*Adam POV*

Next day, I got to work on Arrow II. Eva said she is going to clear her mind, so I decided to leave her alone. Me, Stan and Koji somehow connected both sides of our star racer together, as I'm working on wiring the rest of cut wires to the right engine, Stan is doing something with the turret, probably connecting rails for its move system and some upgrades I found on the market, and Koji helps me finding what wire goes to where with his computer

Adam: "Okay, red to red. What's on now, Koji?"

Koji: "Oil pressure for right engine came from NaN to 0, keep these wires going, Adam"

Adam: "Kay!" Koji gets near me

Koji: "You seem more cheerful than yesterday. Something good must've happen" he smiles

Adam: "Yeah, really good"

'Better keep our relationship a secret. Don would say it's not 'professional' and it 'would bring a distraction' to both mine and Eva's work'

I connected another wire and this time, the landing gear on the right reactor comes up. Good thing we have it suspended on those chains, otherwise I could end up as a stain on the floor

Adam: "Okay, anything we haven't checked?"

Koji: "Some minor stuff like hyperdrive, which is still to repair, and turret lock system"

'Why on the Earth do we need this?'

Adam: "I will leave hyperdrive alone for now, check for the turret"

Koji does some typing and soon the turret hides inside the haul. Koji gives me a thumbs up and I crawl back from under the machine and address Don

Adam: "Everything except for hyperdrive is connected, boss. After the next race I will start the repairs for it" Don nods and I get my cloth and clean my face from all the grease, before leaning against the left reactor, observing Jordan carrying a crate with ammunition

Adam: "Come on, soldier boy, how do you wanna shoot someone without ammo?"

Jordan: "Oh, haha. At least I don't have to get all dirty in oils, grease monkey. Have you seen our pilot anywhere?"

Adam: "She wanted to clear her mind, so I dunno" I shrug

Jordan: "Anyway, you know who is our next opponent? Prince Aikka. I'm gonna knock him outta the sky"

Adam: "And you look kinda too happy about it, Jordan. Molly will never let you do that by the way"

Jordan: "She doesn't have a choice, Don Wei's orders"

Adam: "And since when did she ever listen to Don?" Jordan slumps

Jordan: "Right. How could I have forgotten that?" he snaps his fingers "Aikka will be firing on us too! She'll have to let me fire!" I shrug

Adam: "Do you thing, bud"

A while later I see Eva running back to our hangar. She enter it and Jordan grins

Jordan: "Hey, Molly, you'll never guess who our next opponent is"

Eva: "Aikka. He told me. I've made a deal with the Prince" Don looks over from the rolling staircase, overlooking Stan's work

Jordan: "Oh? What kind of deal?"

Eva: "We're going to have a clean race. No weapons allowed"

Jordan: "What?" he gets a little offended by this

Eva: "It'll be a clean race for speed. And no one'll get hurt"

Jordan: "Good thing I've got a book in the turret" Don steps of the rolling ladder

Don: "Out of question. We must win this race"

Eva: "Sir, the Arrow II is fast, not strong. In order to win, we mut-"

Don: "Trust the Nourasians? Never! Don't you see? They need this victory as much as we do!"

Eva: "But we can trust Aikka!"

Don: "Either you will neutralize the Prince's mount early in the race or Adam will do it. The Arrow II has been newly equipped for the job!" he gestures towards Stan. He grins sheepishly and shrugs. Eva looks at me as I get my head down

Adam: "Sorry, I didn't know it was against Aikka" Jordan picks up a strap of ammo, grinning

Jordan: "Trust me, the pleasure will be all mine" Eva looks down at the floor

Eva: "This is exactly what the Prince has been ordered to do"

Don: "What did you say?"

Eva: "We don't want to fight him. His magic arrows are very powerful" Jordan makes a sound of disbelief

Don: "YOU may not want to fight him, that's why Adam will replace you for this race" Eva gets shocked

Eva: "B-But-"

Don: "No buts, young lady. It's final. Adam, be sure to eliminate Prince at the start"

Adam: "Maybe we allow Molly-"

Don: "No. Get ready for the race, boy" I hung my head down

Adam: "Yes, sir"

Eva: "Adam..." Stan stands up

Stan: "The new laser cannons are ready, Mr. Wei"

Don: "That's a job well done, gentleman. You can go to bed now" Stan and Koji head up the stairs. Don turns to Eva

Don: "If he's as good as you say, we must strike first" he turns away and walks away

Jordan: "Seems like we're partners for this race, Adam. We'll show that lapdog not to mess with us" he puts a hand on my shoulder, as I swipe it away. He then looks at Eva "Molly, you must be dreaming if you think the Prince is going to keep his promise"

Eva: "If you can't trust the Nourasians, you could at least trust me!" Don stops and half-turns to look at her

Don: "I did during the last race. I won't make that same mistake again" he lefts the hangar. Eva eyes widen

Adam: "That's even more harsh than usual" Eva growls

Eva: "You'll regret this! You'll see!" Jordan just smiles and chuckles. "And you!" she points at me "Did you know he's gonna replace me?! And why did you accept?!" I drag her towards the back of our hangar

Adam: "Both answers are no. Star, I trust you. Tell me what Aikka has told you"

Eva: "He agreed to not us his arrows if we don't use our cannons"

Adam: "Y'know, I trust Aikka, he's a Nourasian Prince after all. And I think I have a solution for this"

Eva: "Huh?"

Adam: "Me and Koji repaired the turret lock today. One button and I can close Jordan inside. And after today's race you'll come back behind the steer"

Eva: "Just don't break another bone"

Adam: "If I need, I would break a spine for you to be happy, Eva" she pecks my cheek

Eva: "Don't you dare. Good luck, Adam" she smiles and leaves for the stands. I get to Arrow II, start it and fly out of the hangar towards the arena. I enter it and land in the middle.

Judge: "And now it's the Earth team. Against Prince Aikka of Nourasia" Aikka flies into the arena on G'dar and lands beside me. He looks at me, as I open the cockpit, surprising him. I signal to him 'I know the deal, don't worry' He understands, nods and looks forward. I close the cockpit and open my communication link with Jordan

Adam: "Jordan, maybe we should listen to Molly. If he hits us, we're done. Arrow won't stand another hit. It could end even worse than after the race with Toros!" Jordan pulls on his glove as he replies

Jordan: "You know better than that to follow orders, Adam"

Adam: "But we really can win without using guns. Aikka's beetle is not as fast as our Arrow. We can achieve about 1000 km/h while his beetle can only do 450 km/h! Be rational and stand down!"

Jordan: "Sorry, Adam, but I took the sucker punch in the last race. Crogs won, Earth Team zero" he cross his arms "I'm sticking to the plan" I close our link, breath in and out

Adam: "MOTHERFUCKER!!!" I calm myself down "Okay, time to get my plan on" I call Eva "Hey, Star. You're at the stands?"

Eva: "Yup! Did you convi-"

Adam: "No. I really don't want to do this, but he left me no choice"

Eva: "It's the only way. Now go and win this race, the honorable way" I nod and end our call

Don: "Adam, be sure to concentrate and take him out early"

Adam: "Yes, sir" I say through my teeth. Soon the gong sounds and I get Arrow into the air as G'dar spreads his wings and the gate drops. Jordan instantly locks onto Aikka, as I hear the sound of it and look at Aikka who starts loading an arrow on his bow. I make Arrow do the barrel roll to get to the other side of Aikka. The Prince lowers his bow and smiles

Jordan: "Adam! What are you doing? You're leaving us totally unprotected!" He tries to switch the turret to the other side. It hides inside the cockpit while I smirk

Adam: "Got you now" I press the button and lock the turret inside, trapping Jordan

Jordan: "Adam, what's going on?... You trapped me in here! Have you lost your mind?! Get me out of here!"

Don: "What're you doing Adam?!"

Adam: "I'm winning this race the right way. Like Maya would"

Don: "ADA-" I cut the comms

Adam: "Now, let's see how that rolls out" I speed up the Arrow, gaining on Aikka. He glances over his shoulder and says something to G'dar. I pulled up beside him with a sly grin, only for him to return the gesture with a smile. I salute and speed up Arrow even more, passing Aikka "Come on Aikka, let's have some fun before we end this!" We fly through the tunnel with poles all across it, flying back and forth, and later perform a roll to dodge them as we leave the tunnel "Woo hoo! IT's so much fun! I should replace Eva more often!"

There are more obstacles in our way. We fly high, low, do a roll and move from one side to the other. I fall behind Aikka, who looks at me and mimic my salute gesture from before

Adam: "Oh, you're so on, Aikka!" I speed up Arrow again

*3rd POV*

On the stands, Eva watches the race on big screen eagerly

Eva: "Go Adam! You're doing a great job!" she then gets the call from Don "Huh?"

Don: "Molly, I want you in the control room this instant!"

Eva: "What did I do?!"

Don: "You're in so much trouble, young lady" he ends the call and Eva growls and clenches her fists

Eva: "I swear, I'm so sick of him..." she sits back down "If he don't trust me, then I have no reason to listen to him" she huffs and continue to watch the race

*Adam POV*

I speed pass Aikka, taking a huge lead

Adam: "Sorry, friend, guess the machine beats nature, like always" I smirk and look back. I get surprised as G'dar's decorated shell is glowing blue and he is speeding up, catching up to me in no time. Aikka waves and smiles at me and then flies ahead "Okay, I'm done playing games!" I floor the Arrow II and shoot after him. I catch up in the tunnel, but due to no space for overtaking I have to wait. We fly out of it and into the canyon. We dodge rocks jutting up from the ground and out of the sides of the walls. I'm right on Aikka's tail when we get near two rocks scissoring in the middle. I smirk

'It's too narrow for G'dar to fit with his wings out, but a perfect for Arrow'

I got my opportunity soon, as G'dar closes his wings and drops suddenly. This second without trust was enough for me to pass under the rocks with no scratch and ahead of Aikka.

Adam: "This is the end, friend" I grin and floor Arrow II towards the last stretch. I exit the canyon with a sharp right and floor it towards the finish line. I look behind me to see Aikka also exiting the canyon, and is slowly gaining on me, but there is no chance he'd catch up "It was fun, but it's the en-huh?" I hear a beep and look down to see the turret is back online "Jordan, stop this!" Jordan locks on Aikka "No you WON'T!" Jordan fires just before I tilt the Arrow to the left. The laser misses G'dar by millimeters. Aikka loads an arrow on his bow and shoots us in the engine. Arrow's system shuts down, resulting in us crashing on the sand and letting Aikka win the race. I cough a little and open the cockpit, only to see Aikka glaring at me, angry

Aikka: "I thought humans had honor, but now I can see they have none" he looks away

Adam: "Aikka, it's not my fault, you have to trust me and Molly!" I cough again as Aikka turns G'dar around causing smoke and sand to get around me before he flies off "Aikka! Wait! I growl "I will so fucking kick his ass now! And Jordan is next"

Speaking about our gunner, I hear some kicking and look over the edge of the cockpit to see Jordan kick open the turret entrance. I jump down and grab him by a collar before slamming him against Arrow's body

Adam: "Why the fuck did you do that?! I was ahead by a mile, we could've won this race but no, you deadbrain idiot had to follow our motherfucking manager's orders!" I throw him to the sand and stand over him "Anything on your defense?"

Jordan: "You and Molly trust the Prince more than me, teammate" I growl and push him

Adam: "You fucking idiot!"

Jordan: "Hey! Don't push me!" He goes to push me but I sidestep and make him trip over my leg and he fells to the ground

Adam: "For your information, we trusted you... And you let both of us down" I get my hands in my pockets and walk away "Fuck you, Wilde" I flip him off before going towards hangar, meeting Eva halfway, as angry as me

Eva: "Hey"

Adam: "Hey"

Eva: "You did good for a first race Adam. You lost only because of them"

Adam: "I know. I will so beat your father to a pulp"

Eva: "Leave something for me" We both enter the hangar and gets up the stairs, completely ignoring Don

Don: "I hope you two are proud of ourselves" We continue to go up "Where do you think you're going, young man and lady? Didn't both your fathers teach you any manners?" Eva stops

Eva: "No, he didn't. I'm going to my room, and I'm never coming out!"

Adam: "And you better never use my father's name again, Don Wei. Otherwise I won't answer for what will happen to you" Eva continues to walk up while I glare at him. I notice Jordan enters the hangar and make a 'we're not done, yet' sign

Don: "Do you think I'm going to let you off that easily? Today was a sure win. We lost because you convinced Adam to not stick to the plan" Eva ignores him and goes out of the pit "Come back here, young lady! Do you hear me?" He goes to walk up

Adam: "Come up here and you're done" I give him a cold glare "She suffered enough from you"

Don: "Don't you think you're off the hook, Adam"

Adam: "I know. And I don't care. What you and Jordan did today was plain stupid. I was winning but you had to show everyone who's the boss, huh? You're a pathetic man, Don Wei" I turn around "I still wonder how could you get together with Maya" this seems to be enough for him as he tries to get up, but Jordan stops him, grabbing his arm

Jordan: "Sir, calm down. Adam for sure didn't mean too. I'm sure he's just stressed, both him and Molly wanted to win this race, really"

'At least now you understand, Jordan. But the damage is done'

Don growls and rips his arm out of Jordan's grasp

Don: "So you're against me too are you?! Is that it?!"

Jordan: "Sir, of course not" he says surprised and confused

Don: "Do any of you have any idea just how serious my responsibilities are? Do you?" I decide I have enough and go check on Eva. I knock on her room's door

Adam: "Eva, it's me" I get no answer "Star, are you there?" I put my ear to the door and hear a gentle sob "Eva, I'm coming in" I open the door and look at Eva's bed to see a lump in there. I close the door and sit on the floor next to her "Hey, Star, come out" I tried to get the sheets up, but she drags it back "Oh come on, you said we can tell each other everything. I'm here for you and you're here for me"

Eva: "...Sorry..." I chuckle

Adam: "For what, Star?"

Eva: "Because of me, my dad ruined your first race..."

Adam: "Your dad? Huh, then I'm mistaken. Don Wei ruined my race, not your dad"

Eva: "Huh?" she gets her head up from under the sheets, letting me see her teary face

Adam: "Eva, I know you for how long? Ten years? And when you told me about your dad, I imagined the absolute opposite of Don. It's not your dad, it's an asshole. Your father would recognize you right away, your father would care and worry about you. Your father would TRUST you at least... You got hurt by him far too many times, every birthday, every holiday and now this. Don't worry about me, I will have more occasions to pilot, for sure it won't be my last race" I smile

Eva: "I-I though that you're scared of piloting... After your first try-"

Adam: "I acted. Please, I'm not afraid of crashing or anything. I did it only to let you prove yourself. I will tell you something, he doesn't deserve you as his loving daughter. You deserve a loving family, not a cold ignorant snob. So..." I get my fist up "How about this? We will share. I got today's race, you got the next and we will switch. How're you feeling about that, Star?" She looks at me surprised, as I still offer a fistbump

Eva: "I'm not racing again! I will just stay in my room until this whole thing is over" She turns away from me and I sigh

Adam: "If you're not racing then so am I. I won't let Don off the hook so easily. This time, he will not have a replacements" I stand up and go for an exit "Love you, Star. See you tomorrow" I wave at her and enter my room, starting our strike

'Two can play this game, Don. I won't leave my room till Eva does the same'

A/N Another day, another chapter. Adam got a chance to race, but it did not go so well. Tragic even... costing him and Eva Aikka's trust. Wonder what Don will do to convince them both to pilot. (*ekhm* Rick *ekhm*). We will see. Until then feel free to comment and vote. Stay safe and I will see you next time

Punkie out

Oban Star Racers belongs to Savin Yeatman-Eiffel

OCs belongs to me