*Narrating*

Eva: "Our first race in the playoffs was a complete disaster. To avoid a second disaster, I made a deal with Prince Aikka. But Don replaced me with Adam for the race against him. I told Adam about my promise to the Prince, and he did everything he could to keep it. Sadly, even when Adam was sure to win, my dad's ego hit him, resulting in a big mess we're right now... I don't know what's next. To be honest, I'm not sure I can take this anymore"

*3rd POV*

Don Wei is seen standing in front of Adam's room, knocking

Don: "Adam, what're you doing boy? You have a race later today, and I remember you saying something about repairing hyperdrive"

Adam: "Is Molly out?" Don growls

Don: "I... I haven't talked to her yet, but I need you to-"

Adam: "You need me to what? Race again only for your ego to destroy my next race? No thanks"

Don: "You knew the plan, you disobeyed and decided to follow Molly. I only taught you a lesson. You will be thankful for it later"

Adam: "'You will be thankful for it later'. You're not my father, that's one. Two, even if you were, I would rather be an orphan. Three, I won't go out until Molly decides to do so too" Don growls again

Don: "You would throw away your future for an insubordinate, rebel girl?!" Adam slightly opens his door and looks at Don

Adam: "Yes" he closes the door

Don: "Adam, be rational!"

Adam: "I'm done talking. If you want your hyperdrive repaired, better start apologizing to Molly. And pray she'll forgive you"

Don: "He just had to be like his father..." he sighs and gets in front of Eva's room. He goes to knock on her door, hesitates before knocking anyway

Eva: "Go away! I said I wasn't coming out!" Don growls, but forces himself to calm down

Don: "Molly, I know we've had our differences of opinions, especially during yesterday's events, but we've come to a crucial point in the final selections, and we must put the team first" he pauses "I think now's a good time to get together and talk things over"

Eva: "Wrong! Now's a good time to stay in my room!" Don growls

Don: "I guess we'll move on to plan B, then" he says through his teeth and walks off

Inside Eva's room, Eva sits on her bed, drawing in her sketchbook. Current pages are covered with caricatures of Don Wei

Eva: "All you do is take, Don Wei. You give zero. You don't deserve a loving daughter like me. And I don't deserve a father like you! Only family I have left is Adam, at least he was there for me..." The door opens and she throws the book at the person "I said get lost!" Instead of Don, Rick stands on the other side. He catches the book before it hits his head and later looks at pictures, surprised "Oh, Rick... I thought you were..." Rick closes the book

Rick: "Yeah, I know who you thought I was. Get dressed, Little Mouse and get your boyfriend here. School is in session"

Eva: "How did you... I mean, huh? What do you mean?"

Rick: "I'm your new coach, kiddo"

*Adam POV*

I'm sitting in my room, bouncing a ball against the wall. When suddenly the door to my room opens. In there stands Rick... dragging Eva by the collar of her jacket. Let's say I'm surprised by this situation

Eva: "Adam! Help me! I'm being kidnapped!"

Rick: "Hey there, kid"

Adam: "Umm... What're you doing with Molly, Rick?"

Eva: "He is hijacking me! Help!"

Rick: "Don thought that you and little mouse will need some 'Thunderbolt magic' to get you into shape"

Adam: "So, she is not coming willingly?"

Eva: "I told you! He's kidnapping me!"

Adam: "Then beat it, Rick. And leave Molls alone, we don't need training because we won't pilot"

Rick: "Oh man, you two are too stubborn for your own good" He enters my room and grabs my ankle with his free hand, dragging me out of it. I try to grab a door frame, but Rick easily makes me lose my grip

Adam: "Let me go Rick! We told you, we won't be piloting!"

Eva: "We don't want your stupid training! Leave us alone!"

Adam: "Somebody, help! Toros got Rick's costume and he's kidnapping us!" Rick chuckles

Rick: "Good one, kid" he then puts Eva on his shoulder before grabbing my collar and dragging me along

Eva: "Put me down! Help! We're being hijacked! Help!"

Adam: "Stan, Koji, please! Do something!" I look at the duo of mechanics, laughing "You traitors! I thought that us grease monkeys stick together!"

Koji: "That's weird, because last time I asked Don, you got a promotion"

Adam: "What're you talking about?! I'm a mechanic, not a pilot! I'm afraid of flying!"

Stan: "You got us fooled, pal. But after your race yesterday, Don said you're a pilot now. You two are in good hands" Jordan leans against the railing of the balcony

Jordan: "Uh... what's going on?" Don comes behind him

Don: "It's the long delayed taming of the shrew" I look at him

Adam: "You!"

Don: "As I said, you'll thank me later, Adam" he looks at me, with a sly smile "And I hate seeing a wasted potential, even more than liars"

Adam: "DON WEI!!!"

Rick gets us out of the hangar and near the pound where our rocket seat is waiting. He let us free. I see this as an occasion to run, but Rick holds my shoulder

Rick: "And where do you think you're going, Adam. We're not even started, yet"

Adam: "No way in hell you'll make me-"

Rick: "I will. Now, start running" he starts our rocket seat as me and Eva groan before following him

Eva: "I really regret escaping from the school, now..."

Adam: "At least there I could kick someone if I get frustrated..."

Rick: "Less talking, more running, kiddos" he looks over his shoulder at us and speeds up

Eva: "In case you haven't noticed our next race isn't a marathon!"

Adam: "What the heck running has to do with piloting anyway?!" Rick looks at us again, smirks and speeds up even more, forcing us to run faster

Rick: "What's the big idea about refusing to race?"

Adam: "I'm a mechanic, not a pilot! I'm saying this for like hundreds times!"

Rick: "You won't fool anyone with this, Adam. Trust me, I know a pilot when I see one"

Adam: "Molly is our pilot, not me!"

Rick: "And you, Little Mouse?"

Eva: "I never came here to race! And the rest of our team never trusted me anyways..."

Rick: "Trust you? I'll be the judge of that!" he speeds up a bit again, making me and Eva growl and run faster "Pick up the pace, slowpokes!" We get to each of Rick's sides, but he speeds up again

Adam: "I regret creating this thing!"

Five more minutes of running, Rick finally stops, give us a while to catch our breath before taking out a stopwatch and sitting on the grass

Rick: "Okay, kids, now we do speed laps. Adam, your goal is to get under 45 seconds. Little Mouse, you have to go under 55. You'll be running around the pound until you get there. Ready?"

Eva: "Real-"

Rick: "Go!" I start running, leaving Eva behind me

Eva: "What?! Wait, I wasn't ready!" she starts running after me

After an hour of running I finally got under 45 seconds, 0:44'38. It was close, but as a reward, I can watch Eva doing laps. I look to the left, seeing Eva at the last straight. She is panting, maybe because it's her 78 lap.

Adam: "Come on, Star! This time you'll get there!" She runs past me and Rick, as he stops the stopwatch at 0:59'79. Eva stops and puts her hands on her knees, catching a breath

Rick: "Not bad"

Eva: "Woohoo..." she puts her fist in the air in the gesture of victory and starts walking towards up

Rick: "For a girl"

Eva: "Huh?"

Rick: "Ready for another go?"

Eva: "Are you kidding?! I've been running in circles around that stupid pool for hours!"

Adam: "It gets better with every run, Star. You got under minute now"

Eva: "Easy for you to say, mister 'I've been in the running team in our school'!"

Rick: "Soon you won't even feel the pain, Little Mouse"

Eva: "Whatever" she starts running again. Rick stands up

Rick: "Go get'em tiger!" he sits down "Say, Adam, I was watching your race yesterday and I saw something in you"

Adam: "Huh?"

Rick: "The same spark, the need for speed I got after my first race. Why do you want to be a mechanic when you're born with a talent to be a pilot?"

Adam: "Because I'm not one. Stan told me I got pretty famous in the Star-racing world as an 'engineering prodigy'. Someone who will revolutionize the whole world. I don't have a thing for raci-"

Rick: "You can't fool a veteran like me. I saw numerous of young guys back in minor leagues, and they had the same thoughts too"

Adam: "And I wonder why that is..."

Rick: "Lemme ask again. Why do you pilot, Adam?"

Adam: "I don't. I got an occasion to pilot two times, one after your accident and it was only a test run, which ended with breaking my wrist. And second time because Don didn't trusted Molly and he put me in there"

Rick: "And how did it feel during those tries?"

Adam: "It felt... good. Excellent even. The speed, the rush of adrenaline. I love it" Rick smirks at me

Rick: "See, you have a thing for racing after all" he ruffles my hair "Don't let some gossip decide what you're gonna do, kid. If I listened to them, I would end up as a bartender" I chuckle

Adam: "Heh, thanks Rick"

Rick: "Anytime, kid"

Adam: "I still find it strange getting a life advice from you" he chuckles now

Rick: "Someone have to teach future generations how it's done"

Eva meanwhile gets to the last straight again. Me and Rick look at the stopwatch to see she can make it this time. Eva passes us and Rick stops the timer at 0:53'48

Rick: "Good job, Little Mouse. Come on, time for the next exercise" We head away from hangers. I notice Don standing nearby, observing us

'Have you figured it out, Don? Or are you still too dense to see it?'

He turns around and walks back to the hangar while I follow Rick and Eva. Soon we get near docks

Rick: "Up you go, Little Mouse'' he points at the tall poles in the water "Adam, into the water. I will tell you what to do next" Eva gets on top of the first pole, holding for her dear life not to fall while I get my clothes off except for my pants and jump into the water "You have to jump from one pole to another, Little Mouse. It's a control training" He then turns to me "There are some gates under the water, Adam. I want you to pass them with one breath. This will help to keep your head cool under stress"

Adam: "Do I really have to do this?" Rick nods

Rick: "I'm not the one who threatened Don, kid" I sigh, get a breath and dive under the water. I found the first two gates easily, but before I could find the third, Eva came down into the water, scaring me, making me let out the rest of my oxygen. We both resurface

Rick: "That was pathetic, you two. Try again!" there is an annoyance in his voice

Eva: "Fine, but this is the last time" She swims back to the first pole, using the pieces of wood to climb back. I dive again, hoping nothing will interrupt me this time. Eva however falls back into the water, but I just shrug it off and get to my last gate, where some kind of metal object is suspended. I grab it and resurface

Adam: "I got it!" I hold the object high in the air. I get near the dock and Rick helps me up. "Was I supposed to grab this?" I present it to Rick. He nods and takes it from my hand

Rick: "See, it wasn't that hard"

Adam: "Yeah, I just had to control my breath, like in meditat-"

*splash* We look at the water, only to see Eva who has fallen again. Rick sighs

Rick: "I had a feeling control wasn't your strong suit, Little Mouse. Alright... let's try an easy one" He turns to leave while I look at Eva, still in the water

Adam: "Star, you need to breathe. Quiet down your surroundings and concentrate" she looks at the five poles

Eva: "This is gonna hurt..." She climbs back up and stands there with closed eyes. I see her taking a deep breaths and smile

Adam: "That's it, Star. Control your senses and go" I say quietly, not to distract her

Eva opens her eyes and jumps from pole to pole. She hesitates when it comes to the final pole, taller than the current, but she decides to jump anyway. She almost lost her balance, but regains it a short while later, standing perfectly still

Adam: "There you go, Molly! Good job"

Eva: "Thanks!" She gave me her cheeky smile. Rick turns around and Eva gives him a thumbs up "What's next?"

Rick: "Nothing. You both are done for today. Come on down, Little Mouse. Adam... you can dress up, y'know?"

Adam: "I'm good. The wind will dry me" Eva jumps down into the water and swims toward the dock, where me and Rick help her up. She stands up and wrings her hair while I throw her a towel

Rick: "Molly, you've got good technique, good speed and great reflexes. Why aren't you doing better?" Eva closes her eyes

Eva: "I'm doing the best I can. I'm just a girl, remember?"

'Don's comment about female pilots must've left a bitter aftertaste'

Rick: "Don't play that game with me. You and Adam are Star-racer pilots, pilots for the Earth Team. What's holding you back, Little Mouse?" Eva again closes her eyes, opening them a second later

Eva: "Nothing's holding me back..."

'That's a lie. I know you don't want Rick to find out, Eva, but Maya wouldn't want her death to keep you from becoming someone bigger'

Rick: "You know, it's motivation that gets you across the finish line. Why did you join the team in the first place?"

Eva: "Huh?" she looks at Rick and later back at the water. She stays silent, not wanting to answer

Rick: "Okay then, Molly, why do you race?" Eva looks away

Eva: "I do it for my father..."

'I still wait to shout at him for everything he's done'

Rick: "Finally, we're getting somewhere. I'm sure back on Earth he thinks about you everyday"

Eva: "He has no idea how much I do for him. I think coming here was a big mistake"

Adam: "Yeah, I sometimes think it too..."

Rick: "Look, it's no mistake you both are here. Without you, the Earth Team would be finished'' Eva looks up at him while I skip rocks "Anyway, this race is the greatest there is! Isn't that worth giving it your best shot?" Eva is silent for a moment before nodding wit a determined look "Adam?"

Adam: "I told you already. I will give it a try"

Rick: "Good. Then quit slacking off. Both of you"

Adam: "I was giving my best, but some old fart hold me back"

Rick: "Don was always like this, don't worry kid. He'll come around" We start walking back towards hangar "Now... about you two"

Adam and Eva: "Huh?"

Rick: "You always say how you two are not a couple, but I see it's another way now" he points at our hands, intervening with each other. We quickly stop and put them behind our backs, as color red gets to our cheeks

Adam: "Y-you must be seeing things, Rick"

Eva: "We're no-"

Rick: "You're not a couple. Yeah, yeah, I get it. You don't want anyone to find out?" We nod "Okay then. My lips are sealed"

Adam: "Better keep things low, but I suspect Don already knows. He just don't care"

Eva: "Like always..." We get back to the hangar, which is surprisingly empty. We stop and look at the Arrow II

Adam: "Damn, I got one crash landing and the paint started to wear off. Better get to the repai-"

Rick: "Actually, Adam, what this ship needs is a little TLC" he looks to the right at the shelf with spray paint cans "Why don't you two see what you can do? It might even improve your spirits"

Eva: "Are you sure?"

Rick: "Sure, I'm sure" he ruffles Eva's hair before going up the stairs towards living quarters "Just think of it as your last training exercise for today" He leaves us alone and I instantly go to the shelf, grabbing a can of pink and gold paint. I throw the pink one to Eva. She grins and chuckles before shaking it

Adam: "Let's get to work, Eva"

Eva: "Yeah. Here goes nothing"

Adam: "Don will be so pissed. But it's our ride, so we have every right to customize it. So, what're gonna paint?"

Eva: "A giant, angry rabbit's head. I call dibs on left reactor"

Adam: "Sure, so I will get the right one"

Eva: "What do you've in mind, Adam?"

Adam: "A sun, a star and a crescent moon"

Eva: "Why?"

Adam: "A star, because of your tattoo. A sun, because of my medallion and a crescent moon for your mom. We look up to her, and if I read right in a magazine one day, you're tuning out like her. You got your talent from her. If you don't like it, then I will just paint a skull or some caricature of Don"

Eva: "Y'know what? I think it's a great idea. Thanks, Sun"

Adam: "Sun?"

Eva: "You call me Star, then I'll call you Sun. I don't like all those cheesy couple nicknames, so I thought... Never mind, it's stupid. I'm not into all this lovey dovey stuff, okay?"

Adam: "It's been only two day since we started our little thing, you'll come around. Take your time, Eva" I then shake my can "By the way, I know you have a photo with Don and you, but do you have a photo of your mom?"

Eva: "No. Dad does though. He's got one of my, my mom and him in his office" she clenches her fists "He's got a picture of me, and STILL can't recognize me!" I put a hand on her shoulder for support

Adam: "Eva, it's been ten years. You changed so much and he is too dense to connect the five years old you with fifteen years old you. Maybe..." I look at Eva's face. She has an irritated expression "Okay... how obvious I'm that I try to defend him?"

Eva: "Very. I wasn't expecting this from a guy who wanted 'to beat his ass as soon as he'd see him'. Let alone my boyfriend" she looks away from me "Why do you even try?"

Adam: "Because I love you and I want the best for you. Eva, I don't like seeing you all depressed, let alone seeing you cry. I will give Don my piece of mind when he finds out. And I defend him to keep your hopes up, that one day you'll get your dad back. The real Don Wei you told me about"

*Flashback, five years ago*

It was Eva's tenth birthday. As always she is waiting for Don to call near the phone at Stern's. Then, two boys started talking about her. It was before she got her tattoo and piercings.

Guy: "It's really pathetic. For how long she's sitting here?"

Guy #2: "I saw her here in the morning. So, it's now about 7 hour"

Guy: "It's always the same. Each of her birthdays she waits here, for nothing"

Guy: #2: "I heard she is an orphan, and that her parents deaths did something to her mind"

Guy: "So she's crazy? Yikes, better watch out for her" That was enough for Eva. She started crying, running past the boys towards the dorm she was sharing with me

Eva: "I'm not crazy! My dad is the best in the world! And he loves me very much!" she entered the dorm, surprising me, and ran to the toilet, where she locked herself up

Adam: "Happy birthday, Ev- huh?" I turned around, with a cupcake with a candle. However, Eva was nowhere to be found "Huh? I thought that she came back. Guess I will wai-" A gentle sound of crying, coming from our bathroom cut me off. I got to the door and knocked "Eva, you there Star?"

Eva: "A-Adam!" She opened the door and hugged me, crying in my chest "A-A-Adam..." I petted her head

Adam: "Eva, what happened? Why are you crying?"

Eva: "M-my dad doesn't l-love me anymore!"

Adam: "Why are you saying that? He loves you for sure"

Eva: "Then *sniff* then why doesn't he call me?!"

Adam: "Eva, calm down. Come on, Star" I gave her a tissue, letting her to wipe her tears and blow her nose. I grabbed her by the hand and led her to sit on her bed. Above it were some posters with Don Wei and some cut outs from sport magazines "I need you to tell me what happened"

Eva: "I-I was waiting for my dad to call, when those two boys started saying h-how I'm c-crazy... Adam, please, tell me... am I crazy? I-I just want my dad to call me, ask me how am I doing... Is this really too much to ask?" Tears return to her eyes

Adam: "Shh. Eva, you're not crazy. And about your dad, I'm sure he's busy. You told me he's the best race manager in the world, meaning he have a lot of work to do. Sooner or later he'll call. Now, I need you to tell me who told you that you're crazy" Eva nodded and we left our room. She pointed to some two nerdy twelve years old. I beat them up, warning them to leave Eva alone. After that we went to eat the cupcake together. Eva just blew out the candle "What did you wish for?"

Eva: "I won't tell you, it won't become true if I do" We broke the cupcake in half and started eating

Adam: "Sure"

*Flashback ends*

Adam: "Like on your tenth birthday, you lost the hope but I gave it back to you"

Eva: "I remember. We started giving each other cupcakes with a candle on top on our birthdays since that day" She looks at me "I was really lucky to have you back then. And that's one of the many reasons I... I love you"

Adam: "Love you too, Star. Now, I think we should fix a little problem with you not having Maya's photo. I can always give you my poste-"

Eva: "No. It's yours, I know you're a big fan of my mom. I couldn't possibly take it from you"

Adam: "Okay, then, maybe I sneak into his office and grab the photo out"

Eva: "And you think he won't notice it's missing. Please, he is dense, not stupid"

Adam: "Then... I will grab some magazines from his office. My collection unfortunately stayed behind in Stern's"

Eva: "That's the... wait, you had a collection of race magazines? Why didn't I know about this?"

Adam: "Mainly because you cut out everything about Don from my other magazine, so I kept it a secret"

Eva: "I can't believe you!"

Adam: "Truth hurts. Anyway, I will go grab some of it and come back"

Eva: "You could go into his office and see if he's got any during the race. He won't be there so you'll have no problems. ...Wait. Why don't we just ask Rick if he's got any?"

Adam: "Because I feel like getting on your father's nerves today. And we didn't decide who is piloting today, so during the race I will be either behind Arrow's steer or in the control room. I will go check if he is there now" Eva shrugs

Eva: "Just don't get caught. And where do you think he would be now if not in his office?"

Adam: "Talking with Rick about our training, or anyone else. Or maybe he finally got a life outside his work and is exploring Alwas?"

Eva: "How sad is it that I can't picture him anywhere other than in the hangar?"

Adam: "It's just too sad. Be right back, Star" I jump down from the right reactor and towards the elevator to Don's office. I call it and wait, hearing voices around the corner. I poke my head around, to see Don talking with Rick

'Good, he's busy'

I enter the elevator and get inside Don's office. From there I go to the bookshelf, where magazines are held. I grab three of them from years 70-72 with Maya on cover and make a run for it. I got out of elevator and just as doors close, Don turns the corner

Don: "Adam, what're you doing here?"

Adam: "I was actually searching for something in my room, and so it happened that I got here. Sorry, I'm too busy to talk, see you later, boss" I get down the stairs and into the pit, before getting near Eva

Eva: "You got them?" I take the magazines from behind my back and smile at her

Adam: "Tada!" I present my capture to her "Years 70-72, one of them have an exclusive interview with your mom and, a special photo session after your mom won the championship" Eva gets speechless

Eva: "I... I don't know what to say"

Adam: "A thank you and a kiss on the cheek would be enough"

Eva: "Later, okay. Can you keep them for now? I kinda have paint all over my hands"

Adam: "Sure, we'll look through them later" I get back to my gold paint can and shake it, filling up the star "It reminds me when you tried to get Maya's photo in our school library. But that old school librarian always said 'you can print only school related things'. And later you get back on her printing an article with about forty pages... multiple times" We laugh, starting our nostalgia trip

Eva: "I wasted a ton of paper and ink. She tried to stop it, but it was too late. Her face when she had to explain where the monthly supply of paper had gone. Man, it was priceless"

Adam: "Good thing you did it after lessons, when everyone got there to do their homework. She couldn't tell who did it, haha"

Eva: "Yeah. When you find out, you start messing with her too. I was in the middle of my usual printing prank, when I saw you carrying tons of book from one end of the library to the other"

Adam: "I randomly choose some books and replace them with those I was carrying. I did it about three times, but she spent her entire night putting them back in their place. Only for me to do it again the next day"

Eva: "Hahaha! But it's still nothing after what we did during the trip"

Adam: "When I forged her signature for you to get you these tattoos and piercings? Haha, when we showed up back from the tattoo shop, I though our homeroom teachers will have a heart attack"

Eva: "You got piercings that day too! You chickened out from doing the tattoo"

Adam: "I did not 'chickened out', alright. I'm just not so much of a fan of having sun tattooed on my face. 'Come on Adam, I'll get the star, you will get the sun'. Remember?"

Eva: "No one told you to have it on your face, you could have done it on your forearm or chest"

Adam: "And you did both star and a stripe to match Maya. Yet, you choose a star instead of the moon because of our story. Heh, later when we got back, we dyed your hair in red and I got you my old uniform. Her face the next day we came from the trip was priceless!"

Eva: "Haha, both of us, me with the tattoos, piercings and dyed hair, in boy uniform and you, left ear full of earrings, black leather jacket over your uniform, with a mohawk, going full punk. Even better, she got in trouble for 'signing' the forms for us... it was the greatest thing we've ever done!"

Adam: "Haha... ha... Why did we even leave?"

Eva: "Y'know, Adam, I'm asking myself this now too. At first, it was to find my dad..."

Adam: "And you see how it went... I really can't wait when he finds out. His face will be even more hilarious than that librarian"

Eva: "I know... but I don't think I'm ready to do so"

Adam: "Just say 'Hey, I'm your daughter Eva, remember how you left me 10 years ago? Remember how a happy family we were, but you must've ruined it?' Say everything you're holding back, no mercy. HE doesn't deserve mercy. If he apologizes and says he regrets doing this, then you'll have to decide, either to forgive him or not. Oh, and as your boyfriend, I may have to speak with him too"

Eva: "Just don't make him go suicidal. Adam?"

Adam: "What's on your mind, Star?"

Eva: "Remember your offer from yesterday? I think it would be a good idea"

Adam: "So, today is your race, then tomorrow is mine, right?"

Eva: "This way we can make things more interesting here. How about a bet? Who'll get more wins, starting from today"

Adam: "And the prize is?"

Eva: "Loser have to do what winner says for a day"

Adam: "Sure. I have a few ideas for you to do"

Eva: "Like?"

Adam: "You'll have to wait and see" I smirk and continue on doing the moon on the outside side of the reactor while Eva finished outline for her bunny "It's all coming together" I then start doing the sun on the inside side, after thirty minutes later I'm done with my paintjob. I get off the reactor and look at Eva's side only to see her angry rabbit is almost done. I get to where I left the magazines and start to read. After reading two, I notice that all of them have an article with Maya, even the one which have only a small picture with her on the cover

'That's why he kept them, he still cares...'

I get through the pages, stopping on a two page photo of Maya standing in the cockpit, waving at the crowd while holding her helmet under one arm and a cup in her other arm

Adam: "The win in Cross Continental Championship in 2071. The first one out of three she won during this year. Heh, that's why she's a legend" I get the page out and put it on the floor "Eva still has some final touches for her rabbit, better start getting those Maya pictures out, maybe I will find..." I trail off, getting on the next page I got a perfect photo. Maya, holding what I assume was little Eva in her hands "Em, Star! I think I found some gold!" Eva gets down from left reactor and walks over to me

Eva: "You found something?" I put a magazine in front of her, as her eyes widen "'Family of our champion. Is young Eva destined to follow her mother's footsteps?'" she reads the headline "This... This is perfect... Adam. How, I mean, I don't remember..."

Adam: "Look at you in this picture. You were just a toddler, but it's you for sure. Black hair, red eyes, and Maya is holding you" I rip the page out "Let's check if there are any other photos of you with your mom

Fifteen minutes later, we unfortunately didn't find any other photo of Eva and Maya together, but we found a lot of photos and articles from Maya races. After getting our stack sorted out, I take the magazines to my room while Eva gets her collection to her room. Later we get to our lockers, finding Jordan, who's putting a bandaid on his cheek

Eva: "What happened to your face?"

Jordan: "I tripped... choking on a pretzel" He starts walking towards the pit, but I stop him

Adam: "Jordan, about yesterday, I'm sorry. I know you'd have thought that we don't trust you, but we're, really"

Jordan: "Oh don't go all apologizing, Adam. I deserved it. Come on, we've got a race to win"

Adam: "Actually, Molly is piloting today. I got the next race" Eva smiles

Eva: "What do you say, partner?" Jordan gets all fired up

Jordan: "Let's do this!" He leaves me and Eva alone

Eva: "Be sure to cheer on us"

Adam: "Be sure to win, kay? Love you Star"

Eva: "Love you too, Sun" She goes after Jordan while I get to the control room. Rick is there too to my surprise

Rick: "So, Little Mouse is piloting today?"

Adam: "Yup, I'm getting the next race"

Don: "I still don't believe you talked me into this, Rick"

Rick: "Both Molly and Adam have to show the world what they can do. Trust me, you won't regret this" I get to my seat and open up statistics

Adam: "Okay, let's show the world, The Wheezing Arrow II"

Stan: "What?"

Adam: "'Arrow' sounds boring, so me and Molly renamed her to 'Wheezing Arrow'. It's had this something in the sound of it" Then, Wheezing Arrow enters the arena and appears on the screen. Don gets to his feet

Don: "What is that monstrosity?"

Adam: "Come on, it's not that bad"

Rick: "It looks like a rabbit's head to me" Don glares at him "Hey, you told me to light a fire, so I lit a fire. Remember, Don, before I met you I didn't have any tattoos"

Adam: "I'm sure I would like to hear how Don make you get those tattoos, Rick"

Rick: "Maybe another time, Wolfie"

Adam: "I'm not gonna question your nicknaming, Rick..."

Rick: "Thanks, I try my best"

Don: "Adam, do you have anything to say about this?" he points at the rabbit head painting

Adam: "Nope. I got the right reactor as my canvas. Rabbit head was all her" Don narrows his eyes. We all turn to the screen as Satis, I mean Super-Racer enters the arena

Super-Racer: "I see you tried to top the fabulous design of my Star-racer. Your attempt has failed!"

Jordan: "That voice sounds familiar"

Adam: "Oh God, Jordan, it's Satis!"

Eva: "Satis, what're you doing in that silly costume?"

Super-Racer: "Satis? What're talking about? I'm Super-Racer!" he does a pose, while Eva giggles and I try not to laugh, because Don is a grumpy old man and hates fun "Go on, giggle all you want. In a few minutes, I'll be the one laughing when you're losing the race"

Eva: "Huh?"

Don: "Don't let his dubious appearance fool you, Molly. Super Racer is one victory ahead of us. He's only lost to Toros"

Jordan: "This guy can not be for real. Come on. He looks like-"

Don: "We need this victory! Do you hear me?"

Adam: "Well, let's see how much she improved" I pull on stats for the Arrow. The gate drops down and Eva gains an instant lead as Super-Racer's ship 'gallops' a way before getting into the air "Comedy of the year, ladies and gents, hahaha!" Meanwhile, Eva dodges as Satis starts firing at her

Jordan: "Back off, you super wacko!" he fires back. Then, two giant boulders detach themselves from Satis' racer and start to spin around in loops, covering the race track "Molly" his laser fire bounce of the rock harmlessly "we may have a problem back here!" Eva dodges one of the boulders just in time. It grazes the side of the turret, thankfully not the one Jordan is in

Don: "Lose him, Molly!"

Eva: "I'm trying, sir, but I'm at maximum speed!" Eva performs several barrel rolls and ducks to avoid the rocks. She gets in the clear

Don: "He has a bigger wingspan than the Arrow II. He's not as maneuverable. Take advantage of that"

Eva: "Okay"

She cuts the corners as tight as she can, managing to gain some distance between her and Satis... lasting only a while. Satis speeds up and one of the rocks hits the turret, causing Arrow to turn on its side. And now Jordan spins in Satis' ship instead of one of the boulders...

Jordan: "HELP!"

Adam: "Not good"

Don: "Disaster..."

Eva tries to stabilize her cruise, but to no effort

Eva: "What is up with these controls?" I went to say something, but Don stops me

Don: "Not a word, Adam. She must not lose her concentration"

Adam: "Hey, I know boss. 'We would thank you in the future'"I smirk and turn back to my monitor

Eva: "Stick with me, Jordan. We're going after him" she speeds up. Upon getting near Satis, Eva freezes. Jordan is on Satis' racer, holding on for dear life. The top of it flies off in the air, taking Jordan with him "No!" She stops Arrow and spins around

Don: "Molly, what are you doing?"

Eva: "Something YOU wouldn't understand. I'm going back for someone"

Don: "Molly, Jordan wouldn't have wanted you to lose this race. Think about it" Rick steps forward

Rick: "For once I agree with Don. The track's rescue team is on the way. The best thing you can do for Jordan is to beat this guy"

Adam: "Star, I'm gonna search for him later. Just clear your mind, and win this. For us" Eva nods and shoots after Satis, catching up to him in the canyon. The only boulder left on Satis' Star-racer started to move in figure eight pattern, glowing yellow, blocking Eva's way to overtake. Don gets back on his chair

Don: "Impossible, she'll never make it"

Adam: "Have some faith in her. She only asks for you to trust her" I turn to the screen, showing Eva accelerating the Arrow and... shooting through the opening. She then exits the canyon and turns sharp left, towards the finish line "You're learning something from me, Star. I used that sharp left yesterday. Now, better find Jordan" I run out of the control room and towards where I suspect Jordan has landed "According to the speed, wind speed and point Satis has 'ejected' him I would say it's about..." I trail off, seeing a rescue team on a market and Jordan lying on top of a screen "Jordan, you okay?!" he weakly gives me a thumbs up. Soon I hear a hoover sound. I look up to Arrow flying by. I wave my hand and Eva stops above me and Jordan

Eva: "Is he alright, Adam?!"

Adam: "Yeah! Land this thing so we can take him back to the hangar" I get Jordan to the ground and help him stand while Eva lands Arrow on the ground.

Jordan: "Guys, I'm fine, really" He flex his arms "Let's do some team bonding time, just us three" Me and Eva look at each other

Eva: "Sure"

Adam: "I call dibs to drive!" I run to the cockpit

Eva: "Hey! Not fair! Today I'm driving!" she runs after me

Adam: "Today you only race, Star. I'm getting us to whenever Jordan wants" Me and Eva get into the cockpit "So, where to, buddy?" I open the link with the turret

Jordan: "Beach would be nice after the day"

Adam: "So beach it is! Star, Jordan, hold on tight!" I start Arrow II and fly towards the beach. Soon I land and sit on the left reactor, only for Eva to get near me and Jordan also joins a while later. We look at each other and nod, before looking towards setting sun

'So far 1-0 for Eva, but tomorrow, I will show them what I can do!'

A/N: Chapter done. Hope you enjoyed it. 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