WGP2 Season 2 [RP Thread]

[Mattijana]

Week 10: Practice

Conditions:      	Dry	
Lap Record:      	81.954	
Qualifying Type:	Traditional	
Nation:         	NEK	
Circuit:        	Derneo Quays Street Circuit

POS # DRIVER                   TEAM                	FASTEST LAP	
 1 25 Timo Jänkirinää             Omni-Katoa Racing           	00:01:27.989	00:00:00.000
 2 16 Janne Laukkanen             Nexus Racing                	00:01:27.994	00:00:00.005
 3 44 Laurencia Lynds             SinVal                      	00:01:27.997	00:00:00.008
 4  9 Jannik Markner              Vannish Motors Racing       	00:01:28.005	00:00:00.016
 5 97 Edward Baker                VTM Tropicorp Engineering   	00:01:28.006	00:00:00.017
 6  3 Darius Castellammare        Superia Junior Team         	00:01:28.010	00:00:00.021
 7 15 Rebecca Darlington          Nexus Racing                	00:01:28.013	00:00:00.025
 8  60 Chiemi Hino                Ibuna-Gambal Racing       	00:01:28.020	00:00:00.032
 9 33 Karli Schmitt               Vannish Motors Racing       	00:01:28.080	00:00:00.092
10 14 Miguel Santos               EVolution Racing            	00:01:28.089	00:00:00.100
11  2 Juliano Lemos               Superia Junior Team         	00:01:28.091	00:00:00.103
12 12 Ade Imoju                   Omni-Katoa Racing           	00:01:28.106	00:00:00.117
13 48 Tyra Tabuso                 Ibuna-Gambal Racing         	00:01:28.119	00:00:00.131
14 18 Isaia Fanene                Kaylan Racing               	00:01:28.176	00:00:00.187
15 17 Max Prefodski               Kaylan Racing               	00:01:28.235	00:00:00.247
16 19 Dom Falepeau                MRT2                        	00:01:28.238	00:00:00.249
17 75 Roman Arjenko               SVJ Racing                  	00:01:28.302	00:00:00.314
18 37 Jama'obo Pegasii            SVJ Racing                  	00:01:28.331	00:00:00.343
19  5 Jason Masami                Brutus Obey Sport GP        	00:01:28.636	00:00:00.647
20 63 Dahlia Dahl                 Pompeii Motorsports         	00:01:28.691	00:00:00.702
21 10 Erik DeForest               Pompeii Motorsports         	00:01:28.869	00:00:00.881
22 23 Cocoabo #23                 VTM Tropicorp Engineering   	00:01:29.543	00:00:01.555
23 24 Ekatarina Julic             Brutus Obey Sport GP        	00:01:29.704	00:00:01.716

[Mattijana]

Week 10: Qualifying

Conditions:      	Dry	
Lap Record:      	81.954	
Qualifying Type:	Traditional	
Nation:         	NEK	
Circuit:        	Derneo Quays Street Circuit

POS # DRIVER                   TEAM                	FASTEST LAP	
 1  3 Darius Castellammare        Superia Junior Team         	00:01:27.987	00:00:00.000
 2 33 Karli Schmitt               Vannish Motors Racing       	00:01:27.990	00:00:00.003
 3 16 Janne Laukkanen             Nexus Racing                	00:01:27.990	00:00:00.004
 4  2 Juliano Lemos               Superia Junior Team         	00:01:28.009	00:00:00.022
 5 75 Roman Arjenko               SVJ Racing                  	00:01:28.011	00:00:00.025
 6  5 Jason Masami                Brutus Obey Sport GP        	00:01:28.012	00:00:00.026
 7 14 Miguel Santos               EVolution Racing            	00:01:28.021	00:00:00.034
 8 19 Dom Falepeau                MRT2                          00:01:28.026	00:00:00.039
 9 24 Ekatarina Julic             Brutus Obey Sport GP        	00:01:28.032	00:00:00.045
10 23 Cocoabo #23                 VTM Tropicorp Engineering   	00:01:28.033	00:00:00.046
11 97 Edward Baker                VTM Tropicorp Engineering   	00:01:28.039	00:00:00.053
12 15 Rebecca Darlington          Nexus Racing                	00:01:28.040	00:00:00.053
13 37 Jama'obo Pegasii            SVJ Racing                  	00:01:28.144	00:00:00.157
14 18 Isaia Fanene                Kaylan Racing               	00:01:28.151	00:00:00.164
15 10 Erik DeForest               Pompeii Motorsports         	00:01:28.165	00:00:00.179
16 60 Chiemi Hino                 Ibuna-Gambal Racing         	00:01:28.168	00:00:00.181
17 63 Dahlia Dahl                 Pompeii Motorsports         	00:01:28.219	00:00:00.232
18  9 Jannik Markner              Vannish Motors Racing       	00:01:28.323	00:00:00.336
19 48 Tyra Tabuso                 Ibuna-Gambal Racing         	00:01:28.373	00:00:00.386
20 25 Timo Jänkirinää             Omni-Katoa Racing           	00:01:28.399	00:00:00.413
21 44 Laurencia Lynds             SinVal                      	00:01:28.461	00:00:00.474
22 12 Ade Imoju                   Omni-Katoa Racing           	00:01:28.533	00:00:00.546
23 17 Max Prefodski               Kaylan Racing               	00:01:29.703	00:00:01.716

[Monarch Republic]

Does any of the teams want a driver, because I have a driver. His name is:Alfred The "Pacifist" Monarch

[Aboveland]

Tuesday, 7 PM
Iskajärvi, Aboveland

The light in the lobby of the bathhouse was warm and inviting, in contrast to the worsening snow outside. Anders rushed to the reception desk as soon as they got inside the building, while Janne waited patiently, rubbing his hands to evoke a semblance of heat. His teeth chattered, and occasionally his chest shook, but it wasn't entirely owing to the freezing cold. He closed his eyes for a moment, cupping his hands over his face, exhaling warmly into his palms, the hairs on the back of his neck standing as the rush of warm air cooed his cheeks-

"Let's go!" Anders says suddenly, interrupting Janne's reflective intermission. He hands him a towel. Janne smiles and takes it.

The two go into the dressing rooms, and Anders opens locker 16. He stuffs his coat, his hat, his scarf, his gloves, his shoes and socks in the cubby. Janne follows suit, the ruffling sounds of Anders undressing intertwined between each time he shoves another article of clothing into the locker. He turns the lock and pulls out the key, and when he hands it to Anders he's ready to go into the sauna, his towel wrapped around his waist. For a moment, Janne contemplates the scene.

"I'll leave the key on my jeans," Anders says. "Do you want me to wait?"

"It's fine, go ahead," Janne suggests. "I won't be long," he says shyly.

Anders walks away with his back towards Janne, who hurries to undress. the shimmy out of his skinny jeans inelegant, and just as Anders opens the sauna's glass door he's ready too. "Wait!" he calls out, Anders turning back, smiling that lovely smile he smiles. Anders goes in first, and Janne closes the door behind him. The clouds of steam whirl when the glass pane shoves the chilly locker room air inside.

The pair sit opposite each other, waiting for the sauna to fill with steam before relaxing. Janne's lack of fondness for saunas has all but faded at that moment. Anders begins to speak. They chat aimlessly, Janne continuing the conversation on autopilot, as if his thoughts and his words existed on different planes. He hears Anders laugh, lurch forward in excitement and lean back in indifference as the conversation goes on. When he looks to the side, Janne turns to face him. Amidst the dense clouds of steam he can make out Anders' features, the droplets of sweat that roll down his chiseled chest conjoining with similarly sized siblings to form big globs of fluid that die at the towel's tuck; his arms, relaxed yet just bulging enough with veins that they look powerful, confident; his dark blonde hair, wettened in patches, collapsing over his cheeks. Anders faces him again and Janne looks away, staring at the glass door, the sight of its small metal knob obscuring in the haze.

"Finally," Anders says, and Janne hears him fumble with his towel, the sound of it draping against the wooden bench dampened by the wooden walls, echoing in his head. He turns to face him, but he can only see as far as his knees, pointing upwards as he lays in the thick cloud of steam. Janne lays down too, and undoes his own towel. His heartbeat shakes the drops of sweat pooled on his own chest. He pulls his hair back and closes his eyes. Their conversation carries on, Janne's thoughts taking a detour to his fantasies, his words not at all in tune with his emotions.

part two of three

---

Nekoni
Derneo Quays Street Circuit
Saturday Qualifying

The skip in his step was electric as he walked into the Nexus paddock on Saturday. The events of the previous week were still very fresh in his mind, and his energy oozed into the other aspects of his life: most importantly, the race weekend.

The practice session the day before had already left him riled up and starving for a pole position. In theory, the track should have proved tricky for Janne's aggressive driving, but his recent consistent run, emotional highs, and reignited championship hopes swiped away all insecurities and doubts from the desk before he could even lay eyes on them. The hard braking into turn four, to weaving through five, six and seven, and the launch out towards turn eight were some of his favorite bits to make time up on, and throughout the session the setup on his Chase Cutter--still unnamed--had been tweaked to let the machine dance through the apexes (in a way, quite so, as his exit from turn eleven to turn twelve frequently carried a side of opposite lock).

Janne's tiptoeing and rocketing and whirring and weaving through the street circuit had been almost perfected by the session ended, and he'd held the top spot in the times until Timo Jänkirinää and his obscenely powerful Omni-Katoa machine took the top spot. More exciting still, the top three were separated by an impossibly small eight thousands of a second, so qualifying would be anybody's game.

Early qualifying laps had seen Janne barely edge ahead of his main title rival, Cocoabo #23, and steer clear of the West-East Timorian in third place. But Karli Schmitt and Darius Castellammare had ripped the circuit to shreds and hogged the top spots by over .05 of a second for much of the session, the time gaps progressively getting smaller, but never quite small enough, to catch the leading duo.

At one point of the session, as Janne set the car up for turn eleven on a fast lap, Edvin rung out through his helmet.

"Janne, you've got time for one more timed lap, scrap this one and give it everything on the next lap."

Janne slowed down to copy the message and reply. "Isn't this a two stage format?" he asked, startled.

"One shot quali. You're down on sector two this lap. You're not too far from pole, go ahead and knock yourself out."

Janne crawled through turn 12, hugging the outside to let the drivers behind him past, and floored the Chase Cutter into the exhibition straight, curling his fingers through the holes in his steering wheel. He turned his ICAST request knob to its maximum value, nearly unscrewing the chiseled metal piece from its place. The machine surged into life with a menacing whirr, its electric motors smoothly getting the car up to speed. The rubber around the rims squealed out of turn 16 as he began his final flying lap. "Go get 'em," said Edvin, encouragingly, confidently, as determined as Janne to get him on pole.

The first chicane and turn three were a breeze, the Chase Cutter rolling of the curb at turn two and sliding slightly into three's apex. The tires squealed harder on exit and puffed up a small cloud of smoke into turn four, where the ballerina tip-toeing began, past the daffodils and poppies and chrysanthemums, whipping their petals back with every slam of the accelerator. The ICAST is definitely on, Janne thought for a split second.

The Chase Cutter squatted into turn 11, sliding past its narrow apex and darting straight through turn twelve towards the exhibition straight. The HUD speedometer on his helmet kept on climbing, and it seemed as if the acceleration increased even further as the numbers got higher. He didn't let the speed distract him from the task at hand, however, and entered turn 13 with a slight bit more tact than he had in his earlier laps. Hugged the apex at 14, straight on through the kink before 15, and powerfully over the crest of the dockyards straight, his belly feeling the slightest bit weightless over the top of the bridge, before slamming the brakes for the hairpin, easy in, easy out, and careening down the pit straight.

His HUD flashed 00:01:27.990, the same number it flashed a spot ahead, the same number ahead that was second to pole. First to third, separated by four thousands of a second.

"Good God!" Edvin yelled through the radio. "What a fucking lap! Not quite pole, but damn if it wasn't exciting!"

"Aaaaargh," Janne grunted. "Only just."

"Kiddo, that's something to be really proud of. Bring her in."

Janne, parking his Chase Cutter on the polished concrete floor, was smiling way harder than his radio messages suggested, in tune with the helmet slaps he recieved from Edvin and a couple of the mechanics. His engineer flipped open his visor and embraced his helmet to whisper into his face.

"You're a proper talent, you are," Edvin said. "Pole or not, that was the best I've seen all year. I want you to win this one."

Janne stared into his eyes, their usual hollow calmness replaced with a deep, withheld passion. He could see his own eyes reflected in them, portraying the same emotion. He didn't speak a word, but nodded at Edvin, his emotions entirely in tune with his actions. He was as confident as ever, as hungry as ever, as determined as ever, to take another race win.

His heartbeat resonated in his ears.

The tribal drumming of the pounding of the muscle not out of nerves, or shyness, or uncertainty, but out of adrenaline.

His desire was unstoppable.

[Vangaziland]

Racing | Track Life | Off Grid | Fast Women

Dramatic Qualification In Nekoni

The WGP2 was at the start of one of the most scenic and beautiful stretches of the season. It was time for the Esportivan bloc of nations. The region is currently the center of international motorsports. The Mattijanan staff that currently manages the WGP2 on behalf of the WGPO is located across the ocean from the week's events in Nekoni. The territory of Esportivan Vangaziland is a slight trip down the Hollander Sea from both nations. Esportivan Vangaziland and Nekoni are located on the same continent. This is not to be confused with the Vannish Mainland, that ran both the Vannish Grand Prix and the Blue Coast 400.

To add to the region's motorsports prestige, the increasingly popular NSSCRA is administered from nearby Newmanistan.

Esportiva's run in motorsports isn't limited to management. In the latest seasons of WGP2 I and WGPC 16, all combined four cups went home to Esportiva. Vannish Motors Racing has had a gluttonous hold with 2 driver's championships and a constructor's. MRT snatched a constructor's championship from the top tier league. it could even be argued that VMR's WGPC championship never would have fallen without MRT. Jessica Franssen started her international career racing for MRT. The advice she learned from her principal at the time forged her into who she is today.

It's also about more than winning. The Esportivan passion for motorsports is unmatched. Vangaziland, Mattijana and Nekoni are bringing their own spin on a street course. Like the Emeros Street Course, Derneo Quays Street Course makes its way through a park. The course in Nekoni is designed with features more typical to an open wheel course than the Vannish offering.

The hairpin almost gives the track a basic outline similar to Alixring in Lisander. Instead of the airport, the Nekoni track runs through a set of dockyards. The layout even twists similarly, though the track from Lisander has less turns. At least when compared to the East variant used for WGP2 II.

The airport and the technical 'kink', a set of tight turns, caused problems for Karli Schmitt, ending her race back at Alixring. "Time is just about out"', Karli said before qualifying. "We'll need a big weekend to stay in the competition."

Karli put up decent runs in practice. The team spent the event tuning the car's settings. Her time placed 9th, but she trusted her car. She spoke about this before her qualifying run. "Sometimes getting everything set up is the hard part. I feel like I picked up a good lay of the course during the session too. I'm feeling great about qualifying."

Her session started fairly average. It took time for her tires to warm up. In the early laps, she got into a few scuffles with other cars on the track. Karli ripped past Ade Imoju on Exhibition Road. Ade seemed to be also in the process of warming up. He didn't fight hard for positioning. Although Karli ran an aggressive session, her best time wouldn't come until some time later.

It started before the lap begun, coming around the hairpin on the way to the starting line. Karli was behind Cocoabo. She jammed the gas and began an aggressive paddle shifting rotation. This threw her car forward with a physically aggressive lurch. The underbody glowed such a bright scarlet, that it looked as if it were red hot. The engine howled and popped as the turbo also assisted each shift.

With a swagger of a pull on the wheel, the indigo and red cut inside and away from the stands. The extra boost propelled Karli past the big bird, letting her tuck ahead of him before things slowed down again. Part of this came with an aggressive line. She was still taking risks, even though she'd picked up criticism for it.

Turns 1 and 2 were a crunch, where she escaped locking the brakes. Instead, she made it just in time for a clean line. The car fought for traction through the slow chicane, gripping at the slow speed. The track's designers kept this early segment wide, for just such a maneuver as Karli just managed. She got a good start down a stretch that lead into a winding curve. It took her car out of the dockyards, wheels ripping along the tarmac.

The pack entered a park and the slowest segment of turns 4 to 7. Karli was stuck behind Rebecca Darlington for the portion. The Vangazi would later say, following the Nexus machine during that stretch was "like torture." The track opened up as they raced on to 8 and beyond. The Nexus machine pushed hard. The VM33 chassis was closing on its tail, just outside of the dirty air.

Cars can be quicker or slower from week to week. Here at Nekoni, Karli's gear ratio seemed just a litte sharper than the #15.... For now. After the cars followed the bend around turn 9 and felt the elevation change, Karli made another aggressive move. This time she cut outside, three red flashes blasting the Vannish rocket ahead.

Karli didn't slow down once she made her move either. She kept pushing the tempo. "This is your fastest lap", Jess called up from the control room. She could see each lap by the checkpoint. "Dig deep. Just a few more turns." Things sowed down around turn 11. Karli followed a little pack until she got space at 12. This time, Jason Masami fell victim to the red bursts of energy, 8 cylinders and the most ornery turbocharger in the multiverse.

Now Karli tucked behind Dom Falepeau. But she wouldn't pass him. Instead, the car from Kaylan Racing held off VMR. This was true even through the rest of the Dockyard's two straightaways. Schmitt kept right in his mirror though. She pushed Fanene to run faster through that stretch. His lap wouldn't turn out to be faster than Karli's, since she had a better start. She had made up ground on the entire field.

After clocking in at the finish, she was just .003 seconds off Castellammare's lead lap. Janne Laukkanen would cast a similar time even later in the race. The three drivers had run the course with some of the best lines possible.

"I think we saw the hungriest drivers place at the top this week", Karli said after the session. "It doesn't always work out that way. I know Darius and Janne will hope their hard work between these race weeks pays off."

She seemed fond of the track. "It's well designed", said the blonde as she tossed her long ponytail over her shoulder. "It's an open course, but it's a long track. I have a hunch that we'll see an on-field incident affect the top of the order. I don't want that. The crowd deserves to actually see a clean race pan out. Thing is... Racing is a sport of attrition. For aggressive drivers like me, there are enough features on the course to get oneself in trouble."

Karli hinted at needing to reel herself in. She still refused to accept changing her driving style. "That's some media thing", Karli said. "They don't understand that this style got me where I am today. It's all I know. They may say I'm risky, but I calculate that risk."

VMR acting principal Jessica Franssen spoke on how she feels about Karli missing the pole by the slightest margin. "The pole position may mean more to cars who don't push as hard as teams like VMR, Nexus and Superia Juniors. Our kinds of cars can make up distance. Me personally?" The WGPC driver speculated on how she felt about the award throughout her racing career. "It's almost harder to defend your spot from the lead."

Jessica is known for being one of the most consistent finishers in the modern WGPC. Her number of top 10 and top 5 finishes is far from standard. "Karli has everything she needs to succeed", Jess told reporters. "Now she just has to step up to the plate."

---

Imperial Motorsports Magazine - pgs 33-34 - Jennifer Currituk

---

---

A user with the tag name 'WGPmem3' posted this viral image on the site onegazilionmemes.vng. The site features the classic meme border format for its images, similar to the old 'inspiration' images. Of course, Vannish colors have been added to the borders. The use of the phony number is also a play on the word Gazi.

---

[Lisander]

After Qualifying
Derneo Quays Street Circuit, Paddock

"Congratulations on another pole, Darius! That one was very close ..." - the number one Superia driver congratulated the number two. Or was it the opposite?

"Thank you. Congratulations on the good position too. For tomorrow, we have enough chances to keep climbing the leaderboard! Lets just keep within the points zone and Superia Juniors can carry a great result to Lisander. You also have an extremely important role tomorrow. You have to hold Arjenko tomorrow, so we can surpass SVJ in the standings."

Lemos opened the can of energy drink and sat next to it. His gaze seemed lively, intense, full of will and interest. Soon all this would be expressed in words. Lemos could not keep quiet about all that, and it was understandable, after all, he was the owner of the team as well as being a driver. It all hit him double.

"I really envy you, Darius, all that commotion around the most disputed qualifier of the season so far, and you're there, an example of tranquillity. How can you do it?"

Darius thought of the person Lemos was, and could not help mentally laughing at that situation. The hero of the nation, asking for advice from the humble worker? Darius was the guy who sat there and did his work in silence. Thirty years of life, twelve of them in Camden. He had never been in the leading position. In Camden, Meliné Agrakian was the sovereign. Castellammare was her faithful squire and was only there because the woman had refused the position of the second driver in the international category. Now in SJT, there was Lemos with his desire of overwork. Despite his many victories, Castellammare was used to not being the figurehead, and his victories were just results of hard work, not about having a team behind him. But since Lemos was trying to come up with that ... he decided he would not maintain his diplomatic position. Taking risks was natural for #2, so Castellammare would be pretty straightforward, even if the subject was unpleasant. For the #3, a man who had voluntarily placed on his back half of the nation's motorsport (which he considered an extremely stupid attitude) might deserve all that restlessness.

"This is no big deal, actually ... It's not like I do not get excited, angry or even furious at times ... I was not born calm like that. It took me a lot of time to keep that cool. To slow down outside the car" - Darius, moving his water bottle in circles, sitting cross-legged on a couch, could be mistaken for a Zen Buddhist monk. "To begin with, I think you take too much of that energy drink. It's good to keep your spirits up at the races, but I think it's too sweet to be taking it all the time. It seems to make people quicker, more impatient ... Although sometimes I think these drinks are more of a placebo than anything else ... I think we get excited simply because it wants to. Of course, out of the car, I usually drink water. Plenty of water."

"I never think about it very much." Lemos shrugged. "I only drink by the taste. Now that I've noticed, am I disturbing your meditation?"

"No ... I'm not meditating. if you're thinking that's my secret to keep calm, forget it. I never do that... I admit I've tried, but I do not like it. I get that feeling that something is happening in the world that demands my attention. I like to be lazing. I just sit here, I shrink my legs and I see Sergio and Pedro working in the car." He nodded to the engineers working the car. The men responded with another nod and then turned their attention to the adjustments they made on the right front wheel of Castellamare's car. "Sometimes I ask to take a look at one adjustment or another when I feel like I have to do something. But in general, I'm just trying to keep my head empty. That's the main thing. I analyze things disinterestedly. I feel like I can do that in WGP2. Maybe I can not do it at WGPC, with all the structure, great staff, world travels. But here, I know they'll do the best in the car so I just worry about running. As I said, I do not think it's anything to be envious about. You have a lot to worry about, so I do not think it would make sense to you." Castellammare spoke in a condescending tone, that this was probably not the best choice for someone busy like Juliano Lemos.

"Actually, I'd really like to try. I'm going to sit there on that couch. And I'll be lazing just like you. If that improves my result in the last two races, I'll buy you a bottled water truck."

Lemos was always kidding, bragging. Everything was a competition for him. Unlike Darius, the results kind of went to his head, and to the #3, the other one did not realize the nonsense he was doing. "How does one get so euphoric about being calm?" He wondered.

"Well, to be honest, I do not think you can do it. I could even bet... these water bottles. Let's reset our points. If you get more points than I did in the last two races, I'll give you a truck of bottled mineral water myself. What do you think?"

"It's fine by me. I'll give you something of the same value. How much does an entire truck of bottled water cost? I know a package with twelve bottles costs seven lis. I do not know, it's a lot of money." Not that Lemos was that simpleton, but he did not want to waste time on doing complicated maths. - "I'll buy you something fast."

"What about a Hermes M700-SBK?"

"A racing motorcycle? Are you interested in building a team? Are you aware of any new category of Superbikes in Lisander? You have already realized that I am entering all possible national categories, is not it? If you know anything, please let me know."

"Woah, man. That's your problem... You are this way because you rarely allow yourself to relax. You have two teams, you're putting together a third team for a possible event in the Olympics, you're supporting Miss Westgrens in NSSCRA, and you still want to get into more stuff? How do you expect to be calm? How do you think you'll just be able to sit there with a can of energy drink and relax?" Silence happened for some seconds. "Yeah, I do have plans to set up a Superbike team to race in categories outside of Lisander. I do not mix with local motorcycle scene yet. But unlike you, I plan not to get into the daily affairs. I do not intend to overwork. I just want to analyze in a disinterested way. "

Those words were a bit harsh. It seems that everyone was being a bit harsh with Juliano Lemos at that moment. He just listened, silent. Darius was right. Nobody does anything just with willpower, after all. Advice is always welcome.

"You're right. I think I need to plan things better. Anyway ... consider the bet made. If you win me in the next two, the bike is yours. Now I'm going to sit on that couch there and begin my disinterested analysis. But no water. I continue with my energy drink."

Lemos went to the other sofa, but could not keep still. He shrugged his legs, stretched it, laid down, sit down again, drank his can of energy drink to the end, tried to throw it into the trash can and failed, stood up and threw it properly, then restarted the cycle, sitting again in the couch. He wasn't able to slow down. Castellammare thought he would need another five years to get to that inner disinterest.

---

Some funny image appeared on the internet. The user "wgpmem3" from Vangaziland posted it, with three jets aligned, representing the top 3 of Secondario Premio di Nekoni qualifier. Soon, some lisanderians noted a mistake. The plane in the front had number 2, of Juliano Lemos, instead of number 3, of Darius Castellammare, the Pole-Position. But instead of judging the mistake, they decided to made fun of Juliano Lemos, who e:

@racefan204 LEMOS MAKING A POLE-POSITION? LISANDER WOULD FALL.

@xaros777 Imagine a fantasy world where Juliano Lemos makes a pole-position again. Utterly Nonsense.

@ilovebaconandmoto3 Lemos finished P4. Is more than he deserves. This image was clearly made by a Lemos Fanboy.

@j1mbo Please, don't hate me. I'm just being realistic:

[Former Citizens of the Nimbus System]

Nexus Racing HQ, Crossbay Circuit, Nimbus Bay, the Nexus Wardship of Former Citizens of the Nimbus System
24th of October

Dun DAH duh duh duh dah!

The fanfare that serves as Victoria Light’s ‘new message’ signal trumpets away softly, to the knowing smiles of the other two members of the Nexus Racing programming team. Their head clicks on the notification’s icon.

Her eyes scan across the screen as she reads.

Then she gasps. “They think they got her!”

“Who?” Alex frowns.

“‘G’!”

The other two sit bolt upright.

4th of October; Post-Qualifying

Nexus Racing went to Nekoni prepared. The thousands upon thousands of cumulative hours of work of every individual engineer, technician and designer, working in harmony with one another, continue to manifest their fruit: re-designed rear endplates more comprehensively separate the airflows below and above the rear wing, increasing downforce; new MARS matrices now properly take into account the DIADEM while sculpting air across the car, providing all sorts of aerodynamic efficiencies; the next iterations of both the Waste Kinetic Energy Recycling System and photovoltaic paint add to the reserves of electrical power. While not step changes in the same way that ICAST remains, they retain the team’s famous (and infamous) forward technological momentum.

Hopefully, that will be enough.

Timothy Guard thumbs his chin, thinking. He’s in his office, having stepped through the portal back from the garage only a few minutes before.

The final three courses of the year may as well be tailored towards Nexus Racing’s opponents – but they are also the tracks that Rebecca would theoretically favour. The key word is, of course, ‘theoretically’. Janne’s continuous success is intriguing; he becomes more like Ryker by the day, especially how he was in his first year… He smiles as an incidental thought makes itself known: Ryker does seem to have been returning to that recently. The team will be happy to have him back; of that I have no doubt.

But now to now.

It is good that we have such an advantage over Omni-Katoa and VTM, at least as of now, but VMR will be a potent threat… Guard considers – but does so for only a short time. The grid as it stands may well allow us to reproduce the tactics that were so effective in Lisander – perhaps using the ICAST to a less dramatic degree, considering that we will likely be using them for a longer period of the race, but the same tactics nonetheless. He nods, clasping his hands together to signify to himself the establishment of the decision. One more stop for Laukkanen than Darlington, then; we can give her fresh tyres at the race’s beginning regardless – that is one merit of her position, at least. That strategy can be computed first.

Standing, he walks towards the door, the barrier gliding open to admit his passage.

I need to speak with Valen at some point. He will know how we can help Rebecca.

[Main Nation Ministry]

Chapter 16: Sponsorship

After the qualification at the Street Circuit in Nekoni, Jason Masami pulled the car into the garage as usual, where he was getting to get thirsty than usual. Drinking up from a water bottle while heading to the elevator leading to his hotel room, Masami briefly got his foot stuck in the doors, before it went up. When he got to his room, his phone started to ring which he knew was from the official from the Ministry of Sports. "Yes?" Masami said, knowing it's him. "Is this Masami? We're from the Truth News. We're trying to get an interview of you and possibly some other racers attending also. Is it possible to do it after race day? We love to know more about what happens in the race track."
"Oh, that sounds nice, actually. Go ahead. Just don't annoy the security watching me. They're very cautious."
"Alright, we also wondering if you have plans on getting sponsorships from any local businesses in the nation. Is this true?"
"Not yet. But, I'm sure that people will have me be on some commercials."
"Could you attend a meeting with the Leader? He was having a bad day reportedly, so it will be interesting for you to meet him in person."
"I'm not sure. I'm going to be busy for the whole month, so your best bet is having it at a time where I'm obviously available."

"Alright, also is it possible to attend a live stream that's happening for the Residential Sector Annual Football Tournament?"
"I don't do sports, sorry." Masami said, where he let the reporter end the call. "Well, I can always do another person-to-person interview. I hope they got harass the other racers too much." Masami thought, as they mentioned interviewing the other racers.

[Vilita and Turori]

CoCoCo Searching for Sponsorship Opportunity

Turorian-backed entity CoCoCo, with its operational headquarters located on an Island to the south of South Covello within Esportiva, is looking to get its branding onto a World Grand Prix race car as the World Grand Prix 2 circuit moves forward on its Esportivan swing with the Secondario Premio di Nekoni.

Stood up after the fall of the reign of Lord Gregory, CoCoCo established a footprint inside South Covello and established itself as a primary supplier of core goods and services. Internally the goods were used to provide essential raw materials and goods to Turorian shops such as Cocoa-bo that had opened a presence in country. Soon after, however, central public distribution locations were also established.

One of the most prominent is Coco-mart, the big box store primarily found in South Covello. Coco-marts were sood up throughout South Covello to serve as an interface between CocCoCo and the public offering excess goods to the citizens of South Covello and somewhat reasonable prices compared with what it would have taken for a citizen to acquire similar goods during the reign of Lord Gregory.

The CoCoCo have established themselves on a collection of Islands off the coast of South Covello where raw goods are imported, sorted and redistributed to the mainland. CoCoCo have begun to use the Covellan outpost to direct goods and raw materials throughout Esportiva and elsewhere in the multiverse as they look to expand their distribution footprint.. Other major public-facing CoCoCo entities originally stood up in South Covello include Cocogas and CoCoLectric.

CoCoCo have been actively looking for ways to bring their name to the forefront of the public eye and have been putting big money behind the spread of their brand. Most recently, CoCoCo bought out the naming right to the stadium that was set to host the World Cup 81 Final. As a result, the CoCoCo brand was plastered all over the newly renamed CoCoCo Stadium in the Free Republics as the Tropics of Vilita went on to win the World Cup 81 title defeating South Covello.

With the World Cup having come to an end and with the World Grand Prix's second level circuit making its way through Esportiva, CoCoCo is believed to have been negotiating with several teams and drivers about carrying the colors of CoCoCo and its different brands on their race cars and driver suits over the final three events of the season. One driver believed to be contacted recently is Jason Masami of Brutus Obey Sport GP. Masami has been the better of the two drivers on the Obey Sport team and it is believed that CoCoCo's interest is to sponsor only Masami and not Brutus Obey Sport GP's other driver, Ekatarina Julic. Julic has just 4 points on the season and CoCoCo officials reportedly did not wish to engage in having their logo associated with the driver at this time. While it is believed that negotiations have begun with Masami's camp, CoCoCo officials are hoping to have a deal signed before the start of the Secondario Premio di Nekoni and are willing to work with whatever competitive teams they have to in order to make it happen.

One driver it is already known that CoCoCo will not sponsor is Cocoabo #23. Despite the Cocoabo being a likeness and inspiration to the CoCoCo brands, VTM Tropicorp Engineering have already worked their sponsor associations for the season and are not believe to have additional space on the car. CoCoCo partner brand Cocoa-bo already sponsors the #23 machine as an associate partner in front wing position.

[Vangaziland]

Prince F. Vang Academy was a prestigious Vannish boarding school. The private secondary school even had its moment in the international spotlight during the van Eaux Royal Regatta. The rowing event was run by the Free Swiss States and featured competitors from places like Mattijana, Qasden and West-East Timor. The Vannish Academy defeated the Timorian's New Dili School in a tight race to win the Princess Amelia Cup. The result helped Vangaziland secure the Esportivan Team Points Trophy. Both trophies sit in a polished case at the Academy, to this day.

It was here in a wide open area in the hallway where a few Vannish students met up. Vanessa was a pale sophomore with dark brown hair. She carried a history book and a binder. Another student was a junior with caramel colored skin. He wore a sports jacket over his school shirt, leaving his blazer in his locker. As the captain of the lacrosse team, he could get away with that.

The third student, Jon, had dark brown skin. His hair was cut low and shaved bald. His collar was just slightly unkempt as he had gym class earlier. In the rush to change before the next class, neatness was usually one of the later concerns. The trio only had a few moments to talk before the next class. This was the eaisest time for the friends to see each other, as each of their next classes was right around the corner from this central point. When they heard the next bell, they'd all have just enough time to make it to class without being late.

"So I saw your feed blew up", Vanessa told Jon. "Were those really people from another country messaging you?"

Jon smirked as he adjusted his backpack. "Yeah! That pic is getting more attention than I thought it would. It was even on The Nightly Show." The program was one of the popular late night talk shows on Mainland Vangaziland. It never would have went that far, except for the response to his mistake. The fact that the meme featured the wrong driver opened up so much room for comedians to tease the anonymous poster.

"Vetterten ripped you up", said the lacrosse jacket wearing student. Daniel Vetterten was the host of The Nightly Show. The student laughed. "He said you couldn't tell the two drivers apart."

"I know, I feel bad about that", Jon replied. "It's my roommate's fault. I couldn't watch qualifying because he wanted to watch some dumb college football game. My computer was having issues. When I asked him to check who won pole, he told me it was Castellammare. But said his number was 2."

Vanessa let out a long laugh. "So it was Ricky's mistake? Why didn't you look it up on your phone?"

"I didn't have signal", Jon replied miserably. "I went outside afterwards to send the meme." He paused for a second. Talking about his phone reminded him to check his phone before class. "At least the locals didn't seem too upset. I think I had the right idea."

"I think the meme was overrated anyway", said the lacrosse player. He still laughed a little. "It did fit the moment though."

"That's what memes are about", Jon said as he leaned back against the school's wall. They were surrounded by white with a gold stripe and blue stripe running through the middle of the room. The trophy case stretched along the back part of the wall between two staircases. Not only were trophies from the international regatta there. The school was quite accomplished in Vannish high school leagues. "That's just what I pictured from how close the results were."

"At least Ricky told you how close the race was", said Vanessa.

"Yeah", Jon said. "I mean I eventually looked and saw that too. But it was already in my mind that the driver's number was 3. It's confusing", Jon said with a laugh. "But life is confusing." The truth was that he could have went outside to check the race results himself. He let his crazy friend do so for him. He made the meme using the border template he had on the downloaded app. To actually post, he had to go outside to find that connection. It wasn't until after posting and double checking the results that he figured he made the numerical mistake.

"Why didn't you just change the pic and put up a new one?" Vanessa grinned as she spoke, before checking the time on her phone. The bell rang soon after, signalling time was running out.

"It was already out there. It started getting responses too. I just went with it." The trio split as if they all realized it was time to go. They each gave each other quick nods. They'd see each other again soon. For Jon, it was history class. Time to read history about the Scandinavian Vanns. Or were they talking about Old World Africa's Gazi this week?

[Lisander]

Sunday Morning
Derneo Quays, Nekoni

... But it was not for her that he was in love. He was in love with Anna. His eyes pursued her, but he did not recognize her. How could he be so inattentive? How could he not notice the details? The perfume, the shape of her eyes, the colour of her hair ... Gregory had not realized that she, the provocative Anna, the masked dancer, performing acrobatics on the pole dance, was the sweet and serious Laura, who during the day, in long and behaved dresses, was the serious Governess and devoted Nanny of his two children.

If on one hand, she loved the fact that he was there to see her, every night, on the other, she was very afraid. How could he explain to him the fact that he lived a double life? What if he considered her an unworthy and vulgar woman? What if he fired her and put her out? Where would she live? What would become of her? And every time he asked for more attention, she felt her heart beating out of control.

"Anna, please ..." Gregory asked. Laura ignored him (how difficult it was). When she came back to him, he touched her ankle. She stopped. Beneath the mask, her face warmed.

Noticing that one of the customers was "harassing the girls". The security guard approached.

"Could you release the girl, sir? Or shall I be forced to lead you out?"

"No, no ... I'm sorry. I did not want to do it, it was an impulse. I'm sorry, Anna."

She was sweating cold and left the stage in a hurry. Inside the bathroom, took off the mask and headed straight for the shower.

To be continued...

Darius trailed his finger across the tablet's screen, making the display show the eBook cover again. Placing the device on the table, he finished wearing his suit. Just in time, appeared the other driver of Superia Juniors, Juliano Lemos.

"This is the popular web-novel, Two Shades of Her? The one that everyone is talking about? The babysitter is a pole dancer? Lourdina Westgrens told me about her. It looks like the author has been at the Top of LNovels for sixteen weeks, and they are preparing an adaptation for a Telefilm with Erika Simonsen as Laura and Anna."

"Exactly. And if you know all of it you have read it, too. She's a Governess." Castellammare joked but was, in fact, a little surprised. Lemos did not seem like the kind of person who read those novels. But as Darius did not look either, they were even.

"I have not read the last few chapters I have not had much time with preparations for next year Do not tell me if Gregory found Laura at the nightclub. I'll try to read during the week ..."

"Nevermind. I'm not spoiling you. Since it's the last time I'll be able to read. They called me some minutes ago I'll be in the next season of WGPC, and once I finish WGP2, I'll get back together with the Camden Core Team."

"Wow, congratulations! Your great job at Superia Juniors must have impressed... But actually, I thought it would be Meliné. Something happened?"

"So did I. But she said she did not want to transition from WGP3 straight to WGPC. I think she'll be looking for you soon, to be a Superia Juniors driver at the next WGP2."

"I have serious doubts about anything that concerns Meliné Agrakian. She does not like me ... She is very resentful to me. I think she will try another team, or maybe she will drive on Hodori. Just because of me, she missed the chance to get to WGPC. Lucky for you. You weren't in this mess she made, and now you got the spot without having to worry about anything."

[Mattijana]

Who will come out on top on the streets? This is your raceday cutoff.

[Mattijana]

Week 10: Race

Conditions:      	Dry	
Laps:              	48	
Nation:         	NEK	
Circuit:        	Derneo Quays Street Circuit	
Virtual Safety Car		
Deployed on Laps:		
Cars on Grid:	23	
	

[pre]
Start	First Quarter	Halfway	Third Quarter    	POS DRV       Name                                 Team	                      Time	
 1 CAS	 1 CAS +0	 1 CAS +0	 1 CAS +0	  1 CAS Darius Castellammare        Superia Junior Team         	01:20:06.413	
 2 SCH	 2 LEM +3.737	 2 LEM +8.239	 2 SCH +14.809	  2 SCH Karli Schmitt               Vannish Motors Racing       	00:00:05.981	
 3 LAU	 3 SCH +22.541	 3 SCH +14.387	 3 ARJ +27.026	  3 JSM Jason Masami                Brutus Obey Sport GP        	00:00:49.192	
 4 LEM	 4 ARJ +32.344	 4 ARJ +33.165	 4 LAU +52.187	  4 LAU Janne Laukkanen             Nexus Racing                	00:00:51.703	
 5 ARJ	 5 LAU +37.142	 5 LAU +48.233	 5 JSM +58.034	  5 ARJ Roman Arjenko               SVJ Racing                  	00:01:05.184	
 6 JSM	 6 FAL +40.559	 6 JSM +56.427	 6 FAL +79.117	  6 C23 Cocoabo #23                 VTM Tropicorp Engineering   	Laps Down: 1	
 7 MIG	 7 MIG +42.014	 7 FAL +70.594	 7 C23 +Laps: 1	  7 PEG Jama'obo Pegasii            SVJ Racing                  	Laps Down: 1	
 8 FAL	 8 JSM +42.387	 8 BAK +73.639	 8 PEG +Laps: 1	  8 FAL Dom Falepeau                MRT2                        	Laps Down: 1	
 9 JUL	 9 C23 +55.944	 9 C23 +74.327	 9 DAR +Laps: 1	  9 DAR Rebecca Darlington          Nexus Racing                	Laps Down: 1	
10 C23	10 JUL +67.685	10 MIG +84.173	10 MIG +Laps: 1	 10 MIG Miguel Santos               EVolution Racing            	Laps Down: 1	
11 BAK	11 BAK +70.504	11 PEG +Laps: 1	11 PRE +Laps: 1	 11 PRE Max Prefodski               Kaylan Racing               	Laps Down: 1	
12 DAR	12  +Laps: 1	12 DAR +Laps: 1	12 TJK +Laps: 1	 12 IMO Ade Imoju                   Omni-Katoa Racing           	Laps Down: 1	
13 PEG	13  +Laps: 1	13 PRE +Laps: 1	13 IMO +Laps: 1	 13 TJK Timo Jänkirinää             Omni-Katoa Racing           	Laps Down: 1	
14 FAN	14 MAR +Laps: 1	14 MAR +Laps: 1	14 LYN +Laps: 1	 14 MAR Jannik Markner              Vannish Motors Racing       	Laps Down: 1	
15 DEF	15 DEF +Laps: 1	15 TJK +Laps: 1	15 MAR +Laps: 1	 15 TAB Tyra Tabuso                 Ibuna-Gambal Racing         	Laps Down: 1	
16 HIN	16 PEG +Laps: 1	16 DHL +Laps: 1	16 TAB +Laps: 1	 16 HIN Chiemi Hino                 Ibuna-Gambal Racing         	Laps Down: 1	
17 DHL	17 HIN +Laps: 1	17 DEF +Laps: 1	17 DEF +Laps: 1	 17 LYN Laurencia Lynds             SinVal                      	Laps Down: 1	
18 MAR	18 TJK +Laps: 1	18 TAB +Laps: 1	18 HIN +Laps: 2	 18 DEF Erik DeForest               Pompeii Motorsports         	Laps Down: 2	
19 TAB	19 DAR +Laps: 1	19 LYN +Laps: 1	19  +Laps: 5	DNF DHL Dahlia Dahl                 Pompeii Motorsports         	Ret. lap 35	
20 TJK	20  +Laps: 1	20 IMO +Laps: 1		DNF BAK Edward Baker                VTM Tropicorp Engineering   	Ret. lap 25	
21 LYN	21 PRE +Laps: 1	21 HIN +Laps: 1		DNF JUL Ekatarina Julic             Brutus Obey Sport GP        	Ret. lap 15	
22 IMO	22 DHL +Laps: 1	22  +Laps: 2		DNF FAN Isaia Fanene                Kaylan Racing               	Ret. lap 3	
23 PRE	23  +Laps: 1	23  +Laps: 3		DNF LEM Juliano Lemos               Superia Junior Team         	Ret. lap 28

[Lisander]

WGPC | WGP2 | NSSCRA | WGP3 ALPHA LEAGUE | OPEN GP NATIONAL SERIES | LISANDER GT | MOTORCYCLE RACING | LEGAL STREET RACING | + RACING | GIRLS | CONTACT US

---

From reserve driver to title challenger: How the iceman warmed our hearts again

At the beginning of this season, nobody gave anything for Darius Castellammare. He was a driver to complete the numbers on the discredited Superia Juniors. In fact, nobody gave him anything for a long time. At the age of thirty, he was rushed to take second place for Lisander's WGP2 team after Camden's "darling" Meliné Agrakian refused the position she deemed "Not good enough". It seems that choosing the second driver in the last moment is turning into a tradition in the local motorsport.

People thought Castellammare would simply be a supporter driver for Juliano Lemos, in his quest for rehabilitation inside the track. And that's not what happened. It was, in fact, the complete opposite. Lemos seems to have completely abandoned the desire to compete (at least for now) and assumed he has taken a kind of "mercenary journey" to finance higher flights in the future. He has been increasingly dedicated to the management aspects of Bitten Heroes, and barring a few prominent occasions, has been doing a modest campaign this season at WGP2. He should use the first half of next season, which is already officially defined as a sabbatical period, to begin executing plans for the future. Camden Racing will be the team representing Lisander in the next WGPC Season.

Drivers' Championship - After 8 races
Pos	Name			Points
1	Janne Laukanen		69
2	Cocoabo #23		66
3	Darius Castelammare	65
4	Karli Schmitt 		64
5	Timo Jänkirinää		53

Knowing (or not) that, Darius grabbed his chance with everything he had. And the brilliant results he got gives us even more expectations in his work. With two wins in the season, the first in Aels and the second in the last race in Nekoni, Castellammare reached third place in the driver's championship, four points behind the leader and great revelation of Abovelandian motor racing, Janne Laukanen, and just one point behind Fast Coco, the specially trained Cocoabo to drive race cars. He conquered 80% of the points of Superia Juniors. And he did it all quietly.

But let us try to evaluate the Ice Man in a more pragmatic way. He is averse to interviews, a person of few words, and his short answers transpire simplicity and calm. As of the time they asked about him always being seen walking around with a bottle of mineral water, and he simply replied, "It's water, it's good for our health." He's a hard-working and no-frills guy, but he's extremely conscious and intelligent. Long time being a support pilot seems to have created in him a sense of self-preservation. He does not give critical information. He is direct in the answers and at least in the contact with the media, avoids long explanations or discussions. Let's read his words at the press conference after the victory in Derneo Quays:

"I'm happy because we're doing well, but it's sad that Lemos's car has not completed the race. He was behind me, we could have two Lisander flags on the podium. I was told that with this victory I return to the drivers' championship race, but more importantly, we keep climbing the table and that gives us confidence. Although we do not reach any title now, the prognosis for the long term is encouraging. Now we'll pack everything and move on to North Emeros, the home of VMR, which looks like a very difficult circuit with high-speed sectors and breath-taking brakes. There is also Karli Schmitt, also a title contender, and Ade Imoju, the local drivers, who theoretically have the advantage of already knowing the track."

Constructors' Championship - After 8 races
Pos	Team			Points
1	VTM Tropicorp		112
2	Nexus Racing		99
3	Omni-Katoa		98
4	Vannish Motors Racing	95
5	Superia Junior Team	80

We have heard these words for over half an hour, to write them just as he said. Do you realize that he does not say anything that is not common sense? He does not give details of the car, does not say anything about the mechanic adjustments or the team plans. He says he is saddened by Lemos's result but is happy with the victory and evolution on the championship table. Then he says he needs to prepare for next season and more immediately for the next race. Finally, he reinforces the position that Schmitt is the driver to be beaten in Vangaziland race, and with that takes away any pressure from his own back.

In short, I think we're getting so attached to Darius just for his honesty. It reminds us of Juliano Lemos in WGPC15. Discreet and without making promises, he's reassuring the fans of a good performance and showing what they want to see. Stability, and of course, wins.

---

More from TURBO

NSSCRA: Problems with the streaming causing lack of commentary
Agrakian said no to WGP2. Can this ruin her career?
Motorsports in the Olympics. What we already know?
Camden Automobile signs Stellenbosch as its Tyre manufacturers for WGPC

---

2018, All rights reserved. Turbo Magazine is a Website from Turbo Sports and Automobiles, LLC. For commercial contact, send a mail to turbomagazine[at]tsa-commerce.ls.

[Vangaziland]

Racing | Track Life | Off Grid | Fast Women

The VMR Experiment Lands In Nekoni

"One thing to remember about this season", acting VMR principal Jessica Franssen said after the race at Nekoni. "Is that VMR sees the WGP2 as a place to experiment. This is a testbed." She brought herself up as the best example of this. "I'm sure the team could bring on a more experienced manager to act as principal. But they're giving me the chance to develop." She laughed a little. "It'll be sometime far away in the distant future before I manage for the WGPC proper."

Franssen mentioned how the drivers the team selected were also part of one test or another. "Karli is more aggressive and a bit less reliable than the types of drivers we usually bring to the table", said the brown haired Vangazi synonymous with Vannish auto racing. "We'll never know how such a driver will do in our chassis unless we give them a try."

She spoke of the upcoming event, the WGP2 @ North Emeros. "I mean, Karli's style doesn't even favor our current circuit." Jess smirked and took a slightly mischievous look as she said, "Technical drivers, like myself, tend to do well there. With Karli, we're testing two things. What she lacks in reliability, she makes up for with balanced aggression. So will that balance do well on a diverse types of courses? Will the reliability issues cause too many missed chances?"

Jess also spoke of the team's second driver, Jannik Markner. "We're working with people from other countries to bring in even more talent. We've seen this with Markner and even Gregori Krupin in the big league." Certain critics have gone after Vannish Motors for this strategy. "We feel bringing an international driver may still be the way to go." Her expression changed. It appeared as if she was thinking of something that might be in the works. "We may be working on the next big move."

She laughed and shifted her neck, almost seeming anxious. "Thing is. It's a bit of a longshot. I feel like news might drop any day now." She clarified that nothing had been determined on the part of the other driver. The initial communiques haven't been sent yet. "We've delayed the idea once and almost cancelled", she said about contacting another organization for a joint project.

When asked about Jannik specifically, Jess said, "He's done well. He's helped bring us in contention for the Constructors'. It's been a successful season getting to this point."

Both drivers' impact on the team's chances were brought up. "We've had a few missed opportunities. Karli has had a few major incidents. So I think Jannik has done his part from the second seat."

Karli's race started from 2nd. "Strategy is the hard part", Jess said about track days. "It's not easy to hold a spot over an entire event." Karli spoke after the race about why her car didn't keep up with Castellammare. "You have to look at the way both Darius and I drive", Karli said. "He's a technical driver on a technical track, with hustle. I was out of my element here."

Karli's performance was impressive when considering that fact. The numbers would show why the Superia Juniors car had the edge. The Secondario Premio de Nekoni would become one of those races that open wheel fans call 'boring' for the lack of movement between the top 3 cars.

The blonde driver laughed when she heard this. "It wasn't a boring race. It was an example of excellent race management on the winner's part." Karli only held her position until lap 5. Lemos was close on her tail as the two brightly colored cars curved around the chicanes after exhibition road. There was a short straightaway leading to turn 15.

Karli's indigo & red chassis screamed and popped as she approached the track's next feature. Her line was getting a little sloppy, because she was pushing with her aggressive style. The more experienced Lemos had a better line. The turn had a few apexes, curving inward, just to twist a little more. Lemos had the outside line, since Karli drifted a little further left.

"Dang!" Karli tried not to swear over the team radio as Lemos passed. She knew all sorts of people listened to the live feed. Lemos would build a fairly substantial lead. Karli started to chip away at the top 2 cars as the halfway point of lap 24 approached. Karli was able to hold her position by pitting during race incidents.

When Lemos was taken off the field, Karli was closing rapidly on him. She never had the chance to pass him. Now the race was on to topple his teammate, Castellammare. As the laps wound down, Karli slowly closed on Darius. She had cut his lead by a little more than laugh over the last 10 laps. It wouldn't be enough to grab the win, though Schmitt would find her way onto the podium.

"It's great to earn solid points", Karli said after the brief ceremony. "All we can ask for is to be in the hunt as time winds down. It's a great sign that I can make a serious run at the lead on a technical track."

She spoke of the upcoming North Emeros Street Course. Many expect her and Ade Imoju to have an advantage here. The course requires a technical approach to make the most of its many turns and small straightaways. Aggression can turn into sloppiness on the Mainland capital's street course.

"It's going to be a challenge for me", she told the reporter. "But my strategy is to push every week. North Emeros will be just another track." With time running out, Schmitt is starting to face criticism for a few missed chances.

Chip Maydress, co-host of the sports talk show 'Last Minute' brought harsh words for the young Vangazi. "You know, she had at the one wreck where she had been running near the top. She's had a few minor spins that she managed to save. Karli also likes to lock up her brakes. I think she'll definitely need to refine her style in the future."

Karli has remained adamant about staying true to her technique. "This is who I am", she said in an interview two days after the race at Nekoni. "All I have to do is stick to the game plan."

---

Imperial Motorsports Magazine - pgs 3-4 - Jennifer Currituck

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[Esmerel]

1907 Fomalhaut Drive, Vauxhall, Rosetta, Esmerel
Wednesday, 7 November 2018, 13:00

After many a week of racing, Rebecca Darlington felt off. Was anything wrong? Not really, though scoring only 8 points to her teammate's 34 in the last 3 races left her thinking, here in her home along the southern coast of Esmerel. With her teammate also leading the Drivers' Championship and vastly outperforming her in the Constructors' effort, was she doing something wrong? Was it just poor effort? Was she just stuck on an 18-karat run of bad luck, or was the game rigged from the start?

She didn't know, and probably never would. In most cases, an Esmerelian would leave it at that. But Darlington wanted to know something. Could she possibly be doing something to fix at least part of this?

Probably.

The penultimate round would be held on a street circuit in North Emeros, Vangaziland, the same circuit that held the Vangazi Grand Prix during WGPC 16. Which meant Jean had a bit of experience on it. Maybe she could ask him.

(So she did.)

Hey, got a moment?

Yeah, a few... Nothing too much, though.

Next round of WGP2 is in North Emeros- could use some tips.

I'm still going through therapy, can't text you all that much.

Then summarize it.

Okay. It's fast. Sharp corners require precision braking. High-speed corners plentiful and require both perfect turning and sheer luck. Take it slower than you would on most circuits. But not too much. You were amazing back in the ESTL. Street races were yours to win every time.

Well, then. That was a bit much of a summary. You're doing just fine, aren't you?

Better than the press thinks I am. I'm used to the new limbs. I'll certainly be ready for WGPC 17, whenever it comes up. Just don't mention that to anyone. The time isn't now.

Alright. Thanks.

Don't mention it, buddy. You know what they say... you have to be alert on a street circuit!

So, words were nice and all, but they only got you so far. Driving would help more. Playtime was over. There may have been only 2 races left, but Rebecca was keen on making sure both of those races counted.

[Aboveland]

Nekoni
Derneo Quays Street Circuit
Race

All five red lights go off to the same lulling acceleration that had plagued Janne's Chase Cutter before in the season. The rookie sighs, audible in the Nexus paddock, and likely to the cars adjacent too. He slips immediately from third to fifth place.

The initial laps of the race go smoothly, the Abovian keeping up a steady pace to match the car of Roman Arjenko ahead. The track is delightful to hot-lap around and wide at many places, but the plaza complex of turns, where the most time could be gained or lost, is too narrow to allow for his overtake maneuvers to stick. Slowly but surely, he falls behind the Savojarnan team's driver, falling into the clutches of Dom Falpeau in sixth.

On lap 20 Janne finds himself within a second of Arjenko, this time having timed his advances to place himself in a prime position for an overtake over the Exhibition straight. Yet as he guns the throttle pedal, the scintillating blue glow of his ethereal machine concentrating his viewpoint on the gap to Arjenko's left, he receives a radio message, the car's whiny electrical motors whirring to a lower pitch.

"Janne, ICAST deployed to Rebecca, she's in a pack of cars in 19th."

The rookie groans, weaving to Arjenko's inside to squeeze him against the outside of the turn before the Dockyards Straight, in an attempt to overtake via brute force.

"Acknowledge, please," says Edvin; to Janne, almost mockingly.

Arjenko closes the inside gap, Janne slamming the brakes in a plume of teal tinted smoke. He groans harder.

"Jan-"

"Shut up, shut up!" the rookie replies, furious, flustered. The hum of the car's electric motors dwindles as he turns the final corner into the pit straight. "You can't cut me off midway through an overtake, and you know it!"

Silence as he goes through the first turn chicane.

"You're good for the championship at the moment," Edvin replies nonchalantly. "Head down, keep pushing."

"Hmph," he grunts, but feigning disagreement. Behind his visor, his frown has faded. His excitement bubbles again.

In the final quarter, Castellammare's performance amazingly quick and lead surely untouchable, Janne has closed in on Arjenko in front, the Savojarnan having hemorrhaged time in the closing laps of the race. Enjoying radio silence, he attempts the same moves he'd tried earlier, down the Exhibition straight and into the Dockyards straight, but to no avail. His time loss allows Jason Masami, the Ministry driver, to close in on him again. Into the next lap, the three drivers are led by Arjenko, his SVJ Racing chassis looking down on performance, with Janne runner up and Masami breathing down his neck.

Arjenko defends his position perfectly in the first chicane, and closes both inside and outside lines for Janne. Masami dives down Janne's inside into turn one but the Abovian closes him off by going wide into turn two. Out of the exit of the corner Masami has placed himself to Janne's left going into the next series of turns, with Arjenko barely ahead.

Janne's superior Nimban traction allows him to slot ahead of Masami into the optimal line for turn three; Arjenko locks up on entry and goes wide, Janne swerving toward the inside and blocking Masami's ambitious dive bomb down the inside to hold his podium place, with under 15 laps to go.

Into turn four Janne's eyes ping-pong between his wing mirrors, Masami excellently weaving down the straight and eyeing an overtaking opportunity. Janne relaxes his driving into turns four and five, planning to hold his position in the narrow corridors of the flower-lined plaza, but he turns in early to turn seven and Masami finds a gap to place the two together for turn eight. The Ministry driver holds the inside line for the corner and rockets away, the podium in his hands.

Yet, despite the frustration, Janne crosses the line with a fist in the air, giggling like a self-confessed idiot. His run of consistency has shed its results, and he finds himself at the sharp end of the championship battle going into the penultimate round of the season.

He couldn't be much happier.

Right?

[Togonistan]

Motorsports -> WGP2

Brake malfunction turned Fanene's chances upside down. Literally.
By: Luis Tufatu


Fanene crashing during lap 3 in Nekoni. Source: Ultrasports 1

WGP2 raceday in Nekoni offered yet another exciting event packed full of events, with surprise victory going to Darius Castellammare, a Superia Junior Team driver. One of the more prominent events, though, not a proud one, happened as early as during the lap 3, where we saw Isaia Fanene's Kaylan entering the 4th corner with an unusually high speed, before turning the vehicle to cause oversteering and, eventually, flip upside down, filling the sector with a lot of smoke and rubbish.

According to the team, Fanene reported about the car's strange behaviour during the first lap via team radio, however, he was instructed to continue with the race. It was speculated that it was the car's brakes that failed him, which was later also confirmed by team manager Tanielu Felafa. ''Apparently, the crash was caused by a brake malfunction on Fanene's car, which caused him to take a quick turn at high speed in order to avoid crashing into Erik DeForest in front,'' Felafa said during an interview to Ultrasports 1.

According to the team's medical staff, Fanene's condition is stable and the young driver suffered nothing but minor injuries. ''It was a really lucky accident. We have seen many crashes similar to this one in the history of motorsports that have resulted in fatal injuries. Fanene got off lucky this time,'' said Lola Tuvali, a member of Kaylan's medical staff.

There have been many rumours circulating throughout the season about Kaylan's brakes being the team's weakest point. We can only speculate if the team is going to take any steps forward to improve this during the possible upcoming seasons.

Raceday in Nekoni ended with Darius Castellammare's (Superia Junior Team) victory, followed by Karli Schmitt (Vannish Motors Racing) and Jason Masami (Brutus Obey Sport GP) rounding up the podium. Another Togonistani driver Dom Falepeau (MRT2) finished the race in P8.

Right now, after 8 races, Janne Laukanen (Nexus Racing) is leading the driver's championship with 69 points, followed by Cocoabo #23 (VTM Tropicorp Engineering) with 66 points and Darius Castellammare (Superia Junior Team) with 65 points. Constructors championship is currently led by VTM Tropicorp Engineering, with 112 points. Race for the title will continue next week in North Emeros, Vangaziland.

[Vangaziland]

WGP2 At North Emeros


NAME OF CIRCUIT: North Emeros Street Course
CITY/TOWN: Emeros
COUNTRY: Vangaziland
NAME OF GRAND PRIX: Vannish Grand Prix
QUALIFYING TYPE: (Trad / Two-Tier) Traditional
LAP RECORD: 1:45.19
LENGTH OF ONE LAP: 3.901km

The Jump
Start - Turn 4
The starting straight doesn't go for long before tossing the field into a set of switchbacks. Starting at Turn 1, the drivers pull into a residential neighborhood with old homes dating to the late 1800s. Tall oak & maple trees flank the track, just behind the temporary barriers.

The Boulevard
Turn 4 - Turn 6
There are a collection of shops, mostly family run small businesses. The drivers will pass everything from jewelry outfitters and clothing boutiques to candy, ice cream and fudge shops.

Commerce Row
Turn 6 - Turn 7
The shops turn more commercial. Some time after turn 6, the road will cut through the mall, with a walkway crossing right over the course. Advertisement banners will hang over the track, mainly for Vannish Motors, Vann-Bands, Royal Imperial Brewery and other companies who will pay top dollar. The trees fade away into a concrete jungle of office space, the banking industry and condominiums.

The Hub
Turn 7 - Turn 10
Still within the commerce zone, drivers will pass by several transportation centers. There are large bus stations near turns 8 and 10. Turn 9 bends around a train station with 1940s art deco styling.

The Parklands
Turn 10 - Turn 14
Between 10 and 11, the road will slightly dip down in elevation. The trees return as this road cuts through a large urban park. Passing 11, the road picks on more of a "Main St." feel, with residential neighborhoods visible beyond this road of small shops and services. Turn 14 is a blind corner which is tighter than it looks.

The Parkway
Turns 13 - 16
The road opens up and finds itself away from homes and businesses. This is where the street connects to a parkway, which leads to the main city Emeros, of which North Emeros is a suburb. There will be car dealerships, gas stations and other services seeming to cater to travelers. Turn 13 is called 'Lucky 13'. On that turn's outside corner is a 250 foot bronze statue of 'Lord Emerott' a figure from the 1500s, of which Emeros is named. After reaching the straightaway, the road leads back to the large, ritzy homes. More modern homes fill the row before the jagged streets of Turns 1-4.

---

Mainland Vangaziland seems to be at the focal point of the international motorsports world. Earlier in the month, the Blue Coast 400 took place in a city 500 miles down the Vannish coastline. This territory wasn't to be confused with the Territory of Esportivan Vangaziland (nor Oceanic Vangaziland, for that matter). It was the heart of the Vannish Empire, the birthplace of the original Vanns and the home of the Gazi.

Emeros was a diverse city. Each team's drivers would be put up in simple suites from the chain 'Humboltson Hotels'. The company sponsors the #75 car of Floyd Hackerbee. Other options are available, but the rooms are basically luxury suites. They are the smaller one bedroom variants, but they are quite spacious.

There are two locations the drivers can choose. One is in the heart of North Emeros' international district. The new Embassy District is only a few blocks away. Drivers would likely be put into one of the top two floors. This should give a high rise view down into the busy city. The second location is closer to the track, located along the outskirts of the more commercial districts. The building is less impressive, but the accommodations are just as comfortable.

Just as in Blue Coast, drivers would find themselves in a country which granted many personal liberties. Within a short distance of either hotel, one could find gambling, exotic dancing, pubs and "coffee shops". Sometimes this can get tourists who aren't used to such things in trouble. Rumors were swirling in the Vannish underground about a certain female driver from the Sherpa Empire and an incident which may have occurred before a race. No evidence turned up, so it seemed to be hearsay.

If the story wasn't buried by the club owner, the incident could have easily blown up into a major scandal. With the coverage of the Empire's networks, the story would reach Asia in Jhalpharezi, the Tainese Isles and Parts of Yanjin. The story would reach the Caribbean's Scandinavian Isles. It would reach territories in both Esportiva and Atlantian Oceania. The African nation of New Gazi would hear about it, if news about their soccer team falling out of the top 30 didn't crowd the airwaves.

The local businesses knew wealthy tourists were in town. Many of the establishments were ready to give good discounts, if not complimentary service in a few places. The mayor of North Emeros spoke of the visiting WGP2 drivers at a bi-weekly address.

"Make sure that each of these drivers realize they are welcome in Vangaziland", said Mayor Jamie Reynoldson. "Take care of them now, while they are developing drivers. Maybe they'll come back to the city and your business as well when they're big time WGPC drivers."

The event holds a prominent role on the WGP2 schedule, as the second to last race. Every driver will be scrambling for these final few points. We see a close race for the lead going into the event. Several drivers have a chance to put between them and the pack. Just as important as who will do well, the major question remains to be which drivers will fall out of the top 10. Another level would be to contemplate the chances of a driver running near the top, only to wreck.

It should turn out to be an interesting race. The track takes place in a slightly more open part of the city, on the edge of the Shopping District. Local citizens are finding themselves adapting to life with their roads converted into a track. Traffic has become an issue, with only a few through roads leading in and out of the general ring of the course.

Gated walls close off the path which starts from old homes, down the row of shops, to the mall, past the transit hub, up along the park and back towards the row of homes which line the start/finish line. Grandstand tickets are sold out. Many others are expected to gather along the gates or at other viewpoints. The shopping centers along the boardwalk encouraged visitors to watch from their vantage point. The hope was to draw spectators along the row of shops. North Emeros Street Course ran between two buildings which made up the local mall. A skybridge connected the two buildings, with the walkway passing over the road.

The mall sold a few dozen tickets to spectators who could watch from the landbridge and a few large windows on either side of it. Again, the mall planned to profit on the event. "This city is expected to make a decent profit from the event", said Mayor Reynoldson. "It costs a little to prepare the track and deal with the things associated with it. But it's a great event for the Empire and the multiverse."

Many internationals expect the Vannish drivers to do well. The truth is that they aren't tailored to the technical nature of the track. They both have an aggressive streak that can get them into trouble here. Karli has become known for her risky late braking. There are a few tight corners at North Emeros where she cannot play her odds. Her trust in the chassis and its brakes may prove to be her downfall.

"This is my first year in open wheel", Karli said about her driving style. "I have to take the risks that bring me success. I try to ride a balance, but it's such a fine line. If I see a move, I have to go for it."

Many expect Ade Imoju to do better here, since he's seemed cooler under pressure. This race would certainly bring pressure upon both Vangazi to succeed. Both drivers were a stone's throw from the lead. Three points seperated Omni-Katoa from Vannish Motors Racing. Karli was higher up in the race for the Driver's Championship.

The international field wasn't set to give up their chances on taking the event. Drivers like Janne Laukkanen and Fast Cocoabo were red hot. There were always outliers, like Darius Castellammare. Jason Masami even seems due for a win. Some of these drivers have a style more favorable to the North Emeros track line.

It will come down the actions of each driver on race day. One thing was for certain. The WGP2 At North Emeros was set to have a major impact on the late season chase.

[Former Citizens of the Nimbus System]

Nexus Racing HQ, Crossbay Circuit, Nimbus Bay, the Nexus Wardship of Former Citizens of the Nimbus System
24th of October

Dear Victoria Light,

I write to inform you that we have arrested an individual in connection with the incidents that you have reported over the past months. Said individual has offered security and has been referred to arbitration for grievous injury and unsanctioned hacking with intent to grievously injure; the case for arbitration has been taken by the Branch for Examination and will proceed with an Initial Hearing on the 4th of November.

I would like to thank you and your team for your contribution in making this arrest; the provision of evidence which secured our entry to the property housing the Imagination convertors involved with the case proved crucial in opening a line of evidence through the electronic serial numbers of the convertors which were traceable back to the individual who made the purchase.

You will in all likelihood be contacted by members of the examination team assigned to this arbitration in order to receive your testimonies within a few days; your cooperation would be much appreciated.

With thanks,

Investigative Officer AULO. Farila Smither

New Nexus Tower, the First City, the Nexus Wardship of Former Citizens of the Nimbus System
5th of November

She sits in the all too familiar courtroom. This time, however, is different.

Victoria’s mind simmers. She tries to get her it settled – This isn’t the final word, we won’t be finished after today at all – but there is nonetheless a feeling of determined resilience, a feeling of conclusiveness, a feeling of – well, finality that burns within her.

She stares at the dock directly in front of her – one of the sort in which she had sat mere months before. ‘Sandra Surann’… Nothing on you on the internet, just a regular Mindspeak profile. Why would you want to go ahead with something like this? Victoria looks to Jean, sitting beside his agent Talia, then pulls away and shakes her head before the undercurrents return to the surface. And why in Imagination don’t you have a legal team with you? Indeed, the defenders’ benches are bizarrely absent; only the examiners, with whom she, Alex and Tiffany have been talking for the past days, and the disruptors, the independent, unbiased party seeking to keep the arguments of each side honest, are present.

“You alright?” Ryker inclines his head beside her. Apparently he hadn’t got anything to do this afternoon. This close to the next WGPC season, Victoria doesn’t believe that for one moment.

“Yeah, I’m doing a half-decent job keeping myself in check. Just… Just wondering.”

He nods, seemingly content with that. Any more talk is forestalled as the Arbiter approaches the podium; Celicus, it seems, has taken on this one too. He would be the most appropriate for the role… This time his face is grim as he announces: “This is the Initial Hearing of the Great Arbitration for Sandra Surann over the grievous injury of Jean Mercer-Daly and the unsanctioned hacking of Nexus Racing with intent to grievously injure.” He looks to the benches and all of the cameras and reporters contained therein, then closes his eyes. “Thank you for coming.”

Now he looks to the defendant. She stands – and stands confidently, yet somehow also wearily. “Ms. Surann, have you been informed of your rights prior to this hearing?”

“I have not.”

Whispers echo across the room.

“Are you aware of them?”

“I am.”

Tension.

“Then I will ask. How do you plead to the charge of the grievous injury of Jean Mercer-Daly?”

“Guilty.”

On her other side, Tiffany and Alex sit up, their hands clasped.

“And that of the unsanctioned hacking of Nexus Racing with intent to grievously injure?”

“Guilty.”

The clicking of photos taken fills the courtroom now, reports scribbled on notebooks and tapped out on tablets at this turn of events. The Senior Arbiter only nods gravely. “Then we shall proceed to the second stage of this Arbitration. Do you have a Statement of Reasoning prepared and, if so, are you willing to deliver it now?”

The defendant breathes. “I do and I am.”

The murmuring has grown to a fever pitch now – this isn’t what the majority had expected whatsoever. It takes a stern look from Jack Celicus and a press of his buzzer for the storm to settle.

“Then please, speak.”

In the dock, Sandra Surann breathes. She leans down, taking sheets of paper from the surface in front of her. Then she adjusts them carefully in her hands before breathing again.

And then, finally, she speaks.

“I acted as I did because I felt that someone had to do something to make people think about this and because this was the most effective way that I had to do it. Despite dearly wanting to, I have never once been able to dismiss that conclusion.”

“Imagination is a tool, an incredibly powerful one. It allows us to make the possible real with all the ease of thought. That is brilliant, so brilliant that our Ministers, in their wisdom, have seen fit to distribute its benefits across the nation.”

Her eyes close. Her voice turns hard. “It is also terrifying.”

“How much force, caused by a process totally undetectable after the fact, will trigger a brain haemorrhage? What’s the amount of heat a spark needs to start an electrical fire in a plane’s motors? How long will it take before someone tries playing around with the nuclear forces? These are the questions that we needed to ask years ago and didn’t. Instead, we decided that an easily exploitable series of tests is a sufficient enough safety net to justify handing somebody the most powerful weapon in history.”

Her disquieted look finally culminates in her shaking her head and dropping the sheets altogether. “I remember watching the debates in the Assembly around the reignition of the Nexus. Any concern raised was swept away in a patriotic tide. There was a complete failure of the process; some sort of statement outside it had to be made.” She sighs. “So I made it. I hacked into Nexus Racing’s systems using Imagination convertors to parse the data and make it untraceable, created a plan of their car, disabled the safety systems and then, with millions watching, sent Jean Mercer-Daly’s vehicle into the barriers in the final race of his season. It was the best way that I could think of to get the attention as many people as possible at once. Then I waited for this to happen so I could explain.”

She turns to address Nexus Racing’s representatives now, her expression one of sadness. “I’m genuinely sorry that I had to involve you all in this. I don’t think you’re doing the right thing by pushing your technology so brazenly without considering the potential repercussions but that doesn’t mean that you should be put in harm’s way. I did what I had to, not what I wanted to.”

Finally, she looks back to the Arbiter. “That, then, is my reasoning. In my view, we ought to seriously consider restricting Imagination distribution. That isn’t up to me, though, it’s up to everyone. Our system is democratic but a democracy can only properly function if we think clearly and think hard about issues like these. I say that we finally have a proper public debate about this. If that happens, I will be content.”

There is a silence, now, that no-one dares to break. Even Alex, right fist clenched and face furious, manages to control himself, Tiffany now stroking his held left with her thumb and talking quietly in his ear.

As for Victoria…

…

[Aboveland]

Iskajärvi, Aboveland
Last Tuesday, before Nekoni
9 PM

Janne and Anders braved the elements on their walk to Anders' apartment from the sauna, their faces tucked almost entirely in their scarves to shield them from the worsening snow outside. The weather was no match for Janne's beating heart, and the wispy, windy silence allowed him a quick moment of reflection. He regretted his feelings, but the temptation was too strong to push them aside: he closed his eyes frequently, bunching up to Anders, who'd briefly grab his arm to lead him along the sidewalk, and imagined those surreal instants of exposition engulfed in the penumbra, the teases and glimpses and not-quite-reveals his imagination had to use as a base to lead his desires to his fiery, passionate heart; imagining the sounds of his body through the cloud of mist, the skin under the water hidden behind the curtain, the chance he passed up out of modesty and fear which stood majestically behind his back... Perhaps a year ago, he'd have suppressed his feelings, banished them to a parallel, inexistent realm, justified them through excuses and longing for friendship out of admiration or awe. But now, seventeen and alive, Janne was done keeping it under the rug, at least to himself, and his mind ran wild with speculation and hope of what he dreamed could really be.

The two shuffled into Anders' apartment, a small, one room flat, its kitchen opening up towards the bedroom portion, beyond which there is a long sofa. Anders sighed happily as he stepped inside, basking in the warmth of the room and strewing snowflakes across the floor while he took off his hat, scarf and gloves. He offered Janne a cup of tea, or a coffee, as he took a soda bottle from the fridge, but he politely declined. They sat at the dining table, resuming their aimless chat, Janne's soul dragging along awaiting a glimmer of hope.

"Want the couch?" he finally asks, the look in his hazel eyes perkily inquisitive. Janne stares for a second, his slight disappointment hiding behind his black pupils. He can't quite say anything other than yes, can he?

"Sure," he replies, and they begin to set up the pillows and blankets for the night.

Once everything is settled, Anders undresses to climb into bed, Janne observing just slightly before doing the same, still clinging on to his hopes by his pinky finger. But Anders, the faint glow from his bedside lamp sultrily casting a soft falling shadow over one half of his body, climbs into bed with a smile, checking up on texts while Janne gets ready to burrow himself under the couch sheets. Anders turns off the lights, and they chat for a while longer as they used to when they would have sleepovers when they were younger, but there's no suggestion of a revelation or a return to old habits.

Janne squeezes his eyes shut for long after Anders has dozed off, his thoughts still wildly churning and keeping him awake. He tries hard to keep his disappointment contained within the depths of his soul. It takes him over an hour to fall asleep, his dwindling longing for a call, an invitation, or a confession carried into his dream world, only to vanish as the sun rises over the city and floods the luminous loft the next morning.

3/3

[Vilita and Turori]

CoCoCo Continuing Partnership Search

Turorian-backed entity CoCoCo is continuing its search for a driver or team to sponsor for the final two races of the WGP2 Season after thus far having all their calls ignored by Main Nation Ministry driver Jason Masami. Representatives from CoCoCO, with its operational headquarters located on an Island to the south of South Covello within Esportiva, have been reaching out to Masami and other WGP2 drivers and teams looking to get the CoCoCO branding or that of one of CoCoCo's multitude of sub-entities such as CoCo-Mart, CoCoGas or CoCo-lectric onto a World Grand Prix race car as they look to kick-start their expansion beyond South Covello into the rest of Esportiva and ultimately the entire multiverse.

CoCoCo has already established itself as one of the biggest importer of necessary goods and distributor and retailer of such goods inside South Covello ever since they were first stood up after the end of the reign of Lord Gregory. CoCoCo is particularly interested in expanding the branding of its most prominent retail location Coco-mart, the big box store primarily found in South Covello but looking to branch out to neighboring countries.. Coco-marts were sood up throughout South Covello to serve as an interface between CocCoCo and the public offering excess goods to the citizens of South Covello and somewhat reasonable prices compared with what it would have taken for a citizen to acquire similar goods during the reign of Lord Gregory.

CoCoCo have been actively looking for ways to bring their name to the forefront of the public eye and have been putting big money behind the spread of their brand. Most recently, CoCoCo bought out the naming right to the stadium that was set to host the World Cup 81 Final. As a result, the CoCoCo brand was plastered all over the newly renamed CoCoCo Stadium in the Free Republics as the Tropics of Vilita went on to win the World Cup 81 title defeating South Covello.


Thus far CoCoCo's attempts to secure a prominent place on the side of a WGP2 machine in time for the full Esportivan swing have been in vein but they are still optimistic of getting on a car for the final two races in Vangaziland and Mattijana. CoCoCo officials had thought there might be interest from Main Nation Ministry and Brutus Obey Sport GP driver Jason Masami in flying the CoCoCo colors on that machine but all attempts to reach out to Masami via communication device have been unanswered. CoCoCo officials are planning to be in attendance at the WGP2 At North Emeros in Vangaziland in order to discuss directly with any driver and team who may have interest in a monetary boost in return for a sponsorship decal being place on their car. They will also specifically be looking for Jason Masami of Main Nation Ministry to determine why he had not been returning their communication attempts.

It is also believed that CoCoCo officials may target EVolution Racing driver Miguel Santos - that is if the Azadeshian driver can even make the trip to Vangaziland after losing full financial backing from EVolution as the company looks to battle against a number of Cease to Exist orders that have caused it great legal and logistical difficulty. While the team may end up determining it is more cost effective to run the Vangaziland race then to cut their Esportivan Road Trip short, it remains to be seen if they will be on the grid for Sundays race without getting supplemental backing from an organization such as CoCoCo and its Coco-mart brand.

Elsewhere VTM Tropicorp Engineering had a mixed day in Nekoni at the Derneo Quays Street Circuit as the media-shy Edward Baker retired after 25 laps due to a broken right front suspension. The Krainin Isles driver had been making a late charge in the championship points after some runner up finishes but the retirement in Nekoni will make contending for a Drivers Championship next to impossible for the #97 driver. There is still a constructors championship to play for, however, and a 6th place finish at the Secondario Gran Premio di Nekoni helped VTM Tropicorp maintain a slight advantage in the standings heading into the last two events. it was not, however, enough to keep Cocoabo #23 atop the drivers championship standings as they fell to second place three points behind Janne Laukkanen of Nexus Racing who finished in fourth place during the secondario gran premio di Nekoni. The only other Vilita and Turori driver in the field, Jama'obo Pegasii driving the Savojar based SVJ Racing entry was the highest finishing car that finished one lap down to the leader. However, since Darius Castellammare had lapped over half the field, Pegasii's performance was good enough to finish in the points in 7th position. Now all three drivers will head to Vangaziland looking to improve on their performances from Nekoni beginning with the Qualifying session where all three drivers have been struggling in recent weeks.

[Lisander]

Friday Morning
Emeros, Vangaziland

LAB Blog
The Official Blog of Lisander Autosports Board

In a competition like WGP2, audacity is essential.

But, of course, measure this audacity is needed. Juliano Lemos was a victim of his audacity in Derneo Quays last weekend. He tried to be more daring than the circuit and lost the front of the car after losing control and hitting the wall in turn 6. Thank Jah he's alright.

This weekend, in North Emeros, once more the audacity is encouraged. The street circuit with big curves like the long Boulevard allows much space for good overtaking and even usage opportunities for energy recovery technologies. The following sectors are somewhat slow, but yet the decline in turn 11 may be useful if drivers manage to carry back to the finish line after it. It's a street course, but sometimes don't even seems to. In Lisander, where we're used to planning cities, square curves and artificial chicanes are the most common sights in street racing. I think if this will be critical to the strategy of lisanderian drivers, who can adopt a mixed strategy, with the tweaks in their cars searching for a balance between racetrack and street configuration.

But who will win? in a completely unpredictable track like this one, we are never sure of the results. Theoretically, the local drivers have the advantage, but with the table that tight, we're not betting in some winner. The teams. Laukanen, Cocoabo, Castellammare, Schmitt, Jaarkinaa and Masami can leave Vangaziland in the top of the table, so each and every one of them is a favourite to me. The question is: Who will be the most daring of them?

In other news, Darius Castellammare was interviewed by a TV team from Main Nation Ministry, early this week. Truth TV (what an uncommon name to a TV channel) came to Sirenia and interviewed the lisanderian driver in the Camden Automobile Museum. We aren't aware of the contents of the interview, but we're happy to see our motorsports its making the headlines in foreign media.

LAB is proud to support this dream. And we hope they can do their best to represent us.

Damian Ader
President

"You must be kidding me, bastard! Lemos, lock this door, please, lock it now. Keep me inside. Or I'll pick the first plane to Soria. I want to break this bastard's face! Audacity? Petulance, that's what I say! Ader saying he did something for this team... He left us before the first race, now he wants to use us to be re-elected to the LAB and continue to earn that great direct salary from the ministry." - Lanza shows Lemos the first and only post in LAB Blog. An ugly, lousy website that did not even have the LAB logo.

"Bullshit, he had supported us at all? Of course not. We almost ran out of a driver because of him!" - Lemos sat in the couch and started to think about politics. - "I think it's time to get a job on your presidential campaign too, boss. Who has already promised you support for the election? We know that the Mikado is going to Ader, since you do not get along. Camden-Mott? Stellenbosch? Dunneot?"

"Yeah, all of three, but Alston Tyres is going with Ader, SGA probably will too..."

"SGA is a big supplier. But we have X-PRO. What about John Haines? I know you know each other. He is very influential, he was the broadcaster on TV5 for a long time before retiring and starting to organize drivers. I know he's putting some money into it. I'm keeping an eye on his daughter, Athena, the motorcycle one. She is very beautiful. We had a wine together these days."

"He's well inside the LAB, just like me. Maybe Ader already made up his mind. But having Athena, we probably have him. Does Ludi accept it? You know, even if it's legal, Polygamy is kind of a taboo. I think I saw Lourdina Westgrens looking at you too."

Lemos felt uncomfortable. But he could not complain, he always spoke in that way of the relationship of Lanza and Natassia Maud. In a way, he was even grateful for that, for it had been the former owner of Bitten Heroes who had introduced the two and made Lemos a pupil of the four-time national champion.

"Ludi would never accept another girl, I believe. My meetings with Athena were just professional. She looks more interested in Darius, also because he's setting up a motorcycle racing team. Lourdina is a sweet girl. But she's too young for me. Besides that, she and Ludi were always friends, and they talked about it, I guess. After she's done dating Terfel, she's more focused on work. I think she would make a good pair with your nephew, Afonso."

"That boy only gives me disappointment. He wants to live a tale of Romeo and Juliet."

"Do not tell me. Shizuko? What a good thing! Nothing personal It would be perfect for you and the Seigen to let the bad blood dry up. But wait. Why are we discussing the love life of these people like two gossipy aunts?"

"You want me to support my nephew dating his daughter, to get votes to Board Election. You're a better politician than I am, I guess. You also want me to contact John Haines and promise support for a Motorcycle Racing Series? You know it can't be. LAB rules don't include Motorcycle Racing. A is for Autosports."

"Motorcycles are, by definition, automobiles too."

"It can generate board discussions, You know."

"But isn't that good? It will generate revenue, will bring more people, more sponsors. Motorcycles are cheaper. The price of one Superia Juniors car can buy four stock Superbikes. I can see the privateers joining. An open-class would be needed to fit every privateer who doesn't have a spot in Superbike Championship... It would be great for your election."

"Not that it's a bad idea, of course, it's not ... But you need to go through the Board if you want to get these things. I'm not making this kind of promises. I'm not making any promises. I'm not even sure if I'm winning this election. Ader could even use it as a negative aspect of my campaign."

"Okay, but I know you can do this. And I know you'll consider this. And if I mobilize some people around it, I'm sure they will support you. Now I need to leave. Like your electoral cable, I need to convince people that you will be a good president for LAB. I'm going to take advantage of it and call Camden-Mott and Ludi, I have a pretty good idea to show off in North Emeros. Where can I get a good print shop in this city? When your anger slows down, join the rest of the team at Pitwall. I do not want any more broken computers."

[Vangaziland]

Following Friday's practice session, a festival-like fair was held along the opposite side of 'The Boardwalk' from the track. While crossing blocked off streets and traveling through the fair grounds, a glance west shows a view to the track's tall fencing. The event was being called Autumn Motorsports Fest. Various sponsors helped throw the event. Local vendors also bought space to sell various wares.

The air smelled of fresh food. Spicy hints of Vannish Meatballs wafted through the streets. The smell of hot pastries also filled the air, sold from little booths. Beer was also available in the adults only section. A few blocks to the North were set off so that adults could relax without worrying about their influence. Part of the added reason for this was The Green Hut. Here, tourists could enjoy a taste of the easygoing Vannish lifestyle. There was a smoking section, called 'HotBox'. There was also a dab bar for concentrates. There was even a little café, where one could get baked goods.

Vangaziland was an interesting place. It seems like a peaceful utopia, with all this hand-holding diversity, progressive healthcare policies and laissez faire stance towards Cannabis. There was another side to the Empire. The fair's organizers had scheduled a minor treat. It would prove to be one that any Vangazi would enjoy.

Just as the sunset hit it's best balance of vibrant colors before turning dark, a surprise guest appeared over The Boardwalk. A flight of three (Y)F-23 fighters flew in a high speed, low altitude pass. The scene was one that words might not do justice, unless one has seen the power of a fighter jet first hand.

The Vannish F-23, originally the YF-23, is a stealthy air superiority fighter aircraft. Two fighters flew higher than the center one, which ran ahead of the other two. The center fighter flew extremely low, right over the street of the fair. It was flanked by two others in a V formation. The sound was so loud, that it drowned out any other noise. Every person's body shook to the bones while the aircraft passed overhead.

Another thing one has to realize about the arrival of these fighters was how suddenly they appeared. It's not like seeing a passenger jet high above, or even one taking off from an airport. These were flying under 1000 ft, especially the center ship. It would look as if you could reach up and touch these gigantic metal birds. They would appear from silence with a roar that would make a T-Rex wet its bed for the rest of its life.

Just as suddenly, there was silence. The fighters were back high away and far above. The last sound was a gentle wave of humming distant engines.They were a reminder of the Vannish air force. Before the Vannish Empire became known in the sporting world, military interactions were most of what the Empire was known for.

A lot of this was diplomatic. The Empire burst on the scene while responding to a ballistic missile attack on a nation called Turntry. This led Vangaziland into what was the largest alliance at the time. In the most truncated history summary of all time, Vangaziland ended up having to stand alone against that alliance. some time after joining.

When one of the most notorious alliances of all the world's international incidents decided to set up an illegal blockade on Vangaziland's closest ally at the time, the Vannish Air Force and Imperial Navy sprang into action. The same nation known for its pot smoking hippies brought an entire region to the brink of nuclear war. A former territory bordered one of the nations that declared the blockade.

Vannish submarines popped up, opened doors and fired test missiles. Vannish 'Erelo' stealth bombers flew towards the border. They would fly angles allowing them to be visible once arriving at the border to stir up the opposing air defenses. The VAF also flew B-1B conventional bombers to the border, making even more visible approaches.

These weren't just aircraft being cute or beating drums. The aircraft carried live nuclear weapons. It soon became clear. Vangaziland would not allow the illegal blockade to resolve. Of course the ships made their way unimpeded. It was a victory for the Vannish Empire that this alliance has attempted to cover up to this day. The alliance has never been the same, despite their attempts to hide history.

It was this same Vannish Air Force which flew over the festival for the world to see. This was the air force that led the stampeding campaign to liberate Al-Khalifiya from an oppressive government. The same branch that was still engaged in operations far away in Yanjin.

When seeing Vangazi around the fair, it would be easy to see them as a militant people. Until late 2016, every man and woman had to serve 18 months of military service. These conscripts were not to be confused with the regular Vannish Army. The mandatory service is more of a training and reserve program. The Empire believes every citizen should be trained to defend themselves and the Empire. This is not to be confused with just wildly releasing weapons upon a populace and saying have at it. The Conscript Service had to be one of the most organized, well armed militias in the multiverse. A smaller group of career soldiers man the units utilized for combat deployment operations.

Under the safety net and watchful eye of the Vannish military, the Vangazi and their guests were free to enjoy the fair. Things were looking up for the race. The race would start right at the start of the sky's golden hour. With this being autumn, this meant that this would indeed be a night race. Bright spotlights were set up across the course. The lights might take getting used to, but they would certainly illuminate the tarmac.

The race was sold out. Pre race track days were also prepared for a lot of attention. The city was excited about its road course, whether the drivers were WGP2 or WGPC. People flew in from across the Vannish Empire. This was good news for Vannish airline companies. There was talk of potentially utilizing a course in Esportivan Vangaziland. The airlines and tourism board want to get more Vangazi traveling there.

With only this race and the next remaining, the WGP2 At North Emeros was set to be a dramatic event.

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A trio of Vannish drivers was getting into trouble at the fair. Jang Xiaopeng, Karli Schmitt and Jenna Vandersen were hanging out together. Xiaopeng and Jenna both drove in last year's edition of the WGP2. Jang beat Jenna with a late season push to win the title. They were an oiled machine of a duo. Both drivers pushed hard week in and week out. The Constructors' was inevitable, despite an extremely close race.

This is a new season. With that comes new drivers. One of the current Vannish entries was Karli Schmitt. She finally got to have her hair out and done in public. Usually she is climbing out of the car with helmet hair. She never understood how people like NSSCRA Humboltson Hotels driver, Floyd Hackerbee. Some say he has hair gets even more attention than Jason Masami's. Karli never really cares. She just wants to keep it out of the way.

The three had already visited the beer tent and the hot box. Now they had left the adult zone. The air definitely had a slight chill to it. Things were dipping under 50 degrees at night. Vangazi were used to this, each one of the drivers layered up to adjust to temperature changes. The group escaped the carnival on the streets to eat at a pizza shop located on the boardwalk.

'Dariussen's' is an iconic brick pizza shop originally built in the 1950s. Many consider it the best example of traditional Vannish pizza. Every city, let alone country, has its own take on pizza. The restaurant is famous for its pie called 'The Emeros'. It's typical of North-Central Vannish pizza. The crust is slightly thick, with long slices. The tomato sauce is a little sweet and very spicy. The right oven makes all the difference in getting the crispy crust just right.

After their time at HotBox, the group had worked up quite the appetite. They all shared a pie and had a pitcher of red soda. The drink was quite Vannish, maybe uniquely so. Red soda is available across the Vannish Empire. It's a light, red licorice flavored soda. Jang Xiaopeng currently had a tall glass of it tipped up, feeling an almost Sahara-like level of thirst.

Jenna Vandersen finished a delicate bite of her slice of pizza. She was the Baroness of Central Vangaziland. Her father was the figurehead Royal associated with the province. One day, she may assume that role, though it might be unlikely. She bought her way onto the VMR WGP2 team. Jenna proved her worth by placing in the top 5. After learning that wealthy drivers had the ability to buy race seats, Jenna spent years working on technique in carts. She had the finances to purchase the right equipment, including one mock chassis. Renting track time wasn't an issue either.

Then there was Karli. She almost felt guilty about having a good time tonight. The truth was that she had worked hard all season. It felt as if the entire multiverse was watching her. This was new to her. Even when she raced in Hodori, it was a local series. Even the Vannish press barely covered it. There were other teams from around the world, but it was really a domestic league. Even though this was tier two, there was something big time about the WGP2. Being associated with the WGPO marked you as a member of the premier racing organization of the modern era.

She needed to decompress. This is the kind of track where stress can get the best of you. Jess told her to go out and have a good time. Franssen wanted to hang out, but the optics didn't look good. She hadn't seen Jang and Jenna in the same room together for some time. She felt as if she were missing out.

"So did you see Jess at the Blue Coast 400?" Jang had just finished wiping off with a napkin. "She did pretty well."

"It's not easy to drop in after everyone else has had an entire season", said Jenna. "You've got to prepare. I'm sure she would have liked to have run better. Still."

"NSSCRA is pretty sick", Karli said after finishing a bite. "That field moves around a ton. Think about how fast they go. They just hold from 190 to 200 plus."

"You have to hand it to NSSCRA", Jang said as he stared at the pizza. He felt full, but it looked good. Nah, he'd pass. He looked back up to the group after spacing out for a moment. "They're brought stock car racing to the multiverse."

"For sure", Karli replied. She was glad to meet Jang and Jenna. "Even nations that supposedly hated ovals have drivers going all out there."

Karli laughed. "Good", said the blonde, giggling through squinted eyelids. "That will pave the way for the WGPC to run an oval. Then one of us will get to run at 200 miles per hour the whole run."

"That'd be a gas", said Jang Xiaopeng. Jang was technically his surname, but most people called him Jang anyway. There was something catchy about it. "I'd love the chance to do something like that. I made a phone call about putting in for a full time charter. Dude. Should I do it? Should I just Vee Tea Em my way into an extra driver's seat?"

The others laughed as he said out the letters of another team. The company's actions had become a running joke in Vangaziland about Oceanic excess. "It would cut pretty close to the WGPC", he said.

"Well the leagues are not going to run exactly back to back", Jenna reminded him. "There's some fluidity there."

"I've been talking with the Crapchat guys." Jang spoke with a serious face while speaking about the revolutionary social media app. It bean a rise to notoriety after a NSSCRA exposure. "They're ready to put me in a seat."

"You should try to buy a charter from Team Cocoabo", Karli said slyly.

Jang fought to not laugh, pushing away the statement with a hrmph. "Well, I think the league could see VMR with an extra spot. It should be an interesting team. It should be a good cross promotion to get a WGPC driver involved."

The group continued to talk and finish their meal. They'd go for one last walk up and down the boardwalk before calling it a night. They had a great time bonding. Karli would wake up refreshed and mentally balanced. She felt fresh and ready to run at her best.

[Lisander]

@castellammare posted:

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This is awesome. Here we are, covered of carbon fiber in North Emeros, showing off the special @lanzas Livery!

athena77

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Wow, the new car is very nice ! Will you win again tomorrow? I'm rooting for you!

@castellammare

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It looks cooler than ever.

athena77

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I agree! Did you see my last Photogram?

@castellammare

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Not. Lemme give a look.

@castellammare

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Wow, a Camden RM1! What a bike! Have you found a new series?

athena77

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Not yet, but old John bought it today, it's been shipped to KB. Ludi will make her magic, with purple and orange.

@castellammare

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So I won't have you in my Superbikes team...

athena77

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Silly boy. We don't know if this Superbikes championship will happen.

@castellammare

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Anyways, I'd love to have you

@castellammare

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as my rider #1

athena77

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@castellammare

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athena77

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I noticed this. Silly boy.

athena77

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Need to go now. Good luck on the quali!

@castellammare

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Thank you, clever girl.