you will go out in pairs at a time. The pairs arranged for today are Juracai Klianiota and Lukar Urdaneta for group one, and Luna Estrella and Shinno Soukuba for group two. Both groups will do their ten practice laps and ten flying laps consecutively, so as to keep your skills sharp and maintain your momentum during the session. For those of you who will not be starting first, so, Luna and Shinno, we invite you to take a look around our facilities freely or sit down to watch the group one runners. The same applies for group one once group two takes to the track. Fresh tyres will be supplied to both groups before practice and flying runs. Any questions?"

The room fell quiet, with Karl jutting in to start the test. He led the group one drivers to their cars, talked through their driving preferences and set them off on their practice runs.

Two hours later...

Group 1
1 Juracai Klianiota 1:25.448
2 Lukar Urdaneta 1:25.455

Group 2
1 Luna Estrella 1:25.499
2 Shinno Soukuba 1:25.535

Overall ranking
1 Juracai Klianiota 1:25.448
2 Lukar Urdaneta 1:25.455
3 Luna Estrella 1:25.499
4 Shinno Soukuba 1:25.535

Axel rubbed his chin as he laid eyes on the timesheet for the test. The four drivers were just under his office, in the paddock, either chatting with Sven, giggling at Karl's dumb jokes, or getting to know Terho. He was pleased with what he saw; even though he would have liked there to be a few more drivers at the test, four was the sweet spot.

Looking at the drivers' fastest times, he was excited. He'd hoped for Klianiota to set the fastest lap out of the four drivers. The Vilitian had been the main test driver in the V+T Motorworks WGPC program for season 14, during which the team from Atlantian Oceania had dominated the entire season. He obviously knew how to make a good car, and how to make a good car that suited Terho. Moreover, with the collaboration effort going on within Project AGP, it only made sense to have a Vilitian involved in the testing for next season. The fact that both Novikov Racing drivers would have a secret chance to test the Project AGP prototypes throughout its development for season 16 was kept locked away from the four candidates, only to be disclosed to those who'd get the contract offer.

Axel was also pleased with Urdaneta's time. Not being on the team's shortlist, he hadn't expected the same level of performance as Luna Estrella or Klianiota from him, but his blisteringly quick time put a smile on his face. He had another point in his favor apart from his reputation of being more reliable than the other three drivers, further convincing him he was the guy he was looking for.

Going to the last two drivers in the overall standings, he raised an eyebrow. It wasn't the outcome he'd expected, neither from Luna nor from Shinno. Still, he knew their times would make the contract offer situation even easier. Luna was extremely desired in WGP2, but perhaps it would be a better idea to let her slide and pick up Urdaneta.

Or would it?

The Astograthian was slightly more reliable than Estrella, and she had set a slower time, but statistically she was a better driver. Plus, while the technical aspects of the tracks on the calendar was fairly balanced, there were more tracks specifically tailored to technical drivers than those tailored to aggressive drivers. And, being an aggressive driver himself, Axel started to lean on Estrella's side. She must be pursued for a reason.

Then again, he figured, it might be easier to sign Urdaneta than Estrella. With him requesting the test rather than being invited in the first place, it might make the negotiation process easier. In addition, the team would receive a signed contract faster with Lukar than with Luna, who still had yet to try out Nexus' car. He'd made his choice, but he wasn't going to do it singlehandedly. He called up Sven and Terho to the first floor, leaving Karl to entertain the drivers below, and slid the timesheet across the polished table, Klianiota and Urdaneta highlighted.

"Eh?" Axel said.

"Seems good," Terho and Sven replied.

"That's it?"

"Yep," they replied again, in unison.

"Uh, okay then. Sven, do you have the contract drafts?"

"Yes." He walked to the printer, where they'd been sitting for days, and handed them over to Axel, who filled in the driver blanks and signed at the bottom.

"Sven?" Axel asked before he went back downstairs.

"What?"

"Bring me Klianiota and Urdaneta. You can tell the other two to go now."

"Got it."

"What about me?" Terho asked.

"You stay. It'll look more special. Introduce them to AGP if you want." Axel said with a grin.

Sven swapped with both Klianiota and Urdaneta, who stood before Axel, Terho by his side, opposite their side of the table.

"Juracai Klianiota and Lukar Urdaneta, welcome to Novikov Racing. We offer both of you contracts worth $1.2 million N$D for the entire WGP2 season, with $10k bonuses for winning races and including the chance to participate in the development of the Project AGP car which will partake in the next iteration of the WGPC, season 16. Here you have your contracts, which cover all the points in detail. All that's left to do is sign."

With a jovial smile, Axel handed the two drivers the documents and pressed his hands together, waiting for them to click the pens laid on their papers and sign at the bottom left.

[Vilita and Turori]

Tropicorp Engineering Design & Administration Center, Tropicoast, Tropicorp :: With Gary Cook's theory that Juracai Klianiota had no interest in signing as a number 2 driver at any team; no less Obey Sport GP, it would seem that the two Obey Sport GP spots were still up in the air. But if Klianiota wasn't going to sign with Obey Sport; and Renzo Virzi's acceptance also up in the air as the Audioslavian driver continues to be courted by multiple teams of high repute, who would end up driving for Obey Sport?

While 4 teams on the grid were all but sorted out the remaining 8 teams still were mostly wide open. Looking at the remaining 8 teams on the grid the number of available drivers reduces from a pool of 17 drivers just down to a pool of 14 by removing Lourdina Westgrens of Ignis Racing, Saya Kaseo who will be piloting the Hodori entry and the little known Marcus Schwarz who will be the home driver for Junixwagon. Thats all. 13 other drives available, 14 drivers to fill in them.

Going back to Obey Sport GP, it seemed strange that the Esmerel outfit chose to skip over Manny 'Lil E' Epula despite the fact that the Togonistani driver posted the fastest times in their open test session. If Klianiota declined the drive at Obey Sport, it would be likely that Obey Sport would reach out to Epula to fill the seat. However, Epula could feel slighted in being left out originally. Of the fastest three drivers in the Obey Sport test, it is likely that only one signs for the Esmerel team and considering Klianiota has already been slighted with the Number 2 offer, Gary Cook felt that the number one seat at Obey Sport would either go to Renzo Virzi or Manny 'Lil' Epula.

Either way it was sliced, it was another driver off the target list for Cook. Considering the high level of interest in Virzi from other teams, Cook penciled Epula in for the number one seat at Obey Sport. In the number two seat he slid Lera Kozel, a driver that Obey Sport had shown interest in earlier in the offseason.

Obey Sport GP:: Manny 'Lil E' Epula, Lera Kozel

With those assumptions there were 15 drivers left on the board but more critically for Cook, slotting Epula in at Obey Sport left just 4 drivers; Virzi, Klianiota, Urdaneta and Dahl left on the target board for Tropicorp Engineering.

Moving on Cook decided to look at the teams that only needed to fill one remaining slot. The Junixwagon team was having a test session that would be attended by Cocoabo #23. It was still possible that team Tropicorp would have the Cocoabo sign for a foreign team but it would have to be the right opportunity and they would have to have access to data collection - a complication made into a confliction with the fact that Tropicorp are entering their own team into the competition and a fact that will likely ultimately lead to seeing the #23 on the side of Tropicorp Equipment.

What that means for Junixwagon is that the Ulix driver Martijn von Leeuwen has a chance to impress during the test session and with the second driver seat along side Marcus Schwarz on the line, von Leeuwen will have no one to blame but himself if he doesn't secure the drive.

Junixwagon :: Marcus Schwarz, Marijn von Leeuwen

Cook viewed the Ignis racing team as a dark horse candidate to sign additional drivers off his target board, but there was also interest from the Lisander team in signing Hodori driver Shinno Soukuba. With high profile driver Lourdina Westgrens already off the market and confirmed for Ignis, Soukuba would likely jump at the chance if an official offer came in.

Team Ignis :: Lourdina Westgrens, Shinno Soukuba

Speaking of Hodori it was a natural transition for Cook and his team to look next at the Nadakei Sport AYDP entry. The final team out there that already has a signed deal in place - Hodori driver Saya Kaseo will be staying local and representing the likely colorful livery during the inaugural WGP2 season. Though the reputation of the Hodori teams has taken a hit with recent mediocre performances on the international stage, there is likely still going to be a name driver taking a chance on the ride given the amount of experience and expertise that regularly comes out of Hodori. Though it pained him to do so, Cook figured Audioslavia's Renzo Virzi might be the type of driver to take up the offer.

Nadakei Sport AYDP :: Saya Kaseo, Renzo Virzi

With 4 teams left to consider; including his own, there were just 9 drivers left and more concerningly, just 3 left on the target board for Gary Cook. All four of the remaining teams have made no official signings yet - leaving things wide open. They are also perhaps the four most well established teams meaning they may attract top talent; a concern for Cook with just 3 targeted drivers left and four teams to vye for them.

The team with the potential to put the biggest dent in that seems to be the Novikov Racing Team out of Aboveland. The Novikov shortlist mirrored very closely to Cook's list of targeted drivers and the upcoming invite-only test in Aboveland will include at the very least Klianiota and Estrella, and may also include Dalia Dahl and Renzo Virzi. Shinno Soukuba and Renzo Virzi, who Cook and tentatively penciled in at Ignis and Nadakei respectively, have also been invited for the test. Cook had previously been projected that he would lose two drivers off the board to Novikov. Either way, there won't be a net gain as if Virzi doesn't end up signing for Nadakei he will likely end up back at Obey Sport GP so will be off Cook's board either way. For the same reasons as Cook projected Klianiota would not want the second seat at Obey Sport, Virzi may not want a second seat at Nadakei but has a first seat waiting for him at Obey Sport - or possibly Yogutz Lantzia. But Cook decided to go with the Worst Case Scenario and took both drivers off the board.

Novikov Racing Team :: Juracai Klianiota, Lukar Urdaneta

With Klianiota, Urdaneta and Virzi off the board, there was just one driver left on Gary Cook's target list. So he figured he better start thinking about his own team before there were no drivers left to choose from. Falling back on Cocoabo #23 in the second seat, Cook penciled in Dalia Dahl into the lead position at Tropicorp Engineering. "I've no idea if she'll come" Cook told his team, "But we've got to get someone..."

Tropicorp Engineering :: Dalia Dahl, Cocoabo #23

That left two teams and 5 drivers. Though the intent was to see who would be left available for Tropicorp Engineering, Cook and his team decided there was no reason not to just finish the exercise. The famed Yogutz Lantzia team are also chasing many of the drivers on Cook's target list but with none of those drivers left on Cook's big board. While Lantzia appeared cold on both Astograth Flagged drivers they may be forced to settle for one of them. With Urdaneta already projected to sign abroad that would leave Gorria Bildostegi for the home flagged drive. Along with them would be potentially the Togonistan driver Dom Falepeau.

Yogutz Lantzia :: Gorria Bildostegi, Dom Falepeau

If all of those cards fell as projected, that would leave three drivers on the table. Cesaro Whittaker, Denholm Kingsley and Zoltan Prejko. With the host team MSA-SinVal still yet to make a move, they may - like Lantzia - be forced to fall back to one of the hometown drivers in Cesaro Whittaker. That would leave two drivers and one seat that would likely be won out by the Anthorian Denholm Kingsley who, despite a horrific showing during the most recent WGPC Season, still has that experience to draw from to give them the edge over Zoltan Prejko who Cook projects as the lone driver without a ride.

MSA-SinVal :: Cesaro Whittaker, Denholm Kingsley

The Tropicorp Engineering team looked at the board. Settling for the last driver on the target deck wasn't where they wanted to be, but it was a pragmatic approach. Now Cook had a decision to make. Did he let the cards fall and see where the dust settled? Or did he get aggressive and see if he could snatch one of the other drivers on his shortlist before they secured a deal with a rival team?

Cook decided to take the middle ground and fired up a memo to all the drivers on his shortlist; Luna Estrella, Renzo Virzi, Juracai Klianiota, Manny "Lil E" Epula, Dalia Dahl and Lukar Urdaneta; asking them to submit to him a CV for consideration as the lead driver of the Tropicorp Engineering WGP2 team for the upcoming season.

[Esmerel]

IMPORTANT NOTE- CONTRACT OFFER CHANGE

We are announcing that after careful analysis, we are understanding that Juracai Klianiota is not willing to accept the Second Driver position at Obey Sport GP. To be honest, it was a long shot. We wish Klianiota a good future in the sport, as we have decided to withdraw the contract offer.

Instead, the seat has now been offered to Lera Kozel of Sha Mobutia.

[Togonistan]

Drekaria, Togonistan

Dom Falepeau was sitting at his home, staring at his laptop screen. His head was full of thoughts as he read from different news sites about different WGP2 teams offering contracts to all kinds of racers. And still, not a single contract offer for him. Not a single team had even shown any interest about him in the past few weeks. Only team that had contacted him was Katara Racing, and they offered a contract to Jack Kelly. Of course there was a chance that Jack is going to sign some other team, which would've probably given himself a chance to still sign a contract with Katara, but Dom did not think this was very likely going to happen. Even Ralph had not called him lately, and when he tried to call him himself, he was greeted by a automated message telling him to call again later. ''I need to find a team to race for. Soon,'' he said to himself. Dom sighed and opened up his e-mail account to send a message to Junixwagen.

From: domfalepeau@kaylanmotors.tn
To: JMJunix@xymail.nsh
Topic: Junixwagen WGP2 test

Greetings,

I, Dom Falepeau, would like to attend Junixwagen WGP2 test. Any slot is fine.

Regards,
Dom Falepeau

---

Ramona, Togonistan

Manny ''Lil E'' Epula had just come back home from taking a ride at the local racing track, when his phone beeped. A memo from Tropicorp!? Manny opened it and took a look. ''CV? Consideration for first driver spot? Hell yea,'' he said and sent an email to them:

From: manny497@solmail.tn
To: Gary Cook
Topic: my CV

Hey there,

You asked for my CV so here it is.

Stay cool,
Lil E

Attachments: CV.pdf

Manny Epula
023 Beaumonde Avenue
Ramona, Togonistan
202-555-0190
manny497@solmail.tn

ABOUT ME
18 years old racecar driver from Ramona, Togonistan. 1 older brother, also a racecar driver.

RACING ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Ramona Derby 2014
> 4th place overall

Ramona Derby 2015
> 1st place overall

2015 Hwoarang 24h Cup
Team: Menseke Epula Racing
> 1st place overall

Togonistan Track Racing League Season 2016
Team: Domerton Motorsport
> 7 lap records
> 11th place overall

[Esmerel]

Rebecca Darlington
Lapiz Point International Airport, Lapiz Point, Esmerel
Friday, 16/06, 10:15

After a 3 hour and 17 minute drive to one of the best hotels in Lapiz Point, Rebecca and Talia headed to the airport the following morning. In Esmerel, airport security was existent, but not over-the-top, meaning the two could enter the terminal with little waiting.

Now to find where Nexus were.

"Talia, do you know if they said where they would pick us up?"

"The airport."

"Yeah, but where in the airport?"

"Oh. Hang on..." *checks message* "Yeah, they didn't specify where exactly they'd be."

"Well, I'd guess we just have to look for something so high-tech even we couldn't have built it."

It took the two not long to notice something that looked out of Galaxy Wars. Sure, Esmerel had tech, but the Wardship had tech.

The two ran over to the ship. "Hey, there!" Rebecca exclaimed. "You're with Nexus Racing, I presume?"

[Tenburg]

Tallow, Tenburg

Jack whipped out his phone as he waited for his beer, sending a text to Myra.

Think I'm just gonna take the offer from Katara... can't wait anymore. Don't want to risk my stock falling on a really bad run either.

She replied quickly.

If that's what you want to do. You're the driver after all. Let me know what you decide.

Jack swiped over to his email app:

To: JMJunix@xymail.nsh
From: jkelly66@tmail.com
Subject: test drive

Good evening,

Upon further consideration, I have decided not to attend your practice. Apologies for any inconvenience.

Thank you,
Jack Kelly

To: katararacing@omnimail,wet
From: jkelly66@tmail.com
subject: WGP2 contract

Dear Mara,

I've done some deliberating, and I've decided to accept your offer to race for Katara. Already looking forward to the start of the season. Let me know when you're available so we can hash out details.

Regards,
Jack

[West-East Timor]

Katara Racing Headquarters
Baranburg
West-East Timor

Mara was in her office, checking her e-mails, and saw that Jack Kelly had accepted the contract offer. She began typing a reply.

From: katararacing@omnimail.wet
To: jkelly66@tmail.com
Subject: RE: WGP2 contract

Dear Jack,

I'm glad to have you as a driver. I should be available all week long, so it's basically up to you. You can come here tomorrow, or Thursday or Friday would be good too... Whenever you got time is alright, actually. Just let me know when you plan to come. I guess you still have the adress of our headquarters? My office should be easy to find, if not, ask someone.

Regards,
Mara Katara
Team Principal

After she sent the message, she texted Katja:

Kelly is on board. You can plan our official team presentation now.

Great! I'll do so.

[Aboveland]

Project AGP R&D Complex
Lintulahti, Aboveland

As Sven walked into the wind tunnel testing facility at the Novikov Racing HQ, his phone rang. Karl instructed the tunnel manager to halt the test, and Sven stepped outside.

"Hello?" he asked.

"Hey, it's Terho," answered the other side. "Listen, I've been wanting to talk to you about the lineup for WGP2."

"Go ahead."

"I've been thinking and I feel we- you guys shouldn't sign Urdaneta. I mean, think about it, Luna is the obvious choice. She's tried, true, young and very desirable. We- damn it, you shouldn't let her slide."

Terho's words hit Sven like a blunt stick. It suddenly injected a dose of doubt into him which wasn't there before.

"I reckon," Terho continued, "that Luna will be WGP2 champion this year. No matter the team, no matter the car, no matter what. She's got the potential to be the next driver at the top level and the first WGP2 graduate."

Sven stuttered. "Wh- wh- wha- what makes you say that?" He began breaking into a cold sweat.

"I don't know, it's something about her... I saw a special kind of hunger in her the other day which nobody else had. Edvin and I both agree."

"Uh, okay, uh, I'll see what I can, uh, see what I can do." Sven replied, hanging up and rushing to dial Axel.

beeeeeeep. beeeeeeep.

Axel, who was laying down on the countertop in the kitchen at Lintulahti International Circuit, was startled by the high pitched whirrs and bangs of his ringtone, flopping sideways onto the faucet level with the counter. Holding his sides and ruing his choice of ringtone, he picked up his phone. "What?" he answered, pissed.

"Axel, listen," Sven began, having calmed himself down a tad. "Terho just called me. He says we should sign Luna instead of Lukar. I should have objected earlier but I wasn't bothered on Saturday: I agree with him. Anything we could work out?"

Axel rubbed his ribcage, let out a sigh, and thought up an answer. It was a good minute before he replied. "Sven, you should have told me earlier. But, whatever, we're good. I definitely see potential in Luna, and the only reason I asked for your opinion was to check if we were on the same page. I had expected you to scribble out 'Urdaneta' and jot down 'Estrella', but, well, you didn't, you silly dick." He exhaled strongly through his nose, not quite reaching a chuckle, before continuing. "Anyways, I like what you're saying. We'll do this: first come first serve. I'll send Estrella the same contract we sent everyone else, with the same information. Whichever of the two confirms first, Urdaneta or Estrella, gets the seat. Deal?"

"Deal."

TL;DR: Novikov Racing offers Luna Estrella the same contract which was offered to Juracai Klianiota and Lukar Urdaneta.

OOC: the contract was basically what was written in bold in my previous post, as I never bothered to make a proper draft.

[The Iron Syndicate]

Luna Estrella

There were no smiles when Luna arrived back at her friend’s apartment, where she would be staying until she found somewhere more permanent after being thrown out of her stepmother’s house after her last fight with Zhen. The trip to Aboveland… Hadn’t gone as planned. They wouldn’t be offering her the contract, she hadn’t dominated in the way that she had expected in testing, and the team that should have been a good fit for her ended up picking a couple of others that didn’t have the same experience, didn’t have the same pedigree… Well, she was younger, but that wasn’t a knock on her. She was the youngest to win the Prototype Series for a reason.

“I guess the Novikov trial didn’t go well,” Miya Prince said, Luna’s fellow young driver sprawled out on the couch in sweatpants and a tank top when the more successful of the duo entered with her bags. “You went radio silent on me. You never do that unless something not so great just happened.”

“Great fucking detective skills, Miya,” Luna snapped, a venom in her voice that wasn’t even directed at Miya in particular but at everybody.

“It’s just one trial-”

“And what am I going to tell everyone else about it? Yeah, I was in a newer car with a new team, a situation that should have been perfect for me as someone from the Prototype Series, and I still couldn’t get the best time because I lost the back end twice? What am I going to tell Maria about this after I said I’d come back from the trip with a job offer?”

Maria, of course, was Maria Cattaneo, the runner up from the last WGPC season, who was now moving into coaching for the meantime after walking away from active racing to better take care of her new son, Silva Rawling. Originally, Ella Estrella had matched up her stepdaughter with the famous coach that was under contract at the end of the season as a driver for Ella because of the way that they could have similar personalities at times. They both wore their emotions on their sleeves and had a reputation for either letting their feelings fuel them or destroy them, depending on the day.

That was where the similarities ended, though. Maria had silky handling and an innate sense of the motion of the car, which allowed her to use her technical skills to set up aggressive attacks. Luna, on the other hand, had a very aggressive driving style that saw her brake late, accelerate early, and lead with the front wing rather than focusing on all four wheels evenly. And while both drivers were emotional and had somewhat public relationships, they were quite the opposite. Maria often dealt with the colder end of the emotional spectrum, fighting away feelings of doubt and numbness, and Luna…

Well, Luna was on the other end of that spectrum, wrestling with a rage that had followed her ever since the day the Space Liberation Organization killed her parents and changed the course of her life forever. It was a rage that unleashed itself on the track, where she battled for position with a fervor that could only be from someone that had no other options. Before the Estrellas took her in, it had been victory or the streets. And now that they seemed to be splitting from her, it was the same deal.

Win, and have everything you ever wanted. Or lose, and see yourself lose the only means you have of maintaining every single thing that’s in your life. That was the situation Luna was in every day, and now, that pressure was starting to show in her actions and her words. “There’s still Nexus,” Miya tried to say to comfort her.

“So basically, I can get ready for some serious culture shock,” Luna sighed, opening a cabinet and finding the decently large stash of illegal substances that she and her friend shared. She took a joint in her hand and lit it up, exhaling slowly as she laid on her back on the floor. “How can one person fuck up as much as I do?”

“Luna-”

“Don’t interrupt me. I managed to get adopted by millionaires and messed it all up by starting a fight for the dozenth time despite being warned about it. I got a chance with another team and I couldn’t even keep the back end straight on my best laps. And I’m still homeless, leaching off of my best friend and getting high while I should be working on my career. It’s like… The Estrellas took me out of the streets, but they couldn’t take the streets out of me. I feel like I should have saved myself from all of this and ran the car straight into the wall when I knew I wasn’t going to finish first-”

“Jesus, Luna, don’t say things like that. You’re scaring me. It’s just one team that turned you down, and you still have an offer. Let’s just relax tonight and you can get on the phone with Nexus tomorrow and sort the details out for that-”

“It’s only not a big deal to you because you already have a future! I’m looking at losing everything in my life from my livelihood to my family, so don’t you dare tell me to relax-”

Just then, Luna’s phone rang, and she saw that it was from her agent, and answered. “Devin?”

“It appears that Novikov has reconsidered, Luna,” Devin Dekkers said, the familiar confidence of his voice sounding especially strong today. “And it appears that you have a chance to join them now-”

“Then tell them that I’ll sign for them. Before they change their minds again. You can explain all the terms to me later… Just get them my signature.”

[Former Citizens of the Nimbus System]

Lapiz Point International Airport, Lapiz Point, Esmerel
16th of June

Two women dashing across flat tarmac aren’t exactly difficult to spot anyway; still, it is one of the four Sentinel soldiers whose heat imaging system, a feed from a helmet-mounted infrared camera overlaid over her vision by means of a heads-up display, allows her to pick out the running figures of Talia and Rebecca almost as soon as they leave the terminal and begin heading towards the Praetorian. She informs her colleagues via radio communications before notifying Timothy of the same with a tap on the shoulder and a movement of the arm; after identifying the two himself, he raises up a hand in greeting. “Rebecca, Talia, hail!”

When they have come a bit closer, Guard resumes conversation, a few team members flanking him and the Nexus Force fireteam flanking them. “Hello! My name is Timothy Guard, Project Manager of the entirety of Nexus Racing, and I am incredibly happy to be able to finally meet both of you face-to-face - especially,” and he turns to the driver of the pair, “you, Rebecca!” He leans forward to shake her hand. “I thoroughly look forward to working with you over the coming season and beyond. Far beyond, if you’d like.”

He smiles, then motions to their luggage, turning to the female soldier who pointed out the two of them. “Fireleader Sonja, would your team be happy to take those bags? There’s no sense in the mechanically unaided from being overburdened, after all.” ‘Sonja’’s eyes visibly roll but two of the blue-armoured soldiers do indeed come forward as the party turns to walk back to the gangplank.

“So,” Guard asks as he begins his stride, “what is Esmerel like? I’ve never visited before now - if you count now as a visit - so I am somewhat curious.”

[Esmerel]

Rebecca Darlington
Lapiz Point International Airport, Lapiz Point, Esmerel
Friday, 16/06, 10:18

Rebecca makes a response. "Well, I'd love to break out into a lecture about the detailed history of Esmerel and its people, but we may not have time for that. Long story short, established in 1977 after we were granted sovereignty by our sister nation to the north, used up our nonrenewable resources and then switched to renewable stuff and artificially made the land look new again, led by president Charles Terrell Richmond, 63, and the population is about 200 million, give or take a couple million or two, spread across about 75,000 square kilometers of pristine land. And we've got advanced technology that exceeds anyone else in the region- though not you. That's about as much as I can get into without sounding like I'm trying to be a college professor."

Rebecca looked around. "But I assume you're interested in the nation given you've asked this question in the first place. It's nice, got plenty of tourist spots, et cetera, English and Latin are the main languages, stuff like that. Sure, I'd love to take you on a road trip across the country, but when I arrived at the terminal I was assuming it'd be an extended stay on the Wardship and its amenities- so why not get going? I'm ready when you are."

[Former Citizens of the Nimbus System]

Lapiz Point International Airport, Lapiz Point, Esmerel
16th of June

Timothy blinks once before bursting out in delighted laughter. “You,” he states, grinning widely at Rebecca, “are going to do very well here, I can tell. I would actually be more than happy to listen to your Esmerelian exposition when we have the time but you are correct in that we ought to be off.” He motions towards the gangplank. “Guests first!”

The room into which the group ascend is a white-walled and carpeted corridor which extends in two directions, initially heading off at right angles to the gangplank (which is now beginning to fold back into the aircraft’s underbelly) but soon curving, towards the front of the aircraft. Doors on both sides indicate the presence of a number of rooms; two of the soldiers (the ones carrying the luggage) and most of the Nexus Racing staff file off into one of the rooms, while the other three soldiers with Sonja in the lead, Guard and one other woman lead Rebecca and Talia into a second. This room is furnished with a large, central wooden table surrounded by cream-coloured leather-substitute chairs, all currently facing towards the front of the aircraft, on turntables mounted on rails perpendicular to the table; around this are smaller tables, each next to the wall and with its own complement of either two or four seats - again, all facing the front of the plane and all mounted on turntable-holding rails.

It is one of these that Guard takes. “We’ll be taking off in minutes, so do sit down and make yourselves comfortable for now; we’ll start discussing what needs to be discussed once we’re off the ground.” The woman mutters something but follows suit regardless, while the three military personnel place themselves in seats across the room.

“Oh!” Guard clasps his hand together, turning back to Rebecca and Talia. “One more thing: what kinds of food and drink do you enjoy?”

[Esmerel]

Rebecca Darlington
Lapiz Point International Airport, Lapiz Point, Esmerel
Friday, 16/06, 10:21

"Food and drink... thank you, but we ate at the hotel not an hour ago. Hotel breakfast is actually good. But I will ask you, about how long will this flight be? Because then I might think about it again..."

"Oh, Rebecca. Always getting ahead of yourself. But she is right. We ate very recently. Thank you for the offer, however. You have a very nice craft. I know you've got the tech, but the design works out as well."

"...What she said."

The adventure had arrived. And it was almost as if Rebecca could hear flight control talking to the pilots in the front.

"NWFCNS Venture League Praetorian, you are cleared for takeoff along runway 36N. Good hunting."

Now it was time to get down to the nitty gritty and discuss the details of the contract...

[Eastfield Lodge]

For once, the development team at the MSA were actually pleased with the progress the team were making on the car for the upcoming WGP2 season. Usually, there was always some problem with the engine, or some other part, that always persisted into the season. Or there was a problem with the drivers - namely, Louis Krindle binning multiple test cars into multiple walls whilst trying to get the best out of them. He'd retired for good now, after two decent seasons in the senior WGPC formula. Victoria Gardner had also taken a step back from motor-racing, what with being pregnant and all - she may well return to the WGPC in the future, but for now she wanted to focus on her new family. Unfortunately, she wasn't in any fit state to help the team with their testing, so they had to rely on their own in-house drivers. 17 year old Cesaro Whittaker was the standout name in that crew, newly signed by SinVal after an impressive karting career culminating in a title win in the season just gone, and now hoping to participate in the WGP2 formula. The MSA higher-ups agreed that Cesaro would be a good fit for the testing team, but refused to guarantee him a place in the team come the actual WGP2 season, on the basis that the kid had no experience at even domestic formula level and putting him into the car would be too big a gamble for a team that was, without a doubt, looking to win the title. Much to Tadeo Durand's annoyance, he saw potential in the kid and wanted to help him realise it.

There had been a few problems with regards to setting up for the season however. Grafonil, despite having eagerly signed their contracts with the EAMR to supply tires for the upcoming season, were being somewhat reluctant to let the MSA team use them in testing, at least until the team had gotten a handle on the car's specifics - especially the engine, which was being redesigned from the ground up. MSA had stipulated that SinVal wouldn't use a downrated engine from last season's WGPC, and the engineers agreed; pretty obvious decision, given the innumerable software problems the engine system developed in just the first racing weekend when exposed to rain, problems which plagued them for the majority of the season and could only be reduced - enough for the team to start scoring consistent points, for sure. That put the schedule back a considerable amount, as MSA had to wait for the engine to be finished before they could do anything about the chassis. In the end, the final product seemed to have a similar balance to the WGPC car, which was deemed to be a good result.

Of course, this being motor racing, something was bound to go wrong. And in Whittaker's eyes, it did. Dalia Dahl, the 21 year old hotshot who was looking to make a name for her herself outside of Victoria Gardner's shadow, revealed in a social media post that she was going international, and had applied for a WGP2 license. This put a spanner into Cesaro's plans, because he had expected to make the MSA-SinVal lineup, even if as a second driver. In fact, he had been that sure of his place that he'd even turned down the test offer from Obey Sport. Although it seemed the Esmerelians might not have gotten that message, if rumours were to be believed. But now, with Dahl in the scene, a budding driver who was evidently much quicker than Whittaker could be, and also one with a lot more experience at formula racing compared to Cesaro, he had to start looking elsewhere for a ride. Especially when MSA announced two days later that Dalia Dahl would indeed be signing for them. And so he began contacting the team's that still seemed to have free spots left in their line-ups.

From: cesaro.whittaker@warpmail.co.efl
To: Novikov Racing, Team Ignis, Tropicorp Engineering, Junixwagen, Nadakei Sport AYDP, Vannish Motors Racing
Subject: WGP2

Good Afternoon, to whom it may be concerned,

My name is Cesaro Whittaker, and I am currently looking for a team to drive for in the upcoming WGP2 series. I apologise for leaving it so late, but I was put into this situation after MSA-SinVal changed their mind at the last minute about having me drive for them. I may only be 17 years old at the moment, but I believe I have what it takes to succeed at this level, as I can adapt to pretty much any situation that I encounter on the track. My main strength is my consistency, which is evidenced by my karting career where I won the top domestic trophy by consistently placing high in the standings; whilst I may not be the most aggressive or technically proficient driver on the list, I believe that with a good strategy behind me I can still hold my own.

I am open to travelling and taking part in tests, both open and private, if that is what is required of me before you can make a decision.

Yours sincerely,
Cesaro Whittaker

OOC: basically, Cesaro applies to/accepts all existing offers for tests.

---

Tadeo Durand was sitting his office that night, looking over footage of Cesaro's tests, with a hand kneading into the side of his skull. Sure, Dahl was a much faster driver, but he had his doubts over her ability to finish a race at this level. Some commentators had likened her to Louis Krindle in his early days, extremely fast and aggressive with little care for safety. Sure, she might not have crashed as often as Louis had, but the number of mistakes she made in the course of the past domestic season was worrying, to say the least - she should clearly have won the title, but a few times she failed to hook up a qualifying lap, and a more than a few times in race conditions she ran wide or span out or damaged her car or something equally stupid. While Cesaro was slower, he was by far and away the much safer driver than Dahl, and one who you could count on to reliably bring the car home, and in a decent enough position to boot.

Still, the rest of the management had overruled him, and now he was tasked with finding an international teammate for Dahl. Yes, it had to be an international, maybe because they just didn't want Cesaro to get into the team. Who knows? Anyway, who to go for? Someone experienced, or one of the new blood. Someone purportedly fast, or someone reliable. Someone with motorsport-based backers or connections, perhaps? Too many variables, in truth, and not enough time, with only a couple of weeks to go until the pre-season test. Durand drew up the folder with all the available drivers. Many names, many manufactured reports of greatness and potential, some embellished, some outright false. And some true. Many choices, but a few names stuck out. And one in particular was Juracai Klianiota. Experienced, definitely, and very quick. Could well be a great counterbalance to Dahl's ... inexperience and inconsistency. May as well take a stab at that option before others.

He quickly wrote up an offer and e-mailed it.

From: tadeo.durand@msa.co.efl
To: Juracai Klianiota
Subject: Race seat offer

Dear Mr Klianiota,

I am sending this message to you with an offer to take up the lead seat for the MSA-SinVal team for the upcoming inaugural WGP2 season. As rivals for VTM in the senior formula, we have seen what your work has done for them, and we understand that you are looking to make your own direct mark on the sport, and we believe we can provide the opportunity for you to do that. Please find enclosed the full details of this offer, but in short, you will be given a good baseline salary, with bonuses on top for good performances. If you wish, you can come down to Eastfield Lodge and try the car out for yourself before you make a decision. We at MSA-SinVal look forward to hearing your reply.

Yours sincerely,
Tadeo Durand
Team Principal, MSA-SinVal

[Astograth]

Lukar Urdaneta sipped his lemonade and set it down with a sigh. He had the worst fucking attorneys.

"Take to the sea", they said, so there he was. On a yacht off the Iturributan Riviera, glorious sunshine and deep blue waters... with no racecars, team officials, or contracts in sight. He'd done fine at the Novikov test, better than expected, and the drive appeared to be in the bag. The only thing missing was to finalise the paperwork, which he'd already signed and which his agent insisted he'd get around to doing... until he called to say that Luna Estrella had been signed instead. Urdaneta should've fired the guy then and there, but did he? No! He'd "taken to the sea", whatever that meant, on the advice of his agent and lawyers. He'd understood it to be advice that he cool off for a few days, but it had already been several more days than "a few". And still no news.

No news till earlier today. Apparently, Gorria Bildostegi had signed for Yogutz Lantzia. He'd gotten another call from his agent to say the talks with Yogutz had fallen through, and that they were only looking for one Astograthian driver. Government grants this, female appeal that... no amount of excuses could keep Urdaneta from fuming. He wondered if he'd been set up somehow, if this wasn't all a plot by Barrertze or Badiola -- or even one of the other drivers! -- to keep him off the grid. It would reflect a shocking level of competence by his staff if so. He'd heard nothing of the CV they'd supposedly sent Tropicorp, though it was meant to include clips of his driving from 11 year-old karting to last season's Formula Astograth. Wait - was that it? Were the teams just looking at last year's form, maybe, when he'd only finished twelfth? They should've seen the backhoe that Barrertze stuck him in.

So he picked up the phone and rifled through web pages, jotting down numbers on a pad. He'd call every last team himself if his bloody agent wouldn't. MSA-SinVal, Ignis, Nexus, Tropicorp, Nadakei and Junixwagen, anyone who had a car and a seat.

[Hodori Motorsports]

Nadakei Sport AYDP Trials
Open Invitation

The trials for the second seat at Nadakei Sport AYDP will consist of three sessions at Driving Park Kudakei over the upcoming weekend. All attending drivers will use SAKATA Racing Technologies R-173GP2 machines with VS/E340E 3.4L normally-aspirated V8 engines. Lukar Urdaneta, Cesaro Whittaker, and Denholm Kingsley are specifically invited, with walk-ins to a total of eight drivers permitted.

---

Driving Park Kudakei Circuit J

Lap Length: 2299m
Corners: 17
Estimated Best Lap (WGP2 pace): 0:45.211

The first trial on Friday will consist of 30-minute sessions on Driving Park Kudakei Circuit J, running on the 2299 meter Super Karting layout with the Karting Hook. Drivers will have twelve laps.

---

Driving Park Kudakei Circuit G

Lap Length: 3067m
Corners: 9
Estimated Best Lap (WGP2 pace): 0:56.327

Saturday’s second trial will consist of 30-minute sessions on Driving Park Kudakei Circuit G, a 3067 meter run on the periphery of the facility. As with the first trial, drivers will have twelve laps.

---

Driving Park Kudakei Circuit A

Lap Length: 6114m
Corners: 29
Estimated Best Lap (WGP2 pace): 1:53.601

Sunday’s final trial will consist of 45-minute sessions on Driving Park Kudakei Circuit A, the longest configuration at 6114 meters. As with the first two trials, drivers have twelve laps.

---

The driver with the best performance over the three trials will be considered for the second seat at Nadakei Sport AYDP. Drivers for Nadakei Sport AYDP will be given an IZAYOI Model 134 digital watch and will be paid 8,750,000K (approx. $250,000NSD) over the course of the season.

Though the days given are Fri-Sat-Sun, the actual scorinations will be around Sunday 1500, Sunday 2100, and Monday 0300 US Eastern.

[The Iron Syndicate]

Armo Lehto

“Lehto heads into the final turn as the champion of the Red Hill Karting Series, for his first ever silverware as a driver with a father that has quite a lot of that…”

“And the winner of this race will be Armo Lehto, the son of Carsen Bold and the heir to his racing dynasty! This is Lehto’s first win as an open wheel driver, and the first of many most likely, as begins his victory lap and waves to the hometown crowd here at the largest stadium he’s raced at, the Red Hill Autodrome!”

“Here we see Armo Lehto as the main test driver for RBO Red Hill Racing, the team that his father Carsen made so famous. Carsen and Lehto, of course, grew up far from each other, and Armo didn’t even meet his father in his early years. However, somehow and through some way, Lehto’s managed to continue his family legacy by making it to Formula S with RHR, something many called an impossible dream based on his humble upbringing.”

“And Lehto collides with Estrella here in East Portus, and Estrella is out! Luna Estrella is out, and Lehto will have to pull over too! All signs indicate that both the ART number eleven and the Black Isle number three are out of this Prototype Grand Prix! Wow, what a turn of events, one that isn’t over! Estrella has some words for Lehto, and this rivalry has taken a different turn!”

“Estrella will enter the final turn of the race as champion! Lehto will finish second in the standings. Luna has become the third Estrella to win a major championship, and Lehto will know that he came so close but finished so far… And here after the race, Luna consoles a tearful Armo Lehto, making amends for the East Portus brawl and extending the olive branch so to speak. Where will the careers of the two prodigies go from here? Luna certainly has the upper hand in the battles between them right now, but to say that it will be this way forever would be foolish.”

Armo closed the video of his career highlights and was reminded of the task at hand as he looked up and pocketed his phone, moving over to the spot in the garage where the mechanics were working on the new car for this season in WGP2. Of course, they weren’t at the team offices in Portus, but the testing ground in Red Hill. With Portus being absolutely dense as a city and being impossible to build a track in, other than the ones that were already there, the Academy Racing team tested exclusively at the Isla Circuit, which was in Red Hill. The place was fairly impressive, as it was large and expansive because of its location in the suburbs and also on the cutting edge of technology, with that tech being part of the reason why it had been built in Red Hill, the technology capital of the Syndicate.

“Grayson!” Armo said, getting the attention of Grayson Chase, the team principal that was overseeing the construction of this staff and the construction of this car that would be used when the season rolled around. The car was simply called the Isla D13, mainly because it used diesel fuel that the spec engine mandated rather than the electric power of the team’s other cars, and so far, the design process was leaning towards making it the most efficient and smooth one on the grid. “Tell them to put Bold on the car, not Lehto. I’m not repping my bitch of a mother with this thing.”

“No can do, Armo,” stated Grayson. “Bold isn’t the name on the paperwork, unfortunately. We’re only supposed to use the names and numbers that the league gave us-”

“That’s bullshit. That’s my father’s name, you could put that on there if you really wanted-”

“Rules are rules. The name on your ID and on your registration paperwork is Lehto, not Bold,” said the former driver, motioning for his young prodigy to calm down. “The best we can do is put Armo on shark fin instead of Lehto, that should stay in the rules without using your official surname.”

“Then do it. And I don’t care what anyone says, I’m putting Bold on my helmet,” Armo said, before turning to walk out of the garage for now and get changed into his race suit for the first test of the car. “Oh, and when’s the new guy coming in? The one from West-East Timor.”

“Jannick Markner, and I believe he’s on his way here right now. I’m sure you’ll like having him around, he’ll be better competition for you than people predict. Big upside on him, according to all our footage. Oh, and one more thing before you leave.”

“Yeah?”

“Relax, Bold. Your father didn’t build his legacy as the greatest of all time in one season.”

With that, Armo turned and left without saying one more word.

[Former Citizens of the Nimbus System]

The Esmerelian Sky
16th of June

The Praetorian accelerates with a force but without any jolt or shudder as would feature in a plane that is not powered by a non-baryonic psionic catalyst and soon is in the air in the typical manner of the characteristically ultra-smooth take-offs of Nimban aircraft. Once the plane has climbed to cruising altitude and a tannoy has cheerfully indicated that it is safe to move around, all of the chairs swivel to face their respective tables. Guard and the woman each flick a switch located on the right arm of their chair, causing each to roll forward along its rails to eliminate much of the space between it and the table.

"Now," Timothy begins, and he indicates his companion, "this is Auburn Steel, our team's resident lawyer. She's here so that we can properly iron out your contract, Rebecca."

"Yes, I'm relevant now, aren't I?" Auburn's eyes root themselves to the ceiling before she closes them, shaking her head slightly before they snap open once more and she places her hands flat on the table with somewhat overdramatic haste. "Anyway; down to business, the first item of which is for me to confirm that you have both signed the non-disclosure agreement that was sent to you with our offer. The fact that it pertains to state secrets does make it somewhat important."

"Then we have your contract to consider, Rebecca. I have -" Auburn takes out a tablet, tapping the screen to bring up a document - "a pre-prepared framework here which, so far, stipulates that you will stay with and compete for Nexus Racing and receive training from the team for the course of the WGP2 season. Your salary will be identical to that of our two WGPC drivers."

"Ultimately, it is beneficial to both parties to create ideal conditions so that you can focus on your racing." A small smile alights on her face. "We have resources in plenty, so this is fundamentally a question of what we can do for you, Rebecca - within reason, of course. So long as it isn't anything outrageous, we would be more than happy to include it in the contract."

"There is another clause that could potentially be added to the agreement, as well." Auburn's forearms swing towards each other, her fingers and thumbs meeting to form a triangle. "Our intentions in WGP2, Rebecca, are relatively simple: to find drivers with talent and train them to be ready to compete with us in a WGPC setting. We believe that you are one such driver, Rebecca, and it is therefore in our interest to ensure that you stay with us up to and beyond that point." She smiles again. "The question, then, is of your views on the matter. Should you so choose, we will extend the period of the contract to three seasons and simultaneously give you the ability to replace it with a WGPC one-season contract with us at any time that we do not have a full driver line-up. You will have a guaranteed place in the top tier of competitive motorsport, if you would like it."

[New Scaiva and Horshenwurst]

Jonus stood there in his office, gazing at the list of emails he had received from drivers and teams alike. Quite a few, he pondered, with many entering and then almost immediately withdrawing. It was two days before the planned trial, and already several teams claimed their 2 drivers. Junix was behind, and he knew that postponing would only result in more withdrawals. He knew what he had to do.

Lauren, please notify the 5 drivers that the trials are a go.
Yes, Mr. Martin.

In a few days time, Junixwagen will finally have its second driver.

Two days had passed, and Martin, equipped with his judging team, arrived in Vilchi. The 5 drivers stood in front of them, each desiring to make the cut.

Alright, ladies, gentlemen, bird-thing. Welcome to the Terrace Bullwix in Vilchi, New Scaiva. Here, you will drive the entire length of the course 20 times in either a red or yellow 40XB. For now, we will start with Lukar, then Martijn, Cesaro, Dom, and finish with the Cocoabo who's only here to train for Tropicorp. Lukar and Cesaro, you two will drive the Yellow model. Martijn and Dom, y'all will drive the Red model. For 23, I assume you'll be using your feet or claws, whatever those appendages are attached to the legs. Good luck fellas.

---

---

Junixwagen Trials (Not-Ranked; Fastest Lap)

1 Lukar Urdaneta      :: 1:59.587
2 Martijn von Leeuwen :: 2:05.924
3 Cesaro Whittaker    :: 1:58.868
4 Dom Falepeau        :: 2:03.184
5 Cocoabo #23         :: 1:55.713 NEW RECORD

---

With the completion of the Cocoabo's final, Martin invited the five back to the pit, where he made one final remark before sending them off into the wild.

Thank you all for coming out today and participating. The officials and I will huddle up and decide together who we want to join the team. Until then, good luck to y'all.

With the 5 vanishing, it was time to decide.

[Vangaziland]

One of the Vannish cable sports networks did a documentary on VMR's WGP2 drivers. The hour long show compared and contrasted the life of each driver to the other. Jenna Vandersen grew up inheriting the title of Baroness by age 13 in what's known as a Lesser Royal House. Jang Xiaopeng grew up in a large military family.

One segment looked at each driver's parents. Etta Vandersen was a Vannish fashion icon of the 1980s. She was married to the Jarl of Central Vangaziland, known as "Black Olaf". He fell in love with her after seeing her on a magazine cover. He offered her the world. In the process, the public followed their life in the tabloid mags.

They became the embodiment of the decadent Vannish 1980s.



Etta would pull stunts and was known for showing up with her pet panther. It would cause so much havoc. Some people would be running away because there was a panther on a flimsy leash. Others would run towards her to take a polaroid shot or get her autograph.

Jenna was known as the Little Baroness at this time in her early youth. The media tried to portray her as the prodigal child of Vangaziland. In truth, she had a wild streak based on her party-going mother's influence.

Right as the TapeSter portable player became popular, Etta came out with a track that became Vangaziland's number one song of that year. It was highly synthesized. The lyrics were simple and repetitive, but somehow catchy. The beat was high pitched and mechanical.

Really, it wasn't because of talent. Jarl Vandersen made a few calls and got her a deal on a single. Etta would become a one-hit wonder.

The song was still popular in 1984 when Vannish Intelligence got involved in an operation in Vasconia. Jang Xiaopeng's mother flew an F-16 based in a neighboring nation that flew operations in support of the nation's liberation. Most of 1st Lt. Yuan Wang's flights were air support for the Vasconian militia.

She did confirm and neutralize five enemy fighters. This was in the time when the MiG-29 first came out. Two of her aerial victories were against those top-of-the line (then) fighters. One of those was a close quarters gunfight. The other three kills were on older MiG-21s. This made her an ace.

She was one of the few military personnel involved that was not a classified intelligence operative. The government released her story and she unofficially became the face of the conflict.

In speeches, she made sure to always mention the other pilots over there. A lot of the intel work was classified. The population was told the air operations were only being coordinated with Vasconian officials. In fact, Vannish operatives controlled all aerial operations and often had Vannish teams guiding strategic strikes, escorted by the locals.

"It's the Vasconian people that are the true heroes and heroines for rising to stomp out the flame of the Fierte Alliance's foreign tyranny. We're just a few fireflies over their shoulders." The speech was all over the news in the mid 80s.

This led to the Fiertean dictator responding with "The Vangazi just want to replace a flame with a firefly." Just being noticed by such a notorious figure was something Colonel Xiaopeng called, "one of the most ridiculous achievements of her life."

The point of the documentary showed both drivers came from influential families, but in different ways. Both Jang and Jenna grew up with lots of attention on their early lives because of their parents. In a land of mandatory military service, people would look up to their fighter pilots almost as much as their social icons.

"I never had a jaguar though", said Col. Yuan Xiopeng (ret.) in an interview shot for the series, when approached with that comparison. Her sly implication, passed off as a snide joke, was that she had much less finances.

She hit her head gently, as if remembering something. "Oh, it was a panther. I never had one of those either."

Sadly, Etta is not around for interviews. She lived the fast life and paid the price. Jenna got emotional when talking about her downfall.

The documentary showed a montage of clips of trial runs at the VMR facility in the countryside towards the end. The show talked about the quirky interactions the two drivers have with each other.

Both of them are currently focused on the upcoming WGP2 season... For the most part, that is. Xiaopeng was pulled over for doing 130 mph in a 100 mph zone. The VMR contract was Jang's first big payday. Right away, he bought a VM Ghost sportscar with a sticker over $200K. Jang has made his mark as a street racer for years.

Some things never change. The cop told him, "Next time, do 115 like a normal person", captured on released dash cam footage. It put the officer under criticism from the Officer's Union. Most people knew what he meant though. The 100 MPH zones were high speed corridors. The police won't usually pull you over unless you do something unsafe or go over about 118.

He even convinced Jenna to help him ship his car to a few of the cities throughout the season. He talked about how they could cruise. She could ship her VM Ghost and they could have this team-building exercise where they drove Vannish cars around the world. Honestly, he just wanted Jenna to use her old world money to help him pay the shipping fees. She either fell for it or liked the idea. Both probably.

Jenna keeps out of the public eye, really sticking to the track. She still has a lot to learn. Xiaopeng does as well. This is a development team. Vannish Motors Racing wants to make these drivers about more than just their family names. Both drivers could really bring a unique personal history to the VMR brand. The company's hope is that here in the WGP2, they'll refine their talent.

Of course, the whole project could implode. VMR needs a spark. Their cars are mediocre at best in the current Hodori GT2 and Rally Sport leagues. VMR is hoping to make an impact on WGP2. The fact is that a lot of other teams are putting major effort into the league. This is no kart club.

There are a lot of advanced machines and talented drivers. The Vangazi are showing up in a detuned version of their lightly tested chassis with drivers that can barely qualify as pro-amateur. The Vannish executives like Hattieson were taking a gamble on their personalities. If a Lesser Royal could win a race or compete, that would make such a good story. Stories sell merchandise. Merchandise sells cars.

This was a business for VMR. There were ways for the company to make a profit, win or lose. The drivers were just looking for the opportunity, experience and for some kind of crazy adventure.

Jang and Jenna were set to be quite the traveling duo.

[Esmerel]

Rebecca Darlington
Somewhere Within Esmerelian Airspace
Friday, 16/06, 10:31

"Ms. Steel, you'll be glad to know that Rebecca and I have both signed the non-disclosure agreement pertaining to state secrets. We've done it a couple of times before, actually. It's not something Esmerel wouldn't pull off. At the same time, we are perfectly fine with remaining with the team during the course of the season, and as for the salary, we don't really how much. Rebecca has plenty of state and private sponsors on her side that can help support your already large budget. Yes, that makes her a pay driver, but not a "pay driver," if you know what I mean."

Everyone in the room looked dazed for a few seconds.

"What I mean to say is that her sponsorship isn't the only reason she's racing and that she actually has some skills. Unlike the old pay drivers of the 90s and the actual "pay drivers" in the lower ranks of the ESTL, top drivers also get sponsorship because they're popular. And who wouldn't want to sponsor a lady with a face like this?" Talia turns to Rebecca as she says that.

Rebecca blushes. "Oh, Talia... you're making this awkward... But, anyways, I also have something to add to this contract."

"You do? Go ahead."

"I noticed the clause about the contract extension and the bridge to the WGPC. I do also believe that with proper training I could have some serious skill- sure, Jean Mercer-Daly is a driver like no other, but he is on his way out. Not too soon, but eventually. Given I'm 14 years younger, I could step up to be the one that slots in after his departure. However, I'd like to add an additional section to that clause. It only takes effect if this season even goes remotely well- if I'm fighting up near the front and getting points and podiums, sure, but if I'm constantly relegated to the back amidst reliability problems it may not work out. Honestly, the latter is unlikely, given we're consistent in our actions, but still... Anyways, that's all I had to say."

"To be honest, Rebecca's idea isn't that bad- why extend the contract if things are going horribly? Anyways, we understand that ideal conditions are very important for a driver, though at the moment we don't have any ideas about what to include. Other than Rebecca's idea, we have no modifications to the contract you have proposed."

Talia pauses for a moment to let it all sink in. "So," she begins, "do we have a deal?"

[West-East Timor]

Weshaka Airport
Weshaka
West-East Timor
Jannick was sitting at Weshaka Airport, waiting for Mika. They where going to the Iron Syndicate, so Jannick can drive some laps in the Academy Racing car for the first time. Weshaka Airport was a relatively small airport, but as Weshaka is a relatively small city, nobody saw a need for a bigger airport.

"Where is he?", Jannick thought, just before seeing Mika walking towards him.

"There you finally are! What took you so long?"

"Well, there were some serious traffic jams on the way here..."

"I haven't seen any traffic jams..."

"Well, no. You live on the other side of the island."

"Oh, right..."

As Weshaka Airport was relatively small, there was only one flight going to the Syndicate - and that one wasn't to Red Hill, but to Portus.

"Aren't Academy Racing's headquarters in Portus?"

"Yeah, right."

"So why do they have no race track there?"

"Don't ask me, I'm just your manager..."

"So... Couldn't you manage to book us a flight to New Dili and one to Red Hill from there?"

"That would actually take us longer."

"But we wouldn't have to drive that long in some rental car..."

"I think you'll like driving that far..."

"What? Why?"

"You'll see."

With that, they headed towards check-in.

---

Portus
The Iron Syndicate

A bit later, they had arrived in the Iron Syndicate. They were outside the airport, looking for the car they had received the keys for.

"There it is.", Mika said, and pointed towards some cars.

"Which one?"

"The omnidirectional one..."

"The Parala?"

"Yap."

"You're kidding me..."

"No. Not this time."

The Parala PL52 was a sports car built by Parala Motorworks from Pänkili, in cooperation with WETtech, and was one of the fastest West-East Timorian cars with approval for road use ever built. Jannick walked towards the dark blue car, to have a better look at it.

"How on earth did you get this thing as a rental car?"

"Well, you just need to know the right people..."

"That's why you are my manager... I assume I may drive it? You know, to warm up for the WGP2 car..."

"Shure. If you don't too many speed limits..."

"Well, I'll get one and a half million dollars from Academy Racing for driving for them, and it's not like Neumayer had given me few money in Formula WET1... So I assume I can afford to pay a small fee for driving a bit too fast..."

"But you don't want to read that in the news..."

"I don't think anyone will be that interested in an article titled "Racing Driver Drives Fast"..."

"But more people will be interested in an article titled "Racing Driver Crashes Spectacularly on Public Road"..."

"Hey, I'm a professional racing driver. I don't crash on public roads..."

"If you say so..."

That being said, the Parala left the airport with spinning wheels.

---

Isla Circuit
Red Hill
The Iron Syndicate

Some more time, some traffic jams, and some exceeded speed limits later, Jannick and Mika had finally arrived at the race track.

"That track is quite impressive..."

"That's true... And Red Hill seems to be quite a modern city."

"Yeah, it does. Might be a reason they built this track here. Anyway, where is everyone?"

They walked around the track a bit, and then went to the garages, where there finally where people. Jannick recognized one of them as Grayson Chase, and so he went over to that particular person and shook his hand.

"I assume you are Mr. Chase? It's an honor. I'm Jannick Markner, apparently. This is Mika Marksson, my manager. I thought he might want to talk to some people here as well, so he is accompanying me."

"Yes, that's right." Mika shook hands with Grayson Chase as well. "Nice to meet you."

"So, how exactly are we going to this?", Jannick asked Grayson Chase.

[Former Citizens of the Nimbus System]

A Bit Further Towards the Edge of the Esmerelian Sky
16th of June

Auburn turns to her superior, who nods, before turning back to face the Esmerelian pair. "That is - in my view, more than - acceptable. With your permission, then, Timothy, I will withdraw to fully edit the augmented contract and present it for signing before the flight ends."

Guard chuckles. "Granted." As she walks off, he smiles at Rebecca and Talia. "Auburn is... Protocol-driven, one might say - and for a government-funded organisation, having a lawyer like that to ensure that we remain on the right side of the law is incredibly important. I wouldn't have anyone else working with us."

"Regardless, the flight should be over in a few hours' time. Until then, make yourselves comfortable and be sure not to look through the computers with all of the Ministerial Office for Diplomacy's information on them." He laughs. "Don't worry, they're locked down. In all seriousness, I am really happy to have you onboard with us, Rebecca - literally and figuratively. We're going to make this a fantastic season for all of us, I'm sure."

The Nimban Sky, on Final Approach to Nexus Racing HQ, ???

After a sea crossing and a brief overland flight a complex in the far distance comes into the pilots' view, as does a track around it and a landing strip beside it. This is the place.

The door clicks open as Auburn Steel re-enters the room, carrying a few sheets of paper. Printed on them is text in two languages: one is English, while the other is a strange collection of boxy glyphs that Rebecca and Talia would recognise from the non-disclosure agreement that the two had been asked to sign; it made up half of that contract too and was named the 'Higher Script' in a clause embedded within the document which affirmed that it replicated the English.

Auburn sits down where she was sat previously, then offers the documents to Rebecca's agent. "Here is the contract, which, as I am sure that you wish to confirm for yourselves, encodes what we discussed previously. There is space for your signature there, Rebecca." She motions to the dotted line, then looks up, smiling at the Esmerelian racing driver with utter compassion. "You have a future here with Nexus Racing if you want it, Rebecca Darlington. All that you have to do now is to tell us that you do."

[Hodori Motorsports]

Take the train from Ikasamo to Yazakiro.
Super Express No.89 from Yazakiro to Soeshu.
From Soeshu to Kudakei by train.
Take a taxi from the station to the Driving Park

---

“Just the two?”
“It appears so.”
“So it’s basically just a coin flip now.”
“Unless we get some latecomers, yes.”
In the hours before the test sessions were due to start, the Arada Motorsport crew held a brief meeting in Driving Park Kudakei’s outer pit garage. The plan had been for the attending drivers to assemble in the outer garage, servicing Kudakei’s configurations A through G, before being escorted to the inner garage servicing configurations H, I, J, and K. At the inner garage, really just an open-air metal pavilion running the length of the inner circuits’ work lane, the drivers would be briefed and introduced to the cars.

There were five cars readied for the sessions, four of which were to be driven by the attending drivers. Two - Units 1 and 3 - were in Arada red with silver wing endplates, with the second pair of Units 2 and 4 in bare carbon. The fifth unit in IZAYOI purple and silver was Saya Kaseo’s number 30, who was planned to attend for some extra testing milage and to serve as a benchmark for the others.

Planned to.

Nadakei checked his watch as Urdaneta and Whittaker were ushered into one of the metallic colour-shifting black-gold Arada Moriya sedans of the fleet prepared for the occasion. A keen-eyed observer would swear his eye twitched.

Kaseo was running late.

Again.

As the sedan left the outer garage taking the attending pair on a brief but air-conditioned journey to the inner garage, one of the garage's access doors slammed open. Hunched over catching her breath was a diminutive woman in a purple and silver IZAYOI-branded firesuit. Saya Kaseo had barely made it in time.

---

As part of the briefing, the time schedule for sessions and the points scale the team would use to judge the candidates was outlined. The assumption at the time the schedule and scale were formulated was that there would be more drivers attending. As Kaseo’s seat was already secure, she would be excluded from points calculations.

Unit	Driver		   Start
 30	Saya Kaseo	   12:30
 1A	Lukar Urdaneta	   13:00
 2A	Cesaro Whittaker   13:30
 3A			   14:00
 4A			   14:30
 1B			   15:00
 2B			   15:30
 3B			   16:00
 4B			   16:30

Rank   Points
 1	    8
 2	    6
 3	    4
 4	    3
 5	    2
 6	    1
 7+	    0

Drivers each had thirty minutes to record up to twelve laps of the track (including in and out laps to and from the pits). Only each driver's fastest time is shown in the table below.

Conditions:	DRY
 P No Driver                 Best Lap  Pts
 1 1A Lukar Urdaneta      0:00:45.300    8
 2 2A Cesaro Whittaker    0:00:45.424    6
 3 30 Saya Kaseo          0:00:45.791   --